So you’ve decided to vacation at Walt Disney World. Going on a Disney Vacation can be one of the most magical experiences of your life. However, planning can get very overwhelming, especially if you’re a first time Disney go-er. I’m sure there are a lot of questions swirling around your head right now. I hope I can help put your mind at ease. Let’s get started...
WHAT TIME OF YEAR TO VISIT?
There are two things to consider when planning a trip to Disney World; crowds and heat.
First, we will cover avoiding crowds. Although you might not be able to totally avoid crowds on your visit, there are less busy times to visit. The busiest times of year are typically going to be holidays, summer breaks, spring breaks, and winter breaks. Holidays, such as Halloween and Christmas, will also draw large crowds.
Second, we will cover avoiding the heat. Florida is known for being hot and humid. Rain can also become a concern during the Spring and Summer months. While there is always a chance for rain, it never lasts all day. Summer is a good time to avoid if you are don’t want to deal with the heat and humidity.
Personally, my favorite time to go to Disney World is when school is still in session. I would say either early to mid May or October. Another good time to visit would be between the months of January and March.
HOW LONG SHOULD YOU STAY?
Deciding how long to stay can be tough. Walt Disney World has four theme parks as well as two waterparks. Which means there are a lot of places to explore. However, going to the Parks everyday can be quite exhausting, it can also get expensive.
If you can, you should devote at least one park per day. That should give you enough time for exploring each park. Although, I like to spend two days at the Magic Kingdom because it has the most to see and do. I also recommend setting at least aside one day to stay at the hotel.
When I go to Disney, my trips usually come out being eight days and seven nights. To maximize your stay, I recommend booking the first flight in and the last flight out. This way you gain a whole day for sightseeing and shopping. I’ll cover more on this in a separate blog about planning day-to-day agendas.
WHERE TO STAY?
There are two different options to consider when planning your stay. You can either stay on-property or you can stay off.
Personally, I like to stay on-property when I go to Disney World. Staying on property has many benefits, such as: free transport, magic bands, free parking, extra magic hours, room charging privileges, and more. Free Transportation includes Disney Magical Express from the airport to your Resort.
Staying off-property is also an option. You can either stay at a non-Disney hotel or you can rent a house that is close to property. This is usually a good option is your are planning on doing other things around Orlando or Central Florida. The only downfall is, when you go to the Parks you will have to pay for parking. Although you can get around that by driving to Disney Springs and taking Disney’s transportation service from there. But a lot of times that will end up being more work.
PARK TICKETS
There are two different options when it comes to when it comes to the park pass: basic park pass and hopper park pass. By buying a Magic Your Way Pass you will have access to one Disney Theme Park per day. You are free to come in and out throughout the day, but you must stick to one park. The Park Hopper Option will allow you to visit multiple parks per day. You can start your day at one park, leave and go to a different one later that day.
My personal recommendation is to purchase the Four-Day Magic Your Way with Extra Day through Undercover Tourist. That will give you enough time for one day in each park plus an extra day. I usually take my extra day to go to Magic Kingdom a second day, but it will also allow you to explore a water park one of your five days.
I should mention, if you are planning on attending one of Disney Special Events, such as Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party or Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, those tickets will have to be purchased separately from your day-to-day admission ticket.
WHAT TO EXPECT INSIDE THE PARKS
Now that we have covered where you should stay and for how long, let’s talk about things you’ll need to know before you get to the parks.
As I stated above, staying on property has a lot of benefits that will help you have smooth sailing trip. A lot of those benefits have to do with the Parks...
You will have complete access to the free transportation system Disney has to offer. This includes transportation to and from EVERY Resort to EVERY theme and water park as well as Disney Springs.
The Disney Parks offer Extra Magic Hours. This means that Resort guests will be offered an extra hour either before the park opens or after it closes to experience the Magic.
Guest will also be offered a free Magic Band when staying on property. Your Magic Band is your key to EVERYTHING. It serves as your room key, park pass, resort access, and even your credit card.
Before you enter the park you will have the opportunity to choose different FastPass+ options. Everyday you will have three fast passes, those passes will go towards skipping the lines at some of the more popular rides and shows within the parks. Another cool thing is, once you use the first three, you get more!
You are going to want to download the My Disney Experience App on your Smartphone before your visit so you can keep an eye on all the wait times for various rides and attractions. This will also be your ticket to picking your Fast Passes. Another cool App you can get is Play Disney which will allow you to play games on your phone while waiting in lines. Disney also offers an App exclusively for their park shops. You can go on this App to see where certain things you want to buy are located.
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR NOT AT THE PARKS
Being at the Parks all day everyday can get to be very exhausting. My recommendation would be to break up the days you go into the parks. Don’t go five days straight into the parks and then go home. You are on vacation, you will want to relax a little bit.
Every Resort offers amenities exclusive to them. All resorts have pools, game rooms, and kids clubs that are included with your stay. Different resorts will also offer various outdoor sports courts such as tennis, basketball, and volleyball. They will also offer different events every night such as movies by the pool, bonfires, and arts and crafts. All of the resorts have gift shops specific to their theme, they also offer a wide variety of Disney Movies that you will able to watch in your room.
Once you’ve explored your “home resort”, you should consider exploring all the other Disney Resorts. You will be allowed access to wander around the resort lobbies and grounds, however you will not be allowed amenities such as pool usage.
Disney also offers they own Downtown District called Disney Springs. This is a good place to get all of your shopping done as well as eat at some great restaurants. Disney Springs is not exclusive to Disney Resorts Guests, so it does offer shops that are not directly related to Disney.
There is something for everyone at Walt Disney World, I’ve only just touch the surface with what I’ve gone over here.
Please check back for more posts about planning your Disney World Vacation. And remember, every Disney Vacation holds its own Magic.