Tips for a First Timer to Disney World (or Someone who hasn’t visited in a while)
Recently a friend reached out to me for some tips for planning her vacation. While she had been to Disney World before, it had been many years, and she was completely overwhelmed with planning a trip for her family.
So I started to think about ways to break things down for her to simplify everything, and while I don’t think simplifying Disney is exactly easy at this point, I did put together some information for her that I think would be helpful for others as well.
Here are some tips I sent over to her that I think can help others as well!:
Don’t try to do everything on your first trip. Disney World is HUGE, there are four parks, two water parks, a shopping district, and multiple golf courses including mini golf. Even as someone who goes multiple times a year and have been going since the 80s, I still haven’t seen and done everything, there is just so much to do there, and Disney is constantly adding on new experiences, it’s just impossible to do it all in a single trip. I recommend selecting a few top items to make sure to get to, and then everything else is bonus!
If you want to eat at popular dining establishments, book early! Some places are very popular and fill up quickly. If you’re staying on-site you can book at 60+10, that is 60 days before your check-in day you can book your dining for your entire trip up to ten days. If you’re offsite you have to book each day at a time, and again you can do this at 60 days prior, however now it will be 60 days prior to the day you want to dine, you cannot book your entire trip at once. Booking is at 6 AM.
Use Mobile Order where available! Mobile Order is a game changer, we absolutely love using it, especially during busy times of the year. All you need to do is place and pay for the food order on your phone, select a pick up time, and when it’s time to pick up hit the “I’m Here” button and usually within a few minutes you’re food will be ready! No waiting in long lines to get quick service, it’s so amazing. I will note, if it’s a busy time of year you do typically need to book the mobile order pretty early in the day, so it’s good to plan ahead!
Do a little bit of research. I know I know, that doesn’t sound very fun, and can be overwhelming when you see just how much information is out there, but it can make such a huge difference in your trip. So if you know your kids want to do character dining, don’t show up and expect to just get into a restaurant with character dining that day. Those reservations book up quickly and months ahead of time. Also with the new Lightning Lane Multi-pass (LLMP) and Lightning Lane Single-pass (LLSP), if you plan to use those you need to get those booked before your trip, otherwise your selection of rides can be extremely limited. Also it’s helpful to know which rides are in which parks, if you go to Magic Kingdom and want to ride Slinky Dog Dash and you don’t have a park hopper ticket or an AP, you’re out of luck.
Even if you hate having to plan, plan just a little bit. Ok, it is definitely possible to show up with no plans and just go with the flow, but if you have things like certain rides, tours, and restaurants that are must dos, this might not work out so well for you. Because so many things are booked ahead of time, popular things are fully booked by the time you get there. You don’t need to plan every minute of the day, although with the new LLMP/LLSP you’re definitely more locked into a schedule, but it’s good to get at least your dining booked early, which will often then determine which park you’re going to be at for the day, so then if you want to book LLMP/LLSP you know which park to book them in.
Consider rope dropping, especially if you’re staying on-site since you get an extra 30 minutes. So rope dropping is just being there for park opening, and can help you knock out a bunch of rides with little to no waits. Some rides have wait times that build quickly, like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Remy’s, but others stay walk-on for the first hour or two of the morning. If you don’t want to buy the LLMP/LLSP, this is also a great option to get on some of the most popular rides with a much shorter wait. Or if you have LLMP/LLSP you can book the popular rides with that and rope drop the other rides, which is what we typically do and find it works our really well. We can usually get through the Magic Kingdom rides we want to do by lunch doing this.
Ok, I know I already said have a plan, but at the same time it’s important to be flexible. Rides break down, or storms close outdoor rides, or maybe you get stuck behind a stubborn rhino on the safari and a 20 minute ride turns into an hour ride. Whatever the reason, things happen, so it’s good to be flexible with your plans. If you have dining reservations and something comes up, like being stuck behind a rhino on the safari so you arrive late, Disney usually will still honor the reservation, so it doesn’t hurt to ask!
Don’t promise your family that they will do things until those things are actually booked. This is pretty simple, no need to set anyone up for disappointment. I see so many people desperate to find reservations to Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique because they promised their child they would do it, but then couldn’t get a reservation. So just good general advice, book first then tell the family.
Most of the enchanting extra experiences book at midnight, not 6am. For ones that are hard to get like Up Close with Rhinos, this is very important to remember! Times are all eastern.
If you want to meet characters, you generally have to go to their meet and greets. While there are occasional roaming characters, they’re typically not the most popular ones (sorry Country Bears).
If you want to use Photopass, buy ahead of time, it’ll be a bit cheaper. Also, if you don’t have Photopass, the photographers will take pictures with your own camera or phone so you can get shots of everyone together! Also, if using Photopass, ask for the magic shots, they can be so cool!
If you’re staying at a deluxe resort consider going to one of the extended evening hours. This is free to anyone staying at a Disney deluxe resort, and usually has much lower crowds and wait times.
While it’s an extra expense, I recommend going to an After Hours event if offered during your trip, especially if it is at Magic Kingdom. This is a paid event, but usually has amazingly low crowds, and most rides are total walk-ons. Plus the price includes free sodas, waters, and some desserts (like Mickey Bars!) and popcorn. Probably one of our favorite add-ons Disney offers.
Disney no longer offers transportation from the airport to their hotels. There are various car services you can hire, you can use Uber or Lyft, or the main bus service is Mears. If you are staying club level you can book a Minnie Van to pick you up and drop you off at the airport, although this is probably the most expensive option ($199 each way plus tip) it’s also our favorite, it just feels like we’re getting into the Disney bubble right at the airport!
Look up park hours in advance! From mid-August through December Magic Kingdom closes early a handful of nights every week for the parties. At other times of the year a park may close early for a Cast appreciation event or a corporate buy-out. So be careful when making plans, if you want to see the Magic Kingdom fireworks, you need to either buy a party ticket, or go on a day that doesn’t have a party.
If you see merchandise you love, buy it immediately. It’s shocking how quickly they will sell out of things. So many times we ignored this and planned to pick something up on the way out of the park only to find that it’s sold out by then. Learn from our mistake, if you need to have it, buy it when you see it.
I know this is hard if it’s your first time, but try to spend some time not focusing on rides. Look for hidden Mickey’s, enjoy the scenery and look for all the hidden details the imagineers put into the parks. Kind of a stop and smell the roses thought. So much of Disney is running from ride to ride, it can be nice to slow down and appreciate all the details. If you’re there for an Epcot festival they even have scavenger hunts with prizes which are also a fun way to change things up and take a break from running between rides!
While I think it’s good to see the Magic Kingdom fireworks from the front of the castle at least once so you can get the full experience with the projections, there are also other areas of the park that can be great to watch from. We love watching from the boardwalk in Frontierland, they reflect off the water and look so pretty, and you don’t have to deal with the crowds. Behind the castle is another place to watch with much lower crowds, although some nights due to the wind they will close that area off.
If you’re going to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, bring an extra bag for all the treats. We usually fill up the party bag they provide along with the extra backpacks we bring. If you go trick or treating towards the end of the party, they will typically dump loads of candy into your bags to fill them up!
Lastly, have fun! Try not to stress about the little things, and sometimes when things start to feel a bit overwhelming it’s a great time to take a break. Remember there are great pools at the resorts, so midday pool breaks can be a blast! I don’t see them as a waste of time, especially if you’re following tip #1, they can be a great break from the heat and another fun experience to have fun with the family at the pool!
Hopefully this is helpful, and I really hope you have an amazing trip! Say hi to Mickey for me!
