Disney: Tips
Andrea
11:01 PM
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When preparing for our trip, I read articles, books, and blog posts and spoke with friends who are Disney vets. I collected a wealth of information, so I am compiling the most useful tips into one post.
I hope it helps!
I wrote this post-it note in November 2015! I love the idea of writing it down and making it happen :)
Here is a list of the resources I found most helpful:
AllEars.net: This is a website to help in the planning process of your Disney vacay. There are some great reviews for accommodations, dining, and character experiences.
WDWPrepSchool.com: This website is very comprehensive with a ton of lists and "Ultimate Guide to..." articles.
Pinerest.com: You definitely have to sort through all the JUNK when searching for Disney tips on Pinterest, but there are a lot of valuable resources here.
DisneyWorld app: This is an absolute MUST HAVE during your visit to Disney. The app has some amazing features, including the ability to view and book FastPasses, search the map for attractions, wait times, reserve dining, and view photos. I may or may not still check wait times on the app every once in a while :)
Package Options:
As this was our first trip to Disney, I was ready to take advantage of every package option available to us. I kept thinking it could be a rookie mistake, but we would learn from it. What I learned is that I would absolutely do it all the same again, and I am no rookie anymore :)
Dining Plan: We chose to book the Disney Dining Plan, which included (1) Quick Service, (1) Table Service, and (2) Snacks per night, per person (over age 3). The cost varies year to year and as it is paired with a full package, but we paid roughly $60 per adult and $17 for Peyton per night. Having a dining plan really allowed us to have some incredible character experiences without thinking about the money. (Just for reference, most character dining experiences cost about $35-$60 per adult depending on the meal). We had plenty to eat each day, and used leftover snack credits for our trip home! For each meal, we simply scanned our MagicBands and the credits were taken off. Gratuities were not included, but necessary only for the table service meals.
Popcorn: I wish we had discovered this gem earlier in our trip! We paid $10 for a (large!) popcorn bucket, then $1.50 for a refill OR you can use a snack credit for a refill. We discovered that snacking was a great way to entertain the kiddos while waiting in line, and popcorn is light and not too filling. We brought a carabiner along and just hooked it to the stroller or backpack.
Popcorn: I wish we had discovered this gem earlier in our trip! We paid $10 for a (large!) popcorn bucket, then $1.50 for a refill OR you can use a snack credit for a refill. We discovered that snacking was a great way to entertain the kiddos while waiting in line, and popcorn is light and not too filling. We brought a carabiner along and just hooked it to the stroller or backpack.
Stroller Rental: We chose to rent a stroller through Orlando Stroller Rentals, and it was another life saver during our trip! Very reasonable price and incredibly easy to work with.
Photo Package: There are photo opportunities at every turn at Disney World. We took advantage of the professionals so we could capture more family photos, and not be so consumed with getting a good picture that we couldn't fully experience our time there. If a Disney photographer takes a photo, they scan your magic band, and the photos are loaded to your Disney account (and viewed on your app). There is an option to purchase individual photos, or a Memory Maker Package. We had SO many photos taken (especially with characters), so of course we opted to purchase the package. I had access to download and save every single photo taken while we were there. Invaluable!!
Fast Passes:
Fast Passes were a big source of stress for me at first because I didn't want to miss any important experiences. Because we stayed on-site, we were able to book our Fast Passes 60 days in advance. I spent a lot of time on the Disney World website checking height requirements and descriptions of rides. I also got a lot of info from friends who have kids similar ages to mine to see which rides were a priority. I used some helpful planning pages to write out our plans for park days, but once we were there, I relied on the Disney app to check our plans. When initially booking FP, each ticket holder is allowed to reserve 3 per day. However, once you use up the 3 daily FP, you can add one at a time via the Disney app. This was SO confusing to me prior to our trip, but once we were in the park, I caught on quickly!!
These pages were very helpful in planning
And finally, our daily park bag packing list. Planning for a full day in the park with 2 kiddos is no easy task...and I definitely did not want to forget anything! I had this list handy and we checked it every morning before heading out. We also had portable fans that hooked onto the stroller that came in handy!
