By Pink Diva
You have picked your dates, bought tickets, and made hotel accommodations, now you sit back and count down the days until your vacation, right? Wrong!! So many people stop planning after this part and figure they will just go with the flow once they arrive at Disney.
There are many people who have been to Disney frequently and can get by with “winging it”, but not many. Attractions get updated, shows and parades change, new characters come out, even crowd levels all have effects on your vacation. In my opinion, having a daily plan is one of the most important details of a Disney vacation.
My family are Passholders and live close enough to go often- sometimes several times a month. We still plan every single trip. Last year my whole family (parents, in-laws, sister and her family) took a big trip to Disney World together. There were 12 of us and I planned out our entire trip hour-by-hour. We were able to see and do so much. It took a lot of hours of research, but in the end it made it worth it. (Check out my itineray for Magic Kingdom)
Knowing when and where characters are meeting.
The first thing we do is to decide what our “theme” for the day/trip is. Some people want to see as many characters as they can. Others want to ride all the rides. Find out what your group wants and go from there. It’s an easy place to start and won’t be too overwhelming.
Know what park you are going to on what days. Are you park hopping? Skipping a park? Adding a water park? Spending more than one day at Magic Kingdom? Are there special events going on you want to attend? Or is the park closing early for a special event? The last thing you want is to plan your only day at Magic Kingdom, show up and find out it’s closing at 7pm. (This happens for the Halloween and Christmas Parties along with special Christian concerts throughout the year.)
Taking the time to get a good spot for the parade can pay off. Prince Philip came over and said hello to us.
The FastPass+ system has changed the way we plan our days. Being familiar with this system and being able to use it to your full advantage will cut down on wait times and maximize your experience. It is always changing and improving, so keeping updated on the newest update will keep you moving from attraction to attraction easily. Lean all about the FastPass+ system here.
Dining is another area where you need to do your research. There are so many different options. There are character meals both in the parks and at the resorts, sit down meals and quick service, food courts and food carts. If you have purchased a dining package you need to know how many credits you can spend each day in each category. Certain places are more credits and can cause you to use them up quickly. Learn about the Dining Plan in 2017.
A snack favorite for us-Mickey Bars!
There are so many options for character meals so picking ones that meet your needs is critical. Do you want the Fab 5? Or are princesses more your thing? Fans of Star Wars? You want to get the right meal with the right characters. I was 5 on my very first trip to Disney and still remember our Breakfast with Minnie and the Mickey shaped pancakes.
We went to Chef Mickey’s the day we arrived for our big family trip. It is at the Contemporary Resort and no park tickets were needed. We were able to see Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto and get pictures and autographs. Since we did it on a non-park day, we decided we didn’t need to visit them again in the parks.
The whole family at Chef Mickey’s
The last thing you want is to walk into a park and be so overwhelmed you don’t know what to do. You spend so much of your time in the park with your nose in a map trying to decide where to go next and what to do that you miss out on all the fun. While I’m all for spontaneous moments and flexibility, having a plan for the day will allow you to relax and enjoy the magic.
Ready to book your next vacation? Why not contact our Disney Vacation Planner, Patricia at All For Dreams! Because she is compensated by Disney, her services are free for you, and she can help you with all of your planning needs! Click here for a free quote.
***Disclaimer – We at Tips from the Disney Divas and Devos hope you enjoy reading our articles, and encourage you to share any you feel may be of interest to someone else. We do ask, however, if you choose to share the photographs attached to our articles, you give credit to the photographer. Thank you for your cooperation and sharing our love of Disney!
