Your Best Disney Tips
Tomorrow is a big day in our house. At 5:59 am I will groggily be sitting in front of the computer, waiting to make our Disney meal reservations promptly at 6:00 am!! Yes, for four days and four nights this summer we will be in lovely Disney World!!
I cannot WAIT! Seriously, I might bust before we reach the summer. This will be my fifth time at Disney, and I swear it gets more magical every time we go.
When we went a few years ago, we did all have a fabulous time. But we were staying with a friend, and just headed over for the day. We didn't have a plan in place at all. We just kind of wandered and did whatever we felt like.
This time will be very different. First off, we are staying on property at the new Art of Animation resort. We'll be in one of the Little Mermaid rooms. That alone is going to rock the girls world! Then we'll have four days in the parks. We are going to do Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom, and Magic Kingdom again. As much as I love Epcot, I don't think there's as much for the girls there, and since I'm cheap I refuse to get a park hopper.
We got the Disney Dining Plan with one table service, one quick service, and one snack a day. I plan on having the girls eat something at the hotel in the morning...having our big sit down meal at lunchtime...then doing a quick service for dinner. We're hoping to eat at Cinderella's Castle {omg, I'm SO excited about this one!}, Hollywood and Vine {Disney Jr characters will be there!} and Tusker House Restaurant {Donald, Mickey, etc will be there} I feel like character meals are our best bet, because it will cut down on the amount of time we have to spend waiting in line to see them in the parks.
I've already started making lists of all the must see/do attractions at each park. I want to be as prepared and organized for this trip as possible..but also just be able to go with the flow once we're down there. I've created a travelling board on Pinterest and it's pretty much all full with Disney things.
We'll be driving down {so if you live near highway 95 along the east coast, let me know and we can pop in to visit!} and I think that will help a lot. I'll have the car stuffed with snacks, and we plan on bringing lots {and water bottles!} into the parks. We might also drive to the park each day instead of taking the bus, as we can park for free. We're going to rent a double stroller in the park, and while I know you can get them cheaper other places, I actually love the idea of returning it at the end of each day. We're really only getting it for times the girls want to rest...they can both walk.
I think one of my favorite parts of this vacation will be when we tell the girls. The day before we leave, we're going to tell them we're going to stay at our friend's house in Orlando. But as we pull into the park we'll tell them we'll get there later, because first we're going to Disney!! So shhh, if you see them, don't mention anything about it!!
My bestie has been to Disney close to 20 times, so she's my go-to expert. But as she is expecting her first baby {YAY!!!} now, they have yet to go down with kids. That's where you come in. I've never done a whole week with kids before. Give me your best tips and tricks. What are the must do's and must rides. Also, this is the first time we'll be using the Magical Bands. Have you had one yet? How does it make Fast Pass different? Give me all your knowledge!!
I cannot WAIT! Seriously, I might bust before we reach the summer. This will be my fifth time at Disney, and I swear it gets more magical every time we go.
When we went a few years ago, we did all have a fabulous time. But we were staying with a friend, and just headed over for the day. We didn't have a plan in place at all. We just kind of wandered and did whatever we felt like.
This time will be very different. First off, we are staying on property at the new Art of Animation resort. We'll be in one of the Little Mermaid rooms. That alone is going to rock the girls world! Then we'll have four days in the parks. We are going to do Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom, and Magic Kingdom again. As much as I love Epcot, I don't think there's as much for the girls there, and since I'm cheap I refuse to get a park hopper.
We got the Disney Dining Plan with one table service, one quick service, and one snack a day. I plan on having the girls eat something at the hotel in the morning...having our big sit down meal at lunchtime...then doing a quick service for dinner. We're hoping to eat at Cinderella's Castle {omg, I'm SO excited about this one!}, Hollywood and Vine {Disney Jr characters will be there!} and Tusker House Restaurant {Donald, Mickey, etc will be there} I feel like character meals are our best bet, because it will cut down on the amount of time we have to spend waiting in line to see them in the parks.
I've already started making lists of all the must see/do attractions at each park. I want to be as prepared and organized for this trip as possible..but also just be able to go with the flow once we're down there. I've created a travelling board on Pinterest and it's pretty much all full with Disney things.
We'll be driving down {so if you live near highway 95 along the east coast, let me know and we can pop in to visit!} and I think that will help a lot. I'll have the car stuffed with snacks, and we plan on bringing lots {and water bottles!} into the parks. We might also drive to the park each day instead of taking the bus, as we can park for free. We're going to rent a double stroller in the park, and while I know you can get them cheaper other places, I actually love the idea of returning it at the end of each day. We're really only getting it for times the girls want to rest...they can both walk.
I think one of my favorite parts of this vacation will be when we tell the girls. The day before we leave, we're going to tell them we're going to stay at our friend's house in Orlando. But as we pull into the park we'll tell them we'll get there later, because first we're going to Disney!! So shhh, if you see them, don't mention anything about it!!
My bestie has been to Disney close to 20 times, so she's my go-to expert. But as she is expecting her first baby {YAY!!!} now, they have yet to go down with kids. That's where you come in. I've never done a whole week with kids before. Give me your best tips and tricks. What are the must do's and must rides. Also, this is the first time we'll be using the Magical Bands. Have you had one yet? How does it make Fast Pass different? Give me all your knowledge!!
This is so exciting! I love Disney! It will be such a fun trip for your girls.
ReplyDeleteYay!!! I LOVE Disney! Our family goes to Florida every year for vacation and we spend a day at Disney. It definitely is so magical! I'm so jealous you are staying in the Little Mermaid rooms! She's my favorite!
ReplyDeleteYay! I've been seeing all your pins about disney land tips so this is exciting!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Disney. It's been almost 10 years since I was there and I miss it. I've never been with little kids but my only advice deals with the meal plan (unless maybe you've had it before and liked it). We got what you plan on getting for each day we were there and it's a LOT to eat. The sit down big meal was a lot each day and by the end we felt like we were ordering food we weren't eating just to use the plan. It's a great deal, just not for each day. We wish we had not gotten it for a couple days we were there so we could just get munchie type food or something small. But it was definitely great for part of the time and something I'd do again. I agree Epcot doesn't have too much for kids (it was more for eating for us). I also think finding out what park you can get into early each day, and taking advantage of it is GREAT for beating crowds. If you can't get in early to all the parks, definitely go early to Animal Kingdom for the safari. The animals are out and much more active right away in the morning. We were so amazed by that! Other than that the animal kingdom we weren't super impressed with (it's a BIG park and you have to walk really far between attractions, but the safari is worth it). You all will have a blast!! I hope to take my nephew one day and experience it through his eyes :)
ReplyDeleteOoooh!!! I'll have to send you a nice long email ;)
ReplyDeleteAs a native Floridian and a lover of Disney World--I've been going nearly every year since I was 2 years old, I can help you out! Magic Bands make it so easy!!! With Magic Bands, you can link your park tickets so you don't have to use the plastic cards. You also get to reserve your fast passes for 3 rides each day. Once you get your Magic Bands, use the app called My Disney Experience to book your fast passes. Your Magic Bands can also be used as room keys and you can charge purchases to your room bill. Makes life so easy!
ReplyDeleteAlso, buy some water/non perishable snacks before you enter the park, I know it's expensive at the parks and summers in Florida are brutal. If you can, bring an umbrella or a poncho. It rains nearly every afternoon. If you don't want to carry a heavy backpack, you can always rent a locker to store your items. I believe it's $12 but you get your deposit back. Lockers are also key when you make any merchandise purchases, especially if you feel uncomfortable in having the park send it to your hotel room.
Since you're staying at the Art of Animation Resort, I highly recommend using the Mickey's Magical Transportation Bus--it's FREE and they pick you up from the Orlando airport and they take you to your resort to check in. They also bring you back to the airport when your trip is over. Also, the resort offers FREE transportation to all the parks and usually 1 park either opens early or stays open later 1 hour--that is a perk that is only offered to people staying at a Disney resort.
PS-follow me on Twitter (@TABauman86--we already follow each other on Instagram) and I can give you more tips about Disney!