We love Disney. All my friends and family know that, and probably all my followers by now too. I also love sharing advice to anyone willing to listen. So I figured combining everything I know here from our past 2 recent trips might help someone!
We went to Disney World in November of 2020 and in April 2021. While Covid restrictions are still going on, they have slowly gotten more lenient. (For example in November of last year, we had to wear masks everywhere and at all times. They now allow you to not wear masks outdoors and just require them in shops and on indoor attractions.)
But I’m here to talk about Disney. Not about covid. So here are my top tips!
How many days should I spend at Disney?
Go for at least 4 days if possible! That way you can spend one whole day at each theme park. But if you are only going for 3 days, I would recommend spending 1 whole day at Magic Kingdom, 1 whole day at Hollywood Studios and then park hop on the third day. Go to Animal Kingdom in the morning, and then in the afternoon hop over to Epcot. (Epcot stays open the latest so you’ll make the most out of that day this way.) If you are only planning 2 days, then obviously park hop both days and do a half day at each park. (Make sure to check opening and closing times at each park to maximize your time there. For example, Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom usually open earlier and Epcot opens later but stays open the latest.) And lastly if you could only do one day and had to pick one park, it would have to be Magic Kingdom. They have the most iconic rides and attractions, especially for little ones! Lastly, make sure you reserve your theme park of choice as soon as you purchase your tickets! They currently are reservation only and they tend to fill up and sell out fast, especially if you plan to go on the weekends.
Where should we stay?
Stay on property! Disney owns over 25 hotels and when you stay on property, your staying in the magic “Disney bubble”. It makes your whole vacation better, and your able to take advantage of the Disney perks. One of which is the transportation. Depending on where you stay you’ll be able to use either the Disney buses, monorail and/or the Skyliner. It makes a huge difference, and there are now magic hours for Disney resort guests that allow you extra time in the park! They also offer hotels for every budget. Starting at around $130 per night at the value resorts all the way up to over $800 a night at the Deluxe resorts. We always stay at the value resorts since we are hardly in the room. Plus we actually love the theming better in those resorts. They seem to be more kid friendly, they have great amenities and they are super clean. (Plus fun fact, most all Disney hotel rooms look similar!) So save your money on the hotel room and spend it on more days at Disney! We have stayed at Pop Century, All Star Sports, and All Star Movies and loved them all. Pop Century and Art of Animation are both on the Skyliner route too!
How we save money on food.
So after flight/driving, tickets and hotel room expenses, the major expenses are then food and souvenirs. So here is how we save on those! As soon as we get to our resort, I either order groceries to our room (Amazon Prime has a 2 hour option on certain groceries, or Door Dash has a grocery option. All the resorts we have stayed at have no problem accepting the orders at the front desk for you.) Or we drive to a local Walmart to pick up some if we have our car. Get a case of water, a case of Gatorade, a gallon of iced coffee, orange juice, cereal, and snacks. I usually spend less then $40 on all this and it lasts us a week. This honestly saves so much because a case of water is about $5 whereas if I bought one bottle of water inside the theme park it would cost me $5. (And in a week’s time, we go through at least 24-32 bottles of water!) Your allowed to bring in your own drinks and snacks so we throw a couple bottles of water/gatorade into the bottle of our stroller each day. We also eat breakfast in our hotel room every morning. This saves time and money. (We do occasionally get the Mickey waffles breakfast but we just mobile order it from the hotels food court, and still eat in the room while we get ready.) Getting to the parks right when they open and going straight to rides will allow you to take advantage of the time while ride lines are short. (Rather then having to use that time to go eat breakfast somewhere.) We also only eat at “Quick Service” rather then sit down restaurants. Our kids don’t appreciate fine dining right now anyways, and they would rather eat to fuel up then eat to enjoy. So we grab something quick on mobile order, eat, then get back to rides! We even will share meals because lots offer large portions, and then we can just snack on Mickey Pretzels or Popcorn if they are hungry later. (If you are staying for a few days, buy the Souvenir bucket! Popcorn refills are only $2.)
Souvenirs are harder to save on, but I will say setting expectations with your kids beforehand will help. We let our kids know there will be a lot of cool stuff they will see and want, and we allow them to pick one thing each day. (We also have them wait until the end of the day to choose because that way they don’t see something later and want it more then what they have already bought. We tell them to remember items they like and we will return to that store later in the day if that is still the item they would like to have. This also helps you not have to carry it all day!)
Does my child need a stroller?
In one word, yes. My 5 year old still uses a stroller at Disney. It is a lot of walking. It can be 10 miles or more each day. And kids get tired. Plus it allows little ones to nap while you walk around so you don’t have to go back to your hotel room. It can act as a portable storage for all your stuff, and keeps your kids with you in crowds. I highly recommend it. But also highly don’t recommend the Disney Strollers. They are tiny and plastic, so they are super uncomfortable for your kids. Bring your own or rent one from a 3rd party like Kingdom Strollers. (They do charge $50 per day but they are nice jogging strollers and will deliver and pick up from your hotel.) If you are going for 3 days or more, I would suggest checking out your local Facebook Marketplace. You can usually find used Jogging Strollers, even double ones, for under $200. And then after your trip you can resell it, or keep it for a future trip, and it’ll save you money from renting one!
What do I need to bring?
Prepare for all weather types! It rains a lot in Florida, so make sure to bring ponchos and a stroller rain cover. Depending on what time of year you go, mornings and evenings can be chilly but middle of the day will be hot. So pack accordingly! A portable fan will help too, and portable phone charger. Getting a Magic Band is so useful because it holds your park tickets, credit card, room key and so much more. They used to offer them for free if you stayed at a Disney Hotel, but you can still get them for as little as $5!
And lastly, set your expectations low and try to go with the flow. Kids will be kids, meltdowns will happen, some lines will be super long, and you can’t control the weather. So make a plan but be flexible and know that no matter what, your kids will have the best time ever!
