Earlier this month, my family was able to take a quick trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando. You can read about the experience, along with my review of the gluten-free dining scene, in this previous post.
Over the years, I have learned that Walt Disney World always seems like a great idea on paper, but if you’re not prepared, it can quickly become an overwhelming experience. Having visited Walt Disney World in 2019 and 2022, I found the experience this time to be much more enjoyable and less stressful. When reflecting, I believe that this was partly due to the milder weather, but also because we have become more experienced visitors to Walt Disney World. Let's face it, you've invested a lot of money to visit the Magic Kingdom - likely upwards of $200 per person for admission alone. So below, I have outlined nine simple tips to help you get the most out of your investment.
1. Download the My Disney Experience app. In the weeks leading up to your visit, make sure to download the app, explore its features, and even watch some YouTube videos to learn about it. This app is the most important tool to familiarize yourself with if you plan on visiting Walt Disney World. I used this app to prepare for our visit and throughout our day at the Magic Kingdom to accomplish the following tasks:
Book dining reservations.
View our reservations.
Purchase Magic Kingdom tickets.
Purchase Genie+.
Scan into the park.
Reserve timeslots for rides with Lightning Lane using the “Tip Board” feature.
Scan our tickets when using the Lightning Lane line.
Navigate our way through the Magic Kingdom using a real-time map of the park that includes attractions, wait times, and locations of characters, dining, restrooms, shops, and more.
Order food for mobile pickup and/or purchase merchandise without waiting in line at the cashier.
*Don’t forget to pack the phone charger. You will be using the My Disney Experience app throughout the day and depending on your phone, it may drain the battery quickly.
2. Purchase Genie+ Service. This feature allows you to book rides in advance and utilize a separate “Lightning Lane” line. It allowed us to stand in line for 5 minutes for rides that typically had wait times of over an hour! You can start booking rides via Lightning Lane starting at 7 a.m., and this is exactly what you should do. I logged on at 7 a.m. and found that the earliest timeslot available for Peter Pan’s Flight was between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., so I booked it. There are some limitations to Genie+. One limitation is that once you reserve a Lightning Lane timeslot for a ride, you cannot reserve another one until you have scanned in for this ride or until two hours have passed. So, in my example above, I could not reserve another ride until 9 a.m. (i.e., two hours after I booked my first ride). By 9 a.m., the next available opportunity for some of the rides you may be targeting may not be until the afternoon! Lightning Lane reservations book up quickly, but in my opinion, the service is still worth every penny. Our Genie+ reservation for Peter Pan’s Flight allowed us to bypass a line with a wait time of one hour and fifteen minutes!
To maximize your experience with Genie+, prioritize the most popular rides first. Examples include Peter Pan’s Flight, Jungle Cruise, The Haunted Mansion, and Space Mountain. The most popular thrill rides, such as Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Tron, require the purchase of an additional Lightning Lane pass, which I will not cover in this post.
In addition to prioritizing the most popular rides, you also need to pace yourself. In between Genie+ bookings, we waited to meet Princess Mirabel, rode some of the less popular rides that didn’t have long lines, watched the parade, took some breaks to enjoy a Mickey ice cream bar or shop for souvenirs, and scheduled an appointment at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for our daughter, Emerson.
3. Purchase preferred parking. The journey from the parking lot to the main gates of the Magic Kingdom is quite a trek, especially with young children. Visitors park in a massive lot, then either walk or take a shuttle to the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC), and finally board the monorail or a boat to reach the main gates of the Magic Kingdom. With standard parking, you park at the far end of the lot and then take an open-air shuttle to the TTC. With preferred parking, you are within walking distance of the TTC. A day at the Magic Kingdom is long, so if there is an opportunity to create convenience or efficiency, I’m all for it. That’s why I am an advocate for spending a little more on the preferred parking.
4. Rent a stroller when you enter the park. Disney offers strollers for rent, which is worth considering even if you have an older child who has outgrown strollers. With all the walking and the Florida heat, a stroller will help conserve your child’s energy. They offer double strollers that are spacious enough to accommodate both of our daughters.
5. Pack snacks. This is a best practice for saving money for your family, but also critical for those of us in the celiac community! Don’t forget to stock up on gluten-free food before entering the park. Some of my go-to snacks for the Magic Kingdom include rice cakes with peanut butter, fresh fruit, baby carrots, GFB gluten-free bars, and Good Crisp Company Potato Crisps. In addition to snacks, don’t forget to pack the other essentials including water bottles, sunscreen, and a phone charger.
6. Visit in January or February, but not during school break. This is a personal preference. In the past, we have visited Walt Disney World in the spring and have decided to avoid it in the future. The Florida heat intensifies in the spring, and my family feels that this makes the park experience less enjoyable. In fact, we’d prefer to have a cool 60-degree day or even a day when people might wear long sleeves over a scorching hot and humid day.
7. Sign up for MouseWatcher. This service sends you text message notifications when specific dining reservations become available. There is also an option to receive alerts when spots open up at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, one of the most popular attractions for young “princesses”. MouseWatcher allowed me to book this experience for my daughter, as well as two sought-after character breakfast experiences which I detail here. When it comes to reservations, be patient. I noticed that the number of opportunities on MouseWatcher significantly increased in the 24-48 hour window before my preferred dates.
8. Don’t expect to experience every attraction. Especially with young children, this is not likely to be feasible. Lines are long. You will need to take breaks. And you may just run out of steam. I liken trying to do the Magic Kingdom all in one day to trying to experience all of New York City in one day. Pick out some things you really want to do, enjoy yourself, and prioritize the other stuff for next time. For example, we arrived around 10 a.m. and departed the park around 9 p.m. Let’s explore the rides and experiences that we took part in during this timeframe.
Peter Pan’s Flight
Mickey’s PhilharMagic
Meet Princess Mirabel
Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique
Carousel
3 p.m. parade
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Enchanted Tales with Belle
Be Our Guest Restaurant
Jungle Cruise
* We had two additional attractions reserved that would not have affected our departure time from the park. However, Emerson decided against riding them due to her sensitivity to loud sounds.
9. Consider watching the fireworks from behind Cinderella’s Castle. We happened to be leaving dinner at Be Our Guest Restaurant as the 8 p.m. fireworks were starting. The view was great, and the crowds were light. I have watched the fireworks from the front of Cinderella’s Castle in the past. You do get an added light display of the castle itself, but it can be VERY crowded. There is a give-and-take depending on where you choose to watch the fireworks show, but we preferred watching with fewer people around.
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