How Much Stimulation Can You and Your Family Handle? Disney’s Happily Ever After fireworks show at Magic Kingdom (Photo: Kent Phillips)Įven for the most roll-with-the-punches kids, the amount of stimulation you get in a day at Disney can sometimes be too much. One of the most overlooked Disney strategies is the midday nap, especially if you’re a family of early risers. The point is to be honest with yourself about how well you and your kids will do with an early wake-up and plan your Disney arrival accordingly. When you’d normally banish the kicks back to their bedroom for a few more minutes of shut-eye, instead get them ready to roll for an early arrival, character breakfast, or a rope-drop celebration. On the flip side, if you are a family or early risers, use that to your advantage by getting to the park early. SMALL WONDERS: 10 Best Disney Rides for Little Kids and Toddlers
If your family isn’t the type that can wake up and go, then don’t! Yes, you’ll have to deal with crowds and rides slightly differently-but the Orlando theme parks offer special light shows, parades, and experiences later in the day and evening that may better suit your family’s schedule. If you want to avoid crowds, skip lines, and generally feel like you have the park to yourself for an hour or two, the tried-and-true strategy is to arrive at the park as soon as it opens (or even earlier if you’re staying at a Disney World hotel or Disneyland hotel with extra magic hours and other perks).īut while that’s all true, there’s also nothing quite as miserable as watching a toddler in full-on meltdown mode at 7:30 a.m. What Time Do You Want to Arrive at the Park? The World’s Most Magical Celebration celebrates Walt Disney World’s 50th anniversary (Photo: Matt Stroshane) PLAN YOUR TRIP: When Is the Best Time to Visit Disney World and Disneyland? 1. The answer to these questions will inform your entire vacation and ensure that everything goes according to plan on your Disney vacation. And while there’s no single “right way” to plan a Disney trip, there are some important questions you need to ask yourself before you go. Now for the good news: Unlocking true Disney magic is possible with the right strategy. The bad news is that Disney has made planning a trip more complicated, not less, with ongoing construction projects, closures, and the introduction of Disney Genie, a suite of trip-planning tools for the Disney parks. How to Plan a Disney Trip Everyone in the Family Will Enjoy will be headed straight for epic meltdowns, long lines, and missed opportunities. Without a good strategy, your dream vacation to one of the best family vacation spots in the U.S. Spontaneity and serendipity are great for some family vacation ideas, but not when it comes time to plan a Disney trip. You are trusting this person with your family’s information and financial information so do your homework.If you’re dreaming of a trip to Disney World or Disneyland, “winging it” is not an option.
Once you’re ready to start, get recommendations from friends or use the list below of top-voted Disney Travel Agents. This gives you time to make sure you can sign up for everything that you want to see.
How do I Pick a Disney Travel Agent?įirst, plan to contact your agent at least six months in advance. Our agent even recommended taking a couple of things off our itinerary, as they weren’t age appropriate and we were trying to do too much. They will monitor offers and ensure you get the best possible price. 4 – You Get the Best Pricingĭisney travel agents know all the ins and outs of prices, promotions, and the booking process. This is especially handy if you have a kid melting down in a busy park on a super hot day and really, really, really need to change the time of your dinner reservation. Questions or changes to our reservations were just a quick text away.