Overview and Planning
Disney World in Orlando consists of four theme parks, two water parks, a free shopping area, and over thirty unique resorts. Disneyworld.com is your one stop shop to plan your Disney World trip. On this site, you can book your resort, purchase your tickets, select a dining plan, purchase memory maker photos and even book your airfare!
My Disney Experience App
Be sure to download the My Disney Experience App. This app along with the Genie+ keeps track of your itinerary and all of your plans including your dining reservations and any Lightning Lane passes. It also includes a great interactive map with wait times for all rides, characters, and showtimes. It is a must have for any trip to Disney.
Parks
- Magic Kingdom is the most popular (and my favorite) of the four parks. At the center of Magic Kingdom is Cinderella's Castle. MK includes all of the iconic Disney rides such as Peter Pan, It's a Small World, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Space Mountain, and Haunted Mansion.
- Epcot is my second favorite park. It is divided into two main areas-Futureworld and World Showcase. FutureWorld contains most of the rides such as Spaceship Earth, Test Track and Soarin'. World Showcase is a collection of pavilions, each representing a different country....Canada, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, USA, Morocco, Japan, China, Norway and Mexico. At World Showcase you can shop, eat and drink and pretend you are in a completely different country!
- Hollywood Studios is a fun parked themed around the culture and history of Hollywood. It contains Toy Story Land and Star Wars Galaxy's Edge. You can also find Tower of Terror and Aerosmith's Rockin' Roller Coaster there.
- Animal Kingdom is a very fun park. You can visit the Africa and Asia section and see many amazing animals. There is a safari ride, one of the best coasters in all of Disney-Expedition Everest, and Pandora the World of Avatar which contains arguably the best ride in all of Disney World-Flight of Passage.
- Disney Springs is a free outdoor mall including a bowling alley, movie theater and plenty of great shopping and restaurants. Check out "Homecoming" our favorite restaurant in all of Disney World.
- Magic Kingdom-Snow White and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Peter Pan, It's a Small World, Carousel of Progress, Space Mountain, Under the Sea, People Mover, Winnie the Pooh, Hall of Presidents, Splash Mountain
- Epcot-Ratatouille, Soarin', Test Track, Frozen, Spaceship Earth, Three Cabelleros, Mission Space
- Hollywood Studios-Rise of the Resistance, Smuggler's Run, Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railroad, Tower of Terror, Toy Story Mania, Star Tours, Aerosmith Rockin' Roller Coaster, Indiana Jones Stunt Show
- Animal Kingdom-Flight of Passage, Expedition Everest, African Safari, Khali River Rapids
Characters
Throughout Disney World you can visit a variety of great Disney characters and get your photo taken with them. For example, you can see Gaston near his tavern in Magic Kindgom, meet Jasmine in Morocco at Epcot, get a photo with Chewbacca in Hollywood Studios, or get an autograph with Mickey himself at any of the parks! Check out the My Disney Experience App to see when and where they will be. Each character has a photographer with them and will be happy to take your photo with your camera or phone. PRO TIP: Buy an autograph book and have the character sign it. When you print your picture you can place each one next to the autograph and it makes for a fun souvenir. Also, be sure to check out Magic Mickey at Magic Kingdom near the main entrance.
Shows and Parades
There are a variety of great shows and performances throughout Disney World every day. Check the My Disney Experience app to confirm times and locations. Magic Kingdom has a few parades each day. At the end of every night, each park hosts a multi media show complete with fireworks. At Magic Kingdom, they display an out of this world video show on Cinderella's castle accompanied by music and fireworks, At Epcot the fireworks and music is displayed over the lake in the middle of the park. At Animal Kingdom there are fireworks and a video show on the giant tree of life. At Hollywood Studios the show and fireworks center on the Chinese Theater. PRO TIP: Stake out a good spot early for the evening firework displays. These shows are very popular and the best viewing areas fill up fast.
Hotels
Disney World has 33 resorts you can stay at! You can stay inexpensively at the campground or spend next years salary on a deluxe villa! We have stayed at the All Star Movies (value resort) and Art of Animation (value resort). The value resorts include decent rooms (a bit small but has what you need) a pool, restaurant, arcade and gift shop. The concierge desk is very helpful. Several resorts (inlcuding Pop Century and Art of Animation) are on the SkyLiner trail and provide a smooth trip to Epcot and Hollywood Studios. PRO TIP: Art of Animation contains the largest pool out of all the DisneyWorld resorts.
Transportation
During your stay at a Disney resort, enjoy the complimentary busing to and from all of the parks. The bus corral is located in front of your hotel. And at certain resorts, the SkyLine can take you to Epcot and Hollywood Studios. If you are staying off property, each park has very large parking lots and shuttles to get you from your car to the front of the park. There is also a monorail and gondola that service certain resorts and areas of Disney World. You can also hail a "Minnie Van" minivan and cruise around Disney World in style! Minne Vans operate as a Lyft ride so you will need the app. PRO TIP: Stay on property and take advantage of the free bus service. Orlando traffic can be nuts.
Dining
Each resort and park offers a wide variety of dining options. There is plenty to eat and snack on at Disney World. Disney World does offer a dining plan for you and your family while you stay. There are a couple of options but I have found them to not be a great value. They dining plans tend to include lots of drinks, snacks and desserts and it has been too much for our family. We prefer to simply purchase food as we go throughout our trip. Check out the Disney World website for more info on dining plans. Before your arrive, you can order groceries to be delivered through gardengrocer.com. We have done this to purchase breakfast foods, some snacks and drinks for the days we stay at the resort. These groceries costs a bit more than your hometown grocery store but far less than eating at the resort restaurant. Dining options and quality do vary from park to park and resort to resort. Typically Epcot has some of the best options (and alcohol) in all of Disney World. At the World Showcase in Epcot you can sample foods from all over the world. Enjoy a churro in Mexico, some gelato in Italy, a pastry in France, and wash it down with a lager in Germany or some saki in Japan. Some restaurants throughout Disney World require an advanced reservation. These can be made six months in advance and are highly recommended. Some restaurants are "Character Dining" options which includes select characters making visits to your table while you eat. These are very fun, make for great memories, but are quite expensive and require reservations far in advance. PRO TIP: Order food ahead of time using the My Disney Experience App. Several restaurants use this service and it is a huge time saver!
Queus
Disney World doesn't have lines to wait in. They create "queus" which are often as fun to experience as the rides themselves. Each queue has a sign at the beginning of the line showing you the approximate wait time for that attraction. They are fairly accurate. Most queus are themed very well to fit with the ride and often have interactive elements included. Some of the best queus are for Peter Pan, Snow White and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Winnie the Pooh, Frozen, and Haunted Mansion. PRO TIP: At Peter Pan, look for Peter's shadow and try to catch a butterfly.
Pin Trading
Disney World sells a variety of collectible pins. A tradition throughout the parks in "pin trading" in which you can ask other guests to trade pins with you. Cast Members working in the parks must trade pins upon request. Lanyards are sold to display your pins and allow you to wear them throughout your visit. You can find hundreds of pins including your favorite Disney character throughout the parks. PRO TIP: Order a pack of pins and a lanyard on Amazon beforehand to bring with you to then trade upon your visit. They are much cheaper than purchasing them in the parks.
Magic Memory Maker
This service allows you to purchase all of the photos taken while on your vacation including, character photos, ride photos (when you are on a roller coaster and they take that photo as you make the first big drop) and more. PRO TIP: Don't spend the money on this. Your phones camera is just as good and all of the Cast Members will gladly take your photo for free.
Cast Members and Customer Service
What sets Disney World apart besides the awesome attractions and yummy snacks is their commitment to excellence and customer service. All of the staff, from cooks to ride attendants to janitors, are referred to as Cast Members as they are all a part of the show and are there to provide you an incredible experience. 99% of Cast Members are very friendly and very helpful. If you ever need anything, find a Cast Member and they will do their very best to help you. You will also notice throughout your stay there is very little trash ever found on the ground. Disney takes great steps to ensure their parks are clean all day long. PRO TIP: Keep your eye out for the janitors in Magic Kingdom who use their brooms to paint Mickey Mouse on the ground with water.
