What Did You Wish You Knew Before Going?

[Corbie]

We have yet to arrive for our first trip, but it's not the first time planning. We had planned to go back in December of 2015, but Life got in the way and we had to cancel.

ADRs for me, too. I could not comprehend that people actually made reservations 180 days out and tried to get ours about 150 days. We got most of them, but places like the Contemporary were not possible because I waited too long to make them.

 

[tomlinson]

How a good break in the day is to explore the other resorts. Walk through the nicely decorated hotels, enjoy the AC, try the resort food offerings, browse the resort specific merch... it's really relaxing and enjoyable.

 

[glassslippergirl]

I agree with RD, and if I was the only traveler in my party, I'd RD every Disney day. But I've also learned that DH and DS do better when they sleep a little more, so my advice is to not push the plan over the person. As Crush sings in Finding Nemp: the Musical, "Go with the flow-ow-Ow-ow."

My other advice is, if you have a car, use it. WDW bus service is the worst, especially after a long day when they pack you on like sardines, make you wake sleeping children by folding their strollers, etc. MK is the exception. All other parks, avoid the press of humanity and drive.

 

[Arden01]

This is our first trip back in more than a decade and we will only be traveling with one teen rather than six kids. This will be a totally different experience.

I feel like we should stop reading and just relax and enjoy but I am also feeling that a certain degree of planning needs to happen based on how busy things can be in the park.

What did you wish you knew before going to any of the four parks?

From your signature line, it seems like you are going in the cooler months so I won't give you my hot weather advice I would say to prepare for crowds by hitting rope drop when you can and lining up FP+ from 10:30/11am onwards. We always accomplished a lot during rope drop. If you are staying for more than 5 days, I would suggest a full day off in the middle of your trip. We sometimes do and sometimes don't, but always regret it when we don't. WDW is exhausting!

 

[jjjones325]

Uber and Lyft are readily available and cheap if you want to get between parks or back to your resort and you don't want to wait for a crowded bus.

Where are the pickups for Uber/Lyft for the parks? Also, we are staying at CBR, so would they pick you up in the parking lot in front of your building? We are heading down in December for our first trip in 3 years, and I've never used Uber/Lyft at Disney. Actually, I've never used either in real life either, but I think I could figure them out once I knew where they woud pick me up.

 

[sdomino11]

Hands down, I wish I'd known how valuable a touring plan is. We usually go end of April/beginning of May, so I won't speak for other times, but I am amazed that Touring Plans is so accurate. I remember RUNNING to avoid missing an fp window on our first family trip. We came home from that trip exhausted! But the next 4 trips (40-50 days in the parks) have been smooth because I'm following plans that I carefully (and most enjoyably!) laid out that include breaks and minimize walking. I can't say enough how I'd never go to WDW without a touring plan!

 

[nkereina]

Its normally just DH and I who visit, but we went with a group of 9 two weeks ago including my 5 year old niece and 3 year old nephew. We'd never been with kids before so it was our first time doing character meets. I didn't anticipate how time consuming they would be, and found that posted standby times for character meets were underestimated. Joy & Sadness at Epcot around 11am took a solid hour, Olaf at DHS took a good 35 minutes with a posted wait of 15, Ariel at her Grotto was a good hour with a posted 20 minute, Tinkerbell went from a posted 20 minute wait to a 50 minute while we were in line. We gave up and left. So if character meets are important to your group, I would do them at park opening, park closing, or get a FP. We did Anna & Elsa around 8:45pm, when everyone was lined up for Illuminations, and waited maybe 10 minutes.

I agree with the suggestions on mid-day breaks and being flexible in your plans. I frequently moved around FPs and cancelled dining plans the day before. Plans are best as a framework rather than a minute by minute agenda of your day. Mid-day breaks were crucial to make it through the night.

 

[housemartin71]

Totally agree - meeting characters was an unexpected thing for us. I didn't think my 7 year old son would want to do it, but he was eager to meet characters and willing to wait in lines to do it. These ended up being our longest waits of an 8 day trip and the lines move like molasses.

 

[P800aul]

Hi

I wish I knew to have a plan on a Spreadsheet like this ( I do now )

Decide which parks on what days in advance (use crowd Calendar) then you don't have to do the "Lets decide where are we going today?" deal
Book ADR's if undecided book a few but cancel early so others can pick up.
Book FP+ for everyday regardless
Enter all this on said spreadsheet
Print A3 (BIG) in colour and tape to the refrigerator door or door of the Condo or room while there.
If you need to change the plan while there do, but be prepared to go back to it (because you will)

Oh and keep everything paperwork wise (printouts, tickets, car hire, scans of passports, plane tickets etc etc ) in OneNote (stored on OneDrive so you can access it on your phone)

Regards

Paul

 

[nkereina]

I wish I knew to have a plan on a Spreadsheet like this ( I do now )

Agreed! We went with first timers and they laughed at me when I handed them color coded spreadsheets, but they understood why by the end of the trip. Planning and organization is essential to maximize your trip. It's easier to go with the flow if you've been before and/or are perfectly ok with not seeing and doing as much as you can.

 

[srwarden1928]

When we went in 2008, I hadn't been since 1990. While I DID have touring plans and knew to rope drop, there were two things I wish I had known. 1. Stay on property. I had never done so before--when I was a child the only on property were Contemporary and Polynesian deluxes, then college trips the hotel was arranged by the university. I didn't realize the advantages of staying on property or the reasonable prices of the value resorts. 2. ADRs. I was remembering the kiosks where you made day-of reservations in Epcot. We had chosen Biergarten and Marakesh, which fortunately had walk-up availability, and when we walked into Prime Time they let us eat at the bar. So it worked out ok, but I have made 180 day ADRs every trip since--and a couple of times resort ADRs when we weren't even going to Disney (the parks).

 

[JennyDrake]

Rope Drop has always been, and continues to be your best friend. You can get SO much done rope drop til 11:00-11:30.
Midday breaks help keep everyone on good terms--whether you think you need it or not.....
TS has become outrageously expensive over the last 10 years.
Headliners "need" FP+.
DHS is a sad reflection of what it used to be. Prolly half day park for you.

 

[Deuce84p]

we went during spring break 2016, and it was great. A few of my tips, which most have mentioned before:

1. FP and ADRs are the main part of planning. If you have park hoppers, you don't even have to make the ADR at the park you start your day at. Make a general plan based off FP and ADR selection, but being flexible helps greatly!
2. Rope drop was huge for us.
3. A midday break and then back for the evenings helped a lot too.
4. While the rides and characters are great, the small things are enjoyable too. On the days we didn't go back to the resort midday, we would still just stroll around the park and take a break, enjoy the shops and small details.

I'm sure I'm missing a few, but these were a big help. We didn't care to "do everything", we hit what was important to us, then what had shorter lines, and just didn't worry about it past that. There's so much to do that isn't planned, so being relaxed and flexible definitely worked in our favor.

 

[#1hoosierfan]

Where are the pickups for Uber/Lyft for the parks? Also, we are staying at CBR, so would they pick you up in the parking lot in front of your building? We are heading down in December for our first trip in 3 years, and I've never used Uber/Lyft at Disney. Actually, I've never used either in real life either, but I think I could figure them out once I knew where they woud pick me up.

Great question about pick-up at CBR. I would go to the resorts board and ask on the CBR thread. Someone there will know for sure.

Download the Lyft and/or Uber app before you leave and do the sign up stuff. They park where the cabs do outside of the parks. Any CM outside the park will be able to show you. I will say getting an Uber to MK is not as convenient because they have to drop off at TTC.

I would "order" the car on my app as I was walking out of the park and had one immediately. You will probably have to wait a few minutes if coming from the resort because I doubt they stage there.

We got lucky in June and somehow got a promo for half off all rides that week. I felt almost guilty it was so cheap.

 

[LuvMyEAR]

We (Ok, I) plan to nth degree but only because I like to do so. But I consider all my spreadsheets and careful research to be only a "default plan" meaning that is is what we will set out to do on a given day if no one else has come up with a better plan!

This way, there are no blanks stares when we discuss we are going to do when we set off in the morning. If mood or weather necessitates a change, we change, or even go in slightly different directions.

We do make an ADR or two, but actively plan some meals in our rental home, and don't mind letting our noses and stomachs tell us when and where to eat otherwise. We are huge fans of the Disney Food Blog, and can probably recite menu choices from an unsettling number of places. Nowadays, the MDE app takes away all the guesswork, anyway.

We take breaks when we need them. Even 5 minutes off your feet with a free ice water can help. If you need longer, take longer... you will enjoy yourselves so much more if no one ever reaches the too hungry/too tired/too thirsty stage.

We enjoy our Disney traditions, and will even ride those horrible speedway cars but we also try to get in a new and special activity each trip. Last time, it was Sea Raycers on Bay Lake. THis time, surfing lessons at Typhoon Lagoon!

We are absolutely suckers for the MK parties and for the first time ever, we will attend MNSSHP and MVMCP during the same trip. Always a dream!

Most of all, we believe these vacations are as much a state of mind as any other factor. There are 6 of us who vacation together, three generations. We consciously commit to being considerate of one another, and keeping in mind that if no one is sick or hurt, nothing is really wrong. Everything else is just a detail and we can work our way around any details. There is not much that doesn't look better with a Mickey ice cream in your hand.

 

[pookybean]

I am going to say something completely unpopular.... skip rope drop and stay all night long. I used to try to hit the rope drops (and usually failed while dragging the kids to the gate as the train pulled away) until one trip that was so much hotter than we expected. We ended up sleeping in, eating and swimming and didn't head out until 4 or 5pm. We got so much done in those hours and we weren't nearly as hot as we would have been. My kids are night owls and as soon as I stopped fighting that we had a much better time. Magic Kingdom at 1am....yes please! Even if the park closes at 10, get a snack, sit, rest and wander out leisurely. You will get a better seat on the bus that way too!
What is your teens schedule like at home (like a weekend, not so much weekday for school)? If she/he likes to sleep in, maybe allow for that on vacation...at least a little bit.

I will second the bathroom tip...if one goes, everyone goes! We had one trip with 10 of us and I spent so much time trying to gather everyone after a bathroom trip it was crazy....and most of these people were adults!

Enjoy your trip OP. I think the best tip you can get will be to relax and have fun!

 

[sah95]

I wish I knew how to figure out Touring Plans. I have read until my eyes hurt & I'm not getting it.

 

[AngieInOH]

If you have a very important app or need to be somewhere at an exact time do not count on the buses, get a cab !! Still kicking myself for running to BBB instead of being able to enjoy the empty park before opening.... darn bus!

Also, after every visit I always wish we took the time to enjoy the small things..... find hidden Mickey's, look at the ground there sometimes some interesting things going on down there, etc.

 

[yeheyprincex2]

To always, always have a drink ready for my child for any sit down show.(had to walk out of Indiana jones two years ago cause my son was screaming for a drink of water)
To accept the go with the flow vibe, especially with kids
To always have a sit down meal booked for DHS and MK because we do not like QS options in these parks.
RD with a 10:30-10:45 ARD works well for us, discovered this about 4 trips ago.
See the first parade at hard ticket party events cause my children will fall asleep before the second
pack my patience for when my DH calls me a crazy Disney nut for the first two days, cause I am but don't like to be called out
best of all to remember I'm on vacation and hide my crazy

 

[BigAlsGal]

Remember you can arrive up to 5 minutes early for your FP and be up to 15 minutes late.