Tips for Disney

[fancynewbeesly]

So we are going to do 2.5 days in Disney in the summer. Yeah, not ideal but literally the ONLY time we could do it. (We are also driving down from NJ) 


Our idea is full day at Epcot, full day at Magic Kingdom and 1/2 day at Hollywood Studios. 

The last time we went was in 2019, so any must see/must do things or helpful tips. Restaurant recommendations?

We plan on doing a park in the morning, going back to the hotel to rest and going back later that evening. My parents HATE Disney (they are coming with us)-along with my brother and my nephew (they live in Florida-I think my nephew has been but I don't know if my brother has been in years). 

Also, I want to get some light summery dresses to wear, I figured that will be the easiest since it will be hot. I haven't bought clothes in awhile (because I keep on hoping to lose weight and not spend money--but that isn't going as quick as I would want.) 

[joy]

If you want to do Bippidi Boppiti and it’s sold out, there are people who will come to your hotel and do it!

My best advice is to just lower your expectations. Don’t try to do everything; the goal should be to have fun and do what you can. I took my kid to MK for one day and did exactly wgat she wanted: see the parade, meet Belle, eat a cupcake, watch a show. It was an awesome day.

Have fun!!!!

[fancynewbeesly]

Jun 9, 2024 7:22:36 GMT -6 joy said:

If you want to do Bippidi Boppiti and it’s sold out, there are people who will come to your hotel and do it!

My best advice is to just lower your expectations. Don’t try to do everything; the goal should be to have fun and do what you can. I took my kid to MK for one day and did exactly wgat she wanted: see the parade, meet Belle, eat a cupcake, watch a show. It was an awesome day.

Have fun!!!!

Oh we definitely plan on low expectations. Problem is with a 13 year old and 6 year old trying to combine both of their wants is not as easy. 🤣

[joy]

Jun 9, 2024 7:30:33 GMT -6 fancynewbeesly said:

Jun 9, 2024 7:22:36 GMT -6 joy said:

If you want to do Bippidi Boppiti and it’s sold out, there are people who will come to your hotel and do it!

My best advice is to just lower your expectations. Don’t try to do everything; the goal should be to have fun and do what you can. I took my kid to MK for one day and did exactly wgat she wanted: see the parade, meet Belle, eat a cupcake, watch a show. It was an awesome day.

Have fun!!!!

Oh we definitely plan on low expectations. Problem is with a 13 year old and 6 year old trying to combine both of their wants is not as easy. 🤣

Can you divide and conquer?

[flojo]

When in the summer are you going? Mickeys Not-So-Scary Halloween parade starts Aug. 9th. If you’re there for one of the Halloween parade nights I would get tickets - we love the parade. If you don’t get tickets, you won’t be allowed into MK at night.

[flojo]

Jun 9, 2024 7:22:36 GMT -6 joy said:

If you want to do Bippidi Boppiti and it’s sold out, there are people who will come to your hotel and do it!

My best advice is to just lower your expectations. Don’t try to do everything; the goal should be to have fun and do what you can. I took my kid to MK for one day and did exactly wgat she wanted: see the parade, meet Belle, eat a cupcake, watch a show. It was an awesome day.

Have fun!!!!

This, plus accept now that you’ll spend an insane amount of money.

[coffeecake]

I like the athleisure dresses from Old Navy that have built in shorts for Disney. The only downside is you basically have to get naked when you go the bathroom. Another option is a skort and tank top. Do you want quick service restaurants or sit down?

MK: Columbia Harbor House is quick service and we like it because there is plenty of indoor, air conditioned seating. There is an entire upstairs with tables and we’ve always found a seat. Sleepy Hollow is a walk up place in Liberty Square that has Nutella and fruit waffles, which is my DD’s favorite.

Epcot: Via Napoli has good pizza. There are food stands and restaurants in every country, so it depends on what you like. In Future World there is a food court in the Land building that has lots of tables. I think it’s called Sunshine Seaons? They have healthier options.

[bellatrixgotlost]

I'd swap and do a full day at Hollywood Studios & half a day at Epcot, especially with kids.

[rachers]

Jun 9, 2024 8:48:34 GMT -6 bellatrixgotlost said:

I'd swap and do a full day at Hollywood Studios & half a day at Epcot, especially with kids.

I was going to say this.

Also do the Genie Plus - it’s a PITA to schedule things but better than waiting in hours long of a line IMO.

Make any meal reservations before hand if you plan on eating there.

But have fun! It really is a pretty magical place. The employees are so amazing. We got caught in a downpour right in front of the castle and one employee ran to cover us all with his umbrella. We all snapped a picture and to this day my DD talks about it, haha.

Also Animal Kingdom is my personal favorite, it feels a little more laid back, if yall have the time!

[fancynewbeesly]

Jun 9, 2024 8:48:34 GMT -6 bellatrixgotlost said:

I'd swap and do a full day at Hollywood Studios & half a day at Epcot, especially with kids.

Epcot is my oldest favorite since she was 3. So a full day is pretty set in stone. My parents can't stand Disney but tolerate Epcot the best.  

[coffeecake]

My parents enjoy Disney, but one thing my dad can’t stand is not having a plan for dinner. After a busy day, even with an afternoon break, he gets annoyed if we’re trying to find a place, wait in line, carry trays, etc. So I always make dinner reservations, usually on the earlier side. You will only be there a couple of days so you might not want to spend time on sit down dinners, which I can understand. But that always seems to make everyone happier in our family.

[spicysalmonroll]

In the summer heat (and afternoon showers) take advantage of the indoor shows. Like mickeys philharmonic-magic at MK, mullets 3D at Hollywood, that time capsule one at MK. I thought they were going to bore me to death for 20 min but I actually loved them lol

[daisy]

I haven’t been since 2018, so not like I have great advice, but I agree with making all your meal plans in advance. Make reservations, or at least plan exactly which quick service place you plan to eat at.

[roselab]

I don't know if you want Disney themed clothes, but when I went I found some toned-down Disney themed clothes that I loved at Hot Topic, included a stained-glass beauty and the beast dress that was cute and cool (I wore athletic bike shorts with pockets underneath like I do with all dresses) and a peter pan tank top. I had never shopped at that store before, but I went all-in on the Disney clothes. Oh, and I have this dress that I actually wear to work, but my students call it my Minnie Mouse dress (I *think* in an appreciative way, and it would be good in the summer heat:
www.amazon.com/MOLERANI-Summer-Dresses-Sleeveless-Pockets/dp/B0BX3PL8YC?pd_rd_w=l6RZL&content-id=amzn1.sym.0c0e3277-1675-489c-a566-ea075b32087a&pf_rd_p=0c0e3277-1675-489c-a566-ea075b32087a&pf_rd_r=6B8AK2HATMN2Y4G3177W&pd_rd_wg=uHjZk&pd_rd_r=c2588857-c06d-45cd-8b15-259d8171da25&pd_rd_i=B0BX3X8Z64&ref_=pd_basp_d_rpt_ba_s_17_t&th=1

[peachesncream]

Oh my gosh, the ads on this site are killing me.

I highly recommend Genie Plus, especially if you'll be with Disney haters. It makes the lines tolerable. It's really easy to sit at the hotel for the first half of the day and stack a bunch of lightning lanes for the afternoon/evening to cut down on waiting in lines.

If you're planning on doing Tron or Guardians of the Galaxy virtual queue, be prepared to still wait in line for an hour or more.

It's super easy to mobile order from quickservice restaurants. It's also usually pretty easy to get walkup reservations or same day reservations at sit down restaurants. We really like the quickservice fish and chips at Epcot. Not sure if you'll be there for the food and wine festival but it's really fun to just walk from booth to booth trying everything.

[motherofdachshunds]

Jun 9, 2024 8:17:57 GMT -6 coffeecake said:

I like the athleisure dresses from Old Navy that have built in shorts for Disney. The only downside is you basically have to get naked when you go the bathroom. 

Search Easy Peezy dresses on Amazon. The shorts aren’t attached in the back so you can pull them down. 

[Bumblebee]

We just went and in addition to Genie + we used Standby Skipper (which is a 3rd party app that you buy once, $40 for the week) and using that rode everything at all 4 parks (except for Peter Pan's flight- could never get a LL for that one) with at most waiting for 20 minutes. I watched Tik Tok to get tips to grab virtual queues for Tron & Guardians, and had no trouble getting either ticket.

At Epcot, our last ride was at 4:00 pm and then our LL for Frozen wasn't until 7:30 pm. I very kindly asked the women at Frozen if we could use our LL early because we were leaving the park after we rode Frozen and they let us in the LL line 3.5 hours early. I love Disney.

[dc2london]

Epcot: You are on My Disney Experience on your phone booking Genue+ and yoir H us on his booking a virtual queye for Guardians. Get the earliest return tine you can for either Frozen or Remy. Rope drop whichever one you don't get a lightning lane (genie+ time) for. It's the only way to do both those rides without a ton of queuing (although mist of the queuing at Epcot is indoors, in air conditioning).

Magic Kingdom, same thing. One of you is getting your Tron virtual queue, the other is booking your favorite attraction on Genie+. The hardest lightning lanes to get are Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Peter Pan, and Jungle Cruise. Oh, by the time you go the vurtual queue may have left Tron and be used for Tiana. Same thing applies (that ride is cute AF).

Hollywood Studios, you will want to prioritize Rise of the Resistance (I think at least one of your kids is a Star Wars fan, right?), Slinky Dog Dash, and Runaway Railway as those get the longest lines. Rise and Railway have indoor, air conditioned queues. Slinks does not.

Easy, fast, good food we like: Connections Cafe has decent pizza and you can order a kid's meal with pizza, 2 sides and a drink for less than $10. Cantina de San Angel is always quiet and cool and the food is pretty good. Space 220 has fantastic food, and if you go at off times you can usually go to the lounge and eat there (the actual restaurant books up crazy fast). Plus, it's a cool experience.

At MK my kids LOVE Columbia Harbor House. Get your food and take it upstairs. It's often less crowded, and there are restrooms up there. If you don't want fried food, a kid's meal with a salmon fillet, rice pilaf, green beans and a drink is less than $10. Pinocchio's Village Haus also has an upstairs seating area with a beautiful view of Fantasyland. I haven't eaten there, but my kids said the flatbread pizzas are good. I would not recommend Pecos Bill's, unless you are getting one of the huge turkey legs (you can also get those at Epcot at the smokehouse). Cosmic Ray's is ok. But usually so crowded. But it IS a good place to refill your water bottles, and say hi to Sonny Eclipse.

At HS, my H likes the Ronto Wraps from Ronto Roasters in Batuu, and the brisket grilled cheese from Woody's. I never actually eat at HS, now that I think about it.

[STP]

I have some random ones from our trip two years ago - don't bother bringing your own water bottles. Yes, you can get them filled, yes it's expensive. Yadda. It was a PITA to carry them, we ditched it day two and just bought water and it was so much easier/better. See also popcorn bucket. Unless it's a special one that you want, just get a disposable serving. 

Shell out for whatever will make the lines shorter. It's enraging and greedy AF on their part, but you're already there and you don't want to spend time in line. We barely waited and road everything we wanted, and it was "worth" it in this context.

Do not buy big souvenirs until the end of the day. Obvious? Yes. Did I have to schlepp three lightsabers around Hollywood Studios for 8 hours with increasing fury? Yes.

And dc2london is spot on with food recs. Columbia House is a treasure for a break in MK.

[lucylou]

If you’re looking for a sit down restaurant, Space 220 in Epcot opened a couple of years ago and is a really neat experience. It’s a prix fixe menu, but if that’s not in the cards, the lounge is more affordable and you still get the experience.
If you’re not able to book advance dining, you may be able to walk up (as soon as the restaurant opens) and book a later slot.

[overboard]

You can get free cups of ice water at any quick service. We got back a couple of weeks ago. It is HOT. We did this almost anytime we passed one.

[overboard]

For sit down restaurants, we like Tony’s in the very front of magic kingdom.

[dc2london]

If you want to mobile order (which is super convenient, 10/10 recommend), especially on days when the parks are crowded, grab a mobile order time slot early because they will fill up.

[donnamartingraduates]

Jun 13, 2024 10:16:06 GMT -6 overboard said:

You can get free cups of ice water at any quick service. We got back a couple of weeks ago. It is HOT. We did this almost anytime we passed one.

Was just coming to say this. We'd grab them and drink them in line for rides.

[dc2london]

yeah if you are going in the summer I would definitely consider getting some hydration mix packets to dump into your water. And neck fans. And cooling towels. And I would never go to a Florida theme park without ponchos.

[ainsleyhayes]

We were there for a last minute trip 2 weeks ago and you’re spot on to do early morning and then rest before the night.

We go frequently so we ended up doing more sit down reservations this time than normal for a nice break from the heat. Our faves are Hollywood Brown Derby in HS, be our guest in MK, and Topolino’s for dinner or breakfast. If you don’t get reservations right away, there are apps you can use to alert you to when reservations opens. We’ve also done Space 220 in Epcot and liked it (other than an annoying waiter). Love the quick service poutine in Canada in Epcot and connections for more a/c.

We used standby skipper to get slinky and a couple other lightning lanes right at 7am while I focused on other things. I know some folks who use it to book everything, I’m just a control freak.

The last 3 times we’ve gone, 7 dwarves opened late, so just be aware if you’re rope dropping. Sometimes it’s a little late, sometimes a lot.

Guardians is the greatest and totally worth paying for an individual lightning lane if your kiddos like coasters. I also pay for Tron, but really just because my husband loves it and I won’t do the virtual queue wait anymore.

We timed a big thunder lightning lane with the fireworks this time because my kiddo doesn’t love them but seeing bits of them while riding was absolutely perfect.

Walking up and down Main Street, and Hollywood boulevard, we always go through the shops for a/c.

+many to Columbia harbor house upstairs and mobile ordering food.

Wdw prep school is my favorite website and podcast to help with planning.

[babybean]

I know everyone talks about going back to the hotel Mid day, but it felt like it took up so much time and wasn’t worth it.

For sure get Disney plus and throw money wherever you can to have a better experience.

Check out mouse dining for reservation you want.

[lizblue]

I’m a dissenter and didn’t like space 220. Expensive mediocre food and I didn’t like being in a windowless space.

Columbia Harbor House in magic kingdom was a great affordable quick service. Lobster roll (decent size) plus six hush puppies for $16!

The Snow White dinner at Wilderness Lodge was really good food. We stayed there and loved everything about it.

When you/your spouse/your kid inevitably have a break down, look around- so is at least three other people within arms length. It was comforting actually. We learned to just sit down, drink water and get a snack.

[Wtfshouldmynamebe]

I sent you a message with some additional things. But genie+ and paying for the additional lightning lanes is essential. We don’t/can’t do lines.

[Pizzaslut]

We just got back last week.

+whatever to buying Genie+ and the lightning lanes for the rides you want. My planner told me to grab Jungle Cruise because it fills up so fast but I found the ride boring. I'm mad I wasted my first Genie+ on that.

If you do buy souvenirs, they will ship from your resort, just keep the receipts for any disney merch. You can ship it all together for $40. We had 2 custom light sabers so definitely worth it.

We had a stroller and it was essential for my 2 (6 & 8). It was 96-100 every day so it helped keep them cool and was easier to get around the park.

I also didn't like Space 220. It was an okay experience and the food wasn't bad but it was so expensive and with picky eaters, it was wasted food.

We did not make it until dark at all. My 6 year old actually fell asleep at Space 220.

Also I would choose Animal Kingdom over Hollywood Studios. It was shaded and the rides were better IMO. Also, the Tusker House character breakfast was a favorite for all of us. On the other hand, Hollywood Studios had more opportunities to meet characters without waiting an hour +.