One, must have piece of advice...

[Wild about Walt]

As a mom of 3 I know how easy it is to get caught up taking care of everyone. Making sure sunscreen is applied, fixing untied laces, rushing everyone to the next attraction, making sure everyone has their snacks and faces are clean.....the list is endless.

My advice to fellow moms....take the time to smell the roses. It's your vacation too. You did your planning, take in those special moments and don't rush through them. They'll last a lifetime!

 

[the_green_machine]

The one thing that my wife and I did on our trip (Jan 20th through 27th 2012) was pack food for breakfast. In our case we packed a box of Honey Nut Cherrios, 2 collaspable bowls and some disposable spoons and when combined with milk from the resort food court PRESTO! WDW express breakfast.

Eating our breakfast in our room saved SO much time.

 

[Disney-Chick]

Besides fastpasses and utilizing them the other piece of advice I give is the EMH. We do late hours and we LOVE it. What a beauty to see the Castle at night (3am) when nobody is around. I have gotten great pictures.

Also, I do mention that they should go for 10 days if possible. We would never go any less than that. Plus we drive which is 36 hours one way total so it wouldn't be worth it to go for only 7 days.

I do let others know that they will not be able to everything done and to make sure they pick out what is important and make sure that is done. Should they come across a ride that is a good wait time then to jump in line you never know what it will be when you go back.

 

[hisgrl]

Enjoy EVERY moment. Take the time to stop and pay attention to each moment or those moments will be gone before you know it!

 

[Josh125]

Good advice. We are trying to take it easy this trip, actually typing this from the balcony of our room at the Contemporary while enjoying the view of MK. My tip is this, do yourself a favor and look at the ride closures before you go. It won't change what is closed, but you will know ahead of time. I've seen numerous people this week look devastated that BTM is closed. If they had looked ahead, they would know and it would be planned around, etc.

FP changes are quite the chatter around the park, I overheard many a conversation between guests and FP attendants. It will be interesting to say the least when they start enforcing it on March 7th.

 

[CMJeanae]

Some excellent advice. My #1 is to DO YOUR RESEARCH. Get a guide book. Know that there are four, yes, four parks. No, the one with Harry Potter isn't one of them. No, you don't have to pay extra for fast pass. No, it's not just for resort guests. And, btw, you are a resort guest. Yes, that's a disney resort. You just thought you were staying close, I see. And the word "Disney" in it was just a nice touch. Ah, I see. Yes, food is more expensive, something that might have occurred to you had you stopped and thought about dining at, say, Six Flags for comparison. No, I won't listen to your rant about paying that much for water. There are water fountains, you know. And the lines were bad and it was hot and crowded? When you showed up at 11:30? And planned your trip for August? Imagine that. And every sit down restaurant you walked up to was booked? Can't imagine why. And you thought Epcot was boring with just little countries to walk around? Well what about Future World? Future - you know, that part you walk through to get to the countries? The big golf ball? You - you thought that was just a long walk to get to the countries? You didn't realize there were things to do there? At all? But Space ship - er, the big golf ball - you didn't know that was a ride either. Did you pick up a map? Of course you didn't. Those signs around - yeah, you didn't read those either. Nice. You know there's shows and a couple attractions (er, "rides") in the countries as well, right? You didn't. You thought it was shopping. Cute. And now you think Disney is totally overrated. Nice.

And, yes, this conversation was had nearly verbatim with my husband regarding his college trip with his family to WDW. Just minus the Harry Potter stuff since that was after his time there. That bit came from another conversation. Fortunately my husband has been saved from the dark side but my in-laws still think I'm crazy for loving WDW as I do since for them it's all heat and crowds and lines. Sigh.

 

[littlesparkler]

My one tip is to really take advantage of the photopass photographers. If you plan on buying the pass, then take pictures EVERY time you see one. You pay the same for 10 pictures as you do for 500, so get some! If you do not plan on buying one, you can have the photographers take pictures with your camera - a great opportunity!

I have to say another tip: DO NOT OVER-PACK! I kept reading all of the "packing lists" and I ended up with WAY too much crap. I probably ended up spending $100 on "must have" items which I never used. So, be realistic.

 

[Alexsmommie]

My number one tip: Fastpasses don't expire and are accepted until the close of the park day. They never accept them early, but always accept them late

good to know!!!

 

[Alexsmommie]

We've never been but the one thing I read that I FULLY intend to do is ship some of our bathroom essentials to the hotel before hand... (it'll save space in the car since we'll be partially driving partially taking the auto-train and it wont be something we're worried about losing like electronics or favorite toys etc) anyone else ever do this?!

 

[denvergirl]

Toss all expectations out the window before arriving at the most magical place on earth. . .especially if you have kids! My DH and I have been going to Disney our entire lives, but our first trip with our DD (turned 4) was so different, but SO FANTASTIC! We barely rode any rides and saw numerous characters but had a great time enjoying each moment. I do recommend having a handful of ADRs (NOT breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday. . .one cannot eat that much food!) so you know you'll have a few moments to sit and relax with out worry. So much great info on the boards and this is another keeper thread!

 

[wdwgirl3]

1) live in the moment.

2) get photo pass and try different poses,with different family members. also as the photographers for some " magic shots". we also attached a luggage tag to our backpack slipped our photo pass card in it. easier than keeping track of different cards.

3) 1/2 the fun is planning the trip, but be flexible.

4) watch wishes fireworks show at the poly resort after eating at ohana's

5) take along a hanging shoe thing to hang up bathroom stuff.

6) take one day, or at least 1/2 a day to enjoy your resort.

7) have fun!

 

[frugalfanny]

Remember ziploc bags! They can save your life ~ well, sorta Pack up leftover desserts, save the phone/camera from those water rides or unexpected showers, keep the sunscreen from spilling over everything....

Look for those little touches of magic everywhere!

 

[Jenene]

As a mom of 3 I know how easy it is to get caught up taking care of everyone. Making sure sunscreen is applied, fixing untied laces, rushing everyone to the next attraction, making sure everyone has their snacks and faces are clean.....the list is endless.

My advice to fellow moms....take the time to smell the roses. It's your vacation too. You did your planning, take in those special moments and don't rush through them. They'll last a lifetime!

. Thanks. I needed to hear that... Getting to the park can be hectic and I wonder why I put myself through this... First walk down main street with the music and magic of Disney and I remember why I love it too remembering it is my vacation too is important. Thx

 

[ah1126]

Thanks for all the tips! We will be at Disney in 2 weeks!! I have been twice in the past, but it will be the first time for my DH and DD. We are soaking up any and all info we get so we can make the most of our time.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

My number one tip: Fastpasses don't expire and are accepted until the close of the park day. They never accept them early, but always accept them late

This is not the case anymore. My Uncle works at Disney and just last week on Monday Feb 13 CM were told they can no longer bend this rule.

 

[brettcw23]

Since I am a frequent visitor to the World, I am often asked about planning a first trip to WDW ....what is your one piece of advice you feel every first time visitor should know?

Mine is that you should not over think it and be realistic in what you plan to do every day.

So....how about all of you?

Make sure you plan before getting there. Don't just show up without a clue.
The other piece of advice that goes along with that is you have to be realistic and focus on enjoying yourself even if (WHEN) everything does not go exactly as planned!

 

[courtneydisney]

Some excellent advice. My #1 is to DO YOUR RESEARCH. Get a guide book. Know that there are four, yes, four parks. No, the one with Harry Potter isn't one of them. No, you don't have to pay extra for fast pass. No, it's not just for resort guests. And, btw, you are a resort guest. Yes, that's a disney resort. You just thought you were staying close, I see. And the word "Disney" in it was just a nice touch. Ah, I see. Yes, food is more expensive, something that might have occurred to you had you stopped and thought about dining at, say, Six Flags for comparison. No, I won't listen to your rant about paying that much for water. There are water fountains, you know. And the lines were bad and it was hot and crowded? When you showed up at 11:30? And planned your trip for August? Imagine that. And every sit down restaurant you walked up to was booked? Can't imagine why. And you thought Epcot was boring with just little countries to walk around? Well what about Future World? Future - you know, that part you walk through to get to the countries? The big golf ball? You - you thought that was just a long walk to get to the countries? You didn't realize there were things to do there? At all? But Space ship - er, the big golf ball - you didn't know that was a ride either. Did you pick up a map? Of course you didn't. Those signs around - yeah, you didn't read those either. Nice. You know there's shows and a couple attractions (er, "rides") in the countries as well, right? You didn't. You thought it was shopping. Cute. And now you think Disney is totally overrated. Nice.

And, yes, this conversation was had nearly verbatim with my husband regarding his college trip with his family to WDW. Just minus the Harry Potter stuff since that was after his time there. That bit came from another conversation. Fortunately my husband has been saved from the dark side but my in-laws still think I'm crazy for loving WDW as I do since for them it's all heat and crowds and lines. Sigh.

Is there a way to vote this as the greatest comment ever? I think you just described about 60% of people there!

 

[ZoZo]

My number one tip: Fastpasses don't expire and are accepted until the close of the park day. They never accept them early, but always accept them late

Unfortunately, this isn't true anymore. You have to use FPs within the "return window" now.

 

[scotton]

1. www.touringplans.com I think is a great resource. It's totally worth getting the book and paying for the additional information because it will save you so much time.

 

[ZoZo]

Even if you're not a "morning person," get to the parks early (about 1/2 hour before rope drop). You'll get more done in the first two or three hours than you will the entire rest of the day. I'm definitely a night owl, but I get up early almost every day of a WDW vacation because it's worth it to me.

And because I usually go in October, when the parks close earlier, I don't usually take an afternoon break, as some folks suggest. That's wonderful advice when the parks stay open later, but if the parks close between 5:00 (AK) and 9:00 (Epcot0, I don't want to lose my whole afternoon to an afternoon break. I'd rather power through (perhaps do a quick "shower and change" stop at the resort room if I'm extra hot and sweaty) and then rest in the evening.