Trip Prep

[CoachBeard]

I'm a solo traveler and I've been to WDW twice in the last 3 years, with a trip in 97 days. Now that I am in double digits, I'm thinking about plans a little more in detail. What are some things you all do planning-wise once you're getting closer to travel?

I generally keep a spreadsheet calendar with potential parks and restaurants by day, with estimated costs to help with budgeting. I'm not quite there yet with filling it in but I am constantly thinking "what am I forgetting to think about?"

I hate this feeling where I can't be proactive about dining/experience/tour reservations yet, but I need to make sure I haven't forgotten anything. Last trip in January 2024 was awesome and the only thing I messed up on was thinking my 2 pairs of shoes were good enough. So, what is your planning routine once you hit the double digits but aren't quite at the 60 day mark?

 

[Jonnnyap]

Sounds like you have a good approach to planning. We utilized spreadsheets with all the items we needed to pack, park hours, extra magic hours, which parks had special events (to attend or avoid), and priority on rides. One thing we learned after all of our planning was than Disney will change hours of park opening depending upon expected crowds. For example, years ago, we planned to arrive at AK at park opening only to find it had been opened for 30+ minutes. Our plan of getting ahead of the crowds for first rides in the morning went sideways. Of course, we had a great time anyway, but we learned to check posted park hours the night before and adjust accordingly. Just something to keep in mind as your planning (and in case you do rope drop).

Hope you have a great trip!

 

[CoachBeard]

I have a goal to rope drop at least 2 parks. Last time I went I just couldn't get in tune with the 3 hour time difference and had some sleep issues on top of it but this time I think I should be good. I'll be at a deluxe resort so whatever perks come with that for extra hours, I should definitely take advantage.

I'm a little worried about the lightning lane in advance thing. Part of me doesn't want to commit to it unless I feel I need it, but I also don't want to lose out on the prime return times. I need to research the new system some more.

 

[_19disnA]

Everyone on here seems to have their own way to prepare for a Disney trip. Some make the planning as big a deal as the actual vacation. We have never used spreadsheets or extensive planning to prepare for Disney and don't feel like we were missing out on anything. Some ride might be down for a maintenance issue or inclement weather that you can't plan for in advance. The most popular rides will tend to have the longest lines. Disney can involve MILES of walking in hot weather with large crowds, so it is best to be realistic about how much you will be able to accomplish each day. No one suddenly turns into a marathon runner when they arrive @ Disney so how much walking you will be able to do or how many hours you stay at a park varies by person. If you have been the many times in the past, you likely already know the parks/rides/shows you like best. No amount of advance planning will change how crowded it happens to be when you are there.

We like to be spontaneous on vacation and following some rigid schedule isn't our idea of how to enjoy a vacation.

 

[BrianL]

Everyone on here seems to have their own way to prepare for a Disney trip. Some make the planning as big a deal as the actual vacation. We have never used spreadsheets or extensive planning to prepare for Disney and don't feel like we were missing out on anything. Some ride might be down for a maintenance issue or inclement weather that you can't plan for in advance. The most popular rides will tend to have the longest lines. Disney can involve MILES of walking in hot weather with large crowds, so it is best to be realistic about how much you will be able to accomplish each day. No one suddenly turns into a marathon runner when they arrive @ Disney so how much walking you will be able to do or how many hours you stay at a park varies by person. If you have been the many times in the past, you likely already know the parks/rides/shows you like best. No amount of advance planning will change how crowded it happens to be when you are there.

We like to be spontaneous on vacation and following some rigid schedule isn't our idea of how to enjoy a vacation.

I use spreadsheets, but they aren't that granular as to include specific rides unless I have an LLSP for one. I do put my travel information, parks for each day, and any ADRs or other time-specific things. I include the confirmation numbers, for easy reference. Otherwise I do go with the flow and might deviate from the general plan if I want to.

 

[CoachBeard]

Everyone on here seems to have their own way to prepare for a Disney trip. Some make the planning as big a deal as the actual vacation. We have never used spreadsheets or extensive planning to prepare for Disney and don't feel like we were missing out on anything. Some ride might be down for a maintenance issue or inclement weather that you can't plan for in advance. The most popular rides will tend to have the longest lines. Disney can involve MILES of walking in hot weather with large crowds, so it is best to be realistic about how much you will be able to accomplish each day. No one suddenly turns into a marathon runner when they arrive @ Disney so how much walking you will be able to do or how many hours you stay at a park varies by person. If you have been the many times in the past, you likely already know the parks/rides/shows you like best. No amount of advance planning will change how crowded it happens to be when you are there.

We like to be spontaneous on vacation and following some rigid schedule isn't our idea of how to enjoy a vacation.

I usually toss all planned events aside and become spontaneous but I like a framework so I’m not just lost. I don’t have anyone else to bounce ideas off and sometimes I have to kick myself to decide what to do and to leave the room haha!

I walked 75 miles over 8 days last time.

 

[R&RsMom]

I use a packing app for all our travel packing. Can just copy from one Disney trip to another and update it for trip length, time of year. Also have a high-level spreadsheet on which I plan parks, food, and experiences (e.g., parties) by day. Beyond that, I list my lightning lane choices by day on another tab of that spreadsheet. That gives me all the park detail I want.

 

[CoachBeard]

I use a packing app for all our travel packing. Can just copy from one Disney trip to another and update it for trip length, time of year. Also have a high-level spreadsheet on which I plan parks, food, and experiences (e.g., parties) by day. Beyond that, I list my lightning lane choices by day on another tab of that spreadsheet. That gives me all the park detail I want.

What is the app you use for packing?

 

[jimmymc]

I also go for the spreadsheet to plan meals and parks. I'll list the early and late park for each day and what reservations I want to get. But I won't get more detailed than those.

 

[CoachBeard]

Ok, I am going to hijack my own thread here. Below is a summary of my tentative plans and ADRs. I don’t normally focus on this kind of thing, but I need some help to optimize the plan a bit and figure out hopping park to park.

I have a 10-day park hopper ticket that starts on 1/12, and I want to make sure I effectively use all the days. I have not yet accounted for park hopping, so any suggestions from the veterans on where to hop and when would be appreciated. For what it is worth, I am going solo and will likely have only 1 meal a day, so many ADRs will be canceled. I also have several ADRs for Geo-82 and Beak and Barrel. I assume I will only need to go once each.


Sat1/10 – Travel day, land in the late afternoon, Mears to Coronado for 1 night

Sun 1/11 – Sangria University 1:30 Check into OKW

Mon 1/12 – Check into BWV for 6 nights, Olivia’s Brunch, Yachtsman Dinner, make a Walmart run during the day, Epcot has EE this evening, do I go? Epcot has EE

Tues 1/13 – La Cava Experience in the AM, Space 220 Lounge lunch, Geo-82 afternoon, Rose & Crown fireworks package evening

Weds 1/14 – Wailulu lunch, HS after-hours event (what to do during the day? Save park hopper for a different day?) Abracadabar? Resort Hop?

Thurs 1/15 – Epic Universe day

Fri 1/16 – Geo-82 lunchtime, opening day of iFARTS, Hop somewhere afternoon/evening?

Sat 1/17 – Animal Kingdom, Starlight Safari at AKL evening

Sun 1/18 – Steakhouse 71 brunch, Beak and Barrel lunchtime, Flying Fish dinner ADR Check into Riviera for 7 nights

Mon 1/19 – Wild Africa Trek late morning, Geo-82 evening, maybe Springs in between? Epcot EE

Tues 1/20 – Beak and Barrel lunchtime

Wed 1/21 – MK has EE planned AK in AM but is flexible due to time already spent there. Possible Geyser Point meal

Thurs 1/22 – resort exploring day, Monorail and/or skyliner crawl

Fri 1/23 – Geo-82 lunchtime, Le Cellier late lunch ADR, possible skyliner or monorail crawl depending on what has been done previously, Trader Sam’s?

Sat 1/24 – Hit all parks in one day, Ogas 4:00 (possibly cancel, been a lot in the past)

Sun 1/25 – OKW for one night, Disney Springs day do happy hours in DS

Mon 1/26 – Springs again, fly home evening