{"id":6563,"date":"2014-02-05T17:19:11","date_gmt":"2014-02-05T22:19:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_ms_news\/?p=6563"},"modified":"2018-10-07T22:20:26","modified_gmt":"2018-10-08T02:20:26","slug":"five-quick-planning-tips-make-disney-vacation-magical","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_ms_news\/news\/featured-article\/five-quick-planning-tips-make-disney-vacation-magical\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Quick Planning Tips To Make Your Disney Vacation Magical"},"content":{"rendered":"

By:\u00a0 Jennifer Retzlaff<\/p>\n

After visiting Disney multiple times in the last few years, I have come to learn that planning is essential. I realize that planning isn\u2019t up everyone\u2019s ally and many like to \u201cwing it\u201d when they are on vacation, but I have come to love the planning of the Disney trip just as much as the trip itself. When my daughter turned four, we took our family on the Disney vacation of her (okay really my) dreams and I truly believe that it turned out so well because of the planning I did. Two years later, I am busy once again planning another Disney vacation although this one will be a very different trip. My husband and I will be heading to Disney for our 10 year anniversary without kids. As you begin your Disney planning, I hope these five quick tips will help you start making your trip as magical as possible.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>\"Retzlaff<\/a>1.\u00a0 Educate Yourself<\/strong><\/p>\n

Educate Yourself<\/p>\n

My first tip is educate yourself about Disney.\u00a0Even if you don\u2019t like to plan, being educated about the parks, rides, restaurants, shows, etc. will really help your trip be a lot less stressful.\u00a0I am always surprised when I am waiting for a parade and there are people walking around with confused looks wondering why thousands of people are standing around.\u00a0These confused people are unaware of the upcoming parade.\u00a0Don\u2019t spend all that money and potentially miss out on things because you’re clueless as to what’s happening around you.<\/p>\n

There are many ways to educate yourself.\u00a0 With all the advanced technology there are tons of Facebook pages, (Editors note:\u00a0 we’d like to mention that Magically Speaking has a fun TheMouseForLess<\/a> page) websites, and blogs (Editors note:\u00a0 like The Mouse for Less<\/a>) that will provide readers with a variety of up-to-date information.\u00a0 Get on these sites and just read.\u00a0 Engross yourself in all that is Disney so that when your four year old daughter wants to experience Stitch’s Great Escape you know that might not be the best idea, or when your husband just needs an ice cream sandwich you know where to go about finding one.\u00a0 This isn\u2019t about planning every detail out, but it is about knowing enough about Disney so you are prepared to make decisions and aren\u2019t frustrated when the family starts asking you questions to which don’t know the answer.<\/p>\n

\u00a02.\u00a0 What\u2019s your purpose?<\/strong><\/p>\n

When heading to Disney you need to know what your purpose is for the trip.\u00a0 What I mean by this is talking to those in your travel party and determine what you want to get out of the trip.\u00a0 Is the goal to go and relax with a little Disney on the side, or is it to immerse yourself in all things Disney from sun up to sun down?\u00a0 This is an important conversation to have as it can drastically impact the rest of the your planning.\u00a0 Making sure everyone in your party is on the same page is also important.\u00a0 You don\u2019t want to plan five full days at the park and later find out Grandma really wanted to spend more time at the pool relaxing.\u00a0 Figuring out the purpose of the trip is essential to the rest of your planning process.<\/p>\n

\"Retzlaff<\/a>\u00a03.\u00a0 Where to stay?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Once you have determined the purpose of your trip, you can begin considering where you want to stay.\u00a0 The first question here is to stay on-site (a Disney Resorts) or off-site (a non-Disney hotel).\u00a0 Disney has a variety of amazing hotel options that will provide you with the full Disney experience.\u00a0 There are many advantages of staying at a Disney resort and I have fully enjoyed our time at ours.\u00a0 Disney resorts offer the advantage of Disney transportation and extra magic hours.\u00a0 If your purpose is to immerse yourself in all things Disney but still have some down time, Disney resorts provide this option as you can come and go from the parks more easily.\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Off site there are also a variety of wonderful hotels.\u00a0 Although I haven\u2019t stayed off site in a few years, I know that many have found this option to suit their purpose.\u00a0 Those that want to be at the parks from sun up to sun down tend to like this option as they don\u2019t need the close availability of the Disney resorts.<\/p>\n

When determining at which resort to stay, make sure you look at your family needs.\u00a0 Do kids need a separate room?\u00a0\u00a0 Do you need the bathroom and sink to be separate?\u00a0 Are kids going to need a nap?\u00a0 There are a lot of different factors when choosing a resort and it can be very overwhelming.\u00a0 I also make a spreadsheet with our must haves and then start comparing them.\u00a0 Once you have narrowed it down to a couple, refer back to idea number 1:\u00a0 educate.\u00a0 Research and read about the different resorts and what people have to say about them.\u00a0 Realize that there are also positives and negatives about the hotels, but it does help to hear what people are saying.\u00a0\u00a0 Figuring out where to stay is a big decision and will help as you move on in your planning stages.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0 Food<\/strong><\/p>\n

Everyone loves to eat and Disney is a great place to do this.\u00a0 Disney has three different levels of food service:\u00a0 table service (TS), quick service (QS) and snacks (S).\u00a0 When discussing the purpose of your trip, food is an important thing to talk about.\u00a0 Does your family want to have mainly sit down meals or do you want to be on the go?\u00a0 Does your daughter just have to eat with the princesses?\u00a0 Are character meals important?\u00a0 Does your littlest one only eat chicken nuggets?\u00a0 These are all conversations to have before booking your Disney vacation.<\/p>\n

If you are staying on site, you also have the option of using the three main Disney Dining Plans.\u00a0 These plans are prepaid that you can purchase before leaving on your trip.\u00a0 They come in different levels from deluxe to the standard, to the quick service dining plan.\u00a0 Each provides a variety of different combinations.\u00a0 Again you have to decide what will work with your family.\u00a0 If you are more of a snack on the go family then the deluxe meal plan won\u2019t be for you.\u00a0 Learn about what your options with each plan are and then look at the different restaurant\u00a0menus<\/a> to see what would appeal to your family.\u00a0 Even though it is a top rated restaurant that doesn\u2019t mean it will be right for your family dynamic.\u00a0 It is a very stressful experience if people are hungry during your vacation, so make sure to educate yourself on all your options before heading out.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\"Retzlaff<\/a>5.\u00a0 Which parks do we want to see?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although it would seem this would be the first question, I actually have learned that determining which park I am going to comes later in my planning.\u00a0 When deciding which park to go to, I use a variety of different resources.<\/p>\n

A)\u00a0 Extra magic hours:\u00a0 These are bonus hours that Disney Resort guests can take advantage of either in the morning or late in the evening.\u00a0 Again, know your family.\u00a0 We are up early in the morning with our kids so we can take advantage of these bonus morning hours, but there was no way we could stay up until midnight so we didn\u2019t use the benefit of evening magic hours on our last trip.\u00a0 It is always a good rule of thumb that if you can\u2019t take advantage of the extra magic hours, to avoid those parks if you can as the parks do get overly crowded due to these bonus hours.<\/p>\n

B)\u00a0 Crowd Calendars:\u00a0 There are a variety of sites out there that have done the research to help give you the best and worst park to visit each day.\u00a0 They can also give you the crowd level that is expected for those days.\u00a0 Many of these sites don\u2019t suggest parks with extra magic hours as they are assuming their readers aren\u2019t going to use them.\u00a0 Make sure you take that into consideration when planning for your family.\u00a0 If you can make the morning extra magic hours work, then do so for your family and then use the crowd calendar to determine where you might go in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

C)\u00a0 Favorites:\u00a0 This would seem like a no brainer, but make sure when planning you look at your family favorites.\u00a0 We love a variety of rides at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, so we tend to spend more time there than other parks.\u00a0 Our kids weren\u2019t fans of Epcot, so we didn\u2019t spend a lot of time there as a family.\u00a0 On our adult’s only trip, my husband and I plan to spend more time there to enjoy what the park has to offer.\u00a0 Again look at the purpose of your trip.\u00a0 If it is to see everything at Disney (which is impossible by the way) you will need to spread out your park options, but if the purpose is to hit your favorites as many times as possible figure out your park schedule accordingly.<\/p>\n

D)\u00a0 Food:\u00a0 Again everyone loves to eat and each park has their specialty restaurants.\u00a0 Look at the options at each park to decide if there are specific things you just have to have.\u00a0 If your daughter just has to eat at the castle, you are going to want to plan a day at Magic Kingdom to accommodate that dream. \u00a0\u00a0Or do you have to see Fantasmic?\u00a0 Then make sure you are at Disney’s Hollywood Studios one evening when it is being performed. \u00a0Although Disney does provide great transportation between parks, I have learned that park hopping for reservations can be somewhat stressful, so we now book our restaurants at the parks we are planning to be at already to avoid that stress.<\/p>\n

Disney parks have so much to offer and it can be overwhelming determining which ones to be at and when but I have learned that knowing when the extra magic hours are, reviewing a few crowd calendars from different sites and knowing my family’s favorite rides and restaurants all make the decision of which park on which day a little easier.<\/p>\n

Walt Disney World is truly a world within itself and planning a trip to the magic land can sometimes feel like anything but magical.\u00a0 In my experience, if you take time to educate yourself on Disney it will help you make the best of your trip and will allow you to make decisions on your feet as well as help you better determine what resorts, restaurants and parks to visit.\u00a0 I hope that these five quick tips help you get your Disney vacation off to a magical start.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By:\u00a0 Jennifer Retzlaff After visiting Disney multiple times in the last few years, I have come to learn that planning is essential. I realize that planning isn\u2019t up everyone\u2019s ally and many like to \u201cwing it\u201d when they are on vacation, but I have come to love the planning of the Disney trip just as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6572,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[297,113,291,387,26,30],"yoast_head":"\nFive Quick Planning Tips To Make Your Disney Vacation Magical<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Five tips that will help you when planning your Disney World vacation, such as considering parks you want to see, food you want to eat, and more.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"RNiblett\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script 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