{"id":57450,"date":"2017-10-12T12:00:20","date_gmt":"2017-10-12T16:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/?p=57450"},"modified":"2022-04-09T00:28:20","modified_gmt":"2022-04-09T04:28:20","slug":"things-walt-disney-world-first-times-dont-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/things-walt-disney-world-first-times-dont-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Things Walt Disney World First Timers Don’t Know Before They Go"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Congrats! \u00a0You have decided to take the family to Walt Disney World<\/a> for the very first time! \u00a0With four theme parks<\/a>, two water parks<\/a>, Disney Springs<\/a> and over twenty resort hotels<\/a> there is so much to know before heading down. \u00a0Here are a few things to help you be better prepare for your magical Walt Disney World Vacation.<\/p>\n

Before heading down to Walt Disney World here are a few things first timers need to know.<\/p>\n

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Four Parks:\u00a0 One World<\/strong><\/p>\n

Walt Disney World Is Huge<\/h2>\n

Walt Disney World has four main theme parks, two water parks, an enormous shopping and entertainment center in Disney Springs as well as 20 plus resorts. \u00a0It is huge! \u00a0Understanding how big Walt Disney World is before going is important to your planning and your experience. \u00a0Because of how big it is, it takes a while to get anywhere. \u00a0Knowing that you will need travel time built into your schedule before going down is important. \u00a0Just keep in mind that you will need to be patient during your trip just due to the size of Walt Disney World itself.<\/p>\n

You Will Walk\u2026 A LOT<\/b><\/h2>\n

Because Walt Disney World is SO big, you will walk each day. \u00a0A lot. \u00a0Most guests walk miles a day. \u00a0Be prepared for this ahead of time. \u00a0Get those new shoes broken in. (Don’t wear new shoes!) Take kids on walks to practice. \u00a0Be active. \u00a0All of those things will help when you head down. \u00a0Know that having a few pairs of shoes, band-aids and blister medicine will also help with all of the walking.<\/p>\n

Weather Happens<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Sporting Our Umbrellas and Rain Coats<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/h2>\n

When you think of Disney do you picture sunny, clear blue skies? \u00a0Although it does seem like Walt Disney World has more sunny filled days than other places, weather does happen there too. \u00a0Make sure you look into the weather before going. \u00a0It can get colder in Florida during the \u201cwinter\u201d months down there so plan accordingly. \u00a0Also, it does sometimes rains daily in the summer months. \u00a0Make sure you pack those umbrellas and ponchos so you can keep on moving without much of an issue. \u00a0It would be great if it was sunny skies for every vacation but not even Disney can make that magic happen so make sure to plan ahead.<\/p>\n

Planning is a must!<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Planning Book For My Sister<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/h2>\n

We will get into more detail on what exactly to plan here shortly, but you need to know that a Walt Disney World vacation takes planning. \u00a0Long gone are the days where you can just show up at Disney and wing it. \u00a0Some people (myself included) love planning and will spend hours reading blogs, making spreadsheets and laminating them. \u00a0That type of planning isn\u2019t required for a good time, but some planning is. \u00a0Take time to read some blogs (like this site<\/a>) and look at the maps of the different parks. \u00a0Get familiar with some of the language of Walt Disney World. \u00a0If you go into your vacation not knowing anything, you might find yourself frustrated.<\/p>\n\n

My Disney Experience<\/b><\/h2>\n

When you are starting your planning, you will want to use My Disney Experience<\/a>. \u00a0This is a section of Disney\u2019s online site where you are able to create a profile and then view, plan and make reservations. \u00a0Once you have booked your trip, you will want to get this up and running as it is a great one-stop shop for all things about your trip. \u00a0You will also want to download the My Disney Experience app allowing you to have access to this information on the go.<\/p>\n

Disney Dining Plan<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Don’t Disappoint the Princess… Make Those ADRs<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Disney offers guests staying on property the option of purchasing a Disney Dining Plan<\/a>. \u00a0There are currently three different dining plans to choose from. \u00a0Disney Deluxe Dining Plan, Disney Dining Plan and Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan are the three options. \u00a0Each of these plans are ways for guest to prepay for their dining. \u00a0Each plan offers guests a mixture of credits for either table-service, quick-service and snacks. \u00a0If you are staying on property, this is a great option for many families. \u00a0\u00a0The ease of having food prepaid is a great option for many families.<\/p>\n

Advance Dining Reservations<\/b><\/h2>\n

One of the things that needs to be planned out prior to leaving is advance dining reservations<\/a>. \u00a0These are reservations you can make throughout Disney property at their sit-down, table service restaurants. \u00a0These can be made up to 180 days ahead of time for guests staying at a Disney resort. \u00a0I know. \u00a0You are thinking I have no idea what I want for supper tonight, how am I going to know what to have six months from now. \u00a0I get this. \u00a0It really is important to book your Advance Dining Reservations as soon as possible especially for those popular places such as Cinderella\u2019s Royal Table, Be Our Guest Restaurant and Chef Mickey\u2019s as they fill up quickly. \u00a0Take some time to plan ahead when it comes to your dining reservations in order to get those special meals.<\/p>\n

FastPass+<\/b><\/h2>\n

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FastPass+ Planning<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Before heading down you will want to book your FastPass+<\/a> reservations. \u00a0FastPass+ is part of Disney\u2019s MyMagic+ and can be found on the My Disney Experience website. \u00a0FastPass+ allows for guests to by-pass lines by booking three FastPass+ tickets each day. \u00a0This is a way to virtually stand in line while experience other attractions throughout the park. \u00a0When your scheduled time arrives (typically an hour window), you will scan your MagicBand<\/a> and head on into the ride with little to no wait. \u00a0Those staying on Disney property can book these 60 days ahead of time and it is highly recommend that you take advantage of this opportunity. \u00a0By booking these you will eliminate some of your long waits to highly popular attractions such as Seven Dwarf Mine Train, Big Thunder Mountain, Avatar Flight of Passage and more.<\/p>\n

Extra Magic Hours<\/b><\/h2>\n

\"Walt<\/p>\n

Extra Magic Hours Are Great<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Extra Magic Hours<\/a> (EMH) are additional hours offered to guests staying on Disney property. \u00a0\u00a0EMH are offered at a specific park either prior to normal park opening or after normal park closing. \u00a0This is a great opportunity for guests to take advantage of extremely low crowds. \u00a0Make sure to check out the extra magic hours offered during your vacation located on Disney’s park calendar.<\/p>\n

There is so much to know and learn about Walt Disney World prior to heading down. \u00a0These are just a few things that first timers should know prior to their trip.<\/p>\n

What tips do you have for those visiting Walt Disney World for the first time? Share them in the comments section.<\/em><\/p>\n

Did you like this article? Make sure to share it with your friends! Check below for easy ways to share!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Congrats! \u00a0You have decided to take the family to Walt Disney World for the very first time! \u00a0With four theme parks, two water parks, Disney Springs and over twenty resort hotels there is so much to know before heading down. \u00a0Here are a few things to help you be better prepare for your magical Walt…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":72,"featured_media":57456,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-walt-disney-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57450","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/72"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57450"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57450\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57806,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57450\/revisions\/57806"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57450"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57450"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57450"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}