I think the most important thing to figure out first is your “trip style”, shall we say, for this trip. Each trip could be different. What do you want to get out of this trip this time for it to be considered a good trip?

1. Do you want to be go-go-go and do eeeeeverything possible from morning to nighttime?
2. Would you rather randomly walk around and scope things out, and it doesn’t matter if you ride or do anything in particular?
3. Do you want to do some key favorites (rides, dining, characters, etc) and new stuff but wing it for the rest?
4. Are you into thrill rides or tamer ones, shows, parades, or character meets?
5. Do you want to hit all four theme parks or just certain ones?
6. What about Disney Springs and the two water parks?
7. Are you a foodie and want to check out all the new food options or stick to basics?
8. Do you want to allot time for a sit-down lunch and/or dinner or rather grab a quick bite?
9. Do you want to have whole or parts of days to hang out at the resort pool or want to be at the parks all day, every day?
10. Do you have constraints to work around, like kids who need to nap, morning people vs night owls, height or health restrictions for rides, mobility issues, etc?
11. Do you want to keep costs to a certain budget, or can you splurge a little for a particular resort or fancier dining or more park days?
12. Do you want to stay within the “Disney bubble” and be immersed in Disney or be willing to stay off-site or drive yourself around?

Before you get into planning the specific details, you really need to come to a consensus with your travel group on what your “trip style” is going to be for this trip, since it affects what you will reserve for your parks, resort, dining, Genie+ rides, etc. If you have a large or diverse group, you may need to employ several styles. Perhaps some folks will be go-go-go folks, while others take a more chill approach, then you all meet up for a nice sit-down dinner. There are a variety of strategies that can be made, even different ones for each park or each day. However, you should definitely think this through and discuss this with your group, so everyone’s expectations are met for the trip. This will ensure that everyone has a great time and make it way easier to decide on what to book later.

There are probably a gazillion websites and YouTube videos of Disney info out there. It seems like there are so many things to know. What the heck are Lightning Lanes and Magic Bands? How are we supposed to know what we feel like eating several months from now?

Here’s the gist of what you need to know and do. Trust me, you’ll still have a magical time, and it’ll actually be more relaxing and fun. And even if you do end up creating the most perfect plan, just be ready to be flexible anyway and go with the flow. You never know when something else will turn out to be magical too.

Planning for Magic

1. Get an overview of the parks, rides, and special events.
2. Get an overview of the resorts.
3. Pick your travel dates. (Check if Park Reservations (new post-Covid requirement) are available and if certain events or festivals are going on that could affect park hours, crowd levels, and several other things though. Do a quick check of flight times/prices to see if it influences what days you go too.)
4. Reserve your hotel/resort.
5. Buy your park tickets (do this after you finalize your hotel and flight dates, so you’re sure how many days of tickets to buy) and link them to your My Disney Experience account immediately.
6. Book your park reservations as soon as your tickets are linked, if required for your ticket type.
7. Reserve your flights or other transportation. (If you need to tweak your hotel days based on what flight days you end up getting, make sure the desired hotel is available for the days you will be there before you book your flight.)
8. Book your dining reservations 60 days before the first day of your trip.
9. Decide if you’ll be using Genie+ and plan for the rides you’ll want to book.
10. If you’re staying at a Disney resort, about 5 days before your trip, do the online check-in in the My Disney Experience app or Disney website.

There! Just 10 steps! Not so bad, right?

Click on the link to each page for a deeper dive into that topic. Each page is listed below and under the Disney World section on the site menu too.

If this applies to you, view also this article on 6 Tips for Traveling to Disney World with a Large Group and Young Children.

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