As the world moves into a new phase of managing COVID-19, there is a whole new list of things to know before you go to Disney World. While the old adages certainly still apply, many have taken on new meaning and other tips for managing a successful trip have emerged.
If you’re planning a visit to Disney World now, here are the critical things you should know before you leave home.
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Timing Is Everything
Timing your trip to the right season has always been an important part of Disney World vacation planning. If you can’t stand heat and humidity, then a summer trip isn’t for you. Likewise, if your bones get chilled at the thought of standing in line for Expedition Everest on a 40 degree day, you might want to avoid January or February when a cold snap could easily send temperatures plummeting.
Crowds are another thing to consider. The parks see their highest crowds around Christmas and Easter and lower numbers of guests throughout the rest of the year. Even with park attendance capped to limit viral spread, seasonal attendance numbers tend to vary.
If you have concerns about large crowds or just prefer to visit the parks with fewer fellow guests, you’ll want to plan your vacation for January, February or September. However, there are drawbacks to each of these times that you’ll also want to consider.
For more advice on selecting your travel dates, you can read our blog on the subject.
Where to Stay, so Many Choices
I have a friend who once drove up to the Polynesian Resort at Disney World and inquired about a room at the front desk. She was given a suite at a last-minute magical price that she’s never forgotten.
Unfortunately, those days are long behind us and one thing you need to know before you go to Disney World is where you will stay.
When selecting accommodations, you have two choices. Onsite hotels are located somewhere on the nearly 13,000 acres owned by Disney Parks. These resorts come in three different categories known as Value, Moderate and Deluxe.
Value room feature the lowest price tag and the slimmest set of amenities. Think budget motel, like Super 8, with extensive theming and features geared toward the young at heart.
Moderate resorts, such as Port Orleans Riverside or Caribbean Beach Resort, blend some of the budget-friendly aspects of the Value resorts with a slightly elevated feel. Rooms still open directly onto exterior walkways as you would expect from a wallet-friendly motel, but you can expect more space and a slightly more upgraded feel to the furnishings and in-room amenities.
Inhabiting the top-tier of the Disney hotel experience are Deluxe Resorts. Hotels in this category include the flagship Grand Floridian and the African-themed Animal Kingdom Lodge.
All Deluxe Resorts feature upscale theming, larger rooms, and a true hotel experience. Unfortunately, they have the price tag to match the extended amenities set, with rack rates averaging around $500 a night.
To save money, Disney World travelers have been known to take accommodations offsite at a nearby hotel or rented residence. While the nightly rate may come in under those charged by Disney resorts, there are additional costs to consider.
For one thing, if the hotel does not provide transportation to the parks, you’ll need a car. If you fly into Orlando from your home base, that means a car rental, adding extra cost to your vacation bill. You’ll also be charged a parking fee each day when you drive to the parks, an expense that adds up quickly.
For a detailed account of the pros and cons of the various Disney World hotel options, you can read our blog covering the differences between onsite and offsite resort stays.
Know Your Deadlines before you go to Disney World
Advanced preparation is necessary—that’s what you need to know before you go to Disney World. FastPass+ reservations, currently suspended due to the COVID-19 social distancing measures, allow you to skip the regular queue, but you’ll need to book your ride time in advance. Likewise, those always-popular character meals will likely require an advanced dining reservation.
Here are some deadlines you should know before you go to Disney World:
Advanced dining reservations Begin 60 days before the start of your trip (previously 180) for guests staying at a Disney World resort. If you’re staying offsite, you can begin booking 60 days before each day of your trip.
Disney World resort package final payment 30 days prior to arrival
FastPass+ Reservations At the time the program was suspended, guests at Disney World Resorts could begin booking 60 days prior to the start of their vacation, for the entire length of their stay. Guests booking club-level accommodations at a Deluxe Resort could begin booking 90 days out. Guests of offsite resorts could begin booking 45 days ahead of their stay.
You Might Just Need an Itinerary
If you like to go with the flow, you might not need a step by step timed itinerary, but even the freest traveler will benefit from having some idea of what they want to see on a Disney World vacation and when they want to see it. At a minimum, that means reviewing the list of rides and attractions available at each park and deciding which you must experience.
If you’re traveling during peak times, lines can be long, so identifying your must-dos and penciling them in first will help you ensure you experience the most important rides, shows and events.
Having at least a loose itinerary is essential if the FastPass system is ever brought back. An itinerary can help you keep track of your FastPass reservations, so you don’t miss any ride-skipping fun.
It’s the same for dining reservations. If you hope to dine at some of Disney’s popular table-service restaurants, particularly those featuring character meals, advanced dining reservations (ADRs) are critical. Recording these in your itinerary will put you on a time schedule for making your ADRs.
For the more detailed minded, or for anyone who wants to spend as little time as possible in line, it could even mean planning out more popular attractions for earlier in the day and planning others for later. You can find complete guidelines on planning your park visit in our Disney World Itinerary planning blog.
Decide How You Will Get Around
When visiting Disney World, you have a number of options for traveling between resorts, the parks and other locations across the vast property. The easiest is Disney World’s complimentary transportation system. The network includes buses, boats, a monorail and even a new Skyliner.
Ride sharing is also available across Disney World, either through Uber or Lyft.
However, with the exception of buses and ride sharing, you won’t find every type of transportation available at every location. To make things easier and your Disney World vacation more enjoyable, you may want to know what options are available for you before you go.
The handy list below makes a great cheat sheet. You can also read our blog for complete details on the Disney World transportation system, including a comparison between each transportation type.
Disney World Rules to Know Before You Go
As with anything in life, rules are put into place to keep people safe and create a more enjoyable atmosphere for everyone. This is as true for Disney World as it is anywhere else, particularly now as travelers must consider the possibility of contracting COVID-19.
Here are some of the top rules at Disney World to know before you go:
Line cutting—don’t even think about it: It should go without saying that line cutting is not tolerated at Disney World. However, many guests like to shade this rule with a generous portion of gray, allowing a lot of latitude. We’ve seen large groups push their way through queues to meet up with a single individual who entered the line an hour before. Make now doubt about it, this is considered line cutting and can get you kicked out of the park.
Drones are a no-no: If you’ve ever considered taking an overhead drone footage of your family as you enter Magic Kingdom for the first time, you’ll need to rethink your strategy for creating your fabulous memento. Drones are not allowed anywhere at Disney World
Leave your Snapple and all other glass bottles at home: Glass bottles are prohibited at Disney parks and around resort pools.
Age restrictions in effect: While Disney World welcomes guests of all ages, only those who are 14 or above can enter the parks without an adult.
Fido has a place of his own: While some resorts do welcome your well-behaved dog, animals are not allowed within the parks, unless they are fulfilling a role as a service dog. However, the Best Friend’s Pet Care Center will show your dog a good time, offering supervised play groups, air-conditioned accommodations and a caring place to rest while you’re enjoying a day at Disney World.
Animal Kingdom has its own rules: When visiting Animal Kingdom, you’ll soon realize that plastic straws are not available. You won’t find balloons either. This is for the health and safety of the animals. Guests arriving with these items will be asked to leave them outside the gates.
Turn your flash off: Flash photography is strictly prohibited at indoor attractions, including rides, so turn your camera flash to off before entering.
Strollers subject to specific guidelines: While Disney World rents strollers, many families prefer to bring their own. Without knowing Disney World’s guidelines before you go, this strategy could result in a fair degree of frustration.
For one thing, strollers that measure greater that 31” in width and 52” in length are prohibited. Stroller wagons are also not allowed. You may not use strollers on escalators and on some ramps and elevators.
No smoking of any kind at Disney World resorts: There’s no faster way to rack up a $250-$500 room recovery fee than by smoking in your hotel room, and that includes cigarettes or marijuana. While recreational use of marijuana has been legalized in many U.S. states, Florida has not jumped on the bandwagon, so you’ll be breaking the law as well if you decide to light up in your room.
Tickets are non-transferrable: Once you use a ticket to enter a Disney park, that ticket becomes assigned to the individual who first used it.
This is important to understand, because Disney World theme park tickets get cheaper per day the longer you stay. As a result, guests who have 2 or more individuals in their party who are arriving and departing at different times, may be tempted to get one ticket, expecting to pass it on to a later arrival once the first individual leaves. This money-saving tactic is prohibited at Disney World. Tickets may even be bound to individuals using biometric screenings.
The ever-changing mask dilemma: As Disney parks reopened following COVID-19 shutdowns, masks were a ubiquitous part of the experience. As vaccination rates rose and the CDC lifted mask requirements for vaccinated individuals, Disney World did the same. However, the spike in case numbers due to the Delta variant has prompted new mask guidelines for park visitors. Be sure to check the latest on mask guidance before heading out for your Disney World trip.
Disney World Know Before You Go Special Tips
When visiting Disney World, there are a number of things to know before you go, but the following tips could save you some serious frustration.
Bring a portable phone charger: The My Disney Experience app is the key to your Disney World vacation, replacing Magic Bands in 2021, so you’ll be using your phone a lot. A portable charger can keep you moving and enjoying your vacation.
Ship purchases to your room: Rather than carrying around that stuffed toy or fragile ornament, ask the store to ship it to your Disney World resort room, if available.
Celebrate a special event: Disney wants to celebrate your life moments with you and issues buttons for many commemorative occasions. You can obtain one at the Town Hall in the Magic Kingdom or Guest Relations in other parks.
Pack your own water: Florida water is not known for its palatable taste, so picking up some water bottles from the grocery store and packing them into the park can save you big time over the cost of purchasing from a restaurant or snack cart.
Consider a Memory Maker purchase before you go: Disney Photopass photographers are positioned at most of the key spots for capturing iconic photos, but you don’t need to pay for these. Photographers will gladly snap your pic with your own camera. However, if you think you’ll want to purchase more than 2 or 3 ride photos in addition to these keepsake memory spots, consider Memory Maker. The cost of the package will be cheaper than buying this number of photos individually, and if you buy before you leave, you’ll save even more. Just remember to purchase more than three days before the start of your trip to ensure that it is activated when you arrive.
Ride queue closings: Ride queues close when the park does, but the ride doesn’t stop running until the queue empties out. That means you can get in line any time before the official park close and still get on the ride.
Don’t fret forgotten items: If you forget something, such as toiletries, always check with the hotel front desk before buying. If you’re in the park and realize you forgot diapers, formula or even if you need an OTC medications, such as Advil, don’t run back to the room. Got to the Baby Care Center. In most cases, they’ll be able to assist.
Set up your My Disney Experience account before leaving home. As mentioned previously, this is command central during your trip, allowing you to make advanced dining reservations, look up show times and even get into your room or the parks.
When it comes to visiting Disney World, there are many things to know before you go, and a little bit of preparation can go a long way in creating a more enjoyable visit.
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