I was asked to come up with a list of things that I wish we had done differently and things we did just right on our last trip to Walt Disney World. We went in March of 2015 to celebrate our tenth anniversary, one daughter’s ninth birthday and our other daughter’s one year anniversary of being in remission from cancer. We had a lot to celebrate that trip! That being said here are the seven things I wished we had done different (with input from my husband and girls).
1. Not taking more down time
On the day we arrived we took the rest of that day and hung out by the pool, but the rest of our trip we were at the parks from the time they opened until the fireworks show. My husband says that he really wished we would have taking at least one whole day for nothing but going to the pool and hanging out
at the resort.
2. Not flying (budget permitting)
Our travel time is around 14 hours one way (including the time that we stop with the kids and stop for quick meals). I am definitely going to look into the possibility of flying on our next trip. It will save wear on our van and our sanity while in the car.
3. Not staying in the Nemo section of Art of Animation
We stayed in the Little Mermaid section of the Art of Animation resort. I had no idea that it was the farthest away from the main lobby, the big pool and the bus stop. It felt like we had to run each day just to make it the buses on time to get to the parks. If we stay there again, I want to stay in the Finding Nemo section- it is right by the main lobby, restaurant, big pool, and the bus stop area.
4. Not getting up early for breakfast (this one is per my husband)
Each day we got up early, but we always seemed to hit the crowds during breakfast. My husband said that he wished we would have gotten up earlier and missed the breakfast crowd each day.
5. Not getting fastpasses for the Fireworks
On our Magic Kingdom days we noticed the roped off section that was set up for those with firework fast-passes. I really wish that we would have gotten them on one of our days. It would have been so much better than trying to hunt down a decent place to watch the fireworks from.
6. Not Upgrading to a Moderate Resort (if budget permits)
We have always stayed in a value resort (our budget has been for that), but I really regret not upgrading our last trip. I want my kids to experience staying in a moderate resort. We have already planned to stay in a moderate on our next trip, and it is budgeted into our vacation account!
7. Not Seeing more shows.
We were only able to see a couple of shows our last trip. My oldest daughter was a little bummed out that we missed some of the ones she really wanted to watch. I do regret not planning to see more of them, but there is only so much you can do in one trip.
Now, I want to share with you the five things I feel like we did right.
1. Booked our trip with a Travel Agent
We have actually done a trip with and without a travel agent and I promise you using a travel agent is the best. It was so nice to just tell someone everything we wanted, fastpasses, dining reservations, she took care of everything. All I had to do was make sure we were packed and ready to go.
2. Took Two days for Magic Kingdom
I guess you could say that Magic Kingdom is our favorite park. Each time we go we spend at least two days at MK and I can honestly say we still don’t get to see and do everything. In fact, we have still not been able to ride Peter Pan’s Flight yet, but hopefully that will be remedied our next trip.
3. Stayed hydrated (March can be really hot in Florida)
It really doesn’t matter what time of the year you go, staying hydrated is essential. We have taken water bottles into the park in the past, but our last trip we just took advantage of the free water they provide. The cups are small, but with a price of free, you just can’t beat it. Staying hydrated will keep everyone happy and in good spirits during the day.
4. Booked Fastpasses for early in the day
We had all our fastpasses for each day booked for the early morning hours. We did this because you could only have three fastpasses at a time and once your three were used up, you could start booking more (only one at a time). We loved being able to get more fastpasses booked, that helped us to be able to see and do more on our park days.
5. Made dining reservations at the resorts.
I can not stress enough how glad I am that we did this. We would normally not take time out of our trip to visit the resorts, but by booking some dining reservations there we got to do just that. Our last trip we had breakfast at the Grand Floridian one morning and then one of our supper reservations was at the Whispering Canyon at Wilderness Lodge. The kids absolutely loved it and so did us parents!
(Thanks Timpy!)