Walt Disney World Orlando Planning Guide | Florida

This guide to Walt Disney World Orlando Florida contains everything you’ll need to know. Whether you’re doing all or some parks in a single day or multiple days, I have you covered with info and advice about tickets, attractions, dining, resorts, crowds, and more.

If you’re planning a trip to Walt Disney World Orlando, you’ve come to the right place! Since 1971, Walt Disney World Orlando has welcomed more than 58 million guests per year to its magical theme parks and hotels. Walt Disney World Orlando has 4 theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom & Hollywood Studios), 2 water parks, and a golf course. The theme park resort has grown into a full-blown vacation destination, and it’s only improving. Let’s get planning your trip to Walt Disney World Orlando!

My recommendation for an itinerary

After spending a day at the Kennedy Space Center, we didn’t want to do Epcot, the Space theme park of Disney. We did visit the Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. We did both parks in 2 days (so 1 day per park). it is doable, in the Magic Kingdom we didn’t do every attraction as the waiting lines were too long.

• Get a one park pass for the main park on day 1
• get a two-park pass for the studios & main park on day 2 as the studios close earlier than the main park.
• Skip the fireworks show on day 1 to do attractions when everyone’s watching the show. Do the show on day 2.
• Consider paying for Premier Access (for one attraction or all) if you’re going during high season

Tip: Plan to arrive at the theme parks before opening so you can run to your top-priority attractions.

Before you go:

When to visit Walt Disney World Orlando?

This is the number one question everyone is asking, as I did myself. Try to look at the cost and crowds first. Prices vary significantly based on when you’re visiting. Think of seasonal holidays (Christmas, Halloween), weather, new attractions (we were there unwillingly in 2010 with the opening of the new Harry Potter – boy that was crowded), school holidays, spring break, special events at the park (runDisney events, youth sporting events, or EPCOT festivals) that will induce higher prices.

Fact: Try to also avoid the weekends (locals). Mondays through Thursdays are the best days to visit, with much lower crowds then. However, that doesn’t count during holiday weeks or any time school is out of session.

How long does one visit?

How long you should stay at Walt Disney World depends largely upon the type of trip it is. Are you a big Disney fan, do you have kids, for us travelers from abroad: how efficient can we be in our days? is it a “once in a lifetime” visit? The exact length will still vary a bit depending on how much vacation time you have and if you plan on visiting non-Disney theme parks or destinations. I’ve heard Americans taking 6-7 days as it is their whole holiday, however for me, it was only a stop on my travels so I did less.

Fun Fact: The first time I came to Orlando with my parents (2010), we spent 1 day at Universal Studios Orlando and 1 day at Disney Holywood Studios. In 2022 I did 1 day at Magic Kingdom and 3 days at Universal Orlando.

In addition to visiting Disney’s theme parks, you’ll also want to foresee some relaxation days. Walking in those parks can really make your feet hurt (As did ours after 3 days of parks)!

Park tickets?

We chose a 1-day ticket for the Magic Kingdom (and in another year a 1-day ticket to Hollywood studios) as our priority was Universal Studios. I recommend buying your tickets from an authorized third-party ticket seller to save money. Buy them at click here to buy via Get Away Today, or at GetYourGuide.

Fact: Single-day Walt Disney World tickets are expensive, but multi-day tickets are much cheaper per day. Whatever you do, don’t wait to buy your tickets at the front gates of the parks or on eBay.

FastPass

Genie+ is a skipping service that replaced free FastPass. This can be purchased in the Disney app.  Whether you need to take the FastPass depends on your own opinion. We didn’t take it as we had enough time in the low season. But if this were my one and only visit, and I wanted to do the attractions multiple times and I have limited days at the park? Then I would surely buy it! 

What to pack?

Pack lightly! Think of all the souvenirs you’ll be buying as you’ll need space for them! Some essentials: External charger, sunscreen protection, reusable water bottle, some snacks, sunglasses, and a compact raincoat that can serve as a cushion to sit on.

Attraction strategy for Disney World

Don’t wing it during your stay but prep at least a little! What attractions do you want to do, and what theme parks do you want to spend more time on? If you have kids, check out the height requirements up ahead to know what you can and can’t do!

Where to eat?

If you want to save money, don’t eat at Walt Disney restaurants but eat at an off-site restaurant, or get groceries and prep your own meals. We ate dinner at our hotel and only did lunch at Disney.

Getting there: Transportation?

What’s the best way to get from Walt Disney World Universal? Using the shuttle service of a Walt Disney World hotel! The second best answer is Uber or Lyft (ride-sharing services). The one-way cost of an Uber or Lyft will vary depending upon your location, typically costing under $25 each way and taking 20-25 minutes. Rental? Then keep in mind the price you have to pay for parking and don’t forget about traffic lines.

Where to stay?

Do you want to stay at a Walt Disney World hotel for the duration of your trip, or change hotels? Do you want to stay in an off-site hotel to save money?

We chose a Universal Hotel as we would spend more days in those parks (1), enjoy the early admission to those parks (2), and use the free shuttle bus to those parks (3). For our one day at Disney World, we used a Lyft. Our hotel was Universal’s Endless Summer Resort – Dockside Inn & Suites. Can really recommend it and it’s also good for families. It has a large pool, a restaurant, and a small shop in the hotel. So we ate breakfast and dinner at our hotel.

Let’s visit the parks!

Magic Kingdom

So I’m used to the Magic Kingdom in Paris so this was a bit of the same experience yet still different! Disney World has a bigger park than Paris, the rides are sometimes slightly differen (some for the better some for the worst), the Parade was so much better and the evening show was also nice (you have a real tinkerbell flying from the castle! What??)

Best Rides

Classic attractions: It’s a Small World, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Peter Pan’s Flight, Snow White. 

Thrill attractions: Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast, & Big Thunder Mountain.

Different than Paris: Phantom Manor (more spookier in Florida), American take on Pirates of the Caribbean, Big Thunder Mountain (more thrill in Orlando), Little Mermaid ride (non-existent in Paris), Beauty and the Beast Diner (non-existent in Paris), Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain (Paris is way more exciting and thrills), and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril (an intense outdoor roller coaster unique to Paris).

Best Restaurants

Many table and quick-service restaurants are located around the park. If you plan to eat at a table-service restaurant that accepts reservations, make reservations as soon as possible to ensure you can dine when you want. 
Busy hours: Quick service lines get very long around lunch (12PM to 2PM) and dinner (6PM to 8PM).

Budget Fact: Want to save on money? Bring your own lunch and only have Lunch at Walt Disney World. We then always ate dinner in our Hotel Disney Village.

Disney Hollywood Studios

So this theme park has almost the same attractions as the one in Paris except for the Muppet Vision and Toy Story Mania! for instance. The attractions like The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster were only a bit different (more or less drops).

Also, the location of all the attractions was different. We had to adjust because we were used to the location of the attractions in Paris. There are also parades in this park, and there are real streets recreated in the park from movies.

Visiting Universal Orlando as part of your Walt Disney World trip

I also recommend at least a couple of days at Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is mind-blowing as is Jurassic World. Going for rides and rollercoasters? Go to Universal Orlando.

Read more about my Universal Orlando Guide in this special blog post!
» Universal Orlando Guide | Florida «

Read more about my must do’s in Orlando in this special blog post!
» Must do’s in Orlando ~ Theme Park City | Florida «

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