Sometimes, you might feel like you are falling behind on your Disney World trip when comparing yourself to others. Someone was already standing at the park entrance before you woke up. Someone else rode six attractions before lunch. A video online promises the “perfect” touring strategy with your itinerary planned to every minute. . Suddenly, you're looking at your own perfectly enjoyable day wondering whether you've accomplished enough. But "enough" according to whom? At the

Walk through Disney World and you'll find plenty of things you could bring home. Shirts. Mugs. Pins. Plush characters. Artwork. Mickey Ears. Christmas ornaments. Popcorn buckets. There is absolutely nothing wrong with buying something simply because you like it. Sometimes, however, a souvenir becomes something more. Years later, you see it sitting on a shelf or pull it out of a box. You suddenly remember exactly where you were when you bought it. That's when a souvenir stops

It is the moment you've been waiting for. You have arrived at Walt Disney World. Tomorrow morning is the first real day of your Disney vacation. So, where do you go first? Magic Kingdom? EPCOT? Hollywood Studios? Animal Kingdom? There are many ways to begin thinking about this question, but let's reframe the question and ask: Which park feels like the right place for your vacation to begin? Magic Kingdom For many families, this answer is the most obvious. We will give the oth

The last night of a Disney World vacation can feel bittersweet. Instead of rushing past that feeling, consider making a little room for it. The beginning of a Disney World vacation is filled with anticipation. The last night feels different. By then, the resort room looks lived in. Everyone knows the route to the bus stop. You've developed inside jokes. You've discovered favorite attractions. Someone has probably announced what they want to do “next time.” Eventually, someone

A good Disney World plan should help you know what matters next without making you feel like you're late all day. There are two extremes when planning a day at Walt Disney World. At one end: No plan at all. At the other: 8:03 — attraction. 8:27 — next attraction. 9:12 — snack. 9:31 — walk somewhere else. Somewhere around lunchtime, the family realizes that the itinerary has become the person in charge. Fortunately, you don't have to choose between wandering around the parks w

Before you've ridden an attraction or watched the fireworks, there's a moment when you realize: We're finally here. You've spent weeks or months planning. Maybe longer. You've chosen dates, made reservations, packed bags, counted down the days, traveled to Florida, and answered more times than you can count: “How much longer?” Then, it happens. You see the entrance to Walt Disney World. You see Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse. You see where it says, "The Most Magical Place on E

Getting to a Disney World park before it opens can be a great strategy. That doesn't mean every morning of your vacation needs to begin with an alarm clock. Understanding Disney World can sometimes seem like a foreign language. Spend enough time reading Disney World planning advice or visiting the parks and you'll eventually encounter two words: "Rope drop." Generally, rope dropping means arriving at a theme park before its official opening so you're ready to begin experienci

Some Disney traditions begin because someone carefully plans them. Others begin because everyone loves something so much that, on the next trip, you simply have to do it again. Family traditions don't have to be old. After all, every tradition once happened for the first time (or as they say in Frozen, "for the first time in forever"). That includes the little rituals families develop around Walt Disney World. Maybe you always have the same first meal. Maybe you take a photog

Sometimes one of the best days of a Disney World vacation is the day you don't walk through a theme park gate. When you're planning a Walt Disney World vacation, it's easy to count your days by theme park. Magic Kingdom day. EPCOT day. Hollywood Studios day. Animal Kingdom day. And then maybe a day at Disney Springs, Typhoon Lagoon, or Blizzard Beach. But, there is another possibility: Don't visit one. Instead, have a resort day. That might sound strange. After all, Walt Disn

You're all going on the same Disney World vacation, but each person in your family may be experiencing a completely different one. That's part of the magic. Imagine you've just finished a day at Walt Disney World. You ask everyone what their favorite part was. You might expect the answer to be the attraction you waited an hour to experience. Maybe you anticipate the answer being the character meal you reserved months ago. Or, if it isn't those two, you think it has to be the

Instead of asking "how many days should I visit Disney World?", ask "what kind of vacation do I want to have?" Planning a Walt Disney World vacation comes with a seemingly endless number of decisions. Where should you stay? Which parks should you visit? Where should you eat? Which attractions matter most? What souvenirs would be most special? There is one even more fundamental question, however, that affects all the others: How many days should you spend at Disney World? Plan

The biggest attractions get the attention. The smallest moments sometimes stay with us the longest. Before a Disney World vacation, it's natural to imagine the big moments. Walking into Magic Kingdom. Seeing Cinderella Castle. Riding the attraction everyone has been talking about. Watching fireworks. Meeting a favorite character. Those experiences can become treasured memories, but something interesting happens when you look back on a vacation years later. Sometimes, the memo

The photograph captures what the moment looked like. The story helps you remember what it felt like. Many people take an extraordinary number of photographs on a Disney vacation. The castle. The family. The food. The characters. The attractions. The resort. The picture of you holding that giant Mickey pretzel. Years later, you may look at a vacation photograph and realize something: The picture doesn't tell you the whole story. You remember that everyone was laughing. But why

You don't need to learn everything about Disney World before you start. You just need to know what to decide first. Planning your first Disney World vacation will feel exciting. It may also feel overwhelming. The first step, however, is actually the easiest. It starts with a simple idea: We should go to Walt Disney World. Then, you're suddenly reading about the four theme parks. Next, you turn to learning about the resorts, restaurants, transportation, tickets, attractions, r

The goal isn't to plan a "perfect trip." It's to plan one that feels right for you and to be open to the pleasant surprises you will experience at Walt Disney World. A "perfect trip" for one person or family may look very different from the "perfect trip" for another. One family may happily arrive before the parks open (known as "rope drop") to be at the front of the line for their must-do attractions. Another may choose a slow start with a character breakfast followed by a l