I am a huge Disney Parks fan. I’m not long back from Walt Disney World for Halloween, and next year am back at Disneyland California. Navigating Disney parks and resorts can be daunting and difficult for those who aren’t well-seasoned or know all the tips and tricks to get the most out of your visit. I’ve put together this blog post to help you plan your next visit.

If you are travelling to WDW during the Covid-19 pandemic, these are some great Walt Disney World Covid-19 tips!

Should you stay inside or outside Disney?

This is probably the most important decision of your trip, and I think the answer depends on a number of factors. If you are Disney crazy and are going to that city/region specifically for a Disney experience, I’d recommend staying at a Disney hotel, as it’s more magical and you get a lot of extra perks for your park visits, such as merchandise discounts, early or late park entry, free dining plans, park shopping delivered to your room for you and many more. If you get a Disney Magic Band, it makes so many things easier. You can do so much with it. Plus, if you stay on site, you can get into the parks first and get Galaxy’s Edge done and you are closer to your hotel room to change into that next Disney bounding outfit! However, if you are planning on also purchasing Universal Studios tickets or doing any other sightseeing or shopping excursions, it would probably be more beneficial for you to stay off-site, as drinks are cheaper and you can experience a bit more of the US instead of being in that Disney bubble. Wear comfortable clothing that allows you to move freely!

Your clothing a footwear choices are so important at Disney. To get on and off rides with ease, I recommend leggings as they don’t restrict your movement and don’t get caught on anything or get in the way of anything.

I wore a lot of Lovall leggings on my recent honeymoon and loved them. So comfortable and feel really good quality.

Are firework/show dessert parties or premium seating worth that extra money?

When you go to book your dining at Disney, you’ll notice that many of the restaurants offer fireworks/light show viewing dessert parties or dinner with premium view seats. These are always quite expensive – at least $99 each minimum for a dessert party – so it’s important to look closely at what you’re getting for that money.
For example, with the fireworks shows at Magic Kingdom, a dessert party ticket will allow you to access the dessert buffet for around 1.5 hours before the show begins, then be seated (or standing) in a cordoned-off ‘premium’ viewing space. There’s only so much cake you can eat and I also feel that no matter where you stand at the top of Main Street, you get a really good view of the show, as it’s high up and raised above you. Plus, for shows like Fantasmic, all parades or Epcot Forever, if you sit down with some snacks and grab your spot at least one hour before kick-off, you’ll get an amazing view. However, if you want to watch in comfort, without standing, and without sitting for ages in advance, it might be worth it.Disney’s Genie+ – what are they and are they worth it?

Not everyone agrees with me, but I 100% think Genie+ is worth it and I much prefer it to the old Fastpass system. With Genie+ you can digitally book Lightning Lanes (new name for a Fastpass) for yourself and your party (but all need to pay the $15 too). Rather than having to physically go to the attraction to get a Fastpass from a machine outside. Queues at Disney are LONG! I saw some at 120 minutes. Nobody wants to waste that vacation time queuing.

I’d also recommend paying for Memory Maker – the Disney photo service. With that, all your attraction photos automatically go to your My Disney Experience app and you also have access to official Disney PhotoPass photographers around the park who will take your photo in front of landmarks and then scan your Magicband to send these to your app too. My husband and I were there just as a couple, so it allowed us to get some lovely photos together.
Get the most out of your dining plan!

If you are on the most popular dining plan at Walt Disney World, you’ll get 2 Disney snacks, 1 quick service meal, 1 table service meal and 1 refillable resort cup included. Be careful how you use those snacks though so that you get the most value out of them! It’s easy to use your snack credits on a $4 cupcake or toffee apple that isn’t going to fill you up; but if you look at many of the quick service restaurants/food trucks’ menus, you’ll see some appetisers or sides are also eligible to be bought with a snack credit. Often these are more expensive and would be a size that would do you for lunch, meaning you could have a sit-down buffet breakfast and a substantial quick-service meal at night. Use those snack credits wisely and research what you can spend them on before you go.

If you have any more US Disney Parks questions, I’d be happy to answer them – just tweet me! I hope you have the best time on your next Disney adventure! If you need help with Disneyland Paris, this is a really helpful blog.

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