5 Reasons Planning Your Trip To WDW Is Important

As some of you happy haunts out there may have seen in a recent post I made over at the 2 Foolish Mortals Jamboree, I’ve been hard at work planning my upcoming trip to Walt Disney World. . . . . which may or may not have involved a lot of loose leaf notebook paper. With my trip quickly approaching, at a faster rate than usual giving that it’s relatively last minute in nature, I’ve been spending a lot of time doing in weeks what I’d usually be stretching out for months.

Anyway, this all got me thinking about just how important taking the time to plan your Disney vacation is. So that’s what we’re going to chat about today! These are 5 of the reasons that taking the time to plan your next Disney World trip [rather than winging it] is an absolute must!

Getting All Those Reservations

In the past, when we think about reservations the first thing that usually comes to mind is having a meal at a table service restaurant. However, times have changed and evolved quite a bit over the years making reservations necessary for things like experiences [tours or building lightsabers] and even booking a FastPass+ to secure your opportunity to ride popular attractions. This list has also expanded since the parks reopened in July 2020 to include Park Pass Reservations, which are required to simply enter the parks. In other words, if you’re not taking the time to plan your trip in advance, there’s a good chance that you might arrive with park ticket in hand and not have the ability to enter the parks you want on the day you’re hoping to. . . . . if at all.

Of course, this might sound a little bit grave, but it’s really not much of an issue if you’re taking the time to do even the most minimal amount of planning. However, if you’re the type of person who likes to book hotels and flight ahead of time, but leave the rest to square away after you arrive. . . . this is most definitely going to be a problem. [Also, for those who may have been wondering, I have in fact known people who do just this when visiting Walt Disney World. Their main complaint is always that they never get as much done as they were hoping to and feel like a lot of money ends up wasted.]

Under normal circumstances, the length of time before your stay when your reservation window opens up can vary. For example, those staying at one of the Walt Disney World Resort hotels usually have the opportunity to make reservations before those who are not. There may also be different lengths of time before your arrival when you can make a reservation depending on what exactly it is you’re trying to reserve. However, the current policy seems to be that all guests can make reservations 60 days in advance with Walt Disney World Resort hotel guests having the ability to book 10 days after their arrival date also. In terms of Park Passes, guests can [and should, according to Disney] make their park pass reservations as soon as they complete the purchase of their park tickets. As always, you should check the Walt Disney World Resort website directly to find out the most up to date information before your trip as the information has been changing and updated regularly.

Knowing What You Can’t Do

It’s not something that most people like to acknowledge, but there will be things that you can’t do during your visit to Walt Disney World. Under normal circumstances, this could be because of anything from height restrictions to limited release items that won’t be available during your visit. Currently, it also includes meet and greets with characters and fireworks.

Fortunately, with the exception of unscheduled maintenance or down time, all of this information is available to those who take the time to look. Even the most basic planning can help guests learn what attractions they can [or can’t] do during their visits and what they can expect as far as closures are concerned.

Personally, I also think that taking the time to figure this out before you arrive at Walt Disney World is a great way to set reasonable expectations. For example, you don’t want to promise your little princess that she can hug Cinderella if meet and greets aren’t available. [Which is currently the case at Walt Disney World.] It’s also not worth making a reservation at a restaurant to try a menu item that won’t be available by the time you arrive. Preventing these things from happening means preventing that feeling of disappointment. . . . which no one wants to experience at Walt Disney World.

Learning How Far Your Budget Can Get You

Though there are some among us who visit Walt Disney World without a budget in mind, the rest of us are usually trying to figure out how much the trip is going to cost and/or how to stretch our dollars. This can be somewhat straightforward when we’re talking about transportation, hotels and park tickets. That’s only half of the equation though! The other half of what you’re spending at Walt Disney World includes food, drinks and souvenirs. All of which, by the way, can sneak up on you pretty quickly.

Determining how far your budget can get you while at Disney World can be a bit of work, but with the right tools you can make it happen. One of the things I like to use when planning out my Walt Disney World vacations is the My Disney Experience App. This allows you to take a look at the menu items available at restaurants around Walt Disney World and get a sense of what it will cost to eat there. Believe it or not, a motivated vacation planner could plan out exact meals and determine what it will cost to eat each day of their vacation before leaving the comfort of their living room couch. Not that I’m suggesting this. However, taking a look will give you that realistic idea of what food items costs and help you work your budget accordingly.

Have A Game Plan

Look, I’m not going to beat around the briar patch here. . . . . having a game plan when visiting Walt Disney World is very important. It allows you to avoid crowds, make the most out of your time in the parks, enjoy the best that the resorts has to offer and [arguably most importantly] relax. Though it might sound a bit backwards, taking the to figure out your game plan and structure your days so that you can get as close to that game plan as possible is truthfully the key to having a relaxing and easy going Disney vacation. It’s true!

Figuring out how to come up with a good solid game plan for each day of your Disney vacation might seem daunting, but as it turns out, it’s not that big of a deal. With a combination of chatting with your family about your priorities and using one of the many resources [books, YouTube, blogs, My Disney Experience and more] you can pull together something that works for you.

Get The Most Out Of Your Trip

There are a lot of great reasons to invest time into planning your Walt Disney World vacation and we’ve talked about some of them here today. That said, the most important reason [at least in my opinion] to plan out your Disney vacation rather than winging it is because it’s the best way to get the most out of your trip.

As we’ve established already today, there’s a lot that goes into visiting Walt Disney World. From reservations to get into theme parks to height requirements for rides, there’s a lot to be aware of. Taking the time to plan, even if you’re keeping it basic, gives you a better idea of what you’re walking into and how to handle it. Having that information prior to your visit will get you on the path to not only enjoying your trip, but getting the most for the large sums of money you’re paying. That’s significantly more difficult when you’re trying to figure out the ins and outs of Walt Disney World after you’ve already arrived.