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Because I write about Disney World most days every week, I try to head down to the parks whenever I can to personally experience all the changes taking place. However, I live in Georgia, about 6.5-7 hours away, so I can’t be in the parks every week like some of my coworkers can. And when I go, I have to do things a little differently than some of them do for a few different reasons. One of the biggest helps on my trips is something so simple, but it’s a game changer — mobile ordering through My Disney Experience!
Mobile ordering debuted in Disney World in 2017 and has expanded to include almost all the quick service restaurants around Disney World (not all, though!), and some table service restaurants have a mobile order to go option as well. It’s exactly what it sounds like — you’ll order your food ahead of time on the My Disney Experience app by clicking through the menu and selecting what you’d like, choosing your method of payment, and then waiting for your phone to tell you your order is ready.
It certainly saves tons of time usually spent waiting in line, because while you’re waiting for your order window to arrive, you can be on the complete opposite side of the park and be walking over (just don’t hit that you’ve arrived until you’re really there), or decide to hop in line for a quick attraction. It’s certainly preferred over waiting in a physical line to place your order, and then having to wait in ANOTHER line to wait for your food — this at least cuts out one of those lines and makes it to where you should be heading inside the restaurant only when your food is already ready.
However, for me, it’s even more helpful. I’ve mentioned on here before how I struggle with anxiety, and how being autistic means I have to go about my experience in the park a little differently. I get pretty antsy in crowds and queues, especially if it’s loud, and using mobile order means I can drastically cut down on the amount of time that I’m inside that busy section of the restaurant, and cuts out the main queue all together. Instead, I can wait for my food in a quieter spot (I say “quieter” and not “quiet” because it is Disney World, after all).
Not to mention that while my conversation skills are at a level that a lot of people don’t suspect that I struggle with it, that’s all a mask, and it doesn’t mean I’m not struggling internally. I’d much rather place an order via the app and only have to tell a Cast Member my number and say thank you when my food is handed to me than have to go through a whole order in person AFTER having waited in a line that’s already made me more anxious and jumbled.
Could I do Disney World without mobile order? Yes, I assume I could, but it’d take me a lot more time to buck up the mental energy and courage to go in and order normally every time. I’d likely eat at VERY off peak times so I could avoid larger crowds, which sometimes isn’t good when I know I should eat something soon and it’s NOT an off peak time.
One of my favorite ways of describing it is by using the spoon theory — let’s say I have 10 spoons each day. Every time I order something in person rather than mobile order, it takes away a spoon. But a spoon also gets taken away for every 2.5 hours I’m in the park, just due to noise levels, overstimulation, etc. That means I have to manage my spoons very carefully to not lose them before the end of the day. If I can avoid losing a spoon when I don’t have to by using mobile order, I’ll choose to every time, because then I can hold onto those spoons to be used for the rest of the day. (And to be clear, the spoon theory can apply to anyone and everyone! Overstimulation happens to many people, those with and without neurodevelopmental disorders, so do what you have to to make sure you avoid running out of spoons. ☺️)
But beignets are totally worth walking up and ordering in person. Disney World is for everyone who chooses to enjoy it, even if that means you have to experience it a little differently than other people. You do what makes you happy and what works for you and your group, and have the best trip ever! We’re always here to help bring you the latest Disney news so you can plan better for your trips, so stay tuned to AllEars!
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Do you like using mobile order in Disney World? Tell me in the comments!
Loving your articles. As another anxiety/quirky girl it’s lovely to see your perspective on this site. Great tips, thanks for being you and sharing how we can Disney our best way.
Thank you so much for your kind words, Joy! They mean so much to me!