Let’s be honest — a Disney World vacation can be wonderful, but terrifyingly overwhelming as well.
We’ve got plenty of tips to help you plan your trip, but what about what your friends are telling you? Who’s advice should you really follow? Here are the things that friends don’t let friends do in Disney World.
Buy A Poncho/Sweatshirt
Disney World is home to lots of rain, especially during hurricane season. And despite what you may believe, the winters can be cold in Florida too!
So before your trip, grab some ponchos from Amazon, or from a convenience store nearby, and if you’re going during the winter, or when it could be chilly, be sure to pack a jacket with you as well. Even in the warmer months, it can get cooler in the evenings, so do yourself a favor and throw at least one jacket in your suitcase. Ponchos and jackets are so very expensive inside Disney World’s gates — don’t pay more than you have to!
Need some outfit ideas? We’ve got you covered!
Wear The Wrong Shoes
You do a LOT of walking in Disney World, and wearing the wrong shoes can quickly mess up your vacation.
We’ve got a whole list of the best shoes to wear in Disney World that you’ll really, really want to pay attention to. Listen to us when we say — it doesn’t matter if those shoes will be the perfect completion to your outfit, comfy shoes are WAY more important than style!
I Walk 100K Steps at Disney World Every Week. These Are the Shoes I Count On.
Sleeping In (Not For The Reason You Think)
In the olden days (yes, we’re saying that now), you used to want to wake up early for rope drop. However now, it’s important to wake up early for a few other reasons.
Genie+ reservations currently open at 7AM. If you want to have the paid skip-the-line service for the day, make sure you buy it before 7AM so you’re ready to pick your first selection when they open up.
Individual Lightning Lanes also become available at 7AM for Disney World hotel guests and at park opening time for all other guests.
So get ready for Genie+ early in the morning, unless you’re also getting in the virtual queue for TRON Lightcycle / Run or Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind — then you may want to grab those first at 7AM.
Here’s everything you need to know about Disney Genie+!
Not Studying The Technology
Technology is everywhere in Disney World, and avoiding it is inevitable. Getting familiar with it before your trip is nearly essential.
The My Disney Experience app will show you wait times, allow you to book Genie+ lightning lanes, mobile order your food, and so much more. It’s very difficult to navigate the parks without it today, so play around and explore the app before you go.
Forget Park Essentials
There are a few park essentials that your day very well be a lot harder without.
Bring a phone charger because the My Disney Experience app can drain it fast.
On Amazon, you can grab the INIU Portable Charger — it’s thin and will easily fit in your park bag for the day!
Grab the Portable Charger here
Sunscreen is also a necessity because that Florida sun is HOT.
Disney sells sunscreen, but just like the ponchos/jackets, you could be paying a pretty penny for it. Grab sunscreen like the Coppertone Sport Sunscreen on Amazon before you leave!
Don’t burn! Grab some sunscreen on Amazon here
Pack some painkillers too in case you get a headache from a ride, and if you’ve got young kids, maybe pack them an extra set of clothes in case they get wet or dirty. You can read our ultimate park bag essentials list right here to help you prepare!
The MISTAKE You’re Making When Packing for Disney World
Buy Mediocre and Pre-Packaged Snacks
We know our friends over at Disney Food Blog are the food experts, but we know good Disney food when we try it too. And we can tell you that those pre-packaged snacks you see are NOT the way to go.
We promise you, while pre-packaged snacks may be easier to travel with (and we totally get that), it’s much better to get something fresh out of the store’s case. You can also keep an eye on AllEars — we’ll let you know if we try something we really (or don’t really) like.
The ONE Reason I Always Regret Buying This Magic Kingdom Snack
Buy Water in the Parks
For the love of all wonderful Disney things in the world, we are BEGGING you — do not buy water in the Disney parks!
We’re not saying to not drink water at ALL (please drink water and stay hydrated, that’s very important!), but don’t purchase bottles of water in the park. Quick service locations around the parks will have free cups of ice water that you can use to refill your water bottle or throw away the disposable cup when you’re done. Disney World is expensive, but that’s one purchase you don’t need to make.
There are also many water bottle refill stations around Disney World that you can use if you bring your own water bottle from home.
And those are what true friends will NOT let you do in Disney World! Be sure to stay tuned to AllEars for all the latest Disney news and tricks!
Disney World’s Biggest 2023 Fails
Tell us in the comments below what your #1 essential is in the parks!
Speaking about ponchos. I know everyone wants to cut costs going to Disney World. Buying a bunch of those dollar store ponchos isn’t a good idea. They blow easily in the wind and they rip to shreds easily. It’s kind of funny watching people walking around with the cheap panchos. When a storm blows thru, the panchos won’t cover much more than your head. 🙂 Then you see people getting up from a table and the pancho catches on a chair. Rip! We spend a little more money and pack the better panchos. It the weather app predicts rain, we take them to the park. We bring them back home and save them for the next trip. Disney ponchos aren’t cheap.
PLEASE change the Genie+ from having to wake up by 7:00am to planning the the day/night before. I (the mom) have to wake up at the crack of dawn, after closing down a park the night before, while everybody else sleeps in! I’m awake now…..I HATE IT…?