Walt Disney World in Florida opened October 1, 1971, and has been a destination on the top of many families’ wish list ever since. I believe that ANYtime is a GREATtime to visit Walt Disney World, however, the extra magic during an anniversary celebration is definitely worth experiencing.
There have been a lot of changes around Walt Disney World lately. Even an old pro will need to take some time to understand how things work now. Fortunately, all the information you need is out there on all Social Media outlets. I have been planning Disney vacations for my family for over 15 years. This past year has been stressful and hard because of all the new tools, new rides/dining, new deadlines, new countdowns, and COVID.
Here are some key things I have learned about Disney Vacations and planning (past and present)
- Stay on Disney property
- You will be as close as you can be to all the parks
- Complementary and convenient transportation to/from parks (note that off property hotels usually have transportation also, but they don’t run as often and the pick up locations are usually out of the way)
- Extra time in the parks
- Early park entry – enter any park ½ hour before opening (available to ALL Disney resort guests)
- Extended Evenings – stay at select parks up to 2 hours late (available to Disney Deluxe Resort guests)
- Magical Resorts – all Disney resorts are full of magic, from the decorations to the customer service.
- Download the “My Disney Experience App”, where you will be able to:
- Use Mobile Magic – no more magic bands, you will use your phone to open your resort door and enter parks.(or use a card.) – you will link your hotel and tickets .
- Make Theme Park reservations
- Make Dining Reservations
- Access Disney Genie Service
- Check Ride times
- Join Virtual Queues
- And much more…
- Take masks! Be prepared to wear them. At this time, Disney is still requiring masks indoors.
- Be ready (anywhere) at 6:59a to ‘join’ the Virtual Queue for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure (Disney’s newest attraction in Epcot) – if you don’t succeed, be ready to try again at 12:59p while inside Epcot.
- Make your Theme Park reservation as soon as possible- Once you purchase your ticket, you must reserve a park for each day of your ticket.
- Park Hopping is only allowed after 2:00pm – (keep that in mind when considering the park hopper option on your ticket.)
- There is a new planning tool called Disney Genie. (This is a free service) Guests select which experiences they like and Genie will tell you where to go and what to do first. (similar to any map app on your phone, it will reroute you depending on wait times,crowd levels, etc.) This takes the guesswork out of what to do first.
- There are no longer Fast Passes. Now there is Lightening Lane. You must purchase Disney Genie+ to utilize Lightening Lane. ($15 per day per person) Lightening Lane for the top attractions in each park are pay per ride with a limit of 2 purchases per day. (Prices vary and are in addition to Genie+)
We can always count on Disney to come up with something new and inventive, so I am sure things will change again in the future. There are many new experiences already in the works. Tron coaster, Guardians, and Star Wars: Galactic StarCruiser to name a few. You can find many more tips, tricks, and planning tools online. Happy Anniversary, Disney World. Here’s to a Magical Year! Cheers!
The Mouse Traveler 