Disclaimer – Sorry for the iPhone photos! We didn’t want to carry around my DSLR in the parks all day!
1. Bring a Stroller for EVERY kid under 8
Yes, I know this is tips for parents under 5 but even if your oldest always walks around while you push the little around in the stroller, be prepared for him or her to ask to get in. My mom wears a fit bit and everyday we walked 8-9 miles. That was hard for us as adults, my feet were exhausted when we got back to the resort.
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If you do not have a stroller you can rent them from the parks before arriving or when you get there. I recommend reserving them before you get there.
2. Get Fast Passes and Use them Wisely.
My dad is the one who planned our trip so Ryan and I actually got out really easy when it came to planning and being prepared. My parents did it all for us. That being said. We got to have 3 active fast passes a day and once they were used we could get 3 new ones. We learned that it is best to book your fast passes in the morning use them up and then rebook three more around lunch time for the afternoon. Giving you 6 fast passes a day! You can book your fast passes 60 days in advance and I recommend that because the most popular rides will not have any fast passes available the days your at the park.
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The Disney app lets you know wait times! Check the wait times on the rides you want to ride most and book the longest wait times for your fast passes. This keeps you from wasting your fast passes on something with a 15 minute wait!
3. Pack All of Your Disney Toys!
I say this and kind of laugh because I did this and we still ended up buying a few things at the parks. But you guys – you will spend hundreds of dollars in minutes if you aren’t careful in one of those stores – we did and I still packed things! Pack all of your Mickeys, Plutos and Buzz Lightyears and let the kids pick one each day to take in the park with them. It will avoid the “Mom can I have that?” every time another child rides by in a stroller filled with light up toys and a huge stuffed Mickey! ((Disclaimer – we still caved in and bought the huge life size Mickey))
4. Stay on Property.
I can NOT stress this enough!! We stayed at The Swan which is also attached to the Dolphin. This was the MOST convenient location ever! We could walk to both Epcot and MGM and the other parks were a very short boat ride or bus ride away! The ease of walking to and from is so crucial incase you run out of packed outfits, diapers, or one of the babes is in serious meltdown mode and needs to take a nap in silence instead of in the stroller. By staying on property, you normally will get the benefits of having Character Breakfasts and Dinners on your resort property which also is extremely convenient! If you are traveling with a large group ask for adjoining rooms. This was nice for the kids to be able to run back and forth as well as us to hang out with a few cocktails after long days at the park! We got two queen beds and it was plenty of room for the 4 of us. Ryan and I both took a kid in the bed. Also the rooms had two sinks which was great for getting ready, washing bottles, etc.
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If you forgot diapers or need a few minutes by yourself with the baby find a Baby Care Center. They have a kitchen, diapers, quiet room, and everything you may have forgotten from jar food, diapers, wipes, sunscreen etc.
5. Make Dinner Reservations for Every Night.
Honestly, this tip should have probably been towards the top because I can NOT stress it enough! Unless you want to eat a funnel cake or hot dog standing against a rail make reservations! All of the sit down places fill up and are full until close! If you do not have reservations you are not eating there! And they do not have a bar you and your hubby can sit down at and grab a quick bite. So even if there are only two of you make reservations and make them 180 days in advance (as soon as they are available)! If you are staying at a Disney resort, you can book an additional 10 days earlier. If you can not get reservations for one night make a late lunch reservation. This will help to not have you starving at dinner time and then you can go grab a quick bite to eat somewhere. In our opinion other than Rainforest Cafe in Animal Kingdom – Epcot by far had the best food choices and we ate there every single night except the one night we didn’t have reservations which we had to end up eating outside the parks at the boardwalk on the way back to the resort. The food was still good but you can’t beat the entertainment at the different countries in Epcot!
We loved the food in Morocco, France, Mexico and Italy! We ate in China one night but in my opinion it was nothing to write home about.
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Bring snacks into the park! They will let you bring just about any food or drink in! We brought chips, cookies, crackers, waters and milk!!! This will save you lots of time in food lines and will save you money on all the extras your kids may want so you are only buying lunch and dinner!
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