5 Things to Do Before Disney World
I’m heading to Disney World in just 11 days – so I wanted to share my top 5 things to do before my Disney World vacation!
1 – Packing!
For this Walt Disney World visit, I will be traveling with my husband, 14-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter. We’re going to be staying at the Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort in our pop-up camper for one week.
Packing for this trip means everything we need for camping PLUS our park attire and park gear. Our park gear is pretty basic, including:
- Sunglasses
- Backup battery charger for everyone in the family
- Small backpack for everyone (I’ve got my favorite Loungefly!)
- Ponchos
- Lightweight water bottles
We’re pretty set with our camping gear. In addition to our pop-up camper we have a tent for our 6’1″ 14-year-old. We’re going to eat most meals in the parks or at Trails End, and we can’t have a fire at our campsite, so we’re leaving a lot of our cooking supplies at home.
2 – Review dining details
We were able to snag most of our top dining choices when we were 60 days out from our vacation. We’re excited to check out Ohana, Topolino’s Terrace, Steakhouse 71, Le Cellier, Art Smith’s Homecomin’ and Jungle Navigation Co. Ltd. Skipper Canteen. All of these will be first visits for us and we can’t wait.
Even though we have at least one meal reserved for the duration of our stay, we’re going to have some quick service meals. So I need to read up on mobile dining – is it best to order early in the day or does that matter?
And what’s the current wait time for walk-up reservations at places like Space 220? The latest I’ve heard is that you can walk up and get in, and the waits aren’t too long – about half an hour. I think we’ll do that, even if it is just for the lounge.
3 – Read up on Disney Genie+
Next on my list of 5 things to do before Disney World is to read up on Disney Genie+. The week I’m going is the week after Thanksgiving, which historically is not a heavily attended week. So I think I’m going to try Disney Genie+ one or more days, and other days I’ll just go with individual Lightning Lane Attractions.
But I’m going to read all of the MickeyBlog articles to get ready for Disney Genie+!
4 – Plan my Capture Your Moment outfit
Early in our trip, we’re going to have a Capture Your Moment photo session at Magic Kingdom. In this 20-minute session I hope to get our family Christmas card photo, plus good shots of my husband and I for our anniversary.
I don’t know what to wear! I’m going to have to pick out the mouse ears I want to wear, plus the rest of the outfit. And then I have to make sure my kids are wearing something clean on the day of pictures!
5 – Watch the 50th anniversary special on Disney+
What’s your one word to describe #WaltDisneyWorld? Celebrate #DisneyWorld50 with the @ABC2020 Special this Friday at 8/7c on @ABCNetwork. Stream next day on Hulu. pic.twitter.com/msXFcZjaG1
— Walt Disney World (@WaltDisneyWorld) October 1, 2021
Have you watched the Walt Disney World 50th anniversary special on Disney+? I purposely did NOT watch this on October 1 so I could savor it just before leaving.
I plan on watching this special on Thanksgiving to see what’s new at the parks and to get excited for our trip.
That’s my list of 5 things to do before Disney World – what’s on your list?
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