Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About Planning a Walt Disney World Vacation

A lot of planning goes into a Walt Disney World vacation.  It can feel like a full time job as you try to decide where to stay, what to eat, and what to ride and experience.

In order to help your Disney planning be a little easier, we have some frequently asked questions when it comes to a Walt Disney World vacation and the answers to those questions.

We hope these will help you plan a fantastic Disney vacation.

When Is Less Busy?

Figuring out when to visit is the first step to planning a Walt Disney World vacation.  Most want to visit when the Disney Theme Parks are less busy if possible.

Although there are a few times throughout the year, overall the Parks are starting once again to be pretty steady when it comes to crowds.

If you can avoid when kids are out of school (holidays, spring break, and summer) this can help greatly with crowds.

After those times of the year, then think about if you can visit mid-week instead of the weekend.  This can be helpful when it comes to avoiding large, local crowds.

We also recommend looking at Disney’s calendar to see if you can avoid some of the big events like runDisney Weekends that bring large crowds that you might not be aware of.

These are some of the tips we have when it comes to finding those less crowded times in Walt Disney World.

How Long Should We Stay for our Disney vacation?

This is a tricky question we hear a lot.  If it was up to us, we would recommend staying as long as possible.  Not everyone can stay that long or wants to stay that long so what is the “perfect” amount of time?

If you look at the fact that Disney offers four Theme Parks, we would recommend staying at least four to five days in order to visit all four Parks.

That is a good amount of time if you want to visit each Disney Park once; however, if you wish to visit them more than once we recommend more of a 6-7 day trip.

Staying longer allows Guests to enjoy the Resorts as well as the Theme Parks, giving them some room to revisit some of their favorites.

The big fact to keep in mind when determining how long to stay is to know that no matter how long you stay you won’t get everything completed on your Disney vacation, and that’s okay.  You will have an excuse to visit the Walt Disney World Resort a second time.

Where Should We Stay?

Once you figure out how long you want to stay, the next big question that comes up is where to stay?  Disney offers a variety of different Disney Resort categories offering different amenities and price points.  The main categories for a Disney Resort are Value, Moderate, Deluxe, and Deluxe Villas.

When deciding where to stay, you will want to think about your budget and then what you need and want from your Disney Resort stay.

If you are looking for a place to lay your head at night at a lower price point, you will want to look into the Value Resorts.  These provide Disney magic without a huge cost but are also very basic accommodations.

Moderate Resorts provide bigger rooms with more amenities such as dining options, more pools, and even slides at the pools.  These are great if you want to spend some time at the Resort but also don’t want to break the bank.

For the best of the best in Disney World, you have the Deluxe and Deluxe Villa options.  These are the highest price points but with good reason.  The Deluxe Resorts are often closer to the Parks and offer unique transportation options like boats, Disney Skyliner, or monorail.

The amenities provided at these Resorts are top notch with some of the best dining and pools on Disney property.  This is where you want to stay if you want to feel pampered.

Think about what you want out of your Disney Resort experience and then go from there to help make your decision on where to stay.

What are Disney Genie, Disney Genie+, and Individual Lightning Lanes?

This is a new question but one that almost everyone is asking.  These three new features started on October 19th and we are all still learning about them.

Disney Genie is the free planning service that is found in the My Disney Experience app.  It provides Guests with suggestions for touring the Theme Parks, finding food, and even entertainment they might not have known about.

Disney Genie+ is a paid option. For $15/person/day Guests can add it to their Walt Disney World tickets.  This gives Guests access to Lightning Lanes for over 40 attractions in the four Theme Parks during their Disney trip.  Lightning Lanes are the actual queue lines that bypass the Standby Lines, providing Guests with a shortened Wait Time.

Individual Lightning Lane refers to the two rides in each Park that aren’t included in Disney Genie+.  In order to use the Lightning Lanes for these attractions, Guests need to purchase them separately.

Cost for these individual rides range from $7 to $15 per ride per person and Guests can choose to pay for two a day.

We have a lot of articles about these new features at Walt Disney World from using the free Disney Genie, to how to basics, to how to prioritize Disney Genie+ options.  We hope that these will continue to help you answer this question.

What’s the Weather Like in…..?

This is also a commonly asked question when it comes to visiting Walt Disney World.  The answer to it is typically a little of everything and hot.

Most months out of the year are warm in Central Florida.  It is one of the reasons we love going to visit.

Starting in mid-March sometimes all the way through November, you get hot and humid conditions.  These days are tough in the Theme Parks and you will need to pack accordingly. The rest of the year the temperatures are all over the place. And yes, it can get cold in Florida.

Finally, there is rain.  Starting in the summer months and running through fall and even into winter at times you can expect rain during the day at the Theme Parks.

Overall, we like to prepare for any weather when we head down to Disney World but maybe that’s why we are considered over packers.

These are some of the most commonly asked questions when it comes to planning a vacation to Walt Disney World.  We hope that we helped answer them for you as you plan a magical Disney World trip.