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How You Need to Adjust Planning For Your Disney World Vacation

Credit: Disney

So much is changing in Walt Disney World that it can be hard to keep up with all of it when you are in the middle of Disney planning.  We have how you might need to adjust your planning when it comes to your Disney World vacation.  We hope this will help you be more prepared when you show up for your magical Disney vacation.

Know and Love My Disney Experience

Disney’s free planning app has been around for a while now, but it has become even more essential for a Disney World trip.  This app is where Guests can see wait times, mobile order, select their theme park, join virtual queues, find Genie, Genie+ and select individual attractions for lightning lanes.  Because of all these features, it is extremely important that you not only download the app prior to your vacation, but also mess around with it.  Disney Genie will allow you to make some favorites selections for the theme park and you can always check out wait times throughout the Disney park.  Don’t wait until you arrive at Disney World to download My Disney Experience because you will be very overwhelmed.  We know that Disney World is supposed to be a place to disconnect, but that isn’t a reality anymore with the importance of MDE.  Make sure you plan accordingly by having the app downloaded, chargers for your phone and a basic understanding of the app.

Credit: Disney

Plan These 3 Things Early

It is super important that once you have determined that you are going to Disney World for a vacation and you have dates picked out that you get that resort booked.  We are seeing Disney resorts book up quickly and the further out you book your resort the more availability you will see giving you the best options.  Don’t wait to snag those Disney resort rooms.  Another adjustment revolves around park pass reservations.  Since reopening in July, Guests are being required to make a park reservation.  Once a ticket is purchased, Guests can go into their My Disney Experience account and select which theme park they wish to visit each day.  This is important to do as soon as possible as we have seen some parks fill up.  You don’t want to wait to make a park reservation to find out that a park isn’t available.  We have always had to think about our dining plans early on, but now Guests don’t have to book their dining reservations until 60 days prior to check-in, a big deal for those that used to book 180 days ahead of time.  This doesn’t mean that you don’t need to jump on right at 60 days because you do as dining reservations are filling up quickly still.  If you have specific dining locations, make sure you are ready to go at 60 days so you can snag your dining experiences. These are all important to Disney planning.

Have a Plan, But A Flexible One

We will always suggest that Guests go into their Walt Disney World vacation with a plan.  Knowing what rides and attractions are must-dos can really help organize a touring plan for the day.  Even though we think Guests absolutely still need to make plans ahead of time, now more than ever they are going to need flexible plans.  With the introduction of virtual queues, Genie+ and Individual Attraction, those visiting the theme parks won’t know their plans until the day starts.  All three of these options become available for Disney resort Guests at 7am and off property Guests when the theme parks open.  This means that Guests might not know if they get a virtual pass for Remy’s until 7 am or know what their first Genie+ ride will be or when.  This means that we really have to adjust our planning from knowing what three fastpasses we had and when to being more flexible with an overall goal.  This might take some adjustment for many veteran Disney travelers, but we know that like with fastpass+, we will figure it out during our Disney trip.

Getting to Disney

A major adjustment that will need to be made starting January 1st is how Guests get to their Disney resort from Orlando International Airport.  If you typically use Magical Express, Disney’s free transportation option, you will need to find a different mode of transportation as this system is being discontinued at the end of 2021.  Mears will be continuing a service that Guests can pay $27/child and $32/adult round trip or $200 for a family of four for an express service.  There are other services out there such as Lyft or Uber that Guests can look into, but it is another step that needs to be planned out before traveling to their Walt Disney World resort.

Credit: ComicBook.com

Be Prepared to Adjust

If 2020 and 2021 has taught us anything it is to be prepared and ready to adjust on the fly.  Disney is doing a great job at keeping up with what is going on in the world and trying to keep Guests and cast members safe.  With that in mind, this means that sometimes policies change overnight.  Be prepared to adjust to new policies such as masks wearing while on vacation.  We have seen Disney adjust their policy multiple times in response to the state of the world so be ready to adjust with them.  Bring those masks that you prefer so you aren’t caught without them.  Also be prepared to adjust to the weather.  This isn’t anything new, but Florida weather can change quickly.  Rainstorms come quickly and in the winter months temperatures can range drastically.  Don’t get caught unprepared by having a variety of layers and rain gear ready to go. Being flexible during a Disney World trip is going to be key to the magic.

Housekeeping is Different

If you are used to having housekeeping come in each day to clean up and make those beds, this isn’t happening each day.  Resort rooms are given a deep clean prior to Guests checking in and then housekeeping will come in usually every other day to grab trash and bring new towels.  This doesn’t mean that you can’t get items from housekeeping, just that Disney is trying to limit how many people are in and out of a resort room.  This is part of their safety procedures and might be something you have to adjust to at first.

These are just a few of the big areas that you might need to adjust to when planning your Disney World vacation.  If you are aware of them and take time to plan for the changes, it can make a big difference on your Walt Disney World vacation.

About Jennifer Retzlaff

My name is Jennifer Retzlaff and I became a lifelong Disney fan during my first trip to Walt Disney World in 6th grade. From that moment, Disney became a big part of my life. I live in Iowa with my husband and two kids who are growing up too quickly for my liking. I started introducing my love for Disney early to my family with a Disney honeymoon and then trips when our youngest of 18 months. Since then, our family has been to Walt Disney World over five times and we continue to plan and dream for the next trip. I love the magic that Disney brings to people through the theme parks, cruises, adventures and movies they create. As a teacher, I try to bring that magic into my classroom to help kids believe that “If You Can Dream It, You Can Do It.” I recently reached a dream of mine as I joined Magic Vacation Planner as a personal travel advisor. With this team, I can now help others plan magical vacations. As a passionate writer, I also have my own blog at magicalvacationsbyjen which is also where you can follow me on instagram for trip reviews along with tips and tricks for your next magical vacation.