Howdy Vanessa!
Welcome to planDisney. I’m super excited to hear that you and your family will soon be visiting The Most Magical Place on Earth. I was just telling some of my fellow panelists that I remember my first trip and how overwhelming it was to try to figure everything out, so hopefully I can share some tips to help you plan your days. As my friend Peter Pan says, here we go!
Alrighty, so the two main places to research everything for your visit will be the
Walt Disney World website and the
My Disney Experience app. I like the website because I can view it on my computer and open multiple tabs for different items to come back to. The app will be what you will want to use for booking dining, Lightning Lanes, and much, much more.
The first thing I would recommend is to explore all of the hotel options available in the
Walt Disney World Collection. There are over 30 resorts available with options in every price category, so you should have no problem finding one to fit your budget. One of the many benefits of staying on property is being able to utilize all of the complimentary transportation to and from the parks, as well as early entry, which gives you extra time to enjoy rides and experiences.
Once you know which resort you would like to stay at, you can start building your vacation package. You can find the Build Your Vacation option at the top of the website. Once you enter your travel information and resort choice, you can pick which room type you would like. Next, you can select your tickets. I always recommend getting the Park Hopper Option. This allows you to hop between parks as much as you like during your stay. We love it because it allows us to revisit a park if we want to ride something again or do an experience we might have missed. Next, you can add a dining plan to your package. There are options for any budget, so I would see if this may be a good fit. Finally, you can add any additional options, like the photo package, ground transportation, or a travel protection plan. The best thing of all is that you can book all of this with a small deposit.
Ok a few more things to note before we part ways. You can begin booking your
Advanced Dining Reservations 60 days prior to your arrival date. There are an endless number of dining options at the parks and resorts, so be sure to take a look at where you might want to dine and book accordingly. You can begin booking your
Lightning Lane Multi Pass reservations 7 days prior to your arrival. This is a great service which will allow you to save time by preselecting rides and times so you can make the most of your days.
Vanessa, I hope this helps with all of your planning and that you and your family have a magical time visiting Walt Disney World. If you have any further questions, please stop back by, and we’ll be happy to assist you.
See ya real soon,
Robert