Hi Christy,
I am glad to hear you love the Moms Panel. We love having you stop by with another vacation planning question! Our family always visits the
Downtown Disney area on our first day. With a multitude of shopping, dining, and entertainment options you can spend the morning or afternoon at Downtown Disney. My kids love visiting the World Of Disney Store – the world's largest Disney character store – to find a souvenir, and even just to see all of the decorations. The spitting Stitch out front is always a favorite of my 6-year-old. He especially enjoys the occasional passerby who gets hit by water by that mischievous Experiment 626.
I would also suggest going directly to
Disney's All-Star Music Resort when you arrive in Walt Disney World. We usually go straight to our Disney Resort hotel to check-in and provide a mobile number to receive a call or text on when our room becomes available. On a few occasions, we have been fortunate to go straight to our room earlier than the standard afternoon check-in time. Exploring the hotel after we check-in is another favorite activity of our family.
If you are around the Downtown Disney area for dinner, I would suggest having dinner at one of the many wonderful restaurants there. Some of the places we enjoy are
T-REX and
Wolfgang Puck Express at Downtown Disney Marketplace. Please let me know if I can help you with another question before your upcoming Walt Disney World vacation.
Have a magical day!
Bob