Hey Kristin,
Welcome to planDisney! I’m so glad you’re here with this question and I’m super excited to help you plan your upcoming visit to Walt Disney World. Packing in several attractions in a short period of time is tough, but doable. I had a very similar itinerary a few months ago and I have to commend you for your realistic outlook on being able to see 3 of the 4 parks in 2 days. Being honest with yourself about your capabilities is a great first step.
The first thing I’ll suggest is upgrading to
park hopper tickets if you have not already. This is the only way to accomplish visiting 3 parks in 2 days. Park hopper tickets allow you to “hop” from park to park easily. My next suggestion is to have a good strategy. Before our last trip I sat down with my family to ask what attractions were on their must-do list. This helped me plan our itinerary. While I knew we didn’t have enough time to do everything, I did want to make sure that everyone’s most important attractions were reflected.
If I were in your shoes and wanted to plan for a 2-day trip, I’d start at Animal Kingdom – this park opens earlier than the others on most days so it’s a good place to start. I’d rope drop there and ride the most important attractions, such as
Kilimanjaro Safaris,
Avatar – Flight of Passage and
Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain. I'd make time for the
Festival of the Lion King because no trip to Animal Kingdom is complete without it. After that we would take the bus over to Magic Kingdom and try to catch the
Festival of Fantasy parade, then enjoy as many attractions on our list as possible until park close. I'd skip the fireworks and ride
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train on this night since that is usually a less busy time for it. On day two, I’d start my day at EPCOT riding attractions like
Test Track and
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. Once I finished my attraction list at EPCOT, I’d hop back to Magic Kingdom and finish the day riding anything on our list we didn’t get to the day before and enjoying
Happily Ever After to end the night.
Having only 2 days to experience your must-do attractions really helps you focus on what's most important to your family. While you're racing through your itinerary, don't forget to eat and hydrate! If your crew is anything like mine, they won't let you forget. Consider purchasing
Lightning Lane passes and
MagicBand+ to speed through as many queues as possible. Having two days of pre-selected attractions will definitely help with timing.
I hope this was helpful, Kristin. If you need additional planning help be sure to visit us again. See ya real soon!
Sakinah