Hiya, Kayla, and welcome to planDisney!
I'm so glad you stopped by with a question about the most magical vacation of them all, one that will take you from Cinderella Castle to sand castles — a land and sea vacation!
We're clearly like-minded Mouseketeers, Kayla, because like you, I'm also all about maximizing every moment of a Disney vacation. With this in mind, you'll be delighted to hear that, depending on your
Port Arrival Time, it is typically possible to visit Walt Disney World's theme parks and board a Disney Cruise Line ship at Port Canaveral on the same day. In fact, I did just that in January of this year!
To make this possible, my husband and I opted for the latest possible Port Arrival Time on our particular sailing (which was 2 PM) and spent our morning in
Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park because of its early opening time to get the most value out of our theme park tickets. It takes approximately one hour to travel from Walt Disney World Resort to Port Canaveral by car, so we made the decision to leave Animal Kingdom by noon to allow for a bit of a travel cushion. Because we were able to take advantage of
Early Theme Park Entry, I was able to enjoy breakfast with Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, and Goofy at
Tusker House Restaurant, ride all of my favorite attractions, say hello to my beloved Chip 'n' Dale, and grab my go-to snack all before catching the Sail Away Party on the
Disney Wish. It was indeed a magical day!
Of course, it's important to keep in mind that Disney Cruise Line strictly adheres to its scheduled embarkation time and will not wait for Guests who are running late, so you'll want to consider that when making your plans for the day.
I hope this helps, Kayla, and that you have an incredible vacation filled with magic and sunshine! If any additional questions arise as your countdown (be sure to check out the one in your
Disney Cruise Line Navigator app) draws to a close, feel free to come see us again at
planDisney. You've got a friend in me!
Thinking Happy Thoughts,
Lizzie