Hey there Cheryl, it's always great to have you here at planDisney!
For anyone coming from the more compact
Disneyland Resort over to the massive city-sized wonder of Walt Disney World Resort, it can certainly seem as daunting as undertaking a journey across distant lands (quite literally in this case). With this in mind, it makes sense that you'll want to make the most of every day to really experience as much as you can from rope dropping all the way to that magical park ambience after dark!
- Personally I really do enjoy having a late dinner reservation at the theme parks as this is often resulted in being able to exit after they have officially closed for the night - providing us with the chance to feel like it's all our own among the final few guests making their way home. Some great examples that my husband and I have experienced are evening dinners at Be Our Guest Restaurant, a quick sip or snack at Oga's Cantina at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge or even and evening at Yak & Yeti Restaurant in Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park; each of these options are located deep enough into each theme park to result in a nice, ambient nighttime trek back to the entrance!
Something to be aware of is that in many cases, choosing these late reservation times often means possibly missing out on the
nighttime entertainment and fireworks that are so iconic to any Walt Disney World Resort visit so considering that this is your first time, I definitely wouldn't recommend skipping
Happily Ever After or
Luminous The Symphony of Us! (Though you've very likely also watched
Fantasmic! over in Disneyland Park, the stadium seating and different variety of scenes at Disneys' Hollywood Studios more than makes up for perhaps a difference in boat sizes for the finale.)
Wishing you all the best on your after-dark adventuring!
Prince