Hello and welcome to
planDisney, Allison. Thanks for stopping by with your question.
Allison, are you getting so excited about your upcoming vacation? June will be here before you know it. I bet the countdown is on! When you ask this question, answers will greatly vary depending on who you ask. However, I am very adamant about arriving as early as possible to enjoy all of my must-do's with little to no wait.
The
complimentary transportation to the
Walt Disney World Theme Parks from the
Walt Disney World Resort Hotels starts running anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour prior to that specific park opening time. So if Magic Kingdom Park opens at 8:00 a.m. you can expect the first bus to pick you up at the resort around 7:15ish. For me, we are always at that bus stop right at an hour prior because I want us to be on that first bus over. It gives up plenty of time to get there, go through security, scan into the theme park and be heading to a first attraction for the day prior to the actual opening time. Sometimes you'll encounter a little extra pixie dust and the attractions will open up a few minutes ahead of schedule. I like to plan for this to maximize the day. In those first few hours that the theme parks are open, I am always so surprised at how many of my must-do's I can cross off. I like to head quickly from one attraction to the next until mid-morning. Then we can do some shopping or take pictures but I love to take advantage of those low wait times first thing in the morning. Then, around lunchtime when the parks tend to be their busiest, I like to head back to the hotel that I am staying at for an afternoon swim or even a nap if we've gotten up super early. After we've had our fill of fun in the sun we will clean up and head back to the parks around dinnertime. We will finish up anything else we may have missed in the morning and then enjoy the evening firework display.
This itinerary isn't ideal for everyone, Allison, but it really works for my family and me. I have been vacationing at
Walt Disney World my whole life and have honed in this plan and always have an enjoyable experience. I think early mornings are where it is at when it comes to making the most of your day.
If you have any other questions about this, or anything else, please feel free to stop back by and
ask me. I'm here to help.
Have fun!
Jackie H.