CHAPTER
THREE

BACK TO CHAPTER ONE

Chapter 2

Just like an artist sketches before they put paint-to-canvas, we have to get a faint view of our overall vacation before we set anything in stone.

This part is my FAVORITE, especially since I can do it while sitting in bed in my pajamas. When we rush ahead to the end of planning: reservations are made, dining is booked, etc. we can completely miss the bones of a successful plan.

Love, Dana

Have you been referring to your checklist? This will help keep you organized!

DOWNLOAD HERE

Using your printed planner, or your Google Sheets template, start filling in the things you already know, like:

  • Your travel dates 

  • Festivals + events
    Think fireworks, Mickey's Christmas Party, etc. 

  • Crowd level predictions
    I use the crowd calendar from UnderCover Tourist. Don't put TOO much weight on crowd predictions, but it can give a great baseline when you don't know where to start.

  • Park Hours
    While you can't confirm these hours if your trip is more than 60 days away, check the schedule as far as Disney's calendar will allow just to get a baseline.


Start "Sketching"

01.

TRAVEL DATES

EVENTS

PARK HOURS

CROWDS

Make a vacation sketch with me!

PRINTABLE

GOOGLE SHEET

Create a Vacation Sketch

Instead of going in "order" of parks, plan to visit the park that’s labeled LOW in crowd predictors for that day. For example, if you fly in on Friday, you don't have to visit Magic Kingdom on Saturday because that’s the first one you want to see. If it predicts crowds will be high, plan your days around it.

I don’t care if you’re six or sixty, it's always a good idea to head back to your room from 2PM to 4PM for a nap or sit by the pool.

This is always the most crowded and hottest part of the day. If you want to stay in the park, block off this time to see a show or find a quiet place to rest.

Sketching "Hacks"

ONE

TWO

If you're visiting in the fall/winter, remember that there are nights that Magic Kingdom closes early for Halloween + Christmas parties.

Use this to your advantage! "Party days" have much lower crowds (about 30% shorter wait times). If you are okay with missing the normal fireworks at night, or can come back on a different night, visiting Magic Kingdom on party days is my favorite trick.

FOUR

While I'm not a big fan of "rope-dropping", I do like to take advantage of the mornings, when crowds are the lowest.

I like to say “early to rise, early to nap" because the only way I can get out of bed before 7:30AM is to gift myself a nap later. And coffee.

THREE

GET CRAFTING WITH THESE

Rest Day

Park
Two

Park
One

Park
Four

Park
Three

Try the "park-park-rest" schedule

A common question is "how many days is the right amount for Disney World?" If this is your once-a-year family vacation a full week is ideal. You'll have 2 travel days, 4 park days, and a break in between. The example below is how I usually plan out our week:

How many days do we need for the parks?
There are 4 parks in Walt Disney World: Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom.

Do we want to visit more than 1 park in a day?
There will be an option add a "park hopper" to your ticket. This lets you visit more than one park per day. These are more expensive but come in handy when you want to have more flexibility.

Do we want to experience any WATER PARKS?
There are 2 water parks on property, which may be of interest to you if you're visiting during the summer months.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER before moving on

Buy Your
Park Tickets

A plus ticket gets you an equal number of "plus visits," to
Blizzard Beach Water Park, Typhoon Lagoon Water Park (currently unavailable), or a round at one of Disney's 3 golf courses.

Park
Hopper Plus

Allows you to visit 1 park per day (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, or Animal Kingdom.)

You cannot visit multiple parks on the same day, but you can leave and return to the same park. 

Base
Ticket

1

Buy Your Park Tickets

If you already booked a vacation package with Walt Disney World, you can skip this step and confirm that you can see your tickets under your Profile.

But if you rented DVC points, are staying off property, or only booked a room, it's time to buy park tickets! There are 3 options:

02.

Allows you to hop (scan) into multiple parks in 1 day.

Park hopping starts at 2pm.

You'll need a park reservation for the FIRST park you visit and scan in before hopping to the 2nd.

2

Park Hopper Option

3

This is how most people buy tickets, but it won't be saving you any money. There's no real benefit to buying directly from Disney's website: a ticket is a ticket. 

THE MOST POPULAR

01

Undercover Tourist gives you the same kind of ticket options, but you save a little bit of money.

MY FAVORITE

I've recently discovered this website and it looks like they have great prices! When I compared, it was 10% cheaper then buying through Disney.

ANOTHER DISCOUNTED OPTION

Commonly Asked Ticket Questions

What's a Park Hopper?

DOES MY BABY NEED A TICKET?

HOW DO I LINK OUR TICKETS TO MDE?

CAN WE LEAVE + COME BACK?

Adding the + Park Hopper option to your ticket let's you visit more than one park per day, or "hop". 

Right now, Park Hopping hours start at 2PM each day. You have to have a Park Reservation for the first park you plan to visit AND enter that first park before you can scan into another. A Park Reservation isn't needed for any park except the first one you want to visit.

What's a Park Hopper?

DOES MY BABY NEED A TICKET?

HOW DO I LINK OUR TICKETS TO MDE?

CAN WE LEAVE + COME BACK?

If you purchased through Disney and entered in the same email as your My Disney Experience account, they should be already linked under "My Tickets + Passes."

If you missed it, go back and watch this video from Chapter 1 where I go over how to set up your My Disney Experience account.

04.

Until January 9, 2024, you'll need both tickets and Park Reservations for the dates you want to visit. For example, if you want to visit Magic Kingdom on December 22nd, you'll need ticket and park reservation for December 22nd.





And since you're all linked up with your family - you can make Park Reservations for everyone!

Make Park Reservations

MAKE PARK RESERVATIONS

SKETCH YOUR VACATION

MAKE PARK RESERVATIONS

You're on your way to creating the vacation of your dreams, I can feel it! This first chapter takes a lot of brain power - you got this!

continue to chapter 3

BUY PARK TICKETS

LINK FAMILY & FRIENDS