Guide to the World

Walt Disney World has a pretty impressive transportation system that can get you around their property and even get you to and from the airport. And it’s all included with your stay at a Disney Resort. Since it’s where you’ll start on you vacation, let’s look first at getting to your resort from the airport. Disney’s Magical Express This is an awesome service for those flying into Orlando International Airport with participating airlines. There are two parts to the Magical Express, you and your checked bags. With your travel documents, you’ll be sent special yellow luggage tags (like the ones they put on at the airport) for your bags that have your resort name and area on them. These go on your checked bags and after you check into your airline, you won’t see your bags again until they reach your room. Disney picks them up from the airport and them directly to your room for you. So that’s how your bags get there, but how do you get there? You (and your unchecked bags) take a Mag...

How long to stay is entirely up to what interests you in the parks and how long your budget allows you to stay. For a perfect vacation in my books, I recommend staying for 6 days. Why? Because that gives you a full day at each park plus an extra day at Magic Kingdom and Epcot, but that’s just the opinion I have from how my family has done Disney. Here’s a breakdown to give you an idea of how long you’ll want to stay based on how long the parks might take: Magic Kingdom With all its rides and shows, Magic Kingdom is near impossible to do in a single day if you want to see everything. It is possible to hit the best attractions and shows and still get the full experience in a single day. I would not recommend any less than a day or you’ll feel rushed and won’t get to see enough. Epcot One day for Future World and one day for World Showcase works well (they were actually two separate parks back in the beginning of the planning phase). If you’re not into the big thrill rides or...

Resorts in this category have it all (including a big price tag). Deluxe resorts have more room options ranging from four-person rooms to eight-person suites. The standard rooms have two queen beds or one king and a day bed, which is a sofa that converts into a bed. These rooms also have a bathroom with two sinks, a shower, and toilet. This style room is also available with club-level service for an additional price which gets you your own personal vacation planner to make dining reservations and VIP tours. Suites range from a one-bedroom suite that sleep up to 5 with a king bed, queen-sized sleeper sofa, and twin-sized sleeper chair to a two-bedroom suite that sleeps up to 8 and has a kitchenette and living room area. Deluxe resorts also have more dining options with multiple table service, quick service options, and lounges. Some dining areas are more upscale than others and have a dress code, these tend to be the more expensive, hard to get into table service places. Like dining ...

Moderate resorts are a bit more pricey than the value resorts, but if you can afford it, they're totally worth it. They are so much more beautiful than value resorts and the theming is really cool. These resorts are $200 to $300 a night depending on when you go and where you stay, with the more crowded times and nicer rooms costing more (yes you must pay for that “garden view” over the “standard view”). The resort has multiple buildings and in some they are spread out more and the buses loop around before heading to the main building and out to the parks. The main building is where the food, front desk, arcade, and gift shop are. At each resort (with one exception) there is a table service restaurant along with a quick service restaurant and pool bar. Food at the restaurants tends to match the theme of the resort (think Caribbean food at Caribbean Beach and Mexican at Coronado Springs) plus more traditional food like sandwiches, pizza, and salads. Each also has at least one main...

There are six value resorts at Walt Disney World, though one isn’t actually in this category (for simplicity’s sake it is here). They are All Star Sports, All Star Movies, All Star Music, Pop Century, Art of Animation, and Fort Wilderness Campground. Each of the Value Resorts has a quick service restaurant, pools, arcade, and bus service to the parks. The resorts have multiple buildings with the main one housing the restaurant, front desk, arcade, and bus depot. Guest rooms are spread out in buildings and are grouped to share a theme. Rooms aren't huge, but they have the standard two double beds and a bathroom. There is one sink, which is located outside the bathroom, which makes it possible for someone to get ready at the sink while another takes a shower. The rooms also have the typical dresser, TV, table, and chairs. Art of Animation and All Star Music have larger family suites that can sleep up to six people, though these do cost more than the standard room. Rooms are decora...

With 20 resort hotels (soon to be 21 with the new Riviera coming soon) owned by Disney and a handful not owned by Disney, there are plenty of options when it comes to staying at Walt Disney World. You can also find even more options off property, but most likely require finding/paying transportation to the parks. I've mainly stayed at the Disney hotels so I'm going to focus on those with the biggest plus being that they're close to the parks and provide free transportation. non-Disney hotels on property (think big name hotels) Most provide transportation to the parks (some make you pay) often dropping you farther away from the front gate Many have pools and restaurants (that’s about it for recreation, maybe more at the bigger resorts) Regular boring hotels, no theming, no magic Okay for money saving but by far not the best option in my books Disney Hotels Transportation to and from the airport along with transport to the parks an...

When’s the best time to visit Walt Disney World? There are a few things to consider when deciding when to go. Crowds There are definitely certain times of the year that are more crowded than others and these times typically fall around school vacations. Summer is always busy and typically when new attractions and lands opens, which tends to draw in even bigger crowds. Crowds are also big in the spring for spring break and the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival. This has been the time I've typically gone in the past and the crowds are bearable. Around the holidays it can also get super busy, but the decorations and shows are certainly worth it if you love Christmas. Christmas Day does have a reputation of being one of the busiest day of the year, occasionally parks close their gates because they near capacity. New Year’s Day is also in the running for most crowded day and like Christmas, wait times can peak near 300 minutes and the parks have been known to reach...