How to Make Your Experience at Disneyworld More Special and Exclusive
Calling all Disney fans! Looking for ways to make your Disney trip even more magical? This week Lauren Nowicki joins us to share all her insider tips on elevating your Disney experience.
Calling all Disney fans! Looking for ways to make your Disney trip even more magical? This week Lauren Nowicki joins us to share all her insider tips on elevating your Disney experience.
Lauren is a fantastic Disney World trip planner and blogger. She spends time each month at the Parks learning all the ins and outs to make sure that she provides the best information possible. Let’s jump into ways that you can elevate each of the following sections with a few simple tips!
Resorts
Staying at a deluxe resort is the best way to elevate your overall trip experience. (Disney has three tiers: value, moderate, and deluxe. And you get what you pay for!)
Deluxe resorts have more restaurant options, including higher-end restaurants.
You will also have the best proximity to the parks. Some are even within walking distance of the Parks, which is saying a lot considering Disney World is pretty spread out.
Deluxe guests get extra hours included in their tickets. This allows you to walk on to almost any ride you want!
Many deluxe rooms have great views of the park.
If you upgrade to club rooms, you also have access to free breakfast, lunch, and light dinner/appetizers.
Lauren’s favorite hotel is the Grand Floridaian. This resort has a spa, outdoor sports courts, restaurants, pools, and bars. The grounds are beautiful and it’s very high end.
Lauren’s favorite resort AREA is the Boardwalk. Here you can find a few deluxe hotels here. They offer boat services and walking to multiple parks. There is also a lot of free night time entertainment and great restaurants.
Restaurants
Dining booking window opens 60 days before your hotel stay. You can book for your whole trip on this day. You will want to make a reservation for any of these restaurants!
California Grill - This is at the top of The Contemporary. This restaurant has an amazing view of the fireworks in Magic Kingdom.
La Hacienda San Angel - great Mexican food at Epcot. This restaurant also has great views of the fireworks.
Crystal Palace - This character meal is found in Magic Kingdom. Breakfast and lunch is great here!
Topolino’s Terrace - Fantastic food at the Riviera Resort. They have the best character breakfast and a high end dining experience.
Not a restaurant, but you can have groceries delivered to your hotel if you want to have snacks to take on-the-go!
Transportation
Disney provides free transportation to get to each Disney World Park.
If you don’t want to deal with the buses and crowds, Disney has partnered with Lyft to create Disney themed van rides (for a cost). These vans will pick you up wherever you are and take you to your destination. They even offer up to two car seats!
This is a great option if you want to get dropped off right at the front of Magic Kingdom with the buses.
Rides
Follow Lauren’s page to learn ALL her tips for getting on rides.
Buy the Premier Pass! This pass allows you to walk right up to each ride one time. This option is very expensive, but it also allows you to come in the park later than rope drop and just walk up to each ride. No scheduling required! Magic Kingdom is the best park to use this pass!
Multipass is also a good option, but you have to schedule when you want to cut the line for each ride.
Take a VIP Tour. You essentially hire a Disney guide and they will take you wherever you want to go for 7-9 hours. They will even take you between Parks and grab you snacks while you’re on the rides. You can bring up to 10 guests. It usually costs about $850/hour. This is the ultimate luxury Disney experience!
Fireworks
Pre-party ticket - grab hors d'oeuvres, desserts, and drinks before the fireworks and then head over to the Hub (take grassy hill) by the castle for viewing.
Post-party ticket - same as pre-party, but snacks are after!
Seats and Sweets - Lauren’s favorite fireworks experience! Here you will be served light snacks, desserts, and cocktails (same as the other parties’ food). You will check in at Tomorrowland Terrace. You have a great view of the castle and you get to be seated at a table.
While these options are all in Magic Kingdom, you can buy dining packages in other parks that come with preferred seating for fireworks viewing.
Get in touch with Lauren!