Booking and planning our first visit to Walt Disney World
- It's A North World
- Mar 6, 2023
- 4 min read
Hey everyone!
Come and see how we booked our first Walt Disney World trip!
In October 2022 we travelled to Florida for our first ever visit to Walt Disney World (WDW).
How did we book?
This trip had been planned long before we actually booked. We knew we really want to go but it was just a matter of when. In March 2021 we took the bull by the horns and booked!! After LOTS of research we made the decision to book with Ever After Holidays and I think we made the right decision. Myah, who was our travel agent, was amazing. She listened to everything we wanted and took the time to look at lots of different options and prices until we found the one! We would highly recommend Myah and Ever After Holidays (EAH) if you're looking to book your holiday as a 'package', pay a deposit and then pay off your holiday bit by bit. You can even set up a direct debit so you don't have to worry about calling to make payments. We booked the flights, both resorts, and tickets, with EAH. All the other parts we booked separately.
Don't forget to download My Disney Experience (MDE) and link your park tickets. You will need use MDE to help you plan your trip, and it's also an idea to have a play around before you arrive so you are familiar with the app.
What did we book?
We booked a 14 night trip staying on property. 7 nights at Art of Animation, and then 7 nights a Caribbean Beach. This booking included 14 days parks tickets and memory maker.
Our Flights were with Virgin Atlantic. We had economy seats, which included one hold case each (up to 23kg), one cabin case and small bag such as small rucksack or handbag. We were also allowed to take Estella's stroller onboard with our cabin luggage, as it is specifically for travel and folds down to the correct size. Please do check with your airline what you are allowance is.
Airport hotel was booked with Premier inn and we stayed at Bath Road at Heathrow
Airport parking was booked through Holiday Extras, and we booked with MBW and booked meet and greet parking
Transfers were booked through Sunshine Flyer (we used then going from MCO to our resort, but due to a flight cancelation on our return, they cancelled our booking and we were unable to rebook, so booked with Mears Connect on the way from the resort to MCO)
Don't forget to get your ESTAs or make sure they are in date. Your ESTA lasts for 5 years but is linked to you passport so new passport means new ESTA.
Extras we booked
MNSSHP and MVMCP tickets were booked via the WDW website on the release day. We had to use a VPN (you can download one for free, and it basically put your device in America so you can book things like tickets and events)
Magic Bands were ordered via our MDE (My Disney Experience) app and, as above, we used a VPN.
Bibbity Bobbity Boutique was booked 60 days out via MDE (you will need a VPN). There is nothing to pay upfront as you pick your package on the day, but you need to have a park reservation for Magic Kingdom and valid park ticket to gain entry to the parks
Kennedy Space Centre was booked though Attraction Tickets
What restaurant reservations did we make?
If you are staying on property you can book your advance dining reservations (ADRs) 60 days out for the first 10 days of your stay, and then you have to book each remaining day one day at a time. But if you do a split stay like we did, bear in mind each reservation for your resort has its own 60 days out. This meant we had 2 60 days out dates. The ADRs we made were-
Crystal Palace character breakfast with Winnie the Pooh and friends
Skipper Canteen
Tusker House character breakfast
Sci-Fi dine in Theater
Boma for breakfast
Space 220 lounge
Grand Floridian Cafe for brunch
Ohana for character breakfast
Topolinos for character breakfast
Oga's Canteena
House of Blues weekend brunch (this needs to be booked closer to your desired date so please check on MDE)
Additional things we booked that you may need to consider
There are also various other things you may need to think about booking or organising before your travel or when you book.
Airport assistance in both directions. Our travel agent advised us to book this, we booked for the Heathrow end via Virgin Atlantic, but for coming home we had to do this via the MCO airport website, but to be completely honest, it was pointless at MCO. Heathrow was great and you should book this if you need it. There is also a family lane at security at Heathrow and MCO as well if you have children/a stroller with you
Disability Access Pass (DAS). If you or someone in your party has a disability that stops them being able to queue, you can book DAS to help you while you are in the parks. This can be booked via MDE 30 days out, and you need to have a video call to do this, so will need a VPN if you are in the UK. However, you can also do this at the parks at customer service after you arrive
Genie Plus and individual lightning lanes Are you planning on getting this while you are in the parks? If so you will need to budget for this.
Park Pass reservations
Currently to enter a WDW park you will need a valid ticket and you will need to make a park pass reservation (PPR) to enter your chosen park. So if you want to go to Magic Kingdom on your first day, you will need to book this. Also consider this when making ADRs, as if your restaurant is in a park you will need to have a valid ticket and PPR to enter for your ADR. As of now, you cannot park hop until after 2pm so you have to tap into the park you have the PPR for first before you can enter another park.
I hope this helps you with booking and planning your WDW trip. Any questions just pop them in the comments, or if you have any tips share them too.
I will be adding more blogs to detail some of the things i mentioned such as DAS, and how we used it in the parks.
But for now thanks for stopping by and we will see ya real soon!
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