Saving Time at Walt Disney World

Hi friends and welcome back to Muting and the Mouse. Well, one question I always get when I tell people how many things we did during a day is “how did you get that all done”? Well, Disney can be daunting when you are looking to plan your days out. The best bit of advice I can give is to make sure you are prepared for the day. This can take many different forms and look different for all families, but the one thing is constant..have a plan! When Abby and I do a Disney day, sometimes we let things come to us. The days all play out differently but there are still ways to make the best use of your time. I am going to spell some out below because I really do think these save time and are useful for those looking to get the most out of a day at Walt Disney World. These are obviously not the end all be all, but ways we have found to save time so you can make it to the next ride that just posted a ten minute wait time. So I will start this blog by saving some words for later as we dive into how to save time at Disney!

Use All Kinds of Transportation

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First on the list is as basic as getting to parks. Use all types of transportation that is available to you. Depending on where you are staying, there are multiple ways to get to and from the Disney Parks. If you can take the bus, take the bus, however, sometimes they can be busy or over crowded. If that is the case and you can take a different form, do it! Other forms might be the Monorail from the Magic Kingdom Resorts, the Fairy Boats to the Ticket and Transportation Center, and the Skyliner to the Epcot and Hollywood Studios area hotels. Some of these move quicker than others and can be a time saver. If these all seem to be long lines and waits, you can always take a look at Uber or Lyft. They do have that available if you are willing to pay the money. I will say, at times, this is the way to go if you are looking to save some time. One that can save some time now if you stay at the Grand Floridian is the walkway. Take that if the lines look long, the walk might just save you some time. The biggest take away here is, there are multiple forms of transportation, make sure you see which is best for you! They really can make or break time during the long day. 

Buy A Souvenir When You See One You Like

If you are anything like me, you spend all your time looking for the perfect souvenir. Well, I can tell you it can waste a lot of time. My point here is if you see a souvenir you really like, go ahead and get it! There have been times I have spent a lot of the trip looking for the best souvenir and then go back to get the one I liked and it was gone. Abby and I usually plan some time in the day where we shop so we know we are hitting the shops at good parts of the day. When it gets very hot during the early afternoon is a good time to escape the heat and shop. That is when we typically try to grab some souvenirs and lately, when we see things we like, we buy them. It helps the flow of the day and saves time because we try not to just stop in shops to see what they have. We set aside time to check them out and go from there. Don’t keep searching because some of the stores have the same items, but some do have some unique items, so when you see those, pull the trigger on the decision! 

Don’t Leave The Park Right After Fireworks

Picture this, the fireworks end, the crowd is all trying to exit the park, and you spend one hour standing waiting for a bus. Not the best of feelings when you are tired after a long day at Disney. A way we have found to save time waiting for a bus, is to spend the time in the park! Walk around Main Street, USA and take in the sights and sounds. Take pictures in front of the castle. Disney Photopass is set up on Mainstreet so make sure you get the picture in front of the castle. Head into some shops and look around. The point here is, let the busses and transportation die down and enjoy the ambiance of the park to cut down on the travel home time at the bus stop.

Mobile Order When you Can

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Disney has introduced a wonderful new thing when it comes to dining. The mobile order option is a life saver. We had to do this at some locations in May as the only way to order and I think some places will keep it around. Open the My Disney Experience App and go to the restaurant that you want to order from. Hit the mobile order option and boom, you don’t have to wait in line in the restaurant. You can order from anywhere in the park and then head over to the location and click I am here. They will start to prepare your order then. Something we did is when we were a couple minutes away, hit I am here and then by the time you got to the restaurant, they had the food ready! This saves so much time and is convenient, so make sure you take advantage of this when you can!

Look at Menus and Make Reservations Ahead of Time

Something we really like to do is plan ahead with certain menus. If you are going for a festival at Epcot, make sure you take a look at the menus ahead of time. All of the booths and choices can be intimidating to look at and you could spend lots of time lost just looking at menus. Plan ahead which stops you want to hit and go right to those booths to start. If you are going to look for dining reservations, also use the plan ahead. Plan ahead what restaurants you want to eat at so you know that you have a reservation. If you don’t you could spend a lot of time trying to get one and you might not be successful. Disney has a lot of food as we have mentioned in previous posts, so save time at the park by having a plan on what you want to try! Look above at the photo for what Abby and I do when we are planning to go to a festival at Epcot!

Hit Big Rides Later/Let the Rush Die Down

This one might not be a popular one, but here me out. Rope drops and everyone runs for the big ticket rides. The wait is long and you find yourself with an hour and a half gone or even sometimes more. I propose a different tactic. You are going to wait an hour and a half for the ride no matter the time of the day, so hit up smaller attractions. For example, everyone runs to Smuggler’s Run and Slinky Dog Dash at Hollywood Studios. Abby and I head over to Tower of Terror and Rock N Roller Coaster. We get those two rides done in an hour and then hit up some smaller attractions before going to the bigger rides. You accomplish more in the morning that day and then can wait in line mid afternoon for the bigger rides when some people get exhausted by the heat. This does not always work, but it is something I have found to be a game changer.

Well, here are my ways to save time when going to the Disney Parks. I have found these to really save some time but let’s be honest, there is something about letting the day and the time just happen and enjoying the magic at a slower rate. If there are ways that you like to save time at Disney, please share them below! I will admit, I did leave out Fast Passes because that is all going to change and has not been available for the past year. Fast Passes do help save time and I will always use them at times to help. No matter what you do on your Disney Vacation to save time, just remember one thing, enjoy it! Disney Vacations always fly by so it is best to make sure you pack in all the fun. I hope you enjoyed and can take away some time saving tricks for your next Disney Vacation, until then we will see ya real soon! Oh and remember to escape into the magic, no matter how far!