Disney world must do’s

[EricsBiscuit]

Carousel of Progress, Peoplemover, Walt Disney World Railroad, Its a Small world, Haunted Mansion, Steamboat, Hall of Presidents, Splash Mountain, Country Bears, Big Thunder, Tom sawyer's island, pirates. At Epcot, Spaceship Earth, American Adventure, Impressions de France. At DAK, Navi River Journey, Flight of Passage, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Gorilla Falls trails, Maharaja Jungle Trek, Discovery Island jungle trek, Dinosaur, Expedition Everest. At DHS, Tower of Terror, Rockin rollercoaster, Toy Story, Star Tours, Fantasmic. I highly recommend basically every night time spectacular (Happily Ever After, you want to get a spot where you can see the castle but if not any spot between the carousel and SDMT is fine, Once Upon A Time, Illuminations, Rivers of Light, Star Wars fireworks, Disney Movie Magic)

 

[EricsBiscuit]

When it comes to food avoid Casey's Corner, Starlight Cafe (but stop by to see Sunny!), Electric Umbrella and Restaurantasorous. If eating quick service USE MOBILE ORDER! It saves so much time. Also the food in Pandora is to die for. DAK in general has the best food. Aside from EU at Epcot you can't really go wrong. DHS has the least variety.

 

[Dutch Inn '76]

When it comes to food avoid Casey's Corner, Starlight Cafe (but stop by to see Sunny!), Electric Umbrella and Restaurantasorous. If eating quick service USE MOBILE ORDER! It saves so much time. Also the food in Pandora is to die for. DAK in general has the best food. Aside from EU at Epcot you can't really go wrong. DHS has the least variety.

LOL. Casey's and Restaurantosaurus are two of our favorite Quick Service spots.

 

[habuma]

When it comes to food avoid Casey's Corner, Starlight Cafe (but stop by to see Sunny!), Electric Umbrella and Restaurantasorous. If eating quick service USE MOBILE ORDER! It saves so much time. Also the food in Pandora is to die for. DAK in general has the best food. Aside from EU at Epcot you can't really go wrong. DHS has the least variety.

I'm no fan of Restaurantasaurus, but...in the mid-afternoon, when you need to rest your feet and grab a drink, the place is usually quiet and you can refill your drink to your thirst's content at the soda machines. As for the food...meh.

And, bar-none, Satu'li Canteen is the best quick-service on property. I don't usually consider a quick-service as a must-do, but this has made my list.

 

[awelpjourneys]

I'll chime in with my must-dos...but as others have said, opinions vary.
MK--all the mountains, peoplemover, carousel of progress, jungle cruise
AK--safari, lion king, (pandora rides---haven't ridden them personally, but I feel like they would be must-dos)
EP--spaceship earth, living with the land, soarin', test track
HS--toy story, tower of terror
Food is also subjective, but my favorites include tusker house, biergarten, columbia harbour house, and tangierine cafe
Not really a huge fan of any of the nighttime spectaculars except illuminations
I hope you enjoy your trip. I would recommend you do as much as possible so you can better judge...then create your own must-do list!

 

[SyracuseDisneyFan]

Buzz Lightyear ride at Magic Kingdom

 

[ThistleMae]

I didn't see it but I always enjoy Tom Sawyers Island. Find the fort and the caves. Children love it as well. Easy to skip that, you have to take a boat over to it. You also need to walk around to find everything, it's a fairly large area.

Never been there, so you have to take that boat ride and there are things to see when you get off?

 

[Dutch Inn '76]

Never been there, so you have to take that boat ride and there are things to see when you get off?

You take a flatboat (or glorified raft) over from near the entrance to Big Thunder Mountain. When I was a kid, Tom Sawyer's Island was my favorite part of WDW. The Fort with the rifles! The escape tunnel! The barrel bridge! The mine! The swinging bridge! It was awesome - and it's still pretty great.

 

[discomouse131]

The parking lot tram!!

 

[Chef Mickey]

I don't agree with the "do everything you can" approach (although I have done it myself many times). The reality is, you're not going to do/see everything in one trip.

And as others have said, one person's "must-do" is another person's waste of time. I think it's also smart to think about what are overall priorities for you. For some people, food is a really big deal. For others, it's fuel, something to grab quickly and then move on to the next show or ride. If food is a big deal, look at the menus that you can see online and get a sense of a couple of places you'd like to try. If it's not a big deal for you, anticipate that you'll be eating some burgers or sandwiches from the counter service places (many of which are really good). Disney does have good restaurants but so does the rest of the world, and the rest of the world doesn't have Splash Mountain, so if forced, I'd pick SM. But that's my priority.

Are the parades and fireworks important for you? For some people, they are absolutely essential. You will have to deal with crowds and standing around waiting if you want "the perfect spot" to see parades and fireworks. Is it worth it? Maybe you'd rather use that time to go on one of the busier rides. Only you have an idea of what you want to do.

Attractions - is this a priority? What about rides versus shows? Personally, shows were never a priority for me until probably my fifth or sixth trip. Up to that point I prioritized the rides over everything else. Now, I enjoy the change of pace and the relaxation that comes with taking in a show. Again, only you know what's a priority.

Most of all, I would say to walk around and let some things happen naturally. You will stumble across great stuff even if you don't have a schedule. Don't run across the park trying desperately to keep up with fastpass appointments. I'm repeating myself, but it's true: you can't possibly do everything, but that's okay. I wouldn't approach it as a list of things to cross off; it's a holiday. Walk into the Magic Kingdom and see where the day takes you.

Again, this all assumes knowledge of what's there. You really have to do the attractions/shows before you can decide if they are worth your time or you can miss them. Everyone tries to judge books by their covers, but it's hard to do with no experience.

9 days is plenty of time to hit all the attractions and shows. If you're not interested in a nature walk at Animal Kingdom, that might be something a little more obvious you can gloss over. Absolutely zero reason not to see the Carousel of Progress, Hall of Presidents, American Adventure, Tiki Room, etc if you've never experienced them.

 

[CptRon]

These might be more correctly classified as "In hindsight, things I'm so glad I did not miss":
PeopleMover during an evening rain shower
Hacking food costs by getting chicken fried rice ($4.99 ?) at Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafes
Lounging outside Tiffins
Kilimanjaro Safaris at dusk; a much different ride than during the day.
Completely blowing the budget to smithereens with a savanna-view, club-level access room at AKL
Tusker Lager (see above)
Sanaa - Kidani Village, aka incredible willingness to meet dietary needs at sit-down restaurants
The various Internet crowd calendars (does that count?)
The wonderfully smallest, tasteful, and quiet Port Orleans French Quarter
Haunted Mansion
The unmolested It's a Small World (no, really!)
Pin trading with the sweet lady in the WL lobby
The monorail
Hidden Mickeys!