First, be prepared for crowded parks, especially the Magic Kingdom. As both
@networkpro and
@scorp16 mentioned, planning will make your trip more enjoyable. I agree that your first day should be a relaxing one and think Disney Springs is a great place to start. There are plenty of shops, both Disney related and non-Disney related merchandise. And plenty of places to grab a bite to eat. And all parks and Disney Springs now have a Starbucks, if getting your Java fix is important. Plus, there's an AMC in Disney Springs that includes a couple of their dine in theatres. We've found a relaxing way to spend our first night is to see a movie while we eat dinner.
If possible, check out websites like Touring Plans that have crowd calendars. That way you can get a good idea which days will be the best to visit each park. Request the planning DVD from Disney's website. Before our first trip, we ordered the personal maps of each park (do they still offer those?). That way you can see where each attraction is located in each park, mark those you really want to ride and set up a route. Nothing wastes time and drains your energy like having to wander around a park, crisscrossing the park (especially through heavy crowds) to get from ride to ride. Secret, do the Magic Kingdom clockwise, i.e., start in Adventureland and work your way around to Tomorrowland. Make those Fastpass reservations in that circular order. You don't want to have to go from one side of the park to the other to make your initial three fastpasses. And make those FP+ reservations for those rides you really want. Since you are staying off property, your window to make them will open up 30 days prior to the day you plan on visiting a particular park. That's why that nice map Disney provides is so beneficial. And the maps are two sided, with a park on each side. And if I remember, you can select which parks are on each side. The maps come in a nice little envelope and are bigger than the ones you will pick up in a park.
Since your trip is in about a month and a half, the 180 day window to make advanced dining reservations for Table Service restaurants has opened. If you and your daughter want to eat at any of the popular restaurants, like Be Our Guest in the Magic Kingdom, you will need a reservation, especially since you will be visiting at a busy time. It will be very difficult to walk up to a table service restaurant and expected to be seated within a reasonable time, if at all. You can visit each restaurant on the Disney website and all will have the type or restaurant (table service, quick service, etc.), type of cuisine (American, Mexican, Asian, etc.), price range and a menu. Note that ALL table service restaurants now require a credit card guarantee, but don't charge your card unless you are a no show ($10 per person on the reservation) or when it comes time to pay. Make sure you understand the no show policy, because Disney considers you a no show if you are more than 30 minutes late for your reservation and will cancel it, to boot.
In budgeting for your expenses, make sure to figure in parking at Disney, Universal and Sea World. I don't know what Sea World's parking fee is, but I believe Disney is now $20 a day and Universal may be close to that. And make sure you familiarize yourself with the route from Lake Buena Vista to both Universal and Sea World. I know to go from the WDW area to Universal means a drive on I-4, which is a very busy highway and can be confusing to the first timer. So have that GPS ready.
Speaking of Universal, if you and your daughter want to ride the Hogwarts Express from Hogsmeade (which is in Islands of Adventure) to Diagon Alley (which is in Universal Studios), you will need to have purchased a park-to-park ticket (Universal's version of Disney's Park Hopper addition). It's a great ride on a working train and the scenes are different for each trip - I highly recommend it. Note that Universal's Express Pass, which is similar to Disney's Fastpass, is NOT included in the price of your admission ticket - it's an extra fee. Express Pass doesn't give you a reserved time to ride an attraction; you just get in the Express Pass line and have priority over riders in standby. Not all rides have Express Pass - Hogwarts ride in Hogsmeade and Gringott's in Diagon Alley don't. The are two levels of Express Pass - unlimited which means you can go through the Express Pass line for a ride over and over again or the one time on, which is the cheaper level. I would consider getting the Express Pass option because there will be rides that will have long standby times.
Make sure to download both the WDW and Universal apps to your phone. Both provide ride wait times for rides. Disney's also allows you to make ADRs, purchase tickets and change existing FP selections.
Enjoy your trip!
