How do you plan?

[SamandplanningUK]

Hi everyone,

We are booked to stay 11 nights at the Riviera in July, we had to cancel our stay last year as I got cancer so we haven't been to WDW since 2019 before all the changes started. Last time we went Fastpass was still a thing and there were no park reservations.

I'm trying to plan for our trip but I keep getting confused and changing things so many times I confuse myself. I'm trying to fit 3 water park visits, 3 visits to each park (2 for animal kingdom) 3 visits to Disney Springs, 4 evenings where each of my family has a choice of what we all do, 2 visits to IHoP (my kids LOVE their pancakes) and 2 travel days. I know there's space but I just can't make it work in my brain!

Can anyone give me scheduling tips/examples of how you do it?

Thanks, I appreciate you! x

 

[James J]

For me, being able to visualise everything really helps. I use a Google Doc and then split it out into sections. I'll have the Daily Plan, where I'll list every date we're there and then start assigning parks/restaurants/activities to each day. For example:

• Tuesday 17th - Lyft/Uber to Coronado and then head to Magic Kingdom straight after. Dinner at Three Bridges back at Coronado
• Wednesday 18th - Epcot - Sanaa Dinner
• Thursday 19th - Animal Kingdom, Disney Springs QS for dinner and pick up gift cards
• Friday 20th - Hollywood Studios - Boma Dinner
• Saturday 21st - Epcot - J&A Breakfast at Ale & Compass
• Sunday 22nd - Magic Kingdom/Rest Day/Disney Springs - J&A Brunch at Homecoming, W&M Dinner at Jiko

Laying out each day makes it easier to choose when you want each thing to take place, and can see if you have too many days at one park/not enough at another, or where ADR's fit easiest. I also use Touring Plan's Crowd Calendar to help pick the best potential days for each park.

I'll then have other sections for Restaurants we want to book, must do rides at each park, things we generally want to do like a specific snack or bar, items we need to buy before we go or when we get there, and any other costs to account for like refillable mugs or eating outside the parks.

 

[Figgy1]

We usually do 3 park days followed by a water park day so in your case I'd do I Hop on a water park day either for breakfast or have breakfast for dinner on water park days. If you're doing 2 AK days DS afterwards makes sense as it closes early and you could also go there on your travel days depending on flight times. We usually go to DS on the way in and out. On the way out to grab last minute items

 

[nickys]

This is what I’d do, assuming from your username that you have the UK tickets and therefore park hoppers.

Use a visual planner. A large A3 piece of paper is perfect, plus a pack of different coloured ost-it notes.

Split each day into morning, afternoon and evening.

Create your key where each park has a different colour.

Use the post-it’s to show which park when. You can easily change things, easy to see if you have a good spread (not all of AK in three days) etc.

Try and limit most days to 2 places. In general I would either do all day in one park and hop in the evening, or hop at lunch (2pm if that rule stays) and stay for the evening. But you may have to break that occasionally.
We had to skip a couple of nighttime activities recently despite theoretically having enough time.

Water parks are great in the mornings, a slightly later start and avoids the blazing heat Then you can go to a park and stash swim bags in a locker if you want.

Disney Springs are good for the evenings because shops are open late.

Once you have what seems like a workable plan you can put it into a planner / spreadsheet if that’s your preference. I know some people like it coloured coded there too.

 

[SamandplanningUK]

This is what I’d do, assuming from your username that you have the UK tickets and therefore park hoppers.

Use a visual planner. A large A3 piece of paper is perfect, plus a pack of different coloured ost-it notes.

Split each day into morning, afternoon and evening.

Create your key where each park has a different colour.

Use the post-it’s to show which park when. You can easily change things, easy to see if you have a good spread (not all of AK in three days) etc.

Try and limit most days to 2 places. In general I would either do all day in one park and hop in the evening, or hop at lunch (2pm if that rule stays) and stay for the evening. But you may have to break that occasionally.
We had to skip a couple of nighttime activities recently despite theoretically having enough time.

Water parks are great in the mornings, a slightly later start and avoids the blazing heat Then you can go to a park and stash swim bags in a locker if you want.

Disney Springs are good for the evenings because shops are open late.

Once you have what seems like a workable plan you can put it into a planner / spreadsheet if that’s your preference. I know some people like it coloured coded there too.

I'm starting work on a spreadsheet right now! Thank you

 

[JIMINYCR]

We typically go for a two week stay. We hit each park on different successive days so theres a different experience to look forward to. We start out by looking at crowd calendars to try planning those days that parks are apt to be less crowded on certain days of the week. We also consider if we are PHing and where we have dining reservations. We dont do water parks because wed rather spend our time in the parks. We add in an afternoon or two for DS shopping, sometimes a day off property to do something in the Orlando area and sometimes a day or two for Uni. By the middle of the second week weve managed to hit all the parks twice and then for the remaining days, decide to revisit a park just to do something we really want or explore some part of Disney that interests us.
I use a calendar with large day squares to plot out each day and events of that day. Incorporated is any time constraints or reservation times. I am always tweaking my plans up to the day we leave on our trip. Most times we strictly follow the plan as its been structured but are willing to adjust and flow off course if needed. DW pretty much goes along with what I plan out, DS will at times want to alter the plans.

 

[Weather_Lady]

I like to start my planning with a simple chart, with columns for: Date / Destinations / Meals / Itinerary Summary.
I use 3 rows for each date: one for the morning, one for afternoon, and one for evening. I don't use any fancy software: I just make a "Table" in MS Word.

Once the chart is set up with dates/times of day, I move on to the "Destinations" column. First, I add in our travel plans with expected arrival and departure times (e.g., "BUF to MCO, 7am-10am").

Then, using a crowd calendar with projected park hours (from touringplans, to which I subscribe, but there are other sources out there - at the very least, you can use the hours from the previous year on your dates/days of the week as starting point), and taking into consideration any extended evening hours and special events, I decide which park or parks would be the best ones to visit each day. We usually have parkhopper tickets and tour in two blocks: rope drop through lunchtime, and 4pm to close, separated by a nap/swim break at the hotel in the middle. That means we'll visit either one or two parks per day. I also try to keep in mind the timing of extra evening hours (if we're eligible) and any nighttime entertainment we plan to see, so I can ensure we're not staying up late one night, and then having to get up super-early the next morning. Once I know where we plan to be, I list the parks we're headed to (and their hours) in that second column, "Destinations," for each morning/afternoon/evening time block. Then I make park reservations for the first park we'll be visiting each day.

I also like to color-code the Destinations entries with a highlight color, different for each park, so I can see at a glance how many times we plan to visit each one. For no particular reason, MK is always pink, EPCOT is always baby blue, AK is light green, and HS is pale yellow.

Once we have the "Destinations" column done, we can turn to the "Meals" column, and start figuring out what nearby places we want to eat. We usually do breakfast in the hotel room, and have 1 CS and 1 TS for lunch and dinner. Everybody in the family gets to choose at least 1 TS that they want to visit, so I try to fit those in with the pre-existing "destination" schedule so that we're never having to travel far to get to a desired restaurant. Once those plans are made, I fill in the third column, "Meals," with our plans. Then I calendar our date(s) for making dining reservations, and jot down a list of the restaurants and times we want, with alternative choices for anything that is likely to be hard to get.

Finally, I fill out the "Itinerary Summary" column with our travel arrangements and timeline for arrival/departure days, and for the rest of the time, a realistic idea of what we can expect to do during each portion of each day (e.g., 7am: Join TRON virtual queue if available. Arrive at MK by 8am for 8:30am early entry. Tour Tomorrowland and "anytime attractions" in Fantasyland. TS lunch at Skipper Canteen, ADR ~12pm. Return to hotel for nap/swim break. Head to EPCOT, arriving by 5pm. Tour Future World (CS dinner). Park closes at 9pm.) If we're doing any other "scheduled" or simply necessary activities -- e.g., a "Behind the Seeds" tour at EPCOT, or a load of laundry mid-trip -- I include these in the summary, and calendar a reminder to make any needed arrangements.

Once my chart is done -- at least 6 months ahead of the trip -- I return to it about once a month (and repeatedly in the last 1-2 weeks before we travel) to note any changes to park hours, special events, flight time shifts, dining reservations, etc. and then modify the other components accordingly, as needed.

As an example, here's an old one from February 2020, shortly before COVID shut things down, when everything -- including WDW -- was a bit simpler. Some of the information (e.g., references to DME, no reference to park reservations) is outdated now and it looks like my headings used to be a little different, but in case my explanations of rows and columns didn't make sense, hopefully this helps:

 

[SamandplanningUK]

I like to start my planning with a simple chart, with columns for: Date / Destinations / Meals / Itinerary Summary.
I use 3 rows for each date: one for the morning, one for afternoon, and one for evening. I don't use any fancy software: I just make a "Table" in MS Word.

Once the chart is set up with dates/times of day, I move on to the "Destinations" column. First, I add in our travel plans with expected arrival and departure times (e.g., "BUF to MCO, 7am-10am").

Then, using a crowd calendar with projected park hours (from touringplans, to which I subscribe, but there are other sources out there - at the very least, you can use the hours from the previous year on your dates/days of the week as starting point), and taking into consideration any extended evening hours and special events, I decide which park or parks would be the best ones to visit each day. We usually have parkhopper tickets and tour in two blocks: rope drop through lunchtime, and 4pm to close, separated by a nap/swim break at the hotel in the middle. That means we'll visit either one or two parks per day. I also try to keep in mind the timing of extra evening hours (if we're eligible) and any nighttime entertainment we plan to see, so I can ensure we're not staying up late one night, and then having to get up super-early the next morning. Once I know where we plan to be, I list the parks we're headed to (and their hours) in that second column, "Destinations," for each morning/afternoon/evening time block. Then I make park reservations for the first park we'll be visiting each day.

I also like to color-code the Destinations entries with a highlight color, different for each park, so I can see at a glance how many times we plan to visit each one. For no particular reason, MK is always pink, EPCOT is always baby blue, AK is light green, and HS is pale yellow.

Once we have the "Destinations" column done, we can turn to the "Meals" column, and start figuring out what nearby places we want to eat. We usually do breakfast in the hotel room, and have 1 CS and 1 TS for lunch and dinner. Everybody in the family gets to choose at least 1 TS that they want to visit, so I try to fit those in with the pre-existing "destination" schedule so that we're never having to travel far to get to a desired restaurant. Once those plans are made, I fill in the third column, "Meals," with our plans. Then I calendar our date(s) for making dining reservations, and jot down a list of the restaurants and times we want, with alternative choices for anything that is likely to be hard to get.

Finally, I fill out the "Itinerary Summary" column with our travel arrangements and timeline for arrival/departure days, and for the rest of the time, a realistic idea of what we can expect to do during each portion of each day (e.g., 7am: Join TRON virtual queue if available. Arrive at MK by 8am for 8:30am early entry. Tour Tomorrowland and "anytime attractions" in Fantasyland. TS lunch at Skipper Canteen, ADR ~12pm. Return to hotel for nap/swim break. Head to EPCOT, arriving by 5pm. Tour Future World (CS dinner). Park closes at 9pm.) If we're doing any other "scheduled" or simply necessary activities -- e.g., a "Behind the Seeds" tour at EPCOT, or a load of laundry mid-trip -- I include these in the summary, and calendar a reminder to make any needed arrangements.

Once my chart is done -- at least 6 months ahead of the trip -- I return to it about once a month (and repeatedly in the last 1-2 weeks before we travel) to note any changes to park hours, special events, flight time shifts, dining reservations, etc. and then modify the other components accordingly, as needed.

As an example, here's an old one from February 2020, shortly before COVID shut things down, when everything -- including WDW -- was a bit simpler. Some of the information (e.g., references to DME, no reference to park reservations) is outdated now and it looks like my headings used to be a little different, but in case my explanations of rows and columns didn't make sense, hopefully this helps:

View attachment 691511

Thank you, I had created a table but I much prefer the layout of yours as it's easier to see an overview of the day all in one line. Going to adjust mine to the same layout!

 

[MickeyCB]

I like to start my planning with a simple chart, with columns for: Date / Destinations / Meals / Itinerary Summary.
I use 3 rows for each date: one for the morning, one for afternoon, and one for evening. I don't use any fancy software: I just make a "Table" in MS Word.

Once the chart is set up with dates/times of day, I move on to the "Destinations" column. First, I add in our travel plans with expected arrival and departure times (e.g., "BUF to MCO, 7am-10am").

Then, using a crowd calendar with projected park hours (from touringplans, to which I subscribe, but there are other sources out there - at the very least, you can use the hours from the previous year on your dates/days of the week as starting point), and taking into consideration any extended evening hours and special events, I decide which park or parks would be the best ones to visit each day. We usually have parkhopper tickets and tour in two blocks: rope drop through lunchtime, and 4pm to close, separated by a nap/swim break at the hotel in the middle. That means we'll visit either one or two parks per day. I also try to keep in mind the timing of extra evening hours (if we're eligible) and any nighttime entertainment we plan to see, so I can ensure we're not staying up late one night, and then having to get up super-early the next morning. Once I know where we plan to be, I list the parks we're headed to (and their hours) in that second column, "Destinations," for each morning/afternoon/evening time block. Then I make park reservations for the first park we'll be visiting each day.

I also like to color-code the Destinations entries with a highlight color, different for each park, so I can see at a glance how many times we plan to visit each one. For no particular reason, MK is always pink, EPCOT is always baby blue, AK is light green, and HS is pale yellow.

Once we have the "Destinations" column done, we can turn to the "Meals" column, and start figuring out what nearby places we want to eat. We usually do breakfast in the hotel room, and have 1 CS and 1 TS for lunch and dinner. Everybody in the family gets to choose at least 1 TS that they want to visit, so I try to fit those in with the pre-existing "destination" schedule so that we're never having to travel far to get to a desired restaurant. Once those plans are made, I fill in the third column, "Meals," with our plans. Then I calendar our date(s) for making dining reservations, and jot down a list of the restaurants and times we want, with alternative choices for anything that is likely to be hard to get.

Finally, I fill out the "Itinerary Summary" column with our travel arrangements and timeline for arrival/departure days, and for the rest of the time, a realistic idea of what we can expect to do during each portion of each day (e.g., 7am: Join TRON virtual queue if available. Arrive at MK by 8am for 8:30am early entry. Tour Tomorrowland and "anytime attractions" in Fantasyland. TS lunch at Skipper Canteen, ADR ~12pm. Return to hotel for nap/swim break. Head to EPCOT, arriving by 5pm. Tour Future World (CS dinner). Park closes at 9pm.) If we're doing any other "scheduled" or simply necessary activities -- e.g., a "Behind the Seeds" tour at EPCOT, or a load of laundry mid-trip -- I include these in the summary, and calendar a reminder to make any needed arrangements.

Once my chart is done -- at least 6 months ahead of the trip -- I return to it about once a month (and repeatedly in the last 1-2 weeks before we travel) to note any changes to park hours, special events, flight time shifts, dining reservations, etc. and then modify the other components accordingly, as needed.

As an example, here's an old one from February 2020, shortly before COVID shut things down, when everything -- including WDW -- was a bit simpler. Some of the information (e.g., references to DME, no reference to park reservations) is outdated now and it looks like my headings used to be a little different, but in case my explanations of rows and columns didn't make sense, hopefully this helps:

View attachment 691511

This...is an exquisite piece of work!
I sent a copy of this post to my kids who liked to make fun of my color coded pages and planning.
(But one time, we were seated on a Disney bus and chatting with a lady who was concerned because it was Thanksgiving and she couldn't find anywhere for her family to eat). I looked at my daughter and said, but you have somewhere to eat, doncha?!

 

[yensid67]

Planning a Disney vacation USE TO BE FUN! But things have changed since COVID hit. Now you have to make sure you have Park Reservations for each person for each park, then if you want to make sure you get on a ride that is a must do, you have to pay even more ABOVE YOUR ADMISSION with Genie+/lightning lane///personally this is BS! This is why a lot of guests are being pushed to Universal for a better value! I am planning my trip and I am focusing on Universal and just going to WDW 1-3 days! Just some advice and insight hope it helps!

 

[Snow Queen 83]

The Genie and reservation system sucks, so I just try to go with the flow and act like it doesn't exist. ... Well whenever I can. Thankfully rides like "Rise of the Resistance" won't make or break my trip. I mostly stick with the classics. Besides new attractions like Rise and Guardians seem to be break down every 2 minutes anyway. So I don't find them worth the hassle. I'd rather sit somewhere with a view and have a Dole Whip.

 

[SamandplanningUK]

The Genie and reservation system sucks, so I just try to go with the flow and act like it doesn't exist. ... Well whenever I can. Thankfully rides like "Rise of the Resistance" won't make or break my trip. I mostly stick with the classics. Besides new attractions like Rise and Guardians seem to be break down every 2 minutes anyway. So I don't find them worth the hassle. I'd rather sit somewhere with a view and have a Dole Whip.

I'm not too bothered about the most popular rides either, my favourites are Soarin, Pirates, Toy Story Mania, and Kali River Rapids (my kids are hilarious on this) so I don't think we'll struggle too much. Coming from the UK its SO expensive to holiday at Disney now that we've cut our holiday from 14 days to 11 already and cancelled our car hire so I definitely won't be paying for extra rights to ride!

 

[Tiggertoo56]

Went over from UK last October/November and didn't use Genie+ at all. Managed to get to do all rides we wanted too, although it was busy. Had to wait in a few lines for longer than previous times, but not a major issue for us. We were there for 3 weeks so had time to go to each park a few times, and park hopped as and when we needed to. Haven't hired a car for the last 4 visits either, we use Disney transport or Uber/Lyft with no issues. (From POR, POFQ & ASMovies).
For planning I do a table showing which park each day, then add any extra (meals, parties, etc) and any special things we want to do. Use an icon for each park so that is easy to check, and that we don't go to the same park on the same eay of the week.