Planning a “Maximized” Day for First-Timers

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

My brother and I are heading down to WDW for a short trip in June to celebrate the end of MuppetVision (the company I work for is hosting an event with Imagineers and Jim Henson Co. people who worked on the attraction), and two friends of mine who have never visited any Disney parks before will be joining us. We’ll be doing two parks- Hollywood Studios on June 7th and Magic Kingdom on June 8th.

Since this is their first ever visit to Disney ever, I want to make it as perfect as possible. We’re not staying at a WDW Hotel so if there are extra magic hours these days we won’t be using them, so we’re limited to normal park hours. With four people, how can we maximize our time at both parks? DHS has less to do so I’m less worried. Magic Kingdom seems a bit daunting to get all the essentials done, especially with BTM down, reducing capacity. We’re all late 20s so we’ll be skipping attractions that are specifically for kids and families, like Slinky Dog Dash, but we’re definitely going to do the iconic stuff like Dumbo. We likely won’t be doing any meet and greets either. My brother is autistic, so we always had the DAS equivalent growing up, but with the changes idk if he’d qualify anymore since he’s high functioning (though he still dislikes spending a long time in lines/crowds).

Is there an optimal strategy these days for completing the park in one go, either with or without Lightning Lane/DAS? I remember the strategy used to be “start in Tomorrowland and work your way west” but that might not be a thing anymore.

 

[Worldlover71]

Since you are trying to maximize ride time and are going during a busy time of year, I would say that Lightning Lane MultiPass is essential. We may not like having to pay extra for it, but it will cut down your wait time on at least a few rides, allowing you to fit in a few more.

You will want to arrive well before rope drop (usually 9am), so you can be at the front of the line for your first attraction (start in Adventureland in the MK since that is not open to folks with early entry.)

Lines are often a bit shorter during parades and fireworks at MK if you don't mind skipping them.

Good luck and enjoy!

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Since you are trying to maximize ride time and are going during a busy time of year, I would say that Lightning Lane MultiPass is essential. We may not like having to pay extra for it, but it will cut down your wait time on at least a few rides, allowing you to fit in a few more.

You will want to arrive well before rope drop (usually 9am), so you can be at the front of the line for your first attraction (start in Adventureland in the MK since that is not open to folks with early entry.)

Lines are often a bit shorter during parades and fireworks at MK if you don't mind skipping them.

Good luck and enjoy!

For Adventureland, are any of the attractions worth rope dropping? IIRC all of them have pretty low wait times, Jungle Cruise being the longest. Would it make sense to cut through Adventureland to start with Tiana's since that'll probably have a longer line? I've also heard 7DMT is worth rope dropping but is often down in the morning.

If we end up having DAS, is it still worth it to also get any LLs? When I was last there in 2023, we bought LL even with DAS and in the end we probably could've saved the money, I think the only benefit we had was getting to ride Splash twice between LL and DAS, which was nice since it closed right after we went.

 

[Disstevefan1]

My brother and I are heading down to WDW for a short trip in June to celebrate the end of MuppetVision (the company I work for is hosting an event with Imagineers and Jim Henson Co. people who worked on the attraction), and two friends of mine who have never visited any Disney parks before most likely will be joining us. We’ll be doing two parks- Hollywood Studios on June 7th and Magic Kingdom on June 8th.

Since this is their first ever visit to Disney ever, I want to make it as perfect as possible. We’re not staying at a WDW Hotel so if there are extra magic hours these days we won’t be using them, so we’re limited to normal park hours. With four people, how can we maximize our time at both parks? DHS has less to do so I’m less worried. Magic Kingdom seems a bit daunting to get all the essentials done, especially with BTM down, reducing capacity. We’re all late 20s so we’ll be skipping attractions that are specifically for kids and families, like Slinky Dog Dash, but we’re definitely going to do the iconic stuff like Dumbo. We likely won’t be doing any meet and greets either. My brother is autistic so we always had the DAS equivalent growing up, but with the changes idk if he’d qualify anymore since he’s high functioning (though he still dislikes spending a long time in lines/crowds).

Is there an optimal strategy these days for completing the park in one go, either with or without Lightning Lane/DAS? I remember the strategy used to be “start in Tomorrowland and work your way west” but that might not be a thing anymore.

To maximize with less effort purchase LLPP. Then you can focus planning dining reservations and other things.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

To maximize with less effort purchase LLPP. Then you can focus planning dining reservations and other things.

Isn't that $450 a person? That's insane. I'd rather wait in line than pay three times the price of my ticket just to ride everything once. Plus, dining reservations aren't that hard imo, you can take care of that before you're at the park.

 

[Worldlover71]

For Adventureland, are any of the attractions worth rope dropping? IIRC all of them have pretty low wait times, Jungle Cruise being the longest. Would it make sense to cut through Adventureland to start with Tiana's since that'll probably have a longer line? I've also heard 7DMT is worth rope dropping but is often down in the morning.

If we end up having DAS, is it still worth it to also get any LLs? When I was last there in 2023, we bought LL even with DAS and in the end we probably could've saved the money, I think the only benefit we had was getting to ride Splash twice between LL and DAS, which was nice since it closed right after we went.

You are correct, Tiana is a great choice for rope drop, as is Jungle Cruise. If you do get LL, you should rope drop one and use LL for the other. 7DMT is not good for rope drop though because it is part of early entry, so by the time you get to it after rope drop, the line will already be very long. Better to save that for the end of the day.

I don't have any experience with DAS, so I don't know much about using it with or instead of LL.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

You are correct, Tiana is a great choice for rope drop, as is Jungle Cruise. If you do get LL, you should rope drop one and use LL for the other. 7DMT is not good for rope drop though because it is part of early entry, so by the time you get to it after rope drop, the line will already be very long. Better to save that for the end of the day.

I don't have any experience with DAS, so I don't know much about using it with or instead of LL.

Gotcha, We'll do either Tiana's or Jungle Cruise then! I'm looking into LL, and it seems like MultiPass isn't too bad? It's $30 per day and it starts with 3 but whenever you use one you can redeem it for something else, if I'm understanding it? Kinda like the 3 free fast passes you used to get with a ticket. I'm still waiting to hear from the two first timers on what attractions they want to do and what they don't care for, but at the very least the big waits (Tron, Tiana, Peter Pan, Seven Dwarfs, Jungle Cruise) are likely all must-dos.

In a perfect world, we could start the day with a leisurely train ride around the park as a "sneak peek" of everything to come, but oh well, lmao. That worked in Paris, not so much in America!

 

[erstwo]

Gotcha, We'll do either Tiana's or Jungle Cruise then! I'm looking into LL, and it seems like MultiPass isn't too bad? It's $30 per day and it starts with 3 but whenever you use one you can redeem it for something else, if I'm understanding it? Kinda like the 3 free fast passes you used to get with a ticket. I'm still waiting to hear from the two first timers on what attractions they want to do and what they don't care for, but at the very least the big waits (Tron, Tiana, Peter Pan, Seven Dwarfs, Jungle Cruise) are likely all must-dos.

In a perfect world, we could start the day with a leisurely train ride around the park as a "sneak peek" of everything to come, but oh well, lmao. That worked in Paris, not so much in America!

You are correct. As soon as you scan into one of your fastpass/ lightning lane/ (whatever they are calling it now) - you can immediately book your next ride. If you aren’t picky about the order you ride the rides (might need to cross cross the parks a little) you can get quite a few MK rides done in a day. I think my highest one day total was something like 75% of the rides plus a couple of shows. I was able to do things like ‘scan into Buzz at 9am’ then ‘immediately book Speedway for 9:15 am’. Then ‘scan into speedway’ and ‘immediately book Barnstormers for 9:45am’
Things will start to slow down towards lunch. You’ll run into the issue of the next ‘available time’ to book a fastpass won’t be for an hour or two from the current time. So you’ll either need to pick a ride with a standby line, watch a show, the parade, eat and so on to kill the time.

So INCREDIBLY jealous of the Muppet event. Hope you all have a blast and make great memories!

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

You are correct. As soon as you scan into one of your fastpass/ lightning lane/ (whatever they are calling it now) - you can immediately book your next ride. If you aren’t picky about the order you ride the rides (might need to cross cross the parks a little) you can get quite a few MK rides done in a day. I think my highest one day total was something like 75% of the rides plus a couple of shows. I was able to do things like ‘scan into Buzz at 9am’ then ‘immediately book Speedway for 9:15 am’. Then ‘scan into speedway’ and ‘immediately book Barnstormers for 9:45am’
Things will start to slow down towards lunch. You’ll run into the issue of the next ‘available time’ to book a fastpass won’t be for an hour or two from the current time. So you’ll either need to pick a ride with a standby line, watch a show, the parade, eat and so on to kill the time.

So INCREDIBLY jealous of the Muppet event. Hope you all have a blast and make great memories!

Thank you for the advice!! We should definitely try using that system. I was making a potential schedule doing things in order but if walking around gets more done then we’ll do it!

The Muppet event is looking to be pretty good, some Imagineers and potentially people from the Jim Henson company are doing panels/Q&As the day before it closes! Tickets go on sale on Monday!

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Popping in with another question-

Do lines for rides close with the park or earlier depending on the wait time? For example, at Magic Kingdom, could I hop in line for Seven Dwarfs (probably a dangerous example lol) at 9:59PM if the park closes at 10:00PM? Or would I need to get in line with enough time to wait and ride before a reasonable amount of time after closing?

Trying to maximize our schedule, and since the fireworks end 20 minutes before the park closes, I figure that's enough time to go get in line for one more ride. Was thinking Haunted Mansion, but I also don't want to risk something that my group wants to do in case we miss it. Seven Dwarfs was low priority, so I figure that's a good example. But if we'd be safe with any ride as long as we're in line for it before 10, then it could be anything. Any suggestions for the best "last ride"?

 

[meggo819]

For example, at Magic Kingdom, could I hop in line for Seven Dwarfs (probably a dangerous example lol) at 9:59PM if the park closes at 10:00PM?

Yep!

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Yep!

Oh nice! Then Seven Dwarfs will be a post-fireworks ride then. The first timers don't consider it a must-do, so if it breaks down while we're in line, then it's no loss!

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

More questions popped up while I've been putting together the schedule-

• For Trader Sam's, how early should we get there to get inside? The only time I've ever been there was late at night, and judging by my camera reel, we got there sometime around after 10:00 and were seated by 11:15. While we waited to go inside, they had us seated on the terrace outside and served us drinks/food from the menu (albeit in plastic cups instead of the mugs). The day I'm looking to plan Trader Sam's, we have the entire time it's open free. Hoping to catch the 9:20 MK fireworks on the beach though!
• Aside from taking the monorail and restaurants, what is there to do in the resort that's open to the public and/or free?
• What public restaurants would you recommend for meals? I have lunch at Sanaa booked for one of our free days.
• Is there anything outside of Disney/Universal that you'd recommend first timers to Orlando see? I have the giant Wizard gift shop planned, but other than that, it's all in the Disney bubble.
• How accurate is the Touring Plans schedule maker? I decided to use it after seeing many reviews online saying it's extremely accurate, but I also wonder how it can predict wait times so far out. Weirdly, TP wouldn't let me select MuppetVision and PizzeRizzo on June 7th, despite them both being open that day.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The schedule was made using their service- DHS has a lot of time to kill (which is probably needed for the chaos that will be the ending of Muppets Courtyard- I'm sure there will be long lines for MV3D and PizzeRizzo). MK is more packed, but fits in everything they wanted to do, plus two extras- Carousel of Progress and Seven Dwarfs. The schedule currently doesn't account for any LLs since I can't buy any this far out, but I will 100% be trying to secure at least a LL for TRON, since the two first timers both said that's a must-do.
• Any changes to the schedule that you'd recommend?
• How easy/hard is it to get a LLSP for TRON? Do you get to pick an available time or are you just given a random time? If possible I'd like to keep the times on the current schedule similar enough! We have a good pace of not having to backtrack much with this schedule, haha.
• With LLMP, if I were to use the pre-booked First Group on Tiana's or Jungle Cruise, would I then be able to grab Peter Pan for around 11ish or would it be likely booked late into the day at that point?

 

[Figgy1]

If I was you, I would spring for touring plans as you can save a lot of time using it, helps you plan your LLS/Genie. It's not expensive, about 25 and worth every penny if you're trying to get everything done, including custom touring plans. Paging @lentesta

 

[lentesta]

I decided to use it after seeing many reviews online saying it's extremely accurate, but I also wonder how it can predict wait times so far out. Weirdly, TP wouldn't let me select MuppetVision and PizzeRizzo on June 7th, despite them both being open that day.

Ah, I fixed those closure dates. Sorry about that @Charlie The Chatbox Ghost. You should be able to select them now.

I've been working on new wait-time models for the parks, which should be out any day now. One of the things they emphasize for the Magic Kingdom, for those who are not using Early Theme Park Entry, is rope-dropping Adventureland and Frontierland.

I'm sure that's intuitive for everyone here - you start in the place where there's not already a thousand people in line ahead of you. And those three attractions to start, seem to make sense. I would also not be surprised to see it say Jungle Cruise / Tiana's / Pirates, just because of capacity.

Also, I think the LLMP for Jungle Cruise will be more valuable here.

My one suggestion would be to download the app (free) and use it to optimize your plans while you're in the parks (also free). The odds are good that each park will have at least one ride down at park opening. That can change how fast, and where, lines form. You can re-optimize your plan after step 1, and the app will have picked up on any rides that are down.

 

[lentesta]

What public restaurants would you recommend for meals? I have lunch at Sanaa booked for one of our free days.

Is Disney Springs an option? And for both lunch and dinner? Any allergies or food preferences (e.g., seafood)?

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Ah, I fixed those closure dates. Sorry about that @Charlie The Chatbox Ghost. You should be able to select them now.

I've been working on new wait-time models for the parks, which should be out any day now. One of the things they emphasize for the Magic Kingdom, for those who are not using Early Theme Park Entry, is rope-dropping Adventureland and Frontierland.

I'm sure that's intuitive for everyone here - you start in the place where there's not already a thousand people in line ahead of you. And those three attractions to start, seem to make sense. I would also not be surprised to see it say Jungle Cruise / Tiana's / Pirates, just because of capacity.

Also, I think the LLMP for Jungle Cruise will be more valuable here.

My one suggestion would be to download the app (free) and use it to optimize your plans while you're in the parks (also free). The odds are good that each park will have at least one ride down at park opening. That can change how fast, and where, lines form. You can re-optimize your plan after step 1, and the app will have picked up on any rides that are down.

Thanks for fixing that! I figured it wasn’t there just cause it was likely so unpredictable- I imagine the closer to 4/8 the harder it’ll be to get into Rizzo/MV.

I’m a step ahead of the thread it seems- already downloaded the app and bought the one year access! I’ll set it up to assume I’ll get an early LL for Jungle Cruise after rope dropping Tiana’s. I noticed that even with only 3 LLs used during the day (set to JC, Pooh, and Buzz), it saves us an entire hour- that’s insane! I imagine if I use them right, I might be able to give them a day at MK where we can take things slower and appreciate the details of the park- for early June that would be unheard of!

Is Disney Springs an option? And for both lunch and dinner? Any allergies or food preferences (e.g., seafood)?

Yep! The only food preferences are that none of us really like seafood that isn’t sushi, and I’m the only one of the three who drinks alcohol, but they aren’t opposed to going anywhere that has it (they still wanna go to Trader Sam’s). I’m down to try anything!

 

[lentesta]

Yep! The only food preferences are that none of us really like seafood that isn’t sushi, and I’m the only one of the three who drinks alcohol, but they aren’t opposed to going anywhere that has it (they still wanna go to Trader Sam’s). I’m down to try anything!

For Disney Springs you've got lots of good options. Here are the highest-rated places there:

• Raglan Road (table service, Irish-ish food)
• eet (counter service, Indian) - love this place
• Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill (table service, American) - I was surprised by how high this is ranked
• The Polite Pig (counter service, American barbecue)
• Wine Bar George (table service, American) - small plates done really well
• Jaleo by Jose Andres (table service, Spanish) - another place with small plates. Can be busy and loud. Great variety.

My other recommendation is for the Studios - get the LLSP for Rise of the Resistance if you plan to ride it. It's the least-reliable thing in Walt Disney World, and you don't want to waste time in line for a ride that isn't operating.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

For Disney Springs you've got lots of good options. Here are the highest-rated places there:

• Raglan Road (table service, Irish-ish food)
• eet (counter service, Indian) - love this place
• Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill (table service, American) - I was surprised by how high this is ranked
• The Polite Pig (counter service, American barbecue)
• Wine Bar George (table service, American) - small plates done really well
• Jaleo by Jose Andres (table service, Spanish) - another place with small plates. Can be busy and loud. Great variety.

My other recommendation is for the Studios - get the LLSP for Rise of the Resistance if you plan to ride it. It's the least-reliable thing in Walt Disney World, and you don't want to waste time in line for a ride that isn't operating.

Those suggestions sound great, I’ll pass them along to the group!

I didn’t even think of a LL for Rise- I’ll be sure to grab one. That’s a big must do for one of my friends so I’d hate to miss it!

Thanks so much for all your suggestions and help!

 

[Eric Graham]

My brother and I are heading down to WDW for a short trip in June to celebrate the end of MuppetVision (the company I work for is hosting an event with Imagineers and Jim Henson Co. people who worked on the attraction), and two friends of mine who have never visited any Disney parks before will be joining us. We’ll be doing two parks- Hollywood Studios on June 7th and Magic Kingdom on June 8th.

Since this is their first ever visit to Disney ever, I want to make it as perfect as possible. We’re not staying at a WDW Hotel so if there are extra magic hours these days we won’t be using them, so we’re limited to normal park hours. With four people, how can we maximize our time at both parks? DHS has less to do so I’m less worried. Magic Kingdom seems a bit daunting to get all the essentials done, especially with BTM down, reducing capacity. We’re all late 20s so we’ll be skipping attractions that are specifically for kids and families, like Slinky Dog Dash, but we’re definitely going to do the iconic stuff like Dumbo. We likely won’t be doing any meet and greets either. My brother is autistic, so we always had the DAS equivalent growing up, but with the changes idk if he’d qualify anymore since he’s high functioning (though he still dislikes spending a long time in lines/crowds).

Is there an optimal strategy these days for completing the park in one go, either with or without Lightning Lane/DAS? I remember the strategy used to be “start in Tomorrowland and work your way west” but that might not be a thing anymore.

Completely missed the park about the Jim Henson people that worked on the attraction. I've always been a huge Jim Henson fan!!!! In Atlanta, it's very neat, they have the Center For Puppetry Arts there where Jim Henson collaborated on and they have a museum with many of the puppets and host puppet shows for the children from time to time there. I took my nephew there for a Rudolph the Reindeer puppet show and we also made puppets there also at the event. I thought that the music was from a recording but it was live and sounded exactly like the cartoon. Pretty fun!