A quick trip to the World is a great survival strategy when you don’t have the time for a longer visit. My family has been lucky enough to take several such trips, which have allowed us to enjoy time together in Disney World despite busy school and work schedules.
Although these 3-4 day trips go by fast, we have found ways to make the most of our time and even squeeze in a little relaxation. And so, here are some of our quick trip strategies:
Stay close to a park. On a shorter trip, we have found it makes a lot of sense to splurge on a resort that is close to a park. This tactic can save travel time during your visit as well as open up the option for a targeted stop in a nearby theme park to simply have dinner or ride a couple of rides.
Staying at one of the monorail resorts provides easy access to the Magic Kingdom. If you stay at the Contemporary, you can even walk there (anyone for a quick game of Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom?). At the Wilderness Lodge, you can take a boat ride to the Magic Kingdom. For my family, boat rides are just as much part of the Disney experience as the rides in the park, which is a wonderful benefit during a shorter Disney vacation.
If you want to be able to walk to Epcot or Hollywood Studios, the Beach Club and Boardwalk are good choices. You can hop over to Epcot for dinner at the Rose & Crown or take in some Streetmosphere at the Studios. These two resorts also offer the option of taking a boat ride to either of these parks.
Plan your time in and out of the parks carefully. On our longer trips, my family generally makes a lot of use of rope drop. Although we definitely aim for rope drop on a couple of mornings on our shorter trips, we have also found that a quick trip can be exhausting without some planned rest time.
One option is to do rope drop but then consider an early dinner and ending your day at your resort with a dip in the pool or enjoying the entertainment right at the resort. We have found that getting a good night’s sleep can make all the difference when we are ready for more fun in the parks the next day.
If you do plan a late evening, a good strategy is to plan a slow morning the next day—this could be the perfect time to take advantage of some of those later FastPass+ reservations. And, of course, an afternoon break at the pool is always a great way to recharge and to enjoy your resort even on a quick trip.
Prioritize—you can’t fit in everything. On shorter trips, it’s even more difficult to fit in everything than on longer trips to the World, and trying to do too much can make for a lot of stress. Prioritizing what you want to see and do is key! You may want to limit which parks you visit. Definitely go to the Magic Kingdom if you feel like a trip to the World is not complete without a walk down Main Street, but maybe save one of the other parks for next time.
And if you need to change your plans to avoid a meltdown, definitely don’t be upset. Slowing down may be just what is needed to enjoy a quieter moment relaxing in a resort lobby or having a cold drink while you “Disney people” watch.
Consider at most one table service meal per day. I love eating at Disney World! But when I am there for a short visit, I’d rather be wandering the parks and experiencing rides than sitting in a restaurant. In fact, this could be the time to try some of Disney World’s delicious counter service and snack offerings. I recommend the Greek salad at Cosmic Rays or a jalapeno cheese pretzel at the Animal Kingdom.
On your last day, go to the park closest to your resort. Some of the pain of knowing it is our last day in the parks can be alleviated by maximizing the time before we need to leave. Our tradition has been to schedule a later flight, go to rope drop at the park nearest to our resort, and let the Disney magic allow us to forget our return to reality in just a few hours. Perhaps we’ll have a longer trip next time …
