How to Totally Botch Your Walt Disney World Trip

DisneyFanatic.com and HowToDisney.com make it a priority to guide our readers in making the most out of their experiences at Disney World. Our team prides itself on sharing tips with fellow Disney fanatics about planning, preparing and procuring the most magical trip possible. But today we thought it might be interesting to take a look at a step-by-step guide on how to completely ruin your trip to Disney. Please enjoy this post and then promise us you’ll never follow any of the advice you’re about to read.

1. Don’t put too much effort into planning your Disney trip.

After all, planning is overrated and can be quite the fun-kill as well. Just wing it. If you have a vague idea of the dates on which you’d like to enjoy the parks, by all means, write those down on a calendar, a notepad or a napkin just so you remember when to leave for Florida. And for goodness sakes, no matter what you do, please don’t read those “Disney World crowd calendars” that different entities produce online. Who cares if you’re visiting the parks the same week that hundreds of thousands of other Guests are visiting? Disney World is a big place with room for everyone—how bad could the crowds really be?

2. Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Like FastPasses, for example. After all, Disney only allows you 3 FastPass+ selections per day, and if you use those up, you can only get one at a time for the remainder of the day. What’s so terrible about waiting in line? Isn’t that why cell phones were invented—so we’d have something to entertain us while we wait? And really—how long can the lines actually be? Patience is a virtue.

Oh, and about those dining reservations—those are really a suggestion more than a requirement. It’s Disney World after all. If you don’t have a reservation but you really want to enjoy a restaurant, the magic will surely accommodate you with one of those open tables we’re sure they keep in reserves, just for situations such as yours. It’s laughable really—making a dining reservation for every single restaurant you want to enjoy in the parks? Who has time for that?

3. Don’t bother yourself with the stuff of hotel reservations.

If you’re a parent, an employee, grandparent or the like, you most likely don’t have loads of extra time on your hands. There are kids, family responsibilities, church responsibilities, laundry to wash, meals to cook, houses to clean and jobs to report to. The last thing you need is for a fun family getaway to take away from your time before you even get there. There are more than 25 different resort hotels at the Walt Disney World Resort. Surely there’s enough room for everyone, so don’t waste time you don’t have by making resort hotel reservations you probably don’t need in advance. Be realistic—how crowded could it really be at Disney the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day? Not any busier than it is over the summer, so don’t worry. Relax now so you can relax then. It’ll be fine, we’re sure.

4. Don’t waste time and money by packing a park bag.

You’re going to Disney World with the kids, not on a camping trip in the Congo. What could you possibly need to carry into the parks with you besides your wallet? Just think about lugging a cumbersome backpack around in the parks. That’s no fun. And if you do end up needing something while you’re there, relax—they no doubt sell it inside one of the many shops in the parks—and for a reasonable price, we’re sure. And should you absolutely have to have something that you left in your resort hotel room, who cares? Is it really that far out of your way to make a trip back to your room to get that item? Even on a crowded day in the parks, it couldn’t possibly take more than an hour or three out of your day in the park to return to your room, grab the item and return to the park. Don’t overthink it.