Ready, set, go… as of this morning, we are wheels up and headed to the Happiest Place on Earth AKA Disney World. It’s not our first time, so I feel much more relaxed this time around, though Jeff and I know all the places we can hit up for a much-needed adult beverage if when that time comes during our stay!!
First things first– Why are we Going Back to Disney Worlsd again??
We first took the girls to Disney World in September 2016 and I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t had the itch to go back for at least a year now. I was on the computer one night–sending my planning tips, tricks, itinerary, and other Disney recaps to a close friend of mine to help get her family ready for their trip and Jeff saw the pics of the girls and melted. Having said that, my husband doesn’t just say “plan a trip” very often, so when he said “we should go back”, I ran with it and instantly called Sarah Moske/I’m Your Fairy Godmother, our go-to Disney vacation planner (**you can find her IG page here and her FB page here). Yes, we booked it that quickly–with both Caroline and Carson in school now, our options aren’t as open as they used to be and I didn’t want to have to take them out of school, nor did we want to wait until summer so we decided the week after New Year’s would be a great option for us! Call me crazy, but here we go…
Like I said, I’m not the official Disney guru, but I wanted to pass on some helpful things we’ve learned throughout the process this 2nd time… hoping this can help when you decide to head to Disney World with your pirates and princesses as well!!
Where are you Staying for your Disney World Vacation?
For this go-around, we decided our only criteria was that we wanted to stay on-site at a Disney resort with the monorail access. We absolutely loved staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge the first time we went, BUT transportation was a bit tricky that week, especially with small kids, a double stroller, etc and we wanted to streamline the process for this trip [and no, I don’t say vacation with kids–it’s a trip, haha!!]. So we decided to forego the fancy suite, get a standard room and stay at the Polynesian Resort. We ate at Ohana during our last visit and got to explore the resort and absolutely fell in love with everything about it… so off we go to all things Hawaiian and tiki tropical!
How Do you Plan your Activities/Dining/Itinerary for your Disney World Vacation?
If I say this once, I will say it a million times… USE A DISNEY VACATION PLANNER FOR YOUR TRIP. They are free to use and will save you time, energy, stress and act as a go-to resource so you can actually enjoy your trip [what a novel idea, right?!?!]. Sarah and I plotted our daily schedule of park visits, ride selections, meal/character/dining preferences and then once their scheduling system opened up for our vacation, she hopped on to lock-in all of our FastPasses, meals, etc. (**she also offers VIP planning services for Disney World/Disney Land as well as other travel destinations, too… and her VIP itinerary is absolutely AMAZING–so detailed for type-A friends like me who want to make sure they get the most from their vacation with added details).
Another thing to note is that they know little tips and tricks that many of us guests have ZERO clue about, like FastPass Tiers and Ride Swaps, and other details that could really make your trip more magical. Just go ahead and save your sanity upfront… trust me on this one my friends!
How are you doing things differently this time?
Where Did you Get all of the Girls’ Disney World Outfits and Accessories?!?!
Now you know we can’t venture to Disney without ALL the fun outfits for my babies!! Yes, I have been collecting items and ideas for a few months and I reached out to the fabulous Anne Walker via Elegant Goods Shop to make all my magical dreams come true for the girls’ ensembles.
SHOP THE BEST SHOES FOR DISNEY WORLD:
SHOP THESE DISNEY WORLD ESSENTIALS:
SHOP THESE DISNEY WORLD OUTFITS:
SHOP THESE DISNEY WORLD OUTFITS:
I’m green with envy! We went in Sept for our first time with our girls (7 and 5), stayed at the Polynesian, and the week was nothing short of magical. Have the time your lives!