I haven’t been to Disney hundreds of times (yet. Give me a couple years), but I’ve been my fair share.

I’ve done it with crazy intensity, and in a casual jaunt.

I’ve done Disneyland (finally), and Disney World.

I’ve picked up a few tips along the way.  And while there are blogs across the web, I wanted to hand out my own Disney advice I’ve learned along the way, and tips I’ll be learning as I begin to go more frequently.

This months tip is for EVERYONE. It comes along with the first thing I say when someone says they didn’t like Disney World…which is always “then you did it wrong.”  The biggest mistake is they want so desperately to cram EVERYTHING in. I do mean everything.

Don’t Expect to do it All!

This tip is definitely A-Numero-Uno in my book. I’ve been to Disney World and it’s resorts probably 20 times at this point, and I’ve barely scratched the surface. I’ve heard stories of people that have been hundreds of times, or go practically every day, and still manage to get surprised.

Disney World is an entity all on its own. It’s constantly changing, growing, and adding little surprises to delight guests.

Not to mention the crowds that can quickly ruin your day whether you plan for them or not.

So whether you’re planning a one day visit (see my tip for that), or a long 2 week adventure, you canNOT do it all in that time. Don’t hope for it, don’t try to plan for it. Don’t get me wrong, if you’re there for 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 days – you can do a LOT…but you will never get it all done.

Don’t let FOMO ruin your trip. Or ONIMI* ruin the reflections of your trip.

I promise you, in all of my trips I’ve never looked back several years later and lamented it was a horrible trip because I missed whatever. I didn’t remember and didn’t care. I remembered the fun, laughter, and magic alone.

With that in mind, what CAN you do?

You can plan for Fun. Rides. Food (but not too much, explanation to come). Relaxation (yup, for real). Magic.

Fun: Duh.  Disney can be so much fun. There are little side things you can do everywhere. There’s hidden Mickey’s. Or pin trading. Or just taking in some of the beautiful scenery Disney’s grounds crew works so hard on maintaining. They also have the Disney Play app that can add some excitement (though I like to be no-devices at Disney when I can). There’s also tons of Pokestops and Harry Potter inns & such everywhere if you’re so inclined (we allot for a little of this when we visit).  Across every park there are fun and different things outside the norm you can do. From scavenger hunts to wilderness explorer adventures and Sorcerer’s at Magic Kingdom. There are endless things to do beyond the rides. I like to pick one or two per trip (I have yet to do the hidden Mickey’s. I need to get on that), like pin trading & admiring the small details to focus on.  If you don’t know when you’ll be back, pick one, if it doesn’t suit you go forth and pick another.

Rides: Schedule some fast passes, but space them out a little. There is a LOT of walking in a day, and so many sights to see. You don’t want to schedule your day away and miss the opportunity for the above mentioned fun. The rides are fun, and lines can be long so plan to downloading “Head’s Up”-which has a special Disney game you can download for free once you’re on property. There are people that choose to take on the crazy task of riding ALL THE RIDES (in one day! at all 4 parks!), which I would find too stressful myself, but you do you, I say. If all you want to do is ride rides, then go for it.  Get a game strategy on, know that some rides always have LONG lines (hello Peter Pan & Seven Dwarves), and a few don’t do fast passes, or the fast passes go in a flash. Do your research on what you think your kids will like (or if you’re going alone, ROCK ON. That’s so fun).  I always find rides my tough one, but my oldest has a fine-tuned strategy that gets him some of the best & most difficult to get fast passes (P.S. He lives super close and goes ALL.THE.TIME.).  I like to take my time, and I’m lucky enough to live close enough that if I don’t get a ride, I know I’ll be back soon.  If this is your once in a lifetime trip and you have to get that ride, do your research and get online for your fastpasses as soon as they come available. Good luck to you, rides are awesome.

Food:  Food is both wonderful and awful and everywhere in between at Disney. There are days I go and never touch a thing, and others I eat everything in sight (Epcot is my kryptonite…I want to sample it all…every time…Food & Wine as well as the upcoming Arts Festival drain my wallet every time.).  I offer the same advice here as I did for rides…don’t overschedule.  I was so focused on getting reservations for our 2015 trip that I didn’t think about how the one lunch reservation would interrupt our day. I was so worried about making our scheduled times that I barely enjoyed our morning rides. Then the princess breakfast was a flop – the food was great, the princesses beautiful, but neither of my girls would speak a word to any of them – so it was an expensive disappointment.  Know going in that just because you’re at Disney and the food costs a fortune (most, there are some sweet low-cost deals that will astound you-that’s another post), doesn’t mean it’s always really good, or even more than dull and tasteless. If you think I’m kidding, I’ll remind you of the story of the best worst meal we ever had. Opinions will differ, but do your research. Keep your budget in mind, and your dining plan, and maybe schedule a couple of meals, but don’t schedule your life away.  And remember, you could always order some groceries for your room (or bring them if you’re car-tripping) so you can make your own breakfast or snacks in the room.  Our last trip (first on-site stay) we took snacks and soda which really took the load off at the end of the day.  Oh, but I DO recommend you take the time to actually eat at least one meal a day.  One last tip, get adult meals and share. The heat can make you not as hungry, and in many cases, the portions are big enough to share.

Relaxation: Whether you’re staying at a resort or off-site, make sure you make time to relax away from the crowds (or still in them). This is supposed to be a vacation, after all.  Make sure you spend time at the pool, or if you have/are renting a car, take a day to go to the beach. Disney is a HUGE over-stimulation-factory. It’s wonderful and magical, but oy do you need a break now and then, and so do the kids. Make sure to schedule at least one non-park day into your vacation if you can. For one, you’ll save $$, and for another, you’ll get a break from the constant barrage of ALL.THE.THINGS.ALL.THE.PEOPLE.  It’s a sanity savor.  Inside the parks, find a quiet alcove (they have them, and they’re wonderful when you slip into a low-trafficed spot).  It’s a breath of fresh air in a day of everything. Epcot and Animal Kingdom are the winners of quiet alcoves, but if you’re aware enough, you’ll find them at the others, even one right on Main Street, USA.  Outside the parks, if you aren’t a beach person, there’s so much to do in the area that it’s easy to take a break and stay close without quite the blast to your senses. Vacations are meant for relaxation and time together. They don’t all have to be done at the happiest place on earth.

Last, but certainly not least…

MAGIC.

This is one I can’t overload you with tips on.  The key to finding the magic is to remember what I told you above – you aren’t going to get it all done. So absorb the moment. If you take a look around, you’ll see little moments of magic everywhere. On our last trip I saw two proposals and a wedding…and that was in one afternoon/evening. Cast members, guests, and so many little moments will hold magic if you remember to look for it.

Have you got any other tips to add to mine?  Let me know in the comments!  I’m always happy to hear more tips!

*ONIMI – my freshly coined acronym for “Oh No I Missed It”