Skip to Content

How NOT to do Walt Disney World in one day.

I had all the plans to present to you my tips on how to do Disney in a day. But life and reality set in. Here is our one day trip to Walt Disney World. Enjoy.

Thank you so much to Walt Disney World for sponsoring this family trip! All opinions are my own.

I had plans, but here is how NOT to do Disney in one day

The original title of this post was supposed to be : How To Do Disney World In One Day.

Honestly, I had ALL THE PLANS. But life happens!
Like you discover that your child has left his tennis shoes at home and only has a flimsy pair of flip flops to walk miles around Disney in.  So instead of leaving breakfast at Ohana ( which was AWESOME by the way) and taking the tram directly to the park to be there when they opened…..
how not to do walt disney world in a day
We had to go back to the hotel to get the car and find a Target to get a pair of shoes.
After dealing with a whining 7 ager about what pair of shoes he didn’t want, we finally took the bus from our hotel…..
And FINALLY reached the Magic Kingdom at around 10:30 AM.
 By which time we missed the first two fast passes I had set up.
 But we managed to make it to the last one of the morning,
how not to do disney in one day
walt disney in a day
walt disney world
We proceeded to walk around soaking up the Disney atmosphere and riding a few minor rides that didn’t have a long ( read 80 minutes) wait.
walt disney world
walt disney world in a day
walt disney world
It seemed to work out because we finally managed to walk off that humongous breakfast and decided to head to the Animal Kingdom to eat at Flame Tree Barbecue for lunch. ( Thank God for a park hopper!)
walt disney world in a day
walt disney world
walt disney world in a day
Now my original plan was to soldier on at this point to various attractions ( read Avatar) in the Animal Kingdom before heading to Hollywood Studios for some Star Wars fun.
But Pookah declared:
I’m ready to go to the hotel. Let’s go to the pool mama.
I had a moment when I wanted to stomp my foot in the middle of Disney and scream:
NO !!!!!! WE’RE SUPPOSED TO BE EXPERIENCING THE MAGIC AT DISNEY NOT THE HOTEL!  WE’RE SUPPOSED TO BE FOLLOWING THE PLAN!!
 
But my child wanted to go to the pool. This “vacation” was all about him, not my need to get all the things done so I could write about it on this blog.  He saw my distress and patted my arm: we can come back later.
And just like that, I reminded myself to go with the flow.
We spent a lovely afternoon at the pool at the Swan and Dolphin Resort
 
Relaxed, and with more fast passes secured, we returned to Disney for dinner at the Crystal Palace and then proceeded to enjoy more magic and fun well rested and happy.
We didn’t “do” all of Walt Disney World in one day. Not even close.
But…
We laughed.
We yelled out at the top our lungs.
We ate great food.
We enjoyed each other.
We had fun as a family, and I got to see that beautiful smile bloom all day long.
And isn’t that what matters?
All photos in this post are taken with my iPhone 7 Plus.

5 Must Know Disney Planning tips for First Timers - Everyday Eyecandy

Wednesday 15th of May 2019

[…] pace, and don’t try to take on too much while you are at Walt Disney World. Remember when we tried to do Disney World in one day? That didn’t go so well because I forgot about my family’s limits!  There is a lot […]

Awesome Tips for Disney Every Mom Should Know - Everyday Eyecandy

Thursday 10th of January 2019

[…] I know what all of the books say. I know what all of the websites say. I know what every single Disney touring plan says: get there when the park opens and ride everything in quick succession. […]

Hannah

Tuesday 30th of January 2018

Awesome post and great pics!!!!

Letters to My Son: On the End of Summer Vacation - Everyday Eyecandy

Friday 28th of July 2017

[…] had fun: a visit to Disney, Universal, the Beach, Grandma’s House, camp, the pool every week, swimming, […]

The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter at Universal Studios in One Day - Everyday Eyecandy

Monday 26th of June 2017

[…] Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I knew we had ONE day to get as much in as we could. And unlike our trip to Disney, we really DID manage to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in ONE […]