Updated October 2023.

"The Most Magical Place on Earth"

Open on October 1, 1971, just as the Magic Kingdom, it is now composed of four parks, two water parks, over a dozen hotels, and Disney Springs, a shopping area.

The four parks are:
  • Animal Kingdom
  • EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow)
  • Hollywood Studios
  • Magic Kingdom
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One can also visit Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach, two iconic water parks nearby.
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Please note that for all these parks, I haven’t added times for the rides since wait times may differ. I’m just proposing prospective plans with a brief one-day option also included. However, one should check park hours as they can differ date to date.

1-Day Plan

I believe the ideal 1-Day Plan would either be starting at EPCOT then taking the Monorail (or driving) to ParkHop over to Animal Kingdom and ending the night there with a chance to see their Happily Ever After night show at Magic Kingdom. For the full experience, this requires heading to the park at rope-drop (right when they open).
  • 7:00 AM: Reserve Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind Virtue Queue tickets in the My Disney Experience app.
  • 9:00 - 1:30 AM: EPCOT 
    • ​9 - 11 AM: Rides. 
      • ​My favorites are Test Track and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. For the latter, one should go once your group is called or if it’s past 11, head there as the last ride of the day.
    • 11 AM - 1 PM: World Showcase
      • ​Explore the 11 countries and find small-bite dining experiences across each of them. If the line isn’t too long, I would recommend checking out the Ratatouille ride.
  • ​1:30 - 2:00 PM: Drive or take bus to Animal Kingdom
  • 2:00 - 6:30 PM: Animal Kingdom
    • ​My favorite ride is Flight of Passage, but I also recommend checking out Expedition Everest and the Finding Nemo musical.
  • 6:30 - 7:00 PM: Drive or take bus to the Contemporary Hotel
  • 7:00 - 8:30 PM: Steakhouse 71
    • ​On the first floor of the Contemporary Hotel, this Steakhouse has killer steaks and a 15-layer Jack Daniels raspberry-infused chocolate cake that is DIVINE!
  • 8:30 - 9:00 PM: Walk to Magic Kingdom or take Monorail 
  • 9:00 - 9:30 PM: "Happily Ever After" Show
    • ​One might want to leave dinner a little earlier to ensure one gets a good spot.
  • 9:30 - 11:00 PM: Magic Kingdom
    • ​While one doesn’t have much time, one can probably go to 1 or 2 rides to end the day!
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15-layer Jack Daniels raspberry-infused chocolate cake (Steakhouse 71)

Tips

Getting From the Airport
The closest airport is Orlando International Airport (MCO) which is about 20 miles from the parks. Unfortunately, there is no public transit to take you around, so using a Rideshare app is the best option
Getting to the Parks
If one is staying at one of the Disney resorts (or many of the hotels in the area), most of them will have free buses for guests to get to and from the parks. Some hotels are also on the Monorail that runs between EPCOT and Magic Kingdom or the Skyliner (gondola) between Hollywood Studios and EPCOT.

For those driving, they all have large parking lots and for $30 per vehicle, one can park and re-park at the different parks. A cheaper option is to drive to Disney Springs and park there, taking a bus from there into the parks.
Ticket Prices
The most up-to-date prices can be found on the Disney website, but it's roughly $150/day (not including the Park Hop option, which I would recommend adding to some parks). 
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There are also discounts for multi-day tickets, Florida residents, and military.
My Disney Experience App
Like in all Disney parks, the Disney World My Disney Experience​ is essential. 
  • Manage tickets (although Cast Members will issue you a card at the entrance if one doesn't have a MagicBand)
  • See a map of each park
  • Check ride wait times
  • Add plans and schedule shows
  • View park hours and other important information.

Making a Park Reservation:
  1. ​Head to “My Disney Experiences” app
  2. Click on "Theme Park Reservations"
  3. Press "Make or Modify Theme Park Reservation"
  4. Choose "Book a Park Reservation"
  5. Select "People" who are going with you
  6. Choose your date
  7. Select your park

Joining the Guardians of Galaxy or Tron Virtual Queue
  1. ​Head to “My Disney Experiences” app at 7 AM and/or 1 PM.
  2. Click on "Join Virtual Queue" in the "Request Access with Virtual Queue" section
  3. Select the theme park
  4. Press "Join" and select the people
  5. ​Wait for one's group number to be called while at the park.
Genie+ & Lightning Lane
Replacing the Fastpass, one now has Lightning Lane and Genie+ as options. 

Genie+ allows users to “pre-book” rides starting at 7 am on the same-day, similar to Fastpass.
  • Through the Disney app, one can have shorter waiting times for popular rides and access Lightning Lane entrances.
  • Like Fastpass, one can reserve the next available Lightning Lane entrance window one at a time and they have refills every 2 hours starting at 7 am.
  • One can buy it in the app starting at midnight of the day one plans to visit. Costs range from $15-$40 depending on the park and times.
 
Lightning Lane is similar to Genie+, except one can pay for individual rides which consist of the following:
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  1. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom
  2. TRON Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom
  3. Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT
  4. Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
  5. Avatar Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom

  • Through the app, one can buy a specific ticket $11 - $25 (depending on ride and date).
  • Each guest can only buy two Individual Lightning Lane passes for different rides and one will need to be on-site in order to purchase them through the app.
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Animal Kingdom's Tree of Life

Animal Kingdom

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Tram from parking lot
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Animal Kingdom is one of the best places to go in Disneyworld. Composed of a zoo, a safari, and the iconic tree of life, it is such a fun place to be. Most people consider it a “half-day” park since there are no night shows here, and I would recommend potentially using a ParkHopper ticket to see a night show at one of the other theme parks.

From the parking lot, one can walk to the entrance, but there is also a tram that will take one to the entrance.

NOTE: Compared to the other parks, Animal Kingdom is a little hotter. This might be because the park is located in a depression.

Day Plan
Note that underlined and rides in teal can be skipped, while italicized rides in red are my favorites.
  • 9 AM - 10 AM: Expedition Everest: Mountain-themed, steel roller coaster focused on the Yeti and the Himalayas.
  • 10:30 - 12:00 PM: Avatar Flight of Passage: Exhilarating ride is one my favorite ride in Disneyworld providing an out-of-body experience of what it’s like to be flying on a banshee.
    • Na’vi River Journey: A gentle ride in a river boat to see the Pandora environment with one of the most complex animatronic robots in all of Disney world. 
  • 12:00 - 1:00 PM: Lunch: Satu’li Cantina for protein bowls inspired by the world of Pandora. Would recommend the green onion vinaigrette if you build your own. Otherwise, I'd choose the premade Ocean Moon. Try their Metkayina Mousse for dessert!​
  • 1:00 - 2:00 PM: Kilimanjaro Safaris: 20-minute guided safari ride to see animals from across the African continent.
    • Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail: Walking trail to see gorillas and hippos in a smaller space.
  • 2:00 - 3:00 PM: Festival of the Lion King (at the top of each hour): Performance dedicated to the Lion King with dance numbers, acrobatics, singing, and a fire performer.
  • 3:00 - 3:15 PM: Tree of Life: Iconic tree made of recycled materials and has 337 animals carved into the roots and trunk. It serves as a lightning rod during thunderstorms.
    • It’s Tough to Be A Bug: A 4-D show based on A Bug’s Life.
  • 3:30 - 4:00 PM: Finding Nemo: The Big, Blue…and Beyond!: Enjoy a 25-minute emotional Finding Nemo-based musical.
  • 4:00 - 5:00 PM: Dino-Land and Dinosaur Ride: Animatronic ride in a jeep going back in time to see dinosaurs in the Cretaceous.
  • 5:30 - 6:30 PM: Kali River Rapids: Raft ride that will be sure to leave one soaking.
Other Food Options
  • ​​Tusker House: A buffet restaurant with a character meet and greet. It is rather pricey, but they do have a great selection of food items. If one goes around 11 AM, one might also have a chance to have both their breakfast and lunch options.
  • Flame Tree Barbecue: Head here for the pulled-pork mac and cheese
  • Tiffins Restaurant: More upscale restaurant with African, Indian, and South African food.​
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EPCOT

EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow)

This is my favorite parks since it offers such a variety of options from fun rides to cultural pavilions. 

One can take the Monorail or the Skyliner to reach this park. Note that I prefer eating around the world rather than necessarily going on all the rides.
Day Plan
Note that underlined and rides in teal can be skipped, while italicized rides in red are my favorites.
  • 7:00 AM: Reserve virtual queue tickets to Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.
  • 9:00 - 9:30 AM: Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure (France Pavilion):  4D trackless ride with great graphics.
  • 10:00 - 11:00 AM: Entrance Area
    • Spaceship Earth: Classic ride within the Epcot ball that explores the history of communication.
    • The Seas with Nemo & Friends: Sit in a clamshell on a slow moving ride to revisit Nemo's story. The end of the ride deposits you in an aquarium!
    • Soarin’: Immersive experience of exploring different places around the world.
    • Living with the Land: Educational boat ride about the history of agriculture through a relaxing waterway.
    • Journey Into Imagination With Figment: Slow ride that provides sensory input for all five senses.
  • 11:00 - 12:00 PM: Test Track: Design a car and have a blast racing it. Speeds go up to 60 mph and for a protip, one should go into the single-rider line.
    • Mission Space: Intense ride that can cause motion sickness as it shows the experience of an astronaut. Not for the faint of heart.
  • 12:00 - 1:00 (or whenever group is called): Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind: They will provide a boarding group and call you for a ride. The BEST ride in Epcot and possibly all of Disneyworld. One can only ride it once a day because of the reserved ticket system, but well worth
1:00 - 7:30 PM: World Showcase
  • Every season, there is a new festival at Epcot (sometimes there isn’t, so check before), with “festival booths” across the World Showcase that serve bite-size food and drinks for people to explore a variety of different tastes around the world.
    • There are 11 countries. Clockwise: Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, America, Japan, Morocco, France, UK, and Canada!​
    • Note that there is the American Adventure at Independence Hall in the American Pavilion. It is not the most appealing show/is quite outdated. I wouldn’t recommend it, but do enter the building to listen to the Voices of Liberty who perform everyday around 2:30 and 3:30 PM.
    • The Frozen Ever After boat ride is located in the Norway Pavilion and brings one down a boat adventure.
9:00 - 9:30 PM (but this can depend on the season): "Luminous, the Symphony of Us": A night show on the waters of the world showcase with lights, music, and fireworks. PROTIP: Get a seat either at the front of the showcase, at Japan, or in the fringe pavilions on either side about 30-45 minutes in advance.​
Other Food Options
  • Garden Grill: A rotating restaurant located inside the Land Pavilion, featuring food grown within the Living with the Land ride. It is a character dining experience with an AYCE family-style dining experience.
  • Festival Booths: These booths are scattered across the park that serve different types of food based on the festival and country they're representing.
    • ​Honey Bee-stro: One of the best stands in the park. I highly recommend their Chicken & Waffle as well as the Honey Wine here.
Depending on the season, there are different festivals offering different types of food. Of course, one can also try drinking around the world!
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Entrance to Hollywood Studios

Hollywood Studios

What I consider a "catch-all" park, it is designed similar to the lot of movie studios. One can find attractions from Toy Story, Star Wars, the Muppets, and other shows. The Skyliner connects between Hollywood Studios and EPCOT.
Note that underlined and rides in teal can be skipped, while italicized rides in red are my favorites.
  • 9:00 - 11:00 AM: Toy Story Land
    • Slinky Dog Dash: Kid-friendly smooth roller coaster with views of the park.
    • Toy Story Mania: Shooting game in a moving vehicle.
  • 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM: Rise of the Resistance: An incredible Star Wars-themed ride that may have a long line. It is recommended to purchase the Lightning Lane option to ride this extraordinary ride.
  • 1:00 - 2:00 PM: Lunch
  • 2:00 - 3:00 PM: Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway: Tracklist dark ride to the Mickey cartoons.
    • Star Tours: 3D-motion, classic VR simulator ride.
    • Character Meet-and-Greet  
    • Muppet Show: 3D-show with many visual effects.
  • 3:30 - 4:00 PM: Frozen Sing-along: Honestly, an unexpected great time that offers comedy and singing along.
  • 4:30 - 5:00 PM: Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular: Teaches you about how stunts and special effects are created.
  • 5:00 - 6:00 PM: Tower of Terror: Drop ride that has some of the worst wait times, so heading here in the morning is the best idea.
  • 6:00 - 7:00 PM: Rockin Rollercoaster: Aerosmith-themed rollercoaster in a dark space.
  • 7:00 - 8:00 PM: Dinner
  • 8:00 - 8:15 PM: Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run: A simulator ride where one is assigned a "job" to pilot a ship. To save time, recommend choosing the Single Rider line.
  • 8:30 - 9:30 PM: Fantasmic: Light, music, and character performance. For the best spots, arrive at least 30-mintues early for great seats.

Other Food Options
  • Woody’s Lunchbox for grilled cheese and their “tachos” (tater tot nachos).
  • Docking Bay 7: Unique offering with Star Wars-based food.
  • Backlot Express: Asian-based bowls.
  • Oga's Cantina: Star Wars themed bar serving fun drinks. I would recommend the Fuzzy Tauntaun, known for its buzz button-based foam which makes people's mouths go numb.
  • Milk Stand Star Wars: At the milk stand, one can choose between blue milk or green milk. Both are non-dairy drinks made from coconut and rice milk with differing fruit palettes:
    • Blue Milk: dragonfruit, pineapple, lime, and watermelon
    • Green Milk: mandarin orange, passionfruit, grapefruit, and orange blossom.
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Cinderella's Castle in Magic Kingdom as dusk approaches.

Magic Kingdom

Getting Here
There are 3 ways to get here:

  1. ​Monorail: Take the Monorail from the parking lot.
  2. Ferry: Take the ferry across the water from the parking lot.
  3. Walking: Walk from the Contemporary hotel to enter.
Day Plan
The Magic Kingdom has the classic Disney Rides. It is separated into 6 separate areas with the Cinderalla Castle in the center. This is the only "dry" theme park where no alcohol is served. Given its popularity, wait times can shift wildly, and one should prioritize rides they like. 

​Note that underlined and rides in teal can be skipped, while italicized rides in red are my favorites.

Parades occur at 12 PM and 3 PM.
Happily Ever After starts at 9 PM.

  • Main Street, U.S.A.: Entrance to the park filled with shops and restaurants that looks like a classic American town.
Pick whatever land is your priority and start there and then go from there. The land order I'm presenting is as follows:
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Head through Cinderalla's castle towards Fantasyland.
  • Fantasyland: Features attractions around classic Disney fairy tales.
    • Rides
      • Seven Dwarves Mine Train: Family-friendly themed smooth roller coaster with mine carts that can be rocked side-to-side. Note that this is one of the more popular attractions, so aim to be there first thing in the morning at rope-drop or at the end of the night.
      • The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: Seated ride through the storybook.
      • It’s A Small World: Classic Disney boat ride with the repeated "It's a small world" song.
      • Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid: Animatronic-based scenes from the movie while seated in a clamshell car.
      • Peter Pan's Flight: One of the first rides ever created, it is quite popular as the rider is whisked away through scenes of Peter Pan.
      • Dumbo the Flying Elephant: Spinning ride where one can ride in an elephant as it goes up and down.
      • Mad Tea Party: Swirling teacup ride that usually doesn't have a long line.
      • Enchanted Tales with Belle: One joins the Beauty & the Beast storyline as audience members participate.
      • The Barnstormer: Kid-friendly roller coaster based around Goofy's stunt biplane.
      • Walt Disney World Railroad: Ride a 1920s era steam engine locomotive for 1.5 miles around the edge of Magic Kingdom.
    • Food
      • Be Our Guest ($35-60): Beauty & the Beast-themed restaurant with a fixed 3-course menu.
      • Gaston's Tavern ($5 - $13): Indoor space for snacks. Known for their cinnamon rolls.
      • Cheshire Café (~$5): Outdoor cart for pretzels, cat tails, éclairs, and cupcakes.
  • Liberty Square: Inspired by colonial America.
    • Rides
      • Haunted Mansion: Known for its ahead-of-its-time special effects as one travels through a "Doom Buggy". Lines for this can be quite long, so one can avoid attending. 
      • Hall of Presidents: Animatronic presidents provide a 23 minute long show about the history of the U.S.A.
      • Liberty Square Riverboat: Half-mile trip around Tom Sawyer Island on a Colonial-era steamboat  
    • ​​​Food
      • ​Columbia Harbour House ($10 - $15): Seafood-based restaurant for a quick eat that can be quite crowded, but there is seating downstairs and upstairs.
      • Liberty Tree Tavern ($20 - $35): Enjoy a Thanksgiving meal any time of the year with rooms after historical figures.
  • Adventureland: Tropical land honoring adventure films.
    • ​Rides
      • Pirates of the Caribbean: Classic ride through the water to see scenes from the Pirates of the Carribean movie.
      • Jungle Cruise: Comedic boat ride with animatronic animals through the tour.
      • Magic Carpets of Aladdin: Spinning ride where one rides on a magic carpet.
    • Food
      • Aloha Isle: Famous for the pineapple Dole Whip and other pineapple-based snacks
      • Sunshine Tree Terrace: Like Aloha Isle, exxcept with citrus flavors.
      • Jungle Navigation Co. Ltd. SKipper Canteen ($20 - $35): A fusion mix of food that has some great options.
  • Frontierland: Themed around the American Old West.
    • Rides
      • Big Thunder Mountain: Recommend waiting if less than an hour. It is one of the longest Disney roller coasters with fakeout drops. “It is the wildest ride in the wilderness”.
      • Splash Mountain: Old-fashioned log ride over a 5-story drop that is sure to get one wet.
      • Country Bear Jamboree: One of the strangest rides at Disney World. It is a 16-minute show featuring singing animatronic hillbilly bears. (SOON TO BE DISCONTINUED)
    • ​Food
      • ​Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn & Cafe ($10 - $15): Quick-service restaurant for Mexican-style food.
  • Tomorrowland: Futuristic space
    • ​Rides
      • TRON Lightcycle Run: One gets a chance to ride their own Lightcycle to take off on a high-speed adventure on their own motorbike. It is one of the fastest roller coasters. Like the Galaxy of the Guardians: Cosmic Rewind ride at EPCOT, this requires one to enter the virtual queue on the My Disney Experience app to enter this attraction or pay $20 for the individual Lightning Lane.
      • ​Space Mountain: Unlike other Space Mountain rides, this one is unique since each person rides alone in a cramped cart. There's also no music and only darkness as one goes along the tracks. This ride is not for the faint of heart.
      • Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin: FIre lasers at targets to collect points against the person seated beside you in the star cruiser.
      • Tomorrowland Speedway: "Drive" a car along a half-mile long track going less than 10 mph that offers kids an opportunity to drive.
      • Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor: 15-minute funny comedy show that stars Mike Wazowski.
      • Astro Orbiter: Spinning ride where one rides in a rocket ship that is faster than the Dumbo ride or Magic Carpets of Aladdin ride.
      • Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover: Breezy and shady 10-minute ride tour above Tomorrowland to see what future transit might look like using magnets.
    • Food:
      • Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe ($10 - $15): It serves basic American cuisine (hotdogs, hamburgers, rotisserie chicken, and pulled pork). It might be hard to find seating as it is quite popular, since it is one of the only dining options in the area.
      • Auntie Gravity's Galactic Goodies ($5 - $10): Serivng sweet treats like ice cream, sundaes, milksahkes, and smoothies.
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Entrance to Disney Springs from the Orange parking garage.

Disney Springs

Shopping, dining, and entertainment district that used to be called Downtown Disney. There is free parking offered here in 3 garages (Orange, Grapefruit, and Lime), but one can take a bus from Disney Springs to the theme parks
Generally, the restaurants here are on the more expensive side, but here are a few dining options, I'd recommend:
  • T-Rex Café: A dinosaur-themed restaurant that is a fun experience, and one can even build their own stuffe dino to take home with them!
  • Blaze Pizza: Part of the national chain of pizza stores, this one has a great outdoor dining area.
  • D-Luxe Burger: Classic burgers but I especially recommend coming here to try their sauces (garlic mayo and truffle aioli).
  • eet by Maneet Chauhan: Indian restaurant serving good food but is a little pricey for what it is.
  • Milk Stand Star Wars: A dole whip stand offering a fun selection of flavors! Highly recommend their flight.

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