GG Sisters TIPS for Walt Disney World

GG Sisters TIPS for Walt Disney World

Our 4 day trip to Walt Disney World our itinerary & GG SISTER TIPS!

Day 1: We arrived. We took a flight with Sunwing our tickets were very well priced. We paid about $280 taxes in roundtrip to Orlando from Toronto. We always find that Sunwing has the best priced tickets to Orlando round trip. The kids also love going with Sunwing, they get a mini backpack with treats upon boarding ( makes them feel special). We also booked this trip about 5 days before we left. Very last minute.

TIP: For a 4 day trip we packed light and only packed a carry on each. This way makes life easier don’t have to wait around for your luggage. Once you get to the hotel you can changes the kids quickly and get them to the pool.

We headed over to the Disney Transportation area. It is inside the airport and boarded our bus to Art of Animation Resort.

TIP: When you check in at the hotel let them know if it is your first time visiting Disney, if you are celebrating something special. They have a special FREE pin waiting for you. They also have free Mickey Stickers for the kids and whenever you see a cast member see if they have trading cards it is also something free the kids can collect during their time in Disney. On our way home Ella asked for about 18 Mickey Stickers to bring to her class as a special treat. The cast member was so nice and gave them to her.

We got to the resort and our room wasn’t ready yet (we arrived very early), so we took the kids for a swim in the pool.

TIP: Download the Disney App– When our room was ready we got a notification, and open our room door with our magic bands so we didn’t have to go back to the front desk.

Kids swam their hearts out at the Cars themed pool. We stayed in a Cars themed room. We got the notification our room was ready and went right up to the room. The room was perfect for two small families. It had one queen sized bed, one pull out and one murphy bed. It had two washrooms both with showers and a mini kitchenette.

TIP: If you are doing Disney on a budget share the family suite with another small sized family. In total there was 7 of us.

TIP: Order food from Garden Grocers before you arrive and it will be waiting for you in your room. We ordered cases of water, bananas, bread, chips, cereal bars, cereal milk etc. Every morning we filled our backpacks with the food we needed for the day.

Ok once we arrived to the room kids took a shower after they swam and they took a 3 hour nap.

TIP: Do not go to any Disney Parks on a travel day. You are tired, you need to get settled and there is much else you can see and do on a travel day that is Disney themed other than a Disney park. Once the kids rested and who are we kidding so did we, we got up and got ready to go to Chef Mickey’s for dinner.

TIP: Check the week before your vacation after 11pm at night and every day after that for hard to book restaurants. Keep checking don’t give up. We were part of 7 and managed to get in. We always manage to get reservations at our fave Disney restaurants a few days prior or even the day of. A few years ago we managed to get Cinderella’s castle just by going up and asking the cast members, we waited half an hour but got in. Same thing happened at Be our Guest Restaurant last year. You don’t know unless you ask and always try.

TIP: Book the character restaurants rather than waiting in line to meet characters at the parks. You get a more intimate experience plus some restaurants have parades and its super fun. Not to mention we love all the Disney themed food from the Mickey Shaped waffled to the Mickey cupcakes for dessert.

TIP: Buy your Disney autograph book at home before you arrive, much cheaper for us Canadian and lots of Disney stores carry them.

TIP: Buy your Disney gear t-shirts, sweaters etc. back home before you arrive at The Disney Store, again much cheaper for us Canadians. We still do buy signature Mickey Ears each trip but as part of our Mickey Ears collection. The other stuff is much easier to buy back home.

TIP: After dinner we walked around the contemporary resort and headed to the observation deck located on the back right corner of the 4th floor concourse, you can watch fireworks from Magic Kingdom there.

After that we took the bus and headed to Disney Springs, there is so much to see and do there. The kids love heading to the Coco Cola Store so we can have our taste test challenge. We order a sample tray of about 16 different flavours from around the world. Costs about $8 and the kids love tasting the different drinks from around the world. Once you at the patio bar you seriously have the best view of Disney Springs so get up there and take a pic!

TIP: Head to the Rooftop Patio at the Coca Cola Store in Disney Springs for a the best view of Disney Springs and great pics!

After our visit to the Coca Cola store we stumbled upon a FREE Dance party for families in Disney Springs. The kids loved it and danced for a few hours. Then we headed back to our hotel.

Day 2: Breakfast at ‘Ohana This is our fave breakfast place in Walt Disney World. You truly feel like you are in Hawaii.

TIP: When you arrive ask for a LEI from the front desk they are FREE After breakfast and literally outside the restaurant we hopped on the monorail and we headed to the Grand Floridian, another fave hotel of ours. The kids love it because it reminds them of the Full House episode where the Tanner’s stay. So we always head there and check it out. After that, we decided to try out the new Minnie Van service from Lyft, it was alright a bit pricey in our eyes it was about $25 US. But we had to do it at least once to say we drove in a MINNIE Van. The kids loved it too. The Minnie Van took us to the Boardwalk. The kids love going on the Surrey Bike, we rented one and drove it around. After that we headed to the Disney Beach Club Resort the kids wanted to head to Beaches and Cream for the Kitchen Sink. Unfortunately they were fully booked so we ordered a Minnie Kitchen Sink and had it to go. We ate it outside and it was delicious. Totally Insta worthy!

TIP: For a fun dessert that the family can enjoy head to Beaches and Cream at the Boardwalk. If you can get a table inside- order the kitchen sink. If you can’t you can order TO GO and order the Minnie Kitchen Sink and share. They have tables outside you can sit at to enjoy. Also super budget friendly if you share as a family.

After that we headed to Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. We had to kill time because we couldn’t gain access with our tickets until 4pm.

TIP: We recommend getting tickets for Magic Kingdom themed events like Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party because the park isn’t as busy as there is only a certain amount of tickets sold.

TIP: You can enter the park as early as 4p.m. for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party even though your tickets says 7p.m. When you see a * beside a ride it means those are the rides that Josie’s 18 month old went on, and we think are great for toddlers.

RIDES WE DID AT MAGIC KINGDOM Tomorrowland Speedway Mad Tea Party The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh* Peter Pan* “it’s a small world” (OUR #3 FAVE RIDE AT DISNEY)* Under the Sea Journey of The Little Mermaid* Splash Mountain Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Dumbo the Flying Elephant* Jungle Cruise* Pirate’s of the Carribean Space Mountain We ended the night with Mickey’s Most Merriest Christmas Celebration show, Holiday Wishes (Fireworks) and Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade. Don’t forget to smell the Gingerbread float when it passes by!

TIP: We ended up taking a LYFT to take us back to the hotel even though we could have waited for the Disney bus. After a long day it was only $8 and so worth it, so we could get the kids in bed and sleeping ready for the next day.

DAY 3: Hollywood Studios & Epcot Today was all about visiting the new TOY STORY LAND

TIP: Get to the park early and run to Toy Story Land so you line up for the new Slinky Ride ASAP.

TIP: Keep refreshing the Disney App you never know what rides pop up.

TIP: Once you are in line after getting your fast pass scanned for a ride, start searching for your next fast pass.

RIDES WE DID AT HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS Slinky Dog Dash Alien Swirling Saucers* Star Tours Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Then we took the friendship boat to EPCOT

TIP: We like doing these two parks in one day since getting to each of them doesn’t take up too much time. Also when you go from Hollywood Studios you are basically in the center of Epcot once you exit the boat. There isn’t a long walk to a new entrance etc. like their would be if you were taking a bus.

RIDES WE DID AT EPCOT Test Track Spaceship Earth Mission: Space Gran Fiesta Tour* Soarin’ ( OUR #2 FAVE RIDE AT DISNEY) The Seas with Nemo and Friends*

TIP: Look for the KidCot FunStops throughout Epcot. Great to take a break with the kids and they can make some fun crafts and souvenirs to take home. PLUS IT’s FREE

DINNER: We went to The Coral Reef Restaurant. We love ending a long day at Disney with a nice restaurant and great meal. Not to mention the kids love that we are eating in an aquarium. There is also two hidden Mickey’s Ella found in this restaurant. Ask a waiter to show you where you they are.

Day 4: Animal Kingdom & Hollywood Studios Today was the day we were going to the Pandora- World of Avatar. This is something we have been looking forward to and truly saved the best for last.

TIP: Get to Animal Kingdom at park opening and run to Pandora World of Avatar. The line ups can be hours and it is totally worth it. Our new fave ride at Disney.

RIDES WE DID AT ANIMAL KINGDOM – Dinosaur – Expedition Everest – Kiliminjaro Safari’s* – Na’vi River Journey* – Avatar Flight of Passage ( Our #1 Fave ride at Disney) After our day was done we went back to our hotel relaxed a bit and then went back to Hollywood Studios to watch Fantasmic. Out of all the Walt Disney World shows Fantasmic is our very favourite!

Day 5: HOME We went home and we are already starting our next trip back.

A few things to keep in mind. This is our 15th time to Disney. There are a lot of things we didn’t do on this trip because we have done them on previous trips. We also want you to know what works for our family may not work for yours, but we hope we gave you some great insight when planning your trip. Also feel free to ask anything Disney we love helping when we can. E-mail us info@theggsisters.com

Enjoy our video of our trip below. We have 23 tips & hacks that we didn’t include on here. If you want them please sign up for our e-mail list and we will e-mail them to you!