My family took a week long trip to Disney for Labor Day. On this trip we had 6 adults and 1 child: my husband and I (early 30's) + our 25 month-old, my sister-in-law and brother-in-law (early 30's), and my mother-in-law and step-father-in-law (early 60's). Although we were there from Sunday through Saturday, we actually only went to the Disney parks for 3 of the days so that we could have plenty of down time to relax during the hustle and bustle of a Disney trip.
We stayed on property at the Copper Creek Villas at Wilderness Lodge the entire trip. For our park tickets, we actually got our tickets through Sam's Club and saved about $50. We already had an account in the Disney World Experience app that had our hotel reservation, and after we bought our tickets Sam's club emailed me a confirmation number. I went in to our reservation in the app and went to My Tickets & Passes and was able to enter in our confirmation number to link our tickets to our room reservation.
Pre-trip, we booked 60 days out for our dining and lunch reservations, my daughter's first haircut, custom droid making, and the fireworks cruise. We also were able to book our ride reservations 7 days before our trip through the new Lightning Lane system since we were staying on property. And 4 days before our trip we bought the Memory Maker photo package on discount.
Day 1 - Travel Day/Disney Springs
Traveling
We used MCO2Disney to take the 7 of us from the airport to our resort. What was nice was that they allow you to do a grocery pickup from either Publix or Target on the way to your resort for free. I placed our grocery order right before we got on the plane so that our order would be fresh and ready by the time our plane landed. What I didn't account for was not having wi-fi during the flight and missing the notifications that some items were out and asking for substitutions. We ended up missing almost a quarter of our order since I didn't choose a substitution in time. Next time, I'll try to place the order at least 2 hours before our flight so that hopefully I have time to review any substitutions.
We got lunch and hung out at Geyser Point while we waited for our room to be ready. It took forever to get a table, so we spent half our time at the bar. I regret not packing more food for our daughter this day. By this point in the day, she was over the snacks I had packed and really just wanted a meal, so I wish I had something more than just snacks to hand her. It ended up raining (classis Disney in September weather, and a theme for the week), so we let her explore the property in the rain while we waited for our table.
Epcot
For dinner, we had reservations at Enzo's Hideaway at Disney Springs. It was actually a long bus ride from Wilderness Lodge to Disney Springs, because the bus shares a route with The Contemporary resort too. Our daughter fell asleep while we were walking around Disney Springs that evening, and I wish I had known about the loud live band in the middle of the shopping area. Thankfully, a sound machine and the big sunshade on our Vista kept her asleep through half of dinner. She was cranky and ready to get going after dinner, and to our surprise, the waiter said that it was fine for us to take our drinks to go when we left dinner. We were informed we could drink while walking & shopping, but couldn't take drinks onto busses or into other parks. Not long after dinner, we caught the very last Dreams that Soar drone show. I don't know why they stopped the show, it was spectacular! Not only was it quiet so sleeping kids could stay asleep (except for the audio playing in the speakers, but nothing compared to fireworks), it was soo amazing to see the detail in the drones! We had just bought our MagicBand+ that night while shopping before dinner and didn't have them charged and synced to our accounts that night, so we did miss on that interaction. I really hope they bring back drone shows.
Day 2 - Animal Kingdom/Epcot
Animal Kingdom
Because we were staying in a deluxe resort, we had access to the park at 7:30 am that day. Our daughter couldn't quite get up that early, so my husband and I sent his family ahead of us to rope drop Avatar Flight of Passage since we weren't able to do that last trip. We met up with them for our first Lightning Lane of the day at Kilimanjaro Safari. Our toddler really liked this, but sadly it was the only thing she really did this day.
Half of us then went to our next Lightning Lane at Expedition Everest while those who didn't like roller coasters waiting with our toddler. We ended up spending the next 15-20 minutes letting her watch the people come down the mountain so she could scream with them. We had one more Lightning Lane reserved for Kali River Rapids, but because our daughter couldn't ride on it and we were all ready to go to Epcot anyways, we cancelled this ride. In hindsight, we should have reserved Na'Vi River Journey instead so everyone could go on it.
Epcot
We took a bus over to Epcot and by now we were all ready to eat and get out of the heat. We walked in to Nine Dragons Restaurant, and it was completely empty! The portions are VERY big (and the price reflects it), so we realized that we should have split entrees to not waste so much food. By now, I really wanted to take my daughter back to the resort so that she could get a full nap, because she was clearly needing a good nap. My mother in law went back to the room with us, and the rest went on our Lightning Lane for Cosmic Rewind and then killed time at Living with the Land during a downfall and then went to San Angel Inn to drink margaritas while they waited for us. These drinks were strong, but had a weird flavor to them that I didn't love since I'm a classic lime girl.
Because we had cancelled our Kali River Lightning Lane, we were able to get Frozen Ever After Lightning Lane reservations for after nap time, and I learned that my daughter really likes Elsa after this ride. We had dinner reservations at Via Napoli, and this was probably our cheapest meal of the week. We were all pretty full off of the alcohol by now, so we just split one very large pizza. After dinner, we were in the perfect spot to watch the Luminous Symphony of Us fireworks show, which I packed light up Minnie Ears for my daughter to wear. Although we had extra hours at Epcot this night, we left after the fireworks.
Day 3 - Magic Kingdom
Tomorrowland
We had another early entry for Magic Kingdom at 8:30 this day. We took the buses, but found out that the boats from Wilderness Lodge to Magic Kingdom were already running, so we could have done that to save some time. We did a little family photoshoot on Main Street and then headed to Tomorrowland for our first Lightning Lane at Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. Tomorrowland Speedway had no wait and my daughter was just tall enough, so we did this ride first since we had lots of time. The pedal is oddly in the middle of the car, even though the steering wheel is on the right side of the car, so you spend the whole time with your left foot extended trying to get the car to go.
Fantasyland
We also were able to walk on to the teacups at Mad Tea Party which is right next to the Tomorrowland Speedway. Right next to this is the Dumbo ride. There is the Casey Jr. splash pad right here that I had packed a swimsuit, swim diaper, water shoes, and a coverup towel in a wet bag for our daughter, but it was only about 9am by this time so we didn't want to get our daughter all wet just yet. I kind of regret this, because we never made it back over here so she could play in the water. To make up for it, my mother in law and I did take her on the Carrousel, which was absolutely her favorite part of the trip. And I know this because it's the only picture she actually smiled in! We made the mistake of doing Mickey's PhilharMagic show instead of It's a Small World. While the show was airconditioned, it was 3D and my daughter didn't like the things jumping out at her. It also should be called Donald's PhilharMagic show because Mickey is only in it for about 15 seconds at the end.
Frontierland
While we were doing this, the rest of the group went over Big Thunder for a Lightning Lane and then over to the next Lighting Lane at Haunted Mansion. There's not a lot over here for toddlers, so I skipped this area entirely.
We then parked in front of The Diamond Horseshoe to watch the Disney Adventure Friends Cavalcade parade, which was actually pretty short so a little disappointing. I'd say it's something you stop and watch if you're already in the area, but don't necessarily go out of your way to watch. After this we headed over to the Castle to watch Mickey's Magical Friendship Faire which my daughter really liked, but got overheated about halfway through and then was over it. I wish we had been able to see the Disney Festival of Fantasy Parade, but it was during naptime so it's on the list for next trip. After the parade, we went to to the Liberty Square Portrait Gallery right by Ye Old Christmas Shoppe to get a silhouette done of our daughter as a souvenir. The guy was so fast, we were done in less than 5 minutes, but he did such a good job!
Adverntureland
My husband then took our daughter back to the resort for her nap, and the rest of us headed to our reservation at Skipper Canteen. Apparently, this is one of the few places in Magic Kingdom that sells alcohol. The Brazilian cheese bread is something you definitely should try here! After lunch, we walked on to Pirates of the Caribbean and then went to ride the Liberty Square Riverboat, but unfortunately it had just broken down so we went to shop while we killed time.
Main Street, USA
We ended up going on the Walt Disney World Railroad around the park until it was time for my daughter's first haircut at Harmony Barber Shop. This went better than I expected! The hairstylist had a light wand to keep my daughter distracted, and had me sit on the edge of the chair to keep my daughter relaxed. The stylist even put my daughter's hair in pigtails and pixie dusted her at the end! I'm so happy that we were able to have this memory. After her haircut, we took the WDWR train back over to Fantasyland for our dinner reservation at Be Our Guest Restaurant. It was pricey, but I thought the food was great and the kids desert was the cutest thing I'd ever seen! After dinner, half of us we went over to Tomorrowland for our Lightning Lane at Tron Lightcycle Run while the rest took my daughter back to the carrousel and then onto the People Mover while they waited for us. It started to downpour and lightning, so unfortunately the Happily Ever After fireworks kept getting delayed and we had to leave and then of course the show started as we were pulling away from Magic Kingdom.
Day 4 - Resort Day
We had reservations for a character dining at Chef Mickey's this morning. It was pricey, but I thought the food was pretty good and it was great to be able to sit and eat while you wait for the characters to come by your table. There's people who make sure you're seen by each character at least once. There is a photo pass option on your way out, but there is no professional photographer to take pictures with the characters.
We then went back to the Wilderness Lodge pools. The main pool has a waterslide and behind that is a waterfall with an overflow feature into the pool, which is pretty cool. There's also a whole toddler area that is gated off that has water slides, a playground, and a splash pad. We weren't here for long because my daughter ended up needing a nap, but I really liked this pool.
After naptime, we had some time to kill so the plan was to take a boat over to Magic Kingdom, then the monorail over to the Contemporary, then the bus back to Wilderness Lodge to get ready for dinner since my daughter was all about the transportation. The boat's first stop was actually right where we were going to have dinner, and they had a great playground that was completely empty, so we figured our daughter would enjoy that even more. She had so much fun and even played through a light rain shower that came through. There's an outdoor bar right by the playground so I was able to get a really good mojito to enjoy while she played. This was actually a good move on our end because by dinner time, she was tired and ready to sit down for an hour.
Our dinner was the Hoop Dee Doo Revue, which is a must-do for my father-in-law. The food and beer/wine (very limited selection and I didn't like any of the wine I tried, tasted like boxed wine) is all you can eat during the show. The show is interactive and really fun every time. Definitely some of the best food we have on the trip.
Day 5 - Universal Day
This day, my in-law's had a granddaughter day, my sister & brother-in-law went back to the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot, and my husband and I went to Universal.
The day that we went just so happened to be the first day of their Halloween Horror Nights so the place was SO empty before noon, because apparently most people only buy tickets for the night festival and don't get day tickets! We were able to walk on almost all rides with under a 20 minute wait! We started at the Islands of Adventure side with Jurassic World VelociCoaster, which was a little too fast for me, but definitely a fun ride. Then we did Skull Island, which was just okay. After that we went to The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, which I really liked. A lot of the Universal rides were a similar format, but I really liked them because they were so immersive. Then there was Doctor Doom's Fearfall, which was disappointingly short with only one drop. We road The Incredible Hulk Coaster, which wasn't as intense as the VelociCoaster. We grabbed hot dogs at a kiosk outside of the Hulk for lunch, and I was disappointed that there weren't a lot of meal options nearby, just snacks.
Then we took the Hogwarts Express over to The Wizzarding World of Harry Porter on the Universal Studios Florida side. The seats where kinda scratchy, which I'm is more historically accurate with the movies, but is not comfortable on a hot sweaty day. The train was cool because it had a little movie in the windows, but the room was stuffy and I wish the windows were functioning. We started with Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure which was my favorite ride of the day. Fast, but not scary. Next was Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts which was also fun and similar to the Spider Man ride. The Transformers ride had no wait at all, which was surprising because it's also similar to the Spider Man ride. We ended our day at Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, which is a more like a 3D show than a ride, and then played the Villain-Con Minion Blast, which was a shooter game but instead of sitting down you stand on a conveyor belt. By then, we felt like we had done everything we wanted to do and went back to our resort.
We originally had dinner reservations at Steakhouse 71 that night, but we cancelled them to just have a chill evening with pizza watching movies instead. Then we went to my favorite part of the trip, a pontoon ride on the Seven Seas Lagoon to watch the Happily Ever After fireworks.
Day 6 - Hollywood Studios
We started our last day again with an early entry due to staying at a deluxe resort and rope dropped Slinky Dog Dash. The line was really long, but once the park officially opened it actually moved pretty fast. We had a Lightning Lane for Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run and the line was still short so we rode it again because it was a fun and very immersive "ride." We then had another Lightning Lane for Tower of Terror, which is my favorite Disney ride. Our next Lightning Lane was at Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway and it was such a unique ride! It's as fun as it's hyped up to be. Then we had lunch reservations at 50's Prime Time Café, which is my father-in-law's favorite Hollywood Studios restaurant.
My toddler needed a nap so Ryan and I tried to go back to the room for naptime and things went off the rails. After waiting over 15 minutes for a bus back to our resort, our app updated saying the next bus would be another 20 minute wait. We thought something was wrong with the bus that was supposed to get us, because in that 15 minute wait busses had came and gone and came again for the same resort. We got desperate and hopped on the bus to Fort Wilderness with the plan to take the ferry over to Copper Creek. Big mistake and of course as we drove off our correct bus pulled up, and then when we got to Fort Wilderness we got off at the first stop which was a 30 minute walk to the ferry dock, and the ferry didn't start until after 3.
We eventually got back to our room, but it seriously delayed nap time and then Ryan had to leave as soon as we got our daughter down because he had a reservation to make a custom droid at the Droid Depot. He also missed a Lightning Lane at Rock 'n' Roller Coaster and a drink reservation at Oga's Cantina that the rest of the family went to. They didn't like the cantina and said it was something to do once for the photos and that's it.
My daughter and I made it back for our dinner reservation at Roundup Rodeo BBQ, which was my favorite restaurant of the trip! It is so cute where they let little kids ride a stick horse to their table, and I'm still on the hunt for a similar stick horse for Christmas! I couldn't believe they didn't sell them. The food was all you could eat and really good. The rattlesnake margarita was delicious and I regretted not getting a 2nd one to-go before we left. After that, the boys went to do Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and I took our daughter to Alien Swirling Saucers. The park was getting close to closing by now, so we were able to ride this ride 4 times back-to-back with no wait at all! Definitely my favorite memory of the trip. As we were leaving the park, we could see the ending of the Fantasmic show.
My biggest regret of this day was that I had a false confidence we'd have time to stop by both Disney Jr. Play and Dance and For the First Time in Forever Frozen Sing-Along shows because they go on basically every hour. We ended up missing both shows because we were gone for so long for nap time and didn't have time before dinner.
Day 7 - Travel Day
We had some leftover Dollar Tree Disney toys that I ran out of room to take back, so we left a box of them at the front desk to pass out to new guests as they checked in. For our next Disney trip, I have a foldable duffel that I'm packing in case I need an extra checked bag for the trip home.
On our last day, the same driver from MCO2Disney picked us up about 3 hours before our flight to take us to the airport. One disappointing thing about the MCO airport is that there is NO toddler play area! I frequent HOU and DAL airports and am so used to a toddler play area at both of those, I was shocked to see that MCO didn't!
Overall thoughts on this trip
We did a lot in this trip. I think the one thing that I didn't do before hand is set expectations with the group for traveling with a toddler. My daughter could have easily rope dropped early entrance OR stayed up late for the fireworks, but trying to do both was just too much. I don't regret going back to the room for nap time (except betting on the wrong bus the last day) because I think she slept so much better in an air conditioned, dark room.
I felt like I didn't really get a magical Disney trip for my daughter since she actually spent a lot of time in the stroller waiting while others went on rides she was too short for. I had bought her a cute little Disney swimsuit and Disney wet bag and brought a Disney towel and water shoes so she could play in the splash pads at Magic Kingdom and Epcot, but we never had time for it. I want to go on another trip with no Lightning Lanes planned and just let her dictate what she wants to do and when.
Our next trip
We don't have anything booked right now, but it's no surprise that I want a second trip to Disney for our next family vacation. I'm thinking either a trip to Disney World again where we stay at Pop Century so we can take the Skyliner to Hollywood Studios and not have to worry about breaking down our stroller and spending a full day at Magic Kingdom in Fantasyland, or going to Disneyland and staying at Pixar Place Hotel and seeing all the kid-friendly rides over there.
