How To Dominate A Last Minute Disney Trip

Within our group of friends, we made a promise that before we departed each trip or occasion, we would plan our next “friendcation” to give us something to look forward to. So back in November, when we celebrated “Friendsgiving” in North Carolina, we decided everyone would come to our house in Jacksonville and take the kids on a day trip to Disney in April.

[ReviewDisclaimer]

While we had the plan to go to Disney for several months, 2 weeks before the date, we realized we had done NOTHING to plan for trip. No tickets. No travel arrangements. No logistics.

We finally went online, ordered tickets and booked fast passes for the things we thought our 3 girls (2 and 3 years old) would love. We ended up having major travel changes last minute and had to cancel our passes and go to the park on a different day. We were FINALLY set to make our trip to Orlando 2 days before.

We ended up with 6 adults and 3 toddlers and had the BEST time ever.  I can’t think of one thing I would have done differently.

We were VERY cautiously optimistic this would be a fun trip (because #toddlers) but we all shared some really fun memories with our friends & family. Although our plans were sorta last minute, we realized it doesn’t take much planning to have a GREAT time.

So, how did we do it?  Plan an entire Disney day trip in just 48 hours?  Here’s our secret:

1.) Travel:

In true last minute fashion, we rented a van on Thursday to be picked up on Friday. (Again, we were driving from Jacksonville to Orlando, which is approximately a 2 hour drive.) We got lucky and found a 15 passenger at Alamo for $168 for the weekend! We wanted to ALL stay together and validated that renting a van would have ended up saving us money as compared to the amount of money we would have spent paying for gas and parking, separately.

Needless to say, the van was LEGIT and a lot of fun. Oh, and if one little person vomits in the van on the way, don’t let it ruin your trip.They’ll end up having the best day ever and not actually be sick like suspected (don’t ask us how we know…).

2.) Disney Apparel:  

We didn’t want to spend a million dollars on matching dresses but knew it was essential for the cute factor. Jenny got the dresses from Old Navy for 50% off and Trisha hooked us up with sparkly [amazon_textlink asin=’B0751RL7NN’ text=’vinyl‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’ac48a86e-469e-11e8-9db7-7f2d1334dd74′] decals for the front & back that we ironed on the night before. BAM. $10 dress and [amazon_textlink asin=’B014CL82MK’ text=’Chuck Taylors‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’d7323906-469e-11e8-9a55-b35e5dc304e1′] they all already had.

3.) Stroller:  

It’s essential.  I don’t care if your kid can pass the fitness test at school with top honors by running 3 miles in 5 minutes, bring a stroller.  We ALL have the [amazon_textlink asin=’B019EZD7Y2′ text=’Bob Stroller‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’d7ab1ddf-469f-11e8-90fa-29ee212bac09′] and couldn’t live without it.

It’s not sleek by any means but is rugged and will help you breeze through the concrete jungle of magic and mouse ears. It’s the PERFECT place for a sleepy toddler mid afternoon snooze because you can lean them back in the stroller, it’s SUPER easy to maneuver, really comfortable for the kids, and the [amazon_textlink asin=’B00F9Q3ETE’ text=’console‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’7e5cf3db-46a1-11e8-a50f-93aad3fcc057′] makes a really handy place to put your drinks and phones for easy access.

[amazon_link asins=’B019EZD7Y2,B01BQLPMPO,B074MF4M4Q,B019EZD7T2,B01BSPDOQM,B00F9Q3ETE,B01HHV456E,B00KJB0PTG’ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’86bab4e5-9fb5-11e8-8e4e-41bafbf3068f’]

4.) Snacks:  

If you’ve been a mom for more than 5 minutes, you know you better pack some snacks.

We had an entire bag of snacks, fruit, chips, etc and let the kids eat off of their Bob [amazon_textlink asin=’B004LT5330′ text=’snack tray‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’43a4c26d-46a1-11e8-be8e-013be36d39bb’] that attaches to the stroller.

We also froze 2 gallons of water the night before and threw them in the bottom of the Bob. Throughout the day, it melted and we poured it in our [amazon_textlink asin=’B0764NZ8QV’ text=’bottles‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’2b0fe1df-46a1-11e8-ba3a-49dbc96b5654′] for drinking.

Guess how much money we spent on (non-alcoholic) drinks? $0!

[amazon_link asins=’B004LT5330,B004LT4XQS,B00KJB0PTG,B00F9Q3ETE,B00KLO5F78,B01BPCN0FI’ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’bf145ddc-9fb5-11e8-966e-8b922ff5252d’]

5.) Parking:  

Preferred Parking is $45 and TOTALLY worth it.  Icing on the cake is you get 1 bottle of water for each person in the car and you roll right up (aka skip the tram ride.) Then, it’s only a 1-2 minute walk to the ticket plaza.  As a semi-regular Disney attendee, I’ll never go back to regular-ass parking again.

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6.) Tickets:

We were SO last minute ordering, we didn’t have time for our [amazon_textlink asin=’B00VN1L1KI’ text=’tickets‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’2f7bbcd1-46a0-11e8-9fb9-3fb4e37702c9′] to be mailed to us (apparently 2-day Disney Prime isn’t a thing).

We wanted to avoid having the littles waiting around in line so we chose to divide & conquer.  As soon as we parked, the guys hopped out and headed straight for the ticket counter. Meanwhile, we got the girls ready and the [amazon_textlink asin=’B073NTRQT6′ text=’bags‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’b7ab2e57-46a4-11e8-b42a-713df7af35d0′] & strollers all packed up.

By the time we got to ticketing, our Prince Charming(s) were there waiting to carry us off into the sunset.  And best part? Their wait in line was only 15 minutes! (So don’t let the line at the park discourage you. Remember: this was a SATURDAY!)

[amazon_link asins=’B0749NXWS7,B074SH5QXC,B071DQSWS3,B076GYX2X3,B0127OZX7Q,B06XPDDJX3′ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’4e771008-9fb6-11e8-84fe-87319de41f46′]

7.) Fast Passes:

We chose to start with Ariel’s Grotto ride and would definitely recommend doing this one first! Then, we separated to meet the kid’s favorite characters (Tigger & Pooh for us *shocker* and Ariel for Lilly & Aubrey).

After that, we had a fast pass for Aladdin’s Magic Carpet and meeting Cinderella and Elena.  Word on the street is the line for Cinderella is always SUPER long so that was definitely a great choice.

The best advice I could give is booking your Fast Passes as close together as possible in the morning so you can BOOK MORE when you finish your first three. (You can only book three timeslots at a time!)

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8.) Afternoon Break:

Our resident “alcohol reconnaissance guy” managed to scout out all of the restaurants that serve an “enhanced” experience (aka adult beverages) and made a reservation on the spot for 2:30.  We don’t know if we just got lucky or if he has impeccable persuasive skills, but we were SO grateful for a break.

Jenny & Kaitlin headed to the Mother’s Room to [amazon_textlink asin=’B077M5QKVQ’ text=’pump‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’74f9807b-46a0-11e8-b9d1-8189cf022cba’] (they brought [amazon_textlink asin=’B074TWMKMG’ text=’coolers‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’911a9519-46a0-11e8-911e-c9e5f3ff3314′] for the milk), David & Drew took the girls to the Swiss Treehouse and Demetrius and I stayed behind to wait on our table while Cam snoozed in the stroller.

We got our table in the air conditioning, ordered drinks & appetizers (ice cream for the girls) and were able to recharge our batteries (both physically and [amazon_textlink asin=’B01JB2459Y’ text=’phone‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’bc74b9b5-46a3-11e8-b9ae-2dee7f38285f’]) to make it through the rest of the day.

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9.) Weather:

Don’t let the weather ruin your day!  The night before, the weather in Orlando was calling for RAIN. 80% chance all day long! We were all bracing for the absolute worst and prepared by packing extra [amazon_textlink asin=’B01MQJINWL’ text=’clothes‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’a06eb9ed-46a1-11e8-85e2-6712fa8028e2′], trash bags to keep the strollers dry (I wish we had [amazon_textlink asin=’B000GKU0H2′ text=’this‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’b2374b5f-46a0-11e8-a42d-1944f3da4bac’]), and umbrellas.

But guess what? The weather was absolutely beautiful. There were some clouds here and there but the only thing that got us wet was the camel spit on Aladdin’s Magic Carpet ride and the explosions in Pirates of the Caribbean (yep, you read that correctly… explosions). It’s not exactly kid friendly.

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10.) Dining/Characters:

Because of our last minute status, we didn’t have reservations anywhere… (GASP!)  Although we initially wanted to sign the girls up for the princess lunch, I think we’re all glad we didn’t. We would have spent $60 each for a buffet when instead we ended up having a delicious, quick lunch and saw the princesses throughout the park or in the street parades.

The kids didn’t care and were just excited to get to meet a few of them. And if they questioned us, the princesses were napping. (Sleeping Beauty happens to be a favorite of one of the littles, so this was a mere convenience.)

PS- We saved another $60 by not purchasing a princess dress in the park because you can get them WAY [amazon_textlink asin=’B075R4S7KV’ text=’cheaper‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’3cab6f25-46f5-11e8-a3b6-4d10c9d3d268′].

And if there’s one thing we learned:  don’t let “the [amazon_textlink asin=’1973749122′ text=’dads‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’poms2moms-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’a1d2c119-46a2-11e8-bbfc-330eec8c7fc1′]” choose a ride during your down time. We ended up going on Pirates of the Caribbean and while it was REALLY cool, it’s definitely NOT great for toddlers.

In his defense, the Disney App says it’s good for all ages and has small drops, but we totally disagree. It’s dark, had a bigger than expected drop (in the pitch black) and was littered with drunken, imprisoned pirates, explosions and firing cannons. The girls were NOT a fan and Kaitlin was praying for the YouTube Kids gods to grace her with some cell service mid ride.

Needless to say, we probably won’t be doing that next time.

As you can see, we had the BEST day ever.  Disney is truly a magical place and there’s really nothing like seeing pure joy in your child’s eyes when they see their favorite character or experience a new ride for the first time.

We laughed, we cried, we ate, we drank, but more importantly, we made lasting memories with each other that we’ll never forget.

What’s your biggest Disney trick or secret?  We’d love to hear about it!