Touring Plans IRL | Six Steps to a Practically Perfect Vacation
The Magic Kingdom may be the most magical place on earth, but it is also smack dab in the middle of Walt Disney World. My biggest problem at Disney is there is literally, "more to see than can ever be seen or to do than can ever be done." Forty-three square miles brimming with tons of things to see and do and eat, to be exact. So where do I start planning my perfect, stress-free Walt Disney World vacation?
Whether it's as simple as my kids' picks list out of the Birnbaum's Walt Disney World for Kids or a well detailed down to the minute spreadsheet developed from pouring over PassPorter's Walt Disney World and The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World.
Step 1: Do Your Research!
Look at projected crowd levels. Learn about the FastPass+ system. Measure your children (at the end of the day in sneakers) and note any rides with height restrictions out of your range.
If you have any food allergies or special needs, check out all of the awesome accommodations available at Walt Disney World. Also check for planned closures or refurbishment during your visit. There's nothing quite like missing a ride you've talked up to your kids because it's closed for refurbishment the day that you plan to go to that park when it was open the day before...not that I know this from experience or anything.
Step 2: Get Decisive!
Now that you know which days have the least crowds for each park, decide which days you want to be at each of the parks. Pick restaurants (and make dining reservations 180 days ahead of time, especially for popular character meals) in relation to the park you are planning to be in each day. Pick some must do rides, let your kids pick some must dos or both. Write this down!
Step 3: Pick Your FastPasses!
Armed with a list of which parks you're planning to go to each day, a few must do attractions for each day and with your ADRs (advanced dining reservations in Disney-speak) in hand, you can easily schedule in your FastPass+ selections ahead of your trip.
With only these details jotted down, you can work in other attractions that catch your family's interest on the day you are touring the park and have a magical trip!
Step 4: Practically Perfect Vacation!
You've planned a practically perfect relatively stress-free vacation at Walt Disney World. It's time to lean back, relax and enjoy the ride! Once you arrive enjoy the fruits of your pre-planning and take the time to stop and smell the roses (or Dole Whips!)
Enjoy the trolley show along Main Street, U.S.A.. Stumble upon Starlets on Hollywood Boulevard and get lost in the jungle pathways of Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. Enjoy the journey and wonder of the parks and soak in the atmosphere.
Wait?
Is that all there is to it or would you rather soak up every magical minute of Walt Disney World time by going into super planner mode? Last chance for the mellow vacationers to exit, for the rest of the Mousekateers, it's time to break out the color coded pens, comfortable shoes and touring plans. This is for seasoned veterans who find that half the fun of a Disney vacation is in the planning. If this sounds like work to you, feel free to skip this next step!
Step 4: Get Out Your Pixie Dust and Highlighters and Go Crazy!
Take your list of parks, must dos, ADRs and FastPasses. Now begin to add in other details. If you're staying on property note the extra magic hours. If you plan to go back to your resort for a few hours for a break from the heat, jot that down. If you plan to do rope drop or fireworks, add that to your list as well. Pencil in a few other attractions that are in the same area as your must dos and FastPasses. Pick out quick service restaurants for the meals you do not plan to eat at table service restaurants.
Color code and note to your hearts content!
If only there was a way to accurately estimate how much time each attraction will take between the walking, waiting and enjoying...oh, my little planning heart is glad to inform you that there is.
Step 5: Touring Plans In Real Life
For my most recent trip, I opted to let touring plans take care of the details for me. Touring plans is a subscription service that offers, "trip planning tools show you the least crowded park to visit every day, customized touring plans for visiting Disney’s best rides, honest restaurant reviews, how to save on Disney tickets, the best hotel rooms to ask for, and so much more." They don't pay me and I don't have any sponsorship or financial relationship with them, I just think they rock for super planners.
Basically, they take my plan for the day, rearrange ride order to minimize waiting, walking or balance the two (your choice!) then give you expected waiting, walking and free times for the day. If you first optimize your plans a few months out, they let you get a good idea for how much mileage to prepare for, but if you update them the day of, they can be eerily accurate.
The only frustrating thing is that you may need to reselect either the time or attractions for your FastPass+ a few times as you optimize your touring plan or just skip using one of your selected FP due to back-tracking.
To me, that feels like a waste.
I prefer to use the app that let's me update our touring plans on the fly, but there are some perks to having a printed copy of your touring plan. The list lets my son know how many "girl" things he has until he gets to "something cool."
Like it's a small world or the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House.
Also, my phone seems to die at the most inopportune times and having our FastPass+ times written down so they are easy to check makes my life simpler.
Either bring a portable charger for your phone or print it off, either way, you're sure to have a memorable vacation!
Step 6: Let It Go!
Our touring plans IRL, did not follow the letter of our original touring plan.
If you peek up there on our Magic Kingdom above the scratch outs and added in attractions comes a point on the plan where it says, "REST until Dinner."
Yeah.
I'm sorry, I know that I said way back in my Disney Resolutions for 2015 that I absolutely would schedule in rest. Well...I did schedule it into the plan. I just had a hard time with follow through.
I looked at my kids with a big smile and said, "Who's ready to go back and lay around and watch Star Wars: Rebels so we can save energy for Wishes later tonight?" Kylee and Chris looked at one another and Kylee looked up at me. "Can't we rest in line while we wait to go on Space Mountain???"
It seems the parks commando gene might have resurfaced in my Mousekateers. The kids never returned to rest at our resort all trip.
They did "rest" on the PeopleMover, in the Universe of Energy, at a long dim lunch watching old movies in the Sci-Fi Dine In Theatre and during a late afternoon showing of Festival of the Lion King, just not at our resort.
We rode on the Mad Tea Party approximately four bajillion times after my kids declared it one of their "most favorites."
We took over half a day at Animal Kingdom searching for and earning Wilderness Explorer badges.
We climbed all the way up and down the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House at least three times (there may have been a fourth.)
We ate snacks at all times of the morning, afternoon and evening as soon as anyone mentioned they were hungry.
None of those appeared on our touring plans.
Sometimes it's just a matter of learning when to pull an Elsa and let it go.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you prefer to follow a touring plan, enjoy a plan free mouse-cation, or somewhere in between?
 |
| It can be done! |
Step 1: Do Your Research!
Look at projected crowd levels. Learn about the FastPass+ system. Measure your children (at the end of the day in sneakers) and note any rides with height restrictions out of your range.
 |
| Please note: they do not count bows, high ponytails or fluffy hair and will squish them out of the way to see if your child is tall enough to ride safely! Kylee at just barely 44 inches got measured on every 44" ride, sometimes twice per line. |
Step 2: Get Decisive!
Now that you know which days have the least crowds for each park, decide which days you want to be at each of the parks. Pick restaurants (and make dining reservations 180 days ahead of time, especially for popular character meals) in relation to the park you are planning to be in each day. Pick some must do rides, let your kids pick some must dos or both. Write this down!
Step 3: Pick Your FastPasses!
Armed with a list of which parks you're planning to go to each day, a few must do attractions for each day and with your ADRs (advanced dining reservations in Disney-speak) in hand, you can easily schedule in your FastPass+ selections ahead of your trip.
 |
| A FastPass+ can get you out of a line like this...or get you into one. Choose wisely! |
Step 4: Practically Perfect Vacation!
You've planned a practically perfect relatively stress-free vacation at Walt Disney World. It's time to lean back, relax and enjoy the ride! Once you arrive enjoy the fruits of your pre-planning and take the time to stop and smell the roses (or Dole Whips!)
 |
| There are plenty of roses in Epcot and the Magic Kingdom, if you only take the time to look around! |
Wait?
Is that all there is to it or would you rather soak up every magical minute of Walt Disney World time by going into super planner mode? Last chance for the mellow vacationers to exit, for the rest of the Mousekateers, it's time to break out the color coded pens, comfortable shoes and touring plans. This is for seasoned veterans who find that half the fun of a Disney vacation is in the planning. If this sounds like work to you, feel free to skip this next step!
Step 4: Get Out Your Pixie Dust and Highlighters and Go Crazy!
Take your list of parks, must dos, ADRs and FastPasses. Now begin to add in other details. If you're staying on property note the extra magic hours. If you plan to go back to your resort for a few hours for a break from the heat, jot that down. If you plan to do rope drop or fireworks, add that to your list as well. Pencil in a few other attractions that are in the same area as your must dos and FastPasses. Pick out quick service restaurants for the meals you do not plan to eat at table service restaurants.
 |
| If your youngling (3-12) would like to attend Jedi Training Academy, it is definitely worth arriving before rope drop. |
Color code and note to your hearts content!
If only there was a way to accurately estimate how much time each attraction will take between the walking, waiting and enjoying...oh, my little planning heart is glad to inform you that there is.
Step 5: Touring Plans In Real Life
For my most recent trip, I opted to let touring plans take care of the details for me. Touring plans is a subscription service that offers, "trip planning tools show you the least crowded park to visit every day, customized touring plans for visiting Disney’s best rides, honest restaurant reviews, how to save on Disney tickets, the best hotel rooms to ask for, and so much more." They don't pay me and I don't have any sponsorship or financial relationship with them, I just think they rock for super planners.
 |
| I love to start with a good touring plan and this is nothing like a good touring plan. A good way to record what we did all day, yes. Not a good touring plan. Too bulky to carry around the park all day and no easy way to edit and rearrange. |
The only frustrating thing is that you may need to reselect either the time or attractions for your FastPass+ a few times as you optimize your touring plan or just skip using one of your selected FP due to back-tracking.
To me, that feels like a waste.
 |
| Ariel approves of our touring plan. |
Like it's a small world or the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House.
Also, my phone seems to die at the most inopportune times and having our FastPass+ times written down so they are easy to check makes my life simpler.
Either bring a portable charger for your phone or print it off, either way, you're sure to have a memorable vacation!
Step 6: Let It Go!
Our touring plans IRL, did not follow the letter of our original touring plan.
If you peek up there on our Magic Kingdom above the scratch outs and added in attractions comes a point on the plan where it says, "REST until Dinner."
Yeah.
I'm sorry, I know that I said way back in my Disney Resolutions for 2015 that I absolutely would schedule in rest. Well...I did schedule it into the plan. I just had a hard time with follow through.
I looked at my kids with a big smile and said, "Who's ready to go back and lay around and watch Star Wars: Rebels so we can save energy for Wishes later tonight?" Kylee and Chris looked at one another and Kylee looked up at me. "Can't we rest in line while we wait to go on Space Mountain???"
It seems the parks commando gene might have resurfaced in my Mousekateers. The kids never returned to rest at our resort all trip.
They did "rest" on the PeopleMover, in the Universe of Energy, at a long dim lunch watching old movies in the Sci-Fi Dine In Theatre and during a late afternoon showing of Festival of the Lion King, just not at our resort.
 |
| I love the Mad Tea Party at night, it's so pretty! |
We took over half a day at Animal Kingdom searching for and earning Wilderness Explorer badges.
We climbed all the way up and down the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House at least three times (there may have been a fourth.)
We ate snacks at all times of the morning, afternoon and evening as soon as anyone mentioned they were hungry.
None of those appeared on our touring plans.
Sometimes it's just a matter of learning when to pull an Elsa and let it go.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you prefer to follow a touring plan, enjoy a plan free mouse-cation, or somewhere in between?
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