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Are you dreaming about a Disney World vacation in 2022?
Our kids have grown up visiting Disney World. We are regulars to the Disney Resorts, Disney Parks, and Disney Springs. We have over 1000 visits to the Walt Disney World Resort.
We know planning a Disney World vacation can be overwhelming. We share some of the most common Disney World vacation mistakes and how to prevent them on your family vacation. This will help you save money, skip the lines, and have an amazing family vacation.
Table of Contents
VIDEO Top Disney World Mistakes
You can watch our video of the top Disney World mistakes and how to prevent them. You can also scroll down to learn more. ⬇️
Top Disney World Mistakes
Mistake #1 Pay Rack Rate
Visiting Disney World is expensive. The first Disney World mistakes is DO NOT pay rack rate. So, what is rack rate? This is the regular price of a hotel room (before discounts). This rate is always given to you, if you call Disney directly or book in person. This is the regular price the destination will give you if you ask for a price for your vacation, without a discount.
The best discounts are not the ones that Disney tells you about or are easily found on Disney’s website. The mouse is in the business to make money, so they do not promote the discounts.
You have to search for the discounts (called rate codes) or ask Disney Reservations for the specific discount, when you call their reservations department. If you are not familiar with all of the discounts (with Disney and other suppliers) this could cost you hundreds to thousands of dollars.
We recommend using an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner like Destinations to Explore. They work for you, not Disney. Destinations to Explore will be able to find you the best price for your family and vacation. Sometimes the best price is not directly with Disney, but with another supplier.
Click here to book with our favorite travel professionals. Be sure you tell them Jones Family Travels sent you.
Mistake #2 Choosing the Wrong Resort
The next big mistake is choosing the wrong resort. With over twenty-five Disney Resorts, it is hard to pick the best resort for your budget and your family. How do you know that you picked the best resort for your trip?
We recently heard from one of our fans. They had young children and booked their 3rd visit to Disney World. They chose Disney’s All Star Movies Resort, because it was a less expensive hotel.
However, they did not have the “insider guidance” and found out the hard way that Disney’s All Star Movies Resort was not the best choice for their Disney World vacation dates.
When they arrived at the resort, they found out that Disney was hosting a cheerleading competition and a lot of the teams were staying at the same resort. The resort was really loud with teens cheering and screaming during their vacation, making it stressful on the parents and kids.
This could ruin your family vacation. Be sure you do your research, before booking your Disney Resort. If you need help, reach out to Authorized Disney Vacation Planners. This is their career and they can help you find the best Disney Resort for your family vacation.
Mistake #3 Treating Disney Like a Typical Vacation
Our next big mistake is do not treat a Disney World vacation like a typical vacation. Most vacations involve booking a hotel and airfare. The rest of your trip is kinda “winging it”. In the Jones Family, that is 90% of our vacations.
However, when it comes to a Disney World vacation you do have a lot of pre-planning. Just take a look at the number of Disney World vacation planning books at your local library or bookstore. There are a lot of them!
When booking your Disney World vacation; you need to book Park Reservations, sit-down restaurant reservations, character dining reservations, birthday celebrations, recreation reservations, tours, and more. All of these things should be booked, before you even leave home. There is a lot of pre-planning, even for a more basic Disney World vacation.
Mistake #4 Forget to Budget During your Disney World Vacation
The next big do not is forgetting to budget expenses during your Disney World vacation. Many guests book a Disney World package (including hotel and tickets) and forget to budget the extras during their vacation.
Purchasing a brownie is $2.50 and a Coca-Cola is another $2.59. That can add up quickly! Not to mention that a lot of the rides empty into a gift shop. You know kids are going to want to shop in every gift shop!
Be sure you take the time and budget for those extras during your Disney World vacation. For kids, we love Disney Gift Cards. You can give each child a set Disney Gift Card with a specific amount. That is their spending money during your vacation.
Mistake #5 Not Booking Dining Reservations
Another big mistake is NOT booking restaurant reservations. There are so many dining opportunities at Disney World. Get ready to eat a lot!
Many guests do not book any restaurant reservations before they arrive to Disney World. This can cost you a lot of time waiting during your vacation and additional costs. Not to mention any disappointment.
The sit down restaurants do usually book up prior to arrival, especially the more popular restaurants like Character Dining. If you do not make any reservations, you may miss out on dining with Mickey Mouse or end up at the less popular restaurants. Be sure you book your sit-down reservations, before you leave home.
Mistake #6 Seeing Everything
The next big mistake is DO NOT try to see everything. Our family has been to Disney World over 1,000+ times AND we still have not seen and done everything!
Many guests plan every second of a Disney World vacation. Remember, this is a vacation and you do want to spend some time relaxing! There is so much to do at Disney World, you could spend months at Disney and still not see and do everything.
Take your time and just pick the best of the best and enjoy your vacation.
Mistake #7 My Disney Experience
The last top mistake is do not forget to use the My Disney Experience App on your smartphone. This app is a necessity on your Disney World vacation. You can use this app to do your online check in, open your resort door, book dining reservations, enter a park, and even order food with mobile ordering.
It is a huge timesaver and will make your vacation so much better. Add the My Disney Experience to your smartphone, before you leave home and spend some time learning all about it.
Disney World can certainly be overwhelming, but it can be a lot of fun. We hope these tips will help you have a more relaxing and fun vacation to Disney World.
What is a mistake you learned during your Disney World vacation?
