How to Make a Disney Day Itinerary

For those who were fortunate enough to know my mother, they all knew her by one thing: “The Disney Plan”.  This was a Disney day itinerary for how to get on all the rides at Disney and minimize your time standing in lines.

We were never one of those families who casually stroll to the park late in the day and took naps back in our hotel rooms in the afternoon.  We were always getting up at the crack ass of dawn to get to the parks at rope drop right when the park opened.

There is no thrill like speed walking down Main Street with no one in front of you but with a sea of people behind racing to get to Space Mountain before you.  This has been the only way I have ever learned to do Disney and I have instilled that in my kids as well.

Of course, this doesn’t work for everyone!  But, no matter what type of Disney goer you are, it is important to have some basic structure of a plan.  It will save you time and stop you from just standing around in the hot Florida sun all day deciding what to do next.

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Download my template to make your Disney day itinerary and follow each step below to create your perfect day at the parks.

Step 1: Establish Priorities

With any great plan, Disney day planning should start with establishing your priorities.  Do you want to make sure you get on the brand-new Star Wars: Rise of Resistance ride with minimal wait?  Or do you want to make sure you enjoy a nice long character breakfast in the castle?

Establishing what is most important to you and what you are most excited about helps you decide what big events you should be planning your day around.

Step 2: Restaurants

At Disney, you can make dining reservations up to 60 days prior to your arrival date. Plan in advance which restaurants you would like to eat at and make the rest of your plans around those reservations.

There are three main types of restaurant service at Disney: food carts, quick service, and sit-down dining.  Food carts serve snack items like pretzels, popcorn, and ice cream.

Quick service is where you typically place your order and then pick it up at a counter and seat yourself.  It can be great when you want to grab a full meal, but don’t want to spend over an hour sitting down.

Sit down dining options are typically a flat rate full-service meal that require advanced reservations. My family likes to alternate doing a sit-down lunch or dinner each day. We then do a quick service option for our other meals.

Once you have made all your reservations, it is smart to write these all down and work the rest of your day around them.

Explore More: Looking for restaurant recommendations? Check out my post all about Disney dining reservations.

Step 3: Park Opening & Closing Times

Park hours change each day depending on what park you are in.  The best thing to do is to check Disney’s Park Hours Calendar for the most recent opening and closing times.

I personally love to “rope drop” the parks, which is first thing in the morning when there is a physical rope stopping people at the entrance. They will drop the rope and everyone speed walks (you will get yelled at if you run!) to your favorite ride.

You can likely get five rides knocked out within the first hour and face wait times of less than 10 minutes if you plan it right. In order to get to the front of rope drop, I recommend getting to the park 30-45 minutes prior to opening.

On Disney’s calendar you will also find Disney Extra Magic Hours. These are extended park times offered exclusively to resort guests.

Note that the times can change, so I recommend checking the calendar again about a week before your arrival.

Explore More: Guests staying at Deluxe resorts can take advantage of two extra hours on select nights. Learn which resorts are considered Deluxe in my post comparing all Disney resorts.

Step 4: Shows

Disney offers incredible shows, fireworks, and parades every single day.  You can find their daily schedule of events by checking the My Disney Experience app or their website.

I recommend you see at least one parade while you are there.  Their other entertainment shows offer a great place to rest in the middle of the day where you can get out of the sun and sit for a while.

Be sure to catch Disney’s nighttime spectacular shows offered at most parks.  Fantasmic recently returned to Hollywood Studios and remains one of my all-time favorite shows.  The fireworks at the castle in Magic Kingdom are also a cannot miss moment.

Hot Tip: If the priorities you established in Step 1 were to ride as many rides possible, then skip the shows and use that time to see some of the shortest lines at Disney!

Step 5: Ride Priorities

It is fully possible to ride every single ride at Disney in one day. But, you have to take advantage of extra hours, being there at rope drop, skipping shows, and having a well thought out game plan.

However, for those of us who don’t want to be super intense about our Disney going experience, I suggest figuring out what your top ride priorities are. First, decide what are your absolute must ride attractions.  Plan to do these either first thing or get a Genie+ or Lightning Lane pass for it.

Then decide which rides you would like to do, but won’t be upset if you don’t get to them.  For example, if you don’t have kids, Dumbo might be one you consider pushing to the end of the day if there is time left before park closing.

Establishing which rides you want to do most, will help you decide in which order to do them throughout the day.

Step 6: Genie+ Selections

Genie+ and Lightning Lanes are ways that you can pay to skip the lines at Disney.  Unfortunately, Disney has made this process really complicated.

Genie+ costs a fee that you pay per person, per day.  It allows you to skip multiple lines as long as the passes are available.  Lightning Lane is more of your ala carte option to skip just one line, one time.  The prices vary based on how popular the ride is but can go up to $20 per person for the newer rides.

I do recommend getting the Genie+ service, but I cannot personally justify paying an additional $80 for my family of four to ride one ride.  We averaged getting 4-5 Genie+ passes per day. This can save you A LOT of time standing in lines.

In order to plan ahead for Genie+ and the rest of your day at the park, I try to space these out mentally about two hours apart.  Per Genie+ rules, you can only book one pass every two hours.

The bigger rides tend to sell out of their passes first. So, if you want to skip the line on those, plan on trying to get Genie+ passes for those earlier in the day.

Genie+ and Lightning Lane options can easily be reserved through the My Disney Experience app.  You can monitor which passes are available throughout the day and adjust your Disney itinerary accordingly.

The main thing with Genie+ is to be flexible as you never quite know what is going to be available that day.  It is good to have some back up options just in case.

Explore More: Confused by Genie+, Lightning Lanes, and virtual queues? Read in depth all about how to use Genie+.

Step 7: Put It All Together

Now that you have established everything you want to do during your day at the park, it is just about putting it all in order on the template I created.  I recommend using the Unofficial Guide to Disney to help make some of your choices.

This book has insights into which rides tend to have some of the longest lines and suggestions on which Genie+ passes to select.  The back of the book also has examples of Disney day itineraries. They can be a great jumping off point if you don’t know which rides to do first.

Once you have filled out your itinerary template, I like to bring a copy with me in my bag and also take a photo of it to have as easy access.

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Make sure you think of this plan as more of a guideline and try not to get upset when things don’t go according to plan.  Rides might breakdown, kids might meltdown, things happen.

Having a general sense of what you want to achieve during the day though will help you maximize your experience in the parks. All the happy memories will outweigh anything that doesn’t quite work out the way you thought it would.

Let me know in the comments what you are planning to do during your trip to Disney! Do you like to rope drop it and run to the rides or do you prefer to snack your way through the park and take your time?

Explore More: Don’t miss my ultimate Disney packing list and park essentials!

Would you like some help with planning your Disney vacation? Fill out my Disney Travel Inquiry and I can work to get you a free, no obligation quote for your next Disney adventure.