Planning Your First Walt Disney World Visit By the Numbers!
By Dave Shute
This site exists to help first-time visitors to Walt Disney World make great decisions quickly.The heart of it is the home page, which raises all the key questions–some of which you may not have even known about!–and answers them.
Everything here is ranked and rated–weeks, hotels, crowds, dining, prices —everything.
You won’t find wishy-washy “on the one hand, on the other hand” stuff unless you go deep into the site looking for it.
And everything is backed up by direct experience, by analysis, and by numbers.
So I thought it would be fun to bring all the key numbers to one simple infographic!
See (and share!) the image–all the numbers on it are explained below!
- 180 Days–how far in advance Disney’s restaurants are available for booking–and when some of them sell out!
- 60 Days–how long before your arrival you can do on-line check-in, and start scheduling FastPass+
- 8 Nights–How many nights you should stay to allow for theme park visits, naps, swimming, and breaks
- 6 Days–How many days you should devote to the four Disney World theme parks–2+ at the Magic Kingdom, <2 at Epcot, and one each at Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom
- 8 Years Old–if this may be their only childhood visit, about how old your youngest child should be when you visit
- 2 Times as Expensive–how much more hotels will cost if you go at the wrong time
- 3 Times as Long–how much longer you will wait in line if you go at the wrong time
- More than 35–distinct major room variants among the 25+ Disney World hotels–I’ve recently stayed in and reviewed them all
- More than 50— “Table Service” restaurants at Disney World parks and resorts to choose from–all picked for your family!
- 4-5 People–capacity of most Disney World hotel rooms–larger families, see this
- >$5,000–minimum budget for an 8 night Disney World trip for a family of four
- 25-40% Off–what you can save (especially on hotels) from time to time using various Disney World special offers
- Dozens of Hours, and Thousands of Dollars–Time and money you can save by following this site’s instructions!
And…More than 5 Million–one last number, not shown on the infographic: how many people this site has helped so far!
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4 comments
Hi Dave,
I love this site. I never get tired of looking at all the new information you provide. We visited DW in Nov. and had an AWESOME time. We were able to get the free dining plan on our trip. It was well worth it. We enjoyed restaurants we normally wouldn’t have eaten at. I’m planning another trip for Sept. 20-29. Do know think they will offer the free dining for Sept.? If yes when would they put it out for the public? Thank you for the great information.
Hi Lisa and thanks!!
Here’s the scoop on the 2013 September deal: https://yourfirstvisit.net/2013/05/09/disney-world-free-dining-for-september-2013/ If 2014 is similar–and I expect it will be–your arrival date will be eligible.
The announcement date of this deal has varied. In 2013, it was early May…
I love your site (as well as others), despite the fact that I’m doing opposite of everything you recommend lol. Why do I still love it? Because it still gives me information to determine what is important to me and my family. My daughter is a mature 5, we like a less chaotic, more relaxing environment, are pretty active (I routinely speed walk/run 4-6 miles daily), and are more into the experience of characters and the “magic” rather than having to ride every ride. Pools are great, but not necessary especially during winter (we have pool at home). We also are pretty find having too take a little more time to use the internal travel system (almost view it as a forced break). So, we are going from late Jan to early Feb., staying at POR in a royal room with a garden view, renting a stroller, and easily scheduled our character meals and extras. Every ride we are interested is open and fast passed. The crowds will be lower, the rooms cheaper, and the weather warmer than what we will have in the northeast during that timeframe. We have two days where we have to go to parks where they aren’t suggested, but we’ve scheduled our days as best we can to account for that. Everyone is different, but it’s great to see information and opinions on all sides so I can make the best decision for our family.
Thanks Jess! That is a great time to visit for returning visitors!!
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