If on, rope drop Rise of the Resistance. By that I mean get to HS well before official rope drop time. They'll actually let you in early all the way into the line of Rise of the Resistance. They don't start running it until rope drop, but we were all the way to the hologram room when the ride started moving. Same thing for magic kingdom. Rope drop is the name of the game. At MK we did Peter Pan, Little Mermaid, Barnstormer, Pooh, and Dumbo before the park opened. LL has changed since we went in '23 so I can't give you all the ins and outs. There are a lot of good youtubers that cover all the ins and outs pretty well. Disney Food Blog, Tim Tracker, Mammoth Club, etc. Good luck. I thought I was going to hate it, but we had a blast.

Downlaod the disney Wait Times app to see how long the wait is for every ride. check out Mickey's PhilHarMagic in Magic Kingdom. Theater seating, air conditioning, and a fun 4-d theater show. In MK, Tron is awesome. Try to get the front row or two. Goofy's barnstormer is fun and surprisingly fast for a kid's ride. Adults will like it too. Seven Dwarves ride is good but usually a long wait. Haunted Mansion, obviously. Pirates of Caribbean can be a long-ish wait. Thunder Mtn Railroad might be the best ride in MK. Enjoy the flag raising/lowering, and take the train around the outside of the park (get on at main entrance upstairs) In HS, you can do Star Tours several times in a row at the right times. Wait times aren't long most of the day. For a fun meal, eat at the PrimeTime 50s cafe. Keep your elbows off the table. Toy Story Mania is funnnnnn. Obviously all of Star Wars land... and a long wait for SlinkyDog Dash. Fun ride! Tower of Terror and Aerosmith coaster are in the same corner - can be long waits but fun.

...reopening next year with a new theme. Cool thing about Star Tours is that even though it is an older ride, they have updated it some with new locations and you can get a different experience each time. Aerosmith coaster is going away as is Muppets Vision 3D, both closing later this fall I believe. The Muppets will be getting a new coaster where Aerosmith's is. I'll also add...Everest at AK is a very underrated coaster. ** Edited by vthokieq at 5/21/2025, 8:31:55 AM

If you have any young adults with you put them in charge of the apps and all that stuff. Make sure you have portable chargers ready to go.The best AC at the Magic Kingdom is in the Main Street store where they sell animated framed drawings as well as the Carousel of Progress. Good luck

those, ha. No one ever said while standing in line for 2 hours in the heat waiting for a ride, I'm glad I didn't get a lightning lane, hah. Get there as soon as it opens and run to the ride you most want to ride that you think will have the longest line (staying on a Disney property will give you an hour head start which is huge). That way you will have the shortest line it will be at all day, won't have to lose a lightning lane pass and can ride it again later in the day. Plenty of websites are dedicated to all this and have in depth strategies (heck, watch some youtube videos). Also, download the app and start looking at it. It shows every current wait time for every ride for all the parks. Check in on that periodically at different times of the day between now and then and you may start to see how to best approach. It is literally all about planning or you will be losing out on a lot of things by wasting time. The rides with the longest wait times have long wait times for a reason generally, so as far as what's worth it, it would be personal preference. That said, try to ride Tron at night if you can. It is lit up which was cool. All the rides at Hollywood with long lines are good. However, at Magic, I didn't think jungle cruise or peter pan's flight for instance were worth waiting that long on. I would not make those a priority.

I've copied it below. This way if both you and your wife want to ride a ride, but some of the kids aren't able to or don't want to, you don't have to wait in the full line twice and trade off with the kids. It's only available on certain rides, though. Note the Helpful Hint below as well. If you have a ride that one kid REALLY wants to go on but the others don't, you and your wife can do the Rider Switch and let that one kid ride it a second time with no line at all. What Is Rider Switch and How Does It Work? With Rider Switch, Guests take turns experiencing an attraction. One party waits outside the queue while the remainder of their party waits in the queue. Once the first party returns from riding, the waiting Guest(s) may board the attraction without having to wait in the standard queue. Rider Switch is appropriate in the following situations: A Guest in the party either does not meet the boarding requirements or does not plan to ride but cannot wait outside the queue alone. A Guest has a service animal that cannot board the attraction, or they do not wish to use a provided kennel. A Guest is unable to experience the queue based on the nature or condition of the queue at a particular attraction in light of the circumstances and the Guest’s specific needs. Rider Switch is available at most attractions throughout Walt Disney World Resort. How to Use Rider Switch 1. At the entrance of the attraction, with your entire group present, let a Cast Member know you are interested in the Rider Switch option. 2. Your group will divide into two (2) parties: “Party A” will enter the queue and ride the attraction first, “Party B” will wait outside the queue (with a maximum of two ([2]) people riding next) 3. A Cast Member will scan the admission media or tickets of Guests in Party B and let you know where to return when it is your turn to ride. HELPFUL HINT: Feel free to wait in a comfortable spot or grab a cool drink while you wait – just make sure your party lets you know when they’ve finished riding. 4. After “Party A” rides the attraction, any Guests from “Party B” (a maximum of two ([2]) people) who wish to ride should head to the return location entrance as provided by the Cast Member who scanned your admission media/tickets. 5. At this point, any Guests from “Party B” who are riding the attraction will have their admission media/tickets re-scanned by a Cast Member to use the Rider Switch entrance and board without waiting in the standard queue. HELPFUL HINT: If Party B is only one Guest, one Guest may re-ride the attraction with them, while Party A waits with any Guests who are not riding.

Like, literally standing there in the queue just monitoring things, when you pass them shake their hand and say "Eric Stratton, Rush Chair. Damn glad to meet you!" and move on. Then have your brother come right behind and shake their had and say "That was Eric Stratton, Rush Chair. He was damn glad to meet you!" My brother and I did this several years ago, they all got a laugh, especially the ones old enough to get the reference.

get to the parks when they open--if you are staying at Disney or nearby hotel, go back during the middle part of the day. The middle part of the day is when the park is the most full. The heat will beat you down and especially the kids. Go back to the park in the late afternoon and stay until closing. Standing in line for an hour or more with a 5-to-12 year old in the heat is miserable. Stay hydrated. Best of luck to you--I have been in your shoes!

and Trader Sams grog grotto for you. Most fun bar there is.

Tron lightcycle ride is fun. Rise of the Resistance and Smuggler's Run are both stand outs at Galaxy's Edge. Lightning Lane pass recommended for all. At Universal the Express Pass is worth it (you get it included if you're staying at certain onsite hotels) and pretty much covers all rides at main two parks except for Hagrid's. The new Epic Universe is going to be a complete zoo and I'm not sure if they have any Express Pass available yet.

to Universal last year at this exact same time and kind of know what we want to do and when to do it. I'm hoping so many people are going to be at Epic the others won't be as busy 🤣

cannot be done in one day, so pick one side for day 1 and the other side for day 2. When it's hot, which is always, any indoor air conditioned ride is worth it. My favorite ride at Magic is Buzz Lightyear and at Hollywood Studios it's Toy Story. They hadn't built Star Wars when I was there last so I can't comment on that. Prepare to wait in line, bring snacks and water, and wear comfortable shoes.

But as I understand it all the SW stuff has been removed. It's still a pretty cool park, but definitely more geared to kids. Busch Gardens Tampa is also nice if you over that way checking out stuff. Here are the yoots about 10 years ago at Lego Land....

Kings Dominion rule meant school out in Virginia but in session in Florida. Drank gallons of water but never needed a restroom.

My last trip was during spring break a while back, and I thought it was oppressively hot then. (Frame of reference: I lived in Miami at the time, but didn't spend many hours a day just hanging out in the heat...lol)