The Magic Kingdom is Disney World’s most visited park. It is the quintessential Disney experience. You can ride Small World, and meet Mickey, and walk down Main Street USA. The Magic Kingdom is a big place, and much of your time will be spent standing in line because of the crowds that are there. So you want to make sure you make the most of your time there.
How Many Days to Spend at Magic Kingdom?
Probably the first question to answer is how many days will you be at the Magic Kingdom. Considering that you will likely want to visit other parks at Disney World and maybe even hop over Universal Orlando’s parks this is a big question. If you are used to California theme park going, which has just Disneyland and California Adventure, and then one Universal Studios, just be prepared that Orlando has a lot more going on.
Over the course of our time in Orlando we were able to spend two days at the Magic Kingdom. I really think this made a big difference in our experience there. We didn’t feel like we were under nearly the same time crunch to accomplish everything possible on the first day. We knew that if we didn’t make it to something, that we would be back.
We were able to see and do a lot of things on our first day in the park because we went on a less busy day, so that allowed our second day to be much more leisurely. I’m the type of person who goes to theme parks for the theme experience, and I feel like when you can be less rushed you get to soak a lot more of that in.
If you can spend two days I think that is optimal, but if you have only one make sure you plan carefully for that one day so you don’t have to rush too much. You might also consider getting a park hopper pass so you can go to Magic Kingdom and another park on your second day, for example Epcot could probably be done in a half a day and the monoline runs directly between it and Magic Kingdom.
Arrive Early
This should go without being said, but many people are really bad at getting to the park early. Although it seems super crowded when you arrive before the castle gates open and all the early people are squished up in front of it, once those gates open and the crowd disperses the place seems pretty empty for the first few hours.
You can greatly compress you time waiting for rides by arriving early. On our second day Meagan got in line for the Mine Train immediately after the gates opened. She was still there for maybe 30 minutes, but that is much shorter than the 90 minute to 3 hour wait that it normally has. While she stood in line Lucy and I essentially had Fantasy Land all to ourselves, it was awesome.
Use the App
Walt Disney World has an app that will let you see the maps and wait times of all the parks and attractions. The app is also the best way to control your FastPass+ experience so make sure that you download it ahead of time and use it throughout the day. The app will use data, so make sure you aren’t at the end of you allotment.
Knowing wait times and being able to immediately select the FastPasses you want is really invaluable if you are trying to be efficient with your time.
Vary Your Activities
Rides are not the only thing to do in the Magic Kingdom, and many of the other experiences are just as fun, especially for those of us with sensitive tummies. To really enjoy your day at the Magic Kingdom make sure you are varying your activities and taking advantage of things like performances and character meet ups. These can especially be useful when FastPass+ tickets for the popular rides are all gone and you can use your passes on something like a show.
We really enjoyed the Enchanted Tales with Bell experience, and the open shows that take place in front of Cinderella’s castle are a lot of fun. It is also nice to do some of the walkthrough activities like the Swiss Family Treehouse and Tom Sawyer Island.
Varying your activities will give you a more complete Magic Kingdom experience then mad dashes from ride line to ride line. Some places like Main Street are super fun and iconic but don’t have rides at all.
Use the FastPass+ System Well
I won’t talk about this too much here, you can read our whole post on the system here. Just remember to stay on top of your FastPasses and coordinate them with your entire group as best you can. Being on top of the FastPasses is key to doing everything you want in the most efficient time.
Sum Up
The Magic Kingdom is an amazing place and by far my favorite of the parks at Disney World. Of course this makes it very popular which can lead to really long lines, it is important that you plan appropriately to make the most of whatever time you have there.
