My number one tip for anyone visiting Walt Disney World is to plan, plan, and then plan some more. A Walt Disney World vacation can seem intimidating but do not fear. One, I am here for you! Whether you have booked a trip through me or not, I am here to answer any questions I can and I hope to provide you with information that might help you have a more magical vacation! Two, Disney also understands that just showing up might not provide you with the best experience. Your Disney vacation experience can and should start before you even pack your bags. Disney has created a helpful and fun tool that makes planning a Walt Disney World vacation fun and easy! My Disney Experience (MDE) is a free online tool that is available to all Walt Disney World guests that allow guests to do everything from exploring maps of the parks to planning and reserving times to visit their favorite attractions. The site is pretty extensive and you could literally spend hours on it but I will try to highlight some helpful features.
My Reservations
This feature is probably the most important. It allows you to link your existing reservations which includes: resort hotel reservations, tickets and passes, dining reservations, and FastPass+ reservations. Linking your resort reservations and tickets is imperative as this is what is going to be used for many of the other planning features including your daily itinerary and possibly most importantly, FastPass+. Linking your park tickets is also a great way to safeguard against losing your unused park tickets that may mysteriously disappear from that drawer you have been storing them in since last year.
Friends and Family
This feature allows you to add friends and family whom you may be traveling with to your MDE account which will make your planning easier and more efficient. You can invite those who travel with you frequently to your “Family” list which makes sharing your plans simpler. You also have the option of allowing friends and family to see all of your plans or just those plans your share for when you are traveling together. Linking those you are traveling with will make other features on MDE easier down the road so I highly suggest it!
My Wish List
As you explore Walt Disney World’s website you can save attractions, experiences, and even dining locations to your “Wish List” to help you keep track of what looks appealing to you as you prepare for your trip. You can also narrow your search by using the many filter options which will help you quickly find attractions and experiences that are more fitting for your travel party. This feature will also come in handy when creating your itinerary. Just click the little heart next to what you are wanting to save!
My Itinerary
This part of My Disney Experience will listed everything you have planned for a particular day. You will find details on your resort reservation, like when you are to check in and when it is check out time. If you have already made FastPass+ selections for this day they will also appear on this page. As you find shows or character meet-n-greets that interest you, just click “Show in My Plans” and you can select the day and time you want to add and it will show in your itinerary. Last but not least, if you have linked any dining reservations they will also show in that day’s itinerary.
FastPass+
This feature will eventually apply to all Walt Disney World guest but as of now it is only for those who have been sent MagicBands as part of the testing phase of this new technology. As of now, I am only able to schedule 3 FastPass+ selections per day for one park but the details of this program are subject to change since it has not officially been rolled out to all guests. Be on the lookout for my post on MagicBands and FastPass+. For now, all you need to know is this is where you will schedule your FastPass+ selections before your trip.
Disney PhotoPass
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his feature is for after your trip. If you participated in Disney’s PhotoPass service you can link all the photos from your trip to you My Disney Experience profile. Just enter the code on the back of the PhotoPass card to link your photos. You can even link photos from multiple cards, so collect the cards from your entire party and start ordering and downloading photos immediately!
Summary
My Disney Experience is much like Walt Disney World itself; there is so much to it, you may not see or use it all, but don’t worry! It is a lot of information but it may not all be for you. Personally, I would never golf at Walt Disney World but I would recommend it in a heartbeat to an avid golfer. I think My Disney Experience is a great tool to not only help you prepare and excite you for your next trip but it is also a great way to ensure you get the most out of your Disney vacation. Personally, I think guests who use My Disney Experience before their trip will get more out of their trip than those who don’t. You may be asking how all this work (if you want to call it that) before your trip will help you during your trip? Don’t worry, you don’t have to lug your laptop into the parks or print out thousands of pages of your itinerary to keep track of it all. It will all travel with you on your smartphone! Just download the free My Disney Experience app and log in and all of your plans as well as the ability to change them are all in the palm of your hand!
Have questions, personal experiences or tips about My Disney Experience? Leave a comment below and please share this with anyone you know that is headed to Walt Disney World. Thanks for reading and have fun playing on My Disney Experience!
Book with Magical Vacations by Me at (314)494-9166 or joey@magicalvacationsbyme.com and be entered for a chance to win a $500 Disney gift card!!! See details here.
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