My daughter and I had a special opportunity to spend a few days at Walt Disney World Resort in early 2023 – just the two of us! There are so many fun things to do with kids at Disney destinations in each stage of their development (yes, even the really littles!), but the fact that she was a pre-teen on this trip opened up a lot of options for us that wouldn’t have worked as well when she was younger.
Our chosen dates revolved around the annual RunDisney Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, where I ran the half. I’ll share some about that experience further down. We had a “split stay,” which means we divided our nights between more than one resort. For this trip we spent the first three nights at Disney’s Pop Century Resort, a very fun value-level resort that includes Skyliner transportation (gondola cars) to EPCOT, Hollywood Studios Park and Disney’s Riviera Resort (which has some fun restaurants to try — be sure to check out the Primo Piatto quick service on your next visit).
After we completed our stay at Pop Century (and my race was complete), we moved to Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge for a long awaited stay with a view of the animals on the savannahs behind and next to the lodge. We especially enjoyed seeing the giraffes and the enormous “flamboyance” of flamingos that live there. Though we had visited the lodge on other trips and dined there several times (Sanaa is one of our favorites), this was our first stay – and it was just as fun and amazing as we’d dreamed.
I recommend trying a split stay in most cases if your Disney World vacation is more than 3 nights, and if you like the idea of trying new places as well as planning your activities and meals to save on transportation time. There are just so many resorts to try! Tip: the Bell Services team will take care of moving your luggage if you like – just head out on your day and your luggage will arrive later at your next resort.
As fate would have it, we ended up with a bonus day when our flight home was canceled. I spoke with the front desk and they found us a great deal for a night at Disney’s All Star Movies Resort, another one we had not tried before. We loved it! The rooms are all recently refurbished and feature the same two queen bed layout as Pop Century with one of the beds being a murphy that turns into a table when raised up into the wall. The food court was very nice and we were thrilled to be “forced” to spend an extra day.
I purchased 4-Day Park Hopper tickets for this five day trip, which allowed us the freedom to visit the four parks when crowds would be lowest and to see the evening shows on days it worked best in our schedule. My favorite park is Animal Kingdom, and my daughter’s is EPCOT. But we spent plenty of time enjoying all of them! I purchased Genie+ access for our tickets on three of the days, which gave us the ability to spend less time in line.
Some highlights from the parks:
– On this trip we experienced Rise of the Resistance, a Star Wars themed attraction at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, for the first time. It’s definitely worth the hype, even if you are not a particularly knowledgeable Star Wars fan (… count me in that group). No spoilers here!
– We also rode Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, which is an adorable trackless ride sure to please fans of the 2-D style animation shorts on Disney+.
– We decided not to try the newest attraction in EPCOT, Guardians of the Galaxy, just yet; saving that for our next big family trip. However, it is an immediate hit and many say it’s the best ride at Walt Disney World — you’ll have to let me know if you agree!
– My daughter wanted to try some coasters for the first time, and we had a blast on Big Thunder Mountain (my favorite) and Space Mountain (her favorite), along with several others.
– The new digital scavenger hunt at EPCOT, DuckTales World Showcase Adventure, just opened before we arrived and we had so much fun using my phone to make things magically happen in the various nations while we solved various mysteries. (Tip: This free activity is perfect for kids of all ages; access it through the PlayDisney app when you are at EPCOT)
– While its now been retired, we enjoyed seeing the Harmonius evening show at EPCOT for the first time. A new show that will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Disney Company is coming soon, and is sure to be amazing.
– We visited the new Space 220 restaurant at EPCOT for dessert and enjoyed the magical elevator ride that took us into space :-).
– The People Mover in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom wins the award for always being in our top three favorite attractions during any visit.
– And finally, we had a truly lovely afternoon at the Nomad Lounge, overlooking the river that runs through Animal Kingdom park. As we sat on plush couches on the wrap around porch, flotillas with live musicians and characters passed by every so often, palms swayed in the breeze, and my pre-teen and I dipped perfectly sugared churros into delicious sauces.
As I mentioned earlier, this trip also included the RunDisney Marathon Weekend. Since the parks stay open to guests during this time, all the races start early in the morning (around 5:00am) and the provided bus transportation to the staging area starts around 2:30am. Good thing there is LOTS of entertainment on the course, and it feels special to run through the parks. There is a good feeling of comradery, even among strangers, when the runners gather in the corrals long before the sun comes up. Different races have different courses, and though I have run a half there previously I had not run through Magic Kingdom until this race. It was so memorable to run through the entry gateway that’s typically reserved for cars and buses. The race ended at EPCOT with a gospel choir to encourage runners for those last couple hundred feet. RunDisney events are returning to Disneyland Park in 2024, and hopefully will return to Disneyland Paris soon. There is a lot to know about RunDisney (send me a message if you need advice and/or planning assistance).
In closing, it was a fantastic adventure and so special to share it with my daughter!
A few tips for traveling to Walt Disney World with tweens and teens:
– Involve them in the planning (unless the trip is a surprise). Consider offering them an entire day of the trip to plan, for example.
– Make sure to identify your top three “must do” experiences for each day so you can focus on those and be spontaneous in between.
– Take into consideration their sleeping and eating patterns just as much as you would a younger child. If they (and/or you!) prefer to sleep in and stay up late, forego the early “rope drop” mornings for a leisurely wake up, hit the parks late morning or early afternoon and stay until park close instead.
– Remind them to hydrate and wear sunscreen (and yourself, too). Bring reusable bottles and get free water from the quick service restaurants in the parks.
– If the trip is just a few people, consider adding on an “enchanting extra” such as a behind the scenes tour, private photo session, or fireworks dessert party that may be out of budget for a larger group.
– Savor the experience!
Note: If you and/or your child have special needs (physical, mental, dietary) there are some accommodations available. (I can help you navigate your options.)
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