Friday Five: 5 Time-Saving Tips at Disney World!

Do you need 5 time-saving tips for Disney? (These are great...especially for those who are not morning people!)

1.   Lay the kids' clothes out at night! This goes for teens and adults, as well. If you're anything like me, those vacation pictures are the most valuable souvenir you'll get out of your trip. If everyone knows what they'll wear the next morning, they can dress more quickly, and there are no last-minute tears over them wanting to wear their pajamas or something not weather-appropriate.  I lay out everything in a pile: shoes, socks... the full outfit!

I can sometimes take forever to decide what to wear... Drives my hubby crazy, so this is a better way for us to start our day. Plus the kids can get dressed and eat their breakfast snack while you're in the shower which is unoccupied thanks to tip #2.

2.   Make sure the kids are bathed the  night before. I know, they were probably exhausted (if not dozing off) when you rolled into your room, but they were probably covered in the day's grime, too, so take the extra time to rinse them off before they climb into bed.

Not only will they sleep better, clean and fresh, you won't have to bathe them in the morning.  Now they can sleep while you get ready to go.

3.   Pack your bag for the following morning.  If you're carrying a diaper bag, check it before you climb into bed - you don't want to arrive at the front entrance of Animal Kingdom and not have enough sunscreen or baby wipes.  If you don't have a diaper bag (lucky you), make sure your purse or park bag has all of your essentials - Magic Bands, cash, snacks, autograph books, pens, sunscreen, band-aids, and your camera!

Don't forget to plug in your phone and charge that camera battery the night before, too!

4.   Build in a "down day." With dining reservations, FastPass+ reservations, and Extra Magic Hours, the days are long with lots to cram into them.  I try to make sure my clients have a day to rest and chill at the pool in the middle of their trip.  If that's not an option, we try to make sure that their late nights don't bleed over into early mornings the next day.  A little planning goes a long way!

5.    Have your game-plan ready!  Hopefully your travel agent has your day-by-day itinerary all set for your family.  The ones I send my clients are color-coded to help them easily identify everything like this:

Sample Itinerary; your travel agent may do yours differently!

My nighttime routine:

• Rinse off the kids and settle them into bed.
• Plug in phone.
• Charge camera and videocamera batteries.
• Make sure SD/memory card for the camera has enough room for the next day's pictures.
• Set out the next day's clothes.
• Double-check bag for snacks, tickets, etc.
• Glance over tomorrow's itinerary.
• Set the alarm for tomorrow's fun!

Emily Lamb has been to Disney over 65 times, usually for multiple days on each trip. The tips she sharing are from first-hand experience as a kid and now as a mother of her own beautiful children. Contact Emily to help plan your next Disney trip!