Walt Disney World park strategy plans have changed drastically with the return of normalcy to the parks! Disney has now introduced the new Genie+ to the parks which has permanently replaced FastPass+.
I travel often to Walt Disney World and have been watching park trends closely in between visits so I'm here to share our best Disney World park strategies with you! This guide has all the information on the best Walt Disney World rope drop tips, how to get around the parks with Genie+ or without, and the most efficient transportation hacks.
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Walt Disney World Rope Drop Strategies
We have put together a rope drop and touring strategy for each Walt Disney World theme park. Each of these guides listed below includes the best transportation options.
Magic Kingdom Rope Drop Strategy– Magic Kingdom is the most popular Walt Disney World theme park and has some of the most iconic rides like Pirates of the Caribbean, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain plus the NEW Tron ride. The Magic Kingdom strategy discusses how to arrive at Magic Kingdom for rope drop, the best hacks for using Genie+, and which rides to prioritize.
Hollywood Studios Rope Drop Strategy– Hollywood Studios can be a challenging park to navigate since it has some of the most popular thrill rides and top-rated attractions like Rise of the Resistance. This Hollywood Studios strategy discusses the best options for rope drop, great hacks for using Genie+, and which rides to prioritize.
EPCOT Rope Drop Strategy– EPCOT includes brand new attractions like the Moana walk-through, Guardians of the Galaxy rollercoaster plus the World Showcase full of international shopping and food. This EPCOT strategy discusses the best options for rope drop, great hacks for using Genie+, and which rides to prioritize plus all the hidden gems at EPCOT beyond the rides.
Animal Kingdom Rope Drop Strategy– Animal Kingdom is one of the largest theme parks and is home to hundreds of animals along with popular areas like the World of Pandora. This Animal Kingdom strategy discusses the best options for rope drop, great hacks for using Genie+, and which rides to prioritize plus all the
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Walt Disney World Attraction Guides
If you're new to Walt Disney World, don't worry- we can help! If you're unsure about which attractions you're interested in for each theme park- it will help to review our attraction guides so you know which rides are the best fit for your group.
- Magic Kingdom Attraction Guide
- Epcot Attraction Attraction Guide
- Animal Kingdom Attraction Guide
- Hollywood Studios Attraction Guide
Walt Disney World Genie+
Genie+ is the replacement for FastPass+ at Walt Disney World. Genie+ is a paid program that allows you to access quicker lines (Lightning Lanes!) to nearly 40 attractions from all four theme parks.
Disney Genie+ costs $15 per day per person at Walt Disney World. This is actually $15 less per day per person than the Disney Genie+ service at Disneyland.
A few A-list attractions (two from each park) are not included in the general Genie+ cost and need to be purchased separately for access via Lightning Lane.
In order to have a solid plan for touring Walt Disney World right now, you need to understand Genie+ so you can plan your day! Read our guide on Genie+ along with our best strategies on how to use it and then finish reading our park strategies!
PERK for on-site Walt Disney World hotel guests- Guests staying on-site at Walt Disney World can book their upcharge Lightning Lane reservations at 7AM while guests staying off-site have to wait until the park opens.
How to Navigate the Parks Without Genie+
The key to avoiding long lines at Disney World has always been to arrive at the parks early or stay late!
Many guests don't arrive early enough and this puts them at a disadvantage to those that wake up earlier. If you arrive earlier, you beat the rush of groups that arrive around 11AM so this is a great way to cross a few popular attractions off your list.
If early mornings aren't a good fit for your family, staying until park closing is the other alternative! The parks clear out after the fireworks end and the lines will drastically empty out making it a great time to enjoy popular attractions. Especially in Fantasyland since many guests that enjoy that area have small children- late at night Fantasyland will mellow out and you can walk right on to rides like it's a small world with no wait.
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- Disney World Dining Guide: Food Options, Budget Tips, Restaurant Guides
- Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge
- Disney World Cheapest Hotels
- Be Our Guest Dining and Experience Review
- Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Dining Review
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Hello! Thank you for the valuable information. My sister and I will be there 3/31-4/6/2021 – I am wondering what the park times were (when you visited) for these recommended touring plans? Epcot is the park that concerns me, due to the fact that currently is slated to be open 11am-7pm.
During our visit, Epcot was open 11AM-9PM. As your dates gets closer, Disney will likely extend the hours so keep an eye on the website! For Magic Kingdom, most days it was open 8-9AM and closed by 7-9PM. As for Hollywood Studio the hours were 10AM-7PM and Animal Kingdom 6AM-6PM. Weekends the hours will typically be better especially for Animal Kingdom.
Thank you for the info for planning our trip. We will be there March 14th-24th. We will be staying in the new tower at Coronado Springs. Carribean Beach was sold out for the special they were having. My concern is having to take the bus to all the parks. Would you recommend Uber instead? Also, is there a way to ride the skyliner without staying at one of the resorts?
We used Uber on our last visit and had great experiences! We also used the busses and didn’t run into problems- they had frequent busses arriving in the mornings. Typically you can use the Skyliner without being a guest at the resort but based on covid precautions you usually have to provide proof of a dining reservation/mobile order to get dropped off at a resort hotel.
I’ve been told that you can drive to The Contemporary Resort in the morning and get in with a mobile order for Cafe Contempo and then just park there and walk over to the Magic Kingdom. Is this accurate?
Visiting the parks in May for the first time since the closure! I know that the parking lots do not open until about an hour before listed park opening. How does that work with Uber or other ride share companies? Do you have to wait until the parking lot gates open or can the Uber enter the parking lot gates and drop you off before this time? Trying to decide what the best choice of transportation to AK & MK since staying at Epcot resort.
Uber/ride share companies also won’t be allowed into the parking lot until cast members open them. So sometimes it’s about timing your Uber pick up time ‘just right’ to have it arrive right at that hour mark.