Walt Disney World help required.

Take me with you!

You didn't say how long you are going, but my first advice is to not try to jam everything in. The first time we went we stayed on property and had park hopper passes, meal plan..the works. It was awesome, but very hectic. Grandma made reservations to do everything!

The second time we went, we stayed off property, kept it simplier and I think we had an even more amazing time.

Dinner at the restaurant at the top of the contemporary hotel is a must. The breakfast at the Polynesian is delicious.

Can you take a piece of paper with my name on it? That may be the only way I'll ever be there in any form.

It's difficult to say without knowing what your children enjoy most and what perks you value. If you plan to go on a lot of rides, the fast pass is worth it in the Magic Kingdom. Staying on the property has value if you think your kids (or you) might need a siesta in the middle of the day, or if you want to buy lots of crap and have it sent to your room instead of carrying it around all day. Personal finances also play a big part in what extras a worth the money.

Fast pass is definitely worth it- also, if you know you want to do certain rides, get to the park when it opens and go there right away.
If you do Universal Studios, consider staying in one of the hotels near the park. When we went there, you got a special fast pass that allowed you into the park early, which is amazing for going to high-demand rides/areas (like Harry Potter).
Be aware you will be doing a lot of walking, and have some way to keep everyone together.
If you're going to do water rides, make sure your day is planned around them- you are wet after all, and it sucks sitting on rides all wet.
At Universal, if you are an Amex cardholder, there's a special lounge for you.

More $ than you can imagine. Having a stray thought is $5 per person, please.

The castle is just a backdrop. Nothing to see once you get there. Was so let down as a kid. :(

Lots of sunscreen, dark glasses, hats for everyone. In Florida, you are well into sunburn season in January.

Aspirin/ibuprofen, cortisone cream, antibiotic cream.

If your kids are the age for the "Small World" ride, and you love them, i guess you have to do it. Watch vid of it before you go, if you dare.

Book: The unofficial guide to Walt Disney World. Read it and believe it when it says to take a break in the middle of the day. If you try to go an entire day, especially in the hot months, you'll end up wiped out the next day. Disney World will still be there later when the kids are older. Don't try to do it all in one trip. I can't remember if Snow White ride is still going, but it scared ME. Avoid it with small children. We've stayed at All Star resorts several times. A house or apartment just as close to the World as some of the expensive resorts, with the added benefit of extra bedrooms, a kitchen, and a washer/dryer. You always plan on doing the big stuff, but I always found the best memories were made in the unplanned and unexpected "finds". I'm a teacher, but here goes: Take the trip when school is still in session and the crowds are slightly less overwhelming. The best trip we ever took was 2 weeks before Christmas--great weather and no crowds at all.

Get to the parks 20-30 minutes before they open. Those first couple hours are amazing. The crowd levels really ramp up a few hours in, and are usually crazy in the early afternoon.

Counter-intuitively, you might avoid the parks that have early magic hours. They tend to cause everyone to schedule that park that day, meaning the other parks are a little less crowded. (If you have park hopper, you could go for the early magic hours and then head to another park, but you don't want to spend all your time traveling between parks.)

My wife would get mad if I gave up any more of our secrets, so I'll leave it there.

Take me with you ;) But... Seriously, I've looked into it... and what I will probably do in a few years is book from disney... get one of the flights where they get the luggage for me from the plane to the hotel room, stay in a disney hotel, and get a meal plan to get food while in the park, prepaid not having to worry about much then.

This site has all the answers. Really. You got your forums, you got your podcasts, etc. Definitely buy 'The Unofficial Guide to DW', too.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/

@mfladd

Don't miss the Pirates and Pals Fireworks Voyage. Book early, like months out, no joke. You get fireworks all you can eat ice cream confections, and a boat trip, all taken care of in one fell swoop. Don't let the kids fall asleep!
I am not verbose, just do it, thank me later...

Also, if you have breakfast with Mickey in the contemporary, or dinner at Ohana in the Polynesian, you don't need to pay for parking, and they don't know if you did or not, I'm just saying...

I would recommend Easy WDW Josh, who runs the site, could fill in as a snarky meh writer anytime. He's funny, but has a ton of information. His crowd calendar seems very accurate.

I went last year with my wife and 2 kids (5 and 1 at the time) and my Mother, Sister, BIL, and niece (9). We went in Early March and we had a blast. Before going I planned a lot out and lots of help from the threads over at http://disboards.com/

If you are staying on property in a Disney resort you get to schedule your fast passes up to 60 days in advance, so if you plan on taking advantage of the fast pass (and I recommend you do) if you want to get the best selections you better hurry up and get booked and scheduled. Everyone in our party loved the fast passes, but I was on top of it and online at the 60 day mark to get the fast passes for the top attractions that everyone wanted to do (Anna and Elsa meet and greet were gone within minutes, think of it like trying to get a FUKU), but since we managed to get the meet and greet fast pass for my 5 year old we managed to skip a 2+ hour long line the day of our fast pass and only waited about 10 minutes, so it's definitely worth it. If you don't like planning which park you are going to each day that far in advance, just be prepared to wait in longer lines as fast passes the day of for the top attractions are almost never available, you get to make 3 FP selections a day to start with, once all those are used up you can visit a FP kiosk in park to schedule more if there are any available, our experience was that there weren't many, if any available after the first 3 were used except for lower popularity rides or shows with large amounts of seating.

If you are someone who will penny pinch on your spending on food while in the parks, I might recommend a dining plan. Typically if I were to go to the park I'd see the prices and try to eat as cheap as possible while missing out on some of the options that might sound more appealing, so it was nice to pay for it in advance and not have to worry about being cheap while picking out what to eat. While it's possible this could run a little bit more in the long run depending on what specials Disney may be offering I found it great not to have to worry about the costs at the park as it was all paid for by the time we got there. Speaking of food, while in the Magic Kingdom, I'd recommend getting a reservation at Be Our Guest for lunch if possible.

But the best advice I can give, is go and have fun, be willing to let plans change if necessary, take a break back in the hotel in the middle of the afternoon. And everyone at Disney gets a moment where they are overwhelmed by everything and will have that grumpy moment, it will pass.

Personally, I'm not one that likes to plan out every minute of a vacation, I would rather go with the flow and just see where the day takes me, but after reading a lot of the information out there on message boards and other sites for Disney I realized planning is almost necessary if you want to get some of the things done without having to wait long periods in line, and with little ones not having to wait for some things was a life saver.

I live less than 2 hours from Disney and have spent more time and $$ at that mousetrap than I can think about without an adult beverage handy. The topic of how to "do" Disney is one that we (particularly my wife, who has become an expert of sorts) can expound upon for hours. I will not do that here, because you hate me.

However, I will offer the best of the advice, because you hate me in a "good way". I don't know what that means, but it makes me feel strangely tingly.

Hotels: We have stayed at the less expensive off-site places, the modest priced Disney properties, and at the premium Disney hotels. All of these options have their merits, but if your budget allows for it, there is a lot to say for staying at the places that are on the monorail route. The commute back to the hotel is much easier and less taxing when you're lugging the kiddos when you don't have to worry about trams, cars, etc. Also, (imho) it is almost never worth taking trams to/from your car at the parking lots. Especially if you get to the park early (see below).

The Boardwalk, Beach Club, and Yacht Club hotels, while not on the monorail route, are all a very easy walk to Epcot. After a long day there (and you will walk MILES), and a late evening of fireworks, there is nothing like walking away from the crowds, casually back to your hotel. Just stay on the World Showcase side of the lake for the fireworks show.

If you stay at Animal Kingdom (or go there for a meal), you can putter around the hotel balconies and grounds, where you will likely encounter animals. They bring giraffes and such to those areas, so if you have a room that faces the safari area, or go to one of the balconies set up for it, you'll have kind of a unique show.

Everyone above who mentioned getting to the park early is dead on. You will get more rides done in the first 2 hours than during the rest of the day on a busy day. If you really do get there before rope drop, you can also make better use of your fast passes. If you schedule your first fast pass mid morning, then high tail it to the premier rides at rope drop (before the crowds get there), you'll get two big rides done before your fastpass comes up, and then be right there for the third (fastpass) ride. That's pretty much the long-line rides, done by 10:30a. The rest of the day is a lot easier to manage after that. Also, getting there that early gets you a pretty good parking spot (no matter where you stay, you will need to drive to at least one of the parks). That will come in handy at the end of the day when you are dragging your kids back to the car, and you won't find yourself tempted to wait in a tram line.

As far as planning breaks, another way to do that is to time certain rides during mid day. Soarin' at Epcot can generate a long line, but it's all indoors, air conditioned, and relatively relaxing to wait in. Ellen's Energy Adventure is a slow ride at Disney that never really has much of a line, but it's interesting, air conditioned, and seated. The whole experience is at least 45 minutes of down time.

Schedule character meals if you can still book them. They are expensive for what they are, but then you will be less likely to ever find the need to wait in line for character meets/photos. Your kids will have one-on-one time with the characters in a more relaxed atmosphere, and you'll get better photos.

Animal Kingdom has a breakfast character meal that is pretty worth it. It gets you into the park earlier than usual (if you book it for an early time slot). After you're done, go directly to the Safari ride. Early in the morning the line is short, and it is pretty much your only chance to see most of the animals awake. The early rides are the only times we've seen the lions actually move, for example. Have your fastpass ready at Expedition Everest.

Know how tall your kids are and what the requirements are for each ride. That will save frustration and sadness when you're there. If there are any rides that the grownups/older child want to go on that the younger one cannot, you can always do a "child swap". Go to the cast member at the entrance of the ride, tell them you want to child swap, and they will basically give you a fastpass for the second adult to use after the first goes through. You can take the older kid along again with the second adult as well. If you happen to have a fastpass for the ride in question, then the first adult will whip through the line on the fastpass, and the second will do the same with the child swap pass. The older kid seriously wins!

There is a place at Epcot called "Club Cool". It has free sodas from around the world, is air conditioned, and will amuse your kids for a while while you cool off a bit. It's also one of the few places at Disney that has anything for free...

Just a passing thought: I think you mentioned that you were also considering going to Universal... trying to add Universal during a 7 day trip, and also get the most out of Disney is... madness. Since you were last there, Disney has grown from just Magic Kingdom into 4 parks, each of which is worth a full day. You may well want to go back to one for another day (my family in particular loves Epcot). You might want to consider a water park day instead. Just my $0.02. You can spend part of a day or an evening at Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney) and/or at Universal Citywalk. Both are free to access, have lots to see and do, and offer plenty of restaurants and shopping (especially Disney Springs). If you spend a day at a water park, those places are good places to go in the evening.

The more you plan, the more you will get out of the trip. Go to wdwinfo.com, easywdw.com, and disboards.com and scour the forums. If you have a question or thought, guaranteed someone has thought of it first, and there are a lot of Disney "pros" who share their insights. This stuff just scratches the surface.

Hope this helps! Have fun!! Bring lots and lots and lots of money, and tuck a few bills into Minnie's garter as often as needed.

We did Disney for a full week two years ago but the only child in tow was our 12 year-old son. Here's my 2 cents worth.
Start here: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/attractions/
Notice the filter.

If you stay at a Disney Resort you can use the free bus service so driving in park is not really necessary or really desired. (and parking is never a problem either) Some resorts have boats that will take you around.

MAKE YOUR DINNER RESERVATIONS NOW!!!
*Pay for the Park hopper passes.* Just do it. When you start making dinner reservations you'll figure out why quick enough.
Get the Magicbands. They are your entry pass, door key, and credit card. Names are etched on the inside so you don't need to worry about the kids. https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/faq/bands-cards/program-eligibility/
Schedule non-park days. Waterpark Days!
Treat the Mrs. to a day at the spa (Be prepared to pay big. And I mean BIG) while you take the kiddos to DisneyQuest Emporium at Disney Springs for a day of bonding. This place is four stories of arcade stuff free after admission. But hurry, it's scheduled to close this summer so this is your last chance to go. There's also the Lego store, Build-A-Dino® by Build-A-Bear Workshop®, Ghirardelli® Ice Cream & Chocolate Shop, and lots more.
Romantic dinner on the Boardwalk? https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/guest-services/child-care-services/
Use the app You can get the queue wait times to rides you don't have fast-pass access to.

We arrived Saturday afternoon and spent the evening at Disney Springs for dinner at Raglan Road Irish Pub (River Dancers) and Restaurant and an evening watching Cirque du Soleil. There are a couple of things you do not want to skimp on. Cirque du Soleil is one of them. Get the good seats, spend the money here instead of a fancy dinner. It is worth it and your children will remember this one event more than anything else at Disney.

Do yourself a favor; Don't try to do Disney and Universal the same trip. We did one evening (Spa/bonding day) to eat at the Bob Marley and see the Blue Man Group. Your kids may be too young to enjoy them though. If you go get poncho seats. Again worth the extra $$$.

@dave told you to go to the parks that don't have early hours. This is true to a point. If you stay at a Disney resort you can enter certain parks an hour early, or stay hour(s) later. Do it if you can but this is where the park hopper comes in handy. Spend your day in multiple parks. Follow the app's queue time. Treat the travel time on the monorail as downtime for the kids.

And the most important thing:** MAKE YOUR DINNER RESERVATIONS NOW!!!**

TL:DR Well actually there isn't one. You have to read it all.

I haven't been to Disney World in 10 years, sadly (though we did get dinner at the Boardwalk on our way to Naples in December), but I went at least 10 times growing up (dad had customers in Florida, so we'd go for a week, dad would spend a couple days visiting clients, and he'd write-off part of the trip; looking back I'm very impressed at my mom's ability to take 3 kids around Disney by herself). I think these things still hold true:

Staying on property is a real benefit with small kids because they will get tired and you'll need to go back to the room/pool for a break (you'll probably be tired, too).

Staying at a monorail resort is cool, and convenient for the Magic Kingdom, but for my money the Epcot resorts (Yacht Club, Beach Club, Boardwalk, Swan, Dolphin) have the best location. They're an easy boat ride to both Epcot and the MGM Disney Studios, or you can even walk to either park (but keep in mind EPCOT stands for Every Person Comes Out Tired, so it's worth conserving your steps when possible). Of those I would pick the Yacht Club or Beach Club; they share a pool and it's the best pool at Disney World. It's massive, has a big (but not steep) water slide, a small lazy river, a whirlpool, a hot tub, and the whole pool has a sandy bottom which feels amazing, especially on tired feet. You could certainly justify skipping Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach with that pool, although I'd say it's worth doing one of them if you have the time and the budget. While the Grand Floridian is on paper Disney's premier resort, I'd say the rooms at the Yacht Club are just as nice and for the other reasons above I'd say it's the better resort.

Go to restaurants at the various hotels. Sometimes people think they're only for if you stay at that resort, but they're open to anyone. There was a fun one at the Wilderness Lodge with family-style meals, and at various points kids get to hop up and run around, maybe racing with broomstick horses. Definitely go to Beaches & Cream at the Beach Club resort; they've long had the best burgers at Disney and fantastic milkshakes, too. We also always enjoyed playing in the arcade next door while we waited for our food.

I know they stopped it for a while, but if they're letting people ride up front with the monorail pilot again it can be worth waiting an extra train just to get in the cockpit. The pilots are friendly and often have good advice. You could also do that with some of the boats.

There are little 2-seater boats you can rent that are a ton of fun. Do that at the Magic Kingdom resorts; those are the best lakes to run around on.

If they're still doing the Lights! Motors! Action! car stunt show, think twice about bringing the kids. One of the stunts has a stuntman do a full body burn. While it's really cool, you can't overestimate how terrifying it was for the children in the crowd to see a man running around on fire, acting like he was in excruciating pain.

Similarly, while Expedition Everest is the best pure coaster at Walt Disney World, there's a part where it looks like a Yeti is going to grab you and that was at least as terrifying to children on the coaster as the ride itself.

Buzz Lightyear's Ranger Spin in Tomorrowland is a blast. Don't miss that ride. If DisneyQuest is still open when you go, in my book Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlasters alone is worth the price of admission. All you need to know is "bumper cars with cannons."

As mentioned, the character breakfasts are definitely worth doing so your kids can see lots of characters, but you also need to make sure you get a cinnamon roll; they're amazing. They're available in every park: in the Magic Kingdom they're in a bakery on Main Street; in Epcot they're in The Land pavilion; in MGM Disney Studios I think they're on Sunset Boulevard; and I don't remember where they are in Animal Kingdom, but I think it was near the entrance.

In the Italy pavilion in Epcot there's a restaurant called Alfredo's. Every so often they have a song and everyone takes their napkin and twirls them in the air over their head; that's great fun as a kid.

In the Norway pavilion be sure to try some lefse; it's the bread of my people (although I actually have a lot more Danish heritage than Norwegian, it's worth claiming). If you go to the Smorgasbord restaurant you can try it there with the traditional spreadable cheese called brunost or jams and jellies (I think), but you can also just go in the bakery and get it rolled up with cinnamon sugar. It's not as good as my great great aunt Inga made, but that was also a two-day process to prepare from scratch with the potatoes.

The last time I went was the only time I was over 21. I didn't think I'd have nearly as much fun as when I was a kid, but I was wrong! A lot of the rides were still fun and I could better appreciate the restaurants now. They also do a really nice job of offering alcohol selections from all over the world. If you like trying different beers and wines that's definitely an option (I think I even saw they're now finally allowing alcohol in the Magic Kingdom, although that might've only been in one restaurant).

I'd find trying to fit Universal Studios into your visit questionable. There's so much to do at Disney you'll never fit it all in one week. You can't really do any park in just one day (except maybe Animal Kingdom); you'll just be hitting the highlights, which are probably the same things everyone wants to see. It doesn't leave you time to explore and find things your family especially enjoys; it becomes more a matter of checking things off the list, because you won't want to miss Everything You Should Do. Been there, done that, got the picture. But you'll never have time to actually do everything anyway. When we would go we'd often take a day or two where we wouldn't go in any park at all. That was often a cost-saving measure, but it also gave us time to rest and recharge. Those were the days we'd spend extra time at the pool, go explore other hotels and see what restaurants they had and what their pool was like, rent those boats, or go to Downtown Disney. If you go go go and hit the parks every day you're going to get burned out and need a vacation when you get home from your vacation.

Don't overthink it! It's a vacation; you're supposed to relax and have fun!

@mfladd BTW: are you a Florida resident? We get discounts.

@mfladd I almost forgot. Memory Maker. Save your money and take your own pictures. Unless you enjoy waiting in line forever at the character photo-op places. Get the character pics at the theme meals.

My niece just took a trip to Harry Potter World. She said it was amazing. Looks like it is a part of Universal though.
Just thought I would mention in case your kids are into HP.

Gosh, you hit my sweet spot. Some other users have already left you some great comments. I'm trying not to go on and on, but...

Everyone in my family has a food allergy. This makes vacation difficult, except at Disney. They can handle anything with ease and they don't charge anything extra. We discovered this 4 years ago and keep coming back.

One off the wall thing I might suggest is if your family is into "glamping", there is an RV company I rent from for music festivals that specializes in Disney Fort Wildnerness packages. It's like $1000 bucks for a big 5th wheel RV with a golf cart for the entire week. They are a kickass company that I've used for years and have nice equipment. I've never used them for anything Disney but I have for lots of other things and I like them.

They really do bring everything too. Hell, they'll even stock it with your groceries if you send them the list.
http://www.mcrfl.com/

Oh lord, @mfladd goes to RatLand, this should be interesting!

Pills, that's my recommendation. When the happiest place on earth starts to become the crappiest.....

We did our big trip a couple years ago and these folks know their stuff. https://www.undercovertourist.com http://www.mousesavers.com
Would love to go back but it does cost a fortune. Here are my only couple tips from this family of 5. Again, we are not Disney pros like some others. But here goes...
We packed our lunches in almost every day.
We bought refillable drink cups and that probably saved about a million dollars. They worked at our hotel too. Other than that, just have fun and don't stress. We had 7 day ticket plan and big dreams like you of doing it full bore from start to finish. We ended up taking off after 5 days in the parks and headed back home. We absolutely did it all, multiple times and enjoyed the Hell out of it. Totally satisfied. I hope ya'll have a fantastic trip!

If you're not staying at a monorail loop resort, consider splurging on Uber a few times. It's about $8-$9 from spot to spot, and is a real luxury compared to waiting for and cramming on the buses. (Of course, this is assuming you're not renting a car, which we never have.)

Disney World sounds incredibly complicated and stressful. If it's anything like all these comments suggest, my advice would be: never be sober.

If at al possible stay at a disney resort. Life is so much simpler when the kids get cranky to jump on a boat or monorail and get them down for a nap or parked in front of a tv for a while. Also makes going back to the park later a sane choice.

Find the website Mousesavers and read it thoroughly. Both times we've gone to WDW we used that site and got a lot of great advice.

We rented a house in nearby Poinciana and drove in with the family (7 of us in total) and it worked out well, but if your budget permits, staying on site would be fun.

Oh, and for the kids, I suggest renting the strollers at the park. Even though your kid(s) may be long grown out of strollers, that amount of walking will tire them out, and you'll find them handy. (Of course, some will argue that the kids needs to tough it out, but Disney is not where I pick to instill that on my kid) Honestly, I didn't mind pushing the stroller, as pushing some weight on to it helped my feet last the trek, especially on the late night times.
Alternatively, you could order a cheap stroller, have it delivered to your hotel, and use it through the trip (suggest umbrella style, or otherwise easy to fold up), and since its cheap, leave it at hotel for another guest. We've done both routes.
As others have said, make your reservations as soon as you can. If you are trying to get into a restaurant and cannot get reservations, try booking a smaller number of people, and on that day, ask at the restaurant if they can accommodate .... I have not yet been turned away with this method. Even if you can't get a reservation at all, try stopping at restaurant on the day, and ask if they can squeeze you in, they often can.
Last, and best tip .... if you are planning to book them into bippity boppity boutique for a princess makeover, and can't get an appt, try the salon at the Floridian resort, they have a princess package too, in a much more relaxed environment. (I think it costs less too, and easy access from Magic Kingdom via boat or monorail) Difference is that you bring the costume (can buy ahead of time to save loads of cash), and you can actually pick the hair style, instead of the 2 hairstyle choices at the Bippity Boppity Boutique.

I cannot stress enough.... if you have a particular restaurant you want to eat at, MAKE RESERVATIONS NOW!!!!! The castle thing in the magic kingdom was booked out 8 months in advance, as were the keys to the kingdom tour we wanted to take. You don't mention your time, that i saw, but they have some really nice events.Later in the year will be food and wine fest in epcot, fantastic event. We stayed in the polynesian on our honeymoon trip (4 days in disney and 3 on the big red boat) and really enjoyed it. You will actually be hard pressed to do everything in one kingdom in a single day, you would be surprised how long it takes to do things there. Get the fast pass when possible. We were back for the christmas lights last year and the line for the toy story arcade ride in universal studios (a blast!!) was like 2-2.5 hours. Dont be stressed, just go and enjoy.

I went to Disney as a kid in the early '80's. I have two distinct memories of things that stuck out: 1) I loved the electric lights parade, and if they still do that you should definitely take the kids, and 2) We did breakfast with the Disney characters, and have Chip and Dale (the chipmunks, not naked dudes) hang out at our table was a real highlight for me.

I don't think I remember any of the rides.

We expect pictures. A lot of pictures. Oh, and Tshirts too.

Hi! I'm Mrs. @dave and he sent me to divulge my secrets for the sake of your darling children.

Get to the park 30 minutes before opening. If they have the morning extra magic hour, get there 30 minutes before that starts. You've got to go through security and the ticket tapstile before you're in the park. MK has a cute opening show with the characters arriving on a train, AK has a bird fly-over, and all parks usually allow entrance about 15 minutes before the stated opening time.

We did not care for the Dining Plan. It felt like accounting, keeping track of the various meals and snacks. It is cheaper and less stressful for us to pay out of pocket, but some people like to have their meals paid for in advance. It is unlikely to save you money unless you eat a lot of character dining.

Since you're traveling in April, go ahead to My Disney Experience and create an account right now. If there are dining experiences that are important to you, book whatever time is available. Keep checking, because loads of reservations open up as people cancel when their plans change.

If princesses are important to your girls, try getting a reservation at Akershus. It's in the Norway pavilion at Epcot and has several princesses who will visit your table, but the price is significantly less and it's easier to book than Cinderella's Royal Table in MK.

Take a break in the afternoon, go back to your hotel to swim and nap, then come back to the park about 5pm for the nighttime entertainment. The Star Wars fireworks at Hollywood Studios are not to be missed. They're excellent! If you are visiting on or after Earth Day, the rumor is that's when the new nighttime show will debut at AK.

All the parks serve booze, except for the MK. You can even get a glass of wine there if you manage to snag a dinner reservation at Be Our Guest.

As soon as you book your hotel, book your fastpasses. If you can manage to do this before the 30 day mark you'll have more options. Try to book your Fastpasses for mid-morning, before your afternoon break. After you've used your 3 pre-booked Fastpasses you can book a 4th at an in-park kiosk.

Pack 2 pairs of comfy shoes, bring blister band-aids with you into the park, all counter service restaraunts will give you free ice water. Make a plan of attractions your family wants to enjoy. Go with the flow when the kids want to ride the carousel 5 times in a row.

If at all possible it's worth taking the boat from Magic Kingdom to Fort Wilderness for the Hoop-Dee-Doo-Review. It sounds like the hokiest thing on the planet, but it is so much fun. Also unlimited beer and sangria included in the price.

Plan a rest day, where you let everyone sleep in. Make that the day after the unlimited beer and sangria.

Have fun!

There is a treasure trove of information over here: http://www.disneytouristblog.com/disney-world-trip-planning-guide/. Tom is extremely well-traveled and knowledgeable when it comes to Disney parks.

I'd tell you to go to Disneyland in California instead as planning is far less complicated and there's less under construction, but at this point I guess that's neither here nor there.

Get your hands on tickets ASAP and book whatever Fastpasses you can get your hands on. Book them for early-ish in the day because you have to use all 3 before you can get more at the in-park kiosks. If you use one for fireworks, you're basically up shit creek when it comes to getting more after fireworks are over.

Book sit-down meals ASAP, too. You don't have to be a guest at the resorts to dine there. Somebody mentioned the Hoop Dee Doo Revue. If you love corny jokes & song and dance numbers along with BBQ food, don't skip it. It's a lot of fun. Some other of my favorite restaurants include Sanaa (Animal Kingdom Lodge), 50's Prime Time Cafe & Sci Fi Dine In Theater (Hollywood Studios), San Angel Inn (Mexico @ Epcot) and the Tonga Toast for breakfast at Kona Cafe (Polynesian Resort).

Epcot isn't the same. It just doesn't have the heart that it used to back in the 80's and early-mid 90's (it was my favorite park as a kid and I have a ton of memories that I have to hold onto dearly, now).

Be prepared for Disney Hollywood Studios park to be mostly construction walls. The new Star Wars fireworks won't yet be in place. There are a few good rides there (Tower of Terror, Rock N Roller Coaster, Star Tours), but you could probably skip the Studios entirely and not feel bad for doing so.

Above all, have fun and don't stress out.

OMG this is complicated. I last went shortly after the park opened. They had a great park, Space Mountain, monorails, trams, and the dedicated radio station.

Now you need Eisenhower and his entire European campaign HQ staff to do this.

Thinking about the planning, and getting a sense of the scope of things - that's daunting and scary.

Actually getting things to click once you get into it? Not nearly as daunting and scary as you thought it was going to be. Just start with a basic structure of where you want to go and on what day. Figure out what and where you want to eat those days (long character lunches make for great mid-day breaks). Work in where to add the premiere rides (as I said above - show up early and plan your fastpass strategy thoughtfully, and this becomes a much simpler proposition). Oh, and leave room for wonder!

Being prepared and having planned ahead when you get there? Priceless, and definitely worth the advance work!

Since there seem to be a bunch of this here that went as kids, I'm just gonna leave this video here:

Not for planning, but if you went to Epcot Center as a kid, it's great for reminiscing. I used to borrow this VHS from the library every chance I could get. RIP, 80's Epcot Center.

Best spots to eat without worrying about reservations. In MK, the new & excellent Skipper's Canteen in Adventureland. Pecos Bill's in Frontierland serves TexMex with a huge toppings bar - free Guac! Pinnochio's Village Haus in Fantasyland serves good flatbreads.

In AK, it's worth making reservations at Yak & Yeti or Tusker House (character buffet) because it's hard to find AC at the counter service places.

In Epcot, we snack around the World. You can't go wrong with any counter service in World Showcase. If you have to eat in Future World, go to Sunshine Seasons in the Land pavilion.

Hollywood Studios has the most limited counter service options and they are changing by the day due to construction. I'd try to get a walk up at 50's Prime Time or eat in their lounge.

Also get a jalapeño pretzel when you see it available at a snack cart. So freaking good!

Forgo it and go to Busch Gardens instead. It's cheaper and it's one of the largest zoos in North America, with more than 12,000 animals representing 250 species and more than 30 threatened and endangered species in the park's various animal habitats. Seriously, they basically have a mini Savannah that's 80% of the land area. That's not even counting the rides of which each have a record break on opening day. Generally speaking you'd need two days to really experience the entirety of the park.

Tampa Bay is also more of a city than the surrounding "Orlando" area (which is more of an extended tourist trap) and there's even a water park right in front of Busch Gardens if that tickles your fancy.

The only drawback is that Busch Gardens is no longer owned by Budweiser so they no longer offer free beer at the Beer Conservatory.

Just got back a couple of weeks ago. Been to see the Mouse something like 30 times now. April will be crowded but not unbearable most days. Use fast passes, get magic bands, and book Disney dining today. Downtown Disney(Disney Springs) is still a traffic disaster(Major Construction). Take Disney transportation if you wanna go there and leave early in the evenings. Staying on property is convenient but way over priced. I suggest staying a Wyndham Bonnet Creek. Use Vacationstrategy.com or 5starresortsplus.com to book there. And get quotes from both. If you wanna stay at a Disney Vacation Club property use dvcrequest.com. If not doing a bundle with tickets get them at undercovertourist.com Also use their crowd calendar to see exactly what you are getting into in April. Good luck

We usually pack clothes for half as many days as we are traveling. There will likely be spills and such with little (and big) kids. We pack the detergent pods and dryer sheets rather than extra clothes.
The laundry facilities are pretty nice and usually near a pool. Many use credit cards rather than coins and can send text messages when your load is finished.

Stop obsessing about details and read something fun: Disney By The Numbers by Anthony M. Caselnova (ISBN13: 9781941500606)

If you haven't figured it out now, there's a lot of information to digest and there are many different ways to do it "right."

I'll leave you with a few key ideas:

• Go slowly
• The parks & resorts are designed to be a continuous attraction. You don't have to stand in line to be enjoying something.
• Eat at least one sit-down meal a day. It will give you a much-needed break and the food is better than what you'll find in most American chain restaurants, worse than you'd find in big cities, and monumentally better than what you imagine theme park food to be.
• Use FastPass, it's free. Don't obsess over it. It's big achievement that other theme parks can't seem to replicate is that it reduces the normal lines for popular attractions (and increases for less popular ones), but gives you a sense of never really waiting excessively.
• Keep a spare external battery (or two!) for your phone. You'll be taking pictures and most importantly...
• While modern lines in Disney are in and of themselves part of the attraction, there are still a fair amount of boring, snaking queues. It's a great idea to have a social game you can play on your phone (Heads Up!) while in line with your family; and if you're as magically gregarious as I am in Disney World, with total strangers.
• Talk to strangers - guests and employees. People come from around the world to visit and work. Share your real life with them in this synthetic wonderland and you'll keep in touch with your humanity.

@mfladd We took a trip to Disney last fall. It was my first trip there with kids but my sister and her husband are seasoned veterans and they had all sorts of tips and advice.

The FastPassPlus is standard now. Your park tickets, room key (if you stay at a resort) and fast-pass will all be saved onto your magic band. They're not very comfy, but you get used to them after a few minutes. Your meal plan, if you opt for it, will also be included. We splurged for the meal plan and I'm glad we did. I couldn't believe how much the meals rang up to each time we ate.

If you do a meal plan and your kids are light eaters, then let them share a meal. You can use the unused meals to buy 3 snacks each (ice cream, soda, side items, etc). I didn't know this until the last day. I also discovered that most of the cast members running the snack kiosks haven't a clue how to convert your meals to snacks. If they don't, then you'll get them for free. We attempted to trade out a meal 3-4 times before someone was finally able to do it. That's a lot of free snacks!

Take a water bottle. Actually, take one for every person in your group. You'll be glad you did. Also, pack some lightweight disposable ponchos. It rains nearly every day for at least a few minutes. Your options are to get soaked, find a store to take cover in, or put on a poncho and deal with it. They're expensive in the park, so packing one will save you money.

I can't think of anything else off the top of my head, but
I'm sure it'll come to me in a bit.

Oh yeah, sign up for MouseSavers emails. They'll give you tips on how to save money and make the most of your trip.

I have spreadsheets with every expense of the last two trips, if you are interested.

The cost of a Disney vacation is easier to understand if you think of it this way...

All good info in this thread...here's $0.02 more.
Cant' stress enough with young kids - First time: stay at the Polynesian. It's the only resort on Disney property with DIRECT access to BOTH monorail routes. Magic kingdom route from the 2nd floor lobby and Epcot route from the parking lot.
When we took the young ones the first time it was a godsend to be able to have that flexibility combined with park hopper tickets. Made the hotel feel like 'home' b/c we could always go back to the room any time and hop right back to anywhere else.
Plus - the pool/play area there is crazy good and lets them (& you) blow off steam anytime when you need a break. And it's beach is a good place to see the fireworks and electric boat parade one night if you want to.

Check out the 100+ Disney books here: themeparkpress.com. Hell, if you see one you like, such as the aforementioned and very, very helpful EASY GUIDE, contact me through the site (say meh!), and I'll send it to you, compliments of the publisher (who is me).

My friend does a podcast about his experiences at Disneyland with his wife. Check it out: www.makeminemagicpodcast.com.

I think someone mentioned it already, but the smart phone apps for Walt Disney World are about the best thing since Walt Disney World itself. There are official Disney Apps for iPhone and Android. If you have the windows phone, there is a clone app called "Disney Expedition" by Pinnacle Designs, Ltd. which is also good.

We are in Orlando now (our spring break is crazy early). The kids are older so it's time for Universal. We went to Disney a few years ago and outside food was allowed. If that is still true you may want to take advantage. We packed a lunch so we could sit down and eat anywhere. No lines, much saving, and no burgers and fries in the summer heat.

Wellllll?? How did it go?

Ponchos. It rains in April. Get some of those cheap $1 fold up ponchos at Walmart. If it does rain you are going to REALLY appreciate having those.

I finally got something right! Yay me!

And I wore my cranberry meh shirt for over 12 hours in the Magic Kingdom - not one nod, or wink, or secret handshake. I was disappointed.