If you have just 2 days at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, then you will want to make the most of your time there & get the most bang for your buck. Having been a season pass holder, I have learned some tricks and tips over the years to make this happen. Get all the Disney Vacation tips today.
Travel Tips
With rentals available all over the world, you’re sure to find the perfect place to stay. Airbnb has something for everyone. Plus, with prices that are often much cheaper than traditional hotels, you’ll be able to stretch your vacation budget even further.
If you can not find an Airbnb that fits your needs a second option is VRBO. Find an amazing vacation home for your family.
Make sure to check out our travel deals page for any deals or sales on your next trip no matter where it is!
Orlando Tour Passes
There are so many options for bundling attractions at a fraction of the cost to get more bang for your buck. In the Orlando area, these are your best options:
Orlando City Pass – Save on tickets to famous theme parks
Orlando GoCity Explorer Pass – Choose from 2-5 attractions. You will have 60 days to use the pass.
Orlando Sightseeing Pass – Entry to 2-5 attractions. Over 25 attractions to choose from.
Orlando Tours – 25+ tours and excursions to choose from.
The BEST 2 Days at Disney World Itinerary!
While traveling be sure you bring change so you can take advantage of any pressed penny machines you come across. These make great souvenirs.
There are things you can do to save time and money and to make the overall process go smoother as a whole, so let me share that with you, and give you a 48-hour itinerary of where I would go and when.
With a limited amount of time, it is most likely that you would want to visit the two most popular parks, Magic Kingdom & Epcot, and so I am going to give you suggestions for these two parks.
If you prefer to swap one of them out for another park obviously, the choice is yours and you can just substitute a few of the things I suggest to fit your needs instead.
The first thing I suggest is checking out Getaway Today. They offer vacation package deals but also have many sales on Disney tickets. I always find if you can get a bundle sale you will save more vs trying to put it all together yourself.
Where to Stay at Disney
Disney Economy Hotels – If you will be staying on property, which is a really great way to save money on parking and save time on transportation as a whole, then I would suggest staying in one of the Disney economy hotels.
They have five in total, and all are about the same layout and pricing, and you can get them at discounts periodically throughout the year, in the slower seasons.
When Summer has wrapped up, they usually run deals in September and October, but they do book up fast and you will need to plan this a few months in advance.
I know many people do go in the Summertime, and sometimes that can’t be helped due to work schedules and kids’ schooling, but if you can avoid the Summer heat and the crowds, I highly suggest it.
Related: How to Get a Free Disney World Vacation
Themed Hotels – You can also choose to stay at one of the many Disney-themed hotels such as the Disney All-Star Movie Resort. These hotels are experiences all on their own with themed rooms, events, and food.
Getaway Today has deals on many of these themed hotels and resorts in the area.
Other Hotels – If you are staying in another local hotel, I would at the very least, find out if they run buses to Disney for you, and take advantage of this.
Most bus schedules run every half hour or so and on Disney property, they run every twenty minutes, so no need to worry that you’ll be sitting and waiting for long and wasting any time.
Airbnb – Don’t overlook finding an Airbnb to stay at. Many times you can find a whole condo or apartment so you can cook meals to save from eating out. Plus when you sign up with my link you get a free $40 credit.
Tip: Parking is pricey, I won’t lie, so if you can avoid driving to the park and save that cash, it will be better spent elsewhere and you will also save time and energy on this as well, not having to walk to the trams and as far into the entrances to the parks.
Related: 10 Ways to Take a Disney Vacation on a Budget
What to See at Disney
Day 1 of 2 days at Disney World.
The Magic Kingdom is, of course, the classic park and a must-see, so I would start there on the first day, have breakfast at your hotel (Have the Mickey waffles!), and be sure your tummies are full before heading in.
Some people like to do the meal plans and it works well for many families.
For ours, we typically would do two meals a day instead of three, making them both larger and then snack between, because the time it takes to have a meal does truly cut into the day and you get plenty of food everywhere you eat at Disney, so you won’t be hungry.
Then you can have room and cash to spend on the fun snacks that you have heard about at the parks.
Related: Top 5 Disney Restaurants For The Best Disney Dining
Arrival
When you arrive at the park, you will have the choice to do the monorail or ferry over to the park from the ticketing area, and unless the monorail line is crazy, I always choose it because it takes just a few minutes, whereas the ferry, although fun if you have never done it, takes at least twice the time.
To help save time waiting in lines, book fast passes ahead of time.
You can do this a full month in advance and it is worth doing. You can get three passes per day for one park, so try to stagger them according to where the ride is located and then plan the rest of your day around them.
For example, book Buzz Lightyear early in the day, as it is in Tomorrowland, which is one of the first areas you can get to in the park.
Then, book ones further away like Thunder Mountain or the Haunted Mansion for later in the day so you are not doing unnecessary walking across the park, or racing to get there in time and not miss the window for the pass.
Related: Disney Bucket List: 25 Things to Do at Magic Kingdom Disney
Lunch Time
If you have the funds, I would also book a larger meal for mid-afternoon to early evening, and book it in advance. Many of the really good spots will be full and you won’t be able to just walk up and get a seat.
If you do, you could be waiting an hour for it. I suggest the Crystal Palace, which is a buffet that does not disappoint, (Plus it is a character meet too), or Tony’s Town Square, which is an Italian spot that is fantastic.
Both are in the Main Street area upfront. If you are not wanting to spend the money on that type of place, we love to eat at Pinocchio Village Haus which is less expensive and a quick stop too.
It is in Fantasy Land and is central to the park which is nice.
Over at Adventure land, you’ll find some great Mexican food and the famous Pineapple Dole whips, if you’re wanting either of those.
Grabbing a Dole whip while you’re in that area is a good and popular snack so if that’s on your list, plan that side of the park for when it would be a good snack time.
Related: Things to do at Disney World – Discovering Hidden Gems
Parades
One thing that is key to your visit is to look ahead at parade times. If you want to see the parades well, you do have to know in advance what time they’ll be and get a good spot.
This is a time sucker, I will say, but if someone in your party doesn’t care to ride a ride, let them go get a spot in advance to help your party out.
If you don’t care about seeing the parades, then take advantage of this time slot to go ride something that has a longer wait time while many people are gone watching it.
Related: Top 10 Places & Tips to Meeting Disney Characters That Are Hard to Find
Meeting Characters
Little things like this are what can make or break your day. If you have a child who HAS to meet a certain character, you may want to choose that as a fast pass if it’s offered.
Related: Top 10 Places & Tips to Meeting Disney Characters That Are Hard to Find
They do offer several and Mickey and Minnie are offered at both Epcot and the Magic Kingdom as fast passes so that is a good one to use a pass for and it will allow you to skip the long line.
There are normally a few shows at the Castle stage throughout the day as well, and they can be fun to watch, but the area there is packed full of people and not much fun if you don’t like maneuvering through crowds more than necessary.
If you’re not dying to see the show, I’d skip it and go for a ride instead.
Related: 9 Super Secret Tips to Really Rock Your Disney Trip
Magic Kingdom has plenty of rides, plenty of shops, and lots of good food. It is great for families of kids of all ages, so do look over all the options and plan things that speak to your family.
Make those things a priority to do and then work on what else you can in between if there’s time. You won’t be able to see everything in a day, and even two can be a challenge if it’s a busy time there.
Be prepared to wait in lines and if you have extra help, split up to make the most of things for your kids if necessary.
Related: 25 Free Things To Do in Orlando Fl
If you decide to leave the park before it is closing, you would have time to head over to Disney Springs or play a round of putt-putt golf at Fantasia Gardens.
Also, many of the hotels have movie time at night and all have pools. This is sometimes the best way to wind down from a crazy day instead of leaving the park at the last minute along with the crowds.
Day Two – Epcot
Day 2 of 2 days at Disney World.
Now, for day two – On to Epcot. If you are staying at the Art of Animation or Pop Century Resort hotels, they now have the Skyliner that takes you to Epcot. (It also goes to Hollywood Studios if you chose that instead.)
This is a fun thing to do and saves you parking again. It just opened in 2019 and it doesn’t go to every park or every hotel but check it out to see if you can take advantage of using it.
Epcot is a wonderful park for all ages and a great way to work in some cultural education without even trying.
If there is a certain country you’ve been studying with your kids or one you just are fascinated with, you may want to plan a meal in that one on your visit or make sure you check out what is offered for activities in the park so that you can plan your day around that.
Again, plan fast passes ahead of time too, and work around those.
Related: What to do at Epcot – 25 Bucket List Items
Festivals
Epcot has several festivals throughout the year and most of them feature special activities and foods. The most popular are their food and wine festival and their garden festival.
You may be going during one of these, so you may want to skip a big meal and instead try several foods as you visit the World Showcase instead.
This can add up as far as cost, but it is really fun and a great way to try things you wouldn’t normally have access to.
There are also concerts and shows for the festivals as well. Some of these can be booked in advance and it definitely pays off if you can do that, so you’re not standing in a long line and wasting that time.
My main advice with any of these parks is to do your research ahead of time. It is worth it if planned right but, keep in mind with only 2 days at Disney World these events will be a bit more crowded so you might get less done.
Related: Top Things to See at Disney’s Epcot with your Homeschooler
Planning Your Route
As far as planning your route through the park, you need to know that the World Showcase is out further into the park and is a big circle.
If you need to get to the back quickly, or back to the front of the park quickly, take the boat across the pond in the center.
It runs often and it is a huge time saver. Do the rides upfront altogether if you can, and then spend the other time out in the showcase. This saves a ton of walking and time.
Related: The Ultimate Guide to Disney World Christmas Decorations
Travel to and from the Park
Another thing to know is that the monorail takes you between the Magic Kingdom and Epcot, so depending on the tickets you have, if you can enter both parks on more than one day, you can always take the monorail to the other park to do something you didn’t have time for before.
You can take the buses back to the hotels from Epcot also if the Skyliner isn’t something you want to do again, or at all.
The monorail does a loop around the Magic Kingdom to the closer resorts like the Polynesian and the Grand Floridian and those have places to eat in them too and are fun to see, so if you’re doing the monorail and have time, this is a fun little stop you can make.
I hope these suggestions help you plan your 2 days at Disney World and make the most of your visit!