If I Only Had One Day at Disney…
I asked on Instagram earlier this week what topics you all wanted me to cover in the blog. One of my favorite suggestions that came through was “If you had only one day at Disney, what would you do?” I felt ‘Anthony Bourdain, The Layover’ vibes from the suggestion and I’m here for it. This was NOT an easy post to write. With so many different parks and entertainment options, I really had to noodle on this one. A couple of things to note about this post: 1) This is based off of what I would do if I was on a solo trip, by myself, for one day 2) This is also based on Disney in a COVID era. Meaning, if I were to take off work this Friday, and fly to Disney by myself, what would I do with my time? It’s important to point out that my day would look wildly different if I had written this 18 months ago.
To start my day at Disney, I would definitely rope drop Magic Kingdom. Rope drop, for you new Disney fans, means you would be there before the park opens to watch the Cast Members literally drop the rope to allow guests to enter the park. I would start at Magic Kingdom for a couple of reasons. First, it opens earlier than Epcot and Hollywood Studios, so if you are trying to maximize your time, start with the parks that open earlier like Magic Kingdom or Animal Kingdom. Second, Magic Kingdom is the park that I would want to spend the most time at – and this is my day!
As soon as that rope drops, I would start by making my way to New Fantasyland and head to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. This is one of the newest attractions in Magic Kingdom, opening in 2014. It’s a family roller coaster themed after Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (if the name didn’t give it away) complete with mild thrills and amazing animatronics. This attraction easily has the longest wait time in the park, so it’s best if you can get to it first. After singing “Hi-Ho” with the dwarfs, I would get my first meal of the day at Gaston’s Tavern. This is a must do for me every trip, if not for breakfast, then at least a midday snack! The cinnamon rolls here are amazing and are as big as your head (more than enough to share!) Pair the pastry with the tavern’s signature drink, LeFou’s Brew, a non alcoholic frozen apple juice with passion fruit and mango foam, and you will be set for the rest of the morning.
From New Fantasyland, I would make my way over to Frontierland and hit two of my favorite mountains, Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain. I can’t go to Disney for a day and not do some of my favorite attractions. Since all of the Mountains typically have higher wait times in comparison to other rides, it’s again best to try and knock these out in the morning. From there, I would wander into Adventureland and ride Pirates of the Caribbean, which is arguably my favorite classic attraction in all of Disney World. The scent throughout this ride alone is enough to keep me coming back for more, but the history of the ride itself is pretty incredible. This attraction continues to stand the test of time by being as beloved today as it was in the 1970s. Since I’m in Adventureland, I can’t leave without getting a Dole Whip so I would walk across the path to Aloha Isle and grab a classic Pineapple Dole Whip Float. I would take my float and sit outside the Country Bear Jamboree and hope I timed it right to catch a character cavalcade. After that, I would head over to Haunted Mansion and complete my last attraction in Magic Kingdom for my day at Disney.
Now that I’ve checked all of the attractions off my list at Magic Kingdom, I have to get my favorite savory snack before heading out of the park. This little roll from the heavens, also known as a cheeseburger spring roll from the spring roll cart, is located in the hub of Magic Kingdom just before you enter the Adventureland arch. These things are seriously the best. They are a crunchy fried spring roll filled with cheesy, oniony, cheeseburger filling and are perfect for an afternoon pick me up. This snack is a national treasure, but hard to get these days. It has been reported that the cart is only open on weekends, so be sure to be on the lookout if you are there relatively soon. After finishing my spring roll, I would head right down the middle of Main Street USA to get some shopping done on my way out of the park. I always make it a point to walk through every store on the Emporium side of the street as I make my way toward the park exit. After I get through all of those, I swing through the The Confectionary candy shop on the opposite end to purchase any treats I want to take home for my family (or myself!)
Since Park Hopping is back, and at this point, it would be about 2 o’clock, I would head over to the bus station to hop on a bus over to Epcot. (Ideally, I would be able to take the monorail over, but the Monorail is currently not running to Epcot at the time this article was published). I love Epcot. It’s definitely not the most attraction filled park at Disney, but if I truly had a day to myself on property, I would fill my evening with a slow walk around World Showcase. The closest I have ever been to Europe are the UK and France pavilions but I long to travel out of the country. For this reason, I think this is why I love World Showcase so much. It gives you a little taste of 11 different countries from their food, culture, clothing, and toys. When a festival is going on (which is basically all of the time now) they have even more food booths open for you to try different cuisines from multiple countries and cultures.
When I get to Epcot via the buses and weave my way around the current construction walls back to the World Showcase, I always start left towards Mexico. (Are you the same?) Starting off your mile long loop is always better with a margarita in hand. Better yet, I would go inside the pyramid to La Cava del Tequila, get my marg and then get in line for the Gran Fiesta Tour ride to soak up some air conditioning before heading over towards Norway. After walking past Anna and Elsa’s Royal Sommerhus, I would check and see if the line to Frozen Ever After was manageable (40 minute post time is my max typically.) If it is, I would jump in line. If not, I would head into the gift shop to purchase my favorite Laila perfume and keep on going. (For more information on the perfume I’m referencing, Check out my “Disni-fy your beauty routine” post here.
The China pavilion is up next and it is gorgeous. The live entertainment there pre-Covid was amazing and they arguably have some of the best food booths for the various festivals. But nothing beats the next spot which is Germany. Can you honestly go to this pavilion and not get a beer? Heck no – so Prost! All along World Showcase, there are great benches facing the lagoon so I would order that beer, sit on one of those benches, and enjoy the breeze, boats, and beer. The Germany pavilion also has a caramel shop called Karamell-Kuche where you can get treats and merch but most importantly, a flight of boozy caramels. Yes. Please.
From Germany you hit Italy next followed by the American Adventure pavilion. If the timing is right, I would try and see the Voices of Liberty because it’s truly a beautiful show. After that I would walk through Japan, grab a sake, and head through the peaceful gardens and gift shops. Moving from there, I would walk through Morocco to take in all of the sights and sounds and hopefully see Aladdin and Jasmine at their meet and greet!
The France pavilion is very popular and is about to become even more crowded due to the highly anticipated opening of Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure attraction. In my ‘one day at Disney,’ I would have to stop here and get a glass of champagne and check out the festival booth. They always have some amazing cocktails that are as equally Instagramable as they are delicious! Rounding out my trek around the world would be the UK and Canada pavilions where I would stop in for a beer at the Rose and Crown pub to end my day at the parks.
My day is coming to an end and if you haven’t noticed, I’ve been snacking a lot but haven’t had a full meal. All of that walking has made me hungry and ready for a nice sit down meal. Back to the Magic Kingdom area I go and walk over to Disney’s Contemporary Resort. There I take the elevator all the way to the top to California Grill. If you read my first post on the blog, you know that California Grill is where I fell in love with Disney as an adult and is my favorite restaurant to go to. First of all, the views are amazing, even if you are not there during the fireworks. You can see Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort, and Disney’s Polynesian Resort from your table. Not to mention the beautiful sunset on Seven Seas Lagoon. Here I would sip on wine, definitely order the Sonoma goat cheese ravioli for an appetizer and end with the chocolate soufflé.
Ah, what a day! I got to ride some of my must do attractions, ate some of my favorite snacks, and even took a trip around the world all in one day. If you only had ONE day at Disney, how would you spend it? Would you do four parks in one day? Try to do as many attractions as possible? Would you resort hop? Or have a leisurely day and not do the parks at all? Let me know your dream day down in the comments below!
6 Comments
Jacqueline Peterson
You definitely have my attention! This would be a dream day! And your descriptions are elegant and spot on! Tell me more!
Melinda
We have to plan another big family trip! <3
Lani
Wow!!! This sounds like a blast!! I love all theme parks so much it would be so hard to choose. Hollywood studio has my heart with some classic attractions including Star Wars!!! Toy story land and tower of terror! Ugh it’s so hard to choose but you painted a picture of a perfect Disney day!!!! When can we go ?!
Melinda
Im still waiting on when we can redo our girls trip!
Lauren
Sign me up! And I had no idea about the spring rolls!
Melinda
You have to try and get some in October!