As many of you know, we are huge Disney fans as are many people we know. We continuously get questions about our favorite restaurants, rides and things to do in Disney. We have season passes so we go about once to twice a month. I figured it was time to share a complete guide to Disney. We will share our favorite highlights from each park in this post. Stay tuned for a specific blog post on each park that will go into more details. If you travel like we do, we love to have the best recommendations from people, especially from people who go all of the time. I realize that some people like to use vacation and travel guides for their trips and that is totally okay to do, but just wanted to provide another way to share the must see and things to do there from going often.
Magic Kingdom
Let’s start with the top favorite park! First of all would say that if you can plan a trip in the off seasons it’s the best time and also if you are able to go during the week, that is best too. Off seasons are January-February, September-October. I would also avoid going when they have special events if you can and aren’t going for that. You’re going to want to download the Disney app and make sure to link your tickets etc. Also, Genie+ will come in handy for any of the really big attractions, but I think if you do Magic Kingdom two days you can cover all the rides without Genie+. Also, another way around the really long lines on rides like Mine Train, Rise of Resistance, Slinky Dog, and Passage of Flight would be to get there for rope drop which is 30-40 minutes before the park opens. We also have often waited in those lines right before park closes and the lines have seemed less then. Now onto the fun part our favorite rides, restaurants, and things to do.
Rides
Big Thunder Mountain (this one is fun and a coaster, so I think you have to be a certain height for this)
Pirates of the Caribbean (great ride for anyone, just be careful about lifting your feet under the seats, I lost a toenail one time doing that)
Seven Dwarf Mine Train (would be smart to get a Genie+ for this one or go first thing in the morning once rope drops)
Space Mountain (this is a fav for most adults, honestly not my fav cause it’s jerky, but has a cool vibe)
Buzz Lightyear (we love this one and usually the line is a shorter wait)
Peter Pan’s Flight (this is a great kids one and is nostalgic to me)
Jungle Cruise (this one is often glossed over, but is such a fun ride and they’ve updated it)
Splash Mountain (you have to do it once, but honestly not my fav, I always get soaked)
Under the Sea (this one is Ariel’s journey and is fun)
These would be the one’s I would recommend the most at the park. They have several others for young kids like Winnie the Pooh, which unashamedly I like. My absolute favorite ride at Magic Kingdom would have to be Big Thunder Mountain and Corbin’s favorite is Mine Train.
Food Places
There are so many great places for food at Disney but I wanted to share our favorites and also the most affordable and GF friendly ones.
Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe (has great mexican type food, they are always great with my allergies and have great prices)
Be our Guest (this is obviously more on the expensive side, but has amazing food and a great atmosphere)
Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe (one of my favorite quick places in Magic Kingdom, they do a great job with GF/DF options and have a great menu)
Aloha Isle (I love the dole whip here, definitely need to try it out)
Animal Kingdom
This is my absolute favorite park at Disney World. I love all of the animals, rides, and trees. It’s a really beautiful park. Most of the time animal kingdom is the first park that closes at Disney so you want to get there earlier in the day. The only ride you might want a Genie + pass for is Flight of passage, but besides that it’s not necessary for the rest of the park. Flight of passage usually has a long wait, but if you get in when the rope drops or wait till the end of the day you can just wait in regular stand by line. It’s so worth the wait!
Rides
Flight of Passage (this is my favorite ride at any of the parks and is so much fun)
Everest (probably my second favorite ride at Disney, this is a fast coaster that goes forwards/backwards)
Kilimanjaro Safari (this is a great one for kids and so much fun seeing all of the animals)
The Lion King Show (you need to make sure to see this show! It’s so good!)
Dinosaur (this one isn’t too bad of a ride, it’s just really jerky, but if you have a kid who likes dinos then definitely check it out)
I also love their Gorilla trail and all of the other animals you can see on their trails near the Safari ride. Make sure to grab photos at sunset in the tree. There is a trail to go up in the tree at Animal Kingdom that is right next to the stroller spot for It’s tough to be a bug and it’s such a pretty trail and a good quiet photo spot. Corbin and I’s both favorite ride at Animal Kingdom is Flight of Passage.
Food
Animal Kingdom has some good places to eat. They are more limited but Avatar World is definitely the place to hit up for good food in Animal Kingdom.
Satu’li Canteen (by far my favorite in Animal Kingdom, they make these delicious buddha type bowls and they are so good for GF/DF allergies.
Flame Tree Barbecue (has great barbecue and very good with allergies)
Besides those two I would recommend hoping on over to Disney Springs. I’m sharing my favorite restaurants and things to do in Disney Springs in another post coming soon!
Hollywood Studios
This park is a lot of fun and filled with a lot of rides, especially for your older kids with Star War’s Galaxy Edge. This is Corbin’s favorite park because he is the biggest Star Wars fan! You’ll definitely want to make sure you have Genie + for the bigger attractions, unless you’re a passholder. Rise of Resistance is always pretty long and slinky dog dash as well.
Rides
Rise of Resistance (this is a must and so much fun! It’s very realistic too)
Toy Story Mania (this is a really unique and fun ride, great for any age)
Millennium Falcon (this is also a great one with a lot of action and fun)
Slinky Dog Dash (this is a coaster, but definitely fun for kids too)
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railroad (I haven’t rode this one yet, but keep hearing good things about it)
Rock n Roller Coaster (this is a fun fast paced roller coaster in the dark)
Tower of Terror (Corbin and I don’t like this one and never ride it, but a lot of people really enjoy it.)
Food
Backlot Express (this is great for a quick meal and will be affordable too, they have lots of GF/DF options)
Sci-Fi Dine in Theatre (this is definitely more pricey but is such a neat experience)
Ronto Roasters (this was recommended by family)
50’s Prime Time Cafe (also a really cool experience, but higher priced food)
Olga’s Cantina (you need to get the blue milk here, it’s not a food place but has amazing drinks in Galaxy’s Edge)
Epcot
If you want really great food and a unique around the world experience then Epcot is your place to go. They are always adding new restaurants here too. We haven’t tried a couple of them, but will share all our favorites and others as well. You might want to consider Genie + for Test Track and a couple of those bigger rides on a busy day, but should be fine with the waits for most of the rides.
Rides
Frozen (I have yet to ride it, but hear great things)
Test Track (this is a really fun one and unique)
Soarin (you need to ride this one at Epcot, it’s such an amazing ride)
Remy’s Ratatouille (this one is super cute and different, definitely wait to get in line at the end of the day)
Mission Space (there are two versions of this ride, one that spins and one that doesn’t. I always ride the one that doesn’t)
Living with the land (this one is surprisingly cool to see especially around Christmas time)
Food
Food is the highlight at Epcot and you have so much to choose from! Some of my favorites and allergy friendly places below. Don’t forget to check out Food and Wine festival and the flower festival as well.
La Cantina De Sangel (has great mexican food, they don’t have as many options for allergies though, but have some)
San Angel Inn Restaurant (is a fancier sit down but has great mexican food and great with allergies)
Space 220 (is a new restaurant and I have not visited yet, but have heard amazing reviews about it)
Tangierine Cafe (has moroccan food, not sure about allergy options here as I haven’t eaten here since)
There are so many other restaurants I haven’t tried yet in Epcot. I do know they have a couple of Italian restaurants that offer allergy friendly options too.
Hope you all enjoyed this guide and let me know in the comments if I missed any restaurants. Let me know which rides are your favorites too. I am going to share my Disney Springs Guide in the next couple of weeks. I hope that you all enjoy your visits at Disney and let me know if you have questions and be sure to follow me and check back for more travel guides on my blog, instagram, and Tik Tok (@autumnmturner).
Beyoutiful Adventure 