Disney World in 2022 might sound like an iffy prospect. But I’m here to tell you that the magic is still alive and well!
We usually take a trip to Walt Disney World every year or so for a family vacation. We had a big beautiful trip scheduled for March 2020 but you may remember that things got a little crazy back then. We rescheduled for November 2020 and reluctantly attended the parks in masks for our make up trip. It wasn’t as magical but we still had a good time.
This year, we had to plan a trip around my newly minted high schooler’s schedule now that it’s more important for him not to miss classes. Off we went at the end of January 2022, just after his 15th birthday, just after a teacher service day so he would only miss two days at the start of a new marking period.
“Does your teen still like going to Disney with you?” someone recently asked me. Surprisingly, yes. We took our first trip as a family in 2010 and joined the Disney Vacation Club in 2012. Now we’re on the hook to go at least every other year and we definitely have our Disney style.
Everyone that goes to Disney has a specific style. For us, we’re low key vacationers. We like to do a park per day but we’re not in any hurry to get there and we leave when we feel like leaving. Part of vacation for us is sleeping in! And because we’re DVC members, we know we’ll be back so we’re not devastated if we can’t fit something into our schedule.
But with as many times as we’ve been to Walt Disney World, our trips are starting to run together! So here’s a quick rundown on what our trip looked like this year. I’d love to hear how your trip would have been different!
Getting to Orlando
We flew Southwest, which we typically do since they have nonstop flights from our home airport in Baltimore. Masks are required throughout the airports and on the flight. We lucked out on our Tuesday evening flight with a flight that was only 50% full! And we nabbed the exit row – a perfect celebration of my son turning 15 the day before. He’s now old enough for the responsibility of the exit row!
Once we arrived in Orlando, we rented a car from Hertz. I hate spending money on car rentals but since they’ve discontinued the Magical Express, we preferred to spend our money on something we could get better use out of.
Before we left, I placed an Instacart order for a local Publix grocery store. By having a rental car, we were able to swing in and pick up groceries for our room (we eat breakfast in the room most days and like to have drinks and late night snacks on hand).
We also could opt out of the Disney transportation to/from the parks if we wanted to. And I’ll explain more about why we wanted to!
Where We Stayed
As DVC members, we almost always stay at a Disney Deluxe resort. Our home resort is the Animal Kingdom Lodge, which is our favorite place to stay. For this trip, I wanted to try something different so we booked a one bedroom suite at Copper Creek Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.
It was our first time to the lodge and we loved it! The rooms were bright and clean and the amenities were plentiful. And we quickly figured out how close we were to the Magic Kingdom (nope, I had no idea before I went!). The bonus is that they offered boat transportation directly to Magic Kingdom, which we took full advantage of.
TIP: If you are staying at one of the Disney resorts, they will provide free parking at any of the parks and if you’re a DVC member, you get free parking at your hotel as well. By driving directly to the parks, we save so much more time but not having to wait for buses!
What We Did – Arrival Day
Our flight arrived at 8:30pm so our goal was just to get settled into the room. But first… DINNER! I was excited to take my family to Ford’s Garage, which I had a chance to try when I attended a retreat last year. Burgers and beer were a great way to kick off our vacation.
Then grocery pick up and straight to our room!
What We Did – Day 1
Park: Magic Kingdom
Weather: Cool and rainy
Arrival Time: 11:35am
Departure Time: 10:00pm
How Many Steps I Walked: 15,466
This is not my favorite park. It’s actually my 3rd favorite park but we chose it because they had Extended Evening Hours that night (available to guests staying at a Deluxe or Deluxe Villa Walt Disney World Resort hotel for the length of their stay). That meant that the park was open from 8pm to 10pm just for guests staying in a Deluxe resort (that’s us!).
With the extra two hours, we were able to do a total of 14 rides that day, which is more than I’ve ever done! And it was great because the park was PACKED, even with the cool rain.
Attractions We Did:
- Pirates of the Caribbean (one of my faves!)
- The Barnstormer
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (our family favorite)
- Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
- The Hall of Presidents
- “it’s a small world”
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Peter Pan’s Flight (we only waited 10 minutes!)
- Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train (pro tip: get in line when the fireworks start)
- Swiss Family Treehouse
- Tomorrowland Speedway
- Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover
- Under the Sea – Journey of The Little Mermaid
- Haunted Mansion
Where We Ate:
- Casey’s Corner – I adore the mini corndogs and they also have plant-based hot dogs
- The Diamond Horseshoe – This was a sit down meal served family style. Good food for Magic Kingdom but nothing special
We also had popcorn and amazing sundaes from Storybook Treats!
What We Did – Day 2
Park: Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Weather: Cool and cloudy
Arrival Time: 1:00pm
Departure Time: 9:15pm
How Many Steps I Walked: 14,508
Here it is. Our least favorite park – even with all the cool Star Wars stuff. We had a hard time getting our groove at this park and everyone seemed a little cranky. Because once again, it was PACKED. They actually had to turn people away from the Indiana Jones show!
Although we had a mostly mellow day, I got snapped my son out of his funk by hopping in the single rider line for Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster and he declared it his new favorite ride! We also had the chance to try the Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run for the first time. And as before, we were able to cram a bunch of rides in during the last hour of the park.
(Tip: as long as you’re in line before the park technically closes, you can still go on the ride!)
Attractions We Did:
- Muppet*Vision 3D
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run
- Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
- Slinky Dog Dash (we love this ride!)
- Toy Story Mania! (a longtime family favorite)
- Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
Where We Ate:
- ABC Commissary – They have really stepped up their food game in some places. My buffalo chicken grilled cheese and salad were amazing.
- Woody’s Lunch Box – I read great things about the Lunch Box Tarts and order the Lemon-Blueberry. And it was very disappointing.
I should note that most quick service restaurants are requiring mobile orders which you can do through the Disney app. At first, we were annoyed that they wouldn’t let us in the building until we ordered but after a while, it was just more convenient.
What We Did – Day 3
Park: Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Weather: Perfectly sunny in the low 70s
Arrival Time: 11:00am
Departure Time: 7:00pm
How Many Steps I Walked: 14,830
I know so many people that skip this park but it’s honestly my second favorite park! I’m a huge animal lover and I’m happy to just walk around and look at the animals. But this time, since Everest is closed for refurbishment, I made the boys go with me. And they actually enjoyed themselves!
This is not a ride heavy park but it is beautiful and there’s a lot to see if you don’t mind walking a bit.
Attractions We Did:
- Na’vi River Journey
- Kiliminjaro Safaris
- Wildlife Express Train
- Rafiki’s Planet Watch
- Feathered Friends in Flight!
- Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail
- Maharajah Jungle Trek
Where We Ate:
- Anandapur Ice Cream Truck – I don’t normally eat a lot of ice cream but my husband and son insist this is their favorite place. I joined in the fun and had zero regrets about it.
We chose to have brunch at our hotel before we went to the park and had scheduled dinner at Boma, a buffet at Animal Kingdom Lodge that I HIGHLY recommend.
What We Did – Day 4
Park: EPCOT
Weather: Cold and windy
Arrival Time: 11:00am
Departure Time: 9:00pm
How Many Steps I Walked: 23,176
One of the things we love about Epcot is that it’s so big that it never really feels crowded. Until this day. It was packed everywhere we went. It could have something to do with them reconfigured the main entrance area and horribly rerouting people in the most inconvenient directions. We did walk. A LOT. We circled the countries twice and still managed to ride everything we wanted to, even with the crowds (except for Living with the Land which was, sadly, closed).
We were hoping the cold would make people leave early but it was a Saturday (usually the most crowded day) and people were certainly getting their drink on. We also stayed to watch the new show at the end of the night but left partway through. I’m a traditionalist so some of the modern shows just aren’t my taste.
Attractions We Did:
- The Seas with Nemo & Friends
- Spaceship Earth (our family favorite)
- Soarin’ Around the World
- Frozen Ever After (we went on just before the night show started and walked right on!)
- Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros
- Test Track (twice!)
Soarin’ was the only ride we really had to wait for and it wasn’t long at all. For Test Track, if your family is up for it, always do the Single Rider line!
Where We Ate:
- Regal Eagle Smokehouse – Eating in the America plaza was definitely NOT our first choice but we messed up our dining plans and this was the only place that had mobile ordering. And we were hangry.
- Crêpes À Emporter by La Crêperie de Paris – This is a new walk-up crepe place (with a line) that was totally worth it for our end of the night sweet and savory cravings.
- Yorkshire County Fish Shop – If you like fish & chips, this is a must-have walk-up place. We always eat here.
- Club Cool – If you like tasting sodas from around the world (both good and bad), it’s back! They’ve relocated near the Creations gift shop.
My advice is to make sure you have reservations if you want any kind of sit down service. Even the quick service lines were loooooong. I wasn’t impressed with the food booths for the Arts Festival which was also disappointing but we still made the most of our day.
***
So why should you care how my Disney vacation went? You might glean a little bit of advice from our trip. If you haven’t been in a while, make sure you brush up on the changes. Currently, masks are required at all indoor locations. Reservations are required for parks in addition to your park tickets (by the way, we always get ours from Undercover Tourist for a tax inclusive price AND get a rebate from Rakuten!)
Also, it’s fun to see how other people do Disney along with what they like to do. If you’re looking for a few things to do outside of the parks, we love to spend the day at Disney Springs (usually on our arrival or departure day). I also recommend FootGolf on the property for the whole family!
Please let me know if you have recommendations to add that we may have been missing out on all these years and if you’re planning a trip to Disney World in 2022!
