Have a question about planning a trip to Disney or something you’ve read here? We’re here to help! We’ve visited every Disney resort around the world, from Walt Disney World to Tokyo Disney Resort, and have stayed in nearly every Disney-owned hotel.
Many frequently asked questions we receive can be answered by reading the posts on this site. If you are curious about a certain topic, use the search feature at the top of the page. Some of our most helpful pages include the following…
If you’re trying to plan a Walt Disney World trip, visit our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide. If planning a Disneyland trip, check out our Disneyland Trip Planning Guide. If you have questions about photography or want camera recommendations, read our Photography Guide. If you want to use one of the Tom’s photos from this site on your own blog, website, etc., check out our Photo Usage page. If you have questions about Sarah’s attire, take a look at our What to Wear to Disney and Unique Disney Packing List posts.
If you can’t find a post that answers your question, please leave a comment on a relevant post, and we will do our best to reply to your question. We see all new comments, even on old posts. This is the easiest and most effective way of asking us a question. Unfortunately, we do not have time to respond to questions via email–you’re much more likely to get a response to a comment on a post.
Please note that we just two passionate Disney fans writing a blog about our experiences with advice based on those experiences in our free time. In other words, don’t expect instantaneous responses or post an ALL CAPS comment when we don’t respond to you within a day. If you don’t hear from us within a week or two, consider re-posting the comment, as we might have missed it.
We are not affiliated with The Walt Disney Company nor is this an official Disney blog, so if you have questions or complaints about a booking with Disney or anything of that sort, you’ll want to contact Disney Guest Services for that.
Thanks,
Sarah & Tom Bricker
I hope I’m not asking a question that’s been answered elsewhere but I haven’t been able to find a direct answer to this scenario yet.
You’ve mentioned that Fastpass reservations open up 60 days in advance for hotel guests and 30 days in advance for regular ticket holders. I’m curious how that ties in with getting hotel reservations using rented DVC points and purchasing tickets through Orlando Discount Tickets. Would that allow us the 60 day window or not since the tickets were not part of a usual stay package purchased directly from Disney?
It doesn’t matter where the tickets were purchased, so long as you’re staying on-site, you get the 60-day window.
Hi Tom & Sarah-
Just wanted to say I really enjoy your blog, (actually a couple of people at my work read it and we have enjoyed discussing it), so thank you for all of the informative and entertaining posts.
Also, I am not sure if this would be the right section to ask this, but I was interested in using one of your photos as my cover for facebook. It is the infrared Magic Kingdom photo featuring the sea serpent topiary. It should go without saying I will be crediting you for the photo, I would be happy to word it in a certain way if you prefer. The picture is one of my favorites and I would very much appreciate it. Thanks!
Yeah, you’re more than welcome to use it! 🙂
Hi Tom and Sarah!
I’love lead with saying that I LOVE this blog. I’ve used it planning several trips and the advice has been a life saver. I also point people to it regularly. Thanks for sharing all of your experience/research/wisdom!
My question has probably already been answered by I am having trouble locating an answer. I have never used a travel agent but for the next triput I would like to. How do you go about determining if one is “good”? I know you’ve mentioned that they should not charge a fee. What other things am I looking for in a good agent?
Thanks,
Kimbra Marie
Hi Kimbra –
Sarah can actually assist you with a travel agent. Her email is [email protected] (I’ve passed your message along to her).
Generally, though, when looking for a travel agent, you want to find one that is an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner. Beyond that, it’s a bit tricky. I’d recommend going with an agency that actually *specializes* in Disney, rather than does a variety of destinations with Disney as one of those destinations. The agents specializing in Disney will typically have a lot more knowledge about Disney, and will better be able to help you plan. An example of an agency that doesn’t specialize in Disney would be AAA. Now, I’m painting with a broad brush here, as AAA definitely has some agents that are Disney fans and experts, but the vast majority are not. The other thing is that even at the reputable Disney-oriented travel agencies, you have some great agents, and some bad ones. So at that point, it’s really just talking to the potential agent and getting a feel for them, seeing if you click.
Hi guys. I’ll be making my first trip to Disneyland this summer. I am planning on three days at Disneyland and was wondering if you had any ideas on how you might spend the rest of the week in Southern California? I’ll have a rental car, but don’t want to see the usual Los Angeles tourist attractions (ie Hollywood). Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Check out the California category of posts on my other blog, Travel Caffeine, as that should be a good start: http://www.travelcaffeine.com/location/california/
Hi Tom! Stumbled upon your blog while planning my Disneyland trip (went last month, it was great!) Just wanted to say hi and thank you for all the useful tips (and gorgeous pictures – they’re really helping now that I’m getting those crazy Disney withdrawals!) If you ever come back to Hawaii, let me know! I’m a Cast Member at Aulani 🙂
Thanks–I’m sure being a Cast Member in paradise is a pretty awesome job!
Do you know if HGTV is sponsoring the 2015 Flower and Garden festival? I have not seen any news on HGTV presenters yet so I’m beginning to think there won’t be any this year, but if there are, I’d love to know before we plan a trip for the Spring so I could pick which weekend to attend based on the presenters. Thank you! 🙂
Hi Tom!
I was wondering what software you used to edit your photos from Disneyland Paris. They look absolutely brilliant.
Thanks so much for such a great blog filled with tons of information. We are travelling in May and will be doing out of pocket dining. Can you tell me where I can get prices for meals? MDE provides a range so it’s kind of hard to budget. We are checking in on Memorial Day weekend so that may be considered peak as far a food prices, right?
DisneyWorld.com’s dining section has menus for each restaurant with exact prices. Have a good trip!
I have found this site to be immensely helpful in trying to decide whether or not to purchase a dining plan and also to pre-plan which restaurants to pencil into our agenda.
http://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/dining
Hi Sarah and Tom!
I’m going to Disney World in May, and it’s going to be me, a 17yo, and three of my friends, who are 17, 18, and 20. Since we’re an age group not common (without parents) in Disney World, it’s very hard to find tips on what people our age should be prepared for or do there! Any hints/tips/advice in general for the four of us? Especially for interacting with characters and cast members (will they be as responsive and engaged with teenagers as they are with little kids and adults? teenager is such an awkward age to interact with!).
Thank you so much! Keep up the good work!
Thanks so much for this invaluable blob! What a GREAT resource for someone who hasn’t been to the park in over 30 years. Taking my 6 year old for the first time and your insights and suggestions have been really helpful!
Love this blog. I’ve bookmarked it for our upcoming trip (first time at WDW)! Having fun reading.
So, I was reading about Festival of Fantasy and I saw that during hub construction the FP+ area is by the flagpole in the Town Square. What are your thoughts on the best place to sit/stand here for photos?
I’m sure it will be great to view the parade, just wondering if you have any tips for getting good shots in this new/temporary area.
I’d recommend going for a spot at the edge of Town Square facing Cinderella Castle so the floats are coming directly towards you.
Great, thanks!
Hi tom!
Amazing blog. I don’t know what I’d do without it. We are planning our first trip to Disney in July ( ugh! I know ) anyways I went to pricesavers website and read that you can return your tickets with in 365. This alarmed me because how do they know these tickets were not used and then retuned? Apparently the only way to validate a ticket is at the gate? So how can I be sure the tickets I get from them are not used?
Thanks so much!
I’m not familiar with Pricesavers. I assume whatever site it is has the means of verifying usage based upon the serial number of barcode.
hi there!
came upon your blog b/c it was mentioned as I was researching DVC. (your info was most valuable on that, thank you!)
Just curious, i didn’t see anything about the dolphin or swan hotel. Do you know anything about it, have you stayed at either, is it a WDW resort?
Let me know your thoughts.
thanks!
Ira
Just stayed at the Swan this weekend and plan on reviewing it soon. Stay tuned! 🙂
Hi Tom and Sarah,
First of all, thank you so much for the amazing work you’ve done here!
I know most of your readers are from the United States so I’d just like to say hi from Singapore! I’ve been reading your blog for the past year and a half and it has helped me so much in planning Tokyo Disney (December 2013!). Wouldn’t quite have managed it without the tips here.
Although I live in Singapore, I’ve never been to Hong Kong Disney, though it’s very near and very cheap to fly there. However, funnily enough, I consider the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim as my “home park” though it’s a 17 hour flight away, because I’ve made 12 separate trips there, over the past 21 years. I still remember the days before California Adventure and Fastpass, even though I was really young then!
This year I’ll be visiting the parks in Paris (next month) as well as Orlando (mid April) and its my first time at these 2 parks so I’ve been reading every single post and I think I’ve prepared sufficiently, thanks to you guys! I’ll also be squeezing in a trip to the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim this May and I really can’t wait to go back! Sadly though I’ll be in Tokyo in may too, I don’t have time to re-do Tokyo Disney this time round.
Thanks again for all the hard work and amazing photos and insightful tips! You’ve helped more people in their trip planning than you know! I’ll continue to read all of the posts!
Cheers,
Joanne
Hello! First off, love your blog! It’s great to have an adults-without-kids perspective on all things Disney! I have a question about Disneyland though! My husband and I are planning our first ever trip to Disneyland this year, and we tentatively are thinking about mid May. I just read on Mice Chat today that the time we were planning on going is tentatively scheduled to be the soft-opening for the 60th anniversary festivities. Obviously this will add some crowds to the mix, but I was just wondering what your advice would be on whether we should change our trip plans. (Again, not a big deal, no tickets have been purchased.) You have more experience with crowds and how the annual passholders affect Disneyland crowds, and I was just wondering if an event like this would make the park utter chaos! Since we have never been to Disneyland, and are not sure when we could go back, we want to be able to experience as much as possible!
Thanks in advance, and thanks for all the research you do! I’m sure its tough work, but someone has to do it! 😉
I think mid-May will be the perfect time to visit. That’s when everything will soft opening, and the parks generally aren’t too bad then in terms of crowds.
Yes, there will be more annual passholders visiting this year in mid-May for these festivities, but I think that will be one of the LEAST busy times of year since the big push won’t come until summer.
Of course, this is all speculation…I could very well be entirely wrong!
Great to know! Oh I know its all speculation at this point, but your guess is better than mine! Thanks!
Hi Tom and Sarah! I am such a fan of your blog — your beautiful photos and helpful info. Ok fangirl stepping aside for a moment.
Your blog helped me plan my family’s first trip to WDW in April 2014. It was great! But exhausting. WDW is huge, man. You aren’t kidding about the mileage traversed each day. We left the parks in the early afternoon and initially intended to rest up and return in the evenings, but that never happened. Bummer.
So keeping that in mind, and how my children are 6, 4, and 15m (and the 4yo is now over 40″, huzzah), I’m thinking maybe next I want to give Disneyland a go. I would love to return to WDW at some point, but perhaps when they are bigger and we aren’t so dependent on a stroller/babywearing.
I would fly out of IND. You, too? Wondering if you have any thoughts on best airports to fly into, etc. I’m nervous because of the time change, and longer flight. Like would that mess with us too much? Kinda worried. I mean if we roll in on a day that the park opens at 9, will we only have a few hours before someone needs a nap? Will we have zero chance for the nighttime entertainment?
Also, I’m looking at general prices, and it does seem like the flight to the West Coast is going to run us at least $100 more/ticket (we do buy a plane seat for the baby, because safety). That plus the fewer (seemingly) discounts and etc., and I’m wondering if it’s still a better value for us to just go to WDW and try to oh, I dunno, be a little less intense about it.
Also, we were at WDW during a slightly warmer than normal time — cast members confirmed I wasn’t crazy at sweltering in the 93 + muggy temps. I disliked that.
So, I’m thinking a jaunt out to Disneyland would be superawesome for my crew at this age, but I need a little nudge that if it ends up being more pricey than a similar time at WDW, that it’s still worth the price and jetlag. OR should we keep to WDW for the time being, and make the trek to DLR later on?
(Oh and yeah, last time I did some credit card bonuses to help pay for our trip. We ended up with like $900 toward our trip. Definitely helped the cause!)
kthxbai
Just responded to this comment on the WDW v. Disneyland post. Hope that helps! 🙂
Where is that post found? I have an almost identical situation!
Found it! Never mind…
I have tried countless times to sign up for your email list..no email to finish subscribing arrives, no spam filter blocking. I dont get enough Bricker pearls of wisdom from the site..anything you can do?
..my fave review this week was Jiko..talking about throwing up in your mouth a little. lol! awesome! I am a seasoned visitor and like to keep the disney magic rolling in between trips. Thank you for your time spent. It adds to the Disney magic.
Hmm…I don’t know enough about the tech side of this to explain why that’s happening? Try a different email address, maybe? Sorry! 🙁
Tom,
Your blog has been a tremendous help as I’m planning our May 2015 Disneyworld trip! I have a “first-timer” ticket buying question…probably a stupid one, too, but here goes: do tickets have to be purchased all in one transaction? Or can I purchase four one month and four the next? We have a large family and are on a budget, so I was thinking of ways to spread out the ticket cost over a couple of months instead of one fell swoop.
Thanks so much!
Jerri
So long as you mean buying tickets for 4 people and then tickets for another 4, yes. I would highly recommend having all tickets purchased by the 60 day mark so you can book FastPass+.
DO NOT buy 4 days worth of tickets, and then another 4 days worth for an 8 day trip, as you’ll pay more doing it that way.
Hope that makes sense. For more info, read our WDW Tickets post: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/discount-disney-tickets/
Hi Tom, I run https://www.facebook.com/Digital.Photo.Recommendations and someone just passed me your lovely fireworks shot on http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2014/12/disney-parks-after-dark-holiday-wishes-at-magic-kingdom-park/ wondering how it was done. I’d love to hear more about how you setup for this shot- 13 second exposure – just one? intrigued by how sharp some of the crowd is, I would expect more blur there.
I’d be happy to share this photo out with a link back to you if you wanted to do a short write up of how you captured it all.
Thanks, Toby
Digital Photo Recommendations
Hi Toby,
Yes, that is a single exposure. Crowds are often fairly sharp in long exposure Disney fireworks photos, and it’s more a result of the people not, or mostly not, moving (either by choice or because there’s nowhere to go) during the fireworks. There’s really nothing special about the shot. Ordinary tripod setup in build mode, base ISO, and me opening and closing the shutter based on when that scene of the fireworks began and concluded. Processing was just a simple matter of bringing up the shadows, taming highlights, and giving it some punch.
Hope that helps!
-Tom
I just want to thank you so much for the work and effort you have put into this blog! I am planning a Christmas trip for a group of 12 family members (4 first-timers, 4 second-timers, and my group of 4 pros) and your information has proven invaluable in trying to navigate the ‘joys’ of MDE and Christmas week. While I can’t guarantee it will solve all obstacles we will face, I feel better informed and prepared.
Even better, I’m thrilled to see your info about Tokyo and Hong Kong Disney as my family and I are preparing to move to Japan and will be eager to see a familiar rodent in our travels. Hoping to catch Shanghai after it opens as well!
One question I had about your experience with the various DLs – did you find fastpass running to be efficient or necessary? Or rude? My husband and I had a great system down in our DL and WDW trips until FP+ (I ride a kiddie ride with the kids while he snags a FP) but I wasn’t sure if that works as well overseas or is even feasible!
Thanks again!!!
Yeah, that system is feasible, no, I don’t think it’s rude. It’s *always* more efficient to hand all tickets to one person to have them get FastPasses instead of doing it one by one.