Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Must-Sees
A classic, Disney World’s Magic Kingdom is an essential theme park to visit on your Florida vacation. This year, celebrate Disney’s 50th Anniversary.
January was a very different time of year for me to visit Disney World, as I had only previously visited in the spring and summer. But I think it is a great time of year to visit! The crowds were not that bad, so we were able to get on multiple rides a day. The weather was chilly at some points (50s and 60s), which I definitely was not expecting, so I’d definitely recommend packing warmer clothes if you will be visiting in the winter!
We stayed at Disney from a Monday to a Saturday, the Magic Kingdom was the first park we visited on our first day! We woke up early that morning, for we were staying over in a Universal hotel (we went to Universal the weekend before), got Starbucks (which I spilled), a promptly met our driver at 9 a.m. to head over to our Disney hotel. We used Take 2 Transfer, a driving service used by Universal to bring us to the Art of Animation hotel, that we were staying at in Disney. After dropping our bags at luggage services we jumped on a bus to the Magic Kingdom!
Arriving and right away seeing Mainstreet and Cinderella’s castle felt like an absolute dream. We moseyed our way down Mainstreet, stopping to take pictures with Disney photo pass photographers (we purchased the Memory Maker, highly recommend). While taking in the views, we were ushered to the sidewalk, because the Dapper Dans (Disney’s barbershop quartet) came riding down in a horse-drawn trolley. I was amazed by their singing, and the instant magic it added to the scene. I hadn’t been to Disney World in four years, so I was excited beyond belief!
After being in awe, we went over to Space Mountain to wait in line. Which, fun fact, on this trip we met a Florida native who informed us that Space Mountain is actually one of the slowest roller-coasters at Disney World (I would’ve never guessed). Space Mountain just feels so classic, I definitely recommend making it your first ride at Magic Kingdom. After Space Mountain, we ran into a janitor who was painting Donald Duck, Mickey, and Goofy on the sidewalk with water (again, just so magical!). We also place a mobile order at Starlight Cafe to get chili cheese Fries and Chicken Strips. We ate outside and took in views of the surrounding park! Also, the fries were so delicious!
After lunch, we rode on It’s a Small World (which I’m good with only riding once on a Disney trip) and then Pirates of the Caribbean (a definite must-see). Then we went over to Liberty Square to go on the Haunted Mansion. Which, for some reason, breaks down for a brief period every time I ride it. We were only stuck for a little while, it just added to the spookiness. After that, we went over to Big Thunder Mountain because we had a Genie+ reservation, so we were able to hop in the Lightning Lane and get right on. We also stopped at a PhotoPass location to get some cute pictures in front of the ride!
We were sad because, during our trip, SplashMountain was closed for maintenance. It was disappointing to walk past it and see no water running through it. Nevertheless, it was winter so inevitably it was the perfect time for Disney to provide maintenance to their attractions. I love splash mountain it is another one on the must-see list!
After riding Big Thunder Mountain, we hung out in Liberty Square and grabbed some 50th Anniversary churros, which were so good! We watched along the water waiting for the Liberty Square River Boat to return, and a PhotoPass person took amazing candid photos of us (we were chatting with her before this asking when the boat was to return). She even waited at her post for the boat to return so we could get the perfect picture! We also were able to make it on the next boat ride which was just so relaxing!
By 6:30 that evening we had set up camp in front of Cinderella’s Castle to get an ideal spot to watch Disney’s Enchantment show. Which was absolutely amazing, and made me tear up. Disney’s nighttime shows are just absolutely magical and breathtaking. Before the show, we made friends with the family next to us, one of them was a Florida native, which was helpful when it was time to leave! She knew exactly the route to take to get out of the crowds.
That night, we got back to our hotel early. We put in a mobile order at Islands of Flavor (located in our hotel) for dinner and took our meal up to our Car’s theme room! It was just the best day, a great way to kick off a Disney World Vacation.