Having an extra half day in the Magic Kingdom seemed like a bonus after a full weekend of touring. After a long weekend trip, the rest of our group was headed home, but my daughters and I had an extra Park pass all to ourselves. I wasn’t careful about planning, and ended up feeling as if we wasted a morning at the Magic Kingdom. I still feel a tad disappointed in that morning. My remorse is displayed openly here to offer you options to enjoy a different type of interaction. Hope you benefit from my hindsight. Here’s a list of what I should have done to take advantage of that morning:
1. Scheduled a FastPass with Talking Mickey:
This is newer technology for the character meets. I’ve read reviews and watched some YouTube videos, but this would have been a chance to interact directly with Mickey and form my own opinion. Character meets are no longer on my children’s must-do list, so if I want to see a Disney celebrity, it’s up to me to schedule it. We could have had some comments and questions prepared for the time with Mickey. Afterwards, we could have debriefed on the differences between non-speaking interactions and this experience. We could have theorized about the technology and then discussed how RFID is being used to personalize the experiences in the park.
2. Played Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom:
While we were debating where to go next, we watched a twenty-something park guest walk up to a portal in Adventureland and play a card. My kids didn’t know much about this park-wide game, but I had heard about it. I knew that a quick visit to the Firehouse at the front of the Park was all we needed to start. After they saw that guest’s interaction with the Portal, their interest was piqued. This would have been a good option to move around the Park with a purpose. It seemed from observing the park guest with the card that some of the kiosks are located in nooks or alcoves that would be fun to find. A day with no attractions would have been perfect for playing this game. I had a Minecraft fan and a Pokemon fan with me, so I should have had this on the schedule to show my little gamers a different side of the Magic Kingdom.
3. Said no to attractions:
Speaking of attractions, if we couldn’t make rope drop on a crowded day, and didn’t have any good FastPasses, then we should have skipped attractions altogether. Sometimes it seems that enjoying the Parks is about forty percent expectations. If we were going to the Magic Kingdom to shop and eat lunch plus ice cream, then staying at the front of the Park would have been highly enjoyable and relaxing. If we were going to the Magic Kingdom just to rush from line to line squeezing in a couple of attractions on a day the TTA had a twenty minute wait, then… oh, that’s what we did.
4. Photo Pass Photographer hunt:
We had Memory Maker with our group. All photos would have been included in our photo deal at that point. Moving from area to area seeking out photo sites would have been an excellent way to tour around the Park without setting foot in an attraction. It would have been a scavenger hunt for awkwardly posed enforced smiling! Not to mention some of those Photographers are an absolute pleasure to work with when you are there having fun. We would have had pictures to share and enjoy later at no extra cost.
All in all, my first mistake was in assuming that a half day could be treated as an afterthought. I’m an experienced Park tour-er, and should have known better. My second mistake was underestimating crowds. The Parks have very few low capacity times any more, so if I choose to do attractions, I must plan for the waits. Spontaneity at the Parks does not exist anymore around favorite attractions- not even Small World. My last and worst mistake is even allowing this memory of half a day to nag at me. We were there, we were in the Magic Kingdom, and planning or not, we enjoyed being together in the Park. As we left through the front gate, my oldest daughter hugged me and said, “I just love this place!” My tension melted and the commando touring guide turned back into Mom.
