Amy's 36 hour WDW trip

WDW Prep To Go - a Disney World planning podcast

Amy shares the details of an incredibly efficient 3-day, 36-hour trip to Walt Disney World from Nashville. The episode covers her strategy f

Key takeaways

• The total cost for the 36-hour trip was approximately $996 per person.
• Taking the city bus from MCO to Disney Springs costs only $2 per person and takes about an hour.

Main topics

• 36-hour Disney World trip logistics
• Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party experience

Notable quotes

It was like a fever dream, but it was very fun.

Conclusion

This episode serves as a practical blueprint for travelers looking to

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:00) Today we'll have Amy's 36-hour Disney World trip that's coming up on this episode 532 of WWPrep2Go. Hello and welcome to WWPrep2Go, where we talk strategy and ideas for people planning their Disney trips. I'm your host Shannon Albert from www.prepschool.com. Thank you for being here for episode 532. Today is another trip report, but if you notice by the length of the episode, it is much shorter than normal, and that is because it is a 36-hour trip, so it doesn't take too long to get through that. I will have my conversations with Amy here in just a second. As always, a reminder to follow on social media. And if you want to be a guest like Amy, the only way to do that is to leave a voicemail at speakpipe.com slash WW prep to go. Give us the details of your trip. And if it works out with our schedule, somebody on my team will reach out to you to book your pre-trip and your post-trip. And we can talk then. Also, a reminder that if you want ad-free episodes, there's two ways to do that. One is on Patreon, where this exact same episode, if you're listening to this on the main feed, is up without ads. And if you have a YouTube Premium subscription, that is the only two ways. I often do hear feedback about the ads that are inserted, and I have done as much as I can to control the content of those, but Speaker 2 (1:28) there's only so much I can Speaker 1 (1:29) do because they are dynamically inserted by the advertisers. I think that is it. Let's jump into my chats with Amy, who just returned from a quick trip to Disney World. Welcome to the podcast, Amy. Hi, Shannon. I'm so glad to be here. We are talking on Thursday, September 10th, and you just told me you're headed to Disney World very soon. I'm heading at 7 a.m. tomorrow morning, bright and early. Speaker 2 (1:55) Okay, Speaker 1 (1:56) so that is September 11th. Through Speaker 2 (1:57) what date? Well, I'm heading back on the 12th. I will only be there like 36 hours. Speaker 1 (2:05) Wow, that's so fun. Okay, so talk to me about that. Why did you decide to do a 36-hour trip? Speaker 2 (2:10) I'm going with a friend from work who has always wanted to do a Halloween party. And we just, you know, the fall is busy. We both have busy schedules, and it's just worked out to do a quick one-nighter. We'll do a Halloween party Friday night and Epcot on Saturday. Speaker 1 (2:28) I have been seeing this content on social media a lot about like you don't have to, you know, wait until you have like two weeks for a trip to France. You can just go for a long weekend, come back. Obviously, you know, there's some flight time involved and all that kind of stuff. But it's just the idea of squeezing things in more like small ways. And this is a great example of that. Speaker 2 (2:51) Well, I love to go. I've never been more than four nights. I've always done mostly two and three night trips. So I do quick trips a lot. This Speaker 1 (2:59) is a very, very quick one. Speaker 2 (3:01) Very Speaker 1 (3:02) quick. Okay. And you said you're going with your friend. Speaker 2 (3:04) Her name is Shannon. Speaker 1 (3:06) Oh, let me see if I can remember that one. And you guys, have you ever traveled together? We have not. Speaker 2 (3:13) Trying to think. No, we have not. But we've worked together 15 years. So we know each other pretty good. And she's been a... Fantastic support for not just me, but my kid, our family. It's good. All Speaker 1 (3:25) right. So I guess this won't take very long, will it? Friday, Speaker 2 (3:29) September Speaker 1 (3:33) 11th. Are you flying? We Speaker 2 (3:35) are flying. We live in Nashville. So we have a 7 a.m. flight. And, you know, if things go well, it'll land at 9.50. Speaker 2 (3:45) And then a unique thing we're going to do that I don't hear about a lot is we're taking the city bus from MCO to Disney Springs. I've done it once before. It takes just less than an hour Speaker 1 (3:57) and it costs $2. Okay, this is interesting because I do want to hear about it. But given the fact that you have such a short amount of time. Speaker 2 (4:06) Yes, I did waffle about renting a car. I often rent a car, but we're staying at Saratoga Springs. And we are, you know, there, I feel like I love every kind of trip, splurges and budget. And I feel like this is a great way to budget. $2 a person, and it doesn't take really any longer than Mears can take, as you know, you know, 30 minutes to two hours. So this is a great way to use public transportation to, you know, see things on the way and still, you know, get to where we're going pretty quick. Speaker 1 (4:42) So once you get to Disney Springs, are you walking or using Disney Transport to get to Saratoga Springs? We Speaker 2 (4:48) plan to go have lunch because our room might not be ready. Speaker 2 (4:53) And just shop around a little bit. And then depending on hopefully get a room ready text, you know, along that way. And then just I would I think I'm going to have to use Google Maps to figure out where depending on where our room is, whether we boat or walk path or bus to our room. Speaker 1 (5:11) Yeah. Okay. So, yeah, because obviously the resort is so big, but some parts are close to Disney Springs, some parts a little bit further. Speaker 2 (5:20) Yeah. Well, it's Speaker 1 (5:21) not Speaker 2 (5:21) backpack. It won't be. So I think the bus isn't for everyone, obviously. But like if you did the resort luggage transfer, you could really stay anywhere and go with your backpack to Disney Springs and then take a resort bus, you know, to your resort. But anyway. Speaker 1 (5:40) You could. Okay. So you're going to have lunch in Disney Springs, eventually end up in Saratoga Springs whenever your room is ready. And based on your room location, you might walk, boat, or bus to get there. You have options. We'll play it by ear. Speaker 2 (5:52) Okay. Speaker 1 (5:53) All right. So then what? Speaker 2 (5:54) And then rest, put our feet up for just a little bit because then we'll head to the Halloween party. And I, in fact, just like two hours ago, listened to your August or yeah, trip. And, you know, we can't do everything, but I think the entertainment is a key. She's never been on the Jungle Cruise and like maybe four other rides. So we're going to try to get there not early, but, you know, shortly after four, ride a few rides, just wander and enjoy the atmosphere until 10. And then we're going to try and do all the entertainment, you know, parades and behind. Speaker 1 (6:33) Okay. So you're going to do a little bit of non-party stuff, it sounds like, between 4 and 7. And then you will do all the entertainment towards the end of the night. Speaker 2 (6:45) Yes. And of course, as we all know, rain could be a factor. Our chances between like 6 and 8 looks like the heaviest. So we'll, you know, we'll have our ponchos, we'll have our umbrellas and our, you know, flexibility. Speaker 1 (7:01) Yes. It's so hard to see what's going to happen because every single day says rain, rain, rain, rain, rain. Speaker 2 (7:07) It's like the exact cut and paste. I know. Speaker 1 (7:09) It's every day it says rain, rain, rain. And you never know. Like on my trip that you were just referencing where it said I talked about how it had rained beforehand, there was like no rain in the forecast and then it rains. And then sometimes there is, you know what I mean? It can work either way. Speaker 2 (7:23) Yeah. Speaker 1 (7:23) So we'll see what happens. Hopefully you won't be rained out. Speaker 2 (7:27) Yes. That's the, you know, at least a fake consistent like a quarter of an inch or less for the day. So hopefully that means it won't be like one of the downpours. And do you plan to stay until the end? I think so. It is such a short trip. We don't care if we get enough Speaker 1 (7:44) rest. We'll just stay Speaker 2 (7:46) as long as we want. And I'm really letting Shan, like, we have an iPhone note she's putting in things she wants to. try to eat, to see, to ride, and I'm going to let her steer us. All right. That's fun. Okay. So then Saturday, September 12th? Saturday, we will wake up and pack up our backpack. And currently I have us busing, you know, from Saratoga Springs to Epcot, and we'll get a locker, which will give us flexibility in the afternoon. Our plane doesn't leave till 630. Shan has been to Epcot, but it was the 80s. So everything is new. So we're going to just, you know, try and ride rides till 11 and then wander the countries and World Showcase and have snacks from food and wine the rest of the afternoon. Very loose, very, I did buy lightning lanes, but pretty loose plans. I Speaker 1 (8:44) love that in her world, Disney World is just Magic Kingdom and Epcot. Yes, exactly. Because that's all she's ever done. So now she's going to get to see them in a 2026 version. Yes. That's so fun. Okay. So you are using Lightning Lanes. Speaker 2 (8:59) I Speaker 1 (8:59) bought, I did my tier one as Frozen Speaker 2 (9:02) because we can single rider Remy's and Test Track if we get them later. So that's usually my strategy. Speaker 2 (9:11) Yes, that is a very good Speaker 1 (9:12) strategy. Speaker 2 (9:13) Okay. So Speaker 1 (9:14) a lot of new stuff for her. Speaker 2 (9:17) Yes, I'm pumped. I'm pumped to see it. I love going with people who haven't been in a while or who are new to the, you know, because I go a lot. I'll get to do everything on my next time, you know, but this way I can totally show them how to make it fun and easy. Speaker 1 (9:34) Is there any chance that there could be? like a future trip where she'll get to do more stuff? Speaker 2 (9:41) Oh, that would be great. That would be fantastic. I do feel like sometimes there is a pressure, Speaker 1 (9:47) like when you are the planner, to be like, okay, I want this to go really well so that you like it. Speaker 2 (9:52) Right. Exactly. And, well, she has a great temperament. Honestly, I'm not worried about that. She will have fun and it will whet her appetite for more, I'm sure, to go back. But she's flexible, you know, going to be happy no matter Speaker 1 (10:10) what. All right. So you've got your lighting lanes. You're going to be snacking through the park, World Showcase. But you've got to leave for your flight and you've got your backpack in the locker there. Yes. So how are you making that move to the airport? Speaker 2 (10:25) We will, depending on the timing of things, we'll either bus to Saratoga Springs and walk to the city bus stop. There's actually a city bus that goes to the Ticket and Transportation Center. So we could, like, if she wants a monorail ride, we could monorail to the TTC. It's a different bus number, so I'd have to look up its route. But it would go to the airport. And then if we are