This morning I was chatting with my new friend, Marci, and she asked something to the effect of is it weird to be buying stuff for a Disney World trip that’s a year away. Should that sentence end with a question mark? Yes? No? Maybe? You know what, it doesn’t matter, the point is, a lot of people who go to Disney World start planning all aspects of their trip months and even a year or more out.

Actually, I feel like most people who have a big trip of any kind start planning way ahead. It’s really never too early to plan for your Disney vacation! Planning a Disney trip may involve more planning than people are aware of or are willing to do. But I’ve always started planning about nine months to a year out. And I don’t just mean planning the time at the parks or resort hotel. I also think ahead to what we’ll need for the trip. This includes clothing, shoes, snacks, bags, etc., and also figuring out the best deals for how I plan to get there.

Under normal circumstances, (a.k.a., not during a pandemic) you want to figure out which dates you want to be at Disney World and choose where you’ll stay at least six months or more ahead of time. If you’re staying at a Disney World hotel and a special offer comes around after you’ve already booked, you can usually get your reservation changed to include that special offer. At the 180 day mark, you’ll be able to book dining reservations if you plan on eating at restaurants that take reservations. Dining can get booked and be hard to get if you don’t already have a reservation. Using a Disney Travel Agent is really helpful for all of this! (No, I’m not a travel agent, but there are a lot of agents who can help you for free, so why not look into it?)

I think Marci is spot on for thinking ahead and grabbing stuff that she’ll use for her trip that’s a year from now. Sometimes you run across a really great bargain and buy something that you know you’ll use for your Disney World trip, and that is smart! When my kids were young, I’d find deals on light up Disney toys or Disney themed games or little items that I would give them on the road trip or flight to Orlando to keep them busy, or give them the items during our trip to help cut down on them asking for the high priced souvenirs from the parks that they forgot about once we got home anyway.

I know I annoy family and friends about things I find or with how I plan months in advance of a Disney World trip when I’m taking them with me, but I’d rather plan ahead for the trip than try to do it closer to trip time. Although I’m still some level of a control freak about my Walt Disney World trips, in recent years I’ve used travel agents to make things easier on myself. I’ll admit that I’m not as great with planning out other aspects of my life, but maybe I can finally put my Disney World planning skills to better use and get my regular life planned out better. I won’t hold my breath though… °O°