Now that I've completed my detailed recap of how I visited every major Walt Disney World attraction in a single day, I wanted to offer a few concluding thoughts. In addition, to celebrate visiting 37 major attractions in one day, I am offering 37% off Optimal Magic services for an extremely limited time - details at the bottom of this post.
I've gotten some questions about this quest, so let me answer them here.
Read the rest of this blog series
Part 1 - List of attractions visited
Part 2 - How to plan for such a challenge
Part 3 - Hollywood Studios recap
Part 4 - Epcot recap
Part 5 - Animal Kingdom recap
Part 6 - Magic Kingdom recap
Part 7 - Final concluding thoughts
I've gotten some questions about this quest, so let me answer them here.
Read the rest of this blog series
Part 1 - List of attractions visited
Part 2 - How to plan for such a challenge
Part 3 - Hollywood Studios recap
Part 4 - Epcot recap
Part 5 - Animal Kingdom recap
Part 6 - Magic Kingdom recap
Part 7 - Final concluding thoughts
Why did you do this challenge?
There were three main reasons for this challenge. First, and most importantly, I wanted to raise money for the Make A Wish Foundation. (If you haven't donated yet, click here to make a donation!) Over half of the wishes granted by the Make A Wish Foundation involve the Walt Disney company, and it's a great organization to help out.
Second, I wanted to prove it can be done. I hear so many people complain about the "incredibly long lines" and "huge crowds" at Disney World. Optimal Magic is all about helping you avoid those lines and crowds, and having a much better time because of it. Simply enough, if I can do an entire week's worth of Disney World in a day, and avoid all the lines, imagine what I can do for a family heading there for a vacation?
Third, it was fun! I'm a little weird - I prefer "beating the system" more than actually riding the rides. And this seemed like the ultimate "beat the system" idea - visit every major Disney World attraction in one day without waiting in line!
Second, I wanted to prove it can be done. I hear so many people complain about the "incredibly long lines" and "huge crowds" at Disney World. Optimal Magic is all about helping you avoid those lines and crowds, and having a much better time because of it. Simply enough, if I can do an entire week's worth of Disney World in a day, and avoid all the lines, imagine what I can do for a family heading there for a vacation?
Third, it was fun! I'm a little weird - I prefer "beating the system" more than actually riding the rides. And this seemed like the ultimate "beat the system" idea - visit every major Disney World attraction in one day without waiting in line!
How many attractions did you visit? How long did you wait?
In total, I visited 37 attractions over a single day at Walt Disney World. They were spread among the four parks, and included every single major attraction - the ones with the infamous Disney World lines.
In total, I waited 72 minutes over the course of the day. That's an average of under two minutes waiting per attraction! To put it in perspective, here's a sample of the wait times I saw posted later that day (believe it or not, on a relatively quiet day at Disney World):
Yes, I waited less time for 37 attractions than some people waited for Toy Story Mania alone on the same day!
In total, I waited 72 minutes over the course of the day. That's an average of under two minutes waiting per attraction! To put it in perspective, here's a sample of the wait times I saw posted later that day (believe it or not, on a relatively quiet day at Disney World):
- Toy Story Mania - 75 minutes
- Rock 'n Roller Coaster - 60 minutes
- Peter Pan's Flight - 70 minutes
- Soarin' - 60 minutes
- Kilimanjaro Safaris - 45 minutes
- Tower of Terror - 60 minutes
- Dumbo - 35 minutes
- Space Mountain - 50 minutes
- Thunder Mountain - 50 minutes
Yes, I waited less time for 37 attractions than some people waited for Toy Story Mania alone on the same day!
Is this a record for most attractions visited in a day?
It depends on what you call an "attraction" - I didn't visit many of the minor attractions and relatively few shows. Some people have tried to visit all of the Magic Kingdom in one day - if you count some things like listening to the "Dapper Dans" barbershop quartet, or meeting a Disney character as "attractions" (I didn't count these), then others have certainly visited more than 37 attractions.
However, I don't believe anyone else has ever visited every major attraction at all four theme parks in a single day. I certainly believe that if you hold a minimum standard for what counts as an "attraction" I broke any existing record - I can't find anyone who has done more! (If you think someone has done better, please point me to it!)
However, I don't believe anyone else has ever visited every major attraction at all four theme parks in a single day. I certainly believe that if you hold a minimum standard for what counts as an "attraction" I broke any existing record - I can't find anyone who has done more! (If you think someone has done better, please point me to it!)
How did you pick the day to visit?
Unlike a "normal" visit at the Disney parks, I needed long park hours. October 29 fit the bill, as the Magic Kingdom was open until 1am (using Extra Magic Hours for Disney resort guests).
Also, I needed a relatively quiet day crowd-wise. My "normal" Optimal Magic planning means crowds are never an issue, as we usually avoid the busiest parts of the day and know how to avoid the crowds. However, since I was going to be visiting all four parks, I was going to need to do some park touring during busier times. So a "less busy" day was necessary for this trip.
Finally, I wanted a day where I could have company. My brother was going to be in Orlando on October 29 and had some free time, so it worked out perfectly.
Also, I needed a relatively quiet day crowd-wise. My "normal" Optimal Magic planning means crowds are never an issue, as we usually avoid the busiest parts of the day and know how to avoid the crowds. However, since I was going to be visiting all four parks, I was going to need to do some park touring during busier times. So a "less busy" day was necessary for this trip.
Finally, I wanted a day where I could have company. My brother was going to be in Orlando on October 29 and had some free time, so it worked out perfectly.
How did you pick when to visit each park?
I used all of my Optimal Magic analytical tools to plot out my itinerary, first at the high level (which order to visit the parks), and then the lower-level (when to visit each attraction, when to get what Fastpasses, etc.)
Some things were obvious - the Magic Kingdom was open four hours later than any other park, so that was clearly going to be my last park. Other things were much less obvious - several people suggested I head to Animal Kingdom first, because it opened at 8am - an hour earlier than the other parks.
However, a careful analysis showed that it was much better to visit Hollywood Studios first, and save Animal Kingdom for later in the day! The primary reason is that the four "big" Hollywood Studios attractions get enormous crowds later in the day, with difficulties using Fastpass for two of them. Animal Kingdom attractions, on the other hand, are easier to visit in the late afternoon. If I visited Animal Kingdom first, it would have cost me over two hours in line at Hollywood Studios. And that would have snowballed to Epcot, costing me another hour or two of waiting there.
If I had visited Animal Kingdom first (the "obvious" first park), I would not have been able to complete the entire itinerary! Putting Animal Kingdom third made the most sense - in fact, the early entry for Animal Kingdom still helped me - more people completed the park and left by the time I arrived!
Some things were obvious - the Magic Kingdom was open four hours later than any other park, so that was clearly going to be my last park. Other things were much less obvious - several people suggested I head to Animal Kingdom first, because it opened at 8am - an hour earlier than the other parks.
However, a careful analysis showed that it was much better to visit Hollywood Studios first, and save Animal Kingdom for later in the day! The primary reason is that the four "big" Hollywood Studios attractions get enormous crowds later in the day, with difficulties using Fastpass for two of them. Animal Kingdom attractions, on the other hand, are easier to visit in the late afternoon. If I visited Animal Kingdom first, it would have cost me over two hours in line at Hollywood Studios. And that would have snowballed to Epcot, costing me another hour or two of waiting there.
If I had visited Animal Kingdom first (the "obvious" first park), I would not have been able to complete the entire itinerary! Putting Animal Kingdom third made the most sense - in fact, the early entry for Animal Kingdom still helped me - more people completed the park and left by the time I arrived!
How did you pick when to visit each attraction at each park?
Again, I used Optimal Magic planning tools, plus some on-the-fly creative problem-solving. Some parts were easy - Hollywood Studios was a breeze because I know the crowd patterns in the early morning at each attraction and it was the first park visited. The other parks took a bit more creativity, especially in mid-afternoon when the crowd levels are high and can vary dramatically from attraction to attraction and from minute-to-minute. I had a "suggested plan of attack" for that point (which I mostly followed), but I couldn't even have a ten-minute unexpected delay, so I adjusted on-the-fly using a combination of three strategies:
If you're an Optimal Magic customer, we usually avoid the busiest parts of the day, so the on-the-fly problem solving is minimized. However, if you ever get in a bind or need help, I'm only a text or call away and can get you on the right track again!
- Use Fastpass for the long-line attractions, being sure not to get a "far out" Fastpass that blocks off several hours of time (I used about seven Fastpasses for the day - note that my customers often use eight or more, but they're also re-riding favorite attractions, which I did not do.)
- Riding the "long line" attractions at times where the lines were smallest.
- Riding "medium line" attractions at times where their lines hadn't built up or had died down.
- Filling in the busiest time with "no-line" attractions like Carousel of Progress or the Peoplemover.
If you're an Optimal Magic customer, we usually avoid the busiest parts of the day, so the on-the-fly problem solving is minimized. However, if you ever get in a bind or need help, I'm only a text or call away and can get you on the right track again!
Your trip looked crazy and stressful. Does that mean that Optimal Magic services lead to a crazy and stressful trip?
No - not at all! Vacations planned with Optimal Magic are the exact opposite of crazy and stressful. The whole point of using Optimal Magic is to make your trip less stressful and more fun, by avoiding the lines and doing everything you want to do. And it's 100% customized to what you want to do, not what I think you should do!
I would never recommend an Optimal Magic customer visit all four parks in one day (in fact, I rarely even have customers go to two parks - there are exceptions, especially for people staying at an Epcot-area resort, but it's not too common).
Was this challenge crazy and stressful? Yes, it was. But it's not what I would ever have my clients do. Instead, think of this challenge as a "stress test" on Optimal Magic modeling and planning. If something as extreme as this worked so well, imagine how well it will work for a "regular" family vacation! Replace the stress and the rushing around with 4 hours of down-time to swim or have nice, long meals. It becomes great vacation day after great vacation day!
I would never recommend an Optimal Magic customer visit all four parks in one day (in fact, I rarely even have customers go to two parks - there are exceptions, especially for people staying at an Epcot-area resort, but it's not too common).
Was this challenge crazy and stressful? Yes, it was. But it's not what I would ever have my clients do. Instead, think of this challenge as a "stress test" on Optimal Magic modeling and planning. If something as extreme as this worked so well, imagine how well it will work for a "regular" family vacation! Replace the stress and the rushing around with 4 hours of down-time to swim or have nice, long meals. It becomes great vacation day after great vacation day!
I want to see all of Disney World in one day too!
No you don't. If you only have a day to visit Disney World, you most likely are best off visiting one park and having a great day. Unless the idea of speed-walking 25 miles in a day sounds like fun to you, you really don't want to try this.
But if you really want to do it, drop me a line! I'm happy to help you plan your day. And if you'd like a guide to come with you to climb Mount Disney, I'm happy to offer my services. Heck - let's try to beat my record!
But if you really want to do it, drop me a line! I'm happy to help you plan your day. And if you'd like a guide to come with you to climb Mount Disney, I'm happy to offer my services. Heck - let's try to beat my record!
What's this about 37% off?
To celebrate the 37 Disney attractions I visited in a single day, I am offering 37% off of Optimal Magic services for an extremely limited time. The offer is only good for services purchased through Friday, November 16th, or until claimed by twenty people - whichever comes first! So click here to buy my services before this offer ends!
Read the rest of this blog series
Part 1 - List of attractions visited
Part 2 - How to plan for such a challenge
Part 3 - Hollywood Studios recap
Part 4 - Epcot recap
Part 5 - Animal Kingdom recap
Part 6 - Magic Kingdom recap
Part 7 - Final concluding thoughts
Read the rest of this blog series
Part 1 - List of attractions visited
Part 2 - How to plan for such a challenge
Part 3 - Hollywood Studios recap
Part 4 - Epcot recap
Part 5 - Animal Kingdom recap
Part 6 - Magic Kingdom recap
Part 7 - Final concluding thoughts
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