So my wife's family and our family are going to Disney World in Orlando Labor Day week and I'm a complete newbie here, this will be my very first time there.

I'm being told I need good, comfortable shoes as we will be walking many, many miles a day.

What do you Disney veterans recommend?

I was thinking a pair of lightweight New Balance running or walking shoes? Would that be OK?

I have no idea what to expect so any tips, tricks or advice would be helpful. Should I do what we did in the Army and bring extra socks too? I l know sweaty or even wet feet and walking equals blisters and misery!

I always wear running shoes, and definitely bring extra socks. You might get soaked on a water ride and dry socks come in handy! In the summer, I also bring a camelbak backpack for each family member. Staying hydrated is key, and it's nice to be able to take a sip of cold water whenever you want.

No complaints with my slightly tired Asics the last few times we went.

In June, we went to Disneyland & I actually wore a pair of Sanuk sandals & was just fine & didn't have to worry with the couple wet rides (more of an issue with damp clothes though).

We had my wife's family with us (13 people total)
We packed some sandwiches/snacks to cut down on food costs.

Yes, comfy lightweight shoes that are breathable. Synthetic breathable clothes, sunscreen and water. Are you staying on property or off property? How many days and how many parks?

Tony.

I know you'll get a lot of recommendations for running or jogging shoes, but as someone who's been to Disney more times than I'd like to admit, my go to is always the same... Merrell Moab 2 hiking shoes. They offer terrific support and comfort, and I find them better on super hot asphalt and concrete than running shoes. Once you try a pair and get hooked on them, you might find yourself wearing them casually all the time.

Chacos or Teva sandals are my go-to for Disney. No worry about them getting wet. Make sure they are broken in before you go though.

Since we went during June and it was scorching, I planned to wear sandals with ankle straps. Figured cooler on my feet and still good support, so went online and read a crap ton before buying the sandals they advised (didn't buy the Teva, should have...). Only had a week to break them in. They hurt my feet, and so I tossed them aside and took my New Balance walking shoes and a pair o' flip flops (with the arch supports). Ended up wearing the flip flops the whole time, every ride, and never had an issue. YMMV obviously, but I don't think you'd go wrong with the sneakers.

BTW, if you haven't purchased tickets yet, look into the Disney After Dark option. We got in at 7pm, at 9pm the regular crowd left, and the park was open only to the DAD folks until 12 or 1 am. We used these on every park except Epcot, and it was worth the extra $$ to not wait in line. Longest wait in all parks was a 45 min wait for Pirates of the Caribbean, which wasn't worth the wait. Oh, and all the popcorn, sodas, and ice cream bars you want are free with your ticket. I mighta eaten a few bars.

Lightweight clothes, sunscreen, a Hat if you are folically challenged and water, water water.

Shoes, yes you'll walk quite a bit but you're not hiking from Orlando to Miami, there is park transport, use it to move from park to park to hotel to parking. The Monorail and Disney Train get you around the property and park. Whatever shoes you feel comfortable in walking or running.

And get the ride passes, don't skimp.... Waiting in line with 300 hot, crabby parents with tired kids isn't necessary...

Have fun it's a great place.

If your kids are older hit Universal Studios, it's a lot of fun Harry Potter, and other rides.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
a Hat if you are folically challenged

Yes, that's a must for me. I'm a baldy!

quote:

And get the ride passes, don't skimp.... Waiting in line with 300 hot, crabby parents with tired kids isn't necessary...

I'm not in charge of any of the planning, that's my wife and her sister and their mom and we are getting some sort of set of "fast passes"?

quote:

If your kids are older hit Universal Studios, it's a lot of fun Harry Potter, and other rides.

My kids are 2.5 and 4.5 years old so it's going to be the young stuff. We are doing 2 or 3 days at Disney, 1 day at Universal (where our hotel is actually) and a day just staying at the hotel/resort area.

we have the florida pass. we do about 12000 steps a day when there. To drift you slightly, what you really want to make sure of is to get the fastpass +.

I could not imagine being there without the fastpass+. Imagine waiting 2.5 hours in the sun for Space Mountain (with kids, melting wife etc). With the fastpass+ you show up in the 1hr window, and have a 10-20 min wait.

Be prepared to walk and stand a lot. Oh yeah, also be prepared to spend some money.

Never been to Disney World, but been to Disneyland dozens of times, since I was a little kid. Always wore running shoes. Never brought spare socks, but a Camelbak, hat, sunscreen and sunglasses were a must when I went in my adult years. There was a fair amount of walking, but way more time spent standing in line, a good chunk of that in the hot sun.

We did a 12-hour day at Universal one day last week with Park-to-Park tickets with the Universal Express fast pass. It cost a lot more but was probably worth it in the end since our Special Needs son got to enjoy the day without the interminable lines (we got the SN pass, too, for the couple of rides where the fast pass wasn’t accepted).

We did both parks and went back and forth several times, including walking once since the train was down for a little while. They did everything they wanted to do (as did I until the motion started getting to me) in the intermittent showers while wearing good flip-flops. They’ve done Disney in flip-flops on several occasions, too. It all depends on what you’re used to.

I wore running shoes and my feet were wet a good part of the day. Take the extra socks someone wisely suggested and take rain gear; you’ll probably need it.

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Originally posted by oddball:
Never been to Disney World, but been to Disneyland dozens of times, since I was a little kid. Always wore running shoes. Never brought spare socks, but a Camelbak, hat, sunscreen and sunglasses were a must when I went in my adult years. There was a fair amount of walking, but way more time spent standing in line, a good chunk of that in the hot sun.

To give you an idea, Disneyland fits comfortably inside of the WDW parking lot. There will be lots and perhaps tons of walking and less waiting in line (if your wife does the planning and uses the fastpass+ correctly).

I HIGHLY recommend she download, subscribe to, and consult "WDW Lines" by TouringPlans.com and follow it's guidance religiously. Real-time updates on wait times will maximize your efficiency and save you literally hours each day of standing in lines. It's by the folks who publish The Unofficial Guide.

Mrs.BurtonRW and I use it, update our itinerary after each attraction, and never have to wait more than 10-20 minutes in a line.

If you're staying on-property, get the hard to get fast passes early. They'll be gone (especially for labor day week) by the time they're available to the masses if you're not staying on property, but all the same, WDW Lines will tell you which ones you want and when.

Also, save yourself some headache and more wasted time by ordering your magic bands now and setting them up before you arrive at the park.

Have fun!

-Rob

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Originally posted by PASig:
So my wife's family and our family are going to Disney World in Orlando Labor Day week and I'm a complete newbie here, this will be my very first time there.

I'm being told I need good, comfortable shoes as we will be walking many, many miles a day.

What do you Disney veterans recommend?

I was thinking a pair of lightweight New Balance running or walking shoes? Would that be OK?

Those are exactly the same shoes I wore (very lightweight NB running shoes) when my wife, daughter, and I visited earlier in the year, and they were perfect.

Oh yeah, and don't forget a flask.

I saw the title to your thread and thought you were going to ask something about glass slippers.

Running shoes or light weight hikers. I wore Solomon Goretex hikers on the theory that if it rained, my feet would stay dry, and I hate wet feet, but you will be fine in anything comfortable, and cool.

Find out if Magic Kingdom has a magic morning and avoid Magic Kingdom that day since you’re not staying on property.

Magic morning is for people who stay in property. They get in 1 hour early, so the park is packed quicker on those days.

Disney world is best if you stay on property it’s less chaotic and you can really streamline your trip. You don’t have to lug around anything you buy. You can have your stuff delivered to your resort, etc...


Download the Disney World app and you can see the wait times for rides. It also gives you a map of the park. You can search for restaurants too.

Go to the Disney world website and look up all the food options for the park you’ll be at. You can look up reviews on TripAdvisor for the place you want to eat. Some of the restaurants are booked full 3 to 6 months in advance, like Be Our Guest restaurant.

When it gets hot, go see Mickeys philharmonic. It will be a good break from the heat. Pirates of the Caribbean is also a good break from the heat, even in line since the line is in the shade.

The only ride with long wait times for little kids is Peter Pan. Everything else moves pretty fast. The seven dwarves mine ride has long wait times but your kids are too small for that.

The only other park that little kids might like is Animal Kingdom. There’s a dinosaur area with little kid rides and the safari ride.

Tony.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
So my wife's family and our family are going to Disney World in Orlando Labor Day week and I'm a complete newbie here, this will be my very first time there.

I'm being told I need good, comfortable shoes as we will be walking many, many miles a day.

What do you Disney veterans recommend?

I was thinking a pair of lightweight New Balance running or walking shoes? Would that be OK?

I have no idea what to expect so any tips, tricks or advice would be helpful. Should I do what we did in the Army and bring extra socks too? I l know sweaty or even wet feet and walking equals blisters and misery!

I hate disney when its hot, wear cotton for sure, as for your shoes, if you are ambitious and have a pass for every day - wear low cut hikers.

smart money buys less passes and spends time by the pool

September is a great time to visit Disney World. After Labor Day it slows down a LOT. Still dang hot and humid however.