5 Reasons to Take a Solo Trip to Disney World
I grew up going to Walt Disney World every year. It somehow feels more like home to me than anywhere else still to this day.
I feel pretty strongly that there should be no such thing as guilty pleasures…we are all different and enjoy different things, find value in different things, and are brought joy by different things. So I feel like we should just be able to share about our interests proudly. Aaaaand this is me doing that!
Owning a service based business throughout 2020 and 2021 was just so incredibly difficult. I worked (and am still working) 12 to 14 hours a day, 7 days a week, under really stressful and high pressure circumstances. When I finally, and I really mean finally, made it to the end of 2021, I was literally desperate for a mental and emotional break, and for me personally there’s no better place to do that than Disney World.
So for all of 2021, I saved every cash tip I got at a wedding (THANK YOU sweet client friends who loved me in this way!!), and took myself on a 4 day solo trip to Disney World.
So many people thought this was a weird, wild, questionable choice, but it was exactly what I needed. Let me be clear…I love going to Disney with other people, but it worked out that it wouldn’t be a good time for anyone to go with me, and I was perfectly content to go on my own.
So many people thought this was a weird, wild, questionable choice, but it was exactly what I needed.
Let me be clear…I love going to Disney with other people, but it worked out that it wouldn’t be a good time for anyone to go with me, and I was perfectly content to go on my own.
Here are 5 reasons why I 10/10 highly recommend a solo disney trip:
Less Stress in Planning
As the years go on, it’s requiring a lot more strategy to plan a good Disney trip than it used to. The more people you have with you, the more opinions and preferences there are about how you’re spending your days, which means more planning to make sure that you’re meeting everyone’s needs, hopes, and dreams. By going solo, you really only have to plan to meet your own needs. When I took Ryan to Disney in 2019, it was his FIRST TIME EVER. So I felt this (self-inflicted) IMMENSE pressure to plan an absolutely perfect trip that would make him fall in love with the place I love so much. It was an amazing trip, but it was also a little on the stressful side.
With just me going, I knew I could plan for the things I wanted to do and not worry about whether anyone else was having the time of their lives like I knew I would be.
Do whatever the heck you want
This is maybe the best part? I literally followed my every whim. I did not have to keep tabs on someone else’s favorite rides, snacks, characters…I just did what I wanted to do when I wanted to do it. And I did A LOT. I accomplished a lot more in those 3.25 park days than I would have been able to traveling with someone else. Except maybe my sister because she’d be down to go hard like I was. But honestly even then, she’d have some stuff she’d really want to do that might differ slightly from what I wanted to do! On my first day in Magic Kingdom, I rode 12 rides. That’s a lot for one day, and I had gotten up at 3am, flown to Orlando, and jumped straight into the parks. I probably can’t explain well enough how fun it was to just be like you know what? I’ve already been to Main Street twice today and I’m as far away as possible, but I want to go back! Or on my second day, I left Epcot to go to Animal Kingdom literally just for one hour to ride the safari, and then went back to Epcot.
It’s More Relaxing
I realize that most people would not find a Disney trip relaxing, and physically maybe it’s not (I walked over 40 miles in my time there). But going to a place that is so immersive kind of forces your brain into a break from whatever was occupying it before, and that’s exactly what I needed. And it might sound wild to say, but after the absolute chaos and non-stop difficulty that was 2020 and 2021, I gotta say that at some point during my trip I was like wait is this what fun feels like and when was the last time I truly had any?! So while I spent a lot of time running around and doing different things, I also spent so much time just kind of being. That’s something I probably wouldn’t have done at Disney if I was there with someone else. I spent a lot of time relaxing in the France pavilion expansion and in case you were wondering it’s now my favorite part of Epcot.
Single Rider Lines/Rides to Yourself
This one is kinda self explanatory but all of the rides that have Single Rider options are your’s for the taking. While the sickness that has plagued us for the past 2 years is still a factor, some rides that used to have single rider lines don’t right now because they’re mostly sitting parties together, someday all the single rider lines will likely be back. On the rides that don’t have that option, I was often given my own ride vehicle, which was awesome! I don’t mind sitting with other people (which I did on some rides like Ratatouille and Rise of the Resistance), it was pretty cool to have the space to myself.
Easier Dining Reservations
When you’re a party of 1, all those restaurants or bars that are really hard to get reservations for normally are much easier to come by! You may not be able to grab them in advance, but keep checking the week of your solo trip and even the day you want to go, because they pop up quite a bit. Especially if you’re willing to sit at the bar of the restaurants that have them, you’re really likely to find what you’re looking for if you just keep searching. Because I went at a time when the numbers of the disease that has been plaguing us for 2 years were on the high side, I didn’t really take advantage of this perk while I was there, because I wasn’t really comfortable eating inside, and sit down dining at Disney World is indoors (because it’s hot most of the year and rains like every day). I did snag an Oga’s Cantina reservation, and though I only stayed very briefly for one drink, it was super cool!
TAKE THE SOLO TRIP
Bottom line… if you’re thinking about going to Disney World, or anywhere else for that matter, do it! Solo travel is fun, freeing, and so good for self reflection. If you’re a Disney nerd like me, let’s chat, or if you’re looking for some more tips, you definitely don’t have to ask me twice!