Our one day Magic Kingdom itinerary provides an efficient guide to maximizing your time at Disney’s most popular theme park. Although we recommend two days to fully explore the park, this itinerary will showcase our plan of attack for the best attractions, restaurants and shows.
As efficiency is the main goal, this itinerary will focus on riding as many attractions as possible. In order to do so, some attractions will be skipped (mainly the kiddie rides). This itinerary is somewhat subjective and follows our perfect day, but we are confident it will work with most guests. We’ve been to the Magic Kingdom numerous times and know the lay of the land very well.
Notes
Fast Pass+ is an absolute necessity. For simplicity, we will assume you were able to grab Fast Passes for the top three most popular attractions, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain and Peter Pan.
These three attractions see the most foot traffic and can have long wait times without a Fast Pass. If you didn’t receive a Fast Pass to any one of them, plan to ride them first thing in the morning.
As a reminder, all guests staying at a Disney hotel and some other non-Disney hotels (like Shades of Green) are eligible to book Fast Pass+ reservations 60 days from their check in date at 7AM Eastern Time. I can’t stress how important it is to remember this date.
One final note before we start. If the park opens at 8AM, we don’t pick our first Fast Pass until 9:30AM. If the park opens at 9AM, then we pick our first Fast Pass for 10:30AM. Based on prior experience, we learned the park isn’t busy right at open.
Instead, it becomes busier over time and especially in the afternoon hours. Rather than waste a Fast Pass on an attraction with a short line, we rather use that time and ride the less popular rides and hit the popular rides when they are busy later in the day.
For this itinerary, we will assume the park opens at 8AM. Once you wake up, plan to be through security and at the gates by 7:30AM. Transportation at Disney World takes forever and going through security takes even longer with each security guard spending HOURS checking everyone.
The last part was a joke but seriously they take forever. Plan ahead. Disney unofficially opens the gates a half hour before letting guests roam Main Street. And right at 8AM, the rope drops and it’s time to go!
Morning: Adventureland/Frontierland
First thing in the morning, once the rope drops, head right towards Adventureland. You can easily hit Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Caribbean without wasting really any time. Once you finish with these two attractions, we recommend riding Splash Mountain especially if it’s a warm day (as it can get really busy later).
With these three attractions complete, it will probably be time for your first round of Fast Pass selections. To recap, we recommend Fast Pass+ for the following attractions around these times:
- 9:30AM – 10:30AM: Seven Dwafs Mine Train
- 10:30AM – 11:30AM: Peter Pan
- 11:30AM – 12:30PM: Space Mountain
If you rode Jungle Cruise, Pirates and Splash Mountain by 9:30AM, we recommend heading over to Big Thunder Mountain. Remember, you have an hour window to use your Fast Pass. If it’s only 9:30AM and Big Thunder has a 20-30 wait, ride it.
This way, you can head straight to Seven Dwarfs at the end of the Fast Pass window and then immediately hit up Peter Pan right after. And it only takes about five minutes to walk from Seven Dwarfs to Peter Pan.
If Big Thunder has too long of a wait, then save it for later and head to Seven Dwarfs. Once you finish Seven Dwarfs, then redeem your Fast Pass selection for Peter Pan. After Peter Pan, which you will use right at the start of its window, you have some time before Space Mountain.
Use this time to ride Big Thunder if you didn’t already or Haunted Mansion, depending on wait times. If they are too long, hit up the attractions in Fantasyland, like The Little Mermaid, Winnie the Pooh, or “it’s a small world”.
At 12:30PM, make sure you are scanning your Magic Band and entering the Space Mountain queue. As soon as your Magic band scans, pull out your Disney World official app and pick a Fast Pass for an attraction you haven’t yet experienced.
At this point, your Fast Pass selections become like Disneyland, with you picking one at a time based on the attractions current wait time. Magic Kingdom has tons more Fast Pass eligible attractions than Disneyland so you should find plenty.
Afternoon: Lunch and Relaxation
Once you finish Space Mountain and picked your next Fast Pass, it is time for lunch. The most popular restaurant by far is Be Our Guest. If you managed to grab a reservation, then head over there for lunch. If not, the Jungle Cruise Skipper’s Cantina is an excellent option for a sit down meal. The park hosts a number of counter service options as well, which will save you more time and money than a sit down meal.
Anyway, plan on an hour for lunch. Once lunch is over, it may be time for your next Fast Pass. Keep track of your Fast Pass return and selection times. Again, use those for attractions you haven’t experienced yet and for those with wait times over 30 minutes. And if nothing is really available, just use them for whatever you can get.
As the afternoon is busier than the morning, and hotter, it’s a great time for shows. Our favorite shows at Magic Kingdom are Great Moment’s in History with the Muppets, Country Bear Jamboree and the Hall of Presidents.
Guess what? Are three are all right next to each other. Pull out your app and make a note of the time for each performance. With ease, you should hit all three without wasting much time waiting for the next show.
Once you finish with the shows, you can continue redeeming Fast Pass+ selections for any attractions you might have missed. You can also use this time for attractions with short wait times, like Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters or Monsters, Inc. Laugh Factory.
Just have your phone out checking the official Disney World app for wait times and Fast Pass selection times. In the late afternoon, we constantly check our phones to score a Fast Pass or find an attraction with a short wait time, especially in the afternoon.
Evening: Most Magical Place on Earth
As the evening approaches, the park lights up and becomes even more magical. The evening is also a great time for a cocktail. We recommend leaving the park and taking the monorail to the Polynesian, one of the resorts in the Magic Kingdom Resort Area.
The Polynesian hosts our favorite bar at Walt Disney World, Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar. I love tiki bars and Trader Sam’s is one of the best. After a long day in the Magic Kingdom, order a Nautilus or a Shrunken Zombie Head and that screaming child you heard all day will magically disappear. The bar also serves plenty of great food options. And if you don’t like their food, the Polynesian has a stacked dining lineup for any eater.
After dining and a few cocktails (it’s okay we don’t judge), it’s time to head back to the Magic Kingdom. As darkness falls, the park becomes even more beautiful as you waltz through Main Street with the lights glistening in the background. And once you gaze upon Cinderella Castle, shining bright in the sky, you can thank yourself for paying so much money to be here. And Trader Sam’s helped you feel better.
As the night becomes darker, use the app to score any available Fast Passes. By this point, you should have ridden every major attraction. As the night goes on, the only Fast Passes available are usually for the less popular attractions. But Big Thunder, Pirates, Haunted Mansion and Splash Mountain might have short wait times, depending on crowd levels that day. Doesn’t hurt to check!
The main event however, will be the fireworks. Check the app for the scheduled showtime, but it ranges between 9PM and 9:30PM. We recommend staking a spot in the hub 45 minutes before for a great view of the castle. Even better, leave one person to hold the spot while the rest of the group buys ice cream. Just remember to buy ice cream for the one holding the spot and do not venmo charge them later.
After the fireworks, we recommend taking pictures in front of the castle and down Main Street. Crowd levels lighten up after the fireworks and the lights make for great pictures. PhotoPass cast members can be found all over Main Street and the hub, allowing for great pictures. And if there are any rides you missed, now is the time to wait in line. Remember, as long as you get in line one minute before park close, you will still be allowed to ride.
Conclusion
And that’s it. Magic Kingdom is a large park but it’s totally do able to see almost everything in one day. The key is to arrive at park opening and have you Fast Pass+ selections ready to go. As long as you can score the top Fast Passes 60 days out (which you totally can), you’ll be set.
Remember, if the park is crazy busy that day it will be harder to find Fast Passes and you may spend more time waiting in line. If that’s the case, focus on the bigger attractions first thing in the morning like Snow White and Peter Pan.
When you knock out these attractions, then focus on the less popular attractions in the afternoon. And between those attractions, take every available Fast Pass+ you can. Keep checking that phone.
If the park is really slow, you’ll fly by in no time. On slow days, the major attractions (other than Snow White and Peter Pan), post wait times of only 20 minutes. If this is the case, you’ll fly through the major attractions, leaving more time for photos and character meet and greets. I wish there was a way to predict the crowds but it just depends. The summer is always more crowded than the fall or winter (not Christmas) and weekdays slower than weekends.
But you can’t go wrong if you show up early and follow our plan. At this time, showing up early and with your Fast Pass selections selected is the only absolute way to success. This way you are guaranteed a great day. You may sacrifice meeting Mickey and some Princesses, but you’ll live.
We hope you enjoyed our post and it helped with your Disney World vacation. Again, arrive early with your Fast Pass+ selections and you’ll be fine. Be aggressive in picking you’re next selections when your first three run out.
But also take in the sights, take pictures and drink at Trader Sam’s. And most importantly, have fun with your family and friends. We only live once after all. Thanks again for reading!
Thoughts?
Thank you for reading our Magic Kingdom One-Day Itinerary! We hoped this help plan your vacation. Please read our One-Day EPCOT Itinerary HERE and check our our review of the Magic Kingdom’s very own Diamond Horseshoe Restaurant HERE.
Have you explored the Magic Kingdom in one day? How was it? Did you join 999 Happy Haunts? Let us know in the comments below!
