Disney bucket list: Everything and the Kitchen Sink
It may be possible to do everything at Walt Disney World, but who has the time? You must prioritize.
A place to start is this bucket list featuring 25 experiences. Some may seem too easy, but remember, not everyone lives in Orlando and has ready access or an annual pass. Then, there are events that are special and require special payment. And while everyone and everything has its price – including my dream of a monthlong stay in the Cinderella Castle apartment – sometimes you also need luck or a fairy godmother.
I loosely arranged those categories in order of increasing expense, difficulty or likelihood, but some items are subjective. How much would you actually spend whilst drinking around the World Showcase? Your list, of course, would vary. What would you add?
Mickey 101
• Ride the Magic Kingdom double-decker bus.
• Have a picture made with Mickey Mouse, but also meet Chewbacca at Hollywood Studios.
• Take a selfie with the groovy 1970s scientist animatronic inside Spaceship Earth at Epcot.
• Sit in the middle seat, top row, on Tower of Terror at Hollywood Studios; sit in the middle section, top row in Soarin’ Around the World at Epcot.
• Conquer Summit Plummet at Blizzard Beach and/or Humunga Kowabunga at Typhoon Lagoon.
• Participate in the Candlelight Processional at Epcot.
• Eat a Dole Whip, even if you don’t like pineapple.
• Order the Kitchen Sink from Beaches and Cream at Disney’s Beach Club. (For the uninitiated, eight scoops of ice cream is only the beginning.)
• Take the Express Transport option between WDW theme parks.
• Celebrate New Year’s Eve at Epcot.
BYO pixie dust
• Order (and share) the Nautilus drink at Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort.
• Take a horse-drawn carriage ride at Fort Wilderness.
• Take the Marceline to Magic Kingdom behind-the-scenes tour.
• Eat or drink around the World Showcase at Epcot.
• Watch fireworks from one of the water-vessel options at Epcot or Magic Kingdom.
• Take the Wild Africa Trek at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
• Eat at Victoria & Albert’s, the hoity-toitiest restaurant on property – at the Grand Floridian.
• Spend a night in a room with a savanna view at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Paging Fairy Godmother
• Be selected as an actor in the Enchanted Tales with Belle attraction at Magic Kingdom.
• Be selected as the rebel in the Star Tours attraction at Hollywood Studios.
• Be selected as the grand marshal of a parade that goes up Main Street at the Magic Kingdom.
• Experience an emergency evacuation at a major ride like Pirates of the Caribbean or it’s a small world, where you have to be “rescued” from your ride vehicle.
• Be inside Space Mountain with the lights on.
• Spend a night (or a month) in the Cinderella Castle apartment.
• Pilot the monorail.