top things to do at disney on arrival day

Throughout the years of planning our Disney World vacations, a very common question among Disney travelers is: What are things to do at Disney World on our arrival day? Arrival day can be very tiring depending on how far you’re traveling, and whether you’re arriving by air or road-trip. As a result, you and your family may not wish to dive right into a Disney Park. You may wish to relax, and save some battery power for the week’s packed itinerary. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with heading straight to Magic Kingdom and taking a selfie for the ‘gram right in front of Cinderella Castle, checking out the newest land, or jumping on your your favourite ride (carefully planned with FASTPASS of course)! We, however, thought we’d change it up a bit and share our top “non-park” things to do on arrival day at Disney World.

Hang out at your Disney Resort

There is nothing hard about this one! You’re not at home anymore, you’re on vacation. You and your family have chosen your resort for a reason, so kick back, take it all in, and enjoy it! Disney does an unbelievable job with theming (like the photo above of Coronado Springs’ pool), be sure to not let your full-day park plans prevent you from immersing yourself in your resort. Grab a drink, sit outside and take in all the beauty. Take photos and videos, of as much as you can – even when you’re just walking around, you’ll enjoy looking back on them when you get home. You’ll also stumble upon arcades, pools, food/drink stands, or even firepits where you can make smores at night – who knew, right?!

Traveler Tip: Walk around your resort during the daytime, and also again in at night. The attention to lighting detail is amazing – it really makes for a magical stroll before turning in for the night.

Go and Check Out Another Disney Resort

So maybe you’ve already planned a resort day mid-trip to re-energize the squad – good planning! On your arrival, another awesome idea is to go and check out another Disney resort. Mona and I love wandering around and exploring other resorts, and seeing what restaurant we want to catch dinner at.

There are so many resorts to check out to list here, but these are our honourable mentions:

Traveler Tip: You’ll need to take a bus to a park/Disney Springs in order to get a transfer bus back to the resort you’re looking to visit.

Animal Kingdom Lodge

AKL is a breath-taking resort, and should be on everyone’s list to check out. Once you enter, you’re greeted with the contrast between the darker indoor theming and the light from the huge windows towering over the main lobby. Through these windows, you can catch a glimpse and admire the animals on the Savannah below. Head downstairs for a closer look outside on the terraces. Catch dinner at Boma, Sanaa (bread service is a must – pic below), or Jiko – or just appreciate the African theming of Animal Kingdom Lodge.

Polynesian Village Resort

You can literally spend an entire afternoon/evening at the Polynesian. Trader Sams Grog Grotto is such a unique and fun way to kick back with specialty drinks. If you’re looking for some din-din, there are a number of great options including: ‘Ohana, Kona Island, or Capt. Cook’s. Looking for a treat? Pineapple Lanai has you covered with fresh dole whips! After, head over to the beach to catch the Magic Kingdom firework show – Happily Ever After. You won’t be able to see the castle projections, but they will pipe in the music that will get those tears flowing..

Contemporary Resort

unique in design, perfect view of the fireworks, and yummy food. What more can you ask for? The contemporary is a very cool place to explore, from the monorail that soars through the middle of the resort, to in infamous 5-legged goat painting (deserving of a photograph). Dinner here HAS to be at California Grill. This was by far our favourite Disney dining experience to date. The service, sushi, wine, and steak was out of this world (pics below)! Keep your receipt for entry back onto rooftop for an amazing view of the Magic Kingdom fireworks!

Head over to the BoardWalk

BoardWalk could have just been another honourable mention above, but we really feel it’s deserving of it’s own section. The BoardWalk is a super cool place to spend an afternoon/evening with dining options, souvenir shopping, and a bustling “Atlantic City” nightlife. You’ll find so many options for dinner, such as: Flying Fish cafe, ESPN Club, and various other bakeries and cafes to indulge in sweets and savory delicacies! As the sun goes down, the BoardWalk is lit up so beautifully, providing an excellent ambiance to enjoy a cocktail at one of the bars/lounges. One that we seriously want to try is the unique and amazingly themed Abracadabar.

Along with the dining options, bakeries, and lounges, Jellyrolls (which sounds like another sweet shop) is a dueling piano bar offering up live piano and special audience interaction. You won’t want to miss a night at Jelly’s!

Spend the day at Disney Springs

Disney Springs has certainly come a LONG way since evolving from “Downtown Disney”! There is SO much we could pack into this section, and quite frankly, it deserves it’s own blog post … or two … or several! Our focus here is to highlight some of our Disney Springs favourites, and other activities/entertainment that we have on our to-do list for future visits.

A trip to Disney Spings would not be complete without a visit to “the actual Spings”! I have no idea how they get their water so clean and turquoise blue! It is Disney after all, so I shouldn’t be surprised. Grab an iced coffee or gelato and take a stroll to capture some memories at the great photo ops spots around the springs. Don’t forget to come back for those “after-dark” shots.

If you’re looking to get your shopping fix in, there are countless shops from: Uniqlo, Sephora, Alex and Ani, Pandora (which has unique Disney merchandise you won’t find anywhere else), Under Armour, World of Disney (which is Disney’s massive souvenir shop), The Lego Store, and so, so much more! One store we definitely recommend is: Marketplace Co-op. It has so much unique Disney merch, from artwork to home decor items, and custom cell phone cases. One other recommendation (because I’m a bit of a Star Wars nut) is the two Star Wars shops: Star Wars Trading Post and Star Wars Galactic Outpost. They both have toys, plushies, apparel, and accessories, but the outpost also has artwork for sale.

For a full list of all the stores in Disney Springs, click here.

It seems like every time we take a trip, they’ve added 3-4 more restaurants in Disney Springs. The restaurants we’ve eaten at so far are: Bongos Cuban Cafe, Wolfgang Pucks, Fontera Concina, and The Polite Pig. The comfort food at The Polite Pig is by far our favourite, but don’t expect to do much post-dinner because the food coma will seriously set in.

Other places we have on our list to try are: The Edison, STK, Blaze Pizza, Boathouse, Homecoming, and literally every other amazing restaurant at Disney Springs!

For a full list of all the dining options, click here

If you finish eating, drinking, shopping, and taking pictures, and are still looking for something to do, there are many stages that have live music pretty much all the time! Have a seat and enjoy the music! There is also an AMC movie theatre, Splitsville luxury bowling, Cirque du Soleil (New show in Spring 2020), and the impressive NBA Experience.

MUST DO: If I could only recommend one activity at Disney Springs, I wouldn’t hesitate to point you to The Void. A revolutionary hyper-reality immersion places you and your group in the most impressive VR environment I have ever experienced. There are two experiences to choose from: Star Wars and Ralph Breaks VR. I can’t recommend this enough! It’s one of my favourite attractions at Disney World. It’s THAT good.

Check out The Void here

Monorail Hopping

Our final recommendation of non-park related things to do at Disney on arrival day is: Monorail Hopping ! This one may require some extra patience. You’ve just been traveling … and now you’re going to be traveling around Disney quite a bit more. I’d rank this one as an “adventurous” activity.

Monorail hopping is essentially taking the resort loop from Magic Kingdom, to Contemporary, to Polynesian, to Grand Floridian, then back to MK. The kicker is to have a drink – or two – at each resort! Always enjoy responsibly, and remember, you most probably have a park day tomorrow, and you don’t want to look worse for wears in your family portrait with the mouse!

And, Finally…

We hope you’ve enjoyed our recommendations for non-park related things to do at Disney World on your arrival day. There are certainly more things we can mention here, so we’d love to hear your ideas as well! Leave a comment below with what you and your family/group love to do on arrival day (park-related is okay).

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