Disney World is the happiest place on earth. Chances are you’ve spent so many happy hours there that you can practically traverse the parks by memory. Especially if you used to be a Cast Member, like me!
Every so often, you’ll hear the notes of a song or catch a whiff of freshly baked waffle cones and BAM, you’re right back in the parks, as clear as day, and it doesn’t matter that you’re stuck at home, in quarantine, or just in between Disney trips… because there’s a great big beautiful tomorrow, and your next trip to Disney is just a dream away!
Today, we’re going to lean into the abilities of our imaginations and take a leaf out of Walt Disney’s book himself. Today, we’ll visit Disney World on an imaginary vacation, through the magic of a little something called Virtual Travel.
You’ll be visiting a magical version of Disney World where everything is perfect and nothing bad ever happens, where no there are no lines and no height restrictions, where everything is FREE and the weather is always perfect.
You won’t get a sunburn or need to worry about Fast Passes, nobody will block your view of the Parade, every park is magically in the same place so you never have to run from ride to ride – in fact, everything is practically perfect in every way! Who needs realism when you can have MAGICAL realism!?
So sit back, relax, and let’s take a virtual vacation to Disney World together!
Want to escape on more virtual vacations? We have more virtual travel guides like this one:
Looking for more Disney posts to help plan your next trip?
- How to Do Disney: A (Former) Cast Member’s Guide
- What to Pack for Disney (& What NOT to Pack)
- The Disney World Resort Bar Crawl
We also have a Podcast episode all about Disney! A futuristic utopia that’s definitely not a cult. A suicide-themed ride. Lia’s college internship. What do they all have in common? Disney World, of course! In this episode, Lia spills all the Mad Tea on the most magical place on Earth, plus insider tips from her time as a Cast Member. We also explain our tried & tested Disney Strategy (aka STRAT), because waiting in long lines for rides is some Bippity-Boppity-BS.
Listen above or just click here to launch your Podcast app! Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss new episodes.
Visiting the Disney Parks in 2023
If you haven't visited in a while, there are some extra steps you'll need to take to visit the parks this year. We’ve summarized everything you need to know below!
How to Visit Walt Disney World
You must first check the availability of the date you wish to visit any of the parks, then purchase a ticket, and also make a theme park reservation for the date you purchased your ticket. You need BOTH a ticket AND a reservation to enter the park. If you purchase a park hopper, you may visit the other park after 2pm.
You can find all about making a theme park reservation here, as well as other important information about visiting the resort here.
How to Visit Disneyland
To visit Disneyland, first check the availability of the date you wish to visit the park, purchase a ticket, and also make a theme park reservation for the date you purchased your ticket. You need BOTH a ticket AND a reservation to enter the park. If you purchase a park hopper, you may visit the other park after 1pm.
You can find all about making a theme park reservation here.
How to Take a Virtual Disney World Tour
Although we’ve done our best to guide you on your virtual tour of Disney World, we do have a few tips, tricks, and helpful recommendations to make the most of your virtual vacation and ~set the scene.
- Turn on a Disney Parks Spotify Playlist, like this one or this one. This will help set the scene and activate the parts of your brain that are triggered by sound memory! We’ve included some specific musical cues to help, too. When you see one, hit play!
- Grab some Disney snacks you can eat at home to eat during your trip: pick up a box of Mickey Bars, make a batch of Mickey-shaped waffles (psst: here’s the waffle iron and batter mix they use at the parks) or a Dole Whip (here you go), or heck – even just microwave a corn dog and some fries. Don’t worry about whether it’s healthy or not: today, you’re on vacation! As a bonus, if you can recreate a Disney scent by baking, you’ll trigger even more of those nostalgia and memory centers in your brain.
- Wear your Mickey Ears and favorite Disney-appropriate outfit (like a Disney t-shirt). Nobody can see you, you’re at home. Go on. Trust us!
- If you are a fully grown adult, definitely take advantage of a little magical assistance … perhaps some wine or other *ahem* substances will help you set the scene.
- If you’ll be virtually visiting Disney World with your loved ones, read the post to them out loud!
- Don’t skip the videos! We dug through hundreds of videos to find the best Disney World ride videos and park walkthroughs that will help you feel like you’re really there. We’ve embedded our favorites and linked to additional options. (Even though some of them don’t have covers, they should all work when clicked on!) If you watch all the videos we embedded (plus the videos we linked), your visit to Virtual Disney World will take the better part of a day!
- Pull this post up on the big screen. The bigger the screen, the more real Virtual Disney World will feel.
Ok, are you ready? Now boarding flight 5505 with non-stop service to Virtual Disney World.
Buckle in, pull on the yellow strap… Para su seguridad, permanezca sentado con las manos, brazos, pies, y piernas dentro el barco. Ready? Your flight is about to take off. Soon you will be airborne, so if you or your little aviators have a fear of flying or of heights, you might wanna wait for your party at the arrival gate.
Okay, let’s review: seat, seatbelt, carry-on items, safety strap, fear of heights, keep your hands and arms inside at all times—anything else…? Oh yeah, have a nice flight!
You’ve arrived! Grab your luggage and hop aboard the Magical Express – let’s go!
Oh, and just ignore the blubbering blogger in the corner over there – she used to work here. She’s fine.
The Virtual Disney World Tour
Virtual Magic Kingdom
You’ve arrived! It’s a beautiful, sunny day – not too hot, not too cold, just right. You’re on Main Street USA, and it smells like fresh-baked waffles, strawberry syrup, and happiness. There’s a happy song playing, too …
The park isn’t very crowded and everyone waves and smiles at you. They’re so happy you’re here, too!
Cinderella’s castle is straight ahead! Wow, it sure looks beautiful today. It recently got a makeover and the rose gold paint is shimmering in the sun.
From your vantage point, you can see Cinderella watching ESPN in her living room turret while Prince Charming bakes cookies in the kitchen. Their TV antenna connects directly to the Wide World of Sports Complex!
You gaze at the castle through a cloud of balloons. To your delight, you realize that imaginary balloons have absolutely no environmental consequences!
The balloon attendant lets you hold ALL of the balloons, and as a gust of wind swirls around you, you feel your feet pulling up off the ground ever so gently.
You’re not exactly sure you want to go for a balloon ride today, so you hand the balloons back to the attendant and then buy like 5 balloons – no, 10 balloons – because imaginary balloons are free!
When you get tired of carrying them, you just let them float up into the air and don’t feel guilty about it at all.
Since the castle is looking SO pretty today, you take a picture holding up your Minnie Ears in front of the castle and post it on Instagram. Within 5 minutes, it has over 1,000 likes. Woah! Did you make the front page??
You take another adorable picture in front of the castle and post it on the ‘gram, plus Tik Tok, which you not only understand but are very good at.
Suddenly, your phone lights up: Ellen Degeneres is tweeting you, and Disney wants to buy the rights to your Tik Tok channel and turn it into a major motion picture.
You leave Disney and Ellen on read, cuz you’re on vacation. They can wait.
You stop at a cart to order a Mickey Bar, the perfect snack for a warm, sunny day.
The vanilla ice cream is pleasantly soft and doesn’t melt all over your hands, and at no point does the outer chocolate shell fall off in a giant piece and land on the sidewalk.
It’s the best thing you’ve ever eaten.
You turn down an alley off of Main Street that you never noticed before… and walk right in front of a blogger and her husband taking photos. Whoops, sorry!
The little alley leads to … Frontierland? Wait, that can’t be right. And yet, here you are…
You check your map of Virtual Disney World. At the very bottom, in tiny print, it says: “all places in Virtual Disney World are subject to change and have no basis in reality.”
Well, that explains that.
You decide to take a relaxing stroll through Frontierland.
Pretty soon, you arrive at the wildest ride in the wilderness: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad! Nothing like a little adrenaline first thing in the morning, right?
You walk right on with no line at all.
To your surprise, right next door to Big Thunder is a totally different ride, with related but definitely not the same theming: the Seven Dwarves Mine Train!
You ride that, too, because you’re feeling this whole mine train thing today. Mine trains are fun and, much like balloons, have absolutely no environmental or ethical consequences here in Virtual Disney World!
You leave Frontierland and walk towards the half-timbered steepled rooves of Fantasyland.
It’s a beautiful day, so you decide to take a nice long walk through Fantasyland and look at absolutely everything.
As you exit Fantasyland, you arrive in the futuristic world of Tomorrowland!
It’s a bit jarring, but then again, Tomorrowland has always felt a little out of place in the Magic Kingdom, if we’re being totally honest…
You consider riding Space Mountain, but today they’re only doing rides with the lights on and for some reason that’s not quite as exciting.
But directly next to Space Mountain, you spot Mission Space right in front of you. Wait, I thought Mission Space was in Epcot?
You consult your Virtual Disney World map again, and no, it’s here in Tomorrowland.
Honestly, you think to yourself, that actually makes a lot more sense.
You ride Mission Space. Even though you choose the Orange Team, you look in every direction and don’t feel sick at all afterwards!
You exit Mission Space and head straight to the Laugh Floor to watch a show, and you’re chosen as That Guy. Your jokes are on FIRE today and everyone laughs and applauds you.
After you leave the theatre, a Disney Cast Member appears out of nowhere and hands you a business card: they want you to audition for a part an upcoming Disney movie! You look up to ask the Cast Member some questions, but they’ve vanished. Odd…
You shrug and head towards Adventureland. As you consider whether or not to get a Dole Whip, you run into that blogging couple taking photos again. They’re wearing matching shirts (gross) and you wonder if they’re on Instagram… (spoilers: they are!)
Before you can stop to ask them, a Cast Member gently shops you out of the way. You look at your watch: it’s 3 o’clock. What on earth could be happening?
Oh, right: it’s time for the 3 O’clock Parade! How could you forget??
You grab a Dole Whip – there’s no line! – and then settle into a comfortable bench in the shade to sip it as you watch the 3 O’Clock parade.
After all, there’s no reason not to watch the parade today: there are no crowds, no lines, and you have all the time in the world to enjoy Virtual Disney World.
Hmmm … what next? You consult your Virtual Disney World app: there are no lines on any ride in any park.
That’s awesome, but doesn’t actually make this decision any easier.
You think about riding Jungle Cruise, but you’re a little hard of hearing today, and let’s be honest, the best part about Jungle Cruise is the jokes.
Then, you catch sight of something out of the corner of your eye … there, behind that carousel, can it be … is it really?
Virtual Animal Kingdom
You head towards the familiar green leaves and around the corner, where you definitely thought you’d find It’s a Small World, you’re instead transported through a super-secret hidden entrance to Animal Kingdom!
Y’all – Virtual Disney World is crazy.
You spend some time wandering through Animal Kingdom, enjoying the humid air, the tropical plants and greenery, and the occasional waft of something delicious (mmmm, Tusker House….)
After wandering for a while, you hop into a truck at Kilimanjaro Safaris. Every single animal is out today. Jambo, animals! You had no idea there were so many wild animals on Disney property!
Your Cast Member tells you so many interesting facts about the animals that you start to wonder if some of them are made up (they’re not! Kilamanjaro Cast Members have to study really hard!).
That was a really long ride, and you’re ready for some more action. Way off in the distance you see a snowy peak – a HUGE mountain!
Hang on, wait – now that there’s a giant train going into the side of the mountain you can clearly see that it’s not off in the distance at all, it’s right in front of you. Forced perspective is wild!
You jump in line and the Cast Member puts you in the very front row. And – oh my gosh – the Yeti is fixed!! It works! It’s reaching out to get you!
Wait, hang on … is the Yeti doing the Macarena? It all happened so fast…
Next, you head to Pandora. You’re eager to ride Flight of Passage with no line – because let’s be honest, it might be the best ride in the parks – but sadly there’s a sign on the entrance: “This ride is little too disorienting to be enjoyable.”
Huh. Somebody probably watched a lot of videos to arrive at that conclusion. Like, for instance, this one. I guess 3D doesn’t work quite as well at Virtual Disney World!
Thankfully, there is also no line at Na’avi River Journey, and it is just as visually stimulating at Virtual Disney as you remember!
There is one ride still open at Animal Kingdom that you’ve heard rumors about. Some Cast Members say the ride is cursed. But here in Virtual Disney World, it’s totally safe and a lot of fun!
Maybe riding Primeval Whirl will transport you back to a happier time, like your last trip to Disney World, or 2015. It’s worth a try – after all, anything can happen at Virtual Disney World!
Success! You’re transported to another dimension. A dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind.
You’re moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You’ve just crossed over into . . . Hollywood Studios!
Virtual Hollywood Studios
Can it be? Palm trees, Chinese Theatre, this song, Betty Shambles trying to pass her driver’s test … yep, you’re in Hollywood Studios, all right!
You catch sight of the Tower of Terror over your shoulder. Inexplicably, it is shrouded in an eerie gloom. A misty fog swirls around it and, despite the 85 degree Florida sunshine, you feel a chill creeping down the back of your neck, like an icy hand …
You shiver and turn back around to Hollywood Boulevard, which is still bright and sunny. Weird… that can’t be possible, can it?
You look again. To your absolute shock, it’s bright and sunny.
You blink your eyes a few times, but the fog has vanished…
Where to next? You consider riding Tower of Terror or Rockin’ Roller Coaster, but it’s pretty hard to see, and with the lights on it’s not quite the same.
So instead, you wander through the streets of Hollywood.
After a nice long stroll, you arrive in another planet. Odd, you didn’t notice that while you were walking through the park.
Once inside Galaxy’s Edge, you casually stroll up to the entrance for Rise of the Resistance. There’s no line and no waiting groups! Gosh, will Virtual Disney World’s wonders never end!?
As you walk through the Black Spire Outpost and Batuu, you see that blogger couple again. It really looks like they are having the time of their life. The guy has a look on his face like all of his childhood dreams are coming true at once. He must really like Star Wars!
You walk right onto the Millenium Falcon and don’t get assigned Engineer! You have a fantastic view of the action and you get a perfect score, even though you still don’t really understand what any of those numbers actually mean…
You head towards the brightly colored world of Toy Story Land and feel a bit like you’re walking around the floor of a messy toddler’s playroom. Luckily, there are no enormous children in sight, just giant toys.
You hop in line for Slinky Dog Dash and ride with your hands up the whole time!
You start to head back towards Hollywood Boulevard but take a wrong turn somewhere and end up in Paris, France. Whoops!
Virtual Epcot
Ah, Epcot: land of countries, and also space! This song is playing as you stroll through the World Showcase.
Psst: Are you drinking around the world today? Why not?? You’re on vacation! Go pour yourself something!
As you sip, you wander through France and, by virtue of historical relevance, end up in French Canada!
You consider eating a steak because there’s no waitlist for Le Cellier, but instead keep walking until you arrive in Germany, which is also next door to Mexico, because geography matters even less in Epcot than it does in the rest of Virtual Disney World.
Hey, it’s that blogger again! Did she change clothes? Bloggers are so extra! Oh look, you’re in Mexico.
You realize that it’s getting late, and you still need to eat dinner and watch the sunset.
Luckily, at Virtual Epcot, the Monorail station is inside the park! So instead of a 2-mile slog across hot pavement, you get to take a relaxing sunset stroll through the World Showcase, instead.
Sunset & Evening Virtual Disney World Tour
You take the monorail right back to Magic Kingdom just as the sun’s rays start turning peach and pink and gold.
This song is playing, the lanterns are all lit up at the castle and you can see Prince Charming serving Cinderella her dinner in the tower.
Even though you haven’t eaten dinner yet, you feel like eating something sweet while you watch the sunset. So you look around…
Hmm … do you want ice cream or a cupcake? Or both, because eating too much Virtual Disney food won’t make you feel sick? Definitely both.
Sunset in Virtual Disney World takes a long time, so you take full advantage of the gorgeous light with a nice, long relaxing ride on the People Mover.
Gosh, Speedway has never looked so beautiful or smelled so good, has it?
As the sun sets and the lights of Main Street USA turn on, you’re overwhelmed by happiness. The sights, the sounds, the smells – it’s all so beautiful and exciting. This is the best time of day at Virtual Disney World!
As you look around you, you notice something magical is happening: the Halloween decorations are going up! All around you, bouquets of flowers are turning into Mickey-shaped pumpkins surrounded by colorful leaves.
You take a relaxing sunset stroll along Main Street, looking at all the decorations.
Because sunset at Virtual Disney World lasts for a very long time, you take a stroll down the Boardwalk, listening to the crickets and watching buskers entertain crowds on the sidewalk as the sunset glimmers on the waters of Crescent Lake.
Night has fallen and it’s a warm, clear evening! You’re not feeling tired yet, so you walk back to Magic Kingdom.
You’re feeling fancy and everything is free, so you head to the Jungle Skipper Canteen for bad jokes and delicious food.
You have time for a few more rides before the fireworks begin. While you’re trying to decide what to ride, you hear the opening notes of this song….
Of course! There’s only one choice for the best ride after dark in Virtual Disney World. When hinges creak in doorless chambers, and strange and frightening sounds echo through the halls, whenever candlelights flicker where the air is deathly still… foolish mortals, how did you not think of it before?
The song continues playing as you follow your Ghost Host into your Doombuggy…
I sure hope a ghost didn’t follow you home…
As you leave the Haunted Mansion, you hear this futuristic music playing and follow it back into Tomorrowland. The music plays as you stroll around, taking it all in.
You decide to ride Test Track, which it turns out is also here in Virtual Tomorrowland. That doesn’t make as much sense as Mission Space, but I guess it works.
Next to Test Track you find a secret passageway through to Future World in Epcot! You take a walk through Future World, admiring the fountains and lights and wondering how different everything might look when construction is finished.
It’s a warm, clear night at Virtual Disney World, and you have nowhere in particular to be. Is there anything better???
You consider taking a much longer evening walk through Future World, and decide to head back to Magic Kingdom.
You have all the time in the world on your virtual vacation, so you spend a full hour just wandering around Magic Kingdom in the dark, enjoying the peaceful, warm night.
It’s time for the fireworks! You find the perfect spot to watch them from: there are no crowds, there’s nobody standing directly in front of you, and there’s a nice, comfortable bench for you to sit back and enjoy the show.
The park is closing, and the whole crew is singing you a goodbye lullaby. But don’t be sad… they’ll M-I-C-ya real soon!
You head back to your resort on a packed monorail, exhausted from a jam-packed day at Virtual Disney World. You can’t wait to hurry back … hurry baaack…
Did you enjoy your Virtual Disney World tour? Be honest, how many times did you cry? Was that just us??? We hope this makes your time away from Disney World a little less painful.
Want to escape on more virtual vacations? We have more virtual travel guides like this one:
Psst: If you’re still craving Disney fun, check out our other posts:
- How to Do Disney: A (Former) Cast Member’s Guide
- What to Pack for Disney (& What NOT to Pack)
- How to Soothe Your Post-Disney Depression
We also have a Podcast episode all about Disney! A futuristic utopia that’s definitely not a cult. A suicide-themed ride. Lia’s college internship. What do they all have in common? Disney World, of course! In this episode, Lia spills all the Mad Tea on the most magical place on Earth, plus insider tips from her time as a Cast Member. We also explain our tried & tested Disney Strategy (aka STRAT), because waiting in long lines for rides is some Bippity-Boppity-BS.
Listen above or just click here to launch your Podcast app! Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss new episodes.
If you enjoyed this, drop us a. comment and let us know where else we should do a Virtual Vacation!
FOLLOW US!
Did you enjoy your virtual day at Disney World? Save it for later on Pinterest so you can come back anytime you want!
Disclaimer: On our most recent trip to Disney World we received a 1-day complimentary media ticket. All opinions, dorky puns, and Disney Cast Member secrets that I wasn’t supposed to tell are 100% our own and totally not their fault.
Our Top Travel Tips & Resources
- Booking Flights: To score flight deals, search on Google Flights or Kayak. Money-saving tips: fly mid-week or on the weekend; fly carry-on only on a budget airline; and take red-eyes or early morning flights.
- Accommodations: We usually stay in budget-friendly vacation rentals, boutique hotels or private rooms in hostels. We use Booking.com to book hotels (we love their flexible cancellation policy) and Hostelworld to book hostels (low deposit, easy change/cancellation, and excellent reviews). For vacation rentals, we prefer to book using VRBO because they've got lower fees and better support than Airbnb, and we're not fans of Airbnb's unethical track record. You can also book vacation rentals on Expedia and Hotels.com. We also use TrustedHousesitters as both hosts (for our home and our fur-child) and travelers!
- Travel Insurance: We always, always, ALWAYS buy travel insurance for international trips, and we STRONGLY suggest it - visit our Travel Insurance Guide to find out why. We recommend either World Nomads or SafetyWing for international travel insurance. SafetyWing is one of the few policies that covers Covid-19, and they have excellent monthly policies that are perfect for Digital Nomads and long term travelers!
- Travel Credit Card: We book all of our trips on our favorite travel credit card. Not only do we earn cash back that we can spend on more travel, but the card offers fantastic travel perks like travel insurance, trip delay and cancellation coverage, lost baggage reimbursement, and rental car coverage, which helps protect us on our travels. Learn more here.
- Vaccines & Meds: We use the travel guides on the CDC website to research recommended medications and vaccines for international trips. We always recommend getting every vaccine recommended by the CDC! You can get them at your primary care doctor's office or a walk-in pharmacy.
- Tours: We love booking guided tours, especially food tours and walking tours, to get a local's perspective and a history lesson while sight-seeing! We book our tours using Viator and GetYourGuide.
- Transportation: We use Rome2Rio to figure out how to get from place to place, and book local transportation online using Bookaway wherever we can. When we book a rental car, we use DiscoverCars to compare rental companies and find the best deal.
- Luggage Storage: Whenever we're checking out early or taking advantage of a long layover, we use LuggageHero to safely store our luggage while we're running around. Use the code PRACTICALW for 2 hours of free luggage storage on us.
- VPN Service: A VPN keeps your digital information (like website login details, bank info, etc) safe, even when you're connected to an unsecured network while traveling. Plus, it lets you use Netflix & other streaming sites abroad! We use NordVPN. Use the code WANDERLUSTPROMO when you sign up!
- What to Pack: Here are the travel essentials that we bring on every trip. We also have packing lists for hot weather, cold weather, and many more. Take a look at all of our packing guides!
Breanna says
Words do not do it justice. This. Is. Amazing. And so thought-out! I can tell a lot of work was put into this and I really appreciate getting to escape into something so fun and whimsical, especially since I didn’t get to go on my birthday like I had hoped to!
Lia Garcia says
Thanks Breanna! We had a lot of fun creating it! Glad you enjoyed it and happy belated birthday 🙂
Audrey says
Although there is nothing like being here, thanks for your post! It might help me to remain calm before my next trip. Did you know Disney released a Churros recipe? https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2020/04/cooking-up-the-magic-create-disneymagicmoments-at-home-with-disney-parks-churro-bites-recipe/
you are welcome!
Lia Garcia says
Thanks Audrey! I’m thrilled they’ve been releasing recipes – the better to help us all pretend we’re still in the parks here at home 🙂
Dale says
I love this! I was just at Disney World in February and this makes me super nostalgic. Thanks for putting this together!
David Johnson says
Thank you for this! It really made my day and transformed a dry quarantine day into a magical adventure around my happy place.
Lia Garcia says
That makes us so happy! Glad you were able to have a magical escape 🙂 stay safe!