Aside from working with a MousePros agent to help you plan your Walt Disney World® vacation, the smartest thing you can do for yourself is download the free My Disney Experience® app. The My Disney Experience® app helps you plan and manage your entire vacation, from online check-in to making additional FastPass+ selections to ordering food at Quick Service restaurants.
The app is available for free through the Apple App Store and the Google Play store. Once downloaded, you are prompted to sign in to your Disney account or to create a new account. Your Disney® account is the same email address and password that you use online at https://disneyworld.disney.go.com or any Disney® website. After you sign in, you'll see your personalized icon at the top of the screen and many options for what to do next. There is so much you can do in the My Disney Experience® app:
View your plans, including resort reservations, tickets, dining reservations, and FastPass+ times.
Figure out where you are and how to get to the next attraction using the interactive, GPS-enabled park maps.
Order food at select Quick Service restaurants. Visit this post for more step-by-step instructions on how to use the My Disney Experience® app for mobile ordering.
See your Disney PhotoPass® photos, often within minutes of being taken.
Find Disney PhotoPass® photographers to take more pictures!
View wait times for rides.
Discover new attractions based on location, thrill factor, age, height, interests, physical considerations, mobility disabilities, service animals, and hearing and visual disabilities.
Locate characters and see what times they are going to be appearing.
Change, cancel, or making new dining reservations on the fly.
Find a restroom. Let's be honest. Of all the features this app offers, this may be the single most valuable one, especially if you are traveling with kids.
Keep track of showtimes and special events.
Learn about various guest services, including ATM locations, baby care centers, coin press machines locations, First Aid stations, Guest Relations offices, mobile charging stations, FastPass+ kiosks, rider switch information, and so much more.
Explore various shops without having to visit them in person. You can use the app to get directions to a shop or click on the Buy Merchandise button, if available, and buy items using the related Shop DisneyParks® app.
Walt Disney World® has anticipated all questions you might have while on your vacation, and since you can't pack your MousePros agent in your suitcase (though he or she might love that!), they've put the answers right at your fingertips with the My Disney Experience® app. (Confession: I still open the My Disney Experience® app at least once a week just to look at the maps, get jealous of the short wait times for my favorite rides, and see if anything new was added to the menus for my favorite restaurants.)
The My Disney Experience® app was invaluable on our last trip to Walt Disney World® as we booked additional FastPass+ experiences once we used our first 3 for the day, previewed restaurant menus while waiting in line for attractions to make sure our picky kids would find something to eat, and to change our plans on the fly when a ride suddenly had a short wait and we had time in between FastPass+ times and dining reservations. Our kids enjoyed previewing our Disney PhotoPass® pictures while waiting in line for attractions or characters, too.
Disneyland® visitors should download the official Disneyland® app, also available for free through the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. It includes all of the same features as the My Disney Experience® app and will be a valuable tool for you as you work with your MousePros agent to plan and manage a fantastic Disneyland® vacation.
What is your favorite feature of the My Disney Experience® app? Does anyone else keep the My Disney Experience® app on your phone even when you don't have a vacation planned? Tell us in the comments below!