• To avoid disappointment and/or a psychotic break, call ahead when planning your trip to see if any of the big rides will be closed due to scheduled maintenance during your stay. You don’t want to get all the way there only to find out that Wally World is closed while you’re in town.

• Make a plan before you go. Get a list of the rides and/or a map of the Park and include everyone in the planning. Some of the Parks are so large; you may not be able to see everything even if you have more than one day at the Park. Some of the rides are so awesome; you may want to try to ride them more than once.

• Remember that some of the rides have height restrictions. Many rides also have health warnings for items such as pregnancy, bad backs or heart trouble. Motion sickness and scare factors also need to be considered when planning your Park rides. It is better to plan in advance than to build up a ride as a must see only to find a restriction that will keep some from going on the ride.

• Before you make all your other reservations, you might want to call ahead to find out about any special Park events such as parades, light shows, live music or TV and movie filming that are taking place around the time of your vacation. You might find something special enough to warrant changing the dates of your vacation.

• Many Parks have longer hours during certain days. Check to see if you can make it on one of those days.

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• Check with your company, other associations and memberships to see if they have any connections. Many of the Park rides or events have corporate sponsorship; you might be entitled to a special seating, VIP lounge or be allowed to skip to the front of the line.

• Check to see if your trip could be planned during a second day free period.

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• Check the Parks opening times, they do change. Some Parks will open earlier or close later on certain days thus giving you more bang for the buck.

• Disney World offers early entry to certain Parks on certain days to those staying in Disney Hotels. Find out which Parks open early on what days, and use this information to your advantage. If you’re staying at Disney, take advantage of this early entry. If you’re not staying at Disney, avoid the early entry Parks, they will be filled with the Disney hotel guests.

• Sometimes the Parks will have light shows, fireworks, and parades or live music only on certain days. The Parks publish schedules with this information. These can be found by directly contacting the Parks and are also available at some tourist information centers and local hotels.

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• Forget high fashion, you want to be able to enjoy all your days at the Parks.

• Wear cool and comfortable clothing. Light colors will help to reflect the sun’s rays. Natural fibers breathe the most and will dry the quickest. Since many of the Parks have water rides that are designed to get you wet and cool you off; you might want to also consider the see through factor of your clothing if it gets wet.

• Wear cool, comfortable and supportive shoes. You are going to spend a lot of time on your feet, either walking or standing in line. Bring an extra set of shoes to leave in your car, in case one pair gets wet.

• Cover your body with a strong sunscreen. The Florida sun is very strong and you’ll be exposed to it for much of the day. If you want to take a tan home, build it slowly. A burn will ruin your whole trip.

• Use some baby powder with cornstarch to help keep your feet and other body parts dry.  Try this before you leave to make sure your skin isn't overly sensitive to the powder.

• Consider bringing a hat and sunglasses. They can also help keep you cool and save you from burning. But, you’ll have to hold on to them the whole day, so don’t bring the ones you’ll be upset about losing. You could also look into buying those little ropes to hold your glasses on while you ride.

• Avoid wearing jewelry or other loose items that could get caught or become uncomfortable on the rides.

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• You might want to bring along a freezer bag to seal in your wallet for those water rides.

• Consider bringing raingear. Central Florida, the Theme Park capital of the world, is famous for quick, heavy showers. During the afternoon heat of the day, usually from June to September you can have clear skies one minute and a total downpour the next. These are usually short term, so you might get lucky and just duck inside for a while. Check the local forecast to see if you’ll need it for a few minutes or hours.

• Bring an extra pair of comfortable shoes and socks.

• You might bring a collapsible plastic water cup to assist you at the drinking fountains.

• Consider bringing a fanny pack to do the work of carrying all the items you’ll need.

• If you have two adults in your group, you might consider bringing an extra set of car keys.

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