How is a one day visit at Disney's Magic Kingdom?

While I was staying near Orlando to enjoy the theme parks, my friend living in Miami joined with her boyfriend and her 6 years old kid, so we could all go together for a day at Disney's Magic Kingdom.


Magic Kingdom Disney world Orlando

While I was staying near Orlando to enjoy the theme parks, my friend living in Miami joined with her boyfriend and her 6 years old kid, so we could all go together for a day at Disney's Magic Kingdom.

They joined me at the Park Inn by Radisson Resort & Conference Center- Orlando- Near Disney around 10 am, we had booked a room in the same hotel, and after their check-in, we ordered a  Uber   to get there, which was quite a short ride from the hotel.

Magic Kingdom events
Magic Kingdom hours - Entertainment Schedule - Walt Disney World Resort
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Magic Kingdom tickets

Arriving there, we starting by buying tickets directly at the counter, including a fast pass, which we would definitely not regret later on.

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Disney World Magic Kingdom being the busiest theme park in the world, it is pretty difficult to access any ride, and the only way to enjoy a little bit of the park is to actually buy fast passes to be able to go on some rides - otherwise, it is just a boring day waiting in queues ahead.

A one day ticket costs a whopping 133$ with tax per adult...

Magic Kingdom tickets

The system of the fast pass is pretty bad, as you pay for a limited number of rides that you will do with a shorter wait, but the rides are limited and the access must be booked as early as possible... for us, arriving after 10am, the most interesting time slots were already taken. Terrible system for a disappointing theme park, in which the only real interest is to see the fireworks at the end of the day.

After having buying tickets, and entered the park area, the first step is to take a tramway, as the dropping area is actually far away from the parks, and the Disney's parks area, with their 4 theme parks and 2 water parks, is huge... and parks are far way from each other.

The monorail arrived fast, and we could get in the first one.

On the way, we had an amazing view on the surroundings, including the famous Buena Vista lake.

Getting closer to the park, we could see the Cinderella's castle popping out of the forest.

Arriving at Magic Kingdom's train station, we could see how many people were there... incredible, it really is the busiest theme park in the world.

After showing again our entry tickets, we were finally in the park... and walking up the main avenue towards the Cinderella's castle.

First stop, a picture stop of course in front of the castle, trying to get the best view at it despite the large amount of people all around us.

Magic Kingdom rides

It was now time to find a terminal in which we could book our fast pass tracks.

The system is really bad, as all the interesting attractions slots were already fully booked by the time we got there, and we barely managed to find some nice rides to book with a fast pass, but we got the famous pirates of the Caribbean.

We first went to a ride in that adventure area, which was a show with singing fake birds and other animations.

As lunch time was approaching and the day was getting pretty warm, we continued our tour with an ice cream and pop corn stop, while waiting for the time of our first fast pass ride, the Pirates of the Caribbean.

The ride was pretty good, going on a kind of wooden small boat on a river in a cave, surrounded by pirates, and of course with some of them looking like the famous characters of the movie.

Exiting the ride and walking around the park, we walked passed the Splash mountain, which looked great.

We saw the waiting time announced, 95 minutes... it is actually a pretty decent waiting time for that park. A little bit disappointing.

However, we starter queuing for the attraction, which features wood logs going up and down a river, including a fast descent on a steep section.

After that, it became difficult to walk in the park, as they were clearing the streets to allow for the parade to pass there.

We passed in the post medieval section, and entered the fantasy area.

There, we wanted to enter our second fast pass attraction of the day, some mermaid ride. But arriving there, an employee told us that the ride was closed... and we could instead go to any ride in the park using our fast pass.

Space Mountain at Disney World Orlando

We directly headed to the futuristic area, to board to famous Space Mountain indoor roller coaster!

I couldn't do it when I was in Disneyland Paris because I was too short at that time, and I couldn't do it in Disneyland Tokyo because the attraction was closed for maintenance on that day... but I could do it there in Disneyworld Orlando, amazing, and without any waiting time!

The space like attraction was pretty good, but not so thrilling - like most of the rides in Disney theme parks.

After that, we got hungry, and stopped at the nearby burger restaurant for a more than welcome lunch break.

We kept going with a calmer after lunch ride, the paddle steamer boat, which would take us around the lake with some surrounding Indians installments.

From that area, we could see the mine train, and felt like trying it.

After the boat trip, we went to that mine train, and managed to use our fast pass to cut the waiting time.

The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster is one of the busiest ride of the Magic Kingdom park, with an average waiting time of 2 hours throughout the day... and we only had to wait about 20 minutes to board.

The ride was pretty fun, and a little more intense than what we had before... but, however, is definitely not worth a 2 hours waiting time.

After that, we checked how to use our remaining 2 fast passes, and booked the last remaining rides slots later that night.

Before dusk, it was time to take some more pictures in front of Cinderella's castle, to have some nice memories to take with us.

While the night was falling, we were waiting to board the merry go round, and actually boarded it just as the lights were being turned on.

After that, we headed to the circus area, and went a bit up on the flying Dumbo ride, before going to wait for the fireworks to start.

Disney Magic Kingdom fireworks show

The main attraction of the day, however, after terrible waiting queues, a more crowded than it should park under a strong sun, is definitely the fireworks display above Cinderella's castle.

Very picturesque, it is worth the wait.

Plus, being at the end of the day, during the night and shortly before the park's closure, it is an amazing show.

It nearly makes you forget that you actually had an overpriced and terrible day in the park, and that except for the Disney theme, the park had nothing good compared to nearly any other theme park.

The 20 minutes fireworks display also features a light show on the castle, and of course a lot of Disney music to go with it.

The show is very picturesque, and it was amazing to watch.

After the show, we headed to the futuristic area, and had a ride on top of a building, actually a mistake... we were waiting for another attraction because the waiting was short, but instead we were at the wrong queue, and got on a nicer ride that we thought had a too long queue.

We then headed back to the circus area for our last ride of the day, again a fast pass on a kids roller coaster, themed after Goofy. Was a nice way to end the day.

... And that was it. Time to leave the place where magic happens.

Running to the tramway, there was so many people that we had to wait for the next one.

Arriving at the parking, we were just 5 minutes too late to catch the complimentary bus back to the Park Inn by Radisson Resort & Conference Center- Orlando- Near Disney... and had to order an  Uber   back home.

The kid asleep, we were still hungry at past midnight, and went for a late night burger near the hotel, at an IHOP restaurant, International house of pancakes.

IHOP® Breakfast | Come To IHOP® For Breakfast‎

The end of a long day in Magic Kingdom.

Frequently Asked Questions

What highlights and experiences should visitors prioritize during a one-day visit to Disney's Magic Kingdom?
In a one-day visit, prioritize iconic attractions like Cinderella's Castle, Space Mountain, and the Haunted Mansion. Also, include character meet-and-greets, parades, and the evening fireworks show. Using a FastPass for popular rides can save time.

Michel Pinson
About the author - Michel Pinson
Michel Pinson is a Travel enthusiast and Content Creator. Merging passion for education and exploration, he iscommitted to sharing knowledge and inspiring others through captivating educational content. Bringing the world closer together by empowering individuals with global expertise and a sense of wanderlust.



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