May 2025 Solo- 9 Park Days

[HCL]

Hello everyone, I am going in May 2025 and booked already. I will be there from May 12th to May 22nd. I have 9 Day Park Hopper tickets and am trying to figure out what park will get a third day during the trip. I usually stay in one park each day and do a mid-day rest then go back. I am trying to decide between EPCOT or Magic Kingdom getting the third day, what do you all think? I will not be going into the parks on my first day, and have a late half-day on Thursday at Hollywood Studios as a rest day. I plan to just do Fantasmic and dinner and whatever rides have a low wait.

 

[wildlodger]

How exciting! I would say that Epcot would be a great third day. It definitely depends on your preference, but as someone who's solo'd before, I really enjoy walking around the show case and stopping for food wherever and whenever I want. There is also the single rider line for Test Track, which is nice. Cosmic Rewind is a plus there, as I prefer that to Tron. Epcot shopping is better than MK, if that's important to you. Plus, if you wanted a park break, you can walk over to the Boardwalk or Beach/Yacht Club!

 

[HCL]

How exciting! I would say that Epcot would be a great third day. It definitely depends on your preference, but as someone who's solo'd before, I really enjoy walking around the show case and stopping for food wherever and whenever I want. There is also the single rider line for Test Track, which is nice. Cosmic Rewind is a plus there, as I prefer that to Tron. Epcot shopping is better than MK, if that's important to you. Plus, if you wanted a park break, you can walk over to the Boardwalk or Beach/Yacht Club!

Oh! I didn't even think about Cosmic Rewind, I haven't gotten to ride that or Remy's yet! A third EPCOT day makes sense!

 

[wildlodger]

Oh! I didn't even think about Cosmic Rewind, I haven't gotten to ride that or Remy's yet! A third EPCOT day makes sense!

Cosmic is SO worth it! I recommend doing the virtual queue AND buying a lightning lane after, if you like it. You can get 1 of 5 songs, so that makes it fun. Remy's is a good one, too! Have fun!

 

[jimmymc]

I would probably start the day at Epcot to get another ride on Guardians, then end with my favorite nighttime show. For me, that's Happily Ever After in MK, but whichever you want to see again.

 

[juuuliebeth]

I did a 10 day solo trip in 2018, and I'll say that one of my favorite things I did was my Four Parks In One Day day. I had to ride at least one attraction and eat something in each park to consider it done. (A self imposed rule) I started in Epcot because it opened the earlier, back during EMH days. Then Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom, and finally Magic Kingdom for HEA at the end. It was a blast. Highly recommend.

Also, bonus points if you can get in all the different modes of transportation: boat, bus, monorail, and Skyliner.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Having done many solo trips and since park reservations are no longer necessary, I'd leave one day open, go out to the bus stop and get on the bus for whatever park that arrives first. I used to love doing that as a solo-for me, I'd usually do it the first day, to signify total freedom.

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

You'll be there during EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival with nitely concerts... If that interests you maybe wait til you see the line-up to plan your days. Also, the weather...Just in case some plans are a wash-out.
Have enjoyed my solo trips exactly because they allow me so much flexibility.

 

[HCL]

A follow up question I have is a little bit of a spin off of this. How do you guys slow down the trip and pace yourself? Last time I went, I pushed myself like I was still 25 and found myself having a lot of energy and feet issues. Do you have any tips for keeping it in your head to slow down and enjoy the parks? I found that the later days of my trip I would make it until about 1pm, then my feet and back were killing me and I had to head back for the day. I want to avoid having this issue this time, and I know it was because I was going 100 miles per hour when I got there.

 

[kylenne]

A follow up question I have is a little bit of a spin off of this. How do you guys slow down the trip and pace yourself? Last time I went, I pushed myself like I was still 25 and found myself having a lot of energy and feet issues. Do you have any tips for keeping it in your head to slow down and enjoy the parks? I found that the later days of my trip I would make it until about 1pm, then my feet and back were killing me and I had to head back for the day. I want to avoid having this issue this time, and I know it was because I was going 100 miles per hour when I got there.

My solo trips are structured exactly the same way I structure trips with my partner: 1 full rest day for every 2 rope drop park days in a row. Park days I either rope drop and go till noon with a lengthy midday siesta at the resort and then go back to the same park or hop to another in the evening. The only time I ever really deviate from this is arrival and departure days, and occasionally those rope drops will be replaced by a late start where I have a leisurely morning and stack LLs for the afternoon and evening (I like this on Extended Evening Hour days especially).

This is just what works for me. I also try to minimize crisscrossing the parks for LLs, though sometimes it just can't be helped. But I am never wiped out when I stick to this plan.

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

A follow up question I have is a little bit of a spin off of this. How do you guys slow down the trip and pace yourself? Last time I went, I pushed myself like I was still 25 and found myself having a lot of energy and feet issues. Do you have any tips for keeping it in your head to slow down and enjoy the parks? I found that the later days of my trip I would make it until about 1pm, then my feet and back were killing me and I had to head back for the day. I want to avoid having this issue this time, and I know it was because I was going 100 miles per hour when I got there.

When I'm solo, I'm all about BEING at WDW and NOT just 'DOING' it! I really enjoy Flower & Garden time bc I do stop & smell the roses. I also love the fall season. I stroll, stop to admire & sit often. The details & theming were always what separated WDW from "amusement parks" for me (tho there's a decrease in both & that's a different discussion )
I usually have a few MUST-DO attractions, but if I feel like sleeping thru rope-drop, I have no guilt...I'm on vaycay at my happy place & always hope I can return again... Nothing has prompted me to Genie+ yet. There are enough available activities/attractions to fill my days & I refuse to stare at my phone all day and miss random magical moments happening all around me. (My only regret is that PPF now is so popular. In early days it was always a walk-on. Now it takes me less time to fly to London & see Big Ben in person ...)
PS. I also leave a park an hour before I think I need to. The walking & waiting to get back to the pool or to rest is really hard when exhausted.

 

[CoachBeard]

I did 8 days last trip and I enjoy park hopping. Since my trip was the week they did away with reservations and park hopping time restrictions I picked one day to just hit all 4 parks for a little while.

I thought about just doing one park per day since I had so much time but somehow I always find my way back to Epcot in the evening.

 

[kylenne]

I refuse to stare at my phone all day and miss random magical moments happening all around me.

No one has to stare at their phone all day to use G+ effectively unless they are Encino Man just thawed out in 2024 and have no idea how to use a smartphone. It takes less than a minute to purchase it, set up your tip board, and book a LL. Additional LLs take even less time to book and it's so easily done while waiting on transportation or for shows to start, or for you to get your food, or the dozens of other decidedly non magical downtime moments in an average park day. Even on the craziest pulling every LL in MK day I probably spent more time in line for the restroom than looking at my phone with G+ The only time staring at your phone is a thing with G+ is if you're trying to modify for specific times or pull the most popular rides in the afternoon, neither of which is ever a necessity.

I can definitely understand people not wanting to purchase G+ because that's an additional expense that not everyone wants to budget for, and I don't get it on every park day, but this specific canard is so easily debunked by 5 minutes spent actually using the service.

 

[CoachBeard]

No one has to stare at their phone all day to use G+ effectively unless they are Encino Man just thawed out in 2024 and have no idea how to use a smartphone. It takes less than a minute to purchase it, set up your tip board, and book a LL. Additional LLs take even less time to book and it's so easily done while waiting on transportation or for shows to start, or for you to get your food, or the dozens of other decidedly non magical downtime moments in an average park day. Even on the craziest pulling every LL in MK day I probably spent more time in line for the restroom than looking at my phone with G+ The only time staring at your phone is a thing with G+ is if you're trying to modify for specific times or pull the most popular rides in the afternoon, neither of which is ever a necessity.

I can definitely understand people not wanting to purchase G+ because that's an additional expense that not everyone wants to budget for, and I don't get it on every park day, but this specific canard is so easily debunked by 5 minutes spent actually using the service.

For me now that I’ve been to WDW twice in 2 years time, I’ve done all the popular stuff so I don’t know that I’d buy genie+ daily like I had. I found myself to be indecisive and even when “stacking” sometime I just didn’t feel like trudging across the whole park to make a lightning lane. I’m a magic key holder at Disneyland and the last few times I’ve gone without genie+ and it makes for such a better time.

Sometimes I’ll buy an ILL for Rise or something but that’s about all I’ll do anymore.

Part of my problem is I travel solo and don’t adhere to plans. I also constantly check what’s coming up next because I forget or I’d rather stay geographically where I am.

 

[KenyaSierra]

Why don’t you wait until you’re there and then decide?! Since reservations are no longer necessary, seems like it would be great for you to see how your trip is going and decide while you’re there which park you want to go back to for the third time. My last trip (Feb ‘24) was my first since they removed reservations and the 2 PM parkhoppet restriction and it was so nice just to be able to change plans on a whim about where I wanted to go.

 

[CoachBeard]

Why don’t you wait until you’re there and then decide?! Since reservations are no longer necessary, seems like it would be great for you to see how your trip is going and decide while you’re there which park you want to go back to for the third time. My last trip (Feb ‘24) was my first since they removed reservations and the 2 PM parkhoppet restriction and it was so nice just to be able to change plans on a whim about where I wanted to go.

100% this! Just don’t pick the week I went because the skyliner was down for maintenance the nights I stayed at riviera.