I Go To Disney World Every Year, Here Are My Top Tips Gallery

Hello, my name is Carolyn Menyes, and I am a Walt Disney World addict. Yes, I may be a woman in her mid-20s with no children, but I do have a nerdy husband who also loves Disney as much as I do. That means each and every year (at least once a year), we book a flight from New York to Orlando and take a trip to Disney. I've been five times in the last three years, and while I'm no professional travel agent or Disney employee, I do have my fair share of advice for those who want to head down to WDW for the vacation of their dreams.

Planning a trip to Walt Disney World can feel really overwhelming and become outrageously expensive very quickly. Between booking airfare, a hotel room, dining reservations and FastPasses, it can all feel like too much. It may be tempting to plan every single day of your trip down to the minute, but trust me, there is no fun in bringing a binder full of spreadsheets and food prices with you to the parks. And yes, I have seen that.

My No. 1 tip for planning a trip to Walt Disney World? Do your research and plan some things far in advance, but make sure that at the end of the day you relax and go with the flow. Disney vacations take a lot of work, but they are still a vacation at the end of the day. I've been lucky to spend my vacations at Disney World every year, here are my top tips.

There are a lot of ways to save money at Walt Disney World, but the top thing you can do is book your trip as early as possible. Room rates at Disney resorts go up as the rooms get filled, so as soon as you know that you want to go to Disney and when, book a room and a flight. And speaking of booking a room...

Walt Disney World's table service meal reservations open up 180 days ahead of time. Yes, you read that right: You can start booking dinners for December in June. It's hard enough to know what to make for dinner this week, let alone what you want to eat six months from now. But, if you want to go to some of the best restaurants at Epcot, for example, try logging on as early as possible to get that Advance Dining Reservation (that's Disney lingo for table reservation). Popular restaurants like Be Our Guest, Cinderella's Royal Table and the California Grill will book up at the 180-day mark.

Miss that time slot? Don't worry! I've actually never bothered to book my restaurants 180 days in advance. Knowing what park I want to go to when I've barely even booked my trip is too stressful, and I don't want to be locked into a single plan for six months. You can still get amazing dining options closer to your actual visit date. You see, guests can drop their reservations with no consequences until 24 hours before the meal. That means popular restaurants are open almost all the time. I've nabbed reservations at Be Our Guest, Jiko, La Hacienda de San Angel and more with days or hours to go. I've even seen a dinner reservation for Disney's highest-end restaurant, Victoria & Albert's, open with less than one day to go. Just keep checking Disney's website for reservation times. Trust me: Something you want will pop up.

There's an image of an early Disney trip that still haunts me to this day. My husband and I were walking into Animal Kingdom and ahead of us, a father had a massive three-ring binder full of their plans for the day. While it's great to know what iconic Disney theme park snacks are worth your time and when is the best hour to hit up Flight of Passage, there's no need to have a binder full of spreadsheets breaking down every dollar and minute of your trip. Disney vacations do take a lot of planning, but remember — it's a vacation. You can relax a bit. Plus, if you have every moment of your trip broken down by price and time, you're taking away all the magic.

There's no such thing as a cheap trip to Walt Disney World. No matter how much you plan to eat at counter service spots and forego souvenirs, you will find that perfect Mickey Mouse T-shirt or a surprise dining slot open at one of Epcot's best restaurants. As you save up for your trip, realize you'll get swept away by the magic and have some extra money for last-minute purchases.

I've been to Walt Disney World five times in three years. No matter when I go, I always try to do something new and different. It helps to keep the parks feeling fresh and exciting. If you've never been to Disney (or haven't been in a very long time), everything will feel shiny and new. But since I go so often, it's important for me to keep exploring. This year, I went to Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and visited tiki bar Trader Sam's for the first time, and each different experience made me love Disney even more. Remember how I said you can't do it all in one trip? That means there's plenty to explore on repeat vacations.

There's no reason to have your head buried in your cellphone when you're at Walt Disney World, unless, of course, you're using the My Disney Experience app. This free mobile app can be downloaded on to your smartphone, and it seriously changes the way you approach a theme park. It allows you to book extra FastPasses, find the perfect dinner reservation and see wait times for most rides and meet-and-greets. My Disney Experience also has a host of cool other features, including the ability to unlock your hotel room door via Bluetooth, buy souvenirs and order food from quick service locations. It's a complete and total game-changer and will make your trip go so smoothly.