24 Hours in Magic Kingdom?!?!

With the recent news of the 24 hour event being announced for May 22-23, 2015 I thought this would be a great time to revisit our 24 hour experience from last year!

As soon as I heard the event was going to be held on May 23-24th I knew I had to be there.  My birthday is on May 23rd and how often can you say you spent your entire birthday in Magic Kingdom?  This was a must do but I didn’t want to go it alone.  I decided to surprise my 7 year old son with the trip.  It would be a short one but with hardly any sleep and jam-packed full of fun.

I waited until we arrived at the airport to tell him he was coming along.  The shock on his face said it all.  He couldn’t believe it.  Not only would he get to experience the 24 hour event but also Star Wars Weekend!  He was very excited to say the least.

I was awake by 1:30am (I literally cannot sleep when I’m in Disney!)  My son woke up around 3:30am and we made our way to the lobby where we met up with some friends to split the cost of the taxi.  We were let off at Bay Lake Towers and there was already a group forming near the crosswalk.  This was around 5am.  We eventually were allowed to cross the street and then stood in another line closer to where the buses let off for Magic Kingdom.  We were let through there before anyone else had arrived (the ferry was on it’s way).  We were let in and took our place to see the welcome show.  The characters came out in pajamas to greet everyone.

The show was very exciting!  It was announced that today was a very special day… we were all invited to “Rock Our Disney Side for 24 Hours!”

The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train was set to open on May 28th but we had a feeling that it may open early on this special day.  As we rounded the corner by the carousel, we saw they were letting people IN!!!  I could not get anymore excited… this was a great way to kick off my birthday!

People were jumping up and down and screeching with excitement when they saw the line was open.  We ended up in line right behind famous Disney vloggers “Joe & Ashley”.  You can check out their videos on their channel “See Ya Reel Soon”… it was great riding with them since they were lucky enough to ride earlier in the week… they calmed down my son who was a little worried about this coaster.

This was such an exciting ride… when it was over everyone screamed and cheered.  We loved it!!!  The line grew instantly and stayed long throughout the rest of the day/night.

Have no fear about crowds this early in the morning… they were NON-existant!

We were able to go on ten attractions and take a break to get some breakfast all before 9am which would be normal park opening… it was fantastic!

It was very hot being the end of May… our afternoon was spent on Splash Mountain and seeing the air conditioned shows.  We enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Be Our Guest.

Then we found a spot for the new Festival of Fantasy parade around 2pm and waited for that to begin.

We met Mr. talking Mickey!

and then waved at the live feed camera to daddy & sister back home!

We met up with family members and enjoyed a few more rides before taking the boat over to the Polynesian Resort.  We enjoyed some time on the beach and got to see the parade & fireworks.

It was time for my birthday dinner at ‘Ohana.  We really enjoyed our meal here and it was a nice break from the park… it allowed us to recharge and regroup for our long night ahead!

We ended up back in Magic Kingdom around 11:30pm.  At 1am they put on the Villain’s parade so we caught that and then headed back to do some more attractions.

I will admit, I got pretty tired around 4am and asked my son if he would like to leave.  He said NO WAY MOM and kept me going.  There were dance parties going on in Frontierland and right in front of the castle.  These did a good job of getting me back in the party mood and getting my energy levels back up!

At 4:30am the wait time for the Mine Train was listed at 60 minutes.  We decided to go for it.  This would be our first and last ride of the event.  We rode it just as the sun was beginning to rise!

We did it!  24 HOURS!!!

On the way back to the buses I snapped this picture:

The sun was out by the time we got back to our room.

This was such a fun event!  I would do this again in a heartbeat.  Next time I would take things a little slower and not rush so much in the morning… the meal was a good way to break up the day/night and recharge.  It’s important to stay fueled and if you’re tired, REST!  There’s plenty to keep busy in Magic Kingdom.

If you’re looking to do the 24 hour event this year, I would LOVE to help you plan your trip!  Contact me today for a free, no obligation quote 🙂  youcandreamittravel@yahoo.com  My services are free and I’ll make sure you get the best deal possible!