I moved to Florida in 2020, it wasn’t long before I became a Walt Disney World Annual Passholder. As fate would have it, I happened to find a group of friends who were as Disney-obsessed as I was. Let’s just say that despite living 3.5 hours away from the Most Magical Place on Earth, we still get our money’s worth.
Recently a friend and I decided to do a Disney weekend, but with a twist: On the first day, we would each be on our own and do our own thing. If things went sideways and one of us freaked out or were just too darn lonesome, we could always reach out and meet up with the other. However, we thought this would be an interesting social experiment, as well as a chance to just do whatever we wanted without having to consider anyone else’s agenda. Here’s how it went:
7:10 a.m.: Flight from Ft. Myers to Orlando. Okay, this is a bit indulgent, but at first, I was going to be flying out of Orlando to another destination, so it made sense at the time. However, I am loving the 29-minute flight time … and a one-way flight is relatively cheap (about 46 bucks).
8:30 a.m. (ish): Dropped my duffel bag at the Dolphin hotel and then walked to Epcot. I had early entry due to my hotel stay, so the park was relatively quiet. I immediately went over to Ratatouille and walked onto the ride by using the single rider option. Ah-mazing.
Next, I headed to Soarin’ which was a 10-minute wait (again, fantastic wait time). Or rather I should say, Nice work, pal. (IYKYK).
After that I needed a little something more in my stomach because I knew I would be drinking before noon; I got a granola bar, banana, and water at the Sunshine Seasons quick service area in The Land Pavilion.
I checked in with my husband and then walked over to Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind for my 10:35 a.m. Lightning Lane selection. This was definitely worth the 17 bucks; I ended up waiting maybe 10 minutes tops in the hallway before being brought into the first pre-ride “show”. I was a little nervous about who I would be seated next to, but it turns out it was … nobody. No one was seated next to me. They just put the bar down next to me and it was an empty seat. I guess this was okay but also a little sad? Oh, and by the way I got Tears for Fears for my song (Everybody Wants to Rule the World). Not a bad song, but damnit I am still missing two songs: Disco Inferno and September. At least I didn’t get Conga. I swear I am going to get a t-shirt made up that says, “Anything but Conga please”.
From there the timing was perfect for my 11:10 reservation at Epcot’s new adults-only bar, Geo 82. I did use a little help securing this reservation since it’s a hard ticket to get, and even every bar stool required a res. I used an app called Mousewatchers, which allowed me to get an alert every time a spot opened up on September 6th. For a mere 5 dollars, this worked very well. I’ll admit it was probably a bit easier to secure a spot for one person vs. two or more, which is another advantage to being a singleton at Disney.
Geo 82 starts out by seating you in a little waiting lounge. They even hand you some nicely scented refreshing wet towels. Then the hosts come out and seat each party one by one. I was taken into the bar and was promptly seated … behind a pole. Yes, I got the least-coveted position at the bar … and was then forced to awkwardly stare at a pole in front of me. I ordered something called the High Brow Batanga: Tapatio Reposado Tequila, Ramazzotti Amaro, Kola Nut, Lime Cordial, Salt, Bubbles. It was a little out of my comfort zone, but I wanted to try something different. It was refreshing and light, but I think it’s a one and done situation for me. As for the overall bar? I hate to say it, but I was underwhelmed. Maybe it’s prettier at night or if you are seated by a window, but I really don’t understand the hype. And 25 bucks for my cocktail? Well, that was a bit steep.
From there I wanted to sample some of the deliciousness at the Food and Wine Festival. My first stop was for Pumpkin-Mascarpone Ravioli with brown butter vinaigrette, pecorino cheese, pomegranate seeds, and hazelnut praline. This was super yummy and also the perfect snack-size portion. I then decided that I needed more carbs, as I couldn’t resist the cheddar and bacon soup with a warm pretzel roll (found at Canada).
It was then onto a Friendship Boat over to nearby Hollywood Studios. I made my Lightning Lane at the Hollywood Tower of Terror with seven minutes to spare. I know that a lot of people can’t handle this ride, and I sweat profusely every time I’m about to ride it, but it still brings me great joy and tons of laughs. I was seated next to a very nervous British girl in her twenties who kept saying, “Oh … I hate it … I hate it so much…” as we were gearing up for the elevator. Would it be bad to say that her ongoing commentary and general terror made it even more enjoyable?
I decided I needed another drink, so I dipped into the Tune-In Lounge. I wasn’t feeling the vibe there, so I instead went over to Star Tours, which had a 5-minute wait. (Poor Star Tours … I think it gets a bad rap, but honestly, I don’t think it’s too bad.) Speaking of Star Wars though, I headed to Galaxy’s Edge to check out the wait time for Rise of the Resistance. It was 90 minutes (oh hell no) so I instead went to Oga’s Cantina to see if I could walk in as a single. No such luck, they weren’t even taking single walk-ins. I instead went to Baseline Taproom, got a margarita, and went outside to a communal table where nobody talked to me. After enough awkwardness had passed, I took my drink over to a bench near Toy Story Land and just people watched. This was much more enjoyable.
By then it was time for my Toy Story Mania Lightning Lane, which ended up being less than lightning speed; they were at half capacity, so my wait was at least 30 minutes. I did strike up a conversation with two girls behind me in line; they were from Long Island and about to embark on a Disney Cruise. Again, nobody was seated next to me on this ride either, so I did especially miss my husband on this one … mostly because my score is always better than his, and I can gloat. (Sorry, honey.)
Well, it turned out that the delay was well-timed, because apparently there was a huge downpour while I was inside the ride. The park was full of puddles and sunshine, but it also meant that Slinky Dog Dash was temporarily closed. I didn’t want to wait around for that opening, so I did a little browsing in shops and then took a Disney bus to the Contemporary’s Steakhouse 71 bar. Again, nobody was really talking to me, so I made the effort to chat with a couple who came in a little later. (And again, yay me for making an effort.)
It was then time to head back to the hotel and get ready for dinner, so I took the monorail to Epcot where I then met up with my friend. We took a Friendship Boat back to the Dolphin and got ready for dinner at Topolino’s at the Riviera Hotel. This was a lovely way to re-cap our day and also watch the Epcot fireworks from the rooftop.
Here’s the quick and dirty summary:
Steps: 27,000. Special shout out to my Olukai tennis shoes. I think I have my new go-to walking shoe. I never once even thought about aching feet.
Parks visited: 2.
Hotels visited: 3.
Number of conversations with strangers I initiated: Five (at Ratatouille, Tower of Terror, Steakhouse 71, Toy Story Mania, Geo 82).
Number of conversations strangers initiated with me: Zero.
Would I do a solo day again? I would, however no more than one day. Disney is best enjoyed with friends or family, but every once in a while, it’s okay to be selfish and just do what you want, when you want, at your own pace. There’s a nice freedom to that.
In the words of Mickey Mouse, See you real soon, Disney.
I recently had my first solo day at Disneyland and loved it. The slower pace and chance for connections were amazing!