Shownotes
Read the full show notes for this episode HERE!
Planning your perfect Disney World trip only to spend half of it staring at your phone screen? Been there.
But if your goal this year is a Disney World trip that feels more magical and less like a never-ending scroll session, this episode is for you. I’m walking you through seven totally doable ways to stay off your phone during your next Disney World trip—without sacrificing the magic (or missing your Lightning Lanes).
Whether you're deep into Walt Disney World vacation planning or just trying to survive your first go at Disney World planning with three kids and a spreadsheet, I’ve got ideas you can start using right now to make your trip feel more present, less screeny.
In this episode, we’ll cover:
- The surprisingly nostalgic tool I brought on a whim—and how it completely changed my Disney World planning style
- The simplest swap that saved me from unlocking my phone 147 times a day during our last Disney World trip
- Why using Standby Skipper might be the only time I’ll tell you to use your phone more (because it helps you use it less)
- A low-effort dining strategy that gives your brain (and phone) a much-needed break during Disney World planning
- How using a paper map and writing your plans down (yes, with a pen) could be the thing that finally shifts your Walt Disney World vacation planning from “constantly checking the app” to “actually enjoying your day.”
Do you have your own go-to trick for surviving the screen time spiral during your Disney World trip? Let me know your thoughts over on IG: @somewhereworthwhile.
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Podcast music by Podington Bear, track: 'Filaments', licensed under CC BY-NC, courtesy of Free Music Archive.
Transcripts
[00:00:19] Dana Stanley: It's exhausting and it makes me a little sad. And while this might seem like something that is just the nature of the beast, something that we can't help today, I am walking through seven ways. To actually help stay off your phone on a Disney trip. Not completely off the phone because don't get me wrong, the, my Disney Experience app is very, very important.
[:[00:00:55] Dana Stanley: This episode is about simple, realistic swaps that will help keep you present and in the moment and let you enjoy your trip while still making your plans work. Hello and welcome to the Laid Back Magic Way podcast. I'm your host, Dana Stanley, creator of Laid Back Magic. As a mom of three, I know how tough it can be to find time to plan a Disney World trip.
[:[00:01:33] Dana Stanley: This podcast is your go-to for simple tips, mindset shifts, real life trip recaps, and expert insights to make your trip magical and manageable. New episodes drop every Monday, so be sure to subscribe so you never miss a moment. Okay, let's dive in. All right. I can't wait to talk about this specifically because it's something that I think a lot of us feel, most of us feel, but don't always say out loud and it's how hard it can be.
[:[00:02:28] Dana Stanley: I feel like we could be on our phones less if we were just like, oh, I'm gonna take a picture, put my phone away, or I'm gonna check the time and put my phone away. But what happens is you get these little alerts of, oh, so and so emailed me. You know what? I forgot to message them back. Let me just, boop, boop, or Let me check Instagram real quick.
[:[00:03:05] Dana Stanley: You know, it stinks. So I want to try some things that will make this easier. Seven practical, doable things you can try, whether you just try one or all seven to cut down how often you're reaching for your phone in the first place. Some of these things I've started implementing into our own trips. Kind of by accident and ended up, oh, you know what?
[:[00:03:53] Dana Stanley: But then I grabbed just like a lightweight cheapy one from Amazon, and I found that I really like bringing this, and the kids love it too. So the one that I have is actually a half frame one, which means instead of the normal 36 exposures, you're actually getting 72. So it lasts longer, and I don't feel bad when my kids kind of grab the camera and are taking like.
[:[00:04:40] Dana Stanley: Like this one photo just opened an entire rabbit hole, but with film, I can't get distracted. There's no screen, there's nothing. I just take the photo and move on, and I actually love waiting to see how the pictures turn out later, and it adds kind of like this. Anticipation for the kids of like, they don't get the instant gratification of seeing the photo.
[:[00:05:28] Dana Stanley: And then I just like the look of film because it already looks like it has a filter. Like we're buying filters to make it look like film and we could just use film. So yeah, I'll link everything in the show notes. I don't think you have to overcomplicate. The actual film camera, like even just a disposable film camera, would accomplish the same thing.
[:[00:06:12] Dana Stanley: So as a quick refresher, there are three ways to quote scan in your phone, which is called Magic Mobile, and it's essentially like a digital card, like how you would scan into a flight with your Apple wallet. Kind of the same thing. Or a magic band, which you could wear on your wrist. And then the third option is a physical card, like a plastic card that Disney calls key to the world.
[:[00:07:02] Dana Stanley: It can get annoying really quick. We always use magic bands because we go to Disney often. We can reuse them, so it's worth the cost. It is an added thing, but like everything you're paying kind of for the convenience. I really do like having a magic band and keeping my hands free. That being said, my mother-in-law actually prefers the key to the world card, so just having that and it's free, it's included.
[:[00:07:49] Dana Stanley: So you have to kind of weigh those pros and cons. But either of these options are going to solve the problem of using your phone to scan into lightning lanes. Scan into the parks using either of these options. The magic band or the key to the World Card is going to solve that using your phone issue. My third tip technically uses your phone, but it's in the most efficient way that you could use it.
[:[00:08:38] Dana Stanley: And to get the most out of Multipass, you should be booking as many as possible. But what happens is you scan into a ride and then you end up like sitting on small world on your phone, completely missing everything, and it's because you're focused on booking the next ride. And we have recently had a rule where no phones allowed on a ride.
[:[00:09:19] Dana Stanley: So let's say you're on the bus to Magic Kingdom, you could input two or three rides that you want queued up for when you actually get into the park. So it's a bus ride, you know, you're not missing much. It's a lot better to be doing that than fiddling on your phone and refreshing, which is another thing that it takes care of is if you're familiar with Multipass and a lot of things that I teach is.
[:[00:09:59] Dana Stanley: I've been using it since it came out and I love it. I have not used lightning lanes. Since without it, you'll just get a little notification when your next ride is booked and for the return time, and it can even show on your lock screen, so you're not even actually opening your phone to know that if you've ever tried to manage the app manually, especially having kids with you, you know how quickly it eats up your attention.
[:[00:10:51] Dana Stanley: Not an Apple watch either. 'cause I feel like that will just have its own problems of like checking things. If you already have one, fine, but just an old school watch to tell the time, because I've found that most of the times when I'm pulling up my phone, it's just the check the time. And I mean, I have three kids, so like maybe this isn't an issue for most people.
[:[00:11:31] Dana Stanley: Like, I just wanna know. I. And it's like the classic like time for you to buy a watch. So I think I'm just gonna get something like a cheap, semi stylish functional watch for our next trip, and that alone is gonna save me so many times of yanking out my phone. Now, number five, I am not anti mobile order at all.
[:[00:12:16] Dana Stanley: Being able to like talk to someone and ask different questions and like modifications with a human versus always being on the app. So what I've been doing is usually breakfast in the room or at the resort, and then I'll mobile order for lunch. Then we'll do a sit down dinner reservation. Or maybe those last two could be swapped.
[:[00:13:06] Dana Stanley: Number six, I could talk about forever, but I'll try not to. And that is to just write down your plans on paper. And there's something about writing things down, and I know there's like studies on this of like, you're X percent more likely to complete something or remember something when it's written down.
[:[00:13:51] Dana Stanley: I remember it better and it's kind of like locked in, so I don't even have to actually reference the paper that much, or my phone especially. But beyond that, it gives you a plan to refer to if you have to, that isn't tied to your phone. So like what if your phone dies? Or you lose your phone, or if the app crashes or you lose service or forget your charger or just you wanna unplug for a little bit, you still know what's going on, like what time is dinner?
[:[00:14:43] Dana Stanley: The pre-booked stuff and when the park opens. That's pretty much it in that same line of thinking. It leads me to my last tip, which is to grab a paper map when you get to the park. They still have them. They're at the front of all the four parks, and you'd be surprised how nice it is to unfold a paper map and look at where you are and where you're going next, what's nearby.
[:[00:15:33] Dana Stanley: I think you're noticing things and that's kind of the whole point of being there, right? I feel like you don't have to do all seven of these things. Obviously. Even just picking one or two will shift how present you feel on your trip. I really do think it'll make a difference. So I'll link everything I mentioned in the show notes.
[:[00:16:15] Dana Stanley: I remember more, and I feel like I'm just generally. Not as stressed out and my kids, they always seem a little calmer when I'm actually paying attention to them. I hope this was helpful and I will talk to you next week. Thank you so much for joining me on this episode of the Laid Back Magic Way podcast.
[:[00:16:50] Dana Stanley: DM me if you have any questions about this episode or what you'd like to see in feature ones. Until then, keep planning for your next favorite memory and I'll see you next time.
