Why Would Anyone Go to a Theme Park*
By Themselves?
Me, for one. But also - so many people!
A solo Disney trip is a fundamentally different experience than going as a parent or going with friends. Whether or not you’re the person who usually organizes group trips, you probably never get to do exactly what you want whenever you want without having to make a single compromise.
I wouldn’t make my first Disney trip a solo trip, but if you’re already familiar with a particular park and you’ve always wanted to do things a little differently, think about a solo trip. Slow down, or speed way up, sleep in, or be the first person in line for early entry every morning!… do it 100% your way, every day.
I took a solo trip to Walt Disney World in 2024 and I loved it! It was so relaxing, so fun. I didn’t feel weird or lonely - I mean, there were literally thousands of people around and plenty of folks to strike up a conversation with if I felt chatty. One night, I grabbed a last minute reservation at Tappan Edo at EPCOT and was seated next to a lovely family from Dallas. Like me, they’d traveled to Japan and throughout dinner, we chatted about all the cool things we loved about it. When I was really to roll, I thanked them for their company and went on my way. I had a lot of experiences like that, but I never felt like I had to interact if I didn’t want to and - come to think of it - I never felt like I had to explain why I was there by myself either!
When I got back from that trip I vowed to make it a regular thing. I’m going again in January 2026 and I’m already thinking about what kind of trip I want it to be. I packed a lot of stuff into that first trip thinking it was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime vacation (little did I know…). I had dinner reservations, meet & greets, two tickets to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party… I spent months revising the schedule. For this next trip, I have a few things I’ll need ADRs (advance dining reservations) for but aside from that, I’m going to leave things open and see what happens! And I’m finally going to check out Animal Kingdom Lodge!
Here are some things to consider.
You will be seated next to random people on rides. Like this guy - let’s call him Gary - I sat next to (that’s me in the white dress) on Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind. He was with the other couple sitting behind us. Whenever Gary looks at this photo I bet he thinks, “Who was that random woman we sat with?” Whenever the other guy - let’s call him Brad - looks at this photo I bet he thinks, “Who was that random woman sitting next to Gary?” And whenever Brad’s girlfriend - let’s call her Lisa - looks at that picture I bet she thinks, “We both could’ve used a scrunchie!”
You will dine alone. Some people feel uncomfortable dining alone, but honestly, no one is going to give it a second thought. Cast members are going to make you feel right at home and will be happy to take a picture of you and Goofy if you hand them your phone. I ate by myself at Cinderella’s Castle. I had a nice glass of champagme and got my picture taken with a bunch of princesses at 10 o’clock on a Thursday morning.
(Speaking of that - I got Photopass on my trip and it was well worth it for the amazing professional photos I got all over the parks!)
You can do whatever you want! I said it before. Even if you’ve got a detailed itinerary ahead of you, you don’t have to stick to it if you don’t want to. That’s the best part! You can decide at the last second that you don’t feel like doing whatever it was you had planned and just do something completely different instead and there’s no one to get annoyed with you!
You can people watch. When you’re with family - especially the kids - you’re usually too busy being in the action to see everything else that’s going on. And there’s so much going on. I love seeing character interactions and I love seeing Disney Bounders in really creative outfits.
You can take your time with that Dole Whip. You don’t need to hurry up because everyone else is ready to head to the next thing and you’re not. You set the pace.
You can Amble. I like riding around Disneyland on the Disneyland Railroad. And I absolutely love the People Mover at WDW! I also really like to hop on the Monorail or the Skyliner and just enjoy the journey - and you don’t even need a park ticket for that. I have yet to spend a lot of time on the boats, but that sounds fun and it’s on my list for my next solo trip. Point is, you can just… amble.
You’re Not Going to Have Constant Banter during the trip - or shared stories after. It’s important to remember that a solo trip isn’t the same as a no-kids trip with friends or your partner. This may sound obvious, but you’re not going to have constant hilarious banter while you’re there, or a host of funny/cute stories to tell for years to come about all the crazy stuff you and your pals got up to. You will have crazy stories, but it’ll just be you telling a story about you - like, for example, the time Aladdin approached you for an impromptu character interaction and you initially mistook him for a bus boy... Bear that in mind!
You’ll need to do Character Interactions. If you’re going to Disney by yourself, then you’ve already self-selected as someone who is OK with a certain amount of “kid stuff”, but having a character interaction might be a bridge too far. But even if character interactions are not your thing, when you set foot in the parks, you become part of The Thing. When you see Winnie the Pooh or Tigger heading your way at Crystal Palace, you might think, “Oh, there’s a struggling actor in a costume, haha…” Don’t! Think of it as interactive theater. Sure, the Cast Member in the costume may be playing a role - but so are you. You’re helping maintain the illusion for everyone else around you. Don’t forget there are a lot of small kids for whom this is much more real (not to mention their parents, for whom the cost of this vacation was very real!). If you go in there with a wink wink attitude you’re going to ruin it for everyone else. You’ve got to be 100% in it too. That is Pooh, that is Tigger! Get with the program!
I recommend you take it farther, though, and really go for it. Tap into the kid you used to be. You’ll surprise yourself - I did! That’s the whole point of it. There’s nowhere else on earth (except for the 5 other resorts…) where you’d get to do something this fun and silly, so go all in. Have a real interaction with Mickey Mouse or Chewbacca or Darth Vader or Winnie the Pooh or Cinderella. Pretend it’s really them. Say hello, give ‘em a hug, and ask them what’s kickin’ in the Hundred Acre Wood.
It may surprise you to know that most of the time I am a cynical** Gen X-er. I listen to Radiohead and my favorite movie is the 1992 director’s cut of Blade Runner. And yet… here I am several Mickey Waffles in, gleefully hugging Tigger.
[More to come…]
If you’re not sure about a full solo trip - or you’d love to, but it’s just not on the cards - think about building some solo time into an existing trip if you can. Block out a day, or even an afternoon, where everyone in your group separates and meets up for dinner. If you’re traveling with kids, maybe you & your partner take turns going solo; or if it’s just you, there are limited childcare options during the day (there used to be more), but both Disneyland and WDW have vetted 3rd party babysitting services they can recommend for guests staying at the hotels. That’s an option to look into. Your solo time could be a leisurely dinner with a few cocktails followed by priority viewing of the Luminous fireworks show or maybe World of Color. Sounds pretty great to me!
*It’s so much more than that!
**I’m getting less cynical by the year, though, which is really annoying…