Why Everyone Needs A Disney Bestie (Preferably One Who Knows Where The Bars Are)

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Here is my official position on friendship: you can keep your brunch pals and your group chat friends and your “sorry, just saw this” texters. Give me the person who will willingly set a 5:45 a.m. alarm on vacation so we can power walk to Hollywood Studios, drink iced coffee the size of their head, and debate if a 10 a.m. margarita counts as breakfast.

That is a Disney bestie.
And if you do not have one yet, put that on your vision board.

This is not a planning guide. This is a love letter to going to Walt Disney World with your friend who gets it. The one who knows your preferred side of the Doom Buggy, your EPCOT drinking limits, and your “I am five seconds from crying and need carbohydrates” face.

Let us talk about who this magical unicorn is, what makes a friend trip to Disney different, and how to not ruin both your vacation and your relationship along the way.

What Even Is A Disney Bestie?

A Disney bestie is not necessarily your lifelong ride or die. Sometimes they are, sure. But often, they are:

  • The coworker who casually mentioned they like EPCOT and you were like, “Like like, or ‘I own four Food and Wine spirit jerseys’ like?”
  • The internet friend you have never met in real life, but you know their favorite lounge and where they stand for Happily Ever After.
  • The sibling who also swore they were “not a Disney person” until you handed them a tequila flight in Mexico.

A Disney bestie is simply someone who matches your vacation energy.

If your love language is “planning out an attack strategy for Extended Evening Hours,” they are right there, highlighter in hand. If your love language is “vibes only and we will see where the Skyliner takes us,” they are already walking to the gondolas.

Most importantly, they do not judge your drink choices, your midday emotional support pretzel, or the very real possibility that you are stopping for a second coffee before 9 a.m.

The Essential Types Of Disney Friends

You might have one person who is all of these, or a whole crew that covers the bases. Either way, here are the core Disney friend archetypes.

1. The Spreadsheet

This friend has a color coded Google Sheet, a notes app longer than the Constitution, and a working knowledge of which bars serve drinks in actual glassware instead of plastic.

cinderella castle

They know:

  • When to leave the resort to make your dining reservation
  • Which path in Magic Kingdom is less crowded
  • The best way to get between any 2 destinations in all of WDW

You need this friend. They are the backbone of the operation and the reason you actually make it to Rose & Crown before last call.

2. The Vibes Only Friend

The Vibes Only Friend did not read a single blog post. They do not know what a Lightning Lane is and they are a little fuzzy on the difference between Magic Kingdom and EPCOT.

What they bring:

  • Chill energy when your plans inevitably implode
  • The ability to spot a cute quiet corner to sit, people watch, and work through a basket of fries
  • A willingness to try whatever drink you shove in their hand

They balance you out when you are spiraling about wait times and remind you that this is supposed to be fun.

3. The Rope Drop Psycho

This friend is already in line for security while you are still brushing your teeth. They will absolutely schedule a 7:30 a.m. breakfast, sprint to a headliner, and then casually suggest “just one more ride” when you are ready for a nap.

On a friend trip, the Rope Drop friend is useful because you will actually get things done. Just make sure they understand that early mornings require late night bar time negotiations. We are not here for 6 a.m. alarms and in bed by 9.

4. The Bar Navigator

This is your people. They know which bar has the good ice, where you can actually hear the person you are with, and which lounges are worth a long wait.

baseline tap house night

They will say things like:

  • “We are skipping that bar, the drinks are fine, but the vibe is weird.”
  • “We are going to sit at the bar, the bartenders have the best stories.”
  • “We are not wasting a drink on that sweet frozen thing unless it comes with fireworks.”

The Bar Navigator is the guardian of your time, your money, and your liver.

What A Friend Trip Actually Looks Like

Here is how a typical adults only friend day at Disney goes, if we are being honest.

You start the morning strong. Coffee, maybe a breakfast sandwich that you swear will “totally hold you over,” and an ambitious list of everything you will accomplish. Ha ha ha.

By 10:30 a.m., the plan has already been rewritten twice. Someone remembered they *really* want a picture in front of Spaceship Earth. Someone else is slightly sweaty and needs air conditioning. You suddenly have a strong opinion about riding Soarin’ before Guardians.

You eventually land in EPCOT, which is where adult friend trips either live their best life or go completely off the rails.

There will be a moment where you say, “We are not drinking in every country.” You are lying. Maybe not to yourself, but definitely to your Apple Watch.

There is a slow, beautiful slide into chaos:

  • First drink: “Let us split it so we can pace ourselves.”
  • Third drink: “We should each get our own and just taste each other’s.”
  • Fifth drink: “I need fries.”

At some point you are having a surprisingly heartfelt conversation about life goals on a random bench in the United Kingdom pavilion while a child nearby blows bubbles and someone drops their popcorn in slow motion.

You possibly cry. You definitely laugh. You *absolutely* make at least one poor snack decision that you will think about at 2 a.m. when your stomach is like, “Hi, remember me plus tequila?”

Then, because this is a friend trip and not a “drag two small children through the parks” trip, you go back to your resort, take a shower, and experience the joy that is putting on a fresh outfit before heading back out to the Atlantic Dance Hall with the 14 other people who love kicking up their heels on a mostly empty dance floor while bangers from the 80’s and 90’s blast out on the speakers.

It’s just the best.

These trips are everything. They are what solidified our love of the parks and why we now share what we’ve learned on our website. We hope everyone who wants to gets the chance for these kinds of trips. They fill our cups and our sousl and make the hard day-to-day life $hit a bit easier to handle.

Ground Rules That Will Save Your Friendship

Disney can expose cracks in even the strongest relationship, especially if humidity and shared bathroom space are involved. If you are going on a Disney girls trip, consider these rules non-negotiable.

1. Talk money before you go.

Are you splitting snacks? Doing sit down meals or mostly quick service? Comfortable with a couple of splurge cocktails, or team “I will take the cheapest beer on the menu”? Say it out loud.

2. Build in alone time.

You do not have to be together every second. If one of you wants to rope drop and the other wants to sleep in and meet for brunch, perfect. If you need an hour by the pool while they go ride something, great. No guilt.

3. Lift everyone up.

Everyone is sweating, everyone is a little puffy from salt, everyone has weird hair by 3 p.m. We do not care. We still lift everyone up and celebrate each other. Share joy!

4. Have a safe word for “I am done.”

Not actual handcuffs safe word, although you do you. Just a phrase that means “I am one more person cutting me off away from sobbing in Mexico.” Once you say it, the plan shifts. Snack, water, break. No questions.

5. Choose friendship over fireworks.

If your friend hits a wall and cannot stay for the nighttime show, let it go. You can come back another trip for the perfect view. You cannot un-say the thing you snapped when you were tired and overstimulated.

If You Are The Disney Friend In Your Group

Some of us are The Disney Friend. The one everybody texts when they book a trip. The walking search engine in leggings.

If that is you, here is your reminder:

You are allowed to have a trip that is about you having fun, not just about you being the unpaid tour guide.

You can say, “I do not have the mental capacity to plan every bite of this trip, let us just pick a few priorities and wing it.”

You can say, “I want to sit at Nomad Lounge for two hours and that is the schedule.”

You can say, “I love you, but if you rope drop and I do not, I will see you at lunch.”

three beers from refreshment outpost during epcot food and wine festival

Friend trips at Disney are this weird beautiful mix of theme park chaos, therapy session, bar crawl, and middle school sleepover. You laugh in a way you probably have not in awhile. You drink things that glow. You create inside jokes that will live in your text thread forever.

So message the person who would happily split a flatbread at a lounge, share fries at midnight, and stand in line with you for a character meet that is objectively ridiculous. Tell them you are ready for a Disney friend trip.

epcot map with spaceship earth

And if they text back “I am in” without even asking the dates, congratulations.

You, my dear, have found your Disney bestie.

Keep the Disney bestie planning going

If this made you want to grab your favorite human and book a trip, here are a few next steps:

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