Imagine: You’re at Magic Kingdom. It’s raining. Not just Florida daily rain sprinkles, but a full day of nonstop rain that keeps you chilly and soaks you to your socks. WHAT DO YOU DO DURING A RAINY DAY AT MAGIC KINGDOM?

MAGIC KINGDOM IN THE RAIN

The way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it. Hold on. No. That was what Rafiki said about the past. Let me try again. Here are your real choices: Stay in the park and suck it up or hurry back and hide out at the hotel. During our family trip to Walt Disney World, we did a little of each!

If you’re just joining this adventure and want to read about everything that we’ve done so far, START AT THE BEGINNING.

So the last post left off at us all buying ponchos. Except me. Because I’m just that hardcore and I love being wet and cold as long as it’s at Disney World.

Kidding.

We walked up to Main Street from our breakfast at BE OUR GUEST and I got myself a fancy shmancy rain jacket and Minnie hat. (A rain jacket was a pricey souvenir but I enjoy wearing it at home and I’m a fan of souvenirs I can continue to use!) Everyone wandered the shops for a while with false hopes of the rain stopping until it was time for Mini’s hair appointment.

BARBER SHOP

Like every basic Disney parent, I was in love with the idea of my little guy getting his hair trimmed on Main Street, USA. I thought it would be really cool, a glittering memory that I’d hold onto for the rest of my life.

I was wrong. (Lol.)

First, and most importantly, HARMONY BARBER SHOP is actually amazing. It’s an adorable old-timey little (seriously, it’s very small) building at the front of Magic Kingdom (off to the left in the corner at the VERY beginning of Main Street when you enter the park). The people working there were incredible and kind and took my kid’s total meltdown in stride. They were great. The actual place is great and I recommend it to anyone.

My 1 year old was not great. (Heh.) Much later, I’ve learned that dude is super sensitive with his face and head being touched so getting a haircut in an unfamiliar place during sensory overload… not great. He started crying as soon as the cape was on his shoulders and no binky, cool light up toy, or stickers could plug the tears for more than a minute. But he did survive a quick clip, we moved on with our day, and I don’t think he’s scarred for life or anything.

DISNEY MAGIC BEGINS

Moving on to parts of the day we DID enjoy- and how to enjoy a rainy day at Magic Kingdom two ways!

Amidst the Main Street browsing and nightmare hair cut, we did catch the Magic Kingdom Rainy Day Parade! It’s a cute little cavalcade of characters and performers in rain gear and Mini LOVED it. I may have carried him and chased it down the street so he could see as much as possible. (Yes. Yes, I did.)

We also rode together as a family on our first ride- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Mini love love LOVED the line for this ride. It’s a ton of fun for kids with interactive toys and displays all along the que. The adults were pretty entertained by it, too…

This is also where I had another realization. The rides at Walt Disney World are LOUD and kind of a lot to take in. Mini enjoyed the ride but I could tell right away that it was overwhelming for him with the loudness and the dark and bright colors and flashing lights and everyone excitedly encouraging him to “Look at that!” If you continue to follow along, you’ll notice we didn’t go on a ton of rides after this because I was pretty critical of our choices. (There’s SO much to do at Disney World and rides are just one small part of it.)

HIDE OUT AT THE HOTEL

At this point, Mini was due for a nap and some of our crew were sick of the rain. Mini, my husband, and Gabba and Pappers were not having it with the cold, wet rainy day at Magic Kingdom. They decided to head back to Coronado Springs for a nap and then lunch, gift shop browsing, and hanging out in the comfy rooms. Everyone was happy to enjoy the rest of the rainy day snuggled up.

ENJOY AN EMPTY PARK

On the other hand, Aunt Cakey, Uncle BE and I decided to suck it up in the rain and hit the rides! The great thing about a rainy day at Magic Kingdom is the fact that about half the visitors hate the rain and will retreat to the hotel. We hit all our favorites in just a few hours because there were NO LINES. Seriously, even rides like Haunted Mansion, Space Ranger Spin, and Mine Train maxed out at about a 20 minute wait. It was glorious.

And of course, no visit to Magic Kingdom is complete without some Disney eats. I snacked on a Mickey pretzel with cheese and stopped at THE FRIAR’S NOOK for a late lunch. (Vegan sausage on a pretzel bun with kraut, tots on the side, and a hot chocolate- delicious!)

We were cold, wet icicles by the time we finished up with all the rides we wanted and headed back to Coronado Springs to shower and warm up. The rest of the day was spent in the rooms snuggled up and cozy, coloring and watching TV together!

I would LOVE to hear below which you would choose on a 50 degree downpour day- hit the rides or hit the room?! Our next day was spent at Animal Kingdom, with some meltdowns but a whole lot of magic! Make sure you subscribe to our EMAIL LIST so you don’t miss it!