I’ve had a rough few months.

Since August, I’ve been working pretty much nonstop. And when I say nonstop, I mean that I’ve had several days where I have been online working for 24 hours or more. This has been a year where I’ve been stretching professionally, managing more than I ever have. And it’s good! But it’s also exhausting.

And in the midst of my work frenzy, I got the news that my maternal grandmother wasn’t doing well. She was basically a second mother to me throughout most of my life, stepping in as a surrogate parent and caretaker after my father died before my first birthday. I lived with her off-and-on in my teenage years and twenties; her home was always a safe place to land. And she’d hadn’t been doing well for awhile. She suffered from Alzheimer’s and had been living in a memory care facility for a few years. Her health was frail — she had COPD, was confined to a wheelchair after breaking her hip, and was light as a feather and refusing to eat. So, I knew it was coming, and on some level, I felt that I had grieved her loss for years. That’s how dementia works. You have a long time to get used to the idea of losing someone, because it slowly takes them from you.

But when she died, it hit me like a ton of bricks. I was stunned by the depth of my own grief. I spoke at her funeral; I said my goodbyes to her. And I had a whole three days to grieve before going right back into the chaos of work.

So, when my husband texted me to ask if I wanted to go to Orlando with him for a conference for a week, I nearly cried from excitement. This year has been a long, hard slog. I needed a damn break. And we decided to go to Walt Disney World after his conference, because I also needed a little escapism. And what the hell is Disney if not a magical escape from the real world?

Here’s something I haven’t told lots of people: for most of my adult life, I have wanted nothing more than to travel, but I have been so terrified of flying and not fitting into airplane seats and generally just not fitting places that it’s held me back. Reading about other fat people’s travel experiences has made me more willing to get out there and travel when the opportunity presents itself. Disney World isn’t exactly an amazing travelogue but I wanted to write this so that if you have an upcoming trip to Disney, or have always wanted to go to Disney, or just want to collect more data on traveling while fat, I want to help.

Preparing for Walt Disney World

I had never been to Walt Disney World as a kid. A lot of my friends went, but that was just never in the budget for my family. (And seeing how expensive it is? Holy hell, do I understand why.) My first real theme park experience was on my honeymoon, at Universal Studios in Orlando. And while I loved The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, it was also kind of a bummer of an experience.

Universal Studios really wasn’t built for people like me. I wear size 26 pants. I carry a lot of weight in my thighs, hips, and tummy. And, let me tell you, I could not fit on one single ride at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. That was the whole reason we had chosen Universal Studios for our honeymoon, to see The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I expected it, but when I walked into Diagon Alley and saw the test seat for Escape from Gringotts, I thought, “Well, maybe I’ll fit!” I did not fit in the test seat. I did not fit on any of the Harry Potter rides. I got on exactly one ride during my whole week at Universal Studios, which was the old Jurassic Park ride. I had fun, but it was also frustrating — the main centerpiece of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is the ride through Hogwarts, and I paid the same ticket price as everyone else but couldn’t even enjoy it. Because I was not considered when it was built. I felt unwelcome. I felt like an afterthought.

So, after my disappointing experience at Universal, I was a little nervous about Disney World. I had read that Disney parks are generally much more accommodating than Universal, but I wanted to be prepared. I did not want to be taken off guard and end up crying at a busy theme park with people all around because I couldn’t fit on a ride.

I watched a lot of YouTube videos to get a feel for which rides were possibilities for me. Now, I am not much a fan of roller coasters and thrill rides. I have a mild fear of heights and a major fear of falling. There are tons of videos about Disney. This one is a good one:

There are also a ton of videos of the rides at Disney. These are basically walkthroughs that take you through the rides so you can get a feel for whether you’d be interested in a ride, which you can search for based on which parks you’re planning on visiting.

I felt pretty confident about Disney. I did my homework, and I had a short list of rides I wanted to try. I didn’t understand exactly how overwhelming Disney is before going, but if you’ve never been to Disney World before, Disney is fucking huge. So it’s worth doing your homework to figure out where you want to go and what you’d like to try.

Magic Kingdom

The first park we tried was Magic Kingdom. We’d bought tickets for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. I was on the fence about whether to even go to Magic Kingdom, because it seemed like it was a little on the juvenile side, but oh man, am I glad I went.

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas party was a ticketed event, so the park was closed to anyone who didn’t have a ticket. There was a large crowd, but far fewer people than there would be during the day. And, overall, this was one of my favorite experiences at Walt Disney World.

Mad Tea Party

I hadn’t specifically planned on riding the Mad Tea Party, but we stumbled across it while walking through the park. This is the famous spinning-teacup ride; it’s located in the Fantasyland area of Magic Kingdom. And I decided it was a good test run for the rides at Disney. There was hardly any line, so it wouldn’t be a huge deal if I didn’t fit.

I watched families with people of all sizes go on the ride with no issue. As I was getting in line, I asked the cast member managing the line, “Um, do you think I’ll fit?” She looked at me, a little surprised, and said, “Of course!”

And, lo, I fit! Inside the teacup is basically a curved bench seat, with a steering wheel attached to a pole in the middle, which is how you make the teacup spin. It was a little tight (again, I carry a lot of weight in my middle) but I fit comfortably and we were still able to spin our teacup without any issue. If I had been about 30lbs larger, or carried more weight in my stomach, I probably would have had an issue fitting comfortably.

Getting into and exiting the teacup is easy — there are no stairs to climb, the spinning platform is fully stopped when you’re getting on and off the ride. If you can step into a shower-tub combo, you can get into this ride.

I was feeling hopeful about Disney after this ride! It was quick and simple but fun and, honestly, I was just thrilled I could fit on a ride. I have been crammed inside booths at restaurants that were less comfortable that the teacup.

The Haunted Mansion

After we had dinner at Be Our Guest (the Beauty and the Beast-themed restaurant), we tried The Haunted Mansion because, incredibly, the wait was five minutes. We literally just walked right into it. (This was worth the price for the Christmas party alone.)

The ride starts with a “stretched room” (which is an elevator, but with a spooky story). The ride itself had a pod that will seat two adults or an adult and several children with room to spare. It’s got a bench seat with a lap bar, and that’s it. My husband is an average-sized guy and we were comfortable in our seat; the lap bar is pretty generous and I had no trouble getting it into place. If you need more space, width-wise, you could simply ride by yourself.

The only real challenge with Haunted Mansion is that the seats are on a moving belt, so the floor is moving while you’re trying to get situated. They don’t stop. And it actually moves fairly fast, and there’s not much to grab onto while you’re walking. So, if you have mobility issues, this could be a stumbling block for you.

The ride itself is a lot of fun — you basically just move through the mansion, and in terms of motion, it’s a very tame ride. It’s all about the effects, which are older, but still worlds ahead of anything I saw at Universal Studios.

Prince Charming Regal Carousel

We rode this in Fantasyland on our way out of the park. And, in terms of attractions, a carousel is not really that exciting. But, maybe it’s just me, there’s just something magical about a damn carousel. And this is a very nice one.

There’s lots of different heights to choose from on this carousel. Some of the horses are actually kind of huge, and depending on where the gears of the carousel are when it stops, you could end up having to get down from a fair height. I have arthritis in one of my knees, so I opted for one of the smaller horses toward the center of the carousel, mildly nervous about choosing one that was small. Would I break it? Would the horse just not move? Would I break the whole damn carousel and ruin the magic for everyone?

But nope. It held me just fine. It carousel-ed. It did not miss a beat.

Overall Impressions of Magic Kingdom

I’m really not a “Disney person.” I like plenty of Disney movies, sure. But I’ve never been super into Disney. And I wasn’t sure if Magic Kingdom was really for me. It’s definitely the most kid-centric park at Walt Disney World. But I’m so glad we went, because fucking hell, it’s actually is magical.

I mean look at this shit:

If you happen to go to Disney in December, the Christmas stuff is well worth the price of entry. Disney knows how to do Christmas, man. I am 35 and cynical and generally kind of grumpy. And I went to the Christmas parade and left REALLY STOKED about Santa Claus.

One important thing to note about Magic Kingdom: If you have mobility problems, getting into the park might be a little tricky. Magic Kingdom is not the biggest Disney park, and it was perfectly fine for me to walk, but getting into the park was kind of a thing. You’ve got to walk about a mile before you’re even in Magic Kingdom. We used a ride-sharing app to get from our hotel to the park, where there was a special drop-off lane about as close as you can get to the entrance. Then, you’ve got to walk to a security checkpoint where they go through any bags you have, and scan your park pass. And then you have to either board the monorail or get on the ferry to go to Magic Kingdom. (I recommend the ferry, though there is limited room to sit — so if you need to sit, you should ride the monorail. The monorail forces you to walk uphill to get on it, by the way.) And once you’re off, you’ve got to walk from your mode of transportation to another entrance.

For me, it was not prohibitive, but it was a lot of walking. There are motorized scooters available, but if memory serves, you rent them after the monorail or ferry, right at the proper entrance to the park. So you’ll have to walk a fair amount just to rent a scooter, or consider renting one from an outside company, should you need one. The park itself isn’t huge and is nicely walkable, but it could present some challenges to people with mobility issues or difficulty walking for long periods of time. There are some benches, but not a ton of places to sit and rest, and those might be in even shorter supply when the park is very busy.

Hollywood Studios

The day we went to Hollywood Studios, it rained off and on. Of the three parks we visited at Walk Disney World (Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and Epcot), this was probably my least favorite. There was nothing wrong with it, it just felt a lot more like Universal Studios to me. There was less here I was interested in.

We rode one ride at Hollywood Studios: Alien Swirling Saucers in Toy Story Land.

Toy Story Land is the newest area of Hollywood Studios, and it’s smaller than I expected but really well-done. The attention to detail is amazing.

Alien Swirling Saucers

This is a short ride not unlike the Mad Tea Party ride: you sit in a space ship and are whipped around a track, although unlike the teacups, you have no ability to steer and it whips you around much faster. The wait was about 30 minutes for this ride, and it was fun!

It has bench seats that comfortably seat two adults. There’s no lap bar, but it does have a seatbelt you must fasten before the ride begins. The seatbelt is almost comically huge. It goes on for miles and miles. I was nervous about the seatbelt, but we could have strapped another fat person in our spaceship with us, because it was enormous. You tighten it, and you’re good to go. Listen: You will be able to fit on this ride.

Tower of Terror

Tower of Terror was the one ride I really wanted to go on. I love “The Twilight Zone.” And I like big drops. This is a ride with a big drop where you don’t have to go up a terrible incline and fear for your life in order to experience the drop. But, alas, we didn’t get to try Tower of Terror because the wait time was 2 hours + the whole day we were at Hollywood Studios.

But doesn’t it look pretty all lit up for Christmas?

A lot of experienced Disney folks told me about Fast Passes before I went on this trip. And I didn’t bother with it because I didn’t even know if I would fit on any of the rides. But, if you want to ride the Tower of Terror, get a Fast Pass. There are kiosks in the parks where you can reserve them, and you can also do it through the app. I missed the one thing I really, really wanted to do because I didn’t think about Fast Passes, so don’t be like me. Get Fast Passes for the rides you know want to try.

Since I didn’t ride it, I can’t say anything about riding it, but my understanding is that it has bench seating and a seatbelt. That’s it. If the other seatbelts I encountered at Disney are any indication, most people will be absolutely fine on this ride.

Epcot

Epcot has Spaceship Earth, sure, but Epcot is not really about rides. It’s about eating. And drinking. And also buying things. (There are SO MANY THINGS to buy.)

If you’ve never been to Epcot, you basically walk in a loop “around the world.” (In Walt Disney World, “the world” is mostly European — France is huge, Russia does not exist, and all of Africa is represented in Morocco and vaguely African little outpost where you can buy Lion King merchandise.)

An Unexpected Ride at Epcot

So, at Hollywood Studios the day before, I rolled my ankle. I woke up the morning we went to Epcot, tried to stand up from the bed to use the bathroom, and screamed. My ankle was just… done. It was screaming at me and I could barely walk. But I’d been looking forward to Epcot, it was the park I was most excited to visit.

My husband and I talked about renting a motorized scooter. I hesitated, because I am stubborn and wanted to just tough it out (and I could walk, just not quickly or without pain), but my ankle was on fire and I didn’t want to miss out on Epcot. When I thought about the fact that we’d have to walk through the airport the following day, I decided to give my ankle a rest and rent a motorized scooter to zoom between countries.

Motorized Scooter Rental at Disney World

You can find the motorized scooter rental station at the front of most parks. (You can also rent wheelchairs.) They cost $50 for one day, with a $20 deposit they’ll refund when you return the scooter. (That’s $70 total.)

The weight limit on the Disney website says 450lbs, while the actual scooter itself said 500lbs. When you rent the scooter, you’re given a name tag for the front of the scooter, and a key. You can adjust the speed, and it actually goes pretty fast, though it struggles quite a bit on hills. You use hand controls to move; your right hand has a lever that makes it go forward, the left hand goes in reverse. There are no brakes. (This should be mentioned to all the kids and adults who tried to zip in front of me while I was on the scooter and were almost road kill.)

I’ll be honest here: Epcot is a lot of walking. I was so glad I rented that scooter because I would not have been able to enjoy Epcot without it. Disney is general is a ton of walking and, if you’re doing multiple parks in a row over the course of a few days, you may have aches and pains and muscle strains and your feet might just plain hurt. Don’t be afraid to rent a scooter if you’re in pain or need to take it easy.

What I did was used my scooter to get between the different countries. When I got to a new country, I simply parked the scooter and walked around the country. Epcot is a place where enjoying the whole park on a scooter is tricky; there are lots of alleys and narrow passages and shops you’ll have a hard time navigating on a scooter. So, accessibility in that regard is somewhat low — if you need to scoot everywhere, you’ll probably have a hard time with most of the restaurants and miss out on some of the awesome things there are to do there. But, if you’re able to walk short distances, or be on your feet for 15-20 minutes at a stretch, a scooter is a great option if you’ve got mobility issues or are just in pain (or have a rolled ankle.)

Walt Disney World Tips for Plus-Size People

Wear comfortable shoes

This is a common piece of advice, but seriously: WEAR COMFORTABLE SHOES. Nice, supportive, well-made shoes. You will be walking at Disney. A lot. It may feel, at times, like all you do is walk. The few moments you’re sitting down on a ride may feel like pure bliss because you will be on your feet so much. So good shoes are absolutely essential.

If you do get new shoes for Disney, I would recommend making sure you break them in well before your trip. The middle of Magic Kingdom is not a great place to realize your shoes pinch your toes, or to develop a blister on the back of your heel.

You will see people walking the park in flip-flops or ballet flats. I even saw a few women walking around in high heels. Don’t do this; you’ll fuck up your feet, and you will be sad.

Wear comfortable clothes

So, you may be tempted to get cute with your clothes here. Maybe you’re into Disneybounding. Cool! But I have no idea how people do Disney in dresses and skirts and nice clothes.

Wear loose-fitting, comfortable, lightweight clothes. I only packed jeans because I am stupid, and you know what? I thought about the leggings and yoga pants I own but did not pack every single day I was there. Because things that are mildly uncomfortable about your clothing when you’re at the office or having dinner are amplified at Disney. I actually got a blister on my inner thigh because the pair of jeans I wore one day had a crotch that was a hair too low and my thighs rubbed against the seam all day as I walked through the park. THAT IS A THING THAT HAPPENED.

Put your comfort before the Instagrammable shots of you outside of the magic castle, perfectly made-up and in a cute Disney-themed dress. Or, hell, pack that shit in a backpack, change into it in a bathroom, get the shot, and get back into your yoga pants as soon as possible. Think of what you’d wear to the gym, and plan on wearing that most of the day.

Carry a Backpack

I bought this little purple nylon backpack specifically for Disney and it was the best $20.99 I have ever spent. Fussing around with a purse or messenger bag is going to be annoying as hell at Disney. This little guy held my phone, my pass, my wallet, and most of my husband’s items, plus it had two side pockets for water bottles. Which brings me to…

Bring a Lightweight Water Bottle

We probably spent around $60 just in water at Disney. On average, a bottle of water is $6. I just didn’t think about this, and we paid for it, literally. Besides being more eco-friendly, it’s just more economical. Fill it up before you head out, and use the water fountains to refill throughout the day. (And Florida, even in December, is hot. So, if you’re heading to Disney in a warmer month, this is especially important.)

Buy This Thigh-Saving Miracle Cream

Florida is humid. Even in December, it was reasonably cool (the highest temperature while we were there was 80 degrees), but it was muggy. And you’re walking. (Have I mentioned that Disney is a lot of walking?) So you’ll probably get a little sweaty. And for some of us that means chafing. This Monistat Care Chafing Relief Power Gel is amazing and will prevent the chafe, wherever you may get it. I don’t do affiliate links or any advertising on my blog so I am telling you this simply because I love this stuff, and want to save you from chafing, because it is the worst.

Be Realistic About Your Fitness Level

Okay, if I haven’t been 100% clear about this, DISNEY WORLD REQUIRES A LOT OF WALKING. I thought I knew that before going, but I did not fully understand it until I walked three of the parks. It’s a lot. And if you’re like me, and work a sedentary desk job and walk on a treadmill a few times a week, you might struggle at Disney. Because, ONCE AGAIN, it is a fuckton of walking.

My phone records my steps (which I just haven’t taken the time to figure out how to stop it from doing that — I didn’t know Samsung Health was tracking my steps until one day out of the blue it notified me I’d hit a “fitness goal” I had never set.) This is what one day of Disney looked like for me:

There are a few ways to make the struggle a little less real if you’re not the sort of person to walk five miles in an average day:

• Take frequent breaks. There’s not a ton of room to slow down and sit around at Disney (they want you moving, and buying things, of course) but don’t be afraid to just sit the fuck down and chill out if you need to. Find a curb. Find a step. Buy a soda and sit at a table at a restaurant with counter-service. Do what you’ve got to do. If you push yourself too hard, you’ll be miserable, and that is no way to vacation.
• Plan for “off” days. If you’re staying in Orlando for a week, try to schedule some park-free days for yourself. Rest your feet. Go float in the pool. Lounge in your hotel bed. Relax. Give your poor feet a break. Three parks in three days was a lot for me, and I wish I’d been able to schedule a “break” day in between days 2 & 3. We had a couple of “break” days on our honeymoon at Universal and it made the trip itself and the parks so much more enjoyable.
• Make a reservation at a park restaurant in the middle of the park. So, this was an intentional strategy of mine: Disney park restaurants are pretty much reservation-only. I checked out the maps and made reservations at restaurants toward the middle of the park. That way, we got there, saw half the park, did a fair bit of walking (with a goal — find the restaurant), and got time to sit down, rest and refuel before tackling the rest of the park. It was a nice little planned break that made the treks much easier.
• Work up to it, if you’re so inclined. If you know you have a Disney trip coming up, you can spend the months or weeks beforehand building up your stamina. If you have a treadmill, walk on it a little more often. If you’re able to take a walk outside, do that as often as you can. Go to a local park and walk around for a few hours on a weekend. Plan a day in your nearest city walking around. It can be a real shock to your system to go from sitting at a desk eight hours a day to walking five miles in one day (which is what I did), so with a little planning and gumption, you can work up to being a little more fit for your Disney trip. This isn’t about weight loss, it’s just about getting your feet and body used to walking and standing for long stretches of time, because you will have to do that at Disney World. (As a bonus, you can also break in any new shoes you buy for the trip this way.)
• If you’re in pain, don’t be afraid of asking for accommodation (or renting a scooter). I’m stubborn as hell and was determined to push myself at Disney, but my ankle had other plans. That scooter I rented at Epcot allowed me to enjoy the park and rest my ankle so it could heal and I’d be ready for the death march through the airport the following day. It was hard, and felt a little bit like admitting defeat, but it was so worth doing. If you’re in pain, take steps to make yourself more comfortable. If your feet or ankles or back are screaming at you, give them a rest. There’s no shame in it. And you’ll see LOTS of people using scooters at Disney, for all sorts of reasons, and if you need it and it will make your trip more enjoyable, don’t hesitate. Do what you have to do.

Size Accommodation at Walt Disney World

I was very pleasantly surprised at how accommodating the rides at Walt Disney World were. I was prepared to not fit on most rides but I comfortably fit on every ride I tried to go on. Disney is less about thrill rides and more about experiences, so the seats on rides are generally much less restrictive than places like Universal Studios that focus on fast-paced thrill rides and roller coasters.

I have gotten into lots of online discussions with people who claim that it’s just impossible to accommodate fat people on rides at theme parks… but Walt Disney World shows that isn’t true at all. They offer a variety of different kinds of rides, and they also have larger seats toward the back of many rides. The cast members are super helpful and kind if you ask about accommodation. The seatbelts I encountered went on for miles and miles. And what kills me is that many of the rides at Walt Disney World are fairly old — whereas Universal Studios has gotten feedback for years about making their rides more size-inclusive, and they say, “Oh sure, we’ll keep that in mind for future rides,” and yet The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is full of rides that aren’t built to accommodate fat people (or very tall people either, for that matter). Disney shows it’s possible to create rides that children and adults of all sizes can enjoy.

Just, seriously, bring a good pair of shoes.