Disney Park Planner

Disney Park Planner is a web app that uses geolocation, live ride wait times, and your must-do list to generate the most efficient route through Disneyland, minimizing lines and maximizing fun.

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Disney Park Planner: Our Story

What Inspired Us

Our inspiration came from the excitement —and the challenges—visitors face at theme parks, especially Disneyland, where long lines and scattered attractions can make planning difficult. We envisioned an app that effortlessly helps guests maximize their time and enjoyment. Discovering how powerful and accessible AWS services are—particularly for real‑time data manipulation and backend management—motivated us to dive in and explore these technologies deeply.

What We Learned

During this hackathon we significantly broadened our technical skill set, especially with AWS:

  • Elastic Beanstalk for easy application deployment
  • DynamoDB to store and manage ride information and wait times in real time
  • AWS Lambda to refresh the database every 20 minutes via external API calls
  • EventBridge to orchestrate our workflow efficiently
  • API Gateway to expose optimized‑route endpoints securely
  • Amazon Location Services to capture user locations and integrate geospatial data
  • IAM for fine‑grained permission management

How We Built Our Project

  • Frontend: Python + Streamlit
  • Data layer: DynamoDB, updated every 20 minutes by Lambda functions
  • Geospatial UI: Amazon Location Services powering an interactive map
  • Architecture highlights:
    • Lambda → API Gateway → Streamlit app for optimized‑route queries
    • EventBridge triggers to coordinate periodic updates

Accomplishments We’re Proud Of

  • Rapid AWS adoption: None of us had prior AWS experience, yet in two days we integrated multiple services into a fully functional app.
  • Seamless data flow: Managed continuous DynamoDB updates, Lambda scheduling, and secure IAM roles.
  • Polished UX: Delivered an intuitive map interface for personalized park routes.

Challenges We Faced

  • Lambda + API Gateway integration: Ensuring smooth, secure data flow.
  • Frontend–backend linkage: Overcame initial hurdles due to AWS learning curve.
  • New tools: Streamlit adoption on a tight timeline.
  • Data formatting: Converting JSON to DynamoDB’s required format demanded creative problem‑solving and extensive testing.

What’s Next

  1. Interactive 3‑D map: Dynamic panning to rides/buildings with dotted‑path routing.
  2. Multi‑park support: Extend itineraries to additional theme parks.
  3. AI enhancement: Integrate Amazon Bedrock for richer personalization and recommendations.

Our hackathon journey laid a strong foundation for continued innovation—helping visitors create magical, efficient experiences at theme parks worldwide.

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