AK and HS, really just 1/2 day?

[ZoZo]

Originally Posted by chefsparrow

I really really wish we could afford to add a sixth day to our trip, but it doesn't look like it will happen.

I think what we will do is hopefully catch AK on an EMH morning, and plan to eat lunch at the Flame Tree BBQ, then choose which park to go to that afternoon as a spontaneous thing. Something tells me that even in November AK will probably be pretty hot/humid in the afternoon. Instead of buying the park hopper, we'll just buy an extra ticket or two to save some money.

Want to be sure you understand how ticketing works. It costs much more for a one-day ticket ($89) than it would to add the hopper feature ($57 to add hopping to your base ticket).

Also, by the time you get to a five-day ticket, it only costs an additional $10 to add an extra day! You mentioned that you can't afford to add a sixth day to your tickets, but it would only be $10/ticket.

OP, you may already realize this, but to visit two parks on the same day, you have to have a parkhopper ticket. Some folks think they can just use two of the "days" on their ticket on the same day, to avoid paying for the upgrade to a hopper. But WDW has figured that out - if you try to go to a second park without a hopper feature on your ticket, you will be denied entry at the second park.

Ticketing is kind of complicated, as you can see. Check out the ticket "sticky" at the start of this thread for more details!

[ZoZo]

One more thing. When you read on these boards that DHS or AK are "half-day parks," that's often an opinion expressed by someone who has been to these parks at least once or twice (or many times!) before. They have already experienced most of the attractions and don't feel the need to repeat some of them again. But for someone who has never been to WDW, I'd recommend at least one day in each park. If you have a fifth day, return to the park you liked the best, or that you didn't get the chance to explore fully.

That said, please give AK a try! It's my favorite park (tied for first with MK). So many things to do! Take your time. see all of the shows (including my favorite, flights of Wonder), explore the animal trails, and have fun!

[chefsparrow]

ZoZo, thanks so much for that info!! I had no idea that you could no longer bypass the park hopper with extra tickets. That definitely saved me some heartbreak.

Affording the extra ticket for a sixth day isn't the problem, it's affording the extra day of the hotel and the dining plan that is the problem. I'm hoping that maybe possibly once I'm done paying for my last semester, that I will be able to find it in my budget to add one more day. Unfortunately this semester and next semester have to be 100% out of pocket - that eats up the majority of my budget!

Thanks for helping me!!

[amberg93]

When my wife and I went this past November from the 11th to the 18th we had a free dining promotion. It just didn't come around until July or August (if I remember right) so definitely keep your eye out for that. However, know that it's usually just offered with moderate resorts or higher. We'd originally been planning on a value but with free dining we switched to moderate and even with the fees for changing (I don't remember the exact cost) we still ended up saving like $25 a person from our original plans and the moderate (POFQ) was sooo nice.

The regular dining plan was more than enough for me. However, my wife bought breakfast most mornings out of pocket because she needed it. If you don't need to eat breakfast and can get by on poptarts and granola bars until lunch, like I did, it'll save you money.

As for the parks, it really depends. We were staying seven days on our first trip, so we did a whole day in Animal Kingdom and a whole day in Hollywood Studios. Those were perfect amounts to get everything done, but my wife has said that next time she'd want to spend more time in Hollywood Studios. But you'll get most of it done in a day, so long as you rise early and take advantage of EMH.

[ZoZo]

Originally Posted by chefsparrow

ZoZo, thanks so much for that info!! I had no idea that you could no longer bypass the park hopper with extra tickets. That definitely saved me some heartbreak.

Affording the extra ticket for a sixth day isn't the problem, it's affording the extra day of the hotel and the dining plan that is the problem. I'm hoping that maybe possibly once I'm done paying for my last semester, that I will be able to find it in my budget to add one more day. Unfortunately this semester and next semester have to be 100% out of pocket - that eats up the majority of my budget!

Thanks for helping me!!

You're welcome! It's a very common misconception that you can use more than one "day" on a multi-day ticket at a second park. It sure doesn't make financial sense to buy an extra ticket, given the cost of a one-day ticket. Wanted to make sure you knew the scoop.

And wish you could afford that sixth day! But I totally get you - it's not the extra $10 for the extra day on your ticket, it's the extra hotel and meal costs! Darn. Maybe next trip!!

Sure hope you have a blast on your trip!