All 4 parks in 5 days... Is it possible?

NvrBnToWDW

Mouseketeer
Joined
Sep 8, 2004
We'll be in the parks for 5 days (May 1-5). We will arrive on April 30, but will just be at hotel and we leave on May 6th. Will it be possible to see all 4 parks in 5 whole days? We'll be staying on site so we want to take advantage of EE days. Do you have any suggestions for itineraries that include EE days? We'll be in parks Sun-Thurs. There are 4 of us: DH, Me, DS9 & DS11. IT'S OUR FIRST TIME!!

:earsgirl: pirate: :earsboy: :earsboy:
Zippity-Doo-Dah, Zippity-Hey, get down from there!
 
We did it, although we didn't plan to :)

We started out on Sun.3rd doing Downtown Disney in the afternoon. That night was MNSSHP. My dd got sick at the party and Disney gave us tickets for the Fri.8th MNSSHP.

On Monday dd spent the day in bed recovering. We'd lost 1 whole day AND had to use part of Friday to do MNSSHP (not that we minded, but it was even less time to see everything ~ it was our first time there as a family).

Tuesday we did AK until about 4pm. Went to MK after dinner for Spectro & Wishes & a couple of rides.
Wednesday we did MGM until about 4pm. Went to Epcot after dinner to walk around WS.
Thursday we did Epcot until about 4pm and went to MK for the rest of the night. Got lots of rides in this night :)
Friday we did Typhoon Lagoon in the day and back to MK for MNSSHP.

Obviously what we missed out on was our day we'd planned to spend at MK, but we managed to see almost all that we wanted to see there by going in the evenings a few times.

Good luck! :)

p.s. My kids are 8,6&4 and since yours are older you should be able to manage longer days. :earsgirl:
 
We did 6 days last time, but the first day was rainy and miserable at Epcot. We pretty much re-did Epcot another day. And, we lost the last day to stomach flu (may I recommend being fanatical with the antibacterial hand gel?)
So this time we are only doing 5 days, and we feel that should be fine. We did day 1 = Epcot
day 2 = MGM
day 3 = AK (including several hours lost doing a character breakfast -- the breakfast was great, the wait was awful)
day 4 = AK for a couple of hours, Epcot all afternoon, monorail to MK for electric parade and Fireworks. (Parade was a claustrophobic [sp?] nightmare, but I am sensitive to crowds)
day 5 = MK
day 6 = MK medical center :rolleyes:
Line waits will totally affect your time.
 
We did all 4 parks in 4 days last year, without missing any of the major atractions.
:earsboy: :earsgirl: :earsboy: :earsboy:
 
Check out the Unofficial Guide for good touring plans. Yes, that is plenty of time for us to do all for parks. AK for us is a half day park & I could do MGM in a half a day this time, if need be. MK takes at least 2 days. Have fun & know that you may miss some stuff but it will motivate you to come back!!!
 
It is absolutely possible. May I suggest...

MK -2 days ( I say start there on Day 1)

Epcot -1 and 1/2 days (just requires more than a day)

MGM -1 day

AK - 1/2 day (make sure its a morning; do World Shwocase that evening)
 
Well ... here we go ....based on last years hours ....

I can elaborate more if you wish!

SUNDAY - MK EMH & EPCOT

MK
Lunch
Mid Day Break at Resort
Epcot w/ Illuminations


MONDAY EMH@ AK & MGM

AK
Lunch
Mid Day Break at Resort
MGM w/Fantasmic

TUESDAY EMH@MGM & MK

MGM
Lunch
Mid Day Break at Resort
MK w/ Wishes and Spectromagic

WEDNESDAY - RESORT DAY / DTD

Rest / Sleep In / Enjoy Resort
Visit Downtown Disney
Boating ... etc ...
Basically go "Beyond the Parks" and relax!

THURSDAY: EPCOT & FAVORITES DAY

Epcot & Visit to favorite park



Disclaimer: I am a planning maniac!

LOL

WDWO
 
We have never gone more than five days in a row. We do go to all the parks most of the time. Please keep in mind YOU WILL NEVER DO IT ALL!!! That's the most important thing I think. With the right planning, you can easily take advantage of EMH, do the major attractions in the AM, plus more, take a couple hour break and go back to a park for a nice dinner and one of the night shows.

I find that the parks are very overwhelming and there's constant stimulation. We just have to go back and enjoy an afternoon break at the resort. Watch the boards and take suggestions.

I take a notebook and divide a page into the days we'll be there. Then I begin planning, first what days what park, then what meals and when, then what's the best order to do the rides to get as many done as we want. I always plan an afternoon break, and our evening revolves around a nice meal and the shows.

On the "free" day, we usually go to Disney Quest, shop at Downtown Disney, and maybe even go to one of the waterparks first thing in the AM before it gets real crowded. You can do allot in a few hours then. I'll bet the boys would like Disney Quest. Mine always did.

Our typical "off day" is to sleep in a little, get to Typhoon Lagoon at opening, do shark reef with absolutely no lines and it's neat in the AM, spend a couple hours there, and go over to Disney Quest by 11:30 when they open. Spend as long as we want there and either take a break, or walk around DD.

I also use EMH as often as possible and always get to the park at least 1/2 hour before it opens. Sounds "rigid", but it makes the rest of your day so much more relaxing and the kids really need that swim in the pool in the afternoon just to "freshen up" "body and spirits"!!!
 
I would make AK a 1/2 day park. It also seems like the one park where you have to have a plan. Do the safari first thing in the morning, take in the Lion King show, visit the Boneyard if you have little ones, do some rides, leave before lunch or eat at Tusker House.

Definitely do EE at MK. Look at the rides that are open for EE in the other parks to decide if it's worth it for you. I personally don't like doing EE everyday, but we go when the parks are open later.
 
Before each trip, we sit down and agree on attraction priorities for our trip.

1 = we WILL see this, even if it means waiting.
2 = we want to see this, but it's not essential
3 = not on our plan, but we'll see this if time allows
4 = not interested this time around

Then we use EMH and FastPass to plan our day around the 1's and 2's. We've always managed to do all of them + some of the 3's as well. Knowing ahead of time what your group wants to do makes it easier once you get there.

Good luck!

-hedge
 
We usually do it in 4 days...

Day 1-Magic Kingdom
Day 2-MGM
Day 3-Epcot
Day 4-Animal Kingdom

Day 5-Home and exhuasted and sad. ;)
 
on our last WDW (3wks ago) we did all 4parks in 3days
there is no way anyone can see it all in 3days though

we were last there 10/02 and are returning 8/05
 
Being your first trip, not knowing what to expect you will be a little overwhelmed - even with a lot of planning.

No you will not see everything in 5 days - if by everthing you mean every show, every attraction, every ride, every parade, every fireworks. You will be able to see a lot, but not all.

As others have mentioned - prioritize, you will probably be able to see everything on each family member's "must see" list with ease.

Given the age of your children, I would suggest 1.5 days at MK, 1.5 days at EPCOT, 1 day at MGM, and 1 day at AK. Since AK closes early, that evening you could go to DTD or back to one of the other parks.

Most importantly relax and have fun - don't make it your mission to see everything, make it your mission to enjoy what you do see.
 

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