Nap/Swim time in middle of Day?

[Livinlarge970]

I am planning our attack plan on WDW, however my wife and daughter(16) want to head back to the hotel in the middle of the day for a Nap(wife) lay out by pool(Daughter). My Son (13) would be happy spending an hour at the pool but I feel it is a waste of precious theme park time, but want to make everyone happy.

How much time should I budget to do this, I am thinking 3.5-4hours.

30MIN to leave park and get to bus
30MIN to return to hotel room via bus
1Hour at Pool or Nap
1Hour to shower/change and prepare to leave Hotel
30Min to bus back to park

We are staying at the PO Riverside.

How long does it take the bus to get from each themepark back to the hotel with stops? How long do you think it will take to get to and from the hotel with walking/buses/etc.

Any help is appreciated

 

[imthatgirl]

I don't generally plan my vacation time down to the minute, so I have no idea how much time we spend or how much time it takes or any of that.

Generally we will leave the park when we feel we're ready to, then enjoy our resort as long as we want, then head back out in the evening.

I would suggest just fitting it in naturally in your day.

I think whether it is a waste of time would depend on the individual. The way I see it is I spend quite a bit on my resort room that it would be a waste of money if I didn't take advantage of the things it offers. we will not only swim, but rent bikes and boats, we've gone back to enjoy the scavenger hunts that some resorts have....things like that, that to us just enhance the whole Disney experience.

 

[TDC Nala]

Always give yourself at least 45 minutes to get to the park on the bus.

Any reason why it can't be scheduled that the wife and daughter go back to the resort but you stay in the park with your son?

 

[HsvTeacher]

When we figured out a midday break plan that worked for us, we found that we actually saved time. Here's what we do:

We pick our park and make it to rope drop. We get a fastpass for the most popular ride first. You can usually get your second fastpass an hour later, so we get the next most popular ride. Then every two hours after that, we grab another fastpass.

While we're gathering fastpasses, we ride the rides that don't have long wait times, and we don't use any of the fastpasses we've collected. We then eat lunch in the park/leave for lunch, take a break in the room or swim, freshen up, and go to dinner.

After dinner, we go back to the park and use all the fastpasses that we collected that morning. Since we have already been on the rides that have short lines, and we have fastpasses for the popular rides, we don't waste a bunch of time waiting in lines. We're also in better moods and not exhausted.

 

[Dizneefamily+4]

I don't generally plan my vacation time down to the minute, so I have no idea how much time we spend or how much time it takes or any of that.

Generally we will leave the park when we feel we're ready to, then enjoy our resort as long as we want, then head back out in the evening.

I would suggest just fitting it in naturally in your day.

I think whether it is a waste of time would depend on the individual. The way I see it is I spend quite a bit on my resort room that it would be a waste of money if I didn't take advantage of the things it offers. we will not only swim, but rent bikes and boats, we've gone back to enjoy the scavenger hunts that some resorts have....things like that, that to us just enhance the whole Disney experience.

This! We have found that taking this rest time (none of us are nappers, but we lounge by the pool and have a snack in the air conditioned room or resort) is a total necessity for touring the parks in the summer. It makes us feel refreshed and ready for a long evening at the parks. We too stayed at POR last summer and did this every day. I don't remember how much time it took, because we really didn't keep track! Trust me, you'll appreciate the couple hours away from the parks to rejuvenate!

 

[Tinkerbellie16]

We love our afternoon down time!!! Sometimes we lay around and watch TV or even nap but mostly we go swimming. It refreshes us for the evening. You can always split the family up too! Many times my DH will take DS back to the hotel while DD and I shop for a little longer. And sometimes he takes both kids so I can get my Disney fix in. So that's ok too. I think it's a great time to 'plan' the down time and when it comes to it, you can all decide on what you want to do - maybe stay at the parks, maybe go back to the hotel, maybe you split up. You'll definitely figure it out when you are there

 

[MissMouseInTheHouse]

As far as times go, I'm sorry to say I have no help. But I do think that it would be nice to spend an hour at the hotel by the pool just relaxin'! I understand how you feel about the park time, but you can make up for that missed park time later on in the day. Your family will feel refreshed after the mid-day break, and will be able and more willing to go longer at the parks that night during extra magic hours! so that way it's a compromise, and everybody's happy ! Hope you have a fantastic time and lots of fun!

 

[Lees3rwe]

The after lunch break was very neccesary for us this past June.
It never took all of that long to leave the park and return and even so, we had PLENTY of time to do everything that we wnated to do. As long as you make it for rope drop, you will have done all of the big things by lunch time anyway.

 

[KristiKat]

We need our down time. I totally understand the feeling that you feel it's a waste of park time and I felt that way also but to be honest it's a nicer refresher for the entire family. We had to do it because my 4 yr old had to have an afternoon nap or all of Disney would know about her ill mood that evening. It's nice to get off your feet awhile also and I found that I needed a nap also on some days.

 

[mountdew1]

My DW usually plans on 2-3 hours for her to return to the resort and take a nap. This normally gives her an hour plus a bit to nap. If they are going to swim and do want to shower afterwards, then yeah, you would need to add in how ever long it would take them to shower and get park ready again. Usually mid afternoon is a good time to break as that is when the parks are the most crowded. The only thing that you may miss is the afternoon parades. If you daughter just wants to lay at the pool, and your wife doesn't mind napping at the pool, then I would agree with the PP's suggestion of the girls going back and the boys staying at the park. However, if you son wants to actually go in the pool, you should probably head back as well as they really should have an adult actively watching them.

It may indeed seem like a waste of time during the park day, but depending on when you are going during the year, you may end up doing more and lasting better with that afternoon break. If the park is open til 10 or later, it tends to empty out after fireworks. Going non stop from open til close isn't easy to do and tends to burn out lots of people. That break would let you go hard in the morning, and then hard again in the evening, both times when the parks tend to be less crowded.

 

[DisneyFive]

Last year, we had every intention of taking afternoon breaks. Sounded so nice. Go back to the resort, swim, have a drink, maybe nap...

Didn't happen once in our 8 day trip. We have too much fun at the parks, and the thought of taking 3-4 hours out of our day just wasn't attractive. We hit the pool in the evening after we're done with the park.

If you do want to take a break, I would schedule about 40 minutes to an hour each way to and from your resort.

Dan

 

[Electric Mayhem]

I'm a big believer in midday breaks. For me it's about quality of time in the parks more than quantity. A perfect example is when we when down with my wife's sister's family. We took breaks, they didn't. My daughters were great rope-drop to park close, my niece and nephew were so over stimulated they just mentally shut down and didn't have any fun.

I will say that sometimes my wife feels like we just have to be doing something disney every moment of the trip. On days like that we'll explore a resort (in the AC of course) especially if the holiday decorations are up. It's usually enough of a change of pace to take the place of a nap/pool session.

Hope that helps.

 

[Electric Mayhem]

Sorry, forgot to answer the actual question. When we stay at Port Orleans we allot 35 minutes for HS and Epcot and 45 for AK and MK. That works pretty well for us.

 

[Deb & Bill]

OP, take a deep breath and relax. Everything will be fine. You will come to enjoy the little break each day with your family. It will keep you from having a heart attack. Enjoy being with your family, have fun and enjoy your trip.

 

[jacksmom]

Hi! We are staying at the Poly soon! And, we are planning on a 3 hour break for pool/rest everyday from about 2p -5p! I think it will be good to get out of the heat and crowds for a few hours! We will be @ WDW for 9 nights/10 days, so we should have time for some relaxation also!

 

[NYDisneyGal]

....and you'll be able to decide whether a break is for you or not. We enjoy our afternoons at the resort - I suggest you try it one day early in your stay. Just be relaxed about it, don't time it, enjoy a rest. You'll probably find you have more stamina to do things in the evening that you wouldn't have had otherwise. I suggest trying it early in your trip because if you wait to do it on your last day you'll find yourself saying "wish we had taken a break like that every day"

It's a vacation, after all!

 

[Kat&Dom]

When we take an afternoon break - we make sure we are at the park at opening. We collect fastpasses and ride as many rides as we can before it starts to get too crowded and hot. We usually leave the park around noon or 1pm - head back to resort - go for a swim, have lunch, relax then we head back to the parks around 5pm. We find we get 4-5 hours in the morning and 4-5 hours in the evening - both are cooler and less crowded. It is amazing how much you can get done in the first 2 hours of park opening.

I hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[Momof6]

We love our mid-day break. Sometimes we just hang out by the pool, sometimes we take a nap in the room or just sit in the cool room and wash up a bit before heading out for the evening. We find the middle of the day to be a time when many guests are tired, hot, hungry, overstimulated...we avoid lots of this angst and take a little 'retreat' from it!

When we re-hit the parks later in the day we have lots of energy and feel refreshed, while others are wilting fast.

Hope your vaca is absolutely amazing.
denise

 

[Brer Shay]

When we figured out a midday break plan that worked for us, we found that we actually saved time. Here's what we do:

We pick our park and make it to rope drop. We get a fastpass for the most popular ride first. You can usually get your second fastpass an hour later, so we get the next most popular ride. Then every two hours after that, we grab another fastpass.

While we're gathering fastpasses, we ride the rides that don't have long wait times, and we don't use any of the fastpasses we've collected. We then eat lunch in the park/leave for lunch, take a break in the room or swim, freshen up, and go to dinner.

After dinner, we go back to the park and use all the fastpasses that we collected that morning. Since we have already been on the rides that have short lines, and we have fastpasses for the popular rides, we don't waste a bunch of time waiting in lines. We're also in better moods and not exhausted.

Exactly! Particularly in the hot summer with the whole family, we'll leave the park around 2 or 3 pm and go back around 5 or 6. The break from park exit to park entrance is usually about 3 hours. We've stayed at POFQ and not had any difficulty in terms of travel.

 

[pepe of ohio]

We've never regretted itand actually look forward to them......time it takes is immaterial to us.....we're rope drop people, get there early and tour before the crowds arrive and we're out of there by noon.....too much park stimulation, high heat, sweat, and too many people makes the afternoons in the park miserable for us...

Others have posted they enjoy the resorts and what they offer and what they paid for....we feel the same....we always stay deluxe for the theming and pool and enjoy our luch pool side with a picnic and drinks we picked up at the grocery store in route to WDW....refresh yourself in the pool, rest your feet and back in the hot tub or lounge chair and enjoy the Florida sun....we'll return to the parks later on in the evening as the sun goes down....5 or 6 hours in a park in one day is plenty for us....just too much other things to see and do on property besides the parks......