Won all-expenses paid WDW trip - only 2 days in parks - ride strategy help?

D

Donathius

Mouseketeer
Joined
May 24, 2011
Long story short I won a trip to WDW through work. It's all expenses paid including food, lodging, airfare and 2-day park hopper tickets. I'm wondering if I could get some advice from all ya'll veterans to make the most of our trip as it's not as long as I'd like with only 2 park days. My wife and I have been to Disney World once for our honeymoon 15 years ago and our kids 9F and 11M have never been.

On the plus side, though, we just went to Disneyland in California a few months ago (and it was the 5th time our kids have been) so we've already decided we can skip anything (except Rise of the Resistance lol) that we just went on so that will help a lot with not trying to get on everything we can. Basically all the Fantasyland dark rides, Dumbo, Pirates (we'll go on it if there's time!), etc. we'd skip.

I'd appreciate any tips/tricks/strategies/etc to try and make it on as many of the listed rides as we can - we're planning on paying for Genie+ if the company doesn't cover it. Are we crazy to try and do all of this in 2 days? Is there anything that is just 100% cannot miss that isn't listed below? We're not big on seeing shows and parades - we just want to go on all the rides lol. Thanks in advance for the help!

Here are the details:
  • Staying at AKL
  • Park days are set as July 30-31 (Sat and Sun) with park hoppers - this was set by the company - we didn't get to choose dates
  • Kids are plenty big enough to go on anything so no height restriction issues
  • We're fine not going on any rides that are also at Disneyland (except Rise, but we could skip it if we have to)
  • Planning on paying for Genie+ if the company doesn't include it
  • Breakfast, lunch and dinner is being paid for by the company via vouchers - not sure what that means exactly
  • We just went to Disneyland in March and want to focus on things that are only at Disney World or are significantly unique/different vs Disneyland
  • Top priority rides/shows
    • Magic Kingdom
      • 7 Dwarfs Mine Train
      • Astro Orbiter (skippable if there just isn't time though)
      • Big Thunder Mountain
      • Space Mountain
      • Mickey's PhilharMagic (also skippable)
      • PeopleMover
      • Carousel of Progress (also skippable)
    • Animal Kingdom
      • Avatar Flight of Passage
      • Na'vi River Journey
      • Dinosaur (skippable since we know it's basically just Indiana Jones with different theming)
      • Kilimanjaro Safari
      • Expedition Everest
    • Epcot
      • Frozen Ever After
      • Gran Fiesta Tour
      • Test Track
      • Remy's Ratatouille Adventure
      • Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind
    • Hollywood Studios
      • Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular (skippable though - I know it's not a ride)
      • Rock 'n' Roller Coaster
      • Slinky Dog Dash
      • Muppet Vision (skippable)
      • Rise of the Resistance (skippable if we really have to, but we're already prepared to pay for ILL)
      • Tower of Terror (skippable since the kids already said they don't want to go on it)
 
Pick 2 parks and slow down to enjoy..... There is no way to do all 4 parks (well) in 2 days unless you like misery.

Can you extend your trip on your own dime? That's what I would do. Adding two days of tickets and off site hotel - and now your talking.

You might even be able to extend those 2 day tickets into 4 day (or whatever days) for not as much as an extra standalone ticket.
 
MrWonderful said:
Pick 2 parks and slow down to enjoy..... There is no way to do all 4 parks (well) in 2 days unless you like misery.

Can you extend your trip on your own dime? That's what I would do. Adding two days of tickets and off site hotel - and now your talking.

You might even be able to extend those 2 day tickets into 4 day (or whatever days) for not as much as an extra standalone ticket.
Click to expand...
I've been considering that as an option - or just focusing on 2 parks. Not sure how much leeway we have with the travel like if they'd still pay for the flights if we flew back on a different day than what is already planned.
 
You'll need Genie + and some Individual LL to pull it off but can be done to hit most of the stuff. Also Rope Dropping both days.

You'll want to rope drop Animal Kingdom (earlier opening time than other parks) and Epcot (virtual queue GotG)

Animal Kingdom -> break -> Magic Kingdom You'll likely be able to ride everything by Noon at Animal Kingdom when rope dropping FoP. Will need to ILL Dwarf

update - Genie + first selection as Safari, then suggest stacking at Magic Kingdom unless Navi has availability quickly in morning after Safari.

Epcot -> Hollywood studios (if able to get Genie + late in day for Slinky) then either back to Epcot for Harmonious or MK to ride rest of rides if not able to hit first night. ILL RotR for 3ish time?

update2 -. Stack at Hollywood -Get Slinky Dog first, then RnRC. After those 2 should be able to pick whatever is left needing to ride.


However agree with MrWonderfull. Check if anyway to extend trip too so allows you to pace yourselves.
 


SealedSeven said:
However agree with MrWonderfull. Check if anyway to extend trip too so allows you to pace yourselves.
Click to expand...
Thanks so much for typing all that out. I'm going to check with the company and see if we can extend our stay. Mostly just want them to still pay for the flights! Otherwise we're also considering dropping Hollywood Studios completely as the only hardcore "Must do" is RnRC and we're fine missing that. The other stuff at HS would be nice, but it's fine if we miss it. We definitely don't want to overwork ourselves and be so stressed out running from one thing to the other that we forget to actually enjoy the trip!
 


I'm going to *bold* the rides IMO you should go for...:tink:
I WOULD ADD SOARIN', HAUNTED MANSION AND LION KING...INDOOR SHOWS LIKE PHILHARMAGIC ARE GREAT IF IT IS HOT AND YOU HAVE TIME! ROTR IS A MUST DO IF YOU ARE A STAR WARS FAN! ENJOY!

Magic Kingdom
  • 7 Dwarfs Mine Train
  • Astro Orbiter (skippable if there just isn't time though)
  • Big Thunder Mountain
  • Space Mountain
  • Mickey's PhilharMagic (also skippable)
  • PeopleMover
  • Carousel of Progress (also skippable)
  • Animal Kingdom
    • Avatar Flight of Passage
    • Na'vi River Journey
    • Dinosaur (skippable since we know it's basically just Indiana Jones with different theming)
    • Kilimanjaro Safari
    • Expedition Everest
  • Epcot
    • Frozen Ever After
    • Gran Fiesta Tour
    • Test Track
    • Remy's Ratatouille Adventure
    • Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind
  • Hollywood Studios
    • Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular (skippable though - I know it's not a ride)
    • Rock 'n' Roller Coaster
    • Slinky Dog Dash
    • Muppet Vision (skippable)
    • Rise of the Resistance (skippable if we really have to, but we're already prepared to pay for ILL)
    • Tower of Terror (skippable since the kids already said they don't want to go on it)
 
The Disney parks are HUGE and if you are going in July, it will be very HOT/HUMID all Summer in Florida. Trying to do all four parks in 2 days doesn't seem practical either from the amount of walking that would involve or the number of hours the parks are open. Even doing 2 parks on 2 consecutive days will be a challenge. I would decide which parks to prioritize and spend your time there.
 
0FF TO NEVERLAND said:
One piece of advice to add in this situation is see who's paying the taxes on this trip so you are not surprised with a 1099 at the end of the year, for full face value of the trip.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I already thought about that. The company is covering the taxes. They do giveaways like this every year and don't want them to be a burden like winning a car on a game show.
 
Donathius said:
Oooooook...so I just booked an additional 3 days at Pop Century. Upgrading the tickets my company is providing to 5-day tickets, plus 3 nights at Pop are only going to cost me $1500. Just need to figure out the return flight with work.
Click to expand...
That’s much better. Still busy days, but at least you won’t feel quite as much like chickens running around with your heads cut off.
Like was mentioned, make sure you are hydrating like mad and taking cool off breaks, even if it’s just walking into a shop for five mins.
Things like Carousel of Progress, Philharmagic, and MuppetVision can let you cool off while watching the shows. Plan them strategically in the hottest part of the day. Misting fans are awesome. And free ice water poured over a neckerchief and used to wipe your neck and face can really help too.
If anyone gets overheated to the point of feeling ill, there are first aid locations in every park, and you can lie down on a cot while cooling off.

Oh yeah, and don’t be afraid of a little rain. It’s usually not too long lived, and often it’s the best time to get in lines. There’s a lot of folks who just clear out when it rains, so all of a sudden a super busy park is comparatively a ghost town. Grab ponchos, and keep heading to the rides!
 
Last edited:
Don’t forget to update your Genie Selections with the new Cosmic Rewind as a favorite for Epcot.
 
You gotta do Cosmic Rewind! Absolutely made our weekend trip a few days ago, even though we didn’t get to do everything we wanted.
 
0FF TO NEVERLAND said:
One piece of advice to add in this situation is see who's paying the taxes on this trip so you are not surprised with a 1099 at the end of the year, for full face value of the trip.
Click to expand...
Absolutely this! I won a trip to the 2008 Braves Spring Training Camp at WDW/WWOS…flights, club level at GF, 2 prize packs, hopper park tickets, game tickets, meet and greet lunch, and spending money. I was self-employed at the time. I paid my taxes quarterly but didn’t know how much to budget for the trip. The taxes ate me alive. I vowed to never register to win a trip again. Just give me cash!
 
I am a DLR fanatic and just finally got to go to WDW in Nov 2020. I'll spout my opinions on some of the WDW rides compared to the same or similar rides in DLR:

  • At DLR, BTMRR is one of my all time faves (especially at night!) so it kills me to say this: If you are short on time, skip it at WDW. The queue at WDW is better/more interesting, but the ride is essentially the same.
  • Totally skip the Astro Orbiter (especially if you don't want to skip BTMRR!) It's a little-kid ride in both parks.
  • You didn't list it (good!) but totally skip Buzz in WDW. Same ride as DLR, but the blasters are mounted on the car (without a cord) with a lot less flexibility. Very frustrating!!
  • Agree with your assessment on Dinosaur - it's Indy with a different theme
  • The same goes for Test Track - It's Radiator Springs Racers without the story line
  • Na'vi River Journey - meh. Beautifully done! Very relaxing! But the line is long and the ride is short. And if the Shaman isn't working, it loses some oomph. YMMV
  • I was SUPER disappointed with ToT in WDW. Maybe because everyone kept talking it up? All I know was that the "thing" that makes it different from the old DCA ToT (don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't ridden it!) meant longer boring stuff and shorter exciting stuff! ;-)

The rides I personally would put on my "ride at any cost" list are:
  • FoP (as many times as possible)
  • EE
  • GotG (even though it wasn't open when we were there, there's no way in hades I'd miss that now!!)
  • KS
  • RotR (sorta - great, GREAT ride, but it's on both coasts, sooo...)

Congrats on the win, and good luck, safe travels!
 
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