1st day, crowd 9, MK, DHS, or Epcot?

[cheryterese]

I could use some advice on which park to plan for our 1st day of our 13 day trip (10 days WDW, 3 days Universal). It will be Sunday, Feb 15th, crowd level 9, and will be a WDW day. Following that we'll be doing our 3 days at Universal and then back to WDW for 9 days.

I'm planning 5 days MK, 2 days Epcot, 2 days AK, 1 day DHS.

The kids (9, 7, 6) will want to go to MK, but they can be convinced otherwise. We will have 5 days at MK though, so could take it slower on this high crowd day and still have the thrill of MK on Day 1.
DH thinks we should do our 1 day at DHS first because it's mostly shows so won't seem so crowded.
I'm thinking Epcot because even though crowded it's more spread out and we should save our 1 DHS day to midway through the trip.

We'll follow this day with 3 days at Universal because the crowds don't sound like they'll be so bad - listed moderate, slow, slow while WDW is still 9. We don't want to attempt Universal on that 1st day though because it's listed as busy and we don't want to tackle a theme park we've never been to on a busy day. I do feel like I can plan a WDW 9 day though, having been there 3 times with the kids already (although not at that high crowd level!).

DH and I are going round and round on Day 1, so I thought I'd throw it out to the DIS experts! Thanks!

 

[LSUfan4444]

I would probably do Hollywood Studios, or Epcot or a combo of both.

I would likely start my day at Hollywood Studios well before rope drop and knock out things in the first hour that will have extended waits by 11 am. 11-1 I would likely see a couple shows (Beauty & the Beast, etc), then move over to Epcot for lunch in the World Showcase about 1pm. That is where/when I would also have my FP+ waiting for me (Epcot, 1 - 4 pm).

After maybe 5 or 6 pm I would likely head back to the World Showcase to meet characters, tour the countries and get ready for Illuminations.

If I didn't have park hoppers I would probably stick with Hollywood Studios and go to Fantsmic that night via the Fantasmic Dining Experience (where I prefer mama melrose) then maybe head to Beaches & Cream at Yach/Beach Club for ice cream after Fantasmic.

Sunday February 15

Animal Kingdom: 9am – 8pm (Not Recommended)

Morning Extra Magic Hour: 8am – 9am

Epcot: 9am – 9pm (Recommended)

Illuminations: 9pm

Hollywood Studios: 9am – 8pm (Most Recommended)

Fantasmic: 7pm and 8:30pm

Magic Kingdom: 9am – 12am (Not Recommended)

Festival of Fantasy Parade: 3pm, Main Street Electrical Parade: 9pm and 11pm, Wishes Fireworks: 10pm

Animal Kingdom is not recommended with the morning Extra Magic Hour attracting resort guests and complicating morning touring. If you are Extra Magic Hours eligible and certain that you can arrive by 7:30am to take advantage of it, then you can have a tremendous amount of success touring before 10am, but the afternoon is going to be busier than recommended days. Waits also drop off after 5pm should you need to visit today. Tomorrow is significantly better for those planning to arrive after 8am.

Epcot is recommended. It’s a particularly excellent day to see IllumiNations and have dinner in the World Showcase because Magic Kingdom will be attracting most of the nighttime crowd. Despite the recommendation, you will still have the most success if you arrive prior to opening and head straight to Test Track, Sum of All Thrills, Mission: Space, and Soarin’ or follow one of the touring plans. Single Rider at Test Track is also a good option and will often result in a shorter wait than the standby or FastPass+ lines. It’s more important to arrive early and take care of the headliners first thing than it is to pick the “right” day. You’ll run into lines at the headliners in Future World if you don’t arrive until 10:30am with everyone else. To stay ahead of the crowds for the longest amount of time, move up through the World Showcase beginning at 11am. Return to Future World after 5pm to see anything you missed, but make sure you check your Times Guide because some attractions close at 7pm, including Captain EO, Journey into Imagination with Figment, Living with the Land, Circle of Life, both Innoventions buildings, and Ellen’s Energy Adventure. If you’re interested in re-riding Soarin’ or Test Track, plan to use FastPass+, single rider at Test Track, or get in line around 8:55pm.

Hollywood Studios is the most recommended Park. Magic Kingdom will be attractive with the long hours of operation and both nighttime spectaculars and Animal Kingdom will be attracting a sizable number of resort guests with the morning Extra Magic Hour. In order to find the shortest waits, you’ll need to arrive by 8:15am and head straight to Toy Story Mania. Because of its popularity and extremely limited capacity, Toy Story Mania almost always has afternoon waits of 60 or more minutes, even when crowds are relatively low and the Studios is recommended. There’s no way around that with its limited capacity and the even more limited number of things to do with kids. It’s always your top priority. The second attraction with the longest peak wait is Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, which should be ridden immediately after Toy Story Mania in the morning or with FastPass+. Other priorities are Tower of Terror and Star Tours, though FastPass+ are more plentiful at both attractions and standby waits are usually lower. After you get through these four headliners, it’s just a matter of arriving in time to see the various stage shows that run on a set schedule and getting over to the Studios’ high capacity attractions. You may also have characters to visit before lines get longer. See the second Fantasmic because it will be less crowded than the first. While it’s officially a recommended day, arriving prior to Park opening and hitting the headliners first thing is more important than which day you pick. Arrive at 11am, no matter the recommendation or the overall crowd level, and you’ll be looking at long lines at Toy Story Mania and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster.

Magic Kingdom is not recommended with the extended hours and both nighttime spectaculars. The morning Extra Magic Hour at Disney World’s least popular theme park will help pull away a few thousand people, but won’t do much to ease Magic Kingdom crowds. This coming Tuesday and Wednesday will be significantly less busy. You can still make today work by arriving no later than 8:20an and touring efficiently in the morning. Take advantage of FastPass+ in the late morning and early afternoon and you’re in great shape. Take a break from 1pm to 6pm or so and return in the evening for dinner, some late night attractions, the Electrical Parade and Wishes.

 

[cheryterese]

Thanks for your input!!

 

[cheryterese]

If I didn't have park hoppers I would probably stick with Hollywood Studios and go to Fantsmic that night via the Fantasmic Dining Experience (where I prefer mama melrose) then maybe head to Beaches & Cream at Yach/Beach Club for ice cream after Fantasmic.

For the Fantasmic Dining Experience, is it a set menu you choose from for the pay 1 price or anything from the menu? We have several vegetarians in the family so I just want to be sure. Thanks!

 

[minnie mum]

For the Fantasmic Dining Experience, is it a set menu you choose from for the pay 1 price or anything from the menu? We have several vegetarians in the family so I just want to be sure. Thanks!

It's a set price but you order your appetizer and entree from the regular menu. Dessert is served as a sampler platter for the whole table at MM.

As an alternative, Josh at easywdw.com recommends going to the 2nd showing of F. The standby line will be much shorter.

I agree that either DHS or Epcot would be better than MK that day. Depends on which of the headliners are more appealing for your family.

 

[LJSquishy]

While I would typically recommend DHS due to it being the least crowd-intensive park that day, if you're planning 5 full days at MK throughout your trip, it would be fine to do MK on Feb 15 and just plan to take it slow and enjoy the moment versus trying to cram a bunch of rides in. I get the appeal of wanting to do MK first to start the trip off with a bang. You'd have plenty of time to experience everything at MK with 5 days planned there.

On the other hand, if the extreme crowds will add stress to your family (it's really hard to see the beauty of MK when it's super crowded because you can't see around people), I'd definitely do DHS first and finish the night off with Fantasmic. If you have Parkhoppers and don't mind staying out REALLY late, you could do Fantasmic @ 7pm or 8:30pm (DHS), then head over to MK for Wishes @ 10pm and Main St Electrical Parade @ 11pm. If you opt for the 7pm showing of Fantasmic, you could probably make the 9pm MSEP and then do Wishes at 10pm. That would certainly be a magical way to end your first night!