***1st Week of December Thread ADR Plans, Park Hours, and dealing with Pop Warner***

[JamieOak]

How bad does everyone think Epcot would be on a night with pm emh? Especially if we're primarily just wanting to walk around WS and it's our last day so we've already ridden everything a time or two (or three...).

We are planning to hop over to Epcot for PM EMHs on 11/29, after a day at MK. Since it's a party night at MK, I imagine there would be a lot of people at EP that day, but I hope and expect that crowds will taper off past maybe 9pm. My plan is to leave MK at like 5pm and get to EP around 6ish. It'll be our first time in EP ever (at least in my memory since last time I was so young), so we'll just start walking around the WS. Then I have an ADR at Le Cellier at 7:35. So after we are done eating I hope the crowds are dwindling and we can hit up rides and see Illuminations.

 

[rasadkowski]

Please trust me when I say this: It's never enough. We have 10 days and I'm STILL struggling to get everything figured out and make sure we're spending enough time in each park and not running ourselves ragged getting to ADR's and... and... and...

Are you staying on site? I know someone around here decided to stay offsite but I don't think that was you. Anyway, maybe you should check your 2017 calendar and be prepared to book a bounceback while you're there. It only takes a $200 deposit and you can still cancel and get your deposit back if you decide not to go, but having something booked can really take the sting out of leaving.

thats a really good idea. (i am staying onsite.) I was thinking the depression of the coming of the end of the trip and all the planning could be combated by booking a second one!! but, I just know it would not go over well with my husband. If we lived close enough to drive, maybe. But, I'm even going to have to convince him to go again in at the most 5 years

 

[Iowamomof4]

We are planning to hop over to Epcot for PM EMHs on 11/29, after a day at MK. Since it's a party night at MK, I imagine there would be a lot of people at EP that day, but I hope and expect that crowds will taper off past maybe 9pm. My plan is to leave MK at like 5pm and get to EP around 6ish. It'll be our first time in EP ever (at least in my memory since last time I was so young), so we'll just start walking around the WS. Then I have an ADR at Le Cellier at 7:35. So after we are done eating I hope the crowds are dwindling and we can hit up rides and see Illuminations.

See? That's what really worries me about Epcot on Tuesday nights. I'm afraid everyone who was at MK and isn't going to the party will just hop over to Epcot to finish out their day. Then again, if they've been at MK all day, how long can they last at Epcot before they have to throw in the towel?? Especially if they have kids.

 

[JamieOak]

See? That's what really worries me about Epcot on Tuesday nights. I'm afraid everyone who was at MK and isn't going to the party will just hop over to Epcot to finish out their day. Then again, if they've been at MK all day, how long can they last at Epcot before they have to throw in the towel?? Especially if they have kids.

I agree with you. I think there may be a surge of hoppers, but they won't stay until park closing. Technically they don't get booted from MK until 7pm, but I'm anticipating that we will want to leave MK a little earlier than that.

That is a LOOONG day for us! 7:45 EMM at MK to 11:30pm EP closing. This is our worst day and we'll just have to tough it out. But if we do start to hit a wall early, we can always take a break at the resort (we're at BWV right by EP) between MK and EP before our dinner reservation. I'm not even sure if WE will make it all day as 2 young adults. I'm going to need to add a couple cases of 5 hour energy drinks to our grocery order!

 

[rasadkowski]

does anyone need a dinner for 1900 pf 12/4 520 for 6? there is some availability! one just popped up on tp for me, and they had a few spots

 

[JamieOak]

does anyone need a dinner for 12/4 520 for 6? there is some availability! one just popped up on tp for me, and they had a few spots

Sure I need a dinner on 12/4, but where?

 

[rasadkowski]

See? That's what really worries me about Epcot on Tuesday nights. I'm afraid everyone who was at MK and isn't going to the party will just hop over to Epcot to finish out their day. Then again, if they've been at MK all day, how long can they last at Epcot before they have to throw in the towel?? Especially if they have kids.

maybe a lot would also go to AK to see the new Rol show? i know epcot has emh though
( i know..i am obsessed with seeing this show for God knows what reason!)

 

[rasadkowski]

Sure I need a dinner on 12/4, but where?

umm. i am so dumb! 1900 pf...ill edit post

 

[Candycane83]

Funny you ask, I hit a wall last night.. And I'm so tired today I've been second guessing everything. Like my adr dinners being too early, not having enough time in MK, fp not lining up with what I'd like to accomplish on a certain day....I'm trying to take into account sdfp, but I don't like that it's not a guarantee....also starting to wonder if I really should try to join you all for the parade scouting or just try to see as much as possible at the party and stop wherever we are to see the parade...
RoL is a huge " really want to see" for me. But, the fact that it's still not official and no idea of times or if I can even get a dining package is wearing me out ..

.. I'd really like to add one more day ... (Just ONE more ) but... Actually the only reason is risking flying home on a Sunday and hitting a snow storm. I really can't have my daughter miss another day of school. And the night before the trip would just be starting off exhausted the next morning.. So one extra day is out .

I think all of us would like to add ONE more day no matter how long our trips are. I'm going for 3 nights at Universal and 9 nights at Disney and I still want more time. I'm on the same boat as you too wherein I doubt I will be able to convince DH to go back next year or even the year after. Probably in 3- 5 years... No matter how much I love Disney, I know it's just not going to happen so I, unfortunately, will not even try to look into what the bounceback offer is or I'll just be heartbroken.

Edit to add: This is why even with a long trip, I;m trying to milk every second of it. It's very hard trying to find a balance where you have everything though... enough rest, enough park time, enough ADRs, enough time to see all the little other stuff like resorts or Fort Wilderness playground...

 

[Candycane83]

maybe a lot would also go to AK to see the new Rol show? i know epcot has emh though
( i know..i am obsessed with seeing this show for God knows what reason!)

No worries, I'm the same as you. When I saw the previews I actually booked AKL and was so set on staying there. Until I told DH that there was a deal for Swan. Hahaha! But honestly, the preview of the show reminded me a little of the World of Color and I loved that show.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Yay! I wonder when I'll get my ME tags? I used the local AAA office to book my trip, which was such a waste since they don't do any discounts and my TA hasn't reached out to me or done anything.

Did the travel agent make your ME reservation or did you? If you don't get your tags by the time you are 30 days out, then I would call ME and check it out. You can register online for the Magical Express if no one did it yet.

How's everyone doing with their FP planning? I feel like I'm behind...

I have barely thought about it except to realize that I will have to book my fp+s at AK that day if I want to see Rivers of Light.

We are lucky enough to be able to ride the new Frozen ride before our fp window opens for the December trip. So I will know if I need to worry about riding it again. The same goes for Soarin'. But I usually match fp+s to ADR's, so that helps.

 

[Lisa F]

Funny you ask, I hit a wall last night.. And I'm so tired today I've been second guessing everything. Like my adr dinners being too early, not having enough time in MK, fp not lining up with what I'd like to accomplish on a certain day....I'm trying to take into account sdfp, but I don't like that it's not a guarantee....also starting to wonder if I really should try to join you all for the parade scouting or just try to see as much as possible at the party and stop wherever we are to see the parade...
RoL is a huge " really want to see" for me. But, the fact that it's still not official and no idea of times or if I can even get a dining package is wearing me out ..

.. I'd really like to add one more day ... (Just ONE more ) but... Actually the only reason is risking flying home on a Sunday and hitting a snow storm. I really can't have my daughter miss another day of school. And the night before the trip would just be starting off exhausted the next morning.. So one extra day is out .

I am flying home saturday too. kiddo definitely needs a recovery day and I do too. I did add a day at the beginning, I think it is less disruptive to leave a day early (flying out on friday rather than saturday and later in the day so we will spend the day traveling rather than being up at the "butt crack" of dawn to fly out on saturday and still spend saturday at the parks... now we have a full (and hopefully rested) day on Saturday).

 

[Candycane83]

Looks like they opened a few spots for 1900 Park Fare dinner. I checked 12/10, there's availability too.

 

[SilSprBea]

1st week of December psa announcement; there is tons for 1900 park fare res for the week. They must have opened up tables.

 

[Mintycake]

Hi just catching up....
I hate mosquitos! I am a bug magnet...wasps, mosquitos, you name it, they hang around me. DD and DH are pretty lucky that they don't get bothered. Probably because they're all hanging around me! But I will pack a bug spray. Not really concerned about Zika as I don't plan to be pregnant!

I am concerned about 12/6 due to party hoppers and EMH. That's our date night and we were planning just to tool around the WS. I did however snag a Flying Fish reservation but not sure if I'll keep it or not. Menu looks good and perfect for date night, but I think we'd rather spend more time in the parks than eating (let's face it, there are some pretty amazing restaurants in Toronto!)

Also @Candycane83 you are bang on, I would love to extend my vacation. We're not even going to Universal or AK and it still feels like we don't have enough time - no Disney Springs or "down" day either. I am hoping to return but I don't know. This trip is turning out to be over our budget as it is so I have no idea when we'll return, or if we will. If DH hates it, that's a guarantee he won't be back. I think that's why I'm stressing so much on making it perfect too!

 

[Lisa F]

Please trust me when I say this: It's never enough. We have 10 days and I'm STILL struggling to get everything figured out and make sure we're spending enough time in each park and not running ourselves ragged getting to ADR's and... and... and...

Are you staying on site? I know someone around here decided to stay offsite but I don't think that was you. Anyway, maybe you should check your 2017 calendar and be prepared to book a bounceback while you're there. It only takes a $200 deposit and you can still cancel and get your deposit back if you decide not to go, but having something booked can really take the sting out of leaving.

it does take a lot of discipline (and internal struggle) to say "i'm just not going to do that this trip." lol. I have 7 days but 7 full days (plus one breakfast) and I basically had to make a list of my must dos. I am still struggling wiht what happens if RoL opens but they don't have an 8 or 8:30 show - do I just let it pass? Kiddo asks me about once a week if they have released SWaGS dessert party yet.

But this is why I am doing DxDDP and I still have a handful of things I WISH I could fit...
liberty tree tavern
plaza
BoG dinner
le cellier
mama melrose
flying fish
anything at disney springs

and that's just my restaurant list lol

You can't do it all, but what you do will be great. Isn't that pretty close to what @Talby said?

The struggle is real but i have found in life in general treating everything like it might be your last day, your last trip to disney, your last meal... it leads to anxiety and excess. Sometimes you just have to assume you'll be able to do that "next time."

 

[Mintycake]

Looks like they opened a few spots for 1900 Park Fare dinner. I checked 12/10, there's availability too.

Ooh thanks! I was able to swap my 6:35pm dinner to 7:15pm which gives us a little more wiggle room! Cheers!

 

[JamieOak]

If DH hates it, that's a guarantee he won't be back. I think that's why I'm stressing so much on making it perfect too!

I feel the same way. My DH has never been and he was a pretty reluctant after I estimated the cost of this trip. I really hope he loves it and we can go back, but I know for sure it won't turn into an annual trip for us. But that's OK because there are so many other places in the world I'd like to visit.

 

[Mintycake]

And as for FP planning well it's coming up in 2 weeks so I better get my butt moving on the Touring plans thing. Also I am not sure if you checked but Josh updated his touring plans on Easy WDW to refelct the updates. I'm going to use a combo of those things to make my plans. Exciting! I am roughly thinking of FP RnR at HS and going to Toy story right after our ppo breakfast (hopefully the EMM folks will be cleared by then) and then GMR. We'll leave the afternoon for shows. At Epcot FEA is our FP choice with Character spot. Everything else seems not too bad to get later and we're skipping a lot of stuff at Epcot like Living Seas (dd doesn't like aquariums) and Mission Space and Ellens Energy and Test Track.
For MK we have 3 days there (at about 6-8 hours a day) but only going early on one day (ppo BOG) so will need to balance. I am really hoping we can skip Cinderella at PFH because we'll see her and Aurora hopefully at Akershus (and Cindy at 1900 PF). We'll FP Rapunzel, 7DMT, PP, Space Mountain, those seem to be the critical ones. Now I just need to reallly figure out the touring plan!

 

[Lisa F]

We are planning to hop over to Epcot for PM EMHs on 11/29, after a day at MK. Since it's a party night at MK, I imagine there would be a lot of people at EP that day, but I hope and expect that crowds will taper off past maybe 9pm. My plan is to leave MK at like 5pm and get to EP around 6ish. It'll be our first time in EP ever (at least in my memory since last time I was so young), so we'll just start walking around the WS. Then I have an ADR at Le Cellier at 7:35. So after we are done eating I hope the crowds are dwindling and we can hit up rides and see Illuminations.

I have read that in general the waits are long for Soarin' and TT - there is mass exodus after Illuminations to those rides. Toward the end of EMH they might shorten up though. I imagine FEA has a similar problem though articles I have read are pre FEA. I do wonder if Soarin' might be doable due to the double whammy of an extra theater opening and FEA taking up some of the soarin' crowd.

That said if your primary goal is to do tier 2 rides, the lines for that stuff is short. It is more crowded than morning EMH but less crowded than a regular park day. There is a LOT to do in Epcot that is NOT a headliner ride and it's a good time to do that stuff. For world showcase you can walk around but some shops might be closed. The shows that they run won't be running extra shows.

My plan right now is to head over after Fantasmic... so I should be at Epcot by 8. I am wondering whether I might want to do the FP+ location for viewing or FP+ Soarin'. Kiddo LOVES Soarin and I promised him at least two rides on it.

My plan right now is on my LONG epcot day to RD Soarin' and FP+ FEA, SDFP TT
then the next night is EMH and thinking I might want to FP+ soarin' and just find a place to watch Illuminations
then the next morning we have 10am Garden Grill and I might just FP+ Soarin' for 11-12 and then when I get on the ride book my other to MK FP+ for the evening. Availability should be pretty decent because the park is open late and I want to FP for late (after 7pm).

Just not sure what to do for EMH. It is a PRIME time to FP+ the viewing spot and the viewing spot is a prime location to exit into future world after the fireworks for EMH.

thoughts? (not just you but anyone lol)