3 day trip, add 1/2 day and which park? plus more qs

[jecatro]

Hi, I'm headed to Disney in one week and since it is a last minute trip I am terribly behind on planning! In case there are any disney enthusiasts, wanted to seek advice - here are my details and questions:

Details:
We have 3 full days for parks. Husband is only available for 1 day because he is going to conference. Girls are 3 (still napping) and 4 years old. Staying on property at Disney HIlton (next to downtown disney) but it is not a Disney Resort. We have 4 day passes and a free day at Typhoon Lagoon if we want it.

1) We're flying to Orlando and arrive 11:15 am. All the advice I hear says to make this first day a low key day without parks, but should we try to add a half-day in the parks since it would increase the time my husband can be with us to 1.5 days? If so, which one do you recommend? I'm leaning toward Typhoon Lagoon so I can have second adult with me or Epcot since hubby hasn't been - but welcome tips.

2) Any tips for doing the parks as a solo adult with a 3 and 4 year old? I'll rent a double strolller but appreciate any guidance.

3) For three full days I'm thinking MK (with hubby), then EP, then MK again (with night parade). Comments?

THANKS FOR ANY ADVICE!!!

 

[EagleScout]

Regarding first day (if arriving mid-day), our first day is usually a resort/pool day, followed by dinner at epcot (with maybe 1 attraction at epcot before dinner and one after). Admittedly, we always stay in epcot area (swan/dolphin or beach club), so heading to epcot is just a few minute walk or boat ride, so you might prefer a dinner at downtown disney instead due to proximity. And as part of downtown disney dinner, maybe also do some disney quest (or really splurge and do la nouba- although your kids may be a little young to appreciate).

 

[BadDad]

My kids prefer DHS over Epcot.
Toy Story, Little Mermaid, Disney Jr., Fanasmatic!
even the great Movie Ride (I understand that the Wizard of Oz is coming to the big screen in Oct for 70th anniversary)

We alternated |Park| - |Hotel + Pool + rest| - |Park|.

 

[Julie711]

We always do a park arrival day ( arrive by 11am) & it's always MK!
As far as the 3 days my family (DH, myself, dd 5 & ds 22 months) we would do 2 days at MK & 1 at HS or you could do 1/2 day at HS & 1/2 day at AK or Epcot on the 3rd day.

 

[rachael95]

Hi, I'm headed to Disney in one week and since it is a last minute trip I am terribly behind on planning! In case there are any disney enthusiasts, wanted to seek advice - here are my details and questions:

Details:
We have 3 full days for parks. Husband is only available for 1 day because he is going to conference. Girls are 3 (still napping) and 4 years old. Staying on property at Disney HIlton (next to downtown disney) but it is not a Disney Resort. We have 4 day passes and a free day at Typhoon Lagoon if we want it.

1) We're flying to Orlando and arrive 11:15 am. All the advice I hear says to make this first day a low key day without parks, but should we try to add a half-day in the parks since it would increase the time my husband can be with us to 1.5 days? If so, which one do you recommend? I'm leaning toward Typhoon Lagoon so I can have second adult with me or Epcot since hubby hasn't been - but welcome tips.

2) Any tips for doing the parks as a solo adult with a 3 and 4 year old? I'll rent a double strolller but appreciate any guidance.

3) For three full days I'm thinking MK (with hubby), then EP, then MK again (with night parade). Comments?

THANKS FOR ANY ADVICE!!!

It sounds like you have 4 day passes but only 3 days to use them. Since I doubt these are the passes that never expire, if you add that 1/2 day on the first day, it sounds like you would not be increasing your cost, just using the last day of your pass that you otherwise wouldn't use. In that case, I think Epcot would be really neat for your husband. It's a great place for adults but lots for kids to do as well. You might luck out and get a nap out of both kids in the stroller while you two can walk around the world showcase area.

I'd definitely rent a double stroller from one of the private companies like Kingdom or Orlando Strollers Rentals (they sponsor this board). They'd be a lot more comfortable than the hard plastic ones you could get from Disney.

One thing, I would not buy 4-day passes for your husband since he only can go one. But also, check with your conference and with Disney about conference passes. I know when I went down there a few years ago, there was a special conference ticket you could buy that let you go a 1/2 day on the day your conference ended for a really cheap price. They might have something like that for the day before.

 

[momto3pirates]

I would consider hitting MK the first day with your Dh. Take it easy, enjoy just being there. Ride tea cups, dumbo, have your family pics done in front of the Castle.

 

[jecatro]

OP here, appreciate the input!