3am arrival - which park is best?

[phee]

well, actually, it's a 6am arrival at MCO, but we're flying in from the west coast, so it'll be 3am for us what park would you suggest for our first day and why? dh, ds12yo, ds 9yo, and mo-ah! it was half of epcot originally because i didn't want epcot to be a "let down" for the boys if we went after the other parks (you know how kids are with the "educational" stuff!). a friend says we should do MGM that first day. she thinks it's less strain on our bodies.

 

[Tasmen]

If we book the flights we are planning on right now, we'll be getting in around 10am (7am for us ). Our plan is to go to Epcot. I figure Epcot would be a good target park because it is so huge and would take more than one day to visit anyway.

 

[mickeysgirl17]

I highly suggest Animal Kingdom for your 1st day and Epcot for the 2nd day. The reason why I prefer AK first is because AK usually closes at 5pm ensuring that you have to stop park touring at 5. Many families tend to spend their whole first day at the parks making you extra tired from the traveling, park touring, then your dinner....its just too much especially when you have kids. The way I look at it....Ak until 5pm, rest at resort, and a nice late dinner after you've rested. If you go to Mk or Epcot, you may be tempted to stay there all day and you'll have trouble getting up the next morning. If not AK, MGM is a good 2nd choice. The park is small (less walking) and you'll be able to sit through the shows to rest your legs.

 

[MissionMouse]

....dh, ds12yo, ds 9yo, and mo-ah! it was half of epcot originally because i didn't want epcot to be a "let down" for the boys ....

You might consider your first day... a day you need to be flexible. A mid-day break back to the resort pool, adding a park hopper tickets option to your stay provides even greater options.

Overall, kids love MK and it is on the top of their list. Epcot rates the lowest...knowing this we typically break-up our days between parks and sometimes back to the resort to provide variety and a level of excitement for everyone. We always hit MK first...it is what it is all about.

 

[Meriweather]

We arrived at 7:30 am (4:30 our time). Went to Epcot, but it was just DH and I .

In Jan. Best friend and I arrive at about the same time and are heading to MK first, because she has never been to WDW!!

 

[metsfan11]

I highly suggest Animal Kingdom for your 1st day and Epcot for the 2nd day. The reason why I prefer AK first is because AK usually closes at 5pm ensuring that you have to stop park touring at 5. Many families tend to spend their whole first day at the parks making you extra tired from the traveling, park touring, then your dinner....its just too much especially when you have kids. The way I look at it....Ak until 5pm, rest at resort, and a nice late dinner after you've rested. If you go to Mk or Epcot, you may be tempted to stay there all day and you'll have trouble getting up the next morning. If not AK, MGM is a good 2nd choice. The park is small (less walking) and you'll be able to sit through the shows to rest your legs.

Excactly what I was going to say. Plus, going to AK is a nice way to start off the Disney magic, especially if you are there for the opening of the park!

 

[rmann]

We just returned and spent about 6 hours at Epcot one day. We have a 6 1/2 and 5 year old. We loved The Seas, Soaring (in the Land) was unbelievable. The acrobats in China were fantastic. I highly recommend Epcot. We did not do AK because we heard from MANY that it was just like going to the zoo. (The only exception being the Lion King show). Just my 2 cents.

 

[Dizneydaz]

The one and only time (never again) that we did the red eye (On Song, now Delta) from LAX to MCO we were wiped out when we arrived. Unfortunately we didn't really sleep on the plane. My mom and I caught about a 15 min. nap and my DD (then 5) slept for about 45 mins. It was those darn built-in tv screens-gave us too much to look at.

Anyway, luckily we were able to check-in at POP early (like 7 a.m.) and our room was ready. We didn't even get our luggage, just went straight to the room and collapsed on the beds. We all napped for a few hours. I couldn't bring myself to wake up DD any sooner. Then, thanks to sleep deprevation, we had a small problem with our rental van which took a few hours to resolve. We ended up at MK at about 2 p.m. that day. In hindsight, I think I would have made our first day a non-park day. We were just too tired that day, and the next.


Epcot is a lot of walking and so is Animal Kingdom (to me) I agree that MGM may be your best bet. It's a smaller park and has less walking. We usually end up spending a few partial days at Epcot (Park hoppers). My DD7 actually enjoys it there. And now they have Test Track and Soarin'. Mission Space is good too!

IMHO (in my honest opinion) AK is great! It's really Nahtazu (not a zoo). The Safari ride is great (I like early in the a.m. which can be hard to do with the time difference, or late in the day) Also awesome is Expedition Everest-my DD's new favorite ride! Dinosaur is great. Festival of the Lion King is not to be missed. And now they have the new Nemo Musical, which I hear is good.

Have a great time. Any more ??, just ask!

 

[Califgirl]

I also fly the red-eye from the west coast, and I agree with Disneydaz, I make it a non-park day. Or at least mostly a non park day. I'll often have ADR's for a park restaurant around 4 pm.
Since the room is not usually ready that early, I go to the spa after I check in. (I may have a light breakfast first if the spa isn't open yet). Then I take a shower and steam and if there is an opening (although I recommend booking in advance, just to make sure!) I'll get a massage. that pretty much does away with jetlag and I'm relaxed and ready to go for the rest of the vacation.
I know it won't work for a family with kids, but if you get a chance to try it ... it's heavenly!

 

[disnut8]

I was going to suggest MGM too. At first, you might be a little bit "jazzed" so you can take care of Twilight Zone and Rock N Roller Coaster. The rest of the park is pretty low keyed and easy to get around.

Don't write off Epcot, either. It's my granddaughter's favorite park. There's more there for the kids than people realize.

 

[Mo-Yo]

Depending on how many days you have for vacation, I would consider trying for an early check-in and no park, as well.

We (dh, me, ds6, dd5, dd2) drove straight through from New Jersey a few years ago, and even with naps in the car, we were WIPED OUT. We were staying in a Cabin in Fort Wilderness, and we couldn't get in early so we languished by the pool until we could get in. I can't imagine trying to do a park that day.

Last year, (ds8, dd7, dd5)we got an early am flight, and we were still exhausted by arrival. We left home at 4 am, and arrived at POR at about 1. Again, we chilled by the pool, napped when we checked in, and still, we were still almost too tired to enjoy O'hana that night.

You won't get to your hotel to check in until close to 9, probably...barring any flight delays.

I would take it as easy as possible.

If you do go to a park, MGM does seem like a good choice. It's small and there are alot of shows there.

Or you could always go to MK and snooze through the Hall of Presidents.

 

[RustManFan]

We usually take the Auto Train to Florida since my sister usually comes with us and she won't fly.

We never do any park on the day of arrival. We ride the monorails, take the boat between POR and Downtown Disney (is it still called that?), maybe dinner at Fort Wilderness. Have stopped by Contemporary to see fireworks on day of arrival before also. We don't sleep on the train so this is very relaxing and we make it an early night.

Then up early next day for Epcot as we love it. That includes my kids that do like learning and educational attractions!

 

[tink1978]

I highly suggest Animal Kingdom for your 1st day and Epcot for the 2nd day. The reason why I prefer AK first is because AK usually closes at 5pm ensuring that you have to stop park touring at 5. Many families tend to spend their whole first day at the parks making you extra tired from the traveling, park touring, then your dinner....its just too much especially when you have kids. The way I look at it....Ak until 5pm, rest at resort, and a nice late dinner after you've rested. If you go to Mk or Epcot, you may be tempted to stay there all day and you'll have trouble getting up the next morning. If not AK, MGM is a good 2nd choice. The park is small (less walking) and you'll be able to sit through the shows to rest your legs.

I agree with this one....after you have been in a plane all night and on your feet all day, you're going to be wiped out!