4 Parks in 1 Day? Absolutely!

[lorileahb]

Finally checked off the bucket list of 4 parks in 1 day, and it was amazing! On Sunday (Aug 7), went like this:

Day before, we hit Trader Sam's (fun! flatbread and dumplings were both very good... was in line for virtual queue sign-up at 2 p.m., 4:30 p.m. call back time - we went to check in at Coronado Springs and then a monorail ride to Contemporary, made it back in exactly 15 mins) and dinner at Grand Floridian Cafe (lobster therm burger and fries were good, key lime tart was ok) followed by watching MK fireworks right outside.

6:30 a.m. - Alarm, bought Genie +

7:00 a.m. - Bought FOP $ILL, 7:10 a.m. began trying to get Remy Genie+ for 7:30-8:30 p.m., on a whim Guardians of Galaxy had a 6:30 time, so we booked it)

7:30/8 a.m. - waiting for and riding bus to MK (5-10 min wait max for bus)... still refreshing for a late Remy (right when bus pulled into MK got tired of being on phone, booked it from 7-8 p.m. - all of that refreshing for Remy made me miss the days of early booked fast pass...)

8:30 a.m. - Early MK Entry (we decided to skip the rope drop crush to SDMT/Peter Pan/Space Mtn)
-Carousel - no wait
-Haunted Mansion (opens at park open) - no wait (based on what we saw when we walked by, could have probably done BTM / Splash Mtn with no/low waits, but our favorites are HM and Pirates... so on park hopping day, it was pick or choose)
-Pirates of Caribbean - no wait
-Saw Jack Sparrow right outside Pirates
-Aladdin Magic Carpets - no wait
-Philharmagic - no wait
-10:30 a.m. booked Genie + for Buzz Lightyear (10:35-11:35 return time)
-People Mover - no wait (saw Buzz Lightyear on the stage from the ride)
-Buzz Lightyear Genie+ - no wait
-11:15 a.m. check in for 11:25 a.m. Lunch at Cinderella's Royal Table - saw Cinderella (Tangled chicken pasta and clock strikes midnight - amazing!)
-Shopped a little on the way out on Main Street
-Caught Castle Show
-Saw Dapper Dans outside the stores near the flagpole and Pooh/Eeyore/Tigger/Rabbit on Train Station Balcony.

-1:30 p.m. - Bus to Animal Kingdom (on bus booked Genie+ for 4:20-5:20 for MMRR)
-2:05 p.m. - $ILL for Flights of Passage (seemed different, more smells and water?, amazing!)
-Rum Blossoms
- Saw Otters in their area and Kevin in front of the Tree of Life

-Bus to Hollywood Studios
-Saw Donald/Daisy on Balcony.
-Minnie & Mickey Vacation - no wait (first time watching, not a fan of the newer humor, one and done)
-Muppets 3D - no wait (love this classic - my dad was a major kermit fan so it brought back great memories)
-MMRR Genie+ (first time riding ever)

-Skyliner to Epcot (booked Genie+ for Soarin' as soon as we landed)
-Heard a band in Britain (sounded just like Billy Idol)
-Mickey Pretzel & Beer
-Genie+ for Soarin'
-ONLY DISAPPOINTMENT: Over to $ILL for Guardians of Galaxy... it was down (otherwise, we would have been able to do this, too); they said come back anytime before close and they would honor our $ILL
-Visited a shop or two on way to France
-Friendship Boat to Morocco / France
-7 p.m. Genie+ for Remy (after Remy, Guardians was still down)
-To Mexico / 3 Cab Boat Ride... almost time for dinner reservation (Guardians still down - so we gave up)
-8:30 p.m Tutto Italia (excellent food, HOWEVER server was ready to go home - we had a reservation but when we ordered he said we needed to hurry up so they didn't shut down the kitchen before we ordered, and a similar comment when were ordering dessert - not a fan of this service - will try somewhere else next time we do a late dinner)
-9:40 p.m. Walked through an almost empty showcase (exact reason we booked a late dinner)

NOTE: The next morning, our hotel guest services refunded the $ILL money for Guardians since it was down almost the entire time we were at Epcot. It was easy, and they were very nice about it. We didn't want to waste any park time visiting guest services.

Never rushed for anything - 30,000+ steps - hit a couple of highlights at each park (obviously more at our first park since you can't park hop until 2 p.m.) - spent periodic time inside A/C with either meals, indoor rides or shows - brought our own 24-oz water bottle (got water from water fountains, free at quick service restaurants and from table service meals). Maybe we got lucky, but it definitely seemed that bus service was significantly more consistent than when we went in May - never waited more than 10 mins for a bus.

Had a blast - definitely recommend!

 

[CarolynFH]

@DisneyStarWisher - this post might be helpful to you.

 

[RoseGold]

ONLY DISAPPOINTMENT: Over to $ILL for Guardians of Galaxy... it was down

Really bad luck, haven't seen it down in weeks. Bummer.

I am very impressed you pulled this off with the 2PM hop rule -- and you started at rope drop, WOW! And no Ubers even!

 

[lorileahb]

Really bad luck, haven't seen it down in weeks. Bummer.

I am very impressed you pulled this off with the 2PM hop rule -- and you started at rope drop, WOW! And no Ubers even!

We tried not to be too disappointed, but was a bummer. Just means we have to go back!

 

[NavyDad]

We have done this multiple times prior to 2020. It was much easier back then obviously. I'm glad to hear you can still make it work.

 

[gharter]

With the 2pm hop rule, I really don't see the point except to say you did it.
So you spent 2 hours in AK, missed most of the good stuff, same at HS and EPCOT. Outside of MK, you really didn't do much at any park.
I can see doing it to check off the bucket list and say you did it, but you missed most of the really good attractions that people go to the parks for.

 

[loves to dive]

I often do it without really trying. I tend to go to the park I have reservations for the night before I have reservations. That way I knock out a few rides and don't need to run around all crazy. If you have hoppers and are there for a week, doing one or two rides in a park then moving on works great, at least for me. I'm a sort of go with the flow type visitor so I just go where my feet take me. Often I'll hop into Epcot during a Festival and grab something from a booth or two, maybe ride something and move on to another park. I rarely do rope drop and rarely do late night.

 

[SteveH]

Congrats on the Four Park Challenge accomplishment, with Disney's extra hurdles that's an extra big win!

 

[lorileahb]

With the 2pm hop rule, I really don't see the point except to say you did it.
So you spent 2 hours in AK, missed most of the good stuff, same at HS and EPCOT. Outside of MK, you really didn't do much at any park.
I can see doing it to check off the bucket list and say you did it, but you missed most of the really good attractions that people go to the parks for.

To each their own. We had an amazing day - enjoyed it all. We did our favorite ride/rides at every park and enjoyed a few treats like Cinderella's Royal Table. We are lucky enough to come once or twice a year and don't feel the need to hit everything at every park. I've had back surgery so the big coasters (even though I love them) are never on the table.