5 hours at Disney - Solo! Help me out!

[KookieCanadian]

Hi all,

I will be doing a full-day cruise excursion to Disney (solo) during a cruise in a couple weeks time. Despite the 9-hour length of the tour, it seems by the time I get from Port Canaveral to the TTC by bus, then get myself to Magic Kingdom by monorail or ferry and vice versa, I will only have about 5 hours to spend at Magic Kingdom.

Some background information. I am in the 30-ish range, and will be travelling solo for the day (which should help to speed things up!). I did a land trip to Disney 3 years ago with a friend and had a blast. We did everything we wanted to then, so this will just be a brief whirlwind day of magic! Also as I am Booking this as a tour through the cruise line, I won't have my ticket to be able to book fast passes until the day of, when I am on the bus.

So with only 5 hours to spend at MK (on a Monday in Feb if that makes a difference), likely from 3 to 8pm, I'm at a loss of where to start planning and how to best arrange my day to maximize what I'm able to see and do. As I already have pictures with the characters from my last trip, I am looking towards experiencing the rides (hopefully my favorites like Space Mountain and Thunder Mountain, and hopefully the new Mine Train), and anything else I can get on.

So... Tips? What should/shouldn't I aim for? Which direction should I walk in? What might I be able to get fast passes for only 30 minutes or so before arrival while on the bus? Best way to get from TTC to MK (I actually enjoyed the ferry last time I was there - does it take much longer than the monorail?).

Anything that anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

 

[com_op_2000]

If you can get FPs - do so. that will help you out a lot. Monday's are usually MKs busiest day of the week. 7DMT will most likely not be doable without a FP, unless you want to wait more than an hour in line. SM & BTM should be doable as long as you do the single rider line at SM.

 

[KookieCanadian]

Thanks for the reply! I didn't even realize there was a single rider line at Space Mountain! Any other rides that have them? What would be other good bets to try if I can't get any fast passes? Any suggestions of where to start/end? Are there line estimators at the entrances to each ride that say how long it is? I worry about getting caught in line and not making it back to the TTC in time to catch my bus back to the ship.

Any suggestions of how long I should allow myself to get from MK back to the TTC?

 

[com_op_2000]

At the entrances to all the rides will be an estimator that is usually within 15 minutes of being correct. Even the single rider line will have an estimator.
Single rider lines at MK is only at SM as far as I remember. Someone else will chime in if I forgot a ride.
As for the route through the park, go to 7DMT first, then SM, and then BTMR.
During the afternoon parade is a good time to catch some rides, as most people are watching the parade and not in line.
Are you on a DCL to PC to MK trip? If so, post on the DCL board might get you more information about when you can book FPs.

 

[kayemgi]

You can also download the My Disney Experience app on your smart phone (if you have one) and get estimated wait times for the rides there. It's very convenient, as opposed to walking to the other side of the park simply to see the wait is too long!

Honestly, if I were you, arriving at 3 pm on a Monday with no ability to make FP+ reservations until the day of, I'd focus my expectations on more shows and experiencing the ambiance. Schedule your fast passes as soon as you can and hopefully you will be able to do three rides that you want to do -- you might get lucky with 7 Dwarfs, but I wouldn't count on it. Sorry, not trying to be a pessimist, just that low expectations usually lead to having them met or exceeded, as opposed to having high expectations and being disappointed.

My plan, again, if I were you: I'd hope to get FPs for BTMR, SM, and Pirates. I'd try for Jungle Cruise and/or Haunted Mansion if one of the first three aren't available. Enjoy some shows: Philharmagic, Tiki Room, Country Bears, Carousel of Progress. Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor is always fun. Ride the People Mover, Railroad, Tea Cups, it's a small world, and Dumbo. Catch the Dapper Dans, the Trolley show, some of the streetmosphere by the Castle and Storybook Circus. Enjoy your trip!

 

[SureAsLiz]

Space Mountain does not have a single rider line, so don't plan on that.

Because you will be booking FPs in person at the park in the afternoon, don't expect to get them for the headliners (7 Dwarfs, Anna + Elsa, Space, Peter Pan)

I second taking in the shows/atmosphere while you are there. If you arrive at the TTC around 3, then you might miss the 3 o'clock parade, which reaches Town Square around 3:30 but if you catch it that's a wonderful parade.
Dream Along With Mickey, the stage show in front of the castle is great. Most of the streetsmosphere acts (Trolley show, Main Street Citizens, etc) are done by noon.
Move it, Shake it, Dance and Play it Street Party is a mini-parade type event where character come out around the hub and you can dance with them.

Before you go, make a list of what you want to do. For 5 hours (4 in the park with traveling to/from TTC) I would expect to be able to do 3 FP rides, a show or two, 1-2 standby rides, and some shopping on Main Street. Anything else would be a bonus. Try not to jump around the park too much. Don't go from Tomorrowland to Adventureland to Fantasyland because that's a lot of wasted time going back and forth. Choose a land, and then work your way around.

Is there a specific ride you remember really liking? Aim for getting a FP for that when you arrive.

For TTC transportation, the Ferry and Monorail take about the same amount of time for actual travel, but I find that when it's not busy the monorail seems to be a little faster. The load/unload time for the Ferry adds a decent amount of time on top of the 10ish minutes it takes to traverse the lagoon. The monorail has half the capacity of the boat, but it loads much faster so if there isn't a line, then take that (especially on the way back)

 

[com_op_2000]

Space Mountain does not have a single rider line, so don't plan on that.

Unless WDW has recently closed the single rider line at SM it is there. I have done it multiple times.

 

[SureAsLiz]

Unless WDW has recently closed the single rider line at SM it is there. I have done it multiple times.

If there ever was one, there has not been a single rider line at Space for many years. The farthest back I can find is a post in 2010 stating there is not a single rider line.

The only single rider lines in WDW are Expedition Everest in AK, Test Track in Epcot, and Rock n Roller Coaster in DHS. MK does not have any single rider lines

 

[spiceycat]

are you going in early Feb - or later Feb or March?

Feb - President's week starts spring break. the week after President's week is not so bad - but the rest of Feb and March will be crowded.