7 Day Trip? What Parks? How many days Each?

[mightytuf]

We have a 7 day trip planned next month. I would like to hear what parks to go to each day and how many days at each one? We would like to see all 4 parks. We don't plan to go to any of the water parks this trip. We are a family of 5. 3 kids ages 10, 5, & 16 mos. We will arrive late Saturday morning and leave on Fri eve.

 

[Samsma]

Hi! With kids the age of yours, you will spend most of your time at MK. if you are staying on site, I would definitely check out the times for Extra Magic Hours and hit those for Fantasyland. They also say that Sunday morning is a good time for MK. You might look at www.touringplans.com. They have a chart that will tell you the best days to go to which parks. It breaks down the projected crowds for each day of the year. Just look at your days and go from there.

We also enjoy EPCOT and Turtle Talk is a great attraction for little ones especially. There is really something for all ages at each park, but the most fun for for little kids will be at MK. Don't miss Wishes and Illuminations. Fantasmic might be a little scary, but you can judge for yourself.

You might also subscribe to TourGuideMike. His suggestions are a real help, and it is not very expensive. It's fun to play with anyway, and really gets you in a Disney mood! Have fun planning!

 

[Yensid_MD]

I would make sure that you have Park Hoppers. Then plan one day at each of the parks to start and then you can spend the extra 3 days hitting the ones you feel like you want to go to again. I like the flexibility at the end of a long stay to make sure that everyone gets to do the things that they want. I agree you will probably spend most of your time at MK. It is the most magical.

 

[MinnieNurse]

We went last year for 6 days and we planned a day at each park. We ended up going MK the last 2 days because we wanted to see more. I think it is a good idea to leave a few days open to go back to the park you want to see more of or didnt get to do all you wanted to do.

 

[DVCkidsMOM]

I have a 5 year old and she doesn't stand in line very well, so we go to MK 3 different mornings in a week - 1 each for Tomorrowland rides, Fronierland rides, and Fantasyland attractions. We do 1 morning each at AK and Studios and 2 mornings at Epcot - again to split headliners between mornings first thing. Afternoons are more flexible because the biggies are out of the way or scheduled for first thing another day. EE at AK may change our standard itinerary, though...

 

[mightytuf]

We do have Park Hopper passes each day. We also did the Disney Dining plan the whole week. We will be staying at the CBR on site. I figured 2 days for MK and 1 day for the rest, but heard Epcot really needed 2 days as well. Thought I would get more opinions on that here.

 

[Samsma]

We do like 2 days at EPCOT, but that seems to be our favorite park. One for the WS and Illuminations, another for Future World. It would be a very long day to get to everything. It takes us quite a long time to stroll thru WS, as that is what we like to do. Stroll thru all the gift shops, get our Passporters signed, see what's up at the Kidcot stations, eat at Mexico, eat at Norway, eat at Germany, you get the picture!

 

[MinnieNurse]

Yes, my DH did want another day at Epcot. We only got to see half of the park in one day, but DS and I needed more MK. We will do more at Epcot this time to keep DH happy.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

We went last summer with a 6 and 10 year old and spent 7 days in the parks and 2 at the beach. The days we spent in the parks were as follows:

1 afternoon/evening at MGM
2 1/2 days M.K. (1/2 day was the morning of the day we left)
1 morning at Epcot -- Future World
1 afternoon and evening at World Showcase (spent the a.m. sleeping in and swimming)
1 day at A.K.

Except for the MGM and WS days we got to the parks at opening and stayed until early afternoon and then left. By that time we were too hot and tired of lines to think about "hopping". Instead we went back to the resort, swam and then went out for a nice dinner.

The one thing we didn't do and regretted missing was the waterparks -- they sound like so much fun!

 

[mdoc]

The first thing you need to decide is whether you're going to go to the parks on the arrival and departure days. The incremental cost of a couple extra days is very small with the MYW tickets, but depending on how you're getting there, where you're staying and the exact times you're getting there and leaving, it may not be worth it for your peace of mind.

On our last trip (just a couple weeks ago), we arrived after noon on Saturday and left before the sun came up on Sunday a week later. We went to Epcot on the day we arrived. We found that we got a lot done in Future World in the afternoon, because by then a lot of people have moved on to the World Showcase. You may not get to do Test Track, Soarin' and Turtle Talk, but you can do most of the rest of Future World by closing time (or cut out earlier if you're tired). With 6 more days in the parks, we opted for another Epcot day, 1 day at MGM, 2 days at MK and 2 days at AK. The only reason we spent 2 days at AK (we usually only do 1) was that one of the kids was sick on the AK day and missed EE. Otherwise we might have chosen to do a third MK or Epcot day or, if we only had 6 days for the parks, the 2nd AK day is the one that would have been cut out. (My kids are 12, 9 and 6, by the way). We've been staying at Fort Wilderness for the past few years and we always plan at least one campground day each trip, and usually do it right in the middle.

 

[Stitchfans]

We usually have two days for MK two for Epcot and one for the rest. we usually only have 6 days. if we had seven I would have one more for MGM

 

[Karnak]

To answer your question as briefly as possible; with seven days at WDW I would plan on two days at the Magic Kingdom, two days at Epcot, and one day each for the Studios and Animal Kingdom. I would save the seventh day to cover any possible rain day, or the park where I felt like I'd missed several attractions earlier.

Enjoy.

 

[pezpam]

On our first trip, which was also 7 days, what I did was to schedule the first 4 days so we saw a park a day. For the last 3 days, DD and I decided what we wanted to go back to or explore more. The Hoppers really help.

For the three parks that aren't MK, how much time you spend/need there will depend a LOT on your family's preferences. On our first trip, DD was done with EPCOT in one day, but since she turned 7, she could spend several days there. Some families could spend 3 days at AK, some are done in a half a day...... To some extent, it's nice to wing it a bit on your first trip. Check everything out and go back to what you liked or didn't get to. You can have your research done to help make decisions on which to do each day, but be flexible.

Enjoy!