Advice for first ever day in MK

[Holstar]

Hello!

We're off to WDW in August for our first ever trip, myself, my OH and our three nieces (16, 13 and 10).

Having never been before, I'm having some difficulty working out what average stand by queues would be, which rides would be best to FP+ and realistically, how many rides we could fit into a certain time frame. It may be worth mentioning that crowds are supposed to be around a 6 on the day in question (the 23rd of August).

Please help!

The day I'm having most trouble with is our first day - we arrive quite late the night before, our girls will be jet lagged so I'm expecting we'll all be asleep by 7pm and up super early around 5am. We'll have breakfast at Old Key West, and then head to MK for rope drop.

Question 1!

As there isn't any EMH for the MK that morning, the park opens at 9am. What time would be best to get there, for an optimal position in the queue and to watch the opening ceremony? As we'll be up so early anyway, I don't really mind getting us there an hour+ early.

Ride wise, there are five rides we really really want to do on our first day... They're the five rides (with the expeption of Splash Mountain) we always do first at Disneyland Paris! They are...

1. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
2. Space Mountain
3. Splash Mountain
4. Haunted Mansion
5. Pirates of the Caribbean

We also have another five rides we'd like to squeeze in during the day (if possible, considering the short time frame).

6. The Carrousel
7. Tea Cups
8. Peter Pan's Flight (I realise this may be a difficult one - we don't mind missing it out for the next day at MK)
9. Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin
10. "it's a small world"

The difficulty is.... we'll probably only be able to stay in the parks until 2pm, as the girls will still be exhausted and jet lagged. So, that gives us five hours!

Realistically, with the use of FastPass+ and standby queues, could we do all of our top 5 rides in five hours? Would we be able to squeeze in any of the others? If so, which of the other rides would you recommend? And in which order?

Argh! I'm so confused!

Any help would be very much appreciated!

xx

 

[raven69david]

It's doable if you get there when the park opens. Do Space Mountain first and then work your way through the list. Exclude Peter Pans Flight on the first day as that is the longest wait time in Fantasyland. I'd suggest the following order:

1. Space Mountain
2. Buzz Lightyear
3. Tea Cups
4. Carousel
5. It's a Small World
6. Haunted Mansion
7. POTC
8. BTMR
9. Splash Mountain

 

[Marilou]

Well, I say stay at the park for the day and do mellow stuff mid afternoon.
I have taken lovely cat-naps in The Hall of Presidents and Carousel of Progress.

But I'm on the "open-to-close" team. My group never goes back to the hotel mid-day.

Aim to get to the park at least 30 min prior to opening, 45 min even better.

The previous poster's ride list is great
I would FP+ Peter pan, Splash Mtn and BTMRR

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Since you think you'll be spent by 2:00 pm, would you consider doing Animal Kingdom as your first day? You can get most of that park covered in that time.

 

[KittyKitty]

Since it is August you are visiting, an afternoon break is a great idea. It will be hot! And if possible, go back in late afternoon to finish your list of rides. There may be afternoon thunderstorms, but usually they only last a short time.

Are you staying on site? If not, hold on to the parking slip to reenter same day.

 

[4EverFigment]

I'd say to make sure you are there for rope drop and the opening show, you need to be at the parking lot to board either the ferry or monorail over no later than 8 am for a 9 am opening.

I would head to the right and do Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear back-to-back. Then head around the back side to Big Thunder, then see about Splash Mountain after that.

Pirates next.

Honestly after Pirates, I'd head back around the back side to Haunted Mansion and it's a small world, possible the Carrousel (which is a very slow loader just be advised). Don't miss out on Philharmagic while you're back there.

You will be able to work in the more popular rides and shows throughout.

(Skip Stitch's Great Escape no matter what the line looks like...try to get into the Laugh Floor for a nice break...the Carousel of Progress is usually worth at least one viewing and it's nice to sit down in air conditioning in August...the PeopleMover/TTA is also a nice rest break. Consider Cosmic Ray's for a meal.)

good luck!

 

[disneyworldluvr349]

As for FP+ I would recommend snagging one for Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, or Big Thunder.

If you are planning on getting to the park for rope drop, we usually head right to Tomorrowland. We ride Buzz Lightyear first thing and head right to Space. But you can always switch the order if the crowds look intimidating. After we make the long trek back to ride Splash Mountain and Big Thunder. We will mosey over to Adventureland and ride Pirates and the Jungle Cruise, and cut through to Liberty Square and ride Mansion. Then we would make our way to Fantasyland.
We usually send a member of the family to grab Splash Mountain FPs, but seeing as how there aren't paper fastpasses any more I assume that would be the one FP+ we would for sure pick!

Also, I think you mentioned that you will be coming back to the Kingdom another day in the trip (if not I definitely would stay as long as you can that first day!). But I definitely think you could get all of the rides on your top 5 in five hours. Just try to beat the crowds Parades usually help out with the wait times, and so does lunch time.












__________________

 

[alicemouse]

Hello!

We're off to WDW in August for our first ever trip, myself, my OH and our three nieces (16, 13 and 10).

Having never been before, I'm having some difficulty working out what average stand by queues would be, which rides would be best to FP+ and realistically, how many rides we could fit into a certain time frame. It may be worth mentioning that crowds are supposed to be around a 6 on the day in question (the 23rd of August).

Please help!

The day I'm having most trouble with is our first day - we arrive quite late the night before, our girls will be jet lagged so I'm expecting we'll all be asleep by 7pm and up super early around 5am. We'll have breakfast at Old Key West, and then head to MK for rope drop.

Question 1!

As there isn't any EMH for the MK that morning, the park opens at 9am. What time would be best to get there, for an optimal position in the queue and to watch the opening ceremony? As we'll be up so early anyway, I don't really mind getting us there an hour+ early.

Ride wise, there are five rides we really really want to do on our first day... They're the five rides (with the expeption of Splash Mountain) we always do first at Disneyland Paris! They are...

1. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
2. Space Mountain
3. Splash Mountain
4. Haunted Mansion
5. Pirates of the Caribbean

We also have another five rides we'd like to squeeze in during the day (if possible, considering the short time frame).

6. The Carrousel
7. Tea Cups
8. Peter Pan's Flight (I realise this may be a difficult one - we don't mind missing it out for the next day at MK)
9. Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin
10. "it's a small world"

The difficulty is.... we'll probably only be able to stay in the parks until 2pm, as the girls will still be exhausted and jet lagged. So, that gives us five hours!

Realistically, with the use of FastPass+ and standby queues, could we do all of our top 5 rides in five hours? Would we be able to squeeze in any of the others? If so, which of the other rides would you recommend? And in which order?

Argh! I'm so confused!

Any help would be very much appreciated!

xx

Of course you're going to get 15 different answers to this question, but with no morning EMH, I'd be at rope drop by 8:15. You can't be at the front of the rope AND have a good view of the welcome show. The welcome show is cute, but for me, the priority is being near the rope. If your priorities are different, adjust accordingly.

I'd catch Pirates first thing. You should be on and off in 15 minutes or less. It won't significantly impact your wait time at the next several attractions and it saves you back tracking at the end of the day. The standby line will be long in the early afternoon and there's no need to burn a FP here. BTMR and Splash on standby next (probably about 30 min each) and take the train to the Fantasyland Station. Cut over behind Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and go to It's a Small World, then Haunted Mansion. (You could also walk to Fantasyland--if you do that, catch Haunted Mansion, lunch, and then Small World.) It should be around 11:30 at this point. Grab lunch at Columbia Harbor House either before of after Peter Pan pending FP time. Do Peter Pan on FP. Hit the Carrousel and Tea Cups on the way to Tomorrowland. Have FP ready for Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear. If you can hold off on the break for the day, consider grabbing a spot for the new Festival of Fantasy parade at 3:00. I haven't seen it in person yet, but it looks amazing and you'll be headed that direction to leave the park anyway!

A tip for characters if you do save Carrousel or Tea Cups for the other MK day--sometimes characters appropriate to those attractions take a ride with guests before going to their meet & greet locations for the morning. I've seen this, but I don't know if it's a daily occurrence. Not only may you get to ride the Carrousel with the stepsisters, but if you follow them directly off the ride, you'll be at the beginning of their meet & greet line. It think the Alice in Wonderland characters do this at the Tea Cups, too, but I haven't actually seen it yet.

Also, we've done the week after your trip twice--some of the lowest crowds we've ever experienced both times. Your week will still have some summer crowds, but with older kids starting pre-season for fall sports, a lot of American families aren't traveling after the middle of August. I'm not sure how accurate that "6" will really be on the crowd calendar.

 

[Texas Crude]

Hello!

We're off to WDW in August for our first ever trip, myself, my OH and our three nieces (16, 13 and 10).

Having never been before, I'm having some difficulty working out what average stand by queues would be, which rides would be best to FP+ and realistically, how many rides we could fit into a certain time frame. It may be worth mentioning that crowds are supposed to be around a 6 on the day in question (the 23rd of August).

Please help!

The day I'm having most trouble with is our first day - we arrive quite late the night before, our girls will be jet lagged so I'm expecting we'll all be asleep by 7pm and up super early around 5am. We'll have breakfast at Old Key West, and then head to MK for rope drop.

Question 1!

As there isn't any EMH for the MK that morning, the park opens at 9am. What time would be best to get there, for an optimal position in the queue and to watch the opening ceremony? As we'll be up so early anyway, I don't really mind getting us there an hour+ early.

Ride wise, there are five rides we really really want to do on our first day... They're the five rides (with the expeption of Splash Mountain) we always do first at Disneyland Paris! They are...

1. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
2. Space Mountain
3. Splash Mountain
4. Haunted Mansion
5. Pirates of the Caribbean

We also have another five rides we'd like to squeeze in during the day (if possible, considering the short time frame).

6. The Carrousel
7. Tea Cups
8. Peter Pan's Flight (I realise this may be a difficult one - we don't mind missing it out for the next day at MK)
9. Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin
10. "it's a small world"

The difficulty is.... we'll probably only be able to stay in the parks until 2pm, as the girls will still be exhausted and jet lagged. So, that gives us five hours!

Realistically, with the use of FastPass+ and standby queues, could we do all of our top 5 rides in five hours? Would we be able to squeeze in any of the others? If so, which of the other rides would you recommend? And in which order?

Argh! I'm so confused!

Any help would be very much appreciated!

xx

I'll offer a slightly different strategy than others have suggested. I'd head straight to Thunder Mountain, then hit Splash Mountain, and then Pirates. Should be on and off all three if you're there at rope drop. I'd probably go up and hit Haunted Mansion and Its a Small World next. Use a FP+ on Peter Pan, walk over and do the Tea Cups / Carrousel next, then FP+ for Space Mountain and Buzz.

I don't think you'd have any issue getting all that done before 2:00, even with a comfortable lunch in there. With a short day just minimize the time you spend walking between lands and use your FP+ after the morning waits build and you'll be fine.

 

[eeyoreandtink]

this is great advice. I am looking at planning for two small children and one older child. I read about fastpasses, but I am not sure if we will be able to split up with them. Can we split our group and have some with fastpasses for little kid stuff and some for big kid stuff?