already overwelmed by disney

[mickeyfan83]

we were going to go for 2 weeks but it probably wouldn't of happened this year. now we're going for 4 nights and 5 days. it is fruistrating to "cram" it all in! I am taking some advise i read somewhere about diving it into morning, afternoon and evening schedules but i am still overwelmed. i dont know that anywhere other than MK has a lot for us to do, i dunno. I would like to do 2 days at MK but theres so much else. Anways my biggest question was should we spend a few hours in downtown disney after a 515 chef mickeys buffet or do it some morning on another day and go to MGM instead? also has anyone personally done the GF photo shoot? I was curious if they allow u to change outfits, and if not what should you wear?

Sara

 

[kaylajr]

Okay first off

Take a deep breath

You've come to the right place

Welcome to the DIS.

Look around the boards
check out the theme park attraction and stratigies board

Everyone does Disney a bit differently. Some try to cram it all in during one trip.Others like my family do what we can and figure we will hit the rest another time...
There are tons of ideas advice and tips all over the DIS.

However you decide to approach your trip I hope you have a magical time

 

[wilde_oscar]

one day at a time... every park has a lot to offer. A day per park will let ya see the highlights, a good guide book would help narrow what things are must see.

MK... Pirates, Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder, Splash Mtn, Haunted Mansion, Hall of Presidents, Small World, Space Mountain, Laugh Floor Comedy Club.

Epcot... Soarin, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Test Track, Mission: Space, American Adventure.

Studios... Rockin Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Great Movie Ride, Beauty and the Beast, Star Tours.

AK... Festival of the Lion King, Safari, Flights of Wonder, Expedition Everest, Finding Nemo, It's tough to be a bug.

At GF photo shoot ya get 20 min. with the photographer, not really enough time to change out fits, all the shoots are outdoors.

Don't overplan, if something goes a little wrong because of weather, or transportation issues, people have a tendency to freak out... a list of must do, and would like to do solves that kinda issue. If you have a large party, or small children... remember this will be overwhelming, don't be the mom that is screaming at the kids, "stop crying and have more fun", while dragging them by the arm though the crowd.

Ya didn't mention time of year, or who is going with ya... so advice is kinda general. Get to the parks early, at opening... you can get more done in the first couple hours when everyone else is sleeping in then you can the rest of the day. Drink lots of water, the counter service restaurants will give ya a big glass of ice water if you ask. Don't schedule meals (dinner) to early or to late such that you miss a night time spectacular.

while at the parks watch for the folks that are "Cult of the Lime Green Mickey Head"...

home depot has mickey paint swatches, the color of lime green was decided in an ancient and secret ceremony going back to the far reaches of time. Disboard veterans laminate them and hang them off of backpacks, camera straps, hats, make t - shirts out of them, etc. This is so we can identify each other, but feel free to semi calmly ask them for help.

 

[nlherda]

Welcome to the Disboards! I found this site before our first trip to disney as a family this past August--and they have tons of help and ideas!
We LOVE downtown disney! We filled boxes with Mr. Potato Head Disney Parts and shopped for all things disney. They have such nice embroidered kids clothes!!!! We can't wait to go again! Take a deep breath and read the boards. (You'll probably be copying and pasting like I do all the great ideas so you can print them off and use every single one of them!)

 

[guelde96]

If I had only 5 days at Disney. I would skip Downtown Disney. If you are going with children DTD is mostly eating and shopping. I would really consider the Park Hopper. It will allow you to hop around to the parks you feel you have missed something in. You can not see it all. I have been 3 times for a total of 22 days. I have still not seen it all. Take your time and enjoy. Do what is most important to you and your family.

 

[LISAMWDW]

I would not try to "cram" it all in. You'll end up stressed and missing alot of the "magic" at WDW. There is so much more to WDW than just the rides at the parks and there is so much more to WDW than the parks. It takes many many trips to be able to see it all. I've been 9 times and still have not done it all, close but not all of it yet.

Slow it up, take a breath and make a realistic plan. Such as to fully enjoy MK, you may want to plan on 2 full days there. Plan on fully checking out that park and doing "some" of the other parks. Find out what interests you the most, Epcot, AK or Hollywood Studios? Then enjoy what you can there. I'd also make a few ADR's if you wish to enjoy any table service meals. Otherwise you'll end up doing all counter service meals. Which is fine also. I've done that for my first two trips and had yummy meals that way too.

Enjoy and be sure to take time to smell the roses, oh I mean "magic"!

 

[dreamin in pa]

Hi again! Like everyone else said, take a deep breath. You won't really be able to see everything on this trip. There really is so much to do that you would need multiple trips just to try.

Since you said you have DD4, I would skip Downtown Disney. It's nice to shop there and DD4 might get a kick out of playing at the lego store but I would rather spend more time in the parks. And if you decide to go to Downtown Disney, do not give up a morning at one of the parks to do it. As soon as the parks open is the best time to get on the rides with little or no wait.

I would definately spend more time in MK. But don't try to see everything there either. Look through the info on wdwinfo.com. They have sections on all the parks. Pick a handful of must do rides and plan on doing them as soon as the park opens. Take advantage of both fastpass and childswap.

Don't rule out the other parks just because it seems like there won't be much to do. You might be surprised by what you end up really liking. My 2 younger DD love going to World Showcase at Epcot. They can get a cardboard mask that they color at each of the countries. A CM will then stamp in for them. It's nice because either DH or I will stay with the little ones while they color and the other will shop around the country. Animal Kingdom is fun especially if your DD likes animals.

The most important thing is to take your time.

 

[disney54us]

Hi again. Now deep breath and relax. There is no way you can possible see all of Dis, even if you were going for 2 weeks! So my advice would be not to try to cram it all in, you want to enjoy what you are seeing. Your DD will help you follow the flow, she may want to spent more time at one thing or another. We have taken numerous trips and I know there are things we still haven't seen. I sort of like that, since each time it's discovering new things. I know when my DD was your DD's age, I remember one day going to MK in the AM and her then wanting to go back to the hotel so she could play at the pool. That's okay WDW has great resorts and pools and it's nice to enjoy them, also they get tired and need some down time. So what, I would keep in mind is have a plan, pick things you really want to see, but don't cram it so tight that you are running from here to there. Downtown Dis is nice and like dreaminpa said she may enjoy lego land, but it depends what she likes. Since you are having breakfast/lunch and will already be there take a peek of lego land, I don't think I would dedicate a whole day to it, I would go to the parks. Again when my DD was younger we spent more time at MK (no surprise), so some of it you will have to see how it goes when you are there. Good Luck, we are here to help!

 

[mickeyfan83]

thanks. i was tired and overwelmed. i think i am going to see how much more it would be to add an extra day to the package but we really dont have much to stretch. after everyone's comments i think we'll go to downtown disney after chef mickeys. theres 2 or 3 stores i want to shop at. i could even go by myself if DH is willing to take DD to the resort. or maybe we'll wing it and if shes fussy i'd go alone. i was thinking doing BBB in MK would maximize the most time. i just think i should find a new princess dress if the backround is blue and her dress is blue. thanks for the breather. what about a few more questions. for early magic hours do they open at 8 or 9 . i really didnt understand the wording. and also for disney magic dining, does each person get their own appitizer or is it the group? also any suggestions on what to wear for thephoto shoot?

 

[MomWith2Cinderellas]

we were going to go for 2 weeks but it probably wouldn't of happened this year. now we're going for 4 nights and 5 days. it is fruistrating to "cram" it all in! I am taking some advise i read somewhere about diving it into morning, afternoon and evening schedules but i am still overwelmed. i dont know that anywhere other than MK has a lot for us to do, i dunno. I would like to do 2 days at MK but theres so much else. Anways my biggest question was should we spend a few hours in downtown disney after a 515 chef mickeys buffet or do it some morning on another day and go to MGM instead? also has anyone personally done the GF photo shoot? I was curious if they allow u to change outfits, and if not what should you wear?

Sara

Sara,

Don't try and "cram" it in all in one trip if it will be to overwhelming for you. Save some for the next trip!

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

Welcome!
Don't try to squeeze it all in in a 5 day trip. You'll be really stressed and then your vacation won't be fun. Think of it as leaving more to do for next time.

We usually do only 4 full days and one 1/2 day when we go. DH can't take too much time off work at one time.

Here's what we do:

We keep TS to a minimum - usually one character meal and maybe one other TS. We aren't big eaters anyways - we are more snackers so we do CS and then snack when we get hungry. We've never used the Dining Plan so I'm not familiar with it at all so I can't help on that.

When the kids were little, they napped in their strollers. It was much easier for us to sit down somewhere for an hour (and gave us a much needed break off our feet) while the kids napped than to travel back to the resort and then have to travel back to a park. Luckily, our kids could sleep anywhere.

We get park hopper tickets so we can break up our days and go to 2 different parks in one day if we want. It does cost more though.

We always spend 1 1/2 days in MK. It's our current favorite so we spend the most time there.

Then we do Epcot - sometimes we skip World Showcase and if we do we can do Epcot in a day. If we do World Showcase, we do Epcot for 1 1/2 days and 1 day in MGM. Then we skip AK. We spend the first 1/2 day shopping at DTD and/or swimming at the resort.

If we skip World Showcase at Epcot we do 1 day at AK and 1 day at MGM and then skip DTD.

We also pick 3 things that each of us consider must-do's at each park we are going to and do those first. Everything else that we can do at each park is fun extras.

It works well for us and we don't stress most of the time.

I wanted to add if your DD's princess dress is light blue and the background is a darker blue that would be really pretty so you wouldn't need to buy a different princess dress.

There are 2 different types of magic hours - early morning when the assigned park opens usually at 8am or evening magic hours when the assigned park is open late. I'd recommend only doing the morning magic hours with a young child if you can get there on time. Then you could relax and ride lots of attractions before it gets really crowded. You didn't say if you were getting Park Hopper tickets but if you have them and go on an early morning magic hour, go ahead and park hop when that park gets crowded. You'll be amazed at how much more you can do.

I think the Passporter book would be a good one for you to start with if you want to get a book detailing the attractions. I personally love the Unofficial Guide but it's so detailed it may stress you out just looking over it.

So that's my 2 cents. Feel free to ignore it all.

Have lots of fun!

 

[5 blind mice]

one day at a time... every park has a lot to offer. A day per park will let ya see the highlights, a good guide book would help narrow what things are must see.

MK... Pirates, Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder, Splash Mtn, Haunted Mansion, Hall of Presidents, Small World, Space Mountain, Laugh Floor Comedy Club.

Epcot... Soarin, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Test Track, Mission: Space, American Adventure.

Studios... Rockin Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Great Movie Ride, Beauty and the Beast, Star Tours.

AK... Festival of the Lion King, Safari, Flights of Wonder, Expedition Everest, Finding Nemo, It's tough to be a bug.

At GF photo shoot ya get 20 min. with the photographer, not really enough time to change out fits, all the shoots are outdoors.

Don't overplan, if something goes a little wrong because of weather, or transportation issues, people have a tendency to freak out... a list of must do, and would like to do solves that kinda issue. If you have a large party, or small children... remember this will be overwhelming, don't be the mom that is screaming at the kids, "stop crying and have more fun", while dragging them by the arm though the crowd.

Ya didn't mention time of year, or who is going with ya... so advice is kinda general. Get to the parks early, at opening... you can get more done in the first couple hours when everyone else is sleeping in then you can the rest of the day. Drink lots of water, the counter service restaurants will give ya a big glass of ice water if you ask. Don't schedule meals (dinner) to early or to late such that you miss a night time spectacular.

while at the parks watch for the folks that are "Cult of the Lime Green Mickey Head"...

home depot has mickey paint swatches, the color of lime green was decided in an ancient and secret ceremony going back to the far reaches of time. Disboard veterans laminate them and hang them off of backpacks, camera straps, hats, make t - shirts out of them, etc. This is so we can identify each other, but feel free to semi calmly ask them for help.

Wow! I never knew about the lime green mickey head, and I've been luring around for awhile now. We're going on our first family trip to WDW in February, and I will definitely keep my eyes open for the lime green mickeys.

Like the OP, I sometimes feel a bit overwhelmed at all the Disney offerings. I have managed to convince myself that we will not see anywhere close to everything on this trip. Our kids are 6, 5 and 21 months, so I'll be happy if we can get through the trip without too many meltdowns. We are planning to do naps every afternoon, and basically just try to relax, slow down, do our best to see the "most important" things on our list, and make a new list of what we'll see next time.

 

[dunbarfamily]

Hi! Welcome to DIS! We are here to help!

Like lots of others said, take a deep breathe and one day at a time. We've been there several times and its STILL overwhelming. As a matter of fact, about 2 weeks before our last trip, I just about paniced. My post on it is around here somewhere.

Your trip will be fine. Don't overplan and try to go with the flow. Its hard to do, especially if you like things to be "just so" like I do, but really, you will have a great vacation if you just relax.

Let us know how we can help you!

 

[disney54us]

Wow! I never knew about the lime green mickey head, and I've been luring around for awhile now. We're going on our first family trip to WDW in February, and I will definitely keep my eyes open for the lime green mickeys.

Like the OP, I sometimes feel a bit overwhelmed at all the Disney offerings. I have managed to convince myself that we will not see anywhere close to everything on this trip. Our kids are 6, 5 and 21 months, so I'll be happy if we can get through the trip without too many meltdowns. We are planning to do naps every afternoon, and basically just try to relax, slow down, do our best to see the "most important" things on our list, and make a new list of what we'll see next time.

Remember WDW wants you to keep coming back!!!

 

[HappyLawyer]

just take a deep breath and relax, you will be fine.

 

[tiggerfan1]

Welcome to the DIS boards!!!

It looks like the previous posters have already given you a lot of great info. I know that planning a WDW trip can be overwhelming, but just take it one step at a time. If you haven't already done so, get a good WDW guide book. In my opinion, it really helps to keep your planning more organized. Happy trip planning!