Any tips from those of you just back?

[26555]

I have been taking great interest in "just back" postings this week since I have already committed to this time of year NEXT year. (May 27th - June 3, 2005). Thats beginning a 7 night stay the Friday of Memorial weekend. I've only traveled in offseason before so I'm a little nervous about all the hot and crowded reports. Any recommendations about how to approach this specific time from those you just back? (I know about getting there early, etc and taking a midday break --- with young kids i'm looking at half days anyway so I think it would be morning or night but not both.) My group can't do even a 40 minute wait so I think we may need to skip MK entirely.

 

[Stiff]

avoid MK over the holiday weekend....go afterwards if you can

USE FASTPASS...if not for fastpass, we would have missed out on a bunch of rides

 

[WDWisTheBest]

Originally posted by 26555
I have been taking great interest in "just back" postings this week since I have already committed to this time of year NEXT year. (May 27th - June 3, 2005). Thats beginning a 7 night stay the Friday of Memorial weekend. I've only traveled in offseason before so I'm a little nervous about all the hot and crowded reports. Any recommendations about how to approach this specific time from those you just back? (I know about getting there early, etc and taking a midday break --- with young kids i'm looking at half days anyway so I think it would be morning or night but not both.) My group can't do even a 40 minute wait so I think we may need to skip MK entirely.

I wouldn't skip the Magic Kingdom just because the group can't wait 40 minutes. Just go early and then use the Fast Pass system for the attractions like Space Mountain and Splash Mountain.

We were at the MK Saturday and there wasn't a line that we couldn't get through in under 40 minutes.

 

[TammiMcMan]

You didn't mention if you were staying on site. If you are, then you should be all set. Just take advantage of going into the parks early. It's amazing how much you can get done before noon time with very little waiting. Spend the afternoon relaxing at your resort and if you want to see the fireworks or evening shows, you can plan that also.

The weather was extremely nice this past Memorial Day weekend. It was a little hotter than usual, but there wasn't much humidity, so I thought it was comfortable. Bring bug spray for the evenings though, we noticed that the mosquitos were out in force.

The parks will start to settle down after the weekend and it looks like you'd still have a few more days to enjoy them.

 

[kandmwedding]

Definitely make good use of the FastPass system. And keep in mind that you don't have to use your first FastPass in order to get another one... you just have to wait until 5 minutes into your FastPass window. We took great advantage of this by walking around with multiple FastPasses at a time, and going on rides without FastPasses in the meantime.

Also, invest in one of those mister bottles. Either by one them (pretty pricey) or bring one from home. The first few days we felt like we didn't need, and then when we did with only 2 days left in our trip we were reluctant to by it, thinking we wouldn't get any use out of it. It sure would have been nice to have though!

And, most of all, remember that you're in the most magical place on earth! Some of my best memories aren't necessarily of riding the rides or seeng the shows. I enjoy just taking it all in, which is something you don't have to wait in a line to do.

 

[RC Fan]

Hello!

Here are some tips:

Make sure everyone in your party wears sunscreen and very comfortable shoes! I know you have probably seen this a million times, but these two can literally make or break your vacation!

Make sure everyone knows that the weather is very hot and humid and that there is a great deal of walking.

I would also make sure you know the expectations of everyone in your party, and plan accordingly.

 

[3kidsdisney]

We just got back from our trip---May 18-25th and the best tip I can offeris use the fastpass. it was great---we always got right on the ride and got to do much more than we expected. Also, the fan.mister thing was great for the kids. We also tried to plan what rides we wanted to do in advance and make sure there was a rest time where we had air conditioning. Mk was always the most crowded but we did alot of things early in the day then the crowds seemed to thin out abit after the parades.

 

[rykdad]

We were at MK on the Saturday of Memorial Weekend and had no problems with crowds by taking advantage of EMH and getting a FastPass for Space Mountain as soon as we walked in. The return time was 10:05. In that time period we were able to finish off Tomorrowland and ride the Teacups. We then went to Adventureland and first got a FastPass for Jungle Cruise then toured the rest of Adventureland. We then left for Disney-MGM Studios to catch the Stars and MotorCars parade and our Fantasmic Dinner at Hollywood and Vine. We were able to finish MK later in the week (Thursday) by starting in Fantasyland, then getting a FastPass for Splash Mountain right at 9:00 when it was available. We were finished by 11:00 and went to EPCOT that day.

 

[MouseClubMom]

Just got back late last nite and will be posting a trip report later today. The best tips we can offer are:

*USE THE FASTPASS SYSTEM! This was a lifesaver for us in every park!

*Eat at off peak times (not right at noon for lunch or 6pm for dinner). Make PS reservations way in advance.

*Book an Illuminations or Wishes Cruise for one nite. Quite amazing! Share with other DISers for even more fun.

*Split meals! Instead of getting the kids their own kids meal have them split an adult sized meal with either another kid or an adult. Also ask for cups of ice so you can split the drinks. This saved us TONS of money and we didnt have any wasted food.

*Have everyone make a list of their "top three" must do attractions and make sure to hit those at least once each. This made a huge difference to our kids. They each listed their top 3 attractions and considered everything else we did as a bonus.

*Take an hour or 2 to walk around the Animal Kingdom Lodge. We saw more animals up close there than on the safari at AK! AND it is FREE!

Most of all, have fun. Be prepared for the intense heat and humidity and just go with the flow.

MCMom

 

[Treasure]

We just got back from our trip (May 27- June 5) and I was surprised to find the weather not that bad! It was really pleasant the first few days and then the humidity hit but it really wasn't that bad. I had been really afraid that the heat and humidity would make us miserable. There are so many places and ways to cool off that it really wasn't a big concern.

We also lucked out on the rain. Not an issue except on one night that Fantasmic was cancelled. But the rain actually worked for us the next night (JUne 4) because the rain had come earlier in the day (when we headed to Disney Quest) and MGM had cleared out enough for there to be plenty of seats left at 8:30, so that we just walked up and sat in pretty good seats and saw the show!

 

[NC Belle]

Just came back last weekend--trip was May 30-June 4.

*Avoid Animal Kingdom on Monday mornings...we did a lot between 4pm-8pm.

*E-nights--excellent at MK

*Fastpass--got a lot of dirty looks from those who don't use them.

*Adventureland was easy to do on early entry mornings-no wait for Pirates---Jungle Cruise opened at 10 am.

*Write down the secret places of Tom Sawyer paint brushes--I wished that I had done that---watch out for gators

*Take a mid-day break if possible and don't worry if you miss some rides/shows.

*Portable fan and/or Mister for the waits at rides or transportation
*Ask to see if you can ride in the front of the monorail--it is so cool to enter the MK that way.

*Enjoy your time and don't say it will be a long time before the next trip.

 

[jlw29]

Originally posted by Treasure
We just got back from our trip (May 27- June 5) and I was surprised to find the weather not that bad! It was really pleasant the first few days and then the humidity hit but it really wasn't that bad.

Not that BAD?!?!?! Man, you can tell you're from Texas! We 4 Pennsylvanians who were there the exact same days as you were DYING from the heat. Temps and humidity in the 90's with a heat index around 108 is what you consider pleasant? I'd never survive in Texas! That had us slowed way down. We ended taking longer breaks in the A/C room and at the pool than planned. It was still a wonderful trip.