April/May 2009 - First Disney Trip - Starter Questions

[garrman]

First off, I've been reading a large number of the community posts and they have been so helpful in sorting out everything I am going to need, and everything I am going to do, but I need answers to a few different questions that I couldn't find on answers to. I will be going with my wife and twin boys who will 4 and a half years old.

1) We purchased the Waterpark and More option on our park tickets, but we decided not to purchase the Parkhopper option. Will we be able to go to the waterpark or arcade in the morning/afternoon and then spend the day in Magic Kingdom for the afternoon/evening?

2) I know parks are a personal preference, but we are going 7 days and I want to cover of much of WDW as I can. Here is what I was thinking:

DAY1 (ARRIVE at 2PM) - Magic Kingdom
DAY2 - Epcot
DAY3 - Animal Kingdom
DAY4 - Disney Studios
DAY5 - Typhoon Lagoon/Epcot
DAY6 - Arcade/Disney Studios
DAY7 - Blizzard Beach/Magic Kingdom

Since I've never been there, I will leave it up to your past experiences to let me know if this works.

Thanks in advance,

garrman.

 

[KTME]

First off, I've been reading a large number of the community posts and they have been so helpful in sorting out everything I am going to need, and everything I am going to do, but I need answers to a few different questions that I couldn't find on answers to. I will be going with my wife and twin boys who will 4 and a half years old.

1) We purchased the Waterpark and More option on our park tickets, but we decided not to purchase the Parkhopper option. Will we be able to go to the waterpark or arcade in the morning/afternoon and then spend the day in Magic Kingdom for the afternoon/evening?

2) I know parks are a personal preference, but we are going 7 days and I want to cover of much of WDW as I can. Here is what I was thinking:

DAY1 (ARRIVE at 2PM) - Magic Kingdom
DAY2 - Epcot
DAY3 - Animal Kingdom
DAY4 - Disney Studios
DAY5 - Typhoon Lagoon/Epcot
DAY6 - Arcade/Disney Studios
DAY7 - Blizzard Beach/Magic Kingdom

Since I've never been there, I will leave it up to your past experiences to let me know if this works.

Thanks in advance,

garrman.

My number one suggestion is to join the DIS Dads Club. The club is located on the DIS Families Board. These guys are great and have a ton of knowledge. They are always more then willing to share their experiences.

The best advice I can give you is to be flexible.

 

[bradisgoofy]

You are going to get a great deal of help here, keep posting your questions, just try and use the specific areas rather then post in the general area. You get more expert opinions from those areas because the people who have the knowledge hang out where they can best answer the questions.

Personally I think first time visitors try to do everything and end up over tired and burnt out. Unless you have three weeks, you just can't see and do everything. It's called commando visiting. I would like to suggest you go to the book store and pick up a copy of the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World or get Tour Guide Mike's guide listed else where here on the boards. I used the UG on our earlier trips and found it a wealth of information.

Your day plan seems workable but it does seem "commando" in its time frame but that doesn't mean you can't get it done. And since you can do Disney Quest as one of your "options", yes you can go to a park after, as it would be part of your park ticket visit for that day.

Have fun and enjoy the magic.

 

[garrman]

Thanks Brad!

I wasn't sure where my first post should go, but I'll definitely look for better suited threads. There really isn't a strict agenda for each of the parks. There are somethings that I know I want to do, but when we get there it's going to be a lot of just enjoy what's there. I wanted to get the parks nailed down so that I can get restaurant reservations/character meals all worked out and with decent time slots.

garrman

 

[Floydian]

Welcome.

I have a few thoughts that are entirely my personal opinion.

Based on the ages of the kids, and not knowing their tastes, you may not need both water parks. If I remember correctly, one is much more "thrill" oriented, with the bigger slides and such, which may not suit 4.5 years of age.

Also, again based on age and such, the Studios can probably be a single day thing, unless you want to do every show (in which case you need WAY more time for everything )

Lastly, again based on age, and not knowing the boys, plan for naps, usually mid-day, and usually as much for adults as for kiddies.

I do want to say that I think it's a grand idea of planning to make the decisions as you are in order to arrange meals and all that.

Again, welcome!

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

I'm going to pick up on a few of the suggestions already mentioned:

1. Get a copy of the Unofficial Guide at your local bookstore.

2. You really only need to do one water park.

3. DHS is likely a one day park for your family. No need for the extra time scheduled there.

4. I would plan a second full day for MK and possibly Epcot too if you can. These are both 2 days parks.

 

[nurse.darcy]

First off, except for Magic Kingdom my son and I have rarely spent an entire day in one park. Many people say the hopper portion is not important to them but it is to us. Animal Kingdom closes earlier than every other park so on that day you would be done early. And probably way earlier than park closing. AK is my favorite park though and I can spend hours just wandering the animal trails. At Epcot, unless you plan on spending lots of time wandering the World Showcase and seeing the pavilion's movies, rides or entertainment(which I love doing), this can also be a half day park for rides. I have a tendency to spend exhorbitant amounts of time at DHS. Love going to the shows, seeing the street performers, etc., but not everyone does. Magic Kingdom has so much to do that it does take all day if you want to see most of it. Even with my son (who is 16 today), we usually go back to our hotel around 3, swim, nap, get ready for the evening, and head on out to some other park or DTD.

We could not do what we love to do without hoppers. Its essential to us. Water parks not so much but hoppers yes.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

Just to add a different perspective: I think hoppers are a waste of money unless you are going for a very short period of time and are trying to get all the parks in. I think it takes extra time to hop and don't really think it's that hard to commit to one park each day. For AK day, it's a great opportunity to plan something non-park-related to do in the evening like DTD or DisneyQuest.

 

[Metro West]