Arrival and checking in

[tinkertaylor05]

Getting crazy excited and taking planning to a whole new level now

Made all our ADR's and got which FP+ we want for now, although I am tinkering with them daily. So pleased they change Anna and Elsa to a FP meet by the time we're there after reading about the mayhem!

Does everyone do the online check in? Are we supposed to do it and are there any pros or cons?

Also on arrival day what do you like to do? We aren't due in until approx 2:30pm then there's security and travelling to wdw. Is it likely we'll just be ready for bed?

Thanks

 

[Kath2003]

Getting crazy excited and taking planning to a whole new level now

Made all our ADR's and got which FP+ we want for now, although I am tinkering with them daily. So pleased they change Anna and Elsa to a FP meet by the time we're there after reading about the mayhem!

Does everyone do the online check in? Are we supposed to do it and are there any pros or cons?

Also on arrival day what do you like to do? We aren't due in until approx 2:30pm then there's security and travelling to wdw. Is it likely we'll just be ready for bed?

Thanks

You might as well check in online - no reason not to, may save some queuing at the airport.

Land at 2:30pm means you will be at least 2 hours getting to your room. I'd settle for some food, a wander around, and then bed. You will be wiped. If you make it to 9pm before bed, you're doing well.

 

[tinkertaylor05]

You might as well check in online - no reason not to, may save some queuing at the airport.

Land at 2:30pm means you will be at least 2 hours getting to your room. I'd settle for some food, a wander around, and then bed. You will be wiped. If you make it to 9pm before bed, you're doing well.

Thanks, that's what I'm thinking remembering we'll be 5 hours on in the day really!

I meant online check in at WDW sorry didn't make that clear

 

[Elise79]

I have given up with online check in for Disney tried it and it always causes me more problems than time saved at the desk.

On arrival normally check in, unpack and grab a bite to eat before bed

 

[scoobydooby]

I never check into the hotel room on line as it removes the possibility of debating your room allocation. I'm not fussy and in many trips have only asked not to take the room offered once, but it was worth it. We were staying at the Beach Club and DD wanted to sleep on the single sofa bed instead of sharing with her (smelly!) older brother. There are two sized sofa beds in BC rooms and by asking nicely we were moved from a room with a smaller one to a room with a larger one.

On arrival day the kids normally do an hour in the pool immediately while we unpack. Then we have a food court meal and showers by which time it's generally the equivalent of at least midnight and we're all ready for bed.

Then awake at stupid o'clock early and ready for MK rope drop!

My kids hit the wall about 3pm on our first full day every time. I could pretty much set my watch by it. By day two full day they are on Florida time.

 

[tinkertaylor05]

Thank you that's just what I wanted to know, noticed check in as an option on mde.

I imagine we'll be ready to crash after all the excitement so will pitch for a wander round DTD.

 

[stubb]

We like to check into our accommodation then head to super target for groceries and toiletries ( love those big bottles of Aussie shampoo and conditioner)
I always struggle with sleep on first night, waking up every hour. So we try to stay awake as long as possible.

Wonder if anyone else struggles with sleep?

 

[Molyneuxd]

Trip round DTD on the first night will be good laid back and soak in the Disney experience ready for the full day ahead. Can stay as little or as long as you wish so when bed calls... Home time!

We arrive about 3pm this year so be hotel for 5pm check in changed, get some tea probably just a Golden Corral or even McDonalds then head to DTD ready for hitting Uni / IOA day after.

 

[chmurf]

I always do online check in. It really speeds up the actual check in at the hotel. We noticed that again last year at AoA and POR, we were in and out of the check in process much faster than all the guests that were in the regular check in line, at both hotels.
Never had any trouble debating for a room allocation change at actual check in. I also always send my room requests by mail to WDTC-UK
Now it may depend who you book with, but booking direct doesn't pose any problem with online check in and room allocation (in my experience)

Our check in day tradition goes like this :
we land late, as we must fly indirect (no direct flights from Paris to Orlando) so we don't land in MCO before 5:30pm at best but cheap arifares on US Airways will have us land at around 8pm.
We collect the bags (immigration has been taken care of at stopover airport) and collect the car. We usually manage to make it to the hotel in an hour or less. We check in at the hotel, go to the room. Open our "arrival day suitcase" which has the bathing suits on top, we take a quick shower, and we go for a swim in the hotel pool. Then we change and go to the food court for a quick bite. We then take a walk around the resort, and go back to the room at around 11pm and go to bed.
The next morning, we're all up around 5am, but we found that we were up much earlier if we went to bed earlier.
Advice : don't go to bed at 7pm on the grounds that it's midnight in the UK. You'd be up by 2 or 3am with absolutely no way to go back to sleep, and you'd be tired by 9am when the parks open and shattered by noon

 

[Elise79]

I always do online check in. It really speeds up the actual check in at the hotel. We noticed that again last year at AoA and POR, we were in and out of the check in process much faster than all the guests that were in the regular check in line, at both hotels.
Never had any trouble debating for a room allocation change at actual check in. I also always send my room requests by mail to WDTC-UK
Now it may depend who you book with, but booking direct doesn't pose any problem with online check in and room allocation (in my experience)

So the benefit of online check in may be to do with resort - we have never had a wait at check in (either before or after the introduction of online check in) at any of the resorts we have stayed at (BLT, OKW, CR, BW, BC & CSR). We usual arrive between 5 & 7pm.

I have arrived having used online check in at OKW and the CC details hadn't stored for some reason (they couldn't work out why though and took a call to fix it) and we wanted a room change as the requests on both the reservation & online check in hadn't worked and were not showing (that wasn't the first time for requests not coming through either from OLCI) which meant we were at the desk before & after a family next to us who hadn't used online check in

Therefore I now avoid online check in as it takes them no time to swipe my CC and print my car park pass. Its a whole lot easier

 

[torsie24]

We've not been since the new system has been in place, so can't help there I'm afraid.

But as for arrival day we've landed at 3ish before and it does take a good couple of hours until you're in your room.

We tend to quickly change into summer clothes then explore the resort a bit, have a good look around the shop to get a little Disney hit, grab some food at the hotel CS restaurant.

We've always had a garden grocer order that we then call down and get sent up, unpack the cases and then take nice long baths and snuggle down with some TV and snacks and try and stay awake as long as possible. 9pm is the aim.

 

[Julia Ann]

We like to check into our accommodation then head to super target for groceries and toiletries ( love those big bottles of Aussie shampoo and conditioner)
I always struggle with sleep on first night, waking up every hour. So we try to stay awake as long as possible.

Wonder if anyone else struggles with sleep?

Yep, me! however, i'm hoping i will be super tired as will be in airport hotel night before, which i doubt i will get a good nights sleep (anxiety/excited...strange environment and might be too dark! - i'm funny like that)

 

[starrysky]

We normally get into MCO around 4:50pm so if we are lucky we are getting into our resort in about 1 1/2 hours after landing.
By the time we check in unpack and get food we are done in. It's not just the time change if you factor in the time it takes from getting to the airport say around 6am for a 9am flight that means your up from say 4am if you live close enough earlier if you have to travel to the airport.
It's around an 8 1/2 hour flight time but that's only for direct. We are normally around 12 hours travel time.
So factoring all that in plus time change you can easily be up for 20plus hours. I have always said to DH tired like that makes me feel drunk lol.
We try to stay up for as long as we can when we arrive but by 10pm we are asleep. By 5-6am wide awake and hungry. By lunch time day one we are shattered so early night and we tend to sleep much better than the first night.
Sorry for the long winded response.

 

[tinkertaylor05]

Thank you everyone that's responded, it really does help getting everyone's experiences

I'm really nervous about the flight and how we'll feel after it!

 

[starrysky]

Thank you everyone that's responded, it really does help getting everyone's experiences I'm really nervous about the flight and how we'll feel after it!

Don't be nervous you'll be too excited to be nervous. Just enjoy the time to watch movies and relax. You'll be that combination of tired but wired when you get there.
I love that time where I have nowhere to be and no one can get hold of me.

 

[pampat]

I struggle with sleep on the first night too. I sleep like a log for about three hours and then wake up every hour or so. We tend to not have much planned for the first day or so while we acclimatise and adjust. However, we have been to Orlando a couple of times a year for the last 30 years so we can afford to take it slow! (Oh, and age tends to play a part in going slow!)

Pam

 

[Nicnic]

If were on an early flight, we normally get to the hotel about 4-5pm, we would unpack, take a look round the resort then head to DTD, we've always done that, but last year we were on a later flight landed 6pm and took for ages to get to the hotel, we checked on at 9pm, had to switch rooms, so we just went right to bed about 10pm, we had been up since 6am so it was 3am for us really when we went to bed, DD 2 was up at 4am but managed to go back till 5:30.
We were all up after that and just pottered about the room, unpacking. We had breakfast booked at the hotel and ended up going down earlier and they we're able to sit us no problem.
It took a good few days to make it past 9pm and not get up at 6!!

 

[Kath2003]

I got delayed on a flight that should have been arriving at 7pm and actually arrived at 11pm. It was almost 1am before I crawled into bed - and was still wide awake at 5:30am! (Admittedly I was very, very fast asleep on the plane for an hour or so before arrival - that really embarrassing situation when you have to be woken up by the flight attendant for landing...but hey, as far as my body was concerned, it was almost 4am!)

We always do an early dinner on the first FULL day as we are tired enough to be looking forward to bed by 10pm. After that, we are fine.