Attractions and Shows ~ Suggestions and Must Sees!!??

[domesticdiva]

WE are visiting Disney for the FIRST time ever in 23 more sleeps and I need some help with our plan of attack!! Our kids are 9, 6 and 2 and we need to know what are the must sees and dos at each park so we don't miss out!! Please give me a list of your favorite rides and shows for all the various ages of our kids. Where do you go first at each park?
WE are going from May 23rd - 30th and have heard it is CRAZY busy because of Memorial Day, should we change our plans to suit which parks are voted to be the busiest on these days? I want it to be as stress free as possible, any ideas??

 

[hulagirl87]

Even though you are going at a potentially busy time, you are still going to have a blast. Here are a couple of my suggestions for some must see things...

Magic Kingdom... Mickey's Philharmagic an amazing 3D movie!!! also Peter Pan's flight. It's so great!

MGM - Voyage of the Little Mermaid. It's a great show and it chokes me up every time! Also the nighttime show Fantasmic!!! Amazing!!!

Animal Kingdom - so much here for everyone. The safari - you get to see soooo many animals and it is soooo fun! The movie in the Tree of Life "It's Tough to be a Bug" (though your youngest might get a little frightened either by Hopper or by the bug that "stings" you in your back!), Festival of the Lion King is a beautiful show. It's all around a great park. Fun to walk through and just see all the animals.

I hope you have a great trip. Whatever you decide to see and do you will have so much fun. Don't try to do too much too fast. Take your time and enjoy every step of the way. Disney vacations seem to go faster than regular time! Have fun!!!

 

[Stitch's Boy]

I think that it really depends on what your kids like and don't like. If your 9year old likes some thrills, he might like the mountains at Magic Kingdom and Tower of Terror at MGM. Your 2year old may like the meet and greats, fantasyland at magic kingdom, the living seas with nemo at epcot, and playhouse disney at MGM. Everyone will like Mickey's Philharmagic because it's just a great show. If your kids like cars, they may like Lights Motors Action Stunt Show at MGM. The night shows are great also. Fantasmic and Illuminations are great shows that you should see. I hope you have safe and fun first trip to Disneyworld.

 

[mrstomrice]

Your first time...how exciting! Don't worry too much about the crowds, as long as you are willing to get up early at make it to the parks at opening time. That is really my best advice overall. We were there over spring break, which was packed, but we never had to wait longer than 30 minutes 2 times the whole week. I never thought I would do this, but we left the parks some days around 12 when the crowds got bigger and we relaxed at the hotel, then headed back later in the day. Since we were at the parks early, we were able to get through a lot of the rides that people were waiting 30-60 min for. Be sure to use fast pass as you go too. You may find that your family may choose to separate at times so the 9 and 6 year old can take rides that the 2 year old can't...I don't know if that is necessary since we were only traveling with a 22 month old so I am not speaking from experience. We did not book any meals, because I did not want to stick to a set schedule, which was good with a young one. I do love the character meals though!
here are a few of our park favorites:
MK: Winnie the Pooh (all of fantasyland for the 2 and 6 year old), Jungle Cruise, Philharmagic, Buzz Lightyear, The mountains, Country Bear Jamboree, toontown for character pictures, the MK railroad
dole whip for a snack, and fireworks while sitting at the Terrace (an outdoor eatting area right outside of tomorrowland...great view and great seats!)
AK: The safari (go here at park opening, since there are no lines and the animals are very active) Don't miss the walking trail at the end with the Lowland Gorillas. Expedition Everest (fastpass this one early...send 1 person to get passes while everyone else rides something else)
The festival of the Lion King....do this just after the safari, so the crowds aren't too big. also, try to sit to the right when you enter the show, so you can be close to the exits for pictures with the characters, which are right outside the show.

MGM: Little Mermaid (magical!), the Muppet 3-D show, Rockin Roller Coaster, tower of terror, Who wants to be a millionaire (may be tough for 2 yr. old though to sit through) Fantasmic

EPCOT...hmmm...tough with a 2 yr. old in my opinion. They have to be out of the stroller for most exhibits, so it is a long day. The young ones will like the living seas and Imagination. We left soon after that this time b/c our son had a rare meltdown there.

Most of this advice ships tha big rides...we missed a lot with the 2 yr. old, but it was great through his eyes, for sure! Have a great trip!

 

[Pocahontas1]

First, have a great trip!

I have a son (almost 6) and a daughter who is two. When we were there in December, she went on everything we did. Hard to tell with her, but I think her favorite was the cars. She actually wanted to drive. Anyway, on that trip we went with my father and his wife, so we could swap out and my son got to ride the big kid rides. He loves Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Star Tours, Test Track and Kali River Rapids. He has also ridden Tower of Terror, but we skipped it on the last trip.

As for shows, make sure you see Festival of the Lion King and Lights, Motors, Action. He also enjoyed Fantasmic and Wishes. Mickey's Philharmagic is wonderful as well. He is not a huge fan of "Its Tough to be a Bug", but is willing to go back again.

Anyway, I'm sure you and your family will have a great time. You are there a bit before Memorial Day, so maybe that will help.

Have fun!

 

[paigevz]

Oh, yeah, left out the safari at AK................must do this first thing! It's Tough to be a Bug scared the bejeezus out of my 2 year old.........and I gotta say, it didn't take much to get me to the exit with him, so I guess you could say it scared the bejeezus out of me too!

 

[Disneyof3]

I'll give you some little advice someone here gave me. Don't drag your kids around and expect to see everything. Just enjoy the magic and have fun. I went for the first time 3 years ago and we just read what was on the boards that was always repeated over and over again. Have fun and enjoy:

MK: splash mountain, winnie the pooh ride, it's a small world and dumbo, and especially carousel of progress
MGM: beauty and the beast show, fantasmic, honey I shrunk the audience playarea, and especially for the little one playhouse disney
AK: Pocohontus, safari ride, boneyard playarea and lion king show

 

[momshark]

You will be there during Star Wars Weekend at MGM. This is from Friday through Sunday. If your kids like SW be sure to see the characters, etc. Check out the info on the DIS homepage.

Also the Flower and Garden Show will be at Epcot. Maybe you can check out the topiaries as you make your way around. There are always hidden Mickey's to look for too. This is a great way totake up time while in line or down time.

You will have a blast! Remember to utilize the Fast Passes.

 

[Hobbes]

As far as Epcot goes, Spaceship earth should be OK even for the little one, Figments ride at Journey to Imagination, Honey i shrunk the Audience (The little one may have to pass on that), The boat ride in the Land pavilion, Turtle talk with Crush at Living seas, the rides in both Mexico and Norway, Ellens Energy Adventure (Whatever!) for the 2 elder ones, and most of all, take their swimming cossies and let them go nuts in the fountains between World Showcase and Future World.

 

[Disney Crazy Debbie]

I know it may sound crazy but the first time we went my DS was 10 years old and he bought a Disney autograph book and pen and unabashedly asked the characters for their autographs - making the County Fair at MK a must, plus it is a great place to go if you want to get your children's pictures with the characters.