Epcot planning question: Is this doable...

[kaytayprincess]

We are arriving on June 24th (staying at POP). June 25 will be our Epcot day. We want to be there at rope drop at 9:00, go straight to Soarin' and ride. Then, we need to exit through the countries, walk to the Boardwalk where we have breakfast reservation at 10:25 for the new Bon Voyage Adventure Breakfast. After that, we will walk to the Swan & Dolphin Resort for my daughter to compete in the National Beta Competition. Then, back to Epcot to enjoy the rest of the day.
Is this to much walking? Will they let me exit through the countries even though they aren't open yet? Please offer some advice!!! We could skip the rope drop and just be at our breakfast reservation, then on to Beta, but that probably means skipping Soarin' since we want to FP Test Track.

 

[Shellyb84]

We are arriving on June 24th (staying at POP). June 25 will be our Epcot day. We want to be there at rope drop at 9:00, go straight to Soarin' and ride. Then, we need to exit through the countries, walk to the Boardwalk where we have breakfast reservation at 10:25 for the new Bon Voyage Adventure Breakfast. After that, we will walk to the Swan & Dolphin Resort for my daughter to compete in the National Beta Competition. Then, back to Epcot to enjoy the rest of the day.
Is this to much walking? Will they let me exit through the countries even though they aren't open yet? Please offer some advice!!! We could skip the rope drop and just be at our breakfast reservation, then on to Beta, but that probably means skipping Soarin' since we want to FP Test Track.

That wouldn't be too much walking for us. Also there are boats you could take.

Yes, you can exit through IG.

 

[CAS239]

The international gateway opens with regular park opening. At park opening you can walk up until France and the other side is up until Norway. So you can ride Soarin then leave.

And no it's not too much walking. There are boats you can take but walking will be much faster

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Basically, you are thinking about walking from Soarin' - over to the Swan- with a stop in between- then back to Epcot. The walking is pretty doable, IMO. Just keep in mind that you plan to do this late morning in June, when daily highs will be around 90 and very humid.

I don't know about the competition you mention, but if you do as you plan, all of you will likely be fairly sweaty when you arrive at the Swan. If she's required to dress in any kind of professional manner/nicely, a direct taxi would probably be preferable. Most park goers are clammy by 11am in the summer months.

You also don't mention what time she has to be at the event. Disney character breakfasts can be VERY slow. IME, they often run 90 minutes or more. With a late breakfast of 10:25am, you may well be seated well beyond your ADR time. It depends how popular it is, and how large your party. A good number of times over the years, my family has been seated 30+ minutes PAST our ADR, event though we arrived BEFORE our ADR time. ADR's are NOT reservations. They don't hold a table for your party, just that they will (eventually) seat you if you arrive at the podium.

The walk between the BWK and the Swan isn't very far, so you could do that part, but I'm not sure it makes sense to try to squeeze in some park time before an important event. Odds are low, but you never know when a ride will malfunction. Over the years, we've gotten stuck on a number of rides. do as works best for you, but I don't think I'd chance it if the event is important.

 

[kaytayprincess]

Basically, you are thinking about walking from Soarin' - over to the Swan- with a stop in between- then back to Epcot. The walking is pretty doable, IMO. Just keep in mind that you plan to do this late morning in June, when daily highs will be around 90 and very humid.

I don't know about the competition you mention, but if you do as you plan, all of you will likely be fairly sweaty when you arrive at the Swan. If she's required to dress in any kind of professional manner/nicely, a direct taxi would probably be preferable. Most park goers are clammy by 11am in the summer months.

You also don't mention what time she has to be at the event. Disney character breakfasts can be VERY slow. IME, they often run 90 minutes or more. With a late breakfast of 10:25am, you may well be seated well beyond your ADR time. It depends how popular it is, and how large your party. A good number of times over the years, my family has been seated 30+ minutes PAST our ADR, event though we arrived BEFORE our ADR time. ADR's are NOT reservations. They don't hold a table for your party, just that they will (eventually) seat you if you arrive at the podium.

The walk between the BWK and the Swan isn't very far, so you could do that part, but I'm not sure it makes sense to try to squeeze in some park time before an important event. Odds are low, but you never know when a ride will malfunction. Over the years, we've gotten stuck on a number of rides. do as works best for you, but I don't think I'd chance it if the event is important.

Her competition is at 1:

Basically, you are thinking about walking from Soarin' - over to the Swan- with a stop in between- then back to Epcot. The walking is pretty doable, IMO. Just keep in mind that you plan to do this late morning in June, when daily highs will be around 90 and very humid.

I don't know about the competition you mention, but if you do as you plan, all of you will likely be fairly sweaty when you arrive at the Swan. If she's required to dress in any kind of professional manner/nicely, a direct taxi would probably be preferable. Most park goers are clammy by 11am in the summer months.

You also don't mention what time she has to be at the event. Disney character breakfasts can be VERY slow. IME, they often run 90 minutes or more. With a late breakfast of 10:25am, you may well be seated well beyond your ADR time. It depends how popular it is, and how large your party. A good number of times over the years, my family has been seated 30+ minutes PAST our ADR, event though we arrived BEFORE our ADR time. ADR's are NOT reservations. They don't hold a table for your party, just that they will (eventually) seat you if you arrive at the podium.

The walk between the BWK and the Swan isn't very far, so you could do that part, but I'm not sure it makes sense to try to squeeze in some park time before an important event. Odds are low, but you never know when a ride will malfunction. Over the years, we've gotten stuck on a number of rides. do as works best for you, but I don't think I'd chance it if the event is important.

 

[kaytayprincess]

The competition is at 1:00. You make very good points about the heat and being sweaty. The competition is very important, so we may just go straight to breakfast then on from there. Does Disney transportation go from POP to the boardwalk?

 

[siskaren]

The competition is at 1:00. You make very good points about the heat and being sweaty. The competition is very important, so we may just go straight to breakfast then on from there. Does Disney transportation go from POP to the boardwalk?

No, there isn't resort to resort transportation. (Well, other than things like one monorail resort to another.)

 

[mickeyluv'r]

You could easily get a taxi (or Uber) from Pop to the Boardwalk. To get there for free, without entering a theme park, you'll have to go first to HS. From HS, You can walk or take the boat. Unfortunately, the walkway is on the opposite side of the waterway from where you start and end. (So you'd end up crossing the waterway twice, and it is a bit of a ways in the heat). The boat dock is also a little bit out of your way from where the buses drop you off. Look at the map sticky thread.

Otherwise, your option is to go to Epcot first - as you planned- then walk to the far end of the park, out the back IG gateway, then walk or boat to the BWK. (There's also another boat inside Epcot that can take you a small portion of the way, but walking is usually faster.)

Even if you have a rental car, guests can't always park at the Boardwalk. MOSTLY, if you are staying onsite, you ARE allowed to park almost ANY place on property(without paying more), EXCEPT the deluxe hotels can be a no-go (or they give you a time limit). Last I knew, the Swan/Dolphin also charge for parking. (but it has been a few years since our last stay.)

In this case, your best bet to get there is probably a taxi.

[Just to clarify from what the previous poster said: the BC/YC/Boardwalk/HS/Epcot are connected by a shuttle boat that stops at each stop. though walking all or even part of the way is usually faster.
MK area deluxe hotels are also most connected by monorail/shuttle boats.
Otherwise, most WDW resort to resort travel requires a transfer to a different bus/boat. Like you take a bus to one of the theme parks, then wait for a second bus. It can be quite time consuming. ]

I dunno, it is your trip. If it was my trip, I'd take a taxi to the breakfast, then probably walk to Epcot when it was over.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

You would definitely have time to do this and, honestly, that early in the morning, it shouldn't be too hot (We go to WDW in late August every year and it really doesn't get terribly hot until late morning/early afternoon). We stay at EP resorts most of the time, so do this walk quite a lot - it's really not bad. That being said, if she needs to focus on the competition in the morning, you may want to forego Soarin' and just focus on that. In that case, as others have said, you can uber directly to BWI or bus to DHS and boat to BWI. I would also suggest, if you skip Soarin' in the morning, of FP+ Soarin' and doing single rider for TT (if your daughter is 7 or older) after the competition. You won't ride together, but you can still design a car (if you wish to do so), by going through the gift shop and designing a car in the exit area of TT, then doing single rider.

 

[kaytayprincess]

You would definitely have time to do this and, honestly, that early in the morning, it shouldn't be too hot (We go to WDW in late August every year and it really doesn't get terribly hot until late morning/early afternoon). We stay at EP resorts most of the time, so do this walk quite a lot - it's really not bad. That being said, if she needs to focus on the competition in the morning, you may want to forego Soarin' and just focus on that. In that case, as others have said, you can uber directly to BWI or bus to DHS and boat to BWI. I would also suggest, if you skip Soarin' in the morning, of FP+ Soarin' and doing single rider for TT (if your daughter is 7 or older) after the competition. You won't ride together, but you can still design a car (if you wish to do so), by going through the gift shop and designing a car in the exit area of TT, then doing single rider.

Thanks for the advice! we are a family of 4 (DH, DS3, DD11, and me). Out of all the tier 1 FPs, TT is the only one DS hasn't ridden. That's why it's gonna be the FP. For the competition, she had to read 12 books and take a test on them with her teammates. She's rereading the books a third time now and will again a fourth time in May and June. So, it's not like she has to concentrate on it or study for it. Please keep the advice coming if you all think of anything. We don't make FP's until April 25.