Epcot Strategy with young girls

[BMAEC]

Background info- We are going in November so I don’t expect excessive heat to be an issue. It’s me, my husband, and our 3 girls ages (2, 4, and 6)- total princess lovers. Epcot is open 9am-10pm the day we will be going (unless park hours change but these are the same park hours as Nov 2017 for this same Friday). We are renting a double bob stroller.

My plan is to go when the park opens and immediately walk to Norway to get in line to meet Anna & Elsa. Wait times seem to be shortest first thing. Then was thinking I could get a 10:00-11:00 Fastpass for frozen Ever After, with the idea of going right at 10- to give us time to walk through the park and meet A&E. After FEA, I thought we could get some breakfast at Les Halles in France Pavilion because it opens earlier than the rest of WS. Then make our way to Japan Pavilion so we are there at 11:00 when opens to do the pick a pearl. Then sort of follow around WS at our leisure, seeing what princesses we can in the different pavilions, hitting up Food & Wine booths or snacks for lunch or doing a QS lunch somewhere in the WS, then in the afternoon making our way to Future World to do a few things (not a ton here my girls would like but the Nemo show and Turtle Talk seem geared towards them- probably do FP for those or something else around this time of day). Then make our way back to Norway for dinner at Akershus at 5:15. After dinner explore the WS more until Illuminations.

Does this sound like an ok plan? I’ve heard Epcot is massive so am I being too ambitious with where we can go? My 2 y/o will nap in a stroller. The stroller is capable of holding my 4&6 yr olds and one of us carrying the 2 y/o (she’s tiny) if our 6 y/o needs a break...

 

[NYCgrrl]

Background info- We are going in November so I don’t expect excessive heat to be an issue. It’s me, my husband, and our 3 girls ages (2, 4, and 6)- total princess lovers. Epcot is open 9am-10pm the day we will be going (unless park hours change but these are the same park hours as Nov 2017 for this same Friday). We are renting a double bob stroller.

My plan is to go when the park opens and immediately walk to Norway to get in line to meet Anna & Elsa. Wait times seem to be shortest first thing. Then was thinking I could get a 10:00-11:00 Fastpass for frozen Ever After, with the idea of going right at 10- to give us time to walk through the park and meet A&E. After FEA, I thought we could get some breakfast at Les Halles in France Pavilion because it opens earlier than the rest of WS. Then make our way to Japan Pavilion so we are there at 11:00 when opens to do the pick a pearl. Then sort of follow around WS at our leisure, seeing what princesses we can in the different pavilions, hitting up Food & Wine booths or snacks for lunch or doing a QS lunch somewhere in the WS, then in the afternoon making our way to Future World to do a few things (not a ton here my girls would like but the Nemo show and Turtle Talk seem geared towards them- probably do FP for those or something else around this time of day). Then make our way back to Norway for dinner at Akershus at 5:15. After dinner explore the WS more until Illuminations.

Does this sound like an ok plan? I’ve heard Epcot is massive so am I being too ambitious with where we can go? My 2 y/o will nap in a stroller. The stroller is capable of holding my 4&6 yr olds and one of us carrying the 2 y/o (she’s tiny) if our 6 y/o needs a break...

I think you need to adjust your timetable a bit.
If you are entering the park through the International Gate it's a little bit easier for one of the adults to grab some breakfast from Les Halles while the rest of you continue walking over to Norway's attractions. Now you should be able to make a 10:00 to 11:00 AM FP for FEA with ease. Norway to France is basically on opposite sides of the lake so no longer a need to rush from one side to the other. A leisurely walk to Japan will allow you to buy a pearl and you can continue your Epcot tour as you suggested. I'm not sure where the pearl kiosk is but if it's in the Mitsukoshi store it can be a tad crowded in there so perhaps some of your party will want to wait outside on a bench since there are some nice ones there. If you are lucky the drummers will be out then.

Will all your littles be able to keep such a long day's schedule? Only you can answer that but if at some point you feel it's too much perhaps a return to the hotel for naps would be an idea until dinner time.


Oh and I forgot to mention if you are not entering through the IG I'd hold off on having breakfast in France. You can still pick up some goodies from there as you walk around the World Showcase later in the day and have them the next morning.
HTH and have fun.

 

[BMAEC]

I think you need to adjust your timetable a bit.
If you are entering the park through the International Gate it's a little bit easier for one of the adults to grab some breakfast from Les Halles while the rest of you continue walking over to Norway's attractions. Now you should be able to make a 10:00 to 11:00 AM FP for FEA with ease. Norway to France is basically on opposite sides of the lake so no longer a need to rush from one side to the other. A leisurely walk to Japan will allow you to buy a pearl and you can continue your Epcot tour as you suggested. I'm not sure where the pearl kiosk is but if it's in the Mitsukoshi store it can be a tad crowded in there so perhaps some of your party will want to wait outside on a bench since there are some nice ones there. If you are lucky the drummers will be out then.

Will all your littles be able to keep such a long day's schedule? Only you can answer that but if at some point you feel it's too much perhaps a return to the hotel for naps would be an idea until dinner time.


Oh and I forgot to mention if you are not entering through the IG I'd hold off on having breakfast in France. You can still pick up some goodies from there as you walk around the World Showcase later in the day and have them the next morning.
HTH and have fun.

Thank you so much for your helpful suggestions! Do you think it’s doable to meet Anna & Elsa before 10am? I think I got wrapped up in the idea of Les Halles because I wasn’t sure if we had enough to do in WS before 11 but we can certainly just make our way there later and let the girls pick out treats. They love bakeries! We’re flexible with leaving in the afternoon if we feel they need a break, or even having to miss Illuminations. It’s our last day so it may all be catching up with them by then!

 

[NYCgrrl]

Thank you so much for your helpful suggestions! Do you think it’s doable to meet Anna & Elsa before 10am? I think I got wrapped up in the idea of Les Halles because I wasn’t sure if we had enough to do in WS before 11 but we can certainly just make our way there later and let the girls pick out treats. They love bakeries! We’re flexible with leaving in the afternoon if we feel they need a break, or even having to miss Illuminations. It’s our last day so it may all be catching up with them by then!

Going to preface this by saying I've never done an early morning character meet so can only speak in generalities as far as this type of rope dropping goes. Do I think you can meet A+E before 10:00 AM? Absolutely if you get there early and plan your route in advance. To your advantage you are going during a F+ W event in November so there will probably be smaller crowds for children's events.

Go out there and have some fun.

 

[KenHutch]

I think you can do the schedule you have suggested but have you considered breakfast as Akershus? When my daughter was 5 and 7 we did that at the earliest time possible. At the time there was no FEA it was Maelstrom but even today you could eat and probably do FEA and the Meet & Greet with just a short wait, and the food while not great is good there and you can a ton of the princess's at one time with Anna & Elsa just a short walk away.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

Don’t forget character spot if your girls are fans of Baymax or Inside Out. Sounds like a good plan. Epcot is best experienced leisurely touring, taking in the details. Perfect relaxed ending to a trip. My kids love Akershus for princess meeting (they’re picky eaters but still find food they like). Don’t miss illuminations though! Perfect ending to a Disney vacay!

 

[Chrislovesdisney]

We are going to try to book the latest breakfast at al Forno which is actually around lunchtime, at the boardwalk, with Rapunzel, Flynn Rider, Ariel, and Eric, rather than Akershus. Just throwing another princess option your way! Will walk from international gateway entrance to/from it.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Thank you so much for your helpful suggestions! Do you think it’s doable to meet Anna & Elsa before 10am? I think I got wrapped up in the idea of Les Halles because I wasn’t sure if we had enough to do in WS before 11 but we can certainly just make our way there later and let the girls pick out treats. They love bakeries! We’re flexible with leaving in the afternoon if we feel they need a break, or even having to miss Illuminations. It’s our last day so it may all be catching up with them by then!

If you haven't been to Les Halles before, it won't look like a bakery your girls might be familiar with. No doughnuts, no cinnamon rolls.

 

[familyman123]

My last trip in 2016 I had girls aged 1, 4, 6, and 9. A few thoughts that might help:
1. Kenny the Pirate's subscription includes info on when to meet princesses and tips on fun interactions. May be worthwhile if you plan a lot of princess meet ups.
2. My younger girls liked Living with the Land and Grand Fiesta (Mexico) boat rides.
3. There is an Agent P scavenger hunt in the World Showcase that appeals to younger children. Especially if they like Phineas and Ferb.

 

[LongLiveRafiki]

I would really try not to do a lot of back tracking around the world showcase. I'm not sure what the meet and greet times are like these days for Elsa and Anna, but when we went last year, it was maybe a 25 min wait late afternoon. If that's still the case, I would schedule the FEA FP before or after your Akershus dinner and also do the M&G somewhere around then too that way you aren't trying to make it to Norway twice during the day. Personally, it just seems rather rushed going from Pick a Pearl in Japan (which you probably wont leave until 1030-11, longer if the girls want to look around and they probably will), all the way around the WS, spending time in Future World, then making it back to Norway by 5 to check in for dinner (15 mins early).

Lots of people are able to make it through the WS quickly and pull off stuff like that, but we found between a toddler who needed diaper changes, a 7 year old that always needed to use the restroom when we were the furthest away from one, stopping for snacks, drinks, and meals, lines for characters, checking out the pavilions, etc, that it really took up much more time than expected. And frankly, the walk alone is pretty large.

With the exception of breakfast in France, I think your plan is doable, but I think there will be a bit of rushing past/skipping over things to make it to your ADR and less time overall to actually enjoy everything.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

So, I'm in a similar boat as you age-wise (5,5,5) and I'm also planning a first time trip for my family. It seems like a lot of walking back and forth to try to reduce one specific wait time. From what I've seen, the A&E line doesn't get as bad as others can because 1) there are no FP taking up capacity and 2) there are 3 sets of A&E working in different rooms at the same time.

If it weren't for that specific concern about that line, would you be planning your day differently? For instance, do future world rides in the morning when waits are short, then go down to world showcase at 11am when it opens and work your way counterclockwise. You will likely find yourself in Les Halles right around lunch, so you'd still get to experience those treats. Depending on how quickly you do the countries, you could still plan your dinner at Akershus for the same time as originally planned, but it would then be followed by FEA FP and your A&E visit. This means you can't really use the refresh strategy in future world, since your tier 1 is so late in the day, but it seriously reduces the amount of doubling back you have to do. My thought would be that you're currently adding 20-30 minutes of walking to save 10-15 minutes in one line. Also, if the 2yo naps, better for her to be doing that when you're wandering WS and won't *need* to get her out of the stroller than when you're in Future World and going into attractions. I know all kids are different, but if I woke mine up at that age, they were miserable for at least a half hour afterward.

 

[LongLiveRafiki]

So, I'm in a similar boat as you age-wise (5,5,5) and I'm also planning a first time trip for my family. It seems like a lot of walking back and forth to try to reduce one specific wait time. From what I've seen, the A&E line doesn't get as bad as others can because 1) there are no FP taking up capacity and 2) there are 3 sets of A&E working in different rooms at the same time.

If it weren't for that specific concern about that line, would you be planning your day differently? For instance, do future world rides in the morning when waits are short, then go down to world showcase at 11am when it opens and work your way counterclockwise. You will likely find yourself in Les Halles right around lunch, so you'd still get to experience those treats. Depending on how quickly you do the countries, you could still plan your dinner at Akershus for the same time as originally planned, but it would then be followed by FEA FP and your A&E visit. This means you can't really use the refresh strategy in future world, since your tier 1 is so late in the day, but it seriously reduces the amount of doubling back you have to do. My thought would be that you're currently adding 20-30 minutes of walking to save 10-15 minutes in one line. Also, if the 2yo naps, better for her to be doing that when you're wandering WS and won't *need* to get her out of the stroller than when you're in Future World and going into attractions. I know all kids are different, but if I woke mine up at that age, they were miserable for at least a half hour afterward.

This is the exact plan I was thinking when I wrote my response above.

 

[DIS_AWC]

We saw Anna and Elsa at park opening in April. It took us about 10 minutes to walk back there from the main entrance at a moderate pace and we were done with the meet at 9:25. We had a 9:30 breakfast res at Akershus and a 10:15-11:15 FP time for FEA and we made it there well before the end of the window. When we finished FEA the WS was just getting ready to open. Then we just toured around WS at leisure.

I would recommend a FP time of maybe 9:30-10:30 for FEA. Then you aren’t stuck twiddling your thumbs after meeting A&E since FEA is right next door and the rest of WS will be closed. France is pretty far from Norway and you’d have to go all the way back around the front side of the lagoon to get there.

Have you considered a breakfast at Akershus instead of dinner? We found that timing to really work out well for us and we didn’t have to waste time zigging and zagging and waiting for WS to open.

 

[familyman123]

So, I'm in a similar boat as you age-wise (5,5,5) and I'm also planning a first time trip for my family. It seems like a lot of walking back and forth to try to reduce one specific wait time. From what I've seen, the A&E line doesn't get as bad as others can because 1) there are no FP taking up capacity and 2) there are 3 sets of A&E working in different rooms at the same time.

If it weren't for that specific concern about that line, would you be planning your day differently? For instance, do future world rides in the morning when waits are short, then go down to world showcase at 11am when it opens and work your way counterclockwise. You will likely find yourself in Les Halles right around lunch, so you'd still get to experience those treats. Depending on how quickly you do the countries, you could still plan your dinner at Akershus for the same time as originally planned, but it would then be followed by FEA FP and your A&E visit. This means you can't really use the refresh strategy in future world, since your tier 1 is so late in the day, but it seriously reduces the amount of doubling back you have to do. My thought would be that you're currently adding 20-30 minutes of walking to save 10-15 minutes in one line. Also, if the 2yo naps, better for her to be doing that when you're wandering WS and won't *need* to get her out of the stroller than when you're in Future World and going into attractions. I know all kids are different, but if I woke mine up at that age, they were miserable for at least a half hour afterward.

For what it’s worth, I agree with Much of this line of thinking. It’s tempting to minimize waiting by crossing the park, but it can be taxing, especially with little ones.