EXPERTS: CRITIQUE MY ITINERARY! Thanks!

[fairytinkerbell]

We will be at parks before they open. (except 1st saturday, late start cuz it's the day we arrive in orlando)
1. Please, if you have any suggestions, i'd love to hear them. Such as changing the order of parks. Keep in mind though, I love LOVE magic kingdom and want to do that at the beginning & end of my trip.

2. If you can suggest any disney eateries that "get u in the disney mood", that aren't brightly lit, let me know. Also, any restaurants on international drive or downtown disney. I heard of melting pot. might try-

Here it is:

Saturday
arrive @ Animal Kingdom 12:30pm,
eat lunch @ Flame Tree BBQ
Leave for hotel @ 4:30 pm
Check in & return to Magic Kingdom for 6pm
Evening dinner @ Liberty Tree Tavern

Sunday
Magic Kingdom ALL DAY
(or another park?)
Lunch @ counter place
Dinner @ Ohana in Polynesian Resrt.

Monday
MGM Studios
Lunch @ Sci Fi Diner
Dinner @ ?___________

Tuesday
Universal Studios all day
Dinner @ Wild Jacks, Intl. Drive,
Titanic Exhibition

Wednesday
Typhoon Lagoon All Day
Evening: Dowtown Disney / Wonderworks
Dinner @ The Melting Pot Intl Dr.

Thursday
EPCOT
Lunch @ Garden Grill or England Fish & Chips? Help!
Dinner @ ?_________
Evening: Go to Magic Kingdom!

Friday
Typhoon Lagoon ? or Islands of Adventure?
Dinner @ ________

Saturday
Magic Kingdom all day
Lunch @
Dinner @ Polynesian Luau worth it? any other shows ?

 

[KatelynnsAuntie]

Sounds like you have a fun week planned!!

The only 2 cents I would like to offer is that I personally would never go the the Magic Kingdom on a Saturday, although I know you want to start and end with that park. The crowds just aren't worth it to me (all the locals come out on Saturdays).

I might would consider swapping Friday and Saturday's itinerary. JMHO.

Have fun!

 

[Alice28]

Are you going to the MK on Saturday night with the intention of seeing SpectroMagic parade? If not, then I would go to Epcot instead- lighter crowds for a Saturday and you can see Illuminations. If you are going to specifically see Spectro, then go for it! Depending upon what your tastes are, you might want to try and squeeze in a bit more time at Animal Kingdom; 4 hours isn't quite enough to see the biggees (Festival of the Lion King, the Safaris, your lunch, Kali River Rapids, Dinosaur, It's Tough to be a Bug and the animal treks...not to mention Tarzan, Flights of Wonder, Primeval Whirl and others...Maybe you could head back there another day for a few hours (like the last Saturday----go to MK right when park opens to get in some rides, and head over to AK in afternoon).

 

[fairytinkerbell]

I want to go on Saturday bec. i think in October the Magic Kingdm's hours
are shorter, right? don't they close at 6pm during the weekdays?? That's why i want to go while they're open late (saturday).

I guess I'll see the Spectromagic, I would like too, definitely. I also want to max out my time at MK.

*** As for the Anim. King. I am only doing:
1. Flame Tree BBQ for Lunch
2. Dinosaur
3. Sue (dino. bones)
4. Kalim. Safari
5. Khali River Rapids (all i know is that this ride must be last bec. I heard people get soaked and I don't want to get sick!)

hope this helps! Also, any suggestions for restaurants ??? those nights???

 

[Deb in IA]

Dinosaur, Kilamanjaro Safaris, and Kali River Rapids are all Fastpass attractions, and by 12:30, many of them have stand-by waits of 90 minutes or more. You will probably not be able to ride all of them, especially if you are planning to eat at Flame Tree during that 4 hour period.

Two days at Typhoon Lagoon is a bit much, in my opinion. I think you'd be better off doing AK on one of those days.

By the way, you should try to catch the Festival of the Lion King show at AK also. The best live show at WDW, in my opinion.

 

[cruisnfamily]

Leave for hotel @ 4:30 pm
Check in & return to Magic Kingdom for 6pm
Evening dinner @ Liberty Tree Tavern

I don't think you have enough time to do this if you don't leave the park until 4:30pm I also don't think you'll want to leave yet because you won't have fit much in in those 4 hours.

I would consider doing it this way:
Check into hotel at 12:30 then head to AK
Lunch at Flame Tree BBQ
Skip the 6PM Liberty Tree Tavern(well, not skip it but move it to a different MK day)
Eat dinner at AK(Tusker House?)
Leave AK 1 hr before Spectro at MK and head over to see that.

I don't know, it's an awfully full day. I personally would skip the whole MK plan for this day since you're going there the next day anyway.

Monday
MGM Studios
Lunch @ Sci Fi Diner
Dinner @ ?___________

I notice you don't have an evening at Epcot on your itinerary. Don't you want to see Illuminations? I would hop to Epcot at the end of this day...either just in time for dinner or right after dinner and finish the day at Epcot and catch Illuminations

Tuesday
Universal Studios all day
Dinner @ Wild Jacks, Intl. Drive,
Titanic Exhibition

Is the Titanic exhibit open in the evenings? It's a good exhibit but I wouldn't leave Universal early in order to see it...It seems like you don't have time to do all this in one day.

Friday
Typhoon Lagoon ? or Islands of Adventure?
Dinner @ ________

I wouldn't do Typhoon Lagoon twice. I would either go to IoA if this is a priority for you or else I would leave it as an unplanned day where you could either relax at your resort, shop at DtD, or return to the park of your choice (perhaps you could finish AK this day)

Saturday
Magic Kingdom all day
Lunch @
Dinner @ Polynesian Luau worth it? any other shows ?

How about going over to MGM and seeing Fantasmic this night?

 

[fairytinkerbell]

I requested early check in, but probably room won't be ready til 3pm (checkin)
so that's why i have us leaving first day at 430 to check in.
I didn't want to waste the afternoon.

I can't believe the wait will be that long (in October?) oh god!
90 mins??

I never saw Fantasmic or Illuminations in all my life. How entertaining is it for someone who doesn't like most "shows." I was watching the Disney DVD they send and saw a clip of the Lion King and was bored-- we don't have kids so not sure if we would want to devote time to that...

Any other places to eat in the evening?? like what time would u suggest eating at night ?? Will Magic Kingdom be open late durng week nites to go there to end the night (close 10-11Pm?)

Thx

 

[cruisnfamily]

Originally posted by fairytinkerbell
I requested early check in, but probably room won't be ready til 3pm (checkin)
so that's why i have us leaving first day at 430 to check in.
I didn't want to waste the afternoon.

You can still check in early and they will hold your bags for you while you go to the parks.

 

[fairytinkerbell]

I'm scared they'll lose my lugggage or screw something up, steal etc.
I don't trust strangers.. i usually keep luggage in trunk and go to park

 

[fairytinkerbell]

I can't decide on a schedule. Can someone help me?? I like the bones of it but
i want to make sure that every day feels exciting and each day we look forward to more upcoming stuff durng the week.

 

[fairytinkerbell]

anyone out there today?? i need your advice..

 

[RLewis]

My thoughts:
where are you staying? Heading to your hotel at 4:30 and back to MK by 6:00pm may be tougher than it sounds (unless you're staying at Poly or Contemporary).

Saturday- (see Monday). I suggest going to MGM instead. You should be able to get into the shows, and maybe catch a FP for TOT or RRC. After dinner (Brown Derby if you want to treat yourself), catch Fantasmic. YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS THIS. Trust me, it's the best evening show in WDW.

Sunday - I suggest lunch as Plaza Inn. this is an EE day and you'll probably be ready for a sit-down around 1pm

Monday - this is EE day for AK. I suggest go to AK this day., then go to Typhoon Lagoon afterwards. This is just a personal opinion. Water parks are everywhere, so we don't like spending a full day at one in WDW. But if your family is really into them, I guess you could spend a whole day there.

Tuesday - OK - but keep in mind that UF is about 1/2 hour from WDW. If you really want to see IOA and US, I suggest moving to a hotel on-ste at the end of your vacation. If not, then I'm not sure you're going to want to drive back and forth twice.

Wednesay - If you must go to another wter park, I suggest Blizzard Beach. You can also catch the adjacent Winter/Summerland mini-golf. Also, this is an EE day for EPCOT (I assume you're staying on-site), so you may want to go there today instead). If not, you probably have time to go to MK in the evening.

Thursday - The Garden Grille is a family-style character lunch/dinner. I wold suggest this for lunch, then R&C for dinner. If you time your dinner around 7:30, you may be able to score a patio table, and stay and watch the FW show from your seat. Most people would say this show is one of the best. I like, but keep in mind that it is very crowded, and afterwards, the park is basically closed so everyone wants to leave at once. I think you should try to fit it in, but it could be missed if you wanted to Wishes for a 2nd/3rd time.

Friday - see Tuesday.

Saturday - Lunch at the Concourse Steakhouse is nice and quiet . I personnally am not a big fan of the Luau, but to each their own. If you want to see it, I suggest doing this your first night instead of Ohana. Since this is your last nigt at MK, I recommend that you stay in the park. What better way to end the trip than DINNER IN THE CASTLE?

 

[fairytinkerbell]

CInderella's castle; heard it's BRIGHTLY LIT at night (inside) and noisey from kids. Did u hear the same??


I don't know what we should do on Friday. Go shopping (flea markets)??
or internatnl drive and downtown disney?

Anything special at DD? Restaurants?

 

[RLewis]

Well, I wouldn't call it overly bright. But it is well lit for a restautnt. If you're looking for dark, the restaurants at AKL may fit the bill. It's no noisier than any other MK restaurants (There tends to be a lot of kids at all of them - go figure). There are no characters (only at breakfast), so it's not that hetic.

 

[jcemom]

Can you tell us what your exact dates are? It makes a difference. Have you planned around MNSSHP? If you really want to be a MK at night, how about planning FOR MNSSHP?

It also doesn't look like you've taken EMH into consideration, you're staying off site, right? You should probably avoid the EMH days. Another thing to keep in mind is that we don't yet know IF and WHEN Disney will adopt the new EMH evenings they are testing this month! That will throw everyone's plans off! lol

Like the others, I don't think an hour and a half is enough time to leave AK, check into your hotel, and be back at MK.

 

[jcemom]

Okay, I didn't think to check your countdown for the dates, lol. Here's what I would do:

Saturday: Epcot...I would head straight for World Showcase upon arrival, then back over to Future World for an early (around 5:00)dinner at Garden Grill. After dinner, if you want, you can go check into your hotel and then come back for Illuminations at 9pm (that should give you 2 hours--be back by 8:00 to find a good viewing spot)

Sunday: MK all day, counter service lunch, 'Ohana for dinner (you can watch the 8:00 Wishes show from there if it's scheduled)

Monday: MGM all day, Sci-Fi for lunch, counter service dinner, Fantasmic at 7:30

Tuesday: Islands of Adventure

Wednesday: Universal Studios

Thursday: Typhoon Lagoon at 10:00 opening, break from around 2-5:00, then dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, special fireworks should be at 9:15, and the second Halloween parade at 10:00, park closing at 12:00 midnight

Friday: Epcot Future World when you wake up, if you sleep in after last night and can't be there at opening you'll probably want to use FastPass for Test Track and/or Mission Space, but that's okay, you can see/do the other attractions while you wait...your evening is open for whatever you want to see/do more of

Saturday: AK, lunch at Flame Tree BBQ, hop over to MK, dinner at Cinderella's, staying for Wishes (possibly at 9:00) and the second showing of Spectro (possibly 10:00)

(most of this is based on last year's scheduled times)

I think this maximizes your MK time as well as fits in just about everything else, if you can keep up the pace, lol. There are so many variations of what you COULD do, this is just one of them.

Whatever you decide, HAVE FUN!