Feeling Overwhelmed

[shm_helene]

Aargh. Title says it all. I am not new to the Disney rodeo! This will be my 9th trip I believe. BUT the last time I went my daughter wasn't really into characters and my other daughter was only 1, plus we had 7 full days. Fast forward two years and now I have to think about the whole character meet n greet thing (though I don't even know if my 5 yo will be into it - rapunzel and Cinderella are in the "maybe" pile..what??? she dresses as Rapunzel everyday) plus Fast Pass +. We are staying at Poly so that is helpful but I feel like all I do is plan, plan, plan. I know if the long run it will be time well spent but I just wish I KNEW what they were going to want to do...what rides they would want to do and is it good to do fireworks or will that be too much? I know there is no such thing as seeing into the future but oh was it so much easier when it was just the two of us!! I thought I had a good FP+ plan, which was to do rope drop and schedule first FP+ to end and 10/1030 and then schedule the next two consecutively but then I was just reading another thread that said they just toured until 11 and used their FP+ for after they came back. I just don't know...

I don't really need much advice - I kind of just wanted to vent. Anything that has or hasn't worked (especially with similar age ranges and FP+ strategy) though would be helpful. I am hopeful it will be wonderful and magical!!

 

[lizard1]

How old are your kids going to be? I see one will be 5, but how old is the other?

My strategy is to do character meals for those that are available, that will save time waiting in line or save FP for rides. For us, I figure we have to eat somewhere so the few bucks extra we pay for a kids buffet gets our meet and greets and autographs out of the way with no line. Of course, Rapunzel doesn't appear regularly at any meal, so your choices would be standby or FP at her M&G.

For FP, I probably wouldn't plan much before 11, unless you are really going to try to get the additional FP at the kiosks. When I did MK early last June with my kids (and we didn't get there to closer to 9:30), we were able to ride Splash 3 times and BTMRR 2 or 3 times before there started to get much of a line. I book for the rides that I know will have the longest lines, which for my kids (my youngest is 5) means my MK FP are for Splash, BTMRR, and 7DMT. If your kids aren't into coasters, PPF is a good FP because the line gets very long there as well. I also figure that I can probably drop one of these FP at the last minute to change to something more tame if needed, but won't be able to score these FP again day of. If you plan to eat around 11, I wouldn't make the FP until you figure you will be done eating.

 

[aidansmommy]

Deep breaths! It will all work out. The one thing I've learned from all of our trips is that I NEVER have the trip I imagined, but I always come away with wonderful memories! Did my littles have meltdowns? Yup. But all in all, we had fun. And the magic is everywhere. I know the planning with FP+ is intense, but it's not the end all. Know what I mean? The fun thing about Disney is even the little overlooked things can be amazing! Good luck!!!!

 

[Julylady]

There is no single best way to experience WDW. That's part of the magic of it, right! It sounds like you gave created a good workable plan. Now it's just time to let it go until you go. And when you get there, remember it's just a plan and will need adjusting based on the reality of the moment. On our last trip with younger kids, we cancelled a couple of table service meals during the week because I could tell the kids needed more downtime at the resort. If you try to rigidly adher to your plan, you will make everyone miserable.

I hope you have a really wonderful time!