First and (possibly) only trip to the world.

I'm sure i will reamed for this but personally MK was my least favorite park and DHS was my favorite. If we didn't have the two youngest with us we would skip MK and AK and do Universal instead. My kids are most interested in Epcot actually.
IMO - DHS has dwindled down to a shadow of itself.

And I adore Epcot, but mostly for World Showcase. There's not that much in Future World that we love. The things we love are really favorites, but there's not whole lot there anymore.
 
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I have a couple of observations for you, one suggestion, and a one or two hidden gems (depending on how you count them).

Observation 1: I think you will understand what I mean by this because you have been there, but the biggest difference between WDW and Six Flags and the like is that WDW is a theme park and the other parks are amusement parks. It is difficult for people to truly appreciate how much difference this makes until they get there, and some people won't care about it even after they do. For some people though, it will change their perspective on what makes a ride a must-do to them, so I would be prepared for some changes to the must-do activities after you arrive.

Observation 2: Iconic rides like Splash, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, etc., are iconic for a reason; most people rate them highly. Many of the not-quite-such-a-headliner attractions are lesser because the ratings are more divisive -- it's not that everyone rates them a 6/10, it's that some people rate them a 8/10 and some people could care less if they never did it again. For these, you may not be able to predict well in advance if you'll like them or not, so don't be afraid to try something (time permitting) that only a minority of your group is interested in. This is how you will find the things that are hidden gems to your group.

Suggestion: I did see your post for preference on the MK above, but for hopping MK is often touted as the best to hop to because it is open at least a couple of hours later than all the other parks. Epcot can also be good as the World Showcase is easily consumed in small pieces, so only having a couple of hours is fine. It's quite possible that you will find you have not anticipated reactions in the other parks well, and people will either spend the entire day there that you hadn't planned or else everyone is finished in the early afternoon. My suggestion, if finances allow, would be to do Epcot and MK (in either order) as part of your first two days. Then you will have enough experience with these parks that if you find yourself at AK or DHS and are just "done", but feel like you may have more to do in Epcot or MK, you can consider adding on park hopping and spend some extra time at MK or Epcot. Hopping is an extra $64 flat fee per ticket no matter when you add it on.

Hidden gem(s): When I saw the ages of the kids, the one thing I thought of immediately is that my kids would tell them to make sure not to miss the Agent P World Showcase Adventure. We were fortunate enough to enjoy a bonus trip this year in addition to our planned one in August, and my kids (14, 11, 7) spent a good amount of time on this and didn't remotely think it should cut into the amount of time that would be allotted to it in August. This despite the fact that they have played it on multiple days, for at least an hour a day, when we were there in 2009, 2011, and 2013. It's fun for all ages, but your group of kids are in the exact target age range. Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom in the MK is similar but very different; there is a trading card aspect and whole other atmosphere around that one. My kids love them both (with a big, big, big edge to Agent P), but they are not the same. Wilderness Explorers in the AK is a very distant cousin in this group, but it has by far the biggest differences from the other two -- more education focused rather than entertainment, no cool technology, etc. I mention it here only because you will see it referenced if you look up information on the other two. For your particular group I would rate Agent P as absolutely not to be missed, and in the MK I would try Sorcerers if time allows but not worry too much about it if the day there is too crowded with other things.
 
We will be driving from Ohio and stopping in Ga to spend the night on Friday. We plan on 2 rooms and plan on spending the whole park time together. We are all pretty adventurous except my 12 year old nephew, We figure that we will do rider swap with the baby. As far as the beach is concerned they know it will be too cold to swim but they have never seen the ocean before so its pretty much nonnegotiable as far as their concerned. No one in our groups really cares about characters so meet and greets aren't necessary. It wont be a surprise trip and and we plan on getting touring plans.


You are going to get tons of advice so I'll just keep mine simple...

I understand having to see the Ocean for the first time. Makes complete sense. However, Cocoa Beach is about an hour - 1 1/2 hours away. Going to the Beach will not eat up a whole day. I would suggest waking up early, head to the beach for sunrise. Spend as much time there as you want until you get bored, then head back to a Park. As for which park, you'll figure that out with your research. You can make FP+ reservations for the afternoon/evening and will be able to experience a bit more.
 
You are going to get tons of advice so I'll just keep mine simple...

I understand having to see the Ocean for the first time. Makes complete sense. However, Cocoa Beach is about an hour - 1 1/2 hours away. Going to the Beach will not eat up a whole day. I would suggest waking up early, head to the beach for sunrise. Spend as much time there as you want until you get bored, then head back to a Park. As for which park, you'll figure that out with your research. You can make FP+ reservations for the afternoon/evening and will be able to experience a bit more.

Thank you, I never really thought about that. Maybe we can do that toward the end of the trip and use that as a day to go back to whichever park the kids like best.
 

DD15 & I did Hoop Dee Doo our last trip for the 1st time..we loved it! HS is also my favorite park, but I admit that I cannot leave out a park on any trip, as I like each park for different reasons. I often help friends/family plan their Disney trips and I start to panic when they say they are going to each park only 1 day..haha! Of course it is possible, but there is SOO much to see & do. I have visited WDW 7 times since 2008 and I still find new things to see/do each trip. If I only had 1 day in each park, my must dos would be: MK - 7 Dwarfs Train, Big Thunder Mountain, Celebrate the Magic, Haunted Mansion, Electrical Parade, PhilharMagic, Pirates of the Caribbean, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Wishes EPCOT - Soarin, Test Track, all of World Showcase (catch as many street shows as possible), Illuminations HS - Animation Academy, Toy Story Mania, Tower of Terror, Fantasmic, Rock n Roller Coaster, Indiana Jones Stunt Show, Lights Motor Action Stunt Show AK - Dinosaur, Expedition Everest, Festival of the Lion King, It's Tough to be a Bug, Safari, and the Animal Trails.
 
You are going to get tons of advice so I'll just keep mine simple...

I understand having to see the Ocean for the first time. Makes complete sense. However, Cocoa Beach is about an hour - 1 1/2 hours away. Going to the Beach will not eat up a whole day. I would suggest waking up early, head to the beach for sunrise. Spend as much time there as you want until you get bored, then head back to a Park. As for which park, you'll figure that out with your research. You can make FP+ reservations for the afternoon/evening and will be able to experience a bit more.

Thank you, I never really thought about that. We could save this for the end of the trip and go back to a park the kids really enjoyed.
 
My suggestion, if finances allow, would be to do Epcot and MK (in either order) as part of your first two days. Then you will have enough experience with these parks that if you find yourself at AK or DHS and are just "done", but feel like you may have more to do in Epcot or MK, you can consider adding on park hopping and spend some extra time at MK or Epcot. Hopping is an extra $64 flat fee per ticket no matter when you add it on.

I think this is really good advice. On our first trip, we had intended to do all 4 parks. Well, we went to Epcot the first day and liked it so much, we went back the second day. Same with MK. We intended only one day, but there was so much we wanted to do, we went back a second. And I supposed I *should* have felt like we missed out on something, but I didn't - it was such a good trip. This was long before I knew about crowd calendars and best/worst parks.
 
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I agree with other posters here, I would add one or possibly two days to your tickets. At only 10-15 dollars a day per person more, it will allow you to take your time a little more and soak it all in. You can easily spend two days at both MK and EP.
 
Observation 2: Iconic rides like Splash, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, etc., are iconic for a reason; most people rate them highly. Many of the not-quite-such-a-headliner attractions are lesser because the ratings are more divisive -- it's not that everyone rates them a 6/10, it's that some people rate them a 8/10 and some people could care less if they never did it again. For these, you may not be able to predict well in advance if you'll like them or not, so don't be afraid to try something (time permitting) that only a minority of your group is interested in. This is how you will find the things that are hidden gems to your group.

I know what you mean. At our local park they have a lot of different shows but i would rather do other things. I have a feeling though that my niece would want to drag us to see beauty and the beast. Its her favorite Disney movie.
 
I know what you mean. At our local park they have a lot of different shows but i would rather do other things. I have a feeling though that my niece would want to drag us to see beauty and the beast. Its her favorite Disney movie.
Beauty and the Beast is great! I left it off my earlier list because you have mostly boys, but we have NEVER skipped this show in the 7 trips! It is THAT good!
 
I humbly also suggest adding at least one day. You won't get through Magic kingdom in one day. We are going at the same time this year. The week after thanksgiving is our favorite. But Magic kingdom closes early a lot of those days for the Christmas party. So you will not have super long days at MK. You don't have to go the entire day to the park, but it will give you some more time at the happiest place on earth.

And you're taking a two year old but not doing any character meet and greets? You have to get at least one group picture with Mickey!!

The best suggestion is to get to the parks early in the day. You might have a tough time with all the teenagers you're going with, but even in December some attractions are going to have a wait and early morning is your best bet for short lies and getting a lot done.

In my opinion, the Beauty and the Beast show is not to be missed, so don't think of it as a waste of time. Hollywood studios has changed significantly since your visit 20 years ago. I'm sure the teenage boys will love the roller coaster and tower of terror. The Beauty and the Beast show is very close to ToT. If the boys don't want to watch the show, you could always split up at that point for a bit.

Check out sites with touring plans. They have a lot of good suggestions on park strategies for hitting all the best attractions in a short time.

Have fun planning. I'm sure you'll have a once in a lifetime trip of fun!!
 
My advice is to understand from the beginning that you cannot do everything. I would have your older children do some reading/reseach and maybe pick one must-do at every park. Then, just enjoy the moments and enjoy being together. :flower1:
 
Just an FYI, the week after Thanksgiving is a good time to go, but by no means is considered "the best." It will be lower crowds than earlier in the fall and later in December, but prepare for parks to be crowded during peak hours and have a good plan.
 
Just an FYI, the week after Thanksgiving is a good time to go, but by no means is considered "the best." It will be lower crowds than earlier in the fall and later in December, but prepare for parks to be crowded during peak hours and have a good plan.

I'm going strictly by a chart I found on http://**************.net/ They rank it number 1.
 
The reason for the dining plan is were not very good at saving. We figure it would be a easy wait to have one more thing paid off before we got there. We originally had every intention of only doing 3 days at disney and doing two days at Universal. My 12 year old is the only one that has any real interest in ak. We ended up deciding to to just stick with the four parks and spending the extra day doing downtown disney and hoop dee doo.

I like the dining plan too, of course I like it much better when it's free. You mention using it so you can pay the money ahead of time. If I can suggest, there are calculators that help determine if the dining plan is the best use of your money, like the one at http://www.distripplanner.com. If you use the planner and find it doesn't save you money, another budgeting tool is to buy Disney gift cards each week when you go to the grocery store do your shopping. Save them all and bring them to use for food purchases. Just wanted to throw that out there if it helps.
 
I'm going strictly by a chart I found on http://**************.net/ They rank it number 1.
I think it IS a really good week. Unfortunately, I'm starting to think that the difference between the best week and the worst week, crowd-wise is not as different as we'd like to think. It's crowded all the time. The only reason to note that is for expectation and planning purposes. We're big on rope drop (being there AT park opening), because you can get SO much done before the crowds get there. The masses will start to really file in by 11:00. We usually get a ton of stuff done before then.

If you're going to DHS, put Osborne Lights on your list. It was kind of overwhelming in how amazing it was.
 
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AK has been my fav on my last 2 visits to the World. Previously was Epcot but they have work to do there!
 
I think it IS a really good week. Unfortunately, I'm starting to think that the difference between the best week and the worst week, crowd-wise is not as different as we'd like to think. It's crowded all the time. The only reason to note that is for expectation and planning purposes. We're big on rope drop (being there AT park opening), because you can get SO much done before the crowds get there. The masses will start to really file in by 11:00. We usually get a ton of stuff done before then.

If you're going to DHS, put Osborne Lights on our list. It was kind of overwhelming in how amazing it was.

Like itchin2go said, there really is NO uncrowded week in Disney World anymore. Crowds are at an all time high - the parks are never truly "empty". And remember, because you are going on a "lower crowd" week, it will be more important than ever to choose a recommended day vs a non-recommended day (check out easywdw.com and his crowd calendar).

My first big trip, I carefully chose the lowest crowd week of the year - the last week of January. The difference in crowding between recommended vs non-recommended days was quite impressive.
 
Just wanted to suggest that you have a backup plan for your beach day if you are planning to swim. I have been at WDW during the week after Thanksgiving when it was downright cold (not likely but it does happen).
Be sure to get the kids involved in making plans. That is half the fun!
Hope your trip is amazing!
 
This sounds like a fun trip and you've already put a lot of thought into it. The first time we went (and how did I know that it wouldn't be the last), we had our kids pick their top 3 "must-do's" in each park. Those were our priorities to accomplish. Often they overlapped, so that gave us a chance to do our "tier 2" attractions. If the kids don't seem that interested in some things that other posters say are "must do's" don't worry about it. If the kids have ownership of doing their top things, they will have a great time. We also made sure that everyone respected the other's priority, so if the 2-year old is excited about "Small World", even the teen boys should embrace it respectfully.

Also, I'd suggest being willing to split up a bit. If someone doesn't want to watch a fireworks show, stay in the same park and meet up in a designated spot after the show. I know it might seem difficult to separate in an unknown area, but it offers some flexibility and empowerment to your kids.

Also, pack plenty of flexibility and patience. If it rains, you may need to alter your plans. Rides that everyone wants to ride might be shut down, or someone might get sick. With the right frame of mind, these can be opportunities for spontaneous adventures.
 













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