First time to WDW. Help make my schedule attainable.

[Dutchmom23]

This is a terrific site and I have learned from so many people here. Thank you!!! I have sketched out some tentative plans. We are going May 1-6, staying at POR, MYWD tickets with hoppers. My family includes:dh and self, ds-14, dd-12, dd-8 MY PS are reserved and listed. I want to maximize our time here, but just got struck with thrombophlebitis diagnosis and have come to realization we will have to go slow. Dr. approved trip if I wear Jobst thigh high stocking (tight decompression hose.)

Sunday, May 1 D
Leave for airport, 3:30 a.m.;Flight leaves 5:45 a.m.
Arrive at MCO 10:47 a.m. take shuttle to POR
12:00 PM Rest option if room available
2:00 PM Orient/Rest/Plan
hit the pavement @Disney-MGM Studios
5:10 PM Dinner - Hollywood & Vine
8:30 PM Show - Fantasmic!
9:10 PM Return to POR
8:30 PM-11:30 PM Late Magic MGM after show optional


Monday, May 2
8:00 AM Early Magic Epcot®
11:40 AM Lunch - Akershus - Character Dining
1:00 PM Afternoon delight @Epcot or return to POR
5:00 PM Evening escapades @Epcot
9:00 PM Fireworks - IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth

Tuesday, May 3
8:00 AM Early Magic Hour Disney-MGM Studios
12:00 PM Lunch - Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater

Head out toward AK after lunch
1:00-5 p.m. Afternoon delight Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park
Options:
a. 5:00 PM Evening escapades (Option) - DisneyQuest® Indoor
b. 5:00 PM Evening Escapades Option - Disney's Port Orleans
7:30 PM Operation Aloha!! - 'Ohana
9:30 PM Electric Water Pageant - Disney's Polynesian Resort

Wednesday, May 4
Magic Kingdom® Park
9:00 AM Operation Cinderella
3:00 PM Parade - Share A Dream Come True Parade
5:15 PM Dinner - Liberty Tree Tavern Character Dining
6:30-9:00PM Operation Cinderella continued
9:00 PM Fireworks - Wishes™ Nighttime Spectacular
9:00-12a PM Late Magic - OPTIONAL

Thursday, May 5
Disney's Typhoon Lagoon
10:00-2PM Operation Options=Family Quorum regarding departure
Options:
a. 2:00 PM Operation Options - DisneyQuest®
b. 2:00 PM Operation Options - POR
c. 2:00 PM Operation Options - AK since has EMH, anyways
5-8 PM Late Magic - Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park
9:00 PM Parade - "SpectroMagic" Parade, Magic Kingdom® Park
9:00 PM-12 AM EMH @MK

Friday, May 6
8:00 AM Operation Family Friday Finale (Optional activities)
Options:
a. 8:00 AM Early Magic - MK
b. 8:00 AM Operation Options - POR activities
c. 10:00 AM Operation Options - DisneyQuest®
d. 2:00 PM Mears Transport to MCO

TIA for any input. Have a blessed, joy filled day!!!!!!
31 days and counting

 

[Bob P]

Hi Dutchmom, and welcome!

I have a couple of comments which I hope will help you, they are not meant to be critical of your plan---I think you did a great job!

On your arrival day I would not count on your room being ready by noon. It might be, but it's not a given. I also don't think you'll be at your room by noon if you are taking a shuttle (Mears?).

I'm not sure it's realistic to be up till after midnight that first night if you've been up since 3:AM!

That's it, I don't want to sound negative, you did a great job. Good luck and let us know how it goes. Hope your medical issues clear up with a dose of pixie dust!

Bob

 

[Pixiedusttravel]

Your plan looks great! The only thing I see that could be a problem, is on Tuesday. Of course this all depends on if you are using the Disney Buses for Transportation. If your lunch at MGM is at 12, and then lets just say that you get out of lunch around 1:15-1:30, you still have to wait for the bus, (sometimes up to 20 min if it's busy) so by the time you get to Animal Kingdom, it will be after 2. If the park closes at 5, that only gives you 3 hrs to do AK. Granted, there's not that much to do at AK, but still, 3 hrs is not a lot of time. That's just an observation and personal opinion. Other than that, I think it's great.

 

[Dutchmom23]

On your arrival day I would not count on your room being ready by noon. It might be, but it's not a given. I also don't think you'll be at your room by noon if you are taking a shuttle (Mears?).
I'm not sure it's realistic to be up till after midnight that first night if you've been up since 3:AM! Bob

Yes, thank you for pointing this out. We are taking Mears and will explore or venture into MGM if room is not available. I needed to hear heavy realism in my wave of optimism. DH, who is actively involved in planning pokes fun and says we have personality changes on vacation. I try to micromanage and conquer all and since he does that irl with job, he wants to relax some.

I had copied the itinerary from other site, and think you are right, we won't be able to stay up that late. We did that once flying back from France. It was not the crabby dc; it was the crabby mom. I need experienced people like you to guide me. Thank you so much for responding.

 

[Dutchmom23]

The only thing I see that could be a problem, is on Tuesday. Of course this all depends on if you are using the Disney Buses for Transportation. If your lunch at MGM is at 12, and then lets just say that you get out of lunch around 1:15-1:30, you still have to wait for the bus, (sometimes up to 20 min if it's busy) so by the time you get to Animal Kingdom, it will be after 2. If the park closes at 5, that only gives you 3 hrs to do AK.

Thank you so much for your input. You are right, we will be depending on Disney buses. We will take in what we can, then return on Thursday after TL if we want to take in EMH. Thank you so much taking in the time to post.

Have a blessed, joy filled week.
Dutchmomto3

 

[Matt'sMom]

Also on Tuesday...

If you are at DAK until 5 PM closing, it is going to take some time to get to DTD to DQ. You'll need to wait for a resort bus at DAK... and at closing the wait is typically longer because everyone else is attempting to leave then too. They do not run buses directly between the parks and DTD, so you'll need to hop a bus to a resort, and then wait for another bus to get from there to DTD. Wouldn't surprise me if it took close to an hour (or more) to do this--although I've never personally tried it myself.

Then, to get to Ohanas in time for your dinner PS, you're again looking at a bit of a wait & travel time for a bus from DTD to the Poly.

Based on the ages of your children, I'm guessing they are gonna want to spend some time in DQ when they get there--certainly more than an hour. So I'd recommend that you skip the DQ option on Tuesday (you'd probably have to leave shortly after you got there, in order to make your PS time). My advice would be to take some time out to kick back and relax at your resort on that day, until it's time to head back out for dinner. The kids can always hit the resort pool for an hour or two if they want.

When scheduling days where you plan to hop between different parks/resorts/etc., don't forget to allow sufficient time for travel. Travel time between the MK and Epcot, for example, may only take a short time if you are hopping during mid-day... because you can catch the MK monorail to the TTC and then switch over to the Epcot monorail fairly quickly and easily. But if you need to wait for specific buses, it can take a lot longer to get around The World--especially if you are exiting one of the major parks at closing (along with thousands of other hot & tired guests).

We like to hop too... but I usually try to limit our hopping to two locations per day (three at most). Some hopping combinations are easier to work out than others, based on proximity and the available transportation options. (For example--We'll probably do DQ one morning, have lunch there, then hit the Lego store & other spots at DTD that afternoon too. Then it's back to our resort to relax for a while before heading out to the MK for MNSSHP later that evening.) Otherwise, you can run yourself ragged and waste a lot of time just trying to get from one place to another.

 

[L107ANGEL]

Do you not want to see Fantasmic at MGM?

 

[Bob P]

Do you not want to see Fantasmic at MGM?

Fantasmic is in the first night's itinerary!

 

[Matt'sMom]

The OP has Fantasmic scheduled for the evening of their arrival date.

 

[L107ANGEL]

Sorry
I am having a long day!!

 

[areno79]

Great looking itinerary, Dutchmom! Good job for a first timer
We'll be there from May 1-May 7 for our first anniversary...only 30 days! We're eating at H&V on Tuesday, May 3, you'll love it, they have something for everyone!

 

[marriedmarylander]

How did you get 5PM dinner time? All they had for me was 4PM. Did you call recently?

 

[ErinInCT]

LOL at the "afternoon delights" you have scheduled at the different parks. Not sure what you are referring to, but my recollection from the song by the Starland Vocal Band (as in whatever happened to...) back in 1976 is probably not the same thing you are planning to do in the parks!! But THAT sounds like alot of fun!!!! Better be careful or you may get tagged!!!

 

[marriedmarylander]

There is evening EMH at MK on May 5?
I thought evening EMH for MK in May were Wed...
Did you mean Epcot?

Maybe I'm wrong though.

 

[JennyMominRI]

[ Hi Dutchmom..Just wanted to say we will be at POR the same days as you ,and it's just our second trip,so we are also newbies

 

[Bob P]

There is evening EMH at MK on May 5?
I thought evening EMH for MK in May were Wed...
Did you mean Epcot?

Maybe I'm wrong though.

Epcot is closing early (3:00) on May 5 for the Soarin' press event, so they moved the EMH to MK for that night.

Bob

 

[Dutchmom23]

There is evening EMH at MK on May 5?
I thought evening EMH for MK in May were Wed...
Did you mean Epcot?

Maybe I'm wrong though.

Good catch. They are open later due to Spectromagic at 9, and Wishes at 10, I made error in EMH.

However, EPcot switched theirs to Tues. evening to offset their early closing on THursday. AK traded with them and host theirs on Thursday.

 

[Dutchmom23]

How did you get 5PM dinner time? All they had for me was 4PM. Did you call recently?

I called about 75 days out. It was the closest time I could get to Fantasmic without affecting their "Packages." We are using MYWD, so we will have to deal with finding our own seats.

 

[marriedmarylander]

I called about 75 days out. It was the closest time I could get to Fantasmic without affecting their "Packages." We are using MYWD, so we will have to deal with finding our own seats.

Wow really? No guaranteeed seating?
We called about 70 days in advance for Fantasmic Package though. I was thinking you had the package. Someone told me to call 30 days in advance that's when they open more seats. I'm gonig to keep calling each week until I get a 6PM or something It will be hard to eat at 4.

 

[Dutchmom23]

[ Hi Dutchmom..Just wanted to say we will be at POR the same days as you ,and it's just our second trip,so we are also newbies

I assume we will be in the AB area with a trundle for youngest. We will look for you!!

Have a blessed, joy filled week.