Four days: too long???

[landog]

I'm taking my family (me, wife, kids 20 / 16 / 7 / 7) to Disney World next month. We've never been there before. We're staying at Port Orleans.

What is there to do besides Magic Kingdom and Epcot Center? Are we staying too long? Will the 7 yr. olds even be interested in Epcot?

Is there a value to the park hopper passes or should we just pay admission when we go?

Thanks for any and all advice!

- landog

 

[AZKathy]

You will barely touch the surface of WDW with four days! You definately will wish you were there longer!

Your kids will like Epcot. There is plenty to do in Furtureworld and then they can get their passports stamped and signed at every country. We find that we really need at least two days to do all of Epcot. Make sure you include Illuminations at the end of your day at Epcot; the fireworks are spectacular!

There are two other parks you did not mention over and above MK and Epcot and those are the Disney Studios and Animal Kingdom. There are plenty of things to do at each park. Your kids will like those, too. Don't forget Fantasmic at the Studios; it is a wonderful show with fireworks, fire, animation on water sprays, etc. It is wonderful!

You should also plan on a few character meals for your family. The characters will come to your table to sign autographs and take pictures with your children. It sure beats standing in long lines to see the characters within the parks. Some of our favorites are Crystal Palace with the Winnie the Pooh gang (Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, and Eeyore), Cinderella's Castle breakfast with the princesses (but you have to make reservations exactly 60 days prior within the first three minutes of opening of WDW Dining; you can call 48 hours before and check for cancellations), Donald's Breakfastasaurus (Mickey, Pluto, Donald, and Goofy), Hollywood and Vine (Goofy, Chip and Dale, Pluto, and Minnie), and Chef Mickey's (Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale).

I do believe you save money with the hoppers vs. paying each day, plus you save time in not standing in lines for tickets each day.

You will have a magical trip. Have you gotten any of the guides you can purchase at book stores? You might want to get one so you can read up on all the rides at each park and get an idea of what each family member has an interest in so you are not spinning your wheels in the beginning of the day trying to decide where to go first. You can also find the guides at your Disney Store. The books are very helpful for the first time visitor. I went the first time pretty niave to what all WDW offered and my husband and I felt like we spent a lot of time figuring out where to go and where to eat and feeling kind of frustrated when were were doing a lot of walking and not a lot of riding.

Okay, I am long winded....PM me if you have any more questions. I have not stayed at PO myself, but have heard good things about it. Have fun planning!

 

[vicb]

We stayed four days our first visit and seven our second time around and now planning another week for our third visit. There is sooooooooo much to do at WDW. We never made it to Disney Quest, barely scratched Downtown Disney and never played mini-golf or rented water mice. There are still attractions at MK, MGM and Epcot we've missed! You should go to AK atleast once although it is our least favorite park and we may skip it next time around (it is lots of peoples most favorite park). Epcot is a must do in our family and our kids are 6 and 9. Each time we go we find more to do and learn there.

Keep reading these boards they have an amazing amount of info and get a good guide book and read it from cover to cover!

 

[MELSMICE]

After 4 days you will wish you had much more time to spend in Disney. To me 4 days means only 1 park per day. Don't forget just relaxing at the pool, going to Downtown Disney, water parks, etc., etc., etc. Disney is not just amusement parks, it is a giant resort. There is something to do everywhere for every age group.

Each time we go our trips get longer & longer by a few more days. Next year's will be 15 days & probably another trip in between. We enjoying the resort feeling of it just to relax. Not just the parks.

Four days at Disney will be "filled to the brim" with stuff to do. You'll need another vacation when you get home!!

Have fun and try to take it easy.

 

[bananiem]

I would STRONGLY suggest going to your library and checking out the latest Birnbaum's Disney book and the Unofficial Disney World guide. They do a great job of describing things and you can decide ahead of time what you want to see and what you can skip. You may find the older kids may want to go do their thing for a morning while you do Fantasyland or seearch out characters for autographs or whatever.
Have a great trip!
P.S. We LOVED the Port Orleans-French Quarter. Are you staying there or at Port Orleans-Riverside?

 

[kidzmom3]

Don't miss the MGM studios. Your 20, 16 years olds will probably love the TOT and RNR. Also the shows are great!! We have grown to really love it there, plus FANTASMIC a don't miss!!!

 

[crusoe2]

I also recommend getting a copy of the 2002 Birnbaum's guidebook - it will give you a great overview of WDW. After you've read it, use the info here on the DIS boards to fill in any gaps and answer any other questions you may have. Since you're kinda short on time, you might want to use the search feature to look up previous posts on your subjects - this will probably be quicker than waiting for people to respond to your posts.

As for whether to buy parkhoppers or 1-day tickets, we always buy parkhoppers. It's great to be able to leave one park and go to another. And any unused days can be used on your next visit - they never expire. We've had to leave early from a couple of our trips so we were really glad to have that option.

Hope this helps. Have fun planning.

 

[zurgswife]

Definately not ENOUGH time....We spend at least 7days everytime we take the kids and we go at least once a year...We always go to a minimum of 2 parks a day to see different things that happen....

Definately do some more research....you'll be glad you did

 

[DNSDisney]

Almost every trip we have had are in 4 day rounds.
If your 7 yr olds are interested in science or counties of the world i think you could spend all day at Epcot . If not a half a day will probably satisfy them.
MK is a must. What can i say , it is just magical!
If you choose to do AK , go Early in the morning. By noon it is so hot in that place i got sick last June when we were there. That park has to be at least 10degrees higher and the humidity terrible! And i am use to humidity, i live in GA. MGM your older children will love . THe 7 yr olds would probably be satisfied with half a day. Not a lot to ride there.
Check out the disney web site. It has each park and the rides and attractions in each. I would agree about the hopper passes that way you can come and go from park to park as often as you like, taking breaks outside of them for lunch or a rest. Personally my daughter never wants to leave the pool or can't wait to get back to it.
To make it easier on all i would suggest spliting up . the older kids go and do there thing in whatever park you are in and you and your wife take the 7 yr olds. For the most part they won't be interested in the same things and will save alot of wait time on one another.
Rent or purchase a cell or beeper so you can call them or they can call you.
If your 7 yr olds are girls i would suggest the breakfast at the castle with the characters. Alot of the princess's show up there and every girl loves the princess's!
But most of all don't get overwhelmed and try to do it all. Remember it is a vacation and the parks will be there next yr or the yr after. Just enjoy!!!
hope this helps and you all have a great trip!!

Sharon

 

[Dr. Happy]

was for 10 days and it still wasn't enough!! There are 4 parks total; you didn't forget Animal Kingdom and Disney Studios did you???

Park Hopper all the way!! When we stay its always on property and we always get the length-of-stay pass, but if your staying off-property be sure to purchase the park hoppers; the flexibility of going from here-to-there is worth it, and it will allow you to use Disney Transportation between parks...

Start planning your trip. Get guide books from your library or use this website. There are also many other sites. Do an AltaVista search to find the others...

You have only just begun, my friend! Have a great time!