Four Parks ... One Day ?!?

[ConnecticutNonna]

All I can say is have a blast!

 

[ckb_nc]

Did it in October - it was fun and something to remember. We had EMH at HS, then we took the boat to Epcot (getting a FS in EPCOT to Soarin as we walked in was so key) - then bus to AK. AK we did Kali - it was walk on which helped. Back to the hotel for a rest then we hit MK for one last ride.

 

[Mousemommy1]

We have done it. But I definitely wouldn't have an ADR I there.

We did it in late April 2013.

We first took the bus from YC to AK. We rode Everest 2x and Dinosaur. I had a jalapeño cheese pretzel.

Then we bused directly from AK to MK and rode Space Mountain and Haunted Mansion.

Then we took the monorail to Epcot and rode Nemo and Test Track. We stopped for pretzel and beer in Germany and hopped on the boat to DHS.

We got to DHS and rode TOT and Star Tours and walked back to YC, where we had lunch at Crew's Cup lounge.

We then grabbed our bags from bell services and were on the bench out front waiting for the Magical Depress to pick us up. We were exhausted but it was a mission that my family had set out to complete and we did.

This was all done between 9 am and 3:30 pm.

 

[spideymike]

My wife and I annually do 4 parks in one day on the Sunday after our RunDisney race. You just have to pick a couple of your favorite rides and where you want the evening to end.

 

[bcrook]

Is Beaches & Cream not within walking distance of DHS?

Its a 15 minute walk at least. Plus it's not a fast serving restaurant. So if you took the bus from DAK to beach club, ate your food and hoofed it down to Dhs that would be your best bet. But eating on the fly in the parks would save you over an hour.

 

[wishicouldgomoreofte]

I think it is fun to visit all in one day.

I think you're on target with DAK after 4:00. You can do a lot in this park 90 minutes before close.
FPs at MK will help a lot.

My suggestion would be to drop the Beaches and Cream ADR. That will throw a wrench into your plan. Eating something quick in the parks would be much more accommodating.

As for rides, I think the Safari could be your biggest time suck. Not only is it a long ride, the line doesn't clear out as fast as dinosaur, Everest, and Kali in the evening.

I say do it!!!

I agree. Do it and have fun. Also agree with dropping Beaches & Cream. Too much time waste, and takes you off track.
I have done Epcot, DHS, MK several times, walking from Epcot to DHS, and bus to MK, or EMH nights. Lots of fun.
I frequently do this on arrival day, and get all the nighttime fireworks and shows done and out of the way in one fell swoop, so free to plan the rest of the nights on my trip as the situations and moods lead--go with the flow.

 

[swooshbear]

I unintentionally did three parks in day. I was looking for a Stitch t-shirt that I saw at Epcot. They didn't have my size but the CM called around and they said they had one at AK. I took the monorail>bus to AK only to find out they didn't have them there. I went back to my resort and ended the night at MK. I saw the shirt at MK too but again, they didn't have my size.

(Next morning at MK, I asked a CM to check the back and no sizes for my shirt. Later that evening, we are walking through the Emporium and they finally had my size! I bought two shirts!)

 

[Amberleefuta]

Thanks for the ideals. We've done 3 in one day but not all 4.

 

[challada]

I personally LOVE a hilights day at the end of our trip AFTER we have dedicated actual days and times to real tour plans. The last 2 trips that we did this on were on the old FP system, but some of my secrets include:

1. We always have our own car. Driving was faster than any attempt at Disney transport.

2. Hilights day has NO EXPECTATIONS of what we must ride. We've been on all of it already at that point and are just hopping around to try to catch some extra fun. If we hit a few major rides in a park, awesome....but if we hit only a minor ride and see some Disney magic, that is OK too. We adjust along the way.

3. Food is secondary to fun. I pack extra snacks that are usually eaten in the car between parks. Hot food is usually counter service....again, no preset expectations of what it will be as we just get something when hunger strikes.

 

[TravelingTotMom]

I think it sounds ambitious - but so much fun! Since it's the highlights, it's not like you have anything to lose if you don't complete it, right?

I agree with everyone about losing the ADR. Use that time for buffer time.

Also, take advantage of single rider lines. At EP, for example, hit Soarin first at rope drop and then single rider TT. Single rider also for EE and RnRC.

 

[Amberleefuta]

Thinking of changing our day to November 16th. We still want to do a table service at some point in the day . I have garden grill booked for now but that can change. MK opens at 8th (emh) and exotic closest at 9am. Where and when should we do our table service (we are on the regular dining plan). Thanks for any advice

 

[taythecray]

We basically did this last December except that we went back to MK instead of going to Epcot and I was surprised at how much we were able to do if you plan it right! It really does help to have your own transportation and a good idea of the park layout and order you wish to hit things. I would say give a little more time to AK if possible to give yourself a cushion but sometimes you can get lucky with wait times (it was a 2min wait for us at 1pm when went). What we did:

MK 8-11:30: Space, Ariel, Aladdin & Jasmine, Haunted Mansion, Lunch at BOG
AK 12:30-3:30: Safari, Lion King, Everest, Mickey & Minnie
HS 4:30-7: Tower of Terror, Rock n Coaster (longest waits which were 20 and 40 min), Fantasmic
MK 8-12: Mine Train (FP), Enchanted Tales w/ Belle, Electrical Parade, Big Thunder(FP), Anna & Elsa (FP), Peter Pan and a little shopping

Again, haven't made it over to Epcot yet but I would FP Soarin and use single rider for Test Track. Also travel times seem pretty good, that's the same amount of time we budgeted for and we seemed to get lucky with getting in line right as the parking trams picked up. Good luck! We had a lot of fun but I would say the only thing I regret is not wearing better shoes because I woke up the next morning with a sprained ankle

 

[Dr.Mickey]

I second (or third) the idea of skipping Beaches n Cream. Might be a good place to recover the day after, though.

I would probably never be able to talk my family into a 4 park day but I would love to try.

 

[Summertinkerbell]

Will you be eating lunch? Staying hydrated? Going to the bathroom? Will transportation cooperate? (It surely didn't during our recent visit, especially the monorail.)

I wish you well, but it sounds exhausting to me.

 

[katiea86]

I'm planning on doing four parks on my trip in two weeks, but the idea started as kind of a fluke. We were already planning on 3 parks with a break after the first, so i just can't see a reason not to go for all 4, just to say that i've done it. We're staying at POR and driving to DHS for early EMH, then i'm planning on being dropped off at AK, taking the bus back to POR, then bussing it to Epcot for most of the day, then MK for late EMH. I've been to all four parks many times, and my only requirement is going to be to ride at least one thing and take a picture of myself (i hate that "s" word haha) at each park, just to have a record that i did it i think it'll be fun!

 

[sdsatl]

I think you should do AK > MK > EP > HS.

You only want to ride two rides that, in my experience, can be done in the first hour, and you get AK out of the way, since it's literally out of the way. This also puts EP and HS together on your plan, since they are literally together (right? we walk or boat between them). We've done Epcot third, with no FP+ and finished in time for the fourth park (but my legs couldn't take anymore). I would ditch the ADR, too, not just for time considerations, but also because hopping suppresses my appetite. I recommend packing snacks and/or eating on the go.

Good luck! I love hopping. One day I hope to manage all four. So much easier to hit "all", when I was a kid and there was no AK.

 

[switch15foot]

Thanks for all the suggestions ... New wrench in the plan is that my friend is pregnant and will be 13 weeks along

 

[JennyDrake]

Yeah...I don't think you'll be able to do TT, Soarin, Mission Space, and Nemo in two hours with no FP.

I agree. _I_ would go with single rider line at TT and FP+ Soarin'--or better yet, *just* do single rider at TT.

I am 50 years young and I have done 4 parks in one day several times. I've always started with AK (hopefully EMH morning) then MK (before noon), monorail to Epcot, walk to DHS.

 

[ljcrochet]

We did that last September. We started the day with a pre park opening at crystal palace and ended it at hoop dee do. We took a phototpass photo at each park, as well hitting an attraction.
We did 4 modes of transportation as well.