Has anyone done an evenings only/mostly evenings touring plan?

[Newcastle]

Hi everyone! I'm not sure if this has been discussed in previous threads but I am thinking about markedly adjusting our plans for our upcoming trip in June/July so that we would visit the parks primarily in the evenings, starting anywhere from 4-6 pm depending on specific park hours. We went last summer and ran into some difficulties health-wise due to the heat which impacted our ability to visit the parks during the warmer times of the day. Evenings were definitely better although I realize that it can still be quite hot during the earlier parts of the evening. Unfortunately, we are not early risers at all and so rope drop has never been an option for us. I am seriously considering booking all of our fast passes for the evenings and then spending the early part of our days sleeping in and spending time at our resort. We are fortunate in that we have been to Disney World several times so we are not concerned with trying to hit every attraction. I guess I'm just wondering whether anyone has tried this approach before and if there are any potential pitfalls to this approach that I might be missing since I have never tried this before. Any opinions/info would be most appreciated .

 

[Delirium]

Never for a full trip. But, we have done evening only days 2-3 times a trip in the past. It works well for us in Magic Kingdom and Epcot, where most of what we like to do is actually more pleasant to do at night. It does not work as well for AK and HS because, in addition to rides, we like to see the shows in those parks. And, the shows either don't have nighttime showings, or there is not enough time to get them all in.

As far as FP is concerned, many of the rides, especially at MK, are better at night. I will intentionally schedule nighttime FPs for Jungle Cruise, Splash Mountain, and Big Thunder because the experience is better.

 

[Taylor'sMom]

Agree with PP. We never do evening ONLY, but we do enjoy them. Less heat/humidity so we don't feel drained. And the later it gets, the lower the crowds.
My favorite park days are often MNSSHP and MVMCP days. Not just because of the party offerings, but we enjoy sleeping in, having a nice sit down meal, spending the day by the pool and then heading to the park around 4pm.
The only thing I can think you'd be "missing" is some well-lit photo opportunities. Depending on the time of year and sunset, and your arrival, this may not be a factor anyway.

Personally, *I* would miss the "walk-on" perks of a rope drop arrival, but it doesn't sound like this was an option for you anyway.

Enjoy the parks at night!!!

 

[PPFlight75]

We are RD folks, but will sleep in a few days and go to a park in the evening for a few FPs and fireworks. The only potential problem is the rain. We usually go June/July and the evenings have always been so risky with the rain. We still do it though and just deal with the rain if it comes.

 

[Newcastle]

Thank you all for your responses and for the helpful info. Unfortunately, the only time that we can travel now that the kids are older is during the summer and so I'm trying to find a different/better way to approach the trip. Last year, it was a struggle to get up at a decent hour (teenagers...fun times) and so we would be heading into the parks late morning. We would usually go back to the resort later in the day with the goal of going back to the parks in the evenings when it was cooler, but we often found ourselves dragging to get back out to the parks again. I'm thinking that maybe if we don't put any pressure on ourselves to be at the parks during the hotter times of the day by not booking our FPs until later in the day, we might feel more relaxed overall. Thanks for mentioning about the rain PPFlight75...I think I had blocked that out . It did rain quite a bit last year when we were there in July and usually not until later in the day although by 7 or 8 pm or so, the rain had typically subsided. I think we will have to learn to deal with the rain as well...at least it's not usually quite so hot when it's raining...LOL.

 

[DOOM1001]

If it was up to me the parks in the summer would open at 4-5pm and stay open until 3-4am,its just way too hot to deal with the heat and the sun.I've never seen the point of getting up with the sun to battle others to dash to 7DMT or FoP.I've never been an early riser,I'm running the Disney full on Sunday and even for the races I dislike the early wake up calls and miss the races that used to start at 10pm with after parties until 3-4am.During these colder months however Central Florida can get pretty cold at night but during the summer Disney should really be open until at least 1-2am,getting to the park at 8-9pm and hanging out until 2am is much better park time than sweating like a pig at 3pm.

 

[PPFlight75]

Thank you all for your responses and for the helpful info. Unfortunately, the only time that we can travel now that the kids are older is during the summer and so I'm trying to find a different/better way to approach the trip. Last year, it was a struggle to get up at a decent hour (teenagers...fun times) and so we would be heading into the parks late morning. We would usually go back to the resort later in the day with the goal of going back to the parks in the evenings when it was cooler, but we often found ourselves dragging to get back out to the parks again. I'm thinking that maybe if we don't put any pressure on ourselves to be at the parks during the hotter times of the day by not booking our FPs until later in the day, we might feel more relaxed overall. Thanks for mentioning about the rain PPFlight75...I think I had blocked that out . It did rain quite a bit last year when we were there in July and usually not until later in the day although by 7 or 8 pm or so, the rain had typically subsided. I think we will have to learn to deal with the rain as well...at least it's not usually quite so hot when it's raining...LOL.

I think you will have a great time and be much more relaxed. We like rope drop but we can't stay up super late either or at least not every night. As my kids are getting older it is getting harder for them to get up so early so I try to sleep in a morning or two but I'm sure they will want more as they get older. Your plan sounds great! Hope you have a blast!

 

[arminnie]

I used to travel from California so the three hour time difference did not make early mornings a viable option. Plus I often (7 times in one year) went on business so i was not available until after work anyway. I spoke at many conventions which was great as far as getting a free trip to Orlando, but my first responsibility was my work obligation. So I went in the evenings a lot. Not the same as going all day - but still enjoyable.

 

[sls404]

This is how we prefer to do the parks, especially in the summer. Sleep in, eat at the resort, go to the pool, then head to the parks around 5pm. Works out really nice when MK is open til midnight!

 

[pbb&j]

I did it with my daughter last summer for 9 days. Only once did we go in the morning, and that was only because we were going to all 4 parks in a day. All the other days we slept in and went to the pool, and headed to the parks around 4. It was AWESOME! It actually felt like a vacation. I found the intensity of the sun to be gone later in the day, even though it was still warm and humid. It's the only way I would go back in the summer.

 

[Bete]

Choose your park days with later hours in mind. If MK is open later one night from another, then pick the later night. Epcot offers late extra magic hours; so, go to Epcot on those days.

Try to time going on the trip when school first gets out for the summer. It should be a little better that way. I would avoid July and August.

I'll be taking a trip where we will be doing it differently from our regular pattern. It can be done. Try to take a nap in the afternoon. That will probably help you to stay longer in the park at night. Or get up very late each day.

Disney is great with their hours. You have such a wide variety of choices available to go anytime.

 

[sdomino11]

I’d suggest getting a touring plans membership (about $10). Set your park days to begin in the evening and then plug in all the attractions you hope to do. Touring Plans is extremely reliable. So it will show you just how much you’ll be able to see in a night’s-only vacation. Then you’ll know if it sounds worth it to you or not.

For what’s it worth, I bet you’ll love it. We aren’t rope drop people either and the parks at night are so much more magical, in my opinion!

 

[Newcastle]

Thank you again everyone for your replies and for the wonderful suggestions!! Thanks to everyone's input, I am actually feeling quite positive now about changing up our touring plans. I would love to avoid July and August but unfortunately, my kids don't officially finish school until June 28th this year (we are in Canada and it sounds like our school year runs a bit later than most). I am hoping that moving our park visits to later in the day will a) avoid the more intense heat of the day and b) leave us feeling less rushed/stressed as I won't have to drag my kids out of bed in the morning and we won't need to do the back and forth between the parks and the resort since we will be spending the earlier part of our day at our resort. I will just have to cross my fingers that the weather co-operates as while I don't mind battling the rain a little bit, I may start to regret my decision if we experience a monsoon on a nightly basis .

 

[Mamapapa]

Last year, it was a struggle to get up at a decent hour (teenagers...fun times)

I have a teenager too, and I think this plan of yours is pure genius! They prefer to sleep late in the morning, are slow to get moving, and love to stay up super late at night, so as long as the park hours work for you then I think this is the perfect plan for your needs. I would love to do this, but in addition to that teenager we also still have little kids who prefer to rise at the ever loving butt crack of dawn... or earlier....

 

[scrapquitler]

we more or less do that. We usually leave the room around noon and go to the park until closing. We are night owls and the morning just does not work for us, plus my husband usually has to work in the morning. I usually make our FP for the 3-6pm time frame, and we grab a few extras after. I usually choose our park based on which one has evening EMH or is open latest.

 

[sharadoc]

This is how we prefer to do the parks, especially in the summer. Sleep in, eat at the resort, go to the pool, then head to the parks around 5pm. Works out really nice when MK is open til midnight!

This is exactly what we have done during past August trips, although even then it was too hot for us. We slept in, spent time at the pool, etc. then hit the parks after an early dinner. Most times MK is open until 11 or 12 in the summer, so even if we went to another park first, we'd end up at MK for some late rides during the parade and fireworks, which is usually awesome! Plus one or two late EMH a week at MK made it more like 1 or 2, even better!

Looks like those evening EMHs may be going away, based on my trip hours in March. That would be really sad.

 

[Newcastle]

I have a teenager too, and I think this plan of yours is pure genius! They prefer to sleep late in the morning, are slow to get moving, and love to stay up super late at night, so as long as the park hours work for you then I think this is the perfect plan for your needs. I would love to do this, but in addition to that teenager we also still have little kids who prefer to rise at the ever loving butt crack of dawn... or earlier....

Yikes!! I certainly don't miss those days. My youngest will be 14 on this upcoming trip so the days of getting up early are long gone fortunately...although not so fortunately when it comes to optimizing our time at Disney .

On another note, I feel for you if your tag/title is accurate. I have taken a number of mom/kiddo trips as my spouse is disinterested in Disney to say the least!

 

[Mamapapa]

On another note, I feel for you if your tag/title is accurate. I have taken a number of mom/kiddo trips as my spouse is disinterested in Disney to say the least!

Unfortunately, it is true. I didn't do my proper research to verify his love of the mouse before I fell in love with him...

 

[beaprn]

Hi everyone! I'm not sure if this has been discussed in previous threads but I am thinking about markedly adjusting our plans for our upcoming trip in June/July so that we would visit the parks primarily in the evenings, starting anywhere from 4-6 pm depending on specific park hours. We went last summer and ran into some difficulties health-wise due to the heat which impacted our ability to visit the parks during the warmer times of the day. Evenings were definitely better although I realize that it can still be quite hot during the earlier parts of the evening. Unfortunately, we are not early risers at all and so rope drop has never been an option for us. I am seriously considering booking all of our fast passes for the evenings and then spending the early part of our days sleeping in and spending time at our resort. We are fortunate in that we have been to Disney World several times so we are not concerned with trying to hit every attraction. I guess I'm just wondering whether anyone has tried this approach before and if there are any potential pitfalls to this approach that I might be missing since I have never tried this before. Any opinions/info would be most appreciated .

I have been a grave yard shift worker for over 30 years so RD is out of the question. If I visit during DST especially I usually start out about 3 or 4 and the crowds are definitely lower and you can hit a lot of attractions during the preshow and fireworks! It is cooler and it clears out even more after the fireworks. DAH is the best thing sine sliced bread LOL, Iwent last year and am going again this year with my five year old Great nephew who is also a night Owl! Cannot wait, he does know anything about it yet.