Hello from Texas

[outlaw38]

Hello everone going on our first trip on May 20th. Staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Don't know anything about the park guess we are just going to try and wing it. Please help with suggestions to help us enjoy our trip. Thanks

 

[Thundergod]

I'm not sure you can mess up a disney vacation. It's a magical place and things just go good.

 

[Aliceacc]

Who's going? What ages?

I wouldn't suggest winging it totally. Plan to be at each park at ropedrop-- that's opening-- in order to avoid the worst of the crowds. Take a look at what's in each park, and have at least an idea of what you want to see. Know how fastpasses work. know the first 2 things you'll do at each park-- which fastpass you'll pick up and which ride/attraction you'll see first.

For what it's worth, here's my suggestions (assuming you have kids roughly the ages of mine)
Magic Kingdom: Get a fastpass to either of the following (Peter Pan, Space Mountain) then go right away to Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain.

Epcot: Pick up a fastpass to Test Track on your way to Soarin'

Hollywood Studios: Follow the crowd to Toy Story Mania.

Animal Kingdom: Pick up a faspass to Expedition Everest, then go to Kali River Rapids.

On our last trip there, I was waiting for the park to open. (My husband had the 3 kids; I was the fastpass runner who was going to meet them at Thunder Mountain after I got the Peter Pan FP's.) I was chatting with the woman next to me, and her 12 year old son. She asked me what time the shows started.

"Shows??" I asked.

"Yes, do they have shows or anything here?"

"So I turned to her son and asked what kind of rides he liked. He said he loved roller coasters. So I directed him towards Thunder Mountain (Space Mountain was being rehabbed that summer) and directed him to Splash Mountain next.I told him not to miss Pirates of the Carribean or the Haunted Mansion. He sounded real excited and she was relieved.

I wouldn't want to spend all that money for a trip to WDW and not have at least a basic idea of what I wanted to see.

 

[zianha]

I agree with Aliceacc that you shouldn't totally wing it! If you haven't already done some research (here or on the Disney World website etc) then definitely do some! It may be overwhelming but having a plan of some kind will help you! But as Thundergod said, Disney is magical and you will have a great time!

 

[acf_1991]

Hello everone going on our first trip on May 20th. Staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Don't know anything about the park guess we are just going to try and wing it. Please help with suggestions to help us enjoy our trip. Thanks

I suggest you check out the WDW website (disneyworld.com) and click on each and every link. Believe it or not you will learn A LOT about what they have to offer. Are you only going to one park? If so which one, I'm assuming Magic Kingdom? How many people are going? Are there children going? Have you thought about where you would like to eat or what kind of food? Table service or counter service? Do you have a set budget or you are free to spend (almost) whatever you would like? Are you celebrating a special occasion (other than your first trip to WDW). If you would like, answer these questions and I would be more than happy on helping you plan your trip. Planning, once you have a feel for what you would like, is part of the fun.
Here are a few websites that have helped me and I think might help you.
allears.net
mousesavers.com
and ofcourse wdwinfo.com

These are all GREAT websites with tons of information.
Happy planning and please don't hesitate to ask questions!

 

[Metro West]

 

[PrincessTiffany]

Hello everone going on our first trip on May 20th. Staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Don't know anything about the park guess we are just going to try and wing it. Please help with suggestions to help us enjoy our trip. Thanks

Please don't wing it on your first trip!

I highly recommend that you get The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World or check out their companion website, www.touringplans.com. I use their Best Days/Crowd Calendar to plan out our park days each year. Also, I highly recommend getting your Advance Dining Reservations made if you plan to do ANY sit down/table service meals. A lot of the character meals and popular restaurants will already have little to no seatings for May. Here's a few tips for new visitors:

1. Make sure you have Advance Dining Reservations for any Sit Down/Table Service/Character Meals most restaurants will not be taking walk-ups.

2. Get to the parks at opening. You really can get a lot done in the morning because so many other people sleep in.

3. Eat lunch around 11:00 or 11:30 a.m. before the fast food places get busy. Then when while everyone else is eating lunch, you will have lower crowds.

4. I buy a ton of the two for a dollar ponchos at the dollar store and keep them in the backpack. That way you can throw them a way after use and not worry about keeping up with a wet bulky poncho the rest of the day. Bring throw away ponchos to wear on Kali River Rapids at Animal Kingdom, if not you WILL get soaked.

5. Other things I put in the backpack each morning are Tylenol/Motrin, small first aid kit, camera with extra batteries, small hand towel, hand sanitizer, wipes and a bottle of water.

6. Most single service items under $4.00 are considered a snack credit on the Disney dining plan. (This doesn't apply to you since you are staying off-site)

7. At Magic Kingdom always head to Fantasyland first, if you are not doing Fantasyland on a particular day then head to Splash Mountain first, then Big Thunder Mountain; at Epcot always ride Soarin' first and get a Fastpass for later after you get off of the ride; at Disney Hollywood Studios always ride Toy Story Mania first, then head over to Rockin' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror; and at Animal Kingdom ride Expedition Everest First then head to the Safari.

8. Favorite fast food restaurants at MK are Pecos Bills and Cosmic Rays; favorite fast food at Animal Kingdom is Flame Tree Grill and Pizzafari. If you are there while it very hot, go to Pizzafari.

9. If there are two lines going into an attraction, always take the line that goes to the left.

10. My best tip would have to be USE THE FASTPASS SYSTEM. Our rule of thumb is if the wait is 25 minutes or less, we wait in line. If the wait is 30 minutes or more, use a Fastpass. It is not highly publicized, but your Fastpass does not expire until the end of the day. You can never use it before the return time stamp on the pass, but you can always use it after. We try to collect Fastpasses during the early part of the day and then use them later in the afternoon when the parks become more crowded.

Click on this link from fellow Diser Doconeill and it will give you an excellent overview of Fastpass:

http://www.oinc.net/disney/fastpass.php

If you still don't understand, just let me know your specific questions.

11. I like the Photopass. You can pre-buy it before your trip for $99.00. When you enter the parks you will see the staff photographers, they will take your pictures and give you a Photopass and you can use that for the rest of your trip. Each time you see a photographer have them take your picture and they will scan your picture. Then when you get home you can pull up the pictures, with the code they email you after purchase, and pick the photos you want on a CD. They will then mail you the CD and the copyrights to the CD and you can take them to Walmart or Walgreens or wherever and get them developed. They also have a lot of cool software that you can use to edit your photos before you have them put on the CD.

My favorite Disney planning sites are:

www.disboards.com
www.allearsnet.com
www.wdwinfo.com
www.intercot.com

 

[acf_1991]

Please don't wing it on your first trip!

I highly recommend that you get The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World or check out their companion website, www.touringplans.com. I use their Best Days/Crowd Calendar to plan out our park days each year. Also, I highly recommend getting your Advance Dining Reservations made if you plan to do ANY sit down/table service meals. A lot of the character meals and popular restaurants will already have little to no seatings for May. Here's a few tips for new visitors:

1. Make sure you have Advance Dining Reservations for any Sit Down/Table Service/Character Meals most restaurants will not be taking walk-ups.

2. Get to the parks at opening. You really can get a lot done in the morning because so many other people sleep in.

3. Eat lunch around 11:00 or 11:30 a.m. before the fast food places get busy. Then when while everyone else is eating lunch, you will have lower crowds.

4. I buy a ton of the two for a dollar ponchos at the dollar store and keep them in the backpack. That way you can throw them a way after use and not worry about keeping up with a wet bulky poncho the rest of the day. Bring throw away ponchos to wear on Kali River Rapids at Animal Kingdom, if not you WILL get soaked.

5. Other things I put in the backpack each morning are Tylenol/Motrin, small first aid kit, camera with extra batteries, small hand towel, hand sanitizer, wipes and a bottle of water.

6. Most single service items under $4.00 are considered a snack credit on the Disney dining plan. (This doesn't apply to you since you are staying off-site)

7. At Magic Kingdom always head to Fantasyland first, if you are not doing Fantasyland on a particular day then head to Splash Mountain first, then Big Thunder Mountain; at Epcot always ride Soarin' first and get a Fastpass for later after you get off of the ride; at Disney Hollywood Studios always ride Toy Story Mania first, then head over to Rockin' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror; and at Animal Kingdom ride Expedition Everest First then head to the Safari.

8. Favorite fast food restaurants at MK are Pecos Bills and Cosmic Rays; favorite fast food at Animal Kingdom is Flame Tree Grill and Pizzafari. If you are there while it very hot, go to Pizzafari.

9. If there are two lines going into an attraction, always take the line that goes to the left.

10. My best tip would have to be USE THE FASTPASS SYSTEM. Our rule of thumb is if the wait is 25 minutes or less, we wait in line. If the wait is 30 minutes or more, use a Fastpass. It is not highly publicized, but your Fastpass does not expire until the end of the day. You can never use it before the return time stamp on the pass, but you can always use it after. We try to collect Fastpasses during the early part of the day and then use them later in the afternoon when the parks become more crowded.

Click on this link from fellow Diser Doconeill and it will give you an excellent overview of Fastpass:

http://www.oinc.net/disney/fastpass.php

If you still don't understand, just let me know your specific questions.

11. I like the Photopass. You can pre-buy it before your trip for $99.00. When you enter the parks you will see the staff photographers, they will take your pictures and give you a Photopass and you can use that for the rest of your trip. Each time you see a photographer have them take your picture and they will scan your picture. Then when you get home you can pull up the pictures, with the code they email you after purchase, and pick the photos you want on a CD. They will then mail you the CD and the copyrights to the CD and you can take them to Walmart or Walgreens or wherever and get them developed. They also have a lot of cool software that you can use to edit your photos before you have them put on the CD.

My favorite Disney planning sites are:

www.disboards.com
www.allearsnet.com
www.wdwinfo.com
www.intercot.com

Although this post wasn't ment for me I basically wrote down everything you just said! Thanks once again for all of the great tips.

 

[mickstwin]

Hello outlaw38 from Texas!

I'm from TX, too! Glad you're here. You will LOVE Disney. Be sure you go with at least a little bit of a plan. Try to call ahead and make advanced dining reservations at any of the "sit-down/table service" restaurants that you are going to go to. It will save you a lot of waiting and headaches. The poncho suggestion above is great! We do that, too!

Have fun! Feel free to ask us any questions that come to mind!

 

[Disneyfreak616]