Help me decide first day/last day!

[doodlebug]

Okay I need some help decided what would make the best sense for my family on our first trip to WDW!!!!! We will be there 11 days and only have 10 day park hopper tickets..... So here we go.... We arrive Orlando at around 6:30am on Friday 4/8 after flying all night from Seattle.. So should we hopefully check into our hotel (POFQ)as early as possible and just hang out by the pool, check out DTD and maybe a character meal that day and not go into the parks?? Or on our final day, Sunday 4/18, we don't fly out until 6pm should we use that morning/afternoon to lounge by the pool (we will be at AKL by then), maybe do a character breakfast, mini golf or something else?? Trying to decide which day to use as a none park day? Thanks so much (won't tell you what I am leaning towards until I get some great input from you guys )

 

[Kae]

On our first night we going to Chef Mickey's and ride the monorail both loops MK & EPCOT.

Kae

 

[Nanu57v]

I"d use the first day as the non-park day. You guys will be so exhausted when you arrive. I'd hang out at the hotel until you can check in, take a nap, and then venture about the world in the afternoon. Maybe check out downtown disney and go out to eat somewhere.


I travelled to the UK once overnight. Arrived at my hotel at 8am, no check-in until 10. I walked around town in a daze until I could check-in. I was miserable. Definately take a nap, so you don't have a miserable trip.

 

[doodlebug]

Thanks guys... That is what I was kinda leaning towards but wondering how hard it would be to stay away from the parks since we will be right there and it's a Friday night.. But I'm sure there is plenty of Magic outside the park!!

 

[kcbean]

I have wondered what to do on our first day also. I know the hotels will take our luggage and let us go on to the parks but will they let us go ahead and use the pool? Or do you have to have a room key, etc? We thought we would just hang out at the pool if they let us.

 

[princess lovers mom]

it will be very hard to not go over to the park on your first day particularly since you will be there so early....I would suggest go first AND last day and take a day off during the week to do DTD and a pool day at the resort...it is very nice to get refreshed in the middle of the trip

 

[HenDuck]

Wow, this is pretty much what I'm anticipating for our trip next year, at least the first day schedule. I think we'll get into Orlando around 6-ish in am.

I'm planning on reserving the rental home from the night before if I need to in order to be assured that we can check in as soon as we get there. It's worth it to me since we're travelling overnight with a preschooler and two senior citizens.

We will nap and do our grocery shopping and nap some more. Then I'm leaving it open. If we feel like hitting the parks in the evening, even if just for a few hours, we'll do it. If we're still tired, we may relax at the house in the pool and jacuzzi.

Either way, we will be so happy just to be there, it won't make that much difference.

We will probably take a non-park day break in the middle of the trip just for the sake of our sanity. This has always served us well.

We will be getting 10 day MYW tickets, but I'm not concerned about using all the days, just making sure every day is a good one.

Good luck to you and have a great time!

 

[Nicolepa]

We arrive Orlando at around 6:30am on Friday 4/8 after flying all night from Seattle..

You didn't say if you had kids or not. I have done this red eye flight several times. Without kids we were in OK shape when we got there and did go to the parks until we could check into our room. We've done it twice with kids and will not do it again! If they don't sleep then you just feel like you were run over by a truck!

We personally cannot stay away from the parks so we would go. We usually do the pool day at the end, when we are too tired to walk another step LOL. We take our time packing up and then spend the rest of the time at the pool or DTD. But if you wanted to make it a pool day first then you would be able to use the pool and such before check in, just pack your suits in your carry on.

 

[doodlebug]

OH man I forgot to mention my kids!!! We have two that are 7 & 4... So they most likely will be worn out since it's a 3 hour time difference by the time we get there!! I have two days mid week where we will spend the morning relaxing and then off to the Wonderland Tea Party and then one morning where the kids will be doing the Pirate Cruise before doing any parks!!

 

[Nicolepa]

OH man I forgot to mention my kids!!! We have two that are 7 & 4... So they most likely will be worn out since it's a 3 hour time difference by the time we get there!! I have two days mid week where we will spend the morning relaxing and then off to the Wonderland Tea Party and then one morning where the kids will be doing the Pirate Cruise before doing any parks!!

OK, being that I'm from Seattle, let me tell you what I do. My kids are 2 & 4 and my inlaws live in Ft Lauderdale so we make the trip a lot! You have 2 choices. If you want them to be on Eastern time, (assuming they sleep on the plane), just wake them up at their normal time, but Eastern. If they normaly get up at 8, then get them up at 8 ET (5 pacific). They might moan a bit, but will get over it soon. This works every time with my kids.

That said, while we are at Disney we keep them on Pacific time. This allows for us to sleep in a bit and miss the morning rush of people and then they can last thru the parade (the 3:00 parade is really 12:00 to them) before we go back to the room to rest.

It allows us to eat at off times (a 9 pm dinner is 6 for them), stay at the parks till closing, after lots of people have gone home. Yes they are up until 12 (if they don't collapse before then), but I feel we get to do so much more w/o messing w/their schedules.

We are usually in the parks by 10, go back for a nap/break around 4 (if they don't sleep in the stroller) and are back at the parks by 6-7 and stay until closing. Even if the park is open until midnight, it's still only 9 to them, and there are not very many people there at midnight.