How hard is it to take impromptu trips these days?

[GillianP1301]

Impromptu trips are definitely possible. You have to be flexible, which I find is a lot easier to do when you are a regular visitor, as opposed to it being a one and only trip of a lifetime. I think Epcot is one of the easiest to do this as well because you don't need loads of planning to enjoy a great time in WS and if you do want to ride one of the Tier 1 rides, then all you have to do is wait in line. Not having a fastpass doesn't mean you can't ride anything, it just means you actually have to be a bit patient and wait for it, like the good old days. With so many great dining options in Epcot, you should be able to get an ADR at at least a few of them at any given time. And if you don't want to bother with an ADR, there will be plenty to try during Food & Wine. I say go for it and have fun!

 

[mjallemand]

Alright, discussed it with the wife last night and after lodging, gas, food, and tickets we're looking at close to $1000 for both of us. That's not at all worthwhile for only two park days, so we'll probably pass on it for now; we're putting together a Grand Canyon trip for our first-year wedding anniversary anyway.

Please feel free to give me further pointers though, as maybe we'll revive this idea in the future.

 

[Pigletpal40]

I mentioned to the wife last night that I was starting to suffer from Epcot withdrawal, and she suggested we take a weekend trip someday. At the moment it's too hot and with school still out for the summer, assuredly too crowded, so it's not something I'd want to try to pull off at the moment.

The last three trips we took to WDW (Nov 2010, Oct 2012, Nov 2015) were all planned over at least a year in advance with meticulous scheduling and booking hotel rooms and other amenities way ahead of time. How hard is it to just jump in a car and go to WDW these days?

Since it's been close to two years since I've done any trip planning, I need a good refresher. Is late October and Early November still a good time to drop in or should I try for another period? Ideally I'd love to go for Epcot's 35th anniversary but with October 1st being in the midst of Food & Wine and on a Sunday, I would imagine the park's gonna be a madhouse. I guess if I show up later in the month I could still nab some merch anyway.

We were feeling the same way one August, when visiting Family in S.C. Being from N.H., we figured we were only a days ride away and booked 3 nights at Yacht Club while driving in the car. We had AP's (DVC) and got a pretty good discount on the room. We would walk over early, get on what we could stand by and FP (old) and grab a FP before we went for lunch and enjoy the Awesome Pool at YC/BC. Go back and use the FP and grab another for whatever we felt like and got dinner. Meals were the hardest if you wanted to have TS. We would "shop" for meals. Go to the kiosk, ask for wait time and if they had a table for 4. Many NOs. We did eat at San Angel Inn, Biergarten and Crown and Rose over the three days. We would take the Monorail to MK if we went in the afternoon, or bus to MK early on one of the days. Nice little Disney Fix.

 

[Pacolovestacos]

Alright, discussed it with the wife last night and after lodging, gas, food, and tickets we're looking at close to $1000 for both of us. That's not at all worthwhile for only two park days, so we'll probably pass on it for now; we're putting together a Grand Canyon trip for our first-year wedding anniversary anyway.

Please feel free to give me further pointers though, as maybe we'll revive this idea in the future.

Grand Canyon trip sounds amazing. I just did that last month and had a great time. Make sure to visit Page, Arizona as well. You can do Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon. PM me if you have questions on either of those.