How Long is your Mid-Day Break?

[mi*vida*loca]

Hit RD, leave park around 12ish. Get back to resort by 1. Hit the pool 130-4. Back at bus stop by 5. Hit the parks until close.

 

[lynch34]

We do most of what has been discussed here. I have 9, 6 and 3 so they sometimes get really tired.

Rope Drop is a must. We leave park around 12:30 or 1:00 and then head back around 4:30 or 5.

We either do pool or take nap/lay in the cool.

 

[Mikie]

Are we the only family that had their kids nap in the stroller as the parents pushed through the day? The thought of having to make your way all the way out of the park, to hop on transportation back to the hotel, to go back to the room, and repeat that again in a few hours, to then return to the hotel again later in the day, is maddening.

That being said, if the hotels in DW were more conveniently located like some of those in DW, I'd be more amendable.

Also, if we're talking about heat of the summer where pools are a "must" midday then I understand.

That's what we did when my kids were smaller. I heard all the advice about breaks, but we traveled in spring or fall when heat isn't outrageous and stayed at values or mods that aren't quite as quick to get to as a monorail resort! I think the couple of times we tried to break, the kids fell asleep on the bus, woke up cranky at the resort and didn't go back to sleep, though *I* wanted to sleep at that point.

My kids passed out in strollers or on Ellen or Hall of Presidents )) and we stayed in the parks through early evening, but rarely late. A night or two, we'd start our day a little later (missed rope drop, but still not past 10 or so) and stayed through fireworks or Fantasmic.

Last trip, my kids were bigger, but small niece and nephew came along. I tried to tell their parents that *we* didn't need naps any more, but that their little ones (who don't fall asleep in strollers) should probably go for a break. Grandma and Grandpa even had a room at Grand Floridian they were willing to share for naps! They never took the break and the kiddos were pretty much a wiped out nightmare by the end of the trip.

 

[lovethattink]

We don't take a mid day break. But we don't stay at the parks all day either. Usually 3 to 5 hours is enough time at a park. We have AP and can go back any time.

When we are staying onsite, it's usually for the resort experience and not the park experience.

My husband and sons are night owls. I'm a morning person. I'd love to do rope drop, but they usually aren't ready to get moving til noon.

 

[Accident]

I wouldn't really call it a break that we do. If we're just not peppy anymore or the sun is beating us down we take a break. If it's weather related break then we'll guage how long as the day goes on. We rarely just take a break, it's more to do resort things or go elsewhere that is more friendly...

we also rarely return to the same park but that's more an anxiety thing with my daughter...

 

[ReluctantDisaholic]

We only take breaks in the summer - otherwise we're park-open-to-close people. In the summer we leave somewhere between 130-2, swim for a bit, and head back to a park around 4.

 

[The Sasquatch]

depends on how nice the pool and nap is...sometimes we dont go back at all

 

[Maine_Belle]

I'm planning a resort break our first day in hopes of hanging late at MK with the 7 and 3 year old and then taking it easy around the World Showcase for our 2nd day at EPCOT.

What I don't get is the common call to swim during the break. Swimming makes us so tired! I'd be afraid the kids would want to swim and no one would get to sleep and we'd be double tired come evening! Hubby and I will be encouraging nap time ONLY! They can do their swimming on check in day and back at their grandparents'!

 

[Alexsandra]

I just go day by day. It also depends on the park, we are in. For MK we usually break after lunch and come back around 4:00. We always take a break at Epcot since it is so big and really hot to explore in the afternoon. We stay until 1:00, go back to resort swim/rest and head back there around 5:00-6:00pm. We never take a break at Animal Kingdom. Too small of a park. We usually leave by 5:00-6:00PM anyway. We also very rarely leave HS since we find that we can manage a whole day there without stopping. We just schedule an afternoon meal in a restaurant then catch a few shows afterwards.

 

[JJZMgailey]

How long is your mid-day break? I'm thinking arrive at rope-drop, stay through lunch, leave around 1 and head back to the hotel (we're staying at Boardwalk), rest/swim/whatever at the resort, and head back after dinner. Is that too long to be out of the parks??

Thanks for starting this great thread! You're getting lots of good advice and examples of what others do. We liked your thread so much that we chose it to be featured on the DIS Daily Fix!

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I like the idea of a mid-day break, especially since our trip will include toddlers and grandparents. Any tips or ideas for including the MK afternoon parade (3 pm) and still having a mid-day break?

We slept in and started late and then just stayed to closing. FoF was an awesome parade and I'm glad we didn't miss it.

 

[SDSorority]

Thanks for starting this great thread! You're getting lots of good advice and examples of what others do. We liked your thread so much that we chose it to be featured on the DIS Daily Fix!

Thanks Jackie! I saw this over lunch yesterday and about spit out my water!!

 

[Tomh]

Everybody has a different style and way of touring the parks, so different things work for different people. Our fist year we tried mid day breaks. In general, we found that no one got any rest. When we got back to the park we felt more tired than we would have felt had we just stayed there. In the end, we felt like it was a lot of wasted time for us, with no real advantage to it.

Generally now, we don't do mid day breaks. For the most part, we are there for rope drop, try to hit the popular stuff quick before the crowds build, then when it is getting busy, and hot, we slow down, go for the shows, long rides, have a leisurely lunch somewhere with air conditioning, wander through the shops, have a nice long table service supper, and then enjoy the evening entertainment. We feel like we get to do / see more, and are no more tired than we were when we took the mid day breaks.