How much to plan?

[lily2521]

Trying to plan our trip in May, and just wondering how much planning I should actually do. I did subscribe to Touring Plans, and in all honesty, it's pretty overwhelming.

We are doing every park for 1 day, with an extra day at MK. No hopper.

I have an idea of what ADR's we want (not many, we're going to rely mainly on QS meals) and I know what FP's we want to try for once we get 60 days out. I did read to do our FP's around the 11-2 hours because that's when parks will be busier.

But, how else should I plan? I like the idea of having a rough list of "must do's", and I figured I can reference a park map to make sure we aren't walking back and fourth too much, just to make sure if we're in one area we can do the things we want to in that area before moving on.

But, is that a bad plan based on crowds, etc.? I don't want to spend 1/2 the day in lines either because of poor planning.

I don't know if I should take advantage of TouringPlans pretty intricate day planning or not? It seems like a lot to me.

I am clueless here, and as this being our first big Disney trip, I'm just not sure how much I should have figured out before we go. It's a bit overwhelming.

 

[rwdavis2]

Try easywdw.com. It's a good site and it's free. The have crowd calendars and some touring plane.

 

[Tbiafore]

As far as planning goes, you can put as much planning in as you want. If you have a rough idea what parks to go to on what day (to help avoid the busier parks), your dinning reservations and FP+ you already will do just fine. Just bring some maps or get familiar with the parks some before going so your not walking around lost if your not familiar with the layout.

Youll do just fine...

 

[jude&jonah]

I would do more planning than less- it really helps make the trip better. I would start by pulling up a calendar and figuring out what day you want to do each park- based on extra magic hours (if staying on property) and crowd levels. Then I would figure out your ADRs per day based on where you'll be. Put those in your calendar. Then I would choose my 3 FPs per day. Put those in your calendar (assuming you'll end up getting them- if you don't- you can just change them).

Lastly, I would come up with a plan on what time you plan to arrive at each park and what rides you want to head to right away. For instance, at MK, you probably will have FPs for things like:

Enchanted Tales with Belle
Meeting the Princesses
Peter Pan

(Obviously this would be different if you were traveling with older kids- I'm just being random as I don't know your kids ages- if you even have kids.)

So then I would make a tentative plan on my calendar that says something like (I'm basing this on you having small children- obviously if you don't- your schedule would look different):

1. Seven Dwarves Mine Train
2. Dumbo
3. Journey of the Little Mermaid
4. Winnie the Pooh
5. Get in line for Be Our Guest QS lunch
6. Do other fantasyland attractions that are less popular or shorter waits (Philharmagic, It's a small world, Teacups, etc.)
7. Head to adventure land and do attractions there
8. Parade

etc etc....

So basically I guess my point is I would definitely plan where you're going each day, book your ADRs, book your FPs when you can, and then have a tentative plan of your day- especially where you're going to head to first based on touringplans.com suggestions. If you stray from your plan- no biggie- especially as the day goes on I find- but I would have it printed out or on your smart phone or something so you can minimize line time. It makes a HUGE difference in Disney enjoyment IMO. Always go for the longer line rides as soon as you get to the park- the lines only get worse further into the day.

Also remember some people LOVE going "commando" (early AM to late PM at the park) and some people really like going for awhile until about 2pm (peak crowd time usually), heading back to the resort to swim and rest, and then coming back around 5 or 6 again. Make sure you try and decide what is best for you

 

[kwdw]

Sounds like you did your main homework - ADR's and FPs. I don't use crowd calendars or "touring plans made by others" -- but I DO check park hours. You didn't say if you are on-site or not - but if you are off-site - and there are early EMH's - then you should know that there will be lines before you get in the park. So - I do think knowing park hours and your "best guess" of a day plan based on that is a good thing. Likewise - the park with the evening EMH's is probably going to be busy later in the day. If on-site and you are going to stay to very last hour - that might be fine - but if you are off-site - that park is still going to busy close to your closing time.

In addition to park hours - review the maps - and be aware of your must-dos that you don't have FP for. You don't want to be zigzagging around the park - that's too tiring.

Know your parties meal habits. So - we are going to break for lunch sometime between 11:30-2 and that's going to take us 1-1.5 hours. That's just us. We are East Coast folks and lunchtime is drilled into our rhythm and its the meal we spend longest at. That means I'm NOT booking FPs in that time frame. And if we are "for sure" hitting the parade at MK - I won't book one at 3pm either.

If you haven't had a BIG trip to Disney before - even if lines get long - you can always do lesser attractions - go to Tom Sawyer's Island, Hall of Presidents, etc - and have a great time. I think if you try to plan every minute - that's going to be too overwhelming. It's supposed to be FUN!

 

[mco65]

Planning is great, the more the merrier but don't write it down in stone.. plans will change when your toddler wants to ride Buzz Lightyear 5 times in a row.. be willing to adjust on the fly.. just know what rides are where so your not running across the park to catch your next FP!...

 

[Cyrano]

Both touringplans and easyWDW are popular amongst folks on this board.
I am a subscriber to touringplans.

My main resource for trip planning is here on the DIS. There are boards for park planning - here
Other boards for resorts, dining, transportation and many more.

I would pick a topic then concentrate on that board until you are fairly happy with your plans

 

[lily2521]

As far as planning goes, you can put as much planning in as you want. If you have a rough idea what parks to go to on what day (to help avoid the busier parks), your dinning reservations and FP+ you already will do just fine. Just bring some maps or get familiar with the parks some before going so your not walking around lost if your not familiar with the layout.

Youll do just fine...

I do have our park days figured out based on predicted crowd levels, thanks to EasyWDW and Touring Plans. That was very helpful

 

[lily2521]

Sounds like you did your main homework - ADR's and FPs. I don't use crowd calendars or "touring plans made by others" -- but I DO check park hours. You didn't say if you are on-site or not - but if you are off-site - and there are early EMH's - then you should know that there will be lines before you get in the park. So - I do think knowing park hours and your "best guess" of a day plan based on that is a good thing. Likewise - the park with the evening EMH's is probably going to be busy later in the day. If on-site and you are going to stay to very last hour - that might be fine - but if you are off-site - that park is still going to busy close to your closing time.

Know your parties meal habits. So - we are going to break for lunch sometime between 11:30-2 and that's going to take us 1-1.5 hours. That's just us. We are East Coast folks and lunchtime is drilled into our rhythm and its the meal we spend longest at. That means I'm NOT booking FPs in that time frame. And if we are "for sure" hitting the parade at MK - I won't book one at 3pm either.

If you haven't had a BIG trip to Disney before - even if lines get long - you can always do lesser attractions - go to Tom Sawyer's Island, Hall of Presidents, etc - and have a great time. I think if you try to plan every minute - that's going to be too overwhelming. It's supposed to be FUN!

We are staying on site. I've checked park hours for each day, and based on our current play, we are avoiding parks with EMH's. We already have a day MK is open until midnight without EMH's. Plus we just won't take advantage of the extra hours, so I'd rather avoid those parks on those days.

 

[lily2521]

Planning is great, the more the merrier but don't write it down in stone.. plans will change when your toddler wants to ride Buzz Lightyear 5 times in a row.. be willing to adjust on the fly.. just know what rides are where so your not running across the park to catch your next FP!...

I'm sad they don't do the personalized maps anymore, I feel like this is where they'd really help us, knowing what rides we want are where, etc. I was thinking about maybe printing my own maps on larger paper, and marking them up on my own to know what we want to do and where it is the park, etc.

 

[lily2521]

Both touringplans and easyWDW are popular amongst folks on this board.
I am a subscriber to touringplans.

My main resource for trip planning is here on the DIS. There are boards for park planning - here
Other boards for resorts, dining, transportation and many more.

I would pick a topic then concentrate on that board until you are fairly happy with your plans

Thanks - also good advice. I think my husband thinks I'm crazy, being 3 1/2 months out and I'm online planning something pretty much every day. It's become a bit of an obsession. But on these boards I don't feel so along in my planning ahead - ha!

 

[Mikie]

I am a big planner, hang out here on the DIS, read EasyWDW and subscribe to touring plans. . . BUT I don't even use the step by step touring plans that list every attraction in order for you. I book meals and FPs (personally I do 11-2ish to minimize wait times in busy afternoon) and I use crowd calendars to determine which park which day. I look at the Cheat Sheets on EasyWDW as a guide (do this park counter clockwise, hit the lands in this order, etc) but that's just all "background" in my head for when we're in the parks and taking family's choices into account for what to do next. Total step by step feels rigid even for me and I know my family would revolt!

 

[xlsm]

Just make sure you have a general idea of how the parks are laid out so you know how to stagger your FPs. We usually plan ours between 10:30 and 2:30 so we can grab more. We also rope drop as much as possible because you can get SO MUCH done in the first two hours. Tomorrowland is usually empty, even in high summer, and that's the first place we head at MK. You seem like you're aware of the basics. I feel like I plan a lot, but I plan things in such a way that we can do what we "have" to do AND relax. That might sound counter intuitive, but it's true.

Have an AWESOME trip!!!

 

[Mikie]

I'm sad they don't do the personalized maps anymore, I feel like this is where they'd really help us, knowing what rides we want are where, etc. I was thinking about maybe printing my own maps on larger paper, and marking them up on my own to know what we want to do and where it is the park, etc.

In a "look on the bright side" vein - those personalized maps were a cool keepsake, but a little cumbersome to actually use in the park, and they also added a bunch of stuff I didn't specifically select, so your idea to print and mark up a paper copy will serve you just as well!

 

[lily2521]

I am a big planner, hang out here on the DIS, read EasyWDW and subscribe to touring plans. . . BUT I don't even use the step by step touring plans that list every attraction in order for you. I book meals and FPs (personally I do 11-2ish to minimize wait times in busy afternoon) and I use crowd calendars to determine which park which day. I look at the Cheat Sheets on EasyWDW as a guide (do this park counter clockwise, hit the lands in this order, etc) but that's just all "background" in my head for when we're in the parks and taking family's choices into account for what to do next. Total step by step feels rigid even for me and I know my family would revolt!

And maybe I'm better off looking at the parks the way you suggested, instead of looking at individual rides/attractions, look at the overall area/lands that we'll be in, pinpoint what to do in that land while we're there, before moving on to the next.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

We stick to a more relaxed "plan". We usually know what our must-do rides and shows are, and we know where we'd like to eat each day. Beyond that, we relax and enjoy our vacation. Our day to day is very busy and scheduled, so we like our vacation to be very go with the flow. We have been known to move our fast passes around while in the park. Sometimes we get sidetracked while the preschooler watches a bird, or we have to stop and admire the artwork. Sometimes we walk by an attraction with an amazingly low wait time. Sometimes we like to stop and play an extra 20 minutes at dumbo or Casey jr. Sometimes (usually) we have to ride dumbo or the dinosaur ride that like dumbo or Aladdin magic carpets 6 times in a row. And we wouldn't dream of missing those moments to stick to the plan. Disney magic tends to happen during the unplanned moments. When a random storm rolls through late in the evening, so you practically have the whole party to yourself and you get to spend 20 minutes playing peekaboo with Minnie Mouse. Or when POTC breaks down and you get stuck in the same spot for half an hour and you get to know your boats mates and make inside jokes.

So, having a plan is great. But remembering that this is a vacation, not boot camp, is more important.

 

[Greenfield1984]

much planning I should actually do? It's pretty overwhelming.

Ha! You just summed up what a Disney World vacation is all about.

But in all seriousness, with the ever increasing crowds, you really ought to have a pretty decent ride by ride plan before you go. Just like you mentioned you really don't want to be spending all that time criss crossing the park or spending a ton of time in line. Both touringplans, and easywdw can give you suggestions as to the order of attractions. And it will save you tons of time.

The downside, of course, is the loss of spontaneity. If this is your first trip i'd say try to stick to a pretty good plan so that you can see as much as possible. If this is a return trip then I'd say you have more room for flexibility.

But of course ultimately it depends on what will make you happy. And that should be your goal. Will a completely planned trip take all the joy of it for you? Then don't do it that way. But if you just find the initial planning stages daunting just know that once you start going you'll figure it out fairly quickly.

Have a great trip!

 

[IBLarsen]

I definitely would look at which days you want in each park, you need this to plan FP's anyways, and ADR's in the Parks. If you get a list of what your family's must-do's are, that is a great starting point. If you can do rope drop, you will get so much done the first two hours, and then schedule your FP's for busier times of the day (A great FP link is floating around with great info).
I will say our first trip it helped tremendously to have a loose itinerary of ride order, which saved a lot of standing around saying 'what do you want to do next?'. Decide if you want to start in Fantasyland first thing, then plan a general ride order for that, knowing to avoid lines you want to head right to either 7D Mine Train or Peter Pan first...etc. then fit in the rest of Fantasyland, working around FP's and then decide if you want to head to Tomorrowland or Frontierland. This sort of planning does help, even if it's overwhelming now, it makes for it to not be overwhelming while you're in the parks.
My husband gave me endless grief about the amount of planning and the itinerary, but I have to say he was very thankful, as we went during a busy time and it was a bit overwhelming. He was appreciative that we had a plan to follow and seemed so smooth to him.

 

[Sharpdisney]

Ditto to what many have written here.
Looks like you are set with which parks on which day.
Next, chose an ADR in that park (or outside park but consider commute time). one a day, less or more depending on your group.
Next, organizing parks by "land" is a good idea. We wre also first time, and I chose to organize my plan by a map so we didn't do a low of backtracking. I thought that would get us frustrated, tired, and maybe turned around.
FP midday is a fine idea.
Lots here advocate rope drop. My family wakes up early all year so I thou we'd d two RD days and the other mornings are later.

 

[asbyrneva]

We go at some of the busiest times of the year and I tend to be a planner for these trips but I dont overdue it. Decide your park days, your ADR and Fast passes. Then for parks where you are only going 1 day make a list of all the must do's beyond the Fast passes. We are rope drop folks and use Morning EMH so we get a lot in the first couple hours at a park. Even on Thanksgiving Day we never felt rushed or stood in line for anything that was more than a 20 minute posted time. I dont go crazy planning to every ride and every minute. That way if dear son wants to do sorcerer's of the magic kingdom for 30 minutes after lunch Im not waving some crazy color coded plan at DH and dont think it didnt cross my mind.

If we can get done the things we want and still have time to flex at thanksgiving you should be good with general ideas and not minute by minute planning in May. Have a great trip!