How should we plan our days for AK & HS??

[mshanson3121]

I'm trying to decide the best planning approach: kids will be just shy of 9 & 11. Both have special needs (ASD, SPD, EDS etc...), but do handle night times well (both my kids are night owls). DD isn't really a morning person, but can manage. We're traveling May 14-21 and stay at All Star Movies. We won't have a car, so will rely on bus only.

When I plug in what we want to do into Touring plans for these two days, I always end up with a few free hours. So, I'm wondering whether we should rope drop, take an afternoon break, and then come back for the evening, just plan to stay all day and fill in the time however (there are probably things we could do, they just weren't our "must dos"), or if we should take a more relaxed morning and instead of worrying about rope drop, just get to the parks late morning (thinking 11 or 12), and just stay straight through. We are doing both night time shows.

My thinking is: rope drop means we can get things done with a bit less wait (especially all the character m&gs they want to do at HS, and we can tour the animal trails before the peak heat of the day hits), but, entering the park late means DD gets to sleep in/relax more in the mornings after a late night.

I also wasn't sure, is it even worth the hassle of leaving the park and coming back, if we're only going to have a couple hours at the hotel?

Thoughts?

 

[pitpat]

morning and evening with a break sounds like a good plan, especially with the nice May weather. Sounds like the things you want to accomplish in the morning won't be crazy, so that will work out well.

 

[Calee]

Where are you staying? I personally prefer rope drop, break in the hottest/busiest time of the day, and then return, but others like it the other way.

 

[mom2rtk]

If I only have one day per park, I'm staying all day. With more than one day, I would consider a slightly shorter day at any park other than the MK.

 

[Cornucopiaoflove]

Last year when I went with my DH we rope dropped with a mid-day break and then came back in the evening. I get overstimulated and somewhat anxious in big crowds, and I really needed that down time. Plus, it meant we were headed back at the hottest part of the day!

 

[glocon]

Maybe RopeDrop one day then have a late day next? We too like mid day breaks to relax and refresh. It does take a chunk of your day though. That break may be a game changer though if your kids can get more enjoyment out of the day with a bit of down time.

 

[Rach3975]

With kids who have special needs like ASD, I'd recommend the morning and evening with a break in between. It can get to be a lot, surrounded by crowds and noise and waiting in lines. Even though my son LOVES Disney, too many hours in a row can lead to overstimulation and exhaustion, which is a recipe for him to meltdown or shut down. (Having DAS can help a lot if your kids are eligible, so you might want to look into it. We've never had any problems getting it for my son.) TBH, even my 2 typical kids prefer a mid-day break. They get worn out from all the walking and ready for some down time. And with the mid-day usually the most crowded time of day, they all get a little frustrated with lines then. All of that said, they can't handle continuous late nights followed by early mornings. So you may want to try some later arriving days without a break after your latest nights. You can still get some breaks through shows, TS meals, and riding a few loops on the monorail or taking a boat wherever it goes.

 

[TongaToast21]

We did toy story land EMM and the initial RD rush and crowd that poured in was unlike anything I've seen before. However I noticed around midday the crowds did thin out at TSL and SDD. Unless you were in the front of that crowd, you were waiting 3+ hours for SDD

 

[mshanson3121]

So you may want to try some later arriving days without a break after your latest nights. You can still get some breaks through shows, TS meals, and riding a few loops on the monorail or taking a boat wherever it goes.

This is sort of what we have decided. We're going to do an open to close day at AK, making use of shows, ADR etc... for breaks. Next day we'll do HS, but not go till lunchtime, stay till close, again utilizing shows etc. Next day will be a full day off.