I need advise please

[PartyofSix]

Here's the plan and I need someone to tell me if this is doable. My husband and I are doing a VERY quick trip with our dd's 9,9, & 3. We want to make the most of it for our girls being we only have ONE day. We check in early like 8 saturday morning to ASMU. We are headed only to MK. I was thinking we could do a late CP breakfast like 10:20"ish, spend sometime in the park and there is a parade at 3 then head back to the room for rest. (is that 3pm parade worth staying for?) After resting up a bit make a 5:30"ish ADR for chef mickeys figuring that will take 2 hrs from leaving ASMU to MK entry. So we'd catch the 8 and 9 pm parade grab a snack and head back to ASMU. Leaving sunday morning to DTD and lunch at Rainforest Cafe before our 4 hr drive home. Now I don't know the distance between the hotel to the MK. And from the hotel to Contempory Resort and from CR to the MK after supper. Could somebody please help me or make alternate suggestions.

 

[Bob P]

Hi,

My first thought is that if you only have one day, you are burning a lot of it in sit-down meals and transit.

Maybe you should shoot for spending the whole day at the MK?

 

[jlk806]

Provided you dont have to wait long for a bus, it should take 40 minutes or less to get from your resort to the MK (allow longer though in case you just miss the bus). Once at the MK the monorail to the Contemporary is only a 5 minute or less ride (but will vary depending on the wait for the monorail).

 

[danielle.st]

My kids love all parades, but if we had only one day I think I would chose just one parade.
Are you planning on using disney transportation to get back and forth from ASMu to the park, Contemporary, etc?
If you are driving, when you go back for dinner you should just park at the TTC and monorail to the Contemporary for dinner and then walk or monorail to MK for the rest of the evening IMO.

 

[soonerfan2008]

If you only have one day, I'd rent a city mini single in Orlando. It has a HUGE sunshade and fully reclines, so the 3 year old can rest/nap in it. I'd skip the break in the middle of the day.

If you hit rope drop, a late breakfast would be perfect. Then snack at the park until you can take the monorail to your CM ADR (although I personally would skip that on a one day trip and eat in the park).

We were there in Jan on a 4 day trip with an 18 month old and a 3.5 year old, and we own the city mini double. We did not take a break each day, and it really was fine.

 

[disneypolybride2008]

I would say the biggest mistake would be to go back to the hotel mid day. Just make sure everyone is rested the night before and energized for your day at Disney. Walking to the busses, waiting for the busses, the long ride to resort about 15 min, rest, repeat..?? that is wasting a ton of time. I like to relax on Tom Sawyer Island at MK. You can walk around, it's so peaceful, and there are rocking chairs to sit on and look at the crowds across the river. We like the parades and the 3pm is a good one. If I were going for one day, i would just see if we're near the parade route during that time, grab a spot and watch, but i wouldnt sit for any length of time in a "spot" and wait for the parade. The Crystal Palace breakfast sounds good. We really like going at opening though, it's way less crowded and you can get in the park early.

 

[dreams4disney]

A few years ago we went to Magic Kingdom for one day only. Our vacation was at Daytona Beach. We got lots of rest the night before and woke up early and made it to MK. We were some of the first ones there. We did not leave Magic Kingdom. We made a reservation for Crystal Palace and did snacks and counter service. We did not leave until park closing at 11pm. We drove back to Daytona Beach and had a nice day of relaxation the next day.

The youngest (out of the 4)at the time was 3 almost 4. I have to say that even after many on site stays that one day was one of the best we have ever had at Magic Kingdom. Our kids had a blast.

 

[Joyful Pixiedust]

I also agree that the room break would be a big potential time-waster for a one day visit. Also keep in mind that you may not get to actually check-in to a room at 8:00 am. Yes, you could pre-register, but the room may not be available to occupy until much later.

Other posters have already stated that CR is a quick monorail ride away from MK, but do keep in mind that Chef Mickey is one of the highest-demand character meals, and where you don't mention how soon this plan is to happen, that element may be challenging to achieve.

Finally, the All Star resorts are closer to AK than MK, so plan a 15-minute ride minimum each way, resort to park only. Add on time for waiting for the bus, picking up at the other AS resorts, etc. If you are driving, you will still need to park at the CTT and take a boat or monorail to the park.

Whatever you do, I hope it's wonderful!