Is 6 nights long enough?

[Missyma919]

I know ideally we could go for like 10 nights! but reality is we can not, so is 6 nights long enough? Family is mom, dad, dd 9, dd7, ds 2. We won't get there till 330 pm and leave early the last day so essentially that leaves:
First night evening open (maybe spectro or DTD)
5 days in parks.

I have heard you have to go at a slower pace with the little ones (ds 2) but I worry that we won't be able to do everything we want becasue of this in just 6 nights! We live far away so its a once every two years or so we make it out there.

 

[laceemouse]

Most of our trips have been one day in each of the 4 parks and then one more relaxing day to swim, go to DTD, etc.
Of course you will not be able to see and do it all, it really depends on the crowds though.
I would get a very good planning book and decide which things in each park are top priorities. Then, try to get those done first.
With a 2 year old you are going to be slowed down a little, but I would just take my time and smell the roses. Whatever you miss this trip you can catch the next time.

 

[tzolkin]

We stay for longer (9-11 nights), but we take lots of breaks and don't spend much time in the parks each day. We usually go to an am EMH park (you can get so much done before 11:00!) and then head back to the resort to get out of the heat/crowds (we go around Memorial Day) and take a nice long nap. We then head back to the parks from about 5-8:30. So we're only in the parks for about 3 hours at a time. If we had a shorter trip, we'd probably stay in the parks the whole day.

I wouldn't say you have to go at a slower pace with a little one, but you will need breaks (whatever kind work for your family). My parents went for 6 nights with my sister and her 2 year old in Sept. They did not return to the resort for an afternoon break, but they had two table service meals each day where they got out of the heat, relaxed, and usually met some characters.

We're actually able to move pretty quickly because the little ones are in strollers and DH and I can walk at our own pace. Your older kids will also have the ability to ride many attractions twice if mom and dad do rider switch with the little ones. We found the waiting time with the little one(s) a good time for them to eat a snack.

Will you have park hoppers? I think that's a good way to maximize your park time. We always have a set schedule of one park we're going to do for EITHER the morning or evening each day that way we're flexible for part of each day to fit in anything we missed or want to do again. For example, we know we will go to MK on Thurs for morning EMH but we let the kids decide where they want to go that evening after our afternoon nap. Our first trip we had a bad experience in AK and were DONE after about two hours. That would have been a miserable or wasted day if we felt we couldn't go to another park. We also love to use the monorail to go between MK and Epcot. We can just get the kids' hair cut or do two attractions that they really want to do again in MK and then hop on the monorail and spend the rest of the evening at Epcot.

 

[laceemouse]

We never hop, it takes a lot of time from your day, but most people think it is essential. When our kids were younger they never would have wanted to leave a park before doing it all!
We have never taken breaks during the day, but we never get up really early either. Also, we generally try NOT to go at all when it is super hot out.
I guess your older kids have been before? That could change the whole answer.

 

[It'sWDW4me]

For me 60 nights wouldn't be enough!!

No, you won't be able to see and do everything in a little more than 5 days with a little one in tow. BUT - what you do get to see and do will be absolutely wonderful if you let it.

My advice:

1. if you want to do all four parks, pick out 1, maybe 2 things per person per park that you would be just devastated if you didn't do. (i.e. MK = Pooh & Dumbo for 2yo; PhilharMagic & Buzz for 7yo; PoTC & Splash for 9yo; BTMRR & HM for dad; Spectro & Laugh Floor for mom) Anything else that gets sqeezed in is gravy.

2. use FastPass &/or child swap whenever possible.

3. either take along or rent a stroller for the 2yo. Those little legs tire easily and your precious ds will weigh a ton (or your arms will feel like it) by the end of the day.

4. PLAN, PLAN, PLAN ahead. I work my butt off before the trip and know what park we'll be in each day, where we'll eat (with my ADR confirmation numbers listed), and what we must see this trip. Armed with this info, I can have relaxing days to soak in all the little things that keep me going back.

Wishing you lots of magical moments during your trip!

 

[tzolkin]

1. if you want to do all four parks, pick out 1, maybe 2 things per person per park that you would be just devastated if you didn't do. (i.e. MK = Pooh & Dumbo for 2yo; PhilharMagic & Buzz for 7yo; PoTC & Splash for 9yo; BTMRR & HM for dad; Spectro & Laugh Floor for mom) Anything else that gets sqeezed in is gravy.

This is great advice. We have made the customized maps on the Disney website with each person's top one (or two) attraction in each park. We kept the maps in the hotel room and looked them over before heading to each park.

 

[sksjasams]

We stayed 6 nights and it was an excellent trip. We got to do almost everything that we wanted to, and still have somethings to look forward to if we go again. Definitely have a touring plan for each park and prioritize attractions. I would not hop - you will lose too much time. Just spend a full day at each park. I would not plan anything for the first night - explore the resort, maybe swim, and get to bed early.

Here is what we did:
Thurs: arrival early evening
Friday: Hollywood Studios
Sat: Animal Kingdom
Sun: SLEEP IN - then brunch at Chef Mickeys and little shopping at DTD
Mon: Epcot
Tues: Magic Kingdom
Wed: departure late morning

I did use Unofficial Touring Guide and Tourguide Mike to help make touring plans and also choose the best day for each park. The sleep in day with a break from the parks in the middle of the trip worked out nicely. Have a great trip!

 

[ms_missy66]

You'll go home tired, but heck yeah that's definitely enough time! Have a great trip! I love the idea of picking a few things you HAVE to do in each park.

 

[We Luv Disney]

I agree with It'sWDW4me! 60 days would not be enough for our family! We spent 8 days at Walt Disney World this past summer and had a great time. What helped our family was lots of early planning. We sat down as a family an planned out our itinerary. We went to the Disney World website and downloaded the park hours for each of the parks. We noted which park were offering Extra Magic Hours during our stay and planned our trip accordingly. The parks offering the EMH determined which park we would visit that day so that we could maximize our time in the park. As It'sWDW4me suggested, each person in our family chose 1-2 attractions at each park, so that our wish list only consisted of 8 attractions per day. Any extra attractions were icing on the cake! We collected our fast passes early in the day but didn't use them until later because the lines where very short early in the day and often very there was little to no wait. When the lines were longer in the afternoon or evening we would pull out our fastpasses. That way, we could visit our favorite attractions more than once. We went back during the heat of the day for lunch, nap, and a swim. Being rested as you know makes everyone happier! We didn't park hop until the last few of days. We also built in lots of snack breaks or sit down attractions throughout the day so that we could rest/relax and catch our breath. We had one sitdown meal with the characters so that we could get our photos taken with them and have them sign our kids autograph books and bypassing the long lines in the park. Hope that helps and have a "Magical" trip!

 

[Kat77]

I agree with the PP's-you won't do everything but you will have time to do the most important things. Just plan your attack!
We used Tour Guide Mike and got really great tips. I'm anti-emh myself... I avoid the parks offering EMH and head to another (embracing the theory that emh parks are busier by midmorning than the other parks). We've added hopping before and it was wasted money (for us) ... our kids won't leave a park once we get there!

 

[LWatson]

We stayed for 8 nights w/ 7 days in the parks, and we did well. Our last 2 days were half days at that. The first time we went we did 6nights 5days and did all we wanted. We dont take breaks to go back to the room though as our LOs sleep in the stroller really well, and we didnt park hop last time (we did the first time to just try it).

 

[sksjasams]

I agree with the PP's-you won't do everything but you will have time to do the most important things. Just plan your attack!
We used Tour Guide Mike and got really great tips. I'm anti-emh myself... I avoid the parks offering EMH and head to another (embracing the theory that emh parks are busier by midmorning than the other parks). We've added hopping before and it was wasted money (for us) ... our kids won't leave a park once we get there!

I agree, as does the TGM advice, its better to avoid EMH parks - they are extra crowded. Also, definitely get to the park you choose each day at "rope drop", meaning shortly before they open. You will get so much accomplished the first 2 hours of the day.

 

[Kat77]

I agree, as does the TGM advice, its better to avoid EMH parks - they are extra crowded. Also, definitely get to the park you choose each day at "rope drop", meaning shortly before they open. You will get so much accomplished the first 2 hours of the day.

Yup-That's the way to do it! I'm not a morning person but those first couple hours are totally worth it!

 

[bgohre]

For me 60 nights wouldn't be enough!!

OMG, I was just thinking the exact same thing.