January plan advice

[fizz13]

The cast list will be Myself (26), DH (27), DD (5), DS (3), DS (11months), BIL (21), SIL(22).

Plan:
sat 1st: travel, dinner at Chef Mickeys

sun 2nd:Seaworld

mon 3rd: Epcot F/W, lunch at Beaches and Cream

tue 4th: Animal Kingdom, Hoop-de-doo Revue

wed 5th: DOWN DAY

thur 6th: Islands of Adventure

fri 7th: Magic Kingdom, CRT breakfast, dinner 'Ohana

sat 8thOWN DAY, dinner Emerills

sun 9th: late start, Epcot W/S, dinner Teppanyaki

Mon 10th Universal Studios

tue 11th: Disney MGM, dinner Hollywood & Vine Fantasmic package

wed 12th: DOWN DAY, dinner Boma

thur 13th: (DS 1st birthday) Magic Kingdom, lunch Crystal Palace

fri 14th: PACKING Wonderland Tea Party for kids


How
does this daily plan sound? Have I managed to avoid early entry days, peak days? I know I'm going early January but its better to be safe than sorry. Also I picked Seaworld for Jan 2nd as I figure WDW would be heaving. Is there a way to go to WDW on that day without serious crowds?
Have I picked the right place for my DS 1st birthday?
Any advice on this plan would be greatfully received.

Much love,
Claire

 

[wdwobsessed]

Personally I think your plan looks great. You put in some down days and that is terriffic! I think your DS will love CP for his b-day.

Happy traveling!

I also think you will not have any problems with crowds once the weekend has passed. My kids have to be back in school by January 3rd so if we would have to leave on the 2nd!

Maybe everyone will be sleeping in that day. LOL

WDWO

 

[HopperFan]

Your plan looks great ! Very well thought out !

Finally someone not trying to kill themselves each day - and believe me we do a hard day, but some plans are crazy.

Just some FYI information -

Here in GA many schools are out on Monday the 3rd for teachers to get ready for the next semester SO Sunday could still be busy at parks since we can drive home in one day on Monday.

Sunday, the 9th is the Disney Half and Full Marathon as well as shorter races that I think are the 8th. You may want to make sure you get your PS for Fri, Sat & Sun night in asap as WDW will pick up a few thousand more guests including us !

Sounds like a wonderful trip - have fun !

ps I love Crystal Palace for a One Year Old Birthday !

 

[kandmwedding]

Your plan looks great! My DH and I went last January and found that during the week the crowds were basically non-existant, but they did pick up on the weekends, especially at MK. Based on that, I think you've made the right choices. A few bits of advice, make sure to bring plenty of warm clothes. While Florida is hardly cold in comparison to other places, all the humidity and water around WDW can make things feel really chilly. Something we definitely learned the hard (cold) way! Also, make sure to get a B-Day button for your son. While he won't remember it, you and the rest of the family will have fun with all the extra attention he gets.

 

[Praise2Him]

I also think your plan looks great. We do one thing differently. We always plan our Universal and IOA days back-to-back and stay at one of their resorts for 1 night. That way you get front of the line access and you get to experience a different resort. We also plan if for the middle of our vacation so that we get to split our stay at 2 Disney resorts, but you could do it at the beginning or the end and only stay at 1 Disney resort. Of course, you may not want to change resorts, but it's a thought. We love it!

 

[Jillpie]

The only thing I would change is the lack of time in Magic Kingdom. For 14 days, I think 2 days there is not enough. But then again, when we are there only 7 days, we're at MK at least 4 times, we just can't get enough. So it just might be me, but with the ages of your kids, I don't think they will enjoy Universal nearly as much as they would Magic Kingdom. Have fun!

 

[fizz13]

Thankyou so much for all your positive views, I did ok! We stayed the same time in January before as we have timeshare so are aware of the fluctuations in the weather, but thanks for the tip.

As for US and IOA, I don't think staying onsite for a night is an option budget-wise, even though that FOTL sounds great. We know the kids are too young really, but we missed out last time due to their age and I don't want to wait any more to ride the hulk coaster! Hopefully, we have enough adults to keep them entertained while we all switch round.

I agree about MK but don't want to force it down other peoples throats in the party. I'm hoping the bug will kick in when they see the castle, maybe use down day time on it.

Thank you once again for all your comments and if anyone else would like to comment, please keep it coming,

Much love,
Claire

 

[CindyAnn]

Claire - I think it looks like a great plan and I especially love your down days too. That's what gives you the stamina to enjoy the rest of the trip! Your restaurant choices look like places that the kids and adults will both enjoy. I'll just offer up a couple of points for your consideration.

1) The last 2 years we've travelled to WDW over New Year's and we've actually found that if we spend December 31st in AK and January 1st in Epcot there aren't really many crowds at all. By January 2nd we pretty much based our visit on the day of the week (i.e. Sunday this year) rather than the fact that it was just after New Years. I don't think there's anything wrong with Seaworld on the 2nd (haven't visited in many years), but if for some reason it turns out to be much better to go to WDW that day, I think you should still be okay there.

2) We are usually totally fried on our travel day (up since 4:00 a.m. or so) and everybody gets either comatose or evil by about 7:00 p.m. I'm sure most families are more energetic (and undoubtedly much nicer) but I think you'll probably want a fairly early dinner PS at Chef Mickeys. I realize you'll be travelling from the UK which may make your travel time even more gruelling unless you've planned a stopover.

3) I think the age range for the Wonderland Tea Party is 4 - 10, and Disney is usually fairly strict about it, so it may be that only your 5yo will be able to attend.

4) Tuesday Jan. 11th will be early entry at MGM and Thursday Jan. 13th will be early entry at MK. (Just pointing that out in your plan because it sounds like you want to avoid ee days). Even with that, though, I think MK is a great place to celebrate a 1yo's birthday.

It sounds like you're going to have a great time!

Cheers,