Longtime lurker now needs help!

[amyb1120]

I've lurked here a long time, dreaming of the day when I could finally take my kids to WDW. That day has finally come! I have not been to the world in - gasp! - TWELVE YEARS! We're not telling the girls where we're going until we get there.

Ok, so here's my question... Thanks to you all here, I am being smart about our trip planning and taking advantage of the EMH, FP, etc - all the things that were not there back when I last went. We are mom, dad, DD5, DD3, DS 6 months. Here's my park itinerary so far:

Arrival Day: Stay at hotel
Wed: MK (only day we're not doing EMH, but want their first experience of WDW to be the castle. This is the part where I burst into tears. LOL!)
Thurs: PROBLEM #1
Fri: MK w/ evening EMH
Sat: AK w/ morning EMH
Sun: PROBLEM #2
Mon: HS w/ morning EMH
Tues: MK w/ morning EMH

Which would be better for a 3 and 5 year old (little guy just goes with the flow!)? Thurs - sleep in and go to Epcot - World Showcase only, then Sun do Epcot Future World only w/ morning EMH OR Thurs - go at RD for Epcot, do BOTH Future World and World Showcase with evening EMH and Sun do a fourth MK day w/ evening EMH? I'm fully aware that we will have to go back to the hotel for afternoon naps. I guess what I'm saying is 2 1/2 MK and 2 Epcot or 3 1/2 MK and 1 Epcot better for kids those ages? Will kids those ages be able to do an entire day in WS or Future World?

Thanks for your imput!

 

[ilandrazdsw]

You don't have PHs, correct? So 1 park/day.
My DD is 3 and DS is 5 (when we went). Personally I would go with more days at MK than 2 1/2 days at Epcot. I really don't know what rides DS6mo would be able to do. DD is a tall 3. She was able to meet the 40" requirements, so we got to do just about everything. The WS is nice. They do have the Kidcot stations (beware of Sharpie markers!!!). If you do Epcot in one day do RD with Future World in the AM and then WS when you come back from nap time...you can do any FW attractions that you have FPs in the afternoon too. On the other hand, by having 1/2 days available it gives you time to explore DTD, the pool, and other resorts.
Have fun!!!

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

I wouldn't recommend late EMH hours followed by Early EMH hours... Makes for very tired people.

While I totally understand that you want to get everything in, I would just make a rough plan, go with the flow and don't let any blips ruin the day. There are always blips.

Good luck and have a great trip.

 

[srwarden1928]

If you do NOT have hoppers, do NOT do the EMH. The EMH parks get very busy during the main part of the day compared to the non EMH parks. If you hop out of the AM EMH park to the recommended park or hop into the PM EMH park from the recommended park, they work. If you do not hop, you face big crowds later. We do NOT hop or do EMH for these reasons.

 

[ilandrazdsw]

If you do NOT have hoppers, do NOT do the EMH. The EMH parks get very busy during the main part of the day compared to the non EMH parks. If you hop out of the AM EMH park to the recommended park or hop into the PM EMH park from the recommended park, they work. If you do not hop, you face big crowds later. We do NOT hop or do EMH for these reasons.

Sorry, I disagree when it comes to the AM EMH. Yes, the parks can crowd up with additional visitors being there for the EMH, but you really can get *so* much done in that first hour...especially if you are taking a break in the afternoon.

 

[sk!mom]

If you do NOT have hoppers, do NOT do the EMH. The EMH parks get very busy during the main part of the day compared to the non EMH parks. If you hop out of the AM EMH park to the recommended park or hop into the PM EMH park from the recommended park, they work. If you do not hop, you face big crowds later. We do NOT hop or do EMH for these reasons.

I completely agree. Rearrange, look at crowd levels on TGM or UG, and go to whatever park is forcast as the least crowded. EMH's are too tiring in the summer as the parks are open pretty early and late anyway. Getting to the park at 9:00 is early enough.

 

[NJR]

You know your children best, so this may not apply to you and your family, but I'll share my concern - *I* would be very reluctant to plan so many evening EMHs with such little ones, even with afternoon naps. We were there for 10 days in November with our two sons (2.5y and 2m), and did not even consider doing more than one evening EMH (and even then, we wrapped it up by 9:00). Not sure when you are going, but if it is in summer you may be surprised at how tiring the Florida heat can be (we went once in September and were absolutely dead tired by dinner). Perhaps your little ones are more tolerant of late bedtimes than my older son, who is a wonderful sleeper putting in a solid 11-12 hours/night but who generally hits his limit before 8:30 - we have a lot more Disney fun getting him to bed on time and starting fresh the next morning than by dragging what would be an exhausted and cranky kiddo around late at night. Like I said, your LO's may be different, this is just my own experience.

As for MK vs Epcot, I would vote with more MK than Epcot. Much as I love Epcot, there is not quite as much to hold young childrens' attention as there is at MK.

FWIW, you may wish to take along some sort of baby carrier for your littlest guy. It's so nice to be able to have your hands free while getting on and off rides (eg IASW).

Have a great time!

 

[MiniGirl]

When is your trip, Amy? That would determine if you need to do the EMH. Also, something we have found that doing a park the morning following it's evening EMH works great. For example, if MK had EMH on Monday night, going there on Tuesday morning works well. Many resort guests will generally not return to the park they were at the previous night.

 

[2manyprincesses]

The evening EMH's jumped out at me too. I have 8, 6, 4 and 1 year olds and I don't plan on doing them for our upcoming trip. However we are planing early mornings.

So, I guess my point would be to choose one that would work best for your kids. Early or late but NOT both.

What worked great for us is to have a pretty detailed plan all ready and then adjust it on the day of. Example: We did RD at MK one day and as it turns out my DD that hated all rides at the time LOVED Cindy's Carousel. We stuck around and rode it a few times and skipped other stuff. Worked great.

Hope you have a really great trip!!