Magic Kingdom "Must-See"s for Adults

[SkylarKD]

My fiance and I will be in Disney World for our honeymoon at the end of August. What are the must-sees in MK for adults? Neither of us have ever been to Disney World or Disneyland before. We'll have a day in each park, and then an extra day to finish up any extra things we missed (we'll probably spend half of that day in Epcot).

This is what we're thinking of seeing:

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
Carousel of Progress
Cinderella's Golden Carrousel
Haunted Mansion
Mickey's PhilharMagic
Pirates of the Caribbean
Space Mountain
Splash Mountain
Timekeeper
Spectromagic Parade
Wishes

We'll probably go on these for a relaxing ride:

Liberty Square Riverboat
Tomorrowland Transit Authority
Walt Disney World Railroad

We're debating seeing:

Hall of Presidents
Jungle Cruise


Any comments?

 

[hockey mom]

I think it would be easier to start a "can skip" list. For me it would be
1-Magic carpets of Alladin
2-dumbo
3-Swiss tree house
4- Riverboat

Whether you are a kid or an adult I think everything else is a must. Have fun!

 

[Barbday62]

I like to see everything but I think I agree about Jungle ride. Its pretty corney.

I personally love the Hall of Presidents though. Its a really great attraction. And its air condition and sit down so a nice late afternoon break when you are hot and need a break.

 

[KSgirl]

When my hubby and I go without the kids at MK:

HAVE TO DO:
The mountains
Wishes
TTA
Peter Pan
Mickey's Philharmagic
Carosel of Progress

IF WE CAN FIT IN:
Pirates
Jungle Cruise
Haunted Mansion


and, IMHO, THINGS THAT ARE WORTH SEEING ONCE:
Buzz Lightyear
Tiki Birds
Hall of Presidents

We have NEVER SEEN:
Timekeeper

One of our all time FAVORITES:
Making a PS for Crystal Palace on a non-EM day, before the park opens (say 8:10ish) to walk down Main Street without the crowds. We really enjoy their breakfast buffet.

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding/honeymoon and good luck fitting it all in! My husband and I went to Disney World for our honeymoon (my first visit) and are returning in 2 weeks for our 15 year anniversary!!

 

[Yensid_MD]

How can you miss Jungle Cruise? It is great because it is so corney.

"Those butterflies have a wingspan of 12 inches to 1 foot"

"I see they were able to turn over my jeep"


IMHO it is a MUST NOT MISS.

But go with the idea that it is cornball now. And check out all the stuff in the queue as you are waiting.

 

[msr709]

I'm sorry but I have to disagree with the post to disregard "Dumbo." While it is a kiddie ride its a classic and I love it. I always try to do it first thing in AM or while the parade is on, its also one of my favorite places to take pictures of the park! I also never miss Jungle Cruise, Peter Pan, Tea Cups, Carousel of Progress, the TTA is also a not to be missed, you can get great pictures from there also, I've gotten great fireworks pictures from TTA. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding and have a wonderful honeymoon, you couldn't have picked a better place. Have fun!

 

[miste76]

I don't think there's anything that should be missed, especially if this is your first visit! Do it all!!!!! There is so much to do, that it might not be possible... but I know I try to get it all in every year!!! Good luck getting everything in and congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

 

[webmomom]

I agree with don't miss any rides if you possibly can. It does not matter whether you are a child or an adult, at Disney we all are children. Both my Dh and myself go on as much as we can on each and every trip. It is all Disney and that is the Magic to feel like a child again. We have our fav's, that we always ride, but still try to ride the other ones also.

 

[wdarling]

i really enjoy jungle cruise. it all depends on who drives the boat but it makes for a fun time.

 

[Miniefan]

I don't know about you or your soon to be husband, but I am an adult and I still check everything out, even the kiddie stuff, I can't resist, and if this is your first trip I would say pack it in and try to do all you can, WDW is truly an experience and even the most seasoned WDW traveler will still find there is something they might have missed so go, have fun and do everything you possibly can cram into your day. Enjoy your honeymoon!
Kim

 

[vmkids]

I was not a big fan of the jungle cruise but this time we did it at night and it was cool. For a little extra thrill sit in the very back of boat on the right hand side and you will get the thrill of having water almost come over the boat. We had to ride twice because my teen daughter didn't see anyhting but the water rising up to meet her the first time through! I would say ride Thunder railroad at night too. We saw wishes fire works from the top of the mountain! Splash is also different at night. WE were surprised how different the atmosphere to some rides were at night. Not to mention without kids you can snuggle!

 

[Miniefan]

I totally agree about the Mk at night, during our stay we spent almost every night at the Mk,it so much prettier with everything lit up and a lot less crowded and definitely not as hot. Everyone in our traveling party would agree MK is best at night.
Again, enjoy!
Kim

 

[suerob]

I would say skip Jungle Cruise. It is so outdated and boring. Thw whole time I was on it I kept thinking to myself what a waste of time this was. I saw the Hall of Presidents in 1992. I really liked it but haven't seen it since. I think you should go once but that was enough for me. I don't like Pirates of the Caribbean either - lame.

 

[tjkraz]

Gotta have the TTA on that list. I don't even want to SPEAK to someone who doesn't like the TTA.

Jungle Cruise is OK, but the lines can get long early and it's really not an attraction worth waiting for in that regard. FastPass if possible. But as someone who spent his youth at Cedar Point, which ran its own JC clone for years, it's an attraction that I don't mind missing.

 

[SkylarKD]

Thanks for all the opinions! While we'd love to see everything, I know we just won't be able to, so we'll have our list of must-sees, and anything after that will be an added bonus! We want to be able to enjoy sight-seeing too, so I don't want to do MK too commando-style.

Thanks for the fantastic idea about going on particular rides at night, I sort-of forgot we'd have that option! *L* Question though: is it difficult to get on Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad & the Jungle Cruise at night? Are there loooong lines/no Fast Passes left?

Thanks!

 

[tjkraz]

Originally posted by SkylarKD
Thanks for all the opinions! While we'd love to see everything, I know we just won't be able to, so we'll have our list of must-sees, and anything after that will be an added bonus!

I wouldn't worry too much. At the end of August, crowds will be fairly moderate. We last visited in May '04, which has comparable attendance levels. Between 6pm - 9pm, we did the following:

Ate dinner
Buzz Lightyear
Space Mountain
Astro Orbiter
TTA
BTMR
Splash Mountain

Would have caught Wishes, too, but we stopped to purchase the photo of DW and I on Splash Mtn (we were the last ride of the night--only two in the log) and they had problems with the printer. Oh, well, maybe next time.

If you're committed to having a somewhat-leisurely trip, the best advice I could give would be to take a break in the middle of each day. There's nothing written that says that you need to arrive at 9am and stay until closing.

We like to plan our mornings at one park, take a mid-day break (nap, swim, shop), then change clothes and go somewhere else for the evening. To me, the definitition of "commando touring" is anyone who wants to do the open-to-close routine at a single park. Doesn't matter the pace they're moving at--if you go into your day planning to be inside a single gate for 10 hours or more, you're gonna be dog tired at the end.

 

[vmkids]

One of the best times to ride is when the parades are going on. Watch them one day and night and then do the mountains another night during them. We also got fast passes and sometimes you can ride twice in a row that way.

 

[SkylarKD]

Great tips, thanks! I'll talk to FH about switching parks in the evenings, for a change of pace. We'll definitely take advantage of parade time too, we're not all that interested in seeing the daytime parades, and we'll only see Spectro once.

One more question: Is MK a good park to visit on a rainy day? If not, what are the best rainy-day parks?

 

[EsmeraldaX]

I must be weird because I love the Jungle Cruise - but I only like it at night.

I think going in August, that you will have time to see everything at MK, if you use fast pass.

If you have to skip anything, I would skip Dumbo, the carousel, Tea Cups, Indy Speedy way, Astro Orbitor, The Flying Carpets, and Mickey's Toon Town rides. Although these are cute, they are similiar to rides at amusement parks.

Tom Sawyer Island can be a relaxing place to spend some time mid day for a rest. Sit down, play checkers and have a soda and snack in relative peace and quiet.

I think that MK is one of the best for rainy days because most stuff is inside and you will be able to move from building to building quickly.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Here is our list of Must see's etc. for our Dec. trip. We too will have just 4 days one day for each park, although we are skipping most of AK. (We love AK but we were just there in FEB). We are also two adults, in our late 20's/early 30's.

Rides we MUST NOT MISS :
Spaceship Earth
Mission Space
Tower of Terror
Test Track
Stitch's Great Escape
Small World (closed for refurb until 2005 )
Mickey's Philharmagic
Buzz
Space Mountain
Thunder Mountain
Safari
Dinosaur
Magic Kingdom Train
Peter Pan
Winnie the Pooh
Muppets 3d
Star Tours
Universe of Energy
Tomorrow Land Transit Authority
Carosel of Progress (open seasonally)
Timekeeper (open seasonally)
Honey I shrunk the Audience
Figment (Journey Into Imagination)
Maelstrom
Disney Quest Roller Coaster Builder (then ride your creation via simularor)
Disney Quest Pirates of the Carribean
Disney Quest Jungle Cruise Adventure
The Tiki Birds
Flying Carpets of Aladdin (bah! I like this one!)
Pirates of the Carribean
Jungle Cruise (at night)
Great Movie Ride
Wishes
Illuminations
Mickey's Christmas Parade
World Showcase live performers
American Adventure
Fantasmic. I will not miss Fantasmic
Haunted Mansion

Rides we'd LIKE TO DO if we have time :
Voyage of the Little Mermaid
Beauty and the Beast show
Indiana Jones stunt show
Cinderella's Surprise Celebration
Mexico boat ride
Riverboat at Magic Kingdom
Tom Sawyer Island
Rock and Roller Coaster
Dumbo
Snow White
Splash Mountain
Cranium Command (open seasonally)
Impressions de France
Chinese pavillion movie
Disney Quest Build a Toy
Candle Light Processional
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
The Living Seas
It's Tough to be a Bug
Backlot Tour
Walk through Mickey & Minnie's houses
Hall of Presidents
Country Bears

Rides we can SKIP :
Astro Orbitors
All of Mickey's ToonTown Fair
Triceratop Spin
Primeaval Whirl
Kali River Rapids
Most of the rest of Animal Kingdom
The Canada Movie
The Tomorrowland Indy Speedway Go Karts
Playhouse Disney Stage Show
Sounds Dangerous
The parades
Innoventions
Carrousel
The Teacups
Goofy's Country Music Jamboree