Making ADRs in 1 week...please give me input into this itinerary!

[SFMommy]

We are one week away from our ADR day!

Me, DH, DD9 flying in from the West Coast for 8 nights the first week of May 2016. Currently booked in a 1-bedroom at OKW, but hoping to get a 1-bedroom at BWV if/when discounts are released.

I have narrowed down our itinerary to two different options...basically the same except for which day is our MK day and which night is our MK night. For the schedule below, I am debating swapping TUESDAY and THURSDAY. Any opinions?


Saturday Arrival day (no ADR)

Sunday
Sleep late – Breakfast in room
Epcot 10-2 (QS lunch)
Swim and rest 3-6
ADR at Via Napoli or La Hacienda de San Angel at 7:00 p.m.
Illluminations at 9:00 p.m.

Monday
Sleep late – Breakfast in room
HS 10-3 (QS lunch)
Swim and rest 3-6
ADR at Sanaa at 7:00 p.m.

Tuesday
Breakfast in room – RD day at MK
MK 9-3 (ADR at CRT at 12:00 p.m.)
Swim and rest 4-6
ADR at Kimonos at 7:00 p.m.

Wednesday
Breakfast in room – RD day at AK
AK 9-3 (ADR at Tusker House at 11:45 a.m.)
Swim and rest 4-6
ADR at Il Mulino at 7:00 p.m.

Thursday
Sleep late – Breakfast at Garden Grove or Cape May
Resort/Pool Day
MK 6-11 (ADR at Be Our Guest at 6:30 p.m.)
MSEP at 9:00 p.m. followed by CTM and Wishes at 10:00 p.m.

Friday
Sleep late – QS Breakfast
KSC 10-3
ADR at The Boathouse at 7:00 p.m.
Explore Disney Springs

Saturday
Breakfast in room – RD day at Epcot
Epcot 9-3 (QS lunch)
Swim and rest 3-6
ADR at Spice Road at 7:00 p.m.

 

[wdwrich]

Just one suggestion- I wouldn't have so many 'sleep late" days. By not hitting the parks at rope drop more often, you are missing out on some of the least crowded hours when one can get a lot of attractions done without long waits.
That's just my opinion based on our touring style.

 

[PrincessNelly]

The only change I would make is to RD Hollywood Studios. Even with the current closures, we still average 5-6 hours when we actually stop to watch the shows. Plus this will allow you to re-ride TSMM, Star tours, & RnR without a long wait.

We are "sleep in" people, we always split our MK & Epcot days into two so we can sleep in. Only AK & HS are really RD parks for us.

 

[SFMommy]

Just one suggestion- I wouldn't have so many 'sleep late" days. By not hitting the parks at rope drop more often, you are missing out on some of the least crowded hours when one can get a lot of attractions done without long waits.
That's just my opinion based on our touring style.

Yes, at DLR we are hard-core RD people...waking at 5:45 a.m. to be at gates at 6:20 a.m. for 7:00 a.m. EMH days during Thanksgiving...I know how much you can get done in those early hours! But we will coming from the West Coast and we have a whole week (as compared to 3-4 days at DLR) and I am concerned about burning out my DD9 too quickly!

I had thought that I was strategic about our sleep-in days...Epcot first day (because we have another Epcot RD day), HS after Illuminations night (because we won't be riding ToT or RnRC and plan to get FP+ for TSM and ST), our pool day and KSC day. We plan to RD MK, AK and EP (2nd visit). Also, just to be clear...for us sleeping in means arriving around 9:30-10:00 a.m. As I mentioned, we have been at the gates of DLR by 6:20 a.m. and we are all early risers.

 

[wdwrich]

Yes, at DLR we are hard-core RD people...waking at 5:45 a.m. to be at gates at 6:20 a.m. for 7:00 a.m. EMH days during Thanksgiving...I know how much you can get done in those early hours! But we will coming from the West Coast and we have a whole week (as compared to 3-4 days at DLR) and I am concerned about burning out my DD9 too quickly!

I had thought that I was strategic about our sleep-in days...Epcot first day (because we have another Epcot RD day), HS after Illuminations night (because we won't be riding ToT or RnRC and plan to get FP+ for TSM and ST), our pool day and KSC day. We plan to RD MK, AK and EP (2nd visit). Also, just to be clear...for us sleeping in means arriving around 9:30-10:00 a.m. As I mentioned, we have been at the gates of DLR by 6:20 a.m. and we are all early risers.

We are also from SoCal, and frequently visit DLR (AP holders). WDW is a very different animal, and honestly one week still won't get it all. Our next WDW visit is 12 days, and we know even at that we won't do everything we want. It's really up to your family's vacation style/wants. If sleeping in is important, then go for it. In any event, I hope you have a great time!

 

[SFMommy]

We are also from SoCal, and frequently visit DLR (AP holders). WDW is a very different animal, and honestly one week still won't get it all. Our next WDW visit is 12 days, and we know even at that we won't do everything we want. It's really up to your family's vacation style/wants. If sleeping in is important, then go for it. In any event, I hope you have a great time!

Thank you!

 

[JeninTexas]

I agree with the other posters about RD, but one other thing that stands out a lot in your itinerary is all the pool time. I went with my 9 year old and we stayed at the Contemporary. Both my kids (9 & 11) were bored by the pool after one afternoon. I don't know for sure about the pool at your resort, but I am fairly sure that this true for most pools at Disney - they are not very deep and have no diving boards or other really exciting attractions. The slides are very tame. There seemed to be more toddlers using them than older kids. My kids didn't think the pools were that great and much preferred to be at one of the parks. I wouldn't use so much if your time to do something that you can probably do at home. Also, I was worried about my kids burning out from too many RDs and late nights, but my 9 year old was up before everyone wanting to go! We love DLR too, but you just need so much more time to explore WDW.

 

[holden]

Don't forget to allow 1.5-2 hrs for transportation to your dinner. For example, you'd need to leave your resort around 5 for your Epcot dinner on Sunday. Assuming you want to shower after swimming, you won't have much swim time if you are at the pool by 3pm.