Maximizing Time Vs. "Vacation"

[praline3001]

I also wanted to add the use of cabs.
They are really worth it!!!! You will spend 10-15 bucks for a cab ride to and from resorts/parks or what nots. I know... why use a cab when Disney has FREE transportation but break it down...
you will be waiting/riding and walking to and from the bus stop for average 60 minutes... and OUCH if you miss the bus or the bus is full... you waste another 20 minutes (again average) waiting for the next bus.

The cabs take you right to the front of the resort/park and there is no long waits unless you have to call the cab. All of the parks have cabs in the front waiting for people (at least I have always seen them there at the exit)
and most of the Deluxe resorts always have a cab on stand by. I am not sure about the other resorts but I am sure someone could pop in about seeing them at the other resorts.

For the 1,000's of dollars you spend for your week at Disney is it really worth wasting an hour of your time on the busses? You can get where you need to go in (again average) 15 minutes using a cab... leaving 45 minutes to "vacation" rather than waiting in line for a bus

***note make sure you get in a Disney approved cab (yellow cabs) as there are fly by night places that will try and charge you $40 for 5 miles!!!***

 

[praline3001]

oops I wanted to add the math to the cab value thing and I forgot...

say you take 1 cab ride a day and you take the average of 60 minutes for the walking/waiting and riding of the bus.

If you took a cab instead you would save 270 minutes (for a 6 day stay) using the cabs. That is 4.5 hours of free time you could use to "vacation" for around 90 bucks. Besides that, the hassle ( during peak bus riding times such as opening and closing) of riding the bus can wear you down making your trip more work than vacation. I am not saying to use a cab every single time you leave the resort, but if you are smart and use them during:
opening and closings of the park
to hop to a different resort for dinner (remember to do this is a bus lay over which is more headache)

If you have your own car you can use it BUT... and big but... we have been to Disney many many times over the years and DH still gets lost at least once when driving from resort to resort then we are all in the car, late for ADR's and holding a map and yelling at eachother... YOU SHOULD HAVE TAKEN THAT TURN the cab keeps our family from losing it on the Disney roads

 

[praline3001]

This thread (if you haven't noticed) is right up my alley hehe

Another "trick" we use to save time for more "vacationing" time is we try NOT to park hop! This does take careful planning of ADR's and touring but it works!
We will park hop for a special event (IE P&P party...) and we use it in an emergancy (IE.. the park is so packed we can't ride anything....)
but for the most part we try NOT to use them. Here is the break down time wise

It takes 60 minutes to use the Disney transportation (again walking, waiting and riding the bus...) that is 60 minutes we have in the park to relax and
1. people watch
2. get a snack and rest
3. ride more rides
4. go at a slower more relaxed pace

Also park hopping (especially with kids) takes more energy to do! If its just a party of adults its easier as you don't have to drag the kids (sometimes strollers and backpacks...) to park hop. The less energy the kids have to spend on moving from 1 place to the next, the less tired they are and the happier they are... IE LESS MELT DOWNS...

If you stopped 1 park hop once a day for a 6 day trip (same math as above) you would save 4.5 hours for "vacation time". Ask yourself if that park hop (before you plan it) is worth losing vacation fun time. If it is worth it, go for it ! If it isn't worth losing ... plan your trip to stay in 1 park a day.

 

[hsmamato2]

I have hopper tix for one reason only....if the park we're in has gotten crowded,and lines are long,we hop elsewhere,it's our insurance for a relaxing day! Other than that,I agree with PP,not worth the time and trouble!

 

[praline3001]

I have hopper tix for one reason only....if the park we're in has gotten crowded,and lines are long,we hop elsewhere,it's our insurance for a relaxing day! Other than that,I agree with PP,not worth the time and trouble!

Again, it depends on who is in your party for it to be worth it... remember everyone here has a different family of sorts.
If it is just a couple on their honeymoon and they are in shape and don't tire out in the hotel room (see honeymoon part )
It may well be worth it for them to park hop. of course the 4.5 hours they save NOT park hopping could be used in said hotel room

A family of 5 (us) with 3 kids you have to drag from park to park it just isn't worth the energy spent UNLESS the park is way too packed for the kids to have fun.

 

[chrismb22]

for us it's table service restaurants. We NEEDED Them for both lunch and dinner. We would sit down, in the air conditioner and we could sit, drink a soda (or something stronger ) and figure out our strategy for the rest of the afternoon. When we went in 2005 for 8 days I only planned a couple lunch time table services. We found we had to stop and relax (luckily it was October and we could just walk right in) and the funny part was we knew EXACTLY when that time was. We would both start getting grumpy and tired and we looked at each other and KNEW it was time to eat.

For our January trip I made sure to get both lunch and dinner ADRs for every day but the one we are doing a character breakfast. It will especially save us cause it's only a 5 day trip and we will probably not be stopping back at our hotel mid day.

 

[OurDogCisco]

When our kids were toddler aged we did the mid-day break thing back at the room. Now, that our kids our older we find that doing a park one day and taking a break the next day works for us especially when you go during the Christmas holidays. We were staying at the Wilderness Lodge and it took forever to get back for a mid-day break that it wasn't worth it. We also discovered nobody really relaxed like a toddler would by taking a nap. Everyone was ready to go swimming which just made us more tired. So after the 1st day of doing that we decided one day park and one day rest. The rest day usually consisted of sleeping in. Then, we'd go shopping in DTD, playing miniature golf, visit the resorts, swim at the resort, play at the resort, etc... Next time we are going to visit some the attractions outside of Orlando like the Kennedy Space Center, etc..

I guess, what I'm saying a lot of things can change your touring plans like time of year, age of party members, weather, how often you visit, etc..

 

[praline3001]

That is another big one ... use character meals wisely with kids!!!

If your going to Chef Mickey's for breakfast ... that means all the characters you see while dining you don't have to stand in line for in the parks... saving time. At the same time, if you do Chef Mickeys, skip Garden Grill as they have "about" the same characters. Our family would rather garden grill than chef mickeys so we do the opposite.

If you have kids who are autograph HOUNDS ... use character breakfasts or dinners to your advantage. I would not do a character lunch however.
KIDS need a down time in the middle of the day. Taking them to a character lunch does not give them this down time...

If you don't have kids who are character hounds in your party, stay away from the character meals. They tend to be zoo like and are not restful haha


Where you "find" your time to relax all depends on your expectations and your party. My kids are GO GO GO types and would go nuts going back to the resort for a midafternoon down time (I know we have tried it before). DH and I would spend this "down time" listening to them complain or "Is it time to go back.. is it time yet?" which is NOT restful for DH and I but for some families this resort break in the middle of the day is a MUST. OUR KIDS would much rather stay in the parks all day with a long lunch and a slower pace (NO COMMANDO as this is NOT an option as says DH and I)

 

[klmall]

This question depends on so many factors!
See my DH is an Eagle Scout and a scout master. For him a vacation means back packing 150 miles into the mountains, carrying everything he owns on his back! My boys are the same way. To them a day in the park (unless its summer) doesn't wear them out.
Here are some factors that will make it more labor intensive for you:
1. weather .. the heat of summer will wear you out quick, making more resort time a must to keep that fun vacation feel ESPECIALLY if your a yankee and not use to 100 degree weather!!!
2. How in shape you are! DH and I are in really good shape. We have been with friends/family that have been out of shape and a little "fluffy". By the end of the day they were DYING trying to keep up with us and we felt like we were being held back hahaha
3. How many younger kids in your party makes a big difference. Even the best of kids need to be watched out for and taken care of. A couple with no children can get a lot more done during the day while still having a relaxed vacation feel.
4. As stated the time change can make you feel out of sorts! For our family its only an hour time change but for some families it could be a 3 hour time difference!
5. Where you are staying can make a big difference too. If your staying at a monorail resort, the travel time and fighting with transportation is not an issue for 2 parks. It doesn't SEEM like a big deal but by the middle of the week and your standing at the bus stop watching 3 full busses drive by on the way to YOUR resort and your tired and want to just relax.. IT CAN MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE.
6. Where you eat can also make a big difference! If you pick all character meals or loud "zoo" type places your going to wear yourself out quicker making it not seem like a vacation. We always try and reserve TS in the middle of the day for a quiet (or at least quieter) location. This is REALLY important for our family. It gives us a midday "break" from lines, and the general hub that is Disney without leaving the parks. Some people prefer to go back to their resort miday and we prefer to have a long quiet lunch in the park.

Room serivce breakfast is a must at least twice while we are there so says MOM
Also BEFORE you go make sure everyone has their jobs to be responsible for! You don't want mom coming back to the room, bathing all the kids, getting all the clothes out for the next day, going over the plan for the next day, changing ADR's, washing any clothes, putting the kids to bed, and general organizing of the suitcases to fit all the junk you bought that day!!! Remember MOM is on vacation too! Your party is only as strong as your weakest link so if there is only 1 person doing all the "work" that person will be your weakest link

praline3002 - Loved your reply! Just substitute me for your DH in some habits listed (I am a BS leader and son is an Eagle Scout). And DH would totally love your room service idea.

You listed many of the factors we feel make our trips successful such as planning for easy access to your room and the parks. We know that we will spend the majority of our park hours at MK and Epcot so we always stay at a monorail resort. And for us, packing light, putting away our clothing, keeping the room neat etc. makes it easy to get going in the AM.

Good suggestions!

 

[praline3001]

praline3002 - Loved your reply! Just substitute me for your DH in some habits listed (I am a BS leader and son is an Eagle Scout). And DH would totally love your room service idea.

You listed many of the factors we feel make our trips successful such as planning for easy access to your room and the parks. We know that we will spend the majority of our park hours at MK and Epcot so we always stay at a monorail resort. And for us, packing light, putting away our clothing, keeping the room neat etc. makes it easy to get going in the AM.

Good suggestions!

yup around here its the annual family vote... Philmont or Disney
and until the guys can figure out how to hook my hair dryer up at philmont my vote will always be Disney
though being the committee chairman, I ALWAYS GET ROOM SERVICE DELIVERED TO MY TENT of course some knucklehead tenderfoot usually dumps half of it on the way to my tent but such is life