Mid-day break

[4Hawks]

I'm finalizing our plans for our upcoming trip and need some advice. I had been planning to stay at the park for the mid-day break, and have a long lunch or find a place to rest for a bit. However, after a trip to the zoo this past Sunday in the Georgia heat and humidity, I realized my kids will need a good rest after about 4 hours at the park.

- We're staying at AKV for the first 5 nights then at the Poly for the final night. We'll have our own car and will likely drive to the parks.

- We have a PPO reservation at DHS and plan to stay until park closing to see the shows.

- We plan to use EMH at AK and stay until ~7pm (not staying for ROL). We have an ADR at 11:30am at Tusker house.

- We're going to MK on a party day. We plan to rope drop and stay until 6pm or so (BOG ADR at 4:30). We'll be checking into the Poly that morning.


Questions:

*We'll definitely need a long break on AK and DHS days, but I wonder how long it will take us to make it to the hotel and back. Would 2 hours be enough?

*I don't think we'd want to leave MK for a break on such a short day, even if we're staying at the Poly. Would a long lunch break be enough?

*What do you all do during the break? Lunch? Pool? I doubt my kids will nap.

*Should I schedule the breaks right in the middle of the day (noonish) or during the hottest part of the day (2-4pm)?


Thanks in advance for your input!

 

[vinotinto]

*We'll definitely need a long break on AK and DHS days, but I wonder how long it will take us to make it to the hotel and back. Would 2 hours be enough?
I would allow 3-4 hour break. That includes time to leave the park, drive to the hotel, get some rest, shift gears and go back.

*I don't think we'd want to leave MK for a break on such a short day, even if we're staying at the Poly. Would a long lunch break be enough?
With a 2 and a 5 year old, I think you will need a break every day.

*What do you all do during the break? Lunch? Pool? I doubt my kids will nap.
Lunch, quiet time, pool. Adults nap sometimes more than the kids.

*Should I schedule the breaks right in the middle of the day (noonish) or during the hottest part of the day (2-4pm)?
If you are planning to be at at the parks for EMH and rope drop, you will probably be ready for a break by noon.

 

[Somnia]

*We'll definitely need a long break on AK and DHS days, but I wonder how long it will take us to make it to the hotel and back. Would 2 hours be enough?
I would allow 3-4 hour break. That includes time to leave the park, drive to the hotel, get some rest, shift gears and go back.

*I don't think we'd want to leave MK for a break on such a short day, even if we're staying at the Poly. Would a long lunch break be enough?
With a 2 and a 5 year old, I think you will need a break every day.

*What do you all do during the break? Lunch? Pool? I doubt my kids will nap.
Lunch, quiet time, pool. Adults nap sometimes more than the kids.

*Should I schedule the breaks right in the middle of the day (noonish) or during the hottest part of the day (2-4pm)?
If you are planning to be at at the parks for EMH and rope drop, you will probably be ready for a break by noon.

I was pretty much going to respond exactly like vinotinto so I second everything here

On our breaks we take a nap sometimes (adults, no kids), take a swim, relax on our balcony watching animals (we usually stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge) or just lay back and watch some TV. Our breaks are typically at 12 or 1 and then we go back around 430-5 for dinner (if it's at a park).

 

[Espers]

Generally, we take about a 4 hour break during the day. We always stay on property and because we use ME from the airport, don't have a car. We almost always have lunch in the park then head back to the resort. We take a dip in the pool and then usually take about an hour nap after. Sometimes we spend the whole time at the pool, but just lounging around - I guarantee you we ain't burning a bunch of energy during pool time - I flex my elbow because of a drink in my hand and that's about it

We head back to the parks, usually with an ADR, and spend a few more hours. Sometimes we stay late, but usually not because we are morning people and take advantage of morning EMH or rope drop most days. That being said, we try to see the fireworks at each park during our trip.

We average 10-12 miles walking each day, and that break/nap is really beneficial whether we have kids with us or not. When we have the kids, we tell them before the trip that there's going to be a break and a nap each day, and that's not flexible. It's just part of the Disney routine. Establish that ground rule before you leave. Now, they are old enough to appreciate that - they get tired too, and when the weather is hot, they are happy to be at the pool for a little while anyway.

That's worked for us for years and we like it. Some days we are a little flexible, but we try to pretty much stick to that routine.

 

[MischaOz]

We typically leave around 2 and come back in the 5-6 range. Since DD is too old to nap now, we just have some quiet time in the hotel room, lay down and watch a little TV or iPad.

 

[pens4821]

We've never taken breaks before, but are planning on going in August next year. We usually do winter, and know we won't want to be in the parks all day with the heat. Our tentative plan is to go to one park at rope drop, make an ADR for noon, then head back to the resort thinking we will be back around 2. Then we'll plan our FP at 6, 7, 8 so we will leave the resort to go to park two around 5. We also figure that if we feel like the lunch break helped and we can deal with the heat (maybe look for indoor attractions/shows), we will stay in the park for those couple hours, but I don't see that happening.

 

[Micca]

I think a midday break is probably 4-5 hours. You'll spend 45 minutes each way getting out of the park and into your resort room, so there's an hour & a half right there. It takes a few minutes to get the kids settled down, they may well want a little snack so there's a half hour. Hopefully the kids will nap for an hour or two. If you go for a pool break instead that also eats up time changing clothes, etc.

A six night stay is a nice amount of time at WDW, don't hesitate to take a break when you need one. Exhausted/cranky kids will take a toll on everyone. Do you plan to use strollers? I think they help a lot, even with kids that are generally no longer using them.

 

[4Hawks]

I think a midday break is probably 4-5 hours. You'll spend 45 minutes each way getting out of the park and into your resort room, so there's and hour & a half right there. It takes a few minutes to get the kids settled down, they may well want a little snack so there's a half hour. Hopefully the kids will nap for an hour or two. If you go for a pool break instead that also eats up time changing clothes, etc.

A six night stay is a nice amount of time at WDW, don't hesitate to take a break when you need one. Exhausted/cranky kids will take a toll on everyone. Do you plan to use strollers? I think they help a lot, even with kids that are generally no longer using them.

Yes. We have a double city-mini that I am definitely bringing with us. We used the stroller quite a bit during our last trip, even though we didn't even go to the parks.

 

[Ensusieasm]

I'm finalizing our plans for our upcoming trip and need some advice. I had been planning to stay at the park for the mid-day break, and have a long lunch or find a place to rest for a bit. However, after a trip to the zoo this past Sunday in the Georgia heat and humidity, I realized my kids will need a good rest after about 4 hours at the park.

- We're staying at AKV for the first 5 nights then at the Poly for the final night. We'll have our own car and will likely drive to the parks.

- We have a PPO reservation at DHS and plan to stay until park closing to see the shows.

- We plan to use EMH at AK and stay until ~7pm (not staying for ROL). We have an ADR at 11:30am at Tusker house.

- We're going to MK on a party day. We plan to rope drop and stay until 6pm or so (BOG ADR at 4:30). We'll be checking into the Poly that morning.


Questions:

*We'll definitely need a long break on AK and DHS days, but I wonder how long it will take us to make it to the hotel and back. Would 2 hours be enough?

*I don't think we'd want to leave MK for a break on such a short day, even if we're staying at the Poly. Would a long lunch break be enough?

*What do you all do during the break? Lunch? Pool? I doubt my kids will nap.

*Should I schedule the breaks right in the middle of the day (noonish) or during the hottest part of the day (2-4pm)?


Thanks in advance for your input!

You should plan to be away from the park for at least four hours which includes transportation. The energy you expend getting back and forth is not worth it if you don't plan on 4 hours.

 

[tinkerbella16]

We take midday breaks each day of our Disney trips. We were just there 2 weeks ago and it was so incredibly hot and humid, I would have never made it all day. We typically do breaks anyway, so that we can enjoy the resort. We like to swim, take a short nap and just recharge for the evenings in the parks. It makes the trip so much more enjoyable and relaxing, rather than always being on the go. We also had a 2 year old with us, so we would make sure she had a nap during our break - although she would never nap in the room, so my sister would walk her around the resort and she'd fall asleep in the stroller.

We are always at the park for opening and we leave between 12-1pm and we come back in the evening when the sun starts to go down.

 

[jimandami]

As far as naps, your kids might surprise you. My DS (now 13) had stopped napping at home around age 4, but he took midday naps every day at Disney until he was at least 7. It's exhausting!

 

[dkrauss]

I'm finalizing our plans for our upcoming trip and need some advice. I had been planning to stay at the park for the mid-day break, and have a long lunch or find a place to rest for a bit. However, after a trip to the zoo this past Sunday in the Georgia heat and humidity, I realized my kids will need a good rest after about 4 hours at the park.

- We're staying at AKV for the first 5 nights then at the Poly for the final night. We'll have our own car and will likely drive to the parks.

- We have a PPO reservation at DHS and plan to stay until park closing to see the shows.

- We plan to use EMH at AK and stay until ~7pm (not staying for ROL). We have an ADR at 11:30am at Tusker house.

- We're going to MK on a party day. We plan to rope drop and stay until 6pm or so (BOG ADR at 4:30). We'll be checking into the Poly that morning.

I'm a big fan of breaks...........I usually can always use a nap.......but then again I'm 55

You need to consider the actual timing on each day.....most importantly....when does the park you're visiting close the day you plan to tour?

Take for instance you AK day (stated above). EMH starts at 8am............then you have an 11:30 ADR which will take you to 12:30 - 12:45. If you leave then.......since you're close to AKV you can be in the room around 1:30 -1:45. A 3hr break from that point has you leaving to go back to the park @ 5pm..........doesn't seem to give you alot of time in the park in the evening. Maybe a better strategy would be to arrive in time for your ADR...........then tour the park until about 6pm............you might even save the safari for the evening as your closing ride

On the MK party day..........you state you'll be checking into the Poly that morning. Given that you'll be up extra early to get over to the Poly and then to be MK Rope Drop. For this day......you might want to consider doing lunch at the Poly or one of the other Monorail resorts.........from there its an easy ride to your resort for a rest/pool time. You could then easily be back at the MK for 3pm. Now keep in mind the Festival of Fantasy Parade now goes off at 2pm so if you really want the parade........you will have to adjust.

No easy answers here.........you could shorten the time you take for each break..........but you do have the travel time back and forth to consider. You know your children best so..........you need to do whats best for your family. Remember sometimes arriving later may work best

What ever you decide..........have a magical trip

Doug

 

[neverlandsky]

Agree with the timing of the day and plans. 4 of our days will be breaks right after in-park QS lunch around 1-2 pm for about 4-5 hours and we'll then evaluate how we want to proceed. 2 of our days are late morning starts so no breaks, just have planned green rides for the afternoon time. As far as break time goes, we're doing naps, pool, hotel bathroom breaks, refill drinks, watch football games (Sunday, Monday, Thursday nights) & play games, mini-golf, etc.

 

[Oneanne]

Agree with the advice already posted. The only suggestion to add would be to consider feeding the kiddos in the park before heading out for a break. It can be a long haul out to the car and back to the resort and if they've had a chance to settle before making the trek it might help.

 

[G719]

On our breaks, we eat, swim, and relax in the room while everyone showers after swimming. That works well because the kids won't have to shower before bed and can go straight to bed if we're out late.

We do rope drop most days so by midday we're ready for a break. We also like to stay to close at whatever park we go to in the evening. Everyone appreciates the break.

 

[TulipMom]

Our first trip with kids was when they were 3 & 5. We actually preferred to end the park day sooner vs taking a mid-day break. We did the mid-day break one day and found that we much preferred to head back to the resort before 5pm instead. At the resort, we would rest for 20-30 minutes, then swim for a couple of hours, eat dinner and get the kids to bed at a semi-regular bedtime. We made it through 5 park days without a single meltdown!

Obviously, if you're going to be at a park for a late night or a fireworks shows, etc., then ending early doesn't work. But, you might consider it for at least one of your park days. It takes a lot of time to walk out of the park, get transportation to the hotel, walk to your room, and then do it in reverse to get right back to where you were. So, your total time in the park can actually be longer by leaving early in the day instead, while still getting adequate rest time for your kids.

 

[SAMMMMMMMMMM]

i always schedule breaks but some of these 4 hour breaks seem excessive. Last trip we were at BLT and it was perfect. This upcoming trip we are at Poly and about 2 hours is what we will plan on. The only one I dont know about is AK. We are doing Tusker House for breakfast so will have an early morning and want to try to do Rivers of Light since we never have seen it. I have a feeling if we leave the park and take a 3 hour break, we might not come back. Last trip, we were going to do that at HS and just decided to go to MK since it was a short walk instead of another bus ride with strollers.

 

[Micca]

Last trip we were at BLT and it was perfect.

Well now that's a whole 'nother situation. At BLT/CR you can walk to/from which will be faster than any other mode of commuting from park-to-resort. You can cut your commute time from 45 minutes to approx 20 minutes (maybe less.) The only other comparable commute I can think of is from the Boardwalk resorts to Epcot but even that can be a trek depending on the resort and where you're Epcot destination is. But I agree that MK-to-CR/BLT is about as good as it gets.

 

[SAMMMMMMMMMM]

Well now that's a whole 'nother situation. At BLT/CR you can walk to/from which will be faster than any other mode of commuting from park-to-resort. You can cut your commute time from 45 minutes to approx 20 minutes (maybe less.) The only other comparable commute I can think of is from the Boardwalk resorts to Epcot but even that can be a trek depending on the resort and where you're Epcot destination is. But I agree that MK-to-CR/BLT is about as good as it gets.

We walked every time except once, we took the monorail and it took longer on the monorail than walking.