MK- which attraction first?

[dolphindan1]

We have never waited longer than 15 minutes for any character in toontown...Mickey was always a short wait as were the princess's in the tent....Now keep in mind this is early December vacations....The only ride we have issues with at anytime during the day is the Jungle cruise....FP is always closed and the wait is always 25 minutes for some reason....The race track is always a slow loader but I dont count that....

PolyHereWeCome........Buzz is such a fast loading ride I wouldnt worry with it 1st unless its just something you are wanting to do...If Dumbo and all gets backed up you can forget it....So we ALWAYS hit that first always....I have gone a gotten a fastpass for Pooh while the wife and kids do dumbo....but usually its not necessary....just my 2 cents

 

[wendy1974]

Sounds like you at least know what your children like and that Fantasyland will be a good first stop for them. I agree with previous posters. Ride Dumbo first and then get a fast pass for Peter Pan. Then go get on Snow White< Winnie the Pooh and It's a Small World and just make sure you go back and ride Peter Pan in your 1 hour alotted FP time frame. After that you may want to go and see Mickey's Philarmagic if you think the little ones would enjoy a really cute 3-d show. After that I say head over to Splash Mountain and get a Fast Pass for all the members of your family who can ride (you can utilize child swap here). While you are waiting for your fast pass time go over to Liberty Square and ride Haunted Mansion and then head to Adventureland if you still have time and ride Pirates of the Caribbean.
As far as getting wet on Splash Mountain that can be a bit unpredictable. If you sit in the first row your are more likely to get wet. There are also a couple of other places in the ride that you can get wet. At one point you are going up an incline on the side of the BIG drop and you can get splashed by the boats there. Also, there is a small waterfall going down the side of some rocks and if your boat gets stopped by it and you are sitting on the right side you will get wet. Good idea to sit anyone who doesn't want to get wet on the left side of the boat

 

[dolphindan1]

I think with the time you are going crowds will not be a major issue....I assume its towards the end of October....What will wear you down is the heat.....plus you will have some afternoon showers....I think with the age of your kids you shouldnt do a lot of criss crossing and backtracking....I think hit Fantasyland and toontown and then work your way around what you dont catch on your day at MK you can always do at the Party.....You will also be suprised at what Disney will do to them kids....They will be up for a lot more....you will probably wear out before they will....I know I always do and I am a fairly fit 31 year old guy....Take advantage of fastpass...And do not attend MK on a EE day if you are offsite go the following day....and be there when the park opens....If you find yourself getting behind and you will feel that way....Hit the major must sees, The mountains, Buzz, POTC etc...and then come back to whatever you want to see...There is so much there that will grab your attention time will be 3pm before you realize it an will have only done half of the park....but thats what makes MK so special I think....You cannot get bored if you tried....

 

[cmonroe]

We know it's crowded but our daughter has to go to Buzz first when we go to MK.
It's been about 5 months since our last trip and she still says, "Daddy, I can't wait to go to Disney and go on buzz light year". We actually sit on our livingroom couch and she pretends we are on the ride shooting and turning. What can I say, she's crazy. She gets that from her dad.

If there were no kids and it were just myself and DW, the first place I would go is the haunted mansion. It is hands down my favorite MK ride. No it's not terribly exciting. It's not scary. But it is the ride that encapsulates my memories of WDW as a child. I'm getting worked up just thinking about it while typing this message. We have a terrrible Disney bug in our family. ;-)

 

[dolphindan1]

I hear you...I know the feeling too....I dont feel I am at Disney till I ride Space Moutain....Thts why we tend to go that way after FL and Toontown....I guess its because its the first coaster my oldest and I rode together and he still lives it but this past December he finally went upside down and now RnR is his fav along with Hulk at IOA....Memories I guess....LOL.....Well if thats what your dughter loves then by all means take her there 1st cause nothing else will compare to it till she rides it.....Dang it now I am ready to go and I gotta wait till Dec....

 

[CRSNDSNY]

Our first ride is usually Philharmagic. It used to be Haunted Mansion or Jungle Cruise. Now those are seconds and thirds.

 

[dolphindan1]

I like Philharmagic but not as much as tuff to be a bug at AK....as far as 3-d movis go anyway....I think the fact that its Mickey and Donald draw alot of people to it...but its still a wonderful show

 

[wendy1974]

I always hit Splash Mountain first and then go to Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion(my 2 fave Disney classics)

 

[Princesa]

Our first trip we did Dumbo because of the tips we read....it's slow loading and will have huge lines later so get this out of the way first, etc. Now it's just tradition...I think I will still bolt for Dumbo first even if we don't have the kids with us!

We have DS5 and DD3, so we last trip we did Dumbo, then Peter Pan (by request), Pooh, Philharmagic, and then planned to be at the 10:00 rope drop for Toontown. We figure we save so much time in Toontown lines by being there early that we can hit all the characters and Goofy's Barnstormer, and by 11:00 we have thoroughly enjoyed our morning and have seen all of Fantasyland and Toontown. (We did skip the teacups though) Then off to Buzz which was still very short lines.

 

[jody]

We like to ride Splash and BTMRR first. An easy way to get there is to hop on the train and ride to Frontierland.

 

[bubba's mom]

I am sorry I don't have time to read all the posts, but to the OP: I would head straight for Fantasyland and ride Dumbo--#1. Then the other rides in Fantasyland. Pan, Snow, Tea Cups, etc. (you can actually skip Philharmagic till later....high seating capacity). Then go to either Splash or Space Mtns. The key here is to do Fantasyland first.....with little ones that don't get moving too early, this land is mobbed in the hot afternoon. And, btw, you don't need a poncho on Splash unless you're in the first (maybe 2nd) rows!! have a great time!!!

 

[wendy1974]

Did you hop on the train right at park opening and ride back there? I was just wondering if that would help you get there any quicker than the throngs of people that head toward BTMRR and SM?

 

[MarkLem]

We get there when it opens, myself and 9 & 7 year olds head to Space Mountain, ride then get FP's for later. My wife takes 3 year old to Dumbo, Peter Pan & rides a few times. We meet them and then head to Splash Mtn and Thunder Mtn

 

[scoutsmom99]

I love heading to Splash first! I do that twice and then move on to BTMRR.

 

[leighe]

We always get there about 30 minutes prior to opening (although we generally avoid EMH mornings) and then head straight to Fantasyland as soon as we are allowed to. Usually we get all the Fantasyland attractions done in an hour or an hour and a half. Then we head over to Splash Mtn. for a fastpass and then ride BTM (usually at most a 20 minute wait), then fastpass for Space Mountain. I'm kind of a fanatic about getting in all Magic Kingdom attractions! We usually do really well and have plenty of time to just goof off, get pictures made with characters, wait for parades, etc. However, we haven't ever been when it's been super crowded either. Even our Spring Break hit a pretty low crowd time last year.

 

[PolyHereWeCome]

Am re-thinking our order. Can you ride Pirates of the Carribean or Jungle Cruise on a regular (not extra magic hour) day at park opening? We're going Spring Break and MK is suppose to open at 9, but read on another post that Adventureland opens an hr. later-- so we can't ride them until 10????

Is that right? Even during peak Easter/Spring break?