My final? schedule....thoughts?

[xyymom]

I have to book my PS's this week, so I really needed to figure out my plans. Please have a look and tell me if I've missed something or if I'm crazy We're staying offsite, and our suite has a kitchen. The kids are 8,6&4. I wanted to do Cindy's for breakfast too, but I don't think my boys would enjoy it enough. I can't fit it in anyway, but will be sure to have dd get to meet as many Princesses as possible in other ways (Belle's storytime, etc.) I'm flexible on the evening plans as I'm not sure how the kids will hold up. That's why I've tried to allow for the evening shows on a few different nights.

Sat.Oct.2
arrive 5pm. Have quick dinner. Buy groceries for the week. To bed early.

Sun.Oct.3
MGM for opening. Dinner at hotel after parade. Epcot for IllumiNations?

Mon.Oct.4
MK for opening. Crystal Palace PS for lunch. Dinner at hotel after parade. Back for Wishes (if avail.) (could substitute Fantasmic!)

Tues.Oct.5
AK for opening. After parade head to MK (2nd chance for wishes) or Epcot for evening (trying to break Epcot up into small visits).

We.Oct.6
Typhoon Lagoon. PS for Chef Mickey's for Dinner

Thur.Oct.7
Epcot for opening. PS for Ice Cream social 3pm. Hotel for dinner. Back to a park (Kids' choice) if they aren't too tired.

Fri.Oct.8
Downtown Disney to shop. MNSSHP at 4pm until whenever the kids crash.

Sat.Oct.9
Time to go home

This plan leaves 1 full day and 1 plus on our 5 day PHP passes.

 

[hoosll]

Melt down for the kids is your unknown factor and since you are staying off site it may be hard to get them back to the park for evening things.

I would make a list of don't miss things - for your group of kids -
plan 2 days at least at MK - if electrical parade is scheduled arrive at that park after 2:00 - let the kids have a morning to wind down play in the pool, have a nap - then go to MK, plan PS for dinner like Liberty Tavern and see electrical parade and wishes.

For a great break from MK - ride the boat to FW and go to the petting zoo. The boat ride is a great way to relax and catch a quick nap. Also at MK, ride TTA - very soothing and the kids will fall right to sleep.
Also the railroad is a great place to give kids a time out.

Ride the monorail for a break from Epcot.

The other don't miss for their ages - Fantasmic - plan it again for a day when there is less stimulation so they are willing to go back to the parks.

Don't worry about missing Illuminations for your group of kids, it is just not as exciting, unfortunately they would have loved the old Epcot parade - please bring it back!

I like your plan for MNSSHP.

It is so tempting to want to do everything - we found that our kids were more laid back about stuff than we were and the stress level that my husband and I generated was just awful ... you are right to let the kids set the pace, be flexible because 1 may get sick and you may have to scrap everything at the last minute.

Also remember that it is not the distance from the hotel to the park but also the time getting from parking to the park and then to a certain spot within the park. For some of your excursions within WDW consider riding the boats (between Epcot and MGM) or the buses between parks - I have never been asked to show a hotel pass to get on a bus ... the buses can be a great way to settle down for half an hour - you are under the control of the bus driver - relax .....

My advice, don't leave the World if you can find a way to spend some quiet down time. Every time you leave, it may be a struggle to get them to go back. Try a practice day - go and stand outside a mall for half an hour before it opens, then go into every store whether the kids want to go in or not, have lunch at the most crowded restaurant, finish up the mall, drive home, eat dinner give them down time, THEN ask if they want to go back to the mall. Now do it again the next day, and the day after.... you get the idea. Your plan has something scheduled at a park for every night - plan one night at the hotel with a pizza and an early night.

 

[2ndstar to the right]

I would also second the recommendation for the boat over to Fort Wilderness for a break in the afternoon. If you plan this on a day that there is Spectromagic and Wishes, you can save yourself the hassle of going back to your hotel and then back to MK. (getting to MK is quite a chore if you're staying off site). On our MK day, we ususally head over to FW around 3pm when everyone's getting a bit tired. The boat ride itself is relaxing and when you get to FW there are some comfy rocking chairs on the porch of the Trail's End. Put your feet up for a spell and then have dinner at Trail's End. The restaurant serves an awesome buffet for about $12. 00. The freid chicken and cornbread are the best! (this is the cheapest buffet in all of WDW but also one of the best...a hidden gem. Shhh!) After dinner you can stroll over to the petting zoo and see the animals. I can almost guarentee that after that you'll be ready to head back to MK for the evening parade and fireworks!! This makes for a magical day.

 

[xyymom]

Thanks....I didn't know about a petting zoo at FW, nor did I know I could go there and visit! I'm sure my kids will love it. I don't actually think they'll need/want an afternoon nap, but I do think they'd all do well with a 'rest' or a break from the action if you kwim? I'll look into the restaurant there too
It seems that our hotel will be fairly close to WDW, but I'm not completely sure. I have these details from the hotel website:

-Epcot 2 Miles /3 Kilometers
-Downtown Disney 7 Miles / 11 Kilometers
-Walt Disney World 2 Miles / 3 Kilometers
-Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park 1 Mile / 2 Kilometers
-Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park 3 Miles / 5 Kilometers
-Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park 6 Miles / 10 Kilometers

Do you think it'll be worthwhile? I'm not stuck on going back to the hotel, I just thought I should add it in since most people say it's good to rest

 

[Disney_1derland]

depends on when you are going. October will definitely not be AS hot as June, July, August or September. Are you taking a stroller for the 4 year old? If not, consider that at some point you may need to rent one. It is a lot more stressful than your normal walk around a mall and those little legs just need a rest. At that point, I'd almost bet that your 4 year old will tire out and nap in a stroller while the other two will not want to leave the parks.

The heat/humidity is the biggest factor in needing the mid-day rest. Now, the day you are doing MNSSHP I would definitely vote for some non-park downtime that afternoon. But really, even if your hotel is only 2 miles from the property you can bet it will take you at least a 1/2 hour to get from your hotel and into a park, probably longer for MK. Same for returning to hotel. Factor in your travel times because it will impact your day!

Last time we went we only had dd age 15 months. We were all set to go back to the hotel for naps and she fell asleep in the car and when we got to the hotel she would wake up and be mad that we wanted her to go back to sleep! I can only imagine this would be worse with older kids. AFter that first day we became big fans of the multiple loops on the monorail "plan". If we were at MK or Epcot we would exit the park, take the monorail for two or three loops while she slept then, hop off and go back to the park.

Other than that, your schedule does not seem overly booked to me, it looks like a pretty good balance. Have a wonderful time!

 

[jcemom]

I think a rest break is good, but I don't think it's possible to take one AFTER the afternoon parades --no matter how close your hotel is-- and still make it back to the parks in the evenings for fireworks with October's hours.

 

[Partridge4ever]

Much as it kills me, I've come to accept that my kids and DH just can't stay out til the parks close and then be there at opening the next day. We've tried going back to the room for a break, but even w/Disney transportation it's nearly an hour from the time we get off our last ride til we're opening the door to our hotel room. IF they nap (and that's a big IF), it's at least 2 hours. So that's well over 3 hours out of the park. Then if we stay for Illuminations at 9, it's 10 pm before we're back to the room. Staying offsite, to be at the gates at opening you'll have to leave the room at 8 am. That's only 10 hours for sleeping/getting dressed.

We enjoy the evening fireworks, so we sleep in and then stay put in one park.
Here's what we would do:
Sun. MGM/Fantasmic
Mon. MK/Wishes
Tue. Typhoon Lagoon/Chef Mickey's
Wed. AK (I'd get there at opening since it closes early.) Hop to MK if Spectromagic is running.
Thur. Epcot/Illuminations
Fri. Downtown Disney/MNSSHP

This puts a non-park day right in the middle.

Hope this helps. We're going the same week and I hate having to make PS w/o knowing the hours.

 

[2ndstar to the right]

The problem with leaving MK and then returning later is that there is no parking at the MK. When you go you have to first get to the TTC. Then you park and then you have to go and wait for the ferry or the monorail and then ride that over to the MK. It's a lengthy procedure. That is why it is easier to stay at MK for the day and find a place to unwind a bit while you're there. Fort Wilderness is the perfect place for that. Just remember though that the boat that travels back and forth between FW and MK will close when MK closes. Make sure you head back to MK before closing time. If you are doing this on a late night when there is Spectomagic and Wishes you should not have a problem. Just head over to FW around 3pm, see the petting zoo, rest a bit on the porch of the restaurant and then have dinner at 4:30pm. After that you'll be ready to take the boat back to MK. You can do a few more rides and then catch Spectomagic and Wishes.
We do this on most of our MK days and find it works just perfectly for us. We get a little midday rest without the hassle of driving back and forth from the park/hotel.

 

[chyam]

Although your planning looks good on here, I think you will be able to plan better when the hours come out forOct. since there are many days especially at the MK that they seem to close early 6-7pm. When they come out (I think they just posted the hours for Sept this past week)you will be able to fine tune your schedule. And really I don't find early Oct to be overly busy so you maybe able to see and do more than you realize.

 

[xyymom]

The problem with leaving MK and then returning later is that there is no parking at the MK. When you go you have to first get to the TTC. Then you park and then you have to go and wait for the ferry or the monorail and then ride that over to the MK. It's a lengthy procedure. That is why it is easier to stay at MK for the day and find a place to unwind a bit while you're there.

Thanks 2nd Star to the Right....I've adjusted my MK plans to try to stay once we're there. I can see how the logistics would make leaving and coming back within a reasonable time difficult

 

[2ndstar to the right]

Glad to help xyymom, I hope you all have a magical trip!

 

[dgaston]

I don't know where you're staying, but from the mileages you posted it looks as if it may be off 192. If so, be sure to learn the Sherberth Road entrance to WDW. We used that last Christmas and could travel from the turnstiles at MK to the driveway of our rental house in 15 minutes. I've often been an hour when taking Disney buses to my resort.

I think you would enjoy Ft Wilderness--it's one of our favorite places at WDW, and I would also second other's advice to plan in some more rest days with late starts to maximize everyone's stamina. I usually do two park days, and then a lighter day--we love Typhoon Lagoon--though that can be tiring in a different way.

HTH