My MK plan (Please don't laugh, I have OCD)

[bcoyoh]

I need some expert advise regarding my plan for MK. I will be taking my 2 kids DS7 and DD5 by myself to MK and was wondering if we could do all of these things in one day. We are going on Tuesday May 24 and plan to be there at opening. Here are the things we want to see.
Dumbo, Winnie the Pooh, It's a Small World, Ariels Grotto, Mickeys Philharmagic, Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, Aladin Magic Carpet, Splash Mountain, BTMR, Country Bear Jamboree (is it worth my time?), Buzz Lightyear, Tommorrowland Speedway, Toontown (Barnstormer, country houses, and princess autographs). I am planning on going to go back to AKL for a rest after lunch and then back to MK for a PS at CRT at 6:45p.m. Spectro is showing at 9:00 and Wishes at 10:00p.m. Which things should we get FP and when would be a good time to break this up for our rest time? If you don't think we can do all of this, what would be the things you would leave out. Am I being too structured?

Thanks a bunch

 

[Traveliz]

I need some expert advise regarding my plan for MK. I will be taking my 2 kids DS7 and DD5 by myself to MK and was wondering if we could do all of these things in one day. We are going on Tuesday May 24 and plan to be there at opening. Here are the things we want to see.
Dumbo, Winnie the Pooh, It's a Small World, Ariels Grotto, Mickeys Philharmagic, Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, Aladin Magic Carpet, Splash Mountain, BTMR, Country Bear Jamboree (is it worth my time?), Buzz Lightyear, Tommorrowland Speedway, Toontown (Barnstormer, country houses, and princess autographs). I am planning on going to go back to AKL for a rest after lunch and then back to MK for a PS at CRT at 6:45p.m. Spectro is showing at 9:00 and Wishes at 10:00p.m. Which things should we get FP and when would be a good time to break this up for our rest time? If you don't think we can do all of this, what would be the things you would leave out. Am I being too structured?

Thanks a bunch

Be there when the park opens and immediately head to Dumbo, after Dumbo grab a fast pass for Philarmagic and head to Winnie the Pooh and Its a Small World...hopefully then you can do Philarmagic...head over to Tomorrowland and check out the fast pass situation there...rest of the day play by ear...I would only do Country Bear Jamboree if you had the time later in the day. Also before you leave for your rest try and get a fast pass for one of the mountains for the evening when you return. You can do all three mountains (hurrying) after Wishes (assuming the park is open late...not sure about that)

Good Luck
Liz

 

[bscs]

You may want to skip speedway, if I recall the height requirment for this is high and 5 and maybe even 7 year old won't meet it.As for the rest I also say go straight to Dumbo as soon as it opens. Aladin magic carpet is basically the same thing as Dumbo I would give the kids the choice and do just one if you are pressed for time. Jungle cruise is a waste of time since you are in a hurry I'd skip this. Have fun!

 

[Mysteria]

Height requirement for the speedway is 52" to ride alone. Under that they can ride with a "responsible person who meets the requirement".

Myst

 

[WaltD4Me]

Whew! I'm tired just reading your post! LOL!

I really recommend doing BTMR and Splash before SpectroMagic. Spectro is at 9pm, but it everyone starts staking out their seats about 8pm or a little after, but since Spectro shows up in Frontierland last, you can head over to Splash and BTMR (both in Frontierland) around 8pm, ride them both and still make Spectro. We did this last week and walked right on (with no wait!) to both rides and even did BTMR twice and still had plenty of time to get back to the parade route and find a seat for Spectro. It was great!

Also if you miss doing any of the Fantasyland rides early, try going back around 6pm before your PS....Fantasyland seems to really empty out at dinnertime and after. Same for Toontown, especially if you want to see the Princesses. We went around 11am and the Princess room wait was 45 mins, but then we went back at dinnertime and it was only 20 minutes and the Pooh and Mickey lines were only 10 minutes.

I think it might be a little tough to fit everything you listed in, especially with some of the character waits. If I were going to drop something it would be Jungle Cruise and Country Bear Jamboree. It's cute and I always enjoy it, but I wouldn't trade it for Small World or Haunted Mansion.

 

[rwodonnell]

Not to be argumentative, but I disagree on the fastpass for PhilharMagic. It is a show that lets in a lot of people at once. We've been there at some very busy times, and have not waited more than 15 minutes to get in. I would instead get a fastpass for BTMR or Splash Mountain right after Dumbo. Ride the other one while you are there, and come back to fantasyland later (and when you do, get a fastpass for Pooh instead of PhilharMagic).

 

[Merriwind]

My 2 cents - squeeze the Speedway in as early as you can, maybe right after Dumbo. I hate to have you criss-cross the park, but because of the way it loads, the line for this attraction moves sooooooooo slowly. If you're not there at opening, you're looking at a good 20-30 minute wait and it just goes up as the day goes on. (I don't get the appeal of this rides. Kids, including DD7, just love it.) It's not a high capacity ride, so the lines build up.

 

[isyt]

I think its great to have a plan just don't let it ruin your day if it goes astray. That being said head first to Fantasyland and do those first go over to Tommorrow land , I have done the Indy cars with two of me kids with me( but I don't wait in line for it). Do Buzz go to the mountains and get your fast passes and get lunch.

I know this plan has worked for us (July 4th last year). We got alot more done than expected.

Gee I will be there with my 4,6 and 8 the last week in June by myself, now I am a little nervous.

Good Luck!! May the pixie dust be with you ( and just have fun)

 

[Crazy Kanga]

I would skip Indy Speedway.BORING! and not worth the long wait that is usually invoved. I also agree with skipping Country Bears unless you have extra time.

 

[moopdog]

Regarding Country Bear Jamboree.... rent the movie if they haven't seen it, and decided after that. My kids are addicted to that movie, but they're younger (2 and 4) so for us the Jamboree is a must when we get there... even if it's terrible, we HAVE to see it based on the fact that my kids have watched the movie like 16,529 times in the past 2 years (maybe a slight exageration). HAVE FUN, sounds like a good plan to me!

 

[Disney_1derland]

I need some expert advise regarding my plan for MK. I will be taking my 2 kids DS7 and DD5 by myself to MK and was wondering if we could do all of these things in one day. We are going on Tuesday May 24 and plan to be there at opening. Here are the things we want to see.
Dumbo, Winnie the Pooh, It's a Small World, Ariels Grotto, Mickeys Philharmagic, Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, Aladin Magic Carpet, Splash Mountain, BTMR, Country Bear Jamboree (is it worth my time?), Buzz Lightyear, Tommorrowland Speedway, Toontown (Barnstormer, country houses, and princess autographs). I am planning on going to go back to AKL for a rest after lunch and then back to MK for a PS at CRT at 6:45p.m. Spectro is showing at 9:00 and Wishes at 10:00p.m. Which things should we get FP and when would be a good time to break this up for our rest time? If you don't think we can do all of this, what would be the things you would leave out. Am I being too structured?

Thanks a bunch

Be there and in line at least 3/4 of an hour before opening. I know this seems excessive but the closer you are to the front of that line, the earlier you will get in and trust me that you won't be the only person there that early! Since that is a non-early entry day this is what I suggest based on what we experienced on a non-early entry day the week before last:

Dumbo
Pooh
Get Fast Pass for Buzz
Get in line for Ariel (by 9:30 each morning the line was already 30 minutes long!!! and she doesn't even start until 10am so we technically waited an hour to see her)
Use your Buzz Fast Pass (hopefully you'll be in your window by this time)
Do Speedway
Do Toontown stuff (the line for the princesses is likely to be 30-45 minutes so this should take you into lunch time)
I would probably go over and see what time fast passes are being given out for at Splash and BTMRR. If it's late enough, grab one now.

*If you can at all skip them, you would save the most time by cutting out either Ariel or the princesses, I would cut out Ariel and get the 3 for 1 by seeing the princesses in toontown. I would also skip Goofy's Barnstormer since you will be doing BTMRR later in the day.

If you can do it I suggest being back in the park by 4:00pm and....

Grab Fast Pass for either Splash or BTMRR Check out the lines for jungle cruise and aladdin's carpets. If either is under 1/2 hour, do one or the other. Haunted Mansion
Small World
Philharmagic if time before your dinner.
Dinner
(of course, you're going to have to work your fast passes in here somewhere!)
Assuming an hour for dinner, I would head to a remaining ride or two.

You didn't specify whether or not you actually intend to watch the parade. If you don't intend to watch the parade, that would be a good time to hit toontown. The lines are dead at that point usually and it can be very quick. If you are skipping the parade then I would do toontown that evening.

I know I've said a lot, but here is some more food for thought...
Are you going to have a stroller? What day is this on your trip, day 1, day 5? That will impact how good you feel. Have your kids prioritize a list from 1-10 of these attractions. Then you can decide what the must do's are and what you can save for 'in case we have time'. We usually let each child pick their top 3 and guarantee them they will see those as long as the ride is operational when we are there.

With my 5 year old, we did have a stroller, she definitely needed it. It also made it faster for me to get from place to place. MK has the most to see and do. If you can push it for that one day without the break back at the hotel, you will get more done. (I know this is blasphemy on this board, but there are ways to do it and still get some 'down-time'.) We did MK on day 2 of our trip and dd was in really good shape and actually did not want to go back to rest or swim, you may find your children feel the same or not. If you decide to do this, I would plan to have lunch maybe at Pecos Bill's then hit the country bears after lunch. This will give you a good long period of time sitting in air conditioning and resting. Country Bears is my dd's favorite in-park nap spot! She felt recharged enough after doing this to continue on.

We rested every other day of our trip but dd did not want to go back and leave MK, it worked well for us and we did lots of low-key things in the evening and avoided long waits. We did NOT do the parade and left the park before the fireworks began so we were out of the park by 9:45. You know your kids best and need to make that decision based on your knowledge! Good Luck and have fun!

 

[bcoyoh]

WOW THank you all for your advise, it really has helped alot! I am renting a double stroller, I will be less stressed knowing where they are when we are walking. This is our 1st day in WDW, so they should be raring to go. We are taking a break the next day, so I am thinking maybe we won't go back to the AKL for a rest. I will leave that up to the kids on that day. We are wanting to watch Spectro since we have never seen it before. We have been to MK several times, but have never been there when they have Spectro. Thinking we might leave after Spectro and not see the fireworks so we can make a quick getaway.

Again thanks for you advise.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

On our trips we usually go to MK each of several mornings so we can get in everything we want to do without being stressed or rushed. Logistically the lands are spread so far apart that it makes it easier to just concentrate on one or two areas each morning and see most things they have to offer there. By late morning the lines are usually long everywhere and that's when we head out. It might be something to consider if you don't have plans for Wednesday.

If you stick to your original plan then personally, I would skip Tomorrowland Speedway, Magic Carpets of Alladin, Jungle Cruise, and Ariel's Grotto, however I would add Peter Pan's Flight for sure (even in place of Snow White if I had to choose since it's a very unique/magical ride), Pirates of the Carribean and maybe a quick trip on the Tomorrowland Transportatin Authority. I agree the shows and the "continuous loading" rides take less time in long lines than the rides that hold a limited number of people so you can usually save those for later. I might attempt Country Bear Jamboree when we're hot and tired and in need of a little break seeing as your kids love it so much. I'd also probably just grab a hot dog or something quick for lunch if I was going to stay around most of the day.

If you haven't read it already the Unofficial Guide to WDW explains how to get the most out of your time in the parks if you have a chance to look it over. We've had several trips there with our kids but there are still a couple of things we haven't had a chance to do because now prefer to concentrate on our favorites. We also made "mistakes" on our first trip of such as wasting time in lines for the characters on the way into the park and standing in line for an hour in the sun at Ariel's Grotto, LOL. Live and learn. Have a great trip!!

 

[snyderla]

My suggestions are the following (works for us)

Make a PS (now called Advanced Reservation??) for Crystal Palace at 8:10AM, earliest seating, (you can take your time eating, it's a breakfast buffet, just make sure you are all done by about 8:50) then after breakfast head straight for FantasyLand and you can do Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, Dumbo, Carousel, IASW and PhilHarmagic with little to no wait...
that leaves you extra time for the rest of the park.
Our favorites at MK are: FantasyLand, HM, Splash Mt, Space Mt, Jungle Cruise, PoC, TTA, BTMR, Goofy's Barnstormer, SpectroMagic & Wishes. When you do the early morning PS at CP we have always had time for all of them and then some!
I would skip Tomorrow Land Speedway for sure (everyone in our family just had to ride it, but it was the biggest, actually it was the ONLY let down of any of our trips)...and I would skip Country Bear, but DH loves them.

Fantasy Land & Toon Town are a mad house mid afternoon, so I think early morning for Toon Town (they don't open until 10 though, I think) or evening before Toon Town closes would be a good time for that.

Also, I hear about people skipping the fireworks all the time to get a head start back to their rooms, I think they are doing themselves an injustice though! Those fireworks shows aren't like the ones back home...they are Magical and definetly a must-see for us! (but if you've already seen Wishes, you know if it is a must-see for your family.)

Just some food for thought...

Lori

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Just for laughs I asked my 7 yr old twins their take on your MK touring plans. Here's how we might plan it, at least for the beginning of the day (and knowing sometimes plans go out the window):

Enter park at opening.
Go straight to Dumbo.
Then go to PPF.
Haunted Mansion.
Return to Fantasyland for Snow White (though may skip this).
IASW.
Mickey's Philharmagic last unless the doors are about to open after HM/SW, then go there before IASW.

We would next head over to Frontierland and get a fastpass for either SM or BTMR and wait in line for the other depending on wait times. Then head over to Tomorrowland via Adventureland (and possibly LS first for CBJ if you want) and do PoC on the way and possibly MCA if there was a minimal wait. Once in Tomorrowland I would get a fastpass for SM and see if the line for BL is manageable. I might grab some hot dogs or a snack while waiting in line. (The Stitch ride is not popular on these boards but my DS7 loved it). If we're making good time I might catch a quick ride on the TTA and then head over to Toontown so that most of what you wanted to do is behind you and you don't have to stress about waiting in lines there.

If you haven't done CBJ yet I might save that for later and also Hall of Presidents is a must for us.

I agree that you should see the fireworks. If crowds were an issue for you I might try to get a seat near the entrance to the MK early, that way you'd at least be at the beginning of the crowds.

Have a great trip and let us know how it goes when you get back!!

 

[Wishing on a star]

We just got back a couple weeks ago... I had done a little OCD plannng too, just in case.

We were at MK on a Tuesday, which is one of the very slowest days of the week. We never even needed a FastPass!!!

If I had to choose an attraction to skip, it would definately be the Country Bear Jamboree. No question about it.

Definately Start with Dumbo. This is common knowledge for GOOD reason!
We did Dumbo, Peter Pan, etc... then TeaCups, then BUZZ at 10:00 (walked on!) Checked out ToonTown after hitting Barnstormer (DS LOVED this, and it can develope a line! go for this as soon as you can....), Then, rode the train over to FrontierLand... Did BigThunderMountain (very short wait!) Had Lunch..

It may be busier the week you are there, but Tuesday Morning should be Excellent! Just remember, Get there for the rope drop, and do the popular rides with the slow queues first. Fast Running attractions and attractions that accomodate a lot of people (Philharmagic) can easily be handled at other times.

If you luck out, and there is a very short wait for a favorite ride, then go ahead and do it twice!

PS: My DS really liked the Barnstormer, and this one CAN have a long line! So you may want to hit this as early as you can. Philharmagic is GREAT! You may want to squeeze this in again if possible too. (I would rather see a second Philharmagic over a Bear Jamboree ANY DAY!) Like many Disney attractions, it moves quickly, and the second experience you will be able to enjoy it further, and catch things you may have missed before.

RELAX!!! You will have a wonderful, magical, trip!

 

[bscs]

I am replying again cause someone mentioned Snow white ride. I would never go on this again. It is very scary for little ones, my dd was 5 when we went last time and she hated this ride yet she loved haunted mansion and ToT. Snow white ride is too scarey for little ones and too borring for everyone else. Skip it!