My plans ~ How Feasible?

Amunet

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May 31, 2011
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This is part me gushing about what I have planned (just to get it out!) and part to see if you think it's realistic.
There are questions for each day below and I would appreciate if you could answer. Or give any feedback ^_^
(deleted answered questions 3/1/16)

Quick Background:
2 Adults
March 12-15
One Adult (me) has been to WDW multiple times
One Adult (DBF) has never been, this is his first trip.
AKV ~ Savanna Studio
Food/Dining & Flower Garden are the focuses of our trip.
We will be using Disney Transportation


The below plans are ... I say they are rather advanced plans and please do not attempt unless you've been to WDW a few times before lol
While these are my plans, I do understand that things happen and I am known to change full ADRs or skip fireworks (even for first timers) if I (we) are not feeling well. So, the plans are kind of obsessively planned out, but if I cannot adhere to the exact times, I completely am okay with that. I only do the military regime while planning, not while vacationing :)



Saturday, March 12th

6:50pm ~ Flight scheduled to arrive at MCO
9:00pm ~ Sanaa ADR

Depending on how on schedule the flight is and how quickly we arrive from the airport will depend upon if we get off at Kidani first for the ADR or Check in at Jambo house first.

QUESTIONS
1) What would be the best way to get from Jambo House to Kidani?


Sunday, March 13th

3:30-4:30pm ~ Finding Nemo FP
4:40-5:40pm ~ Test Track FP
5:45-5:45pm ~ Spaceship Earth FP
7:30pm ~ Tokyo Dining ADR

Make it to Epcot by 8:30am for rope drop.
Head straight to Test Track for first ride of the day and maybe even a second ride. DBF is a huge car fan and cannot wait for this ride.
Go to Mission Space for DBF to ride while I go to the Festival Center (if open).
Enjoy Gardens and head towards the World Showcase around 11 or 11:30am.
Spend time in World Showcase sampling. Start w/ Mexico, end in Canada.
Start FP rides.
Ride Living on the Land sometime during this.
Make it to ADR. Request to wait for a window seat. Eat while watching Illuminations.
Probably make it back to AKV around 11pm

The above is tentative since we are still waiting for the specific schedule for the Flower & Garden festival. Spaceship Earth is not a MUST for this trip. Land, Nemo and Test Track are MUSTS.

QUESTIONS
n/a


Monday, March 14th

8:10am ~ BOG ADR (pre park opening)
11:50am ~ Ohanas Breakfast ADR
2:05-3:05pm ~ Space Mountain FP
3:20-4:20pm ~ Space Ranger Spin FP
5:20-6:20pm ~ BTMRR FP


Arrive early for BOG ADR. Pre ordering available for breakfast.
Should be done by 9am for RD.
As soon as rope is dropped, head to Dwarf Ride for first ride of day.
Ride Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan (if not long line), Haunted Mansion, Pirates & perhaps Jungle Cruise.
Head out at 11am to monorail for Poly.
Aim for 11:30 check in.
Eat 'breakfast' (lunch) at Ohanas (yay character interaction!)
Hop on monorail back to MK for Space Mountain FP (2pm).
Watch Festival of Fantasy at 3pm
Head back to Tomorrowland for FP + ride People Mover
Head towards Adventure Land for BTMRR FP.
Most likely after BTMRR, eat at Pecos Bill or Columbia Harbor House for Dinner.
Spend rest of day in Main Street to shop.
9:30pm Start finding spot for Wishes.
10pm Wishes
11pm Electrical Parade
Depending how we feel, we may head towards buses just shortly before the end of the parade OR finish window shopping/grabbing snacks prior to exiting.
To resort by 1am (probably)

QUESTIONS
n/a


Tuesday, March 15th

8:30am ~ Boma ADR
1:05pm ~ Flight Departure


We estimate that the Magical Express will pick us up at 10am for our flight at 1pm.
Ideally, we shall wake up at 8am and be down to our ADR. Giving ourselves time to eat much and still have time to check out prior to leaving.

Depending how we sleep/feel in the morning, we are unsure if we will be packed by ADR time. If we are, we will check out and have them hold our luggage while we eat. Then just head out to the stop for Magical Express.
Otherwise, we are thinking of 45min or an hour to eat at Boma (since it's a buffet). We are quick eaters.



So, what do you lovely people think?
Any feedback would be quite appreciated :flower3:


Due to feedback, I have changed plans and they are reflected above. Below are my previous plans.
Saturday, March 12th

6:50pm ~ Flight scheduled to arrive at MCO
9:15pm ~ Raglin Road ADR

I am planning on heading straight to Magical Express & check in at AKV. Since checked bags will arrive in our room, we can then just head straight to DTD (pppft, Disney Springs).

QUESTIONS
1) Do you think we will have time to shortly browse World of Disney and/or collect pressed pennies prior to our ADR?

2) When do you think we shall make it back to AKV after our ADR? We eat quickly. Yes dessert, no appetizer.

Tuesday, March 15th

8:30am ~ Boma ADR
1:05pm ~ Flight Departure
 
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The only thing that really stuck out to me is your departure day. Magical Express picks you up approximately 3 hours before your scheduled departure...making that a 10am pick up. So your Boma wouldn't work out.

ETA: I would also make your reservation with Raglan Road through OpenTable. The times are a little too close and don't really allow for any delays and what not. So if you miss it, you wouldn't be charged the $10 fee per person (if scheduled through OpenTable)
 
Wow, math is definitely not my forte. So move the reservation to 8:30am :)

Thank you! That's a very good idea. Thank you, I shall do that :)
Or we can dine on resort ... Will have to check Jiko or Sanaa menus.
 
1. You don't give yourself time for flight delays or anything on your arrival day. Really you don't even have time for long lines at checkout or abnormal bus wait times (but this is coming from someone who refuses to make an ADR on arrival day because I refuse to stress myself out trying to get somewhere). Also, if you're bothering paying for AKL, why not spend some time there that evening. I get it, I love Disney Springs, too and it's hard to pass it up, but when I pay deluxe prices I want to have more time in the room, personally.


5. Disney character meet can probably be squeezed in whenever you're passing Innoventions (I can never remember if it's east or west). But it is the only thing in there and the line moves quickly - just make sure to watch hours (I think maybe 1-7 but wouldn't bet my life on it).

Your MK day seems to have a lot of park criss crossing. So let me ask you - is this trip for you to do your favorite things, or to show BF Disney? If it's what you want - go for it, you know how stressful it could be if you're running from place to place trying to make FP's and ADRs and if you're okay with that then...good. If you're trying to make BF love WDW then maybe you need to slow things down a little bit. What are you going to do if he says - hey that Stitch ride looks interesting? Are you going to let him try it for himself or tell him how horrible it is? It seems a little rushed for a first timer to me so you might want to build in some wiggle room (remembering that it'll be the start of spring break times so it could be pretty busy).

None of this is stuff you have to answer to me, naturally, but just throwing it out there for you to think about!
 

Do you think eating at BOG and making Dwarf ride at around 9am feasible?

You can likely make it for 9 am, but the park will open at 8:45. So, either rush through a breakfast you paid alot of money and woke up at 6:30 for or adjust your plans.

Too many people focus on breakfast because they hear so many people say "breakfast" when talking about WDW. Without question the cost associated with breakfast just about anywhere at WDW is a terrible value compared to what you can get other places much cheaper and it takes you away from doing attractions during the best time of the day to do so.

If you're up early, focus on attractions not eating. Later in the day, when you need the rest, want to get off your feet and the crowds have risen which has increased standby wait times then focus on eating. After lunch when crowds are the thickest, use your FP+.
 
WOW! I would be stressed the whole time. On your arrival day I think you are setting yourself up for a problem. I would use Open Table because you have really cut the ADR for Raglan Road way too close, IMO.

On Monday, I think that you should either skip 'Ohana or BOG. You have a lot of running back and forth and I cannot see how that is fun. You may be okay with the criss crossing and the race to BOG and then back to the Poly and then back to MK, you have been here before, but if this was my first trip...I would never go back. This is one wicked long day.

On your departure day you need to be at the DME bus stop by about 9:50. The bus actually leaves 3 hours prior to your scheduled departure time.
 
By the time Dwarf Ride and Winnie Pooh ride are done, how long do you think Peter Pan will be?

You're looking at probably 30 minutes or so by 10 am.



What would be the ideal time to leave AKV (AKL) to make it to Epcot at 8:30am? Park opening is 9am

Advertised opening is 9 am, but will likely open earlier. I would be standing at the bus station for 8 am for an 8:45 opening.

When would be a good time to squeeze in the Disney Visa character meet?

Whenever you walk past it and have time.

When should we leave AKV to make it to MK by 7:50-8am?

7:30
Do you think we can make it back to MK by 2pm after Ohanas? That's a 2 hour slot for eating. We only MUST see Stitch for the characters.

Probably, but I would aim for the tail end of that FP window rather than the start. When you get back to MK do something with a short wait time, then to Space at 3pm and Buzz at 3:20 right when you get off. You want to avoid getting off of Space Mnt then wandering around wondering what to do next. Take that time before 3pm and meet some characters, ride the train, etc.
 
Hi! I think if you want an ADR on arrival day, looking at the AKL restaurant menus is a good idea. In January DH and I had an 8:40 ADR for Sanaa on our arrival night, staying in Jambo house. Our flight was scheduled to arrive MCO 5:50 giving us almost 3 hours to get there. On all our many trips we've had great luck getting from MCO to our resort fast. Well, between our flight leaving over an hour late, a LONG wait for a bus and then sitting on the bus waiting for it to leave, we didn't get to AKL until 8:50. We had hoped to stop at Jambo to drop our carryons first and then walk to Kidani for dinner but instead got off at Kidani and went straight to Sanaa. It wasn't an issue being 10 minutes late but had our ADR been at a park, Disney Springs, or another resort, we'd have been out of luck. And that was with a 3 hour window from when our flight was supposed to land!

As for BOG breakfast: we had an 8am ADR on that trip. We were let in at 7:50, sat down at 8:10 and were done eating at 8:35. We walked out and there were about 15 people on line for 7DMT. They let us on at 8:45. We got 2 rides in before the RD crowd arrived at about 8:55, and by the time we were walking off our 2nd ride the line was crazy long. So if you don't walk out of BOG until 9 you'll more than likely be looking at a long wait. However, we took our time eating, and they'll let you in at 8 with an 8:10 ADR, so if you watch the time you can most likely be out way before 9 since it's just the 2 of you :)
 
I agree with you about arrival day. It is much too busy. We have changed our reservation to Sanaa instead :)
Also, I am not bothering to pay for deluxe prices. I have rented a DVC reservation at AKV. Less per night than a moderate! :)

Ah yes, okay, I shall make sure to put the character meet on my list. We should have some time in between crossing through the area.

MK day doesn't have much crisscrossing. Our ADR is north of the castle. We stay north for Dwarf ride and Pooh. Then go counterclockwise towards peter pan, then haunted mansion. We go straight south from west to pop onto pirates and possibly jungle cruise. This puts us in adventure land, closest to the exit while still being in one of the lands. Then exit for reservation. Upon arrival, we go immediately east (tomorrowland). Yes, we do pop out to the main hub for the parade, but we then stay in tomorrowland for a bit longer. Here we do cross to get to BTMRR but I've also timed it for us to grab dinner while in that area. We end with main street/hub for shopping, parade and shows :)
Also, I have taken into account what he wants. In fact, he has been going through the rides. He wants an overview of the headliners this trip but still experiencing the dining (hence two ADRS that morning, he's crazy!!).

Of course I shall answer. You obviously are concerned about us having a wonderful time! I shall give you the courtesy of my time as well :)
I have done the major mountains (sans dwarf ride) and many smaller rides in a 2 hour period during peak season of the summer. The key is ropedrop :) I figure that if I can handle summer peak crowds in MK, I can do so during the spring. Granted, we shall see how the dwarf ride plays in these plans.

1. You don't give yourself time for flight delays or anything on your arrival day. Really you don't even have time for long lines at checkout or abnormal bus wait times (but this is coming from someone who refuses to make an ADR on arrival day because I refuse to stress myself out trying to get somewhere). Also, if you're bothering paying for AKL, why not spend some time there that evening. I get it, I love Disney Springs, too and it's hard to pass it up, but when I pay deluxe prices I want to have more time in the room, personally.


5. Disney character meet can probably be squeezed in whenever you're passing Innoventions (I can never remember if it's east or west). But it is the only thing in there and the line moves quickly - just make sure to watch hours (I think maybe 1-7 but wouldn't bet my life on it).

Your MK day seems to have a lot of park criss crossing. So let me ask you - is this trip for you to do your favorite things, or to show BF Disney? If it's what you want - go for it, you know how stressful it could be if you're running from place to place trying to make FP's and ADRs and if you're okay with that then...good. If you're trying to make BF love WDW then maybe you need to slow things down a little bit. What are you going to do if he says - hey that Stitch ride looks interesting? Are you going to let him try it for himself or tell him how horrible it is? It seems a little rushed for a first timer to me so you might want to build in some wiggle room (remembering that it'll be the start of spring break times so it could be pretty busy).

None of this is stuff you have to answer to me, naturally, but just throwing it out there for you to think about!
 
I agree with you. We have changed our reservation to Sanaa. I shall update my original post soon ^_^

Yeah ... I've changed the departure day itinerary because math is not my forte lol. I have just moved the Boma reservation one hour earlier.

Yes, I WOULD NOT plan this for a first timer without their consent lol It is quite chaotic!! But BOG and Ohana is a priority for him. I could do without Ohana. I'd like to try the new Jungle restaurant. But, he loves the menus and character interactions (poly). Thus, it shall be interesting to see if this works out. Perhaps I shall do a small trip report to let you fellow Disney fans know if we actually pull it off! lol

WOW! I would be stressed the whole time. On your arrival day I think you are setting yourself up for a problem. I would use Open Table because you have really cut the ADR for Raglan Road way too close, IMO.

On Monday, I think that you should either skip 'Ohana or BOG. You have a lot of running back and forth and I cannot see how that is fun. You may be okay with the criss crossing and the race to BOG and then back to the Poly and then back to MK, you have been here before, but if this was my first trip...I would never go back. This is one wicked long day.

On your departure day you need to be at the DME bus stop by about 9:50. The bus actually leaves 3 hours prior to your scheduled departure time.
 
You can likely make it for 9 am, but the park will open at 8:45. So, either rush through a breakfast you paid alot of money and woke up at 6:30 for or adjust your plans.

Too many people focus on breakfast because they hear so many people say "breakfast" when talking about WDW. Without question the cost associated with breakfast just about anywhere at WDW is a terrible value compared to what you can get other places much cheaper and it takes you away from doing attractions during the best time of the day to do so.

If you're up early, focus on attractions not eating. Later in the day, when you need the rest, want to get off your feet and the crowds have risen which has increased standby wait times then focus on eating. After lunch when crowds are the thickest, use your FP+.

Nope, breakfast is important to us and we are rather excited for the BOG reservation :)
By focusing on eating (as I posted originally as our main intent) we can fill up on energy and make it in early to the park so that we can do our attraction plans.
My fastpasses are after lunch and we do plan to use them.

I have used prepark opening reservations many times in the past and they are marvelous for early ride hopping at MK :) I just have not specifically had BOG. I usually stick with CP as it is my favorite :)

You're looking at probably 30 minutes or so by 10 am.
Ech, wouldn't be worth it then. Which is okay, because he'd rather ride Pooh anyways :)




Advertised opening is 9 am, but will likely open earlier. I would be standing at the bus station for 8 am for an 8:45 opening.
Yes, Epcot likes opening a tad earlier then advertised hrm? Okay, Aim for 7:50am departure from room :)



Whenever you walk past it and have time.
Ah, so it shall not be a horribly long time for the experience? Perfect. Thank you!



I was thinking that. I always forget how early those buses start running. Okay. Sounds goods! Thank you :)


Probably, but I would aim for the tail end of that FP window rather than the start. When you get back to MK do something with a short wait time, then to Space at 3pm and Buzz at 3:20 right when you get off. You want to avoid getting off of Space Mnt then wandering around wondering what to do next. Take that time before 3pm and meet some characters, ride the train, etc.
No, I will be aiming for the beginning window. As I said in my original post; we do eat quickly and the only MUST character he must see is Stitch. I have been to Ohanas before and know that towards the end of the breakfast crowd, they tend to hurry it along. But, I shall be sure to let them know of our time restraints :)
I'd prefer to get Space Mountain out of the way as early as possible before the 3pm Fantasy Parade. This way if there is still a longish fastpass line, we still have time to find a decent spot for viewing. If the line is much better, then we will have time for a character meet. I will not risk going on a ride prior to the parade due to a possibility of it getting stuck.
Ha, of course, there is the possibility of getting stuck on ANY ride. Which is then when I am much more flexible.
As I said ... I have these specific times planned but my world or trip will not end if I cannot fit it in. We shall just have to re-prioritize that day. However, I am planning for maximum fun for us ... but am preparing (both of us) for the 98% chance of reality seeping its way into the magic bubble lol
 
There, I have updated plans thanks to logical feedback!
Again, thank you all for pointing out my miscalculation for departure day :flower3:
 

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