my trip is in 2 weeks - have I planned enough?

[Figment Mom]

I know some people just go and wing it and others plan everything down to the minute. I think I took the middle road and I'm wondering if I should do more.

We will be there for 10 nights. I used crowd calendars to plan which parks we'll be in and then booked FP+ and ADRs. I've been to WDW many, many times as a kid but not at all as an adult so it has been a while but I do know MK and Epcot pretty well, I think.

What I didn't do is plan exactly which rides we'll hit in which order in between our FPs. I figured I'd use the MDE app for wait times, stick to one area of each park at a time (so we're not zig-zagging all over the place), and prioritize based on what interests us.

We'll also be there at rope drop each day.

I've done a lot of research and feel that I know how things "work" and what to expect on a typical day. (A typical crowd level 8 day.)

Is that enough? Will I be wasting a lot of time if I don't use a touring plan?

We'll have 2 full days and 2 1/2 days in MK, 2 days in Epcot, 1 day in AK, and probably 3 days in DHS. I have one resort day planned in the middle. So I don't feel that we have to cram everything in every day and we'll feel free to take breaks if we feel like it.

Again, I realize touring styles vary. I'm hoping I have a good balance of preparedness and spontaneity.

What do you think? Should I do a little more prep work and sketch out a plan for the order of attractions we'd like to see/do? Invest in a touring plan? Or just let it all play out?

 

[jm106]

I think you are fine. We never plan which rides in which order or follow a TP. We usually just have a direction we wish to head when park opens then go from there. That said, I haven't been since FP+. I'm not at all looking forward to making them.

 

[g-dad66]

I think you're doing it just right.

The one additional thing you might look at is the show times (especially at Hollywood Studios, and also at Animal Kingdom) to see how they fit in with your FP+ and ADR times.

You can find a list of them for the current week at
http://wdwent.com, and they are likely to be the same times during your trip.

The showtimes I always check out are Indiana Jones, Lights Motors Action, Disney Junior, Beauty and the Beast, American Idol (well, OK, I don't really check THAT one ) at Studios, and Lion King, Nemo, and Flights of Wonder at Animal Kingdom.

 

[agavegirl1]

Sounds like you've done all you need to with the exception of checking out showtimes prior to your arrival at the parks as mentioned by g-dad66. You have considered a mid-trip, non-park day You are flexible enough to include breaks from the parks if needed. You have your ADRs, FPs and park days planned out.

Consider that so many do not even plan which park, which restaurant or which rides on any given WDW day and you are soooooo ahead of the game here. Have a wonderful trip and get some rest before your trip.

 

[wendybeth75]

I think it sounds fine! I find it easier to "wing It" in between ADR and FP+ times, you never know when you may want to do an inside ride to cool off or a sitting ride or show to rest up for a bit. My only exception to that rule is when we do EMH or rope drop. Then we are a bit more "scheduled" for the first hour or 2. Have a great trip!

 

[Altoqueenkelly]

We plan our trips the exact way you have. We know which parks per day, we have ADRs based on that and now we have FP+. We also want to go with the flow with the rest of the day, prioritize one area at a time. I would never want a minute by minute itenerary of what to do in what order, I think a basic outline is perfect. A full blown touring plan is too much for us. I think your plan is great!

Have a great time and don't over stress about it! You've planned just enough!

 

[Figment Mom]

Thanks for the reassurance!

I'll look into show times and also make sure I have a plan for where we're headed at rope drop. Do all of the attractions open at park opening (with the exception of World Showcase in Epcot)?


I can't wait!

 

[g-dad66]

Do all of the attractions open at park opening (with the exception of World Showcase in Epcot)?

No, there are a few that don't.

I learned this the hard way when we sent wife and infant grandson to ride the Riverboat, while we hit Big Thunder and Splash. Riverboat didn't open until 11 am.

Some others I think of, off the top of my head, are Country Bears and Monsters Inc Laugh Floor at MK. Also, Voyage of the Little Mermaid and the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground at Hollywood Studios. Also, Turtle Talk at Epcot.

 

[Aliceacc]

We leave 2 weeks from tomorrow!! All that's left to be done is the Target run for socks, underwear, shampoo and stuff, a major housecleaning, and packing.

We're rope drop people too. I second the idea of having a plan of what rides you want to hit first, second, and maybe third. Don't waste time in that first hour or so deciding what you want to do. Have a plan. Once you get past, say, ride #3, go wherever you decide.

So, for example, even though we're FPing Soarin', we'll see that first in Epcot-- we'll want to do it at least twice. Then we'll hit Mission Space and Test Track. Then we'll do what we feel like.

In the MK, we can skip most of Fantasyland, but we LOVE Peter Pan, so we'll probably start there at least one day. (Yes, we've FPed that on at least one day.) From there, it will depend on which MK FPs we have.

In DHS we'll head right to Toy Story Mania (even though we've FP'd it-- we love that ride!)

I still should figure out AK. We normally head right to the Safari-- we're not big roller coaster people, so no need to hit Everest. But we've FP'd the Safari, so I really should give this some thought.

Oh, and do you have ponchos? Consider hitting Target or the dollar store and getting some disposable ones.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I would come up with a rough plan, even if you just do it the night before you go to each park, because of the extreme heat. I find it easier to go with the flow in the cooler weather. But in the heat, I like to have a rough plan in place, including working the AC attractions/shows/breaks in.

Have fun!

 

[catra121]

I think you have planned just the right amount. I love having a plan...but my plan is very similar to yours. I planned out the park days, made my ADRs, and then made my FP+ reservations based on where I would be. We are going for 9 days and plan to take it very slow and easy.

I think touring plans are much more critical for people there on a short trip (one day or less in each park) and people there on the very busiest days of the year and people who absolutely want to maximize the number of attractions they can do in a day. I don't fall into any of those categories and it doesn't sound like you do either.

Don't get me wrong...I go to the parks for full days (usually open to close) and I don't take rest breaks back at the resort...but I do take breaks in the sense that I have 2 TS meals a day and will often stop and rest somewhere (maybe with a yummy treat) for a while and just chill out. I like to be in the parks all day and do as much as I can...but it's not a mission for me to ride everything or ride X number of rides each day...some how that just sort of zaps the fun out of it for me.

At any rate...I think you have a great general plan and that is a good happy medium between winging it (which you do a little of) and going with a ride specific touring plan (which you do a little of with FP+).

Good luck and have a fabulous trip!!

 

[Ava]

If you have young kids (or character lovers in general), I'd also look up the locations and times for character greetings. Some of them are only out for a couple hours at a time.

 

[leebee]

Are you doing short park days? I think 3 days at DHS sounds like a lot. However, if you are spacing them out with pool time and such, it'll be fine. When we go for long trips, I like having 10 day tickets so if we want to take a day off, we can, or take most of the day and just go in the evening for parades or whatever. Unfortunately, our next trip is 5 days (with the first day being our arrival, at about 1pm) so we are going to be pretty tired. Fortunately, most of our favorite restaurants are in the resort hotels, so we don't HAVE to be in a certain park for a specific amount of time if we're too tired to stay.

Have a wonderful trip!

 

[Hopefully]

Your Plan looks perfect to me. It is how I plan as well. Which park, which day, ADR's and I will do FP+ when the time comes. But I never did do minute by minute.
I think having an idea of what you want to do first thing at Rope Drop is a good idea. It gives direction as you walk into the amazing park
Have Fun!

 

[Figment Mom]

Thanks, everyone, for the advice.

No, there are a few that don't.

I learned this the hard way when we sent wife and infant grandson to ride the Riverboat, while we hit Big Thunder and Splash. Riverboat didn't open until 11 am.

Some others I think of, off the top of my head, are Country Bears and Monsters Inc Laugh Floor at MK. Also, Voyage of the Little Mermaid and the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground at Hollywood Studios. Also, Turtle Talk at Epcot.

Excellent.

We leave 2 weeks from tomorrow!!

...


We're rope drop people too. I second the idea of having a plan of what rides you want to hit first, second, and maybe third. Don't waste time in that first hour or so deciding what you want to do. Have a plan. Once you get past, say, ride #3, go wherever you decide.

So, for example, even though we're FPing Soarin', we'll see that first in Epcot-- we'll want to do it at least twice. Then we'll hit Mission Space and Test Track. Then we'll do what we feel like.

...

Oh, and do you have ponchos? Consider hitting Target or the dollar store and getting some disposable ones.

Alice! I recognize you from a teacher board (I have a different username there.) We'll be in WDW at the same time as you. Neat!

I think that's great advice to at least plan the first few. And, yes, ponchos are on my shopping list for sure.

If you have young kids (or character lovers in general), I'd also look up the locations and times for character greetings. Some of them are only out for a couple hours at a time.

Thanks. DS will be 9 and I don't think he is very into characters, so I haven't given much attention to them. I did book Tusker House for breakfast just to give him a taste of it, but I don't think we'll be waiting in any lines.

Are you doing short park days? I think 3 days at DHS sounds like a lot. However, if you are spacing them out with pool time and such, it'll be fine. When we go for long trips, I like having 10 day tickets so if we want to take a day off, we can, or take most of the day and just go in the evening for parades or whatever. Unfortunately, our next trip is 5 days (with the first day being our arrival, at about 1pm) so we are going to be pretty tired. Fortunately, most of our favorite restaurants are in the resort hotels, so we don't HAVE to be in a certain park for a specific amount of time if we're too tired to stay.

Have a wonderful trip!

Honestly, I think we'll do long park days but if we feel like leaving we will. I thought 3 days at DHS was a bit much, too, but I'm anticipating that it will be his favorite park. He has already asked if he can do Jedi Training academy more than once - and he's watched it on YouTube so he knows what to expect. We've FP'd TSMM and Star Tours (he's a huge Star Wars fan) for all 3 days. I was originally planning on just 2 days there, but then the Frozen stuff started and I booked the premium package for one of the last days of our trip that I had originally left "open" to be a flex day to go back and do whatever we decided we felt like. I'm prepared to cancel that whole day if, after 2 DHS days we decide we'd rather not invest another day there.

Again, thanks everyone! Our trip is so close!