Need Help Picking Our Arrival Day Park

[RedsDrew]

Need help deciding on a park for our arrival day for our Honeymoon trip. We're going for 12 days, so we're already visiting each park twice with some resort/Spa days. Our plane is scheduled to land at 8:15 AM on the day we arrive. We plan on dropping off our luggage and heading straight to a park after arriving by DME.

Currently, we're torn between EPCOT and AK. We both agreed we want to be able to indulge in a cocktail (or several), hence these parks which have great bars. Also, we want to leave whatever park we go to around 7 PM for EMH in the MK until midnight (we have an 8:25 PM dining ressie at CRT in MK).

If we do AK we get to book a late afternoon FP for FoP which will allow us to ride it three times during our trip with minimal wait and we can get the Dole Whip with rum. At AK we can check off some of the attractions that we'll be able to skip the next day we visit to give us a much slower-paced touring day. If we go to EPCOT, we can book an afternoon FP for Test Track which we haven't ridden in the past couple trips because we only visited once each trip to EPCOT and booked the FP for Soarin' (our fave) instead. At EPCOT we can get ice cream martinis in among a plethora of other drinks. And we could spend time watching the movies in World Showcase that we never get to see because we're always doing the more exciting attractions.

What would you do and why?

 

[hakepb]

I’d probably lean Epcot. Mostly to take the monorails to MK.
With the TTC transfer it may not be faster, but it’s “more Disney” than busses. And at least the Epcot monorail entrance is in the secure zone, so you won’t get bag / security checked going to MK Via monorail.

 

[RedsDrew]

I’d probably lean Epcot. Mostly to take the monorails to MK.
With the TTC transfer it may not be faster, but it’s “more Disney” than busses. And at least the Epcot monorail entrance is in the secure zone, so you won’t get bag / security checked going to MK Via monorail.

Wow, you have provided some very good insight. I hadn't even considered those points.

 

[ChristineOH]

You won't be able to book a FP for FoP on the first day of your trip. Most people report that they can't get it until their fourth day.

I agree with Epcot. We always do Epcot on our arrival day. We've even FPed TT and then gotten Soarin' as a fourth FP. And I love hakepb's suggestion to ride the monorail to MK.

If you get lucky and get into your room early, I might try to take a nap before you head to the parks-- sounds like a long day! Congratulations on your upcoming wedding and have a great trip!

 

[windcriesamy]

Need help deciding on a park for our arrival day for our Honeymoon trip. We're going for 12 days, so we're already visiting each park twice with some resort/Spa days. Our plane is scheduled to land at 8:15 AM on the day we arrive. We plan on dropping off our luggage and heading straight to a park after arriving by DME.

Currently, we're torn between EPCOT and AK. We both agreed we want to be able to indulge in a cocktail (or several), hence these parks which have great bars. Also, we want to leave whatever park we go to around 7 PM for EMH in the MK until midnight (we have an 8:25 PM dining ressie at CRT in MK).

If we do AK we get to book a late afternoon FP for FoP which will allow us to ride it three times during our trip with minimal wait and we can get the Dole Whip with rum. At AK we can check off some of the attractions that we'll be able to skip the next day we visit to give us a much slower-paced touring day. If we go to EPCOT, we can book an afternoon FP for Test Track which we haven't ridden in the past couple trips because we only visited once each trip to EPCOT and booked the FP for Soarin' (our fave) instead. At EPCOT we can get ice cream martinis in among a plethora of other drinks. And we could spend time watching the movies in World Showcase that we never get to see because we're always doing the more exciting attractions.

What would you do and why?

Yay for Disneymoons! My DH and I loved ours!

My big question for you is: are you leaving for your honeymoon the day after the wedding? Because we did, and it was very tiring. After a full two days of wedding activities, we had to get up at 3:30 to get to the airport and catch our flight. After arriving and taking the ME and checking in to our resort, we needed a break! We had every intention of heading to MK right away, but we just couldn’t. We had lunch and a celebratory drink and then went for a swim. We didn’t hit the park until the sun was going down! It was just so nice to relax after a very busy weekend.

With the info you provided, I would probably choose Epcot and then ride the monorail over, but as a former Disneymooner I also wanted to let you know that it’s okay to take it easy on arrival day! You might need it!

 

[cgattis]

I had the same thought as PP. We had a 5:30 am flight the morning after our wedding and we were beat by the time we got to our destination, with all the wedding hubbub. Depending on where you're staying, I might just opt for a pool/hot tub day, some resort exploring, a nice TS dinner at the resort, and an early bedtime if I had 12 days. But if you can handle it, I do love the idea of hitting the ground running; we rarely get to do that because we usually drive, so it would be exciting!! Congrats

 

[RedsDrew]

Yay for Disneymoons! My DH and I loved ours!

My big question for you is: are you leaving for your honeymoon the day after the wedding? Because we did, and it was very tiring. After a full two days of wedding activities, we had to get up at 3:30 to get to the airport and catch our flight. After arriving and taking the ME and checking in to our resort, we needed a break! We had every intention of heading to MK right away, but we just couldn’t. We had lunch and a celebratory drink and then went for a swim. We didn’t hit the park until the sun was going down! It was just so nice to relax after a very busy weekend.

With the info you provided, I would probably choose Epcot and then ride the monorail over, but as a former Disneymooner I also wanted to let you know that it’s okay to take it easy on arrival day! You might need it!

We're actually leaving two weeks after our wedding. We decided to hold off to give us time to get everything sorted out following the wedding. That should help.