Need some expert advice.

[nuge67]

I have not been to Disney in almost 3 years and I will be attending Disney with my wife, my 5 year old, 21 month old and my mother in-law.

I like to plan things before hand, my wife wants to wing it, I feel that if we have some structure and expert advice from you DISers, then we will be better off overall, even if we don't keep to a strict timeline.

OK, we probably won't check into Music All Stars until after 2 on Saturday Nov 4th, what would the experts do next? What days would you hit what parks? Blizzard Beach will be closed when we are there but we plan on hitting Typhoon for a day or two somewhere during the week and also Universal one day as well. We do have the Hopper passes so we can come and go as we please, so, pour on your advice!!!

Sat.Nov 4th, after 2
Sun 5th
Mon 6th
Tues 7th
Weds 8th
Thurs 9th
Fri 10th
Sat 11th( This is the day we can head to my mother in-laws house about 3 hours away, or maybe stay the night if needed, but I think we figured we would leave the parks after dinner on this date)

 

[WI_DisneyFan]

I'm the same as you. I feel a little structure is a good thing. You shouldn't plan your trip down to the second, but it does help to have a general idea of what you want to do each day.

This is what I would do.

Nov 4 - since you are arriving at 2:00, I would probably just spend the afternoon/evening getting to know your surroundings. Relax by the pool, grab some dinner somewhere. Just try to recover from the flight.
Nov 5 - Since Magic Kingdom is my favorite park, I would need to do this one ASAP. So I'd spend my time in this park.
Nov 6 - Next, I'd go Disney-MGM Studios. Historically, this is the quietest park on Mondays.
Nov 7 - Blizzard Beach. No real reason, except that it would be nice to just let loose at a water park in the middle of the week.
Nov 8 - Epcot. Wednesday is the most quiet day at this park, so take advantage of it.
Nov 9 - Universal Studios OR maybe Downtown Disney (But I'm not sure how well this would work with a 5 year old and 12 month old.)
Nov 10 - Animal Kingdom. Friday is the quietest day at this park.
Nov 11 - If you don't do Universal Studios on the 9th, you could do it here, too. You'll already be on the road to your mother-in-law’s, so maybe use Disney Transportation during the week and your own transportation on this day.

This is where I found the best days to visit the different parks...

http://www.touringplans.com/tp2/UG2_index.php?PageID=14

You can try to use this to help you plan when to visit the different parks. Also, the morning after the parks have evening Extra Magic Hours are supposed to be pretty quiet, so use that information to your advantage.

If you are planning on making ADR's, I like to plan them around the park I'm planning on being at. So if I were at MK on the 5th, I'd plan on eating at Tony's Town Square or the Liberty Tree Tavern.

But most of all, don't get frustrated if you don't see everything you had hoped to at all of the parks. It is impossible to see everything and do everything, so just enjoy what you are doing instead of stressing out over what you haven't done yet. That's probably the best advice I can give anybody planning on making a pilgrimage to WDW.

 

[all4disney98]

I am more of a structured person in the sense that I go down there knowing what park I am going to each day. I am flexible though and will change it based on weather or something else that may come up. While deciding which parks I want to go to each day, I check the Disney website (and touringplans.com as a previous poster mentioned). I look specifically for morning EMH parks and I always plan to stay away from those parks that particular day. This is because we have two little ones and we never get there in time for the park opening. I know from experience that by mid-morning those EMH morning parks tend to be packed.

I would suggest you making ADRs for those certain restaurants you really want to eat at or you may end up eating there at 9:00 at night or not at that particular restaurant at all. If you wife wants to wing it then I would plan on just those restaurants that may break your children's hearts if they don't get to eat there

Have a great trip!!!

 

[CleveRocks]

Thanks to DISboards, another message board or 2, Birnbaum's, Unofficial Guide, and some other sources, I am a voracious student of all things Walt Disney World. Before last May, I hadn't been to WDW in 12 years, so I was like a born again newbie.

I went to WDW last May armed with all possible information right in my little brain. I didn't plan which day to go to which park. Really and truly, we let my 5 year old son decide each night which park or parks we were going to the next day. He'd watched the planning DVD a lot, so he pretty much memorized what was in each park that interested him. My wife and I and our 2 year old daughter went along for the ride pretty much all week.

I know this admission may get me thrown off of DISboards. Well, I know I can't really get thrown off, but maybe a moderator or the Tag Fairy will change my password in the middle of the night.

Instead of planning each day way in advance, I was able to roll with the punches because I understood the theories, the facts, the fundamentals, whatever you want to call it. And you know what? It worked out FABULOUSLY. We had a great time. We also toured very smartly and efficiently without being commandos.

I enjoyed doing it that way, and fully intend to do it again when we go in November. I don't like feeling constrained by a schedule -- IT'S VACATION! But I do enjoy a good puzzle, a good mystery, a good brain teaser. SO I had fun figuring out the very best way to tour, given what my son decided we should do the next day. I realize this way of doing things might drive some people nuts, but for me it was the perfect combination of relaxation (not feeling constrained by a schedule, unlike the rest of non-vacation life) and fun (figuring out how to succeed in a given situation, plus the whole Disney thing).