Need suggestions for planning trip

[FirstTimer]

Hi everyone,

As my name suggests this is my first time going to disney. It will be me, DH and DD(4). We'll be spending 4 nights at disney before going on the disney cruise for 4 nights. Now my question, is where do we definitely have to go? I've pretty much got the meals planned, Cindy, Winnie, Goofy, and Ohana. So I know one day I'm spending at the MK but where else should I go. I'm gonna get the 4 day pass but with a 4 year old realistically what other parks should I visit besides MK. Bringing someone with us isn't an option and honestly me and DH don't need any alone time for those 4 days, if anything we'll put her in the kids club once we board the ship. I, however, loooove rides and realize I'll be riding them by myself if I try to do any adult rides, which I'll be keeping to a minimum due to the reported long lines.

So I need your help. What are the top activities you must do for a first time visit to disney for a family of 3? Thx

 

[disneydreamer98]

With a little one I would say that your main focus should be the MK, I would probably spend at least 2 of the 4 days there. There are also some fun things at MGM that she would enjoy...Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Playhouse Disney Live on Stage, Beauty and the Beast, Muppets 3-D and then you could hit Rock N' Rollercoaster and Tower of Terror which are must do's!!!

First and foremost, when you go to MK head directly to Fantasyland at park opening. Go on Dumbo first (if you wait the line get's enormous!) then to Winnie the Pooh. As far as must do's for adults: Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion. (BTW...your DD should be fine on both Pirates and Haunted Mansion)

If you can fit at least part of a day and you have park hopping ability with your tickets then try to go to Animal Kingdom. The presentation of Festival of the Lion King is wonderful and It's Tough to be a Bug and the Kilamanjaro Safari are both great.

You are going to have a wonderful time seeing Disney for the first time through your Daughter's eyes! Have a great time and if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to PM me...I'd be glad to help!

 

[Rowlf]

If you don't mind my asking, where are you staying while you are at WDW? It can make a difference as to what you might want to do.

Last year, DH and I went with our then-fifteen-month-old DS for three nights and we made it to all four parks, seeing most of the highlights and having a great time. One afternoon, we got a woman from KNO to come babysit our son so that DH and I could go ride Mission: Space and Test Track together. We had an extra hour after doing that, so we went and had a beer at the Rose and Crown before heading back.

It might have been easier for me to feel like I could skip things since it was probably my sixth or so trip, but, going in September, I think you'll be able to do more than you think. Lines were pretty short for most things last September, and I hope they'll be the same this year when we are back again!

You might want to consider getting touring plans from the Unofficial Guide or from TouringPlans.com to help you hit the highlights, though.

 

[snowy76]

Take advantage of the child swap passes for rides so you can still ride what you want and not have to wait in very long lines!

 

[FirstTimer]

If you don't mind my asking, where are you staying while you are at WDW? It can make a difference as to what you might want to do.

Last year, DH and I went with our then-fifteen-month-old DS for three nights and we made it to all four parks, seeing most of the highlights and having a great time. One afternoon, we got a woman from KNO to come babysit our son so that DH and I could go ride Mission: Space and Test Track together. We had an extra hour after doing that, so we went and had a beer at the Rose and Crown before heading back.

It might have been easier for me to feel like I could skip things since it was probably my sixth or so trip, but, going in September, I think you'll be able to do more than you think. Lines were pretty short for most things last September, and I hope they'll be the same this year when we are back again!

You might want to consider getting touring plans from the Unofficial Guide or from TouringPlans.com to help you hit the highlights, though.

We're staying at Cypress Pointe, thx for the info I'm gonna hit up those websites now.

 

[crisi]

Add park hopping to your tickets. Then split your days as needed. Our kids didn't enjoy MGM and loved AK. They enjoyed Epcot. Of course, they could do MK every day, but if you are up early, you may be able to see most of what interests a four year old in a day and a half, and still manage to see much of AK, MGM and Epcot.

 

[belle_of_the_ball]

AK is a great place for a 5 year old ive seen alot of little ones interact w/ the animals!

 

[FirstTimer]

Take advantage of the child swap passes for rides so you can still ride what you want and not have to wait in very long lines!

What are child swap passes?

 

[snowy76]

I haven't done it myself since our kids are old enough for all the rides... but if I have it right... you basicaly go to the CM at the Fastpass line; they give you a special pass that lets you ride while your spouse waits with the kids... then your husband can use the same pass to go on right after you.

 

[Danno Magee]

There are really highlights at all four parks and if you can get hopper passes and get to all of them, I would. The MK is definately a good place to go as it is really geared toward kids and fun-loving adults. I personally like EPCOT and know several kids that get a thrill out of seeing different countries and staring at the fish in the living seas. Plus, who wouldn't want to go up in that huge ball? Animal Kingdom has good things like the Safari, Lion King Show, and It's Tough to be a Bug. Some people see the AK as a lot of walking and looking (which it can be), but it just depends on what you are looking for. If you DD likes animals, she'll like AK. MGM has some pretty good shows that kids and adults can enjoy. It also has some good rides for you (Rock n Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror). So all of the parks have some great things to offer. It just all depends on what you are looking for.

 

[FirstTimer]

Thx this has really helped alot

One more thing DH mentioned Universal Studios, I'm already getting the 4 day hopper tickets, is Universal so different than MGM that it's worth going to see

 

[pinkdiamonds1007]

Thx this has really helped alot

One more thing DH mentioned Universal Studios, I'm already getting the 4 day hopper tickets, is Universal so different than MGM that it's worth going to see

Hey First Timer!!! Sounds like you have a busy week planned! We have done both Disney and Universal quite a few times. *not with our dd though, this will be our first family trip to Disney!!!* In fear of being persecuted on the Disney boards for saying this...WE LOVED UNIVERSAL..esp. Islands of Adventure!! So much fun. However, most of it is geared towards older kids or adults. They have a few things like Suess Landing thats fun for kids, but mostly all the rides are suited for older visitors. I would reccomend that one when your dd is a little older or when you have more time. Just doing Disney for the 4 days before your cruise is going to keep you SO SO SO busy!!!! There is so much great stuff to see and do at the world with a young child....we are going to be there for 6 full days, and bought a hopper pass to just do the parks with. We were going to do Sea World this time around..but cut that out ..b/c we wanted to be able to relax a bit and take our time through the parks instead of rushing. Trust me, you won't run out of things to do. And Universal will be there in a couple of years when your dd will be old enough to take advantage of the stuff their too!

Have a fun trip!!

 

[FirstTimer]

Hey First Timer!!! Sounds like you have a busy week planned! We have done both Disney and Universal quite a few times. *not with our dd though, this will be our first family trip to Disney!!!* In fear of being persecuted on the Disney boards for saying this...WE LOVED UNIVERSAL..esp. Islands of Adventure!! So much fun. However, most of it is geared towards older kids or adults. They have a few things like Suess Landing thats fun for kids, but mostly all the rides are suited for older visitors. I would reccomend that one when your dd is a little older or when you have more time. Just doing Disney for the 4 days before your cruise is going to keep you SO SO SO busy!!!! There is so much great stuff to see and do at the world with a young child....we are going to be there for 6 full days, and bought a hopper pass to just do the parks with. We were going to do Sea World this time around..but cut that out ..b/c we wanted to be able to relax a bit and take our time through the parks instead of rushing. Trust me, you won't run out of things to do. And Universal will be there in a couple of years when your dd will be old enough to take advantage of the stuff their too!

Have a fun trip!!

THX this is what I was thinking, ust needed some reconfirmation. DH is the type that tries to cram as much in as possible

 

[Carolinagirl1063]

My dd's first trip was last year at 4. She loved MK and MGM. She liked AK but would have appreciated it more had we not been staying at AKL. She rode just about every MK ride she was tall enough for. She had a blast just at the HISTKs playground at MGM. Although we have a pool at home she wants to swim everyday. She really had fun at Universal but not much at IOA for her. Universal was very expensive for just a day and we paid $35.00 for their version of fastpass due to lack of time. Just the fats passes cost us $140.00 in addition to the park admission. My dd lives for character encounters. Be prepared for that if you encourage the autograph thing. Just follow your childs lead, we do that and it works fine...easier than forcing our wants unless it's something very important to us. My child was not thrilled with Epcot but will go and be good about half a day. Have a great trip!

 

[FirstTimer]

Also, should I get the 4 day pass with park hopper option? With us only being at disney land 4 days before the cruise it only allows us to see each park once with the 4 day pass but what if we wanted to do MK 2 times, that would mean we'd miss a park unless we did the park hopper option, which would roughly be $100 more total for the rest of us (like $35 a piece). I don't think that's too bad and I'll probably be kicking myself if I don't get it but if I do then I'm definitely gonna be in the mindset that we HAVE to use it.

 

[snowy76]

We never go without a park hopper. If it's $100 difference, I would say go for it, unless your budget is extremely tight. We think the flexibility it allows is great for traveling with kids. We also love it in those cases when we hit a park and find it's just too crowded, or too hot, or too rainy, for us -- and we can hit a different park where we know we can avoid some of these issues.

 

[FirstTimer]

We never go without a park hopper. If it's $100 difference, I would say go for it, unless your budget is extremely tight. We think the flexibility it allows is great for traveling with kids. We also love it in those cases when we hit a park and find it's just too crowded, or too hot, or too rainy, for us -- and we can hit a different park where we know we can avoid some of these issues.

That's settled I'm gonna be hopping

 

[snowy76]

That's settled I'm gonna be hopping

Uh oh, the pressure! It's all going to be my fault of you don't like hopping! Have a GREAT time!