ONE day in the parks with husband!

[melsmom12]

We are heading down to the Orlando area for a week in late January, and DH will only be able to join us for a few of those days. My mother will be babysitting our toddler daughter for one day and letting DH and I have one full day all to ourselves.

So, we have all day in the parks with a park-hopper pass, and we want to make the most of it. We'll probably spend the majority, if not all, of our day at MK and Epcot, just our preference. MK closes that day at 7pm, and Epcot closes at 9pm, well the back part does, anyway. So it would make sense to spend the morning and early afternoon at MK and then move over to Epcot.

But we'd love to see Wishes AND Illuminations, is that do-able?

Basically, if you have this day to do, how would you do it? We'll probably just snack for most of the day, but we'd love to have a dinner with reservations, so where would you do that, too?

 

[maelstrom]

If the MK closes at 7 then I guess Wishes is at 7. Illuminations is at 9. Wishes lasts, what, 20 minutes or so? That puts you at approximately 7:20. Then you need to leave the MK, monorail/ferry over to the TTC and catch the Epcot monorail. I think if you really hustled, you'd make it alright. An alternative to catching the monorail at the MK is to walk to the Contemporary and get the monorail there where it's less crowded, or boat to the Poly and walk to the TTC.

If you're spending the morning at MK and evening at Epcot, unless you want to go back to MK for Wishes, and then go back to Epcot for Illuminations, you won't be able to see both. But if you're willing to spend the time travelling back in forth, I think you'd be ok. But you'll lose some park time.

As far as dinner, in the MK area I'd suggest the California Grill, Citricos, or Narcoosees. If you want to dine in the Epcot area, there's plenty of restaurants in WS. Le Cellier might be a nice romantic dinner for two, but make your reservation way ahead of time! You might also consider the Coral Reef if you like seafood.

Like I said, I think Wishes AND Illuminations is do-able, but if you don't want to spend a lot of time travelling, choose which one you'd really rather see.

 

[queenof hearts]

Wishes is great but to try and do both? I would visit MK in the morning than do Epcot. Get a drink at the Rose and crown. I think there is a cafe in Paris where you could have a glass of wine and an appetizer. Or go to the Pastry shop there and share a dessert. Have a beer in Germany. Check the entertainment schedule and see something that interest you both.Try on hats in Morroco and take pictures. Walk the gardens in Japan. Watch the acrobats in China or walk through exhibit and shops. Nosh in Norway- have a Maguerita in the San Angelo Cantina and relax and watch Illuminations. Just relax, have a good time, enjoy your time alone and notice the details!

 

[Evil Genius]

Looks like late January Wishes doesn't start until 8:00 no way would you make Illuminations. I agree with the above poster and enjoy MK in the morning and the late afternoon and evening at EPCOT. A nice meal at Le Cellier or Marrakesh and then a glass of wine or champagne from France while watching Illuminations.

Remember to hold hands all day. Other public displays of affection are okay too!!

Have a great time.

 

[melsmom12]

Awwww, y'all are too sweet! Actually, the night we will be there Wishes starts at 6:30pm and Illuminations doesn't start 'til 9pm, so it's totally manageable. I think we'll be crazy and try to do both.

 

[Love That Stitch]

If you have been to WDW several times then you might want to look into a tour (since this is not something kids would be interested in). Le Cellier is an excellent place to eat dinner. Very romantic. If you make your reservations at the right time you could see Illuminations while eating at Rose & Crown pub.

You would be cutting it close to see Wishes and Illuminations. You have to remember alot of people leave MK after Wishes. Alot of people might have the same idea and therefore congestion getting into the park. You could always take an alternate route. Take a bus from MK to Beach Club. Then take the walkway to International Gateway and you will be at a perfect spot to watch Illuminations (the bridge from UK to France).

Sounds like you are going to have a great time no matter what you do.

 

[melsmom12]

That's a great idea! I think we will take a bus to the beach club and walk in that way. Awesome idea. We've never eaten at Le Cellier, that's another thing to consider. I just don't know how long it would take us to go from one place to the other. We might just eat at MK before Wishes and have a late-night snack at Epcot.

Thanks for all the ideas, keep 'em coming!

(Oh, and we did do the Keys to the Kingdom Tour for our honeymoon, amazing!)

 

[Love That Stitch]

That is probably a good idea to eat dinner at MK (perhaps a romantic dinner at Cinderella's Castle). Watch Wishes and then head over to EPCOT. They say with transportation allow a little under an hour to get to your final destination (I always feel that is very generous amount of time). If you watch Wishes at the front of the park (by the train station) you will not only have the best view of the fireworks (the castle in the background) you will also be in the perfect spot to make a quick exit. The buses at the MK running pretty quick back and forth from the resorts. If it took you an hour to get to the Beach Club that would put you at EPCOT around 8:30pm. This would leave you enough time to enjoy a glass of champagne in France along with a delicious crepe (one of my favorites) before Wishes.

One thing that is fun to do at EPCOT (adults only) is drinks around the world. My husband and I do this and we enjoy trying different drinks and snacks from each land. You may not make around the whole lagoon but you will have fun trying.