One Day Park Hopper - WWYD?

[musika]

Our MNSSHP tix from last year were converted into One Day PHs due to significant rain on party day. We were tentatively planning a trip to the dark side (Universal) anyway for this August so we could in theory make use of this bonus day. If yes, we'd stay onsite somewhere and do a 1-2 day stay so we could also take advantage of water park arrival day.

We are a family of 4 (kids 14/11 at time of travel, so pretty big). The downside is this would be an August trip. Having gone in late September I realize the heat will be no joke. Last year we hit MNSSHP (which was a bit of a washout), brief visit to Epcot mainly for GOTG (Massive hit, worth a repeat visit for us), and significant time in DHS with EEH (No AK at all).

AK would be a priority to visit since we skipped totally last time.... but ... I'm wondering whether we could go nuts and maybe attempt a 4 park challenge?? The weather gives me pause but our kids are also older so more capable of long park days. What would you do??

 

[scrappinginontario]

Since it's a 'bonus ticket' as you were able to attend the soggy party, I'd say the sky's the limit with the new ticket. A 4 park challenge day is a lot of fun but also, if it's the only day you're going to WDW, would you rather do a couple of parks well or, challenge yourselves to get to all 4 parks? We've done 4 day challenges a few times and always enjoyed them but I will say this is when we have longer trips booked and have already done a day or two in every single park so the 4 park was more for the sense of 'accomplishing' this rather than enjoying our time in the parks.

Personally, if I had only 1 day at WDW, I would choose to do 2 (or possibly 3 parks) and do our favourite attractions in each park. You will spend a lot of time waiting for transportation and moving between parks if you do the 4-park challenge and I'm not sure this would leave you feeling accomplished as you'll have only one WDW day.

Just my .02.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Never really got the 4-park challenge, but I know it's real. If you have 1 day PH, I'd focus on 2 parks (sounds like perhaps AK and EP in your case) and actually enjoy your time there. With 4 parks, you'll spend 20% of your day traveling between. Can it be done? Absolutely. But maybe enjoy your time at the parks instead of on a bus.....

 

[Judique]

Our MNSSHP tix from last year were converted into One Day PHs due to significant rain on party day. We were tentatively planning a trip to the dark side (Universal) anyway for this August so we could in theory make use of this bonus day. If yes, we'd stay onsite somewhere and do a 1-2 day stay so we could also take advantage of water park arrival day.

We are a family of 4 (kids 14/11 at time of travel, so pretty big). The downside is this would be an August trip. Having gone in late September I realize the heat will be no joke. Last year we hit MNSSHP (which was a bit of a washout), brief visit to Epcot mainly for GOTG (Massive hit, worth a repeat visit for us), and significant time in DHS with EEH (No AK at all).

AK would be a priority to visit since we skipped totally last time.... but ... I'm wondering whether we could go nuts and maybe attempt a 4 park challenge?? The weather gives me pause but our kids are also older so more capable of long park days. What would you do??

I've done 4 parks in one day several times when I was younger, but older than you. Not in summer though. I'm useless in any kind of heat and have been at any age. Pick the park you most want to hit for the 1st one in the morning. MK would be my end the evening park. The good thing is that if you flag, you can always abort and you will still have done at least a couple of parks. Take a break if you need it to preserve the evening hours as although still hot, you will be out of the direct sun by evening. Where would you stay?

 

[scrappinginontario]

In August, another thing to keep in mind is by mid-August, MK will close early for MNSSHP 3 nights each week. Once you know your dates, that will come into play. Typically in August (a melt-your-face-off month), once it starts, MNSSHP runs on Sunday, Tuesdays and Fridays.

 

[gottalovepluto]

You only have 1 day- go crazy! And if it washes out pivot, you don’t need to squeeze every hour out of the tickets, they were free anyway.

 

[HeiHei2018]

Unless you are keen for Everest or want to buy FoP LL, I would skip AK. DD is in same age range as your kids, and AK was one and done for us. (Go for it if you are keen for the few rides or shows currently open.) Four-park challenge eats up a lot of time with travel and getting through security. We have done a three-park day in August. We did Epcot EE, HS, hotel break, MK. We bought LL, and more than got our money’s worth. On a non-party day, you can EE HS, skyliner to Epcot, then monorail to MK. If it’s a party day, start with EE at MK, then monorail to Epcot and skyliner to HS. Drink A LOT of Gatorade. Have fun!

 

[ExpeditionEmily]

My next trip is a short weekend trip with only a 1-day hopper. Our plan is to grab some morning LL's for Magic Kingdom, monorail over to Epcot for some snacks and shopping, then skyline to Studios for a quick ride or two and Totchos! We're also staying at a skyliner resort, so that makes the plan easier. Toddler is staying home this time, so I can do rope drop to fireworks.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

We did “4-Park Friday” on the last day of our most recent visit in August and everyone still talks about it like it was the best Disney day ever.

The route was Epcot - DHS - Epcot - offsite lunch - AK - MK - resort pool - MK.

14 total attractions plus some autographs with 5 multi passes and 2 redemption passes.

Family of 8, ages 5 to 62 including an expecting mother.

Total walking distance estimated at 12 miles, but the key was having our own vehicle which saved a ton of time.

 

[musika]

In August, another thing to keep in mind is by mid-August, MK will close early for MNSSHP 3 nights each week. Once you know your dates, that will come into play. Typically in August (a melt-your-face-off month), once it starts MNSSHP runs on Sunday, Tuesdays and Fridays.

Good point. Going off last year's dates, we will likely be there the first week of the party season. It almost feels like heresy to say it, but I think if we skipped any parks it would probably be MK.

Unless you are keen for Everest or want to buy FoP LL, I would skip AK. DD is in same age range as your kids, and AK was one and done for us. (Go for it if you are keen for the few rides or shows currently open.) Four-park challenge eats up a lot of time with travel and getting through security. We have done a three-park day in August. We did Epcot EE, HS, hotel break, MK. We bought LL, and more than got our money’s worth. On a non-party day, you can EE HS, skyliner to Epcot, then monorail to MK. If it’s a party day, start with EE at MK, then monorail to Epcot and skyliner to HS. Drink A LOT of Gatorade. Have fun!

AK is a must-do because we skipped it last trip. DD14 is in favour as Everest is on her must ride list this time round. I don't foresee us dedicating a full day to this part though.

Which LL did you buy? We had multipass on our last trip and I found it just okay. It was hard to pick anything up useful beyond our initial three selections.

My next trip is a short weekend trip with only a 1-day hopper. Our plan is to grab some morning LL's for Magic Kingdom, monorail over to Epcot for some snacks and shopping, then skyline to Studios for a quick ride or two and Totchos! We're also staying at a skyliner resort, so that makes the plan easier. Toddler is staying home this time, so I can do rope drop to fireworks.

I have actually never been on the monorail! I'm pretty confident the kids can handle rope drop to fireworks, but DH is a different story lol. I am forever trying to strike a balance between "do all the fun things" while still "maintaining a fun and not breakneck pace". Doesn't help that we have differing ideas on speed!

We did “4-Park Friday” on the last day of our most recent visit in August and everyone still talks about it like it was the best Disney day ever.

The route was Epcot - DHS - Epcot - offsite lunch - AK - MK - resort pool - MK.

14 total attractions plus some autographs with 5 multi passes and 2 redemption passes.

Family of 8, ages 5 to 62 including an expecting mother.

Total walking distance estimated at 12 miles, but the key was having our own vehicle which saved a ton of time.

We rented a car on our first trip and it wasn't as useful as we hoped it would be, staying on site. What did you find it saved time for? Just over waiting on buses?

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

We rented a car on our first trip and it wasn't as useful as we hoped it would be, staying on site. What did you find it saved time for? Just over waiting on buses?

For our family of 8 (and soon to be 10) we find that having a rental vehicle is much more efficient for us that using Disney transportation, other than the Skyliner between Epcot and DHS. Except for MK, we can usually park close enough to the entrance that we very rarely ride the trams anymore either.

Hopping is our break time, and we like to have a good supply of snacks and drinks available when switching between parks. We throw in an offsite lunch now and then which is also a nice break.

 

[HeiHei2018]

Which LL did you buy? We had multipass on our last trip and I found it just okay. It was hard to pick anything up useful beyond our initial three selections.

Our hopper-crazy trip was August 2024, soon after the new LL was introduced. Not sure if availability is still the same. We did two days of LL (neither included AK). Party day we started at MK with an early HM and immediately pulled Frozen. Had prebooked PP, then did Big Thunder and most of the non-headliners there and everything except TT and Remy at Epcot. Non-party day we started at Epcot with Remy and then pulled a midday MMRR and MFSR at HS. We also got Alien Saucers. We couldn’t get Slinky or Midway Mania. Then we stacked Big Thunder and rolled through a ton of small rides at MK.
There is a more detailed summary in my post history with all the timings.

We have mixed feelings about driving vs buses. We had a painfully slow bus (was fully packed and boiling hot but sat without moving) hopping from MK to HS. But we also waited for ages for an AK parking tram. YMMV

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

If it were me I would hit AK in the am and do everything I wanted by around 1pm. The. I would hop to either HS or Epcot until about 6-7. Then end my day at MK. We have found 3 parks totally doable. Four parks not so much. Have fun whatever you choose.