Planning feed back

[Nancyg56]

Yes! My one violation of "no big meals first thing" last trip was a GG PPO so we could walk on Soarin'. It was a great way to start the day

We really enjoyed it. I must say that we planned a few too many meals, but every one had a purpose, and every one involved characters. Turns out that I am a character junkie, and the crew at GG did not disappoint! LOL!!! We left there after a leisurely meal and walked onto Soarin. I would book this one again in a heartbeat!

@Vickie Mabey - another thing I would consider when booking character meals is season and theme. We booked Minnie's Seasonal Dine in DHS so we (translate that to "I") could meet the characters in their Christmas clothing. They change outfits there seasonally.

The probem is that there are so many character experiences to choose from that narrowing them down means you really need to think through which ones are yoru family favorites. I think for you CP is non negotiable, and it is a fun meal, IMO.

Then come the classics: this is where theme and season may come into play. Care May is beach wear, TH is safari, Chef Mickey is classic, and H&V is seasonal
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Princesses? What venue do you really want, and who would you like to meet? It is important to keep them all booked when and where it is convenient to your touring plan, so start with that. Belle in her ball gown is only at Akershus, Cindy is located at multiple venues, so the various Princesses meeting with her matter, IMO.

Bottom line is that you really cannot manage all of them comfortably, so after you have your parks days planned the really difficult task of choosing begins. I love it, but wow, it can be hard.

 

[EdnaMarieMode]

Well then I think it's a good thing I signed up for this board and asked Cuz now I feel a little silly. Thanks for the feed back. I really appreciate it.

1. Please do not feel silly! My eyes are constantly bigger than my stomach when I plan a Disney trip and I have planned many trips over the years. We're working on our 3rd trip since last August and it's STILL hard to narrow it down and accept that we just can't just eat all day. Okay, maybe we could but we sure wouldn't be enjoying our park time after that!

2. Having a car will help with travel time, but you do still have to factor trekking out of the park, driving over, trekking in, and then doing the reverse. I always allow more time than I think we'll need. If I have to wait when I get somewhere it just gives me a few minutes to slow down (or visit a restroom/ change a diaper/ check out something neat at a resort). I would allow for a minimum of 30 minutes of travel time from park to resort if you're driving.

3. Your plans are a lot of food, and TS meals in general take a longer time than QS (character meals tend to take longer than non-character meals as well).

Here's what I would consider keeping/ changing

I know what Pumba had said about up to 90 minutes, is what I've been seeing consistently. Which freaks me out. So here is the tentative itinerary.
Sunday. Arrival day ( we're driving in) my thoughts is really hang out at the resort. Dinner we are thinking Artist Point in Wilderness Lodge. Then probably wander around MK
Monday. AK. Tusker house, Rainforest Cafe (which I'm probably going to swap with something else,) and then chef mickey
Tuesday. Epcot. Cape May, Garden Grill, Akershus
Wednesday. MK. Ohana, liberty tree tavern, crystal palace.
Thursday. HS. 1900 Park Fare, fantasmic.dining package
Friday MK Bog, and CRT
Saturday. Trattoria Al Forno
*Eeyore and Stitch are a must. Eeyore is my boo

Sunday- I would probably just settle in at the resort but if you really want to do Storybook at Artist Point this does look like the best night to do it.

Monday- Keep either Tusker House or Chef Mickey and ditch Rainforest Cafe. There are great QS places at AK. If it were me I would probably keep Tusker House.

Tuesday- I would keep Akershus. I love Cape May breakfast and I love Garden Grill, BUT if you're already doing Tusker House then the princesses at Akershus are different characters so it changes things up a little. If you really want to keep 2 of those, I'd keep Cape May and Akershus (but that's just because I like breakfast at GG more than lunch and keeping breakfast and dinner gives your digestion a break).

Wednesday- if Stitch is your must-do then keep Ohana for breakfast. Skip LTT for sure (it's good, but save it for another time when you aren't already having a big breakfast). Either skip Crystal Palace or move it to another day since Eeyore is also a must- see for you.

Thursday- if you're going to HS, skip 1900 Park Fare. That will save you A LOT of time driving over, then driving over to HS. I don't typically bother with the Fantasmic dining packages (I don't feel like you're really getting anything for the extra $$ as the seating isn't much better and you still have to line up early). OR, you can have your Cape May breakfast here- Beach Club is very close to HS.

Friday- You could have Crystal Palace this day instead of on Wednesday. If you have it early enough, you could plan lunch at BOG (it's a QS for lunch and breakfast and lunch is the better deal, and also more a la carte items so you could have a lighter lunch if you wanted to). Keep CRT. This is a lot of dining in one day, so plan on not doing too much else at the park, or cutting one thing out.

This can still be a lot of food in one day, so you may want to cut down more but this gets you to everything but 1900 PF, Rainforest Cafe, Garden Grill, and Liberty Tree Tavern.

 

[Calee]

Is this your first trip? You will honestly spend almost your entire day eating or travelling to eat. You want to see the parks!

I would do 1 ts per day, and keep it in or close to the park of the day.

 

[_19disnA]

Is this your first trip?

I was thinking of asking that also. I personally think for your first trip to Disney you shouldn't overplan every minute of the day. You really have NO idea what parks/rides you will like best, how long things will take and even where you might be at meal time. It is partly a personal thing, but excessive planning for a place you have never been isn't probably of much value since your ideas may change once you are there in person.

People can cancel dinner reservations the day prior to the reservation. A better option might be to see what you like and then choose from among the reservations that open up when others cancel.

 

[Mickey's Best Girl]

To be honest, how you’re feeling - overwhelmed and such - is exactly why we don’t do more than 2 or 3 TS meals in one trip. Not one day, one trip. And our trips are usually between 10 and 12 night stays. I HATE being a slave to a schedule on vacation.

We are all about the quick service meals and eating when we’re hungry. Not when I thought we’d be hungry 180 days prior.

Just another outlook.
Good luck OP.

 

[EdnaMarieMode]

To be honest, how you’re feeling - overwhelmed and such - is exactly why we don’t do more than 2 or 3 TS meals in one trip. Not one day, one trip. And our trips are usually between 10 and 12 night stays. I HATE being a slave to a schedule on vacation.

We are all about the quick service meals and eating when we’re hungry. Not when I thought we’d be hungry 180 days prior.

Just another outlook.
Good luck OP.

This is pretty much what it’s come to for us as well. My teen and tween can be as unpredictable as my toddler when it comes to what time they’re ready for rest and meals at Disney (spoiler alert- it never seems to coincide with what our meal times would be at home).

I also won’t leave the park for a meal and then go back to the park so that narrows it way down for us as well.