Please help me decide??

[Djscarlette]

We are headed off on our first Disney cruise. We get on the boat Oct 21 and are planning a pre WDW trip just to go to Mk and see pandora at AK. We will fly in on Oct 18, spend Thursday at MK before MNSSHP and Friday at AK. I have a room booked at POR for those nights. We get off the boat on Oct 28' will rent a car go see KSM and drive back to MCO that night for our 8 pm flight.

But.... Disney is making me nervous. There are only like 4 Disney resorts currently available for those there pre-cruise nights ( I've been watching like a hawk awainting the fall discount) and there hasn't been for weeks and weeks. TP says the Utah Ed Association is there for my dates (although I thought this was a DL thing). I know October gets busier every year, from experience, and I think this 2 park days could be super crazy.

Right now I can change my SW fights for the same price I originally paid to fly in Friday before the cruise, do a single night at the POR, get on the boat, then come back and do my 2 park days post-cruise instead. I needhelp, is this a better plan? This means going to MK on a Sunday which is also a MNSSHP, then AK on Monday. I'm nervous about going to MK in a Sunday, we've never been on weekend but with MNSSHP that night is should be less busy, however it is the weekend right before halloween. Has anyone gone on this day? I'd love to hear about the crowds.

There is a lot of availability at the dis resorts for these 3 nights (Oct 28-31), so I think maybe it will be less busy. And maybe I'll have a shot at snagging a fall discount too! Am I comparing apples to apples here? Or does this sound like a better plan? Please help me think this out!

Thank you for always helping fellow dis lovers!

 

[scrapquitler]

I think the end of your cruise will be busier at WDW than at the beginning, especially if you want to do MK, because of the halloween parties.

 

[sharonabe]

I don't envy you your decision.

I think Thur MK will be less crowded than a Sun MK, but probably just 1 number of the crowd calendar difference. However, I think a Fri at AK will be busier than a Mon at AK. A lot of people are putting AK at the end of their vacation to give them a better chance at getting a FoP FP+, and there is still a mindset to start the trip (Sun or Mon) at MK, both f which makes the Mon AK more attractive.

The other variable is the difference in the two vacations. Cruising is so relaxing, and you really will feel rested and spoiled at the end of it. For that reason, going to WDW before a cruise is more recommended than going after.

I might just be tempted to flip a coin.

 

[ghtx]

Stick with the original plan. Touring the parks before the cruise is better than touring after the cruise. All of the second-guessing about the difference in crowd levels probably won't amount to much.

 

[minniegirl19]

Don't you want to see happily ever after? I would do the days after the cruise and do ak on Sunday and mk on Monday to see the fireworks and having more hours at the park

 

[Djscarlette]

I don't envy you your decision.

I think Thur MK will be less crowded than a Sun MK, but probably just 1 number of the crowd calendar difference. However, I think a Fri at AK will be busier than a Mon at AK. A lot of people are putting AK at the end of their vacation to give them a better chance at getting a FoP FP+, and there is still a mindset to start the trip (Sun or Mon) at MK, both f which makes the Mon AK more attractive.

The other variable is the difference in the two vacations. Cruising is so relaxing, and you really will feel rested and spoiled at the end of it. For that reason, going to WDW before a cruise is more recommended than going after.

I might just be tempted to flip a coin.

These are good points about AK. Getting on FoP really is my priority. It's a hard decision, which I need to make before airfair prices change.

Don't you want to see happily ever after? I would do the days after the cruise and do ak on Sunday and mk on Monday to see the fireworks and having more hours at the park

I think I'd rather have the lower crowd during a MNSSHP day, than to fight the crowd during a non-party day.


Another variable in this is the ability to book my 3 nights at AKL. I was hoping to book with the fall discount. AKL rooms are available after the cruise, but none before. We just had our 3rd child and so our days of starting in the 4 person room a numbered, she's 14 months old and as soon as she's out of the pack and play we'll need to book the 5 person rooms. We have never stayed at AKL and I really want to. That may be what's pulling at me the most. I'm still worried about the MK crowd on that Sunday.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Personally, I wouldn't go anywhere near MK the weekend before Halloween. We've done it and it was pretty darn crowded. I would stick to your original plan.

If you do opt to change and do WDW post-cruise, I would also recommend not spending your first night there, pre-cruise. WDW is not close to Port Canaveral so that's a lot of travel to stay at POR for the night. I would suggest staying at a hotel in Port Canaveral for that 1 night if you decide to do WDW post-cruise.

 

[sharonabe]

Another variable in this is the ability to book my 3 nights at AKL. I was hoping to book with the fall discount. AKL rooms are available after the cruise, but none before.

Fall discounts are OUT!!! Go price for after and see if it makes sense to do it.