Quick WDW Theme Park Strategy Check-up (For Girls)

[poeticdiabetic]

Ok, I'm a WDW veteran. I have been to WDW 6 times since 2006. And I'm going at the end of next month. But I'm nervous because this will be the first time that I'm planning a trip with a young girl.

So, my kids grew up going to Disney, but they are all boys. And now they are teenagers, so they really don't even matter anymore. (If it was just us as a family, we would be traveling to Jamaica because we were just at WDW last year!) But we were approached by our dear little God-daughter, who is such a Disney fan that she can sit in front of you and act out and sing the movie Frozen in an afternoon: she thinks that we are the most blessed people on the planet because we have actually met Anna and Elsa. Her bucket list wish, beyond any place on this planet or any other, is to visit Disney World just once! And there's absolutely no way that her parents can afford to take her. (Thus, we are sacrificing Jamaica and Hello! WDW! Again. This time, carrying a girl!

So I gave you this brief backstory to say that since we are now a party of 5 instead of our usual 4, we couldn't go our usual Value Resort route. So we are going Moderate POR-Riverside, because it accommodates 5. That also means that we have to make cuts, so we can afford to go (and still make our Fall trip on a cruise to the caribbean.)

So here are our cuts:

1. We will only go 5 days.
2. We are eliminating the park-hopper (which may be a mistake.)

Got me so far? OK, so here's my plan:

My trip is from May 31st-June 4th. We are on basic DDP and I have the coveted Ohana ADR on May 31st and the Be Our Guest ADR on June 3rd. That means that we have to be at MK on June 3rd.

So here's my thinking- We go to MK on May 31st at Rope Drop and slay dragons to get to Anna and Elsa- because a FP for Anna and Elsa doesn't really exist. (I mean, I put it right up there with the Loch Ness Monster- few people have said that they have seen it.) And we will go the HS on June 1st (Evening EMH, we love evening EMHs.) June 2, AK with Tusker House. June 3rd, MK again with BOG. and June 4th, EPCOT- on our own for dinner. Yes, that puts EPCOT dead last and we will not darken the gate until the very last day. Plus, I will be driving back that night.

So what do you think? I guess I can switch EPCOT and AK, but I like AK (even though I like EPCOT's food better.) Or is the parkhopper indispensable for a 5-day trip?

 

[sharonabe]

Did you check for a breakfast BoG on the 31st? If you can get a pre-park opening, you would be at the front of the line for A&E that morning.

 

[andreajanowiak]

Not sure what you mean when you say that Anna and Elsa FP are non existent- I've gotten one, and I didn't book it at midnight. ((And we were there the last week of June last year.)) I think park-hoppers are a great thing to have, since your plans don't have to be 100% set in stone.

 

[msmama]

You don't say how old the little girl is. More than a boy/girl thing, I'd be worried about a young child/older child thing. Will she be able to handle late night EMH's?

Also, since you're a veteran, do you really need to visit all the parks? Would she like all the parks? I think HS does the Frozen summer thing so maybe you'll want to do that, and you say you like AK. I personally would never skip Epcot, but I don't think it's necessary a bad thing to skip a park (you know what you'd be missing, and she would never know).

 

[SplashMo]

Another thought... Add a day to the ticket and go to AK 9-12PM on the day you leave. Or stick with 5 day and go to Chef Mickey's on morning you leave...

 

[ArwenMarie]

I wouldn't get the park hoppers especially if you are trying to keep costs down. I think your plan looks good as is.

 

[mrzrich]

Honestly I think you should switch your Epcot day and your AK Day. You will be able to leave earlier with that long drive ahead.

Currently every Epcot attraction has FP+ availability on June 2 and every AK attraction has availability on June 4. There is also Tusker House ADR for 5 available at 920 Am

 

[poeticdiabetic]

Hi Everyone- The reason why I said "For Girls" is because if the girl (age 9) wasn't with us, the tour would be really different. I mean, you just have more princess interactions in MK than anywhere else in WDW. And that's kind of why we are coming. (When it was just me, my wife and the boys; we would totally skip over that performance at Cinderella Castle where you saw these princesses and Minnie Mouse dancing in some coronation deal with Mickey and some princes. I don't know what you would call that performance because, you know, we used to walk right past it and barely looked up to see what they were doing.)

I also thought about skipping EPCOT, too. But I wanted her to experience every park because this may be her only time going to WDW in her life, or at least her childhood. And adding days are out because they are too expensive. The purpose of 5 days is to keep it affordable.

Oh, and last thing- I didn't think to say that I am cheap. I am a real advocate of keeping costs down. That being said, I have never paid for breakfast at WDW in my life. The reason why is because of two things:

1. I use regular DDP. It's a luxury, but I like the predictability of it for budgeting purposes (the next time we go, though, I'm ditching it.) Therefore, I am not going to use any of my credits on breakfast.

2. I normally eat meal bars, fruit, juice, etc. for breakfast. So I always bring those from home. (We keep a cooler in the room and fill it with ice every night.)

This is good information, though. I think that if we can't satisfy all of our princess needs with two visits to MK, we may forgo EPCOT on the final day. Thanks, Everyone!

 

[marchingstar]

I wonder if keeping epcot would actually help--so many princesses meet around WS, you'd have tons of time for meet and greets. plus since you're on the dining plan, you could do Akershus for 1TS credit and get lots more in. it definitely would be a lighter day, attractions wise. but if seeing princesses is a priority, it might really fit the bill. (save, of course, for A&E)

 

[Disneyholic]

Just a FYI, not for controversy, but Disney Gay Days at Walt Disney World June 2 - June 8, 2015. Some people just may want to adjust their touring or may want to be ready for an explanation for their kids during this time.
I work with gays and have family and friends that are gay.

 

[senadler]

I would definitely go to Epcot. At that age, my daughter preferred Epcot over either HS or AK. I also think a princess meal is great for a girl that age. We did CRT, but Akershus is a great 1TS credit alternative.

I would probably switch AK and Epcot, I think there is much more to do at Epcot.

 

[mrzrich]

I only said 920 at Tusker because I was assuming you were going there in the am. If you prefer lunch at Tusker even better, there are wide open lunch ADRs for 5 on June 4

As for the pp's gay day concerns, they are totally unsubstantiated the brunt of the crowd comes to MLK on Saturday. The other days have minimal impact. I have been many times that week and never seen anything that I felt needed explanation

 

[maxiesmom]

I would cut the dining plan before the hopper option. Especially if you are used to doing quick breakfasts in the room. You really have to be doing a lot of eating out to make the dining plan worth while.

Have you tried using this to estimate your food costs?http://www.distripplanner.com/

 

[mrzrich]

Oh, and the Castle show is called dream along with Mickey.

It's about Mickey, not princesses.

 

[mrzrich]

Easiest way to quickly meet most of the princesses is Akershus

 

[Bkk40in2011]

What about asking the little girl what she would want to do and tell her that you will try and do things (within reason). Maybe list things that she might like and let her know that you all are going to pick your favorite things and work to see that everyone gets to do them. She probably would love knowing that teenage son wants Everest and she got to help to make that happen. It would help her to enjoy times with the teens without all the focus being on her. Also I know that for my kids they loved the characters but didn't want to spend any significant ride time waiting on signatures. (At the time girl age 8) Just a thought. She is probably just thrilled to go and would be so happy to do whatever you could.

 

[kwdw]

Okay - you have experience at Disney - so I can't be too critical - but man - my plan with a 9 year old girl who may get there only once would be very different from yours.

I'd give up park-hoppers and the dining plan and add another day to start with. Two days MK, two days EPCOT, one day HS, one day AK.

I don't know her AT ALL - and you obviously do - but Ohana and Tusker House aren't the meals I'd be aiming for with a girl that age, for example. Ohana is about eating too much meat. How many 9 yo girls are into that? Teenage boys - yes. 9 yo girls? Tusker House (while one of my personal favorites) doesn't have the classic characters in their NORMAL outfits. She loves Frozen - which to me suggests she'd still love a princess meal. Maybe Akershus. Me - at 9 - I still loved Pooh and would have loved Crystal Palace. I liked Pooh stuff more than princesses at 9.

Anyway - sounds like you are planning your normal trip with boys - but adding her in. That's fine if you want - it's your money! But - maybe it's also a chance to re-think the whole thing and do things from a girl perspective.

 

[poeticdiabetic]

I would cut the dining plan before the hopper option. Especially if you are used to doing quick breakfasts in the room. You really have to be doing a lot of eating out to make the dining plan worth while.

Have you tried using this to estimate your food costs?http://www.distripplanner.com/

Actually, we break even. There's no savings, but there's also no greater expense. It's just convenience. But by getting rid of the dining plan, I may have more flexibility next time.

 

[poeticdiabetic]

What about asking the little girl what she would want to do and tell her that you will try and do things (within reason). Maybe list things that she might like and let her know that you all are going to pick your favorite things and work to see that everyone gets to do them. She probably would love knowing that teenage son wants Everest and she got to help to make that happen. It would help her to enjoy times with the teens without all the focus being on her. Also I know that for my kids they loved the characters but didn't want to spend any significant ride time waiting on signatures. (At the time girl age 8) Just a thought. She is probably just thrilled to go and would be so happy to do whatever you could.

Actually, she doesn't know that she's going! It's a secret! She thinks that she's going over to my rich friend's house named Michael. He owns a lot of land in middle Florida. Oh, and he's of Irish descent. (So what that she doesn't know that he goes by the name of Mickey. Or that he's a mouse.)

 

[poeticdiabetic]

Okay - you have experience at Disney - so I can't be too critical - but man - my plan with a 9 year old girl who may get there only once would be very different from yours.

I'd give up park-hoppers and the dining plan and add another day to start with. Two days MK, two days EPCOT, one day HS, one day AK.

I don't know her AT ALL - and you obviously do - but Ohana and Tusker House aren't the meals I'd be aiming for with a girl that age, for example. Ohana is about eating too much meat. How many 9 yo girls are into that? Teenage boys - yes. 9 yo girls? Tusker House (while one of my personal favorites) doesn't have the classic characters in their NORMAL outfits. She loves Frozen - which to me suggests she'd still love a princess meal. Maybe Akershus. Me - at 9 - I still loved Pooh and would have loved Crystal Palace. I liked Pooh stuff more than princesses at 9.

Anyway - sounds like you are planning your normal trip with boys - but adding her in. That's fine if you want - it's your money! But - maybe it's also a chance to re-think the whole thing and do things from a girl perspective.

That gives me an interesting perspective. I think you may be right about the meal thing. The only reason why I looked at Tusker was because we don't like leaving AK for dinner, but I can do without that! And I agree with Ohana. That's our favorite restaurant, but she's not going to eat hardly any of that food! I'm going to re-think this. See I'm a vet at going, but this is the very first time that I'm going with a young girl. So thanks for the advice.