Rest days

[my4boys+1]

Ok nwe are staying 8 nights, we land at MCO at 10am and leave at 6:40 pm, we have 7 day tickets so should I skip the parks on the first and last day so we get more park time? I have never planned a vacation before.

 

[Atchley]

Last time we went to WDW we arrived on Sunday. We spent that day to relax at the resort and unpack. The next five days were spent at the parks. Then on the following Saturday we left for home. Let me say that spending the first day at the resort to relax was great! We got to explore the resort and just kick back. The next five days were a bit much. It is way too much to expect to do 5 days in a row all day long. That said, next time we go we are staying 7 nights and have 6 day passes. Saturday when we arrive we are going to look around the resort and have a great time there. Then we will go to MK on Sun, AK on Mon, MGM on Tues, and then take a day off. Maybe we'll swim then go to DD or just take a nap. Thurs we will go to Epcot and Fri back to MK. Saturday we go home. We have six day passes because they were only 10.00 more a person than the five day passes so if we do decide to go to one of the parks on Wed then we have that option. I think this trip will be even better than the first with having a break from everything and still doing everything we want to do.
Have a great vacation

 

[powellrj]

When ATA use to fly out of Indy, that was our time frame. We would use the first day to shop going to the outlet malls and DTD. On our last day, we would have breakfast at Chef Mickeys and then head over to the beach for the afternoon, getting back to the airport and having dinner at the airport before we took off.

 

[CapeCod53]

We try to fly similar times as well. We always go to a park on arrival day, its hard to be so close & not go! We often go the last day as well. We wd rather take a couple of days off during the course of the vacation to go to the water parks & maybe a character meal at a resort, depending upon which resort you stay at you can spend a day swimming, rent bikes or a boat. Ft Wilderness has horseback riding, walking trails, wagon rides at night plus the campfire program which is free for Disney resort guest where there is a sing along & free Disney movie. Another day we usually spend at DD, at Disney Quest, shopping & eating. Actually we take a swim,rest break back at the resort every single day. We go to 1 park in the morning, take a break & return to another park at night (around 4pm) so that we never burn out. We usually try to go to the EMH in the mornings & use our break days to sleep in as well.

 

[munchkin bunchkin]

Your definately going to want some down time!We were there in January for only 5 nights , we crammed alot into a short amount of time and were we exhausted! I told my husband that we brought more baggage home under our eyes then in the suitcases and it took well over a week to feel half way human again- We won"t make that mistake again in August when we go back for 9 nights!!!

 

[Priorityonecb]

You will definately want some down time! We get in around 2pm on our first day. We plan to hang out at the resort and have dinner at Downtown Disney. I have at least two hours every day (sometimes more) built into each day to just relax, nap, swim etc. We have one full resort day planned too.

 

[DisneyArk]

Wow, you arrive at 10 AM? It would be difficult for us to arrive that early and not go to the parks! If you hang out at the hotel, maybe you can go eat at a character dinner.

On May 13th we're arriving at 3:00 PM. We plan to go check into the hotel and then go eat dinner at Chef Mickey's. Then we'll ride the monorail and then go shopping at Downtown Disney. My DS8 wants to go to DisneyQuest, but I'm not sure if we'll have enough energy for that or not.

We're going for 8 nights and have 8 day park hoppers. We plan to go to the parks on our last day. That usually works well for my family (my sons are 6 and 8) and we like to do a few favorite things before we have to fly home! I don't like to stay at the resort and swim on our last day because we have to check out of the room and I don't want to travel without taking a shower (after swimming/sweating at the pool).

 

[Boncho]

When we get in at 1:30, we usually relax around the pool for a couple of hours and sort of rejuvenate and then take off for DTD to have something to eat and have a look around. Have a great time!

 

[HappyCamperToo]

Ok nwe are staying 8 nights, we land at MCO at 10am and leave at 6:40 pm, we have 7 day tickets so should I skip the parks on the first and last day so we get more park time? I have never planned a vacation before.

Well, I thought that extra days on the longer-day tickets really only come to a few dollars per ticket per day more. So for an extra few bucks per person, you could have access to the parks on all the days. Then you won't feel like you have to cram so much in on you "park" days. Do you actually own your tickets yet? If not, you might want to rethink the tickets you're getting. 10 a.m arrival has the whole day ahead of you!!! If you bought them through Disney, I'll bet they can easily be upgraded. If you bought them through a discount supplier (which would less money), then I'm not sure if it would be possible to upgrade through the supplier. I think you still could upgrade through Disney, but you'd have to pay up to the full price.

A few extra dollars will give you a lot more flexibility, and may take away the worry that you're wasting a day. IMHO. Just something to think about....

 

[ZoZo]

Well, I thought that extra days on the longer-day tickets really only come to a few dollars per ticket per day more. So for an extra few bucks per person, you could have access to the parks on all the days. Then you won't feel like you have to cram so much in on you "park" days. Do you actually own your tickets yet? If not, you might want to rethink the tickets you're getting. 10 a.m arrival has the whole day ahead of you!!! If you bought them through Disney, I'll bet they can easily be upgraded. If you bought them through a discount supplier (which would less money), then I'm not sure if it would be possible to upgrade through the supplier. I think you still could upgrade through Disney, but you'd have to pay up to the full price.

A few extra dollars will give you a lot more flexibility, and may take away the worry that you're wasting a day. IMHO. Just something to think about....

I agree. I would find out how much it would cost to get extra days (it's surprisingly inexpensive when you're going for a week or more). Since you're arriving so early on day one, it would be a shame to "waste" almost an entire day.

That said, though, I would also plan some down time. You can run yourselves right into the ground it you plan to go to the parks all day, every day. If you added two more days, that would give you more time to schedule breaks (pool time, etc.) outside the parks. That way, you wouldn't have to cram everything into a shorter amount of time.

 

[fakereadhed]

We are going for 8 days, with 7 day tickets also. We never go to the parks before our flight home. With transportation time and the longer security lines, we don't feel like we have that much time at all before an early evening flight. Our plan for our last day is to checkout, go to the pool, and head to DTD for lunch and shopping before heading to the airport.

 

[familyfirsttimer]

I agree. I would find out how much it would cost to get extra days (it's surprisingly inexpensive when you're going for a week or more). Since you're arriving so early on day one, it would be a shame to "waste" almost an entire day.

for our upcoming trip the difference in cost of 7day hoppers versus 6day hoppers was $4...that's $4 total for 4 of us! We just got the 7 days so that if we want to we can go to the MK, see the castle, have a MickeyBar and see some characters our 1st afternoon (we arrive @11 am) and it will still be a relaxing day!
I suggest, like the other posters, check out the price difference, you may be pleasantly surprised and get to do a few extra things that first day.
HAVE FUN!!!

 

[momimouse27]

Okay, since you are getting in so early in the day, I would either plan a nice meal somewhere or go to one of the parks. We get so exhausted trying to see everything that it became apparent to us several years ago that we needed sometime in the middle of the week to rest. So we do 1st and 2nd day in the park, 3rd day either a 1/2 day at water park or Downtown Disney and pool. Then we are rested up for days 4 and 5 and we can take another rest on day 6 if we are there that long. I would use the 7th day to go back and redo everything you missed or wanted to ride again. Don't push yourself-you will be miserable

 

[Ochio]

We usually get to our resort about noon on the first day too. After eating lunch and looking around we go to a park(usually the MK). This is a time for us to walk around slowly and soak up the atmosphere/reality that we are truly back at Disney! The next two days we go to the parks early, rest in the afternoon, and go back to stay late. By that third morning we are ready to sleep in and have a down day. We continue this pattern through our entire stay. So... I guess I'm recommending that you go to a park your first afternoon.

 

[Karnak]

I would advise not planning anything for the last full day you will be at WDW. That way, if poor weather, big crowds, or whatever, causes you to miss something you really wanted to see or do, you can go back and do it.

Enjoy.

 

[STEAMBOAT209]

I would also recommend checking out the price to upgrad your tickets. Your arrival time is very early, and you have a full day of Disney fun ahead of you. We normally arrive at our Resort by noon, unpack, and off to MK to feel that magic, our reason for coming back, time after time . We would just take a relaxing walk around the park, mingle in the crowds, and find our special spot in the park to soak up the feeling of being at Disney. Early evening back to the Resort for dinner and to checkout the resort. On the second day it's full steam ahead like we've never been there before doing everything possible getting exhausted, but taking our usual breaks mid day in order to get rejuvenated for the evening events. Everyone has their own pattern they take that best suits them when it comes to visiting the parks, our main idea is, we did a countdown to get there and once there; we can't stay away from the parks, and its usually MK first park once we arrive.

Enjoy,

 

[pooch]

I always start out with good intentions then I get there and, well, you know. We're landing at 3PM this time and WILL NOT RUN TO MK, really, I promise, no I REALLY promise!!! We're staying at WL & have 6PM ADR's at the Contemporary and then right back to the Lodge, ok? Well I know MK is real convenient from the Contemporary but we won't go, promise! Really I mean it this time. Ok?
What's that? No, I ordered 6 day passes for our 10 trip. The reservation says 8 days? Must be a typo!! I'll call in the morning to check

 

[Mickeygotmymoney]

We found that going someplace like downtown disney on the first or last day is a great time to get some shopping done as you get ready to leave.

Plan a day off in the middle of the vacation or your will probably regret it. We loved the day we spent at the resort and just enjoyed some time to relax by the pool and explore.

I would also recommend a character breakfast on the last day. It was a perfect chance to get some last pictures and say goodbye to disney. Best idea we have had. We packed before breakfast and had them hold our bags. Then went to breakfast and some last minute shopping before we left.

 

[BillyFeat]

My family is in a similar position to yours. We arrive at 11 AM. We hit the MK that evening after a relaxing afternoon by the pool. We always plan a down day away from the parks mid-way through our stay. Try to take a morning off here - an evening off there. If you have children, taking time away from the parks is essential. Have a wonderful vacation.