Should I do a PS on early entry days?

[poohbear8]

Planning our trip is making my head spin...

For everyone who knows how to do this and make it work...

Do you make a PS at the park that will open early? If so, do you make the PS first thing? (then you miss rides) Or does it not matter? Or do you make a PS for another park first thing, so you are then in the park.

I got only 1 PS planned and done: storybook princess on a Monday at 8:50am. Of course, I am wondering if that is a good day or even a good time?!

Family thinks I am obessing about this. Ok, I am. But they think you can just fly down there and it all works out with no planning!

Can anyone guide me?

 

[DznyDreams]

Originally posted by poohbear8

Do you make a PS at the park that will open early? If so, do you make the PS first thing? (then you miss rides) Or does it not matter? Or do you make a PS for another park first thing, so you are then in the park.

In the past, we've only done EE at the MK. Usually, we are fortunate enough to secure a PS for CRT. I try to schedule my CRT PS for the latest possible time on an EE day. We grab a snack (granola bar, etc.) on the way to the parks, then ride a few rides before checking in for our late morning PS. After this all-you-care-to-eat meal, we're usually good until dinner, with only light snacking in between.

This year it was really easy to get the late CRT PS. I didn't even call until something like the 82nd- or 83rd-day out mark, and they had tables available for practically all times! I've either picked an ideal time to travel to WDW, or CRT is just not as popular as it used to be. I know the change from calling 60-days to 90-days out helped, but since the new has worn off this change I just figured it would be impossible to get a table if I didn't call at 7 am on the 90th day out. Oh well.....you won't find me complaining.

 

[dreaminofdisney]

I like to do the EE at MK and then get the latest seating I can (usally 11:15 am) at Chef Mickeys. It is the breakfast buffet but we consider it a early lunch. It works out great if your into the character interaction. We were the only ones seated in our section we ended up with tons of character time and photo's. When we went to leave Mickey, Minnie, Chip, Dale and Goofy were all hanging out near and front. They all starting playing with my daughter! She had all of them all around her in a circle with her dancing in the center, I just stood off to the side and almost started crying when I saw the expression on her face! She was in heaven!

We also did the Princess Storybook Breakfast and loved it also. The food is great (CRT food is terrible). We had a problem with the princesses skipping our table. After the second one missed us I told our server and she had someone come over and asked us who we had not seen. With in a few minutes both princesses had come back to visit. Great service!

I like to take advantage of EE and then have a late breakfast, early lunch.

The more you plan the easier it gets. Have Fun and enjoy your trip!

 

[maps]

dzdreams
it looks like we're going at around the same time and i have had the same experience you had with ps at crt!
i called 7am on the nose 90 days out and got my ps with no problem. then, i had to unexpectedly change the day just recently and i thought i would never be able to get what i wanted.
i called midday (!), got through immediately and got the exact day and time i wanted! same for all my other ps. what's going on here? i thought this was the peak season. is there something we don't know about?! oh well. i'll just have to enjoy the park all by my lonesome!

 

[CamColt]

Usually when we do EE at MK we knock out Fantasy Land and get a FP before going to the Main St Bake shop for Breakfast. The only other EE we do is AK and we will usually grab something quick at the Food Court, or on this past trip Tubbis, for those days.

 

[Kaycee]

We've done it two different ways, and both ways worked well:

1. We made a PS for Donald's Breakfastosaurus at 8:10 when the park was opening at 9 (not an EE day). We finished breakfast just in time to walk out into the park and hit the rides as they opened for the day.

2. We made a PS for Hollywood & Vine (we're really gonna miss that character breakfast!) for around 9:40 on an EE day. We hit MGM at 8 and rode the rides until time for our PS, just when the crowds were starting to pick up for the day.

I wouldn't make an early PS for an EE day. That way, you miss the whole advantage of EE.

 

[poohbear8]

Thank you everyone for the advice! I do hope this gets easier the more I plan!

Peg

 

[Kaycee]

Hang in there...the planning does get easier the more you plan. One warning though - the planning can be addictive. I'm always planning my next WDW trip, even if I don't know quite when that will be! It's okay though, because for me planning is half the fun!

 

[Cathy K.]

poohbear8

My family and I use EE almost everyday when we are at WDW. The only one we sometimes skip is Epcot. I usually make a PS for an early lunch at the EE park around 11:30. My DH will normally go fill our refillable mugs in the morning with coffee and tea and pick up some pastries for breakfast. Then we hit the EE park at opening and walk on the rides until lunch time. By lunch we are ready to sit down and relax and have a nice meal. The worked really well for us during one of our summer trips when it would be very hot and getting crowded by mid-day. We'd leave after lunch and go back to the resort for a swim or to one of the water parks. We even took a couple of naps during the week and then went back in the late afternoon to a different park all refreshed. In cooler months when the parks close earlier we just hop to another park after lunch if we want.

Your family will understand and appreciate all your planning work after you get to WDW. They will realize it when you are able to get into restaurants that other people are being told no or the wait is 2 hours.

Cathy K.

 

[DznyDreams]

Originally posted by maps
what's going on here? i thought this was the peak season. is there something we don't know about?! oh well. i'll just have to enjoy the park all by my lonesome!

I 2nd that, maps!!! I think we're all going to have a great time during this time in March. I'm just so glad that DD's school selected this particular week for Spring Break (TX school)! They've never done this before, and it looks as if there couldn't have been a more perfect time for going to WDW during "PEAK season!!"