Stressing out big time please help.

buzz25

Mouseketeer
Joined
Jan 1, 2011
Hi just wondering if some of you could help me come up with a plan for our holiday as it’s really starting to stress us out.

We have been to Orlando a few times over the last few years but never been a big planner but since our last visit in 2016 it feels like we now need to.

We are both 30 and from the U.K. and this will be our list visit for a good 4/5 years.

We are currently staying off site at Quality Royal Parc Suits (this may change as they are having work done are just waiting to hear back) and have a car. We have a few things planned in terms of ADR’s and MNSSHP.

We have tickets for Disney, universeal, sea world, gator land and bush gardens. We are thinking about a park a day apart from gator land which we may do after a water park or on the day we fly home.

We fly on 28th Sept and land about 2pm Orlando time and go home on 12th October and fly out about 5pm.

Things we have booked and planned already is the following

Friday 28th land, check in, spend the evening at Disney springs.

Saturday 29th Bon voyage character meal at 745am and we were thinking about a typhoon lagoon to help us settle in and relax.

Sunday 30th crystal place character meal at 830am

Monday 1st ohana character breakfast character meal

Tuesday 2nd MNSSHP

And we would like to do a dessert part at MK.

Thank you in advance for all the help we have signed up to touring plans but find it a bit confusing.
 
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You need to get your big picture in order first. You have a lot of days - but you also have a lot of plans - lots of parks to visit. I think you just need to pick the overall "flow" you want first - so pick which day is Gatorland, which day(s) to Universal, which day to Busch Gardens, how many WDW park days, break day, etc. Don't focus on the little things at WDW first - focus on the overall picture of the whole trip.

On your FIRST day - I would recommend specifically adding time after check-in to go to the grocery store. You are going to want to be able to stock up on water, other drinks, snacks, and I don't know if you are planning to do any meal eating in your suite. I'm not sure you need to hit Disney Springs that first night. I think by the time you finish your plane flight, get luggage, get car, check-in, go buy groceries, settle in your room - that will have been a LONG day.

I personally would not do three character meals for breakfast in a row. BUT - it might make sense in the big picture....
 
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You need to get your big picture in order first. You have a lot of days - but you also have a lot of plans - lots of parks to visit. I think you just need to pick the overall "flow" you want first - so pick which day is Gatorland, which day(s) to Universal, which day to Bush Gardens, how many WDW park days, break day, etc. Don't focus on the little things at WDW first - focus on the overall picture of the whole trip.

On your FIRST day - I would recommend specifically adding time after check-in to go to the grocery store. You are going to want to be able to stock up on water, other drinks, snacks, and I don't know if you are planning to do any meal eating in your suite. I'm not sure you need to hit Disney Springs that first night. I think by the time you finish your plane flight, get luggage, get car, check-in, go buy groceries, settle in your room - that will have been a LONG day.

I personally would not do three character meals for breakfast in a row. BUT - it might make sense in the big picture....

That makes sense.

The reason we wanted them early on is so that they are done and out of the way as they are things she really wants to do and as character meets are a big thing for her it knocks a few off and then saves time in the park.

Yeah we plan on hitting a Walmart on the way to the hotel. We were only thinking DS to pick up some quick dinner and some magic bands as you can’t pre order them over here
 
I'd also spread things out a bit more on the character meals, if possible. Consider doing one of those breakfasts at a resort hotel (such as Ohana) on your very last day so that you can sort of cap things off in a fun way with characters even though you likely won't be doing anything in the parks that day. If character meals are something she really enjoys, I think spreading them out over the trip probably makes more sense.

Consider the rest of your meal planning as well - are you going to be doing a lot of eating in your hotel room or do you prefer to eat at the parks? If she likes fireworks, maybe try to add in a dinner meal that also features fireworks viewing.
 
I'd also spread things out a bit more on the character meals, if possible. Consider doing one of those breakfasts at a resort hotel (such as Ohana) on your very last day so that you can sort of cap things off in a fun way with characters even though you likely won't be doing anything in the parks that day. If character meals are something she really enjoys, I think spreading them out over the trip probably makes more sense.

Consider the rest of your meal planning as well - are you going to be doing a lot of eating in your hotel room or do you prefer to eat at the parks? If she likes fireworks, maybe try to add in a dinner meal that also features fireworks viewing.

I did think about doing that meal that day I’ll see if we can get a adr
 


Get a spreadsheet going or a daily calendar with time slots (google has both of these) and just start piecing together your itinerary. Once you can look at it easily enough in a single glance you can start arranging things better.
 
That makes sense.

The reason we wanted them early on is so that they are done and out of the way as they are things she really wants to do and as character meets are a big thing for her it knocks a few off and then saves time in the park.

Yeah we plan on hitting a Walmart on the way to the hotel. We were only thinking DS to pick up some quick dinner and some magic bands as you can’t pre order them over here
DS is not really a quick dinner. 1) You have to drive there. 2) You have to park there. 3) You have to walk to where you plan to eat there. And then repeat to get back to your hotel. It's not super quick.

I admit, it is nice to take care of any ticket issues/MB's the day before your first park day, but you can also deal with that on your first park day.

I like character meals, too - and yep - I also like not having to do as many meet n greats in the park then. So - I don't think three is too many. I just think that three mornings in a row might be.
 
Get a spreadsheet going or a daily calendar with time slots (google has both of these) and just start piecing together your itinerary. Once you can look at it easily enough in a single glance you can start arranging things better.

Seconding this. I'm not a down-to-the-minute planner for Disney, but I am very much a planner. I usually make a google doc that breaks down each day as far as park hours and what the general plan is for morning/afternoon/evening, and then specific times for ADRs and fastpasses. It helps my husband and I prioritize what we want to do each day and have a rough gameplan going into the trip.
 
I used to travel between NY and London 4-5 times a year in a previous life.

Going Eastbound to me was always much harder than going Westbound. However, flying Westbound did mean a long day.

Each person handles it differently, but let me remind you. Landing at 2:00 PM EDT (if the plane was on-time), by the time you get thru passport control, then customs, then get a rental car, it may be closer to 3:30 - 4:00 before you actually leave the airport. Keep in mind, that will also be 8:30 - 9:00 PM in the UK. You may be starting to get tired. And you will be driving on the wrong side of the road...

Or not. Maybe you slept on the plane, maybe you are a night owl, maybe you are 30 and in perfect shape and can easily go 24 hours straight.

Just throwing out there things to think about. You may want to keep your first day/night very flexible.
 
Seconding this. I'm not a down-to-the-minute planner for Disney, but I am very much a planner. I usually make a google doc that breaks down each day as far as park hours and what the general plan is for morning/afternoon/evening, and then specific times for ADRs and fastpasses. It helps my husband and I prioritize what we want to do each day and have a rough gameplan going into the trip.

I'm the same. I typically plan for when the day starts and when we're going back to the hotel. I will always plan what park we're going to, fast passes and meals. That's the only thing on my schedule.

Then each day has typically 3 blocks of time (before and after lunch and evening) and I create a list of goals I'd like to achieve. Goals are viewing parades, rides, character greets etc. The more I can cross of the better, but I don't go crazy making sure I plan to the minute.
 
I'd also spread things out a bit more on the character meals, if possible. Consider doing one of those breakfasts at a resort hotel (such as Ohana) on your very last day so that you can sort of cap things off in a fun way with characters even though you likely won't be doing anything in the parks that day. If character meals are something she really enjoys, I think spreading them out over the trip probably makes more sense.

Consider the rest of your meal planning as well - are you going to be doing a lot of eating in your hotel room or do you prefer to eat at the parks? If she likes fireworks, maybe try to add in a dinner meal that also features fireworks viewing.

Can’t seem to get a ADR on that day now so seems we will have to stick to it unfortunately but I will keep trying
 
Seconding this. I'm not a down-to-the-minute planner for Disney, but I am very much a planner. I usually make a google doc that breaks down each day as far as park hours and what the general plan is for morning/afternoon/evening, and then specific times for ADRs and fastpasses. It helps my husband and I prioritize what we want to do each day and have a rough gameplan going into the trip.

Have you got anything you can send me or a link to one please
 
I second using a calendar/spreadsheet to make an overal planning. Doesn't have to be digital, use a pencil and paper and just move around the pieces of your puzzle.

On one side
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Etc.

And on the other side:
Activities we want to do
- Character breakfast 1, 2 3, etc.
- Bush Gardens
- 2 restdays
 
Have you got anything you can send me or a link to one please

If you Google Daily Calendar Spreadsheet you will get many templates such as this one: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...RZACLnldGJrt7o/template/preview?usp=drive_web

This was a lifesaver to me. I used one that was more detailed but if you have never used one before it would be good to start with something simple until you get the idea of how to add rows and customize it as needed. The great thing about docs on Google Drive (formerly called Google Docs) is that you can share with others in your party and you can read them on your phone in the park if needed.

I started out with lots of notes about ADRs, stroller rental conf #, etc. and it became very unmanageable. The Google schedule saved me and all 6 adults in our party could view it on their own without having to email info back and forth while we were planning.
 
Personally, I think I would skip Typhoon Lagoon and spend the day at the traditional parks instead... you don't seem to be going to any but the Magic Kingdom. I think I would choose Epcot.

Here are our top rides in each of the parks-- you might want to look into Fastpassing some of them:
Magic Kingdom: we love the mountains: Space, Splash and Big Thunder. Also 7 Dwarves Mine Train and Buzz Lightyear. We love, but don't fastpass: Haunted Mansion, Pirates of Caribbean, Monsters Laugh Floor.
Epcot. We love Soarin and Fastpass it. We do the single rider line at Test Track. We also enjoy Spaceship Earth and Mission Space green. Don't miss Illuminations, the laser/fireworks show around the lagoon. And consider a meal at one of the World Showcase restaurants.
Hollywood Studios: We love Toy Story Mania. My husband and older daughter will also enjoy Tower of Terror and Rock n Roller Coaster. We enjoy Star Tours too.
Animal Kingdom: My least favorite park, the one I would skip if my husband didn't love it. But we love a Tusker House breakfast. Kali River Rapids is great-- but you WILL get soaked. We're trying the new Avatar ride next week- my brother in law says its his most favorite ride EVER.
 
Have you got anything you can send me or a link to one please

Here's an example of a the spreadsheet I used for the trip I made last year. I don't think this was the final schedule, but this is basically the working platform I used to finalize my plans. It was an amazing trip, I don't think I could of planned it and executed it better. Talk about a stress free trip.

Capture.PNG
 
I agree that a spreadsheet is the way to go! My daughter is the planner and she starts the sheet the minute the reservations are made. They are an enormous help in keeping things straight and can be easily changed as plans are generally fluid until shortly before we depart.

Just something to think about ... we are two adults and although we are not huge character meal fans but have loved our meals at Crystal Palace, Garden Grill and 'Chef Mickeys. Last trip we booked the Bon Voyage Breakfast at Trattoria ... mainly because we were staying at the Boardwalk and loved our Trattoria breakfasts before they went to the pre fixe character meal.
We hated it! We were the only party with no kids and they seated us in the middle of the room; completely surrounded by families who (maybe it was just discomfort and paranoia), looked at us with confusion and a little suspicion. It was a most uncomfortable experience ... especially trying to be polite and converse with Flynn Ryder, who seemed intent on engaging us over and over! Not sure why this meal was so awkward but you might consider another venue ... just an opinion!
 

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