Rene McDaniel
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Oct 29, 2002
- Messages
- 7
Hi Everyone,
We just returned from Dolphin stay on April 12-16, and I wanted to thank everyone for the many great tips we read on the DIS boards. Just wanted to share a few tips that really worked out well for our trip during a peak travel time, Easter Week:
(1) IF THE PARKS ARE OPEN LATE -- STAY ON SITE!
This was our 1st time ever staying in WDW (last trip stayed at the Vistana) -- and staying on-site is much more convenient. I really enjoyed being right next door to the Epcot World Showcase and MGM. This is especially true if you have a short trip like we did (only 4 park days). Although we had good intentions, we never once made it back to the park in the evening when we stayed at the Vistana. But staying on site, we made it back to the parks every single night, even if it was only for a couple of hours. (Important note: If you are travelling when the parks close early, 6-7pm, this may not be a factor for you.
(2) BE AT THE PARK AT LEAST HALF HOUR BEFORE "ROPE DROP"
At MK there are tons of characters out for autographs & pictures, and the lines are the shortest you'll see all day. The stores are open, and not as crowded. Once the rope drops, you can get in a ton of rides very quickly. This seemed to be the case for both Early Entry and non-Early Entry parks. It was the the BEST!
(3) TAKE A MID-DAY SIESTA
This was great advice. We would get up early-- at the parks for rope drop -- ride the top attractions like crazy. Then, by about 1pm or so, when the crowds were thick & painful, head back to our hotel. Eat lunch, swim for a couple of hours. Then, this is the REALLY IMPORTANT PART --- Take a 2 hour nap. (My 4th grade daughter hated this-- but she always fell asleep in about 5 minutes, and I did, too!) Oh yes, don't forget to put in a wake up call. About 6pm or so, wake up and head back to the park of your choice -- totally refreshed as though it were a brand new day. See the parades, shows, fireworks, etc. As the parks near closing the crowds thin dramatically, and your well-rested group will once again be able to ride top attractions without a 90 minute wait! This is especially true at MK after "Wishes" (10pm on our trip). We were able to get off Buzz Lightyear, and get right back on again with no wait, over and over again. (Our favorite ride! We probably rode it close to 20 times that day-- about 6-7 times at "rope drop", then about 10+ times after "Wishes")
(4) IF THERE ARE 2 SHOWINGS - GO TO THE LAST ONE
Also a great tip. We went to the 2nd showing of Fantasmic at MGM, and were able to get there 5 minutes before the show started and get great seats (center section, but near the top) without having to buy an expensive dinner package or lose a lot of park time.
(5) DOLPHIN STAY WAS ALSO AN AWESOME DIS TIP
Thanks to the DIS, I was able to get a great teacher rate of $139/night at the Dolphin -- which is a fabulous 4-star resort in a great location next to MGM, Epcot & the Boardwalk. (also has nurses & AAA discounts) Although I was not able to get the discounted rate through the Starwood 800#, I was able to get it through Dreams Unlimited with no problem. Also, followed the DIS suggestion to get a Starwood Preferred membership. We requested an renovated room, and got a gorgeous new room with the "Westin Heavenly Beds" (and man, they ARE heavenly) with a great view of the Dolphin pools, beach, and the MGM Tower of Terror. Thanks to tips on the DIS we stayed at a 4-star resort for the same price as we would have paid at the 2-star Pop Century during Easter week. And we were SO CLOSE to Epcot & MGM, it felt like we were practically staying in the park. (Boardwalk, Yacht/Beach Club, Swan/Dolphin really do have a FANTASTIC location -- my favorite area of all the WDW resorts! Note: We are not big MK fans since we live less than 100 miles from Disneyland, which has alot of the same rides as MK.)
(6) KNOW HOW TO USE FASTPASS (FP)
I was amazed at the number of people who would wait in a line where the posted wait time is 100 minutes, when they could just get a fastpass -- do something with minimal wait -- then come back, and ride it later with only a 5-10 minute wait. Get your fastpass, then do something else (eat a snack, watch a show or parade, ride something hokey like the MerryGoRound, Carosel of Progress, tour Imagination or Innovations pavillion, Life of Walt, Animation, tour something educational - never a wait on those!) Then, after 5 minutes after your posted fastpass time, you are eligible to get another fastpass. I heard a poor man on the bus telling the story of how they had waited 2 hours for a ride (Splash Mountain), then it broke down, then they waited another 2 hours for a different ride (Space Mountain), then it broke down. So that they had been in the park about 5 hours and had not ridden ANYTHING yet. They were then headed to Epcot in disgust. I didn't say anything, other than offer sympathy, because we had arrived at MK a half-hour before opening, had already ridden everything we wanted to ride (Buzz Lightyear umpteen times, Thunder Mountain (FP), Mickey's Philharmagic (FP), had breakfast with Cinderella (8:30am Priority Seating), Haunted Mansion, teacups, had done pictures and autographs with about 10 characters in the park (including Ariel at her grotto & Mickey in ToonTown). By the time we had done all that (lunchtime), MK was so packed it was difficult to walk. We were headed back to swim and relax with a lot accomplished. They were headed to Epcot mid-day hoping for better luck there (fat chance at 1 in the afternoon, where they will either be greeted by a 100+ minute wait for Mission Space or Fast Track, and Fast Track if not already broken down... may well break down while they are waiting in line! You need to do both those 2 rides at rope drop. You can ride them over and over again, with little to no wait during the first hour that the park is open. After that -- forgettaboutit!!)
(7) At MAGIC KINGDOM, USE THE RAILROAD TO GET AROUND
This was another fantastic tip I picked up on the DIS. The original poster gave it as a tip for rope drop (get to the back of the park ahead of those walking for Thunder Mt/Splash Mt.). But we found this was a great way to get around the park when the traffic was so thick you felt like a salmon trying to swim upstream. For example, we got a fastpass for Thunder Mountain for 1-1/2 hour later. We took the railroad to do things in other areas of MK, then took the Railroad back to use our FastPass. It's much easier and less stressful than walking across the park when it's that crowded. The railroad circles the park, usually has no more than a 5 minute wait, and lets you move from the front to the back of the park, or from side to side very easily. I LOVE THAT RAILWAY!
(8) IF YOU READ THE DIS BOARDS, AND FOLLOW THE TIPS -- YOU CAN TRAVEL DURING THE PEAK TIMES AND HAVE A GREAT TIME!
We used all the tips we could find on the DIS Boards and I must say we had the best time ever, although lots of people advise against going during peak times. Hey, we have kids in school. That's the only time we can travel -- so, we just have to make the best of it -- and lots of other people have the same problem. The good news is that the parks are open for longer hours, so although the park traffic is extremely thick mid-day.... later in the day - 8,9, 10 pm -- is as good, or EVEN BETTER than what you will have off-season. (I have found the off-season to be frustrating sometimes because they will run only 1 line instead of 2, have much shorter park hours, fewer staff, etc... the parks may not be as crowded, but your waits for rides can still be just as long in the middle of the day.)
Well, that's all the important tips I can think of for the moment. If anyone else has any good tips -- please post them here, so that others can benefit. I want to thank everyone who has posted tips in the past that certainly benefitted our family on our WDW vacation. Meeting a family who felt they had accomplished nothing during 5 hours at MK made me realize how lucky we all are to know about the DIS boards, and what a difference these boards can make on the QUALITY of your vacation.
--- Rene McDaniel
(from San Diego, CA)
We just returned from Dolphin stay on April 12-16, and I wanted to thank everyone for the many great tips we read on the DIS boards. Just wanted to share a few tips that really worked out well for our trip during a peak travel time, Easter Week:
(1) IF THE PARKS ARE OPEN LATE -- STAY ON SITE!
This was our 1st time ever staying in WDW (last trip stayed at the Vistana) -- and staying on-site is much more convenient. I really enjoyed being right next door to the Epcot World Showcase and MGM. This is especially true if you have a short trip like we did (only 4 park days). Although we had good intentions, we never once made it back to the park in the evening when we stayed at the Vistana. But staying on site, we made it back to the parks every single night, even if it was only for a couple of hours. (Important note: If you are travelling when the parks close early, 6-7pm, this may not be a factor for you.
(2) BE AT THE PARK AT LEAST HALF HOUR BEFORE "ROPE DROP"
At MK there are tons of characters out for autographs & pictures, and the lines are the shortest you'll see all day. The stores are open, and not as crowded. Once the rope drops, you can get in a ton of rides very quickly. This seemed to be the case for both Early Entry and non-Early Entry parks. It was the the BEST!
(3) TAKE A MID-DAY SIESTA
This was great advice. We would get up early-- at the parks for rope drop -- ride the top attractions like crazy. Then, by about 1pm or so, when the crowds were thick & painful, head back to our hotel. Eat lunch, swim for a couple of hours. Then, this is the REALLY IMPORTANT PART --- Take a 2 hour nap. (My 4th grade daughter hated this-- but she always fell asleep in about 5 minutes, and I did, too!) Oh yes, don't forget to put in a wake up call. About 6pm or so, wake up and head back to the park of your choice -- totally refreshed as though it were a brand new day. See the parades, shows, fireworks, etc. As the parks near closing the crowds thin dramatically, and your well-rested group will once again be able to ride top attractions without a 90 minute wait! This is especially true at MK after "Wishes" (10pm on our trip). We were able to get off Buzz Lightyear, and get right back on again with no wait, over and over again. (Our favorite ride! We probably rode it close to 20 times that day-- about 6-7 times at "rope drop", then about 10+ times after "Wishes")
(4) IF THERE ARE 2 SHOWINGS - GO TO THE LAST ONE
Also a great tip. We went to the 2nd showing of Fantasmic at MGM, and were able to get there 5 minutes before the show started and get great seats (center section, but near the top) without having to buy an expensive dinner package or lose a lot of park time.
(5) DOLPHIN STAY WAS ALSO AN AWESOME DIS TIP
Thanks to the DIS, I was able to get a great teacher rate of $139/night at the Dolphin -- which is a fabulous 4-star resort in a great location next to MGM, Epcot & the Boardwalk. (also has nurses & AAA discounts) Although I was not able to get the discounted rate through the Starwood 800#, I was able to get it through Dreams Unlimited with no problem. Also, followed the DIS suggestion to get a Starwood Preferred membership. We requested an renovated room, and got a gorgeous new room with the "Westin Heavenly Beds" (and man, they ARE heavenly) with a great view of the Dolphin pools, beach, and the MGM Tower of Terror. Thanks to tips on the DIS we stayed at a 4-star resort for the same price as we would have paid at the 2-star Pop Century during Easter week. And we were SO CLOSE to Epcot & MGM, it felt like we were practically staying in the park. (Boardwalk, Yacht/Beach Club, Swan/Dolphin really do have a FANTASTIC location -- my favorite area of all the WDW resorts! Note: We are not big MK fans since we live less than 100 miles from Disneyland, which has alot of the same rides as MK.)
(6) KNOW HOW TO USE FASTPASS (FP)
I was amazed at the number of people who would wait in a line where the posted wait time is 100 minutes, when they could just get a fastpass -- do something with minimal wait -- then come back, and ride it later with only a 5-10 minute wait. Get your fastpass, then do something else (eat a snack, watch a show or parade, ride something hokey like the MerryGoRound, Carosel of Progress, tour Imagination or Innovations pavillion, Life of Walt, Animation, tour something educational - never a wait on those!) Then, after 5 minutes after your posted fastpass time, you are eligible to get another fastpass. I heard a poor man on the bus telling the story of how they had waited 2 hours for a ride (Splash Mountain), then it broke down, then they waited another 2 hours for a different ride (Space Mountain), then it broke down. So that they had been in the park about 5 hours and had not ridden ANYTHING yet. They were then headed to Epcot in disgust. I didn't say anything, other than offer sympathy, because we had arrived at MK a half-hour before opening, had already ridden everything we wanted to ride (Buzz Lightyear umpteen times, Thunder Mountain (FP), Mickey's Philharmagic (FP), had breakfast with Cinderella (8:30am Priority Seating), Haunted Mansion, teacups, had done pictures and autographs with about 10 characters in the park (including Ariel at her grotto & Mickey in ToonTown). By the time we had done all that (lunchtime), MK was so packed it was difficult to walk. We were headed back to swim and relax with a lot accomplished. They were headed to Epcot mid-day hoping for better luck there (fat chance at 1 in the afternoon, where they will either be greeted by a 100+ minute wait for Mission Space or Fast Track, and Fast Track if not already broken down... may well break down while they are waiting in line! You need to do both those 2 rides at rope drop. You can ride them over and over again, with little to no wait during the first hour that the park is open. After that -- forgettaboutit!!)
(7) At MAGIC KINGDOM, USE THE RAILROAD TO GET AROUND
This was another fantastic tip I picked up on the DIS. The original poster gave it as a tip for rope drop (get to the back of the park ahead of those walking for Thunder Mt/Splash Mt.). But we found this was a great way to get around the park when the traffic was so thick you felt like a salmon trying to swim upstream. For example, we got a fastpass for Thunder Mountain for 1-1/2 hour later. We took the railroad to do things in other areas of MK, then took the Railroad back to use our FastPass. It's much easier and less stressful than walking across the park when it's that crowded. The railroad circles the park, usually has no more than a 5 minute wait, and lets you move from the front to the back of the park, or from side to side very easily. I LOVE THAT RAILWAY!
(8) IF YOU READ THE DIS BOARDS, AND FOLLOW THE TIPS -- YOU CAN TRAVEL DURING THE PEAK TIMES AND HAVE A GREAT TIME!
We used all the tips we could find on the DIS Boards and I must say we had the best time ever, although lots of people advise against going during peak times. Hey, we have kids in school. That's the only time we can travel -- so, we just have to make the best of it -- and lots of other people have the same problem. The good news is that the parks are open for longer hours, so although the park traffic is extremely thick mid-day.... later in the day - 8,9, 10 pm -- is as good, or EVEN BETTER than what you will have off-season. (I have found the off-season to be frustrating sometimes because they will run only 1 line instead of 2, have much shorter park hours, fewer staff, etc... the parks may not be as crowded, but your waits for rides can still be just as long in the middle of the day.)
Well, that's all the important tips I can think of for the moment. If anyone else has any good tips -- please post them here, so that others can benefit. I want to thank everyone who has posted tips in the past that certainly benefitted our family on our WDW vacation. Meeting a family who felt they had accomplished nothing during 5 hours at MK made me realize how lucky we all are to know about the DIS boards, and what a difference these boards can make on the QUALITY of your vacation.
--- Rene McDaniel
(from San Diego, CA)
