This is the only Theme Park Strategy you need....really!

[WDW4us2003]

Get out of bed and get to the parks EARLY!!!!!

We just came back yesterday, and I cannot tell you how important it was to get to all of the theme parks as well as the water parks when they opened. It is the one tip you will see over and over in every WDW guidebook, and it is so true. Of the seven days we were there, we did Extra Magic Hour five times. We were able to ride ALL of the major attractions with little or no wait, some two times in a row. We were able to get FastPasses for later in the morning for other things while we enjoyed the smaller rides with no lines. By 11:00, the parks were really PACKED, and there was up to a 70 minute standby wait for the larger rides, with FastPass times as much as 4 hours later. I cannot tell you how miserable people looked, especially those with little kids. We usually left the parks around noon when the crowds were huge and weather was too hot, and went back to swim or nap, and then headed out again for dinner and the evening shows and parades.

I know many people say "I'm on vacation, no way am I getting out of bed at 6:30", but I am telling you that it will make all of the difference in your vacation if you plan on spending a lot of time at the parks. Naturally, if you go during the very slow season, it doesn't really matter what time you show up. But for many people, school vacations are the only time they can go. It wasn't always easy getting up, especially my 13 y.o. son, but it made all the difference!

 

[tootsiemolly]

What time did you get to each park? If MK opens at 9:00 am does EE start at 7:30?

 

[novafan]

That's good to know, that was my plan. Dragging my DH's butt out of bed is going to be interesting. The poor guy is just finishing up MONTHS AND MONTHS of intensive Army training (army special forces) and is not going to be thrilled when I'm flipping on the lights and rallying the troops for a fun-filled morning of Disney. I'll have to enforce a strict bedtime too.

 

[WDW4us2003]

On early entry days, the park will open at 8:00, with a regular opening of 9:00. We stayed at the Beach Club, and so for an EE day at the MK we (me, hubby, kids 10 and 13) woke up at 6:15, dressed, and went out to the bus stop by 7:10 (had cereal in the room). I guess the busses start around 7:00, so it's good to get the first bus. The busses were very busy at this time of the morning!! This let us get to the MK by 7:30-7:45, and we were right near the front of the line. By 8:00, there was a HUGE crowd.

This is the plan we used for the other parks as well, but of course we walked to EPCOT for EE, and took the boat to MGM.

Whatever you do, make your plan to time your arrival at the EE parks by 20-30 minutes before opening. I am not kidding, if you show up at 8:30 - 9:00, you will have to wait. I couldn't believe the number of people there for EE each day.

 

[Cindy B]

see getting there early is not a big deal for us. DH usually gets up at 430 for work everyday so sleeping in until 615 is wonderful to him.

My kids wake up super early all the time in WDW, so its great for us.

 

[TiggerInNY]

Thanks for all the advice, but we're going to WDW in October. Does anyone out there know if we have to get up early then, too? It's our first time as a "family" going, DH, myself, DS-7, and DS-3. We are staying off-site at Marriott's Cypress Harbour.

Any help is well appreciated.

Thanks.

TTFN,
Maria

 

[Msslaydbug]

We may have to ry a few EE when we are there for our vacation but still wondering exactly how crowded it will be in Sept ?! Hope the FTP wont be making THAT big a diffrence in the Sept crowds !!

 

[Kimberle]

I couldn't agree more! When the parks start getting crowded about 11am, we've done just about everything we wanted to!

 

[Crazy Kanga]

TiggerIn NY,
I think it is still a good idea to get there early. Since you are staying off property, you will not be able to do EarlyEntry, but I would still get to the parks 20 minutes or so before opening to get in as much as possible before it gets really busy. With the Fairytale package that was offered thru Oct. the crowds are expected to be heavier than normal this fall. Also many schools are going to a so called "year round" schedule which gives a fall break in Oct. So I would be prepared for the worst and hope for the best.

 

[TINK61]

Yeah - I usually go commando style. We usually open and close the parks. Once I'm in a park, I usually don't like to leave until I have seen everything, or the park closes, whichever comes first

The only problem is - - I need a vacation to rest from my vacation

 

[ncbyrne]

Benjamin Franklin, who said, "early to bed, early to rise", never went to WDW, but if he did, he'd be able to get a good start on the day and ride all the good rides! Maybe the quote should be, "early to bed, early to RIDE!" We usually go in May or Sept and even though those months are considered slower times, we still get to the parks when they open. Twice my grandchildren were picked to be the ones who "officially" opened the parks, simply because we were the first ones at the gate. Getting up can have it's perks!

 

[WIcruizer]

My park strategy is to go during off-season. We go in early March, late May, etc. and we never get to the parks before 10:00 or 10:30. We never have an issue with lines. We'll get FastPass for the 2 most popular attractions at each park, and usually we have time to go on the mega attractions several times.

 

[JACKNAG]

We used the same plan this year July 5th thru the 17th, by 1:00pm we were back to the resort, then out at night again for a while.


This plan works good all times of year

 

[Pooh93]

I think this is a great tip. Did you notice the parks thinning out in the evening at all?