Time Difference - Advice on arrival

[dobbin]

Hi

I fly at 10:00am and arrive in Sanford at 14:05 (taking the time difference into account). So my body clock will be saying 19:05.

What do you recommend.
a -Stay at the Hotel and go to bed,
b - stay awake take it easy until it gets dark and then go to bed, or
c - hit the parks as if it's only 14:05 and go to bed after dark?

Any advice?

 

[foxylady]

Bear in mind you may land in Sanford at 14.05, but by the time you have got through immigration, collected luggage and got to your resort, chances are it will be nearly 5.00 pm. Depends what sort of ticket you have but I personally wouldn't waste a day's ticket on a few hours in any park.

If we stay in a hotel, we take a walk round to get our bearings. Last year we stayed in a villa, so by the time we had got the keys, found the place and unpacked, all we did was go for something to eat, did a bit of shopping, milk, drinks, etc, and went to bed, which was about 11.00 pm anyway.

It is better to go to bed at the time you would normally go, ie if you normally go to bed at 10.30 pm here, go to bed at 10.30 pm there (despite the time difference). It is hard, but makes it easier to get adjusted.

Having said that you will still wake up at something silly o'clock the next morning anyway. It think it was 3.45 am for me on the first morning last year, so we booked an early breakfast at CP in MK.

I don't think many people would go to bed early!

So, what I think I am saying is option B would be our choice, but go to bed as late as possible.

 

[CustardTart]

We always stay awake as late as we can - irrespective of what we do. Sometimes we chill at the hotel or go to DTD but IMO the most important thing is to go to bed at a normal time, even if it means you've been up for 24+ hours... HTH!

 

[AliceGardner]

Hi

I fly at 10:00am and arrive in Sanford at 14:05 (taking the time difference into account). So my body clock will be saying 19:05.

What do you recommend.
a -Stay at the Hotel and go to bed,
b - stay awake take it easy until it gets dark and then go to bed, or
c - hit the parks as if it's only 14:05 and go to bed after dark?

Any advice?

Definitely NOT the first one - you will probably wake-up at about midnight/one o'clock and will not be able to get back to sleep... then you will have terrible trouble adjusting your body clock

I wouldn't do the second or third one either - it gets dark about 7pm ish. I think that is still too early (you will probably wake up at 2/3am).

Try to stay awake until 9.30pm/10pm - that SHOULD hopefully get you through sleeping until about 5am or so. If you get up at 5am/5.30/6am, it will be easier to adjust your body clock.

Best thing is to get a decent nap on the plane (2 to 3 hours or so) to tide you over. Then go out when you get to the hotel. If you take it too easy (and stay around the hotel), then you will be tempted to nap or go to bed. Go and look leisurely around a park or Downtown Disney, have something to eat out. Go back to hotel and get into bed about 9.30pm.

Obviously different things work for different people, but all professional advice regarding "adjusting your bodyclock" involves trying to adjust to the time zone you are going to (so going to bed when you get there is a big no, no).

Good luck

Alice

 

[tashasmum]

We always have a trip to DTD and then something to eat followed by a bit of grocery shopping. We take a game with us and more often than not you will find us playing scrabble at some ridiculous hour of the morning.Usually by the following day we are more or less back to normal.

 

[XAVIER]

Make sure you adjust your watch as soon as you are airborn - it helps you to adjust mentally. Then stay up as long as you can doing whatever, and go to bed around your normal time. You will sleep like a baby and wake up refreshed and adjusted (well almost.)
Works for us anyway.

 

[wayneg]

We unpack, go for a meal, Publix then Downtown Disney if we have time, if not enough time then miss DTD.
DS(12) goes to sleep around 10, DW around 11 and me around midnight.
Then all get up about 6-7am they can't sleep any longer(I could even after 6 hours sleep on the plane).
Just stay awake as long as you can, go before 9pm you will be up at 3 or 4am, I know we have done it years ago

 

[dobbin]

Thanks to everyone for loads of excellent advice.

I will stay awake until my normal bedtime (11ish) and go to bed then.

 

[Girlsontour]

The latest we have even being able to stay awake until is about 10pm - i would like to say it the DD's that have dictated this time but i would be wrong! We are so tired on arrival that we really don't know what to do with ourselves. If you go about 10pm you should be up nice and early for the next day - round about 5am!!

 

[wicket2005]

It very much depends on the time of your flight and how much sleep you had the night before. Personally I stay up as long as possible say 11 pm (Florida time). The last two years we have done this and jumped straight into the new time zone with no problems; plus woke up at the right time the next day.

We have hit Sea World on the day of arrival as we landed about 12.30 and 2.30, we just dump the cases and get out there and enjoy the fun. This year we are staying at the Royal Pacific which will have the added benefit of not having to drive to the two parks there. On our first day we are going straight into Universal. We find the excitement of being back in the parks keeps us going.

 

[crabbie1]

Hi

I fly at 10:00am and arrive in Sanford at 14:05 (taking the time difference into account). So my body clock will be saying 19:05.

What do you recommend.
a -Stay at the Hotel and go to bed,
b - stay awake take it easy until it gets dark and then go to bed, or
c - hit the parks as if it's only 14:05 and go to bed after dark?

Any advice?

Flying from manchester we will probabky not arrive to our hotel till about 19.30 so will just potter around the hotel(POR) and may go to DTD by boat for a drink or ice cream.Not done the later flight before always gone on the earlier one so will play it by ear.

 

[mungo]

we try to stay up as late as we can. No matter what time I go to bed though, I am usually awake by about 4 or 5am (9 or 10am back in the uk)

We hit the parks early that day.

 

[rpbert1]

Our first time last year, and advice i got on here was excellent.
We got to hotel, left cases in the room ,had a look around the resort then went for dinner about 9pm, had a beer then went to our room, about 11pm we went to bed, advice on here was to leave unpacking for the next morning, as we would be up early, up about 4.30 DD slept to 7 and we did the unpacking then , all unpacking done and DW and myself shower and ready and when DD woke at 7 she got showered and went for breakfast ready for the parks opening

 

[UKDEB]

I say just go with the flow. You probably won't arrive at your hotel much before 4pm local time. By the time you've checked in, unpacked and had a look around, you'll have added on another hour and a half. Depending on where you're staying, I'd be inclined to have something to eat at the hotel, or somewhere closeby, and then just chill and go to bed when you feel you can't stay awake any longer. Normally, the adrenalin keeps me going until between 9pm and 10pm local time (so 2am-3am to my body clock). When I reach the point (and I always do) that I feel totally zonked, and the desire to sleep is more overwhelming than the excitement of being there, I just give in to it. I don't see any point in trying to stay awake. Whatever happens I know I will be awake at the crack of dawn and the excitement will be so strong, I won't want to go back to sleep. It's not unusual for us to be up at 3am or 4am on the first morning, but it never takes more than about 3 days for us to adjust.

On the other hand, if you get there and feel that you're itching to get out and do something, then do it. The only thing I'd reiterate is that there will come a point (and in my experience it's often a split second thing) where you'll be dead on your feet. One time we went out for a meal. I felt fine when we arrived, but by the time the entrees arrived, I was literally falling asleep.

 

[BROON]

check in, meal can.t eat anything due to being full of Coke Classic/Mountain Dew.Publix for essentials,bed about 10 till 4/4.30,chill out in the morning air usualy waiting on the Hot Air Balloons going bye and then I know I,m back in the place I want to be Oh! and the the Waffle House by Golden Coral for first breakfast something not to heavy,usualy.Toast, 2 bacon,2 eggs,2 sausage and a large OJ.

 

[Goofyish]

On past trips we have met US friends in the parks after checking into our resort and freshening up. We have stayed in the parks until closing and have had no problems of waking up really early the next few mornings

Meeting friends does make it easier to stay up though - not sure if we would have the will power to stay up on our own