Travel Days & Parks

[WDW or Bust]

This will be our first trip to WDW and probably a once in a lifetime trip. We are planning to be there for 7 days. Nothing is set in stone yet, but we are thinking of flying into Orlando on a Friday and flying home the following Thursday. Most likely the 2nd week of December. My first inclination is to get to WDW in the morning or at least by noon. Assuming on-time flights and no travel problems, should we use that as a down day or should we buy a park ticket for that day?

Same question for the last day. Assuming we get a late flight out (like 6pm or after) do people typically do park rides or make it a down day?

Or is it best to just go like crazy, plan a down day in the middle? Our kids will be 9 & 11 years old.

 

[CAQDaddy]

Adding a 6th or 7th day to tickets is pretty inexpensive (compared to the overall price). I would probably plan to do the parks on arrival and departure days, but I would be willing to adjust depending on how you feel. If you are exhausted from traveling when you arrive you can just head to the resort and chill. If you and the family feel energized then you could head to the park. On departure day you will know what is best and you can make the call then. I always say make a plan of action (doing parks and rides) but remember it isn't set in stone. Adapt as you go, relax, and have a blast!

 

[eliseisawkward]

Keep in mind that all resorts and Disney Springs are also super pretty and decorated! If you are into seeing all the decor, you can use arrival or leaving to travel around to resorts you aren’t staying in to see their decorations.

 

[spleuchan]

Buy tickets to cover your travel days. After a flight you will want to get out in the parks and stretch your legs. As previously mentioned adding a couple days is relatively inexpensive and you will get those additional fast passes!

 

[MainMom]

Where are you staying? We typically stay at BW resorts and like to do Epcot on our arrival day as it’s close by. We just do our 3 fast passes and enjoy the atmosphere for a while then head back and get settled in our room. We don’t do a park on departure day since we fly out before 12.

 

[Klayfish]

If this is your first and only trip, to me it makes absolutely no sense to take a "down" day. You're not going there to see a hotel, you're there for WDW. I'm not saying you need to hit the parks for 12 hours per day, but I would definitely be in a park every single day...including arrival and departure.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

No one right answer to your question, more personal travel preferences than anything.

You say you'll likely arrive in the morning or by noon. Not sure of your accommodations but for a Disney resort your room likely won't be ready and may not be until 3pm check-in (or after). So I guess I'd ask, what would you like to do with that time before your room may be ready?

We like to fly in first thing so are often in the same predicament. We do two things - either swim/resort day (which means packing so that we have swim clothing/items with us in our carry-ons, changing in a pool restroom, etc); or we head to a park.

Given your December timing, decorated parks, and first/possibly only trip, I'd be inclined to head to a park and make something of the day.

BTW, to the DIS!

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would consider purchasing a 6-day ticket, plan on going to a park on your first day and then, if you are up for going on your departure day, you can simply go to guest services and upgrade your ticket to a 7-day. Especially at Christmas, there is so much more to see then what is strictly offered in the parks. Where you plan on staying is also a factor, IMHO, as it will impact your travel times to and from parks.

 

[WDW or Bust]

No one right answer to your question, more personal travel preferences than anything.

You say you'll likely arrive in the morning or by noon. Not sure of your accommodations but for a Disney resort your room likely won't be ready and may not be until 3pm check-in (or after). So I guess I'd ask, what would you like to do with that time before your room may be ready?

We like to fly in first thing so are often in the same predicament. We do two things - either swim/resort day (which means packing so that we have swim clothing/items with us in our carry-ons, changing in a pool restroom, etc); or we head to a park.

Given your December timing, decorated parks, and first/possibly only trip, I'd be inclined to head to a park and make something of the day.

BTW, to the DIS!

We havent picked a hotel yet but looking at possibly AKL, Port Orleans or one of the carribean one. I didnt think about the check-in time so thanks for pointing that out. What everyone has said makes a lot of sense. I think we’ll just buy tickets for those days and get what we can (or are up for) out of them.

Thank you so much for the advice!

 

[Gussie Granger 1969]

Our last trip (Feb 2017) we arrived around 2-3pm, checked in, went to buy some groceries and were in EPCOT by 4:30. We had our 3 fast passes booked and had a great night and rode everything we wanted (World Showcase we saved for another day) When my husband made this suggestion (he doesn’t like wasting time, ever) I thought it would be too much for our first day but it worked so well, we are doing the exact same thing on our arrival day next month.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

We havent picked a hotel yet but looking at possibly AKL, Port Orleans or one of the carribean one. I didnt think about the check-in time so thanks for pointing that out. What everyone has said makes a lot of sense. I think we’ll just buy tickets for those days and get what we can (or are up for) out of them.

Thank you so much for the advice!

Yeah, Disney resorts operate at such high capacity it’s rare to arrive before the 3pm check-in time and find your room ready. It can happen for sure, but it might not so it’s best to keep that in mind in your packing/luggage logistics for the day and plan accordingly, especially if you plan an early arrival.

Happy planning!

 

[Figment Mom]

On our 11-day trip we did parks on both arrival and departure days. We were actually at our resort around 9 am or so. I was going to leave our bags with bell services but they actually had a room ready for us. We were in MK well before noon.

We did not originally purchase a park ticket for our departure day. The day before we added another day. My son chose MK because he wanted to eat at Liberty Tree again. I got a lunch reservation there and booked our FPs the night before.

He also wanted to swim one last time so we packed our swimsuits in our carryons and left them with bell services while we went to MK. After lunch we headed back to the resort, changed into swimsuits in a public bathroom, and lounged by the pool until it was time to take ME to the airport.

 

[Mto3]

On both our recent trips in Dec 2016 and Nov 2018 we picked an arrival travel day that fell on the day of a very merry Christmas party. That way it gave us time to get there settle in get into the park by 4 and still have until midnight with less crowds. We also always travel back home late, usually 8-9pm, and get a full day at the park.

 

[imprimouse]

we prefer to visit MK on our first park day, last week we arrived @ POP around noon. MK had ex. magic hours that night till 11, so we scheduled FP's and went to MK.
on other trips, when we arrived mid-to late afternoon we headed to downtown Disney (now Disney Springs) vs burning park tickets. when our DD was younger we used arrival day to hit the pool, and then have a nice meal. you will be visiting when Galaxy's Edge is brand new, and crowds will probably be massive.
Time is the key currency @ WDW, so plan your days accordingly. we no longer purchase the park hopper option bc of this. when using Disney bus transportation, you should allow 45-60 minutes to get from point A to B. this includes exiting the park you are in, walking to the bus stop, waiting for the next bus.. then entering the next park, security line etc. we find it much more productive to stay in one park per day. keep reading Disboards and you'll be a pro by the time you get there!

 

[galnar]

We don’t visit a park on arrival day. We usually drive so are tired from the road. I like to schedule a fun dinner somewhere and early bedtime so everyone is ready for rope drop the next morning.

 

[greg9x]

We go on arrival and departure days depending on flight times... Usually arrive early afternoon after a 2 hr flight, so not worn out. Departure day need to remember if using ME that they pick you up like 3 hours before flight, so need to figure that in.. usually try to make flight for after 6 p.m. so not rushed.
As said, the extra days are not much more, and you can schedule the Fp+'s on those days which eases up the schedule for the rest of the week... and that departure day may give you another chance at the hard to get FP+'s since it would be 60+7 for onsite stay and they all should have availability.

 

[TI double-GUH ER]

We like to take it easy on arrival day - explore the resort a little, swim, and then we head to Disney Springs. That way we can walk and stretch our legs, but we also don't feel like we have to rush to anything or deal with lines. We get a decent dinner somewhere (there are so many to choose from!) do a little shopping, and when we've had enough we go back to the hotel and crash so we can get up early the next day. When we tried to do a park on arrival day we felt just too tired to make it worthwhile. Depending on travel time, we don't always have a full day on departure day - and I might not trust myself to leave the parks on time . We tend to sleep in a bit, pack and then get a leisurely character breakfast somewhere like Chef Mickey's and then head to the airport.
That being said, I agree that it's easy to upgrade your ticket when you get there if you need to, and adding days 6 and 7 are pretty cheap. It all depends on how well your party travels.

 

[MrsPete]

I wouldn't buy a ticket for a travel day -- even if it were fairly cheap.

We drive, and we aim to arrive 3:00ish just as our room should be available. Assume an hour to check in, find room, unload the car, choose beds, unpack. Then we need to walk around the resort and "get our bearings". Then we need to do a grocery store run. By the time we've done all that, we're ready for dinner -- our tradition is Beaches & Cream (including a Kitchen Sink) for our first-night's dinner. Even if it's summer and the parks are open late, we'd only be able to "hit the parks" for 2-3 hours at most. We opt, instead, to do some fun things around the resort and be well-rested for a full day on Full Day 1.

Similarly, we don't buy tickets for our last day because, again, we drive. Our drive is about eight hours, so we want to get on the road. Instead of using a ticket for just a couple hours, we prefer to end our trip with a character breakfast at one of the resorts. It doesn't require a ticket, but it's a nice send-off at the end of our vacation.

The real question is, how will you approach your arrival /departure days? Your details may be quite different from ours.