Trip Planning for a family of 7

[Camplover MI]

Hello,
I am going to give a brief description of my family and what we are doing. This is our first time taking our 5 children to Disney. We have a site at Fort Wilderness we will be there from Wed. to Sun. We are planning on getting a 3 day hopper pass. The ages of the kids will be at the time of the trip the following boy 11, girl 9, boy 8, girl 6 (almost 7), girl 2 1/2 years old. I have not been to Disney since 1980. So, what rides would you recommand, restruants and would you recommand the character meals, pro and cons on those, not to miss, we plan on eating one meal at disney, bringing sandwhiches or going back to the trailer to eat and just get a little break. The kids will have back pack with water, and a few snacks. We will be bringing the stroller for the youngest. I will have a back pack, DH will have a fanny pack if I can convince him to wear it.
Ride recommandations, any day itinary that you would recommand, shows not to miss, and which guide book to purchase, I am looking at the Unoffical Guide book for WDW by BobShelinger.
I am going with the mind set to see as much as we can, but not to make everyone miserable. I want to plan so we can get the most out of the trip, but if some of what we planned didn't happen, well that is ok. I just don't want to go with out any idea of where to start and what to do. I want to list from a must see on down. I have a notebook I am starting with notes of things to bring, and to do. After Disney we will be going to St. Augustine to camp for a couple of days. Oh, We are planning to be at Dinsey the week after Easter, want to two weeks in FL, and this way kids only miss one week of school. I didn't want to go in the summer. So, I know it will be busy.
So any advice will be greatly appreciated.
Lynn

 

[eyeheartgoofy]

Go with the unofficial guide you mentioned and study the chapter on WDW with kids - it is really helpful. Just keep the attitude that you don't want to make anyone miserable and you will have a nice trip.

If you do a character meal, I would suggest a breakfast at one of the resort restaurants on the day of your departure - that way you won't wast touring time or theme park admission. On the other hand, I don't think you need a character meal to make the trip complete.

Have fun planning!

 

[shellyfive]

Hi......you'll be very busy, and three days is not alot of time to see the parks with a whole bunch of people(we travel with 5 kids as well)you may not get much park-hopping in, in that short a time span, especially since you haven't been there in quite some time. Did you just want to concentrate on the magic kingdom, or are you planning to hit multiple parks in one day??? You also have to figure time in to feed them all and potty runs etc. You'll also have to ask when /if you book ressies for sit down meals-----alot of places will seat you at two next- together tables(but they won't guarantee that!)rather than one big table . The older kids should also decide before you go what rides they HAVE TO do so you can make some sort of game plan. there are many place to look for hints on getting to the park early, what rides to get on first, what ones to get fastpasses for etc. You can have a great time, but you'll just have to plan a bit more than a family with 1 or 2 kids. I would definately plan on taking/renting a stroller....it comes in handy for so much more than just carring kids!!!!good luck to you!!!!

 

[Camplover MI]

I plan on doing one park each day. My thought was Magic Kingdom, MGM, and a little of Epcot, maybe back to Magic Kingdom.
Lynn

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I would try to hop over to Animal Kingdom. They just opened Expedition Everest.

 

[ajcolorado]

Remember that there are some great things right there at the campground - you can post a question in the camping forum, if you haven't already, and will get lots of good information.

There is a free Campfire Sing-Along w/ Chip & Dale. You can bring your own s'mores supplies or buy a s'mores kit for about $5. (Two sticks included). The sing-along is followed by a Disney movie shown on an outdoor screen. The camping forum always has a "sticky" at the top with the month's movie schedule. The new schedule comes out the last week of the month.

There are pony rides for about $3 each. There is an evening wagon ride ($8/adult, $5/child). And there is a free farm animal viewing area. The campground has a marina, if you are intersted in renting a boat. They also offer catch & release cane pole fishing.

You can also see the Electric Water Pageant from the Fort Wilderness campground. It is a floating nighttime parade.

You might be able to do some of these on your arrival or departure days.
Here is a link with good information: www.buildabettermousetrip.com/activity-campfire.html

Since you have girls, you may find this page listing the locations of the Disney Princesses helpful: www.buildabettermousetrip.com/disneyprincesses.html

The Unofficial Guide is a great book and you will do just fine with their touring plans.

There is a wonderful site that lets you know about any Disney World related television programming for the following week. You can get some great information from the travel channel shows and it is just fun. www.bartlett-sloan.net/tv/agenda.php3?modeagenda=soon

www.allearsnet.com and www.wdwinfo.com have really wonderful information - especially their dining information.

www.disneyworldlinks.com has lots and lots of great Disney World related web sites.

I'll put my Epcot suggestions in a separate post.

 

[ajcolorado]

I think Epcot is WONDERFUL for kids your kid's ages. Mission Space is probably the only thing too intense for the little one. If they’re tall enough; Soarin’ and Test Track should be fine. Honey I Shrunk the Audience 3-D and Maelstrom is a little scary for some but many do just fine. Spaceship Earth, The Universe of Energy (Dinosaurs & 45 blessed minutes of air conditioning), and Journey into Your Imagination with Figment are all visually interesting for kids. One of the Innovention pavilions has a lot of things geared for little ones. The Living Seas is great for kids – marine life & “Turtle Talk with Crush” are fantastic. “The Land” has a character meal and there are Princess meals at the Norway Pavillion. There are Character Meet & Greets all through Epcot. There is some great entertainment too – the Jammitors are a “Stomp” like percussion group and Kristos is a Cirque du Soleil type balancing act.

There are “Kidcot” stations throughout the World Showcase. Your kids can make a cardboard mask (free) at which ever station they stop at first. Then they can add a decoration at each additional station. The boat ride at the Mexico pavilion is similar to “It’s A Small World”. The kids may or may not enjoy the American Adventure or the Circle Vision movies in China & Canada. If I was going to choose one, I’d go with the China movie. There is a little hedge maze in the UK pavilion that is too short for adults to find challenging but I saw a bunch of kids gleefully running through. I also saw kids intrigued by the model train at the Germany pavilion. My kids loved wandering through the Morocco pavilion. There are Koi fish in the pond in Japan. Norway has a Viking boat play area. There is some fantastic entertainment that kids will enjoy: The “Serveur Amusant” (France) is a comedic balancing act. Japan has three great things for kids – “Matsuriza” is a traditional drum act; “Miyuki” is a very neat candy artist, and there is a Japanese Storyteller “Honobono Minwa” on Wed, Thurs, & Fri. Sergio (Italy) is a juggler. “OrisiRisi”, he drum circle and African Storytellers (Mon- Fri) in the Outpost get good reviews. Kids always love the Dragon Legend Acrobats (China) because they are children too. Some kids will enjoy “Off Kilter” (Canada) – bagpipe rock and “MoRockin” (Morocco) – Middle Eastern pop sounding band. IllumiNations is the evening fireworks show and it is excellent.

Epcot takes a little advance planning to get the most out of it because the live entertainment is scheduled at various times during the day. You can start your planning by clicking on the "Epcot" tab at http://pages.prodigy.net/stevesoares/ but double-check your Epcot times guide once you arrive.

 

[Plantlady]

We only traveled with three boys, but we had them decide each day, what TWO rides they each HAD to do. They read the travel guide Disney for kids by kids, and had a very good idea of what was available.

Each day, we made sure to do the rides they HAD to do, and everything else was just bonus.

We also worked it out, so that the oldest child went and did the evening extra magic hours with his dad, while I took the two younger ones back to the hotel. This gave him an opportunity to ride some more thrill rides. We all did the evening extra magic hours together one night though. It made for a long, tiring day, but good memories.

 

[ajcolorado]

You are going to love St. Augustine - at least we did. I think the Fort has more activities and demonstrations on the weekends.

We really enjoyed the Spanish history museum: www.historicstaugustine.com/csq/history.html

I also enjoyed the free Greek Orthodox visitors center - our family has been Protestants for generations so it was an interesting introduction to another set of religious practices.

There is a movie at the visitors center called "Struggle to Survive". It is shown every hour - I think there is a fee.

We went to St. Augustine prior to a trip to WDW and -after visiting the Fort, the Spanish living history museum, etc.- it really changed my perspective on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Bad pirates!

We enjoyed Anastasia Island State Park and saw the lighthouse but didn't go inside because my youngest was too young.

BAck to WDW though - Character meals can be a lot of fun and breakfast seems to be the least expensive. Here is a link with great Character meal information: http://www.allearsnet.com/din/cb.htm Other meals we really enjoyed with the kids were:

MGM Studios: Sci-Fi Dine-In. You sit in cars and view previews for retro monster movies on a giant screen. You can see my short review w/ pictures on tripadvisor at: www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews...8-Sci_Fi_Dine_In_Theater-Orlando_Florida.html

Epcot: San Angel Inn - Mexico pavillion. It is like a mexican village.

Magic Kingdom: - Our whole family loves the Dole Whips at Aloha Isle in Adventure Land. It is pineapple soft-serve, about $2.79 each, I think.

Near Magic Kingdom - you can take a monorail or boat over to the Polynesian resort and eat at Ohana. The meal is served family style and is very tasty and filling. There is a lady who leads the kids in the hula, hula hoop contests, or coconut races periodically. We've gone twice and loved it both times.

Another favorite is "Boma" at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. It is an African influence buffet that is lovely. The lodge has its own animals and there is a storyteller by the firepit in the evening - around 7, I think but you'll want to check. This could be a good option to get the Animal Kingdom feel if you do not get over to the Animal Kingdom park.

A great value for dessert for your crew is to go to Beaches and Cream at the Beach Club resort and get the Kitchen Sink to share - scoops of vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, coffee and mint chocolate chip, smothered in every topping they have for $21.99. That's about $3 per person for your crew and what a weird, fun memory.

Ghirardelli's Soda Fountain at Downtown Disney has something similar: The Earthquake - 8 scoops of premium ice cream with 8 different toppings. Finished off with sliced bananas, whipped cream, chopped almonds and cherries $19.95

About two weeks prior to your trip, you can go to www.ghirardelli.com/about/specials_chocomail.aspx and sign up for their "chocomail". Check the box indicating that you live within 50 miles of a soda shop and you'll receive a printable coupon of some kind. I once received a "Buy One Get one Sundae free" coupon. In September, I received a coupon good for 10% off any purchase which would take $2 off the price of the Earthquake.

 

[Schmeck]

Have you definitely decided to not park hop? If you don't want to park hop, don't waste the $$$ on 3 day hoppers.

3 days at WDW without hopping with kids of that age - MK, and which other two parks? If they like animals/dinosaurs, then AK. If they like Star Wars and the Little Mermaid and Indiana Jones, then MGM (plus, the HISTK playground is amazing when you see it for the first time as a kid) EPCOT has lots of fountains and Figment and the kidcot stations, but with 5 kids, I'd avoid the kidcot stations when it's crowded. You could end up spending hours at the crafts, and not get anything else done. Let the kids do crafts at home...

I'd try to stay for 1-2 more days!

 

[Camplover MI]

We are going to get the park hopper. I would like to stay for a whole week, but DH and I need to go somewhere were we can relax before heading back on the road to MI. We are pulling a Travel Trailer and so it is going to take us 3 days to drive down and back. DH and I need to have some time to relax before making the trip back, plus the kids have not been to the ocean. I know we leave saying we would have liked more time, but I think by talking to others that is a common thought even if they were there a week.
Lynn

 

[bord1niowa]

With only 3 days to see as much as apossible, I think it may be better to not go back to the campsite as the travel to and from would take a good chunk of your day, especially since you could be sitting down watching a parade during that time too. We also found the unoffical guide to be right on the money about the best park to visit ons pecific days of the week too, we didn't follow it at first and ran into crowds, then checked the book and followed it more closely for the park choice and it made a HUGE difference in the waiting times, which were minimal then. This was in June also. I see many people not caring as much for AK, but our 15 yr old daughter liked that park the best, so I think it will depend on what your children's likes and dislikes are.