We're First Timers: Critique our Itinerary.

[amylevan]

Even being first timers you think we could knock out AK and HS in a half day each?

My vote? No, at least for AK. But we love AK. And if you want to see the shows at HS, no.

 

[wdwrich]

Even being first timers you think we could knock out AK and HS in a half day each? And is it possible to upgrade just 2 days to park hopper and leave the other two as standard or do they force you to upgrade all of them?

The park hopping upgrade is all or nothing. You cannot upgrade just selected days on a ticket.

 

[ldymcbth]

We just got back, and we went to Whispering Canyon. There's no way I would leave my only MK day to go eat over there. The food was mediocre and the experience/ambiance was not good. We were expecting a fun and exciting, let's participate in all the shenanigans kind of meal and it was dull with lukewarm, cafeteria-esque food. We won't be back to WC.

 

[kayteekt]

My Father, my aunt, my uncle, and I are all going to WDW for our first time ever in late Feb/early March. I figured I'd have some Disney vets critique our itinerary. What better place than the Dis boards. Here is a little background info about us. We are going more for the shows and food rather than the rides (although we may ride a few things). We are not in to fancy dining aka sushi, seafood, not for us. We put sauce on our steaks . We like to have a beer or two with our meals. We don't eat a whole lot of dessert, but will probably try some since we're on vacation. We (well 3 of us) are also old and slow, so we will probably have to skip a lot of things. Hopefully you can point us in the right direction. Anywho, without further adieu, here is the schedule I've hammered out for us so far. Critique away!

Thanks,

For what it's worth...
Sunday Feb. 28 - Arrive at 8pm - Magical Express to POR - Explore resort the remainder of this night. Perhaps have a drink at the bar on Ole' Man Island. (or water taxi to DS if we get crazy)
River Roost instead of Ole' Man Island

Monday Feb. 29 - Animal Kingdom (AM Extra Magic Hours) - Return to POR that evening and take Water Taxi to Disney Springs (ADR at T-Rex Café at 8pm)
If AK has EMH, not sure I would suggest it...but in late Feb crowds prob won't be horrible. T-Rex, cancel it cancel cancel it, lol. We have children, went once that was more than enough. Food was awful, it's hard to mess up a burger and chicken nuggets but they were successful. Suggestions: ANYWHERE else, lol. Nah, I would really suggest Yak & Yeti (wonton dessert is the BEST!) in AK for convenience...or Sanaa, Boma, Jiko at AKL....if you're really wanting to head to DS there are lots of great restaurants!

Tuesday Mar. 1 - EPCOT (PM Extra Magic Hours) - ADR at Via Napoli 6:30pm
Ok, same theme...avoid parks with EMH, will be the most crowded. Via Napoli is fine but if you do decide on Dining Plan you can get better bang for your buck. PLUS if this is your only meal in Epcot, you could make a better choice than pizza. Not that it's bad.

Wednesday Mar. 2 - Magic Kingdom (PM Extra Magic Hours) - ADR at Whispering Canyon 5:00pm (have been told to leave for this at least one our early)
Avoid park with EMH...WHISP CANYON-For your crowd I don't know that I'd make this my first choice. Why not try a restaurant on the monorail for easy access from MK. Grand Floridian Cafe or The Wave may be more your speed on the cheaper side. If you want to splurge or 2 DC, Cal Grill, Citricos, Narcossees. You could also do a breakfast at Kona, good food good prices. IF you're going to do the park with evening EMH make sure you utilize! Go back to park after dinner, stay as late as possible lines will get shorter.

Thursday Mar. 3 - Universal Studios (both parks) - someone recommended we take a towncar to Universal as it would be roughly the same price as a cab and much more comfortable. Any other recommendations?

Friday Mar. 4 - Hollywood Studios (PM Extra Magic Hours) - ADR at 50's Primetime Café at 6:05pm (almost thinking I should move this up as I hear we probably won't need a full day for this park). Then back down to Disney Springs one last time to close out the trip.
We love HS, if your group wants to watch the shows you may want to plan all day. 50's primetime is a great choice!

Saturday Mar. 5 - Depart 8:30am

Other thoughts: Someone has prob already said but just in case, I would check the crowd calendars at easywdw.com to plan your days

We have always gone with the Deluxe Dining Plan. We have always used and gotten our money's worth. I'm normally a big advocate. But with the current ADRs you have I really don't know if I'd suggest the reg. dining plan. If you do go with it, and IMO the restaurants are half the experience, I would def book some different ADRs. Maybe choose at least 1 signature meal, esp being a group of adults You can find menus with pricing on this site to help you choose.

With the dynamics of your group I would look into some ADRs at resorts, you would probably enjoy some resort hopping. The resorts are so beautiful and so unique.

You may want to look into hoppers it's not a must, with young children we don't find we have to have them...but with a group of adults it's nice to be able to go as you please. Especially if you're wanting to do those EMH parks. You could go to a less busy park in the am...resort break - dinner...then hop to park with PM EMH.

Lastly, I noticed a lot of references to DS. Unless there's something in particular you're after I think one trip to DS would suffice. But that's just me...you could always go at beginning and then if you want to go back later you can, but I wouldn't want to miss out on park (or even resort) time for DS.

Just my 2 cents You really can't do Disney wrong, hope you enjoy your first trip!!!

 

[Paigesmom2013]

Hi. Well be there the same week also. For what it's worth, you are going to parks on their non-recommended days, according to Josh at www.easywdw.com. The Extra magic hours really only make sense if you'll be there right when they start. Josh says EMH days draw extra crowds so he usually doesn't recommend them. But hopefully crowds will be low this week.

 

[MinnieSweetheart]

I vote for not leaving MK. Have you looked at Skipper Canteen? It should be open by then and is expected to be similar to whispering canyon with all the antics. We also really enjoy the plaza for the delicious sandwhiches.

Definitely consider hoppers, because you won't have a whole lot of time in MK.

If you like shows, then AK and DHS are probably close to full day parks.

Choose your fast pass times strategically.

 

[GaryDis]

I'm in the pro-Whispering Canyon, or at least pro-leave the MK group.

If you're not that interested in rides, then the MK simply isn't the intense, time-consuming park the way it is for families with little kids. There may be a couple of shows, the Main Street entertainment could be good for an hour, and there are the parades, fireworks, and Celebrate the Magic. So leaving the park isn't a big deal, and "doing everything" has been stated up front as a non-goal. With the possible exception of BoG (where I haven't eaten yet), none of the MK table service restaurants are anything to write home about - at least as far as food is concerned. If Whispering Canyon feels too far, you might try one of the Monorail resorts.

One option that I don't think has been mentioned is the Hoop-Dee-Doo review. You have to like corny humor, and want the limited menu (ribs and fried chicken), but if you like those, and silly puns don't ruin your appetite, then it's a must-do.

Another thing to consider, particularly since you mentioned Vegas, is Cirque de Soleil. Each of their show locations has a different theme and story line, so it's not like you'll be seeing the same exact show that you've already seen elsewhere. Some, but by no means all of the acrobatics will be similar.

Regardless, other than the Food and Wine Festival, I have a hard time imagining someone going for the food thinking that WDW is worthwhile. It's enjoyable, and I've had some very good meals there, but I wouldn't consider it the right vacation destination if that were my goal. I'd pick NYC, Vegas, San Francisco, or maybe LA. Or maybe Kansas City or Austin, TX if I were a meat and potatoes guy (but I'm not).

 

[GaryDis]

One more point: OP said they like beer with their meals. At the MK, AFAIK, that's limited to BoG, which is a hard to get reservation.

 

[EricInPA]

With only one MK day, I would try to eat in the park or on the monorail loop. Other than that, I think any other choice would just be a preference thing regarding restaurant choice etc. Enjoy your trip!

 

[kyle3423]

man....now I'm torn. The reason I picked Whispering Canyon on our MK day is because we are, as someone stated earlier, a meat and potatoes type of group. Whispering Canyon just seemed like our type of food. I had Ohana booked at first, but other than the meat, the appetizers and sides didn't really excite the other members of the group. We're also not looking to drop $100 on a steak dinner. Is there anything on the Monorail loop that would have that type of fare? For our AK day, I already showed them the Yak and Yeti and it is definitely not our type of food. As for T-Rex, I don't know why, but they really want to eat there....either there or Rainforest (we live in central KS so there are no Rainforest Cafes for a few hours). I suggested Planet Hollywood as an alternative but it appears that it will be closed (for remodel?) while we are there. I'm sure we will debate on the dining plan clear up to the day we leave. I don't think we're going to do Parkhopper. It is a little alarming that you're telling me to avoid the EMH days. I thought that was one of the perks to staying onsite. I can see why the crowds would be larger though. If I change our park days, I'll have to totally rebook all of our ADR's, hopefully there are still times left. We'll have to seriously think about this. I'm loving all of your suggestions. I get home at night and open this thread and do research based on your suggestions. So thanks for all your help.

 

[EricInPA]

I know Ohana gets a panned around the Dis often, but it's one of our favorites. The salad, wings and dumplings are great. The Bread Pudding for dessert is amazing. The tradeoff is that it takes much longer than a typical TS dinner.

 

[Crystal824]

I think you have a decent plan. I would probably not go to DS the night you are in HS. I would instead stay and watch Fantasmic. It is a great show. I also think one visit to DS is probably enough.

I would also not get the DP. With the restaurants you have selected, I think you will fare better without it. Also, you don't currently have enough restaurants selected for all of the credits you would receive. For the regular DP, you get one credit for TS and one credit for QS per night. If you are considering changing your plans and adding more dining, you can googled Disney Dining Plan calculator. You can put in the restaurants, and it will tell you if you will save money with the dining plan.

 

[amylevan]

For the record, my husband is a meat and potatoes guy and loves Whispering Canyon. But he also loves Ohana. I would never get him in Yak and Yeti.

In my family's opinion, EMH's are a marketing perk only. They can market them as a great reason to stay onsite, but in reality they don't live up to their hype. They are more crowded, not everything is open, and are only worthwhile if you can take advantage of the entire time.

 

[wdwrich]

...In my family's opinion, EMH's are a marketing perk only. They can market them as a great reason to stay onsite, but in reality they don't live up to their hype. They are more crowded, not everything is open, and are only worthwhile if you can take advantage of the entire time.

I have to (partially) disagree. While your assessment may be valid for PM EMH, the morning EMH times are generally well worth it.

 

[andiraye]

I agree with the PP who said to skip Whispering Canyon on your MK day. No need to shoehorn that in. There is plenty to see, do and eat at MK and the monorail resorts.

Are you planning on actually using the EMH? Parks are generally most crowded on EMH days so unless you are planning on actually using the EMH it is less convenient to visit a park on an EMH day.

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

Thanks for the comments. I think we're going to stick with Whispering Canyon as it is our type of food. Also, strangely, two members of our party told me to book T-Rex or Rainforest Café. I was dumbfounded by this too. But they're young at heart I guess. and I think it was Walt that said, "Adults are only kids grown up, anyway."

My DW and I have been on three adults only trips to WDW, and we enjoy the chaotic young at heart restaurants as much as the quiet ones. (I especially like the restaurants where everyone is encouraged to wave their napkins in the air!) As long as you're aware of the atmosphere of Whispering and T-Rex, go forth and have a great time!

 

[kyle3423]

My DW and I have been on three adults only trips to WDW, and we enjoy the chaotic young at heart restaurants as much as the quiet ones. (I especially like the restaurants where everyone is encouraged to wave their napkins in the air!) As long as you're aware of the atmosphere of Whispering and T-Rex, go forth and have a great time!

This.

We have a member of our group who will absolutely love the interactive meals like the ketchup thing at Whispering Canyon.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I don't think you can see everything you'll want to see at both parks of Universal in one day.

 

[ldymcbth]

This.

We have a member of our group who will absolutely love the interactive meals like the ketchup thing at Whispering Canyon.

Just know that depending on your server/time of day(?) it may not be that interactive. I was really looking forward to that part - the yelling, the ketchup, the straws, etc., and aside from yelling with us halfheartedly for ketchup, our server did nothing else fun. And we made it clear we were up for shenanigans! We stayed at WL so I was able to see the restaurant throughout the day and sometimes it was very quiet and sometimes it was very rowdy. I guess it just depends on your luck when you go.

 

[pooch]

I also think you might like Hoop-Dee-Do revue. We love that corny show and the food is great down home fried chicken & all the fixins. Oh and did I mention all you can drink beer/wine/sangria???