What are some must do's @ WDW?

[rsschneck]

Believe it or not our first trip home is in a matter of days!

Not only is it our first trip home, but really our first trip to WDW. We went to MK about 12 years ago. We have NEVER seen Epcot, MGM, or AK. I know we have many years to vacation @ WDW, but I would love to hear some of your favorite things to see or do.

Are there places or things that you make a point of doing every trip? We are not park comandos, but I want to get a good feel for what we have bought into and where we will be traveling often from now on. So, your must do's can be park related, resort related, water parks, shopping, eating, whatever makes you the most happy while vacationing @ WDW.

Thanks for any tips. I will enjoy reading what everyone likes to do while @ WDW.

 

[wdwaholic]

Oh how I envy you-wish I were there now!! .Some things we did this past trip were:
Cirque du Soleil's La Nouba-not to be missed!-Try to get ressies to this show if your finances and free time allow.
See Illuminations Fireworks @Epcot-we did Illuminations cruise but not sure if ressies still avail.
Chef Mickeys Character Buffet-great interaction with characters
Festival of the Lion King @AK
Most importantly, take your time and allow some down time!
HTH,
Trish

 

[VMS]

We always have a Dole Whip at the MK when we are there!

 

[DeeP]

Try to see all the parks' night shows. All 3: SpectroMagic and Fantasy in the Sky fireworks at MK, Fantasmic at MGM and Illuminations at Epcot are breathtaking and Disney magic to it's best. Illuminations and Fantasmic are shown nightly, unfortunately the MK fireworks are shown on a very abbreviated schedule and SpectroMagic is even worse. But if they are being shown while you are there make every effort to get there. If there are 2 showings of SpectroMagic in the same night the second parade is always much less crowded. Also Main Street is the most magical spot to watch this parade from but it is also the most packed, if you walk back to the other lands it is always much less crowded. If you want a good curbside seat/spot on Main Street you have to often stake out your spot at least an hour in advance.

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

What's not to be missed at WDW? Everything...I still haven't seen everything that's available to me IN the parks never mind outside it. For me a must have is the Mickey Ears (Vanilla premium ice cream pops with a luscious chocolate covering).

If I were you I'd figure out what was new at Magic Kingdom...and then do that on a catch as catch can basis. EPCOT is a two day affair. MGM is all day if you've never seen it as is Animal Kingdom if you catch almost everything. Magic Kingdom is also a two day affair. So six days to see it all if you'll give it six to eight hours a day (easy to do...just go in the morning, quit after lunch, come back at night for a nice dinner in the park).

And that said...DON'T try to see it all. Pick some things to savor and some to see next time. Replace a park day with a trip to Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach...replace an evening with DTD. Being a bit of thrill ride junkie I'd probably do all the rides this time and start catching the shows next time...but you miss some of what is most special about Disney doing it that way.

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

Must do rides...

Yo ho ho its the pirate's life for me.
Universe of Energy
Honey I shrunk the Audience
Norway
Aerosmith
Tower of Terror
It's a small world
A Bugs Life
Lion King Show
Kilimanjaro Safari
Primeval Whirl
Spaceship Earth
Jungle Cruise
Big Thunder Mountain

And others...must do outside the big parks are pleasure island and either blizzard beach or typhoon lagoon. Take a visit to Wilderness Lodge (ride the boats).

On my todo list was the Richard Petty driving experience...don't think that will ever happen...and a spa experience.

Cirque du Soleil...to be honest I'd have to say see either one in Vegas.

 

[eeyore0062]

Wow, my list of Must Do's would fill a page!

MK: Pirates of the Caribbean, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (if it has reopened by the time you get there), Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, Mickey's Philharmagic, Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, Make a Wish Come True Parade, Spectromagic, Fireworks.

Epcot: Mission: Space, Test Track, Universe of Energy, Spaceship Earth, Journey To Your Imagination with Figment, Listen to the Land, Maelstrom, strolling through the World Showcase, Voices of Liberty, Illuminations.

Disney/MGM: Tower of Terror, Rock n'Rollercoaster, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Play It, Backlot Tour, Star Tours, Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular, The Great Movie Ride, The Animation Tour (if it has reopened by the time you go), Beauty and The Beast, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Fantasmic, Stars and Motor Cars Parade.

Animal Kingdom: Kilomanjaro Safari, Dinosaur, Kali River Rapids (if it isn't too cold when you go, cause you WILL get soaked!), Festival of the Lion King, It's Tough to Be a Bug, Maharajah Jungle Trek, Tarzan Rocks, and the Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade.

 

[xlstacey]

Wonderful to hear of other Oregonians out there enjoying DVC! We just purchased at SSR and have been to WDW by trading our timeshare into the Orlando area.

I agree with the first post ... making sure you make the shows at night when you can. Go slow and take in what you can Even the down times can be a ton of fun. I know we enjoy our 2 weeks and schedule a lot of down time to do whatever.

Please write a trip report when you return. Would love to hear the details as we are going to be doing a cruise in 2005.

Quack .. GO DUCKS!

 

[lc1965]

I would recommend some stranger things, like...
*riding in the front car of the Monorail
*taking the ferry to the TTC
*looking for my favorite Hidden Mickeys
*having a chocolate-covererd Mickey-iconed Oreo at the Main St. Bakery

Stuff like that! Have fun!

 

[CK1]

You didn't mention kids, so assuming we're talkin' adults here...

It's your first trip home to OKW (according to your timer), so you gotta soak up some OKW ambiance... eat at Olivia's, ride the boat to DTD, do something OldKeyWesty!

As for the parks -- if you're an all-adults party, you can get away with just a sampling of MK. Just pick a few must-do attractions (ones that are new and grab your interest; a few from the past you just absolutely loved). AK closes early, so once the parade is over, you could hitch a ride on a bus to, say, Beach Club, grab a bite at Beaches, or Cape May, or the BW area, then walk into Epcot in time for a beaver tail or funnel cake or French wine or whatever your idea of a treat is and enjoy Illuminations! Use another full day to then explore all of Epcot from top to bottom. MGM is a somewhat smaller park and you can see a great deal of it in one day (esp. if you don't have kids... you can probably skip Playhouse Disney, for example, and definitely skip Honey I shrunk the Kids Playground...) Best parts of MGM that we always show the newbies in our group: Backlot Tour, RNR, TOT, WWTBAM, Ariel, Muppet 3D, Drew Carey, Indiana Jones, and Fantasmic. Dining is an experience in WDW -- do Sci Fi or Prime Time for their special effects! At Epcot, well, I pretty much love it all, but if I had to pick the faves, it would be all of Kodak, the shows at Wonders of Life (Making of me, Body Wars), Exxon's show (with Bill Nye and Ellen); Test Track; and while it's to me no biggie, gotta do Spaceship Earth at least once, and you'll have to decide if you can handle Mission Space for yourselves (I couldn't); in the Worlds Showcase, do the Norway and Mexico boat rides, see the American Exp. show, do the 360 movies (if you can stomach them -- my dh can't!), see the Living Statues in Italy, and DEFINITELY see at least one street show in UK! (Actually -- when my sister and I go, we try to see them all! We love these!) And eat, eat, eat, and be merry -- you're in Epcot! As for AK -- we enjoy Kali, the safari, the birds show; It's a bugs Life; and dh loved Dinosaur.

Above all else -- remember -- it's your first time home, BUT NOT YOUR LAST! So take time to relax and enjoy!