What do you do on your arrival day?

[Elliesmommy]

I have always had an early flight to WDW. Often I am checked in by 12:30 so I go to MK until about 7pm or so. Then I go back to the room and crash.

I take WDW very casually and usually get to a the parks at 11am so 12:30 is not much of a late start in my book.

 

[mollygirl13]

We stay at the EPCOT Resorts so we usually get settled in our room, get some lunch and then head to World Showcase.

After that, we leisurely walk to Jellyrolls!

 

[SweetMissy]

Last time we got in around lunch time and just went to downtown Disney and hung out by the pool all night. This time we'll get there around lunch time and we plan on hitting downtown Disney and going to Illuminations that night. We'll be driving from NY, so we don't want to do much that day we finally get there.

 

[H.E. Pennypacker]

We always try to take the same flight there and back, so we usually arrive right around noon. Once we get the rental car, our first stop is always CiCi's pizza. We stay offsite either at Windsor Hills, or at a timeshare, so the next stop is either Target or Walmart for supplies for the week. By then it's time to check in. Once we're settled, in it's usually off to a park or resort for a late dinner. Liberty Tree Tavern at MK if it's open late that night, else Coral Reef at Epcot.

 

[Mrs. P. Charming]

I am arriving at noon and then my first night is the MVMCP!

 

[jmkjr72]

we have a set arrival day its written in stone
we arrive if room is ready we go to the room and put the carryons away if not leave them and pull the suits out and go to the pool till the room is ready
then about 400 we head dtd and see what the wait is at rainforest cafe
after dinner we head to the pin store dtd and then over the the big store where stich spits at you and all pick out a new hat for the trip

 

[kmsimone]

Check in, Unpack, Relax, Unwind
Usually poolside for a few hours and then one of the parks (Epcot for dinner)

 

[PoohsFan1]

We used to never go to a park on our arrival day, instead we would walk around our own resort, go resort hopping, and then go to DTD. However in September we decided to go to MK on arrival day (we were staying at CR so it was easy to get to) and spent a couple of hours riding some rides and just taking in the fact that we were actually in Disney before heading back to get ready for our dinner at CG. Now when we go in May we are staying at BCV so our plan is to walk over to Epcot to enjoy our dinner at Teppan Edo and to watch Illuminations.

 

[Tltorrez]

In Jan we're arriving at 10:30 so we couldnt resist going to a park in the afternoon. We spent 2 days at MK in Oct so we decided to reprise MK for half a day -- our faves, a couple rides that were closed before plus parades and fireworks. A nice nap in the afternoon and a few hours reminding us of our last trip and it will be the perfect intro to an 8 day vacation.

 

[arcticdisneylovers]

On our upcoming trip we are flying in at 10:45am. We are arriving on Jan 1st so we are NOT going to the park since its a 10 on the crowd level. We are staying at CR and have a Kona ADR at 2:35pm. We plan to just hang around CR and explore GF and Poly to check out the Christmas decorations. We'll be up at 4am or earlier for our flight so we will be in bed as soon as we watch Wishes from our balcony. If we are hungry before bed we'll order room service

 

[Quin]

If we are checked in and in our room by mid-afternoon I really like to spend the remainder of the first day at Epcot. FW is not too crowded by late afternoon. Lots of good CS dinner choices around WS if the weather is good for eating outdoors; otherwise Sunshine Seasons has an awesome food court. I don't want to tempt fate by making an ADR for the first night, though. That's like begging for a massive flight delay.

We end the first evening with Illuminations at 9 and then back to the resort and to bed. We can be in bed by 11 pm, get 8 hours of sleep, then a quick breakfast in the room and onto the bus for a 9 am rope drop for the first full day, preferrably at MK!

 

[Sassagoula Billy]

Lately, tradition is early afternoon arrival. Drinks at AKL, dinner at Jiko, and shopping/Ghiradelli at DTD.

 

[atksn]

We usually get in late morning/early afternoon- head to resort, unpack a bit, if weather permits (always go in Feb) let the munchkins swim a bit, rest, and then hit DTD for dinner/shopping.

 

[KCSherri]

So if we arrive early enough and with enough energy, after check-in and a bite to eat, we head over to World Showcase and stroll.

Ditto! That is EXACTLY what we do!

 

[DisneyFan365]

We go every year for Thanksgiving and we drive. We leave on Saturday and get to North Carolina and then leave Sunday morning and then usually get to the Grand Floridian about 4:00 on Sunday. We check in get settled then go to Gaspirilla's for dinner. Then we take the monorail over to the Magic Kingdom and it's usually EMH on Sunday so will stay there until about 2 in the morning. Yeah I'm looking forward to doing this again on Sunday. Haha

 

[nooneshome]

We usually arrive around 5 or 6 in the afternoon after an 11 hour drive so we unpack and rest for a few minutes and then head off to DTD for a quick meal at the Earl. then we just do a little shopping and head back to POP.

 

[Pixie Princess]

I lost my abbreviations link. I'm usually able to figure them all out by now, but HDDR? These things strain my brain.

Out of curiosity, what do you check out at a resort? Do they each have their own activities? Decorations? Parties?Bars?

HDDR= Hoop Dee Doo Revue. It is a dinner show over at Ft. Wilderness. It is fantastic! Cheesy as all get out, but the food is great, and I die laughing each time. And after 8 hours of driving the fact wine is included with the meal doesn't hurt either!

My DD loves hanging out at the beach at Ft. Wilderness and playing tetherball. We also like to go over to the stables and check out the horses there.

Each of the monorail resorts is very different. The resort I like to go to is the Grand Floridian. I love just sitting in the lobby and taking it all in. They have a jazz band that plays in the lobby, so we'll just sit and listen to them. We also like to go and hang out on the beach there. DD also likes the Contemporary. We'll take the boat from Ft. Wilderness over there and just walk through and visit the shops. Then go take the monorail around to the other resorts. Honestly, the monorail is a big part of the fun. We almost always will take the bus to MK from our resort, so this is our monorail time.

The resorts may activites going on, but we really just walk around and take in the ambience and relax. If you want to make a night of it you can hang out on one of the beaches and watch the Electrical Water Pageant go by. But that does make for a rather late night.

 

[*sarah*]

We usually check out the hotel, like the pool and anything else neat. Head to DTD. And then just rest up for the next morning at the park.

 

[carrie6466]

When we arrive in the evening, we usually just check into the hotel, check out the resort, have something to eat and make an early night of it.

If we have an early flight, we go to MK while we wait for the room to be ready.

This is an afternoon flight. Different for us! Actually, we are going to go to DHS on our arrival day to see the Osborne lights. It's EMH night and our flight gets in at 3. We have a 7:30 ADR at Hollywood and Vine, we'll walk around a bit after dinner and then head back to the hotel.

We have an ADR for breakfast the next morning, but not until 10:15, so we can sleep in a bit

 

[momtotaryn]

Unfortunately for us, we'll be traveling a very long ways to get to Orlando from Hawaii. We're taking a red eye flight to a West Coast city on a Sunday night, then we will be on the go all day with another stop over, before flying again and arriving in Orlando at 11:14pm Monday night! I'm thinking even with some sleep, we may be pretty tired on Tuesday morning. Still, I'm hoping we can be up and at one of the parks first thing in the morning. I think I can, but not so sure about the rest of my family.