What to do on arrival day?

[Disney8704]

DH and I will be getting into MCO at 10:10am and we will be taking a limo to the AKL from the airport. So Im figuring at most we should be at AKL by 11:30am. Then hopefully our room will already be ready. We do have a savannah room booked so I figured once we get there, provided our room is ready we can go to the Mara, get some lunch and take it back to the room and eat on the balcony. But after lunch, then what? We cant go to any of the parks because we need to save our passes for the rest of the trip. We are going for 12 nights / 13 days. Our arrival day we cant go to a park, the day we leave we wont be going to any parks and theres 1 day we will spend the whole day in DTD. So that gives us 10 days for parks which is what our tickets will go to. We have an ADR for Boma at 5pm. So Im figuring we will need to kill about 4 hrs. Any suggestions? We will probably just hang around the resort so we can make it to our ADR on time. After dinner, im hoping we can do the story telling and then after that not sure. So any suggestions you all have, would be great!

 

[mrsannb]

How about a little swim?

 

[stellablue]

I would go resort hopping & also visit the Boardwalk.

Or you could relax by the AKL pool.

If you don't have plans at night, you might consider watching Wishes & the Electric Water Parade from one of the MK resorts.

 

[Disneyof3]

We usually shop the first day and relax and take in WDW and then we eat somewhere special. This year the kids think we will be eating in DTD at Planet Hollywood but I instead book CM and I can't wait to see there faces when we get onto the monorail and head there. If you do take a dinner in you can choose from a variety of them at the resorts and won't have to use your passes that day. Enjoy and have fun

 

[frdeb1999]

We usually do the pools and just relax. Then head out for a very relaxing meal at either one of the resorts or DTD.

 

[liftn]

First of all congrats on your trip. 13 nights, that's great. I would not plan too much. A delayed flight, delayed limo, and a room delay, would put you on schedule. I would suggest plan that your room not being ready that early, if it is thats a bonus, and you are going to have kill hours around the hotel. Light lunch, walk to the savanna views, if you have never been to AKL, look around the Lobby.

 

[Micca]

DTD is fun and you could kill several hours there shopping, maybe getting something to drink. Another option is the monorail tour where you board the monorail and ride to the CR, Poly, and GF and get off at each resort to look around. Some people even have a cocktail at each hotel

 

[CoolPool]

Cocktails. So simple.

 

[robhawk]

I would hang by the pool but don't eat too much. Save all of your appetite for Boma. The best buffet I have ever been to. At night maybe just chill and enjoy the beautiful lodge. That way you will be ready to go your first full day.

Rob

 

[robinc71]

Cocktails. So simple.

 

[SuzieN]

I wouldn't count on your room being ready. We weren't able to get into our room at POFQ until almost 5 earlier this month.

 

[cdrn1]

I would advise a VERY light lunch if you have Boma ADR's at 5. The food there is incredible and you will want to be good and hungry! The lounge, Victoria Falls, has a lovely cheese plate that may be enough to fill you up without making you overly full. The lounge is lovely, and has some yummy drinks.
Take time to explore the details of the lodge; it has tons of beautiful and unusual artwork. Of course, you will want to look around outside as well, and watch the animals a bit. It shouldn't be at all difficult to pass several hours at the Lodge.

 

[kirbsam]

the thing is that 4 hours isnt much when you consider travel time to wherever you want to go. best to stick around the resort, i think.

 

[Disney8704]

Drinking is out. I dont drink and DH only drinks beer and only 1 type of beer. And I highly doubt he wants to drink a beer in the middle of the afternoon, not to mention I dont know if they have the kind he likes. He usually drinks at night. That is if he even wants to drink. He doesnt drink very often, only when we have a big party at home.

 

[n2mm]

I wouldn't count on your room being ready. We weren't able to get into our room at POFQ until almost 5 earlier this month.

I agree on this one. WE stayed at the AKL recently (late January and early February -- before and after the cruise) and we had to wait for our room both times. We could not get into our room until after 4:00PM one stay and after 3:00PM the second stay. So the OP needs a plan B. One, make sure you keep your swimsuits with you if you are using DME.

 

[PatsGirl]

For the $$ you spend to stay at AKL I think you should use this time to explore the resort and enjoy the amenities there. I keep telling the kids we can stay deluxe when and if they only want to do 1/2 days in the park. We are usually up and out by 8:30 and not back until at least then at night, so a value is right for us -- if it has two beds and a bathroom, we're good Really take a look at what AKL offers and get the most out of the resort that you can because a bed is a bed is a bed (well, not really, but YKWIM ).

We did just stay at PBH at Universal which had a pretty hefty pricetag but with FOTL you only need 1/2 day in the parks and can enjoy the resort amenities.

 

[RMulieri]

Swim, walk around your resort, resort hop, take a ride on monorail

 

[serendipity]

Will you have a rental car? If so you could always go to International Drive in Orlando. It's loaded with lots of touristy things to do- Ripley's is fun. Alternatively you could take a drive down to the beach.

If you want to stay on-site you could go for a round of mini golf at one of the two courses, go for tea at the Grand Floridian, go to Downtown Disney to explore the shops, rent a boat at one of the lagoon resorts, etc. You'll have a great first day just being immersed into the World!

 

[Hopefully]

If you are taking a limo from MCO to the AKL you will be claiming your luggage yourself. I just returned yesterday from a conference in Orlando. It took 1 hour and 20 minutes for my bag to arrive on the belt. Waiting for your luggage plus the drive to the AKL, I think planning on 11:30 arrival may be optimistic.
I also would not plan on your room being ready. It is very unlikely that it will be. If it is, that is a bonus, not what you should expect.
So you definitely need a Plan B.
First of all, pack anything you will want for the day in a carry on. Then when you check in you can have Bell Services store your luggage until your room is ready and you will only have a small bag to deal with.
Who is in your party? Do you have children with you?
I would plan on a light lunch IN Mara and then time to explore the Lodge and perhaps some time at the pool.
Have a Great Trip.

 

[DznyDreamz]

We stayed AKL on our last trip and arrived at MCO at the same time you plan to. We also had a car service take us to AKL and were hopeful our room would be ready. No such luck!! We left our bags with bell services, had lunch at Mara and explored the resort. There were lots of different activities for kids during the day such as arts and crafts and other fun things. We had our swim stuff packed in a carry on but opted not to b/c we were not sure if we would have someplace to get cleaned up if our room took longer then planned and we had an early ADR at O'hana. We ended up getting our room around 3:00.

I would suggest planning to go with the flow. Your bags may take longer then planned, your room may take longer then planned and that would instantly obliterate any formal plans you have made. The resort is incredible and *if* you end up with 4 extra hours on your hand, you are in an amazing place with tons to see and do.

Enjoy every moment!! That resort is definately somewhere that lots of time can be killed without being bored!!