What to do on check in day and check out day?

[Chelmarie53]

Check out day is usually just preparing to go home for us, but for our first day/night there, we usually go to Downtown Disney to hangout/eat. Depending on what resort we were staying at, sometimes we would also go to a different resort to have dinner.

 

[dkbnyc]

we arriving around 11am (i think) and staying at POR. my kids are 2 and 5.

If we can get into our room early, i would like to take a nap first- if thats possible- everyone may be too excited.

I also plan on having a quick lunch/snack at our resort, then take a walk around POR or maybe go to DTD if we feel like it. We could take a swim depending on weather (dec)but i dont want to make the kids any more tired than they already will be.
I will be making early ADRs for dinner that night and going to MVMCP at 4pm. I did not buy a regular park ticket for that day

 

[mchelle77]

That's good to know about the Poly ...

The day we get there I think is going to be a pool day. Maybe go to DD for an ice cream or something. But we're driving in from New England, so the trip might be a bit more rough on us than one would expect! (Especially with a 4yo!)

The day we leave, we're going to pack up, check out, and then go to a character breakfast (Cape May Cafe). I like that they'll hold your bags even if you're not check in yet/anymore. Gives us some time to do other stuff we didn't have time for while there for the week.

 

[kkrisland]

We don't want to waste a park day but watching the fireworks sounds like a great idea.
Can you see the fire works from the contempory (spelling)resort and where?

I'm going to try and get a later dinner reservation at chef mickey's and hope to see the fireworks from the resort after dinner than back to riverside to sleep.
Thanks for the suggestion.

We loved going to the California Grill (top of Contemporary) in the evening! We were also able to watch Wishes from their deck outside the restaurant. It was fabulous! It doesn't matter what time you eat that evening, you can come back for the fireworks. Great view!

 

[Aunt Stepody]

We don't arrive until 5:30 pm, so our plan is to go to the Polynesian and grab dinner and then watch Wishes from the beach. We honeymooned at the Poly and think it will be special to share with the kids on their first visit (we're actually staying at POR).

We watched the waterparade and WISHES from the beach at the Poly in March this year. It was a FANTASTIC evening. The boys played in the sand while we enjoyed the free show.

We also spent a night playing at the Boardwalk. There are lots of activities with the street perfomers/magicians, which the kids really loved. We also road the surree (spelling?) bike around the Boardwalk. It was so fun. We giggled the entire time we were paddling.

 

[Disney Crazy Debbie]

You usually arrive a little before noon. We go to our room and then check out our resort. On the first day we plan on DTD and dinner at HDDR, that way we haven't entered the park and save the "surprise" for first thing in the morning when things are just winding up.

I do want to thank everyone for all the great suggestions, though. I am planning on taking my grandniece to her first visit next summer and since she loves animals I love the ideas of the petting zoo and the Chip 'n Dale campfire for the first night.

 

[SleepingRebecca]

I would actually change from Chef Mickey's to O'hana or Narcosse for the first night to see the fireworks I just think it is more romantic to see fireworks from the beach. I am glad that you added the extra day and although I tend to go everyday to the parks I would suggest that you go to the parks the first day and go to Chef Mickey's the last morning and wave goodbye to Cinderella's Castle.

I would avoid MK on Saturday before the party (if you attend) since on party days the park seems to elevate in crowd levels.

 

[flipflopmom]

You've gotten a lot of options. We hadn't planned on going into a park at all on check in day. We had an ADR at Chef Mickey's, and the girls could not WAIT to get in to see the castle, so we went. We didn't go any farther than Main St, and we let them get their ears in the Chapeau. They got to look at the castle, had fun trying on their ears, etc. Just be prepared that if they can see it, you might have a fight on your hands to go to it!

For check out day, I would try for the latest breakfast ADR you can get. We ended at Chef Mickey's, too. I think our ADR was around 11am? It gave us time to pack up, get over there, and say goodbye to Mickey! We waved goodbye to the castle (and cried).

So for dinner, Ohana is great at the Poly, then you can see Wishes from there. But we wanted our kids to see the Mouse ASAP. You can take the monorail to the Poly if you want to watch Wishes from the beach after dinner.

Check out morning, breakfast w/ Mickey, Goofy, Lilo, and Stitch at Ohana might be a good option for you if you've done Chef Mickey's for dinner on check in day, so they can say goodbye to Mickey!