aaronsloan1971
New Member
Luckily I nor my oldest have any issues with that. We spin pretty hard in the teacups
. It didn't spin nearly as much as we make the teacups spin. We walked off and he declared it his "favorite ride of all time"
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do you have a strategic plan for the parks or do you just wing it?
- Thread starter buckeyegator
- Start date
Luckily I nor my oldest have any issues with that. We spin pretty hard in the teacups
. It didn't spin nearly as much as we make the teacups spin. We walked off and he declared it his "favorite ride of all time"
Minthorne
Well-Known Member
Sounds like the critique by most of my dates...
It would have been amazing if it were in DHS.
Creathir
Well-Known Member
That would have almost certainly sealed the fate of the Hollywood Tower of Terror though…
I think it's the screens on GoTG that people have trouble with? Not spinning like teacups.
I am also nervous so we will be taking Bonine each night this trip. Worked for us on a very rocky cruise. Everyone was sick, but we felt great!
UKDisney Dave
Well-Known Member
I have a strategic plan for everyday of my vacation, mapped out, colour coded and crafted with reservations, crowd level considerations, and even the weather allowed for. That plan lasts until the moment my alarm goes off in the morning. Then I hit snooze and the plan goes right out the window to be followed by a lot of “wing it” style vacationing.
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
I don't see where "wing it" is even possible anymore unless you don't really care what and how many attractions you get to witness. Disney has ended the concept of a relaxing fun time exploring the parks. You are at the mercy of the money gods without which, you just manage to stand and walk a lot. And all of that for a little over $100.00 bucks per person per day.
Transportation, food and lodging!
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
I agree. The only people I read about (in blogs and trip reports) enjoying a relaxing and spontaneous time at WDW any more are guests who visit so often, and have been so many times, that they have no problem spending an entire day doing 3 attractions, eating a few snacks, and strolling and shopping.
I don't knock that approach a bit, but if you're an infrequent visitor, or a parent trying to satisfy a to-do list for multiple people, and the goal is to experience most or all of the attractions in a park without spending half your day in long lines, you've got to have a strategic plan, as well as encyclopedic knowledge of crowd flow, rope drop priorities, show schedules, Genie+ availability, virtual queuing procedures and timelines, etc. so you can make smart decisions on the fly when you have to inevitably have to depart from that plan.
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Raidermatt
Active Member
Yup. Definitely an advantage for frequent visitors. I do the planning for our group which ranges from 8 to 12 depending on the trip, and its a pain. I don't mind the advance planning so much, I can do that on my time and have everything setup before we ever leave. Its the way this new system leaves things to the day of that is annoying. I would much rather have everything setup before we leave so I can focus on the vacation while I am on vacation.
To answer the original question, we prefer a high level plan, with the option to change on the fly occasionally. So pre-FP+ that meant having the park and dinner reservation pre-planned. Then with FP+, it included scheduling the 3 FP's, which was ok because it meant there was nothing to worry about day-of until those 3 FP's were used. Now I can't pre-plan the FP's, but instead have to be up and on my phone at 7am, and then every two hours after that.
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
Some combination. IMO, "plan" and "strategy" are two different concepts. I try to keep my planning level to a minimum, but always employ strategy. theme park strategy always has some basics, but it is also always evolving.
1. Try to zig when the crowd zags.
2. Time= $, and $ very often = time. WDW time is expensive, so it is generally wise to make good use of your time. The concept goes both ways. Sometimes it makes sense to use a faster mode of transportation even though it costs a little more. In other cases, $ saving ideas take too much time.
Waiting in line isn't just about how much Ilike/don't like waiting, but what am I getting/losing if I spend 45minutes in line?
I LOVE that Universal = much more freedom.
1. Try to zig when the crowd zags.
2. Time= $, and $ very often = time. WDW time is expensive, so it is generally wise to make good use of your time. The concept goes both ways. Sometimes it makes sense to use a faster mode of transportation even though it costs a little more. In other cases, $ saving ideas take too much time.
Waiting in line isn't just about how much Ilike/don't like waiting, but what am I getting/losing if I spend 45minutes in line?
I LOVE that Universal = much more freedom.
The Colonel
Well-Known Member
I approach the parks like a jazz musician: I have the basic structure of the piece planned out, but within that framework, I leave room for improvisation. When it works, it's in the pocket baby, when it doesn't, it's out to lunch man.
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
Again I say I distinguish between plan and strategy, and I don't know we are far off...but we do try to wing it as much as possible.
We have been enough times that we are willing to gamble a little; we're not crushed if we miss 1 attraction. These days, it is pretty common for an attraction to be down.
But being spontaneous, in my view of park touring, doesn't = stopping after 3 rides, except for some Epcot days. Back when the Flower Festival was exciting, for example, we sometimes spent much of the day trying to see all the floral/festival displays. We usually spent 2 days in Epcot, where 1 was more focused on rides and the second was less focused on rides.
That said, we generally don't plan to watch the parade for example, but we often happen upon it when we are walking between attractions. On our most recent visit, we stopped to hear Voices of Liberty perform, because we just happened to be walking by when they were performing, that is one of the things we enjoy about WDW, or at least have enjoyed. There is/was always something new to see. At any given moment, there are multiple things to do/see. Each visit is a bit unique. If we happen upon something unusual/unique, we try to spontaneously enjoy it. To me, it is some of the unexpected aspects of WDW that make it worth visiting at all. The highlight of some trips is seeing young child's smile.
I also agree, most visits, something doesn't go as planned, and knowing strategic options is often the best approach.
Mostly what I'm trying to say is that I might say we don't plan, but that doesn't mean our net result is all that different from yours. We usually end up covering a long list of attractions, and our days are very full of activity.