How Do You Plan Out Your Disney Week?

[PacMan2006]

If you travel to Orlando every year, or every other year, or even every few months...how do you plan your Disney week?

Do you have any rituals? Do you ALWAYS go to a certain park on Monday, a certain park of Tuesday, etc? If so, which parks and why?

Do you always eat at a certain restaurant? Do you rent the same kind of rental car? Do you stay in the same kind of hotel?

Do you go with the same people?

When you hit the parks, do you always hit a specific ride first?

 

[MyNameisStitch]

Do you have any rituals? Do you ALWAYS go to a certain park on Monday, a certain park of Tuesday, etc? If so, which parks and why?

I always make want to hit the Magic Kingdom on the last day and stay for the Fireworks. Thats the best way to end a vacation at WDW in my opinion. And its that night that I make my Wish. I can't tell you what the wish is but I can tell you that I don't not wish to return to Disney. :animwink:

-DGJ

 

[crazy_for_wdw]

As we have a long flight in from the UK first day is always a case of find the villa, dump the suitcases and get down to the nearest Wal-Mart or Publix and stock up on essentials - Twinkies and inexpensive Bud!

Back to the villa where the kids play in the pool and we all just unwind and relax ready for the three week theme park frenzy!

First theme park day is always DAK, we find it more relaxing and slower than the other parks. It's not open as late either and gives us a chance to recover from the flight without overdoing it.

Then its off to the other parks based on historical "least busy day" type info. the kids get to choose which Disney park we do twice (usually MK).

We usually have a rough plan of what we want to do, but it generally gets improvised upon once we are in the park. We make sure we don't go rushing around trying to "do it all", we're on vacation after all.

We'll do a theme park one day and then have a day or two round the pool during the day and then off to DTD/I-Drive in the evening to eat, shop and generally mess around.

But the most important thing we plan for is having fun together.

 

[poohbear6103]

We always leave on an early flight
Then we check in and unpack.
We stay at the Poly so we go for a walk around the groundsto see if anything has changed, walk around the Great Ceremonial House.
Then we ride around once on the resort monorail just to look things over and come back to the Poly.
We always have lunch at the Grand Floridian Cafe and Jikos for dinner on our first night.
We always do MK on our first full day (which is usually a Sunday) and then Epcot on the second full day.
Our last dinner is always the California Grill finsihed up with a breakfast at 1900 Park Fare the morning of our flight back home.
Then a few tears are always shed on the pavement of the Poly parking lot

 

[NadieMasK2]

I am the official planner in our family. Like others here, I prepare an itenerary, and each family member has a copy. I make a point of avoiding parks on early entry days. We make PS for lunches and usually eat counter service for dinner. A lot of people have made fun of me for scheduling out our vacations so specifically, but it really makes it more enjoyable. You don't have that "what do you want to do for dinner? - I don't know, what do you want?..." and so on until you've wasted a bunch of time with indecision.
On the first day we go to DD, getting our first taste of magic without using a day on the passes. At MK we always head to Adventureland first. This year will be a little different because we are getting AP's for the first time, allowing us to just go to a park for dinner and fireworks, or whenever we feel like it, so it may not be quite as regimented. Can't Wait!! :sohappy:

 

[Aurora23]

Every night is spent at the Adventurers Club of course!!!

During the two weeks we are there we always to do (in no particluar order)

Le Cellier
Nine Dragons
Reflections Of Earth
Fantasmic
Have a slice of pizza from the Boardwalk window

A co-worker and I are planning a trip in early December. We have realized a lot of our planning was around the food establishments! We are traveling without either of our families, but have similar "family traditions".

1- we avoid the early opening park. we'll concentrate on the one that stays open late.
2- 50's Prime Time and the Whispering Canyon take presidence!
3- using the Fantasmic dinner package, so that we don't have to wait 2 hours.
4- visit the decorated resorts in the evening, wonderful holiday treat!

...and many more, but you'll think I'm a freak! Any way you look at it, WDW brings the BEST memories!

 

[disneybonbon]

My planning focuses on maximizing my Dole whip consumption.

 

[crazy_for_wdw]

Time to bite the bullet! I have seen it mentioned all over the place but (and please excuse my english ignorance) but what is Dole Whip?!

Sounds like something they would do to the guys in the jail at POTC.

 

[Debbie]

Our first nite is always at Downtown Disney and running to Wal-Mart to grab anything we don't have enough of or may have forgotten at home. Then it's enjoy the resort and get a good nite's sleep. Our first day has to be at Magic Kingdom, unless it's on a weekend. We always like to eat at Pecos Bills and the rest is just whatever comes along. I used to plan, plan, plan. Since my kids are older, and my husband is a very laid-back person; I've become more of a 'whatever comes our way' person.

 

[barnum42]

Time to bite the bullet! I have seen it mentioned all over the place but (and please excuse my english ignorance) but what is Dole Whip?!

Dole is a brand name not unlike Del Monte. The Dole Whip is essentially pineapple and vanilla flavoured soft ice cream:

http://images.mouseplanet.com/wdw/compressed/Magic_Kingdom/Adventureland/dole_whip.jpg

 

[Kadee]

It's been a couple of years since we have been, so our planning and rituals were based on which park opened early for the day. I made a calendar of early openings and made lunch PS for that park. With me being enormously ADD, we can never just visit one park a day. So we make PS for dinner at a different park based on the night time shows that we want to see. We always leave a day or two completely open for what ever we feel like doing.


On our first day there (usually Saturday, arriving around noon), we check into to whatever WDW hotel (We ALWAYS stay on property......it is SO worth it), have them hold our luggage and rush over to MK. I HAVE to see the Castle on the first day and we usually catch the parade at MK.

I do spend a large amount of time planning. But I LOVE planning things. The planning and anticipation is half the fun for me.

 

[LadyDarling]

I do spend a large amount of time planning. But I LOVE planning things. The planning and anticipation is half the fun for me.

Me too! Even though we often end up ignoring my touring plans by day 3, I don't mind it one bit! It builds anticipation for me AND gives us a sense of direction each day. Depending on weather, crowds, etc, we can alway toss them out the window.

 

[disneygirl03]

It depends, but we always go to the Magic Kingdom our first full day there.

 

[Disney_Belle]

The two times out of 11 that I have gone and have been the one that is the bigger Disney fan I made out like these itineraries that say whihc ride to do when and what park to do on what day and blah blah blah well, needless to say, it doesnt work. Now I am going in July by myself, I am making a list of the attractions I want to do, not HAVE to do, and I will just go to whatever park I feel like on whatever day. I still am making an itinerary but not crazy ones (I mean itineraries are half the fun of getting there!).

 

[donvincenzo]

We have an itinerary before we leave. We schedule which days we go to parks by first checking out which days are early entry days. We have gone to disney now for 12 years and this has worked for us. We go early and stay in park till about 2pm. We then take a break and go back to our disney resort, swim or take a nap. We then go back to the park a couple hours later. Make sure you get your hand stamped when you leave the park. We always get park hopper passes. If we do not get to an attraction on one day, we'll park hop another day and do or redo rides. We always try to take a day off in the middle of our week to do nothing but lay in sun and attend a dinner show. The Luau at the Polynesian resort is excellent!!! Avoid if you can Magic Kingdom on the weekends, that park is always the park that is packed with people and the weekends are worse. We also schedule our dinners according to which park we're at for the evening. We recommend all the dinner buffets. They are all excellent and for us we feel its extremely economical. Fabulous foods and its all included, from drinks to fabulous desserts all in one price. We love, Boma's at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, Cape May's at the Beach CLub resort, Chef Mickey at the Contemporary and Crystal Palace at Magic Kingdom, to name a few we hit every year. The last day we leave we check out of our resort, the resort will hold your luggage and we may hit the parks and redo some rides or we go down to Downtown Disney for some shopping before we leave. We schedule a character breakfast this day to say goodbye to mickey and minnie!!

 

[psifreek27]

Im currently in planning for our big july trip it will be eeither 3 or 4 huge disney fans going (2 of which have only gone once...and never been to MK at night!!! insanity i tell you), well anyway..we are going to be arriving on a sunday very early..like 8.am ish early...checking in to a value resort...and going to Blizzard Beach,then at nighttime go back to resort and shower and maybe go to grand floridian beach and watch wishes and have dinner, next day will begin the theme parks Animal Kingdom will be AM and Epcot will be PM (AK can be done is several hours, and im dealing with a first timer on illuminations), Day 3 will be MGM full day (Extra Magic Hour AM)...Day 4 will be Magic Kingdom (Extra Magic Hour PM) with Cinderella's Royal Table Character Breakfast (P.S will be done on April) Then on Day 5 will be a day at Downtown Disney till afternoon and then drive home... But anyway im the big disney park buff so i have itineries planned on what areas to do first and which places were gonna eat at. My girl wants to do Tony's in MK due to her obsession with Lady and the Tramp ( never been there so it should be fun)