Intinerary for our first trip!

[Belle507]

Hi Everyone - What a great site! I am planning our first family trip to Disney and I am so excited. I will be traveling with my husband, 7 year old and 2 year old. We are going for 5 days in May (staying at POR). Our goal is to have some fun and not try to conquer all of Disney My plan is to get my husband hooked and plan another visit soon, haha. Here is our itinerary so far. I would love input on dining recommendations or other activities we might enjoy!

Day 1 - Arrive at hotel by 12:30p or so. We'll explore the resort, have some pool time and head to DTD for dinner. Haven't chosen a restaurant yet

Day 2 - Magic Kingdom I got a breakfast reservation at Crystal Palace at 8:25. Was hoping for the 8:05 time, but missed out! Lunch will be quick service in the park. We will had back to the resort of a nap and back over to MK for the evening. Not sure about dinner.

Day 3 - Resort Day - Playing at the pool and not sure what else! Any suggestions? I am not opposed to a park on this day, but want to sneak in some relaxing time. I was considering the Hoop Dee Doo Review for dinner. Any thoughts? I looked at the youtube video and I am not sure about it, lol. I would also love to visit Animal Kingdom Lodge, but logistically it might be hard.

Day 4 - Hollywood Studios - That's all I have planned so far. I would like to have a nice dinner before our vacation ends. My son would love to go to TRex, but not so sure if I would, haha!

Day 5 - Early flight home

Thanks guys!

 

[counselorgc]

Your 2 year old may enjoy Animal Kingdom more than Hollywood Studios. DHS has some for younger kids but, honestly not much. Disney Junior and other shows are really the only things that a 2 year old would enjoy. HOWEVER, if you and your husband are thrill junkies, Hollywood Studios just may be your best bet. TRex is actually quite good and the dinosaurs are very fun. Your son would probably enjoy it. It gets really loud in the ice cave during the meteor showers so if loud noises bother the 2 year old, stay away from the ice cave.

 

[disneysince71]

Have fun... If you have park hoppers I would consider checking out Epcot and AK even if it is for a meal or a couple of hours... They are both amazing!!

 

[coachwnh]

Welcome to the site!! If you want, you can try AK on your second day, or Head back to MK for a second day. There is so much to do, and one day (or even one trip) isnt enough. read up on what you and your family would like to do. just keep in mind, the earlier you get to the parks in the morning, the more you will get done. take it in as best you can, but remember, you are on vacation in WDW, not competing on the "Amazing Race."

 

[disneysince71]

Welcome to the site!! If you want, you can try AK on your second day, or Head back to MK for a second day. There is so much to do, and one day (or even one trip) isnt enough. read up on what you and your family would like to do. just keep in mind, the earlier you get to the parks in the morning, the more you will get done. take it in as best you can, but remember, you are on vacation in WDW, not competing on the "Amazing Race."

ALTHOUGH COACH.... you have to admit... Sometimes it feels like the "Amazing Race"... But that is part of the Magic

 

[coachwnh]

I

ALTHOUGH COACH.... you have to admit... Sometimes it feels like the "Amazing Race"... But that is part of the Magic

I definitely understand

 

[disneygirl76]

Hi Everyone - What a great site! I am planning our first family trip to Disney and I am so excited. I will be traveling with my husband, 7 year old and 2 year old. We are going for 5 days in May (staying at POR). Our goal is to have some fun and not try to conquer all of Disney My plan is to get my husband hooked and plan another visit soon, haha. Here is our itinerary so far. I would love input on dining recommendations or other activities we might enjoy!

Day 1 - Arrive at hotel by 12:30p or so. We'll explore the resort, have some pool time and head to DTD for dinner. Haven't chosen a restaurant yet

Day 2 - Magic Kingdom I got a breakfast reservation at Crystal Palace at 8:25. Was hoping for the 8:05 time, but missed out! Lunch will be quick service in the park. We will had back to the resort of a nap and back over to MK for the evening. Not sure about dinner.

Day 3 - Resort Day - Playing at the pool and not sure what else! Any suggestions? I am not opposed to a park on this day, but want to sneak in some relaxing time. I was considering the Hoop Dee Doo Review for dinner. Any thoughts? I looked at the youtube video and I am not sure about it, lol. I would also love to visit Animal Kingdom Lodge, but logistically it might be hard.

Day 4 - Hollywood Studios - That's all I have planned so far. I would like to have a nice dinner before our vacation ends. My son would love to go to TRex, but not so sure if I would, haha!

Day 5 - Early flight home

Thanks guys!

Hi there! Looks good! Day 3 would be a good day to see AK - a park where you can spend hours or days there but either way, just great to see. Then you can head to AK Lodge for lunch and then back to the resort for the evening (you would have to go back to AK and get your bus to POR).

DHS is hard for dining for us. We don't really like many of the table services although I know many are quite popular.

 

[PUSH]

I highly recommend fitting Epcot and Animal Kingdom in somewhere along the way. Trust me when I say that you'd have fun at both as long as you do a little research and planning. If you don't want to go to either of those you could go back to Magic Kingdom on your relaxation day. There's so much to do at the park that you couldn't possibly do it all in one day. And it's the most age-friendly park. There's something for everyone to do there! Not that the other parks don't have something for everyone, but I think most people would agree that Magic Kingdom has the most to do.

Also, T-Rex is a great restaurant, and one of my favorite on Disney World property.

No matter what you should have fun, as it seems like you've done your research! Some people don't plan anything and then they complain about how awful their trip was. But as long as you plan you'll have a great time, and you'll want to go back!

 

[Stellajack]

Hi Everyone - What a great site! I am planning our first family trip to Disney and I am so excited. I will be traveling with my husband, 7 year old and 2 year old. We are going for 5 days in May (staying at POR). Our goal is to have some fun and not try to conquer all of Disney My plan is to get my husband hooked and plan another visit soon, haha. Here is our itinerary so far. I would love input on dining recommendations or other activities we might enjoy!

Day 1 - Arrive at hotel by 12:30p or so. We'll explore the resort, have some pool time and head to DTD for dinner. Haven't chosen a restaurant yet

Day 2 - Magic Kingdom I got a breakfast reservation at Crystal Palace at 8:25. Was hoping for the 8:05 time, but missed out! Lunch will be quick service in the park. We will had back to the resort of a nap and back over to MK for the evening. Not sure about dinner.

Day 3 - Resort Day - Playing at the pool and not sure what else! Any suggestions? I am not opposed to a park on this day, but want to sneak in some relaxing time. I was considering the Hoop Dee Doo Review for dinner. Any thoughts? I looked at the youtube video and I am not sure about it, lol. I would also love to visit Animal Kingdom Lodge, but logistically it might be hard.

Day 4 - Hollywood Studios - That's all I have planned so far. I would like to have a nice dinner before our vacation ends. My son would love to go to TRex, but not so sure if I would, haha!

Day 5 - Early flight home

Thanks guys!

Wise of you to make arrival day an early night with a 2 yo. You will be glad you are well rested when you do MK on Day 2.

You're going to get a lot of opinions when you ask for them, but, personally with the 2 yo, I would consider Animal Kingdom the morning of Day 3. The children will love the safari, Chester & Hester (mid-way like attractions) and you can still be back for pool & nap time by early afternoon.

I love the Hoop Dee Doo and your 7 yo will probably be tickled at the corny humor and characters, just not sure your little one will appreciate this theatrical dinner offering for approx. 2 hours.

Still, your family will have a wonderful time in May.

 

[Belle507]

Thanks everyone for your input! Like Coach said, I am trying to avoid the "amazing race" experience, lol! As much as I want to see and do it all, I want to pace ourselves! I have heard mixed reviews about animal kingdom, but I am going to do a little more research. This is so fun!

 

[disneysince71]

Thanks everyone for your input! Like Coach said, I am trying to avoid the "amazing race" experience, lol! As much as I want to see and do it all, I want to pace ourselves! I have heard mixed reviews about animal kingdom, but I am going to do a little more research. This is so fun!

WHAT kind of tickets do you have?

 

[Ember]

We're going in May too! We have a 7 year old and a 3 year old and our plans our similar, but we are devoting a whole day to the AK. We spend a lot of time at zoos and aquariums and the kids really dig animals so AK is right up their alley. For us it's a nice change of pace because we can stroll around and check out animals and not have to stand in as many lines for rides. It's always relaxing and we've never had a bad experience there. Plus the Rainforest Cafe is there so if you are not into the TRex Cafe (which is really cool for kids, and adults, who love dinos), it is a great alternative for themed dining.

 

[Belle507]

WHAT kind of tickets do you have?

We haven't gotten tickets yet. I wanted to figure out a plan and then buy the tickets based on that!

 

[PUSH]

I wouldn't necessarily do a park hopper because as a first timer you might be overwhelmed with the whole hopping aspect and you might not want to waste time traveling to another park everyday. I do recommend getting 3 or 4 (preferably 4 if you can fit all 4 parks in) days, though.

 

[Belle507]

We're going in May too! We have a 7 year old and a 3 year old and our plans our similar, but we are devoting a whole day to the AK. We spend a lot of time at zoos and aquariums and the kids really dig animals so AK is right up their alley. For us it's a nice change of pace because we can stroll around and check out animals and not have to stand in as many lines for rides. It's always relaxing and we've never had a bad experience there. Plus the Rainforest Cafe is there so if you are not into the TRex Cafe (which is really cool for kids, and adults, who love dinos), it is a great alternative for themed dining.

After all the great input, I am leaning more toward including Animal Kingdom in our trip. I was worried cramming in three parks would be too much, but as you mention, in AK we can more leisurely stroll. Are you doing Hollywood Studios as well? As for TRex, I think it would be fun for all of us. I was teasing a bit in my post

 

[Ember]

After all the great input, I am leaning more toward including Animal Kingdom in our trip. I was worried cramming in three parks would be too much, but as you mention, in AK we can more leisurely stroll. Are you doing Hollywood Studios as well? As for TRex, I think it would be fun for all of us. I was teasing a bit in my post

Oops! Haha. TRex is a bit loud and not for everyone so I wasn't sure We are doing HS as well, but we are there for 6 days and are planning on going to HS for Star Wars Weekend so it will be more about characters and shows than the rides because there really isn't much to do there for our 3 year old. My husband and I do love the Rockin Rollercoaster and Tower of Terror though. Our tentative itinerary is MK on arrival day with plenty of resort and pool time in the middle of the day and also a dinner reservation at Sanaa (it's at the AK Lodge and the animals are right outside the windows as you eat). Then we'll hit up MK for a few rides and the fireworks. Day2 will be AK with reservations at Rainforest Cafe, Day 3 MK, Day 4 HS with reservations at Sci Fi, Day 5 MK or Epcot, and Day 6 MK to close out the vacation. Still have to make some more reservations for MK and I think we are going to do the pirate fireworks cruise too. There's just so much to do

 

[sam&mia]

After all the great input, I am leaning more toward including Animal Kingdom in our trip. I was worried cramming in three parks would be too much, but as you mention, in AK we can more leisurely stroll. Are you doing Hollywood Studios as well? As for TRex, I think it would be fun for all of us. I was teasing a bit in my post

1. TRex is awesome if you havent found a restaurant at downtown disney for your first night that place has my vote its a lot of fun!
2. If you are heading back to magic kingdom on night 2 what about be our guest for dinner?
3. If your children like animals AK is a great day out. havent been to the hoop-dee-doo but heard lots of brilliant things on here about it!
4. if you are at hollywood studios what about a fantasmic dinner package for your last night at hollywood brown derby or mama melrose? (from what i have read on here i do not suggest hollywood and vine)

have fun planning xx

 

[Mr. Tom Orrow]

Very great plan of attack, I was worried reading the title of this thread that you had a minute by minute break down of what to do when. I remember as a kid and even my last trip a couple weeks ago that the relaxing times spent by the pool or back at the resort were almost as enjoyable as the park time. Enjoy your trip!

 

[Mr. Tom Orrow]

Very great plan of attack, I was worried reading the title of this thread that you had a minute by minute break down of what to do when. I remember as a kid and even my last trip a couple weeks ago that the relaxing times spent by the pool or back at the resort were almost as enjoyable as the park time. Enjoy your trip!

 

[s&k'smom]

I loooooove resort days. We are spending an extra day on our next trip to do just that. If you don't want to spend the $ on HDD Trail's End at FW is a nice alternative.