Is it still possible to do a last minute day trip?

[fractal]

Looks like we may be spending a week in Clearwater, Fl in August. I'm thinking of waking up early one day and driving the 2hours to WDW. Morning to night in Magic Kingdom - but I have a few concerns;

Will I have any shots of getting Fast Passes to the big rides (7 Dwarves and the Mountains) if I buy the tickets within a week of going?

Having stayed on site on all our trips, I'm worried about an entire day in the August heat without a resort to go back to midday. Perhaps we can plan to do a monorail loop and visit those resorts during the day? How hard is it to spend an entire hot and humid day in a park?

Any input would be appreciated!

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Will I have any shots of getting Fast Passes to the big rides (7 Dwarves and the Mountains) if I buy the tickets within a week of going?

This may disappoint, but you've no chance of a 7 Dwarves FP, and only a slim chance of getting one for the mountains. August is extremely busy and by now most of the FP will be snapped up

How hard is it to spend an entire hot and humid day in a park?

Pick your rides carefully and aim for any with air con between midday and 3pm. Select a restaurant for table serve lunch which will keep you out of the heat for an hour or so. Keep hydrated.
During our last August trip we hit the parks for a full day. We stayed on site and didn't return to the resort or have any issues

 

[Mukta]

Which date in August? If it is late August, crowds will be low and you'll have a shot at FPP for BTMR and Space.

For the heat, I make a lunch ADR in a place with AC, visit HoP and CoP at the hottest part of the day. Lots of AC breaks whenever possible.

 

[flynnibus]

We do a day without breaks all the time... I'd just be stressed about return for value if you had to buy tickets. If you already have days or apps... I'd say go for it. Plenty of cold drink options in the parks . The hardest bit will be leaving and having that long drive ahead of you

 

[smk]

I would say that IF you are a seasoned vet of MK then go! If you need to ride a ride then prepare to stand in line the old fashioned way. As others have said there are plenty of places to get out of the heat mid day, resorts on the water, the monorail, CoP, Hall of Presidents, the TTA...etc...Can't make an ADR? Go to FW and have a buffet lunch/dinner, it is also a place with plenty of shade I would go crazy if I was so close and let the lack of Fp availability alone deter me from going.

 

[fractal]

Yes, I'll be so close and it will drive me crazy. Looking at mid August - week of the 10th.

Kinda stinks; although I like the concept of FP+, in this situation the old FP system would have made this a no brainer.

 

[JasonDeyoung]

I live in Tampa and I go pretty frequent. Most the time with enough notice to book solid FP+ other times very last minute and was still able to book the more popular attractions. It's hit and miss. Get your ticket and just keep checking availability. As for getting out of the heat, any resort is good along the loop. Go grab a lunch, get some AC. Go wander around the monorail resorts for a bit. Could take a break and ride the monorail to Epcot and back as well. There a lot of things you could do for an afternoon break/rest. The big thing about going in the summer is to really hydrate.

 

[fractal]

I live in Tampa and I go pretty frequent. Most the time with enough notice to book solid FP+ other times very last minute and was still able to book the more popular attractions. It's hot and miss. Get your ticket and just keep checking availability. As for getting out of the heat, any resort is good along the loop. Go grab a lunch, get some AC. Go wander around the monorail resorts for a bit. Could take a break and ride the monorail to Epcot and back as well. There a lot of things you could do for an afternoon break/rest. The big thing about going in the summer is to really hydrate.

Thanks for the info! How early would I have to leave to make rope drop?

 

[JasonDeyoung]

Thanks for the info! How early would I have to leave to make rope drop?

Coming from Clearwater? I'd leave around 2-230 hours before park opening. The drive to Orlando isn't bad, it's the traffic once you get to Disney that can get bad. Then parking etc

 

[JasonDeyoung]

Thanks for the info! How early would I have to leave to make rope drop?

I make it in around an 70 mins pending traffic so in all you are looking at around 90 mins from
Clearwater to Disney

 

[fractal]

Thanks @JasonDeyoung !

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I wouldn't rule it out. A coworker of mine just went during 4th of July week. I warned her to book FPs in advance, but it sounds like that didn't happen. I think they booked some same day, but also timed things with the waits posted on the MDE app. I know they rode SDMT several times without FPs and said the wait wasn't bad. When we were there back in Nov, we rode standby in the evening and the posted 45 min wait was more like 20-25 min.

 

[DarthVader]

Will I have any shots of getting Fast Passes to the big rides (7 Dwarves and the Mountains) if I buy the tickets within a week of going?

I think 7D ride is probably going to be a long shot with FP+, but I think overall you can still have an enjoyable time as long as you realize the conditions for which you are there. Relax, don't worry about the crowds/heat and enjoy what you can enjoy when you're there

 

[Tuvalu]

@fractal, is your entire family of 5 going? If so, fastpasses for the mountains at decent times *may* be hard to get a week out for all of you. However, my party of 3 was able to snag popular fastpasses (and modify existing ones) the day before and day of during our vacations Easter week (insanely crowded) and mid-June (summer crowds). People cancel their pre-booked fastpasses all the time, and though I don't have concrete proof, I imagine Disney "holds" a certain amount of slots for same day selection. My son and DIL were able to get 7DMT while on the bus over to MK, so even hard-to-get fastpasses are sometimes available (especially for a small party).

You may find it easier to split up and search for fastpass times that overlap...for example, booking a FP for 2 at Space Mountain at 3 pm, another for 2 at 3:10 pm and party of 1 at 3:15 pm....then all 5 show up at 3:15 to ride together. You may have to get creative, but it can be done .

Personally I would like to see you make the trip, so that I can read another Fractal TR with fab photos and commentary!

 

[DaisyDoesDisney]

My son is taking a trip with his wife's family next week. His in-laws are completely incapable of planning anything in advance so the entire trip was planned just 10 days before departure. My son took it upon himself to do all of the FP selections. He was able to get everything he wanted but he did have to split up the group (6 people total) for 7DMT in the manner explained by @Tuvalu above.

As for negotiating the heat- just be sure to take advantage of air conditioned attractions whenever possible and definitely schedule a table service meal for mid afternoon. Consider taking the monorail to one of the resorts for your meal. You can refresh yourselves by spending some time in the air conditioned lobby and visiting the shops in addition to eating lunch. Also, you'll have a pristine rest room to wash up in.

 

[Kate Alan]

Another way to beat the heat is keep a mini fan or fan/spray bottle combo on you. I bring one every time I do a summer trip and it's a lifesaver. Just be sure to get one with the plastic "blades" and not foam, as those don't work nearly as well.

 

[bee]

For the heat, do a Monorail resort break as you said.

Re: FPs. We were able to get 7DMT, BTM, and SM two days of our last trip about two weeks in advance, and we even got 7D on a different day the day-of around 6:00pm. It was just the two of us though so depending on the size of your party you might have to play around with overlapping windows instead of the same window.