Major Dilema.....

[disneydudette]

well heres the story

we get to WDW 8/24.....which is a saturday.....

2 of us have annual passes.....the other a 5-day PH pass

that SAT is the only night Spectromagic is palying the week were there..........

should we "waste" one of the days on the 5-day ticket???

Is spectromagic worth it.....it's prop the only time we'll get to see it.....at least for the next few years......and none of us have seen it before......

we get to WDW before noon.....so i guess we can make a day at the MK out of it.....but still it would be our "travel day" I don't kno how much energy we will have......

any feed back would be great!:wave: :kiss:

 

[disneydudette]

i]Originally posted by Erika [/i]
I don't know about the rest of you, but my life is pretty much RUN by Murphy's Law. If I planned on "wasting" (DD's word) half a day on a ticket to see Spectromagic, chances are good that my plane would be late, my suitcase would be the last one out on the conveyor belt, traffic would be bad, check-in lines would be horrendous, etc, etc. LOL I guess that's my luck![/B]

LOL!! That would be our luck too...usually our "airport time" goes by quick...but like you said u never kno....

And I don't know how young the "kids" are (you may have said so but I missed it, sorry) but they may need a nap before going anywhere after such an early start. [/B]

There 16 and 14....I don't think they want a nap:lol: if nething they'll sleep on the plane.....but I agree with I would rather relax!

 

[Erika]

Originally posted by disneydudette



There 16 and 14....I don't think they want a nap:lol: if nething they'll sleep on the plane.....but I agree with I would rather relax!

:lol: Well, I guess they are past napping age! :lol:

I wouldn't worry too much then. It's easier to pack a day full with teengers than with probably any other age!

 

[djmatthews]

Heres the answer. What you need to do is go to www.spectromagic.com and download the video of the parade. If you REALLY REALLY like it, then waste a day or even go to MK and buy a day pass (not recommended if on a budget, and dont want to spend too much), if you aren't that bothered about seeing it, then thats ok, but at least you will have seen what its like. Btw, the website is absolutly fantastic, its has full videos of Spectromagic, Share A Dream, and Festival Of The Lion King.

 

[wannabeBelle]

well If you are thinking of it as "wasting" a day on a park, I wouldnt bother going. I Agree with my fellow posters and I think you would be in MK slightly later than noon. Probably not much later but maybe a hour or so later. I like Spectromagic, but I also agree check out all the videos of it on here. As with anything at Disney, the videos/pics can only capture so much, but I have some awesome memories of Spectromagic. Good luck on your decision!!

 

[JLW11Hi]

I had that same dilema a few years back when the new Main Street Electrical Parade was going. They always have it on Saturday night, the night that we get there. Mabey that's a way of getting people to buy an extra day's ticket just for the parade? I never did get to the parade, but I went back this year with a full week Ultimate Hopper Pass thing, so we went to MK the night we got there just to see the parade. I was glad we went, and no one was "cranky" or anything. So if you think you might be going back in a few years, then go a head and skip it. When you go back, you will have that much more reason to see it again.

 

[Maria]

Ok.. I have changed my mind! LOL I didn´t know you were flying there... I thought you were going to be driving!

If you have a 5 day hopper, that still gives you one day per park... then... check the times for AK or the Studios or even Epcot, and go there that first day.... I would avoid MK on Saturday because no matter what you want to get on, it will be packed!! Then, about one hour before the parade starts, switch parks and go to MK for it and finish the day there. You will still have four days to dedicate full days to each park, but you might have started one park already so when there is time to go there, you will have more time to spend fooling around or checking other attractions.

Or do Future World that first day and when you are done with it, then go to MK for the parade. On the day you are going to Epcot, since WSC opens until 11am, you have time to go to a water park or somewhere else in the morning and then go at noon to Epcot to see WSC. Now you have me thinking of all the possiblities!! LOL

Just send everyone to bed at 7pm the night before you leave for Orlando! :lol: :animwink:

 

[cymbaldiva]

Well allrighty then! Guess I've just always been too restless to hang about in one spot for an hour to wait to see a parade (except for MSEP, and that was only once :lol: )!!!

Disneydudette, whatever you decide to do I hope you have an amazing and totally magical time!

 

[Maria]

Originally posted by cymbaldiva
Well allrighty then! Guess I've just always been too restless to hang about in one spot for an hour to wait to see a parade (except for MSEP, and that was only once :lol: )!!!

Nah... you are not the only one.... we refuse it too! We just come when the parade is about to begin and try to get some view, but we don´t die if we don´t have front row... specially if the parade is at 3:00pm! For those, I don´t really care too much! I rather be on a ride! :animwink:

 

[cymbaldiva]

Originally posted by Maria


Nah... you are not the only one.... we refuse it too! We just come when the parade is about to begin and try to get some view, but we don´t die if we don´t have front row... specially if the parade is at 3:00pm! For those, I don´t really care too much! I rather be on a ride! :animwink:

:sohappy: :sohappy: That is my parade plan EXACTLY!!!

 

[Disneynutcase]

Ah-ha! This explains why some of you gripe about getting bad parade viewing positions! Bad strategy, you WDW enthusiasts!

So again I recommend that you kill two birds with one stone. Dedicate a bit of time (45-60 minutes prior to parade time) to get your parade spot and then have a few people in your party trade off holding the spot while doing other things--gathering food (dinner or dessert), shopping, using the bathrooms. It's not a waste of time if you find a way to make the wait useful.

And now that I know the ages of the kids in your party and the time you'll be leaving, definately do it. B.T.W.--I will bet you $$ that MK will be extending its hours past 9:00pm that evening. It's what's been going on all year at MK. If they don't extend hours, that means they are expecting light crowds, which is equally good for you.

I also partially agree with Maria's strategy. You might want to spend the majority of pre-parade time at another park. Epcot is notoriously uncrowded--except for Test Track. You could go there from noon til about 90 minutes prior to parade time (and probably walk on most everything other than TT), then you can monorail over to MK. Entry to MK will put you into my recommended primo viewing area. And the overall end result is that you might even be able to fit in a few MK rides before park closes.

Yeah, definately go--especially if you guys really want to see the parade.

The only proviso you need to have is the recommended self-enforced one--if you get airline delays or for some reason arrive to Orlando late, then scrap the plan. In other words, don't use your ticket if the ONLY thing you know you'll get is just a few hours in a park. Then it's totally not worth it--better to save the extra "pass" day for a more fuller day.

 

[Maria]

Originally posted by Disneynutcase

The only proviso you need to have is the recommended self-enforced one--if you get airline delays or for some reason arrive to Orlando late, then scrap the plan. In other words, don't use your ticket if the ONLY thing you know you'll get is just a few hours in a park. Then it's totally not worth it--better to save the extra "pass" day for a more fuller day.

Ditto! :animwink:

 

[mousecar]

I really love the music from Spectromagic. If you plan on videotaping for yourself - wait the extra hour if you can to get a good spot. I waited for one hour to see the MSEP and during the parade Dumbo's ear hit a bulb off the float and it landed right in front of us! Got a great souvenir and great footage on video. Also met some real nice people waiting next to us. Disney parades are fantastic and worth the wait!

 

[TiggerDaddy]

Why don't you wait and see how you feel when you get there. If you get pumped to go... go. If not...don't go. It's hard to predict this far out. If it were me, I would end up going just because I thought about it for so long. It's definately not worth going for if you are not going to be at the park/parks for at least 1/2 day.

 

[cymbaldiva]

I'm hearing everything ya'll are saying, and the strategy is good if your have more than a few in your group, but on the rarities that I get to visit, it's just DH and myself - we don't have much of a party to split up! It being just the two if us, we prefer to hang out together!

 

[Cookees]

We're arriving on Aug. 30th (very late after driving 21 hours) and plan on seeing SM on the 31st. However, we don't feel like dealing with the Saturday MK crowds, so we're opting to do EPCOT during the day and hop over around dinner time to eat at none other than CRT (first time). We also hope to catch some rides at MK after dinner or after the parade before they close. Additionally, we're going to catch the attractions we missed at EPCOT or MK on a different split day.

We have been to MK many, many times and have never seen SM or any other "Electrical Parade." We really aren't very big parade people, we mostly prefer to ride the attractions during the parades. Although this year I refuse to miss it, since so many people have told me that it's a "must-do, not-to-miss" thing.

Good luck with your choice and have a great WDW vacation!!!