Pre-Trip Mickey's Not-So-Skinny Halloween Party & Fitness Expo

A Cross-Country "Road Trip"

After weeks of debating whether or not to go to WDW or Las Vegas this September...I decided to do both! Because...why not?

Doing so will allow me to see Pandora - The World of Avatar, Disney Springs and MNSSHP at WDW, AND attend the Mr. Olympia Expo in Las Vegas and see whatever else I want to on The Strip while I'm there. I'll be staying two nights at each, at All-Star Movies for the first time in WDW, and The Stratosphere in Vegas in one of the recently renovated "select rooms". I used a room-only discount for the first and points for the second. How much of the third day I spend at either location will be determined by the time of my flight. At this point I'm leaning towards WDW, because I don't want to have to get up early to get to MCO after staying up for the Halloween party.

Animal Kingdom will be interesting for me because it'll be almost 10 years to the date that I last visited that park. Will Avatar and other additions raise my opinion of the park? I think so, though it looks like I might miss RoL if they don't add a show on the first night I'm there. If that's the case, I'll just go on the other rides more often. It's a similar situation for Disney Springs and I'm already looking into where I might go for lunch. Blaze? Homecoming? Jock Lindseys? There's a lot to chose from.

But there's still more to consider! What costume will I wear for the party? Where should I eat my meals? Should I request a certain room at ASM (I'm paying for "preferred")? What's the best way to use the time I have? I haven't been to WDW in 3 years, so there's more things new to me than last time.

Whatever happens, It'll make for an exciting (and likely tiring) 5 days.

 

[littleroo]

Sounds like a great adventure! I can't wait to hear about your 2 in 1 trip!

 

[DryerLintFan]

I read the title and thought you were literally going on a road trip and thought you were absolutely insane to drive that far only to stay two days, LOL! This trip sounds fun!!

 

[Animaniac93-98]

thought you were absolutely insane

Well, you're not entierly wrong about that.

But, no, I'll be flying across the USA that day.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Finally have my flights organized. I'll be spending more time at WDW on Day 3, and simply checking into my Vegas hotel that night. Maybe doing a workout since it has a 24-hour gym, if I'm not too tired.

I had a hard time picking ADRs and sticking too them, but I'm pretty sure I have them all now. Most will be new to me, so that'll be fun.

Despite, what I said before, I won't be doing either AK or DS this trip. My concern with Avatar is the long queues and the fact that you can only get one advance FP+ for either ride. I'd prefer not to spend all that money on a one-day ticket, and then have my time eaten up by waiting in line, or stuck with technical issues (as all new rides tend to deal with in their first 6 months). I'm planning on saving it for next year instead, when I know I plan my itinerary around it, and not Halloween parties and other US cities. To compensate, I did book a breakfast at Boma so that I can spend time at AKL looking at the animals there. I haven't been since they expanded the hotel's footprint with the DVC section.

There's so much to do at WDW, that trying to cram much of it in 3 days can be overwhelming, and there's probably 100 different ways to do it. In deciding what to do, I had to take a step back and ask myself WHY I chose WDW, and why September in particular. Then I remembered this thread title, and realized "Halloween" and set the focus on that in particular. I'm getting a one-day hopper so that I can try Minnie's Halloween Dine and ToT at DHS, along with the new Mission: Space, Frozen Ever After and other favourites at Epcot. I Thought briefly about just doing DHS for the day, but wasn't sure I could justify $100 to do so. A hopper obviously costs more, but it would give me two parks to visit.

I'd also like to thank everyone who has answered questions I've had about this trip. I find this site to be the best when it comes to getting accurate, quick responses to Trip Planning questions, no matter how obscure.