New to WDW

[Mom of 3]

Hi! We are planning a trip to WDW for my daughter's 7th birthday. We have never been. We have hopper passes for the 4 parks. We have AAA parking pass. Our boys are preteen. One loves anything scary. The other is into science, learning, anything 3D. We will be at WDW on June 16-20. We have lunch planned for June 18, 3:00 at Epcot where they do the princess pictures and autographs. Has anyone done this? Advise or tips? We were disappointed that the breakfast with Cinderella at MK was all booked. We will probably spend most or all of the 18th (my dd bday) at Epcot. Having never been to disney, any advise, tips, help planning would be appreciated. My daughter definitely wants to see princesses. We are on a very limited budget. Thinking about pirate adventure maybe..
Thanks in advance

 

[Mom of 3]

Thanks! They did mention the photopass in the dvd, but they didn't say we could preorder it. I'll check the website. My kids definitely want to do Toy Story Mania, so that will be our first stop at HS.

 

[luv]

This June (like in a week) or next June?

If you're going this month, skip the reading and plunk down the $12 for touringplans.com. Make yourself some custom plans and follow them!!

 

[popcenturylover]

Hi! We are planning a trip to WDW for my daughter's 7th birthday. We have never been. We have hopper passes for the 4 parks. We have AAA parking pass. Our boys are preteen. One loves anything scary. The other is into science, learning, anything 3D. We will be at WDW on June 16-20. We have lunch planned for June 18, 3:00 at Epcot where they do the princess pictures and autographs. Has anyone done this? Advise or tips? We were disappointed that the breakfast with Cinderella at MK was all booked. We will probably spend most or all of the 18th (my dd bday) at Epcot. Having never been to disney, any advise, tips, help planning would be appreciated. My daughter definitely wants to see princesses. We are on a very limited budget. Thinking about pirate adventure maybe..
Thanks in advance

We ate at Akershus on our last trip in September & my DD4 loved it so much we booked it again for our trip this Dec. Anyway, if it's Princess' you want it's Princess' you'll get! You will get a picture with Belle before they seat you for your meal. The Princess' we visited with were Ariel, Snow, Aurora, & Cindy. There also is a Princess parade in which the "real" Princess' lead your Princess around the restaurant in a Princess parade. My DD had so much fun! It was also one of the best meals we ate all week! (Breakfast by the way)

 

[SAV]

Since you mentioned the one loves science, make sure you visit Innoventions East and West when you are at EPCOT. It is really cool for someone who likes that side of things. Don't forget that there are boat rides in Mexico and Norway. Movies in China, Canada and America. The Acrobats in China are fun to watch. Another thing you need to do at EPCOT is to use the FastPass system if you want to ride Soarin' or Test Track 2.0. Or you'll be spending hours in lines and with your limited time, it will take time away from doing something else.

We typically get there at opening, I head directly to Soarin'(With all of the passes) to grab FastPasses for Soarin. By the time I grab them and get out of the pavilion, the rest of the family is waiting by The Seas with Nemo and Friends. We jump on that since it is usually little or no line. Do that and try to get in for Turtle Talk with Crush. By the time that's all over, it is time to use our FP for Soarin'. If not, we continue to explore the Seas pavilion. When you get done with Soarin'(or if the FP time allows you to), make your way across Future World and grab a FP for Test Track. While waiting for that time, you can go on something else...maybe Mission: Space! Don't be too freaked out by the walking, it's only a couple minute trek across Future World. Then after doing TT, then you can either do Soarin' or TT again if you want to or head over to Figment or back to the Land to do the Living with the Land attraction. But that way you get the 2 or 3 big rides done and don't have to "worry" about them or wait in a long line. That also gives you time to go back and explore the pavilion's more if there is something you missed earlier.

Don't spend all of your time in Future World and short cut your time in World Showcase. There is so much to see there as well.

 

[DisneyDebNJ]

The pLanning DVD may also be useful but I have to agree with the Unoffical Guide and I recommend the complete guide, there is also a companion guide with pictures that may be useful as well.

Excellent advice. As other posters have suggested, research what you would like to experience. Youtube could be extremely helpful as well. You can look for videos on resorts, parks, attractions and even restaurants. Of course, signing on to WDWMAGIC will help tremendously! You can draw off of other's experiences We're here to help Welcome to the boards!!

 

[Mom of 3]

Thank you! We are so excited about our trip! My daughter, Jasmine, is counting down the days. The princess parade at Akershus sounds like a lot of fun for her. I hope they do it during lunch also!
My son is looking forward to the Hall of Presidents, the Magic of Disney Animation, and Innoventions. I didn't realize there are two Innoventions.
We are also looking forward to the Gran Fiesta Tour in Mexico and Kilamanjaro Safaris. My oldest son is excited about the Haunted Mansion and Tower of terror.
I have read about touring plans. We will probably do a custom one. It will make it a less stressful trip. Regardless how things go, as long as Jasmine meets her princesses and I get some pictures, this will be a happy and fun trip for all of us. I can't wait to watch my kids experience it!

 

[cslafferty]

Our first trip to WDW was when my kids were 9, 11, and 13. It was the year after my husband passed away, and it was our first vacation for just me and the kids. It was SO magical! We all had the trip of a lifetime! I do, however, disagree with some - do NOT get rid of the park hopper option! 3 children don't always agree on where to go, and being able to hop made compromising so much easier!! Plus, since it's your first trip, you may plan on spending the day at a park, and then find out after you're there for a few hours that you're really done there and would like to go somewhere else. Our first trip was in June right after school was done, and my kids really didn't want to spend much time at Epcot ("We don't want to learn anything - we just want to ride on rides!"). So we ended up spending most of our time at MK. The next year we went back, and they were totally different - you just never know with kids! It also gets really hot in June, and I find AK to be a "hot" park - not as much shade and more walking. We can do AK and DHS together in one day. Park hopping gives you much more flexibility. I would never go without the hopper option. And, if you can swing it, I'd get Photopass+ and get your picture taken as much as you can!! Have a great time!!

 

[cslafferty]

http://www.disneyphotopass.com/specialoffers/wdwppp.htm

 

[Mom of 3]

Thanks for the link
I got the photopass cd. Going to upgrade to photopass plus when we get there.

Is it true that it's likely to be rainy the whole time we are there? If so do many rides operate if it's rainy?

Does anyone have advice pertaining to the evening fireworks and shows? That is something we don't want to miss.

 

[sgtmgd]

My NJ friend is spot on there is alot of useful information contained here as well as all the other avenues..Id also reccomend the Passporters Guide if it hasent been mentioned.

 

[cslafferty]

If you don't mind getting a little wet, a rainy day can be a good day to ride rides, as the lines are generally much shorter. I would get some cheap rain ponchos before you go - they're pricey if you have to buy them there. Just watch out for lightning. Their standard forcast during the summer is the icon with sun, clouds, rain, and lightning bolt all in one! As far as evening fireworks, my favorite is Wishes! The best place to view IMO is right in the middle of Main Street just about even with Crystal Palace.

 

[Hannah1284]

Beverly is...unlike anything else. It was made for the Italian market, but has been discontinued being sold. You can only getting at taste testings such as club cool or The World of Coca Cola in Atlanta.

Please don't be afraid of the fastpasses. Use them to your advantage. There will be some rides that will be nearly impossible to ride without one (Sorin' and Toy Story Mania especially) unless you want to wait 2+ hours in line (both of these had 3 hour waits when we were there a week and a half ago). They are really easy to use, and you can always ask a cast member for clarification. There is usually one at each of the fast pass distributions.

The parks are likely to be crowded because it's summertime, but not as crowded - or hot - as they will be in the later summer months. I think you'll be fine if you plan accordingly. Don't try to do everything in one trip - it's impossible! Stick to your list of must dos and enjoy it! Take time to enjoy the magic of Disney! Stop and smell the roses.

Just in case you don't know about it, they have photographers throughout the parks that will capture pictures for you. They give you a card called a photopass and you can look at all your pictures online (they'll take them with your camera or phone too). You can pre-purchase the CD before your trip for about $60 less than what it would cost to buy the same CD after you return. It's a little tricky to find on the website so try this link http://www.disneyphotopass.com/specialoffers/wdwppp.htm or google "preorder photopass cd". It's probably too late for you to preorder the photopass+ since you are within 14 days of your trip! We preordered the CD for our latest trip and it was sooo worth it! It was awesome and we came home with about 300 pictures for our 4 days!

I know you'll have a magical trip! Take the time to enjoy your family and the magic of Disney!

Don't forget! You can also hand your own camera to the fastpass photog and compare the photos before ordering the disc from disney!