Surprise trip in a few days, advice wanted!! It's been a little while!

[mimuma]

hey all, happy holidays! hope everyone is having a great weekend!

so one of my best friends since high school contacted me a few days ago with the surprise that she's got some free park hopper tickets to disney world (AAAAAAAAAA!!!). i am beyond excited!! this will be a really unique experience for me as this is my first spontaneous, last-minute trip to disney world without my parents or close family to accompany me as a young adult. as she works at the disney store at our local mall she automatically gets free admission as well as room discounts, all we will really be paying for is our room, gas, food and drinks, and we agreed at least one nice meal somewhere. we both know it'll add up quick but it'll be our holiday gift to ourselves because we both work minimum wage in retail and have worked so hard for the last few months!!

as i've mentioned, this'll be the first time i'm going to disney without my immediate family, so while it's super exciting it's also a bit intimidating. i've got a good idea of what to pack as it is (a few days' worth of clothes, jammies, toiletries) but i want to know what any of you would recommend i bring? or advice on traveling there in general? we only live about three hours away so we'll be going by car.

she also happened to mention that magic kingdom and possibly hollywood studios would be blocked out on the days we're going (28th thru the 30th), which is completely fine because i love epcot and animal kingdom too. i'll admit i'm a disney veteran and used to visit quite frequently with my parents but it's been quite a while now, our last trip was two years ago and before that it was at least three years. i really can't say i have an idea of what to check out at either parks while i'm there and was wondering if you guys could fill me in and recommend what i should see before we head home early friday. (recommendations outside of the parks, like the resorts and disney springs, is welcomed too!)

i'm really excited and my head is spinning!! aaahhhhh!!!

 

[Marco226]

Yay for spontaneous Disney trip! Those are always the most fun imo. Uhmm.. I would make sure to bring a jacket in case it gets chilly at night.. and extra socks in case you decide to go on Kali River. A good tip for road trips is to make sure you bring a towel or rag in case you spill food or drinks while driving. You said just Epcot and AK, right? You should totally make sure to go to AK at nighttime at least once. The Tree of Life now lights up and there are these really cool projection shows on it that play every few minutes or so. Epcot is mostly the same with some new live shows over in World showcase and an updated Soarin'. Please, don't even look at the Innoventions buildings. It's too depressing. Definitely go on Soarin', though.

 

[mimuma]

Yay for spontaneous Disney trip! Those are always the most fun imo. Uhmm.. I would make sure to bring a jacket in case it gets chilly at night.. and extra socks in case you decide to go on Kali River. A good tip for road trips is to make sure you bring a towel or rag in case you spill food or drinks while driving. You said just Epcot and AK, right? You should totally make sure to go to AK at nighttime at least once. The Tree of Life now lights up and there are these really cool projection shows on it that play every few minutes or so. Epcot is mostly the same with some new live shows over in World showcase and an updated Soarin'. Please, don't even look at the Innoventions buildings. It's too depressing. Definitely go on Soarin', though.

jacket's covered. i'll be sporting my "merry kalikimaka" stitch sweater if it gets a bit cold. i may just wear it anyway for the heck of it because i love it so much. a towel for the car rides to and from there is a good idea, never would've thought of that! and i forgot ak is open late(ish?) now! i'll have to check out the tree of light at night. by your post though i can assume rivers of light isn't ready yet, which is a little sad, but oh well! and soarin' has (or is getting??) a new film, no?

i try not to look at innoventions, no worries there haha. or imagination. or the disheveled dome...

 

[Marco226]

by your post though i can assume rivers of light isn't ready yet, which is a little sad, but oh well! and soarin' has (or is getting??) a new film, no?

Right, RoL is supposed to be coming out in 2017. And.. Yeah! Soarin' has already been updated. It even got a new third theater to help with the crowd levels, so maybe it won't be such a long standby if you're not able to get fastpasses. Oh, and I forgot to mention Frozenstrom.. err.. Frozen Ever After over in World Showcase. You'll probably have to run on over there at rope drop if you want to see it. It's a great ride, and the queue is pretty cool inside. The AAs are awesome. I think people here said that they're the same technology as the 7 Dwarfs Mine Train AAs. Check it out!