Disney - Park Ideas

PARK IDEAS

No matter what park you are in - you NEED A PLAN!  And when your plan gets messed up you need a BACKUP PLAN or to think quick on your feet (before the rest of the crowd realizes they need a backup plan!)

We didn't get to see everything  - my plan sometimes didn't workout - like when I wanted to see the Firework show at Magic Kingdom - one kid refused to leave the resort - one kid threw up on the way to the bus - one kid had to go to the bathroom as soon as the fireworks started - so I missed the entire show! Good thing it was EXTRA MAGIC HOURS and we had two hours to ride everything in the whole park right? Um. no. One fell asleep - and one felt sick still.  So that didn't quite work out as planned!

Magic Kingdom - Barber Shop (on far left at Main Street - where parade starts basically) - you can stop in and get FREE Pixie Dust - If hair is already in a ponytail or pigtails, they will just spray gel and sprinkle for FREE!  If you need to have hair put up in ponytail - it is $5 ...so be prepared with a pony!  This was much cheaper than the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo Boutique ($55-195 per child) - it wasn't quite a magical experience, but it was all that we needed!and it was FREE!!!! Bring your own tiara and VOILA!


Magic Kingdom - The Sorceror's Key Game  - cool concept - you have a key and if you find the special spots in Magic Kingdom a TV screen magically appears and tells you to do something...BUT you have to do them in order - unless you have an entire day to just walk the park and do these, I don't recommend letting your kids know it exists - or only play in on Main Street and then "forget" (LOL!) You can pick up your key at the Fire Station (far left of Main Street by Barber Shop) - it's a FREE game to play!

                       


LEARN THE BUS SYSTEM! It can be quite complicated! So always ASK the driver before you get on the bus if you are on the right bus for where you want to go.  If you plan to go from one park to another - you can't take a bus straight there - you have to take a bus to another resort - and then to that park...This is why I suggest NOT hopping parks - especially with small kids - it takes too much of your day (each bus ride at least 20-30 minutes) Have your stroller folded up already (you HAVE to fold it on ALL bus transportation) and MOVE MOVE MOVE! People (including myself) get annoyed with the slow pokes 

who aren't prepared!

FASTPASSES - you should ALWAYS have a fastpass in your hand for something! This allows you to jump the line in front of everyone else - Disney has different Phases - but for instance Phase 3 - they let SIX people in that have been standing in line for 60 minutes plus - and they let SIXTY people thru with fastpasses - so you don't stand in line long at all! 

• How to do it right - choose one person to be in charge of EVERYONE's park tickets AND fastpasses (they hold all the tickets ALL Day long) - this person can split up from the group and walk fast to the fastpass location (usually outside of that specific ride) - have the rest of the group stand in line for another ride that does not allow fastpasses and then have your "fastpass holder" jump in line with them.  Keep an eye on two things on your fastpass:

1) The time you can get another one (usually 1-2 hours later) and have a plan for where you will get the next one.

2) The time you can all ride the ride - sometimes the Disney Staff do not pay attention to the times listed on the pass, so you can usually get in line even if its HOURS later than you should have - sometimes though they will check so try to get there in the time slot given.

NOTE: Get a fastpass for Buzz Lightyear in Hollywood studios FIRST! Mine was for 9 hours later from when we arrived!

EXTRA HOURS - If you take advantage of Extra Hours I would suggest skipping anything with a long line and waiting til late in the evening to ride - for instance, you can stand in line 85 minutes to ride Splash Mountain during the day...or you can ride it 8-10 times in a row late at night (sometimes they don't even make you get back in line you just stay in the car) AND if the park closes at 1 AM  -that means you can get on the last ride at 12:59 am and if it is a 20-minute jungle cruise than you are good!  The rides shut down at park close, but most of the shops stay open for 1-2 hours after that! So a little late night shopping doesn't hurt either - and it's better than waiting in a long bus line!

I suggest only seeing FANTASYLAND In Magic Kingdom at night - the lines are CRAZY long and the crowd is HEAVY during mid-day...but wait til after 6 pm and you can do it all quickly!

Late at night - NO ONE was on the streets in Fantasy land but US! It was like our own private Disneyworld!

If you don't want to see the parades, this is a perfect time to ride a bunch of rides! Just make sure to stay AWAY from the parade route as the crowd can get very thick and then you are stuck!

I suggest seeing the Magic Kingdom parades at Frontierland - the crowd is less thick and you can usually sit down and watch it.

LEARN THE MAP! If you can study the maps ahead of time, great! I didn't even see a map until we entered the park for the first time.  I had to be very quick on my feet - run to get fastpasses - and figure out the best way to avoid the crowds...

THIS WORKED FOR ME! I put a highlighter and a pen in my purse- I highlighted the rides we wanted to go on (so I could block out all the restaurants to avoid confusion) and also wrote on the map with a pen any attractions that closed earlier than the park so I could make sure to see those before it was too late!

LEAST FAVORITE ATTRACTIONS:

Magic Kingdom - Country Bear Jamboree, The Tiki Room - unless you are just desparate for A/C don't go!

Epcot - the World Showcase (very few rides -mostly restaurants) - kids aren't very interested - I heard the new Detective thing for Kids in the Showcase is cool, but you have to have time to do it.

Hollywood Studios - the new Jack Sparrow ride is TERRIBLE! Don't waste your time!

MOST FAVORITE ATTRACTIONS

Just about everything else!   

Mission space interactive video game

We saw all of Epcot (no World Showcase) - from 4-9 pm - It was perfect because most of the crowd was gone for the day...If you have a video game lover - take the time to play in the area after you get off Mission Space -it is a video game that the whole crowd can play and compete!

We made it to Animal Kingdom for ONE HOUR (ugh!) - so we saw the FESTIVAL OF THE LION KING (fabulous!) and ate at Pizzafari - It was our last hour before leaving for the airport so we had to use our last 7 quick service meals and 5 snacks in that hour - we ate well:)  There is a side entrance to enter the park through Rainforest Cafe (whether you eat there or not!)

Indoor playground at Dumbo ride

Magic Kingdom has a new concept for the Dumbo Ride - you wait in an indoor playground which is nice and gives the kids a break from just standing (there are several rides in the same area with Fastpasses so make sure you grab one before going in!)

Jungle Cruise was HILARIOUS (I love dry humor) - my all time favorite is Carousel of Progress!


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