Cruise with one day WDW pass

[tiffinymunn]

Asking for opinions only, if you were to take the 8 day bahamian cruise, and were to spend one day in WDW.. What would you do? We have never been to WDW. We are planning the cruise for the middle of Jan... We have a 5 year old son and are looking for the top 5-10 things to do while we are there!! Suggestions and opinions appreciated!! Has anyone done this yet, and if so, how long (aprox) were you able to spend in the park?

 

[SnackyStacky]

I haven't done a cruise with 1 day stop in Port Canaveral.

However, never having visited and having a 5 year old, I really think you'd want to focus on the Magic Kingdom. That really is the center of the Disney experience for most kids (and a lot of adults, too).

It's my understanding that the last buses leave late enough that you will be able to enjoy the evening entertainment - including Wishes, the fireworks display, and the Main Street Electrical parade. (Assuming the parade is offered on the day the ship will be stopping at Port Canaveral)

Since you've never been, I wouldn't waste time park hopping. It can take 30 - 60 minutes to get from one park to another - and that includes STRICTLY the time from the moment you get to the bus stop until the moment you get off the bus at the next park. That doesn't include the time it's going to take to get from wherever you are in the parks to the buses out front. Including all that, I think you're looking at a good 60 - 90 minutes depending on crowds, bus schedules and traffic. And again - that's from one park to another. You're looking at that chunk of time if you park hop multiple times.

My own, personal, Magic Kingdom top 10 list:

1.) Splash Mountain
2.) Haunted Mansion
3.) Big Thunder Mountain
4.) Pirates of the Caribbean
5.) Wishes
6.) Peter Pan (ride in Fantasyland)
7.) Main Street Electrical Parade
8.) It's A Small World
9.) Space Mountain
10.) Jungle Cruise

Once you book your cruise, when you book Port Adventures, they'll have more information about bus schedules for you, so you can see what time you'll need to get back to the ship.

 

[sue]

Since your child is 5 years old, I would recommend going to Magic Kingdom vs and of the other parks, since MK is geared more to the little kids. The previous poster had good suggestions as to what to do while there.

If your child likes Animals, you may enjoy animal kingdom too. They have finding Nemo, dinasaurs, It's a bugs life, a ride area for the little ones and you can take a safari ride where you will see a lot of wide animals, including elephants, tigers, gators, etc.

I would suggest going online and pulling up each park to see what is offered at each. That way, you can decide what is best for your family.

 

[DOPEYLUVER]

My opinion is that Snacky Stacky nailed it.

Though it does seem that the new Fantasyland will have quite a bit to offer. With the changes due you may be able to do even more.

 

[Melissa S]

We were on the 6/2 cruise and it was our daughter's first time in WDW. We spent most of the day at MK (DD was 23 months at the time) and had the princess dinner in the castle. The character dinner was nice for the adults since it was good meal, but after several days on the ship with the characters DD wasn't as excited to see the princesses so it was a waste of money in that respect. We spent our last hour at Epcot because DD is a HUGE Nemo fan and we wanted to take her on the ride. As PP wrote, I would avoid park hopping too much since it wastes a lot of time.

 

[iamadisneynut]

Magic kingdom for sure! And the list of rides is great, though I have a 5 yr old ds and he is hesitant on the bigger rides (mountains, splash, thunder, space he can't even ride).

He does love buzz lightyear ride! And the others for sure!

And the nighttime parade and fireworks are fantastic!