Help plan my AK/Epcot day with big family

[Redsred3]

We are going to Disney in June. I’ve been several times with my family of 4-5 and feel pretty savvy with Genie +, and a little bit of rope drop. I’ve never planned a park hop day, though, AND on this trip we are a group of 9. I’m the planner and know most likely I’ll be the one steering the ship. We are doing a MK day, a HS day, and then a day of AK/EP park hopping.

I need advise on how to do plan the AK/EP day. Most of who is coming has never been to Disney and this might be their only time, so I want to make sure we hit certain rides. In no particular order, here is what is important
FOP (buying ILL)
Navi
Kilimanjaro Safari’s
Expedition Everest
GOG (buying ILL)
Remy
Frozen
Test Track
Soarin

We would like to do these, but not required:
Dinosaur
LWTL
Nemo
Spaceship Earth

They also want to do Space 220.
Bonus is we are doing this on a Monday and hopefully it will be extended evening hours l, so we have extra time at Epcot.

Not sure if we start at AK at rope drop (we usually do this) and then go to Epcot. But then I’m worried we won’t get LL for Remy or Frozen. We will have a 4 year old, so despite having extended hours, I’m not sure we will make it til 10:30-11 to get Remy/Frozen that late. Or we could start at Epcot, rope drop Remy, go to Ak, and then back to Epcot later in the day…but that sounds like a lot, too.

Any advice on order of parks, booking order etc? Send help!

 

[Miffy]

I'm assuming you're purchasing a multi-park G+ for your park-hop day. If so, you're going to have to prioritize exactly what's most important to you, since at Epcot, Frozen and Remy sell out or, at the very least, would have very late booking times if you used some of your LLs for DAK.

Getting ILLs for FoP and GoG is a good decision.

If you RD DAK, then you can walk onto Navi, use your ILL for FoP (book it for an early time), then walk over to KS, which, by then, shouldn't have too much of a line. But then you'd have to use a G+ LL for EE.

Or . . . you could walk onto EE--maybe even ride it more than once--then do standby at KS. You would have had to book your ILL for FoP for perhaps 11:30 or so and you would have to use one of your G+ LLs for Navi, since the line there can get pretty long after RD.

Here you could take a chance and use your 7 a.m. G+ booking for an afternoon time for either Remy or Frozen and book your LL for Navi at 10 or whenever it's 2 hours after DAK opens. Or you could just suck it up and wait in line at Navi, which probably won't have as terrible a line as either Remy or Frozen will certainly have. The Frozen standby line is devoid of anything to see or hear or do until you're practically on the ride. Just warning you.

I am not a fan of Remy. I rode it last week just to make sure I hadn't missed something and I can't say that I changed my opinion. But people do seem to like it. That's just my take on it. If it's either Remy or Frozen, then Frozen wins out by a mile.

There's often not much of a line for LwtL, Nemo, or SE, so you could chance those things, but it's also easy to get a LL for all of these, so you could do that. Dino also often has a very short standby line. But of course Dino is nowhere near any of the other things you want to do at DAK and it's definitely not worth wasting your RD time on, altho I do like Dino.

Enjoy your day! Stay cool! Get a UV umbrella and use it. And hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

 

[Redsred3]

I'm assuming you're purchasing a multi-park G+ for your park-hop day. If so, you're going to have to prioritize exactly what's most important to you, since at Epcot, Frozen and Remy sell out or, at the very least, would have very late booking times if you used some of your LLs for DAK.

Getting ILLs for FoP and GoG is a good decision.

If you RD DAK, then you can walk onto Navi, use your ILL for FoP (book it for an early time), then walk over to KS, which, by then, shouldn't have too much of a line. But then you'd have to use a G+ LL for EE.

Or . . . you could walk onto EE--maybe even ride it more than once--then do standby at KS. You would have had to book your ILL for FoP for perhaps 11:30 or so and you would have to use one of your G+ LLs for Navi, since the line there can get pretty long after RD.

Here you could take a chance and use your 7 a.m. G+ booking for an afternoon time for either Remy or Frozen and book your LL for Navi at 10 or whenever it's 2 hours after DAK opens. Or you could just suck it up and wait in line at Navi, which probably won't have as terrible a line as either Remy or Frozen will certainly have. The Frozen standby line is devoid of anything to see or hear or do until you're practically on the ride. Just warning you.

I am not a fan of Remy. I rode it last week just to make sure I hadn't missed something and I can't say that I changed my opinion. But people do seem to like it. That's just my take on it. If it's either Remy or Frozen, then Frozen wins out by a mile.

There's often not much of a line for LwtL, Nemo, or SE, so you could chance those things, but it's also easy to get a LL for all of these, so you could do that. Dino also often has a very short standby line. But of course Dino is nowhere near any of the other things you want to do at DAK and it's definitely not worth wasting your RD time on, altho I do like Dino.

Enjoy your day! Stay cool! Get a UV umbrella and use it. And hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

Thanks for the advice. There’s just so many options and variables, I am afraid I am going to miss something.

How quickly does Navi, Frozen and Remy sell out of LL?

We thought Remy was cute, but would be fine not riding it again. BUT we have some first timers, and a 4 year old that’s never done it, so it’s a must do this time, unfortunately

I must look into this UV umbrella! We went in June last year too. Definitely was hot, but I could handle it…my husband? Not so much!

 

[PoppyJ]

I just did this last May! We took my brother in law who has never been to Disney World. We only had two days in the park so we did Animal Kingdom / Epcot and then Hollywood Studios / Magic Kingdom. Here's how our day turned out:

6:05 on bus
6:25 at Animal Kingdom (Park open 7:30)
7:30 FOP (walk on)
8:15 Safari (LL)
9:00 Everest (10 min wait)
9:20 Everest (15 min wait)
9:50 Dinosaur (5 min wait)
Coffee break
11:00 Lion King show
12:00 Lunch
1:15 Avatar (ILL)
2:15 bus to Beach Club, walk to Epcot
3:30 Living with the Land (LL)
4:15 Soarin (LL)
4:45 Remy (LL)
5:15 Guardians of the Galaxy (ILL)
6:00 dinner at La Hacienda de San Angel
7:50 Test Track (LL)
8:10 Mars (LL)
9:00 Fireworks
9:30 Guardians of the Galaxy (VQ)
10:05 Wait for monorail
10:30 Back at hotel

I believe Navi was about a 30 minute wait when we got out of FOP, so you could easily do that before safari. This was also an extended evening hours night at Epcot so we got the extra virtual queue for GOG. We definitely could have done another ride or two at the end of the night but everyone was exhausted....

I booked Safari as my first LL. I had been watching times for Remy. I knew as long as I picked my next lightning lane before 9:00ish, I would get an evening return time for Remy. It worked out perfectly. Remy was my 2nd LL choice. Then Test Track. You could do Frozen during extended hours.

Alternatively, you pick Frozen LL and do Remy during extended hours. But you're unlikely to get both Remy and Frozen LL.

Pick your LL first. Then buy your ILL. Also suggest getting to your bus stop 90 minutes before early entry to get the first bus.

Also, I did this May 1, which was a light day according to the crowd calendars. Not sure how busy June will be.

 

[kylenne]

Also, I did this May 1, which was a light day according to the crowd calendars. Not sure how busy June will be.

June will be much busier. May is shoulder season, it’s always dead at the parks and crowds don’t begin to pick up until Memorial Day. Even then isn’t awful at all for a holiday. But the week after is when summer crowds start showing up because more schools are out.

To put it in perspective we had a 11 day trip last year that started Memorial Day weekend and quite literally walked onto Rise at 6pm the day after Memorial Day. Week 2 of that trip, the last couple days, it was a night and day difference with crowds and waits.

 

[Redsred3]

June will be much busier. May is shoulder season, it’s always dead at the parks and crowds don’t begin to pick up until Memorial Day. Even then isn’t awful at all for a holiday. But the week after is when summer crowds start showing up because more schools are out.

To put it in perspective we had a 11 day trip last year that started Memorial Day weekend and quite literally walked onto Rise at 6pm the day after Memorial Day. Week 2 of that trip, the last couple days, it was a night and day difference with crowds and waits.

We went this same week last year (includes Father’s Day weekend) and it was ok as far as crowds. Less busy than when we went in September, but not as good as when we went in February. BUT that being said, because I know June is busier, that’s what concerns me with booking LL in the right order so we have the right ones before they run out for the day. Booking for 9 makes that even more challenging.

 

[Miffy]

Thanks for the advice. There’s just so many options and variables, I am afraid I am going to miss something.

How quickly does Navi, Frozen and Remy sell out of LL?

We thought Remy was cute, but would be fine not riding it again. BUT we have some first timers, and a 4 year old that’s never done it, so it’s a must do this time, unfortunately

I must look into this UV umbrella! We went in June last year too. Definitely was hot, but I could handle it…my husband? Not so much!

Here's the link to the umbrella I got: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074YG2XNC
It's not as "lightweight" as they claim it is, but it does a great job--and also, it's an umbrella, so I used it during rainstorms as well.

Go to Thrill Data for detailed info about standby wait times and G+ sellouts. I think it may be impossible to get G+ for both Remy and Frozen on the same day. I noticed that even the amazing itinerary of someone upthread did not include Frozen, a ride I'd have to say would be far more entertaining for a 4-year-old than Remy is. Unless the 4-year-old hates Frozen! Then, no!

I'd also like to say that getting to FoP at RD is not so easy as it might seem, since you have to (a) be at the very front of the RD crowd, (b) not stop for anything, and (c) sprint. Even so, you could end up with a 45-minute wait. And if you don't have (a) or (b) or (c) you could end up in a 245-minute wait.

Navi is almost always available for a LL, however, the problem may be that the time it gives you doesn't work out for your itinerary--and you may want to use that LL for something in Epcot instead. The standby at Navi is pleasant and if it's 30 minutes or so, very doable. The standby for Frozen, otoh, is heinous--crowded, loud, and literally nothing to see or do or hear until you're almost on the ride. Remy standby is marginally better than that, but there are long stretches of the Remy standby that are in empty, brown corridors.

The one thing you don't want to be doing is running around the parks, chasing you attractions from one side of the park to the other and back again. Try to work out an itinerary that has you walking in an arc and never backtracking. And that has rest/eating periods built in.

Maybe this has helped. I hope so. I think you may be trying to get too much done in too little time. Not that others haven't succeeded--they have!--but you are a group of 9 people and have a 4-year-old. G+ and ILLs are definitely your friends. I would not want to be in charge of hauling 8 other people around 2 large parks, but then I wouldn't want to be in a group of 9 people anyway, so there's that.

Keep in mind that both Epcot and DAK require a LOT of walking. Even if all you did at DAK were Navi, FoP, KS, and EE, you would have done a heckuva lot of walking before you exited. Epcot, to me, is the most walking-exhaustive of all 4 parks, lacks sufficient shady outdoor seating areas, and one of the things you want to do at Epcot--Remy--is nowhere near Frozen. So . . . walking. Factor these things into your plan.

If you can stay at Epcot until close, you'll have a better chance of doing everything you want to do.

BTW, these days, with no 2 pm restriction on park-hopping, you can probably take a direct bus from DAK to Epcot--although please check, as this is something I haven't done recently.

edited to fix typo (sprint, not "spring")

 

[Redsred3]

I just did this last May! We took my brother in law who has never been to Disney World. We only had two days in the park so we did Animal Kingdom / Epcot and then Hollywood Studios / Magic Kingdom. Here's how our day turned out:

6:05 on bus
6:25 at Animal Kingdom (Park open 7:30)
7:30 FOP (walk on)
8:15 Safari (LL)
9:00 Everest (10 min wait)
9:20 Everest (15 min wait)
9:50 Dinosaur (5 min wait)
Coffee break
11:00 Lion King show
12:00 Lunch
1:15 Avatar (ILL)
2:15 bus to Beach Club, walk to Epcot
3:30 Living with the Land (LL)
4:15 Soarin (LL)
4:45 Remy (LL)
5:15 Guardians of the Galaxy (ILL)
6:00 dinner at La Hacienda de San Angel
7:50 Test Track (LL)
8:10 Mars (LL)
9:00 Fireworks
9:30 Guardians of the Galaxy (VQ)
10:05 Wait for monorail
10:30 Back at hotel

I believe Navi was about a 30 minute wait when we got out of FOP, so you could easily do that before safari. This was also an extended evening hours night at Epcot so we got the extra virtual queue for GOG. We definitely could have done another ride or two at the end of the night but everyone was exhausted....

I booked Safari as my first LL. I had been watching times for Remy. I knew as long as I picked my next lightning lane before 9:00ish, I would get an evening return time for Remy. It worked out perfectly. Remy was my 2nd LL choice. Then Test Track. You could do Frozen during extended hours.

Alternatively, you pick Frozen LL and do Remy during extended hours. But you're unlikely to get both Remy and Frozen LL.

Pick your LL first. Then buy your ILL. Also suggest getting to your bus stop 90 minutes before early entry to get the first bus.

Also, I did this May 1, which was a light day according to the crowd calendars. Not sure how busy June will be.

I just did this last May! We took my brother in law who has never been to Disney World. We only had two days in the park so we did Animal Kingdom / Epcot and then Hollywood Studios / Magic Kingdom. Here's how our day turned out:

6:05 on bus
6:25 at Animal Kingdom (Park open 7:30)
7:30 FOP (walk on)
8:15 Safari (LL)
9:00 Everest (10 min wait)
9:20 Everest (15 min wait)
9:50 Dinosaur (5 min wait)
Coffee break
11:00 Lion King show
12:00 Lunch
1:15 Avatar (ILL)
2:15 bus to Beach Club, walk to Epcot
3:30 Living with the Land (LL)
4:15 Soarin (LL)
4:45 Remy (LL)
5:15 Guardians of the Galaxy (ILL)
6:00 dinner at La Hacienda de San Angel
7:50 Test Track (LL)
8:10 Mars (LL)
9:00 Fireworks
9:30 Guardians of the Galaxy (VQ)
10:05 Wait for monorail
10:30 Back at hotel

I believe Navi was about a 30 minute wait when we got out of FOP, so you could easily do that before safari. This was also an extended evening hours night at Epcot so we got the extra virtual queue for GOG. We definitely could have done another ride or two at the end of the night but everyone was exhausted....

I booked Safari as my first LL. I had been watching times for Remy. I knew as long as I picked my next lightning lane before 9:00ish, I would get an evening return time for Remy. It worked out perfectly. Remy was my 2nd LL choice. Then Test Track. You could do Frozen during extended hours.

Alternatively, you pick Frozen LL and do Remy during extended hours. But you're unlikely to get both Remy and Frozen LL.

Pick your LL first. Then buy your ILL. Also suggest getting to your bus stop 90 minutes before early entry to get the first bus.

Also, I did this May 1, which was a light day according to the crowd calendars. Not sure how busy June will be.

I WISH AK would open at the 7:30am time for our dates. Thaf works so much better as far as lightening lanes because the other parks aren’t open yet. Unfortunately it looks like it might be the 9am (830 early entry) park open time for June. I’d like to do KS as my first LL and then do Navi, then Remy. Which worked well when the park opened at the earlier time, as KS, although delayed, was opened by 8:30. But if the park opens at 9, I’m worried KS won’t open until 9:30.

I’d prefer to not be in Pandora at rope drop. It sort of takes away from the magic lol. And since this is a lot of my travel parties first (and probably only trip), I want to try and make it as seamless as possible.

 

[Redsred3]

Here's the link to the umbrella I got: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074YG2XNC
It's not as "lightweight" as they claim it is, but it does a great job--and also, it's an umbrella, so I used it during rainstorms as well.

Go to Thrill Data for detailed info about standby wait times and G+ sellouts. I think it may be impossible to get G+ for both Remy and Frozen on the same day. I noticed that even the amazing itinerary of someone upthread did not include Frozen, a ride I'd have to say would be far more entertaining for a 4-year-old than Remy is. Unless the 4-year-old hates Frozen! Then, no!

I'd also like to say that getting to FoP at RD is not so easy as it might seem, since you have to (a) be at the very front of the RD crowd, (b) not stop for anything, and (c) sprint. Even so, you could end up with a 45-minute wait. And if you don't have (a) or (b) or (c) you could end up in a 245-minute wait.

Navi is almost always available for a LL, however, the problem may be that the time it gives you doesn't work out for your itinerary--and you may want to use that LL for something in Epcot instead. The standby at Navi is pleasant and if it's 30 minutes or so, very doable. The standby for Frozen, otoh, is heinous--crowded, loud, and literally nothing to see or do or hear until you're almost on the ride. Remy standby is marginally better than that, but there are long stretches of the Remy standby that are in empty, brown corridors.

The one thing you don't want to be doing is running around the parks, chasing you attractions from one side of the park to the other and back again. Try to work out an itinerary that has you walking in an arc and never backtracking. And that has rest/eating periods built in.

Maybe this has helped. I hope so. I think you may be trying to get too much done in too little time. Not that others haven't succeeded--they have!--but you are a group of 9 people and have a 4-year-old. G+ and ILLs are definitely your friends. I would not want to be in charge of hauling 8 other people around 2 large parks, but then I wouldn't want to be in a group of 9 people anyway, so there's that.

Keep in mind that both Epcot and DAK require a LOT of walking. Even if all you did at DAK were Navi, FoP, KS, and EE, you would have done a heckuva lot of walking before you exited. Epcot, to me, is the most walking-exhaustive of all 4 parks, lacks sufficient shady outdoor seating areas, and one of the things you want to do at Epcot--Remy--is nowhere near Frozen. So . . . walking. Factor these things into your plan.

If you can stay at Epcot until close, you'll have a better chance of doing everything you want to do.

BTW, these days, with no 2 pm restriction on park-hopping, you can probably take a direct bus from DAK to Epcot--although please check, as this is something I haven't done recently.

edited to fix typo (sprint, not "spring")

Thanks so much! We definitely want to do frozen over Remy. But I’m pretty confident we can do that at extended evening hours fairly easily. But Remy seems like the wait is always long, even during extended evening hours.

The “plan” is to do a few hours at AK, rest for maybe 2 hours, then go to Epcot. We are staying at Boardwalk so people will be able to come and go fairly easily, and we plan to take advantage of the evening hours. Holding that helps!