Second Family Trip to Walt Disney World (August 6-12 2016) Hope this plan Works Out!!!

Lewandowski

Mouseketeer
Joined
Jan 11, 2016
Hi All,
So before I start I'll introduce myself and family a bit. So we are four people with two adults and two teens (a 12 year old girl, and a 16 year old boy). I am the 16 year old teen posting this right now. My parents always leave vacations and holidays (especially Disney World) for me to plan, because I know a lot about WDW and studied it on the internet basically, so its my job to do all the planning and everything.

This is our second visit to WDW. For a trip report on our first, see this: http://disboards.com/threads/our-familys-first-trip-to-walt-disney-world-july-2011.3517297/



Day 1-August 6: Arrival Day / Epcot

So my parents have business in Orlando about 25 miles away from WDW, so we will drive down to Orlando area a few days before so my parents can do some business stuff before our vacation. The plan is to wake up early on August 6, and drive to Disney World as soon as possible. The day before we plan to stop at a grocery store to buy some fruit and cereal for breakfast in the morning which we plan to have in our rooms. So we plan on arriving to Disney World at around 10am at the latest.

We are staying at Disney's All Star Movies Resort, because we are kind of on a budget, and don't plan on spending any real time at the resort other than sleeping, so it makes no sense to pay for a moderate or deluxe resort. We plan to check in as soon as we get there. I have heard from many sources that rooms are not usually ready until 3pm but we can always get our park tickets, and everything set up anytime. So we are assuming our room will not be ready, but if it is, we will probably go to our room drop off our luggage and stuff, and also to get an idea where it is exactly and how long it will take to walk from there to the bus stop. If it isn't ready which we are assuming, then we will just let Disney take care of our luggage in the hotel, and then go straight to the parks.

So we plan to be at our bus stop as soon as possible and arrive to Epcot no later than 12 Noon.
We have FP+ for Spaceship Earth, Mission Space, and the New Frozen Ever After Ride. We also have Dinner Reservations for Biergarten around 6.45pm.

The plan for our first day, is to do Future World East (except for the Test Track because lines will likely be way too long) and the World Showcase from Mexico until Germany.

We will start with our FP+ for Mission Space when we get there, and then have lunch at La Catina (the CS place in Mexico). Then we will do Spaceship Earth, and Ellen's Energy Adventure, and then start touring the world showcase. We have FP+ for Frozen Ride in Norway in the late afternoon / early evening. So after we finish future world east, we just plan on relaxing a bit, taking it easy, and touring the countries at our own pace. We will probably hop around pavilions for scheduled events like Acrobats in China all according to the times guide. We plan to end our day with Dinner at Biergarten in Germany. After dinner we will head back to our hotel as soon as possible in order to avoid crowds for Illuminations, and hop into bed straight away.


Day 2-Magic Kingdom

So after a great night of sleeping, we plan to wake up no later than 6am in the morning. We will have our alarms set for 5.50am. Probably take quick showers and eat a small breakfast in our room, before heading to the park. We plan to be at our bus stop by 8:00am, and hope to arrive at Magic Kingdom no later than rope drop at 9am.

So the plan for today is to do Fantasyland and Adventureland. We have FP+ for Peter Pan's Flight, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and Enchanted Tales with Belle.

As soon as we arrive, we will start with the Big Thunder Mountain, and probably ride it twice because I heard that it will close for renovations the next day. Then after BTMR we will do Under the Sea--Journey of the Little Mermaid, and the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. After we finish those rides, I expect lines will likely get long because of all the arrivals that cannot wake up early, and especially in Fantasyland at the popular rides, so what we hope to do is have lunch a little early at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe to avoid long lines at peak lunch hours. I expect there will still be some big lines but probably not nearly as much people as there will be from 12pm-2pm. After lunch, we will be keeping track of the time for our FP+ to make sure we make those rides: Peter Pan, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and Enchanted Tales with Belle, working around the FP+ rides: It's a Small World, Mickey's Phillarmagic, Dumbo, and Barnstormer. We plan on skipping the character meet and greets, carousel, and mad tea party because those rides are really just a waste of time, considering you can get those rides pretty much anywhere, and we are a little old for all the character meet and greets. At some point we plan to get some coffee and ice cream to cool us down a little. In the late afternoon / early evening, or whenever we finish all the rides I listed above, we plan to go to Adventureland. I heard that Adventureland is a great place to hang out at that time because of nice scenery and not too many popular rides there. We plan on doing: Enchanted Tiki Room, Pirates of the Carribbean, Jungle Cruise, and Magic Carpets of Aladdin. Whenever we finish our last FP+ I will try to get an additional one for Jungle Cruise sometime in the early evening, but if I can't we will just ride standby probably last thing before we leave. I also hoped we could see the Swiss Family Treehouse, but it is going to be closed the time we are at WDW so we can't. So after finishing Adventureland, we plan on heading back to our hotel, and eating dinner at the food court at All Star Movies, because it seems like a bigger variety and will probably be less crowded then any CS place at MK. After Dinner we will hop into bed.


Day 3-Hollywood Studios

So again we plan to do the same thing as the morning before, get up no later than 6am, take quick showers, eat a light breakfast, and be at our bus stop by 8am, plan to arrive at Hollywood Studios around rope drop at 9am.

The Hollywood Studios has tons of shows, and of course we won't be able to see all of them, plus some don't even sound that interesting, so what I did for this day is picked a few shows to see, and then after all the shows and must do's we will just move as we go and see what we feel like seeing. We have FP+ for: Frozen Sing Along Show, Toy Story Mania, and Tower of Terror all for the afternoon and early evening.

So as soon as we arrive, we plan on going straight to the Rock N Roller Coaster to Ride it at least once, maybe twice. Then we plan on doing in order: The Great Movie Ride, and then Star Tours. I looked at the time schedule for that day and picked out times to see certain shows. After the three rides we plan on seeing the 12pm Indiana Jones Show getting in line for it at least 30 min early. After the show, we plan on having lunch somewhere at a CS restaurant in the park, maybe ABC Commissary because they seem to have a little variety. We have FP+ for the 2:30pm Frozen Sing Along Show, so depending on the time after we finish lunch, we might see the Muppet Vision before heading to the Frozen theater, but I doubt we will have time for that, so we will probably head straight to the Frozen Sing Along Show with FP+ after we are done with lunch. After the show is done, we have FP+ for Toy Story Mania at around 3:30pm, so we plan to ride that next, and then aim to see the 5:00pm Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage. When we are done with Beauty and the Beast, we have FP+ for Tower of Terror, so we will ride that. If the line is not too long we might ride multiple times. I read that for Fantasmic, its important to be at the theater 90 min prior to the show, so what we are thinking to do is grab some dinner for take away at one of the CS restaurants in the park, and take it into the line for the Fantasmic theater, and eat dinner while waiting for the show. We plan to end the day with the 9pm Fantasmic Fireworks, and then head back to our hotel and get to bed. If we have any spare time anytime in the day, I thought we will just look at the map for any other attractions that sound interesting and have reasonable lines.


Day 4-Animal Kingdom

So again same as every morning, get up no later than 6am, take quick showers, eat a light breakfast, and be at our bus stop by 8am, plan to arrive at Animal Kingdom around rope drop at 9am.

We plan to do almost all of Animal Kingdom, skipping Rafiki's Planet Watch, because I read there isn't that much there and probably not worth the time, plus we saw the affection section last time, so its not like we are missing much. We have FP+ for: Finding Nemo Show, Kali River Rapids, and Expedition Everest. We also have 7pm dinner reservations at Yak & Yeti.

I am BUMMED that DINOSAUR will be closed for refurbishment.

So as soon as we arrive, we plan to go straight to Africa and Ride Kilimanjaro Safaris because the lines seem to build up fast, and I read the morning is best in the summer because as the weather gets hotter and more humid, you see less animals. After the Safari, we plan to see the first Lion King Show at 10am if there is still room in the theater. If not we will stroll through the Gorilla Exploration Trails, and then see the Lion King. If we see the first show, we will stroll through the Gorilla Trails after the Lion King show. After both the Lion King and Gorilla Trails are done, we plan to have somewhat early lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue. We have FP+ for the 2pm Finding Nemo Show, so after lunch we plan on seeing It's Tough to Be a Bug, and then making our way to the theater for the Nemo Show. After Nemo, we plan to ride Primeval Whirl and Tricera Top Spin. We have FP+ for Kali River Rapids at around 3:30pm, so depending on the time, we might also stroll around the Tree of Life for a bit. We will ride Kali River Rapids when its time. We are hoping to see the 4:30pm Flights of Wonder Show, if we can get there in time, however I am not sure how long its important to be there before the show. I am assuming 15-20 min is good enough because its not that popular. After the Show, we will stroll through the Maharajah Jungle Trek, and then use our last FP+ to Ride Expedition Everest. If there is still a lot of time before our ADR at Yak & Yeti, we plan on relaxing, and maybe my sister and I will ride Everest a few more times depending on the line (maybe use the single rider line). We will have dinner at Yak & Yeti, and then see the Jungle Book Show at night. After the show, we will head back to our hotel and hop into bed.


Day 5-Epcot

Same morning thing as everyday. I don't feel a need to write it again. So basically just be at our bus stop by 8am, and plan to arrive to the park around rope drop at 9am.

We plan to do Future World West plus Test Track, and finish up the World Showcase, ending with dinner in Italy and Illuminations. We have FP+ for Soarin and Turtle Talk with Crush. I left the third one open because I don't see any need for another ride to do other than Test Track and Illuminations, but sadly they are all tiered so I can't. I left the third one open. We have ADR's for Tutto Italia at 7pm.

After going through the turn-sliders, we plan to head straight to Test Track and Ride it. If the line is not too long, probably ride it again, maybe just my sister and I will ride it a second time and use the single rider line. After we finish with Test Track, we plan to head to the Land Pavilion and riding Living with the Land, followed by using our FP+ for Soarin. We plan to skip the Circle of Life as I read it is really nothing that great. We will then go to Imagination Pavilion to Ride Journey into Imagination with Figment. We plan to skip the show that replaced Captain EO. I heard it is a good show, but not a must do, and we really want to take our time with the World Showcase. After Figment, we will head to the Seas Pavilion to Ride the Seas with Nemo & Friends, and use our FP+ for Turtle Talk with Crush. After we are done with the Seas Pavilion, we plan to head straight to Morocco Pavilion and have lunch at Tangierine Cafe, and then finish up touring the world showcase, starting with Canada working our way up toward Italy. We have 7pm ADR's at Tutto Italia and then we plan to see Illuminations at 9pm. After Illuminations we will head back to our hotel.

Note: I read that many people get trapped in Illuminations crowds after the show. Are they really bad? Is there a certain trick any of you know to maybe get back to our hotel the fastest way?


Day 6-Magic Kingdom (Final Day)

Same morning thing as everyday. I don't feel a need to write it again. So basically just be at our bus stop by 8am, and plan to arrive to the park around rope drop at 9am.

The plan today is to do Tomorrowland, Liberty Square, and Frontierland, ending the day with dinner at Crystal Palace, Main Street Electrical Parade, and Wishes. We have FP+ for Space Mountain, Haunted Mansion, and Splash Mountain. We also have 7pm ADR's for Crystal Palace.

The plan for the last day is to head straight to Tomorrowland and Ride in order: Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, Astro Orbiter, and Tomorrowland Speedway. After those Rides we will use FP+ to Ride Space Mountain again. We plan to have a somewhat early lunch at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe to avoid heavy crowds although I suppose there will still be a good amount of people in there. After lunch we plan on riding Carrousel of Progress and Stich's Great Escape. We plan to skip Monster's Inc and Tomorrowland Transit Authority. They don't seem to appeal to us, but if you disagree and think they are important please let me know. After we are done with Tomorrowland, we will take the Walt Disney World Railroad to Frontierland and Explore Tom Sawyer Island. I have devoted tons of time for that Island, as I heard its a great place to hang out and relax for a bit. Then we will use FP+ to Ride Haunted Mansion, and see Country Bear Jamboree. We plan on also skipping Hall of Presidents, and Liberty Square Riverboat, because again I just don't see them as that important attractions. I didn't think the Hall of Presidents was worth the time especially since we plan on seeing The American Adventure in Epcot. We will use FP+ to Ride Splash Mountain. If there is still a lot of time before 7pm ADR, we will likely Ride Splash Mountain again if the line isn't ridiculous. After Spl M, we plan on making our way to have dinner at the Crystal Palace. After dinner, we are hoping to look for a spot around Frontierland to see the Main Street Electrical Parade and Wishes, mainly because my sister and I sometimes get quite bored of after 5 min of the show, so at frontierland it will give us the option of hopping on Splash Mountain a few times during the parade and fireworks. After Wishes, we will head back to our hotel and dive into bed.


Day 7-Go Home

Sleep In a little bit, take showers, pack, check out, and sadly return home :(


So that is the whole plan for our Disney World Trip next month. Please tell me what you think, and if there is anything you think is a horrible idea, and are sure won't work out, please let me know.

I CAN'T WAIT!!!! I am sure you know how it feels after you post a pre-trip report here that you still have to wait a few weeks at least before actually starting the holiday at WDW.

P.S. I'll be sure to post a trip report on how it went with some pictures after our trip.
 
Great plans!
I love that you are 16 and the planner in the family! You remind me of myself. When I was 14, I was invited to WDW for the week with my best friend's family. I read a guidebook from cover to cover before we left because I was so excited. Once we got there, I discovered my friend's parents had really done no planning at all. I was the youngest on the trip and ended up calling most of the shots based on the tips I had read. That trip pretty much fueled my life long Disney obsession.
My family (husband and kids and I) are going in September. I am also super bummed about Dinosaur being closed.
On your Epcot day, did you get a FP+ for Living with the Land. I just wanted to make sure you knew that it recently changed to Tier 2.
Have a great trip!
 
You sound very organized and your plans sound great. I hope you'll write a TR and let us know how everything went. Have fun!
 


On your Epcot day, did you get a FP+ for Living with the Land. I just wanted to make sure you knew that it recently changed to Tier 2. Have a great trip!

Thanks again for telling me this. Just got FP+ for Living with the Land (12:30pm-1:30pm), and I also was able to move Turtle Talk with Crush (2:00pm-3:00pm). I was a little worried about this day because it was involving us having a late lunch, but because of Living with the Land I was able to make the plan perfect. So I changed the plan for this day a little.

We will do Test Track at rope drop as usual, maybe twice. Then Ride Journey into Imagination with Figment and Use FP+ for Soarin (10:55am-11:55am). Then we will go to Morocco Pavilion to eat Lunch at Tangierine Cafe. After Lunch we will go back to Land Pavilion to use FP+ for Living with the Land (12:30pm-1:30pm). Then we will go to the Seas Pavilion to Ride Seas with Nemo & Friends and then FP+ for Turtle Talk with Crush (2:00pm-3:00pm). After that pretty much as above, see the rest of the world showcase from Canada to Italy until Dinner at Tutto Italia, and then Illuminations.
 

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