Please critique my itinerary for 5 days at WDW, staying on property (Long - I love planning)

[Steffii]

Hi everyone! I finally decided to join instead of lurking for weeks. I would love some advice on our current plan and strategy to maximize our short stay in Orlando. Three of us adults are going from October 26-31 as we thought it wouldn't be as hot as the summer and would be at the tail end of any major rain. We learned about DVT point rental and are staying at the Grand Floridian (split stay Oct 26-27 then October 27-31 in different room categories due to availability, but it was so worth it as we saved almost 6k off rack rate!!!). We would like to minimize standing in line so will definitely get Genie+ and ILL every day.

October 26th (1/2 MK day) - 7AM - get ILL for Tron and 7 Dwarves for the afternoon (we can do this on the day of check in correct?), fly out and arrive at MCO at 10:30AM, check in/drop off bags at resort at noon, get LL for Jungle Cruise or Space Mountain then head over to MK. Get late lunch at Skipper's Canteen, LL for Haunted Mansion, SM and Astro Blasters over the next few hours. Spend the rest of the time in the park riding rides and shopping. Dinner at California grill at 7:45PM to hopefully catch fireworks then back to GF.

We didn't feel the need to spend a whole day at HS since we are from LA and go to Disneyland a couple times a year.

October 27th (AK and HS day) - 7AM - get LL for Slinky, ILL for Avatar FOP and ROTR. Probably won't rope drop AK since Kilimanjaro Safari is not part of early entry anyway. Start at 9AM at the safari, ride FOP whenever it is our time, single rider Everest, Dinosaur then explore the park for a couple of hours, during this time get LL to Runaway Railway, Smugglers and Toy Story Mania. Uber to lunch at Sanaa at 1:30PM, then head to HS by about 3-3:30PM. Ride rides, Oga's in the late afternoon and Ronto wraps for snack. Open dinner plans, may eat at GF so we can rest right after.

October 28th (Epcot day, hopefully extended evening hrs) - 7AM VQ for GOTG, LL for Remy, ILL for GOTG. Haven't decided if rope drop is worth it since it'll be a long day. Mostly a walking around day eating a ton. LL for test track? Will it reopen by then? Lunch at Via Napoli (open to other suggestions) then back to GF for a 3 hr nap/swim. Return to park around 5PM, dinner at Takumi Tei at 6PM, then enjoy extended hours, VQ for GOTG if it was really good.

October 29th (Universal day) - trying for V&A dinner reservations

October 30th (MK day, hopefully extended evening hrs) - LL for ???, ILL for Tron. Rope drop 7 dwarves if we liked it enough before. LL and ride similar rides from Oct 26ths. Lots of walking around and shopping. Lunch at Cinderella's Royal Table. More rides in the afternoon. May nap for a couple of hours. Trying for V&A reservations this day also just in case Tuesday doesn't work. Then back to the park for extended hours. 6PM VQ for Tron if it was really good.

What do you think? Am I missing out on any great rides/experiences? Should I rope drop more? I like eating, which is why there is so many food things on there. My husband likes rides and my sister likes shopping. We are used to walking long distances and love it.

Finally, I am a little nervous about V&A reservations, esp with the split stay and ADR rules. I called Disney reservations and the CM said that they can bridge reservations to extend the ADR (in my case by 1 day) if it doesn't automatically do it at 6AM when the 60 + X goes into effect. The number opens at 7AM however. Anyone have any luck with this?

Thank you very much for your help!

 

[saraheliz]

In general, I think it looks like a solid plan (except for the fact that there aren't any Astro Blasters at WDW! ). My only thoughts would be-
Animal Kingdom has some of the best food in our opinion, so I probably wouldn't go to Sanaa to eat (although Sanaa is very yummy, too). That's just us, though.
Epcot, again lots of yummy food so I probably wouldn't do two sit down meals, plus I'd take a good look at the map and think about timing of your plan. You don't want to have to go front of the park to Remy, back to the front of the park, all the way over to Italy, back to leave, then back into WS again in the evening. It will still be hot in October and that walk around WS can be rough when you have to get somewhere. Test Track will definitely still be down for refurbishment.
I think the Epcot-Universal-MK hard core through EEH days will be tough- not undoable for a group of adults if you're all in good shape and ok in the heat- but you should just know that you will be absolutely wiped!
Never tried for V&A so good luck with that!

 

[KCO5988]

On your first MK arrival day, I don't see you making a Genie plus selection at 7am. Make sure you do that and then just modify it to be later in the day, I would make your jungle cruise one at 7am as it is one of the rides that books out the farthest, typically. If MK opens at 8am, make sure to book your next one right at 10am or if it opens at 9am book at 11am, you can modify this time too if you need to. Maybe you already know this and just didn't add that detail, but wanted to make sure you did.

 

[kdka421]

October 30th (MK day, hopefully extended evening hrs) - LL for ???, ILL for Tron. Rope drop 7 dwarves if we liked it enough before. LL and ride similar rides from Oct 26ths. Lots of walking around and shopping. Lunch at Cinderella's Royal Table. More rides in the afternoon. May nap for a couple of hours. Trying for V&A reservations this day also just in case Tuesday doesn't work. Then back to the park for extended hours. 6PM VQ for Tron if it was really good.

What do you think? Am I missing out on any great rides/experiences? Should I rope drop more? I like eating, which is why there is so many food things on there. My husband likes rides and my sister likes shopping. We are used to walking long distances and love it.

The only thing that jumped out at me - if you love food (and I'm guessing you appreciate good food, since you've noted a lot of more signature meals in your plans), I'd question your choice of Cinderella's Royal Table, especially since you're a party of adults. Unless you're very eager for the whole "eating in the castle" experience, this meal is not known for particularly good food. Especially if you end up with V&A or any sit down meal for this evening, I'd consider dropping this reservation -- but that said, if you've done your research and want to meet the characters, I totally get it!

Another thing to be aware of - you'll need to keep an eye on what dates end up being planned for the Halloween party in MK, they haven't been announced yet, but it could impact your plans as the park would close to day guests at 6pm those days unless you buy a party ticket.

 

[Steffii]

On your first MK arrival day, I don't see you making a Genie plus selection at 7am. Make sure you do that and then just modify it to be later in the day, I would make your jungle cruise one at 7am as it is one of the rides that books out the farthest, typically. If MK opens at 8am, make sure to book your next one right at 10am or if it opens at 9am book at 11am, you can modify this time too if you need to. Maybe you already know this and just didn't add that detail, but wanted to make sure you did.

Thank you for catching that!! I will look for an LL ride since we will be up anyway at 7EST and at the airport.

 

[Steffii]

The only thing that jumped out at me - if you love food (and I'm guessing you appreciate good food, since you've noted a lot of more signature meals in your plans), I'd question your choice of Cinderella's Royal Table, especially since you're a party of adults. Unless you're very eager for the whole "eating in the castle" experience, this meal is not known for particularly good food. Especially if you end up with V&A or any sit down meal for this evening, I'd consider dropping this reservation -- but that said, if you've done your research and want to meet the characters, I totally get it!

Another thing to be aware of - you'll need to keep an eye on what dates end up being planned for the Halloween party in MK, they haven't been announced yet, but it could impact your plans as the park would close to day guests at 6pm those days unless you buy a party ticket.

Haha was it that obvious that I am very food motivated? My two travel companions let me choose 90% of the dining, but my sister’s one request was BOG or CRT for lunch as she wanted to experience eating inside the castle so I had to oblige. I chose CRT because i heard that there is a little more interaction and food is possibly better? What do you think.

 

[Steffii]

Oh yeah and totally realized today that because of the halloween parties that extended hours wont be at MK we will definitely be getting a halloween ticket for one of the nights. I want to be red jasmine (when she was “in love” with Jafar).

 

[GSDGlitter]

Haha was it that obvious that I am very food motivated? My two travel companions let me choose 90% of the dining, but my sister’s one request was BOG or CRT for lunch as she wanted to experience eating inside the castle so I had to oblige. I chose CRT because i heard that there is a little more interaction and food is possibly better? What do you think.

We took extended family recently (party of 11!) and splurged on lunch at CRT. While the food wasn't as good or creative as our Storybook Dining dinner, it was very good. Even my niece with dietary restrictions was thrilled with her options. The kids had a ball meeting, hugging, and talking with the princesses and the adults felt our server was excellent. The princesses were also very patient with the teary eyed moms suddenly remembering to take a photo. It was expensive but the experience was well worth it for me.

 

[joshua4]

Also, on that first day, you might want to try for a virtual queue at 1 pm for Tron if you want an extra ride. Of course, that would mean waiting in a significant line probably if you get it but at least you would have the option in the event that you love it riding with the ILL and want to go again. Sounds like a super fun trip though.

 

[kdka421]

Haha was it that obvious that I am very food motivated? My two travel companions let me choose 90% of the dining, but my sister’s one request was BOG or CRT for lunch as she wanted to experience eating inside the castle so I had to oblige. I chose CRT because i heard that there is a little more interaction and food is possibly better? What do you think.

I plan my Disney trips around food so I strongly relate
If that was her request, I get it! I haven't personally eaten at either recently, but absolutely you're going to get better character interaction at CRT. I think from what I've read though, I'd agree that overall food reviews have been better at CRT than BOG so I think you made a good choice!

 

[Steffii]

We took extended family recently (party of 11!) and splurged on lunch at CRT. While the food wasn't as good or creative as our Storybook Dining dinner, it was very good. Even my niece with dietary restrictions was thrilled with her options. The kids had a ball meeting, hugging, and talking with the princesses and the adults felt our server was excellent. The princesses were also very patient with the teary eyed moms suddenly remembering to take a photo. It was expensive but the experience was well worth it for me.

Wow 11!! Those are some intense reservations. Kudos. Thanks for sharing your experience. I have tempered expectations about the food definitely. Its really about the ambiance, experience and the magic of course!

 

[Steffii]

I plan my Disney trips around food so I strongly relate
If that was her request, I get it! I haven't personally eaten at either recently, but absolutely you're going to get better character interaction at CRT. I think from what I've read though, I'd agree that overall food reviews have been better at CRT than BOG so I think you made a good choice!

Its dining ressies first then LL haha I really hope I can get a V&A res as we only have 60+3 as opposed to those who have 60+10.

 

[champagne&disney]

dinner at Takumi Tei at 6PM

So this is absolutely worth it but know that it is a 2-2.5 hour dinner so it will eat into a big chunk of park time!

Here is my recent review.

I will say that it is a ton of food and I never get motion sick (okay maybe almost after doing Everest 10x in 60 minutes one night) but I legit can't imagine going on GOTG after this much food. I was really glad I didn't buy an ILL for it on Friday after my meal as it was my original plan.

Just wanted to warn you!

 

[Mouse Tracker]

After reading your original post, my first impressions were that you might not be familiar with G+ and getting LL's.
A couple of times I read that you were going to "kill some time / couple hours" thinking you'd get several LL's during that time. I don't think that's possible based on the built in 2 hour gap between selections., not to mention what's going to be available. I think your itinerary is more of a wish list of want to do's. I like your ambitions but I think the ride aspect is going to be based on your actual eating/ shopping times and where yo are and what LL's are an option. Stacking may work but again the overlaps may be difficult.

 

[Steffii]

After reading your original post, my first impressions were that you might not be familiar with G+ and getting LL's.
A couple of times I read that you were going to "kill some time / couple hours" thinking you'd get several LL's during that time. I don't think that's possible based on the built in 2 hour gap between selections., not to mention what's going to be available. I think your itinerary is more of a wish list of want to do's. I like your ambitions but I think the ride aspect is going to be based on your actual eating/ shopping times and where yo are and what LL's are an option. Stacking may work but again the overlaps may be difficult.

Pretty familiar with G+ and LLs but not an expert. I was trying to summarize my day from my excel sheet so thats probably why it seems like I’m trying to get 3 LLs in 2 hrs. Definitely know the 7AM start time and which ones generally go faster and will try to get one every couple hours or so depending on the times available. At least we will have ILLs for the crazy popular rides so I am hoping we can get another 3-5 throughout the day.

 

[buzzgirls&dad]

I think you have some very ambitious plans when crowds tend to be high. During this time of year it is difficult to get as many A-list rides as you are predicting as MNSSHP will be going on four nights during your week, limiting MK park hours and shifting crowds to other parks. I would skip the TS lunch on your Epcot day and enjoy the offerings at F & W. Also, you may want to consider a nighttime dining package with seats to an Eat to the Beat concert and then Epcot fireworks. V & A can be hard to get at this time as tables are often held for sponsors of various F & W activities and wares. Lastly, if you have two different types of room classes guest services usually can not link for one continuous ressie. I would not wait on this as if it can be done they can do it right now. YMMV

 

[Tbiafore]

Hi everyone! I finally decided to join instead of lurking for weeks. I would love some advice on our current plan and strategy to maximize our short stay in Orlando. Three of us adults are going from October 26-31 as we thought it wouldn't be as hot as the summer and would be at the tail end of any major rain. We learned about DVT point rental and are staying at the Grand Floridian (split stay Oct 26-27 then October 27-31 in different room categories due to availability, but it was so worth it as we saved almost 6k off rack rate!!!). We would like to minimize standing in line so will definitely get Genie+ and ILL every day.

October 26th (1/2 MK day) - 7AM - get ILL for Tron and 7 Dwarves for the afternoon (we can do this on the day of check in correct?), fly out and arrive at MCO at 10:30AM, check in/drop off bags at resort at noon, get LL for Jungle Cruise or Space Mountain then head over to MK. Get late lunch at Skipper's Canteen, LL for Haunted Mansion, SM and Astro Blasters over the next few hours. Spend the rest of the time in the park riding rides and shopping. Dinner at California grill at 7:45PM to hopefully catch fireworks then back to GF.

We didn't feel the need to spend a whole day at HS since we are from LA and go to Disneyland a couple times a year.

October 27th (AK and HS day) - 7AM - get LL for Slinky, ILL for Avatar FOP and ROTR. Probably won't rope drop AK since Kilimanjaro Safari is not part of early entry anyway. Start at 9AM at the safari, ride FOP whenever it is our time, single rider Everest, Dinosaur then explore the park for a couple of hours, during this time get LL to Runaway Railway, Smugglers and Toy Story Mania. Uber to lunch at Sanaa at 1:30PM, then head to HS by about 3-3:30PM. Ride rides, Oga's in the late afternoon and Ronto wraps for snack. Open dinner plans, may eat at GF so we can rest right after.

October 28th (Epcot day, hopefully extended evening hrs) - 7AM VQ for GOTG, LL for Remy, ILL for GOTG. Haven't decided if rope drop is worth it since it'll be a long day. Mostly a walking around day eating a ton. LL for test track? Will it reopen by then? Lunch at Via Napoli (open to other suggestions) then back to GF for a 3 hr nap/swim. Return to park around 5PM, dinner at Takumi Tei at 6PM, then enjoy extended hours, VQ for GOTG if it was really good.

October 29th (Universal day) - trying for V&A dinner reservations

October 30th (MK day, hopefully extended evening hrs) - LL for ???, ILL for Tron. Rope drop 7 dwarves if we liked it enough before. LL and ride similar rides from Oct 26ths. Lots of walking around and shopping. Lunch at Cinderella's Royal Table. More rides in the afternoon. May nap for a couple of hours. Trying for V&A reservations this day also just in case Tuesday doesn't work. Then back to the park for extended hours. 6PM VQ for Tron if it was really good.

What do you think? Am I missing out on any great rides/experiences? Should I rope drop more? I like eating, which is why there is so many food things on there. My husband likes rides and my sister likes shopping. We are used to walking long distances and love it.

Finally, I am a little nervous about V&A reservations, esp with the split stay and ADR rules. I called Disney reservations and the CM said that they can bridge reservations to extend the ADR (in my case by 1 day) if it doesn't automatically do it at 6AM when the 60 + X goes into effect. The number opens at 7AM however. Anyone have any luck with this?

Thank you very much for your help!

Your October 28th day I think your going to run into problems. You are having two sit down meals. That will be anywhere from 1.5 to 2 hours each...Then you plan on leaving the park, that is an 1hr+ and then 3 hours napping/hotel...then a 1hr+ return. That is a lot of hours eaten up traveling and sitting (~7 hours). I dont see you spending much time in EPCOT doing anything if this is your plan.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

For your half HS day, Ronto Roasters closes at 3 but Docking bay 7 sells Ronto wraps after 3. Also for your Universal day, if you want to do as much there as you can in one day I doubt you’ll be “home” in time for any dinner reservation. Maybe plan on eating in one of the WWoHP restaurants, they’re themed really well. Also MK will be less crowded on party days and the other parks will be more crowded, just fyi. Sounds like a fun trip but y’all will be exhausted by the time it’s over. Have fun!!!

 

[Steffii]

I think you have some very ambitious plans when crowds tend to be high. During this time of year it is difficult to get as many A-list rides as you are predicting as MNSSHP will be going on four nights during your week, limiting MK park hours and shifting crowds to other parks. I would skip the TS lunch on your Epcot day and enjoy the offerings at F & W. Also, you may want to consider a nighttime dining package with seats to an Eat to the Beat concert and then Epcot fireworks. V & A can be hard to get at this time as tables are often held for sponsors of various F & W activities and wares. Lastly, if you have two different types of room classes guest services usually can not link for one continuous ressie. I would not wait on this as if it can be done they can do it right now. YMMV

Hi! I agree that the days are going to be busy and I’m not going to do Via Napoli anymore to make time (and space) for exploring, rides and trying out the food stalls. Ah thats a bummer that V&A will be more difficult esp with their new Michelin star. Ill still try both with ADR, waitlist and paid cancelation alerts as its a dream. Fingers crossed!

 

[Steffii]

Your October 28th day I think your going to run into problems. You are having two sit down meals. That will be anywhere from 1.5 to 2 hours each...Then you plan on leaving the park, that is an 1hr+ and then 3 hours napping/hotel...then a 1hr+ return. That is a lot of hours eaten up traveling and sitting (~7 hours). I dont see you spending much time in EPCOT doing anything if this is your plan.

Thats totally fair. I will likely not be doing TS anymore that day. I definitely need a nap because waking up at 6:30 for LL and doing extended hrs that day will wreck me lol. 1hr+ return? Is uber faster? Thats a lot of time spent on just transport. I dont mind getting a rideshare to save time.