View Full Version : Itinery Advice
Hi
We are off to Florida for the first time April 9th 2007 till 30th April(Me, wife Julie, 9 yr old daughter Abi & my 56 yr old mother). We are spending the first 2 weeks in a villa in Kissimmee then third week on gulf coast to recover.[msncool]
I've drawn up a rough itinery and would very much appreciate any advice/reccommendations on it and the type of tickets to buy from this site.
I'm aware the first week we are there it will be particularly busy[msncry] so i tried to ease us in gently and left MK till quieter 2nd week.
I've not included Busch gardens as going to try to go during 3rd week on gulf coast. Here goes....
Monday - (Arrive 6pm ish) Meal, villa, bed.
Tuesday - a.m Seaworld p.m Food shop and chill at villa
Wednesday - a.m AK p.m Villa eve Seaworld (mystify)
Thursday - a.m Epcot p.m Villa eve Dixie Stampede
Friday - a.m Discovery Cove p.m Discovery cove eve Villa
Saturday - a.m MGM p.m Villa eve MGM (Fantasmic)
Sunday - a.m Villa p.m Epcot eve Epcot (Illuminations)
Monday - a.m Wet'n'wild p.m Shopping eve Villa
Tuesday - a.m MK p.m Villa eve MK (Wishes)
Wednesday - a.m MK p.m Villa eve Old Town
Thursday - a.m Villa p.m DT Disney eve Cirque du soleil
Friday - a.m Return to a popular park p.m Shopping
Saturday - a.m Universal Studios p.m Villa eve Film at AMC PI
Sunday - a.m Islands of Adv p.m Villa eve Villa
Phew!! lot to get in but holiday of a lifetime and don't know if we will be able to afford to go back so want to experience as much as poss.[msnwink] As you can see i've put alot of p.m villa time but the amount of this time will depend on how we are feeling on the day!![msneek]
Look forward to hearing your opinions
Thanks
Tony
Well Tony, that is certainly an itinerary! But am sure you will have a whale of a time. If this is a trip of a lifetime I can understand you wanting to do as much as you can. If you have the stamina then go for it, as you can always add some more chilling out time at the villa if you need to.
One thing I would say is that the Disney parks are quite big, so you may need to give yourselves a day at each one. There is quite a ride to get into Magic Kingdom, for instance, as you park and then catch a train or a boat, which if there are queues at Easter will take a little more time. However, you could split Epcot so that you do the main park on half a day, getting there really early, and then do the World Showcase late one afternoon so you can stay for the wonderful firework and laser display.
As for Park Tickets, you can do no better than use the above link - Orlando Park Tickets - for them. They even deliver them to your villa for you. Everything is clearly explained too. If you are only going to do one park a day then you don't need the hopping option for Disney.
Have a great time!
Thanks Ellie some good advice, also forgot to mention that we are a family of wimps[msneek] so won't be queing for some of the more popular coasters etc so should save us a bit of time within the parks.
Tony
Tony, I agree with Ellie, you seem to have packed a hell of a lot into your time, which is understandable, as there is certainly a lot to pack in. I note that you have opted on quite a few of your days to go to a park for the morning, then back to the villa for the afternoon, then onto another park for the evening. If you want to do most of the rides, even without counting the queueing time, you are being optimistic. Of course that is just my opinion, but to truly make the most of the parks and to take everything in, you will need more than a few hours at each park. However, you are sure to have a fantastic time, and you will surely try your best to go back, Florida is just purely addictive! [msnsmile2]
Karen
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by DIKKO29
Thanks Ellie some good advice, also forgot to mention that we are a family of wimps[msneek] so won't be queing for some of the more popular coasters etc so should save us a bit of time within the parks.
Tony
[/quote]
Takes one to know one, Tony![msnwink]
I love the parks but avoid all roller coasters like the plague, but even so, there is plenty for us wimps to do.
My favourite is 'soaring' at Epcot, and it is very very popular, so go there early. Ideal for wimps as it is a simulator ride, and truly fantastic!
Have a great and very memorable time.:)
Hi Tony,
Your itinerary looks really good, with plenty of 'downtime' at the villa. The only advice I would give is don't try to stick to it too rigidly, and don't feel you have missed out if you don't feel like doing something on it one day. I have been here 4 weeks, and haven't done half as much as we planned, it is nice to play it be ear sometimes - have a great time anyway, you will I am sure
With a 9 year old, you may not need as much time at Universal/IoA - depends on the child - but if you are not coaster freaks then you may want to drop those days for R&R/Shopping days
pieman790
25-08-2006, 10:41
Hello Tony, it does seem like you will be busy. Try and follow the Itinery if you can but as other have said you will find that it is tiring. Have a back up plan just in case you need a couple of days by the pool or with your feet up resting. Your suggestion of half a day in some of the parks and the afternoon by the pool is good.
Have a great time!!
E. Cosgrove
25-08-2006, 10:48
Hi Tony, sounds like you are going to have fun.
You seem to have covered all the bases, but as others have said don't worry if you don't stick to rigidly to your itinerary.
You might want to substitute some of those early mornings with a gentler start, and you might find that some of those "am's" turn into almost all day!!!!!
If you really hate roller coasters you can always give IOA a miss and gain yourself a bit more downtime:)
For me personally, there isn't enough shopping planned:D:D:D[msnwink]
mollymolly
25-08-2006, 13:31
Hi Tony
Its a while since we've been to Disney parks but if they are still doing "fast track" tickets you could save yourself some time in the queue. It would be a shame to miss out on the exciting rides. We sorted out our ticket time and then went off to explore the other things in the area arriving back in time to walk on to the ride.
Your third week on the Gulf is a great idea - looks like you are going to need the time to relax.If you think you might want a day or two out at the Gulf contact the Gulf owners for suggestions.
Have a great holiday!
Bernadette
wrightbuxton
25-08-2006, 16:18
Hi Tony
why not think about swapping your Wednesday night trip to Old Town with your Saturday night at the pictures. There is a parade of old cars at Old Town which you may find interesting.
Julie
I would suggest having done the parks with different age groups at the same time to aim to do one park in a day and then if you have hopper tickets you can combine parks later on during your stay if there is anything you have missed or wish to do a second time. Animal Kingdom is the shortest day at the parks so this can easily be joined with an evening in another park!
You might find that although you will probably be up early on your first day with the time change, this day would be better used to chill and explore, check times of shows at parks etc. The main thing to try and be also is flexible - your morning at Seaworld will probably turn into all day at Seaworld! Also bear in mind that if you are going into a park just for the evening show you will need to be there early to get a good spot.
All in all, you have some lovely things planned, will have a great time and be planning your return trip on the plane home! You will certainly need the week on the coast to recover.....[msnwink]
Tony,
it sure a good Itinery. But just like Liz said, try to more flexible with it.
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by DIKKO29
Hi
Monday - (Arrive 6pm ish) villa,drop luggage off, go food shopping, keep going as long as possible - bed.
Tuesday - a.m Seaworld and chill at villa after staying for Mystify
Wednesday - a.m AK till about 4.00pm ish, meal and villa
Thursday - a.m Epcot p.m Villa eve Dixie Stampede
Friday - a.m Discovery Cove p.m Discovery cove eve Villa or shopping in area [pointe Orlando, and Premium OUtlets nearby]
Saturday - a.m MGM p.m Villa eve MGM (Fantasmic)
Sunday - a.m Shopping, afternoon/eve Epcot (Illuminations)
Monday - a.m Wet'n'wild -I would change this -you would prefer the Disney Water parks if you are wimps :) -You would anyway! eve Shopping
Tuesday - a.m MK all day eve MK (Wishes)
Wednesday - a.m A disney Water park, and mini golf PM Cinema and pleasure Island
Thursday - a.m Villa p.m DT Disney eve Cirque du soleil
Friday - Universal Studios all day and evening
Saturday - Shopping and Old Town
Sunday - a.m Islands of Adv [don't bother - mostly BIG rides -catch up on shopping :)] eve Villa packing
Look forward to hearing your opinions
Thanks
Tony[/quote]
Have changed it a bit, to give you a different option.
Just go and enjoy it!!
Hi Tony
I can sense the excitement and anticipation :) I am sure you will have a fantastic time. I would agree with what has been said above, prepare to spend a whole day (at least) at each of the parks. Epcot has some fantastic dining options and you may find it makes more sense to stay there in the evenings.
You won't find a whole day to bad if you pace yourselves, stop often for drinks and ice creams, or just to watch the world go by! You will spend a fair amount of time queuing and this will eat into your day without you even noticing! Also the weather shouldn't be too hot at that time of year, although we did have a slight blip in April this year! If we know it's going to be a long day, we often book somewhere for lunch. We like the Crystal Palace at MK or Coral Reef Restaurant at Epcot. A nice thing to do is the Dine with Shamu at Sea World before going to see the new show at Sea World - Believe.
It's a good idea to have a plan, it helps make the most of your time, but you'll find so many surprises and distractions that you'll also need to be flexible! :)
Have a great holiday!
Best wishes
Liesel
Hi Tony
great itinerary planner but like others have said don't try to stick to it religiously
you will find discovery cove a really relaxing day and it's just a quick nip across the road to seaworld if you want to catch one of their night time shows
i also dropped universal from our first visit, personally i didn't think it would be my childrens cup of tea and also by dropping it we had the perfect excuse to visit orlando again having missed it out[msnwink]
anyway you're going to have a great time no matter what you choose to do
Mizzy
Thanks everyone, some brilliant suggestions and keep them coming as us virgin Disneyers need lots of your expert advice and opinions to help plan a great holiday.[msnsmile2]
Sounds like the key to the plan is to be flexible with it, but at the same time i felt it important to get some sort of schedule to plan our days round. Obviously some days you have to play by ear and will depend how tired everyone is and as alot of you have mentioned there is so much to do in such little time, so no doubt something will have to give.
From looking at the itinery what sort of tickets do you think we should get???[msneek] so many different types!!
(When we booked Discovery Cove we asked for Busch Gardens tickets rather than SeaWorld)
Many thanks
Tony
Busch gardens is really nice, there is something for everyone. Some of the rides here are very white knuckle, so be warned! But if that is what you like give them a try, we love them[msnsmile2]
Karen
Hi Tony
discovery cove allow you one change to your booking free of charge so if you want seaworld tickets then a quick e.mail should sort it for you
as for which theme park tickets to buy, have a look at the link above, their prices are excellent and they will be happy to guide you
you have 6 disney days mentioned in your itinerary plus one fav park day and you also mention a waterpark so i would go for a 7 day magic your way park hopper with waterpark fun and more
seaworld can be included in your DC admission and personally i would question whether you feel universal is right for you and your family
it's very easy to buy too many tickets and end up not getting the full value from them, you could easily end up rushing around a park just so you can fit everything in
Mizzy
Paulinef
04-09-2006, 20:16
I agree with Mizzy.My top tip would be get there early.We have just come back (brilliant time had by all) and we found by dragging ourselves out of bed and getting to the parks when they opened we managed to get on the popular rides/shows with very little queuing. The fast track passes were brilliant,go back at the time on the pass and you go straight in!!
Bookworm
05-09-2006, 13:49
Wow Tony! I hope you're taking your vitamin pills! You have really packed a lot in but you're going to have a wonderful trip from the sound of it. Get to the parks early to avoid the crowds and you might find you're ready to go back to your villa and chill out by mid-afternoon. Then you can have a siesta to catch up sleep!
Have a good one
Joanne
Albert the Frog
05-09-2006, 14:39
I've got to leap to the defence of IoA and Universal and address the "big ride only" issue-We went this year with a 9 and a 6 year old and their favourite parks were these 2. In IoA there is Spiderman, the whole Cat in the Hat, Jurassic Park with it's Discovery centre, The Adventure type land with the magic fountain- Poseidon's Adventure which is a walk through, Popeyes Barges, Dudley Do Right,Flying Unicorn et al. In Universal, you haven't lived until you've done Shrek 4D and Terminator 2,The Jaws ride, Men In Black,Earthquake,etc , none of which are big rides.
Anyway having said that I agree that you can't do the parks in half a day so you might not get as much ad hoc time in your villa as you wish-Going to the Gulf for the 3rd week is a great idea and will certainly allow you time to recover-While your over there check our the Salt Rock Grill at India Beach-the food,service,prices and ambience are magic!
Just wanted to say "hello", as we are going to Orlando for the first time ever and at the same time as you!! We will have our 9 year old with us too, so lots in common!!
Your itinery looks good to me - although obviously I don't have a clue, never having been before!!. We have been to Disneyland Paris though and found that having morning in the park and then resting in the afternoon to return to the parks in the evening seemed to work well.
I think we will be trying to get some walking practice in before we set off, as otherwise we will have tired feet after the first hour!!
Hi Kate
Think we will have to get some walking practice in to[sporty], really excited about going and can't wait. Found this site really useful for us first timers, some really useful advice.
Tony
ncmurray
21-10-2006, 04:15
Hi Tony,
your itinerary looks busy, to say the least[msnscared] However you do it, you will have a fantastic time.
As someone already said, you can spend a lot of time just getting into the parks, so I would think that you should aim to spend a whole day in each of the Disney parks. Animal Kingdom and MGM are both smaller parks, so you might be able to do both of these in one day. It might be a good idea to buy a four day hopper ticket (from the above link!) as it may be cheaper than a 7 day, although I haven't checked the prices. You could also wait until you are there before you buy any other park tickets, because you might decide that the Disney parks are enough for you. There is so much to do in Orlando that you might come back with some park days still left!
Whatever you do, don't miss Soarin' at Epcot!! I guarantee that that is one ride you will all be talking about when you get home, even your mum!
I hope you have a fantastic holiday, and good luck with all the planning!