View Full Version : animal kinkdom for a first day visit ??
louisbourg
25-02-2008, 22:44
hello everyone
well , i have made a few posts , so as i say , april will be our first visit
i have just finished a really good book , disney world with kids 2008 (first book i read in 15 years :D must be excited !!!!
as we are 3 adults and a 10 year old boy i was thinking maybe this would be a good first day as it were , as we don't get in till early evening , so this seems like a good place to take it in our stride , and meet a few characters and get a feel for it
plus might get an idea when driving of where to head for next when we get our bearings as it were..... what do you all think ?
good idea or not ??? if i read correctly , we could do this park easily in a day or under , and then have a nice meal , then back to the villa for a swim ,and an early night, to get ready for the Big parks [msnoo]
can anyone tell me how far to AK from davenport ? or where i could find a map , can't wait for the info to come from our villa owner:D
many thanks in advance
sharon
Sharon,
Animal Kingdom is approximately 10 minutes from our villa at The Palms, there is a short cut route which the villa owner will probably let you know about.
I would say that Animal Kingdom is a pretty good choice to ease you into the theme parks.
florida4sun
25-02-2008, 23:04
Hi,
I always recommend Sea World as there a lot of sit down shows and chill out things. Animal Kingdom needs a full day and there is quite a bit of walking. I would also recommend getting to AK early for the safari.
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by louisbourg
hello everyone
well , i have made a few posts , so as i say , april will be our first visit
i have just finished a really good book , disney world with kids 2008 (first book i read in 15 years :D must be excited !!!!
as we are 3 adults and a 10 year old boy i was thinking maybe this would be a good first day as it were , as we don't get in till early evening , so this seems like a good place to take it in our stride , and meet a few characters and get a feel for it
plus might get an idea when driving of where to head for next when we get our bearings as it were..... what do you all think ?
good idea or not ??? if i read correctly , we could do this park easily in a day or under , and then have a nice meal , then back to the villa for a swim ,and an early night, to get ready for the Big parks [msnoo]
can anyone tell me how far to AK from davenport ? or where i could find a map , can't wait for the info to come from our villa owner:D
many thanks in advance
sharon
[/quote]
louisbourg
25-02-2008, 23:30
thank you very much , 10 mins sounds great , and yes , the lady told me about a new road , which apparently makes disney under 10 mins away (all things considered)
oh yes seaworld is on the top list for me and my sister , just thought with the little guy , it might be nice to see a few disney characters on his first day
oh my goodness , lots of research [msnsmile2] i am so loving it !!
thanks again for your help
sharon
ShirleyD
26-02-2008, 00:42
I would check the opening times and get there early. You will probably wake early anyway. A great little park
CERICROWLEY
26-02-2008, 00:48
I would say not to do a park on the day or your arrival.
As you might well be delayed, for one.
You will probably need to go shopping for the essentials. for two.
And you would waste a park ticket entry for just a couple of hours, for three.
And Animal Kingdom is not open that late in the evening due to the animals etc. for three.
If you really want to try and drag the day out a bit, I would do Downtown Disney and have a Ghiredellia ice cream YUMM. Its a great walk around from Downtown Disney to Westside, and doesn't cost a penny (apart from spending in the shops etc.) no parking costs etc, and you get to know more about the parks at Guest Services and Diseny Quest, this is a must for the kids. Mine have spent hours there, and I get my fix of the forum from the internet cafe upstairs.
louisbourg
26-02-2008, 00:50
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by ShirleyD
I would check the opening times and get there early. You will probably wake early anyway. A great little park[/quote]thank you shirley
my thoughts too , get there early , then a nice rest in the evening <blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by CERICROWLEY
I would say not to do a park on the day or your arrival.
As you might well be delayed, for one.
You will probably need to go shopping for the essentials. for two.
And you would waste a park ticket entry for just a couple of hours, for three.
And Animal Kingdom is not open that late in the evening due to the animals etc. for three.
If you really want to try and drag the day out a bit, I would do Downtown Disney and have a Ghiredellia ice cream YUMM. Its a great walk around from Downtown Disney to Westside, and doesn't cost a penny (apart from spending in the shops etc.) no parking costs etc, and you get to know more about the parks at Guest Services and Diseny Quest, this is a must for the kids. Mine have spent hours there, and I get my fix of the forum from the internet cafe upstairs.
[/quote]
thank you for your reply
we will arrive in the early evening (sunday), and i really meant the first day after we have had a sleep (on the monday)[msnsmile]
sharon
that sounds like a great idea. We also go to a park on our first day - why wait??!!!!!
The good thing is that you will be up and about nice and early due to jet lag! So you can get to the park early. Animal Kingdom do an opening ceremony a while before the stated opening time so it worth getting there early for that. I always think its a great first sight of Disney. There are lots of characters and some music. A really good start to the day. We usually to the Magic Kingdom on the first day and watch their opening ceremony. I don't think Epcot or Hollywood Studios do one but I may be wrong.
You need to check though that the day you will be going is not an Early Magic Day for resort guests as they don't do the ceremony on those days.
As someone has already said the safari is good to see early as its not yet too hot for the animals and you may see more. We tend to wander to the safari and pick up a fast pass and then ride the rapids coming back to the safari with fast pass after that. That usually works out good. Most people go straight to the safari ride at opening.
Have fun!!
L
Paula D-S
27-02-2008, 02:26
I'd say AK is a good park to visit on your first day. We are always up before dawn on our first day and the magic of meeting the characters is fantastic, set's the mood for the rest of the holiday.
The Lion King show is one of our family favourites in all the Disney parks.
Whatever you decide to do, I am sure you and your family will enjoy it. I agree you may be tired the first day, but I think the excitement of being in Florida gives you the energy to go out and do what you have to do. Be prepared to be very tired after your day out though. I am always tired during the evening of our first full day, mind you, we have usually been up early and done lots of things.
Have a wonderful time.
Sandra
louisbourg
28-02-2008, 22:59
You need to check though that the day you will be going is not an Early Magic Day for resort guests as they don't do the ceremony on those days.
oooooo looks like it is an "extra magic hours day" 28th april
might have a re think [msnsmile]
[/quote]
is it morning of evening? Its only if it is an early one that there is no ceremony.
You can still go obviously but at opening time the park will already be busy. It depends on what you want.
I would recommend the magic Kingdom for the first day - even if you only stay till the parade. The opening ceremony there is fantastic and really gets kids (and adults) really geared up for what they see.
L
I would also reccommend Magic Kingdom for 1st day, it captures the whole magic, splendour and character for your holiday, has some great family rides, see loads of characters, and with no littluns will be a gentle stroll around soaking up the atmosphere [msnsmile2]
ShirleyD
29-02-2008, 02:42
If you have a park hopper ticket then you won't feel you have to stay till the end, any rides you missed could be slotted in on another Disney day later in the holiday.
We did Animal Kingdom on our first day:D and it was that good we went again for our last day[msnsmile2]