Definitely go online and buy your park passes so you can get fast passes for the rides your girls will want to see. But the best advice is to take advantage of early morning park hours. With little ones you are up early anyway and the park will seem empty compared to later in the day. Spend your afternoons at the pool at your hotel so the little ones can recharge and Mommy and Daddy can get a drink.
Because our kids liked Magic Kingdom best we found Grand Floridian more convenient, we did have a room overlooking the lagoon so we could see the fireworks and the boat parade.
I didn't find it stuffy. The pool at the Beach Club is better, but at 4 and 6 they'll like the Grand Floridian fine.
Agree about breakfast at Cinderella's castle. At that age if your kids are like mine they'll be more interested in seeing the princesses and maybe getting their picture and autograph than they are with going on rides. So you might want to see if you can get one of those autograph picture books online. during this breakfast the princesses (like 5 of them) come up to every table and meet your kids and you don't need to wait in line like the other places. Plus the food isn't bad.
Lastly, there is an app, download it (won't do much until you get there), but when you're there it tells you wait time for rides, location of the princesses and other characters, and other useful info.
One really last thing is one year we went to a dinner show called hoop-de-doo, the kids loved it and that too books up fast, two seatings per night I believe but they sell out well in advance.
With kids another option to consider is the Disney Vacation Club (DVC)
This is a group that rents out owners timeshares when they are not staying there. Last time we went, I got a great 2 bedroom, with a pull out sofa in the living room and kitchen, for the basically the same price as a hotel. I was actually looking at renting 2 rooms, since my kids are older, but this was much cheaper. They have rooms in any hotel that also does timeshares (most of the nice ones do). It was super easy.
Went to WDW in 2014 during Spring Break, and we used the Unofficial Guide to Disney World (used it again in the Summer of 2015). Suggests what to bring, the lowdown of hotels both on and off site, and an exhaustive review on every restaurant and attraction at Disney (plus SeaWorld Orlando and Universal Studios Orlando).
The book also has a companion website where you can look at historical forecasts on which parks will be the busiest and which parks will have the least crowds on a given day. They have crown-sourced wait times for just about every ride (including some that Disney doesn't publish), which I found to be much more accurate than the Disney posted wait times. And you can make a schedule for your day at the park, adding which rides and shows you want to go to, when you plan to get to the park, when you plan to stop for lunch or dinner, when you want to leave the park, and it will generate a recommended schedule that minimizes waiting in line and recommends Fastpasses. When my family went during Spring Break 2014 (and Spring Break is the busiest time of year for WDW), we only ever waited longer than 20 minutes for a ride once all week.
We used this as the Bible and it has been dead on everytime we've gone
Have you considered a Disney Cruise? We took our kids on it
The app for your phone is the #1 things that helped us on our trips. Real time updates of the lines so that you don't wast time. We really maximized our time there. It will let you plan everything ahead but strength of it was giving info at the moment. https://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/touring-plans - ( New Window )
My family would go every summer when I was a kid. When it got hot, we went back to the hotel and swam in the hotel pool everyday.
Grand Floridian and Contemporary are great, but that's a lot of money. Sure they're great for the Magic Kingdom, but that's not the only park you're going to.
All Star resorts have fun atmospheres. Many of the cheaper ones do too. Consider this, if your kids want a day at the pool to relax and are exhausted from the park, what's your plan?
which are suites. Our kids are just a year older than yours. The extra room was well worth it for me and my wife. We felt like we were on vacation too, because we had a little privacy. There are suites at the Animal Kingdom lodge too, but the animal park is way out there. The neat thing about the animal kingdom hotel is that there are animals on the grounds, apparently. Yes, suites are expensive, but it was worth it for us.
The trip before we stayed at the Contemporary. My kids got a real kick out of the monorail going through their hotel, and I thought it was really nice. There are suites in the tower next door, you may want to check into that. You can walk to the Magic Kingdom from there. We spent most of our trip in the Magic Kingdom, second being Epcot but only because we had dinner reservations every night there. We walked over to the Yacht Club, that was also really nice. The hotel is much bigger than the Boardwalk, so your kids might have more fun there because there are more kids. But you are going at Easter, so you may want the smallest hotel possible.
The Boardwalk is great, but my kids didn't love Epcot. We liked going to dinner in the different countries (Japan was the best), and if you want to do that, book your reservations as soon as you book your hotel. Small World can help with that. There is some Nemo-related and animal stuff in Epcot, that's all my kids were interested in.
Anyway, as others have said, you are going at a really busy time. Disney World is really good at handling crowds, but plan, plan, plan, then plan some more. Especially fast passes. Download the App, you can do your planning on the go. We tried to get fast passes for the morning, like 10 o'clock. Then we would get to the parks when they opened. We would go on a ride or two while the park wasn't totally packed, then we would have our fast passes. By lunchtime, the kids were done, so we'd go back to the hotel for lunch and swimming. Sometimes we went back to the parks, but only if there was something we really wanted to do, and we didn't feel rushed. Anyway, good luck!
My family would go every summer when I was a kid. When it got hot, we went back to the hotel and swam in the hotel pool everyday.
Grand Floridian and Contemporary are great, but that's a lot of money. Sure they're great for the Magic Kingdom, but that's not the only park you're going to.
All Star resorts have fun atmospheres. Many of the cheaper ones do too. Consider this, if your kids want a day at the pool to relax and are exhausted from the park, what's your plan?
You really can't push small kids all day at a park, day after day. The best daily itinerary with small kids:
1) Wake up. Eat quick breakfast in room.
2) Arrive at park 15 minutes before opening. Enjoy having the run of the park while most people sleep in.
3) Since you ate breakfast early, you're ready for lunch by 11-11:30, just when the rides are really getting packed.
4) Ride a few more less popular rides after lunch.
5) Head back to your hotel. Naps for kids if appropriate. Cool off in pool, just relax in general.
6) Return to park late afternoon, just when the masses have had enough.
liked Soarin and Mission Space at Epcot, the rest of the park, not so much.
at their ages (4 and 6) not sure I would even go to Epcot. Magic Kingdom and possibly Animal Kingdom would be it most likely of the Disney Parks.
Really depends on the kid. We took my daughter when she was 4 and figured we wouldn't spend much time in Epcot. But she loved it, especaially all the countries.
You really can't push small kids all day at a park, day after day. The best daily itinerary with small kids:
1) Wake up. Eat quick breakfast in room.
2) Arrive at park 15 minutes before opening. Enjoy having the run of the park while most people sleep in.
3) Since you ate breakfast early, you're ready for lunch by 11-11:30, just when the rides are really getting packed.
4) Ride a few more less popular rides after lunch.
5) Head back to your hotel. Naps for kids if appropriate. Cool off in pool, just relax in general.
6) Return to park late afternoon, just when the masses have had enough.
Really, it's a good plan for any age.
When we've gone, somewhere around 2PM or so, the grandparents would take the ones under 6 back to the hotel while the older kids and adults would stay at the park. Then the group would reconvene for fireworks in the evening or meet the rest of us out for dinner.
I also agree that 4 and 6 probably isn't going to get much out of Epcot. For older kids it was one of their favorite parks between Soarin', Test track, Mission to Mars and the sights around the World, they really like it.
are 4 and 6 too young? wife is worried my youngest wont remember. They love the princess stuff so much right now and i almost dont want them to lose that aspect. I want them to see it and have their dreams come true. i know i sound sappy and shit but i would pay to see their young smiles there.
are 4 and 6 too young? wife is worried my youngest wont remember. They love the princess stuff so much right now and i almost dont want them to lose that aspect. I want them to see it and have their dreams come true. i know i sound sappy and shit but i would pay to see their young smiles there.
You have to know you're kids. We brought our daughter when she was 4 and she had a blast. I've seen other 4 year olds who get pushed around in strollers all day and are clearly only half into it.
Are your kids active, high energy? I'm sure you've brought them to other local parks, so that's you're barometer. And see above on managing the day, and providing rest time, important even for the most active, high energy kids.
And assuming you mean they are 4 and 6 now, they'll be about 5 and 7 next year.
Liked them all. The first two are "deluxe", Port Orleans is "moderate". All have excellent main pools for your mid-day break. We've also visited a lot of the other resorts, and were impressed with the theming at all but the low end "All-Star" facilities. The more spread-out resorts have additional, smaller pools that can be very nice and much quieter (see the Alligator Bayou area of P.O.R.).
The deluxe resorts will be crazily expensive over the Easter break, especially the Grand Floridian. Saratoga Springs and Old Key West might be more reasonable. The monorail is a great convenience, though I personally wouldn't pay the premium for the three monorail hotels during peak periods. The buses really aren't bad, when you consider how much ground they have to cover and how many people they have to move. The new system that displays wait times at the stops helps a lot.
BTW, be sure to book your Fast Pass+ reservations as soon as the 60-day window opens. The trick is to book your daily allotment of three back-to-back, for the first three or four hours the park is open, so you can use them up and then start booking more rides on the fly. If you play it right, you can ride all the good stuff and hardly ever wait in line.
As for Extra Magic Hours, be realistic: if your young family can't comfortably get to the park for an 8am rope-drop on a given day, consider hitting a park that doesn't have EMH that day; the crowds will be lighter.
4 is a little young. If she is prone to tantrums, you may want to wait a year.
Beware of the cheep Disney hotels. They require you to use buses to get to the various parks. Disney buses suck.
monorails are better?
they are 3 and one is turning 6 on sept 11. when we go they will be 4 and 6
The monorail is a short ride, so yes it's faster and better. For small kids it's like a fun ride in itself. The downside is price. All the monorail resorts are premium level. It being Easter week you're likely looking at $500+ per night.
I disagree that the bus uniformly sucks. At the discount resorts they kind of do, as they bounce from resort to resort before going to the park. A long slog. The Moderate resorts have a direct bus connection and are not a bad ride IMO.
liked Soarin and Mission Space at Epcot, the rest of the park, not so much.
at their ages (4 and 6) not sure I would even go to Epcot. Magic Kingdom and possibly Animal Kingdom would be it most likely of the Disney Parks.
Frozen ride at Norway just opened up. Imagine most 4- and 6-year old girls will love this ride. Between that, Nemo ride, the Turtle Talk with Crush thing, Imagination ride and the acquirium, if you are in Disney for 4+ days, Epcot is worth a day... especially when its a more fun park for the adults (drinking, countries, good food, etc)
i might be willing to pay for the convenience. Friday to tuesday should be enough time right?
Yes 4 or 5 days is good, the kids will be exhausted and so will the both of you. I believe Disney has babysitters too, incase you and momma want to head to Downtown Disney one evening. I remember using them one night when the kids were smallish.
As mentioned, getting in early to the park then getting back after lunch for a snooze or pool time will keep you refreshed. Head back out early evening after an early supper. The kids will need the knap or else.
Eating meals at slightly off times will help get you seated faster. Booking the meal times is super important. If you want to eat in the castle at the Princess Meal, book now. That is sold out in a flash.
Keep water handy. You don't want to spend $2.50 for a bottle of water when you can buy a case for that amount. Rooms should have a refrig. If not ask for one. Important for juice and milk for the kids. Depending on what your family eats for breakfast, suggest you bring some with you. Save yourself $50 for breakfast. We brought milk, cereals, donuts, fruits etc. Eat in your room.
Oh, and the buses are not horrific. They get crowded at the end of the day and mid morning. The AC is good. They run quickly and often. I have never had a problem with the buses and I was annual pass holder for years.
1) If you have rented a car then you can just use that, rather than Disney buses/boats. I believe you get a parking ticket when you stay at any on-premise hotel.
2) No matter what hotel you pick, it will be convenient to one park but not to the others. Then there are the lower cost options, such as Caribbean Beach, which need transportation to all the parks. Again, if you have a car its no big deal.
3) Definitely do Epcot and the World Showcase. Kids so love it, and its a great option for a better dining experience than other parks. All the countries have a sit down, better restaurant, so depending on what kind of food you want you can get it there (check the country list). For example Morocco has a restaurant with Belly Dancers (very tasteful), Mexico has a Mexican restaurant and an outdoor Margarita bar, etc. They all also have quick food places.
4) All the parks always have characters roaming around, not just MK. You can't help but see them.
sure the 4 year old won't remember the trip, but who cares as long as the family has a great time while you are there. And the best advice is to stay on the monorail, take advantage of early morning hours, and spend the hottest part of the day at the hotel pool.
1) Buy a Disney guide book. Birnbaum's is considered the bible.
2) Use a Disney Specialist travel agent. I have used Amber at Small World Vacations a few times. They always seem to score upgrades and freebies. They offer better payment terms than if you book directly with Disney.
3) BOOK EARLY as AVAILABLE. Not kidding about this one.
All of these.
I can also give you the info for a Disney travel specialist that we used. She booked all of our sit-down meals months ahead of time, and we were very glad she did. She also booked our FastPass rides well in advance
Also, get the Disney app, which gives you info on all the rides, including wait times, and through which you can also change your FastPass appointments and see what is available.
As for where to stay, we stayed at Port Orleans, which was OK but nothing great in my opinion. If you can splurge, stay at Grand Floridian, Beach Club or one of the other higher-end resorts.
Disney has been my customer for the past 6 years. Been there about 50 times during that span including family vacations.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
thanks for all the suggestions.... i guess i have alot of work to do
Disney has been my customer for the past 6 years. Been there about 50 times during that span including family vacations.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
That's shocking, I always found Port Orleans good. What was wrong with the food?
Be honestly, you don't need to eat at a real restaurant for every meal. The counter service places often have good selection and variety.
Me too. I found the food at Disney to be very good
Since you're staying Friday (travel day) to Tuesday (travel day), that mean you have only 3 full days Sat-Mon in Orlando.
How many of the Theme parks are you planning to visit, that is very important to figure out now. So you want to visit all four parks (MK, Epcot, Disney Studios and Animal Kingdom) or only planning to visit 2-3 parks?
Personally, on travel days (Friday and Tuesday for you), we usually skip the parks and visit Downtown Disney instead or go to one of their two miniature golf courses. Just my opinion but not worth going to the parks when you're not going to be there for a full day.
Disney has been my customer for the past 6 years. Been there about 50 times during that span including family vacations.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
no apologies needed. I do not set their menus and I don't work for them. I sell products to them.
The food at the "food courts" at the resorts is basically food court food. There are many high quality "restaurants" on property (parks and resorts) and that is what I would target. However, every resort does not have a great restaurant. For example, at Animal Kingdom Lodge I would eat at Sana.... an awesome restaurant. However, you may not like the food at the quick serve location behind the pool. Huge difference.
This is why I recommend the dining plan. Get the one which gives you a table service meal, a counter service meal and a snack item. Then, here is how you maximize it...
Use your snack item for breakfast. Get a yogurt parfait or something and then pay for a cup of coffee. If you are staying at a place like the Beach Club or Caribbean Beach, they also have a market where you can buy milk and a box of cereal (and bowls and spoons) so you can eat cheap in your room for breakfast and save your snack item for a mid day snack. Use your counter service meal at lunch. This does not have to be a burger. You can find much better food than that at a counter in the parks. Fish & Chips, BBQ Ribs, etc. Save your full service meal for dinner. Do not waste your time taking your kids to a character breakfast. Total waste of money. If they insist on a character meal, then do it at dinner.
For the full service dinner you need to make reservations well in advance. You cannot show up and then try to find a place on the same day. Especially when you are traveling during their busy season. You can download their app too and make reservations that way if you don't like to use your home computer.
You can order anything you want with the dining plan. The most expensive thing on the menu and it also includes an appetizer and desert. Just does not include any alcohol. Then, you are not concerned with the cost of the meal. It is a fixed daily price. I can tell you that the dining plan always costs us less than if we had to purchase those meals individually.
We weren't sure how our kids would like a cruise ship for a full week. So we decided to so a combo Land\Sea vacation. Stayed at the Disney resorts for 5 days\4 nights and then did a 4 day\3 night Disney Cruise.
Best of all the Disney hotel had easy travel arrangements to the Cruise ship. The hotel transferred all out luggage's to our cabin on the cruise ship.
In the end, as much as the kids loved visiting the parks, they enjoyed the cruise ship much much more and even talk about it today.
FYI, if you do a Disney Cruise ship, skip any and all character meet and greets. On the Cruise ship, they have designated times to meet characters and get photos\signatures and was supper easy to get to 20+ characters in less then an hours time without waiting on long lines.
any princess stuff. so Magic kingdom seems to be the only one that we will be at.
honestly, when my kids get older, i will visit again to take full advantage of theme park but for now its the joy of my kids is all i want
If you want princess stuff, then you can't beat breakfast at Cinderella's castle at Magic Kingdom and then visit Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, I've linked it below....
Make sure you book very early for both, as reservations and appointments fill up very quickly months in advance. Your 4 and 6 year old girls will love it!
Also don't listen to some of these comments about Epcot not being for little kids. They have greatly improved the attractions for that age group in the park the last 5-7 years. Soarin is a great ride, Turtle Talk with Crush is a great interactive Q&A with the kids. They added the Frozen ride on Norway and not sure if your girls what Phineas and Ferb on Disney channel but there is a VERY fun interactive game you play at Epcot's showcase of the world where you have to visit various different countries to find Perry the Platypus. My 4 and 6 year old easily spent 3 hours on the hunt for clues and finding Perry and wanted to spend more time looking for him before we had to do other activities.
If you don't buy the Disney unoffical book, get yourself familiar with fast pass lines at all the parks you're planning to visit.
Download one of the many apps that show you line wait times and get a feel for which rides fill up quickly and get fast passes for them during your trip.
Just off the top of my head, here's the rides that have the LONGEST lines and definitely put in Fast Pass requests for them.
Magic Kingdom
Peter Pan - Very fun kids ride but no idea why but ALWAYS has a long wait time.
Epcot
Soarin - Usually around 11am-12pm, all the Fast Passes will sell out and wait times usually go up to 2+ hours
Disney Hollywood Studios
Toy Story Midway Mania Ride - Absolutely INSANE lines. The ride it ok and fun for kids but on various visits, I've seen the wait time for this ride in the 2-3 hour range. Definitely get a Fast Pass for this one!
Animal Kingdom
Kilimanjaro Safaris - I love having a Fast Pass and getting on the ride in less then 5 minutes compared to people waiting over an hour+. Also get there early for this one, as the animals are way more active in the early morning.
Disney has been my customer for the past 6 years. Been there about 50 times during that span including family vacations.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
That's shocking, I always found Port Orleans good. What was wrong with the food?
Be honestly, you don't need to eat at a real restaurant for every meal. The counter service places often have good selection and variety.
The only meals I had at Port Orleans were breakfast, but the eggs on the hot food line were horrible and barely edible, and most of the other breakfast foods were similarly bad. The food at the sitdown places and even the quickserve offerings at the parks was generally good, but the main issue there, imho, is that there are not enough restaurants. Everything seemingly is too crowded, and the table service restaurants are an hours-long wait if you didn't make a reservation well ahead of time (which we thankfully did).
The only meals I had at Port Orleans were breakfast, but the eggs on the hot food line were horrible and barely edible, and most of the other breakfast foods were similarly bad. The food at the sitdown places and even the quickserve offerings at the parks was generally good, but the main issue there, imho, is that there are not enough restaurants. Everything seemingly is too crowded, and the table service restaurants are an hours-long wait if you didn't make a reservation well ahead of time (which we thankfully did).
Did you stay at the French Quarter of Port Orleans? I really didn't like that section of the hotel and food court there was bad, just like you described.
Not sure why, but on the Riverside part of Port Orleans, the food court was much better and really like overall feel of that section of that hotel compared to French Quarter.
prices were in the 6k at the contemporary from friday to tuesday, with meal plan.
I've stayed at 12 different resorts at DisneyWorld of varying price ranges and in all honesty, check out the Disney All Star hotels. Nightly cost are around $100 per night compared to the $300+ of the higher end ones.
Especially with your kids being 4 and 6 years old, they'll never remember the hotel, so why pay 3x the cost to stay at the fancier hotels when the All Star hotel will do the trick and have two pools each to keep the kids active when not in the parks. Plus with only 3 full days at Orlando, majority of your time will be spent at the parks and you'll only mostly be sleeping in the hotel. So is it worth the extra cost to sleep in a nicer setting?
Save your money on your first visit and spend on the bigger hotels on a future trip there when the kids are older and can appreciate it better.
The only meals I had at Port Orleans were breakfast, but the eggs on the hot food line were horrible and barely edible, and most of the other breakfast foods were similarly bad. The food at the sitdown places and even the quickserve offerings at the parks was generally good, but the main issue there, imho, is that there are not enough restaurants. Everything seemingly is too crowded, and the table service restaurants are an hours-long wait if you didn't make a reservation well ahead of time (which we thankfully did).
Did you stay at the French Quarter of Port Orleans? I really didn't like that section of the hotel and food court there was bad, just like you described.
Not sure why, but on the Riverside part of Port Orleans, the food court was much better and really like overall feel of that section of that hotel compared to French Quarter.
prices were in the 6k at the contemporary from friday to tuesday, with meal plan.
I've stayed at 12 different resorts at DisneyWorld of varying price ranges and in all honesty, check out the Disney All Star hotels. Nightly cost are around $100 per night compared to the $300+ of the higher end ones.
Especially with your kids being 4 and 6 years old, they'll never remember the hotel, so why pay 3x the cost to stay at the fancier hotels when the All Star hotel will do the trick and have two pools each to keep the kids active when not in the parks. Plus with only 3 full days at Orlando, majority of your time will be spent at the parks and you'll only mostly be sleeping in the hotel. So is it worth the extra cost to sleep in a nicer setting?
Save your money on your first visit and spend on the bigger hotels on a future trip there when the kids are older and can appreciate it better.
Biggest reason: the All-Star Resorts have double beds. The width of two crib mattresses. I'm not an infant, and I'm never sharing one of those again.
The moderate resorts, like Port Orleans, have queen beds. It's costs more, but way less than the deluxe hotels.
You left a bunch out... i'll add. btw you can get your fast passes 2 months ahead of your scheduled visit if staying on a Disney property... if going over Easter I suggest you are online at midnight of your eligibility. Most of the below rides will sell out fast.
Magic Kingdom
Peter Pan - Very fun kids ride but no idea why but ALWAYS has a long wait time. Space Mountain
Seven Dwarfs Mine Ride
Epcot
Soarin - Usually around 11am-12pm, all the Fast Passes will sell out and wait times usually go up to 2+ hours Frozen ride at Norway
Test Track
Disney Hollywood Studios
Toy Story Midway Mania Ride - Absolutely INSANE lines. The ride it ok and fun for kids but on various visits, I've seen the wait time for this ride in the 2-3 hour range. Definitely get a Fast Pass for this one!
Animal Kingdom
Kilimanjaro Safaris - I love having a Fast Pass and getting on the ride in less then 5 minutes compared to people waiting over an hour+. Also get there early for this one, as the animals are way more active in the early morning.
Because our kids liked Magic Kingdom best we found Grand Floridian more convenient, we did have a room overlooking the lagoon so we could see the fireworks and the boat parade.
I didn't find it stuffy. The pool at the Beach Club is better, but at 4 and 6 they'll like the Grand Floridian fine.
Agree about breakfast at Cinderella's castle. At that age if your kids are like mine they'll be more interested in seeing the princesses and maybe getting their picture and autograph than they are with going on rides. So you might want to see if you can get one of those autograph picture books online. during this breakfast the princesses (like 5 of them) come up to every table and meet your kids and you don't need to wait in line like the other places. Plus the food isn't bad.
Lastly, there is an app, download it (won't do much until you get there), but when you're there it tells you wait time for rides, location of the princesses and other characters, and other useful info.
One really last thing is one year we went to a dinner show called hoop-de-doo, the kids loved it and that too books up fast, two seatings per night I believe but they sell out well in advance.
Link - ( New Window )
The book also has a companion website where you can look at historical forecasts on which parks will be the busiest and which parks will have the least crowds on a given day. They have crown-sourced wait times for just about every ride (including some that Disney doesn't publish), which I found to be much more accurate than the Disney posted wait times. And you can make a schedule for your day at the park, adding which rides and shows you want to go to, when you plan to get to the park, when you plan to stop for lunch or dinner, when you want to leave the park, and it will generate a recommended schedule that minimizes waiting in line and recommends Fastpasses. When my family went during Spring Break 2014 (and Spring Break is the busiest time of year for WDW), we only ever waited longer than 20 minutes for a ride once all week.
We used this as the Bible and it has been dead on everytime we've gone
https://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/touring-plans
The app for your phone is the #1 things that helped us on our trips. Real time updates of the lines so that you don't wast time. We really maximized our time there. It will let you plan everything ahead but strength of it was giving info at the moment.
https://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/touring-plans - ( New Window )
My family would go every summer when I was a kid. When it got hot, we went back to the hotel and swam in the hotel pool everyday.
Grand Floridian and Contemporary are great, but that's a lot of money. Sure they're great for the Magic Kingdom, but that's not the only park you're going to.
All Star resorts have fun atmospheres. Many of the cheaper ones do too. Consider this, if your kids want a day at the pool to relax and are exhausted from the park, what's your plan?
The trip before we stayed at the Contemporary. My kids got a real kick out of the monorail going through their hotel, and I thought it was really nice. There are suites in the tower next door, you may want to check into that. You can walk to the Magic Kingdom from there. We spent most of our trip in the Magic Kingdom, second being Epcot but only because we had dinner reservations every night there. We walked over to the Yacht Club, that was also really nice. The hotel is much bigger than the Boardwalk, so your kids might have more fun there because there are more kids. But you are going at Easter, so you may want the smallest hotel possible.
The Boardwalk is great, but my kids didn't love Epcot. We liked going to dinner in the different countries (Japan was the best), and if you want to do that, book your reservations as soon as you book your hotel. Small World can help with that. There is some Nemo-related and animal stuff in Epcot, that's all my kids were interested in.
Anyway, as others have said, you are going at a really busy time. Disney World is really good at handling crowds, but plan, plan, plan, then plan some more. Especially fast passes. Download the App, you can do your planning on the go. We tried to get fast passes for the morning, like 10 o'clock. Then we would get to the parks when they opened. We would go on a ride or two while the park wasn't totally packed, then we would have our fast passes. By lunchtime, the kids were done, so we'd go back to the hotel for lunch and swimming. Sometimes we went back to the parks, but only if there was something we really wanted to do, and we didn't feel rushed. Anyway, good luck!
at their ages (4 and 6) not sure I would even go to Epcot. Magic Kingdom and possibly Animal Kingdom would be it most likely of the Disney Parks.
My family would go every summer when I was a kid. When it got hot, we went back to the hotel and swam in the hotel pool everyday.
Grand Floridian and Contemporary are great, but that's a lot of money. Sure they're great for the Magic Kingdom, but that's not the only park you're going to.
All Star resorts have fun atmospheres. Many of the cheaper ones do too. Consider this, if your kids want a day at the pool to relax and are exhausted from the park, what's your plan?
You really can't push small kids all day at a park, day after day. The best daily itinerary with small kids:
1) Wake up. Eat quick breakfast in room.
2) Arrive at park 15 minutes before opening. Enjoy having the run of the park while most people sleep in.
3) Since you ate breakfast early, you're ready for lunch by 11-11:30, just when the rides are really getting packed.
4) Ride a few more less popular rides after lunch.
5) Head back to your hotel. Naps for kids if appropriate. Cool off in pool, just relax in general.
6) Return to park late afternoon, just when the masses have had enough.
Really, it's a good plan for any age.
at their ages (4 and 6) not sure I would even go to Epcot. Magic Kingdom and possibly Animal Kingdom would be it most likely of the Disney Parks.
Really depends on the kid. We took my daughter when she was 4 and figured we wouldn't spend much time in Epcot. But she loved it, especaially all the countries.
Something for everyone there.
1) Wake up. Eat quick breakfast in room.
2) Arrive at park 15 minutes before opening. Enjoy having the run of the park while most people sleep in.
3) Since you ate breakfast early, you're ready for lunch by 11-11:30, just when the rides are really getting packed.
4) Ride a few more less popular rides after lunch.
5) Head back to your hotel. Naps for kids if appropriate. Cool off in pool, just relax in general.
6) Return to park late afternoon, just when the masses have had enough.
Really, it's a good plan for any age.
When we've gone, somewhere around 2PM or so, the grandparents would take the ones under 6 back to the hotel while the older kids and adults would stay at the park. Then the group would reconvene for fireworks in the evening or meet the rest of us out for dinner.
I also agree that 4 and 6 probably isn't going to get much out of Epcot. For older kids it was one of their favorite parks between Soarin', Test track, Mission to Mars and the sights around the World, they really like it.
You have to know you're kids. We brought our daughter when she was 4 and she had a blast. I've seen other 4 year olds who get pushed around in strollers all day and are clearly only half into it.
Are your kids active, high energy? I'm sure you've brought them to other local parks, so that's you're barometer. And see above on managing the day, and providing rest time, important even for the most active, high energy kids.
And assuming you mean they are 4 and 6 now, they'll be about 5 and 7 next year.
Beware of the cheep Disney hotels. They require you to use buses to get to the various parks. Disney buses suck.
Beware of the cheep Disney hotels. They require you to use buses to get to the various parks. Disney buses suck.
monorails are better?
they are 3 and one is turning 6 on sept 11. when we go they will be 4 and 6
The deluxe resorts will be crazily expensive over the Easter break, especially the Grand Floridian. Saratoga Springs and Old Key West might be more reasonable. The monorail is a great convenience, though I personally wouldn't pay the premium for the three monorail hotels during peak periods. The buses really aren't bad, when you consider how much ground they have to cover and how many people they have to move. The new system that displays wait times at the stops helps a lot.
BTW, be sure to book your Fast Pass+ reservations as soon as the 60-day window opens. The trick is to book your daily allotment of three back-to-back, for the first three or four hours the park is open, so you can use them up and then start booking more rides on the fly. If you play it right, you can ride all the good stuff and hardly ever wait in line.
As for Extra Magic Hours, be realistic: if your young family can't comfortably get to the park for an 8am rope-drop on a given day, consider hitting a park that doesn't have EMH that day; the crowds will be lighter.
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4 is a little young. If she is prone to tantrums, you may want to wait a year.
Beware of the cheep Disney hotels. They require you to use buses to get to the various parks. Disney buses suck.
monorails are better?
they are 3 and one is turning 6 on sept 11. when we go they will be 4 and 6
The monorail is a short ride, so yes it's faster and better. For small kids it's like a fun ride in itself. The downside is price. All the monorail resorts are premium level. It being Easter week you're likely looking at $500+ per night.
I disagree that the bus uniformly sucks. At the discount resorts they kind of do, as they bounce from resort to resort before going to the park. A long slog. The Moderate resorts have a direct bus connection and are not a bad ride IMO.
at their ages (4 and 6) not sure I would even go to Epcot. Magic Kingdom and possibly Animal Kingdom would be it most likely of the Disney Parks.
Frozen ride at Norway just opened up. Imagine most 4- and 6-year old girls will love this ride. Between that, Nemo ride, the Turtle Talk with Crush thing, Imagination ride and the acquirium, if you are in Disney for 4+ days, Epcot is worth a day... especially when its a more fun park for the adults (drinking, countries, good food, etc)
Yes 4 or 5 days is good, the kids will be exhausted and so will the both of you. I believe Disney has babysitters too, incase you and momma want to head to Downtown Disney one evening. I remember using them one night when the kids were smallish.
As mentioned, getting in early to the park then getting back after lunch for a snooze or pool time will keep you refreshed. Head back out early evening after an early supper. The kids will need the knap or else.
Eating meals at slightly off times will help get you seated faster. Booking the meal times is super important. If you want to eat in the castle at the Princess Meal, book now. That is sold out in a flash.
Keep water handy. You don't want to spend $2.50 for a bottle of water when you can buy a case for that amount. Rooms should have a refrig. If not ask for one. Important for juice and milk for the kids. Depending on what your family eats for breakfast, suggest you bring some with you. Save yourself $50 for breakfast. We brought milk, cereals, donuts, fruits etc. Eat in your room.
Oh, and the buses are not horrific. They get crowded at the end of the day and mid morning. The AC is good. They run quickly and often. I have never had a problem with the buses and I was annual pass holder for years.
2) No matter what hotel you pick, it will be convenient to one park but not to the others. Then there are the lower cost options, such as Caribbean Beach, which need transportation to all the parks. Again, if you have a car its no big deal.
3) Definitely do Epcot and the World Showcase. Kids so love it, and its a great option for a better dining experience than other parks. All the countries have a sit down, better restaurant, so depending on what kind of food you want you can get it there (check the country list). For example Morocco has a restaurant with Belly Dancers (very tasteful), Mexico has a Mexican restaurant and an outdoor Margarita bar, etc. They all also have quick food places.
4) All the parks always have characters roaming around, not just MK. You can't help but see them.
2) Use a Disney Specialist travel agent. I have used Amber at Small World Vacations a few times. They always seem to score upgrades and freebies. They offer better payment terms than if you book directly with Disney.
3) BOOK EARLY as AVAILABLE. Not kidding about this one.
All of these.
I can also give you the info for a Disney travel specialist that we used. She booked all of our sit-down meals months ahead of time, and we were very glad she did. She also booked our FastPass rides well in advance
Also, get the Disney app, which gives you info on all the rides, including wait times, and through which you can also change your FastPass appointments and see what is available.
As for where to stay, we stayed at Port Orleans, which was OK but nothing great in my opinion. If you can splurge, stay at Grand Floridian, Beach Club or one of the other higher-end resorts.
Enjoy.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
The dining plan is actually a great deal.
I went once without the dining plan and once with.
My advice: Get the dining plan, and book your table meals as early as possible.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
prices were in the 6k at the contemporary from friday to tuesday, with meal plan.
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Disney has been my customer for the past 6 years. Been there about 50 times during that span including family vacations.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
That's shocking, I always found Port Orleans good. What was wrong with the food?
Be honestly, you don't need to eat at a real restaurant for every meal. The counter service places often have good selection and variety.
How many of the Theme parks are you planning to visit, that is very important to figure out now. So you want to visit all four parks (MK, Epcot, Disney Studios and Animal Kingdom) or only planning to visit 2-3 parks?
Personally, on travel days (Friday and Tuesday for you), we usually skip the parks and visit Downtown Disney instead or go to one of their two miniature golf courses. Just my opinion but not worth going to the parks when you're not going to be there for a full day.
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Disney has been my customer for the past 6 years. Been there about 50 times during that span including family vacations.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
no apologies needed. I do not set their menus and I don't work for them. I sell products to them.
The food at the "food courts" at the resorts is basically food court food. There are many high quality "restaurants" on property (parks and resorts) and that is what I would target. However, every resort does not have a great restaurant. For example, at Animal Kingdom Lodge I would eat at Sana.... an awesome restaurant. However, you may not like the food at the quick serve location behind the pool. Huge difference.
This is why I recommend the dining plan. Get the one which gives you a table service meal, a counter service meal and a snack item. Then, here is how you maximize it...
Use your snack item for breakfast. Get a yogurt parfait or something and then pay for a cup of coffee. If you are staying at a place like the Beach Club or Caribbean Beach, they also have a market where you can buy milk and a box of cereal (and bowls and spoons) so you can eat cheap in your room for breakfast and save your snack item for a mid day snack. Use your counter service meal at lunch. This does not have to be a burger. You can find much better food than that at a counter in the parks. Fish & Chips, BBQ Ribs, etc. Save your full service meal for dinner. Do not waste your time taking your kids to a character breakfast. Total waste of money. If they insist on a character meal, then do it at dinner.
For the full service dinner you need to make reservations well in advance. You cannot show up and then try to find a place on the same day. Especially when you are traveling during their busy season. You can download their app too and make reservations that way if you don't like to use your home computer.
You can order anything you want with the dining plan. The most expensive thing on the menu and it also includes an appetizer and desert. Just does not include any alcohol. Then, you are not concerned with the cost of the meal. It is a fixed daily price. I can tell you that the dining plan always costs us less than if we had to purchase those meals individually.
honestly, when my kids get older, i will visit again to take full advantage of theme park but for now its the joy of my kids is all i want
Best of all the Disney hotel had easy travel arrangements to the Cruise ship. The hotel transferred all out luggage's to our cabin on the cruise ship.
In the end, as much as the kids loved visiting the parks, they enjoyed the cruise ship much much more and even talk about it today.
FYI, if you do a Disney Cruise ship, skip any and all character meet and greets. On the Cruise ship, they have designated times to meet characters and get photos\signatures and was supper easy to get to 20+ characters in less then an hours time without waiting on long lines.
honestly, when my kids get older, i will visit again to take full advantage of theme park but for now its the joy of my kids is all i want
If you want princess stuff, then you can't beat breakfast at Cinderella's castle at Magic Kingdom and then visit Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, I've linked it below....
link
Make sure you book very early for both, as reservations and appointments fill up very quickly months in advance. Your 4 and 6 year old girls will love it!
Also don't listen to some of these comments about Epcot not being for little kids. They have greatly improved the attractions for that age group in the park the last 5-7 years. Soarin is a great ride, Turtle Talk with Crush is a great interactive Q&A with the kids. They added the Frozen ride on Norway and not sure if your girls what Phineas and Ferb on Disney channel but there is a VERY fun interactive game you play at Epcot's showcase of the world where you have to visit various different countries to find Perry the Platypus. My 4 and 6 year old easily spent 3 hours on the hunt for clues and finding Perry and wanted to spend more time looking for him before we had to do other activities.
Download one of the many apps that show you line wait times and get a feel for which rides fill up quickly and get fast passes for them during your trip.
Just off the top of my head, here's the rides that have the LONGEST lines and definitely put in Fast Pass requests for them.
Magic Kingdom
Peter Pan - Very fun kids ride but no idea why but ALWAYS has a long wait time.
Epcot
Soarin - Usually around 11am-12pm, all the Fast Passes will sell out and wait times usually go up to 2+ hours
Disney Hollywood Studios
Toy Story Midway Mania Ride - Absolutely INSANE lines. The ride it ok and fun for kids but on various visits, I've seen the wait time for this ride in the 2-3 hour range. Definitely get a Fast Pass for this one!
Animal Kingdom
Kilimanjaro Safaris - I love having a Fast Pass and getting on the ride in less then 5 minutes compared to people waiting over an hour+. Also get there early for this one, as the animals are way more active in the early morning.
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In comment 13096078 EricJ said:
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Disney has been my customer for the past 6 years. Been there about 50 times during that span including family vacations.
Stayed at every property and I am in food and beverage and know the restaurants well. Just shoot me a note if you have any specific questions.
Out of curiosity, and apologies if you are directly responsible for this, but why is the food at some of the resorts so horrific? I stayed at Port Orleans last year, and I'd barely classify some of the food in the dining area as fit to serve my dog.
Also, I've always wondered why Disney doesn't double or triple their number of restaurants. If you don't have a dining plan, the wait at any halfway decent restaurant is hours.
In my amateur opinion, it seems like they could do food so much better there.
That's shocking, I always found Port Orleans good. What was wrong with the food?
Be honestly, you don't need to eat at a real restaurant for every meal. The counter service places often have good selection and variety.
The only meals I had at Port Orleans were breakfast, but the eggs on the hot food line were horrible and barely edible, and most of the other breakfast foods were similarly bad. The food at the sitdown places and even the quickserve offerings at the parks was generally good, but the main issue there, imho, is that there are not enough restaurants. Everything seemingly is too crowded, and the table service restaurants are an hours-long wait if you didn't make a reservation well ahead of time (which we thankfully did).
The only meals I had at Port Orleans were breakfast, but the eggs on the hot food line were horrible and barely edible, and most of the other breakfast foods were similarly bad. The food at the sitdown places and even the quickserve offerings at the parks was generally good, but the main issue there, imho, is that there are not enough restaurants. Everything seemingly is too crowded, and the table service restaurants are an hours-long wait if you didn't make a reservation well ahead of time (which we thankfully did).
Did you stay at the French Quarter of Port Orleans? I really didn't like that section of the hotel and food court there was bad, just like you described.
Not sure why, but on the Riverside part of Port Orleans, the food court was much better and really like overall feel of that section of that hotel compared to French Quarter.
prices were in the 6k at the contemporary from friday to tuesday, with meal plan.
I've stayed at 12 different resorts at DisneyWorld of varying price ranges and in all honesty, check out the Disney All Star hotels. Nightly cost are around $100 per night compared to the $300+ of the higher end ones.
Especially with your kids being 4 and 6 years old, they'll never remember the hotel, so why pay 3x the cost to stay at the fancier hotels when the All Star hotel will do the trick and have two pools each to keep the kids active when not in the parks. Plus with only 3 full days at Orlando, majority of your time will be spent at the parks and you'll only mostly be sleeping in the hotel. So is it worth the extra cost to sleep in a nicer setting?
Save your money on your first visit and spend on the bigger hotels on a future trip there when the kids are older and can appreciate it better.
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The only meals I had at Port Orleans were breakfast, but the eggs on the hot food line were horrible and barely edible, and most of the other breakfast foods were similarly bad. The food at the sitdown places and even the quickserve offerings at the parks was generally good, but the main issue there, imho, is that there are not enough restaurants. Everything seemingly is too crowded, and the table service restaurants are an hours-long wait if you didn't make a reservation well ahead of time (which we thankfully did).
Did you stay at the French Quarter of Port Orleans? I really didn't like that section of the hotel and food court there was bad, just like you described.
Not sure why, but on the Riverside part of Port Orleans, the food court was much better and really like overall feel of that section of that hotel compared to French Quarter.
No, we stayed at Riverside. This was last August.
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holy fuck is it expensive during that time.
prices were in the 6k at the contemporary from friday to tuesday, with meal plan.
I've stayed at 12 different resorts at DisneyWorld of varying price ranges and in all honesty, check out the Disney All Star hotels. Nightly cost are around $100 per night compared to the $300+ of the higher end ones.
Especially with your kids being 4 and 6 years old, they'll never remember the hotel, so why pay 3x the cost to stay at the fancier hotels when the All Star hotel will do the trick and have two pools each to keep the kids active when not in the parks. Plus with only 3 full days at Orlando, majority of your time will be spent at the parks and you'll only mostly be sleeping in the hotel. So is it worth the extra cost to sleep in a nicer setting?
Save your money on your first visit and spend on the bigger hotels on a future trip there when the kids are older and can appreciate it better.
Biggest reason: the All-Star Resorts have double beds. The width of two crib mattresses. I'm not an infant, and I'm never sharing one of those again.
The moderate resorts, like Port Orleans, have queen beds. It's costs more, but way less than the deluxe hotels.
In comment 13096775 NYG27 said:
Magic Kingdom
Peter Pan - Very fun kids ride but no idea why but ALWAYS has a long wait time.
Space Mountain
Seven Dwarfs Mine Ride
Epcot
Soarin - Usually around 11am-12pm, all the Fast Passes will sell out and wait times usually go up to 2+ hours
Frozen ride at Norway
Test Track
Disney Hollywood Studios
Toy Story Midway Mania Ride - Absolutely INSANE lines. The ride it ok and fun for kids but on various visits, I've seen the wait time for this ride in the 2-3 hour range. Definitely get a Fast Pass for this one!
Animal Kingdom
Kilimanjaro Safaris - I love having a Fast Pass and getting on the ride in less then 5 minutes compared to people waiting over an hour+. Also get there early for this one, as the animals are way more active in the early morning.