Itinerary check before I make our ADR's......

[rozac]

We (hubby, myself, daughter-13 & son-10) are heading to Disney in August. We've been there 2x before: once during Thanksgiving week & once during Christmas week. The crowds were HUGE but the weather was GREAT!! We wanted to try a less busy time, but had to go when school was still out, so we ended up with 8/26 - 9/4 (hope we don't melt!). We usually only go 1 week but hubby wants 2 "park-free days". We are also getting free dining, so the ADR's are all new to me & I've had alot of fun doing the research and planning. I'd love opinions on our schedule & dining choices before I book our restaurants next week. Okay, here goes......

8/26 - arrive at POFQ & settle in
*dinner at The Turf Club*

8/27 - MK (it's the "worst" park but it's tradition to go there day 1)
*dinner at Whispering Canyon*

8/28 - HS (again the "worst" park but Fantasmic is showing)
*dinner at Mama Melrose*

8/29 - Resort Day
*dinner at 'Ohanas*

8/30 - AK ("best" park - I don't think we've ever been to WDW on a "3")
*dinner at Boma*

8/31 - EP (the third "suggested park")
*dinner at Teppan Edo*

9/1 - Resort Day & Boardwalk at night
*dinner at Le Chefs de France (we have an extra day on tickets)

9/2 - MK ("best" park - so EXCITED to see the crowd difference!!)
*dinner at The Wave*

9/3 - EP ("best" park again - WooHoo!!)
*lunch at Le Cellier*

9/4 - Back home to NY :)

So.....what do you guys think? Thank you in advance :) Rose :RpS_biggrin:

[Janine]

Rose,
Nice long trip, with spaced out break days. Great move having a resort day after the late F! night. Are you doing the F! dining package?
Since it's not a recommended park, it's really, really important to be at HS ready and waiting at RD.

Stuff you may already know...for your ADRs, it better to aim for an earlier ressie (before 7pm), so that you don't have to wait as long to be seated. Plus, it doesn't end up being a late night. Since it's going to be hot, hot, hot, are you planning breaks where you leave the park for a few hours to recoup?

'Ohana and Boma are two of my favorite restaurants. I'll be trying WCC during our May trip and I've heard great things about Teppan Edo and Le Cellier.

[josh]

Are you driving to Saratoga Springs or taking the boat to Downtown Disney and then walk over? The latter sounds fun.

You'll find heavier crowds than usual at Magic Kingdom on Saturday and the Studios on Sunday. As Janine points out, it will be particularly important to get to the Studios as early as possible to get FASTPASSes for Toy Story Mania (or ride if you're there early enough). The Fantasmic Dining Package would make sense since Mama Melrose is included. It would be a long day if you're there from 9am - 9pm without a break, but there are a lot of low-key shows and air-conditioned areas to enjoy.

You may be aware that you can add another day to your tickets for about $5 per person if you decide you want to take the monorail over to the Magic Kingdom for the evening or prior to the reservation.

Otherwise it looks good. You've got a few of my favorite restaurants included to.

[RoonieRoo]

Just curious if you could do what we do for Fantasmic. We go to HS on a recommended day and then for Fantasmic we go to that after hopping from the recommended park on that day. Works great if you have an AP or hoppers but if you don't it's not worth buying hoppers for that one hop.

[josh]

Alternatively, you could have "resort day" for most of the day and then head out to Fantasmic at night and then plan to return to the Studios on one of the planned resort days.

[rozac]

Josh.....great site, thanks for all the awesome info!! We'll do the boat to DTD, it does sound fun :)

Ronnie.....no hoppers :(

Janine.....yes, we are doing the "fantasmic dining package" but I heard the "reserved" seats are terrible. Any firsthand knowledge? As far as breaks go.......we're counting our sit-down meals as "breaks". We usually open and close the parks & that's during holiday seasons with longer hours!! We also usually eat our meals "on the run" or on line somewhere! We're thinking the shorter hours PLUS a sit-down meal each day will make for an very easy schedule.

Any more thoughts or suggestions......please let me know. Thanks!!

[josh]

I wouldn't say the seats are terrible. They are off to the far side, but the stage is large and you certainly won't be missing anything by sitting over there. You can also opt to leave the reserved seating section and sit anywhere else that is available too.

I've never ridden the boat to Downtown Disney and walked to Saratoga Springs, but that is a neat idea.

Also "love" your use of quotations.

[Brandie]

we are doing the "fantasmic dining package" but I heard the "reserved" seats are terrible. Any firsthand knowledge?

I've been in the reserved seats and found them to be a-okay.:RpS_thumbup:

[rozac]

Good to know that the reserved seats are okay & also that we can move if we don't like them. Thanks for the info!! :RpS_smile: