I still have a lot of time but I can’t stop tinkering with my touring plans. Having both sets of grandparents with us for portions of the trip and reading others opinions has me on here a lot more often than I would like to admit.
considering its august and the fact that I have small children, I am in the camp of rope drop to an afternoon break then return to finish touring and catch the nighttime shows. I sent my plans to my travel agent with a 3 hour break in each day (except for Epcot) and she says no way. The travel times would be too long to and from each park. we are staying at the Poly. I’ve been reading differing opinions of Disney transportation, its reliability, and its timeliness. for the people that do it, how much time do you allot for travel during the afternoon breaks, and how long are your breaks generally scheduled for?
Don’t let anyone talk you out of this! My husband and I have been going to Disney for years, often with grandparents, friends, and our small children. We rarely ever stay in a park past 2pm. At the poly you will be fine taking a break from any Park. I think 3 hours is good for a break, you might want more than that but play it by ear. Breaks are especially important for little ones. We rope drop each Park in the morning (bonus points for EMH) and then try to leave the park between 1 and 2. We go back into the park, maybe the same one, maybe a different one (Park hoppers good for this) between 5 and 6. Stay for an hour or two and head in for the night. This has worked well for us.
We are here now and an afternoon break is essential! It is so hot, and it’s only April. We did not break on Saturday at AK, and we paid for it. Everyone was tired and complaining. Take that break!
My mom travels with us and although she is a very active 79 year old, Disney is totally different. Not only are your little ones going to need a break but so are the Grandparents.
Also, if they aren’t used to the Florida heat & humidity in August, make sure you have a list of air conditioned places in each park they can escape to if need be.
Hall of Presidents is nice & so is the Carousel of Progress in MK.
We’re also going in August, and I have a break for DD16 and I planned for every day of our trip. It’s the one thing I wish I had put in last year for our trip, and the heat wasn’t nearly as bad as it will be this summer.
If I may quote the Unofficial Guide book: Take the break. Take the break. TAKE THE BREAK.
Traveled to disney since 80s w & without kiddos, still we take the break. Even in the spring. You’ll be walking up to 12 miles per day, in the august heat & humidity. BTW, the crowds escalate from late morning til dinner time, then decrease again.
Recently traveled w littles 2 & 4 yr old in august. No meltdowns or fits, that’s pretty cool (no pun intended haha). Also they love that pool of course.
Went in November with my parents (early 50s),my little sister (18), and me (23). We NEEDED those breaks! I think if we needed them the kiddos will really need them lol. I originally had 3hr breaks put in and we could have used more. By the time we got to our resort and filled up our drink mug we only had about an hour and 15min before we needed to go back to the bus stop to head back into the parks to match our schedule. I would at least extend your break another hour if possible. The day we did not take a break we were a little cranky and it hurt us the next day too. Enjoy your breaks! If you are staying at the Poly I’m sure you would love to spend some time in that beautiful resort anyway! It will also be super HOT! I would try to take a break from 1:30 - 6 ish. That will get you out of the peak crowds and the heat. Good luck! Hope that helped!
I put 3-4 hour breaks back in for all days. hopefully that’s long enough to go back to the poly and back to the same park we came from, with a decent amount of rest. otherwise I will have to start dropping attractions. ill post my plans after booking fast passes as the plans are no good without them.
arrival > mk>poly Ohana dinner
ak>poly>ak Yak & Yeti dinner
mk>poly>mk Tony’s Town Square for now…using the reservation finder for something better have another reservation at Chef Mickey’s but yuck to buffets.
epcot>poly>epcot Akershus dinner
hs>poly>mk CRT dinner
mk>poly>mk BOG dinner
mk > departure
We have very similar plans! I’m going to be there in August with my little ones and we are planning 3-4 hour breaks each day as well. I think these will be perfect, avoid the hottest part of the day and high crowds in the parks while recharging your and your LOs batteries.
We’re going in June and planning long breaks every day. I’d rather drop a ride or show and feel good, have happy kids AND husband! Our only difference is I planned mostly lunches where I want to be out of the sun, and hoping to enjoy the pool late afternoon, quick easy dinner, then back to the parks about 6.
Im with the TA no way would I plan for only 3 hour break! at its best your going to add an hour walking and travelling for getting 2 hours rest.
4-5 hour minimum ! if you leave park at 2 your going to be in room and ready to actually relax by say 3 on average(a little less from MK) 2 hour nap and relax start getting ready at 5 back at park by 6.
Some days you may do pool option and that also wouldnt be enough with 3 hours imo.
EDIT another thing we will do is have our TS meal for lunch. so basic snack for breakfast in park whilst walking or at hotel room then park and use FPP(10-11-12) before Lunch at 12:30.
Hmm, just reread your original post, looking at it from @stustaff’s take. If your TA was actually saying much longer break needed to be useful, rather than take no break at all, she definitely has a very important point.
Travel from MK to Poly easy peasy most times (after parade/fireworks or if monorail down is the exception). But to go by transport to any of the other parks, we usually build in up to 1 hour each way (counting time to bagcheck, tapstile etc).
We usually leave park around noon, have lunch at hotel or park & leave. Amazing the crowds pouring in at that time, whew! We swim, nap or rest- then an early TS dinner wherever, then park after that. This plan has worked for us for over 30 yrs at disney, I wouldn’t change it b/c we all enjoy the parks (don’t forget that wonderful Poly pool) all rested & relaxed
Honestly I think a 3-4 hour break will be enough most days but not work others. You’re not going to want to wake the little ones from their naps if they are taking them. What we usually do is plan a 3-4 hour break but keep in mind that our evening plans are subject to change. It is a good plan to do TS for lunch and QS dinner for this reason-no need to rush to a table service only to be still tired or cranky when you get there. Plan for 3, allow time for up to 5. Also, park hoppers are great for this because you can always make it back into MK easily.
We stayed at Poly in Oct 2016 with DD3 and DD1 and it was well worth it. They are up early so rope drops were no problem, and they would falling asleep on the monorail while in the stroller around lunch time. Occasionally the monorail was delayed, but they have the large ferry to the transportation center. Our room was in Moorea and it was a 3 minute walk from there to the Transportation Center Epcot/MK monorails and boat launch, making it usually our first choice of travel. The Poly’s buses have worked well for us in the past. My vote is keep the break and enjoy the vacation.
here is more detail on what I have without getting into the what ride when. arrival and departure day are a non-issue. all breakfasts are either in room, on the run, or dining plan snack credit.
Day 1 rope drop ak, break at 1, return for 6 pm reservation at yak and yeti, finish touring (lunch QS at hotel or ak)
Day 2 rope drop mk, break at 12:30, return for the dinner plan I am not happy with at 5 finish touring (lunch at QS at hotel or mk)
Day 3 rope drop ep, break at 12, return for 6:30 reservation at Akershus, finish touring (lunch at QS at hotel or ep)
Day 4 rope drop HS, break at 2:30, dinner reservation at MK CRT 5:50, call it a night after dinner (lunch at QS at hs)
Day 5 EMM at MK, break at noon, return at 4 or later for touring, 6:20 dinner reservation at BOG (lunch at QS at hotel or mk)
the only day I am really concerned about is HS > MK but we are making it an early night. obviously I will react to how my kids are feeling/acting, pack my patience, and remain as flexible as possible.
