Help needed for Itinerary during last week of Wishes May 6th-May 14th>

Walt Disney World
1

My family’s upcoming trip is from May 6th-May 14th. I chose this week partly because it historically has moderate crowd levels and it should be hot enough to swim in the pool but not too crazy hot for park touring. It will be my kids first trips to Disney (girls ages 6 and 9). My husband and I have both not been to the WDW in 20 years.

To save money (and because I want our family to spend more time enjoying the POLY resort) I had decided to get an 8 day ticket without park hoppers. My plan was to have our late afternoon/evening at MK on Thursday, May 11th to see Wishes. I have booked an ADR for CRT at 6:45 on May 11th as well.

Here is the complete current plan:
Sat, May 6th MK pretty set on starting our vacation here, but would like to be back to hotel early. No ADR
Sun, May 7th MK (BOG ADR at 8:05 in order to get a slight advantage on 7DMT after breakfast). Plan to stay until about 2 p.m. and then hang out at the Poly for the evening.
Mon, May 8th HS Full Day ( Fantasmic Dining Package ADR)
Tues, May 9th AK morning only. (Ohana ADR at 7:10 p.m.)
Wed, May 10th EP. Plan was to get A.M. FP+ for Soarin’ (Rose and Crown ADR for illuminations for me and hubby while kids go to Lilo’s Playhouse)
Thurs, May 11th MK (CRT ADR 6:45)
Fri, May 12th AK late afternoon/evening (ROL dining package)
Sat, May 13th. EP Plan to get FP+ for Frozen, explore world showcase, and see Illuminations with kids.

As you can see, a lot of our ADRS are ones that can’t easily be switched to other dates (Ohana, CRT, BOG, and Rose and Crown specifically).

But now May 11th is the final day for Wishes. I am worried that it will be really crowded and that (1) we will need to find a place to see Wishes really early, which we were trying to avoid (and might not be able to make due to our ADR) and (2) that the rides will all be a lot busier because of the final night of Wishes. Also, I am wondering if we should take up the opportunity to see the new show Happily Ever After while we have the chance.

So, my questions for the forum are 1) Should we keep my original plan and add on park hoppers to our tickets so we can see the new show Happily Ever After on Sat, May 13th? My husband and I would see Illuminations, but kids would not. We would park hop from Epcot to MK in the evening. Do you think the $300 add on is worth that?
2) If we don’t get park hoppers, should we try to see to Wishes on Sunday, May 7th instead? Do you think that Sunday evening will now be a really crowded as well? With this scenario we would still be at MK on the last day of Wishes. Would it be smart to go on rides during Wishes instead?

I make my fast passes in 10 days, which will further lock me in. What do you think?

Thanks in advance!

2

I’m following this thread because we are at WDW that same week and Thursday is also a MK day for us!

We were planning to do the morning (with a CRT 8:05 breakfast), then an afternoon break, and then back for the evening and Wishes. I think what I’ve decided is that we’ll just spend the afternoon at the resort (AKL) after our break rather than braving the crowds. I do think that whole week will be busier for Wishes, but I’m assuming the final show will really bring out the crowds. We’re planning to do MK on Monday (the 8th) too, so depending on the crowds, we’ll try to see Wishes then.

If I were you I’d switch it up so you see Wishes on another night, but I’m a WDW newbie so take that with a grain of salt. Also I have a very “spirited” three year old so crowd avoidance/management is one of our top priorities. Haha! I’m interested to see what others say!

3

If it was me, I would take an afternoon break on either the 6th or 7th and then go back to the park to see Wishes that night. Although perhaps someone else can comment on whether those days would be nearly as crowded as the 11th.

I wouldn’t spend the money on the park hopper, but I haven’t had park hopper yet so I don’t know what I’m missing.

I would think the new show on the 13th would be quite crowded.

4

Newbie here also, but I will also be in the world during this week. Crowd levels are suppose to be at a 4 that an entire week, but with Thursday being the last day of wishes, who knows of that will stick.

I would stick with your plan, I think it will work for you. You already have some other days in the park, so if it is crowded, hopefully your TPs on the other days got you to a lot of the must see attractions.

5

Thanks, everyone! You have helped me make peace with sticking with our plans overall and not trying to add in a park hopper. I think we will plan to go back to MK Sunday evening to see Wishes after an midday break. I guess we will just have to plan another trip to see Happily ever after (and Pandora)!

6

Never say never. Keep trying to change the ADRs if you think it will help your touring plan!