So, We are planning a trip for 6/22 - 6/29 staying 7 nights. Children are 7 (boy) and 12 (girl). We want to be a Disney on 6/28 but other than that I’m wondering what order you recommend to see the Parks. We have never been so of course my first thought is MK first however I see the book suggests otherwise. We will likely do 2 days at MK, 1 day each at HS, Epcot, and AK and then one day Harry Potter World. Considering whether we want to do an extra day on our checkout day. Not sure as we may be worn out by then!
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The Magic Kingdom is typically busier on Mondays (many travelers arrive in WDE on Sunday and want to start at the MK) although at the end of June the difference might not be huge (I’m not a summer time visitor).
As @len has said, an early start makes up for a lot of things, including a crowded park. If you are at Rope Drop, you can beat a significant portion of the crowds and get a bunch accomplished.
Are you staying on property?
Thank you for your reply! Yes, we booked at Port Orleans Riverside (a royal room).
We check in on Monday 6/22 so I’m not sure if we’ll go to a park that day, maybe not. Maybe just swim etc.
I’d prefer not to go in the summer, but our school district is very strict on missed school and there’s really not another time that works. I’m sure we’ll have fun even though it will be hot!
I meant to say works with our school and work schedule as well, so summer Disney trip here we come!
We will do Magic Kingdom on Sunday, 6/28, but was trying to figure out the best order for the other days, which would Tuesday through Saturday. I think we’d do 2 days at MK and one day at the others.
Ok, as of this moment, a Royal Room at POR has been our FAVORITE stay. If you haven’t looked at Room Finder with the views, take a look. Here’s a post from the thread about the newest features.
Have you stayed at POR? It is beautiful and the pool is wonderful. DS was 11 and would have lived in the pool if we’d have let him.
I understand about schools. I have a double whammy. My DS is in junior high and I teach high school in a different district so I usually fight two schedules and policies! I am in complete sympathy!
No, we have never stayed before. This is our first ever trip to Disney. I went as teen (way back) and this is my children’s first trip. I picked POR from all the reviews and such. I’m glad to know it’s so great! That is so reassuring!
Check out the Crowd Calendar Disney Crowd Calendar to see which parks are predicted to have lower crowds during your stay. http://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/park-recommendations has some good tips on how to do this.
We like to AK or Epcot before MK as once you do MK the other ones dont seem as good.
Oh, I hope you have a great time! Our first trip was last year, and it was more fun than I’d ever imagined it would be.
We also stayed at POR. We did standard view and ended up in building 85. It was a GREAT location- right by the North Depot bus stop. Have you seen this site? http://www.portorleans.org
How old are your kids? That will make a difference for a lot of planning decisions. For example, if you have tweens or teens you could fit in Wishes at MK or dinner at downtown Disney on arrival day, but if you have younger kids, then I’d just keep that first evening open for swimming and dinner at the Riverside food court.
I agree with @NeedaTurkeyLeg. If you can do it, arriving at the parks as soon as they open really helps. We are from Mountain time zone, so the time zone change was rough on us, but I got around that by avoiding Extra Magic Hour. We could manage to get to the parks for 9 am opening, but would have struggled to make 7 or 8 am. If you’re an East coaster and morning people, then it might be worth doing the morning EMHs. It’s really a personal choice. You just don’t want to arrive hours after opening.
Do you plan to get a park hopper? If you want to try morning EMH then having a hooper will make it possible to flee elsewhere when the crowds build. We did not get a hopper for our first trip because it made FP+ plans easier and I wanted to keep plans for our first trip as straightforward as possible. We did go in February though, so it’s possible that a hopper would be a useful safety net in June.
Hmm…you’ll also have the heat to worry about. Morning EMH can also help you avoid the June heat.
I think imagining how you want to spend your days is the first thing to think through. Morning and after-dark touring are best for lines and heat, and park choice will partially depend on which way you want to go. Some families can manage both with naps/swim breaks during the hot afternoon, but my little guys couldn’t burn the candle at both ends. We had them in bed by 9:30 pm (7:30 pm our time) every night.
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Thank you everyone. Children are 12 (will turn 13 while we are there) and 7. We are going to get a park hopper I think just in case. With the summer heat, we may need it, not sure. I’m trying to pick dining so any suggestions are appreciated.
Thanks!
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You don’t have to get a PH initially - you can always add it to you tickets at a park if you decide that you are going to need it after all.
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