Short Trip...is it worth it?

Hi Liners! Our AP passes expire on November 18 and I’m desperate for another trip to the World. We have no interest in going in July or August before schools starts and with the kids’ school schedules there seems to be only a few times where we could take advantage of a 3 day weekend. Would it be worth it to you to fly out late on a Thursday and then hit the parks on Friday, Saturday, and then Sunday morning before flying home Sunday late afternoon/evening so that they can be in school on Monday? It seems like such a short trip, but maybe worth it to get in one more time on the annual pass.

Oh, the power of an AP. Having one allows me to justify short trips (and we don’t live close to Disney either). We have not done a 3 day trip, but have done plenty of 4 day trips. Is it worth it? For me it would probably depend on the cost of airfare.

I also used to think that I would never go in July or August, but we have the past few years and we survived (and are going again in 11 days). Summer doesn’t seem to be as busy as it once was.

What are some of the strategies you use in the summer to survive the heat? The husband and I did a 6 night trip in early June and spent way less time in the parks than we did on previous fall trips. Maybe we just didn’t plan good enough, but by the end of the trip we were drained. This trip would be with two of my kids (11 and 7). My 8 year old refuses to go due to the heat. He is like his father!

One good thing about the summer is that the parks tend to have long hours. We like to go at RD, leave in the afternoon to swim and/or nap at the hotel and then go back to the park in the evening. That way we are not in the parks at the hottest time of the day. And we have cooling towels, necklace fans, and lots of water.

I have often taken the 6 am flight on a Saturday morning and then flown home Monday night to miss only one school day. I have done that for a Party weekend or food and wine. The worst part? The DME tag right away- but great trips!

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We did a 4 day trip:first flight out on day one and last flight home on day 4, exhausting sure but aren’t all Disney trips a little exhausting lol. I think a Disney trip is always worth it especially if you can get a deal on flight.

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We do this on a regular basis (which is why I have been 5 times in the last 6 months!). The pull of an AP is strong. We just decide what is most important to us and make sure we accomplish those things. I haven’t regretted a single trip! In May, we flew in Monday morning and left late Wednesday night. And I loved it!

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@PrincipalTinker - I didn’t understand this: “The worst part? The DME tag right away…” Could you explain?

@katmthompson1 - I definitely think that we would have to follow this strategy or plan on flying out on the last flight the evening before and not getting to the hotel until 1:00am or 2:00am. I’m not sure which would be more tiring for us. We live an hour from the airport and the first flight out is typically 6:00 which means we are getting up at 2:30am to get dressed and out the door so we can be there by 4:00am. Usually we are all zombies by late morning and wishing for a nap back at the resort, but our rooms haven’t been ready until closer to mid-afternoon. Coming in the night before, even super late, might be a better option for us.

@FindMeAFishingSpot - I love your attitude! And yes, the pull of the AP is so very, very strong. I have my eye on Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and thinking that my kids would lose their minds if they were able to attend that. We have never done a party before, but that one sounds like so much fun!

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The biggest thing in the summer is to not be in the parks in the afternoon.
I try and get out by noon, 1 at the latest. I do RD & I usually go to whatever the AM EMH park is.
I go back between between 5-6 depending what I am planning to do.
I have the misting fans & the cooling towels. Which really do work.
The other thing is just water. Forcing yourself to keep drinking. I take a water bottle with a filter & you can also get water at any quick server location so you are not spending all your money on bottled water.
I haven’t quite gone the route of setting myself an alarm - but I have thought about it - it can be easy to forget to keep drinking when you are having fun.

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When you arrive on Saturday and leave Monday you receive your DME envelope when you wake up that first morning, for the next day.

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Gotcha! YES…that would stink to get a reminder so quickly that you have to go back home!

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Make it a 4-day trip.

My AP caused me to take THREE separate 4-day trips this year. Two were with my kids.

Let the kids miss a day of school. They’ll learn far more at Epcot & Animal Kingdom than they would in class anyway.

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We are currently here on day 2 of a 3 day trip.

Yesterday was fun, we didn’t spent too much time in the parks, just Epcot and DHS. Today we have a private vip tour with friends, so we will be hitting all 4 parks.

It’s not nearly as crowded as previous trips. Do I wish we had one more day? Yes, but it didn’t work with our schedules. I’ll be back in 4 weeks anyway.

The heat wasn’t that bad yesterday. But then again, we came from soCal which has been having an epicly terrible heat wave!

Go for it!!! I mean, why not?! LOL

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I love all of the encouragement from this group! Why am I not surprised that there isn’t a naysayer among us. After all, it is Disney! I’ve narrowed in a a few dates that would include the opportunity to do Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. We have never done this event, but from everything I’ve read, it sounds great. Anyone have an opinion on it?

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The first time I went was on one of my two night trips ( my rule over the last few years is that it needs to be three nights). I love the party! You have to prioritize what you want to do. For me, I have to see the parade and fireworks, and some attractions- especially the Haunted Mansion.

We are doing a short trip in Dec to see MVMCP then 2 days at UOR. So obviously I say Yes! Emphatically! Also we went to MNSSHP last year and it was one of our favorite parts of the trip.

Hi Friends! Well, I’ve decided to go forward with the short trip! I might be a little bit crazy, but I’m going for it. Thank you so much for the encouragement! I will be traveling with my three kiddos (12, 8, and 7).

I’m hoping you might be willing to weigh in on the schedule I’ve drafted and let me know if you see any pitfalls. Here is a brief run down of what I’m planning. Love having an AP pass to make all of this work!

Friday, September 28 - Arrive @ MCO by 11:25pm; Magical Express to Port Orleans
Saturday, September 29 - Sleep-in a bit since we have a late flight the night before. Head to Animal Kingdom from 10am - 2pm, then Port Orleans from 2pm - 5pm, then finish up at Hollywood Studios from 5pm - 8:30pm
Sunday, September 30 - Rope drop Magic Kingdom at 9:00am and stay until 2:00pm. Break at Port Orleans from 2:00pm - 5:30pm. Head back to Magic Kingdom for MNSSHP and stay until midnight.
Monday, October 1 - .Sleep in at Port Orleans. Hollywood Studios from 10am - 2:30pm. Pool/rest time at Port Orleans from 3pm - 6pm. Finish our trip at Epcot from 6pm - 9pm.
Tuesday, October 2 - Catch Magical Express back to MCO at 7:30am.

My biggest concern is not wearing out the kids and making sure we have a break from the heat (which I understand is still pretty intense in late September). I’ve thought about dropping a park and only going to three, but I would probably drop Epcot and then we would all be bummed to miss Soarin’. Would love to hear your thoughts!

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It looks like a great plan! I always look at the nights on a short trip and you get that covered! The late starts and breaks look great too. My only question would be about AK. Will you get FP there or HS? I expect those HS hours may be extended a little?

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Looks great to me! Are you using busses or a car to get around WDW?

We stayed 2 nights and had 3 almost full days last week. We had a ball! Just DH and I though. It was so hot, 3 days was perfect.

We have a “short” trip planned for Oct, haven’t decided o! 3 or 4 nights yet.

Great question @PrincipalTinker! My hope is to nab Animal Kingdom fast passes on my first day; however, I am doubtful that I will get Flights of Passage that early in my trip. If I can’t, then my plan is to spend both the morning and afternoon of our first day at HS, grabbing fast passes wherever I can that day, and move our AK morning to our last day in the parks in the hopes of getting FOP. Crowd levels for both of these parks on either day are 4s and 5s; however, it looks like FOP still has long waits any time of the day and I’m more worried about getting a fast pass there rather than at HS. Am I off base on that?

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