Hi everyone,

This might sound crazy, but we have a condo south of Jacksonville and are planning on driving down to Disney for the day with our kids, (21 and 20) and another family with kids (15 and 16). There will be 8 of us. We are planning on leaving Jacksonville VERY early to get to Disney when the park opens and will stay all day until it closes. We will then drive back to Jacksonville. I know this will make for a VERY long day, but we know people who have done it before.

Any suggestiosn? The kids are older and have all been to Disney before, but they were younger and don't remember too much. They really want to do some exploring and take in all of Disney instead of waiting in lines and experiencing every single ride they can get on.

Thanks in advance for your help!

I would map out your day very carefully to ensure you see what you really want to in advance. Then check all the tips (starting at the ride farthest from the gate, using the left line if there ar left and right choices, etc to help you get through faster).

Don;t know if the "kids" will want thrill rides. I always liked Epcot best - but that may just be me.

mschau,
Walt Disney World consists of four (4) theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom & Disney's Hollywood Studios) plus two more water parks: Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach. Which one park do you plan to visit?

I'd also say Epcot would be your best park to visit. It has more interesting things for the older crowd, and lots of restaurants. There are a few rides like the earth which I always enjoyed and the pavilions from around the world are interesting as well.

Enjoy!!

Sure, you can do this, though it's completely impossible not to get stuck in the lines. Wise travelers go for more than a day and escape right after lunch, returning only after 6, when the crowds die down.

But it's interesting that you are proposing this particular means of seeing WDW because I've actually done this exact thing before, though it was many many years ago when only the Magic Kingdom existed. We went for the day, rushed around like crazy, got stuck in all the lines in the afternoon, got frustrated and only road about 6 rides, and drove back late into the night.

It was horrible.

Of course, it's absolutely do-able, and many people do it.

I'd make only one suggestion (other than to spring for a couple of cheap hotel rooms for a couple of nights ... and you can get these really CHEAP right now). Buy park-hopper tickets for the kids ... not the adults. Let the kids go wild and go around to as many rides as they can manage, then jump to another park when it gets too crowded in the afternoon. The adults can choose a single park (probably Epcot) and then regroup for the kids for the fireworks at night.

Adding parkhopper to one-day tickets (which are already the most expensive way to visit Disney) is very expensive. I'd pick either Epcot or Magic Kingdom alone.

Epcot is open every night until 9:30 this time of year (and at 9:30 Illuminations starts, so your day wouldn't be over until nearly 10). Also there are a lot of extra holiday happenings in Epcot this time of year.

Magic Kingdom hours vary, particularly this time of year when they close often at 7 for a hard-ticket Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party event. You'd want to avoid a day when it closes early. Also if you can avoid a day where Magic Kingdom has morning "Extra Magic Hours" for on-site guests. But if you went tomorrow MK is open until 1 a.m.!!

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/parks/magic-kingdom/

Learn how Fastpass works and use it!

Consider trying to get a reservation for a sit-down meal, maybe a lunch on the late side, like 1 p.m., after the park has started to fill up a bit and you need a break.

When are you planning on doing this? Time of year makes a difference.

My best tip is to go on rides with long lines during the parade(s). The rides empty out then.

We were passing the Haunted Mansion during the parade (in which we had no interest) and noticed the queuing area was empty. I believe it took us longer to wind through the empty queuing area than it did to complete the ride!

I'm not with you on that DancingBearMD. If the OPs are only going to be there for a single day, then the park-hopper is the best way to go. It's not really a matter of savings. It probably is a waste to go for just a day. But if you're going to splurge and do it in one big sweep, the teens may not want to be tied down to a single park---and I don't blame them.

If it were smaller kids, it would be a stupid move, but with teens, who are going to want to go off on their own, I don't think it's a waste at all. Expensive, but not a waste.

Thank you for all of the great replies. We will be going at the busiest time, between Christmas and New Years. We hadn't talked about tickets yet but I know that the kids haven't decided on one specific park that they wanted to go to. I know my daughter said something about Epcot and others said MGM.

Ouch! Yes, that will be a very busy time with lots of lines. You're going to need a plan; try here: http://www.touringplans.com/tp2/UG2_index.php?PageID=0 Click on the park you're interested in, then touring plans to get some ideas.

Do I understand correctly that your kids want to explore and get the Disney vibe rather than wait in lines for rides? If that's right, then I'd suggest Epcot.

Not Disney, but I think Universal is much easier to do in a day.

I would not get a park hopper. You can do a park in a day, but not multiple parks, especially during peak periods. I would only do a hopper if I were there for multiple days. I don't know how old your teens are, but "teens gone wild" in Disney is not a good idea for me, much less much of a family trip.


yes, this can be done, but I really don't understand why you would want to go at this busy of a time for just day. I don't believe this is a waste of money, you aren't spending the nite, all you have tied up is gas money. To me, it is a waste of time and requires a huge effort without the benefit of really doing disney. But then again, it might be just a great day. One time we went it was super crowded. We had a park hopper pass and rode every ride that we wanted to and still saw all the parades. I don't know if we just got lucky or what. Eat meals at odd times, don't stand in line at peak times for dining. Plan to ride rides during the parades, unless it is a parade you really want to see.

ON second thought, I don't think it's worth doing if you are going between Christmas and New Year's. Seriously. With the parks so overcrowded, you're not going to be able to do half of what you would be able to do if you waited until after New Year's.

Check for a single-rider line on the rides. Most rides are set up for groups of two or four, but many groups come in threes, so there are lots of empty seats going out. Some rides have single-rider lines where you can just stand in a second, waaaaay shorter line, and get one of those empty seats.

Thanks for the responses! Great ideas.

I won't let the peak time scare you too much. I went with my dad & sibs when I was in my early 20's during the holiday break and it was fun; crowded sure but festive. I'd choose the park depending on its open hours (and avoid the "Magic Hours" park); they're all fun if you haven't been in many years. Follow the Fast Pass tips and avoid the meal waits. Have the kids pack a small knapsack with snacks/sandwiches/water bottles to avoid waiting for food.

Fast Pass is your best friend! I would do the park hopper for the kids. I agree with JMN the key is going to be to get to the park without the Magic hours, and without the concerts or shows that will be attracting larger crowds. Map it out ahead of time and stay away from the attractions and go to the lesser populated places and you will be surprised at what you can get done in a day. You can also be very strategic with the fast passes -- and if you can make friends with one of the workers at the fast pass distribution centers, well, I'm just suggesting you might could even get more than one pass at a time...maybe...? You could almost skip Hollywood Studios -- do not even waste time trying to ride the Buzz Lightyear ride there (even with FP the line will be too long) and most of the other rides there are on a strict schedule and will make it very difficult to do other parks in addition to that one. Start early before parks even open with breakfast at the Contemporary Hotel at Chef Mickey's and get all your character-seeing out of the way for the day, and a full meal under your belt (just eat snacks for the rest of the day if you can manage it to avoid wasting meal time). END the day at Animal Kingdom (this park seems less crowded as the day goes on, unless it is the extra magic hours day) and save Expedition Everest for your last ride of the day--which is the BEST ride at Disney anyway! At Magic Kingdom get FP for Splash Mtn and Big Thunder Mtn very first and get that out of the way before heading to other places. Then you can end at Tommorrowland, which is the likeliest place to hang you up time-wise--something about that area is just congested and long wait times, always. I think Epcot is only so-so even for the teenagers and a lot of the rides there are often time-intensive, taking up large portions of the day. The adults seem to appreciate it best, and even then only second to the other parks if you haven't been in awhile.

All just my opinions, but these tips have really worked for us everytime we have been!

After pondering this for some time, I have to agree with Doug_Stallings. If you will never, ever be in Central Florida again - then go for it. However, if there will be other opportunities in the future to come back, that would make much more sense.

The drive from Jacksonville via I-95 and I-4 will probably take 6 hours (5 hours if you drive like a demon) round trip. This probably equates to about 300 miles, more or less. That is a big chunk of your day gone. Then, you are planning to go during the absolute busiest time of the year. If the object of this trip is to have fun, you will be seriously shortchanging yourself.

Hi everyone. Thank you so much for all of your replies. We have decided to just go to one park and will be deciding that in the near future. We also are staying over night next Tuesday-Wednesday but will only be spending Tuesday at the park (whichever we choose). Sanibella, you gave some great advice. Thank you! The kids wanted to go to Hollywood Studios, but I'm not sure that is where we will end up. I will let you know!

Thanks again for your generous and thoughtful replies.

Just thought I'd let everyone know how the trip went. Sorry it's so long after the trip. We went for the day to Magic Kingdom and by using Fast Passes, we got on every ride we wanted to go on. The park was packed, as we knew, but it wasn't horrible. Since everyone was above 16, we were able to navigate the major rides that we wanted to ride. The boys were especially hesitant about going to the Magic Kingdom because of their age, but everyone agreed that it was perfect. Seeing the castle lit up for Christmas was amazing and so worth the jammed packed park.