We have planned a visit to the Disney parks Mar 28-Apr 01. The trip is mainly for our 4 yr old who has been counding down days for the past several months! We are staying onsite in the Polynesian.

As of now, all I can feel is a lot of anxiety! I have printed out touring plans from the Unofficial guide website etc. But all this strategy and planning to combat crowds makes it feel like chore rather than a holiday! What are some things we could do to enjoy the trip and make it more of a relaxed holiday?

Thanks

If you don't know already...IF you go over to EPCOT and you are there when it opens, go immediately to the REAR of the lagoon in World Showcase and work your way forward.

Yes, there may be crowds but with the size of the place they may not seem as large.

I would also make use of FastPass as much as possible, too. Hopefully you have included at least one character breakfast..they are absolutely unforgettable for the kids.

Agree with Dukey about seeing Epcot in reverse order. However, as you progress from front to rear, be sure to pick up FastPass's for Soarin (in The Land). This just might be the #1 attraction in EPCOT and you will be so thankful you did this in advance.

Once you're there and in the thick of things, it's indeed a chore to keep consulting the guide books and to make sure you fit everything in. Index cards worked well for us, it was a hint we'd read online. We had an index card for each day, so didn't feel we had to fit everything in, we knew certain things were coming up on day 2, day 3 etc. We had reminders on the daily card as to what park opened early, where we had a lunch reservation, times etc. Each night the kids looked forward to reading what was on the agenda for the next day, and each card had a kid's choice afternoon where one child got to pick the activities for that afternoon. So if they were arguing about what to do, we could say "we'll come back here on Tuesday when it's your afternoon to choose".
Planning is pretty important for Disneyworld, you can read and read but then if you just "wing it", there is a lot that you'll miss and will regret not seeing. Disboards.com has a good forum section with lots of tips in one section. Print them out if you're taking a long plane ride to Disney, they make for good airplane-reading.

Get to the parks early - before they open.
Follow the UnOfficial guides touring plans, without getting too crazy.
Head back to the hotel after lunch for some r&r.
After resting up, return to parks if desired for evening shows, dinner, etc.

Best advice I can give is leave the parks when you are tired. Nothing is less fun than running around among hordes of people when you are hot, annoyed and exhausted.
I honestly saw just as many kids having fun at the hotel pools, as I did in the park.

It's not a marathon, remember to just relax and enjoy your surroundings. While I think newbies going to DW should definitely have done research and have a plan in place, too often I think visitors get caught up in seeing x number things and it almost becomes an exercise in crossing things off their list. No one hands out awards for most things seen...LOL!

I've only gone once and while I had a serious worksheet all mapped out, it was important to slow up for DH, and if he wanted to stop and dance to some upbeat Xmas tunes performed by live musicians, then it was really fun for me to join him too!

I have no regrets for putting in all the effort I did into the research as the commando plan just informed us of things we'd enjoy, tips, etc. In the end, we completely re-arranged 3 days based on our first couple, but it would have been hard to re-arrange without a plan from which to work.

Have a plan, but be flexible and have a magical time!

Enjoy-la!

"It's not a marathon, remember to just relax and enjoy your surroundings. While I think newbies going to DW should definitely have done research and have a plan in place, too often I think visitors get caught up in seeing x number things and it almost becomes an exercise in crossing things off their list. No one hands out awards for most things seen...LOL!"

Amen. Nothing kills a vacation better than micromanaging and having a list of things that HAVE to get done. Sounds dreadful.

in epcot, the world showcase doesn't up until ~11:30 or 12. so it wouldn't do you any good to head there when the park opened at 9.

do get to the parks when they open. you'll get on the most rides before 11. it starts to get more crowded after that.

have fun!

sorry, world showcase opens at 11. it's the restaurants that don't start serving until 11:30/12. still it is 2 hours after the front part of the park opens.

Be careful about the Epcot in reverse order suggestion - World Showcase tends to open later than Future World.

A couple of other suggestions:
1. Get the stroller for the 4 year old even if you don't use one much now. WDW is huge and even the best walkers get tired easily.

2. Take the afternoon break and take naps. Accept that you may not make it back to the park again that day. The pool is a huge attraction and very relaxing/tiring for kids. Don't feel compelled to return to the park to get the most out of your pass for the day. In the long run its not worth it, as its no fun being in the park with a tired cranky kid (or a tired cranky parent).

3. Don't be surprised if your child is a little leery of the characters -especially the biggest ones. It can be overwhelming. Pooh is quite big and I've seen many kids frightened by him even though they love the cartoons.

4. Don't obsess about seeing everything. Its just not possible. I took my daughters when they were 3.5 and 7 for the first time. They are teenagers now and we've been back 3 more times. Still have not done a ton of stuff.

5. Let spontineity (sp?) happen, regardless of your schedule or plan. One of our most wonderful memories was watching our two girls play in a fountain. They got soaking wet and we were late for a dinner reservation but I can still see them splashing and laughing even though its been nearly 10 years. Well worth the deviation from my uberplan.

6. Try to stick to a regular schedule for eating. Nothing threw my kids off more than not eating regular meals. Take advantage of the healthier options too. It might be tempting to indulge in the junk food but too much of it will really make a kid cranky.


Its good that you are staying at the Polynesian. The monorail will make transportation much easier for you.

Just relax and have fun with your family.

Should we or should we not try to visit parks with Extra Magic Hours? Some say the crowds are worse when there is EMH. Is it better to visit when there is EMH in the morning or do the evening hours offer more advantages?

Thanks

Your four year old is going to enjoy: Magic Kingdom, MGM, and Animal Kingdom in that order. I can't imagine much in EPCOT for a four year old.

Pace your park time around the 4 year old's usual schedule. Take breaks and don't over do it.

Good news is from the Polynesian it's easy back and forth to the Magic Kingdom.

We took our kids to Magic Kingdom when they were 4 (and drove in for a long day rather than staying onsite). One thing that worked for us was an early dinner (4:30?)character meal at the Crystal Palace. The buffet was pretty good and it gave us a great break and easy way to meet Winnie and his friends.

By the time we finished dinner, we did more rides when it was a little less crowded.

Also, figure out your priority attractions and what you should do right when the park opens. After you hit your priorities, then you can relax more and do what you feel like.

We were at Magic Kingdom (kids now teenagers) for Feb. vacation week last month and only one line was 40 minutes (It's a Small World, which usually isn't that slow). Most lines were 15 minutes or so (it's also posted so you can decide if you want to wait).

Have a great time!

we just got back from taking my then 4 and 2 yr olds. it seems like everyone has given great advice. the only reason i am posting is to let you know that i was also almost dreading the trip. but we absolutely loved it. it actually turned out to be more relaxing than i had anticipated. we took breaks each afternoon. my 2-yr napped and my 4-yr old played in the pool. we also stayed at the polynesian which is key with a toddler to me so close the MK. have a great time..

Planning ahead will make all the difference in having this be a more relaxed holiday! We used "Disney World with Kids". This book had alot of good tips and was great at letting you know when something might be scary or especially fun for little ones. A strategy we used a few years back was to get to the parks early and hit our 'must see/do' attractions first. Using fast pass often allowed us to go on popular rides more than once within a short time. When it started getting hot we would go to an indoor attraction. I used fast pass on these too since they booked up quickly. I planned out our course the night before using maps of the parks provided by the hotel and my book. I would circle 'must see/do' attractions and put show times right on the map so I knew where we were headed next just by checking my map. After the indoor attraction we'd grab lunch and head back to the hotel for a swim or a nap. The rest of the day was more casual and unplanned--except for dinner reservations (made well in advance). It won't be like a lazy week at the beach somewhere but you'll have a GREAT time. Enjoy!!!

Note that if you choose the "dining plan", you'll have to pay much more attention to scheduling and timing. Meal times must be reserved, and if it's a busy week, must generally be adhered to. You don't want to be touring Epcot at 4pm if you have a 5pm reservation at Animal Kingdom, etc etc. You may want to do Animal Kingdom in the morning when the animals are at their liveliest...meaning that you should reserve lunch there, not dinner.

I didn't see anyone explaining the FastPass...decide ahead of time which rides are the most important to you which offer FastPass. As soon as you enter the park, send one adult with all your tickets to the attraction to get the FastPass and decide which will be your first actual ride. Have that adult meet you in line once they have received the FastPasses. This will save everyone walking all over because the FastPass will tell you a time range to come back, you can then work your way towards that attraction before the given time. On the Fast Pass it will also tell you the earliest time you can get another Fast Pass, which is helpful to plan the next big attraction. It may sound a little complicated, but if you utilize this feature you will save yourself tons of time in line! The last time we went our kids were 5,8 and 10...it was so great to not have the stroller!!! We also would go early and everyone took an afternoon nap so we could enjoy the fireworks/laser light shows every evening without tantrums, especially form my hubby!

The tip we found most useful:

If there are 2 lines for anything use the line on the left. More people gravitate to the right - and even if the line on the left looks longer - it always turned out to be faster.

Sorry -

Also prepare you child that the characters will be HUGE. Sometimes smaller kids are intimidated that the Mickey's etc are so much bigger than they are.

Use the fast pass and plan one or two meals per day, get there early and you will be just fine. I would do a waterpark for a half day. It is our favorite thing at Disney.