Help with Itinerary?

[dchun2007]

Hey Disney world experts. I'm currently booking and planning a trip for me and my friends to DISNEYWORLD. This is our first time so I'm very excited.

Could you guys possibly look over this itinerary? This is just tentative and gives me an idea of what restaurants I need to make reservations at. Assume the times are correct. Thanks again!

August 5 - 11
Sunday

08:25 AM Depart LAX for Orlando Airport
03:55 PM Arrive Orlando Airport
05:00 PM Depart Orlando Intl Airport for Disneyworld
06:30 PM Arrive Pop Century Resort, Check-In, Unwind
08:00 PM Depart for Magic Kingdom
01:30 AM Return to PC

Monday

08:00 AM Depart PC for EPCOT
06:00 PM Depart EPCOT for Polynesian Resort via Monorail
07:00 PM Dinner at Brazillian BBQ Styled “Ohana” Restaurant
08:30 PM Depart for Disney Quest
12:00 AM Return to PC

Tuesday

08:00 AM Depart PC for Blizzard Beach
02:00 PM Depart Blizzard Beach for PC
04:00 PM Depart PC for Epcot
07:00 PM International Dinner and IllumiNations Dessert Reception
10:00 PM Return to PC

Wednesday

08:00 AM Depart PC Resort for MGM
05:00 PM AR Fantasmic Dinner at Mama Melrose
08:15 PM Check-in for Fantasmic Reserved Seating
09:00 PM FANTASMIC!
01:30 AM Return to PC

Thursday

08:00 AM Depart PC for Animal Kingdom
05:00 PM Depart Animal Kingdom for AK Lodge
06:00 PM Dinner at Boma – African Food Buffet
07:30 PM Depart for Pleasure Island

Friday

08:00 AM Depart for Typhoon Lagoon
01:00 PM Depart for PC
03:00 PM Depart PC for Magic Kingdom
06:00 PM Character Dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern
02:00 AM Return to PC

Saturday

08:00 AM Depart to Park of Choice
03:30 PM Depart Disneyworld for Orlando Airport
05:55 PM Depart Orlando Airport for LAX

[Ride Warrior]

Love your itinerary. Take me with you. I require minimal cleaning-up after, and promise to stay out of your hair.

[BigPigletFan]

Personally, I love the Ohana's reservations and the fact that you're never going to leave Pleasure Island - but yet make it to Typhoon Lagoon?

Just to make sure you know: Pleasure Island 21+
(Effective the start of the year, most PI locations are 21+. See the other thread for more details.)

I'm not sure how you'll all enjoy that crazy schedule (but somehow I've been there, done that too.) Maybe only one day in the water parks and leave your last day to relax and take in what you missed or wanted to do/see again?

[Phonedave]

That is the sort of schedule I make each time I go, and by mid-trip it turns into

7:00 AM - Roll over and go holy cow, I am tired ! The heck with this. I am sleeping until 9:00 AM

Seriously, its a good schedule, but an ambitious one. You are staying at PC so there is not much to see in the way of themeing. There is the hidden spot around the power transformer across the road in the bushes where people (I assume kids and CM's) go to drink beer - but thats not really part of the theme. But you may want to spend some time at the pool and/or poolside bar.

Remember, its a VACATION. So if you (or people in your party) decide that something else seems more enjoyable, then maybe you want to change the schedule, or perhaps split into two groups.

[Phonedave]

the fact that you're never going to leave Pleasure Island - but yet make it to Typhoon Lagoon?

I saw that too. I figured he planned to pass out there and just head over to TL in the morning and sleep it off on the beach

Sounds like a fine schedule to me.

-dave

[SummerInFL]

Schedule seems fine, just remember that with the late night returns your going to get tired near the end of the week so don't worry about breaking your time frame for the end of the week. It's easy to get frustrated, then you start getting cranky and then well...no one is happy.

[Parisi]

excellent itinerary...

Just so you know, Ohana is polynesian food, not really brazillian.

Aside from that, the only bad thing is that its august, its hot, and its gonna be super duper crowded. I guarantee u will be spending a lot more time at a pool or water park then you think...

[sealsm]

That sounds great. I love that everything has a time frame. That's how I like to plan my vacations, too. As other have said already, you will probably be beat by the end of the week. My suggestion is to take a nap in the middle of the day. You'll get out of the heat, the sun, and will be well rested for the evening. But if you plan on sticking to the itinerary as is, I say more power to you!

[lisaboo]

Looks good! Hope you have a fab time and can deal with the heat!

[dchun2007]

I have another question for everyone.

There are two flight options my group is looking at. The first is the one listed at the itinerary at the top. We'd leave early Sunday morning and arrive in Florida in the late afternoon.

The other option my friends want (to maximize the time at Disneyworld) is to leave late Saturday night around 11 PM and arrive at Disneyworld around 9 AM. This gives us more time on Sunday, but I'm concerned it will tire our group out. Although we arrive at 9 in the morning, in Los Angeles time, our body thinks it's 6 am. Anyone have any experience with this matter?

Watcha guys think?

Thanks for the help again!!! I appreciate ALL your comments above.

[steamboatpete]

A couple of comments based upon my own experiences:

1. I'd have no trouble staying out until 1:30 a.m. the night I flew in, but 8:00 a.m. the next morning, I would not be getting out of the bed. Your stamina may be greater than mine.

2. 8:30 to midnight is either way too much or way too little time for Disney Quest. If you hate it, you'll know in the first hour. Take off and do something better. If you dig it, by midnight, you'll wish you'd given yourself an extra hour or two.

3. Make sure that your departure time for the AK day is early enough to get you to the gate when it opens. Better yet, make sure you hit that on an early admission day.

4. Consider building in an extra 45-60 minutes just hanging out at the AK Lodge. It's pretty cool.

5. You're cutting it pretty close with the final departure time, but you'll probably make it. We gave ourselves 2 1/2 hours last summer because of that English liquid bomb terror plot story that broke while we were in Orlando. Even though the new regs were only 2 days old when we traveled, MCO got us checked and through security in less than 20 minutes.

[steamboatpete]

The other option my friends want (to maximize the time at Disneyworld) is to leave late Saturday night around 11 PM and arrive at Disneyworld around 9 AM. This gives us more time on Sunday, but I'm concerned it will tire our group out. Although we arrive at 9 in the morning, in Los Angeles time, our body thinks it's 6 am. Anyone have any experience with this matter?

I've been to Florida (from SoCal) about six times. Twice, I've done the red-eye. My experience: you will get way too little sleep on the plane, but assuming you get some, it might work out. One of the problems you get going to Florida from California is the jet lag. Disney parks open between 8 am and 9 am, and on your body clock, that is an absurd opening time of 5 am or 6 am. Good grief!

If you take the overnight flight, the downside is yes, you will be really tired on your first afternoon and evening. But if you obey your body, you'll get to bed, exhausted, around 9 pm that night. Ten hours later, it's 7 am, you wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, and you are recovered, on Florida time, and ready to enjoy a week at the parks.

It is worth a try.

[lisaboo]

Did the red eye on our last trip and my poor fiance was falling asleep on the Backlot Tour by 7pm (of course, you could be wide awake and still fall asleep on that ride, but that's another story). It will maximize your time AND it will exhaust you. Of course, you are considerably younger than our 30-something selves, so maybe you would handle it better. Much of what steamboatpete said is true.

[LilRah08]

You could also take the earlier flight, & sleep a couple hours & go to the park around noon or 1ish so you wouldn't be as tired & your body would think that it was either 9 or 10am. =)

[dchun2007]

thanks for all the advice so far! I appreciate a lot of it! I'm so excited for Disneyworld now. Well I was excited before, but I'm now even more excited.

Has anyone tried the grand gatherings Intl Buffet for Illuminations?

Also, for the Fantasmic Dinner buffet do you guys suggest Mama Melrose or Hollywood and Vine? The price doesn't matter since we're using the Dining plan.