So, our trip is now 45 days away!!! :)I am so excited. I fine-tuned our itinerary to coincide with ADR's and I would love to get opinions. We are a mom & dad travelling with a set of grandparents, a DS7, DD5 and DS3. We have purposely left our evenings (after dinner) open for the most part, because our kids go to bed early at home and we're not sure how they will do staying up late.

Sat. 11/8 Plane arrives at 10:10 a.m. Take Magical Express to the Wilderness Lodge; take the boat to Magic Kingdom and have a counter service lunch. Maybe catch the 3 p.m. parade. ADR at Whispering Canyon at 5:20

Sun. 11/9 Animal Kingdom with counter service lunch at Flame Tree BBQ. No real plans for dinner...maybe counter service back at the hotel. See how tired everyone is. For some reason Animal Kingdom always seems to be so hot and tiring!

Mon. 11/10 ADR at Chef Mickey's at 8:40. Head to Epcot after breakfast. Counter service/light lunch because we have an ADR at Coral Reef at 4:30.

Tues. 11/11 Relax and sleep in a bit and head to Magic Kingdom mid-morning ;ADR for lunch at Cinderella's Castle at 1:10

Wed. 11/12 Hollywood Studios most of the day; Artist Point for dinner at 6:05

Thurs. 11/13 A.M. EMH at Magic Kingdom; Go back to the hotel and rest in the afternoon. Dinner at Kona Café at 5:30;Wishes at 8:00 *

Fri. 11/14 Downtown Disney in the morning; Earl of Sandwich for counter service lunch; relax at hotel after lunch. Head to Epcot late afternoon/evening for our ADR at Le Cellier. **

Sat. 11/15 Crystal Palace breakfast at 8:05, then more Magic Kingdom until we have to leave. Our palne doesn't leave until 6p.m.

* Will we have enough time to eat and take the boat or monorail to Magic Kingdom for Wishes? Should we try to watch them at the Polynesian? My kids are not huge fans of fireworks (the noise), but I do want them to experience Wishes at least once on this trip.

**This is my husband's birthday dinner. I am going to order a cake for dessert at LeCellier.

Thanks for any thoughts or advice on "the plan" :)

How early do you have to get up to catch your plane? Is your 3 year old in particular going to last long enough without a nap to make it through dinner without a meltdown?

I'd worry about the lack of mid-day breaks with your young kids - I VIVIDLY remember the only reason my 3 year old nephew was asleep before I was on our third day (at 'nap time') was because he got to fall asleep on the bus and be carried back to the room, and I had to walk myself.

I second the recommendation for mid-day breaks. My kids loved the pool at the Wilderness Lodge, and that afternoon swim was a highlight of their day. We all needed a break from the stimulation of the parks, and the few times we skipped that break, we, inevitably had an afternoon meltdown. That is not pretty, especially when you are trying to enjoy a restaurant dinner. JMO, but I would not take a three year old to Artist's Point for dinner (it's a fairly upscale restaurant, and the only time we ate there, it was without our kids), especially if that child is not well-rested and ready to sit for a more formal dinner. I would start my days earlier, take a break for at least two hours, mid-day, then go on to dinner or more park time.

I was assuming that the Artist's Point dinner was just for the 2 parents, and the kiddos were staying with Grandma and Grandpa and having their own version of fun!

Thanks for the thoughts and advice so far! We will head back for a rest every day except Monday 11/10 (because of the timing and location of our ADR's) and Tuesday 11/11 because we have a lunch ADR. That day we have no plans after lunch and we are getting a later start than usual. We are also going to Magic Kingdom on Tuesday, which is a short boat ride away if we have to head back to the hotel sooner than expected. I'm relaxed about our plans to some degree because it really depends how everyone is doing. The 3 year old stopped taking regular naps about 6 months ago. I appreciate the need for quiet time and pool time and I think there is room in our schedule for it as needed. The day we go to Artist Point we'll probably leave HS sometime after lunch in the afternoon with plenty of time to rest before dinner.

The interesting thing about Artist Point is that we went in June 2007 with an almost 2 year old, almost 4 year old and a 6 year old. They did great and loved it. I'm not sure if it was the cute dessert they provide there...but when I initially didn't have a return to Artist Point on our itinerary for this trip, the kids begged to add it! Our kids are used to dining out...not sure if that makes a difference? They really did great and we had a fine experience. I wouldn't bring them back somewhere if I thought it would be a disaster.:eek:

Any thoughts on Kona Cafe on Thursday and where to watch the fireworks? Thanks again for all of the input!:)

You know your kids best wrt Artists Point. I think well behaved kids are welcome in just about every restaurant on site! (V & A being the exception!)

Kona Cafe shouldn't be a long-drawn out meal, so you should be ok --- but if you're cutting it close, you can watch the fireworks from the beach at the Poly!

Your go-with-the-flow attitude is good to hear - so many people don't 'listen' to their kids or their own bodies which results in meltdowns. And if you have to skip an ADR because someone isn't up to it - everyone will survive!

Oh, and on Monday - don't be afraid to take advantage of the lower-level of stimulation in some areas of Epcot -like the kidcot stations, The Seas, or even something as simple as the Movie in France. (I REALLY like that movie for a quasi-nap situation - it's fairly calm scenery, relaxing music, and comfy seats in Air Conditioning. The American Adventure is another potential spot for a cat-nap!

i second Drince's opinion about the cat-napping possibilities of American Adventure and the movie at France - I found both of those places extremely restful - so much so that we had to repeat the experience because I missed all the action first time around! :D

These are great suggestions for getting some "rest" in during our time at Epcot on the Monday of our trip! ;)

Speaking of Epcot...Has anyone ever done the passports through World Showcase? I was planning on doing that with the kids this time to keep them interested through the countries. I understand they are $10 each (so if I bought one for each child...$30). Any thoughts on whether or not this is worth it?

Thanks again!:)

I'm not sure about the passports for your age kids. I'd think they'd have more fun with kidcot.

One thing I thought of for my trip with my nephews was to have a phrase (Thank you, please, Good morning, etc for the younger kids, something more complex for older ones) and then go to each country and have the CM tell them how to say that in their language. Could add a little variety to a school report!

One thing I thought of for my trip with my nephews was to have a phrase (Thank you, please, Good morning, etc for the younger kids, something more complex for older ones) and then go to each country and have the CM tell them how to say that in their language. Could add a little variety to a school report!

Ooh...I love this idea! They would love this!