We've booked our trip, :) we're going Aug 19-27 at the WL in a concierge room. We're doing a 5 day park hopper (Taking advantage of the Military offer) so we'll have 2 day's to explore the resorts, swim, go to Downtown Disney etc... Any suggestions on things to do these days? What non park things are a MUST see... I'm thinking one of these days may include the hoop dee doo, a carriage ride at Ft Wilderness and maybe 1900 Park Faire for dinner on the other.... We'll arrive on the 19th probably pretty late, so our plan is to stay at the Hyatt at the airport, the next day (thursday) we’ll get up and go over to the WL, we’ll use this as one of the days we don’t do the parks...

Friday and Saturday we’ll go to the parks, i’ve read the saturday is usually crowded at MK, but since it’s DD#1’s B-day the plan is to eat at Cinderella's royal table and get hair done at Bippidi Boppidi Boutique, so we’ll probably spend the morning at MK and the afternoon at another park. I was thinking that we’d take sunday off from the parks and then spend mon, tues and wed in the parks.. Is sunday a good day to take off from the parks?

SHould we take advantage of the extended park hours? I’ve read some people totally avoid those parks on days they have extended hours.... we’re usually night people (and I’m thinking it wont be a problem with the time change) but we also always get up to take advantage of MM at DL and we think that is totally worth it. At WDW which is better, the AM or the PM extended hours?

We are Disneyland AP's and go all the time, what are must do’s and see’s at WDW, that you aren’t going to see at DL? And what can we skip (until next time) b/c its similar? I know we aren’t going to be able to do everything, but what cant be missed by us 1st timers? (well that's not entirely true, DH hasn't been since 96, and I haven't been since I was 5, that would have been the mid 70's)

Oh and our girls will be 6 and 9, and they pretty much love all rides, they don’t scare to easily, DD8’s favorite ride is Ca Screamin and DD5’s is Space Mt..... But they are girlie girls and love princesses and dress up too, and they love show’s, parades, and fireworks...

Besides the above mentioned dining, these are some of the places on our list...

Crystal Palace
Whispering canyon cafe
Boma

anything else we should consider?

What are some good quick services places to eat?

Oh and the most important question, will I be able to find my favorite carmel apple pie apple like at DL? I saw there’s a candy store on main street and Goofy’s candy in DTD...

Thanks....

Don't skip the Lion King musical at Animal Kingdom. This show is terrific and it's something you won't see at Disneyland. As a first-timer, I loved this show.

It sounds like a great trip! WL is fantastic :D

I throw a few rambling thoughts out ...

IMHO - It's virtually impossible to take advantage of the late night EMH and get to a park opening the next day for more than one day. You really have to choose which route to go and in general I think it's the morning. In the past I've gotten the Unofficial Guide and had really good luck using their online resources to pick which park to go to each day. Just as you said, they tend to have you go to a park that does not have EMH. I think if you're morning people and you can really be at the gates at opening of the morning EMH it's worth it. Enjoy the EMH and then as that park starts to fill up, move on to another park that doesn't have EMH that day. If you're not going to make opening, skip it. As for the evening EMH, they can be good if you stick around til the end, and for MK than can mean 2 am. :eek: It can take quite awhile for the crowds to thin out and lines to shorten. If you do try some late night EMH's I'd just plan a rest day after them. Overall I think the am EMH are better (again only if you're there right at the start).

Definitely take advantage of the park hoppers!! If you're at a park that is getting crazy, move on to another. Know the transportation layout and options ahead of time. It's really not all that hard, but there are often a few options - busses, monorail, boats, walkways.

It'll be hot and humid, make time for breaks and stay hydrated. WL has a great pool so I'd take advantage of that. With a trip your length for the first time I'd skip the water parks (they are fantastsic, but not worth short changing the parks for and you have a really nice hotel pool to use).

For the non-park days I'd sleep in and relax. In addition to Downtown Disney you might want to try one of the putt-putt golf courses (for us they're a must do). I think the Winterland/Summerland courses next to Blizzard Beach would be great for your girls. Exploring Fort Wilderness is a great idea - you can walk, bike, or take the boat there from WL. Don't forget to watch the water parade (forget the official name) from the WL or FW beach one night. We also think it's a lot of fun to rent the little water sprites at the Contemporary and take them around Bay Lake and Seven Seas Lagoon. I don't think WL has a marina, but I could be wrong.

I'd do Boma on a non-park day and plan to spend a little time exploring Aniimal Kingdom Lodge.

My favorite counter service is Columbia Harbour House in Liberty Square in MK. Sitting upstairs in the covered bridge is fun and it's a nice place for a respite. In the studios we love the Sci-Fi Dine-in - it's so much fun! (it is table service and you'll probably need an adr)

I think there are some good threads about what's at WDW that isn't at DL and what is better at WDW or DL - you could try doing a search for some of them.

Know you can't get it all in so just relax and enjoy all you do get in!!

Guess I got kind of long winded :p
Happy planning :D

Hi! A few thoughts...

Do you have a particular reason why you're planning on using Sunday as a rest day? If for crowds, I can understand. You might also consider going to a park such as Epcot on Sunday that can absorb crowds well and letting Monday be a rest day so you'll have two park days, rest, two park days. I've found on my trips that it's the third straight day that really kills me, so if you do a park on Mon. Tue. and Wed,, you might be hurting on wed. But every family is different as well as energy levels so you are the best person to make that decision for your family.

I've heard about a tour that's given in the Wilderness Lodge that you might do on a non-park day. I think I vaguely remember something about a hidden Mickey hunt, too? Someone chime in here with more details.

I think taking the monorail around to the resorts is really fun. You can stop off and explore and find a snack. They serve Dole Whips at the Poly. I'm sure those would taste wonderful after being the hot and humid August temps.

When you check in to the Wilderness Lodge, it might be handy to have your bathing suits set aside in an easy to access spot. That way if your room isn't ready but you all wanted to go swimming you could change quickly and stow the rest of your stuff with bell services.

I agree with everything Annie said about EMH. My first trip we did both AM and PM EMHs. I loved the AM ones but the evening ones just seemed to be so crowded. We hardly got anything done and ended up exhausted. The second trip I took I avoided most EMH except for a couple of AM ones.

As for what's different/better/worse at WDW vs. MK, you will find a lot of threads that have discussed this. For things not to miss as a DL APer, I say Animal Kingdom. A lot of people rank this as their least favorite park but I just love it. And except for It's Tough To Be A Bug, the whole thing is unique to WDW. The themeing is something you can't get at DL, as well as the real animals. If your girls are animal lovers this park can be a great day for you. And the Festival of the Lion King is the first thing that came to mind when I read your question about what not to miss.

Many things that are "duplicates" between the two resorts you'll just have to make a judgment call on if you want to spend the time on it or not to see the differences. IMO, the only attractions that are true duplicates between the resort are film based attractions such as Star Tours, Muppet 3-D, etc. Rides like Pirates, Space Mountain, Splash, Winnie the Pooh, are slightly different between parks.

I'd say Mickey's Philharmagic is a must do in the MK. In Epcot Illuminations is something I consider a must do as well.

As for quick service places, I really love the ribs at Flame Tree BBQ in Animal Kingdom, and I give another vote for Columbia HH, too. Wolfgang Puck anything in DTD is yummy! So is Earl of Sandwich.

I don't know about your apple pie apple, but something that is really fun is at Goofy's Candy Co. in DTD, you can pick an item (apple, marshmallows on a stick, rice krispy treat, giant oreo) and have it dipped with whatever chocolate or caramel you want and then rolled in a variety of toppings. It's pretty fun and the treats come our so huge it'd be easy to share among your family. So if you can't find your particular apple, this might be a good back up.

I would also consider the campfire show/movie at Fort Wilderness. It's one of those nice, free activities that Disney has that are often times very overlooked. You could combine this with an afternoon of checking out the petting zoo, and just wondering around the grounds. There is a neat old blacksmith's shop that's almost always deserted down by the petting zoo. You mentioned the carriage ride - there is also a wagon ride at FW in the evening - this might be more what you are looking for as I'm not sure the carriages seat more than 2 ppl. (Someone else might be able to confirm/refute this)

Chris
(who has obviously spent way too much time at FW)

Definately use early morning EMH rather than evening IMHO with any child less than a teenager or night owl and try to plan your days off after you have used them. I'm not a frequent visitor and thus expert, but if I had to choose would go for early morning EMH at Magic Kingdom and Epcot if I could only use them 2 days. Also, getting there really early and being at the front of the the early risers at a busy period is not the same as getting there early and being at the back of the early risers. Open the park near the front at MK with a plan and you can storm your must haves by midday. This is the easiest park to make best use of fast pas at without too much backtracking as well I think. If you don't get August rain you will only want to be in the pool in the real heat of the afternoon - it was like nothing a northern English girl had ever even imagined!

Open the park near the front at MK with a plan and you can storm your must haves by midday.

I agree. This is the one park where morning EMH works well for me, as there is just so much stuff open. I usually head right for Pan, and then do the rest of the Fantasyland dark rides, working my way around to Pooh and then into Tomorrowland. I won't stand in any kind of line for the Astro Orbiter or the Speedway, but if there's no line in the morning then I'm all over it (yes, I'm 52 and still enjoy the jets and the cars!). By late morning the crowds are usually starting to get pretty large, so I'll split to a hotel for lunch and then back to my hotel for a nice nap. Talk about yer perfect morning and afternoon!

AK for EMH is nice too. The animals are awake and active and the EME in the evening in this park are really worthless. Animals asleep and hardly anything is open, aside from a few rides and Dinoland.

I would avoid Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Station. We have tried it twice and the food is really bad. IOO (in our opinion):)
We had fun at Chef Mickeys and Liberty Tree Tavern, while not a character meal anymore, the food is soooooo good.

For a day off idea we did the mousesprite boats. ( I think that is what they are called). They seat two and you can zip around Bay Lake. They are a ton of fun and my kids loved them! The Grand Floridian and Fort Wilderness have them.

The Water Mice are available at most of the waterfront resorts, including the Contemporary and the Poly. And they are lots of fun!

Don't miss Finding Nemo the Musical at Animal Kingdom! It is awesome!