Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

I am like Disney impaired...

My dad is taking us in May from Weds-Sun (arriving Weds, leaving Sunday)

That leaves Thurs, Fri, Sat

Obviously, we want to do Magic Kingdom - Cai turns 4 in April....

I want to take him to all the classic rides:

Pirates
It's a small world
peter pan
etc

My dad wants the itinerary this week - do I need to schedule these actual rides?

If we wanted to do Magic Kingdom Thurs & Fri
Animal Kingdom - Dinoland on Sat

Something like that - do I need to actually tell him to get tkts for specific rides, or do we do all that when we get there?

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

No, you just buy the park ticket.

You can buy the park hopper, this way you can go to any park, any day of your trip. Or you can buy 1 park per day, which is a little cheaper. I like the PH, I think it's worth it.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Here are the rides I would love to take Cai on - is this looking like 2 days?

I can't do this in 1 day unless we all are on crack, right?

Buzz light year
mad tea party
peter pan
small world
dumbo
haunted mansion (he likes scary stuff - but I'm thinking this might be too much for him though - we'll see )
country bear jamboree
pirates
tiki room
jungle cruise
aladdin

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

If you son is still into Spiderman, they have an amazing Spiderman 4-d ride at Univeral Island of Adventure. One of the "islands" is super-hero based w/ Hulk rides, dr. doom, spiderman etc. They even have professional superhero face painting. They also have a Jurassic Park "island" if he likes dinosaurs. You will have a ball. The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World w/ kids is a great resource.
You will have a ball! I'm going this Thursday through Monday.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

There is a book called Unofficial guide to WDW. They have Touring Plans for each park. Will you be doing 1 or 2 days in Magic Kingdom.

I would do Pirate League in Magic Kingdom. Does he like Toy Story? Then I would do Disney Hollywood & Animal Kingdom.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

If it is not busy you can do Magic Kingdom in one day. I would buy a 2 day ticket (park hopper). I would def do Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios and maybe leave the 3rd day for Universal Islands of Adventure.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

There is a LOT to see in those parks other than the big rides.

There are carousels, shows, parades (the light parade is beautiful and one of my best childhood memories). Even the restaurants are fun to do... and to get to Magic Kingdom involves a boat ride or a train ride from the parking lot.

It also can get really too hot during the middle of the day & you will need to take breaks.

My advice (note, my DS is only 6 months, but I've been to Disney A LOT as a kid/teen/young adult) is to take it SLOW and err on the side of missing a park than flying through a bunch of them and being stressed.

For a 4 year old, Magic Kingdom & Animal Kingdom is a LOT to see & has a variety of great rides.

Magic Kingdom is DISNEY. It's fun, you get to see characters, the light parade, ect.

Animal Kingdom is somewhat new and is really cute: think Safari.

Epcot is cute... but being from NYC, I know about other cultures and foods from around the world. Last time I went, I was disappointed.

I've never went to Islands of Adventure: I always thought it was more teen-oriented.

I thought Hollywood Studios and Universal were GREAT, but for older kids (think 8) who enjoyed learning about how movies are made, ect.

There are attractions in all parks for all ages, though.

Have fun! I can't wait til DS is a little older so that I can take him!

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

I agree with the above posters. It can be exhausting. If I had to pick only 2 parks it would be Magic Kingdom & Disney Hollywood. I think the Disney Hollywood is the park with the Star Wars, but it may only be on the weekends.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

The parks shouldn't be too crowded if you are going in May. So I wouldn't worry about fitting in all the rides in one day. You would be surprised what you can get done without large crowds. He will enjoy a lot of stuff at Magic Kingdom - the Haunted Mansion really isn't that scary. My DD loved it and she's scared easily. There are a ton of fun rides. You should go to the Disneyworld website - they have all the rides listed there with their height restrictions too. I would skip Universal - I'm not sure Cailen will be able to go on most of the rides, which would be a waste of money.

Do you know if you are staying on Disney property and will you have a car? I think you would be good with Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios (this is where the Star Wars stuff is - but you have to check and make sure it's not closed. I heard they were renovating the ride.) and Animal Kingdom is fun if you have the time! It's a lot to take in - maybe you guys should just get the 3 day ticket - this way you can go to 1 park each day. For an extra $50 or so you can get a park hopper which allows you to "hop" from one park to another park everyday of your trip. This option gives you a little more freedom.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

I think that you can conquer Magic Kingdom in one day!

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

If you have 3 days, I would do 2 in Disney and the third either at Universal Islands of Adventure (I would skip Universal Studios) or at Seaworld. I ♥ Seaworld! But for a 4 year old that seems adventurous, I'd probably be geared more towards Disney or Islands of Adventure.

Islands of Adventure has a new Harry Potter world that is supposed to be amazing if he's into that. They have a lot of roller coasters and a Super Hero "land" with all super hero rides. Also a Dr. Seuss land with smaller rides for the young ones. It's definitely more RIDES than other attractions, but they do have a lot of fun stuff too like little shows and things.

I haven't been to Hollywood Studios so no idea. I went to Animal Kingdom many years ago and was not impressed. Someone told me it's like going to the zoo or the safari at Great Adventure. I would probably skip it for his first trip to Disney and stick to more of the "disney" themed stuff with characters and rides and shows and parades, etc.

As mentioned, Disney and Universal are totally unrelated so you can't buy a group ticket that covers both.

Check out mousesavers.com for LOTS of great tips on going to Disney and Orlando. They recommend UndercoverTourist.com for VALID discount tickets that do NOT come with timeshare sales catches. If you look for discount disney tix online, you will find a TON that offer you free or very discounted tix, but they will require that you go to a timeshare presentation that is SUPPOSED to be 90 minutes, but never is and it's a super hard sell. Total waste of time if you only have 3 days to enjoy.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Message Kimmie on FB-she works there and can get you discounts!

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

I may be in the minority here, but I would probably do two parks and save one day fir the pool. At 4 years old, kids enjoy just being kids and playing. We go to Florida once or twice a year and we only do one park, one day and spend the rest of our days at the pool and going out for cool dinners. We've done Medieval Times, Arabian Nights, Purate Dinner Adventure, the Dino restaurant in Downtown Disney, etc

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

My 3 yr old and 2 yr old..LOVED MK, HS and AK..there was something for them at all of these parks and I am glad I did all 3...HS is all Pixar and my kids are obsessed with Pixar esp Toy story (they had an AWESOME parade)

If you are doing the Meal plan (which I was glad we did and htere is free dining codes out there..which make is doubly worth it)

BOOK now...you can book 180 day before your first day..and they sell out of the good times that far in advance...

check out DISboards.com. I was just as obsessed with those boards as I am here and they helped me with scheduling and restaurants to choose...everything I followed with them worked out great...and with the dining plan we were able to go to character meals and not feel they were too exp...bec we just had to pay gratuity.

Message edited 3/15/2011 11:03:30 AM.

Re: Going to Disney in May - don't know where to start

Lots of useful information here! As for your list of rides that you want to take DS on, you should have no problem doing that in one day. Peter Pan has the longest wait on a normal day, just plan it so that you can go there early and get a fast pass for later.


There is a message board, Disboards, that has all sorts of trip planning boards if you aren't getting the answers you need here. Heck, DH and I go every year, are part of the Disney Vacation Club and I will still go there to ask questions!!

Message edited 3/15/2011 11:00:02 AM.