Thought I had it all planned... now ACK!

[2BEKs]

Ok folks!!! I THOUGHT that I had my trip planned perfectly... now I'm all over the place!!!

I appreciate the advice that I've gotten before - so here is what I hope will be my last question so I can make my plans - - we leave next week!!

For MK specifically, would you rather:

1) go to morning EMH

or

2) go to an in-park character meal at 8am for a 9am park opening

or

3) get there for RD and watch the opening show?


WHY??

this is our FIRST trip and are planning RD at all the other parks... but I know that MK is a bit special and we want to make sure to "do it right". LOL!

THANKS!!!

 

[jcriket]

If it's your only MK day I would EMH, you can do a lot in the morning then do a character meal later when it' more crowded, and hot.

 

[CocosMeme]

I would definately go with #3. Rope drop at MK is the best. WE have done the character breakfast many times and have decided never again. It eats up a lot of time and we were way too full to enjoy the rides as much as we could have. The one we enjoyed the most was Donald's Safari Breakfast at AK. Go with a character lunch at CP. You will be ready for a break then and the food is good. EMH is O.K. but the park fills up pretty quickly. Just my personal opinion, but you will probably get a lot of different ones!

 

[j&j620]

I'd say #1! We went to MK last week for the morning EMH and there was still a rope drop ceremony with all of the characters prior to the park opening at 8. Not sure if that can always be expected, though.

We found that the morning EMH really cut down on our wait times (more so than the PM). The park didn't really feel crowded until 9:30, which doesn't sound that impressive but you can really accomplish a LOT in that time.

Have fun!

 

[bellefromboston]

I would go with doing a character breakfast at 8 am and starting the park at 9. We did this for the first time in March and had a fantastic time. Nothing is more magical than walking down Main Street virtually empty. It is beautiful and such a special way to experience the Magic Kingdom for the first time! It is also a great opportunity for photos. My family loves the Crystal Palace! Not only is the food yummy, but the characters are A TON of fun! Plus, meeting characters first thing in the morning makes it less tempting to stand in long lines to meet them through out the day (giving you more time for rides!) I believe seeing the park at this special hour is far more memorable than going commando from ride to ride at EMH or seeing the opening show.

Have a wonderful vacation!

 

[ilovepete]

I definitely would do the EMH! Because you can get A LOT done in that hour!

 

[kirby428]

First time, eh? Do the rides. Skip the character meal. There are pleanty of opportunities to meet characters and it doesn't have to be during a meal at the most precious time for optimum touring. If you plan to be in the park for an EMH day, do it. If you need to visit on a non-EMH day, just follow thru with your rope drop pattern. The pressure to ride as many of the rides as can be done is greatest for first time visits. Try to sort out a priority. What might you feel can wait for a second visit? It all depends on your touring group so no one can do that for you. Rest assured...there will be a second visit. Remember, if you have what it takes to arrive for an EMH early day, you are doing well for best touring.

 

[GrtWtNorth]

#1 and #3 simultaneously. They will only do the rope drop ceremony once per day, and if it's a MEMH day, it will be at the beginning of EMH.

Character breakfasts are OK, but not nearly as magical as the parks.

Enjoy your first trip!

 

[2BEKs]

for clarification

the character breakfast is PRIOR to park opening.

park opens at 9am (not an Morn EMH day)

breakfast is scheduled at 8am at CP.

so it's not that I'm spending TOURING time to eat breakfast...

just a choice between doing breakfast/walking down empty main street OR watching the RD show.

OR

doing morn EMH instead of all of the above.

make sense??


THANKS EVERYONE!

Would love to hear more opinions w/ reasoning...


thanks again!

 

[MHSweb79]

We've seen the MK opening show at morning EMH so that's certainly possible to do. It's nice but really it's only about 10 minutes or less, so not a deal-breaker as far as I'm concerned.

Of course, I would still do morning EMH with the ages of your kids, because you could knock out all of Fantasyland in about an hour or two, while if you went later in the day the lines for Peter Pan and Dumbo could be an hour or more each.

 

[bamagirl@hrt]

I love morning EMH, especially at MK because you can get so much done! I also love character breakfasts. What we like to do is go to the park early, ride as much as we can in the first 2-3 hours, and then have a late breakfast at Crystal Palace. I try to get an ADR 10:00-10:30. By that time, the crowds are increasing, we're ready for a break, and the restaurant is not as crowded, giving my family wonderful interaction with the characters. When my kids were younger & we used this strategy, once we were the ONLY ones around our area of the restaurant. We were finishing up with paying & Pooh came to our table. He played "ring around the rosie" with my kids - just the three of them! It was amazing!

My biggest piece of advice for you on your first trip is this - don't have expectations that are so high that you'll be easily disappointed. That has happened to me before on WDW trips. These boards are fantastic for information, but it's easy to hope for the same experiences others have had. We are not the WDW veterans that many here are, but we've been 6 times with our kids in the last 8 years. Some of our most magical moments have just happened by chance - for example, the scenario I described above. Just let the magic happen and you'll have an unforgettable trip!