Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom Discussion Thread

[jray21]

I still don't understand all the complaints about the christmas decoration changes. It seems to me that anything Disney removes suddenly becomes the most important and amazing thing ever, and by removing it, the entire park is forever ruined.

[Bubba]

I still don't understand all the complaints about the christmas decoration changes. It seems to me that anything Disney removes suddenly becomes the most important and amazing thing ever, and by removing it, the entire park is forever ruined.

I love Disney, but I just skim through many die-hard forums cause of this. Most want everything to stay the same as when they were children even if beaten to a pulp & unknown by 99% others.

[cfc]

^ Disney & More.com did an article with photos and video tour of the new Peter Pan queue,

and the possibility of it being built in Disney Paris, as well....

 

http://disneyandmore.blogspot.ca/2014/11/will-they-build-at-disneyland-paris-new.html

 

It's definitely a huge improvement over the original bare-bones queue. That line gets pretty long, so they may as well give guests something to look at while they're waiting.

[jray21]

That would definitely get me to wait in that long queue! Pretty cool looking stuff.

[chargersmichael]

Hello all! I am planning a trip for this Sunday. It is a Park Hopper Pass and I definitely want to go to this park and Hollywood Studios. However, I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on which one I should do first. Also, I really want to do the Be Our Guest Restaurant. Is the lunch or dinner better? That may decide which park I go to first.

 

EDIT: Never mind. Be Our Guest is all booked up for dinner for Sunday. I'll go to Magic Kingdom first then for the lunch

[robbalvey]

Happy 40th Birthday Space Mountain! Let's celebrate with a lights on video of the ride!

 

Edited January 16, 2015 by robbalvey

[GwaziBSRider1]

I can't wait to show this video to my friend! Every time I show her the video of Space Mountain lit up that I shot from the Peoplemover, it gets her so angry. This will be a delight! Thanks, Robb!

[cfc]

I have yet to experience a lights-on Space Mountain ride.

[coasterbill]

Hey everyone!

 

We're planning on visiting Orlando over President's Day / Valentines Day weekend (we know... we know) and after doing some research and trip planning I'm seriously considering visiting the Magic Kingdom. (For what it's worth the "crowd calendar" thing seems to think crowds at Magic Kingdom will be low on Friday but Orlando itself will be packed). I'm hoping the experts can help us out a little bit and let us know if this is worth doing or if we're better off just scrapping this idea completely.

 

So this is the basic plan. We live in New York and we're no strangers to long drives. I took Friday and Monday off from work so we're planning to leave my office at 4:00 and start driving. The drive should be about 16 hours. I'm expecting to stop around 1 or 2 in the morning and start driving again around 7 AM. So if everything goes perfectly we should get to Orlando around 1:00 in the afternoon. I know that's really optimistic and it's a Holiday weekend (though we'll be finished driving before Rush Hour on Friday) but even if you add 4 hours to that we'll still be in Orlando by 5:00. We do drives like this all the time... a few weeks ago we left my office at 4 on a Friday to go to Dollywood the next day and got there by opening all while getting a hotel and sleeping for a good 5-6 hours. We almost never stop unless we need gas so we're prepared for the drive. Last year we drove to Orlando through Kentucky and made it a 25 hour drive to get around a huge snow storm. This has to be a dramatic improvement over that... lol

 

Originally the plan was to only visit 2 parks... Sea World on Saturday and Busch Gardens Tampa on Sunday (I know it's strange to skip Universal and Disney but my girlfriend and I each picked a park we wanted to go to and those 2 won... she loves whales so there was no way she wasn't picking Sea World and Busch Gardens Tampa has Kumba so that was an easy decision for me. Plus Cheetah Hunt was closed when we want last year and I'm yet to ride that or Falcon's Fury which wasn't open yet.

 

Anyway I was looking around for things to do on Friday night and there's no shortage on I-Drive but then I noticed that the Magic Kingdom was open until 1AM. That means that even if we got into the gate at 6:00 (we could check into out hotel after we leave the park so we don't even have to go there first) we would still have 7 hours to spend there and if all goes well we could be there even earlier. My girlfriend has never been to Disney and I haven't been there in 10+ years.

 

I know it's best not to rush this park but my thought is that rushing it is better than not going at all. We've decided that the rides we absolutely have to ride are

 

- Mine Train

- Big Thunder

- Splash Mountain

- Space Mountain

- Haunted Mansion

- Pirates

- Hall of Presidents (I'm kidding, don't worry)

 

If we have time we'd like to ride more (Jungle Cruise comes to mind as does Barnstormer because I'm a filthy credit whore) but anything other than those 6 rides is a bonus.

 

So here are my questions

 

1) Do you think this is feasible or should we just say screw it and play Miniature golf or something and then go ride White Lightning and drink all night at Fun Spot (we did that last year)?

 

2) How long should we expect to wait for those rides (not exactly... just a ballpark obviously). I assume Splash will have a short line once it gets dark since it's February but I really have no idea. Keep in mind that it's the Friday of President's Day weekend.

 

3) If we buy our tickets through the Disney site I assume it will prompt us to select the day we're going and then they'll send us the information for Fast Pass plus correct? I don't really know a thing about this system but what I'd like to do is book some of these rides in advance and do it after 7-8pm so we know we have enough time to get there... is that realistic? How far in advance do you think we need to book?

 

4) Assuming I'm understanding Fast Pass Plus correctly, what rides do we need to book on that system?

 

5) Is there any concern of the park hitting capacity this day based on the high crowd prediction for Orlando as a whole (excuse my ignorance)?

 

Thanks everyone, and I'm sorry for all the dumb questions but my Disney knowledge is non-existant. I also know that the park has extra Magic Hours but 3am is a little late if we want to be at Sea World at 9am the next day and we're not planning on staying at a Disney resort anyway (just a hotel on IDrive that seems nice like the Courtyard Marriot we stayed last year).

 

Any additional tips are great as well because I know next to nothing about Disney.

[hey...hey]

^^I will never forget when the lights came on while I was waiting in line just about to get on. I had ridden it about a dozen times before, and never had the lights come on. Then, there we were, my brother and I were just about to board when the ride broke down. It was a surprise to both of us. Kind of a little bit of a deflator.

[Yamez]

Hey all! Its rare that I visit this thread, but I have a couple questions for you Disney vets out there. My family and I are going to do the parks on the week of July 4th. Long story short its the only time everyone could get time off - so we're kind of stuck there. We'll be staying at the Port New Orleans Riverside, the specific dates are June 30th (check in) - July 7th (check out).

 

I figure crowds are going to be huge, but I have a couple quick questions on some of the newer things going on in the parks:

 

How do people feel about the dining plans? We're kind of up in the air on those, though the Disney representative assured us that we can add a dining plan to a resort package without the tickets after we make our reservation. Everything I've read has said the opposite - you must purchase tickets through Disney to purchase a dining plan. Anyone know whats with the conflicting answers?

 

The next question I have is regarding the Hub expansion and construction. I know there is no official completion date, but just a general guess for those of you that live in the area and frequent MK, do you personally think they'll have it done by that weekend? Would really love to see the park mostly done with their construction when we go as its the first time visit for all of the kids.

 

And finally, there doesn't seem to be a huge price differential between buying your tickets from Disney or getting them discounted from agencies like AAA or my union perks. Would you recommend buying your tickets from Disney and just putting them on the resort package, or is there some place you would suggest looking at ticket prices?

 

Other than that, if you guys have any experiences to suggest for the little ones that'd be great! We've got three girls and a boy all going for their first time - the girls are 13, 8, 1 (21 months), while the little boy is going to be 7. We have a princess makeover for the 8 year old scheduled, and they're going to do some of the neat dinner shows. Past that though I'm just looking for things to suggest to the group to make it as fun of an experience as possible for the kids.

[SharkTums]

So here are my questions

 

1) Do you think this is feasible or should we just say screw it and play Miniature golf or something and then go ride White Lightning and drink all night at Fun Spot (we did that last year)?

 

2) How long should we expect to wait for those rides (not exactly... just a ballpark obviously). I assume Splash will have a short line once it gets dark since it's February but I really have no idea. Keep in mind that it's the Friday of President's Day weekend.

 

3) If we buy our tickets through the Disney site I assume it will prompt us to select the day we're going and then they'll send us the information for Fast Pass plus correct? I don't really know a thing about this system but what I'd like to do is book some of these rides in advance and do it after 7-8pm so we know we have enough time to get there... is that realistic? How far in advance do you think we need to book?

 

4) Assuming I'm understanding Fast Pass Plus correctly, what rides do we need to book on that system?

 

5) Is there any concern of the park hitting capacity this day based on the high crowd prediction for Orlando as a whole (excuse my ignorance)?

 

Thanks everyone, and I'm sorry for all the dumb questions but my Disney knowledge is non-existant. I also know that the park has extra Magic Hours but 3am is a little late if we want to be at Sea World at 9am the next day and we're not planning on staying at a Disney resort anyway (just a hotel on IDrive that seems nice like the Courtyard Marriot we stayed last year).

 

Any additional tips are great as well because I know next to nothing about Disney.

 

Lots of questions here...

 

First off, I don't think driving is crazy and as long as 95 sucks somewhat less than normal you'll be fine.

 

1. Sure it's feasible. Is it practical? Not so sure. Is it worth the money? Also up to you.

 

2. It will be busy. I expect most times to be in the 30 - 45 time range with the big rides much longer. Seven Dwarfs yesterday on a random Tuesday during the day was 140!!!! Like you said, Splash and most rides get much shorter towards the end of the night. One hour after Wishes usually. You do mention though that it's an EMH night so more people will be there later than normal.

 

3/4. If you buy your tickets and setup a Disney account then yes, you can do Fastpass +. I'm looking right now and I can get EVERY thing at Magic Kingdom on that day except 7D, Frozen girls, Mermaid, and Wishes. So you could reserve Thunder, Space, Mansion. Standby the rest. Save 7D till the very end of the night.

 

5. MK will NOT hit capacity on that day so nothing to worry about there.

[SharkTums]

Hey all! Its rare that I visit this thread, but I have a couple questions for you Disney vets out there. My family and I are going to do the parks on the week of July 4th. Long story short its the only time everyone could get time off - so we're kind of stuck there. We'll be staying at the Port New Orleans Riverside, the specific dates are June 30th (check in) - July 7th (check out).

 

I figure crowds are going to be huge, but I have a couple quick questions on some of the newer things going on in the parks:

 

How do people feel about the dining plans? We're kind of up in the air on those, though the Disney representative assured us that we can add a dining plan to a resort package without the tickets after we make our reservation. Everything I've read has said the opposite - you must purchase tickets through Disney to purchase a dining plan. Anyone know whats with the conflicting answers?

 

The next question I have is regarding the Hub expansion and construction. I know there is no official completion date, but just a general guess for those of you that live in the area and frequent MK, do you personally think they'll have it done by that weekend? Would really love to see the park mostly done with their construction when we go as its the first time visit for all of the kids.

 

And finally, there doesn't seem to be a huge price differential between buying your tickets from Disney or getting them discounted from agencies like AAA or my union perks. Would you recommend buying your tickets from Disney and just putting them on the resort package, or is there some place you would suggest looking at ticket prices?

 

Other than that, if you guys have any experiences to suggest for the little ones that'd be great! We've got three girls and a boy all going for their first time - the girls are 13, 8, 1 (21 months), while the little boy is going to be 7. We have a princess makeover for the 8 year old scheduled, and they're going to do some of the neat dinner shows. Past that though I'm just looking for things to suggest to the group to make it as fun of an experience as possible for the kids.

 

You're brave! Mentally and physically prepare for the crowds, heat and humidity. Staying on property is a great idea as you can take breaks, relax, swim, etc. Let me try and answer some of your questions:

 

- Dining package - They've recently become less strict about it so I'm not totally sure, but it seems logical that they would let you add it on without tickets. We've done this once or twice. As for the worth of it? It depends on your family. For us it was TOO much food and I think that's what you'll hear from most people. The other issue we have is that they always include desserts but not appetizers. We are much more an appetizer than dessert family so for us we always were paying more and leaving desserts over. If your family can eat and like desserts though, by all means go for it! It makes things easy and there's less out of pocket spending once you're in town.

 

- Hub - I haven't been following the progress but it certainly would not distract from your children's first view of Disney, the castle, etc. When Disney does construction they do a VERY good job. Seriously, this shouldn't even be a back of the mind concern.

 

- Tickets - You are correct. The savings are only a few dollars when going through AAA or authorized ticket sellers. Put your mind at ease, and make things even easier and just book the whole thing through Disney.

 

- Kids - Staying on property is great. Check out the French Quarter side of your resort as there's a better pool/playground area for children there than at Riverside. Take advantage of the Extra Magic Hours. When there's a super late one at MK, let the kids sleep in, play around, then go to that park late. The water parks are really nice, mini golf is fun, etc. My daughter loves Fort Wilderness at night. They do a Chip and Dale Campfire Singalong with Smores, a movie, and more! Seriously though, try and take it easy and go back to the resort for AC and Rest at the heat of the day.

 

Hope this helps!

[coasterbill]

Thanks! I really appreciate you taking the time to respond. All of your help is much appreciated because as I said I don't know much of anything about Disney.

 

I really do wish we had more time there and I know it's really strange to spend a full day at Sea World and not Magic Kingdom but when it's Valentines Day weekend and your girlfriend's #1 priority when visiting Orlando is to see Shamu then you make absolutely sure you go see Shamu. lol

[SharkTums]

Thanks! I really appreciate you taking the time to respond. All of your help is much appreciated because as I said I don't know much of anything about Disney.

 

I really do wish we had more time there and I know it's really strange to spend a full day at Sea World and not Magic Kingdom but when it's Valentines Day weekend and your girlfriend's #1 priority when visiting Orlando is to see Shamu then you make absolutely sure you go see Shamu. lol

 

Trust me, I'm not judging at all! I once asked Robb to take me to Waffle House for my birthday dinner!

[DJeXeL]

Waffle House is what Denny's wishes it could be!

[Yamez]

You're brave! Mentally and physically prepare for the crowds, heat and humidity. Staying on property is a great idea as you can take breaks, relax, swim, etc. Let me try and answer some of your questions:

 

- Dining package - They've recently become less strict about it so I'm not totally sure, but it seems logical that they would let you add it on without tickets. We've done this once or twice. As for the worth of it? It depends on your family. For us it was TOO much food and I think that's what you'll hear from most people. The other issue we have is that they always include desserts but not appetizers. We are much more an appetizer than dessert family so for us we always were paying more and leaving desserts over. If your family can eat and like desserts though, by all means go for it! It makes things easy and there's less out of pocket spending once you're in town.

 

- Hub - I haven't been following the progress but it certainly would not distract from your children's first view of Disney, the castle, etc. When Disney does construction they do a VERY good job. Seriously, this shouldn't even be a back of the mind concern.

 

- Tickets - You are correct. The savings are only a few dollars when going through AAA or authorized ticket sellers. Put your mind at ease, and make things even easier and just book the whole thing through Disney.

 

- Kids - Staying on property is great. Check out the French Quarter side of your resort as there's a better pool/playground area for children there than at Riverside. Take advantage of the Extra Magic Hours. When there's a super late one at MK, let the kids sleep in, play around, then go to that park late. The water parks are really nice, mini golf is fun, etc. My daughter loves Fort Wilderness at night. They do a Chip and Dale Campfire Singalong with Smores, a movie, and more! Seriously though, try and take it easy and go back to the resort for AC and Rest at the heat of the day.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Thank you so much for the answers Elissa! I'll definitely pass on the information to the rest of the group, and this will be a big help for our planning. My mother loves Chip and Dale, so I'm sure we'll try to hit that up one of the days that we're over there!

[thrillrider]

Not to change the subject, But there has been talk of a "possible" new gate in the next few years. It got me to thinking as to what they would theme a new Disneyworld park to. At first I was thinking that a Disney sea type park(like in Tokyo), but then it dawned on me that they now have the rights to the Marvel comics.

 

I am not sure what type of agreements would have to be made with Universal studios as I sure they have some sort of contract in place for the use of Marvel. On the other hand, a Disney sea type park could be huge as well.

 

A couple questions I have about all of this.......

 

1.Do you think there is a need or demand for another park?

2. What type/ theme do you think the new park would work best?

[robbalvey]

So this happened last night...

[cfc]

^Remember--only a head shot will kill an animatronic zombie!

[PeoplemoverMatt]

Animatronics not working correctly, AND in view of guests?!!???!?! This will NOT stand! Think of all the childhoods and expensive vacations that were just instantly ruined!!

 

We must go to the internet quickly and sound the alarms of the imminent collapse of the entire Walt Disney Company while we can still take credit for even the tiniest unrelated change made while this catastrophe is still fresh in people's minds!

[jray21]

Declining by degrees!

 

That's awesome you got that! Definitely would be creepy with no sound or movement.

[coasterfreak101]

But how many degrees did they decline by? I need a number here!

[COASTER FREAK 11]

That is sooo odd.

[KBrylczyk]

Animatronics not working correctly, AND in view of guests?!!???!?! This will NOT stand! Think of all the childhoods and expensive vacations that were just instantly ruined!!

 

We must go to the internet quickly and sound the alarms of the imminent collapse of the entire Walt Disney Company while we can still take credit for even the tiniest unrelated change made while this catastrophe is still fresh in people's minds!

 

Yes, but were the USB ports working?!