NYE morning visit with an almost 3-yr old- advice on when to arrive/ what to do

[Carlymouse]

Hello everyone! We are taking our first family Disney trip December 31st (arriving the day before and staying off-resort) through the 5th (leaving on the 6th). It is my husband and I, daughter (2-almost-3) and my in-laws.

When I originally wrote this post, we were thinking of doing MK in the AM with a 10:25AM reservation at Crystal Palace. I still have that reservation, but I also have a 1:05PM Tusker House reservation and we're considering doing Animal Kingdom on Day 1 instead for easier-to-navigate crowds. I know it'll probably be crazy everywhere, but AK is still supposed to be a little less crowded and I think (?) it may be a little easier to get in and out from off-resort than MK. Any thoughts on either place (travel time/ when to arrive/ what to do) would be appreciated! If we do AK day 1 we'll do MK day 2; if we stick with our original plan it will be MK day 1 and AK day 2.

 

[mousehouse23]

For the 31st, I'd get to the parking lot by 7:15-7:30. I know that sounds nuts, but it's a time-consuming process to get on board the monorail at the T&T and make it on over to the Magic Kingdom. There will already be a lot of people waiting to get into the park--some will be people with early morning ADR's, though, who will be let in around 7:45. Remember, they'll let everyone onto Main Street around 8:00 or so before holding you at the Hub area until the opening show. (You can always grab a coffee at Starbucks while waiting.)

I'd head straight to Peter Pan at Rope Drop (unless you want to FP it later, and not be part of the mad rush). Then I'd do Winnie the Pooh or The Little Mermaid or Dumbo, and see what you can squeeze in before you head to the Crystal Palace.

 

[Carlymouse]

Thanks! That is really helpful! We're definitely thinking of going back to MK on subsequent days, but since it's our first day I was torn about what park/ rides to begin with, and Fantasy Land had been heavily on my mind. That is way earlier than I'd been thinking when I heard it was a 9AM opening, but that is why I posted! I needed 3rd party insight!

For the 31st, I'd get to the parking lot by 7:15-7:30. I know that sounds nuts, but it's a time-consuming process to get on board the monorail at the T&T and make it on over to the Magic Kingdom. There will already be a lot of people waiting to get into the park--some will be people with early morning ADR's, though, who will be let in around 7:45. Remember, they'll let everyone onto Main Street around 8:00 or so before holding you at the Hub area until the opening show. (You can always grab a coffee at Starbucks while waiting.)

I'd head straight to Peter Pan at Rope Drop (unless you want to FP it later, and not be part of the mad rush). Then I'd do Winnie the Pooh or The Little Mermaid or Dumbo, and see what you can squeeze in before you head to the Crystal Palace.

 

[mousehouse23]

I know it seems crazy! Magic Kingdom has the most time-consuming entry process because of the delay at the Ticket and Transportation Center, where you have to wait on a monorail. And also, it's the busiest park--especially on that particular day. But I totally understand why you want to hit MK first! I'd be the same way.

Josh at easywdw.com has great park touring maps and plans, if you ever want to give those a look. http://www.easywdw.com/easy/magic-k...s-rope-drop-wait-times-and-fastpass-priority/. Touring Plans is an informative website, too.

 

[Carlymouse]

Thank you! That easywdw is a great resource I hadn't found yet. It's been difficult to find easy-to-read and up-to-date maps online. I am playing around with Touring Plans. I thought about avoiding MK on our first day, but it was hard to imagine the first Disney trip with our daughter not starting at MK, so we'll just plan to start early and nap later!

I know it seems crazy! Magic Kingdom has the most time-consuming entry process because of the delay at the Ticket and Transportation Center, where you have to wait on a monorail. And also, it's the busiest park--especially on that particular day. But I totally understand why you want to hit MK first! I'd be the same way.

Josh at easywdw.com has great park touring maps and plans, if you ever want to give those a look. http://www.easywdw.com/easy/magic-k...s-rope-drop-wait-times-and-fastpass-priority/. Touring Plans is an informative website, too.

 

[SmallWorld71]

Hello everyone! We are taking our first family Disney trip December 31st (arriving the day before and staying off-resort) through the 5th (leaving on the 6th). It is my husband and I, daughter (2-almost-3) and my in-laws. First day in MK on NYE probably isn't ideal, but that's when we could go. So we're thinking of getting there for rope drop to make the most of it before my daughter tires out and we leave to nap and have a quiet evening. Online it says that MK opens at 9AM that day and we have Crystal Palace reservations for 10:25. What time should we arrive if we want to plan for parking and entering at or before the park opens? Any advice on fast passes or easy attractions before brunch? Thanks!

It is highly unlikely that the park hours will remain the way they are. Keep a close eye on them as your trip gets closer. If you look at last year's hours, the Magic Kingdom opened at 7:00am for resort guests and 8:00am for off site and I would expect the same this year. I would recommend that you plan to arrive at the Magic Kingdom parking lot by 6:30 am.

That said, I can't stress to you how insanely busy the Magic Kingdom will be on this day. It's one of the busiest days of the year and the park routinely hits capacity. I have been to the Magic Kingdom on a day when it hit capacity and it's extremely overwhelming. It will be a sea of humanity with long lines for even the least popular rides. I would never recommend it for a first time trip, especially with a young child.

I wish you luck.

 

[Carlymouse]

So.... @SmallWorld71, you've got us reexamining our plans. I used Touring Plans and AK is predicted to have the lowest crowds that day. Thoughts, dear readers, on AK during the day on NYE? How easy is it to get in and out of that park? Would it still be recommended to arrive at rope drop or could we show up mid-morning? I was able to get a lunch reservation at Tusker House (1:05PM).

 

[SmallWorld71]

I always recommend rope drop, especially on busy days. Least crowded is a relative term. Crowds will be high everywhere, but you should be able to get stuff done arriving at AK early. The good news is, the crowds should drop during your stay. I am not trying to scare you or sound negative. We went over the holidays and had an amazing time and did everything we wanted to. But, I think knowledge is essential when planning a trip during crowds. I wouldn't cancel any reservations yet, so you can keep your options open while you work things out.

 

[Carlymouse]

I always recommend rope drop, especially on busy days. Least crowded is a relative term. Crowds will be high everywhere, but you should be able to get stuff done arriving at AK early. The good news is, the crowds should drop during your stay. I am not trying to scare you or sound negative. We went over the holidays and had an amazing time and did everything we wanted to. But, I think knowledge is essential when planning a trip during crowds. I wouldn't cancel any reservations yet, so you can keep your options open while you work things out.

Thanks! I have somewhat operated that way. I still have my Crystal Palace reservation in case we change our mind, and I'll keep my eye on announcements for times that parks open. We're definitely expecting crowds, but, as you recommended, we're using planning to try to be prepared so that we aren't completely taken aback by the crowds and that we can still maximize our time there. I'm definitely going to rely on passes to minimize wait times with a child who may not put up with the waiting very well, but I'm sure she'll be dazzled by all there is to see in the parks in general.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Traffic coming in from offsite will be horrendous on Dec 31 and Jan 1. After that, maybe not as bad. You might not even get into the park on the 31st.