By the co-author of The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit 2020, the best-reviewed Disney World guidebook series ever.

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Category — w. Most Recent Stuff

Planning Your First Walt Disney World Visit By the Numbers!


Planning Your First Walt Disney World Visit By the Numbers from yourfirstvisit.netThis site exists to help first-time visitors to Walt Disney World make great decisions quickly.

The heart of it is the home page, which raises all the key questions–some of which you may not have even known about!–and answers them.

Everything here is ranked and rated–weeks, hotels, crowds, dining, prices —everything.

You won’t find wishy-washy “on the one hand, on the other hand” stuff unless you go deep into the site looking for it.

And everything is backed up by direct experience, by analysis, and by numbers.

So I thought it would be fun to bring all the key numbers to one simple infographic!

See (and share!) the image–all the numbers on it are explained below!

And…More than 5 Million–one last number, not shown on the infographic: how many people this site has helped so far!

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December 26, 2013   4 Comments

Images of the Christmas Season at Walt Disney World

Disney World Christmas images from my visits in November and December 2013. (For more on the Christmas season at Walt Disney World, see this and this.)

THE CHRISTMAS SEASON AT THE DISNEY WORLD RESORTS

Christmas at a Fort Wilderness Campsite from yourfirstvisit.netThe resort hotels go all out on resort decorations, but at Fort Wilderness, campers decorate their sites as well!

Christmas at Fort Wilderness Campsite from yourfirstvisit.netI didn’t have my tripod on this visit, so my photos don’t really do justice to their efforts!

Christmas at Disney's Saratoga Springs ResortHere’s Christmas at Saratoga Springs…

Christmas at the Treehouses at Saratoga Springs  from yourfirstvisit.net..and at the nearby Treehouses area, where the streetlights are charmingly decorated.

Christmas at Kidani Village from yourfirstvisit.netChristmas at Kidani Village.

Christmas at Disney's Contemporary ResortThe Christmas Tree outside of the Contemporary Resort.

Christmas at the Grand Floridian from yourfirstvisit.netThe famous gingerbread house at the Grand Floridian.

Christmas at Disney's Wilderness Lodge from yourfirstvisit.netA detail of the Christmas decorations at the Wilderness Lodge…

Christmas Tree at Disney's Wilderness Lodge from yourfirstvisit.net…and the lobby Christmas Tree there.  The first visit of my boys to Disney World was to the Wilderness Lodge in the Christmas season, and I’ll never forget the way their jaws dropped at the site of this…

THE CHRISTMAS SEASON AT DISNEY’S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

The Christmas Osborne Lights at Disney's Hollywood StudiosThe Osborne Lights…

The Osborne Lights 2013 from yourfirstvisit.net…more Osborne Lights from another angle.

THE CHRISTMAS SEASON AT DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM

Christmas at Disney's Animal Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.netThe park’s Christmas Tree.

Santa Goofy  at Disney's Animal Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.netSanta Goofy and Pluto.  In my opinion, Pluto is wildly under-appreciated!

Christmas Mickey and Minnie at Disney's Animal Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.netMickey and Minnie in their Xmas sweaters, and an unattractive elf.

Christmas at the Animal Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.netFrom the Animal Kingdom’s afternoon “Jingle Jungle” parade.

THE CHRISTMAS SEASON AT EPCOT

Christmas in the American Pavilion at EpcotA Christmas tree in the American Pavilion…

Christmas at the American Pavilion at Epcot from yourfirstvisit.net…and the nearby Santa and Mrs. Claus.

Christmas at Epcot from yourfirstvisit.netA little detail–you’ll see such charming little things everywhere.

Christmas at Epcot from yourfirstvisit.netA shot of Spaceship Earth, the main Epcot Christmas Tree, and some palm trees that’s too blurry to work but I still really like anyway…

THE CHRISTMAS SEASON AT THE MAGIC KINGDOM

The Magic Kingdom Christmas Tree from yourfirstvisit.netThe Christmas Tree in Town Square

Christmas at Walt Disney WorldA Main Street shot…

Christmas at the Magic Kingdom--Main Street from yourfirstvisit.net…and another…

Christmas at the Magic Kingdom--Holiday Wishes from yourfirstvisit.netHoliday Wishes

Holiday Wishes at the Magic Kingdom…and another.

And finally, my two favorite Christmas season images from this year’s visits:

Christmas at Disney World from yourfirstvisit.netThe Castle in its holiday finery…

Christmas at the Magic Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.net…and Main Street, with the garlands across the street taken down for the parade taping.

Merry Christmas to all! 

–Dave

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December 25, 2013   2 Comments

First Time Visitors and the Christmas Season at Walt Disney World

(A slightly different version of this first appeared in WDW Magazine.)

The Christmas Season at Disney World  for First Time Visitors from yourfirstvisit.netThe purpose of yourfirstvisit.net is to help first time visitors to Walt Disney World make great vacation decisions quickly.

Because of that, it ranks the weeks of the year in order, and for each week publishes a recommended itinerary.

Since it opened more than five years ago, the three weeks between Thanksgiving and mid-December have always been the top-ranked weeks, combining as they do lower crowds, lower prices (only the first two weeks), and wonderful, magical Christmas programming.

(Carl Trent, founder, publisher and editor of WDW Magazine, had a role in setting me straight and helping pick those three weeks—thanks again, Carl!)

There’s three parts to the Christmas season at Walt Disney World

  1. The two weeks that include Christmas and New Years— wildly crowded, wildly expensive, and to be avoided
  2. The period beginning about a third of the way into Thanksgiving until Thanksgiving Day—much, but not all, of Disney World Christmas program is in place these dates. Up until the Sunday before Thanksgiving, these are low crowd and low price dates.  Thanksgiving Week is a mess…
  3. The three weeks beginning the Saturday after Thanksgiving—recommended because they combine low crowds with the full Disney World Christmas program.

My “Basic Itinerary” includes all of what I suggest is the best of Disney Christmas for first-timers.

But honestly, for some there is too much, for others, not enough, and yet a third group rather sensibly would rather pick and choose!

So I’ve taken the core elements of Disney’s Christmas program and divided them into three groups:

  • Must-Sees: wonderful offerings that are easy to build into your Disney World Christmas visit
  • Nice-To-Sees: also wonderful offerings, but with “issues”—some kind of logistical or timing complexities, extra costs, or other issues that may make them not for everyone. (All of the Must-Sees and Nice-to-Sees are in my Basic Itinerary.)
  • Maybe-Sees: offerings not worth a special trip, but worth checking out if you are in their neighborhood when they are happening!

DISNEY WORLD CHRISTMAS SEASON MUST-SEES

Christmas at Epcot from yourfirstvisit.netThe Christmas decorations in all the theme parks.

You’ll see these anyway as you visit—but look not just at the major decorations, but also the details! And try for blurry but arty shots from a distance…

The Christmas Osborne Lights at Disney's Hollywood StudiosThe Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, every night from around 6p on.

The Holiday Storytellers at Epcot—holiday traditions from each of the countries in Epcot’s World Showcase

Mickey's Jingle Jungle Christmas Parade at the Animal Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.netThe Christmas-themed afternoon parade at Disney’s Animal Kingdom

The Christmas special version of Illuminations at Epcot

Christmas Parade at the Magic Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.net(Christmas and New Years weeks) Holiday Wishes, and the Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade, at the Magic Kingdom.

Only viewable as part of MVMCP until the Saturday before Christmas, on that day these become part of the Magic Kingdom’s core offerings.

DISNEY WORLD CHRISTMAS SEASON NICE-TO-SEES

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (“MVMCP”) at the Magic Kingdom.  MVMCP is a special evening party held certain nights at the Magic Kingdom, typically with its last show the Friday before Christmas.

At it you will see special Christmas parades, fireworks, character greetings and shows, have access to most major Magic Kingdom attractions with shorter waits, and luxuriate in free cookies, hot chocolate…and snow on Main Street!

The negative of the party is its extra cost. Prices vary by show date and how and when tickets are bought, but a typical family of four will spend between $200 and $300 for tickets to this special party.

The nightly switch-on ceremony for the Osborne Lights at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.  The Osborne lights are typically turned on daily at 6p (beginning, in 2013, November 8), and this switch-flip is usually preceded by a music show by “Mulch, Sweat, and Shears” and followed by the opportunity to meet Santa Goofy.

For families who have never seen the Osborne lights, the transition from darkness to their full display is simply astonishing.

The issue with seeing this transition is that, this time of year, Fantasmic is often scheduled for 6.30 p.m., and even with a Fastpass+ you can’t quite be sure you’ll be able to get from the lights-on across the park to Fantasmic. Not only is it a hike, but also you won’t want to leave the show that quickly…and given the crowds that it attracts, may not even be able to.

So, if you have only one evening at the Studios on a night Fantasmic is at 6.30p, skip the “switch-on” ceremony, and head to Fantasmic instead, checking out the Osborne lights later that evening.

The Candlelight Processional at Epcot.  The Candlelight Processional is shown several times nightly from the Friday after Thanksgiving to the night before New Year’s Eve.

Taking place near the American Pavilion in Epcot’s World Showcase, the Processional combines Gospel readings from a celebrity narrator with Christmas hymns and carols sung by massed choirs.

For some families, there are a couple of potential issues with the processional.

One is that it is not remotely secular. The Candlelight Processional is a very Christian show—not “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” or “Here Comes Santa Claus,” but rather “Oh Little Town of Bethlehem” and “Silent Night, Holy Night.”  This makes it fine for some, but perhaps a little too “churchy” for others.

Second, there’s no great way to get in to the show.  There are two lines: a “space available” line, and one reserved for those who book the Candlelight Processional Dining Package.

The “space available” line may involve hours of waiting—and then not getting in, if no space is left. The Candlelight Processional package, which guarantees a seat (though you still have to wait in line, especially if you want to sit close to the celebrity narrator) is quite expensive—on the dining plan, it’s two credits.

The Christmas decorations in the Deluxe Resorts. Disney’s deluxe resorts have wonderful Christmas decorations in their lobbies from about the middle of November through the holiday season.

Four are easily accessible from the Magic Kingdom: the Polynesian and Grand Floridian by monorail, the Contemporary by either monorail or walking, and the Wilderness Lodge—my Christmas favorite—by boat (you can also get to the Lodge from the Contemporary by boat).

Christmas at the BoardWalk InnThree are easily visited from Epcot—the BoardWalk Inn (my Christmas favorite among the Epcot resorts), Beach Club and Yacht Club.  You get to them from Epcot’s World Showcase entrance, either by boat or walking.  You can also get to these three via a longer boat ride or walk from Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Touring the deluxe resorts is always fun, and especially magical at this time of year when they are dressed in their Christmas finery.  Such visits are on this ‘nice to see” list only because they can take, with transport time, more time than you may have or want to spend.

DISNEY WORLD CHRISTMAS SEASON MAYBE-SEES

Christmas at Fort Wilderness Campsite from yourfirstvisit.netThe Christmas decorations in the campground at Fort Wilderness.  It’s been a tradition for decades for families staying during the Christmas season at Fort Wilderness to decorate their campsites, rigs, and tents with Christmas lights and holiday decorations.

Fort Wilderness is out of the way, and these decorations are not worth a special trip.  But if you are at the Fort anyway—perhaps to see Hoop Dee Doo Revue—and have some extra time, it’s well worth checking out some of the loops closest to Pioneer Hall to see the creativity, and honor the willingness to share holiday festiveness, of the campers behind these displays.

Festival of the Seasons at Downtown Disney.  Downtown Disney finds itself re-decorated to a Christmas theme, and populated with special acts and performers, from mid-November through December 29.

Like Fort Wilderness, Downtown Disney is out of the way, and these offerings are not worth a special trip, but if you are in Downtown Disney anyway—to dine or see Cirque du Soleil, for example—it’s well worth building some extra time in your schedule to enjoy the decorations and street shows.

The taping of the Christmas Parade.  Disney’s Christmas parade, shown Christmas morning, is typically taped at the Magic Kingdom the first Friday and Saturday of December—in 2013, the 6th and 7th.

This is not really a spectator event—rather, Main Street and the area near the Castle becomes basically a television studio, and the prime viewing areas are not easily available to the general public.

Unless you are really a fan of someone being taped, and are willing to stand around in a not great viewing area, this isn’t really a destination event—rather, it’s just a way that Main Street and the front of the Castle (but not the rest of the park) get clotted up.

If you are here these days anyway, it’s worth a look…but it’s not really a show, and not really set up for viewing by regular park visitors.

For first-time visitors, all these special events, shows and displays are worth seeing.  But use the thoughts above to balance how much time and money you commit to them!

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December 24, 2013   2 Comments

First Time Visitors and Dining at Walt Disney World

(A slightly different version of this first appeared in WDW Magazine.)

Dining at Disney World for First-Time Visitors from yourfirstvisit.netFirst time family visitors to Walt Disney World need to know three things about dining:

  1. Some dining venues are among the best family experiences Walt Disney Word has to offer
  2. The most popular of these can sell out months ahead, so planning really pays off in helping access them—you can—and should– start booking them 180 days before the day you plan to eat
  3. Disney World dining in general is expensive, and some of the best experiences even more so, and there’s no perfect way to cut the cost

The best rides at Walt Disney World are often called “E” Ticket rides—from the old days, when it took a most-expensive “E” Ticket to get on them.

Dining—particularly at certain “table service” restaurants that have offerings beyond the food itself–can be an E-Ticket experience as well!

(“Table service” is Disney World lingo for venues with seats, waiters, and scheduled times. Venues without waiters are called “quick” or “counter” service, may or may not have seats, and can’t be reserved.)

Guide to Disney World Dining from yourfirstvisit.netThe most fun and best-loved family dining contains some or all of the following features in addition to the food:

  • A fun setting
  • Some kind of show and/or interactive play-along elements, and
  • Visits by Disney characters like Mickey, Tigger, or the Disney Princesses.

On almost everyone’s list of the best among these are

  • The Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue, a silly dinner show with interactive elements at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort
  • The Princess meals Cinderella’s Royal Table at the Magic Kingdom and Akershus at Epcot.  The first has the better setting, the second is much less expensive
  • Dining with Tigger, Pooh and friends at the Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom
  • Dining with Mickey and friends at Chef Mickey’s at Disney’s Contemporary Resort and ‘Ohana at Disney’s Polynesian Resort
  • Various degrees of wait-staff induced silliness at 50’s Prime Time Café at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Whispering Canyon at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
  • Exotic settings in the local versions of national chain restaurants the Rainforest Café, in both Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Downtown Disney, and T-Rex in Downtown Disney

That’s why you’ll find most of these on each of this site’s itineraries.

San Angel Inn at Epcot from yourfirstvisit.netBut, because the best dining options have limited capacity and are wildly popular, these restaurants can be filled almost as soon as reservations open for them—180 days before.

The importance of dining experiences is the Disney World topic that most surprise first-time visitors, and is where their doing some advance thinking and planning pays off most.   So you should pick your table service dining choices as soon as you can, and reserve them as soon as reservations open.

Disney World calls these reservations “Advance Dining Reservations—“ADRs” for short.

Reservations currently open 180 days before the date of dining—online at 6 a.m. and over the phone at 7 a.m. (If you are staying at a Disney World hotel, once 180 days from your arrival dates rolls around, you can make ADRs for not just that day but the first ten days of your visit.  You’ll sometimes see this referred to as “180+10.”)

Disney World dining is expensive.  The Disney Dining Plan, which has a couple of variants, is a way to prepay some of these dining expenses.  Years ago, you could save a lot of money by buying the “Disney Dining Plan,” but at current pricing levels you won’t save much—or anything—by buying it.

The Disney Dining Plan is a handy budgeting tool, and it does relieve some anxiety (because you already paid for it…) about the cost of meals in the parks.  So I do still recommend it.  But with or without it, the typical family should budget about $50+ per adult per day for dining, and somewhere between $25 and $50/day for the kids–depending on their ages and appetites.

The best way to save money eating at Disney World  is to buy ingredients and build some of your own meals.  This works best for cold breakfasts in your hotel room, and packing some lunches and/or snacks into the parks.

But these ingredients aren’t cheap (if you have a car, you can hit an off-site grocery store…but that costs time you could be spending vacationing) and may not even be available in your hotel.

Food at Disney's Grand Floridian from yourfirstvisit.netThe availability of such ingredients—lunch supplies especially– varies widely across the Disney hotels.

The best selections of such food for sale in shops are found at Fort Wilderness and in the Disney Vacation Club resorts, and the weakest are the value resorts.

The example is from a shop at the Grand Floridian after its new DVC Villas opened.

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December 23, 2013   No Comments

Your First Disney World Visit…Might It Be Your Only One?

(A slightly different version of this first appeared in WDW Magazine.)

Your First Disney World Visit or Your Only One from yourfirstvisit.netThis site exists to help first time visitors to Walt Disney World who may never return make great decisions quickly. The home page has a Summary of Instructions built to do just that.

And since I opened the site almost six years ago, the most controversial—and most misunderstand–instruction has been the third one:

“…if this may be your kids’ only childhood visit, consider going when your youngest child is at least 8 or 9, and your shortest child at least 48 inches tall.”

The Magic Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.net

It’s the “who may never return” words that drives this instruction: Will–or might—this be your only Disney Word visit?

So it can be hard enough to plan a first visit to Walt Disney World, and here I am asking you to figure out how this visit might fit into your other future vacation plans too? What’s up with that?

Well, if you want to have the best first visit, it really matters.

There’s an enormous Disney World fan community that can’t imagine going only once.

Yet plenty of families can’t imagine how they could go more than once.

  • Some just can’t see how they could afford a return visit.
  • Some could afford another visit, but have too many other vacation goals—Yosemite, New Orleans, Cleveland—to see how a return visit could fit.
  • Others could afford another visit, and could make the time…but just can’t say before they visit for the first time whether or not they’ll ever return. This group won’t know whether the value is there for a return visit until they go the first time, because—if you’ve never been there—it’s astonishingly hard to imagine the scope and fun of Walt Disney World.

If this might be your family’s only trip, and you want to see all the best of Walt Disney World…well, that has big implications for how old and tall your kids should be, how long you should stay, what you do each day you are there, when you should go, where you should stay, and all kinds of other issues.

Jess and Friends from yourfirstvisit.netFor now, let’s focus on how old and tall your kids should be.

If this may be their only childhood visit, wait until your youngest child is around 8, and the shortest around 48 inches tall.

Why? Because Walt Disney World is not designed for children.

It is designed for children and their parents.

Among Walt Disney’s frustrations that led him to the concept of Disneyland—which set the tone for all the other Disney parks that followed—was watching his daughters enjoy rides that were too dull for him.

That lead him to a park design that children and their parents could each enjoy together.

As a result, much of the best of Walt Disney World has a level of sophistication, and of physical and emotional demands, that will escape, or worse, overwhelm, children younger than 8 or so.

Disney World itself is only half of the equation—it requires the other half, your child’s mind, to complete the experience of the place.

The play world of kids is grounded firmly in what they understand of the real world, and a kid with an understanding of the real world below that of the typical eight year old just won’t get as much fun out of Disney World as a more sophisticated and experienced kid will.

Height is the second issue. A couple of Disney World’s best rides require kids to be 48 inches tall, and several more of the best require a kid to be at least 44 inches tall. Some of this is for safety reasons, and some is a way of marking that a ride just isn’t for the littlest kids.

Disney World Height Requirements from yourfirstvisit.netIf your kids aren’t this tall, they won’t get to enjoy these rides at all—and if they are tall enough, but aren’t mature enough, then they can ride, but may well not get Disney Word at its best.

Now don’t get me wrong—kids of any age can enjoy Disney World.

But if this may be your only trip, why not wait until they are old and tall enough to fully enjoy all of the best of Walt Disney World?

Santa Goofy and Friends from yourfirstvisit.netIn contrast, if this is just the first of several trips, then bringing younger and shorter kids makes much more sense. Having things go over their heads is not an issue, because they can see and fully get those attractions on a later visit, when they are older.

But little kids do bring along their own set of issues. You have to match what you do to their interests, stamina, and routine schedules…or tantrums may result!

This tends to lead to much shorter days, and fewer experiences per day, than with older kids. Not an issue if you can catch what they missed later on another visit…but frustrating to the parents—who, since the parks were designed for them too, will want to see and do more than their kids can take!

But if you push your little kids too hard…well, the most miserable people one sees in the parks later in the day at Walt Disney World are the parents of small children, and the second most miserable group is their kids…

If you don’t push them too hard, littler kids who will be returning are also easier to schedule for.

  • The first visit can be just a few partial days at the Magic Kingdom.
  • A later visit can add to revisiting the Magic Kingdom (your kids will never tire of revisiting the Magic Kingdom) mornings at Epcot, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
  • Still later visits can pick up the more sophisticated rides and shows at all the parks.

So a core question—one that really affects almost everything else—is whether or not you will be able to return.

And that’s why you need to think about this now.

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December 22, 2013   4 Comments

Disney World Monorail Closures Beginning in Later January

RESORT AND EXPRESS MONORAILS TO CLOSE PARTS OF WEEKDAYS BEGINNING 1/21/14

Monorail Shutdowns at Walt Disney World from yourfirstvisit.netThe two Magic Kingdom monorail routes around Seven Seas Lagoon—the Express and Resort monorails—will be down on weekdays from 11.30a til 7p beginning January 21, 2014.

This beginning date is the day after the busy Martin Luther King Day weekend. An end date for these weekday closures is not firm, but is expected to be in March.

  • The Express Monorail normally goes counterclockwise around Seven Seas Lagoon in a loop from the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC) to the Magic Kingdom and back to the TTC.
  • The Resort Monorail normally goes clockwise around the Lagoon, in a loop that takes it from TTC to the Polynesian, Grand Floridian, Magic Kingdom, and Contemporary, and from there back to the TTC.
  • The Epcot Monorail—which goes in a loop from TTC to Epcot and back—is not affected.

TTC Monorail From Polynesian from yourfirstvisit.netThe two Magic Kingdom monorails are heavily patronized, serving guests going from TTC to the Magic Kingdom, from the Magic Kingdom to the Epcot monorail station at TTC, and to and among the monorail resorts.

At peak usage—like right after the evening parade–2,000+ people might be on these monorails at once (6 monorails at ~350 people each). That’s the equivalent of around 40 buses or 3 and a half ferryboats…

But—with a few exceptions—weekdays in later January, and much of February, from 11.30a to 7p,  are not the time of peak usage of the Magic Kingdom monorails.

This is especially true since the 3p parade “Celebrate a Dream Come True” has ended its run, and will not be replaced until March with the “Festival of Fantasy Parade.”

I suspect the monorail repairs and afternoon parade hiatus are related to each other, as getting people to the Magic Kingdom in time for it, and even more so out of the Magic Kingdom after it, are the heaviest afternoon uses of the system.

Disney World Buses from yourfirstvisit.netDisney will be providing additional buses (especially to the monorail resorts), motor launches and motor cruisers, and likely will be using its third ferryboat, which usually comes out only during the busier hours of the day, to help people move among the areas served by the monorail during these outages.

Most days, most of the time, with the added ferry this will work OK—although it will take a lot of buses to serve the monorail resorts. Perhaps the new double-sized articulated buses will by then be in service at the larger moderates and values, freeing up older buses—but not drivers?  or capacity in the roads?—for this.

But most of the time, most people should be OK if they add an extra 20 minutes to their transport times.

TTC Walkway from the Polynesian from yourfirstvisit.netGuests at the monorail resorts should ask cast members—and other guests—whether walking, the boats or buses seem the best choice, and how much extra time they should plan for.

  • Guests at the Polynesian should still be able to walk to TTC, and from there use either the ferry to the Magic Kingdom or the monorail to Epcot. Despite the other construction at the Polynesian, this walkway was still open on my December visit.
  • Guests at the Contemporary can walk to the Magic Kingdom. Buses or boats will serve other monorail destinations
  • Grand Floridian guests can’t really walk anywhere…so will rely on buses and boats.

The Liberty Belle at the Magic Kingdom from yourfirstvisit.netHere’s the issues for everyone I foresee:

  • There may be capacity crunches many January and February evenings for people trying to get to the 7p Electrical Parade—the most common show time for it on weeknights during the outage.
  • The very busy week of Presidents Day will be a zoo.  If I were Disney, I’d not work on the monorails this week but rather stop the work and run them instead.
  • Peak Spring Break crowds will begin the week of March 9th.  This almost has to be the real targeted end date for the monorail work…otherwise perhaps Disney is buying another ferry?  Or moving the Liberty Belle out from the Rivers of America to Seven Seas Lagoon?

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December 21, 2013   5 Comments