How Long to Stay - The Easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit 2015 - page 17

If this is a once-in-a-lifetime visit, we recommend trying to stretch your vacation dollars
to eight nights and nine days. This allows for the equivalent of a full day at Animal King-
dom and Hollywood Studios, in addition to two days at Epcot and two or three full days
at Magic Kingdom. The longer trip length also offers flexibility in late arrivals and early
departures. You may elect to leave Epcot one afternoon at 3pm to head off to the Grand
Floridian Resort & Spa for afternoon tea with Alice from Alice in Wonderland . With an
eight-night stay, there's plenty of time to return to Epcot without fear of missing anything.
On a four-night trip, there's more pressure to stay in the park and tour until the last member
of the family drops. It's either that or potentially miss out on key attractions that could be
made up with a longer stay.
If time and budget don't allow, a shorter trip can be perfectly enjoyable, particularly if
you're already planning a trip farther down the road. Two trips spread out over the years
offer an opportunity to enjoy two potentially different experiences, while also providing
more time to save for the hefty costs. (It also affords a great opportunity to purchase two of
our guidebooks, which is pretty fantastic in itself.)
Deciding on a trip length that maximizes value and enjoyment varies a bit based on age:
Kids five and younger tend to enjoy Magic Kingdom the most, where Fantasyland and
most entertainment offerings cater specifically to their heights and maturity levels. Kids at
that age may have no interest in visiting Downtown Disney or Animal Kingdom. In this
situation, a three- or four-day trip focused on visiting Magic Kingdom offers plenty of time
to visit over multiple half days, in addition to affording opportunities to head back to the
resort for naps.
Most kids between five and eight will still prefer Magic Kingdom over the other major
theme parks, but will get more out of trips to Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Stu-
dios. Plan to spend at least a half day at each of these three, pushing the number of theme
park days up to five or six.
Most kids eight and older will be tall enough to ride every major attraction, including the
thrill rides at each theme park, and mature enough to enjoy them all. Still plan at least two
days at Magic Kingdom, but add full days at each of the other major theme parks (and, if
you can, even more at Epcot) to take care of attractions like Soarin' and Rock 'n' Roller
Coaster.
The Value of Time Away from the Parks
Many first-time visitors equate time away from the theme parks as time wasted or value
lost. This seems logical on the surface. After all, if theme park tickets are going to cost
$350 a pop, we sure as heck better be in the theme parks waiting in line for something . But
don't make the most common rookie mistake.
Touring the theme parks in Florida, by their very nature, is exhausting—particularly dur-
ing the unrelenting summer when it's 85 degrees by 10:30am. It's a lot of standing. It's a
lot of walking. If the kids are in strollers, it's a lot of pushing. In fact, it's not uncommon
at all for guests to rack up five or more miles a day walking through the theme parks. Just
a quick lap around Epcot's World Showcase Lagoon is 1.2 miles. And that's without doing
anything!