Misc Magic Kingdom questions
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| Wed, 08-22-2007 - 2:59pm |
We will be at WDW the weekend of Labor Day. I was originally thinging about going on Sunday, but that day happens to be a Little Ones Magic "AM EMH." Since the only part of the park that will be open early is Fantasyland, and it's where we want to focus as DS is not quite 3yo, I'm afraid it will be packed when we get there. So now I'm thinking we should do MK on Saturday, and AK on Sunday. (MK is also having PM EMH on Sunday but I don't think that will affect us as much as the Little Ones Magic Hour.) What you do you think?
Since we want to go straight to Fantasyland when we get to the MK, should we walk or take the train?
My other question is about parking. We are purchasing our passes in advance so as not to waste time when we get to the parks, but we are staying off-site. How early are we allowed to show up at the parking lot and then stand in line to get into the MK? I was thinking that if we are there at least 30 minutes before the gates open we should be fine. Or do we even need to be there that early?
And last, but not least, I can't figure out for the life of me which parades are going on that night and what times. HELP!
Ruth in FL

Okay - I'm not sure about the parking - cause well, we are just hitting our first trip this October - but I did find the parade schedule... When you pull up the Calander you click on the day of the week number and it gives you the parad times -
So for MK for Saturday it is -
Parades and Fireworks
Hi Ruth,
I think you're right to be concerned about the mob in Fantasyland for LOEMH, however it MIGHT be worth it if you truly plan on arriving before RD, and particularly if you will have hoppers and plan on switching to another park when MK gets crowded that morning? Disclaimer: I'm just guessing here, don't really know what I'm talking about since I've never taken toddlers to WDW!
I would also choose to walk, not ride to Fantasyland (and not even jog, for goodness sakes, that "Space Mountain Dash" first thing in the morning on our second MK day -which I'll include in my report later- was by far my least favorite way to experience Main Street! But of course you wouldn't do that...I'm just saying!)
As for parking (again, a guess, but I'm hoping other posters here will be able to confirm or deny my guesses!) I'm thinking you can be there pretty early, as much as an hour before rope drop at least (what time is rope drop that day? I know for sure people go there as early as 8:00 for CP breakfast, for example, and park even earlier than that).
Finally as far as the parades, I could be wrong but check carefully about Spectro, since they don't have it every night (Wishes yes, but not the parade). We picked our night for MK based on when they had Spectro, and I personally didn't care for it that much (LOVE Wishes though) but DS9 did enjoy it immensely and I think I"m just biased from missing the Main Street Electric parade from my childhood (especially the music) but I guess now that we have video of Spectro it'll grow on me...but I digress (again)!
I have to say I"m very thankful for your questions here...it helps with the withdrawal pangs I'm getting being back from our trip! :)
I don't know how early you can get into the parking lot, but it's quite a while before opening.
No, we don't have park hoppers. We are buying the FL resident 3-day pass which is one park per day with a 6-mo expiration date. I think we have decided to to MK on Saturday to avoid the Little Ones Magic Hour crowd in Fantasyland. After all, our plan is to concentrate mostly on Fantasyland. I did check the calendar as the other pp suggested and I did find out there are three parades on Saturday - Dreams Come True @ 3pm, Wishes @ 9pm, and SpectroMagic @ 10pm. There is no way we can have DS stay up for SpectroMagic. We would have one CRANKY toddler in our hands the next day. Even staying up for Wishes will depend on how much we get done in the am and if we go back to our hotel for nap/lunch. I would hate to miss the nighttime parade, but I would hate even more a cranky tired toddler the next day! LOL
Ruth in FL
Ruth,
Two things real quick: Wishes is the fireworks show, not a parade, the night time parade is Spectro. But the main thing is, are you sure the times you got are not mixed up? Usually as far as I know, if there's only one night time parade, it's BEFORE the fireworks. So: Spectro at 9, Wishes at 10. The exception is when there's TWO parades, one before and one after the fireworks. This might affect your plans!
I totally see your point about the cranky toddler...I didn't even want to put my 9 year old in a position where he hadn't had enough rest (we did this on our last day and it wasn't the greatest)! So Frankly I might not even stay for the 9pm parade (assuming it's Spectro), or at the most, I'd pick a spot close to the entrance to the park, which is also where it the parade begins, so you can hightail it out of there right after the last float goes by you!
I went and looked at the calendar in the official WDW site. (Another nifty thing I have learned on this board!) You were right. I had them backwards. This is the schedule for Saturday 9/1 -
Disney Dreams Come True Parade - 3:00pm
"SpectroMagic" Parade - 9:00pm
Wishes™ Nighttime Spectacular - 10:00pm
Either way, whether it was a parade or fireworks they had at 9pm, I think we will be back at our hotel by then. I usually like to have DS in bed and asleep by 9pm anyway and at his age when I stick to his routines he is a much more agreeable child. (: Also, since we want to be in AK bright and early Sunday morning I don't think I want to push him.
Ruth in FL
Smart woman! Now just don't change your mind while you're there! For me, it was tempting to think "Oh, let's stay a little bit longer, we're having so much fun" and then regretted it afterwards. Should have stuck to the plan! So remember that!
AK is a good "take your time" park. I hope you enjoy your trip (I know you will)!