DIsney itinerary help and suggestions?

[Momof3littles]

Please be kind, as I haven't been to disney in 30 years, and my DH has never been. This will be the first trip for my kids as well. This was planned on relatively short notice, so while I am reading and trying to self educate about WDW :D I have a long way to go. I have a poor concept of how long it will take to get from point A to B. I'm scared of buses taking forever. I have zero orientation for the most part and will need to leave myself extra time to navigate I guess. It is tough to book restaurants without a good background in where everything is, what I'm scheduling, etc. I want to get some reservations on the books and modify as needed later, in case incentives come out that cause some of the reservations I'd like to have to fill up quickly.

 

ETA: My kids will be almost 10, 7, and almost 4 a the time we travel.

 

RIght now we are not on the dining plan. We may revisit if stay, play, dine comes out. We are planning to pay OOP.

 

Right now we do not have park hopper tickets.

 

So we are officially booked now for POR in a preferred room location for early Feb. I'm crossing my fingers for play, stay, dine or a RO discount to come out. We may reprice things if RO comes out and go elsewhere, but I think we'll probably just end up at POR. As of now, we are just planning to pay OOP for meals, but we may tweak that if stay, play, dine comes out (assuming we might not be able to use a RO discount on a preferred room at POR, but who knows).

 

I am finding reservations, but it is tough as I have no concept of how long it takes to get from point A to B. We are planning on using Disney transportation as of now. Maybe a taxi if it would be a huge help on 1-2 days.

 

Since this plan was sort of short notice, we don't have perfect options for dining reservations, but it seems like enough is available. I have extra reservations for now, because I am assuming if stay, play, dine comes out the remaining restaurant reservations may get booked quickly. I am not keeping this # of character meals. I'm aiming for 2 probably. My kids will be almost 10, 7, and 3.5 (2 boys, one girl).

 

Right now I'm thinking about this:

Day 1 arrive to MCO around 1 or 1:30, hopefully to POR by 3.

As of now we don't have tickets for that day but we may add them in case we want to wander around. I am considering doing DTD and just exploring that, the POR, and getting my kids to bed as soon as we can so we can be ready for MK.

 

Day 2

Crystal Palace reservation 8:25 am. Would you drop this to get into the park right at 9 that first day? Keep it since it isn't a terribly busy time of the year?

MK

Dinner at Cali Grill at 7:20 pm, should catch Wishes from there

 

Day 3

MK

There is a parade at 3pm

I considered dropping the day 2 crystal palace bkfast and doing a Crystal Palace lunch.

Ohana at 5:10 (only time I could get at all so I booked it)

How long would you leave to get from MK to O'hana? Any chance we'd have time to catch the parade at 3 and still make O'hana without major difficulty?

 

Day 4 Epcot

Garden Grill reservations for 4:30 pm

Illuminations

 

Day 5 Hollywood Studios

1:40 lunch at Brown Derby

 

Day 6 AK

10:30 bkfast at Tusker House

 

Day 7 not yet planned at all. That night is supposed to be a good one for Illuminations, so maybe Epcot that day. Not supposed to be a great MK day but may go that route if kids want to say goodbye there.

-ETA: just added Les Chefs de France for lunch at 1:30 but need to confirm when Remy is there by calling, apparently. My kids are all here so I can't do that now.

Would probably like to find a dinner reservation and location to work with Illuminations that night.

 

Day 8 depart in a.m. for airport

 

Now I know why people book so far in advance ;) Planning it when I'm already inside 6 months is a challenge, especially without any working, useful knowledge. I remember going at age 4, but my memories certainly aren't about the practical aspects of WDW!

[kroe1]

 

 

Right now we do not have park hopper tickets.

 

So we are officially booked now for POR in a preferred room location for early Feb. I'm crossing my fingers for play, stay, dine or a RO discount to come out. We may reprice things if RO comes out and go elsewhere, but I think we'll probably just end up at POR. As of now, we are just planning to pay OOP for meals, but we may tweak that if stay, play, dine comes out (assuming we might not be able to use a RO discount on a preferred room at POR, but who knows).

 

I am finding reservations, but it is tough as I have no concept of how long it takes to get from point A to B. We are planning on using Disney transportation as of now. Maybe a taxi if it would be a huge help on 1-2 days.

 

Since this plan was sort of short notice, we don't have perfect options for dining reservations, but it seems like enough is available. I have extra reservations for now, because I am assuming if stay, play, dine comes out the remaining restaurant reservations may get booked quickly. I am not keeping this # of character meals. I'm aiming for 2 probably. My kids will be almost 10, 7, and 3.5 (2 boys, one girl).

 

Right now I'm thinking about this:

Day 1 arrive to MCO around 1 or 1:30, hopefully to POR by 3.

As of now we don't have tickets for that day but we may add them in case we want to wander around. I am considering doing DTD and just exploring that, the POR, and getting my kids to bed as soon as we can so we can be ready for MK.

 

Day 2

Crystal Palace reservation 8:25 am. Would you drop this to get into the park right at 9 that first day? Keep it since it isn't a terribly busy time of the year?

MK

Dinner at Cali Grill at 7:20 pm, should catch Wishes from there

 

Day 3

MK

There is a parade at 3pm

I considered dropping the day 2 crystal palace bkfast and doing a Crystal Palace lunch.

Ohana at 5:10 (only time I could get at all so I booked it)

How long would you leave to get from MK to O'hana? Any chance we'd have time to catch the parade at 3 and still make O'hana without major difficulty?

 

Day 4 Epcot

Garden Grill if we don't do Crystal Palace on Day 2 or 3? Did not sched. reservations yet

Illuminations

 

Day 5 Hollywood Studios

1:40 lunch at Brown Derby

 

Day 6 AK

10:30 bkfast at Tusker House

 

Day 7 not yet planned at all. That night is supposed to be a good one for Illuminations, so maybe Epcot that day. Not supposed to be a great MK day but may go that route if kids want to say goodbye there.

 

Day 8 depart in a.m. for airport

 

Now I know why people book so far in advance ;) Planning it when I'm already inside 6 months is a challenge, especially without any working, useful knowledge. I remember going at age 4, but my memories certainly aren't about the practical aspects of WDW!

Good choice on the tickets. I do not recommend Parkhoppers for first timers.

 

I would have chosen Art of animation since there is so much more room in a one bedroom, but POR Riverside has a ton of extra activities.

 

Everywhere takes about 30 min to 1 hour to get to froM POR. This is from the time you arrive at the bus depot. There are several locations within POR to choose. One will be close to your room.

 

You will never need a taxi. They are ridiculously expensive anyway. Let Disney take you to and from the airport so you will not have to rent a car or get a cab from the airport.

 

Day1. Good plan. There is plenty of exploration to be done at POR. There should be a kids activity going on at 3:00 next to Boatman's. eat there that night and ask for the pot roast. The youngest can eat from everyone else's plate as too much food will be served at each meal. D not forget the pools and playground as well as outdoor movie.

 

Day 2. Keep your early dining reservation. You will be able to get a photo in front of the castle before the crowds come in. Do a pirate makeover for the kiddos.

 

Day3. I would not do a second day at MK. Bump the rest of your schedule forward and hold this day back to the end. Then take a family vote after you have done all 4 parks to see which one is the best to repeat. You may be surprised as most families do not choose MK.

 

Day3. Epcot. Eat breakfast at POR or character breakfast in Norway. We also like Mexico for food, but your choice is good too. Just make sure you are not booking 3 sit down restaurants a day. The food is just too much. We have cut down to just one sit down a day because we cannot eat all that food.

 

Day4 Hollywood Studios. Brown Derby is my favorite. Did you get the Fantasmic package?

 

Day5. Animal Kingdom. Lots of walking this day. Make sure your two youngest have a stroller.

 

Day6. Repeat day or water park if the weather is nice. Also consider Neverland Club for kiddos while you and DH have a romantic night at Citricos. If you are interested, I will give you the details of a romantic night of the century.

 

Enjoy your trip. It sounds like you are doing very well with your planning.

[whitestavern]

Just wanted to let you know you will have time to watch the parade prior to your 'Ohana ressie...the Poly is pretty close to MK.

[Jennifer in MI]

Please be kind, as I haven't been to disney in 30 years, and my DH has never been. This will be the first trip for my kids as well. This was planned on relatively short notice, so while I am reading and trying to self educate about WDW :D I have a long way to go. I have a poor concept of how long it will take to get from point A to B. I'm scared of buses taking forever. I have zero orientation for the most part and will need to leave myself extra time to navigate I guess. It is tough to book restaurants without a good background in where everything is, what I'm scheduling, etc. I want to get some reservations on the books and modify as needed later, in case incentives come out that cause some of the reservations I'd like to have to fill up quickly.

 

RIght now we are not on the dining plan. We may revisit if stay, play, dine comes out. We are planning to pay OOP.

 

Right now we do not have park hopper tickets.

 

So we are officially booked now for POR in a preferred room location for early Feb. I'm crossing my fingers for play, stay, dine or a RO discount to come out. We may reprice things if RO comes out and go elsewhere, but I think we'll probably just end up at POR. As of now, we are just planning to pay OOP for meals, but we may tweak that if stay, play, dine comes out (assuming we might not be able to use a RO discount on a preferred room at POR, but who knows).

 

I am finding reservations, but it is tough as I have no concept of how long it takes to get from point A to B. We are planning on using Disney transportation as of now. Maybe a taxi if it would be a huge help on 1-2 days.

 

Since this plan was sort of short notice, we don't have perfect options for dining reservations, but it seems like enough is available. I have extra reservations for now, because I am assuming if stay, play, dine comes out the remaining restaurant reservations may get booked quickly. I am not keeping this # of character meals. I'm aiming for 2 probably. My kids will be almost 10, 7, and 3.5 (2 boys, one girl).

 

Right now I'm thinking about this:

Day 1 arrive to MCO around 1 or 1:30, hopefully to POR by 3.

As of now we don't have tickets for that day but we may add them in case we want to wander around. I am considering doing DTD and just exploring that, the POR, and getting my kids to bed as soon as we can so we can be ready for MK.

 

Day 2

Crystal Palace reservation 8:25 am. Would you drop this to get into the park right at 9 that first day? Keep it since it isn't a terribly busy time of the year?

MK

Dinner at Cali Grill at 7:20 pm, should catch Wishes from there

 

Day 3

MK

There is a parade at 3pm

I considered dropping the day 2 crystal palace bkfast and doing a Crystal Palace lunch.

Ohana at 5:10 (only time I could get at all so I booked it)

How long would you leave to get from MK to O'hana? Any chance we'd have time to catch the parade at 3 and still make O'hana without major difficulty?

 

Day 4 Epcot

Garden Grill if we don't do Crystal Palace on Day 2 or 3? Did not sched. reservations yet

Illuminations

 

Day 5 Hollywood Studios

1:40 lunch at Brown Derby

 

Day 6 AK

10:30 bkfast at Tusker House

 

Day 7 not yet planned at all. That night is supposed to be a good one for Illuminations, so maybe Epcot that day. Not supposed to be a great MK day but may go that route if kids want to say goodbye there.

 

Day 8 depart in a.m. for airport

 

Now I know why people book so far in advance ;) Planning it when I'm already inside 6 months is a challenge, especially without any working, useful knowledge. I remember going at age 4, but my memories certainly aren't about the practical aspects of WDW!

We are just back from a stay at POR!  We love that resort.  there is so much to do there that we make sure to plan a couple days off to take advantage of them!  I just asked my husband about time to and from the resort and parks.  Maybe from door to door, we would take 30 minutes.  It really depends where you are in the resort.  We stayed near the West Depot and it was the first stop, so we had to drive for another 10 minutes in our hotel complex to pick up others!  But, then getting to the parks took maybe 10 minutes.  That is, of course resort to park.  If you need to get to another resort, add time!

 

I think your arrival day plans are good.  Get yourself settled.  Head to Downtown Disney and get in the Disney mood!  We always eat our first meal at Wolfgang Puck there.  But, this last time, we tried Bongo's and it is our new favorite!  Then, be sure to head to the pools at the resort.  

 

Have you heard of the Magic Bands they are testing?  You may get chosen to test them.  POR is a testing resort.  Read up on them - they made our park days SO much less stressful as you pre-plan your fast passes.  

 

Day 2

I've not been to Crystal Palace, so I can't speak to that.  But, I do think it's smart to do the MK first!  And, Cali Grill is one of our favorites!  It's very close - easy ride on the monorail.  

 

Day 3

Yes.  You will definitely make your dinner at O'Hana's.  And, actually, our family prefers the earlier dinners.  All that walking and the heat makes them hungry and tired.  I was surprised this time that we actually left the park early most nights.  We were just too tired.  (And, the Magic Bands guaranteed we did everything we wanted!)  Now, we definitely love O'Hana's.  But, this time we tried Be Our Guest.  It has jumped up to the top of our list for our MK day!  Very good food and the service was even better!

 

Day 4

Be sure and eat somewhere in the World here!  We've had amazing meals at the sit down place in Mexico (I forget the name), and Tappan Edo in Japan.  Le Cellier is also amazing.

 

Day 5

Looks good.  I've not eaten there, so I don't know about the food itself.  Our Hollywood Studios day is our day to eat at another resort.  This last time, we ate at 50;s Prime Time Cafe. The waitresses treat you like you are their children.  They make you eat your vegetables and make fun of you.  Very fun.  But, the food wasn't very good.  (Well, my husband's was.  Mine wasn't!)

 

Day 6

Never eaten there either.  If you need a place to eat that's counter service - try Flame Tree.  We were able to split four entrees for our family of 6.  Actually, this is true of most of the counter service places.  I split meals with my daughter and I was STUFFED!

 

When our family has to choose a second day at a park, we usually choose Epcot.  But, dd and I prefer a second day at MK.  So, if you do put it up for a vote, be ready to split up!!!

 

And, definitely bring a stroller!!  We still bring one for our 7.5 yo.  It's just easier than holding her.  My sister went once and wore a pedometer.  She walked over 10 miles their Epcot day!  It's a LOT of walking!  We bring a small backpack as well and keep everything else in it so when we have to fold up the stroller for the bus, it's easy.  

 

Have fun!!  All this planning WILL pay off!!!  

[Momof3littles]

You all are fabulous :)

 

I did the back to back MK days to try to work with the crowd calendars, although maybe that is a mistake to even worry about at that time of the year. The days as they are right now have us at all parks on a recommended or highly recommended day, but maybe I can rework that so the MK days aren't back to back.

 

Good to know we can do the parade and Ohanas if we keep that reservation.

 

Where would you eat if you were having a HSD day and did not have a park hopper ticket? I am still reading and am not even sure which restaurants I can get into without a park pass on a given day. I hate doing this all backwards from how I'd normally plan, but I'm concerned that if stay, play, dine or a serious room discount comes out (as rumored) the remaining reservations will book up very fast.

[Momof3littles]

Minniewannabe,

I thought about the fantasmic package but I wasn't sure about committing to the package cost, as then we are locked into that day. Since I don't know what I'm doing, I'm afraid of locking in what park on what day :)

[Momof3littles]

I added a bkfast at Cape May at 10:50 on epcot day. Dumb idea to do Epcot at rope drop, leave for a bit for bkfast, and then return to EPcot? There's nothing earlier at Cape May as of right now, but I will keep checking back.

 

Will we also end up with the dregs of bkfast at that time of day? I know character bkfasts often don't have the best food, but cape may looks nice and since we are paying OOP for food as of now, theirs is more affordable than many.

 

If I keep Cape May reservations on Epcot day (may have a 2nd day at Epcot too later in the wk) should I cancel Crystal Palace Bkfast at 8:25 to get into MK earlier? I don't need Tusker Hs, Crystal Palace, AND the Cape May bkfast. But some are not at ideal times and I can't do much about that since we just started booking reservations and are closer in than 180 days.

[Jennifer in MI]

You all are fabulous :)

 

I did the back to back MK days to try to work with the crowd calendars, although maybe that is a mistake to even worry about at that time of the year. The days as they are right now have us at all parks on a recommended or highly recommended day, but maybe I can rework that so the MK days aren't back to back.

 

Good to know we can do the parade and Ohanas if we keep that reservation.

 

Where would you eat if you were having a HSD day and did not have a park hopper ticket? I am still reading and am not even sure which restaurants I can get into without a park pass on a given day. I hate doing this all backwards from how I'd normally plan, but I'm concerned that if stay, play, dine or a serious room discount comes out (as rumored) the remaining reservations will book up very fast.

What are your dates again?  As I said, we just got back and the longest line we waited in was about 10 minutes.  We did get FP for a couple rides, but most didn't need them.  (Think - Expedition Everest, Thunder Mtn RR, Splash Mountain, Rock N' Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, etc.  Just didn't need FP!!  We just got FP for Storytime with Belle (worth it!), Peter Pan, and Toy Story Mania.)  So, you may not need to worry about what days you are at what parks.  Make sure you aren't there on a three day weekend!  

 

On our HS day, we usually run to another resort.  Boma at Animal Kingdom is a favorite.  Whispering Canyon is another.  You'd just take the bus to that resort from HS.  Getting back to POR can be a bit tricky as it may require a transfer then.  But, if you do O'Hana's on the HS day, it would be a monorail ride back to MK and then a bus back to POR.  Boma would be a bus to a park or DD and then another bus back to POR.  So, it can be done quite easily if you have a plan!  (The reason we usually leave HS for dinner is because it's an easy park to finish before dinner.  So, I can't really speak to the quality of the food at any of the restaurants there (except 50's Prime Time Cafe).)

[Momof3littles]

THank you. I'm so in in over my head LOL. Thank you for having mercy on my uninformed soul :)

 

We are there Feb 3-10, so it should be pretty slow. I think most park days are like a 3, and I'm already working the schedule around expected crowd levels, which as you said is possibly not really necessary. Maybe I should skip doing MK back to back if the lines won't be long.

 

We don't have park hoppers and I think we are going to try to skip doing that if at all possible, which is why I went with Brown Derby. That one seems to get pretty good reviews.

 

Do you usually leave and skip Fantasmic?

[Jennifer in MI]

THank you. I'm so in in over my head LOL. Thank you for having mercy on my uninformed soul :)

 

We are there Feb 3-10, so it should be pretty slow. I think most park days are like a 3, and I'm already working the schedule around expected crowd levels, which as you said is possibly not really necessary. Maybe I should skip doing MK back to back if the lines won't be long.

 

We don't have park hoppers and I think we are going to try to skip doing that if at all possible, which is why I went with Brown Derby. That one seems to get pretty good reviews.

 

Do you usually leave and skip Fantasmic?

I'm actually really impressed with how much you know!  You've done a great job with research!  

 

We were at WDW last year in Feb and the crowds were VERY low!  Looks like you missed all holidays, so you should be good.  

 

We have never had park hoppers.  I'm so exhausted after just one park, I can't imagine heading back out to another!!!  :)

 

Would you believe that I've never seen Fantasmic???  I desperately want to.  Two times it was not showing when we were there.  Last week, we had priority seating (whatever that means), and two of my kids started running fevers at the park.  They were troopers and took Advil and kept up for most of the day.  But, we left the park after dinner, again!!!  Some day I WILL get to it!

 

Honestly, I plan my park days around when I get my dining reservations.  And, I'm picky.  I don't want to eat at odd times.  I get grumpy!  So, we plan meals at traditional times.  And, we never go during a crowded time, so I've never really looked at the crowd calculators.  I know some people live by them, but we really never have!

[DianeW88]

Day 1 arrive to MCO around 1 or 1:30, hopefully to POR by 3.
As of now we don't have tickets for that day but we may add them in case we want to wander around. I am considering doing DTD and just exploring that, the POR, and getting my kids to bed as soon as we can so we can be ready for MK.

 

Yes, DTD is perfect for the first night.  If you want sit-down service for a meal, your kids will love T-Rex.  If you want counter service, go to Wolfgang Puck Express.  It's our favorite at DTD!  The Lego Store and the World of Disney store will be fun for your kids.  If you get the Park Hopper and More option on your tickets, head to Disney Quest for the evening (at DTD...an "indoor amusement park".  My kids love it!)

Day 2
Crystal Palace reservation 8:25 am. Would you drop this to get into the park right at 9 that first day? Keep it since it isn't a terribly busy time of the year? We always eat at breakfast at Crystal Palace once during our trip, so I would keep it.  Unless you're dying to get on the rides. 
MK
Dinner at Cali Grill at 7:20 pm, should catch Wishes from there  Good choice.

Day 3
MK
There is a parade at 3pm
I considered dropping the day 2 crystal palace bkfast and doing a Crystal Palace lunch. Breakfast is better.
Ohana at 5:10 (only time I could get at all so I booked it) Awesome!!  We LOVE 'Ohana!!
How long would you leave to get from MK to O'hana? Depends on how busy it is...take the monorail directly there.  Give yourself 30 minutes. Any chance we'd have time to catch the parade at 3 and still make O'hana without major difficulty? You should be able to without a problem, unless the crowds are all exiting after the parade and gumming up the monorails.  The Polynesian is really close to MK...it's not difficult (or long) to get from one to the other.

Day 4 Epcot
Garden Grill if we don't do Crystal Palace on Day 2 or 3? Did not sched. reservations yet  Garden Grill is fun and the food is pretty good.  Order the platter.
Illuminations

Day 5 Hollywood Studios
1:40 lunch at Brown Derby Good food...if your kids are very young, they might be bored. 50s Primetime Cafe might be a better choice (I'm sorry, I neglected to check your kids' ages.)  Don't forget to stay for "Fantasmic" if there is a showing.  And get a cupcake for a snack at "Starring Rolls".

Day 6 AK
10:30 bkfast at Tusker House Excellent choice!!

Day 7 not yet planned at all. That night is supposed to be a good one for Illuminations, so maybe Epcot that day. Not supposed to be a great MK day but may go that route if kids want to say goodbye there. Choose at least one restaurant in World Showcase for a meal.  Via Napoli is a good choice and the food is great.  Les Chefs de France is great during lunch because Remy appears there.  For counter service, try the bakery in Norway (good sandwiches and get the school bread or the cloudberry horn for dessert).  For snacks, the kaki gori in Japan, the American Dream in the USA, or ANYTHING in Karamel Kuche is Germany is a good option.  You can also eat dinner at The Rose & Crown in the UK pavilion and watch Illuminations from their patio.

Day 8 depart in a.m. for airport

[HelenNotOfTroy]

On Monday, we watched the 3 pm parade and were in our car in the parking lot at 4. You should have no trouble getting to the Polynesian by 5. I don't do sit down meals, it adds to much to the cost, so I have no advice there. It isn't a bad idea to use crowd calendars to plan which park to visit which day as long as you don't want to do whatever added attraction makes a park busier.

[Momof3littles]

Okay, I have Les Chefs de France booked for lunch on our last day, but I'm not certain yet if we're doing Epcot that day. I'm leaning that way given a choice though. I need to call as it says that way they can tell you when Remy is there, but I have all 3 kids underfoot and for now this is a surprise.

 

I can't decide if I want to leave flexibility in our schedule, or get things booked and then cancel later. Part of that is because I am not sure what will happen if promotions come out like stay, play, dine and then everyone starts booking reservations.

 

if you try to walk up to a place like Rose and Crown, what type of wait would that be during a less busy time of year? It says they don't take reservations for outdoor seating I believe. If you are waiting at a restaurant, do they give you a pager, can you leave and come back, or are you stuck sitting there for an hour? it seems like that is a possibility even with reservations (I've read people sometimes wait 60-75 mins at times past their reservation time, but I don't know how common that is?), so I'm just wondering how it works when you attempt a walk in.

 

I also don't know if DS2 is going to nap on the go, which complicates planning dinner reservations. I'm doing it as if he's going to nap in the stroller, since getting back and forth to and from POR by bus doesn't seem the quickest or easiest.

 

Thank you all so much! Diane and Jennifer, I started reading your Disney posts when I first came to WTM just in case we ever decided to book. As soon as we decided we'd probably do it, I started pulling up all of your old posts :)

[Momof3littles]

Dumb question. I am reading the Unofficial Guide right now but haven't gotten to this section if it exists.

 

Is there an easy way to find out what restaurants do not need park tix to enter, other than just looking at whether they are in a resort? I didn't know if there was some list for Disney Dining Dummies. That would make it easier to round things out.

 

With kids my kids' ages (almost 10 when we travel, 7, almost 4 when we travel) and paying OOP (for now, will reconsider if play, stay, dine comes up) but not necessarily pinching pennies too mch....would you keep booking restaurants or do more QS and CS meals with what I have now?

[DianeW88]

Are your kids comfortable with dining in more adult-type restaurants?  Because two of your restaurants (California Grill and Brown Derby) are definitely more adult oriented.  Not that they won't accommodate children...they will, but your kids might be bored there.

 

I love sit down restaurants at Disney...the food is good and they are an enforced rest period.  We eat at one every day we're there.  We always get the regular dining plan.  I recommend you schedule in at least a few.

 

As far as whether or not you need a park ticket...any restaurant inside of a theme park requires a ticket.  If you want the names of good resort restaurants...I know everyone will chime in with their favorites.  But let us know your kids' preferences (picky eaters?  more child oriented places?) so we can advise you correctly.

[Momof3littles]

Kids are most definitely not picky and would be bored with chicken nuggets and pizza. All 3 are quite adventurous and don't bat an eye at things like sushi. I know my almost 10 yo will not want to eat off the kid menu for sure, and suspect the same for DD. Even DS2 (who likes hot dogs and pizza and kid food) enjoys pretty diverse tastes. I think the kids will be much happier splitting adult entrees or ordering an appetizer as an entree vs. being compelled to order from the kid menu.

 

Our CA Grill reservation is 8:20 and wishes is at 9, so I'm hoping that will keep them entertained? It seems like places often run behind and you don't get in right at your reservation time, so I assume we'll still be eating in some capacity while we are there when Wishes starts. They are pretty good in restaurants, and LOVE fireworks, so I am hoping that just knowing they are coming is enough to keep them patient.

 

I am not attached to Brown Derby but had read it was good so thought I'd book that in case we want to stay in HS. I am not sure where to eat if we want to stay for Fantasmic, although I'm not certain if we'll be there for the show or not. It seems like HS doesn't have the best food selection? I have no idea how much they'll like HS. DS1 will probably like star wars stuff (still hasn't seen the movies but is familiar and plays Starwars on Xbox).