Taking a break at WDW

[auntangi]

My husband and I are planning a week long week long visit to WDW in October (Food and Wine!!!!). Disneyland is our home park and this will be our first visit to WDW. We know it will be easy to overdo it especially with that many days at the parks and we really want to avoid that. We have already scheduled a mid week day off where we will spend most of the day just relaxing at the resort and enjoying the pool. We also want to schedule our mornings (early starts, FPP in the morning) and then be flexible, taking breaks in the afternoons, so that leads me to my question. What tips/recommendations do you have for how to work breaks into our touring plans? Where are good places to take breaks at either the parks or the resorts? Any suggestions or insights are appreciated!

 

[HydroGuy]

As a DLR vet, there are multiple things to consider. Here are my two cents:


o Taking hotel breaks can take a long time - be careful with this

On our trip last month it took us 90 minutes to get from MK FantasyLand to our hotel room at the Swan by Disney bus. To be fair, we did make a quick stop on Main Street at a store on the way out. So call it 75 minutes. I am not saying this is typical but I am saying that taking breaks can take a lot of time out of your day getting back and forth to your hotel.


o The ease of taking hotel breaks depends a bit on which hotel you are staying at.

For the days we were at the Swan, Epcot and DHS were much closer and easier to take breaks from

When we were at AKL, the same was true for AK park


o DHS is under huge construction right now with limited attractions and shows available. You can finish by 3 or 4PM if you want and make that be a half day

o AK used to be considered a half day park by many, but with the new Rivers of Light show at night and the opening of Pandora on May 27, that will change

o Make some dining reservations - WDW has many cool dining options - but lunch may be a better option than dinner if you want to take afternoon hotel breaks. The reason being is that you know you will be at the park at lunch but dinner timing is uncertain because of the potential hotel break

o Plan 2 days for MK and 2 days for Epcot

o As for breaks at the parks, Epcot has so many places you can just park yourself for awhile. Especially in World Showcase. For the other parks, not so much unless you are dining somewhere. AK has 2 animal viewing trails which are worth doing and sort of like a break. Not too many benches there as I recall and a mix of shade and sun.

 

[hiroMYhero]

Where are good places to take breaks at either the parks or the resorts?

On your MK days you can take the Monorail to Contemp, Poly, or Grand Floridian and check out the Lobby and grounds for a nice break.

For DHS and Epcot, the Boardwalk and Epcot resorts are a boat ride or short walk away.

For AK, lunch at Sanaa at Animal Kingdom Lodge - Kidani and viewing the savannas is a good mid-day break.

Are you staying at an onsite resort?

 

[barbliny]

Park closing time matters - the length of a mid-day break is directly proportional to closing time - the later it is open, the longer the possible break

Personally, we like long breaks. We are at the gates -towards the front, waiting for 'the rope to drop'. The first 2 hours a park is open are invaluable - the first hour is gold standard.

In most instances - we ropedrop, are out before lunch, usually go back to the hotel (onsite, because again ropedrop and morning EMH), grab an early dinner and then go back to a park.

While others may say that going back to the hotel can take a bite out of your day - I cannot say enough for the ability to take a swim, or a shower (or both), changing into fresh clothes when it's really hot, laying down for an hour - it's worth the transportation time in my opinion

The WDW parks are much larger than their DL counterparts. The weather in Orlando is not as forgiving (the humidity is no joke).

If you do not want to leave the parks to 'take breaks' - leverage air conditioning. That can be shows, attractions, meals, shopping

Leave the park - and go someplace close as others have mentioned - Epcot and Hollywood Studios have the boardwalk resorts, Magic Kingdom the monorail resorts, Animal Kingdom has the AKL - there really might not be anyplace more relaxing (and free) than the AKL lobby

I would caution against doing Disney Springs as your break, unless you are planning a long break - the buses are fairly unreliable and there is still a lot of walking and not a lot of shade - air conditioning is plentiful, but it is very sunny

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

A first trip is the MOST exciting! Fun! Here's my take on midday breaks...
-I personally find going back to the hotel more exhausting than just staying at the parks. We've only done it a couple of times and I didn't find it relaxing, but that's me!
-I choose to do most days as early rope drop days, and I'll throw in a couple "late" days where we show up to the parks later so we can stay for a night time show, if there is one that interests us. I don't do rope drop + night shows, unless we take that break EARLY in the day and make sure its long and worth it.
-There are multiple rides I consider to be nice breaks in each park. For example, MK's PeopleMover always feels like a break. AK's train to Rafiki's Planet Watch. Epcot's Spaceship Earth. HS has so many shows that you can sit and watch and rest through. Again, depends on how much of a break you need.

Question: Will you have a car, or use all Disney transport?

 

[Ambehnke]

This one is really going to be a to each their own I think. We always rope drop. We like to do a sit down lunch around 12:30 or 1. Then if the park is only open til 9 we ride it out. We will do something like carousel of progress or Frozen a sing along that had you sitting for a while. If it has longer hours than that we go back after lunch for a nap. You can't close and open a park every day (which we like to do) without a decent mid day break. It's too exhausting.

 

[Ambehnke]

Oh and I agree that this is much easier with a car.

 

[rwdavis2]

With FP+ we found we could skip rope drop most days, sleep in, and still see what we wanted to. But that was our 5th trip together which made skipping a couple attractions no big deal.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

We always take midday breaks at our resort, which the last few trips has been Yacht Club. Easy walk from Epcot or a bit longer walk/boat ride from DHS. For MK and AK we typically take the bus back to the resort for the midday break, though this can take a bit of time. Still, we aren't interested in staying at the park for 12+ hours in 85 degree (or much hotter) weather. Simply isn't enjoyable for us. We are usually at the resort from noonish until 3-4ish, at which point we'll head somewhere for a drink or two and then grab dinner before going back to a park. So for example, I recall that last trip we went to DHS for rope drop one morning and were able to ride Toy Story Mania and Tower of Terror (multiple times), along with Star Wars and Great Movie Adventure, before mosying around some of the shops and heading back to the resort. We then went to the pool for a few hours. After that headed over to Animal Kingdom Lodge around 4 and walked around, grabbed a drink at the lounge, then had dinner at Boma. I believe we went to MK direct from AKL afterwards.

 

[disnut8]

At Animal Kingdom - sit at the Flame Tree BBQ lovely seating area and enjoy lunch or a few drinks. Get a table near the water and watch and listen to Expedition Everest across the way or go by the cement pond in the middle and watch the ducks and ibises come and go.

Epcot - the outside seating area for the Liberty Tree Inn back in America. People watch and have a snack or a drink from nearby. Watch the fountain.

Hollywood Studios - the Muppets area. Grab a pizza and sit around and just relax.

Magic Kingdom - Hall of Presidents and the Liberty Square area. Take a ride on the riverboat.

You don't have to leave the park to get a break. You can just relax while there.

 

[thelittlemermaid2]

We like to make dining reservations at 3 pm for the more popular restaurants. This allows us to do 2 big meals a day (breakfast and afternoon) with snacks that saves money in the long run. This also is usually the time when the parks are the busiest, the weather the hottest, and the restaurants are the most empty. It is nice to enjoy a cool, relaxing indoor meal and to be able to take your time and not feel rushed!

 

[dkrauss]

We always take midday breaks at our resort, which the last few trips has been Yacht Club. Easy walk from Epcot or a bit longer walk/boat ride from DHS. For MK and AK we typically take the bus back to the resort for the midday break, though this can take a bit of time. Still, we aren't interested in staying at the park for 12+ hours in 85 degree (or much hotter) weather........

My wife and I have the same attitude. Although for our trip in June we've made a small adjustment..........we originally planned to stay at WL, however due to a better discount/cost we moved to the Yacht club (as part of a split stay with POP). This plan works quite well for Epcot and HS days while we're at the YC. However for our MK day we've changed things a bit. We won't be going back to the YC instead we'll boat over to WL after the FOF parade for drinks/rest/early dinner at Geyser Pt. This keeps us close to the MK since we'll return there for the evening.......and gives us the serenity and peace we like by going to the WL. We're also looking forward to trying out Geyser Pt.

On the POP portion of our trip we'll just suck it up..........because POP isn't really closer to AK or the MK

Our bottom line is we always need a break............we work them into our plan..........I need my naps

Doug

 

[heidijanesmith]

We take a daily break at our hotel, it's a must! As a PP stated, we hit the parks for rope drop. That early AM touring is the best, better crowds and lower temps.

We take a mid-day break at our hotel; swimming, napping, just chilling out. This recharges us and gets us ready for PM touring. We will break usually from 1-5 and then head out for dinner and nighttime touring.

 

[PSUGuy]

We're there in Nov for 9 park days, did 10 last year. We stay at Board Walk which is perfect for our strategy. We hit a park at rope drop, tour until noonish then hop to WS for F&W every day, stopping at our room if needs be. Actually every day except Sat., WS is crazy crowded all that day so that's our pool day and we hit Raglan Road for dinner.

So... we do breakfast in our room and mostly 'Graze Around the World' for much of the rest of our grub. Other than Raglan Road the only other sit down meal is the Cape May Clam Bake.

Bill From PA

 

[Catvondita]

For breaks we usually get to the park earlyish (not rope drop though) and then come back in the evening as long as the park is open late enough to justify the hassle. We'll usually go back to our hotel room (usually POP) and stay there for about 2 hours or so. But I would factor in the fact that it can take maybe about an hour and a half in total traveling back and forth. Also at MK sometimes well just go to Trader Sams, or the Contemporary for a drink or two ad hang out there.

 

[JenBush]

My family likes to go back to our resort for breaks, but if we aren't going back to our room, here's the places we like to rest based on which park we are in each day.
-Magic Kingdom: Carousel of Progress(air conditioned, dark, the perfect break!) or A relaxing boat ride over to Wilderness Lodge is our go to mid-day break. The resort is beautiful to walk around and just appreciate the scenery. I usually just end up in the massive lobby on one of their big comfy chairs or couches and just chill out. There are also a lot of food options if you want to grab a bite to eat while there.
-Epcot: I'm content just finding a bench somewhere in the World Showcase getting a nice cold drink and just relaxing. If its too crowded or you want to get away from the park head over to the international gateway and hop on a boat over to any of the Epcot area resorts. All of them have nice grounds to walk around and quiet spots you can find to sneak away from the crowds.
-Hollywood Studios: Hop on a boat and head over to either the Beach Club, Yacht Club, Boardwalk, or Swan and Dolphin. Grab a bite to eat, find a nice quiet bench and watch the boats come and go or find a nice corner in one of the lobbies and enjoy the air conditioning.
-Animal Kingdom: This park is always hot. Why is it always so hot and miserable!? It's a beautiful park, but it can be downright unbearable in the mid-day summer heat. I usually only spend half a day there, but if you are planning an entire day there you might want to go over to AKL for a little while in the afternoon to get a break from the heat of the day and also to look around one of the most beautiful lobbies on site.

 

[soniam]

World Showcase at Epcot is a break in and of itself.
Ellen's Energy Adventure in Futureworld at Epcot is a great place to take a nap. Seriously, not being facetious.
In front of Expedition Everest in Animal Kingdom. Dawa Bar near Tusker House in AK.
Most favorite place though is Tom Sawyer Island. Should make you feel right at home and possibly satisfy your yearning.

 

[joyjoy]

We've been know to stay on the train (WDW Railroad) for a couple of loops around MK for a break in the shade. You'll have the audio part memorized, but a little breeze, some shade and sitting down for 30 mins or so makes it worthwhile.

 

[AmyA]

We aren't big fans of taking breaks...it takes so much time to get back and forth that I find it really frustrating when we have a car and downright intolerable when we don't. We almost always stay on the monorail or at the Boardwalk so we are close to parks and I still find the travel to be very time consuming...patience is clearly not my strong suit . So, instead we plan long, short, and off days so we get breaks without all the travel time

DH and I are taking an week long trip starting 4/28...here is how we are managing our trip. Hopefully this can give you guys some ideas...

• 4/28 - Epcot - RD through Illuminations...with lots of chilling out in WS
• 4/29 - MK - RD until about 1230. Dinner ADR at 530 so we'll relax all afternoon
• 4/30- MK - RD through Wishes...although we have dinner in the park at 615 so we will be sitting and relaxing essentially from 6pm through close
• 5/1 - AK - EMH to about 7pm
• 5/2 - No plans until Dine Around at 545. We will be super lazy this day
• 5/3 - Epcot from RD through lunch. No plans until 830pm Hoop-Dee-Doo
• 5/4 - DHS RD (maybe) until we can't stand the crowds (it feels so compressed and crowded to us right now at DHS)...although we may stick it out until the SW firework show
• 5/5 - no plans until we head to airport around 4...we will likely hit either MK or AK in the a.m.

 

[leebee]

For a break on MK day, sometimes we take the ferry to the TTC and then ride the monorail to Epcot and back to the MK. On Epcot day, we'll ride the boat over to DS and back, and the reverse for DS day. Always makes us feel like we are still in "Disney" mode but we are actually sitting down in the a/c, relaxing, giving our feet a break. Riding the train around MK is another good way to get a break, and the same at AK. Another break we do, which works in any park, is to sit down in the a/c somewhere and buy a soda/iced tea. Sit, relax in the a/c, stay off your feet, and rejuvenate for about 30-45 minutes. It's amazing what some sit-down time in tha a/c will do for you! I will also try to schedule shows for the times I know we are going to need a break, because once again, that's "sit down in the a/c" time. (If it makes any difference, we usually arrive at the parks around 10:30-ish and stay until closing. If parks close early- 7-8pm, we might arrive earlier.)