Just wondering how much time (and money) I should spend figuring out touring plans given that we are going in a slower season (Nov. 7-21). Is it still worthwhile?
Thanks
Mel
Are touring plans necessary in November?Whether or not to use touring plans is entirely a matter of personal preference. When I was at Disney in September, it was very slow, but I still saw people with notebooks in their backpacks with nicely typed daily itineraries, down to the time they planned to ride each ride. Personally, I think that%26#39;s too much planning!
Keep in mind that toward the end of your trip, it will probably be busier than at the beginning. I would try to visit any ';must see'; attractions and restaurants as early in your trip as possible. I don%26#39;t plan any farther than deciding which park I want to go to, making any necessary dining reservations at that park, and a list of three or four things I absolutely don%26#39;t want to miss. I don%26#39;t like to be so regimented that I can%26#39;t just relax and have a good time.
Are touring plans necessary in November?I visit most Nevembers..it will be very quiet, no need for touring plans. An ideal opportunity to relax , take your time and enjoy the parks rather than a planned regimented assault on the popular attractions
The only place where I think a ';touring plan'; is necessary is SeaWorld, if you plan to go there.
SeaWorld have more shows than the other parks and scheduling around those shows is critical for you to get into all of them before the end of the day.
When you first arrive at the park, be sure to get a show schedule and plan your day around the shows you want to see.
Kat,
How long does it take to do Seaworld? We have 2 young kids. We arrive late on the 7th (like 10:30), so I was trying to decide what to plan for our first day. I was thinking we%26#39;d get to a store in the morning after breakfast to get supplies and groceries for our villa, then maybe head to Seaworld later in the afternoon. The tickets say 7 days for the price of one, so theoretically we could go back for another half day if we wanted to. Also, Jack Hanna will be there on the 11th and 12th - have you (or anyone) ever seen him? Would the park be a lot busier than on the 8th, given his visit and it%26#39;s the weekend? How are the line ups generally at Seaworld?
Thanks so much!
Mel
ps - Happy Thanksgiving to any fellow Canadians. Still recovering for the turkey dinner last night!... :)
Well, to work in all the shows at SeaWorld, you really need the equivalent of a full days time, especially with the shorter hours of the off season.
When I recently went there for the day, we arrived when they opened and stayed until 6:00 that evening just to get in all the shows. The problem occurs when some shows ';overlap'; others and you can%26#39;t be in two places at one time. That%26#39;s why it%26#39;s important to get the show schedule as soon as you arrive and figure out which shows you want to see the most. We usually begin with the limited Shamu shows (we only had 2 time choices), then Clyde %26amp; Seymour, then Blue Horizons, then Pets Ahoy, etc.
With those ';7 for 1'; admission tickets, you could break things up into different days, but you still need a full-days amount of time. Maybe you could see one or two shows per day that way. Just remember, it%26#39;s much less crowded in the morning hours and SeaWorld does have early closing times in the ';off season'; months.
I%26#39;ve never seen jack Hanna, except on T.V. The park may very well be busier with him there, so if you decide to go multiple days, go to see the main shows before he arrives that weekend.
';Lines'; at SeaWorld only occur, for the most part, for the few rides they have, as most of the shows have huge seating theaters. I do suggest getting to the shows when the ';gates open'; to get the best seats. Chances are, with the younger children, you%26#39;ll only be doing the rides in the ';children%26#39;s section'; over near Wild Artic, and you won%26#39;t be riding Kraken or Journey to Atlantis.
Hope this helps!!
Thanks a lot Kat and Steve! I think I%26#39;ll have a general touring plan in my pocket just to help organize. Steve, you are right about not knowing where to go when. When we went to Disneyland last time we did a lot of back tracking and wasting of time.
I was planning on doing most park time the week of the 13-17th, since the Christmas stuff starts then. But then again, travelling with small kids you can never plan too much ahead. Every trip we%26#39;ve taken since we%26#39;ve had kids we%26#39;ve had at least two people sick, so I almost have to have ';sick days';. Didn%26#39;t allow for that on our 5 day trip to Disneyland, and it was miserable. Nothing like walking all day with a 102 degree fever!
Thanks again,
Mel
Previous posters mentioned touring plans at Sea World. The good news about Sea World is that you can go to the courtesy booth before you leave the park and for now extra charge get a ticket that is good to come back any time over the next six day. We usually don%26#39;t do a touring plan at Sea World for this reason and simply allocate two days instead of one. We take our time, catch the shows we%26#39;re interested in when we come to them and don%26#39;t have long to wait.. Look at the schedule regarding what we missed and make a point to see them the second day.
In my experience (3 Nov trips) touring plans aren%26#39;t required in November - most places are very very quiet.
However, I would say its a good idea to have a few ideas about what you want to see %26amp; aim for the ';headliners'; 1st - for example:
MK usually has bigger crowds than anywhere else - so last year we headed for Space Mountain, Big Thunder %26amp; Splash when the park opened. All 3 were ridden inside an hour (along side Jungle cruise %26amp; Pirates) - so a plan of sorts is useful.
Its quiet enough to do what you like when you like really - but good to do the ';main'; stuff before the kids get too tired....
Have a great time... I%26#39;m not jealous at all!
HI!
Not sure if you are headed for MGM at all but they are having a Big Soap Star Weekend November 11%26amp; 12th. I heard that this area is one to avoid like the plague because of the soap opera fans trying to get a glimpse of their favorite stars!
Thanks for the post we are also headed for the parks the first part of November. Counting down!!!!
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