Is 8 days too many for WDW?

My husband and I (no kids) have planned 8 days/nights at a WDW resort in January 2007. We were probably going to get a 7 day park hopper pass.

Is this too much time at WDW? How should we spend our time? How many days at each park? Should we rent a car and go to the beach for a day? Any other ideas?

I would think about other non-Disney parks except, like Disney, the first day or two is the most expensive. So I%26#39;m not sure it%26#39;s worth it for us.

I haven脙垄t been to WDW for 20 years (I was 8) and my husband has never been, but I脙垄m worried we%26#39;ll get bored.

How would you spend your time if you had 8 days?

Is 8 days too many for WDW?

Too much is never enough.

Is 8 days too many for WDW?

Sorry for the slightly cryptic response above, though in the case of Disney, it is true for many people. If you get a 7 day park hopper, and use all 7 days, you will kill yourself. Give yourself some downtime between the 4 theme parks. Some have suggested that MGM and Animal Kingdom can be done both on the same day (AK in the morning, MGM later), though not exhaustively. Besides the theme parks, just at Disney, theres DisneyQuest (interactive indoor theme park), Pleasure Island (clubs and nightlife), La Nouba Cirque du Soleil, the House of Blues, and the rest of Downtown Disney, as well as the Boardwalk shops, Richard Petty Driving Experience, and a myriad of restaurants and character meals to choose from (if you have the $$$$, you can spring for the #1 rated restaurant in the USA per Trip Advisor--Victoria %26amp; Alberts at Disney%26#39;s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa--jacket required). You can visit the different resorts (though you can%26#39;t pool hop). You could also visit a spa, or something like that. It depends on how much you like Disney in particular, and how much you want to spend. Of course, if you rent a car, you%26#39;re opening yourself up to options outside of the Disney property that will be inexhaustible in the span of 8 days.

The entire central Florida area is a mecca for tourist%26#39;s. As far as the other parks, check on-line. The rates are good if you buy more then one day. Sea World is another great option. It is different then the parks, but just about everyone comes away happy.

Having that long in Disney is a plus, not a minus. You can take your time and really enjoy the long vacation together. Sleep in, nap, party! Since you don%26#39;t have kids, you will be able to have time out for nightly entertainment options. Check into Pleasure Island. It is really fun.

I would rent a car. You will be blasted with guidebooks and without a car you are at the mercy of wherever you stay.

Since your going in January, the beaches will not be crowded. It is chilly at night here, so keep that in mind.

On the East Coast, where I live, there is Kennedy Space Center, half day gambling cruises, beaches, etc. It takes about an hour to get here.

Enjoy your vacation. I%26#39;m sure you will get lots of ideas on things to do between now and your trip date.

You

Thanks for the great suggestions. It definitely reassures me and gives me some good ideas!

I really want to figure out if it%26#39;s okay to book ourselves in at a Disney hotel for the whole stay. It makes it easy to plan and lets us to spend all that time at Disney if we want, but I worry that it limits our ability to explore more of the area.

Perhaps we should look into renting a car for 3-4 days of our trip and make day trips from our Disney hotel. Sound about right?

Hello pdxrobyn,

First there isn%26#39;t a need to spend the extra money and purchase the hopper pass as you won%26#39;t need to hop with the amount of time you have to spend in Disney! You can simply enjoy a park a day. The only park you may need two days at is Epcot. One day for Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom and MGM Studios is plenty. Simply purchase the 4 or 5 day Base ticket which costs approximately $195 for the 4 day and $199.00 for the 5 day. If you and your husband think you would enjoy a water park I recommend Typhoon Lagoon it%26#39;s atmosphere is tropical and you can enjoy the lazy river and snorkel in the shark reef. To do this you would add the water park option to your base ticket and would include admission for the day and you could also choose to go to Pleasure Island or Disney%26#39;s Wide World of Sports Complex.

I would take a couple day%26#39;s in between the parks to simply relax and enjoy the pool area of your resort. The best pool Disney has to offer is Stormalong Bay, a 3 acre sand bottom pool. The Yacht and Beach Club%26#39;s location cannot be beat as it%26#39;s a 5 minute walk to Epcot and a short boat ride to MGM Studios. This is my favorite Disney resort and even if you don%26#39;t stay at this resort take some time to stroll around the area and the Boardwalk that surrounds a lovely lake. It%26#39;s especially lovely in the evening. There are restaurants such as Big River Brewing Co and the ESPN Club or you can enjoy the Clam Bake offered at the Yacht and Beach Club that is offered nightly. The buffet also pleases non seafood eaters also. Check it out the Yacht and Beach Club at www.disneyworld.com.

I don%26#39;t see any need to rent a car if your staying on Disney property as all your transportation needs are taken care of to and from the airport and all the parks including Downtown Disney however if your planning on renting a car anyway you might want to consider visiting Playalinda Beach, it%26#39;s a relatively quiet beach located North of the Kennedy Space Center in the National Park.

Another option would be to spend a day at Discovery Cove, it%26#39;s a relaxing day in a beautiful park! Check it out at www.discoverycove.com

I Defiantly would not spend 7 days in Disney Parks. one day in each will be plenty. As grown up with no kids MK is only half a day, most of it is to babyish for 8-9 year olds some of it is garbage.

Look for a post asking people for their worst rides.

As a young couple form Oregon I would take a look at the gulf side beaches for a couple of days. Clearwater to St Pete%26#39;s. 2 hours drive.

Do a Disney Water park till 2;00 pm than spend the rest of the day in one of the Disney Parks till it closes, Sea World- IOA- Universal- Bush Gardens , Epcot are more entertaining for the grown-ups- I personally wont waste my money in MK, MGM. there are some interesting bits in them but not enough to justify the cost.

In my opinion, you can find plenty to do in WDW over 8 days. I am in my mid 20%26#39;s and everytime I go to Disney, I want to stay longer (I usually go for 7-8 days). I do suggest the getting a Park Hopper pass, it makes it so much easier later on in the week returning to each park and riding your favorite rides again. I have found the older I get, the more I enjoy Disney.

Hi pdx! My hubby %26amp; I also have no kids and spent 7 nights/8 days at Disney last October. We didn%26#39;t get to see/do everything so we%26#39;re coming back this Nov/Dec. We had a blast! Even though we have no kids, we spent the majority of our time in MK. There%26#39;s just something about the magical atmosphere that kept us going back. We spent 4 of our days there. Now, they weren%26#39;t full days because we would go back to the resort around lunch for a break but out of all the parks, that one held our attention the most. This time, we%26#39;re mostly going resort hopping to see all the Christmas decorations and we%26#39;ve tickets to the MK Christmas Party. 2nd fav after MK was Sea World. Hubby enjoyed it so much he couldn%26#39;t stop talking about it when we got home. 3rd fav was Epcot and we missed half of it so we%26#39;ll be spending a lot of time there this year. No, you won%26#39;t get bored and 7 days is not enough. We also had a car and it just made it easier on us. We used the car half the time and Disney transportation the other half. Have fun!

It%26#39;s worth bearing in mind that,in January,most parks close around 6 or 7 p.m (except Epcot which closes 9 p.m year round).

It might,therefore,be worth buying %26#39;too many%26#39; days if the cost is not too much more because you can spread your time better across the parks, without having to %26#39;blitz%26#39; them in short days.

We go in February a lot,and find it convenient to park hop over the whole duration of our stay.

In particular,we like to visit Epcot in the evening after the other parks have closed,and generally do them in %26#39;bite-size%26#39; chunks of time.

If you don%26#39;t feel like doing 7 or so days at Disney,then try to do the Universal parks for a couple of days in lieu.

Our family went to Floridal last summer and spent 5 days at Disney and it was too much - too many crowds etc. After Orlando we drove to the Palm Coast and stayed at Ocean Hammock for a week. This was the high point of our trip! Great beaches, drives to historic St. Augustine, wildlife, classy hotels and pools. We live in the busy SF Bay Area and realized the busy Disney park was not a vacation for us - even our kids got bored. Evaluate what you want and if you are true Disney people you will love it, otherwise break up your trip and see some native Florida that will give you a change of scenery and culture from the west coast.