Waffles, A Celebration, and a Plan

We had Mickey waffles for breakfast this morning to celebrate that it in just two months we will be back at the most magical place on earth. Of course, this lead to reminiscing about previous trips and experiences and planning for our future trip. We started talking about taking in the film at the France Pavilion at EPCOT since we will be dining at Chefs de France and haven’t explored France previously. The husband agreed and then the conversation shifted to talk about how there is still much more to explore at EPCOT and we always feel like we haven’t seen or done it all there, yet. That reminded us of a funny story. . . and a plan . . .




I know I have written about this before, but it was a large family we bumped into at EPCOT saying it was the most boring park, basically complaining that there wasn’t enough to do. Since I was within ear shot, I asked if they had ridden Soarin’ yet. They asked “Where’s that?” I pointed to the Land Pavilion just steps away. They had yet to experience Test Track, the Living Seas with Nemo, or any of World Showcase, yet EPCOT to them seemed the most boring park.



My conclusion was that in EPCOT, you gotta know what’s there before you go otherwise you will miss stuff. . . lots of stuff. It can be intimidating, down right scary to walk through a door at a theme park not knowing what is on the other side. Will I like it? How much time will it take? Will the kids be OK with it? Will I be wasting valuable park time? And, at EPCOT, almost everything you do or experience requires walking through the door to find out what is on the other side. It is not an “in your face” theme park where you can stumble on attractions. If you want to read our touring plan for EPCOT click here.



In the Magic Kingdom, you can roam aimlessly without a plan and enjoy many attractions. You may spend a lot of time waiting in queues and your feet might hurt, but it is doable. I think this is why there are those handful of people who hate Disney and are never going back. I think they did just wander aimlessly without a plan in the Magic Kingdom and waited in long lines and had hurt feet.  If that had been my experience, I wouldn't want to go back either.  Would you?   If you want to read our touring plan for Magic Kingdom click here.



In Hollywood Studios, you have to know the schedule of events to have a productive day. Want to see Indiana Jones? Then know the show times either before you get to the park—Steve Soares web-site—or by looking at the Times Guide you get with the park map. I have talked to people who have walked away disappointed with Studios, and the main reason was they didn’t know the schedule of events and missed things. You can’t just walk up to Indiana Jones and expect there to be a show right then. Even Voyage of the Little Mermaid has a schedule, at least to start and so does Playhouse Disney. Roaming aimlessly at Studios may mean you stumble onto some gems, but it also means you may miss well-done shows and attractions.



At Animal Kingdom, the pure size and foliage of the place keeps you from seeing what lies ahead. Animal Kingdom is the largest of the parks, and if you don’t know where you’re going or what you are going to and when, you could weave back and forth across this park only to find your dogs barking loudly. And, in Disney style, the major shows and attractions are spread across four corners of the park. Our advice—go in a circular motion and don’t backtrack if you don’t have to.



The theme to this post is that a plan is crucial to enjoying theme parks. A plan and comfortable shoes will make your day. Speaking of shoes. . . I better get packing!