Any thoughts on our planned itinerary?

[lauraclaire]

Hi there,

We're off to Orlando in less than two months. We have been before, a few years ago. We've got two weeks and want to fit in as much as we can without exhausting ourselves, so we thought that our first day would be a chill out and food shopping/unpacking etc day. We plan to spend one day at each of the following; Universal Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios, Seaworld, Aquatica, Magic Kingdom, Disney MGM (now Hollywood I believe), Kennedy Space Centre, Typhoon Lagoon, Busch Gardens and Gatorland/Boggy Creek Airboats. That's 10 days out, with a couple more chill out days spent at the villa. Does this sound reasonable?
Also, I've been trying to get my head around the tickets we'll need. I'm assuming I'll need a 5 day premium ticket to cover the 3 Disney Parks (Magic K, MGM and Typhoon) and the Orlando Flex Ticket Plus to cover I of A, Universal Studios, Seaworld, Aquatica and Busch Gardens.
Do I need to buy Kennedy Space Centre separately as well as Gatorland/Boggy Creek?

Thanks a lot - I have been trying to figure it out myself but the brain says 'no'!
LauraClaire

[Alan & Poe]

You haven't mentioned your exact dates. It sounds like you might be hitting spring break which will make a big difference on your planning.

>>>So the answer to, "When is spring break 2008?" would be February to April, of course, with the big weeks being March 10-21 (especially March 17-21)<<<

Especially during busy periods it is not always possible to do a park a day. You may be advised to purchase a 14 day hopper if your budget can run to that so that you may gain entry as many times as you like during your visit. It may be better if you visit a park first thing in the morning & chill by the pool or a nearby restaurant during the afternoon. Trying to cram a whole park in one day during busy periods can lead to serious brain damage & inflicting serious bodily harm on family members (just ask my husband)

You've omitted Animal Kingdom & Epcot. Was this intentional?

Yes, you need to buy KSC seperate. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but you don't get a discount on advance purchases; so don't bother buying till you get there just in case you change your mind or your itinerary no longer allows it.

I presume Boggy Creek is the same.

Gatorland - buy when you get there. You do need a seperate ticket. You can get money off vouchers all over the show; even online before you leave. What time is your plane coming home? In the evening? Are you leaving from MCO? You may like to visit Gatorland on your last day before you head for the airport coz it's kinda on the way.

I would never dream of wasting the first day on chilling. Scrap unpacking. Take advantage of your jetlag & get up at the crack of dawn & hit the parks (maybe for a character breakfast) before the teenagers have even lifted their heads.

If you are going during spring break....well, good luck with that! My thoughts are with you.....

....do it right & you'll still have fun; I'm just being a wiseass.

[lauraclaire]

Thanks for that. We fly out on 30th March. I did omit Animal Kingdom and Epcot intentionally, we did Animal Kingdom last time we went and are happy to miss that out this time - Epcot we also visited but not entirely sure we want to go again. Hubby wants to do the Kennedy Space Centre (which to be honest I'm not especially interested in) so I don't really feel obliged to indulge him with Epcot as well! The reason we were thinking of chilling on the first day is that we have a 10 and 12 year old and the 10 year old can get a little grumpy when tired (can't we all) but I may re-think that. Thanks for all your suggestions.
LauraClaire