Need help planning MK arrival timing with hours change!

[Maniacal]

Hello! First family vacation to WDW (6 & 4 year old making their first trip) Feb 17-23 and we're facing a unique (I assume based on inability to find similar posts) situation.

We're arriving in the area and staying offsite on Friday night 2/16, kids won't find out where we're going until Saturday morning 2/17 as we drive through the maingate signs (if we pull this off). The were to be whisked straight off to MK for 8am breakfast at CRT, and hopefully the best week of their young lives would begin. Now the park hours have changed to 8am open, hampering the empty-ish main street plans and making it unclear what we should

We're not bothering with resort checkin (aside from online so we have room info ready to go) until that night after MK, so planned on driving to TTC and getting in as soon as possible (even if it's just to stand around before breakfast) just so they can soak in whats happening. I assume the 'hour before' rule will still be in effect, making it possible to enter Main Street at 7am. With the hours change, what time should we plan on parking, monorail be running, etc?

The 8am ADR/9am park open plan seemed so easy...now the 8am open threw a wrench at our carefully crafted narrative.

Any help you can provide would be amazing.

 

[Robo]

Now the park hours have changed to 8am open, hampering the empty-ish main street plans...

That idea has been virtually eliminated 7 days a week with the new opening procedure at MK.

to the DISboards, Maniacal!

.

 

[Robo]

I assume the 'hour before' rule will still be in effect, making it possible to enter Main Street at 7am.

Sorry, but that is not correct.

When MK's open time is moved to 8AM (or 7AM EMH) the "hour before" is not in effect.

Expect to be let onto Main St. about 7:55-ish when MK's opening time is 8AM.

 

[gap2368]

The park will open at 8( not 7) for every one they might let ADR people in 10-15 minutes before hand but this dependent on a number of things like if they have the street clears of all vehicles I would plane on getting to the TTC around 7:15-7:20 take what every you can sometimes the moneril is not running and only the farry boat is.

 

[wdw&sonny]

I would arrive at TTC at 7:00, park, walk to Monorail, arrive at MK gate around 7:30. They may let you through once they verify your ADR.

 

[gap2368]

I would arrive at TTC at 7:00, park, walk to Monorail, arrive at MK gate around 7:30. They may let you through once they verify your ADR.

I would say 30 minuted is slim to none, leanig tarwd none. You might get in 15 minutes but more then likely 5 minutes the resign way I said to get there a few minutes after 7 is that is when the parking Botha open and people directing cars and since the OP has not been there for s few years (I am guessing ) and having people direct you in the lot is a lot easier

 

[Robo]

I would arrive at TTC at 7:00, park, walk to Monorail, arrive at MK gate around 7:30. They may let you through once they verify your ADR.

Unlikely.

 

[Robo]

My suggestion to the OP is to drop the Character Breakfast on the first day at MK.
There is so much to do and see on your childrens' first day at the park that a breakfast may be just prolonging the agony of waiting,
especially with way the opening procedures are now timed.

CP is great, but maybe much later in the day (or on a different day then your first.)

 

[Maniacal]

My suggestion to the OP is to drop the Character Breakfast on the first day at MK.
There is so much to do and see on your childrens' first day at the park that a breakfast may be just prolonging the agony of waiting,
especially with way the opening procedures are now timed.

CP is great, but maybe much later in the day (or on a different day then your first.)

Appreciate the advice there, but that won't be an option...this is built on my wife's first experiences there, going to the castle (8am reservation at CRT, not CP) for breakfast to start off the trip in such a magical way is one of her greatest memories, and as the kids a) have never been to WDW and b) ideally won't know until 6-7am that morning that they are going there, the agony of waiting shouldn't be too much trouble.

As we'll be staying 2.5mi from the welcome sign on World Drive the night before, we should be able to arrive to the TTC by 7 and either monorail or ferry in accordingly. We'll go in when they let us in!

Appreciate everyone's feedback; these boards have been great reading material, and now with a month to go, figured it was time to ask for help! Thanks so much.

 

[gap2368]

Appreciate the advice there, but that won't be an option...this is built on my wife's first experiences there, going to the castle (8am reservation at CRT, not CP) for breakfast to start off the trip in such a magical way is one of her greatest memories, and as the kids a) have never been to WDW and b) ideally won't know until 6-7am that morning that they are going there, the agony of waiting shouldn't be too much trouble.

As we'll be staying 2.5mi from the welcome sign on World Drive the night before, we should be able to arrive to the TTC by 7 and either monorail or ferry in accordingly. We'll go in when they let us in!

Appreciate everyone's feedback; these boards have been great reading material, and now with a month to go, figured it was time to ask for help! Thanks so much.

They do not close the parking lot so you can really go whenever you want to the CM are not there directing traffic un till 7am ( there is a thread on here right now about a bad CM in the parking lot) it sounds like they got to the parking lot a little before they opend and got confussed about where to go ( very easey to do) and had a very rude CM ( not many) but I would not get to the MK any time before 7am ( 7:05-7;15 would be good, if your a few minutes late to CRT you should be fine.

 

[ChristineOH]

I'm sorry that this will change your plans. Definitely plan to be there early. There will be masses of people all planning to head the same direction as you. It's just not going to be as pleasant of an experience as it would be on a 9:00 park open day.
I vividly remember being so disappointed that I couldn't go into the castle on my only visit as a kid, so CRT was SO important to me on my first visit as an adult. We only booked about 90 days out, so we had a crazy late dinner ADR, because that's all I could get. It was still awesome.
It's such a hard ADR to get that while I'd be tempted to switch it a little later to avoid the RD crowds, I know that would be hard to do.

 

[Alesia]

I really think starting out the first day of a first trip with a character breakfast is a terrible idea. The kids are going to want to take it all in and you're going to be saying, "okay, stop having fun - we have to go to breakfast!"

 

[ChristineOH]

https://www.easywdw.com/easy/blog/b...nd-new-rope-drop-touring-plan-strategy-12617/

https://www.easywdw.com/easy/blog/m...ber-rope-drop-on-a-mickeys-party-date-101217/

WDW changes procedures without warning, but these two posts may be helpful to you. Neither is perfectly applicable, but both have some info that may help.

 

[Rjw615]

Also- just FYI, not sure if it was a "that" day thing or what but this past Sunday, (01/14), we got to TTC at 7:10 am, they advised Monorail wouldn't begin running until 7:30, however, Ferry boat began running at 7:00am.

 

[gap2368]

Also- just FYI, not sure if it was a "that" day thing or what but this past Sunday, (01/14), we got to TTC at 7:10 am, they advised Monorail wouldn't begin running until 7:30, however, Ferry boat began running at 7:00am.

The monorail has been having a lot of that days, there will be a way for the OP to get to the MK in time for there ADR