What do you do on your first day?

[faberj]

I am planning on getting the earliest flight out of Milwaukee, WI and that will have us landing in Orlando at 11:10 AM (If we do not have any dreaded delays) and then we (DH and I) will hop ME to our hotel CSR. Then what should we do from there??? Head to the parks, go to DTD, afternoon tea (we will be on the Dlx dining plan and I am not sure if I should pay out of pocket for the tea). Any tips or suggestions would be great!

[Hair_Razor]

Our first stop is to MK I always feel like this park takes the longest to get through so if we know we have extra time we start here. Have fun whatever you choose.

[RoosMomKanga]

We (DH and I...yes, alone!:cloud9:) will be arriving the same time of day as you. By the time we check in, we'll head to DtD for shopping, and a nice dinner. We'll then head to :beer:PI for the night (we love the Comedy:laugh: and Adventurer's:tikki: Clubs). I don't feel pressure to get to a park the first day, I get most of my shopping out of the way (babysitter's gifts etc., or at least then I'll know what else I need to buy) and it's a relaxing way to start the trip, then we're ready to hit the MK bright & early!:mickey:

[Tygger7]

I'm torn on this one....we normally go to DTD, or the Boardwalk on our first day there, but that's because we don't have a "package" the first day and don't get park tickets. If I could, then the very first thing I would do would be MK. Even if I only go over for a couple of hours and hit the Main St. shops, it gets my vacation off to a magical start. It's always our first park...I'm sentimental about going there. :mickey:

[FaithTrustPixieDust]

By the time we get to our resort and get checked in, we do not normally rush to the parks on the 1st day. Instead, we take time to explore our resort and kick off the trip with a great dinner. For our family, that means a character meal at a resort ("for the kids") so we quickly get immersed in the Magic. Then we get plenty of sleep and start of strong the next morning!

If it were just DH and myself, I would love to take the opportunity to go to Boardwalk or Downtown Disney and explore some of the night time places!!

[BigRedDad]

A lot will depend on where you are staying. If I were at GF, Poly, or CR, there is no way I could not go to MK. If not there, then I would either do DTD, Epcot or AK. Those are half day parks for my taste.

[ChipDale2708]

We usually have an early arrival as well. In October we should be at the BC by noon, so we'll start off w/ lunch at Beaches n' Cream. Love those burgers! :tasty: Then if the weather is nice spend some time at the pool :swim:and then head to MK for Specto and Wishes. That's been our usual start to Disney vacations for several years now. One year we went to MGM and Fantasmic the first night and somehow it didn't feel quite right.

[SAHDad]

Our last trip (just a few weeks ago - I want to go back!), we got there about 1 pm (actually to the resort, WL). We didn't go anywhere, because our entire party of 12 came at different times, but we used the day to go swimming, look for hidden Mickeys around the lodge, and the like. Plus, the party had 3 kids under 4, so giving them a break from all the time spent driving to the airport, flying, taking the Magical Express, etc was a good idea.

If it had been just my wife and myself, we would have dropped our stuff off at the resort and headed for either Epcot or MK, whichever was open later that night.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

:) How long are you staying? If it is really short (4 days or less) try squeezing in a few attractions at one of the bigger parks....if you have a longer stay...go to Downtown Disney and have a nice meal and do some shopping, or check out some of the other resorts-try looking at the shops at Boardwalk or go back to your resort and familiarize yourself with the layout, where the giftshop, foodcourt, restaurants, laundry are and then get a good nights rest.

[KylesMom]

We, like you, take the first flight out of Chicago and arrive in Orlando around 11:30 am. We'll pick up the rental car, pre-check in to Wilderness Lodge, and away we'll go to MK! Last year we stopped at MGM since Star Wars Weekends was going on, but our first day wasn't complete until we hopped to MK! :mickey:

[May524]

Our first day we usually just take it easy. Some members in my family are tired from driving or some like me, just like to take it slow the first day. I like to check in, check out the resort, grab a drink at the bar :marg: and chill at the pool! A tradition we have done is do Hoop De Doo the first night. We love it! :mickey:

[scootch713]

We have done it both ways. I think it all depends on how long your stay is. You could always do both... do a little down time.. and just do a couple hours in the evening at the park. We always do an early morning on day 2, either way we do it.

[4277]

We usually get settled into our hotel around noon or 1pm, grab some lunch and then head to MK. I can't wait to walk down Main Street and see the castle again.

[rj]

We usually go to MK.

[hubbyofadisneyholic]

Depends on what time we arrive. If we get there by early afternoon the routine is usually unpack, relax for a while then head to MK for Spectromagic and fireworks. My wife and m-i-l are parade junkies and my daughter and I never miss a chance to see fireworks. Our niece has no choice...she's outvoted 4 - 1.;)

If we get there later in the evening we normally take it easy the first night and hit the ground running with breakfast @ Chef Mickey's the next morning.

This year is going to kind of fall in the middle...our flight out of Milwaukee is scheduled to land shortly after 6pm, it will be close to 8pm by the time ME gets us to OKW and we get checked in. But since we will have APs, I have a feeling we will be heading somewhere. :thumbsup:

[dizneegirl71]

DH and I always try to fly in early. This will give us a little bit of extra time to settle in at the resort. Then we head to MK! Even though we are at WDW already, I really do not feel like I am "there" until I am walking up Main St. and see my "house". (I mean, Cinderella's castle):princess: We just take MK at a slow pace on this day. We catch a few of our favorite rides, eat a nice TS meal, shop, and get a spot early for Spectromagic and Wishes. We try to get back to the resort a little earlier on the first night, that way we are ready to "hit the ground running" the next day.

[#1donaldfan]

There's nothing like walking through the tunnel and spilling out onto the streets of the MK !!! We normally start our vacation that way!! That's the ultimate way to start a week of magic. IMHO of course.....:thumbsup:

[sacandjac]

We always plan dinner at Ohana's then head to MK to catch Spectro (if it's going on) and then the fireworks. We head to the Poly early so that we can have a drink (Pina Colada-my favorite) and walk around the resort. It's a great evening and so full of magic knowing we are just starting a great vacation.

[brewcrew26]

Just have to say hi to another Milwaukeean!! :wave:

Normally, we would check in, look around the resort and then head to MK. Our first ride is normally TTA so we can just get a look at all of Tomorrowland, unless we decide to go the other way and then Jungle Cruise is first. Something slow to get started.

This next trip in April, we're not going to the parks on the first day. We're flying from Milwaukee and land in Orlando around 11-ish, too (are you taking Midwest, too?) So, we'll catch DME, head to AKL, and check-in.

We're in a similar sitch to Tygger 7 and don't have a package, so no park tix the first day. Also, since it's our honeymoon we're taking things slow this trip. If we can get into our room early, I just want to lounge by the pool. Then we have ressies at Boma. For that evening we were going to head over to Boardwalk and chill at ESPN Club (future hubbie is a HUGE sports fan, plus we play some mean air hockey) and then head over to Jellyrolls.

I think after that we'll be ready for our next full day...I don't have my schedule with me...think we're going to spend our first day in the parks at Animal Kingdom since my fiance hasn't been there before and we're both dying to try Everest.

I think whatever you decide on doing will be great. Everyone has their own little things they like to do first. Just enjoy!! :mickey:

[kakn7294]

As soon as we check-in to our resort, we head over to MK - I always have to start my trip there!

[dolphinmickey9170]

If we have driven, we check in, we go to the character premier outlet, and walmart for groceries. If we have flown, we check in, go to the room, drop off stuff, then go to MK!! Gotta love it!!:mickey:

[Hull-onian]

Most of the day is spent traveling :plane:. By the time we check in, it is about 3:30 p.m. Last time we did the Aloha Dinner:lei:. This time we are doing the Hoop Dee Doo Revue at 7:15 p.m. In years past, we just go to DTD for dinner :eat: and shopping :spend:. It's all good.:thumbsup:

[DisneyDog]

We will be arriving at midnight and waking up to our first full day at WDW. We were thinking about flying in on the morning flight, but we will only have 4 days in the parks and wanted to make the most of it. Hopefully we won't be too worn out in the morning! Hopefully the adreneline of excitement of being at WDW will be enough to wake us all up!!

[Dragongirlx]

We come form the UK so by the time we get to WDW its been about 9 hours on a plane so we are usually shattered. We get a qucik bite to eat then straight to bed.

However the next day its straight to Magic Kingdom :cloud9:

[4casons]

We ALWAYS go to MK and head to the Plaza for lunch. I also fly out of Milwaukee and arrive around 11:00. So, to be on the safe side, I usually make a 2:00 PS for the Plaza and usually, I am there by 1 - 1:30. Then, once I am full on hamburgers and chocolate milkshakes - off to ride Space Mountain :sick: ha ha!

[Tink#64]

We always arrive around noon and have lunch at the resort & then head to DTD, shop & have dinner there. But our trip this year is going to be a day shorter than usual and we also want to fit in the MNSSHP so we may change things up a bit. If the party is going on the day we arrive we may hang out & let DS's swim & then head over to MK. Who knows, my DS's really like the tradition of DTD on arrival day, but our schedule may work better if we switch things up a bit.

Who cares, you're in WDW! You know you're going to have a great time wherever you go! :mickey: