Orlando, Florida, USA trip: Disney World in 5 days - Great Family Vacation | TripWiser: Social Trip Planner for Family Trips and Road Trips

OUR HOTEL: In the heart of the Walt Disney World Resort, the award-winning Walt Disney World Dolphin is your gateway to Central Florida's greatest theme parks and attractions. Come and discover our magical surroundings and luxurious facilities. We are an Epcot Resort, offering onsite accommodations, superior service, and many special Walt Disney World Resort benefits such as complimentary transportation to all Walt Disney World Theme Parks and Attractions, Disney character dining opportunities, Disney ticket desks, priority seating at select Walt Disney World restaurants, early entry to a select Walt Disney World Theme Park on select days, and advance tee times on five nearby championship Walt Disney World golf courses. We also feature 17 onsite restaurants and lounges, with menus featuring everything from coastal cuisine, to Italian, steak, seafood, sushi, 24-hour room service, and more. Other amenities consist of four lighted tennis courts, supervised children's programs, five pools, including a three-acre grotto pool and white sand beach, jogging trails, health clubs, saunas, massage therapy, beauty salon, and the nearby Disney's Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf courses. Please note: Pets are not allowed at the Walt Disney World Dolphin.

Day 1 Disney Resort - Magic Kingdom: Get to the park early to avoid the crowd. First off, head for the big rides: Space Mountain, Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, if your kids are brave and over 44 inches tall; Goofy's Barnstormer (a great first coaster for preschoolers), Dumbo and Pirates of the Caribbean, if your kids are younger.
Day 2 Disney Resort - Epcot Center: Epcot Center is more than twice the size of the Magic Kingdom, and some might say double the fun. The park has two sections: Future World (which contains nine pavilions grouped around the silver geosphere Spaceship Earth) and the World Showcase, where 11 international pavilions sit around a lagoon. Begin by touring the World Showcase. The American Adventure show, the Maelstrom ride in the Norway pavilion and the live street shows are my family's favorites. Jordan and I love the United Kingdom's World Showcase Players, who do a hilarious spoof of the King Arthur story using volunteers. Leigh favors the British Invasion, a Beatles-clone pop group, also appearing at the U.K. pavilion. Disney Epcot - Future World: First stop, Future World, on the other side of Epcot. Epcot's main entrance often opens ahead of the stated hour, so try to get there early. Now's the time to try to beat the long lines at Spaceship Earth, where you can take a 14-minute tram ride inside the 180-foot-tall geosphere, and have a quick breakfast before the rest of the park officially opens. Once the rest of the park opens, hoof it to Test Track, Disney most technologically impressive attraction. Riders over 40 inches tall get the chance to test GM-inspired Disney test cars. Next, head for "Honey, I Shrunk the Audience" in the Journey Into Imagination pavilion. (If your kids are too young for Test Track, go to "Honey" first.) Lots of attractions claim to be popular with all ages, but this 3-D show truly is. My kids and I also like the Wonders of Life pavilion, which contains the stomach-lurching, motion-simulation ride Body Wars. My daughter won't touch that one, so she heads for the funny film CRANIUM COMMAND, which chronicles a day in the life of a 12-year-old boy. At Coach's Corner, you can have your tennis or golf swing videotaped, played back in slow motion and analyzed by videotaped experts like Chris Evert and Nancy Lopez. Disney Epcot - World Showcase: Across World Showcase Lagoon, eleven nations stand side-by-side in perfect peace and harmony. Each display authentic wares and serve ethnic cuisine. Here is a closer look at each nation as they appear clockwise around the 1.3-mile promenade. Mexico - Enjoy the authentic marketplace, lively Mariachi bands and a boat ride through Mexican history. Norway - Embark on a voyage through time beginning in a 10th century Viking Village. China - Banners that stretch above offer good wishes to passerby can be translated "May good fortune follow you on your path through life" and "May virtue be your neighbor." This pavilion offers a serenity that is in contrast to the merriment of bordering Germany. Germany - Be transported to authentic surroundings inspired by towns along the Rhine and in Bavaria and be sure to check your guide map to see when a German trio will perform outside the Biergarten restaurant. Disney-MGM - Animation Courtyard: MGM has lots of shows, lots of chances to sit, so my crew can handle going directly there from Epcot. (Younger kids, however, may be ready for a nap.) Exit Epcot via the World Showcase back door, walk to the dock at the Yacht Club Resort, and take the water taxi to MGM. At this time of day, the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" Stage Show are easier to get into, and you may be able to slip into the last seating of "Beauty and the Beast." The Tower of Terror is especially fun to ride at night. Disney technology allows the long-deceased Rod Serling to narrate the preshow, which takes you into a segment of THE TWILIGHT ZONE. The brief ride through the Hollywood Tower hotel is spooky, but the real killer is the 13-story plunge down an elevator shaft at the end. Disney-MGM - Hollywood Boulevard: We like to have an early dinner at the Prime Time '50s Cafe (meals are reasonably priced), which puts you smack in the middle of a '50s sitcom set. Classic TV clips play in the background while you sit at Formica tables, eating meat loaf and other comfort food served up by your waitress-mom. It's a hoot to click through the dessert menu on a View-Master. The s'mores are a must.
Day 3 Disney Resort - Blizzard Beach: Blizzard Beach, Disney's newest water park, resembles a melting ski lodge, complete with sleds, slalom runs and chair lifts. Arrive early, claim your lounge chair with a beach towel (available for rent or bring your own) and head up Mount Gushmore for the super-fun white-water raft ride, Teamboat Springs. Blizzard Beach's thrills range from the kiddie slides in Tike's Peak to Summit Plummet, which at 120 feet is the longest flume ride in the world. In between, there are the Toboggan Racers, where you slide down the mountain on a foam-rubber sled, and the highly addictive tube ride, Runoff Rapids. (Warning: It's 157 steps to the top).
Day 4 Disney Resort - Disney-MGM Studios: If you visit MGM on the Surprise Morning (check your information packet for details), certain rides, including Star Tours, The Great Movie Ride and the Tower of Terror, will be open early. Ride them, and then get in line for the first show of "The Little Mermaid," which is held in a small theater and can be packed later in the day. At this point in the trip, everyone will probably welcome more opportunities to sit. Check out the amusing Muppetvision 3-D; the Animation Tour, where you can see Disney artists at work; and Superstar Television, which uses audience volunteers to hilarious effect.
Day 5 On your last day, explore the Downtown Disney Marketplace for some great souvenirs & last minute gifts! Younger kids will enjoy the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue at Fort Wilderness, a down-home dinner show that's been packing 'em in for years. But kids ages 10 and up will enjoy Pleasure Island equally well. Pleasure Island is a Disney version of a nightclub complex, that is, wholesome. Leigh's favorite stop is the Comedy Warehouse, where the show is improvised. (If you want to be part of the act, sit by the telephone on the right-hand wall.) In the mood to dance? Check out the retro 8-TRAX disco or learn a country line dance at the Wildhorse Saloon, both in Disney's Boardwalk. Bizarre entertainment takes place all night in the streets, where you can watch women bodybuilders strike their poses. Across the bridge at the Downtown Disney Marketplace, there are tons of cool places to eat. Our favorite spots are the Rainforest Cafe (check out the zebra and flamingo legs on those bar stools), Ghirardelli(R) Soda Fountain & Chocolate Shop, Cap'n Jack's Oyster Bar and the Portobello Yacht Club.

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