Four Festivals in One Year... Can I do it? The PTR of PTR's!

[BriarRose0708]

Who's turning 40 this year and is a newly minted WDW Annual Pass holder?
Who bought an AP in April but can't use it until October?
Who decided to start a PTR 6 months in advance?

It's me, hi. I'm the planner, it's me.

I am feeling super duper lucky and grateful that I've reached a point in my professional and personal lives that I can buy an Annual Pass and take the time off work and school (going for my Doctorate in Education!) to treat myself to Disney trips in the coming years. I have a very supportive partner, who himself would rather snowboard than visit Disney so he puts his own Epic Pass to good use in the winter months, who tolerates WDW with me. He may make some appearances on my trips in the next 16 months or so, but by and large I'll be solo. Which, frankly, is my favorite way to "do Disney."

So, now that I have the AP, what am I going to do with it!?! Here's my goal -

All four EPCOT festivals in a year. There, I said it. I know EPCOT is a polarizing park and she's going through some stuff at the moment. Honestly, it used to be my favorite park out of all the options in WDW but with all the construction, confusion, and identity crisis, I much prefer the vibe in Animal Kingdom right now. Anyway, I am really looking forward to EPCOT reclaiming the #1 spot in my heart once all the work is over. That being said, I have only ever experienced 1.5 festivals in World Showcase.

Why 1.5? Well because I typically travel to Disney in October, so I've done Food & Wine Fest many times over. In 2010 (I think, it was a while ago!) I visited during Spring Break in March so Flower and Garden Fest was going on but it was nothing like it is now (aka, topiaries but no food stalls) so that's why I feel like I've only done half of that festival.

I have NEVER been to WDW during the holiday season, and it's been on my bucket list since I was a tiny kid in the 80's and 90's. My parents never made enough money to take us to a local theme park, forget Disney, and could only experience what WDW might be like by watching hours and hours of Disney Channel, ABC specials, and vacation planning VHS tapes. So I'm psyched to finally be able to visit in December now that I no longer work in a job that follows an academic calendar, if you know what I mean!

But I think I am most looking forward to Festival of the Arts. It seems like the least popular fest, more laid back, and since I am lucky to live fairly close to NYC and get to see Broadway shows kind of regularly I would LOVE to go to to EPCOT to see the special performances by Disney Music and Broadway Legends.

Even though I won't be activating my AP until October, I still have some Disney-related or adjacent activities planned soon, including the Disney 100 Exhibit in Philadelphia (With some INTERCOT Friends!) and some trips to the NYC Disney Store, and more! Follow along for the next year to see where the road takes me.

[BriarRose0708]

Spring 2023
No park visits yet
April & May NYC trips with family, stopping by The Disney Store in Times Square
In May I will visit the Disney 100 Exhibit at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia

Summer 2023
No park plans but stopping by Disney Springs on our way to Port Canaveral for a Royal Caribbean Cruise. Lunch reservation at Homecomin' for thigh high chicken & biscuits!

Fall 2023
September 30 - October 7! Finally activating my AP to enjoy Halloween at MK and Food & Wine at EPCOT! 4 days of park time before a conference begins nearby, I plan to spend evenings in the parks at the end of the week. Husband will also join for the first half!

Winter 2023/2024
December 9-12! Hitting up the Holidays, I can't wait! Will be solo.
February 7-9, 2024! A short trip down for Festival of the Arts. My bestie may join me.

Spring 2024
April 24-26! Another fast one but just enough time to enjoy Flower and Garden Fest.

Fall 2024
September 21-24! Squeezing out one more trip before the pass expires. Halloween is not my favorite holiday but it is my very favorite time of year to visit WDW.

All of the above (except October 2023) is tentative, and nothing has been booked yet but I tried to find the pockets of the year crowds are fairly low relative to popular times of the year. I tried to avoid school breaks, holidays, and race weekends as much as possible. You'll notice a large gap in spring/summer 2024. Husband and I are going on an Alaska cruise in May 2024 so the budget will be a bit tight. I'm not entirely sure I can make the April trip work, and if not I will move it to June after the cruise.

Now, where to stay! October and December will definitely be on property, one because I want to take advantage of early entry in October and first crack at ILL's for certain rides when Husband is with me (its been so busy the past few years in the fall!) and in December I want to stay in the beautifully decorated resorts since I've never seen that before. For 2024 trips I'm flexible! I've never visited WDW as an off-property guest and would be totally fine renting a car and driving since parking is included with the AP. I'll just need to do the (fuzzy) Disney math to weigh my options against on property hotel rates and any available AP discounts. More decisions to make on the way!

[PopPhan]

Sounds like you have great plans...tentative or not! LOL

Festival of the Arts is nice and at a decent time of year. Not my favorite, but worth the visit.

Flower and Garden is probably my favorite of the Festivals. Just enjoy all they do with the topiaries and since they added the kiosks (a la Food and Wine) a few years back, it is easy (easier? LOL) to spend multiple days in EPCOT.

Food and Wine is okay, but not the draw, for me, that it was early on. The best part had been the Eat To The Beat concerts.

Festival of the Holidays gives Flower and Garden a run for its money. Christmas, and the time between Thanksgiving (US) and New Years was always my dads favorite time and it kind of rubbed off on me. Seeing the holiday tradidtions around the World Showcase and the decorations throughout the park lift my spirits.

However your plans work out, with family and/or friends or solo, enjoy the planning and making the most magic you can!!! Thanks for the report and look forward to hearing (reading) how things work out for you!

[John]

A few quick things - love that you are planning... seriously the only way in busy lives to actually get things done. My wife and I sit down about once a year and try to figure out when we are gonna do STUFF.

I love that you are setting BHAG's - big hairy audacious goals!!!

Finally FARTS - love it. Best festival despite the acronym. Seriously... if you are a collector, there is none better.

[Cinderelley]

You will have a great time. I love my solo time in Disney.

We started staying off property a few years ago, and I was surprised with how much I enjoyed it. There's a lot of interesting souvenir shops to go browse in. We did a tour at the chocolate factory. My oldest son and I took a helicopter ride around Disney property. There's so much more to see and do than just stuff on Disney property.

[Simba's Mom]

It'll be interesting to decide, after you've been to all 4 Festivals, which is your favorite. I've been to all four, but not in the same year. And as things change over the years, preferences change. So have fun in your decision!

[faline]

So many nice things to look forward to!! Can't wait to hear all the details!!

[BriarRose0708]

My first Fest is coming up soon! Husband and I will be going September 30 - October 4. This will be Husband's first time getting the FULL Disney experience with me. We took our kiddos only to the MK many years ago and he hasn't returned since. I can't wait for him to experience alllll the things!

We are staying at POP Century. I've had many, many stays at POP and looking forward to returning for the first time since 2012 or 2013. It's been a while! The last time I was there the Skyliner didn't exist so I'm excited for this newer mode of transportation to Studios and EPCOT.

On our arrival day, if everything goes well, we will land at MCO by 10:30 a.m. We will Uber to POP and head to the room, or leave our bags if the room isn't ready. Then we'll hop a bus up to the MK! It's a Saturday, so I'm expecting it to be busy. Not sure if we will get G+ yet but since we won't be park hopping I anticipate I'll buy Individual Lightning Lanes for 7Dwarves and TRON at 7 a.m. I don't think we will be in the park in time for the 1 p.m. virtual queue drop. It will be tight, but if we are able to get in the queue then that will be a nice bonus ride.

The next day, Sunday, we will head to AK in the morning so Hubs can see Pandora, Everest, and the Safari. He hated the Indiana Jones ride in Disneyland so I'm not sure I will force him on Dinosaur but if the wait is short (which it usually is) I may go by myself because I love that ride!

After hitting the AK highlights we'll head back to POP for a midday rest before getting ready for Mickey's No So Scary! I haven't been since 2018 and it's such a fun event. We are thinking of dressing as Donald and Daisy. I'm excited for some of the spooky treats, seeing the Hocus Pocus Spooktacular again, and the new fireworks. I was a Hallowishes forever fan so I will really miss that one, though the clips I've seen of the new show with the Jack Skellington puppet look really nice.

Monday is our EPCOT day. Since the night before will be a late one, we will likely take our time getting to the park this morning. I know it's not usually needed in EPCOT but I do plan to buy G+ this day to make hitting everything we want to do just a little easier and free up some time for festival booths. I'll buy Guardians and then join the 1 p.m. virtual queue so we can get 2 rides in. I rode this twice my last trip and it's so much fun, I know Hubs is really going to like it. Even though we will take it easier in the morning I'll still be on the app at 7 to get Remy and then keep stacking LL's from there. For F&W Fest we will do the cheese crawl and get one drink in each country. Not going to go overboard for budget and dietary reasons, and I will be coming back solo to EPCOT in the evenings after my conference days are over later in the week. My only 2 must-dos in World Showcase this day is seeing Boyz II Men for Eat to the Beat, and see EPCOT Forever. I know people don't like it, but I haven't seen it and I love nostalgic EPCOT.

Tuesday, our last full park day together, will be at Hollywood Studios. I will absolutely buy G+ and pay for Rise today. Again, just to maximize our time there since we only have this day to experience all the heavy hitters. I imagine we will arrive as early as we can to do as much as we can. We have a lunch reservation at 50's Prime Time and happy hour at Oga's. We may take a midday or evening break and come back to Fantasmic! depending on how we are feeling.

Wednesday we have breakfast at Topolino's before we head back to MCO. I am PUMPED to go to breakfast here, I've wanted to do it since it opened but couldn't ever get a res. After breakfast we'll check out and Uber back to MCO. Hubs is flying home and I am picking up a rental car, turning around, and heading back down I-4 to Rosen Shingle Creek for my conference.

In the evenings from Wednesday to Friday I'll likely pop back over to EPCOT (so happy to have a car!) for dinner and sunset strolling around World Showcase. On Saturday I am presenting a session in the morning, then taking myself to AK to enjoy a luxurious afternoon and then hitting Disney Springs for some shopping and dining. I will drive back to MCO to drop off my car and staying the night at a nearby Courtyard. I'm flying out on Sunday around 7 p.m. back to NY. It will be a long but so much fun week!

Next trip for the Holidays is already planned in December!

[faline]

Looks like your own your way to fulfilling your Disney goals for the year!!!

[BriarRose0708]

It's after Thanksgiving, so you know what this means... it's Christmastime at Disney World! I am about 12 days out from my first ever holiday time trip. Here's what I have coming up!

I'll be on my own for the majority of this trip with a couple guest appearances from a local FL area friend or two. If you're in the area and want to get a couple rides in together, feel free to DM me on Instagram. My Disney travel account is @nikki_at_disney.

I'll be arriving in Orlando around 3:30 p.m. and before I leave the airport I will need to stop by the Clear office to finish setting up my Clear+ account. I learned my lesson last trip that pre-check is great but not nearly as fast as Clear+! Once I can head out, I'll Uber over to Animal Kingdom Lodge. I can't wait to see my first ever Disney Christmas tree in the beautiful lobby. I don't always love going to a park on arrival day because I usually don't like using a day ticket for just a couple of hours but the AP is a game changer. I hope to get over to Studios for the evening to soak up some retro Christmas vibes, eat dinner, and see the 9:30 Fantasmic.

The next day I will get up early and head to the MK for rope drop to enjoy low crowds on a VMCP morning. Around 11 or 12 I'll go to Disney Springs for lunch and the tree stroll before heading to Animal Kingdom for the afternoon. I will finally get to see it at dusk and enjoy my favorite park at night. It's been since 2008 for me to experience that and I've never seen Pandora at night.

The next day I'll get to HS mid-morning for some shows, a couple rides, and more Christmasy vibes and then walk/boat to EPCOT while stopping in at Boardwalk, Yacht Club, and Beach Club to check out the resort holiday decorations and gingerbread houses. I'll spend the afternoon in EPCOT enjoying the Festival of the Holidays eats and entertainment, saving some of the e-ticket rides for extended evening hours. It will be a late night but worth it!

The next day I plan to "sleep in" and have Boma breakfast at 8:45 a.m. After I eat, I'll hop a bus to the MK and then get on the resort monorail to explore the resort loop hotel decorations and gingerbread houses. I may or also may get a beverage at a lounge at each resort, too! Once 3 p.m rolls around I'll get into the MK because I'm attending MVMCP this night for the first time! Some of my priorities are the ride overlays at Space Mountain, Tomorrowland Speedway, meeting the Seven Dwarves and probably some princesses with their princes, getting cookies and cocoa, and seeing the fireworks and parade from Main St. with the snow!

My last full day will start with waking up and packing. I am doing a resort transfer to All Star Music this last night. I'll then get to EPCOT to do more Festivaling and then that evening have a CP dining package reservation for Garden Grill dinner and the last CP of the evening narrated by Brendan Fraser. I'll stay for Luminous and then head back to ASM.

I don't need to be up super early for my flight home, but don't have quite enough time to hit up a park before getting to MCO, so I'll take my time getting packed up this morning, get some breakfast at the food court, and then Uber back to the airport.

When I first made these plans back in August it felt like I would have so much time to experience all the holidays had to offer at WDW but now I'm realizing I will need more next year! After this December trip I'll be halfway through my gial and have February and April to go. Stay tuned for more!

[PopPhan]

Sounds like you have a great plan for your 'Christmastime/Holiday' visit. That is one of my favorite times to be in the parks. Enjoy your trip!!! Look forward to reading your trip reports!!

[faline]

Enjoy all the things Disney offers at this festive time of year!!

[BriarRose0708]

Hi everyone! It's nearly a week out from my next pilgrimage down for Festival of the Arts! Hard to believe I am halfway through my 4 festivals in 1 yer challenge. This time I will be visiting Sunday - Wednesday in early February staying at my old standby, Pop Century!

Day 1
Landing around 11:15 a.m., hopping in an Uber, and dropping my backpack at POP, hopefully in the room but if not then leaving with bell services and then getting in the Skyliner to head to EPCOT. Earlier that morning I would have bought a LL for Guardians, and if there's availability at 1 p.m. in the VQ I'll get myself in that, too. I'll spend most the afternoon wandering around the FOTA (I will not call it FARTS, lol) booths and sampling food from the stalls, and of course getting my Guardians ride in at some point.

My plans in December to hang in AK after dark were foiled by rain storms. The sun is setting in FL at 6 pm now, and AK is open until 7 this night, and it's the only night of my trip that it's open past 6. But since I also want to see this evening's Disney on Broadway performance at EPCOT I will need to be strategic. I'll hop to AK around 5, grab a ride or two on Everest, enjoy the after dark vibes, and then leave the park by 6:45 to get back to EPCOT for the 8:15 pm of Disney on Broadway. I may or may not stay for Luminous, because I would have been up since very early and would still need to unpack and get organized at the room. I also have one more opportunity this week to see it.

Day 2
EPCOT again in the morning, midday hotel chill out, and then I have MK After Hours this night. I plan to do a monorail lounge crawl starting with a burger at Steakhouse 71 and ending with a cocktail at Enchanted Rose. I can get into the MK anytime with my AP, so if I am in the park earlier than 7 p.m. I'll just get my event wristband inside and carry on with my plans. I would like to see Happily Ever After at 8, ride some lower wait rides until 10-ish when the park closes for day guests, then really get rocking and rolling once the event begins. I am so excited to see Enchantment during this event since I never saw it when it was running for the 50th anniversary. Also plan to take advantage of the complimentary bottled beverages (and maybe stockpiling some for the next two days) and snacks and low wait times through 1 a.m. I am usually not a super late-night park gal much anymore but if I have paid to stay until 1, I will do everything I can to stay until 1!

Day 3
Sleeping in! Probably buying Rise for a late morning time and getting to HS in time to ride it plus see a show and hopefully get to Tower of Terror. From there I'll get to EPCOT and spend the rest of the time at FOTA, have dinner at Via Napoli, and see the Disney on Broadway show (different performers than Sunday) and Luminous.

Day 4
Pack up early and leave backpack with Pop bell services, then get to EPCOT for early entry and hit some rides - Remy, Frozen, TT, Soarin. Get in the Guardians VQ at 7, buy it for the morning, and hopefully have my VQ return time called before I need to get back to POP at noon. My flight is at 2:30 and thanks to Clear, not checking a bag, and flying Jet Blue out of the very not busy Terminal C, I don't really need to be to MCO until an hour before boarding. I don't have a carryon bag this trip, either, since most of what I need is in my Owner's Locker, but I am a little bummed I don't have much room for mementos from FOTA. Maybe just a new Corkcicle or something small.

It will be a short but packed trip, which is on brand for me, haahahahaha! One more to go after this one in late April for Flower & Garden. Thanks for reading, I will post my report when I'm back!

[PopPhan]

Pop is still my favorite as well and is a perfect resort for all the EPCOT festivals. SkyLiner makes access easy, if there is no 'weather' in the vicinity, and is a fun way to get around.

Your 'schedule' sounds great, even if a little rushed on your arrival day. Should be a lot of fun!

Looking forward to reading your trip reports! Enjoy!!

[faline]

Enjoy!!

[BriarRose0708]

I'm almost two weeks away from Festival trip 4 of 4! I'm packing extra Benadryl for Flower and Garden Festival. I'll be traveling on an early Thursday morning flight from central NY, having to change plans at BWI, and then coming back home mid-day on Sunday. A quick 3-niter to scope out the fest and check some "never evers" off my list.

Never-Have-I-Ever #1: Stay at a DVC property! I like to think of this as helping out a fellow Disneyphile by taking a DVC reservation they couldn't make, lol. I am booked for three nights at Boardwalk Inn Villas. I've stayed at Boardwalk in the not-DVC side way back in 2014 when I ran the half marathon. That was several years and a refurb ago, but I love the location and vibes there, and the confirmed reservation price was too good to pass up (think Deluxe hotel for a moderate price tag!).

Day 1: Travel, Arrival, Parks, Dinner
Land in Orlando around 10:30 a.m. as long as everything goes to plan. I hope to drop my bag with bell services if my room isn't ready when I arrive and then get over to EPCOT through the IG. I don't plan on rushing to do anything huge except Guardians, I'll buy a LL for that, but I want to take in the topiaries and maybe grab a snack on my way toward the buses, because I need to get to Fort Wilderness in time for...

Never-Have-I-Ever #2: Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Review! I am booked for the 4 p.m. seating. I've wanted to go to this for YEARS and years so I figured this trip was as good a time as any. After dinner I'll get over to the MK through fireworks and maybe to close at 10 but after such an early morning I might go back to Boardwalk to unpack and unwind. I'll be getting back to the MK on Saturday so there's not a huge need to rush.

Day 2: EPCOT and Studios
I'll only set the alarm to get in the Guardians VQ and then take my time getting ready. It's not a rope drop day but I do want to head to EPCOT by 10 and explore more of the festival through the mid-afternoon. After that I may take it easy back at Boardwalk until heading to Studios, or maybe pop to Disney Springs to see what's new there. I have a 7:30 p.m. dinner at Brown Derby so whether or not I do anything before then at Studios is a question. Trying to be a little less planned this day but I don't know how well that's going to work out in reality, if I know anything about myself it's that I always have a plan! After dinner I'd like to see Fantasmic if there is a second show. But if not that's totally cool, Brown Derby is my favorite restaurant in Disney World right now so I am not looking to rush out of there to get a seat.

Day 3: Never-Have-I-Ever #3: 4 Parks in 1 Day!
In all my nearly 20 years of visiting WDW, I have never visited all four parks in one day. So I thought this would be a great time to do that. I am challenging myself to eat and/or drink one thing, ride one thing, and get a picture with a character in each park. Here's a tentative plan:
-Up early, buy TRON and Guardians at 7 p.m.
-Get to Studios at early entry rope drop and go straight to Runaway Railway for my first ride. TOT for a backup if it's down. Mobile order breakfast at Woody's lunchbox and eat while waiting for the Mickey & Minnie M&G to open at 9.
-By 10 leave Studios and get on a bus to Animal Kingdom.
-In AK, check the wait time for Mickey & Minnie. If it's short, get in line. If not, find another character M&G. Ride Everest through Single Rider. Dinosaur as a backup if needed. Get lunch or a small snack at Flame Tree BBQ or a food stand. Hopefully by 1 p.m. leave AK and get on bus to MK.
-In MK, head to TRON to ride during LL window, my aim is to book between 2:00 and 3:00. Look for a character M&G with a short line. Stop for an ice cream at the Plaza. By 4 p.m. head to the TTC and get on EPCOT monorail.
- In EPCOT, go straight to Norway to Ana & Elsa M&G before it closes at 6:30. Maybe get a snack to eat in line if I have time. Ride Guardians, I will aim to buy the LL return time between 7:30 and 8:30 p.m. EPCOT is risky to do last because the character meets end relatively earlier than other parks, but, I may be overestimating my time in the other parks. Or, it could take me a heck of a lot longer than I think. I may buy G+ to help me on this quest because I could make a LL time for some character M&G's in AK and MK and some rides to save some time. I just love the idea of ending the evening in EPCOT, my favorite park at night.

Day 4: Breakfast and departure
I'll be up and pack my room, drop my Owner's Locker and bag at bell services. I have a breakfast reservation at Ale & Compass before heading to the airport for my 11 a.m. flight back north. Luckily it's direct this time instead of having a connection on the way.

I am taking the summer off from visiting, just due to scheduling, budget, and general distain for FL weather from June to September, LOL. My AP expires September 30th so I will need to decide if I want to renew or not and maybe squeeze in another 3 or 4-day weekend trip before it runs out.

[PopPhan]

If you don't mind a little extra time in the Studios, maybe try for a reservation at Oga's for right around park close. Relax for a little while and check out Galaxy's Edge / Batuu with very few people around. Oga's is a lot of fun and the area at night is gorgeous!

[faline]

Enjoy your time among the flowers!!