No Park/Flex Day recommendations?

[maleficent55]

We did "monorail tour" on our off day recently. Absolutely loved it. Took the Epcot line twice, then the resort line, got off at Poly, GF, and Contemporary and spent about 30 minutes touring each resort. The entire thing took about 3 hours.

I’d like to do this as well! First timer…

Can you explain the difference in lines, are they the same starting point? Thanks!

 

[_19disnA]

Any of things the OP listed are good options and depend on how active you want to be on a non-park day. Doing Disney parks can involve MILES of walking, so it makes sense for most people to also have some non-park days in their vacation plans. Some may just want to relax by the pool and do nothing else. There is really no right/wrong way to enjoy a non-park day. Disney Springs has some unique shops you likely won't find elsewhere. There are also several restaurants to try for either lunch or dinner.

 

[rhenkt]

I’d like to do this as well! First timer…

Can you explain the difference in lines, are they the same starting point? Thanks!

From the transportation center (“TTC”), you can take the Epcot line, which loops through the front of Epcot, stops at the entrance, then returns to TTC.

Also starting from the TTC, you can take the resort line, which stops at each of the three deluxe resorts and MK entrance.

We had lunch at Disney Springs, then took the bus to Contemporary and used that as our starting point. If you’re coming from a different resort, take the bus to MK and start from there.

 

[maleficent55]

From the transportation center (“TTC”), you can take the Epcot line, which loops through the front of Epcot, stops at the entrance, then returns to TTC.

Also starting from the TTC, you can take the resort line, which stops at each of the three deluxe resorts and MK entrance.

We had lunch at Disney Springs, then took the bus to Contemporary and used that as our starting point. If you’re coming from a different resort, take the bus to MK and start from there.

Thank you!

 

[_19disnA]

Can you explain the difference in lines, are they the same starting point? Thanks!

There are two separate tracks between TTC and MK. The 'inner loop' stops at all three monorail resorts as well as MK and TTC. The 'outer loop' is an express monorail that only goes bewteen TTC & MK. There is also a totally separate route where the monorail only goes between the TTC & Epcot.

If you are taking either of the MK/resort monorails, you have to exit at TTC and get on a different monorail that only goes to Epcot. So the best way to look at this as a first timer is there are total of 3 monorail loops.

 

[starry_solo]

Resort hop. one of the trips we had, we were lucky to get AKV concierge on rented points. We ate breakfast there, then resort hopped over to Port Orleans, Saratoga Springs and a few other resorts for lunch on various days.

 

[Anna131517]

Do a part pool day followed by Disney Springs or another resort. AKL, Poly, Grand Floridian, Wilderness Lodge, and Contemporary are all great for walking around and shopping, and they all have good restaurants - you can do either QS or TS at any of them. Or use the skyliner to explore the skyliner resorts. CBR has a nice QS and TS restaurants, hammocks, and a nice playground for kids.

If you don’t want to do a pool day check out the Wilderness Camp Ground magical extras like horse back riding, archery, and fishing.

 

[ClapYourHands]

Are there characters we can see outside of parks these days? Chip and Dale used to appear at Ft Wilderness campfire - are they still doing that? And I think I heard there used to be a princess thing at Grand Floridian, but that was way back several years ago, and haven’t heard about that recently. Any advice on doing “Disney stuff” out of the parks is welcome.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Are there characters we can see outside of parks these days? Chip and Dale used to appear at Ft Wilderness campfire - are they still doing that? And I think I heard there used to be a princess thing at Grand Floridian, but that was way back several years ago, and haven’t heard about that recently. Any advice on doing “Disney stuff” out of the parks is welcome.

Your question has been merged with a recent thread that has a lot of great information in it. There is so much to do at Disney on a non-park day that sometimes it's hard to narrow it down! Have fun!

 

[KCMA]

The boardwalk at night can be fun
They have performers out and some games.. or grab a drink and walk around the path to beach club

 

[PalmettoPath]

Grand Floridian Cafe for the dining. It fits your ask perfectly (as a table service). You can get lower cost of course at Quick Service.

 

[ClusterDucks]

Our last non-park day we did our first monorail bar crawl. We spent the morning by the pool, then took a lyft to the Poly about 2:30, got on Trader Sam's list and worked our way around the resort loop. We went leisurely and shared beverages and snacks. We will definitely be doing this again!

 

[lockets]

Are there characters we can see outside of parks these days? Chip and Dale used to appear at Ft Wilderness campfire - are they still doing that? And I think I heard there used to be a princess thing at Grand Floridian, but that was way back several years ago, and haven’t heard about that recently. Any advice on doing “Disney stuff” out of the parks is welcome.

Chip and Dale and Daisy appeared at Port Orleans French Quarter March of this year around breakfast time in that open courtyard in between the gift shop and the quick service. I've also seen Goofy pop up at Grand Floridian. There's a van that shuttles the characters to on-property hotels. If you are staying on site, a cast member may know when/where.

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

Honestly a no-park day sounds LOVELY. We've only done it once on a resort-transfer day, so we did Homecomin' for brunch (happened to be a Sunday) and then hung out at DS for awhile. Afterward we went over to the new resort, hung there for awhile, and did Storybook Dining for dinner. It was low-key and relaxing, and I didn't feel like I missed out at all by not being in the parks that day.

That said, on a non-transfer day, I think I would do a character breakfast to start the day, pool time (maybe hit the spa depending on where you're staying), then do Disney Springs for dinner and drinks.

 

[amandolin]

Are there characters we can see outside of parks these days? Chip and Dale used to appear at Ft Wilderness campfire - are they still doing that? And I think I heard there used to be a princess thing at Grand Floridian, but that was way back several years ago, and haven’t heard about that recently. Any advice on doing “Disney stuff” out of the parks is welcome.

I know earlier this year I saw characters out at the Beach Club too!

 

[ClapYourHands]

Does anyone know if they are doing the drawing class at AoA? We used to love that activity, but it shut down during COVID, and I don’t know if it’s back.

 

[Skywalker3]

Sleep later than usual. This last trip, we finally took the time to go to Geyser Point for the Bison burger, and it was delicious. Worth the trip, and enjoyed the view on the lake out there. After than could spend some time looking around/browsing at the monorail resorts. Then if you're still have time, go to Disney Springs for a bit. Even if not intending to really buy, nice to look around some. and then get a treat/ice cream. We don't generally do a pool day on our transition day, as we don't like worrying about changing/packing dry clothes, etc, but a lot of people do that ,and it would be a good choice too.

 

[Jacq7414]

We really enjoyed our dinner at Bluezoo.

We had our arrival day as a non park day (we got to the resort probably around 10 am). We spent the day at the pool, walked around the Boardwalk and then we had dinner at Bluezoo. We did the boardwalk games and watched all of the performers. It was a nice day.

 

[Jacq7414]

Are there characters we can see outside of parks these days? Chip and Dale used to appear at Ft Wilderness campfire - are they still doing that? And I think I heard there used to be a princess thing at Grand Floridian, but that was way back several years ago, and haven’t heard about that recently. Any advice on doing “Disney stuff” out of the parks is welcome.

They may randomly show up at the resorts. Goofy & Pluto were in the Boardwalk lobby yesterday. There was even a photopass photographer with Goofy. It was our last day at Disney so it was a wonderful way to end the trip.

 

[Rob Huff]

We've done a couple of no-park trips and the adults other than me always finish those trips suggesting that no-park Disney trips become the new normal!

Some of this depends on where you're staying. For example, getting nachos at Capt. Cook's at the Polynesian and watching Happily Ever After either on the hill overlooking the Bungalows or from the beach at the Poly is fantastic...but it's less attractive if you're staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Hanging out at the Boardwalk is awesome...but less so if you're staying at the MK area and can't walk through EPCOT to hop on the monorail.

I'm partial to lots of time at the pool and a nap. After that, eat somewhere that is otherwise inconvenient to access from the parks, whether Geyser Point, anywhere at the AKL, or Beaches and Cream.