Ok, so it's the middle of the afternoon on a hot Florida day. You were up at the crack of dawn to get to the park at opening, you've walked at least five miles already, there have been tears, there has been arguing, there have been meltdowns, and that's just the adults. The kids are on the verge of breaking down too. So what do you do? Do you walk to the front of the park, walk to your car (or wait for a bus), load everyone up and head back to your hotel, and take several hours out of your afternoon? In my family, that answer is a definite no. This of course is a decision that varies from family to family. For some (especially in the summer when park hours are long), it truly works best for their family to leave the park and go recharge at the hotel. Our family would rather find a place to take a break inside the park and recharge in other ways. Please keep in mind when that our family goes in October when park hours are shorter and my child has never been a napper. Even as a toddler (her first trip was at 20 months) she would take a power nap and be ready to go for the rest of the day. So, she did just fine taking naps in the stroller without having to go to the resort. I know that this is definitely not the case for everyone.
So, where can you go to recharge inside of the parks? Below I will list my favorite spots in each park. Sometimes all it takes for us to feel better is a cool ice cream treat (Dole Whip float is number one on our list) or a cold coke in the shade and we are better. However, sometimes we have to find a show to escape to and get off our feet in the cool to find the energy to go on. That is what I will focus on below.
In Magic Kingdom, there are a few possibilities. One of the most obvious is the Hall of Presidents. This is a 23 minute show with pretty comfortable seats in a nice and cool theater. A bonus is that the kids get a history lesson while the adults rest their feet :) Another option is a round (or two or three) on the TTA Peoplemover. This is a pretty cool(ish) ride even on hot days and it allows a great view of Tomorrowland. Finally, if the kids are getting tired of being penned in the strollers, ride the boats over to Tom Sawyer Island and let them run while you sit on a bench in the shade and watch. On a side note, if you visit Tom Sawyer Island in the morning and find one of the paintbrushes hidden there, you get a prize when you return it to the workers at the boat dock. We did this last year and got fastpasses for our whole party to use anytime that day for Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain.
In Hollywood Studios, there are several ways to find a break. There are several pretty long shows here that allow you to get off your feet for a while. Even though the Indiana Jones Stunt show and Lights, Motor, Action shows are outside, they last a while so they allow you to rest your feet. If you want a long break, visit the Magic of Animation building and watch the short show of how they bring animation to life. Then walk around the building and enjoy a quiet visit with some of your favorite characters. Afterwards, do the drawing class. Our family loves this class. You get to sit at a drafting table and learn how to draw a cartoon character. The instructor walks you through drawing each feature, and at the end you have a special souvenir to take home. Priceless!
In Epcot there are obviously many ways to get off your feet. This park is filled with shows (which is a good thing because this is the park that wears me out the fastest)! If you are in Future World, go see Ellen's Energy Adventure. This is a really long show/ride, though sadly very boring to me. It has actually put me to sleep before...so I guess that is a bonus! However, if you really really need a break, this is the perfect place so that you don't have to leave the park. If you are in World Showcase, there are several shows that you can watch to rest your feet. Just to name a few, you can see one in America and China that allow you to sit for a few minutes and learn a few things in the process. Another good show is in Canada, but you have to stand for it so that fact alone keeps me from seeing it too often. It is pretty cool though because it is a 360 degree film so you see it all around you (which I guess is the reason for standing). The boat rides in Mexico and Norway are also pretty cool and last for a few minutes so they can be a quick break as well. Another plus is that there are many snack options in World Showcase so there are many options for short breaks with those.
Finally is Animal Kingdom. We haven't really had to come up with a way to take a break here since (as I have posted before) we don't spend a lot of time here. We are usually done with this park around 2:00 anyway, so leaving that one and heading somewhere else is our break :) However, I can think of a few ways that I would take a break if we stayed here longer. They have two wonderful shows at Animal Kingdom. The Legend of the Lion King and Finding Nemo are amazing (and long) shows, and they are both in dark cool theaters. So I would head there for a nice break for sure. Also, the Kilamanjaro Safaris ride is long as well so it could easily be a nice break, with a great bonus of seeing lots of cool animals along the way.
So, here are a few of my favorite ways to unwind and refresh without leaving the parks. There are probably a ton more, but this will get you started if you don't want to leave the park for a break. Happy touring!
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