And on the 8th day, there was EPCOT…
Plus there’s an Octoberfest/Winefestival happening around the lake around then.
Le Cellier has cheese soup too, but that’s year round.
Don’t waste your time on MGM.
Do Animal Kingdom early. Get on the first tram ride if you possibly can. That’s the best time to see activity.
Go see Shamu.
Psst… see location. I live and work here too! 
AK is my second favorite park in Orlando (after Epcot). I was surprised how much I lied it. I’d skip Universal Studios and only do Disney Studios for Tower of Terror and Rock 'n Rollercoaster.
My suggestion would be to not try to squeeze as much as possible in. Exhaustion doesn’t add to the fun.
Oh, and eat at Boma.
Completely disagree. I’ve been to Disney World 7 times, and we never pass up MGM – n fact, it may be my favorite park. Tower of Terror is one of the best, if not the very best, rides Disney has ever produced.
Rockin’ Roller Coaster, also, is one of the best coasters I’ve ever ridden. Star Tours, though a bit older, is still great fun. Muppets 3D is brilliant. And the Indiana Jones show is a good time (though don’t kill yourself for it). Also, I haven’t seen it myself, but I’ve heard the new Motor Stunt Show is excellent.
Another YAY! as there is a Morton’s Steakhouse in Orlando! I came across Morton’s when I was staying at the Venetian hotel in Macau. Best (also the biggest) steak I’ve ever had bar none.
Morton’s
Don’t come back!
Uzi, what do YOU like? Who are you going with and what do THEY like? What drives you to Orlando for a theme park vacation? Are you a thrill ride person (in which case, you may not be that impressed with Disney at all)? A fan of logistics? Someone who likes immersive themes? Someone who wants to walk around the World Showcase in Epcot and drink your way around the world (easy in October when its Food and Wine Festival). A water park person or someone who wouldn’t be caught dead in a swimsuit? A shopper? An eater? What my family enjoys with nine and ten year old kids isn’t what we enjoyed with toddlers, and certainly isn’t what I do when I’m down solo.
One day per park is a good guess for October - you won’t be able to do EVERYTHING with one day per park (we always go in October), but if you avoid stuff you aren’t interested in, you should be able to see almost everything that strikes your fancy. We always get “park hopping” on our Disney passes - which allows us to say “wow, the Magic Kingdom is crowded today, lets try Epcot.”
If you don’t have a guide book, buy one. There are a few that include Universal.
Weather wise, I’m from Minnesota - last October most days had highs in the low 90s. Never needed a jacket. Some years we are cool in the mornings, and sometimes we need jackets mornings and evenings, but normally shorts and tshirts are fine. However, we are from Minnesota - we think 60 is shorts weather. Its also the end of hurricane season - be prepared with a rain jacket.
You do want to make reservations to eat - especially if you are a fan of places like Morton’s. You won’t find much sit down available at this late date in the Disney Parks, and may have a hard time getting into the more popular places at CityWalk (I made my reservations for October five months ago). Orlando pumps through both a ton of tourists and a ton of conventioneers. Eating offsite however, will give you more options. (There is a Capitol Grill in Orlando as well, and the Tommy Bahama Cafe serves a really good ginger mojito - I believe I had dinner as well…)
If you want a mojito, go to Bongos at Downtown Disney West Side. (That’s the Disney “shopping area”, basically… and that’s where Cirque du Soleil is, so you’ll be there anyway.)
I’ve already booked what I and the wife like. It’s the extra day and evenings that if there was something else worth seeing and doing that I’d like to fill up.
As to booking restaurants at this stage, we have no real idea what we’re doing when other than the event bookings I’ve made. If we can’t get into the restaurant then we’ll go down to the local IHOP of which there are plenty it seems (my wife’s favorite restaurant so much so that she’s even inquired about a franchise at one time). We’re flexible, in other words, and won’t be disappointed if we miss something, or have to skip a park.
I had no idea what a mojito is until I looked it up. I don’t drink, but the wife might try it if we’re there (to many and she starts to ‘perform’. This last for minutes then she passes out. A lightweight to be sure). A place like the House of Blues would be great (I’ve been there before in both Orlando and LA), but other than that we’re not much into bars or nightclubs.
I’m just fishing for ideas.
I think the caves on Tom Sawyer Island (Magic Kingdom) is the best make-out spot.
Haunted Mansion is good as well.
Excellent!
I mean this as nicely as possible, but you are nuts(!) to be trying to do so much is that time. With that said, since you have no kids, if you are young and active, it is possible, but you risk missing a lot of stuff. With the extra day, I would recommend going back to EPCOT as it is by far the largest park and it is easy to miss a lot between Innoventions and the World Showcase. If you don’t have the days on your pass to go back to that, then I would try to fit a day in the middle/late in the vacation to RELAX and perhaps hit the tacky souvenir shops along International Drive if you have it in you.
‘Nuts’, definitely debatable. But what we have scheduled may not be what actually happens. As I said, we’re flexible. We have the Park Hopper option and a flex pass, so we can go and come as we pretty much please. I agree about Epcot from what I remember years ago. It was a pretty big place.
Wait, what?
Epcot is big, but there really isn’t all that much in it. Unless you’re drinking around the world or have kids, the World Showcase is a bit pants.
Oh, and this is really important- if you go on Mission: Space, the barf bags are in pull-out hoppers in the middle of the cabin. It isn’t so much that the ride will make you sick- it’s that *you get warned that the ride will make you sick at least 40 times *while standing in line and boarding and so on, and so you start feeling sick before the stupid ride even starts.
I didn’t puke, but a heavier lunch (or more than two beers beforehand) and it would have made much more sense to buy an overpriced poncho, so to speak.
I completely agree with all this. I’m not one for the scary rides, but MGM is pretty tame so I felt like I got to take advantage of the whole park. I braved the Aerosmith Rockin’ Roller Coaster and it has been my best coaster experience.
Plus MGM has Star Tours!
You gotta ride Star Tours!
Twice!
Oh, and did we mention to bring and **use **the sunscreen? 
But its not a ginger mojito (the Bongo’s mojitos are good, I’ve had them. The Tommy Bahama ones are worth going out of my way for).
Just keep in mind that no matter where you are (ESPECIALLY on dark rides!), you’re being watched by the operators! They have nightvision cameras in there.
And, while Epcot seems bigger, Animal Kingdom is actually roughly twice the size of Epcot (510 acres vs. 260 acres) because of the area required for all of the animals and plantlife. FWIW, Magic Kingdom is 107 acres and Hollywood Studios is 135 acres.