Want to go to Disneyworld but I am clueless

[Like2Plan]

March is crazy busy spring break I've heard. Never been at that time. Perhaps others can weigh in on better times. There is always these "deals" if you can swing off peak like free meals or something.

It can get very busy, that's true. Disney does have promotions where they have "free dining"--as part of package during certain times of the year. You have to pay full price rack rate for the room and Disney adds the DDP in. I think you also have to buy at least one day of park admission. There is always a lot of discussion on this on The Dis board when the promotion is offered. The offer is examined in full detail (along with the best way to optimize it )

Another factor is March is not that far off. When I go, I like to look at schedules and lay out a rough plan: which park has extra magic hours, when the fireworks shows are going to be, getting restaurant reservations and the past couple of visits--trying to mesh the FP+ fast passes with our other activities. (Goldy1 is lucky she has a little boy and not a little girl--trying to get reservations for Cinderella's Royal Table character breakfast or Be Our Guest for dinner--these are difficult to get reservations months out! )

My favorite times to go are in October for the Food and Wine Festival and the first or second week in December. I think March might come in third--just because the weather is generally so nice.

[snafu]

Canadians who can cobble together a few grand of devalued Loonies are desperate to escape snow, ice, sleet and cold and nearly invade DW in the east or DL in the west for Spring Break. It's approx. March 23 rd to 7 days post Easter Monday. Sorry, can't be more specific as each school district picks days to suit themselves. Tourism is good for the economy. Understand you're at a resort and expect line-ups and resort costs. It's not nearly what they're charging for accommodations and meals for Superbowl or Sochi. We wore backpacks and brought games, small entertainments, water and snacks to keep DSs happy.

[disneysteve]

When I go, I like to look at schedules and lay out a rough plan: which park has extra magic hours, when the fireworks shows are going to be, getting restaurant reservations and the past couple of visits--trying to mesh the FP+ fast passes with our other activities. (Goldy1 is lucky she has a little boy and not a little girl--trying to get reservations for Cinderella's Royal Table character breakfast or Be Our Guest for dinner--these are difficult to get reservations months out! )

Perfect example of the personal preferences in planning a trip. When we go, we do very little planning in advance. We make zero dining reservations. We haven't experienced FastPass+ yet but when we do, we will not schedule them in advance of our arrival in the park each day for the simple reason that we don't know which park we'll be in on any given day. It depends on how we feel. It depends on the weather. It depends on what we did the day before.

We do check which park has early entry so that we can be sure to avoid that park that day. I always advise people to do this since whichever park has early entry will be the most crowded, but again, personal preference. Some people like going to the early entry park.

Are you confused yet, Goldy?

[Like2Plan]

Perfect example of the personal preferences in planning a trip. When we go, we do very little planning in advance. We make zero dining reservations. We haven't experienced FastPass+ yet but when we do, we will not schedule them in advance of our arrival in the park each day for the simple reason that we don't know which park we'll be in on any given day. It depends on how we feel. It depends on the weather. It depends on what we did the day before.

The dining is something we really enjoy, so we always try to get reservations for our favorites. In some cases, the gate guard will not let us park at a resort if we don't have an advance reservation--like at the Kona Café especially during busy times of the year. So, it's all part of the planning.
We've tested the FP+ on 3 different occasions. I found we could generally make same day adjustments--but they weren't necessarily times we wanted. (Yup--I have to agree the software is not the greatest). On our NYE visit, we couldn't make same day adjustments--all the FPes were gone. (It might have been a function of high demand. ) And, it takes some figuring to make everything line up.

We do check which park has early entry so that we can be sure to avoid that park that day. I always advise people to do this since whichever park has early entry will be the most crowded, but again, personal preference. Some people like going to the early entry park.

Are you confused yet, Goldy?

We rarely do early entry anymore at WDW (I don't like getting up early on vacation ). In the past though, we would go to early entry and then stay for another hour or two beyond that and then eat a late breakfast/brunch at a resort and then switch to a different park. It was a great way to go on a lot of attractions with relatively short waits in line.


Now, the extra magic hours at night is a really nice feature for us. Friday night is often EMH at EPCOT. So, for example if Friday is our arrival night and we are staying at BWV, we'll plan to walk on over to EPCOT and go on some rides on our arrival night. If we didn't study up on it before we arrived, we might not take advantage of an opportunity.

But, you're right--there are so many different ways to enjoy WDW.

[disneysteve]

The dining is something we really enjoy, so we always try to get reservations for our favorites.

We prefer not to spend a lot of time (or money) on expensive sit-down meals. We'd rather maximize park time and keep the spending down by eating at the great counter service options at Disney.

We rarely do early entry anymore at WDW (I don't like getting up early on vacation ).

We always get to the park for rope drop in the morning.

there are so many different ways to enjoy WDW.

Agreed. That's why it is always so hard to answer questions like, "What should we do? When should we go? Where should we stay? Where should we eat?" The answer to all of those questions is, "It depends."

[Goldy1]

I am finding mousesavers informative and overwhelming lol
There are quite a lot of things to consider. wow
I didn't know March was considered spring break time.
Also, I am glad we waited until my son is older(he turns 5 this March) because I can't imagine doing this with him any earlier. (just MY personal preference. I know hoards of people who take toddlers)
My idea of hell would be my son there at 1 , 2 or even 3. lol.
He's a happy healthy little guy, but a coddled only child. We were still carrying him around the local zoo at 2 1/2 here, and he just wouldn't care. I can still entertain him with a puff ball and a scarf if I need to at four. I say save the big stuff for later. haha.
and he still scares easily(he didn't like the costumed things younger) Now he knows it's make believe.
and he was an active boy running all over the place
I have a local zoo membership. when he was 2 and 3 I was so tired after chasing him round the zoo, it was unreal(and I'm in shape)

[Like2Plan]

Also, I am glad we waited until my son is older(he turns 5 this March) because I can't imagine doing this with him any earlier. (just MY personal preference. I know hoards of people who take toddlers)

The experience is always different based on the ages of the kids.

[disneysteve]

[QUOTE=Goldy1;378712]I am finding mousesavers informative and overwhelming{/quote]
It is easy to get information overload. It is also easy for these sites to convince you that you must plan every minute of every day or else your trip will be a disaster. Don't buy into that. I can tell you from a great deal of experience that pre-planning isn't necessary (unless you are going during really peak times). You do need to educate yourself though. You need to know what your options are. You need to learn the layout of the parks and the property in general. If you won't have a car, you need to understand how Disney transportation works. You need to explore the various ticket options, etc.

I am glad we waited until my son is older(he turns 5 this March) because I can't imagine doing this with him any earlier. (just MY personal preference. I know hoards of people who take toddlers)

Again, very much personal preference. You know your kid best. In our case, DD's first trip was when she was 5-1/2 months old. Her 2nd trip was the week of her 1st birthday. And the trips continued 1-2 times per year ever since. Her last trip in August she was 17 and it was her 21st visit. We have loads of special memories of taking her when she was a toddler. She doesn't remember them, of course, but we sure do. And sometimes it is silly stuff like the first time she fed herself with a fork was at a restaurant in Epcot. The first time she drank from a straw (not a sippy cup) was at Disney. We have a photo of her with Tigger from every single trip from 5-1/2 months until 17 years. Stuff like that.

People often ask me what the "best" age is to take their kid. I always tell them that every age is the best age. Every trip is different. Every kid is different. Every age is different.

[Goldy1]

Steve, those memories are precious! I love that!
I guess it's workable. My son was very active though. I can't imagine us having enjoyed him there as a tot at all. lol I loved every second of him with what we did do(stuff close to home)He hated strollers, drank very often, and wanted to be held or carried in a carrier.

[Goldy1]

I spent an hour or two last night online looking into my trip.
We want to go for at least 5 nights( 3 isn't enough.) It might be if we were locals, but with two days involving travel, it's not enough or worth hauling ourselvess thru airports etc.

I went to the website mousesavers.com.
I went to a travel agent website specializing in Disney from there. Neither site gave me rates.
I found a website I can purchase tickets from cheaper than from the park direct. I got the park prices. I decided to not involve waterparks even tho I enjoy the water. We can do that here locally indoor and out.

I decided we would buy the tickets where we can just go to one park per day, not a park hopper. That seems enough. For some weird reason, 5 day tickets cost a dollar more than four day thru this ticket buying website.

I was able to get an idea of rates through Travelocity and thru the Disney website to get a general idea.

It looks like I"m looking at about $2500. This is for 5 day park tickets, airfare, and a lower end hotel in a Disney resort for my family of three.
I plan to contact the online travel agent this week and get more details, and hopefully a better deal.

thanks! I will post after we book. you guys have been so helpful as usual!!
ps
we're going five nights or so between march 14 and march 24th (parents will be in town thru those dates and join us for a day at the park then)

[sandrark]

Goldy, I have a friend who specializes in WDW trip planning; she's awesome.

I'll send you her contact info via PM.

[Like2Plan]

I spent an hour or two last night online looking into my trip.
We want to go for at least 5 nights( 3 isn't enough.) It might be if we were locals, but with two days involving travel, it's not enough or worth hauling ourselvess thru airports etc.

I think you've made a good decision. It looks like you are getting a handle on things.

Regarding your tickets. Make sure you are able to upgrade them if you decide to add the park hopper option after you arrive at WDW. (It used to be no problem, but they have made some changes).

Not having the hopper option may or may not be a big deal to you. But, on the other hand some of the parks close later than others. It looks like the Magic Kingdom will be closing at midnight most of the dates you are planning to visit. The Animal Kingdom closes at 8pm (some nights as early as 7pm). So, if you are at the Animal Kingdom and they close at 7pm--you're done at 7pm with the one day-one park ticket. (You may be exhausted at 7pm, so it may not make a difference. )

Here's a link to the park hours:

March 2014 Disney World Park Hours

[Like2Plan]

P.S. when the Magic Kingdom closes at midnight, it is a good sign that Disney is expecting quite a few folks.


Disney has been testing Fast Passes for lunch at Be Our Guest (BOG) restaurant at the Magic Kingdom. This is a fairly new restaurant--it is counter service for lunch and table service for dinner. We haven't been able to get a reservation for dinner, but we have had lunch there several times. I think it has really awesome food and the theming is really great. All the times we've ever been there, there was a fairly substantial line for the counter service at lunch--so, a fast pass (if you can get one) will save some time if you decide to eat there.

[disneysteve]

I went to a travel agent website specializing in Disney from there. Neither site gave me rates.

No travel agent site is going to give you rates. There are too many variables and they want you to contact them and work with them.

I found a website I can purchase tickets from cheaper than from the park direct.

Be very careful here. There are very, very limited legitimate discounts on tickets. If the price quoted is more than a few dollars less than Disney's price, stay away. The only ticket vendor I recommend is UndercoverTourist.com. I've dealt with them many times. AAA is also good if you are a member.

[disneysteve]

It looks like I"m looking at about $2500. This is for 5 day park tickets, airfare, and a lower end hotel in a Disney resort for my family of three.

That sounds about right. You will probably want to book the airfare yourself. Travel agents used to get a commission from the airlines for selling tickets but that stopped years ago. Now agents often add a surcharge for booking your flights so it is generally cheaper to do it yourself.