Disney World Trip?

[Faithful Retrievers]

Anyone know where to get a good deal on a Disney World vacation?

[lipsplitter39654]

leaving friday morning for a 5 day trip. the best deal we have found is thru walt disney travel company inc. they run specials from time to time and are easy to work with. to give you an idea i will break down our trip plans as the invoice is laying with some paperwork on my desk. We are doing 5 nights, 4 days in the park with park hopper tickets which means you can go back and forth from one park to another as much as you want for the entire stay, 5 nights in the port orleans riverside hotel which is a moderate hotel and the deluxe dining plan for 2 adults and 3 children total package with tax and everything was $2857 which comes out to less than $600 per person. I feel like it is a fair deal compared to what we have paid before. The dining plan is the ticket as it gives you lots of dining options including 3 meals per day and snacks for everyone. you can bank the meals from day to day if you dont eat 3 meals which we rarely eat 3 and use them for character dining and such. for example the dinner with cinderella takes 2 meal tickets so if you eat 2 meals one day then you have one left over for the next to add to the more expensive places. We have previously stayed in the all star resorts which are cheaper than what we are staying in now. if we would have stayed in the all star it would have been around $2400 total. The catch with the all star is that if you have more than 2 kids over 2 or 3 years of age not sure which it is, then they make you get 2 rooms. the all star rooms are small and decent but no extras in it. like an 80s holiday inn but very clean and decorated with character stuff. They all have good pools and a decently priced eating facility with finger foods and small meals in the lobby. We love some disney as they pay attention to every detail and we find new and fun stuff that we havent seen every time we go. Hope this helps.

[lipsplitter39654]

btw i wanted to spend valentines in mazatlan duck hunting this year but i got out voted and will be with Mickey and friends on valentines day.

[dukhntn]

Have you stayed in Riverside before? I've stayed in Port Orleans French Quarter and it was nice. Kind of like the French Quarter, but without the smell of urine. Riverside seemed like everything was spread out to me, but we just walked through once.

Like lipsplitter, the best deals I have found have always been booking through Disney's website. We go with the dining plan as well.

[cwink]

Go with the meal plan and park hopper pass for sure.. We have stayed at the Wildernes Lodge (I think that is what its called, the one with the Animals walking around the hotel) it was cool, but expensive and we have stayed at Port Orleans which is a moderate hotel and much more affordable... The first time we went we did 3 days and that was not near enough time just too much to see and do...

On the meal plan you can do (or at least used to ) get a sit down meal, a quick server (usually burgers, salads, chicken, BBQ) and a snack on a less expensive than 2 full meals.. All the food is really good even the quick serve stuff. Definitly do the fast pass stuff on the big rides.

[gator]

MEAL PLAN, MEAL PLAN, MEAL PLAN.

went in october......loved it and will be going back soon.

i have no clue what strange mind bending message those folks get down there, but i never had a bad experience trying to pay them money.........all the cashiers actually acted like they appreciated you business.

really strange.

gator

[olduckhunter]

several years ago there was a man from hornersville, mo up and took his kids down there. this was before internet and all the info out there. he drove all the way down there and got to the gate and when they told him how much the tickets were he turned around and drove back home. the tightwad. and that's the truff.

[lipsplitter39654]

i havent stayed at riverside. we have always stayed at the all star resorts in the past and off property other times. on property is the way to go for sure. it is nice just to get on the bus and not worry about parking and is cheaper. i am interested to see what the port orleans hotel is like. as everyone else and i have stated the meal plan is the best deal going. if you cant find something at disney that you like to eat well you should check your pulse. i agree with Gator those folks are taking happy pills or something. disney has a great business strategy and way of doing things. everything is spotless and they leave no details out.

[edub20]

Does the meal plan include free beer?

[lowbar]

Does the meal plan include free beer?

No. But you can get a wine plan

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/media/ ... neDine.pdf

[thcobb1]

If you have an RV or a camper stay at the campground.

We stayed there Thanksgiving 2009. What a blast. We were driving anyway so the extra cost of fuel was not too bad when you consider the cost of the room. The campground is really nice and with lots of things to do.

Get park hopper passes, try and plan a down day in the middle to do something besides the parks. Most of the on property hotels/campgrounds have enough to keep everyone busy for a day.

[South Woods]

Go to mousesavers.com, we are planning a trip now and that site has helped us.

[jar0023]

Work related conferences and generous grandparents have conspired to get us ther 6 times in the last 8 years. My wife and I probably have more fun than my daughter. The last couple of trips I had to keep up with work via BB but even then they make it pretty easy to forget about work while you are there. We always book through Disney; haven't found a cheaper way to do it.

We've stayed off site and on. On site or at least at a Downtown Disney hotel is the way to go. Shuttle takes you directly to the park. Staying at a Disney park also means anything you buy (gifts/pictures/etc) can be sent directly to your room so you don't have to tote them around with you all day. There will also be "extra magic hours" for persons staying at the resort hotels. Sometimes they open the parks and hour early sometimes they keep them open til after midnight. The schedule varies but you can check Disney's website for schedules.

Don't rule out the Downtown Disney hotels. They are just standard Hiltom/Marriott hotels but Disney runs the shuttle and package service. You can usually get two beds for $100-$125 a night.

We've stayed and the Port Orleans Riverside, All star, and this last time at Coronado Springs(wife had a conference in the resort). They are all similar. Rooms are older but clean. For us it's just a place to leave our stuff and shower and sleep. We don't need a ton of ammenities.

Unlike the others we don't do the meal plan. We don't eat that much. Meal plans usually cover desserts and appetizers etc. We usually grab a Clif bar or piece of fruit in the morning and eat that on the way to the park. We plan one big sit down meal each day and make the other a walk up. When my daughter was younger we'd bring food in for her. Now we pack PB&J. My wife and I usually split entree's. Speaking of food. They have great restaurants in the parks and you need to make your reservations early. You used to be able to make them 3+ months in advance. I think it's 30 days now but check.

If you can avoid it don't ever go the week between Christmas and New Years. We were there Christmas Eve 2009 and that's as close as I've ever come to wanting to eat a bullet. Never again. They actually fill the park up and start turning people away. Summer time can be bad as well. Anytime between Thanksgiving and the week right before Christmas is a good time, as is right now and ealry October. We went in October and the weather was great about 70 during the day with no rain and the longest wait was around 20 mniutes. Most rides the wait was less than 10.

[jar0023]

Man the editor is acting screwy. To continue the above post.

Fast Pass is your friend. Determine what rides you want to do the most. Hit that one first thing in the morning. As soon as you get off hit the fast pass and move to your next favorite ride. The parks really start to fill up after 10 am so if you get in early you can get some of the big rides out of your system and settle down and enjoy the park a little more. One Fast Pass trick we'd never seen advertized and a friend pointed out to us was a 'family or stroller pass'. For the rides with height restrictions, if you have a younger child you can ask one of the cast members for a family fast pass and they'll hand you one on the spot. Dad can ride with the older kids and then Mom can turn around and quickly ride via the pass. This is real handy if you have more than one child. Majic Kingdon - Space Mountain, Big Thunder Railroad, Splash Mountain are the big rides. At Epcot is Soarin' and Test Track. At Animal Kingdom it's Expedition Everest and the Dinosaur ride. At Hollywood Studios it's Rockin' Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror and Toy Story.

We usually plan to see some of the shows in the afternoon. Gives you a little downtime for kids (and parents) to recharge.

If you like to drink and eat Epcot will be your favorite park. Every country has great regional food and beer. Lot's of good beer. Epcot can be a little boring for kids. If you have older preteens look into the Kim Possible adventures. They'll give your kids a phone that acts as a communicator. They'll get clues that lead them to different areas (of a country). Once they figure out the clues something 'special will happen'. In Japan my daughter made a waterfall start up etc. It's a good way to perk up a bored kid.


I know folks that want to wait until their kids are older to go so they can do all the rides and remember more. If you can go when your kids are under 6 or so it will be a completely different experience for this. When my daughter was younger it truly was 'magic' as she has gotten older it's more about rides and not so much about the whole experience.

Anyway enough rattling on from me. If you have any specific questions freel fre to send me an email.

J

[jar0023]

Oh. One more thing. Guns and knives are discouraged in the parks. They're not going to try and arrest you etc, but you will be asked to leave or the store the weapon. No metal detectors or anything like that. They don't search people but they will look into every bag that comes into the park. Cooperate, have the bag open and they'll just shine a light in it and pass you through. My brother had his knife clipped into his back pocket. They made him rent a locker for the day. I just drop mine into my pocket. No problems. With all the rides you probably don't want to be carrying anything large in your waistband anyway, but a P3AT slides into a pants pocket or the hidden compartment on a Kelty lumbar pack with relative ease.

J