Planning a Disney Trip (Help)
- Thread starter jaclyn
- Start date
LusbyMom
You're a LOON :)
We took the kids for the first time this summer. They are 10, 8 and 7 and they had a great time. We booked it through disney.com. I can't give you any info on hotels because we took our camper and stayed at Fort Wilderness Campground. They do have some nice cabins there and swimming pools that are open 24 hours.
We did tour the Fort Wilderness Lodge while we were there and it was beautiful. If you book through Disney.com you can make payments on the trip. It just needs to be paid for 45 days before you arrive.
Disney is great for all ages~!!
I think the easiest way to do it and to have the best time is to stay at one of the Disney Properties and book right through disney.com! We went with pebbles and Elle in April. The kids loved it, I have a three kids, 10, 2 and 1.
We did however stay offsite this time b/c we got a deal we couldn't pass up, but in the two visits prior stayed onsite and booked through disney.com. If we wouldn't have gotten this house we would have definitely stayed onsite again.
My one suggestion though is, if you don't care about how much it costs then stay at one of the most expensive hotels (they are very nice!!!), but if money matters to you and you want to go for the best cost when comparing the moderate priced hotels to the value go with the value. We have stayed at both and honestly didn't see much of a difference for our money. With doing Disney everyday of the trip there really isn't much time left for anything else at the hotel. If we were going for a week trip and only doing Disney a day or two (if that is even possible, haha!) then it might be worth it, but if you are going for a week trip and planning on doing Disney everyday to me it was just a waste!!!
Elle though should have lots of info for you!!!!
I think the easiest way to do it and to have the best time is to stay at one of the Disney Properties and book right through disney.com! We went with pebbles and Elle in April. The kids loved it, I have a three kids, 10, 2 and 1.
We did however stay offsite this time b/c we got a deal we couldn't pass up, but in the two visits prior stayed onsite and booked through disney.com. If we wouldn't have gotten this house we would have definitely stayed onsite again.
My one suggestion though is, if you don't care about how much it costs then stay at one of the most expensive hotels (they are very nice!!!), but if money matters to you and you want to go for the best cost when comparing the moderate priced hotels to the value go with the value. We have stayed at both and honestly didn't see much of a difference for our money. With doing Disney everyday of the trip there really isn't much time left for anything else at the hotel. If we were going for a week trip and only doing Disney a day or two (if that is even possible, haha!) then it might be worth it, but if you are going for a week trip and planning on doing Disney everyday to me it was just a waste!!!
Elle though should have lots of info for you!!!!
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StrawberryGal
Sweet and Innocent
PM Elle or Geek for information. 
Staying at Disney hotels is a little more expensive compared with staying somewhere else....but it has its perks:
1. If you are just doing the parks and such, there is really no reason to rent a car. A shuttle will pick you up at the airport and take you to your hotel. There is also transportation to and from each park. There is also a shuttle to take you back to the airport when you're ready to go home. If you do rent a car, you don't have to pay to park at the different parks. Normally, its 10 bucks at each park.
2. Hotel guests have extended magic hours. Either 1 hour before opening or 2 hours after closing, you are allowed into/stay in the park and enjoy it. Different parks have extended hours on different days. If you goto the disney website, and view the calendar for hours of the parks, you can see which ones have extended magic hours.
I've stayed at the Disney All-Star Music Hotel. It wasn't bad. Basiclly a place to sleep. Stayed for 3 days and got an amazing deal (I have family that works for WDW) so it was a real bang for my buck. They have nice amenities and such, so the kids would enjoy it. Let me know if you have any questions!!
1. If you are just doing the parks and such, there is really no reason to rent a car. A shuttle will pick you up at the airport and take you to your hotel. There is also transportation to and from each park. There is also a shuttle to take you back to the airport when you're ready to go home. If you do rent a car, you don't have to pay to park at the different parks. Normally, its 10 bucks at each park.
2. Hotel guests have extended magic hours. Either 1 hour before opening or 2 hours after closing, you are allowed into/stay in the park and enjoy it. Different parks have extended hours on different days. If you goto the disney website, and view the calendar for hours of the parks, you can see which ones have extended magic hours.
I've stayed at the Disney All-Star Music Hotel. It wasn't bad. Basiclly a place to sleep. Stayed for 3 days and got an amazing deal (I have family that works for WDW) so it was a real bang for my buck. They have nice amenities and such, so the kids would enjoy it. Let me know if you have any questions!!
dn0121
New Member
We went in April and stayed at Marriott's Cypress Harbour.
It is a 2br condo with 2 full baths an a kitchen. Its a lot cheaper than staying on the properties if you have a car. If your interested let me know and I can give you more details. There are others also.
It is a 2br condo with 2 full baths an a kitchen. Its a lot cheaper than staying on the properties if you have a car. If your interested let me know and I can give you more details. There are others also.
LusbyMom
You're a LOON :)
My sis went this summer and she stayed outside of Disney at an AWESOME place. I think next time we go back we might look into staying there.
Next time I want to spend some time doing some other things outside of Disney too.
Elle
Happy Camper!
Disney is awesome I can't wait to go back (less than 3 months and already having withdrawls). Staying onsite is a bit more expensive but remember you can take advantage of the Disney transportation and also if you are not a resort guest you have to pay $10 a day to park. The easiest thing to do is to book a package through Disney directly (or if you wanted to use an agency I'd suggest Magical Journeys) - this way you have your room and tickets linked together. You can also have your room key set up so that you can just charge directly back to your room and if you book the package your ticket is your room key - only need one card when you walk out the door. If you want to save some money on tickets you can buy them from off base - I think it was a 10% discount. A lot of people will disagree but I also suggest getting the Disney Photopass - visit this website for special $99.95 preorder and you don't have to pay shipping. I love the intercot website for information on planing and just keeping up-to-date on Disney.
dn0121
New Member
I can usually get a condo cheap (under $100 a day) for 7 days, so if your interested let me know.
LusbyMom
You're a LOON :)
I LOVED the Disney Photo Pass! It's expensive to buy the pics, but worth it. I also ordered one of the books. I used the pics they took and a few that I took!.
Elle
Happy Camper!
I can't believe I forgot to mention this. EMH is awesome - we used it every day in April when we went. In August the heat is a killer and the parks already have extended normal hours so we didn't use it as much but it was still a nice perk to have. One of the most awesome parts of our August trip was the Dance Party at MGM – Hollywood Studios – during evening EMH they open the Playhouse Disney building, have a DJ come in, and various character mingle freely (no handlers) – where else can you get a picture of yourself doing the Electric Slide with Mickey Mouse.
woah...that sounds awesome. is that a summer thing or do they do that all year round? last two times i was there, i went in december and january. its nice weather, no lines or crowds...so it makes it more enjoyable.
but a dance party with MM...sounds like i should go in august.
StrawberryGal
Sweet and Innocent
Interesting. Waiting to hear from Elle about this.
I've always wanted to go to Disney World. Tried to planned to go to Disney World for my honeymoon 10 years ago, but it didn't happened because my husband's new employer at the time doesn't give their new employees vacation leaves right away after hiring. 10 years later, we still haven't gone to Disney World.
dn0121
New Member
Interesting. Waiting to hear from Elle about this.
I've always wanted to go to Disney World. Tried to planned to go to Disney World for my honeymoon 10 years ago, but it didn't happened because my husband's new employer at the time doesn't give their new employees vacation leaves right away after hiring. 10 years later, we still haven't gone to Disney World.
Elle
Happy Camper!
To my knowledge it's year round but only during evening extra magic hours at Hollywood Studios - as in you have to be a resort guest. I just looked back on my pictures and there was also a clown in there - each of my kids got a balloon animal (for free - yes at Disney we got something for free). If August was your only time to go then by all means go when you can but we enjoyed April much more - no heat and less crowds (there were still lines though so don't be fooled). We also went 4 years ago in November and that was nice but it was soo long ago and our first trip I really don't remember the crowd level but from this year April was a much better time to go than August. When we go back in 2 or 4 years we are going in October - kids normally only have a 3 day school week the weekend of Columbus Day so we are going to try that out.
When I went in January I waited at max....20-30 min in line. And that was for something like space mountain or hollywood tower of terror.
When I went in December, it was more like 30-40 min. of waiting at just about everything. The holiday season down there is a big thing for them, so there was a ton of people there for that.
is the dance party more geared towards the kiddo's or is it an free for all lets have fun? I dont have any kids, so would i just be the creepy dude in the corner? haha.
When I went in December, it was more like 30-40 min. of waiting at just about everything. The holiday season down there is a big thing for them, so there was a ton of people there for that.
is the dance party more geared towards the kiddo's or is it an free for all lets have fun? I dont have any kids, so would i just be the creepy dude in the corner? haha.
What time of year are you going? That will make a big difference in how much daily planning you will need. Check out DISboards.com, lots of info there.
I prefer staying on site and not having to deal with a car but people seem to have individual preferences there. We stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge over the summer and our wait for the buses was less than 10 minutes with the exception of once when I think we waited 20 minutes. If your'e going during a busy time, the single most important thing you can do is get to the park at rope drop in order to maximize how much you are able to do. We never waited more than 10 minutes for any ride except for the new Toy story ride which we were not able to get fast passes for. Next, use your fast passes wisely (you don't have to enter the ride during your window, just as long as it's AFTER the entry time). We paid for the meal plan and I thought it was a good deal but again, it takes some planning to make the most of it. Also, if going during a busy time be sure to make your dining reservations as soon as your window opens otherwise you may find you won't be able to get a seat a the resturant of your choice. Let me know if have any specific questions, I did a ton of planning for our summer trip.
I prefer staying on site and not having to deal with a car but people seem to have individual preferences there. We stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge over the summer and our wait for the buses was less than 10 minutes with the exception of once when I think we waited 20 minutes. If your'e going during a busy time, the single most important thing you can do is get to the park at rope drop in order to maximize how much you are able to do. We never waited more than 10 minutes for any ride except for the new Toy story ride which we were not able to get fast passes for. Next, use your fast passes wisely (you don't have to enter the ride during your window, just as long as it's AFTER the entry time). We paid for the meal plan and I thought it was a good deal but again, it takes some planning to make the most of it. Also, if going during a busy time be sure to make your dining reservations as soon as your window opens otherwise you may find you won't be able to get a seat a the resturant of your choice. Let me know if have any specific questions, I did a ton of planning for our summer trip.
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