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Here are a few tips and things I've leaned over the past few years. My wife and I go every year, sometimes more than once, with our now 5 year old (took him the first time at 3 and it was great). We are DVC members but that doesn't change things very much. (I apologize if this was covered, can't search the thread on my phone and this thread is HUGE for only being a few pages.) 1. Plan your trip in advance. If you want character meals, or specific dining reservations, listen to Disney and anyone else that says to book 180 days in advance. Sometimes planning the entire trip sucks, but it's a huge help when going to Disney. 2. Disney Dining Plan: we love it, but we also have a child and do character meals, so it works out well for us. If you are on the fence about whether or not it will work for you, use this DDP calculator: http:/www.seeyareelsoon.wix.com/seeyareelsoon I found that on the DIS Boards, it's safe and it's loving awesome for planning your dining and estimating costs. DDP is also sometimes free to guests going at certain times of the year. 3. Sign up for the MouseSavers newsletter. Always good info about all things Disney (refurb dates and times, discounts, etc.). 4. Dole Whip. Best snack in the entire kingdom.
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Jul 3, 2013 19:12
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Lincoln posted:
The main walking path from Saratoga is closing later this year when the Disney Springs construction starts, but there is another walking path that takes you from Saratoga to Downtown near Cirque du soleil. Otherwise it's the boats or the buses.
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Jul 4, 2013 16:21
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How is the crowd back there during the fireworks show? I know Main St is a clusterfuck, and we haven't stayed for the show yet, but will be this year ( son says he's ready for fireworks at Disney).
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Jul 7, 2013 15:16
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demonR6 posted:Wide open. We sat along the brick planter that runs around that set of towers and watched with no one around us. There was a family of eight near us but never close enough to be a problem. It was not dead empty by any means but nothing near the mess that is Main Street. We walked from there straight on to Dumbo to kill some time while the lemmings all pushed the exit gates then cruised through Tomorrowland taking the back exit behind Main Street that dumps you at the train station and out we went. The ferry to Grand Floridian took about fifteen minutes, two boat loads, and we were out of there. You only get the fireworks and the music though right? Not the castle animation stuff? Which, btw, is fine with us. I'm glad there is a spot you can actually relax in the park and watch the fireworks. The only time I've been angry or agitated during a trip to WDW is when I'm on Main Street before the fireworks. E: what is this back exit through Tomorrowland you are talking about?? Douchebag fucked around with this message at 16:47 on Jul 7, 2013 |
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Jul 7, 2013 16:44
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demonR6 posted:From that location we cannot see the castle activity since we are behind it but you can see where the location is in relation to the bunker. Thanks for this, we will probably utilize that spot for the fireworks if we can, though we aren't going back until early December and will probably want to get on main street for the Very Merry Christmas Party.
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Jul 7, 2013 22:41
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Unless you need a break from the heat, skip the GMR.
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Jul 10, 2013 15:04
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Cheap Disney park tickets don't exist. AAA has some discounts, military members get discounts, and there are some other corporate discounts out there but it's not a huge savings. The park tickets are just not cheap and you won't find big discounts out there. A 3 day hopper for one adult, direct through Disney including tax is $341.87. Cheapest I've been able to get via another reputable site is $332.95. I generally just buy direct from Disney, since the savings elsewhere isn't that great. The roadside places offer great discounts, and when you get to a park the tickets are fake, or used, and now you're out hundreds of dollars with no recourse.
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Jul 30, 2013 22:40
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MrMoo posted:How come Disney's website revolves around go.com and is so slow? I think it's related to the merger in 1996 creating the Disney ABC group or something. Espn is also a go.com site and owned by ABC.
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Aug 3, 2013 21:14
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So what is the whole NGE thing? I was aware of them looking into RFID wristbands instead of KTTW cards, but what else are they doing? What is Fastpass+? Regarding planning your trip, we are used to planning our ADR's, but I don't think I'd like it if I have to plan more than dining in advance. As it is, you almost have to plan out the entire trip now, which isn't bad with kids if you want to do certain things (which we do every trip).
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Aug 4, 2013 14:04
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Bob Loblaw posted:
We take our son every year, that's how we do our family vacations. We always do the MK park opening once per trip. I cry every year because my son gets so excited. It's unavoidable, and it's why I love going every year.
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Aug 8, 2013 15:05
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kensei posted:Does anyone here have knowledge of the Disney Vacation Club? I am pricing out a trip for my family of four, and am starting to wonder if I might be better off buying a DVC membership instead. I am looking at the secondary market and since we are thinking of a trip to Hawaii in the next few years we could visit that resort too. If I understand how it works, we could exchange our membership points for places like Las Vegas as well, right? I have DVC. I can answer most questions so let me know. As far as transferring points, you can only exchange DVC points with RCI, which js a one way exchange and not recersable. You can use your DVC points for a variety of Disney locations. DVC resorts (WDW, Disneyland CA, Aulani in Hawaii, Hilton Head and Vero Beach). You can also use points for other Disney vacations worldwide. It depends on the date of the trip, where you are going, what kind of vacation class it falls under etc. I bought DVC because we love going to WDW, go every year (sometimes multiple times), and our son is only 5 so it was a good investment for us. We also bought because it allows us to stay at deluxe resorts which we couldn't afford the rack rates, such as Bay Lake Tower.
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Sep 3, 2013 15:28
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I own 125 points at Saratoga Springs, which is my "home resort". I can book eleven months out at the home resort. Any other DVC resort I'm limited to a 7 month booking window. Availability depends on time of year. I'm going this December, 12/8-12/14, and I booked my home resort 11 months out. At the 7 month window I tried for other resorts but they were all booked solid. You can "waitlist" a request, and it something opens up it will switch automatically. I've booked non home resort stays at 7 months and had no problem. We plan on going to Hawaii in a few years and will have to wait for the 7 month window but shouldn't have a problem as long as its not Christmas. Certain festival times are busy, such as Food and Wine, Christmas and New Years etc, it just depends. There are other benefits to DVC as well. Discounted annual pass purchase and discounted annual pass renewals (no discounts on normal park passes). You are not eligible for the free dining plan promotions as a DVC member, those are reserved for customers paying rack rates. I transferred into RCI once, and won't do it again. Didn't have an issue, there are just some point requirements that don't make it cost effective to doing it. You can also stay at any Disney resort using DVC points, but if you are trying to use points at a Non-DVC resort (Polynesian, value resorts, Art of Animation etc) the points required are ludicrous, so it's not at all cost effective to do it.
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Sep 3, 2013 15:54
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kensei posted:Did you buy direct from Disney? What's your dues rate of inflation? What does your 125 points get you, a week typically or? I'm not sure what the ROI was for the dues, they fluctuate every year. This year it was less than last year by about $1 per point overall, but if you talk to a DVC sales agent they can tell you all of this. When I bought DVC we looked at how much we would travel and settled on once a year, then looked at point charts, and settled on 125 points, as it would allow us to pretty much go for one week a year, with points left to bank. Banking/borrowing: you can bank one year and borrow one year, at a time. So, say you have 50 points per year, for 2013, and you bank them. Now you have 100 available in 2014. You can also borrow one year ahead, from 2015, and have 150 points in 2014 to plan a trip. Once you bank it's not reversible. Anyway, if that's confusing let me know:) Let me break down my points for you: I had a balance of 98 points for 2013 (I borrowed some last year). I'm staying at Saratoga in December for 6 nights, for a total of 75 points. I'm left with 23 points which I banked, giving me 148 to use in 2014. In 2014 I'm going twice: I'm doing a split stay in march, 3 nights at Wilderness Lodge (51 points) and 3 nights at Boardwalk (57 points), leaving me with 40 points for when I want to go back for Food and Wine in November. I'm probably going to be short 7 points in Nov but that's another situation entirely (you can buy points at $15 per point once a year if your short). Each resort has different point charts, and the points change based on what season you are going (Disney seasons, not real ones). I try to go Sunday to Thursday as weekend nights are more points, so I can save a little that way. Another reason we factored into our point total choice. If you are interested go online and request the DVD package, it has a ton of info. Or PM me if I confused the poo poo out of you  Edit: yes I purchased direct from Disney. I got in on a promo for $99/point at Saratoga at the end of 2011. Douchebag fucked around with this message at 17:11 on Sep 3, 2013 |
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Sep 3, 2013 17:06
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I agree with that wholeheartedly. I spent 6 weeks researching and reading before I called DVC to talk to a person. By the time I called the only thing I needed information on was the cost. Definitely research it. DVC works for us, but another company might work better for you. DVC was better for us because RCI makes you buy the same week every year, I liked the flexibility of Disney better. Douchebag fucked around with this message at 17:22 on Sep 3, 2013 |
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Sep 3, 2013 17:17
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demonR6 posted:Out of curiosity can you elaborate on the RCI comment you mentioned because RCI is only an exchange company and does not sell timeshare. RCI functions on what is traded into the system and depending on the demand, some locations and weeks can be limited. My understanding of other companies is limited, and what I said earlier was what I learned from talking to RCI members, most recently last month. They purchased a week from RCI, and can stay at any participating resort during that week. This person said they purchased the 3rd week of July and always take their RCI resort vacation during that week every year. I'm sure there are other plans but when I was researching it I only came across the weekly based purchase plan.
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Sep 3, 2013 19:12
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That's good to know because there is a participating RCI resort (that also sells a limited inventory of rooms at cash rates) in FL that my wife and I love. I will look into that and if we are going back next year ill hit you up for info
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Sep 3, 2013 20:03
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Lincoln posted:Ooo, September is one of the best times to go, as far as crowds are concerned. (Check to make sure the 17th isn't a holiday.) You'll walk onto pretty much everything. If you're arriving mid- to late-morning, you should have enough time for all of Epcot or almost all of Magic Kingdom. And honestly, there's a good chance you'd be able to finish the MK. They're two very different parks, but you'll have a great time, regardless. Whichever you go to, be sure to catch the fireworks. This. The past 2 years I've flown into Orlando on the Sunday before Labor Day, and while Sunday and Monday are crowded (Sunday much more than Monday) the entire week feels empty by Disney standards. Back to school week is the best week to go IMO.
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Sep 3, 2013 23:55
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There is actually a fantastic DDP calculator: http:/www.seeyareelsoon.wix.com/seeyareelsoon I found this link months ago on the DIS boards. It factors in everything, TIW, DVC, tips etc. even tells you HOW to use your meal credits and what to pay cash for.
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Sep 10, 2013 11:56
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I don't think there are any overly unique QS meals out there TBH. I use the DDP because we tend to do a few character meals with our son, and use the QS meals while at the parks so it works out. I put my entire trip dining plan into that calculator and it was a few dollars difference between DDP and out of pocket, so it really depends. If I didn't use the DDP I probably wouldn't get an app or dessert with every meal. I'm debating what to do for our December trip, go TIW or DDP, haven't decided yet. But, I think it's negligible either way for us. The big benefit I saw to that sheet was it showing which meals to use the DDP on and which to pay out of pocket if you ran out of credits.
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Sep 10, 2013 14:11
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Jay Dub posted:Last time I was down there I stood in line for 45 minutes to get a dole whip, and oh man was it worth it. Dole whip is definitely worth the 45 minute wait. Or hop off the monorail at the Poly and grab some.
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Sep 10, 2013 22:17
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I'm doing a split stay next March, but it's intentional so we can experience 2 DVC resorts in one trip. This will probably be the only time I do it and its just to try out something new for a change.
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Sep 12, 2013 16:49
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Saltin posted:I am attending a conference in October at WDW, and have never been before. I'll be staying at the Grand Floridian. Most of the conference events seem to be at the Dolphin, Swan and Boardwalk Hotels, which appear to be a distance away from the Grand Floridian. I would have booked one of those hotels, but they were sold out. Monorail to Epcot and walk through Epcot. Or, monorail to the ticketing and transportation center and get on the resort bound bus. Or monorail to either MK or Epcot and take the resort bound bus.
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Sep 24, 2013 16:06
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demonR6 posted:or bus from resort to resort... they may run extra buses if there is some agreement due to how busy the conference is. I think Disney will get a taxi for you too. They have for me in the past when we had breakfast reservations before the busses began running and it was no charge.
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Sep 24, 2013 17:10
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demonR6 posted:Oh poo poo they closed down Haunted Mansion yesterday for rehab.. also there is a shortage of turkey legs but they are being substituted with tofo salad. Ooh and due to the high cost of pineapple the Dole Whips are no longer being served but they will sell vanilla ice cream instead with sprinkles. Is the Mansion really closed for rehab? How long? I'm heading down this Sunday for a week and I want to ride the Mansion as much as possible. Small World will be closed for rehab for most of my visit and I'm loving giddy about it. Weather isn't going to be hot enough where the AC in Small World will be needed in the middle of the day. E: I do like It's A Small World, if you like Disney you can't avoid liking it. But my son likes to ride it over and over and after the 5th time I want to kick babies.
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Dec 3, 2013 17:04
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demonR6 posted:I was just pulling BBS's leg. But something is probably inevitably under rehab.. Oh absolutely, especially in the off peak months. http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/rehab.htm
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Dec 3, 2013 18:05
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I'm taking my son for the third year in a row (vacation club addicts that go every year) for Christmas and his 6th birthday and this will be a huge year of firsts for the entire family. We have never stayed for any of the fireworks shows. This year we will do at least Illuminations and the MK shows. My son doesn't like loud noises so I bought a child's set of NASCAR ear muffs. I'm not playing around this year. We are seeing fireworks. I have dinner reservations at Rose and Crown and I'm going to grease the hostesses palm for patio seats to watch illuminations. I'm also determined to do the Carousel of Progress AND Hall of Presidents, by myself if I have to. I don't care if they aren't awesome, it's Disney and they do everything great. Test Track (closed the past 2 trips), new Fantasyland, the Very Merry Christmas Party and my best friends wedding (yup a Disney wedding to boot). All firsts. Also was that poster serious about no Dole Whip?
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Dec 4, 2013 02:04
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:It was pretty busy in Magic Kingdom this past week and that thing never had more than a 10 min. wait the entire trip. it has a Fastpass+ Entrance now which is hilarious. Everything has a fast pass. I'm surprised you can't fast pass taking a poo poo. I actually like the magic bands and the FP+ system, to a point. I dislike having to plan what park and rides I plan to do ahead of time. Especially when I plan dining and this week I'm doing 2 dinners at the MK. It's easy to change your FP, even the day of. I changed Sunday and Monday easily and got ride times that worked for us. Biggest gripe of FP+ so far, and it relates to Toy a Story Mania. In the past we could ride it on busy days 4 to 5 times, by riding it early and getting a FP, then getting another FP later. There was never an insane standby line. I had a 1:10-2:10 FP+ today and that's the only time we rode it today. Combining FP+ with regular FP kind of sucks. Toy Story had a 90 minute wait at 930 this morning, all FP sold out for the day. In contrast nothing else had a loving wait at Studios today. I went on Star tours 3 times back to back, and a 4th using a FP and all 4 times the ride wasn't full, 5th row was empty. Rockin Rollercoaster was closed which hosed up the rest of the park and TS Mania unfortunately, not sure if it opened later in the day. I love the magic bands for the ease of purchasing, room access etc, they are great. However they need to seriously rethink the "Tap Mickey to Mickey" thing because 90% of the world is retarded and can't figure it out". Make the entire band, or the entire flat part with Mickey an RFID part to fix this.
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Dec 9, 2013 22:07
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Does anything go on for Friday the 13th tomorrow? Or was that just during Halloween this year?
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Dec 12, 2013 16:08
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Well I extended my trip one day due to the winter storm in the northeast. United changed my flight to Sunday night for no charge and I had enough DVC points to add one more night at Saratoga Springs. Disney made it super easy and kept everything linked to my current magic bands and such.
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Dec 14, 2013 18:18
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:I should have done this, since my fight home last week during the first of the snowfall in New England was delayed three times. However, I chose the cheapest flight option, meaning changing my flight would cost almost as much as the flight cost me in the first place, and I couldn't afford another night in a hotel, even at the value resort. I got ridiculously lucky today. Checkout is at 11 normally. At 10 I started making phone calls, I've been watching the weather for a few days. Called united, it was an hour wait to talk to a human. Called back, picked a different prompt and I got someone right away. Explained the situation, she had a flight for 7:07pm on Sunday with no change fee and I took it right away. Called DVC member services, explained the situation again, they had 1 bedroom villas available (we normally take a studio which is just a hotel room), I had points to use, so I got a extra night for essentially free. Would I like to be home tonight? gently caress yes, in tired, have to work Monday and would like to spend Sunday on my own couch drinking cheaper beer watching football, but I got an extra night in Disney and my son is happy so I'm happy. Oh, has anyone done Sorcerers of the MK? It's pretty cool and my son loves it.
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Dec 15, 2013 01:32
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:It's cool that everything fell into place. I thought Sorcerers was cool too. But it's strange as hell when a 60 year old overweight woman on a hoveround rolls up, gets up and activates the portal, then opens a binder with 36 cards showing, casts her spells, then drives away. My son loves the Agent P stuff in Epcot, so we tried Sorcerers out and now he's all about both. Just more stuff to do at WDW. Maybe we will try the scavenger hunt next time.
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Dec 17, 2013 17:15
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Mykkel posted:So my wife and daughter were watching the Disney Parks christmas parade this morning. And they now want to go to the filming of the parade. Anyone have an idea on how I might find the recording dates in time to plan a trip to Disneyworld? Check the Disney blogs or wdwinfo.com. It is usually filmed in early December, you don't need a special ticket but expect it to be crowded and hard to get from section to section. And get there early, really early. It filmed on December 6 and 7 this year in Orlando FYI
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Dec 25, 2013 19:02
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Kart Barfunkel posted:I'm not into that whole pin thing by any means, but I found a pin that some cast members will be getting this year that I kind of want to have in my life. (It's here: http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2014/01/new-hidden-mickey-pins-arriving-soon-at-disney-parks-for-2014/ The Peter Pan pin). My question is if the only way to get one is to trade for it, could I just buy some random pin at a shop and trade it with a cast member and they'll have to accept it? Or do the CMs get to be as picky as I am? Cast members can't say no to your pin request and they will take whatever you give them in return. So yes buy a cheap pin and trade it for what you want, that's what we did with my son this year. I bought my son a few of the more expensive pins and it's not a big deal when you trade with the CM's because they don't pick one of your pins in trade, so he wore them on his lanyard and didn't have to worry. Most pin traders only trade with CM's too, and only like to browse other peoples pins rather than trade.
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Jan 29, 2014 00:31
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Cryosleep posted:I found some really cool "ticket" pins that I started collecting. And no one had ever told me that each store in the resorts has a giant pin board to trade with! Yep, either the store or the check-in desk. Sometimes both. Saratoga had both last month and I think the Contemporary did too. One pin we want but couldn't get was the Very Merry Christmas Party pin, was sort of bummed that they are a limited release only the day of the parties.
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Jan 29, 2014 12:46
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Savage Bliss posted:Not sure what I'm asking other than this: If I only take the kids one more time, is it worth the convenience/$$$ of a monorail/Deluxe resort? I've stayed at both and honestly have had a great trip regardless. Our first trip we stayed at Caribbean Beach, we liked it, decor was nice, restaurants were good, we had the Pirate themed room so our son loved it. But we spent 8-10 hours a day there tops (mainly to sleep), and were pretty far from the main pool. I had no issues with the buses and felt the ride times were OK. I've also stayed at the Contemporary and Saratoga Springs. Loved both of them, but again, we don't spend much time in our rooms. It's either at a park or at the pool. We really liked the ability to walk to MK from the Contempo, and to get on the monorail to go to Epcot or the other monorail resorts for a meal. Is it worth extra money for a monorail or deluxe resort? That depends on what you want out of it. We spend the majority of our time at Epcot and MK, so the monorail was awesome during that trip. In December I stayed at Saratoga (and will again in March) and riding the buses was not a big deal at all. Not having the monorail didn't make or break the trip for us.
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Feb 5, 2014 16:51
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APOLLO OHNO-UDIDNT posted:What is a reasonable age for a first visit to Disney? I recently became a parent back in December and my folks who live in FL are already hinting at future Disney trips. We visit them in Tampa about once a year so Orlando is very doable. To me it seems reasonable to maybe go for his third birthday, because do kids younger than that really get much out of it? My husband and I both enjoyed the parks but we're not superfans so I'm thinking wait until he's three? Any thoughts? We took our son the first time when he was 3 and a half, he loved it even though it was sensory overload for him. Going for our 4th time with him next weekend (he's 6 now). Some of the dark rides scared him at first but now he loves pretty much everything. Be prepared to cry when he first sees the characters up close, the reactions are priceless.
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Mar 1, 2014 15:05
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Roar posted:Earl of Sandwich, bar none. Earl of Sandwich is great, if you can deal with the insane line at the Downtown Disney location. I saw one of those food trucks the other day while I was down there, it's between World of Disney and Basin. Didn't look at the menu but I also didn't realize until reading the thread now that they are putting in more with selections from other restaurants.
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Mar 17, 2014 19:08
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mattfl posted:I needed a visit to the Lego Store and we still want to try out Splitsville. Splitsville is drat expensive, even with any AP/DVC discount. One hour of bowling plus 2 drinks and 2 appetizers ran us close to $200. Never again.
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Mar 18, 2014 00:47
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I've done dinner 3 times with 8:30 reservations at Epcot and have never been rushed or told we had to leave by a certain time. I've left at 945 and still been able to catch a monorail or bus.
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Apr 13, 2014 20:09
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Paul Allen posted:So Memory Maker...thoughts? Both for and against are welcome. Well it's cheaper than the standard photo pass, it includes all ride photos and lets you download every picture taken on property by a Disney photographer. The ride photos alone make it worth it I think.
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Apr 17, 2014 11:07
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