Have you been to Disneyland florida?

[Lwrenagain]

If so, was it worth it?

Looking last night at booking 2 weeks in florida and with passes to disneyland & universal, for my family I was getting quotes upto 30k which shook me 😂

That was on the disneyland site however so I'm sure I can find it cheaper.

The most exotic place I went to as a kid was Blackpool, so even looking at holidays abroad feels very out my comfort zone.

If you've been was it worth it?
How did you book it?
Is there loads of different parks, or a giant one?
Does it take a long time to get to the parks?
Is sealife ethical? (Sorry, loaded question, definitely not goady, I've just read things making it seem questionable)
What age ideally would DCs benefit?
Is car hire essential?

Basically any recommendations, experiences or suggestions or ideas you may have I'd love to hear.
Thanks!

It was a few years ago, but I found it disappointing and expensive. That part of Florida isn't that exciting either. For the money, you could go somewhere really exciting.

Yes I have, and I don't think so but appreciate we all like different things from a holiday.

I stayed at Universal so had the 2 parks there within a 5 minute stroll. We got taxis over to WDW, which took about 30 mins and I just found it faff. I didn't enjoy it over there at all as it was too busy and I'm not fond of the sugary coated forced fun of Disney. If you stay at a Disney property they operate free buses to their parks, of which there's 4 main ones.

Seaworld is not ethical.

Car hire isn't essential if you're staying in a hotel but definitely makes life easier. I couldn't envisage staying in a villa without car hire.

It's disneyworld op haha you'll definitely be able to get it cheaper than that - my family of 6 costs 5k and we're choosing to take 10k spends (but can do it much cheaper)

I've been twice and I really enjoyed it.

I booked on TUI this time but in the past I've booked separate using Skyscanner, net flights and booking or any other hotel website.

There's six parks - magic kingdom, Epcot, animal kingdom and Hollywood studios plus two water parks.

It depends where you stay with how long it takes but a lot of hotels offer (usually inconvenience) free shuttles but you can use Uber and taxi services which are reasonable.

Never been to the sealife centre, don't agree with it personally.

I'd say starting from 3 or 4 DC will benefit but it is magical for all ages.

I've never hired a car and have been fine.

I always stay off site and I've never found it difficult.

Firstly is Disney world in Florida, Disney land is either california or Paris.
Firstly do you love Disney? If you aren't that keen it's probably not the holiday for you.

We did a week in Feb half term for £6k. We didn't to universal. We stayed off site and I loved it as did the kids.
You don't need to stay on site, buy the food packages etc. Have a look on the virgin holiday website for flights and villas and attractions tickets for cheaper tickets. Also there are many Facebook groups you can join to ask questions.

It depends on what you and your kids like, I think. Mine love characters/shows/fireworks and rides. They don’t yet have the patience or desire to visit historical sites/museums and are too young/ASD for city breaks and get bored at all inclusive/holiday resorts. So for us, it’s worth it.

We never do sea life, Disney world has numerous parks/water parks. Universal has two and a water park. We find staying on site at Disney, for the ease of their transport best then stay at universal hard rock for two nights to benefit from speedy passes/early entry best.

I went last year with my family and we loved it. We only went to the Magic Kingdom but I have previously been to the rest.
Be prepared for everything being VERY expensive and for the queues to be quite long, unless you purchase fast passes.

Not loads of shade so bear in mind in the heat. Unless you find a nice shady table at one of the restaurants.

We went in February and the place was heaving.

Better to rent a car I think. We stayed in a little hotel in Kissimmee rather then inside Disney itself. Lovely hotel only 15 mins drive away. PM me if you would like the name of it!

In a nutshell I'm so glad we did it, it was an amazing experience.

There’s a website called the DIBB which is very helpful for all things Disney.

I wouldn’t bother taking very young children, I’d say 4 years minimum to really appreciate the experience.

30k seems ridiculous, is that staying on a Disney hotel property? They will be much more expensive. There’s a lot of cheaper hotel/motels in the area. You probably don’t need a car as hotels have shuttle buses to the parks.

There’s loads of separate Disney parks and Universal ones. Nothing is too far away.

So, the one in Florida is Disney World. There are 4 Disney parks, 2 Disney water parks, 2 Universal parks and 1 Universal water park. Plus unlimited other things like Gatorland, loads of museums and small attractions, shopping etc.

ive been about 6 times now. Typically I book everything separately myself to get the best deal, but I’ve also used travel agents when I need to pay a deposit and pay it off gradually.

time to get to parks will depend where you stay. I’ve been in villas where it takes 45 mins, and I’ve been in Disney hotels where it’s a short walk. I personally wouldn’t stay on site at Disney again unless I found the deal of a lifetime - just too expensive. If one of you drives, I’d recommend a car hire and a cheap hotel on I Drive. Most hotels do shuttle runs though.

SeaWorld is gradually getting rid of their more controversial exhibits, and turning into more of a theme park which happens to have fish. I have been many years ago, but I don’t go anymore for various reasons.

I’ve seen deals for £1000 each for 7 nights - that’s flights, 7 nights in Disney Hotel and 7 day Disney pass - so it is possible to get bargains! On average I pay about £2000-2500 total for my flights, 2 weeks hotel, 2 weeks park tickets and a cheap car hire.

Yes we have been. We have also been to the Paris one which I prefer. The Paris one is the same size as one of the kingdoms in Florida. What you have to remember is this is not a relaxing holiday. You will be busy and walk many miles !

I’ve been a few times and I absolutely love it. We’re planning on going with the kids in a couple of years, however it’s going to be extremely expensive.

If you’re considering going, I’d recommend getting yourself a copy of the Brits guide and reading it cover to cover. It’ll give you a really good insight into travel/ hotels/ parks etc which might help you make a decision.

Minor detail It is Disney World in Florida and Disney Land in California . It is the most amazing place and we have had many awesome holidays over there. Don’t be in a rush to book before doing loads of research. Look at forums such as the Disboards there are many others

Book your flights and car hire yourself as a package. It usually works out better. Deciding when to go is very important. We like the end of August as while there is a slight chance of a hurricane the weather is better and the parks are not as crowded

We've been about 14 times now because we love it, so maybe a little bit one sided on my part but I will try to help a bit.

£30k can easily be cheaper. We always book our hotel & tickets directly through Disney but then buy our flights separately (always fly Virgin Atlantic, but you can get cheaper again).

You could also look for hotels/resorts off Disney property which do come in a lot cheaper. Some hotels near Disney Springs (the shopping and restaurant area) have partnership deals with Disney, so you do get some of the extra perks that the Disney hotel guests get.

On your first day, get to a Walmart and buy a load of snacks & bottled drinks. Cheaper to do it this way than buying them in the parks. Although if you're just drinking water, you can get free cups of ice water at most food counters in the parks.

100% worth it for us as a family. We've been loads but still find lots of new things to do. We venture outside the parks too, so we'll do Disney & Universal, but we have also stayed in a Radisson hotel near Port Canaveral for a few days, hired a car & had beach days, visited Kennedy Space Center, shopping trips etc.

We've also done a few Disney cruises from Port Canaveral to their island in the Bahamas. The cruises are amazing, but an added expense.

Disney have 4 parks plus 2 water parks. Get the best ticket you can afford, so park hopper, 14 day ticket.
Universal have 2 parks & 1 water park.
If you stay on Disney property they put on buses, boats, monorail or skyliner depending which hotel you're in & never takes a long time to get to parks. The furthest away from most parks was the Animal Kingdom Lodge, because they have animals on that property the hotel is further out. Our favourite hotel is Yacht & Beach Club, but Port Orleans French Quarter is also lovely. Saratoga Springs is great location etc but very difficult to get a room now because they release a lot of their rooms for the Disney Vacation Club now, which is like a Disney timeshare scheme.
Universal takes a bit longer to get to, but off the top of my head I think it is around a 45 minute car ride. We always book an Uber for this, but I know you can get buses from certain locations.
Don't go to Seaworld. If you do want to go to a sealife center, do Discovery Cove. It's beautiful and they have limited numbers every day, so doesn't get busy. It is expensive though on top of all the other expenses.

Age wise is a difficult one for me to answer because we have been taking our children since they were babies. Our oldest was 6 the first time we went, but our youngest was not even 1. I will say though that we all love it there and we all love to go back as often as possible. They both love most of the rides so that makes it easier. When they're smaller it can be a pain not being able to go on certain rides, but there's so much to do in each park they would soon get over the disappointment of missing out on one or two rides.

Car hire is not essential. The only time we have ever hired a car is when we stayed in Port Canaveral for a few days, but even then we could have easily just used Uber. We have never hired a car while staying on Disney property.

I could go on and on! Please ask any questions as you think of them & I'll come back when I think of other tips/tricks :)

Wow thank you so much for responses!
It seems more like preparing for a battle than a holiday there is so much to navigate 😂🙈

Definitely lots to look into!

What's insane is, 30k could buy a flat where I live 😂

I'd definitely look at not staying on the resort and a hotel, and weirdly, my kids or me arent Disney fanatics, we like it but not crazy, but with some of the kiddos being ASD it seems as though it would be quite a good holiday keep them entertained.

It sounds the least relaxing holiday ever though, plus, I hate rides 😂

I've been several times. I've stayed in hotels on International Drive and also in villa's with pools. If you are in a villa, you will need a car. You can stay on I drive though and use public transport to get everywhere.

We took the kids when the youngest was just 2 years old (almost 3) and the oldest was 4. The Disney parks are best for this age group, mostly Magic Kingdom. However, when we went when they were older, we preferred the Universal parks - the rides were so much better.

I would book with Virgin or TUI.

If you want to do this kind of holiday a bit cheaper, have you looked at Port Aventura in Spain? I have been there as well, and it's just as good as the American Parks (whereas Disneyland Paris is crap). You can stay at a hotel in Salou and a little Land Train will take you to the park each day. We stayed at the H10 Salou Princess (iirc) and the train stopped opposite the hotel. It was brilliant. Then you can also have pool days or beach days, and you get all of the lovely Spanish summer holiday vibe as well. We did the park during the day, then back to the hotel for a swim and dinner, followed by live music outside. The second time we went, we hired a villa within striking distance of the park.

Honestly, OP, I would really think about whether you and/or the children really like all things Disney and, if some of the kids have ASD, whether they will cope with the heat, crowds and endless queueing. I mean, I don't think it's helpful to think of it as the biggest, most fab treat holiday ever that you can give your children, regardless of their quirks and preferences, any more than I would expect my ideal holiday (art tour of Italy/walking in the Pyrenees/renting a lighthouse) to suit everyone, everywhere, regardless of their interests.

Yes - Disneyland in Orlando as a 17 y.o. (20 years ago ); it was magical. What they have designed and built there is absolutely jaw dropping and incredible.
I cannot wait to take my son there when he's a little older. It will be DH's first time too and I'm excited for him to see it

And yes queues were insanely long. I remember waiting 2.5 hours for the Shrek 4D show/ride.
Overall we spent 2 or 3 days there and don't think covered everything.

I went twice as a child. Once at 7, and again at 11. Obviously, I look at it through rose-tinted glasses, but it was one of my most memorable and exciting memories from childhood.

30 years later, we - as a family - still talk and reminisce about those holidays.

The only change I'd make would have been to be a little bit older the first time I went. I was an averagely tall 7 year old, but was a bit small for some of the rides, and particularly in the water parks, found some of the rides a bit intense/scary for a smaller person. I feel like I'd have been better off being 9 or 10.

Yes, we've been a few times. We stay in a villa nearby (nothing like getting a takeaway from nearby and going back to the villa and relaxing in the pool after a full day at Disney)
We usually do a day in each of Disney/Epcot/MGM and then in between visit a mall, go to Kennedy Space Centre etc. Last time we did a week in the villa then did a cruise of Oasis of the Seas to relax for a week before flying home.
We always hire a car. Roads are wider and it's less busy than on UK roads a lot of the time!

We've done it a few times and it's not expensive as others say if you don't fall for the gimmicks! All hotels around Kissimmee and Celebration are geared up for Disney. Most are much nicer then Disney hotels which are actually pretty basic and expensive. All hotels have Free shuttle busses etc. They all weave a little of the Disney magic like Mickey pancakes for breakfast.

Car hire cheap, but parking at Disney is expensive - but once you pay for a day you can come and go, even to other parks so it's nice to be able to book rides, go early leave early and come back for fireworks/parades. Surprisingly Downtown Disney is actually alright in evenings for a walk and dinner. Epcot is actually lovely for food and drink. Locals with season tickets just go there to eat and drink at the many international restaurants. Sometimes have food festivals. Some resultants like the French one have perfect views of fireworks so you can get a table by the window and have dinner with a show!

Food and drink at Disney isn't as overpriced then food and drink at UK theme parks! Water fountains everywhere (that Americans don't touch) so we take bottles. Though you can buy massive cup for soda and get free teeth rotting refills everywhere. Even the themed high end restaurants like The Brown Derby as actually reasonable and quite nice!

We use Orlando as a base, after a week we get a bit sick of Disney (though a week's pass is virtually same price as 2 weeks so we always get 2). Then in second week we just go to a park for a couple of rides in morning and do something else with the day.

Shopping at outlet malls are awesome, crazy cheap. We bring a spare suitcase and load up!!!

Lots of day trips to places like Clearwater which is stunning and a lovely drive.

Americans really buy into the whole Disney thing, which as Brit gets a bit griding as we are far more cynical hehe

We went in 2020. The prices have gone up so much since then it's ridiculous.
There is no way of doing it cheaply. The park ticket themselves are £1000 each
30k seems excessive though. You should be able to do it for half that
Is it worth it? Depends on whether you can comfortably afford it or not. I'd say it's not worth sacrificing day to day activities for

I went when I was 12 (just over 30 years ago!) and absolutely loved it. It was a very special holiday for me as I went with my mum and she went all out to make sure we saw as much as possible, not just Disney World. We also visited some other parts of Florida including Sarasota and the Everglades. I would love to go again so that my DC can experience it but it is just so expensive and I worry that my DC, who has SEN, may struggle with the heat and long wait for rides.

Oh - and in terms of price we did investigate recently and could definitely do it for £6-7k max including park tickets. £30k is just ridiculous.

We've been twice, some 20 years apart, first as a couple, then as a family.

Well worth going, but you can do it far cheaper than that.

Staying in the resort hotels is insanely expensive and unnecessary. Yes, there are benefits if you want the full "immersive" experience, but you have to pay the price.

First time we stayed in motels as we were in Orlando as part of a more extensive holiday in Florida which included the Tampa area, Fort Launderdale and Miami. We stayed in Orlando for a few days when we first arrived, did a couple of the theme parks, then stayed another few nights at the end and did other parks. Second time we stayed in a "villa" which was basically a 3 bedroom terraced house on a secure complex with pool, etc.,

If you're not staying in a resort hotel, then, yes, a car is essential, it's easy to drive and park in the theme parks, just very busy. With a car, you can also explore other things, we went to the Kennedy Space Centre, Air boat alligator watching, the coast, etc. on days between going to the theme parks, and of course there are other theme parks besides the Disney ones! Obviously you don't need a 14 day entry ticket if you're doing other things on some days - maybe get a shorter duration ticket or a couple of say 3 day tickets, one for the first week, one for the second, so you can do other things.

For us, one day in each theme park was adequate. Yes, they can be busy, but if you plan, you can do plenty in a day, as you're unlikely to want to do every ride anyway.

Personally, the idea of staying in a resort hotel and going into the parks every day would fill me with horror. There's so much else to see in Orlando, and Florida in general. You really shouldn't go without going to the Kennedy Space Centre. Orlando and Disney in particular is all very artificial.