THEME PARK/ATTRACTION TICKETS ETC..

[sonata1]

Any advice on where to buy attraction tickets for Disney and Universal etc? Is it better to buy here or once we are in Florida? How about Fast passes? It's been years since we went to Orlando.

Check the Dibb forum - they know everything about Disney!

There are loads of sites to get them from. Attraction tickets direct are pretty good. I've found getting them over here saves money because you can get all in one tickets that include park hoppers etc something I believe you pay more for.over here. As for fast passes... disney now do fast pass plus where you book them in advance... I think 10 days and there's an app. As for universal it depends on the time of year you go. We went October and have only ever bought fast passes for special events because we really didn't need them. It is cheaper to get them in advance though if you want them.

Thanks for the information ! We are going out of season so maybe we won't need fast passes. We have already looked at Attraction tickets direct but will go back and take another look.The official Disney site (redirected from Disney itself) seems good too. There is no way to find out the actual gate price from the venue itself. Mmmmm....

I was in Florida in June, prices on the gate for Disney were expensive. It was around $99 plus tax for one day at Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom was $129 plus tax

Universal....its cheaper to buy a two park tickets for 14 days than pay on the gate.

I've been a few times 9 and always buy from Attractions Tickets direct, I've never had any issues and the free gifts are usually pretty good.

Thanks one and all. We have just bought over the phone from Attraction tickets direct. Disney plus Universal 14 day ticket. Very helpful lady with lots of experience of having been herself.So another thing ticked off. ESTAs now approved. Just need to do the DVLA code for the car hire.

You chose well OP I have always found ATD very good too

You won't need a code from DVLA.

Remember your API's too.

No DVLA code? I thought you had to register your details so that the car hire firm could check all your driving docs were in order?
API....yes I will check in online and do this.Thanks.

So long as you have your photocard or old paper license that's all they want to see, the guys behind the desk are more interested to try and give you the hard sell about upgrading, sat navs etc.

If you email the hire car company in the US they will tell you they won't require a code.

OK thanks BDH !

Book your car hire hire from the UK and you'll get all your insurances and extra drivers etc included - we used rentalcars.com. Have just returned from San Diego and Alamo did not require car hire codes (we had them just in case, it only takes 5 minutes to do on the DVLA website and the codes are good for 21 days). You will need your licence photo card, and it's useful as ID for hotels etc as it has your home address on it.

We got our Universal Studios tickets from Attraction Tickets, good price for two day entry tickets, although we could have got one day entry tickets slightly cheaper on the Univeral Studios website ($80 instead of $95).

And you will want FastPasses, no matter how out of season you travel. They're free so you might as well! Even in low season, a few rides can be a 2 hour wait!

DEF use Fastpasses and, if you can stay at a Universal hotel you get the Express passes free.

DH said he wouldn't do,Universal again without them!

How did you get on, Bacon? I hope you had a great time! Was the heat/humidity bearable? We've just got back from France where it was 95F and we are now feeling very nervous about our August trip next year! Still, got next month's trip to think about first

Hi Lucas we had an amaaaaaazing time thank you! I cried on a couple of occasions, the first incident was when we arrived at the Magic Kingdom on the first morning at about 7:30am, paying for parking

Loved every minute of it and we definitely want to return, although need to do a fair bit of overtime first

It was VERY hot, mid to late 30s. I took a photo of the car's thermometer when it read 101'F!

We tended to get to the parks for rope drop then leave around 3/4 o'clock, drink loads of water and we bought the water fan sprays, fabulous! $19 at Disney, $7 at Target! The DCs were brilliant and only moaned a couple of times.

I'm sure you'll be fine. I'd have no qualms about going back in August.

I'm now feeling very bereft of any Disney Planning Duties...........

the first incident was when we arrived at the Magic Kingdom on the first morning at about 7:30am, paying for parking confused

Because you were excited or because the parking is so expensive?

Did you find that the heat was bearable because you could escape it into air-conditioning quite often? That's what I'm hoping :)

I'm booking our first FPs tomorrow, yay! Although when you have annual passes it's a much more complicated process :(

Even off season some FP tickets are useful at Disney. Some of the most popular rides still will have reasonable waits. They are free to reserve and can be booked 30 days in advance, or 60 days if staying at a Disney hotel.

Last couple of times we bought our tickets direct with Disney and Universal as there was little difference, for the ones we choose.

In the past we have used Undercover Tourist and and American Attractions, with no hassle. We always make sure we get the real tickets to avoid having to go via the Will Call booths.

www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-disney-florida-theme-parks

Haha, lucas it was because I was excited and overwhelmed. I know,it sounds extremely naff but finally getting there after months of waiting and planning was a big thing for me!

Definitely yes to your question about the heat! Getting into a hot car after a day at a park was unbearable until the air con kicked in!

A top tip I found on the Dibb was to buy a cheap polystyrene cool box (ours cost $6) and fill with a few bottles of water that have spent the night in the freezer. Bliss

Wow, that's exciting re the FPs! Hope it goes well.

I wish I was booking FPs................