Anyone got a Disneyworld / Florida holiday planned - Part 4

[ChippyMinton]

Hope no-one minds if I start another thread as the old one is full?

Or are you all in Orlando now?

I'm afraid we're no help on that front. We tend to pay and then Dd sorts it out when home. She doesn't want to carry things round the park so doesn't have cash and cards on her. In the Disney parks she can pay using her magic and but that is our credit card.

We're on the way to the airport this evening; flight is at 1 tomorrow.

Nearly had a disaster. Was doing the check in with VA flights and mine, dh and dd's friends all went through fine but dd's kept asking for additional visa documentation information.

Suddenly dawned on me she had a new passport on January and her ESTA was in her old passport! So had to do a very quick esta application. Initially said it was pending and could take up to 72 hours. A few refreshes and it came through within 5 minutes so could finish check in. Phew! Could have been a disaster if we'd waited to check in at the airport!

So all ready now, and have two excited teens in the back of the car - Dd is excited because her friend is coming and her friend is excited for her first Disney/Universal and USA visit.

This time tomorrow we will be flying!

Ribbity for spending at wdw you just charge it all to to your magic band.

Caxton fx cards are great!

Thanks for the info, had forgotten about the magic bands and will look into the Caxton cards too.

We tried Toothsome Chocolate Emporium last night. We just did the counter service and sat in the cafe area at the front. Oh my word!!! The milkshakes and sundaes were so big. Had no idea they'd be quite so big. Delicious but massive.
We could have had one between us!

We ordered:
Strawberry shortcake sundae
Chocolate brownie milkshake
Espresso Buzz milkshake
Salted Caramel milkshake

No, we didn't manage it all!

The Disney parks are busy so far this week.
We went to Magic Kingdom on Sunday and the queue for the Snow White mine train was 160 minutes, though luckily we had fast pass.
At Epcot at present and sat in a 70-90 minute queue for Soarin'

Had Express pass for Universal parks yesterday but tbh could have done those without (back on Friday without) - those two parks are much quieter than the two Disney ones we've done so far.

We just got back! So glad we took the buggy (and wishing I had found this thread before!)

nunnthewiser.com/family/florida-fun-disneys-magic-kingdom/

25 days to go and booking Fastpasses is going well - very pleased to have got some for Froze Ever After!

Does anyone know if you can book fast passes for the duration of your holiday (once you get to the 60 day mark) or is it like the ADR's and you can only book the first 10 days and then daily after that?

I think it's the duration of your stay. We only went for a week - on way home from airport now - so not done a fortnight' booking for a while but seem to think it's the whole duration.

disneyworld.disney.go.com/faq/fast-pass-plus/product-description/

This suggests whole duration.

hi all - I am a single mum and taking my son who will be 7 in August staying at AKL for 10 nights.

Bit confused over fast passes and any recommendations for what don't miss things to FP for a 7 year old who will not be good at queuing!!

Your advice is appreciated

Thanks Hula.
Hope you've had a great holiday!

Lokijet - my advice would be to buy the Unnoficial Guide to Walt Disney World with kids book. It has a wealth of information about all the parks, rides, parades, restaurants etc.
Also, regarding rides, we looked at the Disney website and then searched them up on YouTube. It gave us an idea of what we would enjoy and then based our fast pass selections around that.
If you are staying in a WDW hotel then you can book your fast passes up to 60 days before online.

lokijet - find out how tall he is as the rides are based on height, and also the types of rides/shows he is likely to enjoy most. YouTube has a wealth of videos of pretty much all the rides, shows and events to get an idea.

Do you have the dining plan? If so - 180 days in advance you need to book, especially the popular places.
Fast pass is 60 days in advance.

You will need to make a plan of action - which parks, which days. Google a crowd calculator and you can work it from there, and you can also see which days have Magic Hours (early entry or late finishes) - decide which parks on which days and then you can plan food and rides.

If you let us know his height and ride preferences we can help you know which rides are most likely to have the worst queues.

Offhand without that info:

Magic Kingdom - 7 Dwarves Mine Train, Space Mountain and either Mine Train or Splash Mountain (if he likes bigger rides) otherwise rides like Peter Pan have huge queues. Restaurants depends on what you like. DD adores Beauty and the Beast so be Our Guest evening was a must for us where she met the beast and we also went for breakfast at the Royal Table. The Winnie the Pooh restaurant, Crystal Palace, was always good food if you want a character meal.

Animal Kingdom - the safari, Everest and either the rapids (if he likes getting soaked) or Dinosaur. You could go for FP for the shows though you don't really need to ime. If doing a dining plan or character meal I recommend breakfast at Tusker House - if its early you get to enter the park before it opens.

Epcot - this has two tier FP so is trickier - you can have one top tier and two others. The top tier include Frozen Ever After Test Track and Soarin'. I'd recommend Test Track most. Lots of eating options here - the Japanese tapenyaki is great, though we did a princess meal her at Akershuh this visit.

Hollywood Studios - again two tier. Depending on height and ride preferences use your top tier for Rock n Roller or Toy Story Mania. The others for Tower of Terror , etc.
Our favourite restaurant here is 50s Prime Time diner.

Hula - so how was your holiday?! Wanna hear all about it please!

It was fabulous, as ever. Was brilliant taking DD's friend (new to the US and Disney/Universal) and seeing it all through her eyes. She was enthralled every single day, exclaiming"I love it" "This is amazing" at every entrance, theming, show, ride, character experience, fireworks, etc. Saw her parents at parents evening tonight and they both say she has talked of nothing else since getting home.

Weather was excellent - was a shade temperature of about 28 each day bar one - that day it rained a lot but was still 24/25, so still shorts and t shirts but with a poncho added. It was Animal Kingdom that day so a lot is under cover and the park closes fairly early, so not really too big an issue in the end - bar wet!

We really liked the Old Key West resort - so much space, lovely lad back resort.

And we had a DDP for the first time - worked really well, though we hadn't realised you could use it for drinks the first couple of days. Also, as we had two days at Universal we did end up with loads left over,, snacks and Quick Service (which can be converted to 3 snacks per QS credit) - so on the last day the girls had about 60 snack credits to use up! They got lots of big lollies and treats to bring home for friends and family!

Anything in particular you want to know?

How were the crowds, Hula? Was it busy? I'm used to going in July / August so I'm hoping March will feel quiet by comparison...

Hi all, hope you don't mind me joining in. We're considering orlando next year (June 2018) and would love your thoughts. We're planning to stay on I Drive...... and to perhaps eat there as much as possible as I assume it may be cheaper than eating in Disney. We also considered staying in one of the cheaper Disney hotels. Any thoughts with this?

We want to visit the Disney and Universal parks, alongside the Kennedy centre. Is this doable in a two week stay. We're not too bothered about sea world.

We planned 100pound a day for food, this is for a family of four. Would this be ok?

We get free care hire but only at third party insurance..... for those who drive there, is it worth paying the extra for better insurance?

Thanks

little ostrich - it was busier than February half term last year. Although our half term was different to areas such as London, it was Presidents day over there and also it was the Disney Princess runs the final weekend. It is also celebrating Mardi Gras at this time too.

Magic Kingdom in particular was very busy, probably the busiest we have known it (been February, June, July and early August over past years.) Queues for rides such as the Seven Dwarves Mine Train was over 140 minutes, so I am glad we had FastPasses in place. Despite this we still did everything we wanted to and managed to see parades and fireworks with no issues despite not sitting and waiting for ages beforehand.

We had Express passes for one day at Universal but not the other (we planned on harry Potter many that day as express not valid for them.) the two universal parks were definitely quieter than Magic Kingdom and Epcot. Hollywood Studios and Animal kingdom were not bad at all - though it was a rainy day for AK.

Is March out of term time? Does it clash with any US holidays?

Inkpad - welcome!

We're planning to stay on I Drive...... and to perhaps eat there as much as possible as I assume it may be cheaper than eating in Disney. We also considered staying in one of the cheaper Disney hotels. Any thoughts with this?

Definitely cheaper to eat outside of the parks than in the parks, though you wouldn't want to be leaving and coming back much tbh. It would be hassle. But you could have breakfast out and dinner out, and then just one meal in the parks - go for snacks at trolley carts or Quick Service. You could look at hotel suites which have kitchen areas so could make breakfast in the room - or even a villa - they can be cheap as there are so many of them!

I haven't stayed in the cheaper Disney resorts but I assume they'd still be dearer than the I Drive hotels, though do take into account that the Disney hotels include your Disney parking - that is $20 a day. And with the Disney hotels you can use the transport to and from the hotel/airport, and between parks, resorts and Disney Springs fro free too. If you time it right you can get free dining plans - the budget and moderate do still offer these though are either snack only (some snacks are big!) or quick service only. Worth keeping an eye out for the deals.

We want to visit the Disney and Universal parks, alongside the Kennedy centre. Is this doable in a two week stay. We're not too bothered about sea world.

Definitely doable.
We've just been for a week and did 4 Disney parks and 2 Universal parks - a day in each, plus half day at Magic Kingdom on last day as flew home late.
When we go for a fortnight we always do the parks more than once each and add a day at the Space Centre - we love the space centre! We haven't done SeaWorld for over a decade and don't miss it. You would also be able to use the water parks too with most tickets - two Disney ones and a new Universal one opening in may. You'd have a bit more flexibility - most UK bought tickets are for 14 days (though you often get 14 days for price of 7.) We found we could only manage about 2-3 hours in the water parks as it gets so hot and busy.

We planned 100pound a day for food, this is for a family of four. Would this be ok?
How old are the children? Portions can be huge - they may be able to share.
You could manage this is eating off site and/or at home. Less likely in the parks. Also bear in mind that tips are expected for any table service, even if i a cheaper restaurant. You don't pay tis on counter service though. Tips are expected and it is recommended between 18-20% out of the time now.
At present the dollar is expensive for us, hopefully it will improve ver the next year.

We get free care hire but only at third party insurance..... for those who drive there, is it worth paying the extra for better insurance?
You really need to look at fully comp insurance tbh. Sometimes it is cheaper to book the car hire with fully comp insurance independently. We have done this before - just not picked up the 'free' car hire and sorted our own.

We're going in UK term time, but the American 'Spring Break' crowds are a bit difficult to interpret. Most things I've read suggest Spring Break is after we leave, but there seems to be some colleges that take it early, so we'll see. The main thing happening while we're there that may impact crowds is WWE Wrestlemania in Orlando - I believe there were some ticket packages that included Universal park tickets.

Countdown: 18 days!

Thanks for all the great info Hulababy. We are possibly considering not getting a car - feel that with the costs of parking at hotel and parks it becomes extremely expensive. May hire a car for two days for a trip down to the space centre. Do you think it's doable without a car? Thanks

If not staying in Disney accommodation you'd need to consider buses or taxis - not sure this are overly cheap though.

If staying in a Disney hotel then you can use Disney transport between the hotel and airports, parks and Disney Springs. The coaches run every 20 minutes or so normally. We used the coach one day to go fro our hotel to Epcot (so dh could have a drink) - going was fine and very easy, though the coaches get busy if you are at a popular hotel. Coming back after a late finish was a bit more tiresome - had to wait about 25 minutes for the coach, and some bus lines were really long, luckily ours wasn't too bad. We'd have been home much sooner by car. However, from a park such as Magic Kingdom it is probably quicker than car at times.

To get to Universal would be a little trickier. You can get some special ticket and transfer deals online BUT do check they are official authorised sellers. Most people seem to use taxis - Mears seems to be the main one. Not cheap though as have to pay both ways. You'd definitely need one for the space centre I would think.

TBH though cars are fairly inexpensive to hire. We just paid £150 to rent a car through Alamo for a week, then an extra $22 for prepaid fuel.

Parking at the parks is $20 per day (both Disney and Universal). However, if you stay at a Disney hotel parking is included at the Disney parks and resorts.

Parking is not included with Universal hotels though (we had to pay $20 per day at the hotel in additional to $20 per day we visited Disney when we stayed at Hard Rock last year)