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Original poster

Florida - am I being realistic?

83 replies

Lavendersquare · 19/05/2023 09:55

We are planning a Florida trip with DC 17 &12 we've never been before and not sure that we will go again so need to fit as much in as possible.

We plan to stay for 17 nights and want to do the following:

Disneyland - all parks
Universal
Cape Canaveral
Air boat trip - Everglades or similar
Beach - Clearwater beach for 2/3 nights

Our plan is to rent a villa/condo on one of the Orlando resorts, have 2 nights in Hard Rock Universal hotel (for the express passes) and relocate to the beach for the last 3 days for a relaxing end to the holiday.

My worry is that the list of things we want to do is unrealistic and is going to be completely exhausting.

Any thoughts?

OP posts:
DoneAdulting · 20/05/2023 12:58

I would imagine total cost for what you have planned to be around £20k with premium flights.

Easter is the second busiest time to go after Christmas, just bear that in mind.

There are three Universal hotels that offer express passes included so check the price of all three. Remember you still need park tickets too.

Please don't call it Disneyland, it's Walt Disney World Grin

ididntknowthat11 · 20/05/2023 13:27

Thank you @thecathasbeenfed, that's useful.

It will be a few years before we will be able to go, so it will give us some time to save. We also won't be staying anywhere fancy Grin

I realise it costs what it costs for the parks etc but will try and keep costs down in other ways, hopefully.

Qilin · 20/05/2023 13:49

Lavendersquare · 20/05/2023 11:32

Thanks again for all the comments and suggestions I do really appreciate it.

I'm thinking of splitting the 2 nights at Hard Rock hotel because I think you get the complimentary express passes on your check in day and the day after. Is this correct? If it is I think splitting the days would give us 4 days of express passes whereas 2 nights would only give us 3 days of express passes.

Also wondering how the above works if you can't check in until the afternoon??

You can check in earlier in the day. You just can't get your room until then, but you can get your express tickets earlier though.

ukhgf · 20/05/2023 13:50

@Lavendersquare it's the disability pass if you've got anyone in your party that would struggle to stand in a queue for long periods.

Original poster
Lavendersquare · 20/05/2023 14:23

ukhgf · 20/05/2023 13:50

@Lavendersquare it's the disability pass if you've got anyone in your party that would struggle to stand in a queue for long periods.

That's me! With my dodgy knee, unfortunately not bad enough for blue badge so unlikely to count.

OP posts:
omnishambles · 20/05/2023 14:30

Lavendersquare · 20/05/2023 11:32

Thanks again for all the comments and suggestions I do really appreciate it.

I'm thinking of splitting the 2 nights at Hard Rock hotel because I think you get the complimentary express passes on your check in day and the day after. Is this correct? If it is I think splitting the days would give us 4 days of express passes whereas 2 nights would only give us 3 days of express passes.

Also wondering how the above works if you can't check in until the afternoon??

So you can check in to HRH at 7am I the morning,leave your luggage there and go straight to the parks. When you come back later or in the middle of the day you can sort your rooms out. That was you will get 3 days of parks out of 2 nights. The other way round you check out at 7 in the morning and get them to hold your luggage.

I would drop everglades and canaveral as well btw. I can recommend madeira beach and that area for the beach stay.

On BA premium economy not worth it. On virgin its better but economy delight would probably be good enough.

WhatWouldTheDoctorDo · 20/05/2023 14:42

@Lavendersquare on the express passes at universal, unless it's changed, you still need to buy your park tickets separately, so if you split your stay for four days of express passes instead of three you'll need 4 days of tickets rather than three. I wouldn't split the stay tbh, we stayed for two nights at universal hotel and it was good to be able to go back to hotel for an hour or so to use pool, freshen up etc. You don't have that option the same way if you're checking out (they do let you use facilities on check out day, but you have to store luggage and won't have your own room). And it's so easy to be so close to the parks for a couple of days without the faff of changing accommodation after one night. We checked in at 7am when we arrived, it was pretty slick and we were at one of the parks for opening.

fumpster · 20/05/2023 14:43

I hate waterparks as the flumes terrify me but I loved volcano Bay. They have a water roller coaster. It was amazing

Original poster
Lavendersquare · 20/05/2023 15:07

Why is premium economy not worth it on BA? We were planning on flying either BA or Virgin and there is a big difference in prices to upgrade from economy so I don't want to pay for something we do t actually need.

OP posts:
ukhgf · 20/05/2023 15:18

That's me! With my dodgy knee, unfortunately not bad enough for blue badge so unlikely to count.

You don't need any kind of diagnosis or prescribed condition, they have strict privacy rules that mean they can't ask for proof, they just ask why you would struggle to queue, it's more about the issue you will face than the condition if that makes sense. We got it based on ADHD. It's worth trying but just to warn you mobility issues don't always meet the criteria because they will suggest renting a wheelchair or scooter as their rides are accessible in that regard.

fumpster · 20/05/2023 15:41

Lavendersquare · 20/05/2023 15:07

Why is premium economy not worth it on BA? We were planning on flying either BA or Virgin and there is a big difference in prices to upgrade from economy so I don't want to pay for something we do t actually need.

We've flown every class on BA longhaul. BA premium gives you a leg stool you pull out from your seat. The stool is at an angle, you cannot have it flat to rest your legs like you would for a reclining chair/sofa. I found I was slipping down it. Not comfortable at all. You get drinks on demand. You do get the option to book 2 seats at the side together which was the only thing I thought was decent. You have to pay extra to reserve specific seats. We paid £130, one way, on top of the airfare, to book specific seats. The food is served in the same style as per world traveller, albeit the food is a little bit better but still not worth the extra money.

We save airmiles to fly business or first

NotLovingWFH · 20/05/2023 17:08

We’ve done Florida a few times and tbh with kids the age of yours I’d think Universal is way better and most of Disney will be a bit meh (unless they’re really into Disney). If it’s all about the rides then universal wins hands down for for older kids and the water park is brilliant. Staying in a premium hotel is excellent idea for the fast pass tickets which you will definitely need. Premium economy flights are a bonus if you can afford them but we’ve only flown with Tui, I’m sure Virgin would be very good but not heard good things about BA.

fumpster · 20/05/2023 17:16

@Lavendersquare rather than book BA premium, I would book the front (bulk) seats in world traveller. When we flew premium earlier this year, we wished we had done this and saved our money

Livinginanotherworld · 20/05/2023 17:21

I’d definitely avoid spring break for Disney, queues will be horrendous. We did all the parks including universal with 3 weeks and very little downtime, it’s exhausting but your kids are older. Definitely premium if you can stretch your budget. Agree with checking out the the dibb for all things Disney.

Ihaveaskedyouthrice · 20/05/2023 17:35

Personally I'd skip Clearwater. We did Hard rock hotel and Universal, Caribbean cruise and then 4 nights in Clearwater at the end. DH and I both hated it and it felt like such an anti climax after the rest of the holiday.

omnishambles · 20/05/2023 18:09

Why not PE on BA? because it isn't very good. If you just need legroom and nothing else then economy delight on virgin or hubby in PE on virgin and you in economy.

I wouldn't split my universal stay either. We rope dropped each morning and then volcano bay in the afternoon.

CarbonNeutral · 20/05/2023 18:20

We're going this August and are staying g at the Royal pacific in universal for 1 night to get 2 days of unlimited express pass. Can we use the express pass at volcano bay?

TallerThanAverage · 20/05/2023 18:52

Lavendersquare · 19/05/2023 10:06

My other question is whether it's worth paying extra for premium economy seats? DH really wants to do this because he's tall and wants to be as comfortable as possible.

We’ve gone for economy delight which has an extra 3” leg room. I did ask a travel YouTube creator how tall they were and how the legroom compared with economy and he said that the legroom was sufficient for him and he is 6’4”

allthewoes · 20/05/2023 18:54

Easily doable in 17 days I'd say. You can use the Disney water parks as a "rest day" in between the parks.

PoolSafety · 20/05/2023 19:02

Please don't do sea world. Or at least watch black fish before you do.

MrsMitford3 · 20/05/2023 19:05

There are facebook groups like Brits in Disney Florida or something like that and they are so so knowledgable and informative

they can give you lots of help

mathanxiety · 20/05/2023 19:06

rainraingoawaay · 19/05/2023 10:56

At Easter, there's spring break + Easter holidays so it can be mega mega busy, I'd just build that into your time frames 😊

Show quote history

Spring break and Easter don't necessarily coincide, and Americans don't get an extended Easter break.

That being said, Easter is on March 31st next year and you may well find it crowded because of spring break.

OhcantthInkofaname · 20/05/2023 19:33

There are plenty of Condo rentals in the Orlando area. Some you could rent for the entire time and not have to transfer.

As for going to Disney World and all of their parks, I would plan for 2 days at Epcot (1 Future World + 1 World Showcase), 1 @ Magic Kingdom (due to age of your children), Animal Kingdom 1, and Hollywood Studio 1. Substitute Blizzard Beach for your days at a real beach. Its got everything including the best lazy river. I do like staying on Disney property for the dining plan. The vacation planners employed by Disney are really good at helping you design a trip.

Think 3 days at Universal.

I'm not sure I'm available for DM's but I've been to Disney world area about 17 times. That includes with tweens, teens and adults only. If you are going in October that's the adult time for the food and wine festival at Epcot.

My3cents1 · 20/05/2023 19:52

@jeaux90 Im from that area. You made a great choice. Siesta Key is beautiful, especially the quartz sand. It’s cool and soft like baby powder. You will love it I’m sure.

QueSyrahSyrah · 20/05/2023 19:58

fumpster · 20/05/2023 17:16

@Lavendersquare rather than book BA premium, I would book the front (bulk) seats in world traveller. When we flew premium earlier this year, we wished we had done this and saved our money

DH and I always do this on long-haul. I'd love PE (got upgraded once due to a last minute change of aircraft) but I can just never justify the cost. On our honeymoon last year just the upgrade cost was more than the whole all inclusive week in Mauritius again. We book bulkhead extra legroom in economy which is usually around £100pp per way extra and it's perfect.