Too much choice ! Help me please Orlando Theme Parks. August (aaghhh)

[PistePrincess]

dh and I have decided ( well I have and he's agreed) that this summer we should go to Disney World in Orlando... has to be August sadly. We have 3 kids who will be 10, 7 and 4.

I have been madly researching and my questions are divided in to

package or self book?
Hotel or villa ( given that the kids will prob all stay up late with us anyway)

If hotel which ?????
if villa where????

Do we need visa's

thank you so much to anyone with a reply

Hi,

The visa waiver scheme to the US has now been replaced by the ESTA.

If you go to the US all five of you will need to apply online for an ESTA which is the US's travel authorisation. This is valid for two years. The children will each need their own passport and it must be valid for at least 3 months after they return to the UK.

(An interview to obtain a visa at the US embassy would not be necessary unless there are previous criminal convictions excluding parking offences).

Would book asap for August as many flights there will likely be full or near capacity.

Villa will give more flexibility in terms of accomodation/space than a hotel room. You will need to drive though as many villas are not within easy reach of any other transportation.

Try to fly into Orlando itself if at all possible. BA and Virgin are the only two UK based carriers that fly into Orlando.

Hi,

The visa waiver scheme to the US has now been replaced by the ESTA.

If you go to the US all five of you will need to apply online for an ESTA which is the US's travel authorisation. This is valid for two years. The children will each need their own passport and it must be valid for at least 3 months after they return to the UK.

(An interview to obtain a visa at the US embassy would not be necessary unless there are previous criminal convictions excluding parking offences).

Would book asap for August as many flights there will likely be full or near capacity.

Villa will give more flexibility in terms of accomodation/space than a hotel room. You will need to drive though as many villas are not within easy reach of any other transportation.

Try to fly into Orlando itself if at all possible. BA and Virgin are the only two UK based carriers that fly into Orlando.

Well first. OMG! Disney in August? You is going to be standing in line for a lo-o-o-n-g time.

Perhaps try and go towards the end of August when American schools will have gone back and it may be (marginally) quieter?

I would say Villa with a pool because you can go back and chill at the end of the day. Don't underestimate how exhausted you will be traipsing round the parks - they are huge!

I have always self booked because we also go elsewhere in the States, but Kenwood and Virgin do reasonable packages to Orlando.

(Although we have stayed in one of the Disney hotels which have fab pools, but could only stick that for a few days.)

Also, don't forget, there is more to Orlando than the theme parks.

There is a fantastic state park with a lovely swimming creek and lots of nature trails- a great antitidote to the MADNESS of Orlando- which is kind of like Gt Yarmouth with sunshine.

Having said that, the parks are exciting - my kids fave is actually Universal's Islands of Adventure - smaller and more manageable than the bigger parks, but fantastic fun.

You won't need visas (presume you hold British passports?) But be prepared for the horror that is flying from Gatwick in the summer. And Orlando airport is huge - just be prepared for a tiring journey, Chill at your villa for a few days and then muster your energy for the parks.

Good luck!

Lucky you! But, it will be very hot, so Merrylegs is right, a villa with a pool is great to get away from the crowds. We tended to go to the parks early in the day, and came home at about 3 when we had all had enough, or had a chill out day at home, then you can always go out again later, back to the parks if you want for the firework displays. They are open later in the summer. We went in May and sometimes went to the parks at the end of the day when lots of people are leaving and the queues are less.

Villas are great, well equipped, but no welcome packs in the ones we went to (Virgin), not so good if you are arriving late at night, and you are all too tired to go to a supermarket, but starving and thirsty! Virgin are very good, if you need to phone them here, do it Sunday morning,so you don't have to wait in a telephone queue for hours.

We got a really good book, Brits Guide to Orlando, and the first time, got them to do us an itinerary, told them what we wanted to see and they organised it around the parks' less busy days. You don't have to stick to it of course, but it's full of really good tips, like making straight for the most popular ride immediately - no queues!
Outside the parks we really enjoyed the Kennedy Space centre, but don't think that would appeal to your 4 year old.

Swimming with the dolphins at Discovery Cove is fantastic but pricey, we did it as a one-off, and its beautiful and not crowded. Sea World is our very favourite place - do the Shamu show late in the day. Agree again with Merrylegs about Islands of Adventure, loads to see and do. Don't try and cram everything in, you just can't see it all and everyone gets 'parked out'and overtired.

Foodwise, we liked Bob Evans diners - nice big salads if you want them!

Ooh, also, if you live near Gatwick and fly Virgin, you can do twilight check in the night before and just walk through without the queuing in the morning, it's brilliant!
Sorry if I've gone on.....and on, have a great time!

self book, villa, kissimee. stop off at a 24/7 on your way. They are pretty cheap too, so getting one with a pool is affordable and lovely for the mornings.

food - mac grill and some fabulous italians.
I never want to ever see another taco bell as long as I live. Oh and fantastic junky breakfast places - denny's hash brown things were lovely.

I'd find other things to do too for breaks from parks.

btw cautions also count with the american visa waiver scheme. Dp has one, but did the waiver scheme anyway and we were terrified he was going to get refused entry! Was ok though.

Lucky you - we're hopefully off there again next Easter time.

I wouldn't worry unduly about booking flights immediately. When I went last time with DD in August 2007 it was a spur of the moment choice and I booked everything three weeks before we left. We flew from Gatwcik with US Airways (had to change onto a connecting flight in Philadelphia which was a bit of a drag) and the flights were fairly cheap.

We went over there around 14th August and had an amazing time - most of the American children were back at school so there were hardly any queues at all at any of the parks. We had brilliant weather too, but be warned, my cousin went the same time the following year and it was full-on hurricane season - they had nothing but rain

I booked all the components of the trip through Expedia and bought the tickets for the parks separately. We stayed in a hotel which was beautiful - OmniOrlando at Championsgate. Lovely food, lovely hotel, gorgeous pool. It was good for me and DD as I'm a lone parent and it was just the two of us so staying at a hotel was a lot more social than if we'd had a villa.

I'd definitely recommend purchasing 'The Brit's Guide to Orlando' - it's available from Amazon or there's a website too: www.askdaisy.net/orlando/
The guide was invaluable and it's worth sitting down a few weeks before you go, planning your itinerary roughly each day. You need to be organised if you're only there for a limited time period, because there's so much to do, it's a shame to miss out on anything!

The best parks that we found were:

Magic Kingdom (make sure you go when there's the 'Wishes' firework display in the evening)

Islands of Adventure (absolutely amazing rides - next to Universal Studios)

Universal Studios

Sea World

Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach (but I know that Aquatica has recently opened and that looks very cool!)

MGM (which has changed its name I think to Hollywood Studios?)

We didn't have time to do Epcot or Animal Kingdom but they're on the list for next time.

Busch Gardens is great too - about an hour's drive from Orlando, near Tampa.

Have a great time!

We stayed in an apartment in Kissimmee that we found on the internet. Was fairly cheap (although was Feb not Aug), huge, 15 min drive from Disney and had a pool and tennis courts etc. When I saw the Disney hotels - what you get for the money etc - I was very glad we didn't choose to stay in one.

You have to go to Disney's Magic Kingdom, though . Your little ones will especially like it.

I was totally underwhelmed by Epcot as was 3 yr old DS, but slightly older children might like it (?)

Universal Studios was good fun - probably the best we went to. Something for everything. We went back three days in a row. There's Islands of Adbemture which is a proper theme park - your 10 yr old will adore this. Then the other bit (name escapes) which is good for all age groups.

Animal Kingdom - your older kids will like it. My 3 yr old was a bit bored, to be honest.

Wet N Wild is good fun, too. Might be a bit hot in Aug
( was 80-ish in Feb) but we spent two whole days there.

Ah, I am envious. I never thought in a million years I would ever enjoy Disney/Orlando, but it was one fo the best holidays we have ever had.

Dont bother with Epcot, it was a waste of a day IMO (although the World showcase at Epcot was really good).

Magic Kingdom, Animal Kindom and both of the Universal parks were by far the best theme park.

this is so ,so great THANK you !

No votes for the Disney hotels then - are the 'perks' you get with that ( ? extra hours/free transport) not worth it ?

Oh yes, sorry.

We stayed at Disneys Port Orleans hotel and I would jump at the chance to stay there again, if only for the extra hours at the theme parks.

So yes to Disney hotel!

You will have a fantastic time but you need to prepared for the weather in Forida in August. It is very hot and humid, your Dcs will need to drink water, water and more water all day as humidity is very dehydrating. Also, it is very busy and you will have to stand in queues for a long time so be prepared!

The water parks are great in the heat but sometimes close by 10 am at that time of year due to the sheer number of visitors so go early. All of the theme parks are great and have something for everyone. My Dds love Islands of Adventure and Magic Kingdom.

We always stay in apartments in Lake Buena Vista, closer to Disney than villas and we can get away from the parks when we feel like it.

You will never see everything so pick your most want to sees and stick with them. Try and get to the parks when they open and go to your favourite rides first. The Brits Guide (awful title) is a really helpful book and will tell you which are the best days to visit certain parks and which rides get busy first. Also has lots of other useful info. for first timers!!

Outside of Disney, assuming you have a car, I would recommend a Boggy Creek Airboat Ride. Great fun and something different to Disney. A morning shopping at the malls is fun, although exchange rate not so good at moment, there are still bargains to be had. The factory outlet mall at the bottom of international drive is good.

There are lots of fantastic restaurants in Florida and even the 'posh' ones welcome children. You definately do not have to live on burger and chips. There are some fantastic fish restaurants.

Have a great time.

Fultons Crab House at Downtown Disney gave me the greatest Crab and Lobster I have ever experienced in my life. We went back there twice. Mmmmmm.

Fultons Crab House is fab

We are planning on going end of July/beg August too.

We have done some online and via travel agent research. We have found that this year it is cheaper to book independently and not as a package. The packages are coming out a few hundred pound dearer.

In the past we have done villas which have been great. If there are a few of you this is especially good. However this year it is just me, DH and 6y DD so we have opted for a Disney hotel. I didn't want a non Disney apartment or hotel, so if I wasn't having a villa with pool I wanted Disney hotel.

We have looked at Animal Kingdom and Caribbean Beach. It is cheapest to book direct through the Disney website at present. DD really wants to stay in a pirate of the Caribbean room . I think DH is being convinced by her esp as it is cheaper Disney hotels include the price of the Disney parking and free use of Disney transport.

If bbooking a Disney hotel it s currently 14 dys for the price of 10, and a 14 day Disney ticket for the price of 7. Ths deal is on until end of this month.

Virgin flights are coming out cheapest - £2176 for 3 of us going on 31st July for 14 nights. The travel agents found this too. They also fly to Orlando rather than Sanford, which is closer so good. The flights have changed in price since December.

Car hire is not expensive particularly and will be very easy to get.

This year is coming out about £1000 more than the last time we went, 2 years ago.

We love Epcot!

We actually found Animal Kingdom the elast favourite park.

We love epcot too. Soarin and test track are great rides, and the boat ride through the greenhouses is fab. My 2 boys like innovation too. And that's without getting to the world showcase and the fab firework display.

Didn't even bother going to the animal kingdom last time though as we found it dull

Our dds were the same ages as yours when we went. Remember when you book theme park tickets your eldest is 9. Over the age of 9 they pay adult ticket prices.

Also hotel rooms seemed to be for a max. of 4 persons so an apartment or villa may be a must. Would recommend a villa personally and not to do a main theme park every day. The water parks are good. Epcot - the one or 2 good things didn't make up for the boring things to us. And Animal Kingdom not brilliant either. Fave things for us were Universal, Gatorland, Boggy Creek boat-ride and Kennedy space centre. The highlight of the last was a stray crocodile walking across the entrance as we drove up! Eeek!

We're also going in early to mid August. Lat time we went was mid to end August and it wasn't very busy as American schools had gone back. It will be busier this time, I think.
We've done an individual thing- booked a villa through (I think it was) Disney Villas (there are loads, all with slightly varying names)and have got flights with BA. We saved loads though by choosing Wednesday flights.

Last time we only had ds1 who is now 13, now we have ds2 who will be 21 months, so a slightly different holiday. But we love Epcot and the Animal Kingdom.

It is best to shop around and use the airline's websites direct.

Know they get flagged up a lot but Virgin are not always the cheapest to fly to Orlando. We learnt this when we did a price comparison of a two week break last Easter. BA was a couple hundred pounds less for the same flights!.

Hulababy - if you haven't already booked it look at BA's website because I looked at flights for 31st July - 13th August and they came out at £1995 for 2 adults and 1 child in World Traveller (economy). Do not use a travel agent to book flights.

Not arriving or departing on Friday or Saturday will also saves £s.

definitely go for the villa. You can get some real bargains now, you can get a 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom villa with games room and private pool sleeping up to 10 from around £400 per week. this actually works out cheaper than 2 rooms in some of the budget hotels. Have a look at www.loyaltyusa.com. This company is run by an english lady who only manages properties within 4 miles of Disney. She can also advise on booking car hire and cruises as well as tickets for the various theme parks.

You can hire other items from her such as playstations etc and she can provide welcome packs so that you have the basics in when you arrive.

It works out so much cheaper to book it all yourself rather than a package. It can also make things quicker at the airport. Many years ago I booked a Virgin package and had to stand in a queue to pick up my hire car with practially everyone else on the flight as everyone was using the same car hire company. I always therefore book with a different car hire company than the big tour operators use

Thank you everyone - dh has now started to worry about the weather - that it will be unbearably humid and hot and we will be miserable. How have others found t ?

What about the fast pass - does this cut queuing ? or does everyone have it and it dosnt make much difference ?

Fastpass can only be used for one ride at a time and only where Fastpass is available. It gives you a time slot e.g between 12.30-12.45 so you can join the Fastpass queue and bypass the regular line. Fastpass lines move quite quickly but you can still queue particularly later in the day. Some rides also run out of Fastpasses early on during the day.

All guests must have a Fastpass ticket to use the Fastpass line (you put your Disney ticket into the Fastpass machine at the ride and a Fastpass ticket is also returned to you).

If you want an honest opinion, I have been in July,August,April,October and November. I would not go in August again, sorry. It was so humid but then I am not too good with that sort of weather. Other people cope better. April is the by far the most busy time, we queued for hours. We love going in October, lovely weather but not too hot and hardly any queues. May is also supposed to be the best month to go but obviously this means taking Dcs out of school.

You will have a great time whenever you go but you will need to be prepared for the weather in August. I know people who went last August and had a great time.

The fast passes are good but in Disney you can only hold one pass at a time, I think. Also when it is really busy even the fast pass queues are not short. Universal runs a different system where you pay for a fastpass and can use it on all rides. I have never used this so can't comment on how good it is.

My advice would be if it is a holiday of a lifetime and you will not be going again, then I would go at a different time of year. If you will be going again in the future try August out and see if it works for you. You will have a great time in Disney despite the weather, it depends how much you are affected by the heat and humidity. Have fun whenever you go, it is a very fun holiday.

Well, I'm reaaly not too good in the heat but I found it fine. There were rain showers on some days- most people carried a plastic poncho- and that cooled things down. Also, Epcot has little areas with water fountain type things to cool off in (can't remember about the other parks). We had a great day in Animal Kingdom because it was grey and overcast- most people in the park were British, I think!! Hardly any queuing that day.

And there's the water parks.

The main thing, I think, is not to expect to spend whole days in one park. With the Ultimate ticket you can dip in and out. (This is only for the Disney parks mind, I haven't done Universal etc). If you have a villa/car etc you can go in for the morning, come out for lunch and a rest, then back later etc. We often used to go to Downtown Disney and lurk in the air-conditioned shops if it was very hot. Also lots of water.