Q&A with Virgin Holidays - Ask your questions & share your tips on going to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida - 3x £100 vouchers to be won

[EllieMumsnet]

We're going to have the Virgin Holidays experts online on Monday 17th June from 1:30pm - 3:00pm to answer your questions on how to get the most out of a trip to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, from the great value Disney Dining Plans to what to take with you into the Disney Parks, best attractions for different ages or how the Disney FastPass+ service works. This Q&A will work a little like our Live Webchats if any of you have taken part in one before - just ask a question below for the experts at Virgin Holidays to answer!

Not only would we love you to ask your questions below for Virgin Holidays to answer but we’d also like you to share any top tips or helpful advice you may have for other MNers thinking of going to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

Here’s what Virgin Holidays have to say: “Planning a dream family holiday to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida can seem a little daunting. What was once ‘just’ the amazing Magic Kingdom Park, is now four entertainment-filled theme parks, plus two water parks, covering a total area the size of San Francisco. And that’s before you add in Disney Springs — packed with shopping, restaurants and attractions in its own right.

Don’t leave the holiday of a lifetime to chance. Here at Virgin Holiday’s we’ve got a whole team of Disney experts to help you with the planning now so you can enjoy the Disney magic even more.”

Post your question for Virgin Holidays and they will be online to answer them on Monday 17th June . Everyone who posts a question or shares a tip will be entered into a prize draw where 3 MNers will win a £100 voucher each of their choice (from a list).*

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply
Webchat guidelines - one question each (follow-ups allowed if there’s time)

*The Walt Disney Company Limited has no responsibility whatsoever with the running of this Prize Draw and shall not be liable for any losses, damages, or costs should a reader make any claim against the promoter as a result of the running of this Prize Draw.

Just the amount of planning involved. to go to a theme park the size of San Francisco is completely daunting to me. I would not know where to even begin. Where do you begin?

I almost took the children to Disneyland Paris this year but again with all the meal passes and the fast passes and add on extras it just seems ridiculously complicated. It's not the sort of holiday I would enjoy planning.

My tips would be:-
to take full advantage of the fast pass system
hire a pram (my DS was 4 and was glad of the rest (and sleep).
Take an empty bottle to to refill with water.
Use a map to plan your route around the park.

My question would be would you consider a (or do you do) a luggage service - taking your luggage to and from the plane to your hotel and take that part of the holiday stress away.

I have been to WDW back in 2018 and and am planning to go back in 2020. My tips would be if you have a toddler, hire a pram - you will do an awful lot of walking, and you will get around the park a lot quicker, and you also have your 'eye' on them, it will be a lot less stressful.
My question would be, do you have any published statistics (verified) showing the safety tests on the rides, and how often they are inspected structurally by a qualified independent professional.

There is no legal requirement in Florida to independently test ride safety in large theme parks (only fairs/carnivals) but all theme parks have to release quarterly statistics relating to accidents and incidents. Given the billions of dollars that Disney, Universal and the rest make based on their reputations, it's highly unlikely they would cowboy anything related to safety though!

I am going to Walt Disney World in August with my DS1 and 2 ages 4 and 7. I have never been before, so do not have any tips, other than what you would usually do on a holiday - pack essentials, insurance, get good flight times etc.
My question would be are there any app's you could use to see queue times on rides, book a place in the queue or book into a WDW cafe whilst your there - to make the day go a little smoother ?

I have been on a Disney cruise and loved the whole 'Disneyness' of the ship, we have booked for WDW for this Summer, we are however kind of dreading the time difference and jet lag - what are your tips for getting acclimatised to the new time ? I am sure many of you guests have come across this. Thank you.

My daughter lives the life of a Disney princess when she wears her princess her outfit. so when you wish upon a star, give a little whistle and bibberty bobberty boo around the theme park my tips would be:-

Photopass to be a good buy and takes the pressure off parents trying to capture all the magic moments when there is a meet and greet with a Disney character.
It's very expensive food and drink wise -so if you have time - take a packed lunch.
Book your 3 Fastpasses for between around 10.30am and 1pmWear wear comfy shoes you will walk for miles!
Hire a buggy! It can not only be used to carry excess bags, your toddler can have a break/nap, and you know where they are.

my question would be I want to hire a car whilst I am there this time - I have a full UK licence - can you organise the car hire for me as part of my holiday package, and do need extra holiday insurance when hiring a car in the USA ?

I've never been. What age is the best age for kids to go?

I really liked Florida but had a hard time initially coping with the heat

Top tip would be take a water bottle with a filter you can fill up with ice water free in the parks and take something like Robinsons Squashd little bottles.

Take a collapsible laundry basket. Absolute godsend keeping dirty laundry tidy and to carry laundry to resort laundry rooms.

High factor Spf is a must. Should also be water resistant.

Take regular nap / swim breaks to stay rested and hydrated.

Put your after sun / aloe Vera gel in your resort room fridge and it makes it lovely and cold to put on overheated skin.

Take good care of your feet. Moleskin blister pads and take a nice foot cream you can massage in each night. Some people take little collapsible foot baths which you can fill with ice from the resort ice machines and cool off hot overtired feet.

Take ziplock bags in your park bag to keep your electronics dry on water rides.

Take flip flops in your park bag so if you go on a water ride you can keep your other footwear dry.

Take a Usb rechargeable hand held spray fan to the parks with a water mister. Easyacc do one which is good and helps keep you cool in the heat.

We are planning on taking our children in the next couple of years but I feel totally overwhelmed with what I need to book, where to book, what is on offer etc. I would therefore ask Virgin to they have a dedicated website that a complete novice could look at and find out what is on offer, when to book tickets, hotel versus a villa.

Disney seems to be a holiday that involves a lot of planning. Any suggestions on how to involve a 7 and 9 year old in the planning? (For the fun and to save my sanity!)

We went last year with a 8 and 5 year old - the perfect ages, we embraced the whole Disney experience, my tips would be set yourself a budget for when you are in the park, there are plenty of places to spend your $$$$$'s and when you are in the Disney/Holiday mood it's so easy to spend on things you won't and don't need when you are home. We went Disney mad getting autographs and photos, (which are now in boxes in our wardrobe, the memories and my mobile phone footage is far more personal and moving to have.
We would love to go again, and would love to book, so my question would be how far in advance can we book, and therefore start to budget for the trip.

Why do people go here rather than Europa Park? I can't fathom it.

If you struggle to get fast passes at the times you want for the rides you want, grab them for whatever time is available and you'll be able to alter the time once you've actually got the ride. It's always worked for us.

Oh and early, rope drops - do the popular rides as soon as parks open then use your fast passes for 2 hours after park opening

And buy your pins to trade before you go - you can buy them from eBay and then trade them with cast members when you're there! It's great fun deciding which set to collect and it's a great way to have conversations with the staff there!

My main tip would be to PLAN.

Use all the resources out there, and especially the My Disney Experience website, to research and plan your time there whilst you are still at home.
It will feel strange to do so and weirdly restrictive compared to normal holidays, but it makes your life so much easier when you are there.

Why do people go here rather than Europa Park? I can't fathom it.

Based on the Europa Park website - there are 4 theme parks and 2 water parks at WDW compared to 1 park in the German park to start with, so a much greater variety. Long haul v short haul, different weather at different times of the year, the 'Disney' aspect of it itself - the specific characters and theming for example.
It depends on whether you want just a theme park or you are going for the overall package. Just like a day at Alton Towers is different to a 3 day break at DLP, a holiday with a day or two at Europa park is going to be a very different experience than a week or two at the Florida parks isn't it?

I went with my children twenty years ago - we loved it so much we went back two years later. My tip would be to go for at least three weeks and I remember we were advised to do attractions in the park in reverse order to avoid some queues- doing the rides furthest away from the entrances first. It worked. My question- How has it changed in that time?

I have two questions:

1. There are a lot of disgruntled holidaymakers posting on various forums about how difficult it is to link My Disney Experience to their Virgin Holidays Disney reservation - can you explain your process for linking reservations on MDE?

1. How does the pass for disabled guests work in the parks?

@JC4PMPLZ look at the detail that's gone into Galaxy's Edge that just opened in Disneyland California and you may understand slightly more. The level of detail that goes into everything Disney Parks do is insane. They travel the world just to get the tiniest props when opening new rides and areas. When Expedition Everest opened in Animal Kingdom, a team of Imagineers went to Nepal to study rock patterns and gather artefacts for use in the queues. It's just a completely different level to any other theme park.

always know where the food places are.
go early.about an hour earlier than you plan to!

do you have any or would you consider working with people who have autism so they could enjoy the park. ive seen other having special times slot or chillout rooms for kids who have autism.how would you suggest we do the day to make it manageable or would it just not be recommended at all.

On average, how much do I need to budget for including flights, hotels, food and spending money?

Is it as 'commercial' as euro Disney? I assume so but wanted to ask anyway.

How long a visit is recommended to get the best from the park?

Also what's the silliest complaint you have heard about or dealt with?

I really would love to go but someone recently told me that the descent into Orlando airport is a tricky one for pilots and has quite a bit of turbulence . That makes me nervous

You absolutely can take your food in, there are lots of areas around the parks to sit and eat a picnic. We, however found the dining plan and magic bands such an easy and great value way to have meals. The app was brilliant, with the magic bands we could see photos of us taken by Disney photographers within minutes, scan for fast passes, meals and restaurant bookings! Made it so much easier!

I’ve never been, so my question is, what makes the travel and experience better than going to the Paris one? ( as I’d need to justify the extra cost to get there etc)

My top tip is DO NOT under estimate the size of WDW. A particular tip is not to under estimate how long it can actually take you to get into the Magic Kingdom if staying off site. You park, get a tram and then the monorail/ferryboat just to get the the entrance. It all takes time....but is part of the experience as well (just in case I made it sound awful)

We have not been for a couple of years and so it will have changed yet again if/when we return, but one thing we always consider doing is visiting the resoirts and getting drinks/food at some of them. I have heard it is fine even if you are not staying there - is this correct - and can you use the resort boats/monorail etc if not staying in a Disney Hotel?