Please go easy on me.....Disney question.....

[911Rob]

My family and I have really enjoyed the theme park vacations; a little challenging to get the full enjoyment out of them; learning how to avoid the line ups and crowds is a key factor.

LA Disneyland has been a fav of ours, but we do many other parks there too; but Disneyworld is fantastic! Last time we went we took in the D cruise and we'd do that again in a heartbeat, it was excellent.

I live in a vacation town and we enjoy a full outdoor recreation here, but for the last 20 years whenever I ask my kids where they'd like to go for a vacation..... good 'ol Disney comes up everytime.

I am amazed at how well Disney does things; Florida is just gorgeous!
Next will be the grandkids!


I'm the *punk* on the right; ha, ha. That's my kids Grandma on the left (my mom).

[rattlsnak]

if you stay at the hotels near E Buena Vista drive, near Epcot, you can save yourself alot of driving. There are a few hotels on a lake nearby, and they have a walkway nto the back gates of Epcot. Once there you can hop on the momorail and zip over to the Majic Kingdom. So one day in Epcot, and one day in Disneyworld with no driving is nice.

Also, you will need one day at Universal and one day at MGM, and of course there is Islands of Adventure and Sea World. You need at LEAST 5 6-days there to see everything.

[Super_Dave_D]

Originally Posted by 911Rob

My family and I have really enjoyed the theme park vacations; a little challenging to get the full enjoyment out of them; learning how to avoid the line ups and crowds is a key factor.

LA Disneyland has been a fav of ours, but we do many other parks there too; but Disneyworld is fantastic! Last time we went we took in the D cruise and we'd do that again in a heartbeat, it was excellent.

I live in a vacation town and we enjoy a full outdoor recreation here, but for the last 20 years whenever I ask my kids where they'd like to go for a vacation..... good 'ol Disney comes up everytime.

I am amazed at how well Disney does things; Florida is just gorgeous!
Next will be the grandkids!

I'm the *punk* on the right; ha, ha. That's my kids Grandma on the left (my mom).

You sure are an ugly punk too Hey that pic isnt even in Florida!!! Ask me how I know - Im not hater man! I do all that stuff too! Dont make me go find all of my Disney Cruise pics! LOL

[Monza_dh]

Originally Posted by dmoolenaar

I've been monitoring this thread as we're toying with the same vacation as soon as the kids are out of school. I was thinking 3 days in Orlando for Disney World and then two days in Coco Beach just hanging at the ocean and hotel pool. I can get 3 nights free through the Hilton system at/near DW or do a Disney hotel and have free hotel in Coco Beach. What would you folks recommend?

For all the abuse, this site does have everything you need on Disney:

http://www.disboards.com/

You then can add one of these to your sig:

http://www.mickeypath.com/

[RKC]

Just did Disney at New Year's (kids are 7 & 12), and they loved it. We have some friends down the block that go there every vacation, which does seem nuts (one of their kids even whines "not again). Yes, more of a duty than a vacation for the parents, but the kids love it, and that makes you smile....

That said, we all slept in a bit, kept some little supplies in the room for breakfast, and just ate lunch and dinner in the parks. I think we wound up better off than the meal plans, and the meal plans restrict what you can order at at least some of the restaurants. For some reason we wound up at the Disney Studios park more than the others - even more than the Magic Kingdom. Animal Kingdom was our least favorite (more like a zoo for locals than a theme park).

Favorite dinner was the Brown Derby for real food/drinks, or the Whoop-de-Doo Review - a sort of Gold Rush/Can-Can comedy show (food was OK, but the show was quite funny in a family friendly/blue-collar comedy sort of way).

Doesn't seem to be any good way to get discounted tickets (AAA used to have them, not sure now...) Make sure if you want sit down food reservations or show reservations that you call the day they open (60 or 90 days out, I think). I suppose part of our worry was that it was New Year's week, but they do fill up, and many people go there all the time and know all the little ins and outs of such things, so buy a guidebook because the place is huge....That $10 will save you a great deal of hassle.

[Schrup]

Originally Posted by dmoolenaar

I've been monitoring this thread as we're toying with the same vacation as soon as the kids are out of school. I was thinking 3 days in Orlando for Disney World and then two days in Coco Beach just hanging at the ocean and hotel pool. I can get 3 nights free through the Hilton system at/near DW or do a Disney hotel and have free hotel in Coco Beach. What would you folks recommend?

We went to Orlando a few years ago, I would recommend Sea World. We enjoyed it much more that Disney World. It was a lot less crowded, a little less expensive & more entertaining IMO.

We're heading to Cali this July for vacation. Disneyland & Legoworld are on the agenda. I hope this is the last time I have to go to a Disney park. Disney World was hell.

[bell]

I am a converted disney fan, and emberassingly have become an expert at how to do it to enjoy it the best with the least headache......ill post more tonite (I'm working) but you want to stay at a disney resort to take advantage of the meal plan, and get park hopper tickets.....ill give the details tonite on my experience....

[911Rob]

Cheers David, wasn't trying to flame you bud; sorry.
That pic was from the Florida Disney Cruise, but you prolly knew that?

I could pass along some tips too, but I'm not a low budget holidayer. We stayed on the resort in a theme park hotel (safari park). What I will recommend is Universal Studios.... that was a blast! Call the park and arrange for the VIP passes at Universal; you'll thank me for this tip! First class all the way.

[URY914]

Animal Kingdom is the weakest of the parks IMHO.

Men will enjoy EPCOT more.

Sea World is good but not a full day park.

[Super_Dave_D]

Originally Posted by 911Rob

Cheers David, wasn't trying to flame you bud; sorry.
That pic was from the Florida Disney Cruise, but you prolly knew that?

I could pass along some tips too, but I'm not a low budget holidayer. We stayed on the resort in a theme park hotel (safari park). What I will recommend is Universal Studios.... that was a blast! Call the park and arrange for the VIP passes at Universal; you'll thank me for this tip! First class all the way.

Its all good man.....I somehow manage to go once or twice a year!

OK my restaurant tip! Eat at Fulton’s in the town of Disney! It’s the floating restaurant so you can’t miss it. Kinda spensive but well worth it.

[berettafan]

LOVE WDW.

Going in dec and 'renting' points from a vacation club member I know. We are staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge savana view for $1150 total for 8 nights.

No way I'd do a hotel off property (other than quasi disney hotels on hotel blvd).

[berettafan]

Btw Earl of Sandwich in downtown disney is a good sammich. Also the beer hall in germany (lots of sausage beer and pretzel rolls!).

[trekkor]

My wife an I went this past January.

We had a big breakfast outside before entering.
We had lots of snacks and drinks.

Going in the off season was the only way we could have tolerated the experience.
We went mid week between two rainstorms. The lines were pretty short and we rode/saw everything we wanted.

Yes, parking and admission is expensive. Think about it this way, where else can you see or enjoy that many things in one place?

For the two of us it set us back about $200.

Never go on a weekend or school vacation/summer ( unless you enjoy waiting in long lines )



KT

[Hugh R]

Give all your money to Disney! We need it! I get a seasons pass for my family, but I can't get discounts for anyone else. Sorry.

[911Rob]

Originally Posted by Hugh R

Give all your money to Disney! We need it! I get a seasons pass for my family, but I can't get discounts for anyone else. Sorry.

No need Hugh, Disney has figured out how to get all our money already! Everywhere you go, just swipe the card and charge it to the room; ha, ha.

Originally Posted by Super_Dave_D

...OK my restaurant tip! Eat at Fulton’s in the town of Disney! It’s the floating restaurant so you can’t miss it. Kinda spensive but well worth it.

Kinda?
We sat in there one evening for a few hours and got a tab for $600! Never forget it. (4 adults, lots of booze & seafood)

[Christien]

My dad used to take me every year when I was a kid, up until I was about 11 or 12 I think. So I couldn't wait to take our kids. We went this past February with our 2 daughters, oldest was 2 1/2, youngest was 3 months. We knew it would be a bit harder with the baby, but my wife was on maternity leave, so it made sense, as we could go in the off season.

I'm with Rob on this one - sure, ostensibly it was for the kids, but we had an absolute blast as well. Yes, there are lots of fat people on scooters because they're too lazy to walk. Just ignore them. Yes, there are plenty of smelly sweaty people. So what, big deal, I'm sure there are on a beach in Mexico or the Italian Riviera too.

We stayed on-site in one of the "value" resorts, and got a meal plan as well. Yes, it's a bit more expensive, but for the convenience and time-savings it's WELL worth it. I'm on vacation - I don't want to spend my time in traffic, driving or on shuttle buses.

As for the meal plan, it worked really well for us. Our youngest is still breast feeding, so that doesn't apply. Our oldest was under 3 so she was allowed to share from our meal plan, which worked out really well, as we only needed to buy 2. We did run out of some things near the end, but our package came with a $200 gift card, so we just put some food on there (didn't buy too many souvenirs, just some plush toys). I would recommend doing the meal plan - we will again when we go back in December, though we'll buy one for our daughter as well (they have kid plans that are cheaper). Someone mentioned the food was bad - I couldn't disagree more. No, it surely wasn't gourmet, but for buffets it was excellent (and I'm not a big buffet fan). Lots of selection of both kid and adult food, always fresh, of course junk food but lots of healthy stuff too. We didn't have high expectations, and were really impressed with the food. The only catch is that you need reservations for pretty much any restaurant that has character dining (where the characters come to your table for pictures and "autographs"). But again, it's well worth it, because the kids LOVE it.

I'm not anywhere near as obsessive as those people on the disney boards that log ALL their trips, with a count-down timer to the next one, but we are DEFINITELY excited to be going back this winter!

Oh yeah, and about low vs high season - our last day there was the first day of the high season (Feb. 15). WHAT a difference in crowd size! I'll bet there were twice as many people as the day before. Absolutely nuts. I'll never go in high season.

[MT930]

Lots of fun for the kids. You got to be willing to open your wallet, if you can get past that it's more fun. The food at epcot is the best in the parks IMO. Those turkey legs are very good. The condition of the people (large) is a real shock to the kids, the sea of people is a shock to me the first couple days coming from Montana we have had a great time staying at the Polynesian. You do it for the kids! Disney does a great job, I would go back.

Alaska is my Disney world

[Porsche-O-Phile]

I've been to the Disney parks (both WDW and Disneyland) more times than I can count. It never, ever gets old. I was a cast member at WDW in college in FL (I worked there to make $$$) and my wife is currently a hotel front desk lead which is our only income right now. It's a great company that is (unlike most) true to its vision and treats its people well. They pay our medical costs right now (long story) they mentor and develop their talent from within and they really do try to create a positive experience for their guests/customers.

I agree that one shouldn't depend entirely on those sorts of parks and try to get exposure to other things as well (National/State parks, beaches, historical sites, etc.) but they're certainly a success story more than any sort of failure. As Rob said above, I don't see how ANYONE can be a hater on Disney - it's one of the very few examples of positive thinking and good intentions manifested in a successful business. Yes, it has its flaws (cost, a certain amount of "phonyness", shameless over-marketing, etc.) but when you look at the overall package, the entire Disney company is a resounding example of good things triumphing over more of the same old blah out there.

It's also nice to be able to go to a public place without having to see or listen to a lot of thuggish and arrogant pr!cks - the crowd there tends to be a bit better and more family-oriented than you find at your run-of-the-mill movie theater or fair, better behaved in general and not prone to using profanity every other word, wearing juvenile sexual innuendo t-shirts or other low-brow nonsense that you tend to get WAY too much of in society-at-large these days. It's somewhat insulated from these things, which is nice. It helps make the experience special.

[dd74]

I love Disneyland. It's easy-pleasy compared to any Six Flags fiasco.

You really just have to buy into it and not try to fight Walt's persuasion. He was a master at drawing people into his world.

If anything, the engineering of the park is incredible. A guy in Disney Imagineering (I believe they create the rides) told me attractions like Haunted Mansion and Pirates can't be duplicated because they're so complex and cost prohibitive to construct.

[tinkerbell]

I'm bell's wife, and he asked me to check this thread out. I'm a Disney fan, bash away.

IMHO, there is a way to do Disney and a way NOT to do Disney. Doing it the wrong way will guarantee you a miserable time. (seriously, ask bell) I can't help but roll my eyes every time I hear someone complain about lines, spending money, blah blah freaking blah....... Every vacation requires preparation and planning, Disney is no different. Unless you want to sit on a boat and fish-oooohhh what fun.

If you want to do Disney and enjoy yourself, put a little effort into the planning and find out what they have to offer, how you can save money (staying on-site vs. off-site), when to avoid going, etc. There are going to be advantages and disadvantages.

Here's some questions for the OP:

Are you flying or driving to Orlando?
If you are flying, do you plan on renting a car?
Are you only going to visit Disney World, or are there other attractions in the area you want to see?