Disney Newbie from Saskatchewan

[Teaz]

Hi guys, I am a complete Disney newbie and we are going to be taking our kids (four of them) to Disney World in January. I am looking for tips and advice on flights and trying to get some good deals. Do any of you drive to Minot and fly out there?

Any help on flights and while in Florida to make it more cost effective would be greatly appreciative.

 

[SaskieGirl]

Sure, we flew from Minot last year via Denver and down to MCO. It's a nice relaxing little airport to fly out of with little kids. If you overnight the night before, stay the Minot Grand International and they have a free shuttle across to airport and you can leave your car at hotel for free when while you're away.

 

[SaskieGirl]

I fogot to mention that we have rented condos at Windsor Hills for the last two years - very cost effective and beautiful accommodations. They have a fantastic pool complex and playground 5 minutes from Disney. They have fully equipped kitchens, so we saved oodles of money making our own breakfasts, packing our own lunches and eating supper at the condo on many nights. Close enough to zip home for supper and then back to parks for the evening. Walmart, Target and Publix are close by for groceries. Buy a whole flat of 24 water for $3 or pay $5 for oen water inthe parks. You can take in a backpack with your bottled water and snacks/luncha nd Disney will not say a thing.

 

[CdnKayDee]

Reginians here. We have flown to WDW from Regina about 10 times now all with Delta(Northwest). Here's our tips always check the price over and over again. We usually end up booking flights last and have never paid more then 600 round trip per person usually 450 is good but we have seen 363 out of Regina in the past year.We have always checked other airline and many cities but in the end Regina wins out. We have switched reservations to accommodate better flight prices. About driving to Minot believe it or not prices are no cheaper out of Minot or Billings whenever we have checked. Your best bet here is to drive straight to Minneapolis and fly direct to Orlando. Now don't forget luggage fees, good planning here can save you money ie pack a suit case in a suit case or sign up for the delta credit card. With most Airlines you do have a 24 hr cancellation window if prices happen to go down the next day.(Saved us 150 once).
Here's some odds and ends. We have never had a bad experience with Delta,However the last flight to Regina from Minneapolis is prone to delays. Delta has changed our flights schedule on us before due to worries about getting through customs quick enough.Also Magical express will pick you up on departure day 3 hrs before your flight leaves. So the 7am flight may not really work for you.

 

[the_green_machine]

Hey,

I just booked for my wife and I for Jan. 2012.

Transat Holidays just started a direct charter out of Winnipeg every Friday to Orlando over the winter. The majority of the packages are flight + a value resort + taxes and what not.

Just thought I'd throw it out there.

 

[holidaygirl]

Our family has flown out of Minot 3 times to Disney World and have found it is usually about 1/2 price than flying out of Regina. Yes you may have to spend the night but as a previous poster stated staying at the Grand International is a good value with transportation. A bonus of flying out of Minot is that you have already cleared customs so no airport delays.
If you stay at Disney World using the Magical Express from the airport saves you a car rental unless you need to travel to outside sites.
I hope that you enjoy your trip we have been down 6 times and never get tired of it.

 

[Teaz]

Thank you everyone for your help and advice. We just booked our property using lostinthemagic we got such an awesome deal and it was so cheap that it has us on cloud nine. The one thing I am worried about is the cost of flights. Flying with a family of 6 is expensive. We are going from January 2nd and coming home January 14th!!

 

[CdnKayDee]

Our family has flown out of Minot 3 times to Disney World and have found it is usually about 1/2 price than flying out of Regina. Yes you may have to spend the night but as a previous poster stated staying at the Grand International is a good value with transportation. A bonus of flying out of Minot is that you have already cleared customs so no airport delays.
If you stay at Disney World using the Magical Express from the airport saves you a car rental unless you need to travel to outside sites.
I hope that you enjoy your trip we have been down 6 times and never get tired of it.

When do you normally go? What price do you normally pay? Who do you fly with? Last trip for us was September/October out of Regina and we paid around $450. We kept checking Minot but it was either the same or slightly cheaper.

 

[holidaygirl]

We usually go on the Feb break, we get the cheaper airfare account we usually are booking our trips 9 to 10 months in advance, and check daily for fares. We just booked airfare to Hawaii in Feb to stay at aluni ( Disney property) and got our airfare for $1800 for the 4 of us, from Minot to Denver then over, and same return.

 

[SaskieGirl]

We also checked daily to get a flight from Minot and booked about 7 months out. We flew last November for $345 each for 6 of us on United. Regina is far more convenient for sure, but we had 6 flights to consider, so we took the savings. We've got enough airmiles again, so we'll be going from Regina next year. We had a terrible experience with the short time between United's morning flight to Denver and the next flight to MCO. Be sure you give yourselves the time to clear 6 people through customs, especially if you've got kid gear. I stayed behind to get the luggage as we were so tight for time, my family were all on the plane and they didn't want to let me on with them. I had to turn on the tears and tell them I had my son's asthma meds to get on - which I did, so I wasn't fibbing. Having already cleared customs in Minot was pretty nice. I hope you a fabulous time no matter how you get there. It's easy to get hooked on holidaying in "The World". If you're renting a car, check the Mousesavers website for promo codes.

 

[CdnKayDee]

Good to know that there is good deals to be had in Minot. It has never worked for us but we always check. Considering driving all the way to Minneapolis next time we go.

 

[wdwgirl1]

Moose Jaw here

We have done many options in the last 25 years we have been flying to WDW.

For a long time at the beginning we flew out of Minot. There are still good airfares to be had out of Minot...but in January I would be worried about the weather....always a chance of a blizzard.

We have gone directly out of Minniapolis as well. A very long drive...but the price was amazing (both times we did it).

But- as others have said...we mostly fly right out of Regina. We have had some good deals, and some not so good deals. We have flowen Westjet once- we had to do Calgary-Toronto-Orlando. We will never do that flight again. Clearing customs in the Toronto airport was a nighmare. That being said we have had friends that have taken the Regina-Calgary-Orlando flight and loved it.

For us we have been happy flying with Delta-and will be flying them again in 3 weeks when we return to WDW. I am already pricing out possible trips for Feb or Easter. If you see a price you can live with book it.

 

[SaskDisNut]

We mostly have flown out of Regina but have driven once to Minneapolis and flown from there at a really good price. I wouldn't do that in the winter though because of the chance of dealing with a blizzard. We have flown with Delta/NWA and generally like it. Our flight was delayed once leaving Regina causing us to miss our connection in MSP. We had to overnight in MSP and flew out early the next morning. It didn't turn out too bad.

Allegiant flies out of Fargo. But they fly into Sanford airport. I have seen some really cheap fares with them but don't know too much about the airline. I would certainly consider flying out of Minot if the price is right.

holidaygirl, I saw those cheap fares flying out of Minot to Hawaii. I'm kicking myself now for not booking. You got a great deal! Tell us all about Aulani.

 

[holidaygirl]

Just finished booking Aulani at the 7 mth window for 9 nights in a 1 bdr with no problems! We could not be more excited......

 

[eveandlo]

We usually go on the Feb break, we get the cheaper airfare account we usually are booking our trips 9 to 10 months in advance, and check daily for fares. We just booked airfare to Hawaii in Feb to stay at aluni ( Disney property) and got our airfare for $1800 for the 4 of us, from Minot to Denver then over, and same return.

That's a fantastic price! What airline was that with? If I can get the flights for that little, I may be able to convince hubby of a trip to Hawaii...

 

[holidaygirl]

We booked with United but you have to watch the fares as they seem to bounce around. I keep checking everyday, I actually found that price on the United Airlines web site but it was on the U.S site (com) and not the Canadian site (ca) the difference between the 2 sites was $1100. I am not sure how they can offer that flight cheaper on the US site and offer the same flight on the Canadian site at the more expensive price ???
Oh well we have it and that is all that matters.....