Give me your best Disney World tips

SkRiderMom · Feb 25, 2015

Our family (husband, myself and two kids) have been to Disneyland 3 times and are now planning our first trip to Disney World. There is just so much more involved with planning a trip to Florida over California that sometimes it seems a little overwhelming. Some days the more I research the more confused I feel. So please help me get a handle on this and share your best tips for planning a Disney World vacation.

Background-We are hoping to go February 10-21, 2016 and are going with my husband's sister, her husband and 3 kids. The kids ages will be 16(2 of them), 14(2 of them) and 12 at the time we travel. I have been pricing out staying onsite as well as using VRBO. We are flying from Saskatchewan and will (hopefully) be using Airmiles for our flights.

Aladora · Feb 25, 2015

Jumping in and watching this thread since we are heading to WDW this December after 7 DL trips.

gem21 · Feb 26, 2015

The Disney World Tips Board have many many suggestions! I suggest you start there, there is a great (but long!) thread there that should get you started!

The best tip I have is to get a guide book, and then go from there. It's a learning process, and it's hard to give general tips for success because everyone is different!

Good Luck!

RipperSB · Feb 26, 2015

I'm a resident of Saskatchewan as well (Saskatchewan - hard to spell, easy to draw!) and flying to Orlando is not the easiest thing to do, esp with Airmiles. We have flown United for every trip, previously, but now they have ceased the direct flight out of Regina. WestJet and Air Canada (whose motto is "We're not happy until you are not happy") fly you to either Calgary or Toronto first and, in some cases, have you overnight there as the Orlando flight does not depart until the next day. Our next trip, in Jan 2016, we'll be flying Delta.
For the parks, there are a myriad of ways to go about it. We have used the crowd predicting calendars to plan which park we are going to be on each day of the trip. Having decided where we are going to be on that day, prioritized what attractions you want to enjoy and obtain Fast Passes for those attactions and go Stand By for the others. Decide what dining you would like to experience - table service? Quick Service? Park resort or offsite? Like attractions, decide which ones you would really like to do and make reservations for those.
Most of all, remember - no plan ever survived first contact.

bankr63 · Feb 27, 2015

Tip one - Unofficial Guide. Read it for a realistic view of what to expect. It is our bible.
Tip two - don't limit yourselves to Disney. Once my kids hit tweens, Universal started getting more popular than Disney. Stay open to the idea.
Tip three - mousesavers.com for budget tips, and undercover tourist for tickets (with the Mousesavers monthly discount code).
.
.
.
Tip ten thousand three hundred and ninety eight - don't overdo the planning... :rotfl:

SkRiderMom · Feb 28, 2015

Well I guess I'm doing better than I thought I was, I've read the threads, read the Unofficial guide, and I'm already subscribed to Mousesavers. That does make me feel more confident moving forward.

I think we need to have a sit down meeting with the other family and figure out exactly what our priorities are and then I'll know what I need to focus on.

As soon as Air Miles have the flights available we are going to book them so hopefully that will give us the best flight options.

I believe that based on how much cheaper it will be that we will be going with VRBO. Anyone have experience using that and want to share tips on the best areas to look in? What questions should I make sure to ask when emailing potential homes?

We will be spending 2 days at Universal and I am planning in non-park days to relax as well.

hey_jude · Mar 1, 2015

SkRiderMom said:
Our family (husband, myself and two kids) have been to Disneyland 3 times and are now planning our first trip to Disney World. There is just so much more involved with planning a trip to Florida over California that sometimes it seems a little overwhelming. Some days the more I research the more confused I feel. So please help me get a handle on this and share your best tips for planning a Disney World vacation.

Background-We are hoping to go February 10-21, 2016 and are going with my husband's sister, her husband and 3 kids. The kids ages will be 16(2 of them), 14(2 of them) and 12 at the time we travel. I have been pricing out staying onsite as well as using VRBO. We are flying from Saskatchewan and will (hopefully) be using Airmiles for our flights.

This offsite location was recommended on another thread - http://www.vrbo.com/441673?utm_sour...pid_text_o_lprop&utm_campaign=VRBO_replyBlank

The poster said they got a great deal in Canadian dollars because the house is owned by a Canadian. He suggested emailing and mentioning that you were a fellow Canadian and ask what the best rate is.

Good luck!

PanamaMike · Mar 2, 2015

SkRiderMom said:
I believe that based on how much cheaper it will be that we will be going with VRBO. Anyone have experience using that and want to share tips on the best areas to look in?

I have rented a townhouse twice at the Villas at Seven Dwarfs Lane..once in a 3 bedroom/2 bath unit, once in a 4 bedroom/3 bath.
Both owners I dealt with were great.
Nice complex with a big pool.
Units were clean & roomy.
About 10 kms to WDW. An easy drive along Highway 192.

Windsor Hills is very close to WDW and is also a popular choice although I have not stayed there myself.

dancin Disney style · Mar 2, 2015

My tip is....
Don't try to do it all in one trip....because you can't. You can always go back.

Just make plans that include the must do's for everyone and then remember to be flexible if things either change or don't go as planned. Also, include some down days to just hang out at the pool or something else that is leisurely.

Lay out some ground rules for everyone before you get there. It's ok to not spend every minute together. Splitting up for the day and meeting for dinner might be the way to maximize fun.

Susie63 · Mar 3, 2015

We are like you. We have been to DL 4 times.... but WDW freaks me out a little. We are also going with a rental home.... which is also scary

twinz · Mar 9, 2015

I'd say to remember that WDW is MUCH MUCH MUCH larger then DL. You will do a lot of walking. You can not walk from park to park like at DL. There are some differences in some of the rides, make sure you do those ones (it's been a while since I have been to DL so I can't tell you which ones are different, but I know there are some). One difference I noticed that most of the rides in DL line up outside, while most in WDW line up inside. Above all have fun.

Give me your best Disney World tips

SkRiderMom

Earning My Ears

Aladora

DIS Veteran

gem21

DIS Veteran

RipperSB

Mouseketeer

bankr63

DIS Veteran

SkRiderMom

Earning My Ears

hey_jude

Mouseketeer

PanamaMike

DIS Veteran

dancin Disney style

<font color=blue>I found one to share with some fa

Susie63

Dreamin' of Disney

twinz

I agree with getting my WDW fix

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