The first stages of planning WDW

[periwinkle20]

Would love some advice. I have read many of the trip reports on here and it just feeds that desire to travel to the east coast again!

Have also been reading a few threads and I have to agree with another poster it seems you need to be far more organised and do much more research to do WDW well. We are planning on going November 2015 as a substitute for schoolies for my DD1 who will have finished her HSC (or sooner if I can save and it would be more value to go in Sept 2014 school hols) and I am feeling a little overwhelmed!

Last year we did DL, San Diego, Vegas, New York. We had a 14 day pass and we used about 10 days of it as we went to New York for a few days in between. Was not nearly enough time to do all what we wanted to do in New York so it feels unfinished . Even though I planned everything for our trip last time, booked all the accommodation and tours and all went smoothly...WDW seems really daunting.

So I am thinking 5-6 nights NY and 8-10 days for WDW at the moment. Then for Universal 3 days? (too long?) and we would want to do NASA so how far away is that?

Think we would want to stay onsite at WDW. There would be me, DH, DD17, DD13. I like the look of AoA but not sure if that is designed for larger families and we would get better value elsewhere. Do you book via WDW website or Dreams Unlimited or somebody else? I can't get my head around DVC whatever that is lol...feeling very uneducated at the moment phew

Any advice on where to stay, how many days to plan etc would be greatly appreciated. Oh and I need to fit a few days in shopping here and there as we loved the shopping last time Thanks in advance

 

[Tara2004]

We did WDW in November 2011. It was great then because they had free dining, plus they had just put up the christmas decko's. I think its a great time to go. Its still warm, but without being to cold. T-shirt weather.

I think AOA would be great for you guys. You get free dinning if you stay on site, plus staying onsite just makes disney more enjoyable. We just did disneyland, and it just wasn't the same staying off site.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Hi Periwinkle,

I can sympathise with you feeling daunted by all there is to learn about WDW. The good news is that you have heaps of time to research and work things out.

It was probably about 2 1/2 years ago that I decided a trip to WDW might be fun. Just for fun, I bought a couple of travel guides of Amazon and was shocked when I started reading about all the things I needed to think about - where to stay, when to go, what sort of tickets to buy, how long to go for, where to eat, etc etc ...
However, between the guide books, the wealth of knowledge people have shared here on the Dis, and a few years of research, I think I pretty much have my head around it all

To be honest, the research has actually been a heap of fun. I feel like I've sorted out all the big stuff, so now I'm focusing on small pedantic things. Mainly I think because I don't want the planning to be over. It makes the wait till my holiday more bearable.

I think the more days you can plan to stay onsite at Disney the better. For most of us the limit is our budget and the time we can take off work.
I have 3 nights (2 full days) planned for Universal and I'm feeling like that will be about right for my family.
I have 11 nights planned for WDW and shopping and I'm wishing I had more.
I have no days planned for the likes of Kennedy Space Centre, Legoland and Discovery Cove and I'm feeling quite gutted about that. But at the end of the day, you prioritise and fit in what you can.

Probably the best way to start is to decide how many days you can afford to go away for. Then organise that time according to your priorities.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I think AOA would be great for you guys. You get free dinning if you stay on site, plus staying onsite just makes disney more enjoyable. We just did disneyland, and it just wasn't the same staying off site.

Just so you know, free dining no longer seems to be a guaranteed thing. there has been a lot of talk about Disney trying to phase this out and the promotions they have offered so far this year would seem to back this up.
There are some pretty strong rumours that free dining will be offered in September this year, but it also looks as though the free dining period will be shorter this year than last.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Welcome to the USA and DLR and WDW sickness.

You've got plenty of time to plan this trip out. All the resorts at WDW are great. It will come down to your budget and what resort theme you like.

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Disney trip planning madness .

You will find everything you need here to plan your amazing holiday and so many people willing to help you and share their knowledge.

I'm a total NYC nut so will always encourage you to have lots of time here . I love that city so much. If you go in September make sure to catch a baseball game.

As for WDW - my opinion, and this is just my thoughts, is you need 2 days for Magic Kingdom, 2 days for Epcot, 1 day for Animal Kingdom and 1 day for Hollywood studios - AS A MINIMUM .

We recently went to NASA in December and it was excellent, you will love it. We did this tour - http://www.kennedyspacecentertours.net/?event=offer.detail&offerId=5827. Definitely go to the meet an Astronaut talk, it was a total highlight of the day.

We have only ever visited Universal for the 1 day and mainly for Harry Potter. With that said though we are not thrill seeker rider peeps so if you love the full on rides you would perhaps need 2-3 days. I would suggest 2 days.

Definitely stay onsite, all of the resorts are amazing and as PIO mentioned, it really comes down to your budget.

You can book accom directly with Disney, or through Dreams Unlimited, I know people on here have been happy with them and I'll also recommend the people we always book with, Kimberly and Bob Hill at Mousetalestravel.com. They are amazing. It doesn't cost anything extra to book with them or DU, and they apply any new discounts or specials that may come along after you've booked.

Good luck with your planning and keep asking questions, so many great people in here that love to help.

 

[Minniemum]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Disney trip planning madness .

You will find everything you need here to plan your amazing holiday and so many people willing to help you and share their knowledge.

I'm a total NYC nut so will always encourage you to have lots of time here . I love that city so much. If you go in September make sure to catch a baseball game.

As for WDW - my opinion, and this is just my thoughts, is you need 2 days for Magic Kingdom, 2 days for Epcot, 1 day for Animal Kingdom and 1 day for Hollywood studios - AS A MINIMUM .

We recently went to NASA in December and it was excellent, you will love it. We did this tour - http://www.kennedyspacecentertours.net/?event=offer.detail&offerId=5827. Definitely go to the meet an Astronaut talk, it was a total highlight of the day.

We have only ever visited Universal for the 1 day and mainly for Harry Potter. With that said though we are not thrill seeker rider peeps so if you love the full on rides you would perhaps need 2-3 days. I would suggest 2 days.

Definitely stay onsite, all of the resorts are amazing and as PIO mentioned, it really comes down to your budget.

Good luck with your planning and keep asking questions, so many great people in here that love to help.

What Ms Shuttergirl said!

I'd definitely factor water park visits in if you end up going in September, November is more hit and miss.

Kennedy Space Center is about a 1 1/4 - 1- 1/2 hour drive. If you feel comfortable driving in the US I'd hire a car.

A few days shopping? That's a given!

Whilst all this planning may seem daunting to begin with, the more you read and ask, the easier it becomes to get your head around it. Happy planning

 

[periwinkle20]

Hi Periwinkle,

To be honest, the research has actually been a heap of fun. I feel like I've sorted out all the big stuff, so now I'm focusing on small pedantic things. Mainly I think because I don't want the planning to be over. It makes the wait till my holiday more bearable.

I think the more days you can plan to stay onsite at Disney the better. For most of us the limit is our budget and the time we can take off work.
I have 3 nights (2 full days) planned for Universal and I'm feeling like that will be about right for my family.

I have 11 nights planned for WDW and shopping and I'm wishing I had more.
I have no days planned for the likes of Kennedy Space Centre, Legoland and Discovery Cove and I'm feeling quite gutted about that. But at the end of the day, you prioritise and fit in what you can.
.

Thanks Wanderlust and everyone else for your advice so far

I have to agree that half of the fun is in the planning and research, it's quite addictive and even though stressful at time I do enjoy researching and booking my own stuff. It is very satisfying when it all works out and everyone loves their holiday.

I think after the initial buzz of trying to make it happen sooner we will stay with November 15, that way we can go for longer rather try to squeeze in to school holidays and we will get to see Christmas decorations

At this stage I'm thinking 10-12 days at WDW, 5-6 in New York and then a trip down to Washington for 3-4 days. Who knows we may even stop off in Anaheim on the way home

Ms Shuttergirl and minniemouse - we did catch a baseball game at Yankee Stadium on our last visit and everyone enjoyed it. NYC has been the drawcard to get everyone back over there!

I think 1-2 days at Universal would be enough for us as a family, the girls are not into HP. Would you stay on site for this or is it easy to travel there? The only reason I thought about onsite was the front of line passes?

 

[PrincessInOz]

Would you stay on site for this or is it easy to travel there? The only reason I thought about onsite was the front of line passes?

That's the reason I'll be staying on-site. But this will depend on how busy UO will be for the time of year you'll be there. If it isn't busy, then the value of the FoL passes is less.

 

[baf65]

we were in florida last november and IOA and US werent that busy the days we went...we just checked the busy day guides on undercover tourist....so FOL passes wouldnt have been needed, there were times on the rides that people did have them and we were a bit envious of them! but the extra $$$ of staying in a hotel to get them i didnt think would have been warranted, we were staying offsite in a villa that averaged about $100 per night v a Universal studioes hotel costing $300 per night,
we managed to get on all the US and IOA rides once or twice at least, max wait was about 15mins

 

[AussieNSW]

I noticed that you mentioned 3 or 4 days in WashingtonDC. We travelled by train from NewYork and back. We loved the train trip. Hubbie didnot have to worry about driving and it was comfortable. Our 17 and 13 year old became bored with Washington and were a bit sick of American history by day 2. I must admit after 2 days I had also had enough although my husband who loves history enjoyed every moment of our 4 days. We also stopped off in Anaheim on the way home couldnot help going to Carsland and to do some extra shopping as I didnot need to lug it around the states.

 

[Marlea98]

Welcome to the USA and DLR and WDW sickness.

You've got plenty of time to plan this trip out. All the resorts at WDW are great. It will come down to your budget and what resort theme you like.

And boy do we have it bad!

 

[periwinkle20]

we were in florida last november and IOA and US werent that busy the days we went...we just checked the busy day guides on undercover tourist....so FOL passes wouldnt have been needed, there were times on the rides that people did have them and we were a bit envious of them! but the extra $$$ of staying in a hotel to get them i didnt think would have been warranted, we were staying offsite in a villa that averaged about $100 per night v a Universal studioes hotel costing $300 per night,
we managed to get on all the US and IOA rides once or twice at least, max wait was about 15mins

Thanks that is good to know what it would be like in November. Where did you stay offsite?

AussieNSW - I read somebody's trip report about the train trip from NY to Washington and it sounded like fun. Think 2 days will be enough too, my kids will be the same age as yours were

We went to DL last April so Carsland wasn't open yet. We all loved our time in Anaheim and DL so we may need to go back. My DD2 thought the best shopping was at the Block at Orange

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I would have to politely disagree with AussieNSW and say that my kids are 14 and 10 and absolutely loved Washington and all it had to offer. We were there for 4 nights and I never felt like it was too much. The kids didn't either.

I would say it depends on the kids. We only went to the Museum of American History which took half a day and I had to drag the kids out and we came back another day. And we went to the Air and Space Museum for a morning.

My kids aren't big museum fans either.

Washington is a really cool place, a visit to Georgetown is great too. I would do a bit of reading on Trip Advisor etc before making any final decisions on how long to spend there.

 

[baf65]

Thanks that is good to know what it would be like in November. Where did you stay offsite?

we stayed in a villa in Terra Verde, this year we are staying in a villa again, but more than likely in Sunset Lakes....its a bit closer to the parks and this year we are going to get 14 day ultimate passes (UK site) as that way we can come and go to the parks as we please without having to stay all day to not waste a day of use IYKWIM. My almost 76 and 80 yr old parents are coming again and I think a whole day in a park x 7 days killed them last year!

 

[Toy Story]

Hi,cI agree with MsShuttergirl park plan - 2 days MK, 2 at EPCOT, 1 at AK and 1 at HS. We also have a day off in between for DTD. On both trips we have stayed at POR, which we loved but will probably choose a different resort for the next trip.

Last year we did 4 nights at Universal staying at Portifino Bay. We had 4 day park passes, but only used 2 full days. I was so sick that I only got to the park on the afternoon we arrived and on the last morning before a day shopping. DH & DD went to the parks on the other days and loved the front of line.

Another huge NY lover - we spent 12 nights there last year and could have easily stayed longer.