??? about park passes

[cristen]

I am trying to figure out which passes will be the best for our trip. It will be my husband, three daughters, (6, 3, 2) and I. We will arrive in Orlando around 4p April 26th. We are leaving May 3, early in the morning. So I am figuring that the first night we are there, we will check in and take a look around our resort. No parks that night, then Monday when we leave, no parks. That leaves 6 full days to do whatever. I was planning to get an AP for me, my husband said to only get him a 6 day hopper. We are not planning to go to the water parks, we think the pools will be fine for the girls because of their ages. Plus I have a feeling we will be in the parks most of the time, this is our first time to WDW. We also are not planning to go to PI because we have the kids. That leaves DQ, which we weren't going to go to, but now it looks like it might be pretty cool to go check out. Any opinions on DQ would be good, thanks.

Anyway, it looks like they don't offer a 6-day hopper pass. I HAVE to buy a hopper plus. But we aren't going to use any of it. So either go with only a 5 day or pay for things I will not use. Am I missing something? Can someone help me out with what would be best to buy. Thanks!

Cristen

 

[DVC California]

HI Cristen -

Two questions for you - Have you been to WDW before and Do you think that you will ever return again?

If the former, then the plain vanilla 5-day PH should be sufficient. You could always spend that 6th day visting Downtown Disney and even splurging on 1-day tickets to Disney Quest. (Or maybe even visit Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure - which has some good options for the age of your children).

If the latter, then the 6-day PH Plus could make sense. Park Hoppers and their Plus days never expire, so you can use them again next year or 10 years from now. And you will have purchased them at prices that are inflation protected.

HTH, Steve

 

[tjkraz]

If you're planning to go to DisneyQuest, consider the Ultimate Park Hopper. It is the only multi-day, multi-park pass (other than the Premium AP) that includes admission to DQ. If you get Park Hopper PLUS passes, you'll need to purchase DQ tickets separately, which run $25-30 (Adult).

The advance purchase price for a 6-day UPH is $299 (adult), which I believe is very comparable to the 6-day PHP.

With the UPH, you would get unlimited admission to ALL parks (4 main theme parks, water parks, Pleasure Island and DisneyQuest) for the duration.

The only drawback to the UPH is that the "days" do expire when your vacation ends. So, it's up to you to determine the odds that you would "pocket" any of the park days or plus features from a PHP for a future trip.

 

[whozit]

If you do decide on the UPH, you might make 3 separate reservations. The UPH is good from the time you check in until midnight on the day you check out. With your planned itinerary, if you don't arrive until 4pm on 4/26, much of the day is already gone....maybe spend that day settling in, swimming at your resort, riding the monorail, resort hopping or maybe going to the Ft Wilderness campfire and movie. If you are leaving early on 5/3, your last day on an UPH will go completely unused (but you paid for it). If you check in for one night (room only) on 4/26, then check in for 5 nights (4/27 through 5/1) and buy the UPHs--this gives you full park access from 4/27 through midnight on 5/2 (the day of your checkout), then check in for one night only (room only) on 5/2. If you You might crunch the numbers and see how the costs stack up. We did this in August with the Fairy Tale Package...UPHs were included with the FTP, so we got room only reservations on the front and back end with the FTP sandwiched in-between. Disney will not guarantee that you will get to stay in the same room for your entire stay (and this concerned me), but I faxed in a room request with my primary request being that we be booked in the same room for the entire stay. I included all three reservation numbers in the request and upon check-in, they had a note on the record that we would have the same room for the entire stay.

 

[jann1033]

you can go to www.mousesavers.com for a good explaination of the tickets/passes available , make up a rough outline of what your family will want to do/ be capapble of doing and go from there. we personally buy Park hopper or park hopper plus since we like down time from the parks and if you buy the Uph you pay for an admission price for that down time. There is another thread going about "what's the difference in the tickets" also you may want to check out for additional info.( on this same board) for example we will be at WDW for 10days whcih means unless we do the check in check out thing we would need a 10 day UPH pass ($456) but are only going to use 7 days. paramount tickets has the 7 day PHP for $301 ( and you get a free break fast voucher to boot) some one ( I think ticket mania but I am not positive) had DQ single days for 21, someone for 26 plus tax so that brings it up to $327 (for 7 days in the 4 major parks, 4 plus features and one disney quest day that never expire) vs $456 for the 10 day UPH( that does) or the 8 day uph would be $365, still more

edited because first I looked at the gate price instead of advance price of the 6 night /7 day UPH then again cause we are going to be there 10 days and I originally put 9 and 7 instead of 10 and 8 knew something wasn't right....sorrrryyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!lol))

 

[cristen]

Hey everyone,

thank you for all the responces. No, we have neer been there before, and I am not sure exactly when we might get back. The year after this our vacation will be to DL for her 50th birthday. Then after that, I think we are going to do the Disney Cruise.

We really don't want the PHP plus because we are not planning to go to the water parks, or PI at all. I already have so much packed into our vacation, that I doubt we would even have time to do the water parks at all. And with the girls ages, I think the pool is fine. I talked to my husband, he said a 5 day hopper will be fine for him. He said he could care less if he doesn't go to a park on that 6th day. I will get the AP, and the girls will get a 5 days hopper. I figured the day we get there, we can eat dinner, and do the scavenger hunt or hidden mickey thing at WL. Then Tues-MK, Wed-Epcot, Thurs-MGM, Fri-AK, Sat-down time around the resort or DQ. Then on Sunday before we leave we could do MK again. Does that sound ok?

ANd yes, I was on MAry's site, that is where I saw that there was no 6 day hopper! I love her site, so much info. Thank you again.

Cristen

 

[whozit]

If you haven't been before, you might be underestimating how exhausting it can be touring the parks (especially for the ages of your kids). Instead of 4 straight days followed by a "down time" day, you might want to plan a "down time" day earlier in your stay. We were worn out after two days and needed a day off before hitting the parks again. Also, it is just my opinion, but I would skip DQ with your kids....I think they are all too young to enjoy it. If you were interested in going, I think I'd get a sitter for the kids. Instead of DQ, I'd ride the monorails, take the boat from WL to Ft. Wilderness and spend some time at the petting farm, see the horses, maybe do pony rides or hayride, and/or stay for the campfire program and movie. Also, go to Downtown Disney and see the Lego Store (and the Lego sculptures outside), look for the live tropical bird shows outside of the Rainforest Cafe, and if it is warm enough, let the kids play in the splash fountains. Also, you might want to watch the Electrical Water Pageant.

 

[jann1033]

I am just wondering why you are getting the Ap...do you plan on going again soon? If it is for the resort discount make sure you find out the prices first...so far the Ap for us was not worth the cost of the Ap ( we would have to save 90 on resort to break even, so far we are only able to save 60 according to the cm I talked to this morning when I added a night on to our stay)

 

[cristen]

Whozit,
yes, that is why we were not going to do DQ. But then I went to check out exactly what it was, and it sounded really cool. But then I went to Deb's site to get more info and saw that it was more for older kids. So you're suggestions are better. We definately were going to do the pony rides and the Ft. Wilderness thing. One night we are going to the Hoop De Doo show, so I was thinking we could spend some time checking all that out. We also wanted to go canoeing.

Jann,
I was planning to get the AP for the hotel discounts. I am not buying the AP until the rates come out and I can get the discounts if they are available. I also know that they have been wishy-washy about when they come out and whether or not they are going to have them at all. So if not, I too will get the 5 day hopper.

 

[XStAnt]

Cristen,

I think you need to price things out. Both the UPH and the 6 day PHP give you things you don't need. I suspect the 6 day PHP is cheaper than the 6 or 7 day UPH.

If you are sure you don't want to do a water park (they are lots of fun, even for young children) then I suggest the 5 day PH. For the extra day you can:

1) take a day off from the parks. Hang out at the resort pool, check out other resorts, ride the monorail, go play mini golf, check out the petting farm, etc;

2) go to Universal or Sea World for a day;

3) buy a single day park ticket. While you can't park hop you can certainly spend an entire day in a park like MK, especially if you've never been. (You should price out a 5 day PH plus one single day ticket vs. a 6 day PHP--it may not be a big difference in price, especially with the advance purchase discount for PHP).

I have only one word of caution. If you've never been before you may want all six park days. While you can never do anything, it will give you more chances to see more things. Your kids (and DH) will want to do everything they can but will likely tire out and need a rest during the day. The extra day gives you a chance to take a midday break and not feel the need to rush through the parks to get everything done. If you can afford a 6 day PHP (or 5 day PH with a single day ticket) I would strongly suggest it.

Have fun.

 

[jann1033]

Originally posted by cristen
Whozit,
.

. I also know that they have been wishy-washy about when they come out and whether or not they are going to have them at all. So if not, I too will get the 5 day hopper.

The Cm I spoke to this morning laughed when I said about if they'd have them (ap rates) and said oh yeah they'll have them,,,now this is value season( for me) but she said they ought to be out by Dec which if they are for the next 3 months ( I think they were for 3 months this time) that would take it up to March. just to give you an unofficial time ( plus she actually figured them out for me down to the penny, making me think she already knew what they were going to be or had a good guess. Personally I don't think I'm going to bother with it since I don't think it will save me enough in the long run...but I am hoping for some other nice healthy discount before then!

 

[cristen]

XStAnt,

That was what I was planning on doing. I will get the basic 5 day hopper with no extras, since we will not use them. My husband does not really like Disney all that much (I know, he is a barbarian), so he would be just as happy taking the younger two back to the hotel room for naps. He says there is NO WAY he will want to be in the parks more than 5 days, EVER. ANd although I think the water parks would be FUN, I love water parks, my girls really don't know how to swim just yet. I think the pools are going to be more than enough for them. Plus with this being our first trip ever, I didn't want to try and cram EVERYTHING into this one trip.

Jann,
I will be thrilled if they put out codes early. I even saw on Mary's site, that one year for April, they released them in Jan. But I have read on these boards that it is a hit and miss for around Easter. So I am praying that since we are going the week after Easter and hopefully Spring Break will be over, that they will release some codes. I tried to figure out how much we would save by the historical figures on Mary's site. And we would save almost $900.00!! That is quite a bit. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

 

[whozit]

If your whole family is going to the Hoop-de-do revue, then I would plan to do the other things at Ft. Wilderness at that time. My reasoning is that transportation (even in the best of circumstances) can eat up a lot of time, and if you could consolidate it into one trip, you wouldn't be waiting twice for transportation.

You mentioned doing the scavenger hunt at WL, so I assume that is where you are staying (and maybe that isn't the case). If you are, your transportation would probably be pretty smooth, you'd just take the boat directly from WL to FtW. From the boat dock, you'll be walking distance from most of the activities you might be interested (although the campfire/movie woould probably require you to ride the internal bus). Even if you have a car, the boat is probably your best bet, because if you drive to Ft. Wilderness, you will have to park in their lot and then take an internal bus to get to the HDD (or any of the other things).

 

[cristen]

Whozit,

yes, we will be staying at the WL. The night we do HDD, I was planning on touring FW and maying go canoeing. You can do that, right? I thought I saw a picture of the site showing people doing that. I also want to do the peting zoo, and pony rides. My girls LOVE ponies. We will have a car, but I was thinking of just taking the boat. I was reserving the car for when we go down towards Epcot and DTD.

Thanks everyone for your help.

Cristen

 

[whozit]

We didn't stay at FW, so I don't know a lot of the details. I don't know about canoeing at all. I think the petting farm is open until dusk, I'm not sure what the hours are for pony rides. I do know from experience that if it is raining (or has rained hard in the late afternoon), Chip & Dale will not appear at the campfire program...although the movie goes on even if it is raining. You might post specific questions about FW activities/times/prices on the Camping forum, I'm sure there are folks there that can answer your questions. (And I would stick with the boat tranportation instead of driving over.)

 

[jann1033]

Originally posted by cristen
Whozit,

yes, we will be staying at the WL. The night we do HDD, I was planning on touring FW and maying go canoeing. You can do that, right? I thought I saw a picture of the site showing people doing that. I also want to do the peting zoo, and pony rides. My girls LOVE ponies. We will have a car, but I was thinking of just taking the boat. I was reserving the car for when we go down towards Epcot and DTD.

Thanks everyone for your help.

Cristen

I may be wrong but I don't remember ever seeing pony rides, just horse backriding.. ( my daughters always did that but at least when they were smaller there weren't pony rides) there is a number to FW on the camping board and at www.disneycampers.com and more information on that website that may help you.

 

[cristen]

Jann,

you had me worried, but I found this:

Pony Rides:
Pony rides are available for children under 80 pounds, cost is $2 plus tax per ride.

You have to go searching for this. It is not listed by the horse back riding activities. I had to go to the resorts page by the FW page, and I found the activities to do there.

And I checked for the canoes, there are some available, but they never post how much they are to rent.

Cristen

 

[jann1033]

thanks for clarifying that although I doubt anyone in my immediate family will ever be under 80 lbs again so we'd all have to stick with the big ones! The trail rides were always one of my kids favorite things.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by cristen
Jann,

you had me worried, but I found this:

Pony Rides:
Pony rides are available for children under 80 pounds, cost is $2 plus tax per ride.

You have to go searching for this. It is not listed by the horse back riding activities. I had to go to the resorts page by the FW page, and I found the activities to do there.

And I checked for the canoes, there are some available, but they never post how much they are to rent.

Cristen

Pony rides are available near the petting "zoo" at FW.