Advice, first time booker, get it any cheaper??

[Donald Ducks wife]

Hello, im a DLP regular but never been to WDW. now I just want some help if possible, I know its far away, but im looking at going October 2017, 1 adult, 1 8 year and 1 infant (under 2 years) (Ages they will be in 2017) Now just to get an idea on a price I priced up for this October, for 2 weeks at Art of animation hotel, park tickets for me and 8 year old, flying from Glasgow with Thomas cook airlines, (booking all this separate) its coming to £3,362.68. Now is there anyway of getting this cheaper? Even though we go to DLP every year, I think this WDW trip will be once in a life time, if not then once every few years kind of trip, so that's why I choose Art of Animation hotel and not a cheaper one. as it looks nice, and the little mermaid room looks cute.
How far in advance can I book? And will it be cheaper to book as soon as the dates open up, or should I wait for any offer if there is any? im new to the whole WDW booking, and I just wanna see if this £3,362.68 is the cheapest I can do it, or can I do it cheaper?

 

[Kath2003]

Hello, im a DLP regular but never been to WDW. now I just want some help if possible, I know its far away, but im looking at going October 2017, 1 adult, 1 8 year and 1 infant (under 2 years) (Ages they will be in 2017) Now just to get an idea on a price I priced up for this October, for 2 weeks at Art of animation hotel, park tickets for me and 8 year old, flying from Glasgow with Thomas cook airlines, (booking all this separate) its coming to £3,362.68. Now is there anyway of getting this cheaper? Even though we go to DLP every year, I think this WDW trip will be once in a life time, if not then once every few years kind of trip, so that's why I choose Art of Animation hotel and not a cheaper one. as it looks nice, and the little mermaid room looks cute.
How far in advance can I book? And will it be cheaper to book as soon as the dates open up, or should I wait for any offer if there is any? im new to the whole WDW booking, and I just wanna see if this £3,362.68 is the cheapest I can do it, or can I do it cheaper?

We can give you a better guide if you ca tell us the prices you've quoted for each component, and some dates.

Flights can be booked 11 months in advance for scheduled airlines.
Hotels usually 12 months, probably further in advance via Disney.
Park tickets are usually available 12 months out.

 

[chmurf]

AoA is a value (cheapest category)
You seem to want to make it count, so you might want to go for a moderate. If UK deals are renewed in april 2016 for 2017 stays you might get free dining for your stay, so staying at a moderate would cost almost the same as staying at a value li'e aoa and paying for your meals
This is the kind of discounts you can expect even though they're not guaranteed
There are discounts but most of the time it won't mean you pay less, but that you get more bang for your bucks

Be more specific lile PP said, it will be easier to guide you

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

We can give you a better guide if you ca tell us the prices you've quoted for each component, and some dates.

Flights can be booked 11 months in advance for scheduled airlines.
Hotels usually 12 months, probably further in advance via Disney.
Park tickets are usually available 12 months out.

oh sorry didn't think of that;

Flights from Glasgow with Thomas cook airlines, in total £1,691.96

When looking at the hotel, It said when booking the room, if I bought park tickets at the same time, I would save £35, so this amount is for the room and the park tickets minus the £35 im saving- £1,670.72

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

AoA is a value (cheapest category)
You seem to want to make it count, so you might want to go for a moderate. If UK deals are renewed in april 2016 for 2017 stays you might get free dining for your stay, so staying at a moderate would cost almost the same as staying at a value li'e aoa and paying for your meals
This is the kind of discounts you can expect even though they're not guaranteed
There are discounts but most of the time it won't mean you pay less, but that you get more bang for your bucks

Be more specific lile PP said, it will be easier to guide you

Looking through all the resorts, AOA is the one I want to go for, its not cause of the price, its the one I like the look of, its new, and very Disney. The meal plans are no use to us, as we wont get our moneys worth, as we are not big eatters, so myself and my son can easily share an adults meal.

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

oh sorry didn't think of that;

Flights from Glasgow with Thomas cook airlines, in total £1,691.96

When looking at the hotel, It said when booking the room, if I bought park tickets at the same time, I would save £35, so this amount is for the room and the park tickets minus the £35 im saving- £1,670.72

Edit, sorry, the dates I looked at were 9th - 23rd of October this year. BUT we want to do October 2017

 

[Kath2003]

oh sorry didn't think of that;

Flights from Glasgow with Thomas cook airlines, in total £1,691.96

When looking at the hotel, It said when booking the room, if I bought park tickets at the same time, I would save £35, so this amount is for the room and the park tickets minus the £35 im saving- £1,670.72

£1700 for one adult and one child?!? Outside of the school holidays?!
You can do MUCH better. I'd be looking to knock £600 off that alone.
Or, are you working that out per person?

Either way - flights £1000ish, though if you are set on flying from Glasgow and not connecting, this would significantly increase your price.
Disney tickets - £600 allowing for a bit of price increase
That's for 1 adult, 1 child, as the infant will be free.
AoA this year is in October is under £90/night, so say £1400 for two weeks
That's £3,000
So yes, with generous allowances, you should be able to save 10-20%
My best advice would be to make that as your price to save for, and then use the savings you can make nearer the time as your spending money.

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

£1700 for one adult and one child?!? Outside of the school holidays?!
You can do MUCH better. I'd be looking to knock £600 off that alone.
Or, are you working that out per person?

Either way - flights £1000ish, though if you are set on flying from Glasgow and not connecting, this would significantly increase your price.
Disney tickets - £600 allowing for a bit of price increase
That's for 1 adult, 1 child, as the infant will be free.
AoA this year is in October is under £90/night, so say £1400 for two weeks
That's £3,000
So yes, with generous allowances, you should be able to save 10-20%
My best advice would be to make that as your price to save for, and then use the savings you can make nearer the time as your spending money.

That price was for an adult and a child return.

It can be any Scottish airport, but none in England as I don't drive, unless im saving at least half, then I could train it down there.

Our Schools have 2 weeks off in October, its usually within the first 3 weeks of the month. But im not restricted to school holidays as I don't mind taking my son out of school if needed.

Would I really save a lot on connecting flights? when I was looking on sky scanner for the flights, there was one, but it only worked out £200 cheaper, and in total it would have taken us 15 hours to get there. I would rather get there the quickest way we could, as for a child and an infant that's a long time to travel, also for me too if im traveling with 2 young ones. The longest flight ive ever done is just over an hour and a half to france.

 

[Kath2003]

That price was for an adult and a child return.

It can be any Scottish airport, but none in England as I don't drive, unless im saving at least half, then I could train it down there.

Our Schools have 2 weeks off in October, its usually within the first 3 weeks of the month. But im not restricted to school holidays as I don't mind taking my son out of school if needed.

Would I really save a lot on connecting flights? when I was looking on sky scanner for the flights, there was one, but it only worked out £200 cheaper, and in total it would have taken us 15 hours to get there. I would rather get there the quickest way we could, as for a child and an infant that's a long time to travel, also for me too if im traveling with 2 young ones. The longest flight ive ever done is just over an hour and a half to france.

If you want to fly direct from Scotland, you will pay a premium.
If you are willing to connect, prices start at under £500 for an adult this October from Glasgow. United have prices around the £430 mark.
Is it more hassle? Sort of.
The advantages are that you wouldn't need to travel far within the UK to get to an airport. You also clear US immigration at your first stop in the USA, which means that you just walk off the plane and straight out of the airport when you get to Orlando. Coming home, there's no immigration or need to recheck bags, so you just land from one flight and walk to the gate to board your next. Some people say the break is good with small children - a chance for a walk around, use a proper restroom, get some "real food" - can't comment on that myself. It's usually around a third to half the price of flying direct.
The disadvantages are that it's a slightly longer flight than flying direct and you do have to spend some time walking between your flights and waiting in airports.
We've done both and think the savings are well worth the hassle - but no kids...

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

If you want to fly direct from Scotland, you will pay a premium.
If you are willing to connect, prices start at under £500 for an adult this October from Glasgow. United have prices around the £430 mark.
Is it more hassle? Sort of.
The advantages are that you wouldn't need to travel far within the UK to get to an airport. You also clear US immigration at your first stop in the USA, which means that you just walk off the plane and straight out of the airport when you get to Orlando. Coming home, there's no immigration or need to recheck bags, so you just land from one flight and walk to the gate to board your next. Some people say the break is good with small children - a chance for a walk around, use a proper restroom, get some "real food" - can't comment on that myself. It's usually around a third to half the price of flying direct.
The disadvantages are that it's a slightly longer flight than flying direct and you do have to spend some time walking between your flights and waiting in airports.
We've done both and think the savings are well worth the hassle.

you have some good points there. where would you suggest I look for flights, sky scanner maybe?
if I was saving a lot flying from somewhere in England, I would see about taking a train down. But im central Scotland, so Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen is only 1-2 hours drive from us

 

[Minniesgal]

That price was for an adult and a child return. It can be any Scottish airport, but none in England as I don't drive, unless im saving at least half, then I could train it down there. Our Schools have 2 weeks off in October, its usually within the first 3 weeks of the month. But im not restricted to school holidays as I don't mind taking my son out of school if needed. Would I really save a lot on connecting flights? when I was looking on sky scanner for the flights, there was one, but it only worked out £200 cheaper, and in total it would have taken us 15 hours to get there. I would rather get there the quickest way we could, as for a child and an infant that's a long time to travel, also for me too if im traveling with 2 young ones. The longest flight ive ever done is just over an hour and a half to france.

Have a look at flying Aer Lingus out of Dublin. Could potentially be a lot cheaper. Flying out of Scottish airports adds a fair bit to your cost. Also you could look at Gatwick as you can pick up an Edinburgh Gatwick flight very cheap.

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

just having a play around with sky scanner with airports in uk to orlando, up to now ive found a great price, flying from Belfast, 1 stop in new York and in total its £839.40

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

Just found London (cant remember what airport sorry) to Orlando, return is £699.28!! that's wow!! that's like £1000 cheaper, I would deffo travel down to London on the train the day before and stay in a cheap travel lodge or something since im saving so much, I just never thought about traveling to a differnet airport. and Also looking at flight times, I wouldn't mind an indirect flight, as it would break it up for us a bit.

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

So my next question, sorry;

since you can book flights a year in advance, when it comes time to book, should I book flights first, so I can play around with dates, airlines etc, then book our hotel when I know dates for sure? if I do leave booking the hotel after I book the flights, will the hotel be any more expensive booking 1 year in advance rather than book say 18 month in advance?

Thinking about it, it might be better booking flights first huh?

 

[Kath2003]

So my next question, sorry;

since you can book flights a year in advance, when it comes time to book, should I book flights first, so I can play around with dates, airlines etc, then book our hotel when I know dates for sure? if I do leave booking the hotel after I book the flights, will the hotel be any more expensive booking 1 year in advance rather than book say 18 month in advance?

Thinking about it, it might be better booking flights first huh?

You can book flights 11 months in advance. We always book flights first. You can often get a better rate on hotel rooms if you choose a nonrefundable rate and you can't do this without flights.

Orlando has so much hotel space, you're guaranteed somewhere that meets your needs so no rush. Hotels don't tend to follow a pricing pattern - we have always found good deals whether booking 10 months from departure or 24 hours beforehand! We hold out for the price we want; if it doesn't come up, we would reassess a few weeks before travel but have never needed to do this as we have always got the hotel we want within budget (in fact this year, we are paying less than the same hotel in 2013!). AoA is huge so shouldn't sell out proving you book a couple of months before you fly. It's not peak travel time, either.

 

[Minniesgal]

Just found London (cant remember what airport sorry) to Orlando, return is £699.28!! that's wow!! that's like £1000 cheaper, I would deffo travel down to London on the train the day before and stay in a cheap travel lodge or something since im saving so much, I just never thought about traveling to a differnet airport. and Also looking at flight times, I wouldn't mind an indirect flight, as it would break it up for us a bit.

Instead of the train look at Edinburgh London by easy jet. Can be as cheap as £30 per person and if you can avoid the cost of airport hotels etc saves a bit.

 

[Kath2003]

Instead of the train look at Edinburgh London by easy jet. Can be as cheap as £30 per person and if you can avoid the cost of airport hotels etc saves a bit.

Be careful. If you book connecting flights on the SAME ticket, you ate coveted if you miss your connection (ie the airline will get you to your destination). If you book separate tickets and miss your flight, this is NOT the case. I'd want a HUGE buffer on that idea, probably an overnight stop.

Indirect places should be similar from both Scottish airports and London so there will probably be no need to travel to London anyway.

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

Be careful. If you book connecting flights on the SAME ticket, you ate coveted if you miss your connection (ie the airline will get you to your destination). If you book separate tickets and miss your flight, this is NOT the case. I'd want a HUGE buffer on that idea, probably an overnight stop.

Indirect places should be similar from both Scottish airports and London so there will probably be no need to travel to London anyway.

if I was going to London, I would travel the day before and after, as its at least 6 hours on the train there and back so doing it the day before we travel will break the journey up a bit.

That cheap flight I priced was direct to orlando from London!!

Thinking about it, I think when it comes to booking a flight, I will have a limit of £1000 to be safe, and shop and around and try and get it as cheap as possible. (that £1000 will have to be for it in total, like if it was London, it would mean train or flight tickets down to London too)

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

Sorry for more questions, but for the hotel and park tickets, am I better off booking with WDW or can I go to Thomas cook and book it? do you get anything extra if you book directly with WDW?
Only asking is that I have a few hundred pound of Thomas cook vouchers that ive not used, no use by date, so I could use them to book it maybe?

 

[1nfrequent]

One thing to consider is signing up to a site like Topcashback or Quidco so you effectively get a further discount. If you do your research before hand, then booking through a cashback site can give you an even bigger discount as you'll be getting a percentage of your spend back. I saved £400 doing that for my trip later this year.

Also, if you're looking to stay on site, then if you're putting the trip together yourself keep an eye on prices on WDW's site, hotels.com, ba.com and expedia.co.uk to make sure you find the best price (again, you can book through some of them using a cashback site for a bigger discount).

Finally, I would strongly recommend checking out Aer Lingus if you're looking for cheaper flights - the advantage they have of preclearing security could save you hours at the other end.

1F