Advice on how to plan trip

[calgarymom]

We are planning a Disney cruise January 10th, 2009 out of Port Canaveral and want to arrive 3-4 days early in Orlando to visit Disney World. We have never been to a disney park anywhere and are very excited - as is our 4 year old DD (who will be 5 when we go). We would like to keep costs down as the cruise itself is already costing us $3500. So having said that, should we book a hotel or rent a condo offsite and rent a car to go to DW? We will probably only spend one or two days at the most at DW, and spend a day shopping in Orlando. I have heard people say that if you stay at a DW resort you can get by without a rental car, but I think we need one since we need to get back to MCO to catch the Disney transfer to Port canaveral. If anyone has experienced a similar travel itinerary I would love to hear how you did it. TIA.

 

[Diamondintheruff]

When you are looking at only3 or 4 days and you are on a budget you need to prioritize what it is you and your family really wants to do. What type of hotels works for your family(cheap and cheerful or all out luxury)makes your family happy? Which Disney characters do you like? Which Disney park do you want to visit? Will mass transportation work for your family?

There are so many options available to you. Search the disboards. Buy a book if you'd like (I recommend the Unofficial Guide but they all have their good points). Talk to others who have been there. But most of all know that the world is such a vast place with so many options that it is better to focus on the things you know your family will like.

In reference to your particular questions. No you will not need a car if you stay on site. Magic Express will pick you up at the airport and drop you back off at the airport for your cruise. However if you stay on site you will need to rent a taxi to go shopping in Orlando. If you are planning on visiting multiple locations than the taxi fare will add up(check on the transportaton board for how much a one way fee is from the resorts to Walmart). You can buy your disney park ticket from a discount vender such as undercover tourist(check out www.mousesavers.com) to save some money.

Good luck planning and have fun!

 

[Muziqal]

i just came back from a very similar trip. see my trip report here:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1664501

i guess my advice would vary depending on what you want to see. sounds like you've done some research about the place already - which is good 'cause the place is huge!

so here is how i do things to cut costs. let me know if you have any questions:

1. car or wdw transportation and airport transfers? i always rent a car from alamo from MCO when i arrive and drop it off at the dolphin resort near Epcot and then take wdw transportation to where ever i am going the first morning. this cost me, just recently, $32 for the one night. compared to the alternatives (ie; towncar or mears shuttles), it's much cheaper and you have the flexibility to do what you need to do the first night (grocery stop, etc.). i used a combination of discount codes and coupons found on the mousesavers.com website and in posts on the transportation board on the dis.

i picked up a rental car at the dolphin resort the morning of the cruise and drove it myself to port canaveral and parked there. this worked our to be cheaper than the four of us taking the disney cruise shuttle from wdw to the cruise ($70/person round trip). i don't know what you are paying for the shuttle from MCO to the cruise line. is it free?

but this might cut costs...just to rent a car the day you arrive and the morning leave for the cruise. i know some rental car companies have offices at port canaveral. alamo doesn't.

2. onsite vs. offsite? depending on what you want, i think. a kitchen? condo. kitchen not important? offsite hotel. standards? depends what you are comfortable with. i have stayed at a few offsite places and have stayed at a bunch of the disney resorts. i recently stayed at coronado springs for 9 nights and then at the regal sun resort for 2 nights after the cruise. and it depends where you want to go shopping. i went to the premium outlet malls (everything my fiance and i needed)...which is in the lake buena vista area and very close to downtown disney. i would recommend staying close to there. the regal sun is close as is the comfort inn lake buena vista. stayed at both. both are decent enough and cheap. i think the regal sun was $80/night and the comfort inn was $50/night. both have free shuttles to all the parks. comfort inn has continental breakfast. regal sun is walking distance to downtown disney.

offsite condo, you will pay for parking at the parks - i think $12/day.

3. shopping? from either the regal sun or comfort inn, a cab ride to the premium outlet malls will cost you at most $10. i don't think you want to go into orlando to shop. the city is not that great. there are a few places people like to go to...the florida mall is big and has some good stores, but definitely not discount oriented. there's the bellz outlet mall near univeral and the premiums which are, in my opinion, the best i've been to. depends what you like to buy i guess though.


let me know if this was good or you need more info.

 

[SandraC]

I recommend staying at a Value Disney Resort. In January the rates are low and you will be totally immersed in DISNEY!

We always rent a car from MCO....we've rented them all; Budget, Alamo, Hertz, Dollar, etc.,. Always cheap and always happy with our choice.

Have a blast! Sandra

 

[calgarymom]

Thanks for the advice. Hey Muziqal, glad to see a fellow Calgaryian on the post. Our trip is still 1 year away so lots of time to research and plan.

Staying at a hotel near DW is a good idea if they have shuttles to DW. We have been to the Premier Outlet Mall on our last cruise trip in September but it was a short shopping trip so we like to visit again. What would be the most econonmical way to get from MCO to a hotel? Taxi, shuttle, or rent a car? Have you heard of the Radisson Hotel and what are your views on it?

We are doing the Disney Cruise Bus to Port Canaveral for the convenience of them taking our luggage right to our stateroom for us. We like to broard early so it is nice to wander around the ship without all our luggage (since they don't let you in your stateroom until mid afternoon. It's also nice to have them handle your luggage at disembarkment. It's worth the extra cost to us.

I don't think we will do Epcot. My daughter is too young for that from what I heard of Epcot. So Magic Kingdom is 1 choice, haven't decided which other park would be a "must see" for a 5 year old.

So, what about renting a car from MCO upon arrival to a hotel that has shuttle to DW. Doing our shopping on day 1 and return the rental car. Then shuttle from hotel to DW on day 2, 3, maybe 4. And lastly, does anyone know if there is shuttle service from hotels to MCO. Timing would be a big issue. Do hotels have shuttles at all times of the day or just once a day. We need to pick a hotel that would shuttle us to MCO around 9 am. Can anyone can suggest a hotel they meets our critierias above? And BTW, is the shuttle service to DW free?

TIA again.

 

[mkmommy]

If you want to use the DCL transfes to Port Caneveral, you should think about staying at a Moderate resort at DW. You can take the Magic Express free from MCO to the Moderate hotel( do not have to pick up luggage at the airport) and then take the DCL transfers from the Moderate to Port Caneveral (they will pick up luggage from hotel room and deliver to ship, but there is a charge). This way you do not have to go back to the airport to get the Cruise shuttle saving you time and luggage handling.