Back After 7 years!

[gabriellewatson]

I'm not new to the Disboards. I used to be quite a frequent visitor actually.

I am Gabrielle Watson, and I LOVE Disney, anything and everything. I visited WDW for the first with with my DH in 2006 for our honeymoon. Then we went again in 2007 for our 1 year wedding anniversary.

Now I am planning a September 2014 trip to WDW with my two small children (DD will be 5, and DS will be 2).

First, where do I begin? I have Disney Rewards that I'll use for a 'down-payment' on the trip. Then I'll pay per month to pay it off.

I know how to get better rooms and deals to stay at resorts. I want the DDP free of course, hence my chosen dates, smaller crowds, etc.

I need more advice though. How do you do Disney with a 2 year old AND a 5 year old. Also, how do you save on flights? We are flying in from TX, so seems expensive for all of us.

When can I book the trip to start paying on it.
I just want this trip to work out. My daughter says she dreams of WDW every night at bedtime, and I believe her. She eats, breaths, sleeps Disney and princesses

Thanks to all my fellow Disney Freaks for the help! I NEED it

 

[ParrotBill]

welcome back and great story! You will get lots of good advice on travelling with kids on the family and theme parks boards. Head to the transportation board for help on flying... book early and be willing to drive to other airports if needed!

 

[gabriellewatson]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll be checking both boards!!

 

[twinsouvenirs]

I am a returning member too! I used to post back in '99, '00, and '01 and then went to grad school, got married... and now I have two twin babies and we're joining DVC.

SO there is my first idea. Have you considered renting DVC points for your accommodations to stay in a nice (large) place? It is usually a significant savings and puts the trip closer to a moderate hotel budget. Now, if you are staying in a value hotel it is not going to compete with that. It will REALLY allow you to control your food budget though because you can cook in your room.

This assumes you are staying on property which maybe you aren't.

Unrelated, but what are you and DH studying in grad school?

Flights--I have no advice other than use a credit card that gives you miles, and book your travel expenses on the card, which will let you use the cost of the disney trip to help you pay for the flights to the disney trip! You can also ask relatives for donations of miles. Look into AirTran and other servicers that might fly out of your areas.

Also--pack snacks for each day to prevent impulse snack spending. Make a trip to a discount bulk store and buy 'treats' for your five year old that will constitute a major thrill for her. My mom got snapples and fruit by the foot, etc.... and she broke them out each morning as part of a treasure horde we could pick from to bring with us to the park. I was probably 10 and I still remember choosing yogurt covered raisins and fruit snacks and peach snapple and feeling like a goddess. I also got a souvenir twenty that kept me trying to decide how to spend it and NOT begging for everything I saw.

Just SOME ideas. I'll keep thinking, and I'm so excited for you. I'll be returning for my twins first birthday--different challenges there!

If you have any birthdays, holidays, etc in the meantime... ask for disney dollars

 

[gabriellewatson]

Thanks for the advice. I actually have been looking into renting DVC points because it was less expensive. I want the free dining to cover our food costs though so I am not sure how that works with DVC rental. I know that you can't really save on park tickets which I'm not all that worried about. I'll probably get those through undercover tourist to save a few dollars there. Also I looked at airfare and I can likely save 30% thru SW airlines maybe 4 roundtrip tickets $771 after taxes. It is actually cheaper than driving for us and gives us 7 nights/8days. And it is cheaper if we leave on a Tuesday and arrive home on a Tuesday

Last time we went we brought a small suitcase with snacks and bottled water. Then we brought home our souvenirs in that. So we will probably do the same thing again. I like staying at moderates. I stayed at POFQ on my first trip. Then we stayed at WL on our second trip. This time I was thinking moderates so we get the regular dining free and/or the DVC rental thing. Whatever is cheapest.

Also I am waiting for specials on rates for the value season September to see if I can get a further discount, so I am stalking the boards.

 

[DonnaL]

Not trying to change your mind about free dining....however, please keep in mind when free dining is happening all of the ts restaurants are usually very booked...therefore, service tends to be a bit slower. To answer your thought on DVC and free dining.....when staying on DVC points you cannot get free dining....you may pay for a dining plan, but, the DVC owner you are renting from must make all the arrangements for you. Also, please keep in mind.....free dining happens only when you are paying for a full priced package. You might want to do a comparison of full price package w/free dining vs renting DVC points (and getting a 1 bdrm w/full kitchen and washer/dryer unit IN your room...very handy with a 5 and 2 yr old). With a full kitchen you are able to have groceries delivered from one of several grocery delivery services (very reasonable) and can prepare several simple, easy prep meals in your room and also, if you choose, dine out for several.... paying out of pocket. Also, having the kitchen makes it very easy to have breakfast in your room and then being able to get right to the parks w/o having to go and eat breakfast somewhere first......we always found our kids were anxious to "get to the parks" and did not like to stop somewhere to have breakfast. I'm quite sure (from experience) once you do a cost comparison you will find that free dining really isn't all that free...... I do understand for some families dining out is a huge part of their vacation...that's why I said you might want to plan on dining out for several meals.....just not all of them....you may find at least for a few evenings it would be nice to get the kiddos fed and bathed and asleep and have a quiet dinner in your rented DVC villa with a nice glass of wine and just relax.

 

[gabriellewatson]

Thanks for the input Donna

I am definitely trying to weigh the pros and cons of staying in a moderate vs staying in a DVC rental.

I like the 'free' dining option as my husband and I did this in the past, and it was such a wonderful experience to participate in character meals and eat at restaurants we normally would not have tried due to cost. We also like the option to get an appetizer, meal, and dessert.

With that said, this time we are going with 2 small children, and they may get tired of eating in the parks and feeling overwhelmed, so having an option to eat in might be nice. I'll definitely be looking into having groceries delivered.

If nothing else, we will bring cereal and buy milk while we are there, so the kids can have something small for breakfast before starting a big day at the park.

Thanks for the heads up

 

[DonnaL]

Like I said...not trying to change your mind about free dining, but, IMO it really isn't free if you're paying full non-discounted price for a package....you might want to check on this.....but, I believe the package also needs to include your park tix...not sure. I believe you mentioned buying your tix from Undercover Tourist, but, you may not have that option if you need to buy the whole package. If you'd like to check out menus for the various restaurants to estimate cost for out of pocket for several meals vs. dining plan, www.allearsnet.com has a complete list of all dining locations along with pricing. I do agree with you.......the dining plan is a nice option....my husband and I have done it (we're DVC members so we have paid for it) several times. However, IMO, if you're vacationing with young children it puts way too many time constraints on the way you spend your entire day.....just because you have a dining reservation at a certain time.... Our kids are all adults now, but, we do have one grandson, who is 11, and has traveled with us frequently. We rarely make "set in stone" dining plans when he's with us, especially when he was younger. We are also expecting three more grandbabies in early/mid December (our daughter is having one, and daughter-in-law having twins!) so I'm quite sure we have a lot more years of traveling with children ahead of us!