Disneymoon March/April 2014 (Coming from the land down under!) WARNING: long post

[Princess Jes]

Hi all!
So I'm entering the research phase of WDW for part of our honeymoon and have LOTS of questions!

My Fiancé is a wrestling fan, so we want to try and get to Wrestle Mania on April 6 in New Orleans, so I'm trying to work out whether we try to go to WDW right before for 7 nights or go right after.
I've worked out that this time is Spring Break? How long does spring break go for and what affect will it have on our Disney-moon? Crowds, peak pricing?

Also, I'm the type of gal with luxury tastes but not necessarily luxury budgets. However, I want to make the absolute most of WDW as we are from Australia, our chances of getting back are slim (or possibly with a good decade between visits)
My question is:
In your opinion and experience, would we benefit from going with a premium or platinum package and stay at a moderate resort? (I'd LOVE to stay at the Contemporary based on its accessibility etc but am thinking of maybe CSR or one of the PO resorts, but I HATE the beds at POR, lame, but I'm taking that into consideration)

I already know that I want to get DDP and the full ticket experience (PH and the water park/mini golf access) but I think the tours and recreation would be great too.

We plan on spending a day at Universal as I'm a mad Harry Potter fan, so I wonder if we will have time to utilize the platinum package? I just love the fact that we can do all the extras without having to worry about money?

Also, does anyone have any idea of what these packages cost roughly? The vacation planner on the website isn't very helpful as March next year isn't available as yet. Or alternatively, can anyone advise the costs of the following recreational activities:
Cirque tickets
Golf at an 18 hole course with shoe, club and cart rental
Mini golf rounds (we LOVE mini golf!)
Horse trail rides
Fire works cruise
Epcot seas aqua tour
The Epcot Segway tour

Also, I read somewhere that on platinum, it includes a dinner at V&A's? Is this true?

Argh, sorry for the long post, but I have read A LOT of the blog posts at The Disney Tourist Blog, and now have a million questions!

TIA, Jes

 

[Princess Jes]

No one has any info to offer? :-(

 

[wannagoback]

Your trip sounds fabulous! I think you might get better answers in another section though. The budget board might not be the best fit for many of your questions.

Happy planning!

 

[4xmom]

If you are set on wanting a deluxe resort, I would see about renting DVC points. We spent our honeymoon at the Contemporary. I loved it! We don't do a lot of the paid shows. There are so many free things to do on down days that I save money that way. Best wishes on your planning.

 

[LittleKittyMarie]

Welcome. You should go over to the weddings and honeymoons forum where Disneymoons are of frequent discussion, as well as making those magical moments!

My fiance and I went to Disney during spring break this past March and we rented DVC points for our stay Old Key West resort and saved over $1000. It's a really good way to stay in a deluxe for less, especially during peak pricing season. The crowds are pretty bad, some days were better than other. The worst is when we spent an afternoon/evening in Hollywood Studios. All fastpasses were gone, you could barely move and we only managed to get on one ride, but after a very long wait. If you are able to go at a different time of year I highly suggest it, because will be pretty well impossible to get everything you want done -- especially if you don't think you will be back for a long time if ever.

Lastly, if you go with the deluxe dining plan you will probably spend most of your day eating. Portion sizes at WDW are huge, we like to eat but we can barely manage the amount of food in the regular dining plan per day. Also, we no longer use the dining plan at all, it actually costs us more to use the dining plan than to just pay out of pocket for our meals. Obviously, that's just us personally, but it's something you should consider.

We did the horseback riding on our first trip to WDW at it was really magical. They take you along a path through Fort Wilderness and there were deer in the woods watching us, it was a very special experience. I think it is around $40 per person.

Hope that helps.

 

[Heidi Lou]

I never got married in disney but if you have any questions about New Orleans i can help with that

 

[Princess Jes]

Welcome. You should go over to the weddings and honeymoons forum where Disneymoons are of frequent discussion, as well as making those magical moments!

My fiance and I went to Disney during spring break this past March and we rented DVC points for our stay Old Key West resort and saved over $1000. It's a really good way to stay in a deluxe for less, especially during peak pricing season. The crowds are pretty bad, some days were better than other. The worst is when we spent an afternoon/evening in Hollywood Studios. All fastpasses were gone, you could barely move and we only managed to get on one ride, but after a very long wait. If you are able to go at a different time of year I highly suggest it, because will be pretty well impossible to get everything you want done -- especially if you don't think you will be back for a long time if ever.

Lastly, if you go with the deluxe dining plan you will probably spend most of your day eating. Portion sizes at WDW are huge, we like to eat but we can barely manage the amount of food in the regular dining plan per day. Also, we no longer use the dining plan at all, it actually costs us more to use the dining plan than to just pay out of pocket for our meals. Obviously, that's just us personally, but it's something you should consider.

We did the horseback riding on our first trip to WDW at it was really magical. They take you along a path through Fort Wilderness and there were deer in the woods watching us, it was a very special experience. I think it is around $40 per person.

Hope that helps.

Unfortunately, going at a different time of year isn't an option, mainly because of the fact we are going for a specific event, and have to base the rest of the trip around that, and also because I don't wan to go much more after our wedding (wedding date is 24 jan 2014)

 

[kmb584]

Welcome!

The Premium and Platinum packages come with quite the price tag, $4,423/pp and $5,083/pp respectively. Each package is valid for 3 nights / 4 days. Also, keep in mind that if you decide on Platinum you are required to stay in a deluxe resort whereas with Premium you can stay at any level of resort.

With the Platinum plan, V&A is included but a reservation must be made ahead of time; with Premium it's excluded.

The Segway tour at Epcot was canceled a while back, but based on the tours that you mentioned I don't think that either package would be truly worth it. If someone is going in with the notion of doing as many of the tours as possible, then I'd say go for it. If a person is planning on only 2-3, it's not cost effective, even when the DDP is factored in.

You'd probably be better off renting DVC points (it could easily save $1,000+ on deluxe accommodations) and paying OOP for the DxDP (or with a bit of pixie dust, a free dining pin will be released). From there, book the tours you're interested in. You can find discounted La Nouba tickets online.

Hope that you have a fantastic trip!

 

[Princess Jes]

Welcome!

The Premium and Platinum packages come with quite the price tag, $4,423/pp and $5,083/pp respectively. Each package is valid for 3 nights / 4 days. Also, keep in mind that if you decide on Platinum you are required to stay in a deluxe resort whereas with Premium you can stay at any level of resort.

With the Platinum plan, V&A is included but a reservation must be made ahead of time; with Premium it's excluded.

The Segway tour at Epcot was canceled a while back, but based on the tours that you mentioned I don't think that either package would be truly worth it. If someone is going in with the notion of doing as many of the tours as possible, then I'd say go for it. If a person is planning on only 2-3, it's not cost effective, even when the DDP is factored in.

You'd probably be better off renting DVC points (it could easily save $1,000+ on deluxe accommodations) and paying OOP for the DxDP (or with a bit of pixie dust, a free dining pin will be released). From there, book the tours you're interested in. You can find discounted La Nouba tickets online.

Hope that you have a fantastic trip!

Thanks for all that!
As its our honeymoon, I'm not overly concerned with the money side (I'm still reasonably concerned, but it's not necessarily a deciding factor!)
My hubby to be is, can I say, kinda tight! Lol. And I'm not sure he's thrilled about spending up to a week at WDW. He thinks it's too long (some friends went and told him "you'll only need 3 days or so" I think they think they're far too cool for Disney?)

So the more I can have "prepaid" the better! That way we can do whatever we like without worrying or thinking "I'll get this meal because it's cheaper than the meal i REALLY want" which is why the packages appealed to me.

If I rent DVC points, would the free DDP apply? Also, from what I've read, free dining probably wouldn't be released for the March/April period would it?

Do you know how much the tours all cost? Or somewhere I can look them up?
On the WDW website, the premium and platinum packages include the Segway tour at Epcot in the info pack. Would they have left it there or could it be back?