First Disney Trip for Family--HELP!!

[TCWFT]

We are scheduled to go on our first trip to Disney Aug 1 -7. (DH, myself, DD-13 & DS-9) After looking at the on site rooms and packages, and getting the kid's input, they decided they wanted to stay offsite, have a little more room, plus fridge & micro in the room, so we're booked to stay at HIFS. The best rate I could get was $130/night, which seems high, but maybe it's just timing. I'm working on finding affordable air out of either Tulsa, Kansas City or St. Louis (we are in Springfield, MO). We plan to eat breakfast at the hotel. We plan to take snacks to the park and either go back to the hotel mid day to rest, swim etc. I didn't know how much trouble this will be, as we aren't planning to rent a car at this point.
This board has been a WEALTH of information and all of you seem to know soooo much about the planning, etc. For that, I say a HUGH thanks!
I would love to have any suggestions for making this first trip a really memorable one for my kids!
Thanks!

 

[KristiKelly]

I'll try to help as best I can. I have never stayed off-site, but I think alot of places offer shuttle service to the parks. I know that WDW resort busses run about every 15-20 minutes from parks to hotels, I have heard that off-site hotels do not offer that fexibility with their shuttle svc. I looked into a hotel once that made 1-2 morning, afternoon & evening pick-up / drop-off to & from parks, try to plan around that. Going in August, you can expect it to be HOT, so I would definitely try to plan an afternoon swim, but once at the parks - plans often change. You may also want to look into Blizzard Beach, your kids might like that. If you need some info on restaurants, check out the restaurant board & www.allearsnet.com there is a section on dining and you can pull up menus for all of the restaurants - also gives prices. This can be really helpful when planning meals with kids. Since you'll be staying awhile, you could take the monorail & visit the 3 monorail resorts or if @ EPCOT, take a stroll over & visit Beach Club / Yacht Club & Boardwalk and go eat @ Beaches N'Cream - yum!!! This is a good way to look at resorts for your next visit I hope this has helped some.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

Have you thought about getting an AP pass for one member and using the AP discount to stay at a moder on-site hotel? We're using the AP rate for POR and it's only costing us $84 a night and you have Disney transportation which makes it a lot easier to go back to the hotel for an afternoon break, and you get to take advantage of EMH if you want. EIther way have a great first trip!

 

[bcinohio]

Hi,

We also will be at WDW Aug 1-7. We are staying at the ASMo. Two boys 7 & 10. They have been many times. I would suggest that you plan ahead. Find out what is in each park and what you would like to see. Make a plan of attack for the day. Use fastpass as much as possible. Get to the parks before they open. If it rains, which it will, put on a rain coat and keep going. In Aug. your already wet from sweat. We were there last Aug and my DS was 9. His favorite thing to ride is The Rock n Roller coaster and Mission Space. He also likes Buzz lightyear, Space mountain and the Tower of Terror. He is a real Dare Devil. Don't miss the Fantasmic show at MGM.

I hope you have a great trip. We can not wait!!

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

You might want to check out the rates for the Downtown Disney Doubletree using this link from Mousesavers. When I entered your dates it was $119 for a Deluxe Family Suite and included Continental Breakfast.

http://www.mousesavers.com/dtguestsuites.html

It's not that much lower than your rate @ HIFS but it is closer and a really nice hotel. You would also be eligible for E-Ride nights, etc.

 

[vossjemi]

I'd love to hear about your trip and if you liked HIFS! I too am from spfld, mo, and am starting wayyyy early planning. We are going in 2 years! Ha. ha. But, we are wanting to do a combo land/cruise package, and i've heard to get the cruise rooms you want, you have to book early. Anyway, check out tripadvisor.com as they have reviews of all the hotels. And, let me know what you decide and what you recommend after you go! Thanks.

 

[HaleyB]

The shuttles from HIFS do not run often enough to make them of use for an afternoon break. Also your kids may be a little past the prime age for HIFS. If you want to really improve your trip stay onsite. If you do stay at HIFS you will need a car. But onsite is really the way to go. Don't let the 'small' room thing scare you off- they are not all that small, I don't know where the people who claim they are tiny are used to, but they seem average to me. POR rooms are perfect for a family of four. You can rent a fridge if you really need to (we never do) and there are microwaves in the food court areas. We just eat in the food courts and don't bother with too much food in the room. You are not going to be in your room too much, so don't worry about the size.

 

[canwegosoon]

Just a thought. Go to Mousesavers.com, and check on the annual pass. You will be there for 7 days so it might be very close, as several posters have mentioned with the discount on rooms for annual pass holders it might be cheaper for you to stay on site(only one AP needed to get the room discount). I think the Fort Wildnerness Cabins might be the way for you to go, if you want the kitchen and everything( according to my caculations it might be $149. using codes). Also it is just a short boat trip from Magic Kingdom, and they have boating for your kids and horseback riding too. Just offering a different suggestion, POR was beautiful request building 14 if you want to be close to the bus

 

[CheapMom]

I have to agree that if taking a mid day break is important to you than you should stay on site. I have stayed off site once at Holiday Inn Nikki Bird which has kid suites- very nice for the price. The transportation, however, was a pain. If having a lot of space in the room is top priority than staying off site is the way to go. You just can't get a good price for a large space on Dis property. If you stay off-site I would recommend renting a car, then you could do Universal or Sea World, grocery shopping and you wouldn't be at the mercy of the shuttle schedule for Disney.
I am the cheapest person in the world but I love staying on site at Disney. It is something that has always been worth every extra penny in my experience.
Good luck and have a great time planning.

 

[tar heel]

If you're going to take an afternoon break -- and you're going to need one in August -- staying at HIFS without a car just isn't going to work. For $130 a night, you should easily be able to stay on site or at a Downtown Disney resort. You can still eat breakfast in your room and take snacks and water to the park -- we always do. You will be so grateful to have the very efficient Disney transportation. If you decide to go this route, make sure to use one of the towncar services that give you a grocery store stop for your transportation from the airport.

 

[KristiKelly]

If you want to have a refrigerator & microwave, you may also want to look into renting points for a studio @ DVC resort. We stayed @ BCV last year, 9/28-10/04, the price broke down to about $130 a night for a studio. As for a mid-afternoon swim, you cannot beat Stormalong Bay@ BC. Renting points is such an economical way to stay @ a deluxe (+some) resort on WDW property. We loved the location of BCV. Keep in mind that a studio is still probably not as large as what you're looking into now, but location, location, location - AWESOME!!!

 

[renessa]

For your first trip...two words "stay onsite". You can get a value or moderate for way less than $130, you won't need a rental car ($ saved) and you can take a towncar to and from the airport with a free grocery stop to pickup breakfast goodies and snacks. You could still eat muffins, poptarts, granola bars in the room for breakfast, and return to the food court for lunch and an afternoon break. I think that with the extended hours in August that you won't be in your room much...just to shower and sleep. I really think the onsite/offsite thing really could make or break a first vacation. My husband decided on day #2 that he would like a bus, monorail, or boat to pick him up and take him back and forth to work daily. We drove to Orlando, but didn't move the car all week. We will be flying next summer, having a towncar pickup, and then heading off to our Disney resort (to be determined). Can you tell this is a hot topic???? Onsite is the way I would go....and definately look into the AP for one person in your party. They offer nice disounts on rooms!!

 

[Sunbeamblue2002]

Hello,

I am going in July and we are staying in a two bed villa at Cypress Pt. I have a dd-10, ds-4 and dd-15months and we need the space. Go to www.hotelkingdom.com and see if its available for your dates. We only paid like $64 a nite and the pool has a slide and stuff. Plus each kid would get their own bed cause I know my kids don't want to be sleeping together. Thats no vacation for anyone. Maybe the saving would pay for the rental. Go to the orlando attrations boards cause the folks overthere get some good deals on rental homes and villa's but like you this is our first time to disney. Hope you find what your looking for. Oh yea the villa also is a two bed with a king and two twins two bath and a jacizze tub. Have a great trip
Sunbeamblue2002

 

[hdecker]

Howdy Neighbor, I'm from Bolivar. First off, go to travelocity and check out airfare from K.C. to Tampa with flexible dates - they have several flights for about 130.00pp. Rent a car in Tamp and drive to Orlando 60 - 90 min. We are going on our fifth trip June 17-26. With myself, DH, DD14, and DD12 we really prefer offsite. The rooms are alot bigger, cont b-fast, shuttle service and we like walking out our door to the pool only a few steps away. We got a great hotel rate of 40 per nite with 2 doubles and a pull out couch. We always travel with a AC/DC refrig and aren't in our room except for b-fast, sleeping and changing. We really enjoy the drive though. Flew to DL last year and about drove DH crazy - he likes his road trips. If you want any more info - keep asking questions!