First Time Going Questions

[firstXdisfam]

My family of six is going to Disney this July and staying in a FW cabin. We are SO excited! I have a couple of questions that I hope people can help me with.

First of all, we will be going to Epcot the first day, WDW the second, MGM the third and Animal Kingdom the 4th day. I know there is a boat to take us to WDW...but what about the other parks? Can we take Disney transportation to all of them too? And if we CAN....we have reservations for the Hoop Dee Doo show/dinner at 7:20 one evening.......that is the day we are at Epcot. What time do we need to leave Epcot to be back in time?

Secondly, my daughter and I have a reservation at Cinderella's Royal Table at 8:20 AM on the morning that we are going to WDW. It opens early that day. What time do we need to catch the boat in order to insure we get to the castle and get there in time? I know we need to factor in some walking time.

Third....for those of you that go a lot...will our 16 and 14 year old boys be safe to walk around some on their own at the parks?

Fourth....can we take water bottles or coolers into the parks? Worried about how hot it will be there in July...

Fifth....we plan on eating breakfast in the cabin, lunch in the parks and sandwiches in the cabin later in the evening....should we bring most of our paper goods and such with us from home and just buy the perishables when we get there?

Sixth....How big is the fridge in the cabins?

Seventh.....Do you think it would be good for us to rent a golf cart? There isn't going to be a whole day where we will have at just the FW campground area....only the first day we arrive in the afternoon will we have time to explore.

Eighth.....How much should we budget for our lunch meals in the park? Remember that there are two adults, two ravenous teen boys and two other kids with moderate appetites.

Thank you, ANYONE, SO much for helping us! I am getting really excited for our first trip to Disney!

 

[JCJRSmith]

First - the Disney transportation system is terrific. You can take the boat to the MK and from there catch a bus or the monorail. YOu can also take the FW bus to the front of the campground and catch a bus to just about anywhere on the Disney property.

Second -I would be on the dock no later than 7:30

Third - Yes, they should be fine

Fourth - Water bottles - yes. Coolers - I don't know but I doubt it.

Fifth - are you driving or are you flying and renting a car? If the latter, buy when you get there, but don't buy on property. Hit a WalMart or supermarket in town to pick up your neccessaries when you arrive. If you are flying and taking an airport shuttle, you may have to get a cab to go to a store. You my be a little disappointed by the selection in the Trading Posts.

Sixth - I believe they have a full sized fridge in the cabins, but don't quote me - I have never stayed in one (we have a camper)

Seventh - for the small amount of time it sounds like you will be spending at the Fort, I think a golf cart would be an unnecessary expense. Use the money for number 8

Eighth - we are a family of four and we usually budget $100 per day for food if we are staying in the hotels. We offset that by bringing convienient breakfast foods (cereal pack, hostess stuff, pop-tarts, etc) and we get milk, juice and coffee from the hotel food court. If we are in the camper, we have all the food we want for any meal with us. We tend to eat light for lunch and have nice dinners in the parks or hotel restraunts.

You may want to stop by your nearest bookstore and hit the travel section to pick up some of the Disney guides there. Also, great info can be found on these boards and at this site: http://www.allearsnet.com/

Have fun!!!!

 

[homemaker]

We have stayed in the cabins and yes it is a full size fridge. Also I don't think you will need many paper products. They have plates, bowls, glasses, and utencils for 6 people. There are also kitchen towels and paper towels. Housekeeping will even run the dishwasher for you. The cabins are great!

We ate mostly breakfast and snacks at the cabin and our other meals out since we had the dining plan. Also we got our groceries at the super walmart - it was cheaper then the stores at Fort Wilderness and the Goodings.

Hope this helps and have a great trip.

 

[goscudder]

In response to your first question.....if you will have a car at FW, I would suggest driving to all the parks but MK (use the boat). Based on people's advice we just drove to all the parks when we camped in Feb. and we were pleasantly surprised by how fast and easy it was instead of relying on the bus system.

 

[auntie]

Full size fridge..and don't worry about the 14 and 16 year old.
Although you won't be spending a full day at the campground..you never know..it gets pretty hot in July, and often it's nice to spend a day enjoying the many campground amenities. You might consider renting a golf cart for even a day to check out the rest of the campground and get a good look around at things. Nice way to relax..and even go over to the pool on a hot July day.

 

[Andrea_loves_Disney]

HI and welcome to the DIS boards!!! It is a fun place to be!

Seems like you had most of your questions answered already but I thought I'd give you my thoughts on a couple things since we just stayed in a cabin 2 weeks ago. (We LOVED it by the way!!)

We did not have a car there and it was just fine taking the bus to all the parks. (except MK - boat of course which is so awesome!) We rented a golf cart for one day which was fun but not necessary. We were in the 2100 loop and we could walk to the Meadows Trading Post and pool. (We only had one day off from the parks while we were there- next time I want to plan for two!)

Like someone else said - you don't need to bring paper products! We used the dishes in the cabins. They also provide paper towels, which double at meals for napkins! Gotta bring your own coffee (they provide one packet I think) and filters - and salt and pepper!

I would be happy to answer any other questions! Hope you have a GREAT trip!!

 

[campingcorgi]

Yes, you can take a small softsided cooler into the parks. With the fridge in the cabin you'll be able to freeze waters and keep other things nice and cold. Put some wet bathcloths in ziploc bags in the cooler--they come in very handy for cooling people off!

 

[Tricializ]

Some different opinions. LOL

As for transportation, we always use the WDW transportation to the parks. The buses come pretty regularly and work fine for us. They are crazy crowded when a park closes, but you go with the flow and it's fine. As for golf carts, I wouldn't go without renting one. BUt, maybe that's just me. It sure is nice when you are at your site and want to take a bus at the Settlement Depot or Outpost depot and your campsite is at the opposite end. Not having to take 2 buses is nice. My kids like that part of it as much as the parks I think. It is also nice to come back from the parks (when the kids are tired and grouchy and even sleeping), hands loaded down with "stuff" and the skies open up and you are steps from your nice covered golf cart! (on that note, if you do rent one, grab a couple of trash bags and/or a towel to wipe down seats if it rains while you are not on it).

The kids will be fine roaming the parks by themselves. The cabins are wonderful. Have a great great time.
Tricia

 

[lawnspecialties]

First of all, we will be going to Epcot the first day, WDW the second, MGM the third and Animal Kingdom the 4th day. I know there is a boat to take us to WDW...but what about the other parks? Can we take Disney transportation to all of them too? And if we CAN....we have reservations for the Hoop Dee Doo show/dinner at 7:20 one evening.......that is the day we are at Epcot. What time do we need to leave Epcot to be back in time?

Just a little tidbit here. The bus stop at the back last year had a direct bus to MGM. If you're staying at a loop near the marina, no need to ride a bus to the front and then wait for another to MGM.