First timer HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[iggler]

We are planning a trip to DW in June 2011, I know thats a long ways off from now, but I need to wait untill I have plenty of vacation time built up from work. I do have some questions I hope you all can help.
I have never been there before, and everthing I see on the internet, is just confusing me more, it is over whelming...
What is good amount of days to stay? I was thinking 4-5 days, and getting the park hooper pass, do you recommend the never expire option?
We will be taking our 2 oldest grandkids, who will be 14(girl) and 11(boy) by then. What can you recommend for this age group?
Is the beginning to middle of June a good time of year to go?
We will be driving, is there any good vacation plans that do not include airfare?

If I start buying tickets now that never expire, I am right in assuming they will still be good next year?
Thanks everyone, have a magical day!
Iggler

 

[scarlet_ibis]

We never stay less than a week and usually make it 9 days if we can. We fly in, and you lose most of your first and last day to travel. There are 4 major parks, plus Downtown Disney, plus two water parks, and lots of stuff beyond Disney if you have a car.

The no expiration option is very expensive. Since we usually stay 7-9 days, we use up our passes while we're there and don't worry about it. If you don't get the "no expiration" option, unused days on your passes will expire 14 days after their first use. You can protect yourself from price increases by buying passes sooner, but you don't need the no expiration option if you're not planning on using them outside of that one trip.

Disney will offer discounts that don't require airfare, but they might require that you buy park tickets with your package.

 

[Eric in TX]

I think 7-9 days is always preferable if you're able to do it. That should give you a good two or 2.5 days between the waterparks and DTD, and then you've got plenty of other time for the 4 parks.

It's doable in 4-5 days, but your time will definitely be more packed with activity and there's less opportunity for downtime. When you get out into the 7-9 range, you can afford lots of breaks, some afternoons at the resort pool, a late morning or two, and generally a more relaxed pace IMO.

I always recommend Park Hopper if you can afford it b/c it adds alot of flexibility if you can start your morning at one park, and then finish up the day at another depending on crowds, shows, nighttime events, etc. I don't have any experience with the no expiration option, so I can't offer any advice there. Sorry!

Don't be overwhelmed - you've got plenty of time to plan - and the fact that you're here asking questions means you've started off on the right foot There are lots of folks here who can help answer your questions.

You first decisions are (a) time of your visit, (b) length of stay, and (c) where are you goinig to stay? After you get those things figured out, you can start to work on the finer details through this summer and fall.

Good luck - and have fun planning!!! For me that's half the fun

 

[TheDisneyingNewfie]

I'm so excited for you. But the important thing is to not stress too much. You've got lots of time to plan.

Eric in TX was right in suggesting

You first decisions are (a) time of your visit, (b) length of stay, and (c) where are you goinig to stay?

The where you are going to stay is potentially the hardest of the 3. On site or off site Disney is the first big question in figuring that out. In my mind, if you're "doing" Disney, stay at Disney. The value resorts are very reasonable and get you all the same privileges.

As for length of stay, my airfare is a minimum of $2k for 3 people, so we always stay for 2 weeks. But we do all the other Orlando things like Universal, IOA, Seaworld (and now Aquatica). We added a short cruise this time so we only have 9 days. We cannot get everything we want to do in those 9 days. We're even park fanatics and don't really take breaks. It's a huge place.

Good luck!

 

[jenn-n-okla]

We are planning a trip to DW in June 2011, I know thats a long ways off from now, but I need to wait untill I have plenty of vacation time built up from work. I do have some questions I hope you all can help.
I have never been there before, and everthing I see on the internet, is just confusing me more, it is over whelming...
What is good amount of days to stay? I was thinking 4-5 days, and getting the park hooper pass, do you recommend the never expire option?
We will be taking our 2 oldest grandkids, who will be 14(girl) and 11(boy) by then. What can you recommend for this age group?
Is the beginning to middle of June a good time of year to go?
We will be driving, is there any good vacation plans that do not include airfare?

If I start buying tickets now that never expire, I am right in assuming they will still be good next year?
Thanks everyone, have a magical day!
Iggler

Invest in the Tourguide Mike program. It is worth every penny of what $25 ....I paid $16 since I have used it for 3 yrs...each time you get a discount. He will tell you least crowded days, tips of how to navigate through the parks, suggestions for the age groups you have, everything like that.

 

[Trying to Plan]

We are also planning a long way out...May 2011. I have found it overwhelming myself at first, but if you spend time reading these DIS forums, it sure helps with understanding. The more I read, the more I learned and understood. We haven't been before so I am using the experince from those that have to make our plans. And with so long to plan and learn, I am hopefully, I won't make the rookie mistakes the board warn of.
Good luck and have fun planning...spend tons of time reading.....

 

[Eric in TX]

Two other suggestions:

1. Practice using the "search" function on these boards - you'll be able to find answers to almost every question you might have.

2. I am a big fan of the "Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World" book series. You'll find the best up to date information here on DIS, but I like the UG for background, touring strategy, dining reviews, etc.

Feel free to PM me if you have any other specific questions!


Eric

 

[bluebelle99]

After my first trip this year, here are my suggestions:

1. As other posters have said, 5 days is doable, but 7-9 days would allow for a more relaxed trip.
2. There is a LOT to see and do. Don't try to do it all.
3. I subscribed to Tour Guide Mike and thought it was well worth the money.
4. WDW parks were much bigger than I had expected, and there is a lot of walking. You will get tired --plan accordingly.

You will get a lot of information from these boards, so happy planning!

 

[Gemmy]

I'm not a newbie, but this is only my second time with kids and its been 5 years since the last time we went. What is Tour Guide Mike?

 

[honeydiane1953]

I have been many times and I love reading THE UNOFFICIAL GUIDE TO DISNEY. I got mine on ebay but have seen them barnes and noble, books a million etc. It has soo many tips and info. I have read it several times and learn something new and of course with this great board it's still lot to absorb. We disser's ask questions a lot. Of course Disney changes things out hourly if seems too. lol

 

[Beauty908]

First off: GET PUMPED!!!

As many others have, I highly recommend The Unofficial Guide and thier website touring plans.com Extremely helpful!!! Also, you should figure out how much you are planning to spend--make a budget and stick to it!! You can have a really great time and not pay an arm and a leg.

To save some money, I recommend staying at a Value resort. Disney transportation can take you to and from the parks (an important note, busses can go park to park, not resort to resort). Also they have a great feature--if you buy anything at a gift shop, they ship it to your hotel, so you dont' have to carry it all day. Also, when parks offer Extra magic hours (parks open early or stay open later) this is for resort guest only.

And don't feel silly for planning so far ahead--its super important so you can fit a lot in. The time that you are thinking about going--June. It's florida so it will be humid and hot. keep that in mind.

When it comes to food, just like any vacation it can add up! If you want to do most sit down style restarant, be sure to do reservations just in case. At counter service restarants, most adult servings are big enough to share with two people, and anyone can order a kids meal. Kids meal comes with a small entree, two sides, and a drink=not a bad deal. Also you are allowed to bring in your own drinks and food into the park (except no glass!). I would recommend doing this. Although a few of my meals were paid for with the trip i went on, i only spent $100 in a week on food (some of the food is just from a local grocery store). It was way worth it!

Learn the beauty of the FastPass--it is a real time saver. I would recommend that once in the park send one person with all of the tickets to an attraction that is really popular (for DHS i would say Toy Story Mania).

And keep asking questions!! There are no dumb questions. you may want to check out other boards like intercot.com.

Good luck and you are welcomed to PM if you have a more specific question

 

[iggler]

Wow, lots of good advice here, Thanks everyone.......Yeah if it were up to me I would do 7-9 days, but the hubby is a hard sell, He only wanted to do 2 days, but I vetoed that and convinced him to do 5 days, so I shouldn't press my luck. We will be driving from Michigan, therefore we will see other things on the way there and back. Maybe go to seaworld too. I have a family in Florida and now I see that florida residents get a discount, can they purchase our tickets for us?

 

[lovetoscrap]

. I have a family in Florida and now I see that florida residents get a discount, can they purchase our tickets for us?

Sorry, but no. You are required to show Florida ID in order to buy or activate Resident tickets. Because you don't have Florida ID you would have to purchase a regular ticket.

 

[Wendy Lee]

I rcommend staying at a Disney resort. It is worth it to get early entry and late stay hours at the Disney parks. These are only available to Disney resort customers. Plus with youngs kids, the Disney Resorts are just fun. We loved Caribean Resort and are thinking about Port Orleans this time.

 

[iggler]

We do plan on staying at a disney resort for sure.

 

[ZoZo]

If you can swing it, I'd definitely recommend going for 7 days (that's seven days in the parks, not 7 nights). There are four major theme parks, plus two water parks, and lots of other things to do (like Downtown Disney), so it's hard to do a trip in 4 or 5 days.

I'd strongly recommend that you buy a guidebook to give you the "basics" of a WDW trip. I love the Unoffiical Guide to WDW - it's a huge book, but gives you so much information. I'd read through that book (using it as sort of a "jumping off point"), then use this chat board to ask specific questions.

Good luck with your planning!

 

[PRenee]

We just went for the first time with the kids for 5 days. I did think it was a little jammed packed since we had to do all four parks back to back (HIGHLY DON'T RECOMMEND). If I could plan it I would do two parks (day each) then rest and relax at the resort for a day then finish off the other two parks the next two days. Or I would just forgo one of the parks and add that day towards Magical Kingdom but I would REST in between.

Next time we go we will certainly PLAN better and not WING it. Once we got the hang of fast passes it was easy. Example: I knew we wanted to ride Soarin and when we walked in the park we went get a fastpass first thing. Lucky we did because at 9:30 our fast pass wasn't until 3:30

Personally, I wouldn't do park hopper. You can save yourself the money and time and just do one park a day. My main reason is because if you park hop you risk wasting time if you go to that park and it's not allowing people in anymore. Yes happened this past week to some people who couldn't get in Magical Kingdom.

For the 4 of us it cost around $2400 with the dining plan included and we stayed at Pop Century. I think we just calculated it cost of $250 in gas. We drove 11 hours.

Again I'd just make sure the kids understand fast pass it can SAVE you from having to waste time all day waiting in lines. Oh and also the later it got in the day the less people were there. My husband and daughter waited 45 minutes to ride the Goofy Roller Coaster. That night when we returned to get Mickeys Signature they rode it back to back 5 times in a row (it was during the fireworks show)

 

[scarlet_ibis]

Personally, I wouldn't do park hopper. You can save yourself the money and time and just do one park a day. My main reason is because if you park hop you risk wasting time if you go to that park and it's not allowing people in anymore. Yes happened this past week to some people who couldn't get in Magical Kingdom.

On the flip side, you could get to a park and find it's the most crowded one that day and be stuck there without a hopper pass. If you're not going at high season or a holiday, I wouldn't worry about capacity crowds.

I wouldn't go WITHOUT a hopper pass. We can make our ADRs 180 in advance and not have to worry about spreading them out over the parks, and which day we'll spend in which park, and whether there will be extra magic hours in a specific park on the day of our ADR. If we get bored at one park or annoyed by the crowds/lines, we go to another. If the kids want to nap in the stroller, we can hop on the monorail and tour World Showcase while they sleep.

 

[PRenee]

On the flip side, you could get to a park and find it's the most crowded one that day and be stuck there without a hopper pass. If you're not going at high season or a holiday, I wouldn't worry about capacity crowds.

If that would have happened we would have just rearranged our schedule and went to another park that day rather than that one. I just personally didn't want to waste money on park hopping until I actually saw that I needed it. When we got there is was very apparent there was no way we'd go to more than one park per day since we were drained with just one park. Now that being said the last day my older son did want to go back to MK and ride something before we left and he couldn't. Maybe the more we go then we might use this but as a first timer we didn't. And yes it might be a good idea if it isn't high season or a holiday to park hop

 

[MarinLezlie]

I would suggest going staying at the Value Resorts, All star movies, music or sports. They sometimes are quiet cheap and you get all the perks of the other hotels without the high cost. Free rides to all the parks, cafe, pools ect. Any other questions feel free to ask! I have been to DW 5 times now! and im 22! I love it.