First Timers...A few questions

[Rippington'sFan]

We are planning to go to Disney World in March or April. I have a few questions since it will be our first time as a family.
1. How do you get the best package deal with Air, Hotel,rental
car,park hopper/fastpass tickets etc...? Do most of you use a
travel agent or would it be possible to book everything
myself. I'm just trying to figure out the BEST way to plan the
trip.
2. How many days would we need to see the Majority of
Attractions? If you had 3 or 4 days set aside for Disney
what should our priorities be as far as Attractions to see
1st,2nd,etc...? I know the MK for sure. Our kids are 8 and 5.
3. Are the Park Hopper/Fast Pass tickets highly recommended?

4. What about staying inside the park vs. outside the park?
Is it really worth it and advantageous to stay inside the
park?

I may have more questions but that's all I can think of for now.
Thanks in advance for any information and opinions you can share.

 

[Gutto]

hi

i think that "DISveteran" will answer your question, DISBOARD is the best forum about WDW.

I did three things that help me to do a good plan

1 - Buy Unofficial Guide by Bob Sehlinger or Birnbaum's

2- Order Tour guide Mike, it worth for us !

3- go to www.wdwig.com

Gutto

 

[jsginmd]

1. Getting the best deal. - It is possible to get a great deal by booking everything yourself. Check out
Mousesavers.com for a great site for discounts for everything Disney. A lot of people enjoy the planning and discount hunting part as much as the trip. If that isn't for you, a travel agent may be the best way to go. For my honeymoon, we worked through a travel agent. After finding these boards and other online resources, I have booked a la carte for every other trip.

2. Time to see everything. - If you want to see the highlights of each of the four parks (MK, Epcot, MGM, AK), you might be able to hit them commando style in four days (one for each). That makes for a VERY exhausting vacation and not necessarily realistic with little ones in tow. Add in a trip to a water park (Blizzard Beach or Typhoon Lagoon) or other non-park activities (DisneyQuest, etc.) and you are over four days for sure.

I would recommend getting a guidebook (Passporter, Birnbaum's, etc. - everyone has their favorite) and figuring out what you most want to see. Let everyone make a top three to five list of MUST-SEES. You can then work your plans around that. The guidebook can give you some pointers on making the most of your time too. You can also order a free vacation video/DVD from Disneyworld.com to see some highlights.

If your time is limited to 3-4 days, you'll have to pick and choose what you'll want to see. If, instead, you can take more time, you can see more.

To make the most of your time, get to the parks at opening time (find out what park has Early Entry each day if you stay on-site) and you'll be able to do more those first few hours before things get busy. If you've got the energy, you might want to take in E-Nights at MK too for lower crowds.

Kids 8 and 5 will enjoy the MK for sure, followed by MGM or AK. Epcot tends to be the weakest for kids, although there are a few highlights they might enjoy (Illuminations is fantastic if you like fireworks). The highlights for my 8-year-old nieces were Tower of Terror and Rock-n-Rollercoaster at MGM. Again, check the guidebook for attraction descriptions and make your list.

3. Park hoppers/FastPass. - If you're going to hit multiple parks, a park hopper is for you. If you stay onsite, you can also get an Unlimited Magic Pass which used to be called the Length of Stay Pass. Basically, it is good for admission from check-in to midnight of the day you check out. Park hoppers are good for a particular number of days and unused days never expire (good if you plan to go back someday). UMP expires at midnight of your check-out day.

FastPass has nothing to do with park admission (except that you need an admission ticket to get a FastPass). FastPass is a way to minimize standing in line for attractions. Attractions with FP will have clocks estimating the stand-by wait time and the FP return times. If the stand-by time is prohibitive, you can get a FP which is a ticket printed with the return time window on it. Now you can go do something else (ride rides, shop, eat, etc.) and return to the attraction when your FP return time comes. When you return, you'll enter the attraction through the FP line which is usually (but not always) shorter than the stand-by line. FastPasses are free and available to everyone, but some rides (like Test Track) run out of FastPasses early and when they're gone for the day, they're gone. Also, your return time can range from almost immediately to several hours later, depending on how many FPs have been distributed before you get yours. And while there are exceptions, you can only hold one FP at a time until two hours pass or your return time comes around.

Short answer - FastPass is definitely worth it. Take advantage of it.

4. On-site or off-site. - Everyone has their opinion, but I prefer on-site. Early Entry, E-nights, UMP are all on-site only perks. Also, you have access to Disney transportation (although I've never been asked to show ID) which can be useful. We once started a day at Epcot and unexpectedly ended the day at MK and it was a breeze because we used Disney transportation (didn't have to go back to get the car).

Also, if you stay on-site, you'll have a shorter trip back to your hotel if you want to take a mid-day break (usually a good idea).

I like on-site for all of those reasons, but mainly because it helps to keep out the real world while I'm on vacation.

Of course, if price is your main driving factor, off-site can't be beat. Time and money have an inverse relationship at Disney. If you have more time, you can save some money. If you can afford it, you'll spend less time traveling between your hotel and the parks.

I've already written too much. If I can share more (and believe me, there's plenty to tell), I'll be happy to.

 

[Snow Shoe]

You've started at the right place, here, and asking questions.
The best deals I've found, is by booking everything seperately. However if that's not your bag, then a TA would be your best bet. I would first though, get Birnbaum's book, or a Passporter 2003/4 book on WDW and study them closely to find out just what resorty you want to stay at, pass types that are best for you, what are PS's how to make them and for what restraunts you want to eat at, what park to visit on what day (use early entry days or not), or what character meals you want to do, etc...


The one major thing I would suggest to you is that since you have young children, I would strongly suggest staying on property. This would allow you to go back to the resort in the afternoons to nap, swim or just relax before re-entering the parks at night for parades and/or dinner. You'll thank yourself later for doing this. I've seen many a child burned out, exhausted and just plain cranky from just a few hours in the parks.


About TA's..(aka travel agents). A lot of TA's don't have the sightest idea how to go about getting you the best deals at Disney for you. They pick/book the "package deals" that they are the most familuar with usually. Many of these packages have extras that many people pay for, but never use. Money waisted. If you must use a TA, then quiz them about their knowledge of Disney. See if they are a Disney College grad, or if they're familuar with what a PS is, and when you can make them. You can gleen alot of basic info from reading Birnbaum's, Passporter or other books on Disney.

 

[Rippington'sFan]

Thanks for all the responses and excellent tips/advice. I see that this is a great website for information and planning.

 

[crisi]

Originally posted by Rippington'sFan
We are planning to go to Disney World in March or April. I have a few questions since it will be our first time as a family.
1. How do you get the best package deal with Air, Hotel,rental
car,park hopper/fastpass tickets etc...? Do most of you use a
travel agent or would it be possible to book everything
myself. I'm just trying to figure out the BEST way to plan the
trip.

Used to be that you could really get a deal doing it all yourself. Disney would release "codes" for room only packages, and you'd buy your park tickets through a broker. Disney has switch tactics, and they now offer better packages (room and park tickets), but you need to watch them. If you choose a travel agent, you may want to work with one that specializes in Disney (Dreams Unlimited that sponsors this board, for instance). But most of us do it ourselves - it depends on how much work you want to invest in it.

2. How many days would we need to see the Majority of
Attractions? If you had 3 or 4 days set aside for Disney
what should our priorities be as far as Attractions to see
1st,2nd,etc...? I know the MK for sure. Our kids are 8 and 5.

I would plan on spending a week at Disney and Disney only. No Universal, no Kennedy Space Center, no Sea World, no day at the beach. But I haven't been to these places in years (never been to Universal). In a week, you still won't see it all (or even the majority) but you will leave feeling like you've managed to see all the stuff you wanted to - especially as March and April tend to be fairly busy months. Keep in mind that Disney is 51 square miles, four major theme parks, two water parks, 99 holes of golf, a nightclub complex, a couple hundred restauants (some of the pretty darn good unless you are a real food snob) and offers things like bass fishing excursions and horseback riding. If I was only going to spend four days at Disney, I'd get park hoppers and do your mornings at MK and AK and your afternoons at MGM and Epcot. But we'd have to know more - do you kids like thrill rides? Are they into educational stuff? Are you a go-go family, or a family of couch potatos? Will you really get up for park opening every day? Are you Tiki Birds kind of people or Rock and Roller Coaster kind of people, or both?

3. Are the Park Hopper/Fast Pass tickets highly recommended?

Park Hoppers are great. They allow you to say "gee, Epcot isn't very interesting to our family, lets go over to MGM and ride Tower of Terror again!"

Fastpass tickets are great and they are free. Follow the board and a fastpass strategy thread will pop up over on the theme park forum - or start your own over there.

4. What about staying inside the park vs. outside the park?
Is it really worth it and advantageous to stay inside the
park?

We love Disney resorts and wouldn't bother to stay off site. We know that the room will be a quality room, that the theming of the hotel will be great. That the pool will be well kept up. That we will wake up to Mickey's voice and go to sleep to Disney stories on the TV. It is Disney 24 hours a day. But we have the money to be able to do it. You can get some great deals on rooms off site - and if you aren't going to take advantage of Early Entry and are going to rent a car and drive everywhere anyway - the main practical benefits of on site are gone. Take a look at your budget. If you can stay at Disney and not break the bank - go for it. But you may want to do something other than spend your money to stay at Disney.

 

[jann1033]

if you do decide to stay off site (although I too vote on site if you can possibly do it) check out the orlando hotel board here. we stayed off site our first time and got a room that was terrible.... evidently the picture on the pamphlet was of some where else or from 1902. we had to find another hotel which was not fun and probably at least part of the reason why we have never even considered staying offsite again.

also 2nd( or 3 rd or whatever) the limit yourself to Disney idea...there is plenty to see at wdw and imo the other parks do not compare ( been to Universal 2 times, wasn't impressed the first time due to long waits, even though the park was dead, for extremely short attractions...like earthquake lasted all of what, maybe 2 mins, 1/2 of it to get to the "station" where what seemed like maybe 1/2 min of "action" took place after a 45 min wait when at the same time of year we literally walk right on any ride at disney , occasionally waiting 10 mins,... many down ( broken not rehab) attractions,etc. gave it a second chance a few years later with the same results. and with young ones a number of attractions were gory and much more frightening than wdw...for example Frankenstein and some other monsters were walking around and chasing people ,,,a little different than a 5 year old being approached by Mickey! I doubt I would ever go again. in fact one time we went they were offering a free second day ticket which we did not even bother to get...neither did many others btw since the window to do it never had a line the whole day. haven't been to ioa and only the seaworld that used to be by our house which was nice but not a big draw for us in Orlando due to the fact we could go locally). by speading yourself too thin I think you miss a lot of what makes Disney special by rushing around and not having time to soak it in.

 

[Jane E.]

You have lots to plan, but you've come to the right place. This site is a wealth of information. Continue to dig in and choose what will work the best for YOUR family. I really really hate going to any theme park during Spring Break time. They get so busy & congested. I always arrive early at the parks. By noon the parks are full. Utilize your fast passes. If you plan on having a sitdown dinner get your ps in. Dh never wanted to eat at a sitdown dinner until I started planning them. Then he was grateful he didn't have to wait in line but could sit down, relax, and be waited upon. I had gone to the parks for almost 30 years before I ever got my first ps. The only reason I tried it was because of these boards. I also need a break from the parks. We enjoyed taking days off. We'd sleep in, go for a late breakfast, enjoy swimming or shopping. Don't plan a frenetic day everyday. Make sure you have time for relaxation & just hanging out. I hate long lines and crowds and will avoid them at all costs. It always helped me to keep a Disney or Orlando file folder with our trip, ps, ressies etc. organized by date. Dh loved it when there was a long line outside a restaurant and we were seated within 5 minutes. Have a great time!

 

[crisi]

Continue to dig in and choose what will work the best for YOUR family.

Yep. Your family. There are families that are perfectly happy staying off site. And families that have to stay on site. There are families that are Universal families, and there are families that are Disney families. There are families that wouldn't dream of getting up before 10:00am, and families that - if they sleep past 8:00 feel the day is wasted and they might as well hang out at the pool. Families that have priorities around parades and fireworks, ones that eat out constantly, ones that shop, ones that spend all their time in Epcot, others that only ride thrill rides, and ones that collect pins and/or autographs.

We can tell you how we like to vacation - and we can tell you some of the pitfalls in your plan. For instance - sleeping in. I can tell you that we find that getting to the parks early is very important, we get more done between opening and 11:00am than the rest of the day. But I can't tell you if your family will rebel at having a vacation where they wake up every day at 7:00.