First Timers

[mom2of2]

I have been reading pretty much everything that I possibly can about how to save money and DO Disney. I'm really getting overwhelmed and still don't know excatly where to start. I have a list of questions that I hope can be answered by you wonderful, helpful people here!
So here goes!!
How far in advance should I book?
Is it really cost effective to do it all myself and forgo a travel agent?
Are packages the way to go?
How much time will actually be spent at the hotel..meaning should I go econo or moderate?
How many days/nights are the best to see and do it ALL?
What amount of $$$ should I be prepared to spend for a family of 4.....air, hotel, tickets, food etc.. ball park figures of course

Thanks ever so much in advance!!!

mom2of2

 

[tar heel]

I can answer somewhat a few of your questions:

You'll get a million different answers on how far in advance to book, but I've never done it more than six months. I also am ALWAYS looking for a better deal up until the cancellation date -- five days before check in.

You will save a lot of $ by forgoing a travel agent

Packages are NOT the way to go if you need to save $.

Amount of time spent at hotel depends on your family. Do you have small children who have to have a nap or go to bed early? Will you be going during the very hot season or when it rains a lot? It is very difficult to predict this in advance.

To do it ALL at a busy time of the year -- about two weeks. We've stayed eight nights twice and have skipped some things both times. And our children are older, so we don't have strollers, etc.

No way can anyone answer your last question without knowing where you're flying from (i.e. how much the plane tickets will be), how many nights you're staying, and what kind of hotel (there's hundreds of dollars per night variance).

 

[poohsdoodle]

mom2of2...

First off, no matter how you "plan", you will be overwhelmed!
My first time was Easter '01, I went with relatives who had been, but you cannot imagine what it's like until you live it!

That said...
Food: you will find boards how to budget apprx $50.00 a day. This can be done and no one is hungry.

Hotel: We stayed off site, budget hotel. I have heard others say they would NEVER stay at Days Inn Suites Main Gate, but we did not have a bad expierence. Our room was clean (it is an older place) but then again, we were not there. We ate breakfast in the room, had a full kitchen. We bought a few things at local WalMart. We took snacks and froze bottles of water. The only thing we used to room for was to shower and sleep, so I'm not one to spend a ton on the hotel.

Tickets: decide what's best for your family. Will you be going back soon? How long are you staying and will you do water parks?

Flights? depending on the economy, would driving be a better option? (sorry, I don't recall were you are travelling from.).

There is a lot to think about, your brain will be tired before you go!!!

Have an AWESOME vacation!

 

[tonilea]

I always start by purchasing airline tickets. BUT, I do that because I use Priceline for our hotel stays. Priceline is non-refundable, so I pretty much have it in the can before I purchase hotel rooms. I have seen and you will too, if you look around, that alot of people will say the ONLY way to truely experience Disney is to stay on site, and while that may be true for some, I cannot imagine being able to enjoy staying in a room that I KNOW cost at least twice (for a value resort) or much, much more, when I can stay off-site in some nice hotels for $27 to $35 per night in a three star.

Then I book priority seatings, though not many. Mostly we eat counter service. DH doesn't do breakfast, and I get cranky if I miss it, so I grab a bagel or PopTart in the room.

I also recommend the PassPorter as an excellent planning tool.
In addition, frequenting these boards and using www.mousesavers.com and www.wdwig.com will help a lot!

 

[CarolA]

A travel agent will NOT necessarily cost you money. However, if you agent is only willing to sell you a package then you may be in trouble.

A lot of people use Dreams Unlimited to book their hotel. You can get to them from the www.wdwinfo.com home page. They work with you on codes you might be eligilble for.

Priceline has it pros and cons. I use it, but I am a single traveler and can deal with some uncertainity. Priceline does NOT gurantee you more than one bed per room and there have been some issues in Orlando with families being upset. See www.biddingfortravel.com and find the Orlando hotel section.

You can spend as much or as little as you would like. I would recommend you get a guidebook (I like the Unofficial Guide) and get familiar with everything there is to do and some of your options.

You won't be able to do it ALL in one trip unless you move to Disney for a month so figure out your MUST DOs and work from there.

 

[tink2dw]

This should help you get started!
Now you can start deciding what are the things that are "must do's" and "must
see's." and decide the length of your trip.

Then decide on the tickets you will need here.
http://www.mousesavers.com/tickets.html

To keep an EYE on All the discounts for on-site and off-site resorts check here
often and sign up for the MouseSavers.com newsletter to get all the best news.
http://www.mousesavers.com/wdw.html

For Air fares sign up at all the Airline Web sites that fly out of your airport
that fly to Orlando or MCO in airline speak. Then Check Expedia,Travelocity for
airline deals. Also check out the Transporation Board air,car deals.
http://www.disboards.com/

Start a WDW change jar to save for your trip.[there are many tips here on this
board!!]

Also you can decide where you will want to eat and start making plans to make
your food budget and check the Priority Seatings Calculator to know when you can
make PS's some are as far out as 730 Days.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/dispscalc.html

Also to help decide where to eat you can find menu's at Deb's wdw site,this
works 2 ways to see where to eat what,and how much it costs, to finalize the
food budget.
http://www.wdwig.com/menu/menus.htm

To keep all this info in one place,here is a computer Disney Vacation Planner.
It will print each day on a seperate sheet. Also check the pull down menu'sat
the top for loads of info!!
http://www.intercot.com/planner/default.asp

Well,this should get you start on a thousand more Questions!! So,don't be shy!
Ask away!! The kind members here will share what they know! So,check back
often!!

tink2dw