First trip ever, lot's of questions!!

[Xcited4Dizney]

Hi, I’m new here!!

I’m so excited about our first ever trip to Disney World!! Our family just moved down to Florida last week and we have decided to take a family trip to Disney World! A nice lady at work knows a lot about Disney, and she has helped us out with our trip. The first thing we did was buy Florida Season Passes, she said that was the best deal for us if we plan on going more than once in the year. They are great, only about $200 each. That’s like 3 days at regular price, right?

So, we have plans to go from Saturday July 1 to Wednesday July 5. That way, I’ll only have to use two days of vacation and get 5 days at Disney! She told me to call Disney and ask for the annual pass hotel code and we could get a big discount. I am going to stay at the Disney Movies hotel, she said the kids would like it the best. She also said she has some drink cups she could give me that are good for unlimited free pop! How cool is that? Does anyone know if that’s for real? Is there a 800 number to call for reservations, I can’t seem to find one anywhere. Should I call for reservations a week or two before we get there? Are the discounts bigger when they think they aren’t going to be able to fill up the rooms?

She also told me I need to check out the Beach Hotel pool and even make a day out of it, because the Movie Hotel pool is not all that great. Does anyone know what this? She said it was right next to Epcot Center, that we could even walk there from Epcot Center.

I have so many more questions. The lady at work said to use the monorail as much as we could because it is the quickest way to get around. Does anyone know where I can get a map that shows all the stops. Is there a stop close to the Movies Hotel? Within walking distance? She also said to make sure we get to restaurants early, that they used to do priority reservations (I think that’s what she called it) but they stopped it a year ago.

You guys are a lot of help, so many people know so many things about Disney. I know I’ll be reading so much, I have a lot to learn. Thanks everybody!

 

[Skylarr29]

First off I just wanted to say welcome to the boards. Secondly I have bad news for you. The Florida res seasonal passes have blackout dates. they are blacked out from June 10th - Mid August which means they will not get you into the parks the weekend you are planning to go. You will either have to purchase different admission for the trip or plan to go another time.

You also will probably not be able to get a hotel for those days. It is going to be super busy. I would call ASAP to find out if there is any availability at all much less with an ap discount. In general the AP discount is great though but there are only a caertain number of rooms available at that price.

Also just so you know the soda mugs are only good for the duration of the stay for the person that purchased them. You can buy new ones for your family when you are there for around 10-12 bucks.

I hate to break it to you but your "friend" was wrong on alot of things.

the only stops on the monorail are at the Ticket and transportaion center which is where you park when going to the Magic Kingdom and has monorails to the resorts , Magic Kingdom , and Epcot. The only other monorail stops are at the Contemporary, Polynesian and grand Floridian resorts. There is not a stop close to the resort you are trying to stay at.

You will need to drive or take resort busses to all parks and resorts. There are very few places that you can actually walk to while at Disney. it is 47 square miles after all.

You are not allowed to use Stormalong bay which is the pool at the beach club. They will check your room key and give you a bracelet IF you are staying at the yacht and Beach club. No one else may enter.

Also they are not called priority seatings anymore. they are called Advance Dining reservations (ADR's) and they can be made 180 days in advance. Once again you will be lucky if you can get any for that time frame. I would call ASAP for all of this if you are serious about trying to pull this off.

 

[plutolovr]

I think someone has waaaay too much time on their hands today

 

[Skylarr29]

I wonder too?? I will give them the benfit of doubt

 

[GoodFairies]

This is obviously a big joke. Don't waste time on serious replies.

 

[heatherfeather24]

hmmmmm . . . . every hot-button issue in a single post . . . veeery interesting.

 

[familyfirsttimer]

Skylarr29, you were SO nice to take the time and explain each peice of their email. It is really a shame if this is someone joking around and taking advantage of your kindness (any everyone's time!). Not getting on any high-horse here, just saying how nice it was of Skylarr29 to take her time and answer the OP.

 

[btuftee]

Goodness... first, you need to go to www.allearsnet.com and read, read, read. Get as much info as you can about Disney, because that's the best way to plan for a trip.

The parks are going to be insanely crowded during the July 4 time period, and generally for most of the summer. Hotels are going to be booking fast, you'll have an especially hard time if you wait any longer.

I'm not sure about pool-hopping at resorts, I think you're only permitted to use the pool of the hotel you're staying at. The monorail covers the Magic Kingdom, the three resort hotels near the MK, and Epcot. Epcot would be the physically closest monorail stop to you, but you can't walk there. You'll be using buses exclusively for transport at the All Star resorts.

Disney still has dining reservations, they call them Advance Dining Reservations now, but they work basically the same as the old priority seating did. Avoid typical rush-hour dining (11am-1pm, 5pm-7pm) unless you don't mind waiting.

 

[Skylarr29]

Skylarr29, you were SO nice to take the time and explain each peice of their email. It is really a shame if this is someone joking around and taking advantage of your kindness (any everyone's time!). Not getting on any high-horse here, just saying how nice it was of Skylarr29 to take her time and answer the OP.

Thanks! Hopefully they are serious and if not then it was just a little time wasted.

 

[WINTER]

this was their first post!

 

[familyfirsttimer]

this was their first post!

I know, that's why I assumed it was legit too!

 

[heatherfeather24]

I know, that's why I assumed it was legit too!

Funny how we all react differently -- that's why I assumed it was a joke. I just figured it was a regular or a lurker who decided to have a little fun under a different name.

If I jumped to the wrong conclusion, of course, I apologize.

 

[foolishmortal]

First off I just wanted to say welcome to the boards. Secondly I have bad news for you. The Florida res seasonal passes have blackout dates. they are blacked out from June 10th - Mid August which means they will not get you into the parks the weekend you are planning to go. You will either have to purchase different admission for the trip or plan to go another time.

You also will probably not be able to get a hotel for those days. It is going to be super busy. I would call ASAP to find out if there is any availability at all much less with an ap discount. In general the AP discount is great though but there are only a caertain number of rooms available at that price.

Also just so you know the soda mugs are only good for the duration of the stay for the person that purchased them. You can buy new ones for your family when you are there for around 10-12 bucks.

I hate to break it to you but your "friend" was wrong on alot of things.

the only stops on the monorail are at the Ticket and transportaion center which is where you park when going to the Magic Kingdom and has monorails to the resorts , Magic Kingdom , and Epcot. The only other monorail stops are at the Contemporary, Polynesian and grand Floridian resorts. There is not a stop close to the resort you are trying to stay at.

You will need to drive or take resort busses to all parks and resorts. There are very few places that you can actually walk to while at Disney. it is 47 square miles after all.

You are not allowed to use Stormalong bay which is the pool at the beach club. They will check your room key and give you a bracelet IF you are staying at the yacht and Beach club. No one else may enter.

Also they are not called priority seatings anymore. they are called Advance Dining reservations (ADR's) and they can be made 180 days in advance. Once again you will be lucky if you can get any for that time frame. I would call ASAP for all of this if you are serious about trying to pull this off.

hook, meet line and sinker

 

[slug]

It would be so easy to put a fake post up and make it sound legit.

This person couldn't even accomplish this simple task. This post is so clearly fake it's sad. At least make it sound authentic next time.

 

[Xcited4Dizney]

Well, first of all I want to thank Skylarr29 and btuftee for the thoughtful responses. Then, I have to tell everyone that I almost cried today when I read most of the rest of the answers. I’m not sure what I did wrong, but I guess I got some people mad. Like I said, I’ve never been to Disney World before, so I don’t know as much as the rest of the people here. I really didn’t expect these kinds of responses. My hands were shaking when I read them.

But, anyway, I now know I have a lot of stuff wrong. And, I’m sorry if I gave a bad first impression, but I really wish people had been a little nicer about it. But, this is really important to me, so I hope I can still get some help.

So, I called Disney to find out what was available for July 1-5, the only thing that was affordable was at Port Orleans on the river side, but it has one king bed. It’s just under $800 for the four nights, but with the four of us we really need two beds. Even a rollaway won’t do because the kids are 9 and 6. So, she said I could keep calling back and trying, but that it is a very busy weekend.

But, that doesn’t really matter, because Skylarr29, you are right about the tickets. Stupid me, it’s printed right on the card I got. So, we will have to go August 18 at the earliest. The kids start school on August 14, so now I have a new challenge. They did say that the yearly pass does not start until we get there, so I’m not wasting my money. So, time to start planning again. When really is the best time to go?

So, I printed out Skylarr29’s and btuftee’s answers and showed them to Judy. She said that she never said the monorail went to the Movies hotel, but that we should use it whenever we can where it does go. I guess I misunderstood her. She also said that they don’t really check the drink mugs and you can keep using them. Really, I don’t feel comfortable with that, so I’ll just buy some new ones for us. Is the Beach Club pool checking a new thing? She said she doesn’t remember that. But, anyway, I’ll figure it all out eventually.

Well, after a rough start, I’m going to keep on planning. Maybe sometime in September. Thanks Skylar and buftee.

 

[stm61]

early Sept is a great time to go, the first 2 wks have no crowds at all! Towards the end of the month the Food and Wine Festival and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party start and the crowds start to pick up again. Plus it's value season so the hotel rates are lower. As far as the mugs, there have been many threads on the board that have ended up locked because things just got to out of hand. One side says go ahead and reuse them, the other side says you're stealing drinks. The mugs and pool hopping are really hot issues here, that's why you got the replies you did.

 

[foolishmortal]

Well, first of all I want to thank Skylarr29 and btuftee for the thoughtful responses. Then, I have to tell everyone that I almost cried today when I read most of the rest of the answers. I’m not sure what I did wrong, but I guess I got some people mad. Like I said, I’ve never been to Disney World before, so I don’t know as much as the rest of the people here. I really didn’t expect these kinds of responses. My hands were shaking when I read them.

But, anyway, I now know I have a lot of stuff wrong. And, I’m sorry if I gave a bad first impression, but I really wish people had been a little nicer about it. But, this is really important to me, so I hope I can still get some help.

So, I called Disney to find out what was available for July 1-5, the only thing that was affordable was at Port Orleans on the river side, but it has one king bed. It’s just under $800 for the four nights, but with the four of us we really need two beds. Even a rollaway won’t do because the kids are 9 and 6. So, she said I could keep calling back and trying, but that it is a very busy weekend.

But, that doesn’t really matter, because Skylarr29, you are right about the tickets. Stupid me, it’s printed right on the card I got. So, we will have to go August 18 at the earliest. The kids start school on August 14, so now I have a new challenge. They did say that the yearly pass does not start until we get there, so I’m not wasting my money. So, time to start planning again. When really is the best time to go?

So, I printed out Skylarr29’s and btuftee’s answers and showed them to Judy. She said that she never said the monorail went to the Movies hotel, but that we should use it whenever we can where it does go. I guess I misunderstood her. She also said that they don’t really check the drink mugs and you can keep using them. Really, I don’t feel comfortable with that, so I’ll just buy some new ones for us. Is the Beach Club pool checking a new thing? She said she doesn’t remember that. But, anyway, I’ll figure it all out eventually.

Well, after a rough start, I’m going to keep on planning. Maybe sometime in September. Thanks Skylar and buftee.

omg this is great!

I wish I knew who this was.

 

[missmun52]

I dont know if your playing or not but I could really see someone needing all this help anyway so if it does not help you maybe it can help someone else with one of these questions.

As far as the mugs thats a personal choice, your really no supposed to do it though, just up to you to be honest.

Pool hopping is not allowed so if your satying at the all stars thats the pool your supposed to use. If you want to enjoy a nice pool/slide I would suggest going to one of the water parks for the day.

September (week after labor day) is a much better time to go then June/july/August. It is far less crowded, one of the leat during the year actually. there is also free dining offered that time but you have to get a package (that means buying regular admission tickets for all in the package of at leat one days admission)

If your going during Aug-sept I would advise you to book soon and make your dining reservations as the resturants are allready filling up and some are having trouble getting the times that they want.

I would also suggest that you read mousesavers.com allearsnet.com and buy a guide book for more info (I like the unoffical guide) .

 

[foolishmortal]

I dont know if your playing or not but I could really see someone needing all this help anyway so if it does not help you maybe it can help someone else with one of these questions.

As far as the mugs thats a personal choice, your really no supposed to do it though, just up to you to be honest.

Pool hopping is not allowed so if your satying at the all stars thats the pool your supposed to use. If you want to enjoy a nice pool/slide I would suggest going to one of the water parks for the day.

September (week after labor day) is a much better time to go then June/july/August. It is far less crowded, one of the leat during the year actually. there is also free dining offered that time but you have to get a package (that means buying regular admission tickets for all in the package of at leat one days admission)

If your going during Aug-sept I would advise you to book soon and make your dining reservations as the resturants are allready filling up and some are having trouble getting the times that they want.

I would also suggest that you read mousesavers.com allearsnet.com and buy a guide book for more info (I like the unoffical guide) .

shhhhh


That's when I go now. perfect time!

 

[Lynne M]

Xcited,

Sorry if we misunderstood the situation. Once you've read these boards for awhile, you'll understand why. The 'nice lady' gave you such atrociously bad advice on so many topics that none of us believed your post was for real. It honestly sounded like a joke post.

Your first stop should be at your bookstore or Amazon.com, to pick up Birnbaum's Guide to Walt Disney World (a great overview for first timers) and the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World (loads of great tips). The Passporter is also an excellent guidebook. Read through the DIS boards, and check out allearsnet.com. A wealth of information there.

Whatever you do, do NOT take any more WDW advice from this person. Talk about steering someone wrong - I'll give you two examples of how she could have messed up your trip.

1. You're not allowed to use any pools other than the ones at the resort you're staying at. The Beach Club pool just happens to be the one where they really enforce that. You need a wristband and your Beach Club resort ID to even get into the pool area. How embarassing would it have been to bring your entire family over there, and then be tossed out?

2. Her advice about dinner reservations was the exact opposite of the truth. Not only do they still allow people to make Advanced Dining Reservations (ADRs), they're an absolute requirement during a holiday week. If you'd taken her advice and not made reservations, you would not have had one table service dinner during your entire trip. Even now, it may be too late to get reservations at most restaurants.

In all honesty, I thought at first that this woman was having some fun at your expense. Her advice is that bad. Just nod politely the next time she tries to give you some WDW tips!