from the disney paris forum to the disney usa asking for tips

[smittenkitten]

Hello Im from the disneyland paris forum and have now ventured into planning a orlando disney trip as kids are getting older, and we are ready to go to great USA disney etc

Looking to go early 2012

I have a few questions (I have also been reading through many of these threads which are really usefull)

Is virgin atlantic the best option for flights cheapest etc

do you hire a car through a fly drive or seperate

possibly looking at staying at a villa in two seperate locations - any tips

as our first trip possible 2 1/2 weeks what are the top places to see Disney has to be a def xx


all tips welcome at this planning stage

thank you

Smitten

 

[Pegasus928]

Hi - and welcome to the Florida planning section

I will try to answer a couple of your questions.

Flights and airlines are a subject that comes up regularly and in my opinion the one that you chose would be down to personal circumstances. We prefer to travel with Virgin as they offer great cunstomer service and special assistance to my DS who has special needs. You may find that another airline suits you as they fly from closer to where you live. Prices are also changeable but I would guess that wayneg is the best person to advise on that score.

We have also booked a fly-drive in the past but have always found that it is cheaper to leave the car and to hire one DIY. The cost of a 3 weeks hire for us from Florida Car Hire was cheaper than paying for the insurance for 1 week from Virgin.

On all of our trips we have stayed in a villa. The choice is endless and will depend on where in Florida you want to stay. We have a couple of favourites and some in a short list that we have yet to try. Let me know if you want them and I will provide you with a list. Things you may want to look out for are:
South facing pool that is not overlooked
Free international phone calls
Free internet access and PC or Wi-Fi
Depending on the abilities of your party you may want more rooms downstairs
Most locations are around 15-30 minutes away from the main attractions with any developemment on H27 being the furthest away. We have generally found that the villas located around Ponciana Blvd are a nice short drive from the parks but also have plenty on your doorstep for those all important provisions.
Just out of curiosity why do you want to stay in 2 seperate locations?

I am sure you have already figured out by now that a 2 or 3 week trip isn't long enough to do everything that Florida has to offer. It's also really hard for us to suggest things you should do as everyone is different. I would suggest reading a few trip reports and seeing what everyone else has done then make notes of what stands out as being 'must-do'. Put these on the top of your list and go from there

Kenny

 

[wayneg]

Welcome

No airline is consistantly the cheapest, could be any of them for your date.
1st choice is would you be willing to fly indirect? sometimes can save you £100's but not always. Indirect is a little more inconveient but you get immigration done at your 1st US airport which saves time on arrival in Orlando.
Also consider other airports, we flew into Tampa last August and doing same again in Feb, slightly further than MCO or Sanford but again can be savings.
Flight only is not available until 11 months from your return flight so post again around then for help with flight prices.

Check flydrive prices, they are sometimes reasonable but usually cheaper to do flight only. Car hire almost always cheaper to book seperate. Again when ready for booking ask for help with prices.

Can't help with Villas, prefer hotels.

Main attractions are Disney (4 parks & 2 water parks) Universal (2 parks) SeaWorld(1 park, 1 water park Aquatica & Discovery Cove), Busch Gardens but loads more to see & do.

 

[torsie24]

Welcome!!!

You are in for such an exciting time planning for a WDW trip! It;s like 10x funner than planning for DLRP as there's so much there!

I won't chip in with advice about flights/villas etc as you've had some great advice. And I'd just be repeating people.

But WDW can be very daunting, and I've always found reading trip reports, threads on this board and asking questions really help you get your head around Orlando!

Also the Brits Guide to orlando and the Unofficial Guide to WDW are two great books!

 

[crim1978]

If I could offer one tip I would say - Plan and plan and plan!

Firstly in my opinion its half the fun of the trip (that's why we're all on this site) and helps the time pass by.

Plus, as has already been stated, there is so much to do that you cannot possibly over plan. We see so many people wandering round with no clue where to go or what to do next. Do some planning and then you wont miss so much.

Have fun preparing and then you will enjoy the time there so much more.

Chris

 

[wayneg]

We see so many people wandering round with no clue where to go or what to do next. Do some planning and then you wont miss so much.

You just reminded me of a post I saw a few month back on another forum. Went something like "We arrived last night, staying on Idrive can anyone recommend somewhere to eat tonight?"
Last thing you want is wasting time posting questions like this while on holiday.

 

[dixonsontour]

Hi and welcome

A good start is the book Brits guide to orlando by simon veness - new one just out. I leant it to someone from work going for the first time and he raved about the book.

Have a think about what you would like to do best and your kids ages. Alot of first timers buy 14 day disney ultimates and 5 day flex for universal seaworld busch - that is a heck of a lot to fit in and wasted money imo.

We just did disney this last trip and still didn't have enough time.

We've stayed at hotels, onsite disney and a villa.

If you are doing mainly disney then onsite with free dining can be a great deal - dates not released yet for 2012. You can do character meals for free and some resorts have 1 and 2 bed apts.

Think carefully about your dates. There is a US public holiday in Feb meaning higher crowds and march/april is very busy due to spring break and easter. As US schools finish earlier late may/june is also busy. Mid Aug or end Oct seem most popular times on here for people with kids in school as US schools are not off then in the main. Touringplans.com gives a crowd estimator for the coming year scale 1-10. I think it is $10 or so to subscribe.

Happy planning!