Gateway Trips

[Diskidatheart]

I go on one little golf trip last week and I miss all this excitement. Now that I am back and had a chance to glance at the Italy trip vs the Gateway Italy trip, I'm sure the Gateway trip is nice, but it is one less day (which is very disappointing), 2 less lunches, 1 less dinner, and some of the activities have changed. For an extra $850 per person, which is quite a bit, I think the Italy trip is worth it. I have a feeling the hotels on the Gateway trip would be fine, but they probably aren't in prime locations. That was one thing I noticed about other companies that had a similar trip to Italy...their hotels weren't in convenient locations. I don't regret our decision and since it's only my wife and me without any kids, the adults only trip was (and is) a real plus.

It also looks like the Venetian mask making is not offered on the Gateway trip, 2nd class Eurostar tickets (which probably isn't a big deal), and as mentioned earlier, no return transfer. That's quite a bit cut out of the trip for $850.

 

[sayhello]

I go on one little golf trip last week and I miss all this excitement. Now that I am back and had a chance to glance at the Italy trip vs the Gateway Italy trip, I'm sure the Gateway trip is nice, but it is one less day (which is very disappointing), 2 less lunches, 1 less dinner, and some of the activities have changed. For an extra $850 per person, which is quite a bit, I think the Italy trip is worth it. I have a feeling the hotels on the Gateway trip would be fine, but they probably aren't in prime locations. That was one thing I noticed about other companies that had a similar trip to Italy...their hotels weren't in convenient locations. I don't regret our decision and since it's only my wife and me without any kids, the adults only trip was (and is) a real plus.

It also looks like the Venetian mask making is not offered on the Gateway trip, 2nd class Eurostar tickets (which probably isn't a big deal), and as mentioned earlier, no return transfer. That's quite a bit cut out of the trip for $850.

That's pretty much the same impression I had.

It will be interesting to see what happens with these Gateway trips...

Sayhello

 

[glassslipper2004]

The European trips are short enough -- by the time you get yourselves all the way there, with expensive and tiring air travel -- that shortening the trip by a day seems to be a mistake. If it were me, I'd wind up adding extra days - and there would go any price savings.

I'm grateful to ABD for showing me that foreign travel with my family is possible, but I'm starting to understand that it will also be possible without ABD too. Oh well.

 

[KidDad]

I realize this thread is a bit old, but I am likely going to book a Gateway and was surprised by some of the conclusions people drew about the relative merits.

For the London/Paris trip, the difference in price for 1 adult and 1 child is $2,800 ($8,400 vs. $5,600)--that's serious money. The differences--which don't matter to me--are second class Eurostar to Paris vs. first class and the hotels (five star versus four star). Also--high tea at Harrod's--I'll pass (did I mention I have a 9-year old son?). Finally, the Paris hotel apparently has easy and direct transportation to the airport (which ABD helps you arrange), so having that included is just not that big a deal to me.

The two differences that really seem material are the Lion King and the tour of Versailles. I've looked at bike tours for Versailles, and we can book that on our own for less than $200 total on one of our off days. The Lion King? Okay--you got me. Fortunately we already saw it on Broadway but I would have seen it again (and with the backstage tour) in a heartbeat. Instead we'll take the opportunity to see something fun and different (Oliver or Grease). So in sum--$2,800 for the Lion King? Not for me.

I just think the Gateway is a great opportunity for families that don't want or have the money to go first class on everything--but still want the ol' disney magic. See you all in London!

 

[airbear]

I agree with you kiddad. I thought the gateway trips looked pretty good. I like that you have a little more on your own time and you save quite a bit of money. The Costa Rica gateway was very appealing to me however I had already booked southwest splendors when the Gateways came out. Have an awesome time in London and Paris.

 

[Bobo912]

I realize this thread is a bit old, but I am likely going to book a Gateway and was surprised by some of the conclusions people drew about the relative merits.

For the London/Paris trip, the difference in price for 1 adult and 1 child is $2,800 ($8,400 vs. $5,600)--that's serious money. The differences--which don't matter to me--are second class Eurostar to Paris vs. first class and the hotels (five star versus four star). Also--high tea at Harrod's--I'll pass (did I mention I have a 9-year old son?). Finally, the Paris hotel apparently has easy and direct transportation to the airport (which ABD helps you arrange), so having that included is just not that big a deal to me.

The two differences that really seem material are the Lion King and the tour of Versailles. I've looked at bike tours for Versailles, and we can book that on our own for less than $200 total on one of our off days. The Lion King? Okay--you got me. Fortunately we already saw it on Broadway but I would have seen it again (and with the backstage tour) in a heartbeat. Instead we'll take the opportunity to see something fun and different (Oliver or Grease). So in sum--$2,800 for the Lion King? Not for me.

I just think the Gateway is a great opportunity for families that don't want or have the money to go first class on everything--but still want the ol' disney magic. See you all in London!

'

Please let us know how the trip goes once you get back. I have a 9-year-old son too and it would be great to hear what your son likes about the trip. My son absolutely loves the two ABDs we've done so far, but they were more active/outdoorsy than K&L. There is another more recent thread where a few of us were considering booking the K&L Gateway. Have you taken an ABD before? I would really love to hear a first hand account from someone who has done both. If this is your first ABD, it would still be great to get your impressions. I've decided no more WDW trips for us for a few years and we're saving up to hopefully do two ABDs (or something similar) in Europe next year. If one of them could be a Gateway trip it would make the cost a little more bearable. Hope you have a wonderful trip! Can't wait to hear about it!

 

[KidDad]

Hi Bobo912: This is our first ABD. I've wanted to go for a while, but couldn't pull the trigger because of the cost--which is why Gateway is so welcome. I'll definitely post when we return (we're going to book the 6/25 departure).

And AirBear--I agree about the appeal of the downtime. Maybe I'm wrong about this, but because this is our first "escorted" tour, I was concerned it would be too structured. I actually like the fact I'll have a little bit of time to plan on our own.

Cheerio mon amis!

 

[Bobo912]

KidDad, have you booked your airfare? Did you come across any good deals? I think we will be waiting until next year for a European trip, but if I could find a good airfare and I'm not too busy at work, I would definitely consider a last minute booking of the Aug 2 K&L Gateway - if it's not fully booked, that is. That's a lot of "ifs", but one never knows how things will work out. I gather that you are traveling alone with you son. Just want to let you know from my ABD experience that it is the perfect way for a single parent to travel with their child. But let me warn you, you will be spoiled forever. Every time I think about taking a vacation on my own now, I can't bear to put myself all the research, planning, transporting, luggage toting, etc., etc., etc.

 

[wdwsos]

Bobo912, I got relatively good rates (under $1,000/pp) out of Boston for my K&L on 6/11. I flew Icelandair (to Iceland!) in February and loved them, so booked my air with them again for this trip. It is a connecting flight, but the airport in Iceland is one terminal and very easy to navigate. I saved over $400.00 over the direct flight and I get to stretch my legs.

Dotti

 

[HappyHilda]

My family is taking the Italy Gateway tour in June - I sadly waited too late to be able to join the Viva Italia tour . But, we are quite excited about this trip the closer it gets!

 

[Bobo912]

Bobo912, I got relatively good rates (under $1,000/pp) out of Boston for my K&L on 6/11. I flew Icelandair (to Iceland!) in February and loved them, so booked my air with them again for this trip. It is a connecting flight, but the airport in Iceland is one terminal and very easy to navigate. I saved over $400.00 over the direct flight and I get to stretch my legs.

Dotti

Thanks, Dotti. I'll add Icelandair to my list of airlines to keep an eye on. A layover in Iceland doesn't sound too bad to me either.

 

[KidDad]

Bobo: I can't say we got great airfares, especially since we're traveling from California. I'm sure fares will be less if you're on the east coast, but seems like there aren't many deals out there for this summer. I checked out the discussion boards for United and was able to work with a great consolidator. We got non-stop to London and a one-stop return from Paris for $2476--that was more than $600 less than booking directly with United. And yes, we can make changes to the ticket (costs $50 more) and get miles.

The consolidator I worked with was:

Wendy at 817-939-0204

The discussion board listed several other reputable consolidators--I'm not able to include the link, but you should be able to find it if you Google:

List of United's Consolidators - FlyerTalk Forums

We'll be on the 6/25 trip, but would love to hear/compare if you go on 8/2. Regards.

 

[Bobo912]

Thanks, KidDad. I wish ABD would offer a $500 airfare credit like they did last year. It was announced on 6/18/09. It's going to take a credit like that or a really good deal from the airline to make it possible for me to take more than one trip this year. I have to get my driveway repaved. It's reached the point where it's an embarrassment. I'm hoping it won't cost as much as I think it's going to.

Dotti - I priced a flight on Icelandair for me and DS and it was around $200 - $400 cheaper than the major US airlines. It was also cheaper than Aer Lingus after they add their enormous tax on. One thing I noticed about Icelandair was that their kid's fares are significantly less than the adult fares. I priced a RT to London and a multi-city to London/return from Paris and the kids fare was $150 and $200, respectively, less than the adult fare.

 

[wdwsos]

Icelandair flies mostly 737's and they don't serve anything to eat (although there's a decent selection of food for sale for a reasonable price), but for a $400.00 savings, I figured I could pack a lunch.

Each seat has its own entertainment unit with games, TV shows, movies (around 12, mostly current, if I remember correctly) and music. You can control the TV shows and movies with FF, Rew, Play and Pause buttons -- you're not at the mercy of one central system for all. Overall, it was a good experience. I would have liked a little more leg room -- I'm very tall -- but it wasn't as tight as AirFrance or Alitalia either.

Dotti

 

[Bobo912]

Is anyone familiar with the Marriott Rive Gauche hotel in Paris? I looked up the hotels for the K&L Gateway and saw some very good reviews for the London hotel as far as the location and the accommodations. The Paris hotel had good reviews too, but some of them were not very enthusiatic about the location, saying that it wasn't near attractions. Since there is more free time on the Gateway trip, that would be a concern. I admit that there were a lot of reviews and I didn't get very far into them, so I'll go back later and read more when I have time. Or just wait until KidDad gets back from his trip in June and he can fill us in on the details.