I could use some direction

[borcherk]

My family of four DH and two children ages 2 and 5 at time of travel need direction. We visited Disney for the first time in June of last year and will return this September 20-26 after my DH returns from his summer deployment. As a military family we have an awesome opportunity to stay at the Poly for a good price however with their ages I'm concerned about the following...travel time to dinner meals which usually seem to be at Epcot, waiting for an excessive amount of time at the airport for the shuttle and whether or not I should even invest in the meal plan as I do have a picky 5 year old and I'm not an adventurous eater myself. My head is spinning! I don't want to pass up what feels like a one time opportunity to stay at the Poly but I'm torn about dining and transportation issues. Anyone have a compass - some direction for me? As a note: We stayed off property at the Caribe Royale and had a rental car last year and didn't really have any complaints. The Disney offer just seemed so good we are exploring.
Thanks

 

[Maggie'sMom]

I don't think you should consider transportation an issue against the Poly. I booked my August trip there because of the transportation options. To get to Epcot, you can walk from the Poly to the TTC and catch the Epcot monorail. With young children, you will be spending a lot of time at the MK. The Poly has: a boat launch from the resort to the MK, the resort monorail where the MK is the second stop, the monorail from the TTC, and the ferry boat from the TTC. The only parks you need to deal with buses would be the AK and DHS.

 

[bas71873]

With regard to using ME to get from the airport to the Poly in Sept, I wouldn't think you'd have much of a wait. When DD and I traveled alone 2 years ago (she was 5 at the time) in October, we waited maybe 5 minutes in the line for the bus to WL and then sat on the bus for maybe 10 minutes and then we were off. MAYBE 10 people on the bus. They show a movie on the bus to the resort so that keeps the kids busy, plus it's on it's way to Disney. The ME area is disney-fied too. AND, you get to walk the red carpet to the resort line. Personally, I LOVE ME and all the bus transpo at WDW.....I like not having to do ANY driving at all while I'm there.

 

[bas71873]

About the dining plan. I'm not an adventurous eater either, but we like having our whole vacay paid for when we arrive, hence doing the dining plan. Plus we can do character meals, etc., which I wouldn't pay out of pocket for (I haven't yet anyway ). AND, I found that by doing buffets, it gave DD a little more variety (but she's not picky and will eat anything. She got tired of the same old same old on the kids menus). For $10/12 a day or whatever it is for the kids, that's a STEAL for my DD. You could always just do the QSDP and then book a TS meal or two and pay OOP for those?

We are giving the QSDP a try this fall because my DH cannot stand to be tied to a ressie every day so we are going with the flow this year.

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

First, from another military wife, best wishes for the remaining part of your husband's deployment. Mine did 1 year in Iraq in 2006-07 and is on a year of stateside TDY now. It's tough with little ones!

Second, I would definitely spring for the Poly. You are so close to Magic Kingdom - just a short monorail ride away - and with kids that age you will probably be spending a lot of time at MK. I know we do (our kids are 4 and 7). Even going to Epcot is pretty painless. From the Poly, you can walk to the Transportation & Ticket Center (TTC) and get directly on the Epcot monorail there.

Third, when you have small kids and especially one under 3, the meal plan can be a great deal. Schedule several of the character meal buffets (Chef Mickey's, Crystal Palace, others) and your kids will get to meet the characters without waiting in line in the parks. One child's dinner buffet averages $20, and the dining plan only costs $11/day so you come out ahead. Plus, your 2-yr-old will eat for free at the buffets. Don't worry about being an adventurous eater; I am not and I find plenty to eat that I like. Neither are my kids and they get enough variety at the Disney restaurants. Check out the menus at www.allearsnet.com to find out what each restaurant serves.

Hope this helps!

 

[borcherk]

I guess after being off property and really having no complaints we've just been unsure of things. It's good to hear that the transportation should be pretty painless. We are pretty laid back about this visit b/c we were just there last year so I think that will play in our favor. Can't wait to experience the on property "magic".

 

[rcallbeck]

We've stayed both off-property with a rental car and on property at the Poly, and travel was pretty darn painless.. had to take the bus to get to AK or DHS, but never waited longer than 10 minutes. And with the monorail right there to MK and the TTC just a few steps away to get to Epcot, you shouldn't have any issues!

Also, the ME from the airport was no wait for us... we just walked right up and the Poly bus was right there.

 

[carolinagirl121]

Make sure you check out the military ticket deal that WDW is currently running. It's a great price. You should still be eligible during that time frame, but I think you will have to buy before you go. You could talk to MWR and they should be able to give you more information.

Also, spring for the Poly. It's amazing and as a military family making it through it deployment, you deserve it! We are gearing up for our next one here in a couple of months.

 

[deerhart]

allearsnet has all the menus updated regularly for all places to eat at Disney. So just hop over and check them out to see if there are things you would want to eat at a certain place. It also includes pricing, so you can check for yourself if the meal plan would save you money or not.

As for ME, the buses to the deluxe resorts do tend to go faster then say to value. I have waited almost 45 minutes for a bus, but that was because we arrived about midday for Pop Century and it rides with the all stars and it was packed. Last year we headed to ME about 9am for CBR and had almost no wait.