I need help? When, Where and who with???

[major]

Hi,
Thinking about booking for 2008 and have a few questions

what's a good month to go - been Feb, March, July and June. Feb was a bit cooler,March was gorgeous, July was rainy and June (07) gorgeous but a wee bit on the hot side. We are thinking about September/October - I'm a bit worried about hurricanes...raining loads and it not being hot enough

Thinking about TCD either Homewood suites or Crowne plaza universal - any views on these two hotels (good or bad) would be helpful in helping us make a decision. Looking at these in particular as we don't like to drive abroad ( Have done it once but much preferred using shuttles/taxis) and would like complimentary travel to the parks (the Homewood also has free breakfast, happy hour etc) but are open to suggestions - we would like to stay in I-drive area.

TCD seems to be the cheapest (September from Glasgow) I know they have been talked about many a time on the boards but again any views would be good. We would do a DIY hol (especially as I like to book a night at both universal on-site and a disney area hotel)but the flights seem much more expensive than a package...unless I'm looking in the wrong place for flights???

Also do TCD let you book their package without hiring a car???

Sorry there is sooo many questions - you'd think it would get easier the more times we go but it just seems the more I find out the more I realise I have still got loads to learn(thank goodness i found these boards )
Any help from you all would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

 

[wicket2005]

No one can give you guarantees about the weather at any time of the year. Hurricane season lasts from June to November, some years are worse than others. We have been twice in July and the weather was lovely with only a couple of showers in the 4 weeks in total we were there which wasn't what we were expecting (rain every day).

Tripadvisor.com is a handy site to look at reviews on hotels over there but be warned Americans seem to have a lot higher standards than we do so their reviews are often on the negative side. On the other hand if Americans rave about a hotel I would say you are guaranteed to have found a top rated place.

We have been with a few tour operators Airtours, Thomsons and First Choice, all of which were fine. Again there are no guarantees with any company, problems can arise. This year travelling with Virgin for the first time. I would find the hotel you want to stay in and see what the operators charge and compare it to booking it up individually. We have done this once and it was quite easy to do and it did work out cheaper. Usually now we just take the quick option and get a travel agent to do the job but from all the posts I have read here there are certainly some excellent deals to be had by doing it yourself.

 

[angel659]

Hi

Where is Carol when you need her There are loads of people who can help you. Carol (carolfoy) is a TA and I am sure she can help you where you to look.

We have been in May, June, July, August and October. This year November. My fav time is October closely followed by May. October weather was lovely and they have Mickeys Halloween Party. In my eyes made the whole holiday even more special. Hence this time we are trying Mickeys christmas party in November.

TCD have negative reviews, but people still book them on here. It might be worth flying with them if they are cheaper.

Try tripadvisor for hotel reviews. These for flights

www.travelsupermarket.com
www.expedia.co.uk
www.airlinenetwork.co.uk

If you do not mind stop overs there can be savings in these flights. Also have a look on My travel flights only they have come out comparable in the past. Try to fly at week days to prevent the extra weekend supplement costs. TCD do not offer flight offers if I remember correctly. They tried to apply car hire. Sometimes booking seperately you do save money. We have always saved money in the past doing it this way. Might be an idea to think about waiting for a couple of months. If you do go in late Aug/Sept then WDW may offer the same free Disney dining plan. This can save you loads of money. Have you tried registering as a frequent flyer on Virgin Atlantic. You will be able to get 10% off the flights or package by booking with virgin holidays.

 

[Beep]

Hi, almost every time I have been has been in September and October and I think it's a great time of year to go. It is humid, but not too hot compared to other times of the year.

The only downside is that the parks don't open as late as in high season, but the goodside is that the crouds are lighter. Last year, I think the longest we waited for a top ride was 30-40 minutes.

I've only caught the tailend of a hurricane once and it was torrential rain and high winds for about an hour.

I've read on here that 'hell-week', which is when the college kids have a weeks break isn't happening until later in October (or even November) so it should be even better!

Forgot to say, last year we went in for 2 weeks on 6th October and although it was cloudy for the first few days, it was still very warm. After that, it got quite hot, very sunny, but not too hot.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

If you are not restricted by school holidays I would say late April/early May or October through early November are the best times to go in terms of a good combination of light crowds and ideal weather.

Just my opinion but wouldn't stay on I-drive unless it was the nicer and quieter south end, Rosen Center is a very nice hotel.

 

[Melcatfish]

Hi,
Thinking about booking for 2008 and have a few questions

what's a good month to go - been Feb, March, July and June. Feb was a bit cooler,March was gorgeous, July was rainy and June (07) gorgeous but a wee bit on the hot side. We are thinking about September/October - I'm a bit worried about hurricanes...raining loads and it not being hot enough

We went for 3 weeks in August 2004. We had to go in August as some of the group were school teachers \ employees and as we wanted three weeks it was August or not at all.

it was Hot and I would imagine it would still be warm in September. The rain was weird. It rained on probably half the days we were there but usually for 10-15minutes and then everything dried out quickly - we actually found it quite refreshing! We only had one day where it rained a lot but even then it was still warm.

While we were there Hurricane Charley hit and although it was not exactly top of my list of favourite things it was amazing how well geared up they are for these things. The parks opened in the morning but everything was tied down!!! They were scheduled to shut at 2pm as the hurricane was due to hit late afternoon. We got loads of rides done in the morning then headed home at lunchtime. It was quite surreal as all of a sudden the radio music cut out and there was a beeping sound and the announcer cut in to say there was a severe and immediate weather warning. Literally as that came over the airwave the skies opened and it bucketed down. I was driving at the time and i do admit it was quite scary as they talked about tournado warnings in the area of Wet and Wild and we were driving past there at exactly that time! Luckily we were nearly home and we got inside the villa, battened down the hatches and played board games and watched hurricane coverage on local TV.

We were all fine and the next day everywhere was in full clean up mode and all the parks except Discovery Cove were open again. Guess where we were booked for the next day?!?! Yes, next day was my cousins 16th birthday and we were booked in for Discovery cove. GUTTED and we couldn't rebook before we went home which was sad. But i was amazed how quickly everything got back to normal next day.

Having said all that I wouldn't let the possibility of a hurricane put me off going and we are going to go again in August but not til 2010 The only thing i would change is to be safely tucked up at home or in the hotel with a bit more time to spare!!!

I do realise that not everyone is that lucky in a hurricane but from a holiday makers perpective the standards of accommodation are pretty high so you are relatively well protected if you follow the guidence which is given out on the radio \ TV and in the local papers. Hurrican Charley was category 4 and they were talking of it approaching category 5 so it was a big one!

Hmmmm when i started typing the idea was to say that you can still have a great holiday even in hurricane season - this post sounds a bit scary... we did get forced to have some valuable down time so it wasn't all bad!

Mel
x

 

[major]

Hi Everyone
Thanks for the replies...keep the suggestions coming,it really does help with the planning.

Mel...Thanks for the info on the hurricane...you haven't scared me about going in hurricane season

Jonny-Sharp - I know it's not everyone's cup of tea (I don't know if it was because this is where we have always stayed apart from the villa this year) but we like the hustle of I-drive and found the villa area too quiet!!

Anyone stayed in the Crowne PLaza or Homewood suites by Hilton???? I've been quoted £1847 by TCD for Crowne plaza & £1903 for Homewood suites flying 8th September with transfers (we don't like having a car on holiday) is this good/bad price???

Thanks in advance
Linda

 

[JohnnySharp2]

Jonny-Sharp - I know it's not everyone's cup of tea (I don't know if it was because this is where we have always stayed apart from the villa this year) but we like the hustle of I-drive and found the villa area too quiet!!

No problem, would be boring if we all liked the same thing - to be honest we couldn't stay in a villa for the whole holiday anymore and now mix it up with several nights at a resort also, this way we get the best of everything.
Different for us as with Josh's autism we really need to have cooking facilities and that extra room.

Before Joshua was born we actually used to like I-drive location, but to be honest other than the southern end we just don't like the area anymore.

 

[major]

Hi Johnny,
It is difficult choosing a place that suits all your needs - I think for us we like I-drive for a couple of reasons 1) it was the first place we stayed and 2) We don't really like driving on holiday...my DH drove the first year we went and swore (literally)he wouldn't do it again!!!

This year we stayed in a villa (Hampton Lakes) but relied on a member of the other family we went with to drive us around...this is ok if everyone wants to go but if the driver isn't really that keen it kind of leaves you a bit stuck. The villa was gorgeous but unless you drive it was very isolated.
Although if you don't mind driving, a villa is great and obviously with having Joshua you really need to make sure you choose the right accommodation/location. I'm sure you'll love the Omni Champoinsgate as much as we did... and that was us just staying in a "normal" room, I'm sure the villas will be out of this world.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

Hi Johnny,
It is difficult choosing a place that suits all your needs - I think for us we like I-drive for a couple of reasons 1) it was the first place we stayed and 2) We don't really like driving on holiday...my DH drove the first year we went and swore (literally)he wouldn't do it again!!!

This year we stayed in a villa (Hampton Lakes) but relied on a member of the other family we went with to drive us around...this is ok if everyone wants to go but if the driver isn't really that keen it kind of leaves you a bit stuck. The villa was gorgeous but unless you drive it was very isolated.
Although if you don't mind driving, a villa is great and obviously with having Joshua you really need to make sure you choose the right accommodation/location. I'm sure you'll love the Omni Champoinsgate as much as we did... and that was us just staying in a "normal" room, I'm sure the villas will be out of this world.

Hi,

Yes cannot wait for our stay at the Omni.
Even with a car you can feel isolated in a villa, and having to drive everywhere is a big dis-advantage. Overall though the private pool, Joshua loves water, plus having all the amenities works for us - being able to relax a bit on holiday is important to us.
A mixture of private villa, Omni villas and Saratoga Springs is in theory perfect as it gives us everything we need.

I can understand if you don't want to drive that I-drive is suitable, I guess we have just grown out of the area over the years.
We do have some good memories there , when Pointe Orlando just opened we were staying at the Rosen Plaza just opposite and we used to walk over with Josh - he was just a baby then.

 

[pebbley1]

Hi Major,

Chris (BF) and I have been to Florida in nearly every month. My favourite time is late September - early October, as the hurricane season is just about over, but there is still heat and not so much humidity. Having said that, last year there was a freak small local cyclone whilst we were eating at the Red Lobster at the back of Downtown Disney. We had to stay in the restaurant (no hardship there!) until it passed. Still, made an interesting after dinner story.
The only problem with late Sept/ early October is the lovebugs that seem to be everywhere in Disney / Orlando. Idon't know if it because the land is all reclaimed swampland, but they get a bit annoying. We stayed in OKW and had to leave the pool. There seemed to be fewer bugs at Grand Floridian (maybe they couldn't afford the rack rate!).

 

[GemmaPixie]

IMO Crowne Plaza is a really nice hotel!! More for adults I'd say because the pool is smaller than a lot of hotels and while there is a games room, it's also small. However, the hotel is really clean, staff are wonderful and bedroom and big with the most comfortaable beds you will have ever slept in in your life!! They are that good!