International Vistor in need of info!!

[mikaelroth]

Hi there!
We ( a Swedish family , consiting of my wife -Karin , Paula 10, John 9 and me) are going to Florida Oct24. )). This will be the kids first visit to US ever (me and my wife were ther 12 years ago and decide to go back if we got kids).
So have have been planning and researching and the original 2 weeks have become almost 4 weeks! But I have a few question still unanswered and a very helpful person directed me to this site. I know this is the budget site but since some of the questions are economical I figure I will ask all here.

First , what shall we see/do in Florida (DisneyWorld of course , where we will spend 7 days - bought 5+2 day Hopper tickets).
We will go to Sea World but after that we do not know? Mayby go fishing? Please , I would much apreciate help on activities /events?

Second is food at Disney Parks
How do I get about to get Q&C vouchers? I have called the numbers and applied for membership but you have a US address and US based credit card. Is there a club that accept international members?
How can I aquire Premium Dinner Voucher and how much do they cost (have seen them at eBay)?
Should I make reservations at the dinner resturants? And if so is it at all possible to reserv though the web (have you ever tried to reserv a table through international call)?
Do many (if so which) reusturants require jackets/ties (we are not used to warm climate- I will melt ;-)?
I have noticed that a lot of the parks close early at evenings what happens to the resturants inside (we are used to eat dinner 8-9 pm)?

Parking at DisneyWorld is it free? I have seen AAA has some kind of parking offer outside the Theme Parks. Is it diffcult to get parking?

Seaworld/ Wet&Wild/ Busch Garden We will go to SeaWorld for sure but W&W how does it compare to the Disney Water Parks? And is Busch Garden worth one day? And the cheapest tickets where can I get them?Is it cheaper to buy on location then on net?

Are there any "must see" between Tampa-Orlando-Miami? Are there any cheap /free activities/events that are happening while we are there (Oct24-Nov17)?

How about gas (we will rent a car for the duration)? I hear that it is expensive? Any savings here?

Can someone recommend a hotel (chain of hotels) that are not to expensive of good quality and children-friendly (we already have bookings in Tampa and Orland, but not when we go south (Ft.Lauderdale Miami Everglades) ? I have searched the web but one only gets to see the advert pictures.

Last: Please forgive my english/spelling and that all questions are not Disney related. Also do not feel that You have to answer all questions ALL help is hugely apreciated.
Thanks in advance
Mike

 

[ceecee]

How long will you be in FL and how far do you want to drive from the "World"???
Do you need the car the 7 days you are at WDW? Or are you staying onsite?
You can buy Vouchers on Ebay (watch what you spend, $11.50 is what they cost normally). I have bought them on Ebay and paid a little more to avoid the hassle of joining and cancelling the membership.

 

[swilshire]

Mike,

What an exciting trip for your family! Welcome in advance to our country. I'll try to answer as many of your questions as I can and feel free to keep asking until you get all the info you need.

If you have not already, you may want to buy some guidebooks for the Orlando area. There are many available and the prices are worth it if you pick up a few tidbits. I have been to DisneyWorld many times and still read the books. You can find them for good prices on eBay, Amazon.com and Overstock.com.

Disney is a must and can easily take weeks to see and do completely. Between Disney and Sea World, your seven days in Orlando will be very full. Just seeing all of the Disney resorts is always a treat for us. Be sure to visit some of them and maybe have a meal. Our favorites are the Wilderness Lodge and the Beach and Yacht Clubs. The latter is also a good place to use the meal vouchers you ask about, as is the Coronado Springs Resort. If you had more time in Orlando, I would also suggest a day or two at Universal Studios, but I don't think you'll have the time. Also fun in the Disney area are the Disney Water Parks (Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach) and Disney Quest (video games for kids). I don't think you'll find much time for fishing in Orlando.

The time of year you are going is excellent for visiting Florida. It may be a bit cold and rainy or it may be warm and lovely. Bring clothes for any possibility. At that time of year, I doubt you'll need dinner reservations, but you can ask at Guest Relations when you get to each of the parks. They can advise you. Dining will be very casual. It would be rare to be required to wear a shirt and tie. The places that would require that would not fit into our family budget.

As for the meal vouchers, since you're not in the US you'll have to buy from someone else. We found them to be a good savings and they provide enough food to share.

I believe parking at DW is $8 per day now. You can keep your ticket and use it the same day at any of the parks. AAA has a special parking area that is more convenient to the entrance. There is plenty of parking but you will have to ride the trams to the entrance unless you get there very early each day.

Sea World is more shows and a few rides. No comparison to the Disney Parks. I like Busch Gardens. You should check the website for combo tickets for both Sea World and Busch Gardens. I don't know it off the top of my head, but a simple search always turns it up. Probably www.buschgardens.com.

I've always avoided Miami. I usually do mostly the beaches from Tampa, but I know there is more to see there. Someone will pipe in with some good suggestions. Lots of nice restaurants if you enjoy fresh fish (one of my favorites).

Gas will be close to $2.00 a gallon. Prices will vary a lot. Look for places with lots of stations and they are usually cheaper. You'll learn where they are. Hess stations are often the lowest cost around Orlando.

If you just want a room, try Hampton Inns. They are usually very economical and serve free breakfast. If you want a kitchen and perhaps a separate bedroom (with the kids on a sofa bed), try Residence Inn and Homewood Suites. They're not the cheapest hotels you'll find but they're almost always very nice. You could also try one of the bidding services such as Priceline.com, but you don't get to see the hotel until you've already paid for it and the reservations can not be changed or cancelled. You'll find very good deals there, though.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your trip.

Sheila

 

[mikaelroth]

Thank You kindly for the advises already given.
ceecee: we will be in Florida 3weeks an4 days (Oct24-Nov17) and we will rent a car for the entire period. We are booked at Clearwater Tampa the first week (we will drive down to Orlando at least once that week , just to keep the kids from nagging us to death). The second week we will be in Orlando, but after that we will roam not book until Nov17 (flight home :-(.

As for needing a car in Orlando, well we are used to have a car and who walks in Amerika ;-)

Regards
Mike

 

[pjlla]

I think that swilshire was suggesting that you use Disney transportation while in Orlando. But that would only apply if you were staying onsite at one of the Disney Resorts. Otherwise a rental car is needed. We visited SeaWorld for the first time as a family this past January and LOOOVED it. And I have heard many good things about Busch Gardens. If you have the time, I would suggest both. And have you considered Kennedy Space Center? It is about a 90 minute ride from Orlando. Truthfully I haven't been there since 1983 (college trip), but it was very memorable and I am impatiently waiting for my children to be old enough to enjoy and appreciate it so I can go back.

Regarding a few of your questions.... I believe the only place on Disney property that requires a jacket and tie is Victoria and Albert's restaurant in the Grand Floridian Resort. With children along it is probably not in your plans.... so don't worry about the formal clothes!

I believe that "Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party" (aka MNSSHP) is going on at the Magic Kingdom while you are there. Not sure if this is a sold out event yet, but maybe worth checking into. Do you have Halloween in Sweden? (Hope that is not a stupid question). If Halloween is something new for your kids, they would probably get a kick out of this event.

Parking at WDW is free if you are staying onsite... otherwise $8 per day. Parking is plentiful.

If the parks close before you are ready for dinner, there are PLENTY of restaurants in the Disney resorts and in the surrounding Orlando area. And even when Animal Kingdom closes at 5pm and Magic Kingdom closes at 7pm, Epcot usually stays open until at least 9pm. They have some terrific restaurants there.

As far as water parks, I believe you stated you bought the "5+2" tickets. I think you mean the 5 day Park Hopper Plus tickets, which includes, as stated, two plus features. These plus features can be used at the water parks.... so why go elsewhere if you have already paid for this!?

The only "free" activities that comes to mind for me are DownTown Disney, (it is a shopping/restaurant district at Disney) and the Boardwalk... kind of a street fair/carnival type atmosphere area at Disney.

Sorry I cannot elaborate more.... gotta run.... DD is celebrating her 9th birthday today with her friends.... gotta go hang streamers!

Best Wishes from a US Swedish family... Have a great trip!......Pamela

 

[JoiseyMom]

Hi, you are going to have a wonderful trip when you are here!! When you are in Orlando you can also visit Universal Studios and the Islands of Adventure. There are Universal boards here too for you to check out. Those two parks can take two days.

For Q&C Vouchers, you might get lucky and be able to buy them from DisAuctions or Diser that has some extras. Read these boards, they will give you good advice. AAA can give you some good clues for Hotel Chains. Holiday Inn's are good, Marriott are good. If you can buy an Entertainment book for Orlando or Ft. Lauderdale to get discounts on hotels. You can look into priceline, or skyauction, or other sites for hotel discounts. Go to the Hotel board, and they can give you lots of information on how to use those sites. These boards will help you make the best decisions for your vacation!

Good Luck!

 

[summersfam4]

Mike,

Welcome! You and your family are going to have a great time in Florida. We also stay in the Tampa area during our trip and our family loves Busch Gardens, there is alot to see and do there for all ages, I know that there is usually a combo ticket as swilshire mentioned so you should get a good price for the busch garden's / Sea World tickets. Since you are going to be in Orlando you might want to extend your days there and consider doing Universal Studios Orlando and/or Island's of Adventure (both are Universal Studios Parks) at the age your children are at they will probably enjoy them but you can do some research on the web about the parks just to be sure that you might be interested. The ticket prices are comprable to those at Disney, but you will not need so many days and someone else here might know of a good price or special offer on tickets (my kids are 5 and 1 although we have taken them to Universal and Island's of Adventure before we are not visiting again untill they get a bit older, but as I said your kids are at a great age for these parks). I don't know about hotel's outside of the area but you might also want to check out skyauctions.com for a place in or near Miami, I am sure I saw a couple great deals last time I was looking. If you see something you like look around on the web for reviews on that particular hotel to get an idea of what it's REALLY like! Good Luck, and if you have any more questions feel free to ask away.

Kelly

 

[sweet maxine]

Good morning from the Mississippi Delta!

I agree with the information already posted, and also want to stress what pjilla said about the Disney tickets you have. The 2 "plus" features of your tickets can be used at the water parks, and if used that way you would not need to buy the Wet and Wild tickets.

I also agree about Hampton Inns. I believe they have a 100% guarantee that you must be happy with your stay there, so they seem to put a little extra effort into keeping customers happy.

You might want to also spend at least an afternoon at Downtown Disney, as stated earlier. There are lots of cute shops, and the Rainforest Cafe is there---I'm sure your kids would love it! Make sure to allow some rest time in your schedule, so that you don't get too tired during your touring of the parks.

The Unofficial Guide to Disney World by Bob Sehlinger is a great book to get to help with your planning. Lots of people here also use the Passporter guide. Either one can be purchased from Amazon.com.

You might want to look at the Sea World boards on this site, as someone there may know the best deal for Sea World and Busch Gardens. I think you can buy a combination ticket for both parks. Wendy's is currently running a promotion if you go to the Sea World website and enter the word COMBO as the promotion code. I think it's about $9 or $10 off the usual ticket price.

Hope your family has a great stay in Florida!

 

[swilshire]

Mike,

I strongly recommend you NOT drive from Clearwater to Orlando one day. It's not that far, but the traffic can be TERRIBLE. Even just Clearwater to Tampa can be a bit of a pain.

Tampa/St Pete/Clearwater is lovely. Enjoy your time there .... then go to Orlando. You may want to take a day drive down to Sarasota or even Sanibel. I've done Sanibel from Tampa. It's a very long drive for a day, but it was worth it to me. If you go to Sarasota, visit Siesta Key. It's the best beach area down there in my opinion. Lots of Amish restaurants in the Sarasota area, which might be something different for your family.

Just tell the kids it will NOT be a fun day if you go to Orlando from Tampa and take them to Busch Gardens instead.

Enjoy.

Sheila

 

[canwegosoon]

Welcome Mike...I think that you would not need a Jacket/Tie very often (perhaps at California Grill/ Brown Derby/Grand Flordian) if you were doing a special night with your wife. But almost all restaurants are geared to family. I think the current "dressed up" look that my husband has is Chino(khaki) pants, nice shirt, and a sports jacket, with loafers (but most nights he did not bring the jacket). Everything is relaxed on site.

Another fun thing while you are in the Clearwater/St. Pete area is the Savaldor Dali Museum. I loved it there, but haven't been in a long time, so you might want to took into that.

To help with your WDW research please also look at:
www.mousesavers.com and www.allearsnet.com There is tons of info there.

As far as your vouchers go, I know the Canadians have posted that even they can not get them. My best suggestion would be to check with a friend in the US, who could order them for you.

 

[mikaelroth]

Thank You for the advise(s)! I have printed them all and will use them in my planning.
The problem is that I need the vouchers (10 Q&C and 4 Premium Adult Dinner) and have looked at eBay and the DisAuctions but unfortynatly nobody sells outside Northamerica! And I cannot join the clubs to buy directly.
Anybody who can point me in right direction or give advise
Regards
Mike

 

[mtblujeans]

Please check your personal messages (pm). I have sent a suggestion to you....

 

[Taja]

Welcome from the desert Southwest!

You and your family will have a terrific time in Florida! I never can take enough time off for an extended holiday, so I'm just a little envious!

I've never gone to Busch Gardens in Tampa, but I used to love the one that was in California (it didn't survive the competition of Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm, Magic Mountain, etc.). Combination of live animals, subtle education and rides. You can easily spend one or two days there. As others have mentioned, Busch Gardens and SeaWorld share ownership, so check into the combination ticket packages on both websites. Love SeaWorld in San Diego (California), as well, and hope to visit SeaWorld in Orlando in December!

At WDW, another place to spend the evening after the parks is on the Boardwalk. It's outside the Boardwalk Inn. Not much going on during the day, but it's quite interesting at night. It's an EPCOT resort, so you can take the Friendship launch to the Beach Club & Yacht Club or the Swan & Dolphin to check out the resorts and/or eat.

When planning your days at the WDW parks, check the parks operating hours and event schedules for the following:

MK: SpectroMagic (evening parade) and Wishes (new fireworks finale).

Disney-MGM: Stars & Motor Cars Parade (daytime) and Fantasmic (multi-media finale).

EPCOT: IllumiNations is nightly at 9:00 p.m., barring technical difficulties. Find a place upwind of the lagoon (you want the wind to blow toward the lagoon, not you!) an hour or so before the show begins. Have someone from your family get snacks and beverages and settle in to enjoy the show!

AK: Jammin' Jungle Parade. I've never seen it, but I've heard it's terrific. Also, be sure to catch The Lion King show!

Clothing: Plan on layers. You'll be spanning seasons, which are not clearly defined in Florida (as in the desert Southwest!). The temperature just sort of alternates lower/higher for a day or two with the lower eventually outnumbering the higher. When that happens consistently, it's winter! Pack a little of everything. Shorts, tanks, t-shirts, polo shirts, slacks, sweatshirts/sweaters, moderate weight jacket (ski parka isn't needed). Two pairs of very comfortable, well broken-in shoes per person (old comfortable shoes are much better than new, unknown shoes!). You won't need dressy clothing at WDW, but you may want to take something that can be dressed up a bit if your family wants to go somewhere nice off property. Khakis, dress shirt and sport coat (toss a tie in the luggage, just in case!) for the guys, ladies can dress up slacks, shirt or tank and jacket or pack a lightweight dress, if they choose. Florida usually is pretty casual, with some exceptions.

You have plenty of time to work out the details, once you have your lodging in place!

And your English is fine, Mike!


__________________
Taja

 

[phabric]

I am sure you will enjoy to trip to the States.

Go to the top of this thread and find Everything You Wanted to know about Connections Meal Vouchers. Go down the thread and you will find Where to buy them. They say Florida Orlando Tickets have Q&C vouchers for $17.00 and they have international delivery for $25. or you can pick them up or have them delivered to a hotel. Hope that helps.

 

[mtblujeans]

Does anyone know where one could find Adult Premium Dinner Vouchers?

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

In my opinion, $17/each for the Q&C Meal Vouchers is way too much money. You would end up paying more for the vouchers than what the meal would cost by just paying cash. The only exceptions might be Beaches and Cream and the Pepper Market. Several of the counter service restaurants now include the side dish with the entree and they run around $7-$10, a large drink is approx. $3 and the dessert is anywhere from $2-$4. Worst case, the meal would be just at $17 but more than likely somewhere around the $12-$15 range. Use caution with the vouchers as they are only a good deal if you pay less than $15 for them. Good luck

 

[mtblujeans]

That is a good break down. We have not been to WDW enough to realize all this info. Those break down amounts are good to know.....thanks!

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

You're welcome, mtblujeans! I found out the hard way when I purchased several of the vouchers off ebay. We had not done our research and didn't realize the examples given in the auction were the exception...not the norm.

 

[mtblujeans]

Yes, you are right there!

 

[Microcell]

Welcome to the USA! We are much nicer than our reputation would lead you to think.

Okay, I want to tell about Tampa- Don't bother with the Pier, it is just barely a mall in my opinion! Treasure Island is a very kid friendly beach with alot of seashells- small ones though. My kids are smaller and they really love it there. My personal favorite is Clearwater Beach. I think it is the cleanest! You can do a dolphin watching cruise there. We always go from Tampa to Orlando and Vice versa and dont ever have trouble with traffic. I would not use a park hopper to WDW on a day when you drive from Tampa unless you get up very early to beat traffic, like be out of the hotel at 6 AM. I would avoid rush hour 7-9 AM and 4-7 PM. We always go back and forth at odd times to avoid the traffic. It typically takes an hour and a half. We are used to it taking an hour here in Kansas City to get 25 miles during rush hour so our perspective may be off!

Do you want to stay primarily in Florida? If there are other states you want to see, we can give you ideas about that. North and South Carolina are beautiful, but you might use up a day driving there. Georgia is nice from what I hear, but Atlanta is probably a five hour drive.

As far as casual, we are a pretty casual country. Black tie is probably only a necessity at Victoria and Alberts. You will see many full serve restaurants in and out of Disney and anymore they are all casual dress. I remember a time when it was not that way! 98 out of 100 places you go to eat you will see people in shorts or jeans. People take their kids just about anywhere. Kids equals casual here! If you have your heart set on a particular place at WDW I would get Priority seating, otherwise, along with formal dress, reservations are not necessary at most full serve restaurants anymore. If you go on a Friday night after 6:30 expect a wait of up to an hour and a half at places like steak houses (Outback for instance). If you like MC Donalds go into Kissimee for that, it is very pricey at WDW compared to the rest of the country!

Have fun and we are very sorry ahead of time for all the campaign ads you will be forced to watch if you are coming at the end of October.