Yeah, I know the pools are heated and bff ceeps telling me that either way it's going to warmer than back home so she is swiming no matter what. But I have fibromyalgia so swiming when it's a bit chilly is gonna make my muscles hurt so I'm hoping for warmer rather than colder weather.
And trying to figure out what to pack is somewhat challenging. Am starting to think about it now so I will have the whole summer to buy stuff I'm missing before it disapears from the stores. Guess I will just have to try and be ready for anything while not overpacking so I can shop while there
You will probably at least get a few days you can swim comfortably.
Packing is always a hassle. Layers are usually the best option. The last time we went in January, I wore jeans/long pants nearly every day. My husband wore shorts every day. One thing I like about being a "snowbird" is that I definitely have to pack something a little warmer for my travel days, so I'm guaranteed to have at least one pair of long pants.
Hi everyone -
This is the first time that I have used one of these chat sites so I hope I am doing this correctly. Please forgive me if I'm not. My family of four is planning our first trip to Disney World in January 2015. It will be my hubby, myself and my twin 5yr old boys. I have been to Disney as a child and once as an adult, but it has been a while. I had no idea how much planning went into the trip. I'm getting a little overwhelmed. Any advise is welcome.
Here are my thoughts and my questions....
We want this to be the "big" trip. We will go back maybe in two years. We want to stay on property. We thought Animal Kingdom Lodge (the boys love animals) but I read the buses can be a problem. So now I'm thinking somewhere on the monorail?? It might be nice to be able to take rests during the day and maybe see the fireworks from the room?
And then there is the meal plan.... What meal plan to chose? Where to eat? What restaurant can't be missed? What character meals are the best for boys?
How about strollers? We haven't used a stroller in years... but I read that you really will need one. Is it best to bring your own or rent one? What do you do with it on the bus or monorail? What do you do with it in the room?
The next question is with all the choices should I get a travel agent to handle the arrangements????
As you can see I'm lost.... All help is welcome...
Sorry this got too long....
Thanks!
Welcome! You'll be able to get some answers here, then it's up to you whether you want to venture out for more input.
Animal Kingdom Lodge (AKL) - We LOVED staying there. If I had to pick one of the places we've stayed at to return to, it would be the winner hands down. That said, the only other Disney resorts we've stayed at are Port Orleans-French Quarter (POFQ) and Caribbean Beach Resort (CBR) (both tiered as moderates).
We do have lots of experience with the buses, and I don't think AKL is any worse than anywhere else. The distance to the Magic Kingdom (MK) is further, but it's literally right around the corner from the Animal Kingdom (AK) and reasonably close to both Epcot and Hollywood Studios (DHS).
Without fail, we've had a "bad bus" park during each of our trips, regardless of where we've stayed. It just seemed that the bus to that park was always a problem during that particular trip. The buses are all dispatched from a central location, and every hotel uses buses at some point.
If you're planning on spending the majority of your time at the MK, then it's possible that you may find a monorail more convenient, but there can also be problems with that. The only places you have complete control is when you can walk.
We determined during our last trip that we like having a rental car, and will likely be using one for all subsequent trips. We'll probably drive it to every park, except the MK, since the bus will drop us off closer. EVERYONE (except people who can walk from the Contemporary) takes some form of Disney transportation to get to the MK.
My husband (DH) likes having the control of driving himself around, and I liked the fact that we could leave the stroller in the car, which freed up a good bit of space in the room.
Meal plan - We don't get one at the moment. That may change in the future, but as it is, we can get everything we want to eat and then some by paying out of pocket. The Dining Plan includes some stuff we don't really want and doesn't include some things we do. Our habits are somewhere between the regular Dining Plan and the Deluxe Plan, and if we eat as we like our food ends up costing more with the dining plan.
Basically, the dining plan is a good deal if you commit to eat exactly as it specifies. If you don't, your mileage may vary.
In the future, I see us getting it again if we decide to do lots of character meals/buffets with our kids, but we don't really like those, so I don't expect to do more than 1 or 2 during a trip in the foreseeable future.
Restaurants - We've been slowly making our rounds. My favorite is Ohana at the Polynesian resort for dinner. My husband's favorite is Le Cellier, but that was back when we got a dining plan and it only "cost" one credit. We haven't been back since. My top picks for each park are as follows:
Magic Kingdom - Plaza Restaurant - inexpensive burger place, but guaranteed seat in the air conditioning. Cinderella's Royal Table is wonderful too, but I probably won't go back until my little girl is old enough to enjoy it. I think everyone should try it once, but it's pricey enough to not make sense for every trip.
Epcot - Biergarten - decent food for a buffet, and a fun show - it has my favorite dessert, Bavarian Cheesecake, which you can also get at Sommerfest outside
Hollywood Studios - Sci Fi Dine In -The tables are "cars" and you eat while watching clips from old monster movies
Animal Kingdom - As a rule, we don't do table service here. They don't have many options. Tusker House is a perfectly adequate character buffet. Yak & Yeti has similar food options to the counter service place outside.
Strollers - I expect 5 year olds will need one, unless they're exceptionally active, but they probably won't need them all the time. It really depends on your touring plan. Our son only really needed one a few times during our week long trip last year, and he was 2 years old. We tend to only do around 4 hours at the parks at a time before heading back to our room.
In your position, I might be tempted to just get a single stroller for them to trade off in. We'll probably stick with a single for our trip, and just take turns wearing the baby, when the 4 year old needs to ride, but I may spring for at least a sit and stand by then.
Travel Agent - You probably don't need a travel agent, but it can't hurt to hire one. I've used one for two of my trips, but I still do most of the planning myself. I just figure someone else getting a commission is nice, especially since so many of my friends on the DIS have become Authorized Disney TAs over the years.
Ultimately, your choices will depend on your preferences. A TA can make most of the arrangements for you, and handle any problems that may arise. You'll want to make sure you go through an Authorized Disney
Travel Agency, because they go through extra training specific to the destination, and most of them have traveled to Disney extensively themselves, so they have firsthand knowledge and can make suggestions.
Joining in, taking my two sons and my Mom January 24-February 1. I'm still going back and forth on where to stay. Art of Animation in the Little Mermaid rooms or Caribbean Beach Resort. I loved Art of Animation, but the walk to and from the bus stop made us all miserable last time! LM rooms are pretty far out there. It's not a bad walk until you've been walking in the parks all day! I've stayed at Caribbean Beach Resort and loved it, but we had our car and drove to all the parks. One time I took the bus there and hated it because of all the stops it makes just within the resort!
To all of you running the marathon, I'm jealous!
P2twinmom - If you decide to use a stroller, I've rented the City Mini Double from Orlando Stroller Rental many times. They deliver it right to your hotel. I found it easy to open and close, and not terrible to manage on the buses. The last time I used it was when my sons were 4 and 7. I found myself pushing this stroller constantly telling them to get their feet off the wheels or to stop fighting, but without a stroller you have tired boys, possibly not walking as fast as you might want to... there are many pros and cons.
If your budget allows you stay at a monorail resort, I love the Poly. It is under a lot of construction right now, so that is something to consider. My favorite longhouse was Tokelau, with a short walk to the bus stop and ceremonial house to get the monorail. To go to Epcot, it's a nice little walk to Transportation and Ticket Center and you can get right on the Epcot monorail, instead of taking the resort monorail to TTC and then switching to the Epcot monorail. Really though, any resort along the monorail would be great in my opinion.
Why not stay at AoA and rent a car?
)
