Leaving tomorrow - 3 last minute questions!

[nicolem]

I really hope someone can help me out with these questions ...I've been planning for five months, so you'd think I'd be all set, but of course various issues have popped up in the past 24 hours.

1) Probably need advice from a Florida resident on this one: The forecast shows several days with a 20% chance of rain. Going in early June, we fully expect to have at least a brief rain shower every afternoon. Does anyone know if that 20% chance is referring to those almost-certain showers, or does weather.com not even factor those into its predictions? In other words, if it says 20% chance of rain, are they talking about a 20% chance above and beyond the expected afternoon shower? I know 20% is a small percentage to begin with and that the forecast will probably change anyway, but my parents (who are traveling with us) are very curious.

2) We're using Sunray Transportation to and from the airport (staying at SoG the first and last nights). Our round trip total is $82 plus tip. I'm assuming we pay that in full when they drop us off. Do we tip about 15% ($12-13) for both the ride to WDW and the ride back to the airport next week? Or does the 15% cover both rides?

3) Finally, our group includes 7 adults and 1 child, and we're pooling our money for TS meals so we can use my DDE card. Everyone has already given me their share, and my plan was to convert those into 3 or 4 prepaid Visa debit cards (I think that's what they're called). Yesterday at the bank, I discovered that Bank of America doesn't stock them, and they said the only way to get them is through Visa.com. Obviously it's way too late for that, and this is all my fault for not trying to take care of the money thing sooner. So my question is, have any of you bought the prepaid Visa cards anywhere other than Visa.com? Should I just put the money in my regular account and use my debit card all week?

Thank you so, so, so much for any advice. I'm a little panicky that so many things have popped up at the last minute, even though they're all minor things.

 

[scrapbookingpro]

Hi Nicolem!
I'm a Fl resident who can help with your first question. 20 percent means 20 percent, nothing more. As someone who has lived here for six summers, when I hear "20 percent chance of rain", I don't really expect to see any rain. If you do, it will be one of those breif passing showers. I don't think you have anything to worry about.
Have a great trip!!

 

[suswa]

3) Finally, our group includes 7 adults and 1 child, and we're pooling our money for TS meals so we can use my DDE card. Everyone has already given me their share, and my plan was to convert those into 3 or 4 prepaid Visa debit cards (I think that's what they're called). Yesterday at the bank, I discovered that Bank of America doesn't stock them, and they said the only way to get them is through Visa.com. Obviously it's way too late for that, and this is all my fault for not trying to take care of the money thing sooner. So my question is, have any of you bought the prepaid Visa cards anywhere other than Visa.com? Should I just put the money in my regular account and use my debit card all week?

Thank you so, so, so much for any advice. I'm a little panicky that so many things have popped up at the last minute, even though they're all minor things.

If you have a disney store near you you can go get a disney card and load it with the amounts you would like to have on it, I believe those are accepted in all places Disney. The only draw back to that would be you would need to keep up with how much was on it.

An empty credit card or a debit card may be easier.

I'm leaving tomorrow too! Only one more sleep

 

[Sugardimples]

I've gotten Visa gift cards at my local Commerce Bank.

 

[tkd lisa]

1) I personally like the weather underground site, because they seem a little more accurate than weather.com

Checking it as of this morning (and there's a details option that goes hour by hour), tomorrow and Sunday look pretty likely for a mid-to-late afternoon rain shower, but the rest of the days are clear. Pretty typical for June in FL. Bring ponchos with you, and have some sort of plan if it rains (do you keep going, try to take a snack break undercover, head back to the room, do an indoors attractions?)

2) No clue for this one. I've always either rented a car (when we flew in), or lived close enough to drive.

3) I'm not sure what type of cards you're looking for. Something that would probably work for you is to buy one of the Disney gift cards that they've just started using. You can get them in any WDW gift shop, and I think they're available at the resorts too. That would be a pre-paid way to move the cash into one place. But if it were me personally? I'd put their cash in the bank, and run all the costs through my Disney Visa rewards card. That would give me 1% to put towards my next Disney vacation

Have a great trip!

 

[Mickey_Maniac]

2) We're using Sunray Transportation to and from the airport (staying at SoG the first and last nights). Our round trip total is $82 plus tip. I'm assuming we pay that in full when they drop us off. Do we tip about 15% ($12-13) for both the ride to WDW and the ride back to the airport next week? Or does the 15% cover both rides?

I would tip each way seperately. You never know if you are going to have the same driver on the return leg as you did on the first and the tip is for the driver, not the company. I would give each driver about 15% of a one way fare (about $6-7).

Have a great trip...

 

[addicted2disney]

Nicole-
Ive used Sunray a bizillion times. If you get Bob for a driver, tell him Aimee in Pittsburgh said "hi and go steelers". You pay upfront when he drops you off. I tip both ways and I always tip more than 15%, just because we have used Sunray for years, at least 2 times a year since 2002. We have had nothing but exceptional service from them. Tipping both ways might be the better way to go, incase you dont get the same driver each way.

If you are staying on property, you can use your room key to charge meals. If you plan on using your debit card, deposit the money in your account and use that. IF you use a credit card, leave the money at home and use it to pay the bill when you get your statement. I woudnt go to all the trouble to get visa card things.

And as for rain, Ive never gone in June, but I know when it says a chance of rain when we go in January and November, it almost never rains. In 13 trips, I bet i can count on one hand, the times that its rained. And of those few times, only one day was it an almost all day rain. If you hit a day where its supposed to rain all day, MGM is a good place to be. All the shows are long and it keeps you from walking around too much.

Have a great trip, and dont forget to tell Bob from Sunray hi!!

 

[plutolovr]

You can also get an American Express gift card. I see them at my supermarket.

 

[The Mick]

Hi Nicolem!
I'm a Fl resident who can help with your first question. 20 percent means 20 percent, nothing more. As someone who has lived here for six summers, when I hear "20 percent chance of rain", I don't really expect to see any rain. If you do, it will be one of those breif passing showers. I don't think you have anything to worry about.
Have a great trip!!

Yeah, this is exactly right. I've been in FL for 10 years, and this 20% stuff is the standard fair for summer weather. It simply means that in the late afternoon, there could be a passing shower. In other words, don't be surprised if it does come down for 10 minutes at about 4:30-5:00 and then be clear for the rest of the night.

 

[excitedfordisney7]

What about getting a few travelers checks? That way you don't have to be the only one with the money.....

 

[ukcatfan]

One thing to consider when looking at the percent chance of rain is that it really does not mean that there is a 20% chance of it raining that day. They never explain it very well and it can be misleading. It means that there is a 100% chance of it raining in 20% of the coverage area at any one time. Clouds are always on the move, so a 20% chance can mean rain in 100% of the area, just not all at once. Knowing how many inches of rain they are predicting is helpful in knowing how heavy the rain is going to be.

Knowing how they define the area is also very important and they usually do not tell you. The coverage area would probably be the greater Orlando area, but it could include Tampa or Daytona. The typical Summer daily rain builds up in the center of the state and works out towards the coasts, so Orlando is typically more likely to get the rain compared to a coastal region. So, if the coverage area does include a coastal region, then it is more likely to be about a 50% chance of rain in the central FL part of the area and about a 5-10% chance at the coast. Everything changes if there is a storm front moving in, but I do not think that will be happening this weekend.

I personally find WESH NBC to be more accurate than weather.com for Orlando.

As long as you are prepared, it is not difficult to handle. I personally like it when it rains a little longer than normal because it clears more people out of the parks and cools things off a little. A short rain only adds higher humidity to the heat.

We will also be there along with you this weekend. Avoid MK on Saturday and AK/EPCOT on Sunday. Those are the Gay Days parks for those days and they will be extremely packed. I believe MK usually goes to capacity on the Gay Days Saturday every year.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[nicolem]

Thanks everyone! Excellent suggestions and really interesting info about how the weather predictions work (why don't they explain that on the news?!). I'm currently taking a poll of our group to see which option they want to go with for our pooled money.

Thank you again! This is why I love the DIS!

 

[MAGGIED]

Our local mall sells the Visa cards as do many of our local banks - have fun - we will be at the SOG later in the month!!!

 

[KJHawley]

I'm not a weather person- I don't even play one on T.V. And I didn't stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night. However, here's what I know about weather forecasting:

There's a certain weather pattern around Orlando right now- a mixture of temperature, clouds, approaching storms, and everything else that makes up our weather. When they make a weather forecast, they look at all the other times in the past when the conditions were exactly the same, and see what happened after that.

So, the last 10 times Orlando had the current arrangement of clouds, storms, etc., it rained somewhere in Orlando during 2 of those times.

What type of rain? Sometimes, passing showers. Sometimes, steady downpours. However, the most frequent type of precipitation was scattered thunderstorms. So, that's what they put in the forecast.

Hence, we have a 20% chance of scattered thunderstorms.