Lots of questions

[janie91]

We are very excited to be planning our first trip with our family to Disney! My husband and I both visited as children over 20 years ago. Please forgive all the questions, but we want to get the most for our money.

1. Has anyone had good or bad experiences at the lower priced hotels near the kingdom?

2. We are considering a package in Port Orleans Riverside as it is the least expensive resort that accomodates 5 in one room. What location is best at this resort?

3. Is it difficult to leave the park for meals to save $$?

4. What is the weather in Nov.?

5. Any ideas of which water park will be open in Nov. would it be different if we went in Sept. or Oct.?

6. Any ideas of all the park's hours during Nov.? In order to get the 5 plus 2 we have to book by June yet they won't have park hours available by then. We can be flexible as to when in the fall we can come so we want to come at a time we can have more hours and more parks to choose from

7. IF we do a package at a resort can we convert our UPH passes to AP if we want to after the first day? I think we will likely be addicted. Also, am I correct that your AP is good for a year from 1st day of use?

8. Best places to eat with reasonable prices?

Thanks so much for all your help!

 

[Serenity]

I have stayed at Holiday Inn Maingate East before and really liked it. They have a 2 room suite that sleeps 8 very comfortably and at off season is usually around $99 a night. Last Jan they had an internet special for $109 a night but for every night you stayed you got a night free. So we stay for 6 nights but only paid for 3 (that was great and teh only reason that we stayed off site).

As to leaving the parks to save money for meals, you can pack a lunch and put it in a locker and then eat it outside at lunch time (supposedly WDW does not let you bring in outside food, but I have seen many people sitting at counter service tables eating sandwiches from home and just purchasing fries and drinks.) Another option is on your MK day to go over to Fort Wilderness by boat and eat at the Trail's End buffet. It is really good and the cheapest buffet offered. Another option is to eat a really big breakfast at the hotel and then a very late lunch. Then you can pick up a snack on the way back to your hotel or even eat Supper in your hotel room - thus having only paid for one in-park meal.

I have never been in Nov so am unsure about the weather, but have read many posts here that say it is very comfortable. If you do decide to switch your dates, I would chose Sept over Oct if you are looking for lower crowds. Due to MNSSHP, Oct tends to have higher crowds than early Nov or mid to late Sept.

Hope this helps.

 

[decker96]

I can't answer all your questions, but here's what I can tell you.

2. We stayed at POR and really liked it. The location depends on what you are looking for. If you want to be close to the food court and restuarant/check-in/gift shop area, the Alligator Bayou buildings are closest. I think 14 is the one right next to the food court. We stayed in building 38 and it took us about 5 minutes to walk up to the food court, but we were close to the main pool. Alot of people like the mansion buildings, but I've never been in them, so I can't say.

3. If you have your own car, I don't think it would be difficult to leave for meals, but you would waste quite a bit of time. Since you are thinking about going for a week in Nov., this probably wouldn't be a huge deal. It just depends how much you want to see during your trip. You can rent a small fridge for your room, I think it's $10 a day, and eat breakfast and lunch in your room to save some money that way.

4. It depends on when in Nov. you are going. We were there Nov. 6-10. The first day it was in the low 70's and by our last day in was 85. It did cool off a bit a night -- sweatshirt and shorts weather. We never wore pants. It was still warm enough to swim.

5. I believe both Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon were open in Nov. (I know Blizzard Beach was for sure) although we didn't visit either. It would be the same in Sept. and Oct.

6. We were there in 2002 -- Hours were MK -- 9-6, open late on Sat. for Spectro and fireworks ( til 10 I believe), AK 9-5, MGM 9-7 and Epcot - Future World 9-7, World Showcase 11-9. On the homepage of the DIS there is a Park hours link. If you put in your dates they will give you the Park hours from last year.

Maybe someone else has info on your other 3 ?'s!

 

[WDSearcher]

Originally posted by janie91 3. Is it difficult to leave the park for meals to save $$?

It's not difficult, but it is time consuming. You have to walk from wherever you are in the park to the main entrance, take a tram or monorail to your car, drive somewhere to have lunch, eat, drive back, park, tram or monorail in, and then get back into the park. This can chop several hours off your day. Lots of families have something hearty for breakfast (bagels, muffins, oatmeal -- something with more substance than a pop-tart! -- try to find a hotel with free breakfast) and then have granola bars or other healthy snack-type stuff while at the parks, and then eat dinner off-property at the end of the day. That can work well. Also, eating lunch at WDW isn't as horribly expensive as lots of people say. You just have to budget properly and don't wait until you're all STARVING before you start looking for a place. Scope something out early in the day, otherwise you'll end up eating someplace simply because it's close by and you're all hungry. And you'll tend to spend more.

4. What is the weather in Nov.?

It will probably be warm during the day and cool in the evenings, but we've also had Novembers that were hot and humid, as well as cool and rainy. But you're most likely to have warm days and cool nights with some rain.

7. IF we do a package at a resort can we convert our UPH passes to AP if we want to after the first day? I think we will likely be addicted. Also, am I correct that your AP is good for a year from 1st day of use?

You can always "trade up" with tickets, you can't "trade down." So yes, you can convert your UPH to APs if you want and yes, the AP's are good for a year from 1st day of use.

8. Best places to eat with reasonable prices?

In the general area of the parks and 192, you will find every single type of fast food, buffet, and chain restaurant known to man, so anything that's cheap to eat at where you are will be the same down here. The farther you get away from Disney, the cheaper things become (critical mass and all that), but virtually everywhere caters to and wants to attract families, so you can find some good deals. When you check into your resort, ask if they have coupon books or any other sort of specials, and ask if they know of any "kids eat free" restaurants in the area. Chances are you'll find plenty!

 

[CharlesandCamilla]

You can upgrade any ticked but a UPH.

UPH's are length of stay. They're good the moment you check in and expire at midnight on the day you check out. They aren't for everyone. You have to be staying on site. If you arrive late the first day and leave early the last and can't go to the parks on those two days it's usually not a good deal.

 

[dizagain]

We stayed at the Marriott Village in LBV - about a mile from DTD. The Springhill Suites were great - free breakfast, nice pool, and we had two double beds plus a fold-out couch. Lots of room!

We didn't really leave parks during the day for meals, but we did eat out for dinner once we cleaned up at the hotel. Lunches weren't so bad in the parks. We always ate the free breakfast in the hotel even though it got boring - the same stuff we eat at home!

Good luck planning and have fun!

 

[Micca]

I'll just pick one question to answer about leaving the park to eat.
You can always grab a bus/boat/monorail to leave a park to eat at a resort. There are counter service restaurants at all of the parks which are reasonable (though not as cheap as the fast food places at home). You might look into getting a cooler, and finding transportation to a grocery store where you could get some staples. If you have a car, this will be much easier, but it might even be cost effective to get a cab, buy a cheap stryo cooler, and stock up.

As several other have mentioned: this will burn up a lot time(which at WDW is a commodity almost as precious as money).
Staying in the parks and grabbing some snacks may be the best deal all around.

 

[Gary M]

Just in case you aren't familar with resort room discounts go to www.mousesavers.com to see about the potential of getting your rooms at a discount.

 

[snowglobe girl]

Here's my experiences on several of your questions:

1. NEVER stay at Travel Lodge on I-4 in Orlando (not sure which exit but its right on the interstate and beside Holiday Inn and across from Cracker Barrell). Me and DH stopped there one year on the day before our trip and got our money back within 15 minutes. At the front entrance, there were several intoxicated people barefoot. When we pulled to the parking area nearest to our room, people had their door open with music blaring and were also intoxicated. We opened our room door and didn't even bother to step any further than the doorway, as the bed was ruffled, there was a coffee cup on the table and what appeared to be "used" tissue on the table. We immediately went back to the front desk and got our money back. The lady asked what the problem was and my DH asked her if she really wanted to go back to the room so he could show her. She immediately gave us a refund. This taught me a VALUABLE lesson about trying to save money in a tourist area. We went next door to Holiday Inn and GLADLY paid twice the amount. Now we always book a "room only" night at a WDW resort on the night prior to our package. I had rather pay more and be safe than sorry.

2. I would stay in the park also instead of leaving for meals. Although it is slightly more expensive, you will burn a lot of time. Take snacks with you to tide you over. Even the counter service restaurants aren't that bad anymore.

4. I'm not sure about weather in November, but in December the temp stayed around 75-80 during the day and cooler during morning and evening. Overall, it was very pleasant.

8. The most reasonable priced place to eat for the quality of food that we've found (although not at the actual parks) is Beaches and Cream across from the Boardwalk. It was great food, large portions, cheaper prices and we went on two different occasions! You can also walk there from Epcot and MGM (is a pretty good walk, but nice to do).

 

[ShadowWind]

1. Has anyone had good or bad experiences at the lower priced hotels near the kingdom?

I would avoid the Comfort Inn on West Gate, it had very bad service, things were broken, all in all, we called it the DisComfort Inn. Would never stay there again. Days Inn near Old Town and WestGate (west of Disney property) were both reasonable and had nice clean rooms.

2. We are considering a package in Port Orleans Riverside as it is the least expensive resort that accomodates 5 in one room. What location is best at this resort?

This depends on your taste in surroundings. The more woodsy will like the Alligator Bayou which is closer to the main pool and has a more wilderness slant to it. There are no elevators. I think it was building #18 that was fairly close to the restaurant lobby. If you like the more elegant southern charm, then the Mansions are such. I loved the Mansion room I had there. The buildings are a bit further off the path than the AB ones are. They do have pools between every other one or two, so you are always near a pool. Water views are more expensive.

3. Is it difficult to leave the park for meals to save $$?

I would say yes to this, because to save money, you'd have to leave the WDW property which is quite a ways from any of the four parks. Even McDonalds on property is more expensive than your standard one.

4. What is the weather in Nov.?

That depends on the day. Florida is pretty finicky in November, some hot days, some very cold days. Would be hard to predict.

5. Any ideas of which water park will be open in Nov. would it be different if we went in Sept. or Oct.?

One water park has rehab during that time, but Disney has not released which one yet for this year. September and October would have both parks open. The weather would be warmer in September so there would be better swimming and that would extend into October as well, although the further in October it is, the more chance you will be subject to the random cool days.

6. Any ideas of all the park's hours during Nov.? In order to get the 5 plus 2 we have to book by June yet they won't have park hours available by then. We can be flexible as to when in the fall we can come so we want to come at a time we can have more hours and more parks to choose from

Generally it's off season from late August to November (barring Labor Day of course) until you hit the week before Thanksgiving. The rates are cheaper at the hotels during this time. All parks seem to stay pretty consistent with the 9am opening throughout the year. The park hours for MK and D-MGM vary depending on what Disney has in mind for those times. In years past, it's been usually MK around 7:30-8:30pm and D-MGM about the same. However, they have been known to have special days where one or both are open later, like one year they had Spectromagic Saturdays where they were open until midnight during September. EPCOT and AK are pretty consistent, 9pm for EPCOT and 5pm for AK. TL & BB generally are 10am to 5pm.

The parks are open later for the Thanksgiving holiday, but the rates at the hotels also go up.

7. IF we do a package at a resort can we convert our UPH passes to AP if we want to after the first day? I think we will likely be addicted. Also, am I correct that your AP is good for a year from 1st day of use?

Not sure on this one...

8. Best places to eat with reasonable prices?

Most of the self service places aren't too bad, generally around $8.00 for a drink and sandwich/fries.

My favorites for saving money are:
EPCOT
Liberty Inn - Next to American Adventure
Electric Umbrella - In Innoventions Plaza

MK
Cosmic Rays Starlight Cafe - Tomorrowland
Pinocchio's Village Haus - Fantasyland
Columbia House - Liberty Square
Casey's - Hot Dogs on Main Street

ANIMAL KINGDOM
Restaurantosaurus - Dinoland (some McDonalds stuff here, though more expensive)

D-MGM
Backlot Express - Near Star Tours
Commissary - To the left of the Great Movie Ride.

Hope this info helps...

16 hours to my 2nd 2004 trip to WDW - All Star Music 7 days

 

[ShadowWind]

Since you are considering staying on US-192, there is a huge Wal-Mart supercenter on that road east of WDW, about 5 miles from World Drive. You can stock up on snacks and such as others have mentioned and eat in the room which will be cheaper. You may also want to purchase rain ponchos (which are much cheaper) and those mist bottles if you are there on a hot day. Basically anything you will need, as Disney will get top dollar for it. Also there is a few places like Eckerd Drugs, Walgreens and others also on US-192 close to Disney's World Drive (the main entrance). Coolers are not allowed in the parks, something to keep in mind. Not sure if they still allow coolers at TL and BB since 9/11.

PS: The Port Orleans Riverside rooms are the same price whether it is the Mansion or the Bayou. They only vary depending on view.

 

[tar heel]

If you're on a budget, I would stay away from almost all packages. Make a room only reservation, then watch for specials. There is a good chance you will be able to get a big discount in November, but it's too early now. Then buy hopper passes. With the UMP, you are paying for everything, everyday regardless of when you arrive, when you leave, or if you want to take a break. You usually can buy hoppers and still go to Disney Quest for less $. I'll tell you a secret though -- with younger children (I'm guessing yours are younger since you're talking about one room at PO-R), there is plenty to do without adding the cost of DQ. My children are older, and we've never been.