My first trip help please

[lennonbeav]

I will be staying the week of my 3rd childs third birthday. Everything changes after he turns 3. When we arrive he will still be 2. Do I need to inform anyone of this, or can I just call him 2? If so, does this limit options for him within the park because he is not 3?

Can I get a 5 day pass if I am staying 6 nights at a resort?

If we are going on Oct 7th, should I book everything now or wait to see if any discounts come up?

Should I book directly from Disney or is a travel agent the best option?

Thanks very much for any assistance provided.

 

[catherines_mama]

First off.. Welcome to the DIS!

Now .. your questions...

I will be staying the week of my 3rd childs third birthday. Everything changes after he turns 3. When we arrive he will still be 2. Do I need to inform anyone of this, or can I just call him 2? If so, does this limit options for him within the park because he is not 3?
Well, to not be flamed, I believe that the age at arrival is his age the entire trip. Note.. he IS free until he's 3 yrs old, so I wouldn't sweat it AT ALL! Limitations.. NONE. He's still free at Buffett meals.. and is he really going to eat more the day before he's 3 and the day after? NO. Rides.. they are all by height anyway.. not age. No limitations there. Only downside.. is if they DO know its his Bday.. he might get special treatment.. its not promised but some times they do things.

Can I get a 5 day pass if I am staying 6 nights at a resort?
yes, this is what my DD and I did on our Feb trip. The 5 day park hopper also does not expire. So if for some reason you have to miss a day at the parks (god forbid) you wont lose the time, you can use it later. Do note though: If you want to arrive at WDW in the afternoon and do a quick hop to a park before bed say for fireworks and dinner, you will use up a day. Its best to plan to arrive early AM at the resort check in then go to the park, or if you arrive later in the day, enjoy DownTown Disney (DTD), Go eat at a nice resort, or just enjoy your resort. (pssst.. if you eat at an Epcot or MK resort, you can probably catch that parks fireworks from somewhere)

If we are going on Oct 7th, should I book everything now or wait to see if any discounts come up? Should I book directly from Disney or is a travel agent the best option?
BOOK NOW! My advice, book with WDW and with the AAA rate (if you have AAA). It's a good rate none-the-less, and if a room only code comes out, you can just change the ressie. That is exactly what I did)

Thanks very much for any assistance provided

some additional stuff... ok.. you need 90 days out to do any priority seating for character meals. MY DD (was 2 1/2 on our trip) loved Crystal Palace with Pooh (we did breakfast there our first MK day). I have heard mixed reveiws on Chef Mickey's but its something I want to try in the future - it has Mickey, Goofy, Minnie I think and Chip&Dale. My DD also enjoyed Ohanas.. I loved the food, she loved the interaction there.. its not a character dinner, but they have the kids holla hoop and coconut race.. its fun. If you need ANY advice, feel free to PM me.. We will be in Disney on Oct 4 or 5 and Oct 8. My grandparents are in Sarasota and while down there we (DD, Me and my sis) are planning 2 day trips to MK and AK. HAVE FUN!

 

[swilphil]

I would highly recommend using Dreams Unlimited. I have been reading about them here for a year and am using them for our upcoming trip. They will apply discounts for you when they come out. I also think they would be helpful if you haven't been to WDW before. Their website is dreamsunlimitedtravel.com. You can fill out a form for a quote, and then an agent will e-mail you back. Our agent Bob also gave us his phone number.

My understanding is that if your son is 2 on the first day he goes to the park, he is considered 2 the entire trip. You can get a Ultimate Park Hopper Pass and knock off the first or last day of your trip. The UPH ticket includes water park and Disney Quest visits.

If you aren't going to Disney Quest (not good for a 2 year old), you can get 5 day Park Hopper Plus tickets for less money. The days never expire if you don't use them all, which is great in case of severe weather, illness, etc. The UPH tickets expire when you leave. You also can take a day off from the parks in the middle of your trip instead of at the beginning or end. We bought our Hoppers in advance from the Disney Store.

 

[Terk-1]

1. We ran into this one year for one of my nephews. Since his age did not turn until he was already into the trip, we stated that he was 2 when we made the reservation. There was no limit for him in the parks due to age. The limitations are due to height.

2. Yes you can get a 5 day hopper pass.

3. Book now under something like a AAA discount, then watch for codes. This way you know you have your reservation at least at some type of discount.

4. Depending on if you want to do a package or not will answer this question. I usually do things in pieces, so I call Disney directly.

 

[swilphil]

Deedee, Terk and I were all posting at the same time, sorry for the repetition. By the way, Dreams Unlimited will book your PS's for you. They are very good about getting hard to get PS's.

 

[catherines_mama]

Originally posted by swilphil
Deedee, Terk and I were all posting at the same time, sorry for the repetition. By the way, Dreams Unlimited will book your PS's for you. They are very good about getting hard to get PS's.

LOL I LOVE IT.. it just goes to show how helpful us DISers are. And there are so many options to things and as we all know... different strokes for different folks.... LOL Different opinions are great to help figure out what works best for YOU and your fam!

ps.. is it October yet?

 

[lennonbeav]

wow, this is awesome. I truely appreciate all the help. We are so excited. My 8 yr old and 6 yr old are big time into it. Thanks very much.