New to DIS with planning questions

[2ddprincess]

Hi. I want to plan our first trip to DisneyWorld this September. We have two daughters, 2.5 and 4. I have not done ANY planning yet. We have not chosen our dates, but picked September because I was told it is less crowded after the kids are back in school. Looking for advice on:
1. the best week to go in September
2. how many days should we go?
3. how should we book? - ie., travel agent or disney site?

I have a ton more questions on where to stay, etc., and I will try to post them in the correct forum, but any advice would be great. Thanks.

 

[scoutsmom99]

Hello 2ddprincess ,
Welcome to the Dis.

1.Almost any week in September will be a good week. I'm heading down at the end of the month so I can attend the Halloween party and spend some time at the Food and Wine Festival at Epcot. Here is a list of events going on in September.

September 2005
The Tom Joyner Family Reunion September 2-4, 2005

Night of Joy(takes Place at the Magic Kingdom (MK): September 9-10- Live concerts by some of Christian music's most popular performers. This is a hard ticket event (read seperate ticket required) and starts after the park closes for the day (7:30pm I believe).

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party - Sept. 30, Oct. 2 (there are more dates in October as well (check the sticky thread at the top of this forum for more info.) It is another hard ticket event (7pm-12am)

Epcot Food and Wine Festival September 30 - November 13, 2005.
Events take place all over Epcot (Tastings, concerts, demonstrations, etc) Some events (tastings) require extra money, but the festival is all throughout Epcot. Check out this page for more info: http://www.allearsnet.com/tp/ep/foodwine.htm

2. How many days you go really can depend on your budget for the trip and what you would like to do while you are there(charchter meals, relaxing, water parks, etc.)! I think a fairly standrad trip is about a week long. September in FL is hurricane season, and it is very hot and humid in as well. Make a list of things you would like to do and try and come up with a skelton schedule of things then you can get an idea of how many days you would like to spend in the World.

3. It really depends on what you would like to do again. Some people (myself included) love to plan the trip themselves booking everything (for me it helps build anticipation and it is cheaper). But, there are a lot of wonderful travel agencies out there willing to help you out. Be sure to check out the resorts forum (and the sub forum there rates and codes), Disney for Famlies forum, and also the transportation forums for help and ideas.

I also want to reccomend that you order the Disney Planning DVD (it's free!)
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/index#
Click on the pic on the right side a little ways down to order

Ok I hope that helps some. If you have any other questions just fire away. It is always fun helping someone out

 

[2ddprincess]

Thanks for the info. But now I'm worried. You said Sept. is hurricane season. What should I expect? I guess I'll be taking my chance with a hurricane, but is it more rainy, etc. Should I aim more for the beginning of Sept. or does it matter?

 

[scoutsmom99]

Although last year FL did have a few hurricanes that made landfall and the Disney parks did close during those hurricanes (August 13 &14 due to Hurricane Charley, September 4&5 due to Hurricane Frances, and September 26 due to Hurricane Jeanne ) they do not always reach land. I think last year was the first time that Disney closed the parks for hurricanes (someone else will know for sure) Don't worry about it too much Hurricane Season in FL goes from June-November. We went September 28 last year and the parks were opertating just fine.

Here are some September Weather Stats
Avg High 89
Avg Low 73
Avg Temp 81
Avg Rainfall 6.27in (for the month) (The last two times I have traveled in September (2002/2004 we have had no rain), but an afternoon thunderstorm is normal there.

I don't think it will matter when you travel in September just be prepared with either ponchos (get them at the Dollar Store ahead of time) or rain jackets with hoods) in case the skies do open up.

 

[southjerseymom]

I just got back Thursday with my two little ones - DS 4.5 and DD 2.5. We stayed at the BC and loved it. However, it is only worth the cost if you expect to do some resort time. If you think you will spend most of the time in the parks do a value or moderate resort. We stayed one night at AS Sports and kids thought the over the top decorations were great. Go figure - after I spent all that money on a Deluxe. You will probably be spending most of your time at the MK - so you may want to consider a MK resort. We liked the WL - and you can get a reasonable rate in September. The kids loved the geyser and the boat to the MK was relaxing. The Poly is great if you expect to spend some time in Epcot. This was our third trip with the kids since May of 2003 and we have learned a lot. When we went in November my DS was scared of everything. Nobody scares the kids better than Disney. Last week he conquered all his fears and loved everything. So take it easy and just go with the flow. What scares them one day they may love the next. It is going to be hot in September. It was hot last week! We found that the kids did better when we hung around the hotel in the morning (We rented a boat one day - a bike another) and we headed out to the parks after naps and snacks. They seemed to like it better at dusk when it wasn't so hot. Definately do a couple character meals. We did breakfast at the Crystal Palace before an early day trip to MK and loved it. We have also done dinner at Chef Mickey's and it gives us a chance to enjoy ourselves while Mickey keeps the kids busy. I would have to say eating out all the time is tough with kids that age. We have used room service at the Deluxes a lot. They give you plenty of food so we get two salads and split an entree. That way we get a relaxing dinner while the kids sleep. It is a challenge taking kids that age to WDW - but we found that we really love it. Just take plenty of breaks and naps and enjoy!

 

[donaldsgal]

Although last year FL did have a few hurricanes that made landfall and the Disney parks did close during those hurricanes (August 13 &14 due to Hurricane Charley, September 4&5 due to Hurricane Frances, and September 26 due to Hurricane Jeanne ) they do not always reach land. I think last year was the first time that Disney closed the parks for hurricanes (someone else will know for sure) Don't worry about it too much Hurricane Season in FL goes from June-November. We went September 28 last year and the parks were opertating just fine.

Here are some September Weather Stats
Avg High 89
Avg Low 73
Avg Temp 81
Avg Rainfall 6.27in (for the month) (The last two times I have traveled in September (2002/2004 we have had no rain), but an afternoon thunderstorm is normal there.

I don't think it will matter when you travel in September just be prepared with either ponchos (get them at the Dollar Store ahead of time) or rain jackets with hoods) in case the skies do open up.

We've gone in September once and are going back in September (see sig) this year. It rained every day for 20 minutes in the afternoon. However, it was actually welcomed because it was surprisingly humid (at least to me - I didn't expect it to be) and the sun shined the whole time. It's nothing like the midwest (particularly in central Ohio) where the cloud gets dark, the wind blows, and the rain comes down sideways. It was definitely manageable. Just bring a change of clothes and stow in a locker to be safe. Remember if you keep your receipt and then hop over to another park, you can show the receipt and just put down the "down payment" which you'll get back.