October Honeymoon Tips

[DWHoneymoon]

I apologize if this has been posted before. I tried using the search function and was overwhelmed with the results. If this has already been done, feel free to link me to that topic. Sorry!

We are getting married in October of next year (2012). We are planning to leave on our vacation on October 15th and go until October 26 or 27th. I know that this is quite a ways away, but I just can't shake the excitement. I am hoping to meticulously plan the trip to pack it full of awesome. I am looking for tips or less known aspects of Disney World (as well as Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, The Kennedy Space Center and Busch Gardens) that will make this trip extra special. Money is not ULTRA tight, but it isn't free flowing either. If at all possible, can we rate ideas on the "money scale"? $- inexpensive $$- moderately priced $$$- pricey and $$$$- expensive

Thanks so much guys! I apologize again if this topic has been done a billion times before.

Whitney

 

[emilykawaii123]

October is a good time to come to FL because school has started in most of the country, so it's mostly locals and some Brits that are there so one way to save some cash would be to do park hoppers. You could easily hit DHS and AK in one day and ride everything. If you are so inclined, there is also Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party on certain nights. It's a fun event with a special parade and the limited number of guests means walk-on lines for most major lines. Also, don't take the online estimate for hotel prices. They aren't written in stone, so if you call a couple of times you can often get a better price and sometimes a better room.

 

[jshora]

We're getting married in WDW this October and we specifically chose that month due to the Food & Wine Festival at EPCOT. It's one of our favorite times in WDW. I strongly suggest hitting up the Food & Wine Festival and partaking in some of the seminars and classes that go on during that time.

We also love Mickey's Not-So-Scary and the Haunted Hayrides at Fort Wilderness.

 

[microgrl]

I agree with the previous posters that October is a great time to visit Orlando.

I don't know if you and your honey like scary stuff, but I took my bf to Halloween Horror Nights (HHN) at Universal and he loved it! It is always really crowded so be ready for long lines (not romantic i know) but the haunted houses are really well done. I would recommend going on a weekday, which should alleviate some of the lines. We also found that the lines for the rides were relatively short. If you are planning to go to Universal Studios you should try to go on the day you plan to go to HHN b/c you can stay in the park between when they close for the day and when they open HHN. I recommend making reservations at the Irish pub during the wait. I would say that HHN is moderate to expensive. We got a discount on the HHN when we booked our vacation package all at once (3 day single park tix, HP package, HHN, and hotel rooms at the Doubletree at Universal.)

I also wanted to mention that if you make the trek out to Cocoa Beach for KSC you should stop by Ron Jons. I know it is just a store, but it is an icon. It is in a building shaped like an enormous pink sandcastle and it is open 24 hrs. (Also a good place to go if you need to buy any beachwear.)

 

[PrincessTinker11]

I also second the fact that Epcot has the Food and Wine Festival, we cannot wait for that!

Also you may consider renting points for a Disney Villa, you get better accommodations that way! You can also trade in if you have RCI which is what we did

We are planning one night for the Hoop Dee Doo Review and plan to get as many firework displays in as we can

 

[transfergirl]

We're getting married in WDW this October and we specifically chose that month due to the Food & Wine Festival at EPCOT. It's one of our favorite times in WDW.

Same here. I also highly recommend avoiding weekends at Food and Wine.

 

[CositaRicaFabulosa]

I agree with the recommendations on Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. We celebrated my mom's 65th birthday at WDW in October a few years ago, and everyone loved that. The special fireworks show and the parade were spectacular.

We also did an Illuminations fireworks cruise on that trip. Our boat left from Yacht and Beach Club, so we ate at Cape May Cafe and then got on the boat. The boats hold up to 10 people, and the boat is yours (Disney won't fill it up with additional people if you have less than 10 in your party.). The cost is about $350 to $370, depending on whether you want the boat decorated or not. I'd actually recommend springing for the decorations (signage and balloons) because, prior to Illuminations, you go on a tour of the lake and canals near Boardwalk, DS, and Epcot, and people everywhere were shouting happy birthday to my mom as we rode by them. She felt like a queen. They also do Wishes cruises over at MK, too, if you would prefer those.

 

[Wannabe*Belle]

I third or fourth or fifth, what number are we on? Mickey's Not So Scary party, it is an extra fee and it is alittle pricey but we've gone every year since 2008 and we love it. I would definitely recommend going on a weekday or even a Sunday if they have one.

We've never done Halloween Horror Nights at Uni but we are planning on doing it for our Honeymoon this year. We're going to FL around the same time but this year. If your planning on doing Islands of Adventure which I also highly recommend then the price for HHN might not be that bad. I know for us since we are only going to IOA one day to add on HHN it was only an extra $35-36 instead of the regular almost $80 price.

Food and Wine fest is also a really good choice.

 

[qtsugarangl]

Make your dining reservations as soon as they open! All the best ones get taken right away!
We always get the Deluxe Dining Plan, its a LOT of food but we try to do as many signature restaurants as possible. We get to eat at so many different places that we normally wouldn't because we wouldn't want (or be able to) pay OOP.
Halloween Horror nights in fun if you enjoy haunted houses, they have a couple of rides open during the night too. HTH

 

[herb102211]

October is a great time of the year to visit WDW! There is so much going on. Have you thought about which resort your staying at. Our favorite deluxe is the Beach Club and our favorite moderate is Port Orleans French Quarter? Both are perfect honeymoon locations! We loved the Beach Club because of its close proximity to Epcot and Hollywood Studios (if you have a park hopper you can also get to MK by the monorail at Epcot).

You can go to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom ($60pp). The park closes at 7pm and only guests who have paid to go to the party can get in. You can trick or treat around the park, go on the rides, parades and shows that are only shown during the party. DF and I went last year and loved it.

You can go to the Tomorrowland dessert party too. It’s an all you can eat dessert buffet and its around $25pp. It only happens on nights that the Halloween Party isn’t going on. You get a perfect view of the fireworks too.

Epcot has the Food and Wine Festival going on during October. You can sample different foods and drinks all around World Showcase. The food is relatively inexpensive ($5 or so each item). If you’re on the Disney Dining Plan, some of the food items count as snack credits. It’s really fun and definitely worth checking out…

We usually don’t venture outside of WDW but I will tell you that Discovery Cove is worth every penny spent. It’s a little on the expensive side ranging from $150pp for the beach day to $259 for the Dolphin swim/beach day. All food is included (breakfast and lunch buffets, and the food is really good). If you do the dolphin swim, you spend 30 minutes in the water feeding the dolphin, performing tricks and swimming with it. The groups are pretty small (10 people per group) so you get a lot of one on one time interacting with the dolphin. They also have a beach where you can relax, a sting ray pool, aviary, lazy river, and coral reef swim. Unlike the WDW, Discovery Cove caps its attendance at 1000 people per day and you never feel like its crowded( we went this past Memorial Day and it felt like no one was there even though the attendance was almost 1000).

Have an amazing honeymoon!

 

[JeanfromBNA]

What are your interests? Do you like production shows, or prefer movies? Do you like sports or hate the outdoors? Do you prefer fine cuisine, burgers and chips, or a little bit of everything? Do you need quiet time, or prefer to be active? Do you like watercraft, or do you walk everywhere? Do you like to take things as they come, or are you better with a schedule?

 

[beautifultomorrow]

We are just back from our honeymoon (beginning of August) so here are my tips:

-- Stay at absolutely the nicest resort you can reasonably afford. We stayed at Grand Floridian for the first time for ours and it was fabulous!

-- If you like to eat get the Deluxe Dining Plan. This way every night you can dine at signature restaurants and eat table service for lunch or breakfast (if you choose). Eating all these fancy meals REALLY made us feel like we were on a special, high class trip. One of my favorite features was that since we were staying at GF we could use our DxDP credits to order rooms service from Citricos or Narcoosees. When you do this its actually cheaper than dining in the restaurants because the fees and gratuities are included. It also is much more flexible (NO ADR's needed not to mention the romance factor. Fancy 3-course dinner in your bathrobes while watching Wishes from the privacy of your room-- YES!

-- Do Mickey's Not so Scary Halloween Party

-- We did a one-night platinum plan during our honeymoon which meant we got to pack in tons of special experiences for much less than they would have cost out of pocket. Unfortunately in 2012 there is a 3-night minimum for the platinum plan but if you have the money its still something to consider. Some of the things that are included (that we did) are: Dinner at Victoria and Albert's; fireworks cruise, tours at the Living Seas, parasailing, spa treatments, etc. There are lots more you can choose from as well. If you did go this route you'd definitely have to cut back on the non-Disney experiences though simply for time reasons.

-- Get the bride and groom mickey ears and wear them all the time! Trust me, it is worth it!!