****Official August 2014 Thread****

[lovin'fl]

The flight I was interested in is available today (was 'sold out' yesterday). It would cost $336 for the 3 of us to fly from BWI to MCO...or we could do the autotrain (3 coach seats) for $390. I'd have to drive to Lorton, VA and it would be a 17.5 hour train ride to Sanford, FL (if on time and it frequently is not). As much as we hated the autotrain in 2007, it would be better now with my teens (as opposed to little ones) and I wouldn't waste money on a family cabin this time. But it costs more than flying (and I do have a $180 credit with SW...so that $336 becomes $156). But, still, I think I will actually drive since we have to get from WDW to HHI and I don't want to mess with renting a car at the Dolphin hotel (going to get it and it seems to cost a lot for a 1 way car rental). Those considering the autotrain, Amtrak offers a AAA discount if you have AAA (not much, would save us $20).

 

[huggiebear23]

The flight I was interested in is available today (was 'sold out' yesterday). It would cost $336 for the 3 of us to fly from BWI to MCO...or we could do the autotrain (3 coach seats) for $390. I'd have to drive to Lorton, VA and it would be a 17.5 hour train ride to Sanford, FL (if on time and it frequently is not). As much as we hated the autotrain in 2007, it would be better now with my teens (as opposed to little ones) and I wouldn't waste money on a family cabin this time. But it costs more than flying (and I do have a $180 credit with SW...so that $336 becomes $156). But, still, I think I will actually drive since we have to get from WDW to HHI and I don't want to mess with renting a car at the Dolphin hotel (going to get it and it seems to cost a lot for a 1 way car rental). Those considering the autotrain, Amtrak offers a AAA discount if you have AAA (not much, would save us $20).

I got the aaa discount as well. I paid 340 for 1 adult and 2 kids. We have some flexibility with our days. Our Disney vaca doesn't start until 2 days after we get to Orlando. We are staying at my hubby's hotel for his work convention. And we have 2 days to get back home. I think that's part of the reason for taking the train. We have the time. If I only had a week I would prob fly.

 

[ewspy87]

Just put down the deposit on a 8/16 - 8/23 trip to the world. Thought we would get back sooner and staying at ASM this time. It will be a budget trip. Just me and the boys this time. I decided after taking my ex the last time, that it would be the last time i took my ex

 

[KSL]

Okay, so we didn't book and we are seriously considering driving. Has anyone taken the auto train??? my husband wants to take the train from Orlando to Virginia and then drive the rest of the way back.

YES! We LOVE the AutoTrain! Highly recommend. We aren't experts by any means, but we have ridden twice (once Coach, once Sleeper), so feel free to ask questions and I will do my best to answer any! There's also a thread over on the Transportation board, if you are interested (but it is l-o-n-g to read it all...).

 

[Disneylover99]

YES! We LOVE the AutoTrain! Highly recommend. We aren't experts by any means, but we have ridden twice (once Coach, once Sleeper), so feel free to ask questions and I will do my best to answer any! There's also a thread over on the Transportation board, if you are interested (but it is l-o-n-g to read it all...).

I think my biggest concern is sleeping. Does everyone sleep okay in coach? I don't want to do sleeper because of the price. We might as well fly if we are going to do sleeper.

 

[KSL]

I think my biggest concern is sleeping. Does everyone sleep okay in coach? I don't want to do sleeper because of the price. We might as well fly if we are going to do sleeper.

As you might expect, everyone will have different experiences. Personally, we prefer squishing it in a sleeper to being "out in the open" of coach. The sleeper is certainly more expensive than coach, and can be more than flying depending on circumstances, so it's just a decision everyone has to make WRT how much your family values having their own vehicle (and stuff) with them, generally enjoys train rides, how much time you have to travel, and many other considerations, as to whether the cost of a sleeper is worth it. ALL THAT ASIDE (...because your question was about sleeping in coach....! ) here is my input:

Sleeping in coach is definitely do-able, but will be impacted by a number of factors, many of which will be outside of your control. Things to think about:

• Will it bother you if people are walking by you when you are trying to sleep? For us there wasn't a lot of foot-traffic at night, but there will be some, including the doors at either end of the car opening/closing which bothered my DH. The last dinner seating is at 9pm, so there will definitely be people moving around until at least 10pm when the dinner service is over. And then of course there will sometimes be people stretching their legs, visiting the restroom, etc. at any time.
• Ages of your children and how you will arrange yourselves. The seats are in pairs on either side of a center aisle, and are slightly staggered (not directly across like on an airplane). If you are an odd-numbered party on a full train, someone will be with a stranger. If your kids are small enough, it is possible to snuggle an adult with two of them in one pair of seats -- the seats are wide and have footrests and are actually reasonably comfortable. Note that I think you need to bring your own pillows and blankets in coach now. Back when we rode coach they were provided, but I think they have changed that since.
• Does your family tend to be light sleepers or sound sleepers? I tend to be a light sleeper and one of my biggest concerns in coach was someone snoring or people talking, or hearing someone else's music even though they have earbuds in. This didn't turn out to be an issue, but it could have been & there's no way to plan for this unless you bring earplugs! My kids, though, sleep like rocks and they were out-cold all night.

So, in short, we love the AT but did not love traveling in coach. [I feel like I need to write another post about all the reasons we love the AT because this one is definitely reading more negative and I don't mean to be down on the AT because for so many reasons it is great for my family!] Coach was generally fine and we all got some sleep (to varying degrees; the kids slept well, I slept OK, DH really only dozed in and out), we just prefer our "own space" of a sleeper. If that's not in the cards, for families traveling with children, I would recommend lower-level coach, if possible. There are far fewer seats down there, and the path through the cars is on the upper level, so no one should be accessing your lower-level seating area unless they are sitting there (or are curious, or get lost). We didn't realize this when we booked coach, so we were on the upper level; I don't have first-hand experience with lower-level coach, but it sounds better to me. You would have to go upstairs to get to dining and lounge cars, but otherwise the bathrooms are on the lower level (but there is a door to separate the coach seating from the general restroom area) which can be convenient if you have small children.

I hope this is helpful! Good luck deciding!

 

[bluecastle]

I think my biggest concern is sleeping. Does everyone sleep okay in coach? I don't want to do sleeper because of the price. We might as well fly if we are going to do sleeper.

Hello fellow Augusters!
My 2 cents on the auto train: we tried it around 15-20 years ago. Driving to Lorton was convenient for us. My daughter ( only child, around 8 or 9 at the time) made friends with this family sitting near us and had a wonderful time. We did Coach and the seats were fairly comfortable. It wasn't sold out and when it was time to sleep my daughter was able to sprawl across 2 seats. She slept fine. My DH who can sleep anywhere, slept fine. I did not. Every time someone walked through the cars, the light in between the cars lit up and that woke me. Every little noise woke me. Every time I started to fall asleep, something woke me. (if done today I would probably take an OTC sleep aid, perhaps that would help) The bathroom smelled pretty bad in the overnight hours. ( I would bring a can of Lysol) Needless to say, we canceled our return trip and just drove home instead. That pretty much says how miserable I was. I am a very light sleeper and sensitive to smells. Your mileage may vary, plus it was a long time ago! I would check out the other thread so you can get a balanced opinion. Good luck!!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

A big to all the new folks who have joined us in the last few days. We've got quite the group travelling to Orlando in August!!!

 

[disneymom1229]

I bought our airfare yesterday. Southwest fares are a little crazy. I was booking for my family and my mom and dad. We are leaving on the same day but coming back on different days. First thing in the morning it was 112 each way for us and 112 down and 149 back for my mom and dad. I had a little trouble with my mom's because I wasn't sure on middle names and had to wait. So I booked ours. I was so happy to get 224 roundtrip out of buffalo. Then when I looked at my mom's later in the day, it had jumped to 123 down and 168 back. But I was at work and couldn't do it and I figured it wouldn't go up anymore than that. Boy was I wrong!!!! This morning I sat down to buy it and the fares had jumped to 191 and 315!!!! Now I guess I have to play the waiting game.... I am so frustrated... I mean I am relieved about my own but I was right there for my mom's and totally missed the boat....

 

[AKies47]

Yeah I had the exact same experience yesterday, so frustrating. I was caught off guard with some of the times so I had to tweak my schedule by the time I had things figured out the prices had jumped. I wasn't sure what to do at that point and before I knew it they had jumped again. Now they're really high and a bunch are already sold out. I'm going to have to wait and hope for the best, also flying out of buffalo.

 

[Disneylover99]

Yeah I had the exact same experience yesterday, so frustrating. I was caught off guard with some of the times so I had to tweak my schedule by the time I had things figured out the prices had jumped. I wasn't sure what to do at that point and before I knew it they had jumped again. Now they're really high and a bunch are already sold out. I'm going to have to wait and hope for the best, also flying out of buffalo.

You're not alone.....maybe we should get together and rent a bus!

 

[Disneylover99]

Thanks KSL and bluecastle.

Your detailed info. about the auto train was so very helpful and informative. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

I'm still not sure what I'm going to do yet. But I've got 5 and a half months to figure it out!

 

[Disneylover99]

Okay fellow August travelers.....

I hope everyone had a happy Pancake Tuesday!!!!! We made Mickey shaped pancakes for dinner.

 

[Mousemommy1]

Doing the OFFICIAL PIF DANCE!!!!!!!!

 

[muffkrypto]

New to the group, and can I just say WOW! Never planned so much in my life! Got most of the reservations I wanted, going August 25th to 31st but just found out about the Tomorrowland Terrace dessert party and would love to take my 9 year old niece but apparently it is booked our whole trip.. anybody know if things like that ever open up again? Trying to get the 27th or 29th.. thanks in advance for all help and advice!!

 

[mom2willnbrendan]

I've been MIA studying for finals and such...glad those are over....well, until class starts back Monday. 14 more weeks of nursing school left and I am so excited!!!

We got our planning video in the mail and watched it today. It was great to see the kids light up and plan all the things the wanted to do. It's been several years since they've been so it's almost like the first time for the two younger ones! I think I've convinced them to ride everything except ToT and R&R....I am so stinking excited! Anyway, here's our park breakdown as it stands now:

Sat, Aug 9th...Boardwalk
Sun, Aug 10th...Hollywood Studios, AM; MK (Wishes dessert party) PM
Mon, Aug 11th...Epcot, AM; Hollywood Studios (Fantasmic) PM
Tues, Aug 12th...Typhoon Lagoon
Wed, Aug 13th...Magic Kingdom
Thursday, Aug 14th...AK, AM; Epcot (Illuminations) PM
Friday, August 15th...DTD/Disney Quest/LaNouba
Sat...homeward bound

Can't wait to make fast pass selections!!!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

New to the group, and can I just say WOW! Never planned so much in my life! Got most of the reservations I wanted, going August 25th to 31st but just found out about the Tomorrowland Terrace dessert party and would love to take my 9 year old niece but apparently it is booked our whole trip.. anybody know if things like that ever open up again? Trying to get the 27th or 29th.. thanks in advance for all help and advice!!

Welcome to the group!

Just a heads up that there is a rumor that Disney will be hosting a Mickeys Not So Scary Halloween Party on August 29th ..... you can check out this thread for more information:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3237803

If you can't get the dessert party, this might be something your niece would enjoy!

 

[muffkrypto]

You are awesome!! Thank you, I knew nothing about that so I will definitely check out that thread!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Doing the OFFICIAL PIF DANCE!!!!!!!!

That's awesome! (and totally the best feeling!)

I hope everyone had a happy Pancake Tuesday!!!!! We made Mickey shaped pancakes for dinner.

Well, I guess we all know where we should have gone for dinner tonight!!! Awesome idea, BTW.

You are awesome!! Thank you, I knew nothing about that so I will definitely check out that thread!

You're welcome! I sooooo have my fingers crossed that the rumor is true! I even have everyone agreeable to wearing custom Mickey Halloween t-shirts (and have picked out a supplier from Etsy)...so Disney better not let me down now! lol

 

[faylynn24]

Hi everyone I was hoping someone would be able to explain to me exactly what I will need to do. I am staying at three resorts during my stay. I does it work when switching to another room at another resort. Also with the dining plan does my credits from one room stay or expire after I check out of one resort? I'm supper nervous about changing rooms/resorts this time. I have never done it before lol. Tia