OKW - Trip planning questions

[ds251]

Was hoping to get some information to assist me with planning my first trip to OKW as DVC member:

1) What is the best way to go about getting groceries for the week?

2) Should I rent a car or take a shuttle from the airport to OKW. From the information I could gather from the web the cost is the same for a weeks stay, about $150.

3) We will be taking our 3 year old son with us for his first vist to WDW. Can anyone give me an idea of how much a day we should try and an do with him before he would be worn out?

Thanks
Joe

 

[janiejo]

Joe - I can't answer the question about getting groceries for the week. We are snackers and just stop on the way from the airport and pick up our supply of Diet Coke and "junk food." I will say that for the money, I would highly recommend getting the rental car. We just can't stand to be without a car. OKW is very convenient for having the car parked right outside your villa. Then when you want to hop in the car, you can! We use the car to run to DD no matter which resort we stay at. We also like to drive over to Port Orleans - Riverside (formerly Dixie Landings) and eat at their food court. It is just down the road from OKW. As far as the three year old goes, you know his schedule. Does he usually take an afternoon nap? When ours were that age, we would go in the mornings but head back to the resort for afternoon naps. Seemed like EVERYONE was happier with them getting their nap. We never tried to push - afterall, since you own DVC, you know you will be back again. Our attitude has always been "what we don't do this time, we can do the next trip!" It has made our trips much more pleasant through the years. You may have a different approach so go with what you are comfortable with. Just ENJOY!

 

[bres@westernMA]

Hi Joe.

There are basically three options to get from the airport to WDW - a rental car, Mears or a limo. I haven't used Mears for a couple of years and remember it at about $15 per person - round trip with no stop for groceries. You get your bags at the airport then stop at the Mears area right outside the baggage area. You are assigned to a bus (within 15 minutes) and dropped at your resort. You call Mears the night before to arrange a return trip to the airport. You will need to get all you groceries at the DVC general stores. They have a limited and rather expensive selection. You can fax in an order and have it delivered to your room upon arrival. You can also use some of the Net Grocer services which are occasionally discussed on this forum.
A limo is available from a bunch of companies some listed on the DIS. The rates for a town car are in the $70 (plus tip) range for a round trip. You can arrange a half hour grocery trip.
An economy car can be had for less than $150 per week. The drive is not bad and it gives you lots of flexibility. There are commonly lots of directions posted on this board as where to shop. Without a car, you are subject to the WDW bus system which generally isn't all that bad <but> it gets very old towards the end of the week and a 20 minute wait feels like an hour.
Regardless of your method of transportation, I always pack an extra suitcase with unbreakable food like coffee, coffee filters, juice mix, pb, jelly, snacks, etc. to save on the cost of food at WDW. We fill this suitcase with souvenirs for the trip home. Have a great trip.

 

[llp479]

First bit of advice, rent the car. Mears shuttle can take forever, you are not guaranteed a straight shot back to the airport. My DH and I got crammed in and spent over an hour going back to the airport. After an hour of someone's briefcase jammed in my side I was very close to a major anxiety attack - and I don't flip out - ever! Also, if you're not close to the Hospitality Center, the other pools are 3 - 5 feet deep. Much easier to drive to the Hospitality Center than walk!

Do you belong to the Disney Club? They have an offer through National for a free day. Just took advantage of it this past weekend for our trip to OKW. If not, Dollar was the cheapest I found. Also, National's rates through the internet are MUCH cheaper than the rates you get when you call their reservation number.

As for your son, pack his "comfort" foods. They may not be readily available. My 4 year old lives on Ritz Bits, so I made sure to bring those along. If he sleeps in his stroller, you may want to take yours with you. The strollers Disney rents are not real conducive for sleeping.

Play your days by ear. Our philosophy also has always been, if we don't do it this trip, we'll catch it next year. We've found Magic Kingdom to be extremely busy on Mondays, so we go to one of the other parks. It can also get extremely hot in the afternoons, so you may want to go back to the room and let your son rest and cool down. Nothing worse than a hot, tired child! Even my 7 year old twins needed to cool down.

One finally piece of advice, be sure you and your wife take advantage of the baby swap option. That way you can enjoy the "big people" rides! Don't miss Rock and Roll Roller Coaster at MGM.

Have a great trip!

 

[mikek]

All good advice so far-

Just remember BE FLEXIBLE with your kid(s).

I always get a chuckle from the people you see at WDW like Clark Griswald in the 'Vacation' movies. To paraphase- 'we're on vacation so your going to like to do this wether you want to or not'. (then I think of their poor kids)

 

[normr]

I see someone suggested renting a car and use it to travel from their unit up to the HH and park in the parking lot there to go swimming. This really hurts the people checking in or going to Olivia's or the general store because once the parking lot is full, people start parking in the parking lots for the villa's across the street, the last time we stayed up in that area, at times when we came back, it was impossible to park near our unit.

If too many people do this it will create problems, I don't want to see them having to put up gates in the villas parking lots just so people staying in these units can park.This is no different from the people who were driving over to the Contemporary parking lot and going to the MK the rest of the day.

 

[akdisneyfan]

You did not say what time of year you are going which can make a huge difference on the schedule you go by and how much the adults and children can tolerate. We always go in the off season when it is less busy but the parks don't stay open as late, so that determines how long we "nap" for in the afternoon. We have went when we had a three year old two different times, the first time we did not have a rental car and the second time I made sure we did. While the buses are generally fine, at the end of the day they are crowded and preschoolers are often tired and whiney. That can make the bus ride seem like an eternity, in addition, if the child falls asleep it is very uncomfortable to hold them on the bus and carry them off at your stop. I am sure that from all that you can guess that I would recommend renting a car, which also allows you to make a run to a grocery store or Walmart for anything that you forgot and not pay the premium prices that are charged on property.
I would suggest that you request either a room on the ground floor or a building with an elevator. Unless you are in peak physical condition, carrying a three year old up 2 or 3 flights of stairs when your tired too can be a real back breaker. I think OKW is the perfect place to stay at WDW when you have a small child, WDW is such an exciting, stimulating place it is often hard for a child to absorb. OKW has a more calm, laid back atmosphere that allows a child to "decompress" from all the excitement of the vacation.
One last suggestion, if your child has a particular video that they like to watch it can be a way to get them to lay down for a short period of time and relax. There are video rentals at Hank's but they have a limited selection.
Many people have said they think I am crazy to take my kids to WDW when they are so little because they can't appreciate it and they don't remember it. I don't agree with that (obviously) my kids always have a great time and my five year old remembers things from a visit when he was 3. Oh yeah, another suggestion, we take alot of pictures of each child doing different things and then go to the outlet mall that has the Disney outlet store and buy each one a photo album. After we get home I develop the pictures and assemble albums for each child to keep. This is a great way for the kids to remember a vacation, the older kids use their own disposable cameras so that their albums contains pictures they took along with a few of mine.

Kim
OKW member since '93

 

[RONfromRI]

We almost never rent a car unless we're planning on going off-site a lot. Driving for me is work and I don't like to work while on vacation. We make full use of the Disney transportation system which we consider a big part of the Disney experience. Many will disagree. One our favorite activities is taking the Trumbo ferry from OKW to Downtown Disney and another boat from DD to Port Orleans Riverside (the resort formerly known as Dixie Landings) to eat at their food court. Yes this can be time consuming but that's the best part. It's relaxing and the sights are beautiful, especially at night.

We usually use Atlantis Limo. It includes a grocery stop at Albertson's and you can fax in your grocery order in advance. We'll be utilizing the faxing service for the first time next week. I believe there are also other reputable transportation options. We've never used Mear's but I've heard differing opinions about them.

I don't have a 3 year old son but my DW and I will have 6 college students with us, roughly the same challenge as a 3 year old. We will make sure that they have their nap when needed.

Our theme park approach might work out well with a 3 year old. We begin the day by going to the early-entry park for that day, go back to the resort around noon to rest etc, and go to a different park which will be less crowded than the early-entry park for the rest of that day. There are a lot of other tricks that you will learn after several visits that will suit your needs. When our children were younger, one of the first things we learned was that being tired was no fun, so don't push it. Have a great time.

 

[TrudyZ]

Just got back from OKW with a 2 1/2 year old. My suggestions:

1. Rent the car. We got a full size (Taurus) from Hertz using Hotwire for $160 total for 7 days. We drove everywhere but to MK.

2. If you rent the car, you can stop on your way in from the airport at a grocery store. I made the grocery list out while on the plane.

3. Our typical adjenda was: Get up early (not usually a problem for little kids) and go to EE, especially for MK; either eat a character lunch or got back to the room for lunch; nap (Mom too!); swim, go back to a park, or swim and go back to a park. Pick a few things you want to get done that day. Anything else you accomplish is just icing on the cake.

4. Do E Night. Yes, your kid won't be able to ride most of the rides--- but you will. If you are like us, you will spend your fast passes during the day on such rides as Pooh, Buzz Light Year, Jungle Cruise, etc. It was the only way my husband and I got to ride the "top 10" biggies. There was no wait, and on several rides you go to ride thru again because no one was waiting to get on. Got more done in 3 hours than we could have done in 3 days. And there were characters in the park to keep her busy.

5. Buy a few things ahead of time at the Disney store on sale, etc., and have them for little surprise gifts for your son. Helps cut down on the "buy me This" syndrome while you are there (especially when some of the rides, including Pooh, exit into the gift shop).

6. Take a small penlight flashlight for your child to turn on in the dark rides (even Pooh has dark parts). Helps a child who is timid of the dark, and doens't bother the other guests. Take extra batteries for it too. Inadvertantly, it will get left on in the backpack (the voice of experience here...)

7. Read up on the height requirements, the "fright factors" on the rides so you know what you are getting into. Measure you child before you go so that there will be no disapointments when he gets to the front of the line and can't ride...

8. Don't push it. We were there for 7 days. We saw lots of things and had a great time, and never made it to AK. That's whats nice about DVC, no commando trips. Figured we have many more times to see things...

Hope this helps. If you have any specific questions, you can email me.

Trudy

 

[ds251]

My wife and I just wanted to say thank you to all for the great ideas and suggestions.

Joe