Overwhelmed, late to plan, need help please!

[Danserusse]

I do not know if I am in the correct board or not. if this needs to be moved please politely let me know and I will do so.

A little background. I grew up going to Disney. I was born in Cocoa beach etc... I personally have been there so many times I lost count. however, I have not been back in 20 years.

My husband is very ill, meaning this will be our first, only, and last family vacation. We will be traveling with our 7,14, and 16 yo daughters and my mother who has some chronic health issues such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

These things being said, hubby is in a wheelchair which I will rent when we arrive as ours is large to travel with. He will be wearing a mask to prevent exposure to germs etc...To begin with, I have no idea about accommodations to request because I have no idea what to anticipate, after a day in the park I may have a better idea.

After lodging, I have a budget of 6500 left. I paid the deposit for an off property house, the lodging ran 1400 for March 21 through April, 3rd. I have not heard back from my recent attempt to pay the balance. So, that is issue number one. The rest is just overwhelming.

Hubby is a veteran, are there cheaper tickets than the regular deals I am seeing such as Orbitz, or is that only for retired Vets. We were looking at 7 day tickets to allow for a slow pace and the ability to leave the park when he is too tired to carry on. We will not park hop due to the difficulty in getting him from place to place.

I have a reservation the Friday night we are there for V&A, I also have a Tony's (not sure about this one), and Teppan Edo. The BOG is being a pain. I had locked in an 8:45 for the 31st then received notice of an error and in fact, did not secure this one, which is the one place DD(7) really wanted to eat which is proving a pain (I understand it is very difficult to get).

Any suggestions from pro's, have I budgeted enough money? Any hidden little tricks of the trade, are the resort movies available to anyone at the parks or do I need to be a guest etc... I am lost as to how to make this flow smoothly.

TIA

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

The Shades of Green Resort on Disney property but not run by Disney is dedicated to military members and retiree's Here you can get tickets at a reduced price as well as condo type lodging.

http://www.shadesofgreen.org/

http://www.shadesofgreen.org/ATT.htm

 

[Danserusse]

The Shades of Green Resort on Disney property but not run by Disney is dedicated to military members and retiree's Here you can get tickets at a reduced price as well as condo type lodging.

http://www.shadesofgreen.org/

http://www.shadesofgreen.org/ATT.htm

thank you, I will look into this option. appreciate the response.

 

[MomToOne]

First, I suggest you head over to the disABILITIES! forum for more information about disability access service, and the ins and outs of using that.

Second, take a deep breath. It'll be OK. While your DD may want BOG, there are plenty of other magical moments to be had at Disney, and she's at a great age for it, so she'll still have a great vacation if you can't get it.

As far as resort movies go, I don't know that you would want to head to one of the resorts just for that - that's a haul for a small reward. If you want to take in a movie, I suggest the movie theater in Downtown Disney, You can even eat dinner while you eat - kids get a kick out of that - heck, I do too

 

[Dashzap]

I am so sorry your husband is ill.

The disability board here on the Disboards may have some good ideas about doing the parks with someone who is ill.

We went to Orlando this summer for the first time since my son was disabled. It is a very different trip when you can't do rides (very slow touring and more enjoying the ambiance), but it is wonderful.

I recommend you get a photo package (Memory Maker) since you will be busy make it all work for your family, and won't remember pictures all of the time. Let them do it for you.

Remember to take care of the caretaker!

 

[OhMari]

If you stay off site, raking is $15 a day.

 

[Danserusse]

I am so sorry your husband is ill.

The disability board here on the Disboards may have some good ideas about doing the parks with someone who is ill.

We went to Orlando this summer for the first time since my son was disabled. It is a very different trip when you can't do rides (very slow touring and more enjoying the ambiance), but it is wonderful.

I recommend you get a photo package (Memory Maker) since you will be busy make it all work for your family, and won't remember pictures all of the time. Let them do it for you.

Remember to take care of the caretaker!

Thank you so much for the kindness. this is different for us. We've never been able to vacation. Husband has an aortic aneurysm and other cardiac issues and is now in heart failure, we can't do surgery we just found out. I will be looking into that photo package, is that per person or family? I am sorry to hear about your son, it's just a different type of lifestyle, you start thinking in terms of before and after.

 

[Danserusse]

First, I suggest you head over to the disABILITIES! forum for more information about disability access service, and the ins and outs of using that.

Second, take a deep breath. It'll be OK. While your DD may want BOG, there are plenty of other magical moments to be had at Disney, and she's at a great age for it, so she'll still have a great vacation if you can't get it.

As far as resort movies go, I don't know that you would want to head to one of the resorts just for that - that's a haul for a small reward. If you want to take in a movie, I suggest the movie theater in Downtown Disney, You can even eat dinner while you eat - kids get a kick out of that - heck, I do too

Thank you. Checking that board out now!

 

[SplashMo]

you will want to get your tickets before 30 days. Have them in your hands so you can make FP+ reservations. Not that big of a deal really. But something that should be done. FP+ reservations become available at midnight on your 30 days plus. The theme park strategy board can help with this. Also read easywdw. They have a plan for each day in the park and lots of good information.

 

[danygirl]

BOG - talk to the cast members in front of the restaurant. It was a must do of us but we could not get a reservation. We saw a long line and asked cast members - they told us to come back around 2pm at the end if lunch. Sure enough when we did what they said we walked right in.

I am hope you have a great trip and enjoy this time.

From dealing with my dad it might be better to bring your own wheel chair for comfort.

Be flexible- our strategy is to zig when everyone else zags

Military discounts only available for active duty and retired

 

[monica9]

Sorry to hear about your husband. I will be saying a prayer for you and your family.

I suggest you look into a military discount and stay at a disney resort if you can get your deposit back.
they have very good military discounts.

I second the memory maker package to make sure you get all the great pictures you can!!

Good luck and God bless!!

 

[Marionnette]

I do not know if I am in the correct board or not. if this needs to be moved please politely let me know and I will do so.

A little background. I grew up going to Disney. I was born in Cocoa beach etc... I personally have been there so many times I lost count. however, I have not been back in 20 years.

My husband is very ill, meaning this will be our first, only, and last family vacation. We will be traveling with our 7,14, and 16 yo daughters and my mother who has some chronic health issues such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

These things being said, hubby is in a wheelchair which I will rent when we arrive as ours is large to travel with. He will be wearing a mask to prevent exposure to germs etc...To begin with, I have no idea about accommodations to request because I have no idea what to anticipate, after a day in the park I may have a better idea.

After lodging, I have a budget of 6500 left. I paid the deposit for an off property house, the lodging ran 1400 for March 21 through April, 3rd. I have not heard back from my recent attempt to pay the balance. So, that is issue number one. The rest is just overwhelming.

Hubby is a veteran, are there cheaper tickets than the regular deals I am seeing such as Orbitz, or is that only for retired Vets. We were looking at 7 day tickets to allow for a slow pace and the ability to leave the park when he is too tired to carry on. We will not park hop due to the difficulty in getting him from place to place.

I have a reservation the Friday night we are there for V&A, I also have a Tony's (not sure about this one), and Teppan Edo. The BOG is being a pain. I had locked in an 8:45 for the 31st then received notice of an error and in fact, did not secure this one, which is the one place DD(7) really wanted to eat which is proving a pain (I understand it is very difficult to get).

Any suggestions from pro's, have I budgeted enough money? Any hidden little tricks of the trade, are the resort movies available to anyone at the parks or do I need to be a guest etc... I am lost as to how to make this flow smoothly.

TIA

I'm sorry about your husband. Definitely check the disABILITIES board for help on how to navigate the parks with a wheelchair and advice on how to make your husband's visit more comfortable.

I hope that you get thru to the person who is renting the house to you. There could be a number of reasons why they have not responded to you. Here's hoping that you hear from them soon.

Military Salute tickets are available for active and retired military. Honorably discharged vets are not eligible for the discounted tickets. You can find more information about them here:
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/special-offers/military-4-day-tickets/
The problem with these tickets would be that part of your visit will be blacked out due to it being just before Easter Week. But the price is so good that it might be worth buying them and then finding other things to do on your off days (like visit Universal?).

Your dates are also excluded from the YES program, which would have qualified you for discounted tickets if your children attended an educational program sponsored at one of the parks.

Your best hope for a discount on a 7-day ticket would be by purchasing from UT or through Orbitz or Expedia going through eBates for a cash back discount. All of those sources discount tickets for less than the price that Disney charges at the gate or through the web.

Getting a reservation at BOG can be almost impossible. People who are staying onsite can make their ADRs at 180+10 days prior to their arrival. Offsite guests begin making their reservations at 180 days prior to the day they plan to eat there. You're already inside that 180-day window. On the bright side, people cancel reservations all of the time, so keep trying and maybe something will become available.

As for your $6500 budget, that's not something that we have enough information to really comment on. Will you be flying or driving? If driving, how far will you be driving and will you need hotels rooms along the way? If flying, will you be renting a van? Does the $6500 have to cover transportation costs, tickets, food, souvenirs, etc? My advice is to sit down and write down a price for everything that you anticipate spending money on. Some parts of that budget, like food and souvenirs, will be flexible. Some parts, like airfare and rental vehicle, will have a fixed cost. You can adjust your flexible costs up or down when you have determined what your fixed costs will be.