Overwhelmed newbie from the Chicago suburbs

[angie712]

Just started planning our first Disney trip this week for May 2012, and I am already completely overwhelmed.
We are Angie and Travis from the western Chicago suburbs, and this will be our first trip to Disney since we were very young. We are now in our mid-twenties. We have been married 2 years and both have degrees, good jobs, and no kids. Our friends call us DINKS (double-incomes, no kids) and we love to vacation.
So far we have been on one cruise (Carnival), and have 2 more booked. Our goal is to do one land vacation and one cruise a year. Our first land vacation was Panama City Beach, and we loved it, but we wanted to do something different next year, which brings me here.
Anyway, I have only been looking for a couple days, but so far have decided that I want to do 7 day Disney vacation, Sunday-Sunday, of memorial day week next year. I believe we only want to hit Hollywood Studios and Epcot, but I think we'd like to spend 2 days at each. We also want to save a day or 2 for Universal studios. I also know we want to stay at a Value resort (its how we afford 2 vacations a year), and I'm pretty sure we decided on the Pop Century resort, and I believe we are going to book through Disney. That's about all I've got figured out so far. Does this sound reasonable? Any and all advice is appreciated!
I still have no idea what to do about dining. I was thinking of buying the deluxe dining plan because it includes all 3 meals, but I'm wondering if that's going to be too much food and a waste of money. Advice? On that same topic, I've read some about the free dining plan promos. Historically, has that ever been done in late May before? If it is offered as free QSDP, can we pay to upgrade that to the deluxe plan? Also, what is this about PINS for FD? Is this random or should I sign up for something in hopes of getting a PIN?
Does anyone recommend not booking this trip through Disney's website? Are there any other discounts I should be looking somewhere for??
I'm off to paruse the boards to see if I can get any of these answers myself, just wanted to introduce myself and see if I can get anything answered here in case I get confused looking elsewhere. Thanks in advance for all your help!

 

[Aliceacc]

HI and welcome!!!

You sound as though you've got quite a handle on things! My friend stayed at Pop a few years ago and just loved it!!

As far as dining goes, the Deluxe plan would be just too much food for us. (And if you're going to spend 2 days at Universal, even moreso.) We've done the regular plan the past 2 times, and it was just enough food. (We used the "snack" credit for a bagel or croissant for breakfast, the counter service for lunch most days, then did a table service dinner. Perfect.)

By Memorial Day, a decent number of schools throughout the country are on vacation, so I'm not sure I would expect any sort of real promo to come out. If people are flocking to WDW, then there's no need for them to entice people by offering deals.

One thing that may save you a little is booking through an AAA agent if you're AAA members-- you can save something like 10% of the cost of your room. Admittedly, rooms at Pop are fairly cheap, so it's not going to make a huge difference. But I like booking through a travel agent. I like that someone has my back, and is looking for discounts, and I like the idea that someone is earning a comission at no cost to me.

 

[Lizboo]

Hello fellow DINKS!! We have been going to Orlando since 2000. We used to always go in May..only once we were there for Memorial Day...that change in crowds from one day to the next was just crazy. I don't remember in first seven years when we went in May ever receiving free dining. We started going in Sept in 2007 and love that time of year..Halloween in Orlando is awesome...free dining is awesome..and the kiddos are back in school, so it is not as busy (and as you know, not an issue for us DINKS).

As PP suggested, I always compare multiple pricings before booking (website vs CAA- the Canadian version of AAA) and we have always gone with CAA (better prices plus extras like blue diamond parking). I also agree with PP about skipping the Deluxe Dining Plan if you are spending 2 days offsite (and we LOVE Universal ..and always go, so have fun there too).

Pop is the one value resort we have never stayed at (because it was always booked when we tried). I can't speak of Pop since we have never been, but we felt the other three values catered to non-DINKS...everything is big and colorful..you know, catering to a kid. We did a really short trip in 2009 to check out WDW at Christmas time on a budget and that was the last time we stayed at a Value. It is a clean place to stay and have access to the WDW perks..and that's about it.

Instead of spending money on the Deluxe Dining Plan, look into staying at a Moderate. We have stayed at all by CSR (which some love, but I avoid because it is a convention centre). CBR was very nice but big and we liked both Riverside resorts (with a slight edge to POFQ).

Good luck planning and be prepared..WDW is addictive.

 

[Metro West]

 

[tamarr44]

Hello & Welcome!!

 

[Boo Bear]