Package or No Package?? Please Help!

[FireRescueMom]

I was wondering if anyone has any feedback on Packages, with meal plans, etc......

We are a family of 6, and the packages seem pricey, but convenient also.

I read on another site that you could get a Silver package for part of your party, but other places seem to say it has to be your whole party.. One site said to "leave the other half of your party off the ressie until you get there". Wasnt sure if this was good advice or not. Not looking to cheat anyone, just save a few $$.

We already have two 5-day Park Hopper Pluses left over from last trip, so two of my kids wouldnt need an ultimate park hopper.

Any help would be really appreciated.

 

[arizonacolbys]

I would try pricing out everything your family will need for the trip separately & then compare your total to the total package price. I have found when planning my trips it generally ends up being cheaper for us to purchase everything separately on our own.

Some people use the packages & get more out of them by eating 3 large meals a day or using perks like parasailing, golfing or waterskiing. It may depend on your particular needs & family & what you are looking to get out of a package. The restaurants at Disney always seem to serve so much food that it takes hours to even consider eating again.

I also think that you would have more flexibility if your family isn't involved in a package. I vote for planning everything on your own & watching for discounts on hotel rooms, etc.

Good luck!

 

[McCall]

Originally posted by FireRescueMom
I was wondering if anyone has any feedback on Packages, with meal plans, etc......

We are a family of 6, and the packages seem pricey, but convenient also.

I read on another site that you could get a Silver package for part of your party, but other places seem to say it has to be your whole party.. One site said to "leave the other half of your party off the ressie until you get there". Wasnt sure if this was good advice or not. Not looking to cheat anyone, just save a few $$.

We already have two 5-day Park Hopper Pluses left over from last trip, so two of my kids wouldnt need an ultimate park hopper.

Any help would be really appreciated.

Leaving people off the reservation and showing up with them expecting to add them to it when you get there when you are on a package will not work, they will charge you the full price if you can even get them in.
the one way this does work is if someone is coming to stay only a part of the time you are there and there is room like room says it will hold 5 and you have 4 and say your mother is coming in the middle of your stay for 2 nights for example, you can add them as a room only guest for those nights and pay the additional adult in room only fee. other than that everyone must be included in the package.
That being said you can usually get a better deal booking everything separately and using any available discounts.

 

[kmcdougan]

Believe it or not, calling the Disney Reservation line can be quite helpful with this. THey were able to save my GF and I about $400 on a week long Gold plan by doing room only nights on the frint and back end (we're driving in from New Orleans and would really have no use for the package on the arrival and departure days).

 

[4greatboys]

I usually find that I save money by doing it myself. I also have more freedom to change resorts if we want, by tickets that suit our needs. We did use the UPH once and they were great but we dont need that type of ticket every trip. By reading these boards you can find great ways to save money, such as discount codes for resorts, meal vouchers, ticket brokers and prices, etc.