Planning our trip...5 questions

[Cambribec]

Hi everyone,

I'm so happy to have found this forum and am looking forward to getting to know all of you.

I'm in the process (early stages!) of planning our trip. My husband and I have been before, but never our kids. They'll be young (at the times we're thinking of going they would be 4.5 and 2), but I just can't wait any longer to take them..I'm too excited.

With that said, I have a few questions..

1) Which of these dates would you choose to go? I know they all have relatively low crowds and wait times, but is one better than the other?

• Week before Thanksgiving
• First week of December
• Last week of October

2) I can't decide about staying on site vs. off site and I have seriously spent hours comparing the two. With our kids being young, we'll likely go back to the room for 1-2 hours in the afternoon (for naps/to rest) so I was thinking staying on-site would be easier in that regard, but I wasn't sure it was worth the pretty substantial cost difference. We're driving, if that makes a difference.

3) Dining plan - we're "foodies" (according to my husband, lol) but with a 4.5 and a 2 year old, is it worth the dining plan? We plan on being there 7 days.

4) If you have toddler/preschool age boys, what restaurants and attractions did they enjoy the most? I'm trying to make sure I don't miss anything.

5) Water park (probably Blizzard Beach) - worth it or not?

Thank you everyone!

 

[gules]

Congrats on the upcoming trip, and welcome to DISboards! People here are... well, they're still people, but they tend to be pretty nice! I'm glad you're excited. Just don't get planning burn-out!

1) There are pros and cons to all these dates. Last week of October will see some of the Halloween crowd, plus MK will close early some days for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. Unless you want to do that (it is a separately ticketed event), I would skip. However! If you are "foodies" as your husband says, you would appreciate the Food and Wine Festival at EPCOT, and the last week of October carries the highest chance of you overlapping it, even if it's not this year. The week before Thanksgiving might still intercept Food and Wine, but it's harder to call as that will be the tail end of it. You might also accidentally intercept the early half of the Thanksgiving crowds depending on your exact dates. The first week of December is probably safest crowds-wise, but you will definitely not be able to do Food and Wine, which is amazing for adults and older kids. So it really depends on what your goals are.

2) With two small children and breaks planned, I would stay on site if my budget allowed it. Remember that you and dad will be walking everywhere, and to get to the car you'll have to then get to the tram, walk to the car, and then do it in reverse just to come back if you stay off-site. On-site means you can go to the front of the park and take the bus, and be dropped off near your room. It also means that you can take advantage of EMH for even lower crowds, or to do something your kids (or you!) really love. And FP+ windows will open sooner for you for any of those must-have experiences. To mitigate costs, hunt down seasonal offers or possible discounts through places like AAA. Low season costs are pretty decent.

3) Being foodies, you might want to skip on the dining plan for these reasons:
a) You will probably want to choose just an entree, dessert, or appetizer to share so you can try multiple things. A dining plan is less flexible and more prone to you either having less variety or losing on credits.
b) If you make it to Food and Wine, you'll be snacking on those all day and won't need the dining plan anyway.
c) If you're on a budget, dining plan is actually tricky to maximize and still try a variety of things.

4) Don't have kids.

5) This depends. Do you, your DH, or your kids like water parks? If you're going in October, the weather will likely still be good enough for this. The later dates... I probably wouldn't bother unless I had someone who LOVED the water. With your kids as young as they are, an on-site pool is probably sufficient, assuming you're staying on-site. The pools in Disney are generally nicely themed and some have children's play areas with smaller interactive elements and even water slides. I think there is a thread here somewhere on best on-property pools.

Hope this helps!

 

[bhartman]

We've only taken our kids to Disney once, when they were 2 (almost 3) and 5, so I don't have tons of experience, but I can share what I know.

1. We went the first week of December 2012 and had an amazing time. The crowds weren't too bad, the weather was warm but not hot, and the Christmas decorations were beautiful. The kids liked seeing the Christmas lights at all of the resorts. We went to Grand Floridian and got some gingerbread shingles from the big gingerbread house and rode the monorail while we ate them. Cheap and relaxing - the kids loved it. That may have been our favorite night.

2. My husband and I have stayed off-site before, but when we took the kids we stayed onsite (at Art of Animation) and loved it. It was really convenient being onsite so we could have souvenirs sent back to our resort, take advantage of morning EMH, and get the bus back to the resort for nap/swim breaks.

3. We did the dining plan for our 2012 trip and swore we'd never do it again, unless we got a free dining offer. We scheduled all of our dinner reservations, but found early in the trip that the kids were too pooped to endure a sit-down dinner by that point in the day. A couple of days into the trip, we ended up changing our remaining dinner reservations to lunch/breakfast reservations. We would do some rides, stop for a long lunch, ride a few more things, and then head back to the resort to rest. I just don't know if the dining plan is worth the cost when you're using all of your TS credits for lunch and your QS credits for dinner. I could be wrong though.

4. Our boy was almost 3 at that age and he loved just about everything. His favorites were Toy Story Mania, the pool at the resort, Barnstormer, the wicked stepsisters at 1900 Park Fare, the pool at the resort, the Peter Pan ride, and the pool at the resort. Which brings me to #5.

5. If you ask my kids what their favorite part of our trip was, they'll tell you the swimming pool at the resort. We're going back in September, and I considered planning a water park day, but then I remembered how much they loved just swimming in the pool and I nixed that plan. Instead of a water park day, we're doing a full day at the resort to just swim and play on the playground. I think the water parks are great for older kids (I've only been to Typhoon Lagoon), but I feel like little kids won't get as much out of them and would probably be just as happy splashing around in the pool. And bonus, if you're at the resort, you're already super close to your room when the afternoon crankies set in.

Have fun planning!

 

[jtowntoflorida]

We have been to Disney three times in October and once in December (plus a couple of summer trips). When we started going, our kids were essentially the age yours are now (our youngest was just shy of 2 and our oldest turned 5 on our first trip). So I base my answers on our BTDT experience.

1. December is likely to be the most crowded of those three dates you mention. October is by far my favorite BUT we also love the Halloween party, so that's a must-do for us. All three of those proposed dates are going to fall during "party season" (either the Halloween or Christmas parties) so you're going to be looking at early MK closures for about half the days you're there. That's OK! Especially with kids as young as yours. MK is great, crowd-wise, on party days because people avoid it due to the shortened hours.

2. We always stay on-site.

3. I would skip the dining plan. We've done trips both with and without it, and I've enjoyed the trips without it more. Because you need to follow the rules when you use it, it feels very restrictive, and it's hard to justify ordering exactly what you want if it doesn't fit the parameters of the plan. We've tracked food costs on all of our trips, and it really is a wash cost-wise.

4. If they're Disney Junior fans, the Hollywood & Vine character meal is a must-do. I recommend breakfast, and doing it pre-park if possible. Reports indicate the food quality can get bad as the day wears on, but we've always done an 8:05 ADR at A&V and the food was nice and fresh. Still a theme park buffet so not gourmet, but definitely edible. Other than that, Crystal Palace for Pooh fans is good, and Chef Mickey's or Tusker House for Mickey & Friends. The Tusker House food is probably the best quality of all the character buffets that I've experienced. Also, other than the H&V breakfast, we tend to make our one big meal lunch. It gives the kids a nice break and their appetites are best at mid-day. By dinner they're usually exhausted and don't eat much (especially after snacking through the day) and no one wants to waste prime touring time on breakfast.

5. If you choose December, it will likely be too cold for the waterparks. Personally, we've never been to a waterpark. Especially for little kids like yours, I think the resort pools will be fun enough. I know the waterparks have their fans, but I wouldn't want to waste the time or expense to go to them when the resorts have so many awesome pools.

 

[Happyjen27]

Hi everyone,

I'm so happy to have found this forum and am looking forward to getting to know all of you.

I'm in the process (early stages!) of planning our trip. My husband and I have been before, but never our kids. They'll be young (at the times we're thinking of going they would be 4.5 and 2), but I just can't wait any longer to take them..I'm too excited.

With that said, I have a few questions..

1) Which of these dates would you choose to go? I know they all have relatively low crowds and wait times, but is one better than the other?

• Week before Thanksgiving
• First week of December
• Last week of October

If they crowd calendars think they're fine, probably they are!
2) I can't decide about staying on site vs. off site and I have seriously spent hours comparing the two. With our kids being young, we'll likely go back to the room for 1-2 hours in the afternoon (for naps/to rest) so I was thinking staying on-site would be easier in that regard, but I wasn't sure it was worth the pretty substantial cost difference. We're driving, if that makes a difference.
I found that staying near the Magic Kingdom was priceless, we always took breaks, and you were more apt to take them if it was convenient to do so. There was something so amazing about staying at the Contemporary in particular, with the Monorail going through it. If you can swing it, do it.


3) Dining plan - we're "foodies" (according to my husband, lol) but with a 4.5 and a 2 year old, is it worth the dining plan? We plan on being there 7 days.
I found the food at Disney to be largely substandard. We ate at recommended places that have a good following ('Ohana, Chefs de France, Be Our Guest as well as many character meals) and it was not delicious enough for me to consider Disney a destination where one goes for the food, like NYC or New Orleans is. I did the dining plan my first trip, but, the next and all the trips in the future we will not. I preferred the flexibility of being able to just order and appetizer and a salad, versus an entree, and we don't usually eat dessert with every meal. Do not expect a $50 steak at Disney to taste like a $50 steak in your hometown. Overall, we spent about the same on food both trips, but, I enjoyed the freedom of spending on what sounded the best regardless of whether it is on the dining plan or not.


4) If you have toddler/preschool age boys, what restaurants and attractions did they enjoy the most? I'm trying to make sure I don't miss anything.

Buzz Lightyear in the Magic Kingdom was a do not miss for us. Lights, Motor, Action was enjoyable with the pyrotechnics and so on. We brought ear plugs for that one, because the explosions can be kind of scary.

5) Water park (probably Blizzard Beach) - worth it or not?

I agree with the person who said that the pool at the resort would be just as popular with your kids. And, at the time of year you're looking it, it might be too cold to enjoy a water park at all.

Thank you everyone!

 

[Fob]

Hi everyone,

I'm so happy to have found this forum and am looking forward to getting to know all of you.

I'm in the process (early stages!) of planning our trip. My husband and I have been before, but never our kids. They'll be young (at the times we're thinking of going they would be 4.5 and 2), but I just can't wait any longer to take them..I'm too excited.

With that said, I have a few questions..

1) Which of these dates would you choose to go? I know they all have relatively low crowds and wait times, but is one better than the other?

• Week before Thanksgiving
• First week of December
• Last week of October

2) I can't decide about staying on site vs. off site and I have seriously spent hours comparing the two. With our kids being young, we'll likely go back to the room for 1-2 hours in the afternoon (for naps/to rest) so I was thinking staying on-site would be easier in that regard, but I wasn't sure it was worth the pretty substantial cost difference. We're driving, if that makes a difference.

3) Dining plan - we're "foodies" (according to my husband, lol) but with a 4.5 and a 2 year old, is it worth the dining plan? We plan on being there 7 days.

4) If you have toddler/preschool age boys, what restaurants and attractions did they enjoy the most? I'm trying to make sure I don't miss anything.

5) Water park (probably Blizzard Beach) - worth it or not?

Thank you everyone!

Welcome. I will speak from my own experience. My wife and I have two children as well, DS is 8 and DD is 3. We have been in Jan, Feb, Sept, Oct, and Dec.

Question#1.

Our favorite time of all is the 1st week of Dec. Cast members will tell you this is normally the least crowded week of the year as you've just had the Thansgiving rush and you don't have the Christmas crowd yet. The temperature is generally ok for short sleeves during the day and a light jacket at night, so I wouldn't plan on doing the water park. (If feel like you have to, one of the two is normally open with the other having routine maintenance done. They also heat the water, so the only issue is coming out of warm water into cooler air). Plus, the parks and resorts are all decorated for Christmas.

Question #2.

I am biased because we are DVC members and have only stayed on-site, though we have friend who swear by staying off-site because of the cost difference. If you do choose to stay on-site, I will suggest you drive your own vechile to the parks each day (no charge to park if you are on-site). This makes it SOOOOOOOO much easier to manage tired children and all the other stuff you need (strollers, bag with snacks and pull ups?, etc). Also, you don't have to wait for buses.

Also, as mentioned above, you get earlier access to FP+ and the EMH.

Question #3.

We did DDP the first couple of trips we took, but have moved away from it. We don't always want desert and I don't like feeling that I have to order the most expensive menu item to get my moneys worth. With that being said, you may be able to get "free dining" during that week. If so, take it. You can always pay OOP for other items. (Remember, gratuity is not included with the DDP).

Question #4.

It really depends on what characters the like the most. If they love Disney Jr - Hollywood & Vine Breakfast, Winnie the Pooh - Crystal Palace, Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto - Chef Mickey's or Cape May (breakfast). Non-character meals - Coral Reef (Epcot - one wall is the aquarium), Be Our Guest (MK - hard to get, but the dinning rooms are cool), Raglan Road (Downtown Disney - They "Riverdance" and will let the kids dance with them - may need to be a bit older).

As for attractions, the only one I would say don't miss is meeting Mickey in the theater in MK. When he started speaking to my children, their eyes got SOOO big. To my knowledge, this is the only place in the parks where he will speak to the kids.

Question #5.

Never been to a water park at Disney.

One suggestion. If you do go in Dec., make the time to tour some of the resorts (Grand Floridian - life-sized gingerbread house, Wilderness Lodge - massive Christmas tree, etc...). This is a good way to spend some time if you choose to have a non-park day during your trip.

Whatever you decide, have fun and enjoy the excitement and wonder of your children.

 

[sullyfam]

1. I would do the last week of October to take advantage of both F & W at Epcot and MNSSHP at MK.
2. I would DEFINITELY stay on site with little ones.
3. I would do the deluxe dining plan if you can swing it. You will get an opportunity to eat pretty much anywhere you want, have endless snack credits (comes in handy for F & W) and do all the character dining and dinner shows you want. Great for foodies!
4. My kids love MK and we always spend the most time there. Haunted Mansion and Thunder Mountain are among ride favorites. They also love doing the character dining and meeting the characters that way.
5. NO water park! With little ones, it's more of a hassle than it's worth getting to and from the water parks. Our kids always have hours worth of fun at the resort pools and it's so much simpler. Wait til their teenagers and then take them to the water park, til then, they won't know the difference

 

[luvmy2babies]

First I will say I have only stayed on site including the time we drove from home; so can’t offer much there. Just remember to include the cost of parking ($17 each day) when budgeting off-site options. Other than a short trip to Orlando the week of Halloween in 2011; I haven’t been during those particular weeks because of my daughter’s school schedule; but we went during Thanksgiving one year and I loved the weather. Made the crowds easy to deal with and we loved the decorations.

Whether or not to get the dining plan is such an individual decision. We have been four times. I have done one trip without the dining plan and 3 trips with the plan and that probably indicates I prefer having it. I really like having most of the meals paid for in advance. The trip that I did without it showed me that. But it also showed me something else. When I would get the plan I would usually get the one that included a table service meal per day; but when I went without it, we had 3 table service meals in 8 days and I enjoyed the freedom of not having a reservation each day; so going forward I think we will probably do the Quick Service plan and choose 1 or 2 of our favorite table service meals to do during the trip (Crystal Palace, Hollywood and Vine, Tusker House, Ohana).

What I would do if I were trying to decide would be to go to allears.net and look at the menus to get an idea of the cost of what you and your family would eat, do the math and make your decision from there. Remember the 2.5 year-old eats free at buffet and family style restaurants and can eat off your plate at others. At Quick service restaurants, I often shared meals with my son if I was at a place that served large portions. Also remember dining plan meals include a drink and dessert. Paying out of pocket for an adult meal the drink and dessert is separate.

I have a daughter and a son. My son is the one who experienced Disney as an infant, toddler, preschooler. We do most of the rides with no height restriction and he loves all of them. We just haven’t done Pirates and Haunted Mansion because he didn’t care for those when we watched them on youtube. His favorite is likely Toy Story Mania. As soon as it ends he asks to go again even though he just watches while his sister and I play the game. He loves the Disney Junior show at Hollywood studios and the shows and parades at Magic Kingdom. He also enjoys fireworks as long as he has his headphones to help with the noise. He’s sensitive to a lot of the noise, especially when it is coming from different directions at once so after he spent most of the week in 2013 with his hands over his ears even though he still had fun; I bought them for 2014 and he wore them most of the time we were in the parks and he wears them when we go to sporting events.

Whenever I thought about going to a water park, I had the same thought as a previous poster. The resort pool is fine, especially when I consider it’s extra to go to the water park, plus getting to the water park with all of our stuff compared to just going outside the room to the pool. I will say though I also have the issue of being the only adult with two children with significant space between their ages. My daughter is too old to be in the children’s area with my son; so, it would just be difficult.

 

[Thing 1]

What fun ages!

#!-I would choose the first week of December. Christmas decorations are out in full gear and its a really nice time to be there. We have done that week and its one of our favorites. Weather is mostly good, though you have to bring items to layers. We have learned there are very very few no crowds times anymore, but this week is not bad.

#2-On site all the way. So much easier to grab a bus and head back to the resort for a nap or swim. Kids like riding the bus and love riding the monorail.

#3. We like the DDP simply because it is nice to have it all paid and not have to try to save money when we order. If that is not an issue for you, you might not enjoy it too much. Think about these questions: Will you do signatures? Lots of character meals? More than one sit down a day? How do your kids eat? Do you eat desserts regularly? Do you prefer apps to desserts? When my little guy was a preschooler he really did not want to eat kid meals so he mostly shared with me and we really wasted his meals. Are your kids foodies too?

#4- Lots of experience with preschool boys .Favorite rides included Buzz Light Year, Grand Prix cars, The train, Jungle Cruise, Living with the Land, Safari, Triceratops spin, Fantasmic and the Disney Jr. Show. HATED Haunted Mansion and did not like the Stars and Light Car Stunt show. (Very loud, smelly and crowded). Did BTMR as a preschooler, and loved Soaring and Star Tours but not the other coaster. Was scared of TT but many preschool boys like it.

#5- Most kids are totally happy with the resort pool. Most of your dates could be a bit iffy for a water park day, though likely fine for a shorter afternoon dip in the resort pool.

Have fun planning.

 

[sharona]

IMO, there's nothing easy about grabbing a bus with 2 young ones when it's crowded or they're tired and cranky, or you are... rent a car if you can, it's very affordable and you'll be so happy that you have it. Maybe bus/ferry to MK so you can get that "there it is, there's the castle!" moment or experience the monorail. Stay on site if you can afford it but offsite has some great options too (with more space and laundry, microwave, fridge etc.). Join the Free Dining watch thread for whatever month you end up choosing - that might make it financially equal to stay on site vs. off.

.

 

[ThistleMae]

I don't have little ones any more but from a stand and wait for buses perspective...it's really tiring...but only at the end of the night when there is a mass exodus to leave the park. Otherwise, the bus crowds are good. The resorts that access monorail are better and if you plan on being at mk more than once, Willderness Lodge has a boat to MK which your kids will like. Regarding dining plan....look at the menus and figure out what u will most likely eat, then calculate. I do not like hot weather....but I've been in Sept. Twice, it was really hot...did Mickie's not so scary Halloween party, which was really fun....and swimming is really great this time of year. I'm doing Thanksgiving for the first time this year, so Christmas! My understanding is weather is great. week after Thanksgiving is less crowded...but pool will be cold getting out. They are heated. Kids don't mind swimming when it's cool, so u will probably be fine. I really don't think you can go wrong with any of your dates!

 

[MandiC]

1) Honestly, are you a Halloween person or a Christmas person? that is how I would decide. For me personally, I love Christmas, I definitely want to see the Processional in Epcot one of these years. I'd love to see Disney Christmas decorations, AND we have a child with a birthday the second week of December so THAT is the week *I* would choose. I'd be leary on October for the rain chance, from what I have heard. I always thought the week before Thanksgiving was pretty busy too? Maybe not, but since it is kind of in between Halloween/Christmas celebrations I'd probably skip that time. Disney that week is just never going to happen for me due to hunting season LOL
2) Something I have discovered is unless you plan on staying at a deluxe resort you really don't save much, if any, money. Price it out, you might be surprised. Personally, I love on-site and even if it were slightly more expensive it would still be worth it for me (you do get more 'space' off-site usually, to me, that just isn't that important even with a family of 6, we aren't in the room *that* much. I just loved being 'in the bubble', outdoor movies, campfires, and just little Disney touches everywhere. The transportation wasn't extremely fast IMO but certainly less stressful for us than driving/parking/paying (if you stay off site there is a $17 daily parking charge at the parks, not a huge deal all things considered but something to think about)

3) If you are foodies, definitely. We did the dining plan and loved it. It was nice to not have to think about meals for the most part, I ordered whatever I wanted...some people point out feeling like they have to order the most expensive things...for me it is the opposite. If we didn't have the dining plan I would have felt obligated to go with the least expensive meals. I like steak, chicken is just okay Overall, definitely worth it for us, definitely something we plan on getting on future trips.

4) We didn't bring our boys last time but they were on my mind as I was planning our next trip in my head Two restaurants we are for sure doing on our next trip. T-Rex in downtown Disney and Tusker House breakfast in Animal Kingdom. We did Tusker House and loved it, good food, and good character interaction.

5) Water park (probably Blizzard Beach) - worth it or not?
For us, we didn't feel the water parks were worth it, but we went in February so there was only maybe 2 days of our trip where a water park would have been okay temperature wise and even then, I would much rather go to the parks. We have water parks well within driving distance that aren't terribly priced. We just weren't interested in Disney water parks. *Maybe* if I were going during the summer, and *maybe* if I were going for 2 entire weeks...but spending a week in Disney is easy without doing water parks.

 

[EPCOTgrl1]

1) Which of these dates would you choose to go? I know they all have relatively low crowds and wait times, but is one better than the other?

• Week before Thanksgiving
• First week of December
• Last week of October

I say Last week in October. It will be just as busy as the other 2 weeks you choose but you will get Halloween (MNSSHP) as well as Food and Wine. If you like the sound of that these are the dates for you. If you are more into Christmas then the first week in December. It will be a little colder then but you will have all the Christmas you want.

2) I can't decide about staying on site vs. off site and I have seriously spent hours comparing the two. With our kids being young, we'll likely go back to the room for 1-2 hours in the afternoon (for naps/to rest) so I was thinking staying on-site would be easier in that regard, but I wasn't sure it was worth the pretty substantial cost difference. We're driving, if that makes a difference.

When it comes to staying on or off site it is what works best for you. Since you are driving you will most likely not have a big issue with going back to your hotel in the middle of the day. Just plan for extra time getting to the parks in the morning and when everyone is leaving at the end of the night. If you are prepared for that then you will be fine!

3) Dining plan - we're "foodies" (according to my husband, lol) but with a 4.5 and a 2 year old, is it worth the dining plan? We plan on being there 7 days.

For the Dining plan I have only done this once. Price wise, when my husband and I did the math, it tends to be "break even" for us. The one time we did do it it just seemed like a lot of food. I would say look up where you want to go and see if it will be worth it for you. The kids can always split their meals and it will make it last longer.

4) If you have toddler/preschool age boys, what restaurants and attractions did they enjoy the most? I'm trying to make sure I don't miss anything.

I don't have kids, yet. I have been to Disney with a friends 1 year old as well as some younger cousins. You are limited on what they can ride. The 1 year old didn't like the dark so all those rides where out but he did like dumbo, flying carpets, etc. I am really no help with this one.

5) Water park (probably Blizzard Beach) - worth it or not?

No, during the time of year that you are talking about going it is not worth the money for the water park. If you do have a nice day I would just go to the pool at the resort on your breaks. It is to cool in the mornings/evenings. Maybe if you were going in the spring or summer then yes. I would also wait till the kids get a little older.

 

[brittamouse]

We have a 4.5 year old that we have travelled with to Disney several times over the past several years, starting with her first trip at 4months old Here are my suggestions:

1) We have travelled to Disney in Feb, April, May, and late Sept. The lower crowd levels in the fall are great and we had a blast at MNSSHP with my daughter and her friend riding the tea cups and Barnstormer over and over without any wait. My vote would be for the last week of October (which is when we are planning on going this year).

2) We have always stayed onsite and love the "magical feel" but it is definitely more expensive. I don't mind the buses/boats/etc... and my daughter has always thought it was fun. One important perk with staying on site is the morning EMH - if you have kids that are early risers (as is mine) it really was great to be able to be at MK for say 8am instead of starting our park visit later in the day after my daughter had been up since 6am. As one of the prior posters mentioned, Wilderness Lodge might be a good option as it is reasonable value (for a deluxe), is close to the MK and you can easily connect to the monorail resorts for character meals, etc...

3) Until recently we always purchased the Dining Plan (or received it for free), however on our last trip we paid out of pocket for all of our meals. We found that we spend several hundred dollars less than what we would have on the DDP but also didn't skimp on where/what/when we ate. For our style, we found ordering groceries (through Garden Grocer or other) made our mornings easy and we generally ate breakfast most days in our room (as I mentioned my daughter is up EARLY). There are lots of analyses on whether the DDP is a good value, but for us (and our sometimes picky daughter) it isn't.

4) If your boys are Handy Manny or Jake The Neverland Pirate fans, don't miss the Hollywood & Vine character meal. My daughter also loved the Disney Junior Live on Stage Show at HS. Those are two we never miss We also usually spend at least 2 or 3 days at the MK (for a 7 day visit) - there is just so much to do for young kids and that allows you to do some of the less popular but great kids things (such as letting your kids run off some steam and explore Tom Sawyer Island.) Make sure you make use of the Rider Switch where you can.

5) We usually try to spend one day at a water park weather permitting. If we can make it work with weather, etc... its always one of our favourite days and can be a good "break" day mid week for a change of pace from the parks. If you are staying at one of the resorts that has an awesome pool with slides/kids water play area, that would work too and save some $$. Last time we did the water parks, we had one of the giant sundaes that is in a beach pail - that basically blew my four year olds mind and you would think it was too much ice cream for a small family.....but it was not. LOL

Either way, you will have a blast

 

[Bethany Fine]

I would definitely recommend the character breakfast at Hollywood and Vine (featuring Disney Jr characters) at HS for your boys. The food and characters are great. We were celebrating my DD's third birthday when we went, and she loved it! The characters spent lots of time at our table. She got a special cupcake for her birthday. And there were lots of food choices. The bread pudding was my favorite dish!

 

[Misha72683]

Hi everyone,

I'm so happy to have found this forum and am looking forward to getting to know all of you.

I'm in the process (early stages!) of planning our trip. My husband and I have been before, but never our kids. They'll be young (at the times we're thinking of going they would be 4.5 and 2), but I just can't wait any longer to take them..I'm too excited.

With that said, I have a few questions..

1) Which of these dates would you choose to go? I know they all have relatively low crowds and wait times, but is one better than the other?

• Week before Thanksgiving
• First week of December
• Last week of October

2) I can't decide about staying on site vs. off site and I have seriously spent hours comparing the two. With our kids being young, we'll likely go back to the room for 1-2 hours in the afternoon (for naps/to rest) so I was thinking staying on-site would be easier in that regard, but I wasn't sure it was worth the pretty substantial cost difference. We're driving, if that makes a difference.

3) Dining plan - we're "foodies" (according to my husband, lol) but with a 4.5 and a 2 year old, is it worth the dining plan? We plan on being there 7 days.

4) If you have toddler/preschool age boys, what restaurants and attractions did they enjoy the most? I'm trying to make sure I don't miss anything.

5) Water park (probably Blizzard Beach) - worth it or not?

Thank you everyone!

My boys are roughly the same age as yours (they'll be 4 and 2.5 in October), so we're in the same boat.

1. We're going the last week of October, though mostly because our choices were April, August or October and I thought October seemed like the best, plus MNSSHP. In October F&W will be going on, which is great if you're foodies.
2. We're staying on-site. We won't have to pay for parking and we'll be able to go back and relax and chill in the pool. We have the option of taking the bus if we don't want to drive. I think with small kids, on-site is so much easier.
3. We're doing the DDP (or maybe the Deluxe, still trying to decide). For us, it's worth it. We like dessert. We're going during F&W (which I'm super excited about) and I like that I'll be able to use my snack credits there (since the options tend to be a bit more expensive that the typical Disney snack) and we definitely want to do at least one TS meal a day. It also seems to work out well if you have kids and want to do character meals, as they tend to be a bit more expensive and the kids plan is pretty cheap. I think whether it's worth it depends on your individual eating habits and whether you like the convenience of having it pre-paid.

I haven't been to Disney yet, so I can't answer questions 4&5.

 

[hokieinpa]

1) Which of these dates would you choose to go? I know they all have relatively low crowds and wait times, but is one better than the other?

• Week before Thanksgiving
• First week of December
• Last week of October

We went the last week of October. The weather was great and the crowds are very manageable. I have 3 boys (they were 4.5, 2.5, and 1.5 on the trip) and they really enjoyed MNSSHP - the parade, fireworks, trick or treating, etc. But I think it really depends on what you are interested in! If you want the lowest crowds I would say the first week of December is probably your best bet.

2) I can't decide about staying on site vs. off site and I have seriously spent hours comparing the two. With our kids being young, we'll likely go back to the room for 1-2 hours in the afternoon (for naps/to rest) so I was thinking staying on-site would be easier in that regard, but I wasn't sure it was worth the pretty substantial cost difference. We're driving, if that makes a difference.

I would stay on site, 100% if you can afford it. We took breaks at our hotel every day and it was great just getting on a bus. You do have to wait for the bus/monorail/boat but you don't have to hike to your car, drive back to the hotel, then do it all over again plus find parking! Also, parking is $14 (?) a day so factor that into your budget! On site also keeps the Disney magic - we stayed at AOA and loved it!

3) Dining plan - we're "foodies" (according to my husband, lol) but with a 4.5 and a 2 year old, is it worth the dining plan? We plan on being there 7 days.

If you go during the times mentioned, you have a pretty high likelihood of stumbling into Free Dining! But if not, the dining plan is LOTS of food - but you also have to do lots of planning to get your money's worth. We paid out of pocket and find it cheaper than paying for the dining plan.

4) If you have toddler/preschool age boys, what restaurants and attractions did they enjoy the most? I'm trying to make sure I don't miss anything.

As I mentioned above, I have 3 boys under 5! At MK they loved...pretty much everything! But especially Buzz, the People Mover, Pirates, 7DMT, Jungle Cruise, and Peter Pan. At AK, they liked the Safari, playing in the Boneyard, and doing the Wilderness Explorer stations. At Epcot, they loved Soarin (my oldest was tall enough) and the entire Seas pavilion. At Hollywood Studios, Toy Story Midway Mania, Star Tours (again, my oldest was tall enough), Lights Motor Action show, and the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground.

But they also LOVED our time at the resort. We took the morning of MNSSHP off and just played at the pool/playground. And after our AK day, we spent the evening by the pool, ordered a pizza from the food court, and watched the movie by the pool. They had a blast just playing!! Be sure the build in time to relax at the resort!

5) Water park (probably Blizzard Beach) - worth it or not?

We didn't do any water parks. I think we may when they are old enough for all the slides. They enjoyed the resort pool plenty so no need to spend the extra money!

 

[DisneyCAL]

1) I would choose October as November/December can be "iffy" on weather plus you can do MNSSH.
2)Yes off site is less money. But i would still go on-site just for the purpose of naps. Our first trip we did off site and kids would fall asleep in the car and then wake up in transition to rental house and then stay up .
3)Dining Plan always worth it especially with character meals for your kids or signature meals for you and your hubby.
4)Peter Pan, Speedway, and shooting saloon at MK, AK Safari and Rapids and the boneyard, Epcot Test Track. You should try Restaurantsaurus at AK, Chef Mickeys, or Ohana's. Also the boys might like to do the Pirate League.
5)For water Parks save it as a Plan B for a really hot afternoon but typically if you stay on-site the kids will enjoy the hotel pools enough. Depends on how many days you have. I would personally rather spend my days in the regular parks and cool off at the hotel pool than spend a whole day at a water park.

 

[tabistar]

We took our kids for the first time when they were 4.5 (ds) and 2 (dd)!

1) December would be great for the Christmas decorations, but October would be good for Food & Wine. The kids would enjoy Christmas over Food & Wine, though.

2) We stay on-site whether we drive or fly. It's just easier. Make sure to bring/rent a double stroller for the walk to the buses/car and while at your resort! My kids even napped in the stroller a few times, especially when we walked around World Showcase in Epcot, which saved us a trip back to the resort for naps

3) We're foodies, too, and after doing the dining plan twice, we decided we won't do it again unless it's free. It's just not worth it for us. We would end up either throwing food away or eating so much that we were miserable. And, after comparing prices, we really didn't save any money. We'd rather get an appetizer to share instead of a dessert for each of us (yes, it's possible to gain weight at DW!).

4) At that age, my son LOVED Toy Story Mania and Buzz Lightyear's Spin. Chef Mickey's and Tusker House were his favorite restaurants.

5) I'd skip the water parks. Not only because of the unpredictable weather, but at that age, there is only so much they can do. The resort pools will be enough (if you stay on-site, that is).