Please help a lost newbie European!

[DisneyDutchPrincess]

Greetings from Holland!

We are staying offsite (Caribe Royal) and will be in WDW from Dec. 22 to Jan. 2. This is our first time and we are clueless. We have been to Disneyland California and Paris but Disneyworld seems so much more complicated!

My main question is, can we purchase the food card if we are not staying in one of the Official Hotels? Our hotel is a "good neighbour" hotel. There will be 6 of us, with three very big and hungry 20 somthing guys. What do you suggest that we do?

I would value any of your comments!

 

[DisneyDutchPrincess]

Any tips that I should know for Christmas and New Years? When will the opening times for December and January be available?

 

[Aliceacc]

Hi and welcome.

As I understand it, the dining plan is open only to those staying on site.

sorry I can't be of more help; this is my first trip in 19 years.

 

[Samsma]

Hi! Welcome to the Dis! You can't buy the dining ahead of time if you are not staying onsite, but if one of you got an annual pass you could get a Disney Dining Experience card. This would give you a 20% discount on the sit down meals, but not counter service. I don't think an Annual Pass would cost much more than a 10 day pass if that is what you all are buying.

Christmas is very crowded of course. You might do well to also purchase a trip planning program like Tour Guide Mike. He has an advertisement at the top of the Theme Parks page on this site. I have found it very helpful when planning any WDW trip - and I've never been during Christmas. You won't be able to take advantage of extra magic hours since you aren't staying on site. Have you looked into a value resort vs Caribe Royal? I'm sure it is very nice, but staying onsite is so much better!

Check out this website for deals and Annual Pass comparisons

www.mousesavers.com

Have fun planning!

 

[superbird]

Your bigger problem will be the parks will be PACKED! If you stay offsite you will not be quaranteed to get into the parks where staying onsite will. Every restaurant goes up in price for that time frame so you better book early

 

[DisneyDutchPrincess]

They can denie you access to the parks? How cruel! Out of curiousity, do the hotels in DowtownDisney count?

 

[IWISHFORDISNEY]

My suggestion is to stay onsite. You will need the extra magic hours at that time of year. That would also qualify you for the dining plan. Also it will give you a 10 day head start on dining reservations that offsite people dont get. Traveling from overseas might be easier if you are staying on Disney property. Just my opinion of course.

 

[Luv2Roam]

If the parks are at capacity, some guests can be denied entrance. Keep in mind this is not the norm. But right at the holidays the parks are packed. On-site guests are guaranteed entrance into a park. Maybe not the park of their choice on a jammed day, but they are guaranteed entrance into an open park.
Agree an Annual Pass may be your best bet. AP-ers are not as high as on-site resort guests. But they are up there when the parks start reaching capacity.
And as mentioned, you can buy the DDE discount card.
But to your original question, currently off site guests cannot purchase DDP.
DDP is part of a WDTC package that includes a room and tickets. (Although there are some ticketless packages for AP-ers now.)
You will need to check with Caribe Royal to see what perks they offer.

 

[Luv2Roam]

And for the DDE -- only one adult needs to have an Annual Pass to purchase the DDE. It has to be an adult since adult beverages are also part of the 20% discount.
The only downside is at each sit down meal you use a DDE, each individuals meal will be on one ticket. They will not separate meals onto multiple tickets. But that may not be an issue for you anyway.

 

[FirstNo]

Greetings from Holland!

We are staying offsite (Caribe Royal) and will be in WDW from Dec. 22 to Jan. 2. This is our first time and we are clueless. We have been to Disneyland California and Paris but Disneyworld seems so much more complicated!

My main question is, can we purchase the food card if we are not staying in one of the Official Hotels? Our hotel is a "good neighbour" hotel. There will be 6 of us, with three very big and hungry 20 somthing guys. What do you suggest that we do?

I would value any of your comments!

You have my sympathies. IMO, You couldn't have picked a worst time for a first visit. The parks and hotels are gorgeous with their decorations and events, however it is THE busiest time of the year for WDW. Parks can, and will, shut down; meaning they close down in increments and the first set of people they close down to are "day guests". A day guest is someone who is not a guest residing on the WDW property, which you are not. Waits for rides/attractions will exceed 60 min. You are not eligible for early entry nor extended hours to help make up time in getting things done. Not my idea of fun. I live here. I'm 15 min off the property line and you couldn't pay me to set foot in DW during that time, but that's me.

You are not eligible for the dining plan as you are not a Disney guest. While another poster suggested the dining card, I wouldn't recommend it (you do not need to be a passholder to purchase one....any one can purchase it). They changed it at the beginning of the year and that whopping 20% discount has been cut down to 2% since they now mandate an 18% gratuity charge on the bill if you use the card.

Any chance you can change your dates? Come in on Jan 2 for 11nts? or, come in on Dec 11 for 11nts? I think you'll have a better time. The decorations usually stay up through the first weekend of Jan. The crowds will have died down and you can probably find a good rate staying ON the property. Caribe Royale isn't in a bad location. You're less than 5 min from the property line, but that time of the year, you don't want to stay off site due to the crowding.

Disneyworld is more complicated than Disneyland or Disneyland-Paris because it has so much more to offer. I enjoyed both of those parks too, but they can't compare to WDW. With internet access, I wouldn't waste money purchasing a book or tapes (DVDs). This site has much to offer. I also recommend mousesavers.com and especially wdwig.com to help with your planning. Ik hoop u een grote tijd, geen kwestie hebt welke tijd van jaar te bezoeken u beslist (I hope you have a great time, no matter what time of year you decide to visit).

 

[MomLC]

I have to agree w/everyone who states you should inquire about staying on the WDW grounds. Staying on the grounds will allow you the extra magic hours (access to the parks of the day w/entrance 1hour before scheduled opening time or 2 hours of park time after the scheduled closing time) But for this you need a WDW resort room key to obtain these privileges. Have you considered staying at a WDW resort?

 

[Luv2Roam]

I was not aware anyone could purchase the DDE. But I am not real up on that as we are FL residents and DH has a PAP.

In case the OP is interested in the DDE, here is some additional info to consider that is from the Dis: (There are block out days that would impact your group if you chose to go the DDE route.)

"The Disney Dining Experience offers Florida Residents and Annual Passholders 20% off of all food and beverage purchases at the participating Disney Dining plan restaurants. It is a membership program with annual fees.

The price is $60 for an Annual Passholder, $25 for a second card. For a Florida Resident who is not an Annual/Seasonal Passholder, the cost is $85.

The Disney Dining Discount is not available on holidays including New Year’s Eve, Year Year’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Certain restrictions may be applicable. Participation is subject to change. To view Disney World Restaurant menus click here."

 

[Goofy22]

Greetings from Holland!

We are staying offsite (Caribe Royal) and will be in WDW from Dec. 22 to Jan. 2. This is our first time and we are clueless. We have been to Disneyland California and Paris but Disneyworld seems so much more complicated!

My main question is, can we purchase the food card if we are not staying in one of the Official Hotels? Our hotel is a "good neighbour" hotel. There will be 6 of us, with three very big and hungry 20 somthing guys. What do you suggest that we do?

I would value any of your comments!

OK! I too would have to agree with looking into staying on site! You could do 2 value rooms and could request connecting rooms which would give you a door in the middle that connected both rooms or you could request adjoining rooms which would be side by side although these are requests not gauranteed most requests are granted. Also look at the All Star music Family Suites they sleep 6 and have a mini kitchenette they have 2 bathrooms and tv they have a I think Queen or DBL ( I can't quite remember the size) in the one room and in the living room area they have a coach that pulls out to a bed and 2 chairs that pull out to bed it's pretty neat only thing is most beds are pull out but if you have a bunch of 20 somethings it should work then you would qualify to purchase the disney dining plan and solve you're big eaters problem you could do all you can eat buffets as oopose to sit downs. I have stayed offsite and would not go back to that AFTER actually staying ONSITE . It's the whole atmosphere that makes the trip i would goto www.disney.com and play around with a few choices and see what you can come up with. Goto the main resort thread there is a thread there about All Star Music (ASMU) Family Suites etc... lots of info even 2 rooms that have 2 dbls would or should work for you and it maybe cheap enough to do. Hope this helps.Unless your really set on staying at the Caribe Royal.

 

[DisneyDutchPrincess]

Thank You! Dank U!

What a fantastic site this is that so many of you are so well informed and are so generous with your time and knowledge to help me! I have always believed that people who love Disney are great! Thank you so much!

We have, unfortunately, booked our flights but not our hotel. I am honestly freaking out about this now!!! Ahhhh... I should have joined this site BEFORE I paid for the flight!

I will have to look into Hotels in more depth now. It just seemed that the cheapest Disney hotel would be 900 dollars more expensive per room than the Caribe Royal which is a 5 star. I thought I was getting better value! I suppose not?!

When we looked at staying at the Contemperary Hotel it was 7,000 per room for 12 nights. It makes me sick...how are average income families suppost to afford the Disney Expereince?

As each plane ticket from Amsterdam to Orlando cost almost 1500 US dollars, I was hoping to save some money. What I am hearing from all of you is to splurge and stay in the park to get the best bennifits! I appreciate all of your suggestions and have really taken them to heart!

 

[superbird]

Thank You! Dank U!

What a fantastic site this is that so many of you are so well informed and are so generous with your time and knowledge to help me! I have always believed that people who love Disney are great! Thank you so much!

We have, unfortunately, booked our flights but not our hotel. I am honestly freaking out about this now!!! Ahhhh... I should have joined this site BEFORE I paid for the flight!

I will have to look into Hotels in more depth now. It just seemed that the cheapest Disney hotel would be 900 dollars more expensive per room than the Caribe Royal which is a 5 star. I thought I was getting better value! I suppose not?!

When we looked at staying at the Contemperary Hotel it was 7,000 per room for 12 nights. It makes me sick...how are average income families suppost to afford the Disney Expereince?

As each plane ticket from Amsterdam to Orlando cost almost 1500 US dollars, I was hoping to save some money. What I am hearing from all of you is to splurge and stay in the park to get the best bennifits! I appreciate all of your suggestions and have really taken them to heart!

7k per room is top of the line. shop around 5 star hotels are great if you will stay in the hotel. If your going to Disney you will NOT be staying in your room much at all. Try Wilderness lodge, the moderates or value resorts will definitely be cheaper and might even be cheaper than the off site

 

[vbarry]

My advice...stay onsite. Call WDW reservations and price the different resorts. You could get 2 hotel rooms at a value or moderate resort. You can also price the 2 bedroom villas. Old Key West and Saratoga Springs would probably be a little cheaper than Beach Club, Boardwalk or Wilderness Lodge Villas. They say Wilderness Lodge is a beautiful at Christmas time.

In the villas you would have a washer and dryer and full kitchen.

Try www.allears.net. They have a lot of pictures and it shows the holiday pricing.

Hope you have a great time!

 

[DisneyDutchPrincess]

I find the WDW website really embaressing for Disney. It seems to have so many glitches and I am not even able to check hotel prices any more because it will only allow me to check in on January 2009 as the first available date.

I can not even LOG In or search how much an annual pass is because the site either glitches or somes up a blank purple page.

Anyone else having this problem?

 

[Luv2Roam]

If you plan on spending alot of time at the parks, and want to stay on-site, stay in a value or moderate. The room and resort time you want, stay at least in moderate to a deluxe.
You really do not need to stay in a WDW deluxe resort to have a great WDW vacation.
Yes, the monorail resorts are great! But you can have a great WDW vacation in a value resort too.
The off site resorts offr a good value and different options. However on-site guests do have better perks. And around holiday time that may be an edge you need. Again, it just depends on your needs and wants.
Staying off site is fine. It just may take extra planning and time during your stay.

 

[Luv2Roam]

2009 packages will not be available until mid 2008, on-line or not.
Guests can now book a room for 2009 at a non-guaranteed rate.

 

[Luv2Roam]

On the Disney website:

"Enjoy 365 days of magic. Annual passholders can come and go as they please through all four Theme Parks for an entire year.* Even hop around from Park to Park on the same day, or choose to do even more with a Premium Annual Pass."

Current prices for non-FL residents:

Ages 10+ = $448.00
Ages 3 - 9 = $395.00