So overwhelmed....resort help and dining

[Mynamewastaken]

I just booked our airfare... now need hotel and park passes. Is it cheaper/ worth while to go off site or stay in the parks?I just cannot believe how expensive it is!! Of course we (being teachers) have to go over vacation week when prices skyrocket.

I was looking into POR royal rooms but not sure they will be ready by Feb 18th and then pondered on the cheaper resorts. The rooms in most hotels are nice right?

Also, the dining is it worth it? I figure we just eat toast in the morning and lunch and easy dinners. I think 58.00 per person is a lot but then again I have no clue how much oop we would pay for meals on our own. Hopefully someone can help this overwhelmed mommy!!

 

[vicki_c]

It is always cheaper off-site for equivalent or better accommodations, room-wise.

But then you can't buy the dining plan, you really need your own transportation in most cases (99% of the time that would be best), don't get access to Extra Magic Hours, can't use Magical Express from the airport -- although with a rental car you wouldn't need that anyway.

All depends on how important those things are to you and your group.

 

[Mynamewastaken]

I see so if we stay in the park then we get free service from the airport to the hotel?

 

[Mynamewastaken]

I guess it is better to stay in the park with the extra hours and shuttle. Now for hotels, which of the value ones is the most up to date or has the nicest accomodations??

 

[vicki_c]

I see so if we stay in the park then we get free service from the airport to the hotel?

Yes, that is correct. Disney's Magical Express bus service will take you from the Orlando airport to your Disney resort (but not the Swan/Dolphin resorts) and back for free.

Another thought - the Swan and Dolphin have good teacher rates, I think. They are a Sheraton/Westin, so they are not Disney hotels, and you also can't buy the dining plan, can't use Magical Express. But they do get access to the Extra Magic Hours, and they are in walking distance of 2 parks and have Disney bus service to the other parks and Downtown Disney. We just stayed at the Swan and it was pretty nice, although I prefer on-site Disney resorts.

There's a lot to consider. I usually recommend that people figure out their budget first. Then based on that, determine what you could get on-site and what you could get off-site, and move on from there.

 

[Mysteria]

How many adults/children are going?

 

[NH Disneyfan]

If you can provide a little bit of info, you will get a lot of help.

When are you going?
How many days?
How many people?
How old are the kids?
Have you ever been before?
Are you planning 1 park per day, or park hopping?
Are you doing Disney only, or Universal or SeaWorld too?

I have been going to Disney for 12 years now. We always stay onsite for the following reasons:

• 
  The atmosphere - it is completely immersive
  No Driving/Parking - Daily parking at the theme parks adds up.
  Free round trip transport from MCO to Disney Hotels (Magical Express)
  Pools and Recreation
  Fully included resort transportation

I have purchased the dining plan once and will likely never again. I had little kids at the time and just didn't feel like they ate the value of the plan. Do you plan on dining at table service, or are counter service okay? You mentioned toast for b-fast - how will you make/store/buy bread, butter, etc? Would you eat in your room on vacation, or go out?

I have stayed at the All Star Movies resort and it was great. Pop Century is the newest right now until May 2012 when a new resort will open.

I recommend that you go to Disneyworld.com and find "special offers" to see what you can get. I have never paid full price for a disney vacation. The packages can be a ripoff if you don't know what you're doing. I always book a room only reservation and then buy tickets from a reseller, like undercover tourist. My recommendation is to book a room only now and pay the deposit to hold the room. You can always add a package. It will also allow you to watch discounts if there are not currently any for you specific dates.

Hope this helps. If you can answer the questions above I'll try to help more.

 

[twinboysmom]

All star movies just finished with the latest renovation. Essentially, in my opinion, all the values are about the same so pick which ever theming suits your family best. I would also check with the swan/dolphin hotels (swandolphin.com) as they offer great discounts to teachers. You do not get magical express but it isn't that much money to arrange for a mears transfer yourself. It would be more than a value hotel but is much nicer accommodations. As for the dining plan, doesn't sound like you might need it. You need to really look at your eating style and compare to the dining plan. There is no way I would pay for it, particularly as it is for the 2012 year. Look at allears.net for the menus and see if it is a benefit for you. You will need ADRs for your table service restaurants. No dining plan for swan or dolphin butnyoumwould get emh's and use of Disney transportation.

 

[Mynamewastaken]

There are 4 of us going- My husband, myself, our 5y daughter and 2y son. We are going for a week- Feb 18th- 25th. We booked our airfare already. After talking with my husband we are going to stay in the park somewhere. Trying to decide between a moderate resort ( I love the Royal Rooms at POR) or the cheaper resort like pop, all star etc. I guess I would be paying for the decor and that seems kinda of stupid since the majority of the time we will not be in the hotel room. I am just trying to decide which of the moderate resorts are the nicest and which of the cheaper ones is the nicest (meaning most up to date). I am thanking you all in advance for replying to my thread. I am just don;t even know where to begin....

Doing 1 park per day. So I am getting a 6 day base pass....

 

[Mynamewastaken]

Thank you sooo much NH poster!! I think I will book a room and pay onl the deposit. I just have to figure out which one. I think that the dining plan seems expensive and my kids are grazers.... Who has the best price for park passes??

 

[twinboysmom]

Undercover tourist has the cheapest rate for passes. Have you checked the price for the swan or dolphin yet? It will probably run the same as a moderate resort and is more of a deluxe. It is on disney property in the Epcot area.

 

[Mynamewastaken]

can someone send me the direct link to undercover tourist?

 

[tinacaplan]

Personally, I don't think the price difference between a mod and a value is worth it. I would always go mod. With a two year old, you're probably going to be spending more time in your room and at your resort than you realize and while I don't think that you have to be on the monorail loop to have a great time, you might want someplace pleasant to hang out. Lots of people really enjoy the values, though...so what do I know? Its all your perception. But the differences between the resort categories are a lot more than decor! Its often queen beds vs. double beds and more elaborately themed pools.

My husband and I are both teachers, too, and we go over President's Week. Its very busy. We've stayed at Coronado Springs during that time twice and it was wonderful both times. Excellent bus service.

 

[Mynamewastaken]

I will have to look through my pages of notes but the Swan hotel is 1,966.13 for me for that week, which is only slightly less than the pop centry quote I got when I called and the pop centry quote of 2,002.00 or close to that and it included the 6 day base passes

 

[NH Disneyfan]

With your dates, I think you are eligible for the discount, at least for a couple of days. (I guess you now only get discounts on the days offered, then you will pay full price when it isn't. It used to be that when you arrive determined the date).

I just went to disneyworld.com -> Tickets & Packages -> Special Offers and check this out:

Save up to 35% at select Walt Disney World Resort hotels when you book through December 21, 2011 for stays most nights January 2, 2012 to February 20, 2012. Book now, rooms can sell out fast!

So, I would go to this site and see who has availability for your dates under this special offer and book what you can. You need to select the associated link, or it won't price the discount.

I also like room only because you can cancel right up until the trip, where a package has fees when you cancel less than 45 days (?) out (or something like this).

Back to my questions....are you going to park hop or one per day? You can save $$ by doing only 1 per day, but you'll need to be creative to see the night shows, etc. It gets complicated w/out park hopper, but you can still do a lot with little kids. DON'T TRY TO SEE EVERYTHING!!!! Our kids are best early, so we did early magic hours and played it by ear from there. For our first 3 trips with our kids (with ages similar to your's) we NEVER did park hopping and it worked - they were angels each day because we didn't do too much - and we actually felt like it was vacation.

If you google undercover tourist, it will come right up. Their logo/mascot is a frog (I think) so you'll know it is legit.

So, again with the questions. If you will be spending time at the resort (sounds like a 2 yr old might nap???) you will probably want the moderate. There is more square foot, more recreation for mom/dad & 5 yr old to do while the little one sleeps (either day or night), a sit down restaurant, and more pool "things" to offer (slide, etc). The value rooms really are very small. When we stayed there we used one bed for parents, one for clothes, and the kids slept in sleeping bags we brought with us. Very tight fit - for 5 nights - not 7.

 

[NH Disneyfan]

Swan/Dolphin is waaayyyyy nicer and waaaayyyy better location than any value or moderate. Ask for teacher rates, or search the web for discounts.

The grounds are huge, the pool is fantastic, the location and transportation to the parks is great. There's tons of food options.

The only "downer" about swan/dolphin is that they feel very "corporate" because they support major conferences and lots of people. They are not Disney brands but Sheraton/Westin (unless they've been sold recently). They don't feel disney, but there are 3 very amazing Disney hotels within walking distance. These are Yacht Club, Beach Club, Boardwalk. You will LOVE the location. You can walk to EPCOT and Hollywood Studios.....or take a boat.

 

[padawans]

If its your first trip I would get the dining plan. You might want to try some table service restaurants and charachter meals. It think it will make your trip more enjoyable not having to worry about the price of food. After you have been there once or twice you know how much things cost and where you want to eat. I am not for or against the dining plan I just think its nice for first time visitors than you won't be shocked at the price of food. I agree with pp if you can afford swan or dolphin book it. Its in a prime location compared to the mods and values.

 

[Mynamewastaken]

I tried looking under what you suggested and nothing was popping up as available and that is when I called Disney and spoke with someone on the phone., I saw the 20% off thing a few hours ago. Since you have so much experience... when you book the room how do you do it... through Disney.com or a travel agent?? And, I am going to order our tickets through undercover tourist. Thanks for that info.... It is so helpful what you are doing- Thank you

 

[twinboysmom]

I will have to look through my pages of notes but the Swan hotel is 1,966.13 for me for that week, which is only slightly less than the pop centry quote I got when I called and the pop centry quote of 2,002.00 or close to that and it included the 6 day base passes

I got $1808 at the dolphin, it's a bit cheaper. Like I said, will cost you about the same as a moderate. I personally see nothing wrong with the values. We are dvc members and usually stay in a 1 bedroom villa or bigger. When we take more trips than our dvc points, we stay in a value. We just stayed movies for a week in October. I have 2 just turned 2 year olds. We spent plenty of time in the room. There is not that much of a difference in the room size between a moderate and value. We had 2 pack n plays and a large double stroller in the room and did just fine. The pools at the value have activities for children and most kids love the big icons. I personally don't think the price difference is worth it, but that's me.

 

[padawans]

I tried looking under what you suggested and nothing was popping up as available and that is when I called Disney and spoke with someone on the phone., I saw the 20% off thing a few hours ago. Since you have so much experience... when you book the room how do you do it... through Disney.com or a travel agent?? And, I am going to order our tickets through undercover tourist. Thanks for that info.... It is so helpful what you are doing- Thank you

I would book through disney. It easier to make changes, and you control your reservation not someone else.