Sticking my toe in the water here....

[pashari]

..I'm new to the DISboards and have spent the last few days reading all your posts. The amount of information here and on the disney website is truly overwhelming.

Just last week, DH & I decided to take the plunge and take the family to WDW this May. Travel dates are planned for 05-06-07 to 05-13-07. Our kids are Elena (who will have just turned 4 y/o) and Anika (who will be 8 months old.

While I have tons of questions regarding the parks and attractions, we would like to "book" the trip in the next few days so I need some quick advice/comments on just the basics.

We're thinking of the following (and I'd love your thoughts/comments):

Lodging - We are leaning towards the Fort Wilderness Cabins. In fact, we're about 99% sure unless someone here can come up with a reason not too. We would like to stay at an on-site resort.

I like the cabins because there is a separate bedroom area where the kids can sleep while we're not stuck tip-toeing around with the lights off/tv off or stuck going to bed at 8 pm.

I also like the idea of a full kitchen where we can have breakfast (cereal or oatmeal), pack sandwiches to take to the park for lunch, then whip up some mac'n'cheese or hotdogs/hamburgers on the BBQ grill for dinner - all very relaxed. The idea of dragging a toddler and a baby out to eat for three meals a day is just depressing.

Our plan is to spend about 1/2 day at a "park" then spending the rest of the day relaxing and hanging out at our cabin (or staying at the cabins then heading out to the park mid-afternoon if there is an evening attraction). We just want a realxing, laid-back, no rush, no stress vacation that everyone will enjoy.

Where to book it? I rated a package plan thru the WDW site and it came back around $3,900. This was at the cabins and included park tickets, airfare, and mini-van rental. The park tickets had the park-hopper option. We are pretty set on the car rental also as we will probably take a day to go see the ocean and probably drive to the parks. From what I understand the bus system at ft wilderness can sometimes be a hassel and since I'd like to take our bulky stroller for the 8 month old it may be a pain to haul it on and off the busses. Is this a decent price? Can we find it considerably cheaper elsewhere? Would it be better to use a travel agent?

Also, I read on a post that if I call the Walt Disney people to book vs. booking on-line it costs more. Is this true?

Booking meals/dinners isn't much of a concern as we plan to eat mostly at the cabin. However, my DD#1 (Elena) is a princess fan (what 4 y/o isn't?) and I'd like to book a character meal plan for her. My (very) quick research tells me that the Cinderella breakfast or luch would be the best and allow Elena to meet the most number of princesses. Is this correct?

I also thought I came across a "tea party" at one of the hotels (the Grand Floridian, I think) that has princesses. Is this correct? Would it be fun for a 4 y/o princess fan?

I guess I need to know - what do I need to know and how fast do I need to go about getting my DD to meet as many princesses as possible.

Any additional info would be appreciated. Once we get things booked I'm sure I'll have more questions once I start planning an informal, very casual itinerary.

hugs -

lisa

 

[Poconos to Disney]

I've read good things about Fort Wilderness! I've been to POP, Music and AKL! All one trip!

I went with a 4 yo, we would go to the parks as early as we could. Then come back to the room for my DS to take a nap around 1ish. Didn't get to see much of the parks, so we hit some stuff that we really wanted to see. Then we went back to the parks for dinner and night shows!!

When we booked our packages the dining plan was not an option. So we paid everything out of pocket!! Kinda expensive!! But if you plan to not eat in the parks, you might be better off w/o the dining plan. We made the mistake of NOT making res for dinners!!!!! We tried to make some Res the week before. Most everyone was booked. We got times of like 8pm. So we flew by the seat of our pants and got to rest. early and waited. So book the character dinners now if you can, I believe its 180 days before you book.

What ever you book we be magical!!!!!!!!! So when the planning is done and you have arrived, sit back, relax and enjoy!!!!! And remember, you will more than likely go back again and again and again!!!

 

[eliza61]

Welcome Pashari,
When we first began visiting Disney we stayed at the cabins. We loved them! My sons were 9 & 6 at the time. Transportation is a little trickey at Ft. Wilderness though. You catch the park transportation at the Settlement trading post and then catch an internal bus to your specific loop. This aggravates some folks, if you can request a loop near the Settlement trading post and then you can walk.
Check AAA to see if they have any discounts for the cabins. One year we saved over $700 bucks. That was enough for us to join AAA and rent a compact car for the week.
You didn't say what time of the year you were going but here are our reasons for the love affair with the cabins.

1. SPACE!. Having an extra bedroom for the kids was great and the living room/kitchen area was large enough for everyone to move around comfortable. Even though we did not cook a lot, the refrigerator was a godsend. We stored bottle water, juices and pop. We froze the water and juice for the kids and had a nice cool drink all day through the park.

2. Surroundings. We loved the peace and quiet of Ft. Wilderness, after a hetic day at the parks, it was great. My sons loved the lizards (very small, not enough to scare mom) and wild life. Since you are in a individual cabin, you never feel crowded like you some times do at the All stars, especially in the high seasons.

3. Lots to do. close to the magic kingdom and you have the electrical water parade at night. You also have biking, the petting zoo and lots of things for the kids to do.

Have a magically time, let me know if there are any specifics you want to know.

Eliza

 

[gcrw11]

The cabins are our favorite to stay at. We go to Disney World about 6 times a year. We don't stay at the cabins as much as I'd like but it's because the value resorts are so much cheaper and since we go so often, it makes more sence to us to go cheaper. But if this was my first trip with the kids, the cabins would be my choice. Every night that have a campfire with chip and dale and then 2 disney movies on a big drive-in theatre screen and you roast marshmallows and watch disney movies. You could stay at the campground your entire vacation, never going to the parks and find new things to do every day. I love it there.
As for the buses, yes you take 2 buses, one from the settlement or outpost and then one to your "loop", but it's usually not a long wait and you're at Disney, you're on vacation, what's the rush?
If you don't want to wait for the "loop" bus, rent a golf cart for the time you're there and it can be parked by the settlement or outpost, so the only bus you wait for is the one to get you back to the campground. My kids love the golf cart, somedays we just stayed there and rode around the campground all day doing activities there.
My boys are 15 and 8 so we've never done the princess stuff, I'm out numbered but I've heard it's a must see so book that now.
Also in the cabins you still get maid service, which I love. So it's camping with a maid, now that's my idea of camping.
The atmosphere there is so different than the resorts. You will love it. And it is so quiet at night, you won't be awakened by noisy people next to you at 6am.
Have a great disney trip.
Maybe I'll see you there.

 

[byoung]

Welcome to the DIS!!! Stayed at the cabins once and love it there.

 

[GoofyBaby]

 

[toy]

As far as the princess thing. I can't stress enough to MAKE RESERVATIONS. I called 178 days in advance and I couldn't get the castle on the day I wanted. I was 2 days late. You are running a little tight on time but call, call, call. It is not impossible. Because you are planning a relaxing vacation this allows you to be more flexible. We were able to get lunch with cinderella in the castle. We were also able to get dinner at 1900 Park Fare (Grand Floridian). It should have Cinderella, Fairy godmother, and one of the mice from Cindrella. You should try to meet most of your princesses at the park for signatures. This is our first year where the girls actually care about the princesses. They are 4 & 6. My oldest is in love with the head mouse. I hope this helps. Maybe someone else has suggestions on other ways to meet princesses.

 

[TENIA66]

our first trip with our four year old daughter was our most magical!!!! she loved everything!!! i'm tearing up just remembering her reaction to Minnie, the castle, leaving disney world, wonderful stuff....

you know about the extra early magic hours? i would recommend getting out early and going to the attractions and characters with your girls. head back to the room for lunch and a nap and maybe a swim in the pool....

don't miss wishes, the nighttime firework show at magic kingdom or fantasmic, a beautiful show hosted by micky at mgm....

if space isnt an issue, the all stars are affordable and perfect for kids the pools are wonderful.....

or port orleans french quarter is better, jazzy with great kids pools

or port orleans riverside is very quiet and relaxing......


best wishes to you!!

 

[Indy's Girl]

I haven't heard much about the cabins, but have heard a lot of buzz about the all star family suites which have seperate bedroom and a kitchen. Not sure how comparable in price it is to the cabins, but it might be worth checking out if you want the extra space. As far as princesses go, you might have a hard time getting ressies to eat in the castle, but keep calling back everyday as someone may cancel. There is the option of 1900 park fare which as a pp said has Cinderella characters and also Akershus Storybook Princess meals which I have heard has at least 4 or 5 princesses always so this might be a great one to do instead of the castle. I think the "tea party" you have heard about is one where you pay some amount (which I can't remember at the moment, but it seemed high to me I think?? ) for your daughter to go to a tea party (choc. milk/apple juice) with Alice and Wonderland cahracters, but be aware that she will go alone. Parents are not allowed to accompany their children to this so decide if your daughter would be okay with this. There is also the daily tea at the GF where anyone can go and order tea (no characters) etc. and they have a kids tea that is choc. milk/juice that you can get but this might not be as fun for a four year old?

You will have a fantastic trip, no matter what!

 

[MinnieGal]

to the boards.

 

[Desnik]

Hi and welcome to the boards!
Personally the Cabins are a bit rustic fo me. But if you like the look, go for it! I have heard good things about them on these boards. Personally I would also look into the family suites at ASMu. Here's a link:
http://allearsnet.com/acc/g_asuites.htm
I would also look into booking it all seperate, no package. You could probably get it cheaper that way. Do you need park passes for everyday? Do you really need the hopper option? Those are things you should look into because you can save money there too. Sometimes the plan includes things you don't need or won't use, like water park access. You can find really inexpensive car rentals by doing alittle research. cheaper than booking through Disney. Check over on the transportation board, there's a ton of info on car rentals. Also, remember if you rent a car you will have to bring 2 carseats with you or rent them. IMO you really don't need a rental car. You can take DME(Disney's magical express)transportation from the airport to the resort roundtrip for free. Then use WDW transportation. Plenty of us parents bring our strollers to WDW and bring them on the buses with no problems at all.

You do know that the ocean is about an hour or more away from WDW, so if you plan on going to the ocean, you need to plan a day just for that. Maybe rent a car for just a day to do that? I know there is a car rental place on WDW property.

I get what you mean about not wanting to do 3 meals a day with the kids. We always do breakfast in the room. You can also ship a package to the resort with all your snacks, breakfast items, juice boxes, bottled water, etc. We do this all the time and it works out well. You can get milk at the stores in the resorts for cereal, or coffee. If your DD is a princess fan then you need to try and book those character meals NOW!! I cannot stress enough how hard it is to get these ressies, especially at a popular time of year. You can try the princess character meals in the castle, or try the Epcot one. Here's a link with more info on them:
http://allearsnet.com/din/cb.htm

Personally I just think if you stay at ASMu you'll have quick, easy food options right there with a fun, over the top theme. Do you really want to be cooking on vacation, everyday twice a day?

Here's the info on the Tea at the GF:
http://allearsnet.com/din/girlstea.htm

They also have a time where you could just have tea at the cafe, nothing special going on. There also is Tea with Alice in Wonderland, cooking class, and pirate adventure at the GF. Here's the info on all that:
http://allearsnet.com/pl/grandadven.htm

Also for airfare, go to the airline websites, or Expedia, sites like those. You can get good deals you just have to look for them. I'm certain you can do the resort, tickets, car rental(if you choose to) and airfare cheaper than $3900.

Have fun planning and if you have any questions I would love to help!

 

[DizneyNutz]

Just wondering? If you are only planning to tour a park for half a day then spend the other half outside the parks, then what is your reasoning for purchasing the park hopper option You can certainly spend a half day at any park easily. I feel this option would be a waste of your money used in this manner. Hope you have a wonderful trip

 

[UrsulasShadow]

Sounds like you got a fair quote on the price. If you have AAA, sometimes you can get a deal on room-only and vehicle rental, and sometimes you can get a good airfare by shopping around, but it takes time and energy to research it, and I'm not convinced you'd get that much better a price.

Unless you plan on going to different parks at night than in the morning, you might skip the hopper. Save yourself about $117. If you find you really, really need to hop, you can add it onto your package later...same price.

I loved FW cabins when I went there several years ago. I think it's smart to have a vehicle when there, esp. with small children. I had no probs with the transportation, but my children were a little older, and could handle trips on buses with transfers.

 

[tadamom]

Hello and Welcome!

 

[pashari]

The park hopper option is free with the package we are getting.

Thanks for all your help everyone.

hugs -

lisa