summer hols 2013 planning

[pda789]

Hi everyone,

i have not planned a Disney holiday before so require some advice please, we are planning to go next year anytime from the 24th July for 21 days hopefully (if budget allows).

i have been looking around trying to price up flights but dates dont seem to be available yet for when we would want to come back, also looking for recommendations for sites for booking flights and hotel Separately as i believe this will be cheaper.

the cheapest hotel at the moment with decent reviews i have found is the Rosen Inn near Wet n Wild, any thoughts about the hotel and location would be most helpful

as i said i am a complete newbie when it comes to planning holidays so all opinions welcome

cheers

 

[wayneg]

Your dates will be available in a few days but best prices are not always available from release, book when you are happy with the price.

Being flexible will help you get better prices, from example if you want direct flights from Manchester you will be looking at around £800pp, there are direct flights available from London for next summer for around £550pp, we have flown numerous times from London due to costs from Manchester.
Look at sites like Kayak, travelsupermarket, skyscanner etc.

Again being flexible will help with getting a good price on a room, personally I don't like Idrive, much prefer LBV area but everyone is different. When you have your flights then post again with dates for help with hotel search. If spending a lot of time in Disney also consider onsite with free dining (hopefully released again soon) with free food & free parking it can be as cheap as offsite although recent prices were not as good as previous offers.

Lots of us with experience so just ask anything you need to know.

 

[queendisney]

are you going to hire a car or use buses/taxi? This will also have a huge impact on where you stay and what you will be mainly doing. If you are thinking I-drive, decent hotel, mainly Disney but not driving, then you should re-think I-drive. Maybe consider a split stay?! Doing a couple of weeks in the Disney area and then moving to I-drive for Universal and Seaworld.. If you have a car then you need to take into the account the cost of parking at Disney if you are not a resort guest! I-drive is great for going out to eat and obviously there is other entertainment in that area but it is a tad far if relying on buses from your resort and you are likely to miss fireworks at Disney because of the return times...

Anyway thats just a little something for you to think about

Ask away...

 

[orangetiggs]

Free disney dining is back for next year next week so might be wrth looking into as well

 

[pda789]

thanks all for your input so far, yes we are planning on buses and the occasional taxi if needs be, that's why i was looking at that end of I-drive.

tbh i didn't think it would be possible to get onsite with free dining, i thought it would be way off pricewise.

we are also planning on purchasing the 14 day Disney ultimate tickets and the flexiticket plus for the theme parks, our little boy will be 4 when we are there so i was wondering is there any of the main theme parks\attractions that would be a waste of time\money for us because hes only 4.

cheers

 

[wayneg]

thanks all for your input so far, yes we are planning on buses and the occasional taxi if needs be, that's why i was looking at that end of I-drive.

tbh i didn't think it would be possible to get onsite with free dining, i thought it would be way off pricewise.

we are also planning on purchasing the 14 day Disney ultimate tickets and the flexiticket plus for the theme parks, our little boy will be 4 when we are there so i was wondering is there any of the main theme parks\attractions that would be a waste of time\money for us because hes only 4.

cheers

Do you just have the 1 child age 4? onsite with free dining is probably not a great option then. If you have 3 adults(2 adults & 1 over 9) or 4 people in the room its easier to get value.
This year we paid £118/nt at Old Key West, add up the cost of an offsite room and food and we get near that price for 3 adults. Next years prices will probably be higher, early availability were £142/nt so quite a jump on this year but wait for prices to be released but being onsite with free dining would be an easier option than Idrive without a car.

Make a list of parks you definitely want to visit, often the Flextickets are an expensive way to go and there are better options for most.
We have just got back with our God daughter again(2nd year) last year she was 3, this year 4, we still haven't taken her to Universal or IOA, more than enough with Disney, Busch & Seaworld at that age IMO.

 

[queendisney]

If your little boy will only be 4, then I would be even more inclined to stay in or near to Disney if you don't have a car. The Lake Buena Vista area maybe. To rely on buses maybe hard going if you want to nip out of the parks for a nap or pool break and then its quick to come back in for the evening. All day in a park is going to be hard going. At least the LBV area hotels have a frequent free bus service that will enable you to do this. I take it you are going to do more Disney then anything else?

 

[pda789]

thanks again, after reading your last bit of advice we had a total rethink and within seconds realised you were so right.

it makes total sense to stay as close as we can to Disney and only commute out for the odd trip, it seems really easy to get carried away with yourself in this planning lark , we are so grateful for your input

we are going to focus on Disney and the waterparks and then see what happens for other stuff

cheers