Take the Plunge - Just Move There!!

[David R]

I actually had a very, very good job interview in Orlando very recently and I'm hoping that I get the actual job offer soon.

Having said that, I'm making a career move. I didn't apply because it's in Orlando, I applied because of the quality of the job and the pay. The fact that WDW is there is definitely a plus though.

 

[goofie4goofy]

Count me in as another who would never want to actually live in Orlando. As much as I love my yearly Disney trip, I love my summer's here in the Great Lakes. Disney is my escape from reality, and I want to keep it that way - I don't want it mixed with my regular life of work, responsibilities, etc.

I've told my wife that what I'd really like to do is spend our winter's in Florida when we retire. We would rent a place on the coast for a couple of months, and then a month at WDW. Of course, I can't even imagine what a month would cost by then. Guess I'll need to keep working a bit longer to make that one a reality - as well my inform my kids where their inheritance will be going

Exactly!

We love the change of seasons here. It is a very short drive to beautiful beaches, 30 minutes from NYC by train, perfectly located for just about everything. It is very expensive to live here but what place isn't these days?? We are also very lucky weather wise, the sea breezes keep lots of the bad weather away. The snow does stink...but it's also fun too. One of my favorite times of year is on the way..Autumn. Nothing like a stroll thru the leaves on a crispy autumn day, going to the north fork for wine tasting and pumpkin picking, roasted corn and lunch at the Modern Diner. Anyone from LI know what I mean Going to the beach in the winter is beautiful...first a long walk on the beach then off to a lobster lunch - my kind of Sunday! I am too much of Long Islander...I could not leave...maybe for a weeks in the winter but that's it.

We love love love our WDW vacations. We have been too many times to count each one is unique and better than the last. Also WDW is just a short flight away. There have been many times we have decided to go to WDW on 2 days notice

 

[Otimon]

If anyone is interested, would be glad to share our experiences. We moved here from the Chicago area 8 years ago and we all now work for Disney.

 

[HeatherPage]

Otimon...do tell

 

[kaabost]

I have always thought that the ideal situation for me would be to live in some place like Jacksonville or some place with similar proximity to WDW. In this situation, we could visit WDW often but not all the time. We could limit our trips to WDW to weekend trips and/or vacations. That way, we could actually justify staying onsite and keep the magical experience alive......just have it more frequently. We could still stay immersed in the Disney experience and go swimming in the resort pool after a day at WDW. Unfortunately, DH, isn't interested in this plan. Wah.

 

[Lorelai]

Hey Goofie4Goofy -

How about trying to get a job with the Florida Department of Tourism?? C'mon get cracking.... We need you to talk up this "Living in a theme park area stinks" idea. Make a little more elbow room for the Disney obsessed.

Life is what you make of it. Wherever you live.

 

[PatriciaH]

I'm sure you'll get different answers on this. But I would never advise someone to actually move down here because they love Disney. We moved to Orlando last year, but for the weather and the housing market more than anything else. Yes, it appealed to us that there is a lot to do in the area, including several theme parks. The housing market has really taken off down here and so it's no longer as cheap to live here as it used to be. And unless you have a job waiting for you, high paying jobs aren't necessarily easy to find.

I would have to agree with dvcgirl on all of her points. We moved to Orlando last year because housing was much cheaper than MA and for the wonderful weather. We were done with snow and ice Being right near WDW was a great bonus. I also wanted to work at WDW.

Now housing is throught the roof-as much as MA. Everything else is the same or more as up North (food, electric, gas, cable, etc.) I would have a good job lined up first or your own business. Good jobs at WDW (salaried) are very hard to come by. Good paying jobs in general are hard to come by here.

We love it. The weather is awesome and we lucked out on a beautiful condo in Celebration. We go to the parks several times a week and it is still magical. I love being able to go to every event we want to . MNSSHP, Food and Wine, CP, Halloween Horror Nights, MVMCP!!!

 

[FanOfStitch]

One look at my location can tell you where this post is going. I would love to live in Florida and work for Disney. I have been thinking about it for quite some time now. I don't think it would kill the magic for me and quite frankly, with how much I go down there, it would probably be cheaper to move. I am a DVC member so I would still be able to immerse myself by just making weekend trips. I am a self admitted Disney nut and could go there 5 times a week and still get tears in my eyes while watching the fireworks, seeing the Castle, holding hands with Mickey. Guess I'll always be a 10 year old at heart.

 

[TDC Nala]

I would like to move there (wouldn't do it without a job already lined up, which probably means I won't be going until I can retire from the job I have in 19 years) but I really seriously doubt I would work at WDW. I'd rather play there, not work there.

I go to Florida pretty much whenever I want to anyway.

 

[travelbug]

I actually had a very, very good job interview in Orlando very recently and I'm hoping that I get the actual job offer soon.

Having said that, I'm making a career move. I didn't apply because it's in Orlando, I applied because of the quality of the job and the pay. The fact that WDW is there is definitely a plus though.

Just wanted to wish you the best of luck. I hope the job comes through for you!

Interesting thread!

 

[newchic99]

DH and I have considered moving to FL. We have friends in Winter Haven . The company that DH works for has locations in FL that he could easily be transfered to.There is nothing to really hold us here. If something should happen to my job, we are so there.
The only thing that concerns me is the summer heat. Of course, there is always air conditioning.

 

[georgina]

I could see possibly spending a few months in the winter in Florida, but I would never want to live there year round. I can't see myself ever leaving the OH/PA vicinity permanently. I like the 4 seasons (even the snow for a while) and I suspect all the warm places peolpe are flocking to are going to run out of drinking water someday.

 

[DOOM1001]

I live in South florida and make trips to central Florida theme parks every two to three weeks. If I lived in Orlando I would probably be at the parks 2-3 days a week without ever getting tired or losing the magic. Might seem obssesive to some, perfect for me. I do plan to move to Orlando sometime in the future to escape Miami. South Beach is really nice on tv and all but living here isn't as nice.If you've heard traffic in Orlando is bad try South florida's expressways at rush hour, basically 6-10 am and 3 -8 pm. Housing prices in Miami are basically already out of hand, even though Orlando is catching up quickly.

To move to Orlando I suggest to throw out the idea of working at a theme park, except if its a good job making big bucks cause dealing with huge amounts of people in a place that's open 365 days a year, working crazy hours during holidays for low pay isn't very fun.Although there are exceptions, I myself think that disney bus drivers have a pretty cool gig .Don't forget that summers in florida aren't very fun, unless you like sweating, rain, humidity and long waits at the parks. This is the time of year I go least to the florida parks, but I'll schedule some trips to parks up north like Cedar Point in Ohio or Busch Gardens in Virginia. If money wasn't an option I would have a house in Orlando for october through April and another one up north for may through september.

 

[Muffy]

We bought a home in Celebration just 2 months ago. It is still being built but should be ready by April. We can't wait to set up this second home in central FL. Retirement is at least 10 years away for my DH. We will use it as a vacation home until retirement. We both love central FL and know we will be happy there.

 

[tink2dw]

I live way to far away from WDW!! It costs a fortune just for airfare. I want to move to a hub city close enough to WDW to get $100. rt airfare so I can afford the rest of the trip!!

So what hub city has the best fares to wdw??

 

[ricktib]

I live way to far away from WDW!! It costs a fortune just for airfare. I want to move to a hub city close enough to WDW to get $100. rt airfare so I can afford the rest of the trip!!

So what hub city has the best fares to wdw??

I think if you'd move to any city with cheap airfare to Orlando, that you ought to just move to Orlando, or some where driveable. Airfares go up and down like gasoline, and they're back on the upswing now.

Working for an airline, I fly for free, but it's much more enjoyable for us to take the six-hour drive down there, and it really takes about the same amount of time as from leaving for the airport to arriving at WDW.

But back to the OP's question, if for whatever reason we can't live here in the Charleston, SC area, we'll be coming to central FL.

 

[WeLoveThePoly]

DH & I always joke about moving to Orlando and getting jobs at WDW. But we'd never do that since, personally, we believe the magic would fizzle away.

We even say we don't want to live so close to WDW that we can go there anytime - it's so special because we feel it's a hard to reach treat. I know, that sounds crazy. But I do wish that we lived 8 hours or less away (we live 16 hours away) so we could at least drive down in 1 day!

Debbie

 

[Nancyg56]

2 years ago I was visiting my niece and nephew who live in Orlando. They introduce me their friend who would spend the day with us in MGM. SHe did exactly what the OP dreams about. Both she and her husband moved to Orlando in order to wor=k at WDW. Both still work there, maybe 10 years later (can't remember the year that they moved) and now their son is employed by WDW. All are happy with the decision that they made.

 

[mco-missy]

Hi- I live about 30 miles from Disney. We moved here when I was two (October 1971- the same month Disney opened). I have always been able to go to Disney- especially in the old days when it was free to get into the park. I am still a Disney fan! We have annual passes but I do have to admit that life gets in the way and we usually only go about once every 3-4 months.

I do think that we get spoiled living here. I used to take my nieces but when they were about 8 & 10 years old they decided they didn't want to go to Disney because "it was too much work!" They were so used to going that the thought of catching the tram, riding the monorail, and waiting in a few lines was not worth the effort to ride the rides. And that is with going only in the slow season.

Supprisingly, my Dh, DD and I go about once every three months and stay on-site. We really like to be "immersed" in Disney. It does lose some of it's magic to us when we have to go for the day and then drive home.

I have to agree that if you are moving here you must look at the jobs available- I really want to work at Disney and quit my job (at Orlando Int'l Airport) but I would be taking a MAJOR, MAJOR pay cut. Also the cost of housing has gone crazy in the past year. And unfortunately the crime has increased also.

We are actually looking at moving away from Orlando due to the above reasons. So, if anyone is interested in buying a house 30 minutes from Disney, let me know.

 

[liamsaunt]

I love Disney, but I would never move there. I could not take the heat and humidity in the summer, air conditioning or not. And don't get me started on all the Florida bugs! I love to visit the parks, but would not want to work there at all. I really appreciate the effort that all the Disney employees go to in making a magical experience for their guests. I like to be on the receiving end of that magic!

That said, I have quite a few relatives that moved from Connecticut to Orlando specifically to be close to Disney, and they all love it. However, some of them are retired, one is a teacher, and the other has their own business. I think those facts made the economics of their move easier.