Rough overview of our plans so far:
- Fly from South Australia to Orlando
- April or May 2018 (dictated by work commitments)
- Stay on property at WDW for 10 days - 2 weeks (too long, too short? Advice needed please)
- Staying at one of the least expensive value resorts (ie. All Star Sports or Movies)
- Want to do all the Disney parks, both water parks, maybe Universal. Not interested in Sea World or outlet shopping
Questions:
- Tickets - What did you do? 10 day passes? Annual passes?
- Any tips on saving on accommodation or tickets? Worth speaking to travel local travel agents or should we just book online?
- Any other advice for saving $$?
I'm going to apologise now, because re-reading what I have written, I have probably given you far more options to think about than actually helping you out! So sorry about that! But please feel free to ask more questions where you need to. For us, we are DVC members and go to WDW generally every year. We usually get an annual pass, and try to be clever about how we use it, so we can get two years worth of trips out of it, i.e Go October the first year, and September the second year. Having DVC and AP, we are able to buy Tables in Wonderland to help with food costs. We generally go for 21-24 days because of the travelling, but these days we normally throw in a 4night cruise in the middle, so time at WDW is reduced a little. We do MK, AK, HS, EP, BB and TL, but very rarely go to the other parks (Universal, SeaWorld). We do, however, like a trip, or two, to the Florida Mall and Belz (or whatever its called these days), and freedom on site, so usually have a car. Now for some tips...
Flights: If you haven't booked flights already, start watching them now. We normally start watching from release date (around 12month), as knowing what the general price is helps to better recognise the cheaper deals! If you think you can manage it, consider multi-stops. We managed to get Premium Economy with Air New Zealand, going SYD-AKL-IAH-MCO, for cheaper than their own economy flights, and cheaper again than our usual Delta flights (SYD-LAX-MCO). It pays to watch and wait (if you have the nerve!) Of course, watching and waiting does pose the risk of not finding/missing a cheap option, so it's a bit of a balancing act.
Length of Stay: Even now, on trip 10+, we have not seen and done everything. So, don't try to cram it all in or you will need another holiday after! Lots of families, particularly with children, like to do a park in the morning, go back to the hotel for a swim/rest around lunchtime, then back out again for late afternoon/early evening. We, as three adults, like to do similar, but we also know we will always be back next year, so don't need to rush it. Typhoon and Blizzard can be done in a day, as long as you miss school holidays/spring break. The others you will probably need longer if you aim to do everything. We normally do 3-4wks at WDW because of the travel time. If staying on side, you will have access to Extra Magic Hours, but sometimes this makes parks busier not quieter.
Transport: I don't know how up to date this information is now as I have not done buses for about 10yrs now. I know previously, we have caught the Lynx bus from Disney (Springs or TTC) to the SeaWorld area, and then another, or I-Ride Trolley, up International Drive. There used to be a bus stop opposite Wet 'n' Wild, and from there, Universal is a 10-15min walk, but that depends on heat and humidity, as none of it is under cover! Universal also has three parks now - Universal Studios, Island of Adventure and Volcano Bay (water park), so you might want to consider that. You don't need a car at Disney. Use the ME to get you to and from the airport (it's free), then use the buses, monorails, boats to move around the world. You will, however, have to allow a little extra time to travel between locations when heading out for a meal, particularly if you are going from one resort to another, as you will need to transfer via a park/Springs.
Accommodation: I would do some costings yourself. If you can get a free dining offer with Disney, that may well save you some money. I think the values only offer the value dining plan though, so depending on what you eat, you might want to consider the moderates. As previously mentioned, you can try DVC points renting. We are DVC so accommodation is not an issue for us, so not sure how and where is the best place to go. Of course, if you do your own costing, you can then go to Flight Centre or similar and get them to cost it for you, and see how the prices fair.
Ticket: You need to do some costings again. Magic Your Way tickets are normally one park per day only, with no park hopping or water park options. You normally pay extra to upgrade to park hopping, and upgrade again to get water parks. Park hopping has become considerably more challenging since FastPass+ system was introduced as you can only book FPs in one park. In case you are unaware, you can normally buy an annual pass for the water parks only too, so something else to consider! MYW tickets only go as far as 10-days.
Annual Pass: Consider purchasing if staying longer than 10-days. You also get additional benefits: park hopping included, water parks included, Memory Maker is free (which is a huge saving in itself), merchandise discounts and access to purchase Tables in Wonderland (discount on food in certain table service locations). Tables in Wonderland costs an additional fee ($150?), and you get 20% off select table services, but 18% gratuity is automatically added. If you normally tip, then that becomes irrelevant anyway. Also, not everyone in your party needs an AP to get all those discounts - just the person who is paying for everything! So again, another combo to throw into the mix
Food: If you can get the free dining plan, get it! If it's only available to purchase, think carefully. Depending of food choices, out of pocket can be cheaper than the plan, particularly if you have Tables in Wonderland. There are character dining options inside the parks, and then at some of the resorts as well. Generally speaking, the character dining experiences at the resorts are cheaper than the character dining experiences in the parks, with the exception of big name places like Chef Mickeys. We've also found the resort character dining experiences are not in so much of a hurry to get you in and out again.
Hope I have not confused you too much! Again, happy to answer any additional questions you might now have.
