traffic in & out of Resort

[born to travel]

My DH & I will be taking our granddaughter to Disney World April 17-21 this year. We have reservations to stay at the DoubleTree inside the resort. I know the parks will be very congested then, but we were considering going back to hotel during busy afternoon period and returning to parks in the evening. Thought we might leave resort for early dinner & more dining options. So I wanted to get some feedback on what I should expect in terms of traffic leaving and returning to Disney World. Thanks

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

Do you mean going off Disney property for dinner or away from your particular resort? There are tons and tons of dining options at all different price levels on property outside of your particular hotel in each of the parks, on Disney property at other resorts, and at Downtown Disney. Seems to me it would be a big time waster to leave property just for dinner. The Disney property is huge and it takes awhile just to drive around there without leaving.

You can go over to allearsnet.com and see the menus for different restaurants on property to see what they have and the $$.

 

[safetymom]

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningmain.cfm No need to go elsewhere for the menus.

The traffic shouldn't be too bad. The worst place for traffic would be around Downtown Disney. It may take a light or two to get through.

 

[happymommy]

If you're staying at the Doubletree Guest Suites, then you can actually walk across the street to the Crossroads Shopping Center (or drive). They have a few dining options like Sweet Tomatoes and a couple other chains.

Also, you'll have bus transportation to the theme parks.

It won't be too bad.

I agree - check out Deb's page allears.net. She's got info on dining choices in the Disney parks and resorts.

One really fun thing is to visit a Disney resort to eat - if you can get reservations (do it online at Disney's website). The theming is fun!

 

[born to travel]

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I was thinking of leaving resort as I heard so much about dining reservations being needed and restaurants being booked up. I didn't want my granddaughter to endure a long wait. I will check out allears. It sounds like there are more options that I thought.

 

[livndisney]

The Doubletree is not inside WDW "resort". It is located at the end of Hotel Plaza. Just across the street are off property dining options. If you go the other way, you will see several other hotel chains and eventually will come to Downtown Disney. Depending on what time you plan to eat, you may still have long waits even off site.

If you have not made ADR's at Disney table service places yet, you may want to if you want to eat a sit down meal on property. You can also go to counter service places without ADR's. Each park offers several options. Perhaps having your husband order while you take the Granddaughter to wash up will help avoid the long wait.

 

[happymommy]

Most trips that I've taken with my kids but without my husband, we've enjoyed many counter service meals. Sometimes it's just easier to grab something, and not wait at a restaurant. So you may find nice options inside whatever park you're at to dine. We especially like:

Sunshine Seasons - inside the Land pavillion at Epcot. It may look crowded during meal times, but we have always found a table. They have wonderful choices like rotisserie chicken with mashed potatoes, soups, salads, stir fry, lots to choose from.

Any country in Epcot!

Animal Kingdom park has nice options in Asia - we like fried rice there!

Hope you enjoy your trip!

 

[Traveliz]

The Double Tree is a nice resort - I have stayed there twice recently and just to throw it out there -the food there is not bad - and they do serve Pizza Hut pizza (if you are looking for that) through their restaurant.

Liz

 

[lpoeppelman]

I would consider a few onsite Disney reservations to get the most out of your experience. Heck, two weeks ago I booked all kinds of reservations for my friend (party of 6 no less) and snatched her ressies at Cinderella's Gala at Grand Floridian, Pooh at Crystal Palace, Ohanna's... and she's going over Presidents Day week. But there are others that you can usually get that are nice that you don't always have to have reserved way ahead of time.

I would rather have a "dining plan" for WDW and take the option to cancel if it doesn't work out.