Trying to plan - My brain hurts! Help!

[K8T]

I am trying to plan a trip to WDW from when dd breaks up school on 7th July.

Initial idea was to do 7 days Disney and then go down to cruise on the Dream for a few days, looking at a Disney resort hotel, but then I started thinking about villas being a cheaper option.

I seem to be now at a stage where my head is so full of 'stuff', I can't see the wood for the trees. I got a quote for the Beach Club - our wish hotel!, for 7 nights with DPlan for £4,900, but then OH nearly had a fit!! Not sure if this is a 'good deal' or not to be honest

Is a villa much cheaper? If so, where is a good place to find something? Should I be looking at budget hotels?, would a Disney property give better value with the Dining Plan thingy at the moment? All I know is that OH would hate Pop Century or something like that! Not sure he would like the Best Western type budget hotel on International Drive either!

Am I the only person that just doesn't know the best way about this? What should I expect to be budgeting for say 7 nights or 10 (without the cruise)?

I can sort out the cruise standing on my head, as that is my comfort zone! I don't mind putting something together myself, we travel all over Europe doing our own thing, jumping on trains etc., but I don't know where to start with Disney.

Everyone on here just seems so decisive!!!

p.s. I have searched threads for ideas, but it just seems to make things worse!! I feel such wimp!!!

[off for a lie down with a cold flannel!! It would be a G&T, but it's not even lunchtime yet!!!]

 

[VailaTigger]

Hello!

Firstly, hope the cold flannel helped. If not, I think you'd get away with a G&T now.

Do you have a budget in mind? That might be a good place to start.

Then you can try some 'dummy' bookings online, or do some calculations to see what you can get for your money.
Some people swear by booking each element individually, some go for a complete package with a TA - it's whatever suits YOU best though.

There are lots of little things which could swing it one way or the other for you. For example - If you book a villa, you need a car, and you'll pay for parking each day at the parks - whereas if you stay on Disney property you can use their transport system.
Eat on-site with dining plan, or off-site which is cheaper if you are 'paying' for it...

I may be far too over-orgainsed but I find starting with a spreadsheet works... I list all the things I want from the holiday, do some dummy bookings to get prices then add it all up... different columns for different combinations of hotel / car etc. The final choice isn't necessarily the cheapest one for us, it's the one which gives the best balance for what we want out of the holiday.

Hope this helps - even just a little!

 

[eeyore86]

were going in september this year flying out of mcr international for our disneymoon. we booked whole package, flights, hotel,park tickets, dining plan ect for £6235 for 4 adults with travel city direct. we hav stayed off site before and it ended up costing more than staying in disney resort hotels. it all depend on wether you realy want to drive everywhere, if you like to have a glass of wine with meal or a pint unless you do stay in villa and eat there it is 0 drink and drive over there.

 

[beautifullily]

Yes, it's confusing isn't it!!!

This is my experience:

12 night holiday at Port Orleans French Quarter (moderate hotel), flights with Virgin, 14 day park tickets, free quick service dining plan (but upgraded to table) for 2 adults and 2 under 10s over June half term has cost us around £5K.

The free dining plan outweighed any villa savings for us and we liked the idea of being on site and near the parks.

We booked directly with Disney for the hotel and Virgin for the flights.

Are you worried that OH will think the Disney hotels too themed?? If so take a look at Port Orleans (FQ and Riverside) as I don't think they are.

My DH is struggling with the cost of this holiday but it's such a special treat for us - he's getting used to it now!

 

[wilma-bride]

Firstly, my assumption is it is just the 3 of you (2 adults, 1 child) - is that correct?

Secondly, if the £4900 was for accommodation, dining plan and tickets only then, personally, I think that is extortionate If it included flights too then less so.

Thirdly, if you are able to travel on (or shortly after 7th July), you may be in a slightly advantageous position as I think the majority of flight prices from the UK increase around the middle of July.

You may well be able to save money by staying on-site and adding the 'free' dining but, in my opinion, free dining is not really free as you have to pay rack rate for the room and, if booking from the UK, you also have to buy a 5, 7, 14 or 21-day ticket. If you are planning to do a cruise for 7 days, unless you plan to spend every single day of your first week at a Disney park or water park, it is not necessarily the most cost effective option.

Having said all that, this would be my approach.

Flights

Try looking for some flight only prices first and see how much that will set you back for various dates/options/departure and arrival airports. If you want to do a cruise on the Dream, that will sail out of Port Canaveral and, as you want to spend at least a week at Disney, chances are flyin into Miami wouldn't be a sensible option (as a lot of your time would be taken up travelling). However, BA do direct flights into Tampa and Orland and there is always the option of a charter flight to Sanford.

Accommodation

Have a look at a few of the on-site and off-site options. Consider what your requirements are for a hotel/accommodation. What facilities would you want? Personally, I prefer on-site, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't consider off-site if it can work for your family. There are some lovely hotels off-site and a quick look at Tripadvisor could give you a good indication of some of the nicer/better ones. Also, don't necessarily rule out a villa if you think that might work (although, with 3 people, a hotel room is nearly always likely to be the cheaper option). As a PP suggested, some of the moderate hotels are lovely and aren't 'in your face Disney' like the value resorts.

If you really have your heart set on staying at the Beach Club, there is always the option of renting DVC points (although that is not without it's own possible complications) - as a comparison, though, 7 nights at Beach Club Villas in a studio in July would require 134 points. You could expect to 'pay' around £7-£8 a point so you would be looking at approx £1000 for the accommodation. You would then have the option to add a dining plan, if you wished, and whatever ticket options you needed depending on what parks you want to visit.

i would suggest that is probably a good starting point. Once you have an idea of what you want, you can start looking at whether you are better off with individual bookings or a package.

Hope this is helpful and feel free to ask if you want any more advice

 

[disney_princess_85]

Just to give you an indication of prices, we (two adults) are paying just over £4k for the following:

Direct flights with Virgin, a four-night cruise on the Dream and nine nights at Wilderness Lodge with 14-day tickets and free dining.

We still need to book a hotel for two nights before the cruise but we think we're just going to stay at Pop (a snip at £50 a night! ).

 

[K8T]

Hello!

Firstly, hope the cold flannel helped. If not, I think you'd get away with a G&T now.

Do you have a budget in mind? That might be a good place to start.

I may be far too over-orgainsed but I find starting with a spreadsheet works... I list all the things I want from the holiday, do some dummy bookings to get prices then add it all up... different columns for different combinations of hotel / car etc. The final choice isn't necessarily the cheapest one for us, it's the one which gives the best balance for what we want out of the holiday.

Hope this helps - even just a little!

Cheers!!

Thanks for the replies:

I didn't really have a budget, I had no idea how much it would cost! I think we would like to keep under the £4,000 if possible. I love the spreadsheet idea, I keep writing stuff down on scraps of paper and then not really getting anywhere, so thanks.

Yes, it's confusing isn't it!!!

This is my experience:

12 night holiday at Port Orleans French Quarter (moderate hotel), flights with Virgin, 14 day park tickets, free quick service dining plan (but upgraded to table) for 2 adults and 2 under 10s over June half term has cost us around £5K.

The free dining plan outweighed any villa savings for us and we liked the idea of being on site and near the parks.

We booked directly with Disney for the hotel and Virgin for the flights.

Are you worried that OH will think the Disney hotels too themed?? If so take a look at Port Orleans (FQ and Riverside) as I don't think they are.

My DH is struggling with the cost of this holiday but it's such a special treat for us - he's getting used to it now!

Looking at your price, maybe our quote wasn't too bad, it did include tickets, dining, a car and flights from Manchester.

My worry with OH and the hotels, is that he likes his comforts and wouldn't be happy with a Travel Lodge type of accommodation or lots of theming and bright colours and stuff! He doesn't mind Disney, and we have done a few cruises, but they are really very different from WDW. We went several years ago, (all arranged by someone else) and we stayed in the Beach Club, whcih was so easy with the pool and walking everywhere, but I had no idea how much planning must have gone into it. The $ rate was 2 to £1, which made eating cheap. Funny you mention Port Orleans, that appealed to me too.

I am interested you upgraded the dining plan, was that expensive?

Firstly, my assumption is it is just the 3 of you (2 adults, 1 child) - is that correct?

Secondly, if the £4900 was for accommodation, dining plan and tickets only then, personally, I think that is extortionate If it included flights too then less so.

Thirdly, if you are able to travel on (or shortly after 7th July), you may be in a slightly advantageous position as I think the majority of flight prices from the UK increase around the middle of July.

You may well be able to save money by staying on-site and adding the 'free' dining but, in my opinion, free dining is not really free as you have to pay rack rate for the room and, if booking from the UK, you also have to buy a 5, 7, 14 or 21-day ticket. If you are planning to do a cruise for 7 days, unless you plan to spend every single day of your first week at a Disney park or water park, it is not necessarily the most cost effective option.

Having said all that, this would be my approach.

Flights

Try looking for some flight only prices first and see how much that will set you back for various dates/options/departure and arrival airports. If you want to do a cruise on the Dream, that will sail out of Port Canaveral and, as you want to spend at least a week at Disney, chances are flyin into Miami wouldn't be a sensible option (as a lot of your time would be taken up travelling). However, BA do direct flights into Tampa and Orland and there is always the option of a charter flight to Sanford.

Accommodation

Have a look at a few of the on-site and off-site options. Consider what your requirements are for a hotel/accommodation. What facilities would you want? Personally, I prefer on-site, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't consider off-site if it can work for your family. There are some lovely hotels off-site and a quick look at Tripadvisor could give you a good indication of some of the nicer/better ones. Also, don't necessarily rule out a villa if you think that might work (although, with 3 people, a hotel room is nearly always likely to be the cheaper option). As a PP suggested, some of the moderate hotels are lovely and aren't 'in your face Disney' like the value resorts.

If you really have your heart set on staying at the Beach Club, there is always the option of renting DVC points (although that is not without it's own possible complications) - as a comparison, though, 7 nights at Beach Club Villas in a studio in July would require 134 points. You could expect to 'pay' around £7-£8 a point so you would be looking at approx £1000 for the accommodation. You would then have the option to add a dining plan, if you wished, and whatever ticket options you needed depending on what parks you want to visit.

i would suggest that is probably a good starting point. Once you have an idea of what you want, you can start looking at whether you are better off with individual bookings or a package.

Hope this is helpful and feel free to ask if you want any more advice

Wow!! Lots of info!!. Yes it is the three of us, dd is 7 and as I said above, it was everything included in that price, there was a similar price for Animal Kingdom too.

I didn't realise the prices of flights went up in July, so that could be a big advantage and I will check Trip Advisor for other hotels, although I think we would like to be in a Disney one if possible if we don't do the villa thing. I am not keen on the idea of renting points, sounds all a bit complicated! The cruises are four nights, but I am now thinking perhaps we should just leave that out!

A spreadsheet sounds the way to go for a start, putting some flights on and then pricing hotels, then maybe price some villas to compare.

Thank you everyone, I do feel a little calmer, having a sort of plan, but if anyone has any other suggestions, do please let me know

 

[Ciorsdah]

I'm a party of 2 adults travelling from Glasgow to Orlando in September. Flights, 14 nights at POR, QSDP, 14 day park tickets and 14 days Universal tickets and car hire was £3400 (approx).

Still have to add on the photopass and tickets to MNSSHP and the cost of the Dessert Party and 2 ADRs at Rainforest Cafe and Niccoossee.

Not sure if that helps or not! But I defo found it easier to write down the things I knew I HAD to do first like flights/accomodation and priced that out first.

After that I built in tickets/cars etc and got a price based on me booking everything myself. Then I just went to BA and to Virgin Holidays (who we eventually booked with) and asked them to quote the same trip and I booked with who was cheaper.

 

[K8T]

Just to give you an indication of prices, we (two adults) are paying just over £4k for the following:

Direct flights with Virgin, a four-night cruise on the Dream and nine nights at Wilderness Lodge with 14-day tickets and free dining.

We still need to book a hotel for two nights before the cruise but we think we're just going to stay at Pop (a snip at £50 a night! ).

Gosh, that sounds good, ours didn't include the cruise, that would have been another £2,000!!! How did you put that together?, or did you have a TA?

Kate

 

[Rach78]

Hi.
I know what you mean about not knowing where to start!!
We are going for the first time this October and we were not sure where to stay/what to do etc. I liked the idea of staying at Disney but also wanted to see other things and eat in other restaurants outside Disney so we decided to do a split Disney/Villa stay. We have 9 nights at Old Key West for 2 adults and 2 kids (although DD1 is classed as an adult as she is 13) with DP and 14 days tickets followed by 8 nights in a lovely villa in Westridge. Therefore for us it is the best of both worlds. For the whole holiday including flights, car hire, disney and villa we have paid approx £5k. The villa is costing £500 for 8 nights, so it's probably about the same cost as the week at Disney including food. I think for us it was that we didn't just want to experience Disney and Disney Restaurants, we wanted to do some off site things too, and also having 2 children at 13 and 5, we will be sharing a room at OKW so it is a nice thought that the second week we will all have our own bedrooms, private pool etc!! I think it's just about deciding what is best for you and your family. Have a great time whatever you decide!!!
Rach xx

 

[beautifullily]

I am interested you upgraded the dining plan, was that expensive?

Think it was about £300 for the 4 of us.

I remember looking at dates around the start of the summer holidays and prices for us were around the 6K mark. I'm sure we might have been able to get that cheaper had we spent more time looking, but 5K was our budget so we stuck with June.

 

[NatalieMT]

We've booked 9 nights at Beach Club, tickets, DDP and flights from Manchester for just under £3500. That's 27th August until 5th September - wish I could have flown back later because it would have been a lot cheaper then! It seems more expensive this year than previous years for some reason but maybe that's just my imagination...

I did a lot of dummy bookings online before deciding to actually go for it and even then I got help ha ha. It's a bit different for me because I don't have children but I can see how deciding between a villa and a hotel is difficult. Personally I think I'd probably always opt for an on site Disney hotel, I think they just make it really easy for you. The magical express is great, don't have to worry about any taxis to and from the airport, you can book all your dining reservations in advance and with the DDP you're not spending extra out of pocket every night etc, the amenities are excellent, car hire isn't necessary (although some people still like to hire a car I'd be lethal on US roads) as you have the bus/boat/monorail services between parks and hotels and you have entertainment galore. The EMH are great too because you get that little bit more out of the day.

I guess villas have positive points too though - less people to disturb you, nice private pool, more space and cheaper I imagine! But it's not something I've ever explored because of the lack of ability to drive.

 

[heatherbelle]

Flights 2249 flying man to mco 7/7/12 indirect with us airways va want. 1107 each.
Yacht club with dining plan and tickets for 1 week is 2311
Cruise for 1 week sailing 14th is 3448 ouch! In 11C

You will then need 1 extra nights hotel post cruise say 70.00 plus car for 1 week say 200.00

Now go for a cruise 28/07 and you can have a cat 7 for 2358 but you have to pay in full now.

You could even fly home the day of your cruise.

Use kayak for flights and Disney for the hotel. It includes the free dining plan for the above dates. It's not available to UK TA's.


You can do this girl, if you can plan your way around the med, you can plan this. First starting point is getting the flights to tie in with cruise. Used the disney site for the hotel and park tickets or try complete orlando. Don't use a TA it will cost you a bomb and don't forget quidco for some cash back. When you've booked let us know and then we will help with your ADR. The best Disney hotel IMO for kids is the beach/yacht club after that maybe wilderness or the Poly. All of these are based on best location. Ak is too far away to walk anywhere. OKW is good for getting a boat to other hotels and downtown.



Going 21/07 to 4/8 airfare each is 868

It looks like the beach club only has water view rooms left for the week comm 21/7 and the yacht club has sold out. The wilderness lodge with park tickets and free dining is 2116 for the three of you and old key west is 2091.

So total cost is 5278 for this option including a car for say 200.oo for the week. So you have a delux hotel cabin, park tickets and food.

If I have done the Maths right this option will save you around 1500.00 Stirling.

Edit, I have priced a 1 week cruise on the Fantasy just realised you wanted the dream. Dohhhh! Although on looking at dream prices you can cruise for 7 nights cheaper than 4 I know which one I would choose

 

[Disney Princesses LW]

Yes, it's confusing isn't it!!!

This is my experience:

12 night holiday at Port Orleans French Quarter (moderate hotel), flights with Virgin, 14 day park tickets, free quick service dining plan (but upgraded to table) for 2 adults and 2 under 10s over June half term has cost us around £5K.

The free dining plan outweighed any villa savings for us and we liked the idea of being on site and near the parks.

We booked directly with Disney for the hotel and Virgin for the flights.

Are you worried that OH will think the Disney hotels too themed?? If so take a look at Port Orleans (FQ and Riverside) as I don't think they are.

My DH is struggling with the cost of this holiday but it's such a special treat for us - he's getting used to it now!

I am planning my 3rd trip to florida and I would definatly use this option too. We have previously stayed off site cheaper but always spend a fortune getting to disney and we like a glass of wine with our meal on holiday so dont want to drive over there either.
If you dont mind driving and want a few days peace then maybe a villa would be good idea for you.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

Simple advice:

Sort your dates/flights out first, then discuss and look into your accomodation options.

Renting DVC points is a good way of staying at a deluxe standard hotel - we have rented off owners in the past and it's not a difficult process.

I completely agree about the Disney budget hotels like Pop, personally they are not for me either.
Staying on site is all about location & facilities, for example staying at either the EPCOT or Magic Kingdom resort areas is far more appealing (in my opinion) in staying at some of the others, purely based on location.
Having so much so near is such a plus point.

Villa's have rented over a dozen, would cost less than half the price than staying at a WDW deluxe resort (as an example).
Advantages are having the extra room, cooking facilities, private pool and more - plus just that feeling of being able to stretch out and relax, something you just don't get in a hotel room.
Disadvantages, you can feel a bit isolated - I swear on one holiday I never saw a soul all week until we drove off the villa development, plus of course you literally have to drive everywhere.

If you need any villa tips, glad to assist.

 

[K8T]

duplicate post!!!

 

[K8T]

Well.........Its amazing what you can do after a couple of bottles of wine!!!

Thank you so much for all the ideas and help. I sat down tonight and went through it all and I actually managed to get OH to have a look at the hotels and go through the options. I also weighed up the idea of being off site, but took on board the benefits that some people had said of being in a Disney hotel.

Heatherbelle, We are actually stuck with the beginning - mid July, as OH has to be back by the end of, so we picked a date and went for it. We also seriously thought about the different hotels and came back to the Beach Club each time, really because it is so easy to get anywhere and we will expect to be coming back during the day to chill out, due to the heat. We also realised, having read your posts, that a car isn't essential immediately and we need not be worrying about this for a few days in.

I went through quite a few 'dummy' bookings on various sites, the range was amazing, even direct was more than others and we ended up booking on line with Complete Orlando!!!! this came up with the cheapes option, for the best room.

We have booked the Beach Club, going out on 11th for 7 nights, including Dining Plan and tickets for £2204 (waterview). I have found flights direct for £2180 for all of us with United Airlines, which will come back on the 22nd, so total is £4384, which is cheaper than my previous quote, at a much better hotel.

I haven't actually booked the flights, as OH then said that he is doing a lot of work for a few of the airlines recently and thinks he may be able to get a better price by calling in a few favours on some of the Charters!!! We will know more tomorrow.

We have paid a £215 deposit on the rooms, so if it all goes ---up then we are not out of pocket too much at this time, but we wanted to get in for the Dining Plan, which we did with half an hour to spare, as I believe it may be ending tomorrow!

We have left the four days for the cruise at the end, open at the moment, we may do it - I am waiting for a quote from our usual company and we could take advantage of an on board discount, which we made for next year, by bringing it forward to July and then rebooking for next year on board - getting another discount.

If we don't do the cruise, we may think about relocating up to Universal, or off Disney for a few days, although OH is really keen on the cruise, so I think it will be on.

My only concern is sorting out the flights, but the availability looks good, so hopefully will have these sorted out tomorrow.

Looks like I may be on these boards for a bit now, watching and learning!

Kate

 

[JohnnySharp2]

Good news - are we neighbours by the way?

 

[wilma-bride]

Well done Kate

 

[disney_princess_85]

Gosh, that sounds good, ours didn't include the cruise, that would have been another £2,000!!! How did you put that together?, or did you have a TA?

Kate

We booked the cruise directly with DCL and the rest with Complete Orlando. We hadn't wanted to book a package, having booked everything separately for the past few years, however CO's flight prices were exactly the same as VA's prices on their website, plus we could pay them off gradually so we decided to go with them.

Congrats on booking.