WDW experts please help me!!!

[cajungirlie]

Ok here's the deal. I've never been to Disney. I'm looking into bringing my family in June (middle). Looking at 5 days, 6 people. I can't decide where to stay!!! It's out of two rooms at All Stars, a cabin at Fort Wilderness or a hotel. Next delema...my kids are 5, 10, 15, 17. Ok, see how crazy this trip can get. I need suggestions for this to run smoothly. Do I let my two older kids go off on their own and me and DH enjoy the rides with teh little ones or do we all try to stick together. We've been to six flags and found that letting teh older ones go off is more ideal since it takes so long for rides. But I want to enjoy this vacation with them too. It's sort of like our last vacation as a family before the older ones go off... Any suggestions would be great. Thanks!

 

[RamseyTrio]

I'm not expert but here's my 2 cents worth

As for hotel - we're fans of staying off-site - the rooms are bigger & cheaper and since we always rent a car I enjoy being on our own schedule as opposed to WDW transportation's schedule. In May we stayed at Doubletree Maingate in a 3 bedroom suite for $99/nt. It's was fine - clean, friendly, easy to get to. 2 bedrooms upstairs, 1 bedroom downstairs.

As for your touring plans --- I think you'll be able to do both - enjoy the parks with all of the kids and then let the older ones go off on their own. In every area there's something for everyone. I would imagine that Toon Town & Fantasy land would probably bore them but otherwise you should be able to see them a lot.

You could do meals together and set aside certain times of the day to meet and catch up.

It'll all work out and you'll have a blast!

 

[Desnik]

First, welcome to the DIS!!!!
If you don't plan on being in the room a whole lot then I would say 2 rooms at one of the All Stars would be ideal. You will be on property so transportation to from the parks will be easy. 2 rooms also means 2 bathrooms and with teenagers it is a must!!!
I would definately let the 2 older kids go off on their own. Maybe you could come to some type of compromise so everyone can be happy. Maybe all go to the same park, let the older kids go off on their own and then meet up for lunch. Maybe split up again and do dinner or a special show together like Illuminations, or WISHES. How about making 1 day "family day" and doing everything together.

Another idea would be to rent points for a 2 bedroom at one of the vacation club resorts. The kids can have their own space. Mom and dad will have privacy. If you stay at BWV or BCV you will be in walking distance to MGM and Epcot. Your teenagers could lounge at the pool and walk over to one of the parks to meet the rest of you for dinner at Epcot. You will have a kitchen so you can plan a dinner together there. Check out the DVC board and the rent/trade board for more info. We rented points for our up coming trip and it was easy to do. We have a baby so we really need a fridge and such.

Whatever you decide I'm sure you will have a great time. You do have time to plan the perfect trip. Here are some sites that can help:
www.wdwig.com
www.mousesavers.com

Have fun planning, it's a big part of the fun and let us know if you have anymore questions.

 

[Kuffam]

I'm a fan of staying somewhere with a kitchen or kitchenette. That way you can at least stock up on snacks and maybe have breakfast of lunch there or take it with you to the park.

The Tropical Palm Resort is nice you can rent a cottage for $70-$109/ night. They hold 4 adults and 4 children and it's not too far from WDW.

I agree let the older kids go off or at least split up and have one adult go with the younger kids and one with older. I find large groups bog you down. But this way you can have some quality time with all the kids.

 

[sha_lyn]

I highly suggest staying at one of the All Star Resorts. With 4 kids, with that big of an age range I think you'll find that sometimes you might need to go back to the room with the younger 1 (or 2) before the older 2 get ready to go. At 15 and 17, I (if it were my kids) would trust them to take the bus transportation on thier own.

That way you can at least stock up on snacks and maybe have breakfast of lunch there or take it with you to the park.

We stock up on snacks in our rooms at WDW. We even take a cooler and quick breakfast items to eat in the room.

Going back to a room for lunch would waste time. WDW policy clearly states that outside food is not allowed in the parks. Besides, who wants to lug around lunch if you did sneak it in? Coolers aren't allowed so it would have to be something that wouldn't spoil in the hot Fl sun. There aren't any picnic tables etc provided to eat at. At one time I belive there were some In the TTC parking lot. I don't know if they are still there. All tables are for patrons of the restaurants that they are at.

I just think it would be way too much trouble. After all this is a vaction right? Preparing, storing, lugging around all the food etc is work IMHO.


As for splitting up. Our plan varies from park to park, but usually we spend from arrival- lunch together. Spilt up sometime between lunch and dinner. Then stick together after dinner.

We take 2 way radios with us and keep in touch every hours or so.

 

[MinnieGi]

I would also suggest two ALL-Star rooms so you will all be on the Disney Transportation route. That way it will be easy if your party has to split up and someone needs to go back to the room. And with the ages of your children that seems likely.

Since you do have so many age ranges to please, I would advise making a schedule of "family times" and "free times" for the older children. Have everyone look over a guide like "Birnbaum's" or the WDW free travel DVD and make a list of activities you would like to do together and then schedule times where the olders can go off on their own and you and DH ride with the younger children. For instance a day at AK might start out with the whole family seeing "The Festival of the Lion King" (which I highly recommend and is good for all ages) and then splitting up till you meet up for lunch say at Tusker House or Flame Tree B-B-Q. After lunch you may want to go back to the hotel for a nap or swim with the younger children and the older children can stay in the park and meet up with you later at a planned spot for dinner. You might have an evening family activity after dinner planned as well such as DTD or Disney Quest or Illuminations in Epcot.

There is so much to do at WDW that I think it will please all the ages in your party and still enable you to have lots of family time too!!

Happy planning!

 

[sln88]

"WDW policy clearly states that outside food is not allowed in the parks. Besides, who wants to lug around lunch if you did sneak it in? "


Rest assured, you will have absolutely no problem bringing in any food that you want to if you choose to. We were just there 2 weeks ago, brought in snacks, sandwiches, sodas, juice(nothing that really had to be refridgerated), ect, in our backpacks(which were checked by security), and no one said anything about food being a problem. I have heard of people that rent lockers for small coolers, but I have never done that myself. I prefer to have snacks and drinks handy when the kids say they are hungry, rather than having to stop what I am doing and try to figure out where we are going to eat, and then go stand in line or wait for a table.

I prefer to stay offsite in a condo. There is a great advantage with space and $$ saved. But, if you do plan on letting the kids go off on their own, you may want to stay on site to use the Disney transportation.

 

[cajungirlie]

I'm really enjoying all of this advice, thanks guys! I figure if we do stay at the All Stars we would rent the refrigerator to keep ham, cheese, drinks, milk, that sort of thing in. I forgot to mention that we are driving there. We will have no problem eating sandwiches, cereal, that sort of thing in our room. I 'm 99% sure we will stay on Disney. And your right, I would trust my older kids to use the transportation by themselves but I do wamt family time together too since its the purpose of this trip!

 

[SueM in MN]

I would agree with the suggestions to stay on-site so that anyone in your party can come and go back to the resort as they please, rather than having to meet up and all drive back at the same time. We've done this a number of times and it works out really well.
Another thing that would be helpful to you is family radios or cell phones. That way if you plan to meet at 3pm and something they are doing takes a little longer than planned, you won't be worrying about where they are when they haven't shown up at 3:15! Keep in mind though, that the radio won't always be able to be heard. in some buildings, reception is bad and it will need to be turned off (or way down) for shows and rides.
If you make meeting spots, make sure everyone is agreed on which side of the building is the "front", otherwise you may find yourself waiting at different fronts. Radios can help with that a lot since you can call the rest of your party up and say - "I'm at Spaceship Earth, facing the Electric Umbrella".

 

[sha_lyn]

Instead of renting a frig I suggest buying an electric cooler. You can pick a large one for 60-70 that includes the plug that plugs into a car lighter, and the adapter that goes inot an electical outlet.

A few healthy ideas for meals in the room using nothing but a cooler and a coffee pot.


Instant cereals made with hot water from the coffee maker (several brands come in cups now). Can add dried fruit, gronola etc on top.

Instant ramen noodles or other instant soups in cups. Serve with raw veggies (broccoli, carropts etc washed and bagged, are next to the pre bagged salads)

Cheese sticks with slices of ham wrapped around them, accompanied by whole grain crackers, whole baby carrots and grapes.

Organic yogurt in tubes (we often have these as part of breakfast on the go)

Organic apple sauce in tubes

Pretzels (good with the cheese and ham above, or as a snack). They travel better than chips.

Use pita bread or flour tortilias instead of bread for sandwiches. They travel/store better and take up less space.

You can do chicken salad wraps using
Whole grain tortillias
precooked perpackaged sliced chicken and a bagged ceasar salad kit.

3 main staples for meals in our room are V8 juice, milk boxes (like juice boxes) and cereal bars. Breakfast can easily be eaten while walking to the bus stop. The V8 is great in the evening to help get those missed veggies in the diet.


My suggestion is to do breakfast and dinner in the room and eat lunch in the parks. Part of the fun of WDW is the meals, such as character meal, Prime time cafe, exotic meals at Epcot etc

 

[4greatboys]

cajungirlie--we always find it easier to stay on site. Ft Wilderness would probably be a nice place for your family to try. You can often find a good discount code on mousesavers.com and having a kitchen will really come in handy. 2 bdrm DVC villa's are awesome but can be $$. We joined DVC since we are a large family as well--and spread out. My boys are 16, 13, 3 and 1. We nomrally hit all the parks together and my 2 oldest will hit Disney Quest once or twice alone.
You can take food in the parks--we have taken in snacks every time. And last time staying at OKW we froze bottled water at night and took it to the parks during the day. Worked out great! If your 2 oldest want to head out on their won sometime take your cell phones or walkie talkies to keep in touch.

 

[peachgirl]

If I were making the decision, it would be Fort Wilderness Cabins, hands down. Wherever you stay, I would most definitely stay onsite. If you're wanting to let the older ones go on their own some, being onsite would make it super easy to keep track of everyone.


The price of 1 cabin is probably very close to the cost of 2 All Star Rooms. When you add in the huge savings you'd see from eating in the cabin, you'd be money ahead in the end. There's a full kitchen, so you wouldn't have to worry about coolers, ice chests, etc.

I much prefer the location of FW compared to the All Stars. The boats are fun to ride and fairly quick, so the MK is just minutes away. You can also bypass the busses if you want by taking a boat to the Contemporary and then using the monorail to get to Epcot. We didn't mind the busses, but it's just another option.

Also, I think the younger ones especially would love FW. There's so much for them to do there, you could easily have a great time without ever leaving Fort Wilderness.

To me, a cabin would just be much more relaxing and peaceful and really wouldn't cost you any more than the All Stars!

As far as food in the parks....Yes, there is a rule against bringing "outside" food into the parks. That said, WDW made that rule and they are the ones who choose to bend it everyday. Personally, I wouldn't take a 7 course meal into the park, but you'll have no problems at all with sandwiches, drinks and snacks. Rest assured, no one is going to say a word to you about it.

 

[Grumbo]

WDW policy clearly states that outside food is not allowed in the parks.

I doubt that there are VERY few people that haven't taken food into the park. You don't take in bottled water, an apple, sandwiches? I see so many people sitting on benches eating food they''ve obviously brought in with them.
I don't mind buying the occassional meal or food to go with my lunch I take in but with a large group/family the cost becomes prohibitive and a soft sided cooler bag works absolutely fine.

Picking up some food at a Publix or Winn Dixie and keeping it in a cooler in your room and making up lunches is a good way to save some money, eat healthy as opposed to fried food, and save time to do more stuff

Cheers,
Grumbo

 

[phamton]

Originally posted by sha_lyn

Instant cereals made with hot water from the coffee maker (several brands come in cups now).

Corn Pops and Frosted Flakes eat dry or pour on a little Yahoo chocolate milk!

Originally posted by sha_lyn
whole grain crackers

Ritz crackers all the way and a little squeezable cheez whiz.

Originally posted by sha_lyn
Organic yogurt in tubes

Jello Chocolate pudding in single serving packs

Originally posted by sha_lyn
Organic apple sauce in tubes

Sara Lee's Apple streudel cinnamon rolls

Originally posted by sha_lyn
Pretzels (good with the cheese and ham above, or as a snack). They travel better than chips.

Chips with onion dip or Fritoes with bean dip and a Twinkie for energy

Originally posted by sha_lyn
Whole grain tortillias

Do they make whole grain torillas? Looking in cabinet I see corn and flour, that must be at least 2 grains.

Originally posted by sha_lyn
3 main staples for meals in our room are V8 juice, milk boxes (like juice boxes).

Pepsi or Cream soda, Orange soda for breakfast

Originally posted by sha_lyn
exotic meals at Epcot etc

Exotic for my kids would be chicken nuggets but instead of plain we can throw in a little BBQ sauce.

OK I'm kidding. Carry on.

 

[sha_lyn]

You don't take in bottled water, an apple, sandwiches? I see so many people sitting on benches eating food they''ve obviously brought in with them.

So since you see them doing it, even though it is against policy it must be OK. No I do not bring food into the parks. I honor the contract I enter into with WDW. I don't sneak an extra adult into the room or lie to get my over age kid in for free either. Belive it or not some people do follow rules.

 

[4greatboys]

Originally posted by sha_lyn
So since you see them doing it, even though it is against policy it must be OK. No I do not bring food into the parks. I honor the contract I enter into with WDW. I don't sneak an extra adult into the room or lie to get my over age kid in for free either. Belive it or not some people do follow rules.

If this is such a hard and fast rule then why when we take snacks in our backpack do they not throw them out or say we cant take them in???? They just say thanks and have a nice day. Obviously some people on the boards care way more about Disney policies than Disney themself
On our trip in 2002 my mil stayed in our room at the YC--Concierge level no less and they did not charge us for her and yes they knew she was there--had her own room key and all. Disney does nice things like this for guest all the time so I guess some of the topics mentioned dont arent really a huge concern for them.

 

[poohandwendy]

Originally posted by phamton
Corn Pops and Frosted Flakes eat dry or pour on a little Yahoo chocolate milk!

Ritz crackers all the way and a little squeezable cheez whiz.

Jello Chocolate pudding in single serving packs

Sara Lee's Apple streudel cinnamon rolls

Chips with onion dip or Fritoes with bean dip and a Twinkie for energy

Do they make whole grain torillas? Looking in cabinet I see corn and flour, that must be at least 2 grains.

Pepsi or Cream soda, Orange soda for breakfast

Exotic for my kids would be chicken nuggets but instead of plain we can throw in a little BBQ sauce.

OK I'm kidding. Carry on.

ROFLMAO...you crack me up....I kinda had the same response to the 'healthy list' Shalyn posted....what ever happened to the required junk on vacation?...for us it is tradition to eat greasy, sugary, unhealthy food so that we will be begging for dying for better-for-you food when we come home.......can't go messing with tradition....

also, my children really eat healthy foods on a regular basis, but if I threw V-8 juice in our vacation cooler, they would think I was losing my mind (or planned on being sprayed by a skunk)....blech.....

 

[Musky]

Sha_Lyn, does your "contract with Disney" give you permission to use a portable frig and coffee pot in your All-Star room? If you're really so worried about abiding by the rules, you would not be bending them by using unapproved and potentially hazardous appliances in your room. And if you were really so worried about Disney, you would not be eating two meals per day in your room. Disney does not put cooking facilities in the All Stars, because they want you to buy meals in their food court. Just as they do not put picnic tables at the parks because they want you to buy your food from them. It could be that the people you see eating their "brought in" lunches may be saving their money for dinner at V&A's, and could very well be spending far more on Disney dining than you are with your one lunch. I see absolutely no difference between eating meals in your room and bringing food into the parks, and will never understand why so many people on these boards make a distinction between the two. If Disney decided that you were no longer allowed to eat in your room or have a cooler there, would you still "honor your contract?"

Musky

 

[peachgirl]

Originally posted by sha_lyn
So since you see them doing it, even though it is against policy it must be OK. No I do not bring food into the parks. I honor the contract I enter into with WDW. I don't sneak an extra adult into the room or lie to get my over age kid in for free either. Belive it or not some people do follow rules.

Oh for heaven's sake! Just because at some point WDW made a policy, doesn't mean that they actually intend to enforce it. Many of the policies they have in print are there should they decide at some point they want/need to use it.

Since no one is talking about slipping a pbj sandwich in under their shirt, no one is trying to sneak anything past anyone. As long as WDW doesn't care, and they obviously don't, why do you?

There's a difference between following the rules and being anal about them. WDW is a vacation, not a prison camp.

Frankly, I can't imagine trying to feed a family of 6 within the confines of an All Star room. I'm sure the maids are absolutely thrilled with having to clean up a room that was used as a kitchenette for a week.

But, since WDW apparently doesn't care about that either, it really is one of those myob issues.

 

[Grumbo]

Sha_lyn the last time I looked when we went into a park I didn't see piles of sandwiches, apples, drinks and treats piled up where they go through your bags. Obviously Disney isn't confiscating food.
Who said I sneak extra people into my room and lie about my kid's age (or was that a suggestion for my next trip? )
Disney doesn't give a darn about you bringing in food. You have to be completely naive to believe they do, or are you attempting to wind people up with this type of attitude.
Anyway I'm not letting this degenerate into me being a "bad" person cus I don't honour a "contract". It is called common sense alot like a person sitting in the passing lane of highway going 60 mph. THAT is the speed limit. However you're going to cause more problems and grief if you sit there, but hey that is THE law. Move to the right and let the rest of us continue on.

Cheers,
Grumbo