WDW Newbie

[ROBEAR84]

Hi all,

Although I'm not new to DIS, I am to this board and planning on a wdw scale so please bear with me!

We are finally booking our WDW trip this weekend! it'll be myself, DH, DD1 (7) DS (will be 6 by then) DD2 who will be 14 months, MIL, FIL & SIL.

We're staying in a villa off site as that's what the in laws have done for their last few trips (The kids and I haven't been before but DH and in laws are on trip 5/6) ideally if it was just us (without the in laws) we'd have stayed onsite as it appeals to me more, being amongst the magic!

As we're staying offsite, I'm interested in how I can make the most of our trip. With young children we have always really made the most of EMH at DLP and I'm worried we'll miss out a bit not having this. Am I worrying about nothing though? DH says the queues are nothing like DLP anyway, should I believe him!? We're going mid/late September.

I also want to do quite a few character meals, if we're going to any at hotels, is it easy enough to get to them by car? parking etc? I really am pretty clueless when it comes to WDW and one of the things that worries me a little is that the in laws have never been with little ones (DH was 14 on their first trip) so it's going to be a totally different trip for them too. As well as travelling with a very little one, MIL relys on a wheelchair there which makes things a little more challenging too.

Any hints, tips etc would be greatly appreciated! Have been looking forward to planning for so long! I've loved planning for our Paris trips so although I'm a bit daunted by how much there is to think about, I'm itching to get started too!

Even just the amount of boards to look through for WDW is quite daunting! I don't know where to start!

 

[tinks86]

Hi all, Although I'm not new to DIS, I am to this board and planning on a wdw scale so please bear with me! We are finally booking our WDW trip this weekend! it'll be myself, DH, DD1 (7) DS (will be 6 by then) DD2 who will be 14 months, MIL, FIL & SIL. We're staying in a villa off site as that's what the in laws have done for their last few trips (The kids and I haven't been before but DH and in laws are on trip 5/6) ideally if it was just us (without the in laws) we'd have stayed onsite as it appeals to me more, being amongst the magic! As we're staying offsite, I'm interested in how I can make the most of our trip. With young children we have always really made the most of EMH at DLP and I'm worried we'll miss out a bit not having this. Am I worrying about nothing though? DH says the queues are nothing like DLP anyway, should I believe him!? We're going mid/late September. I also want to do quite a few character meals, if we're going to any at hotels, is it easy enough to get to them by car? parking etc? I really am pretty clueless when it comes to WDW and one of the things that worries me a little is that the in laws have never been with little ones (DH was 14 on their first trip) so it's going to be a totally different trip for them too. As well as travelling with a very little one, MIL relys on a wheelchair there which makes things a little more challenging too. Any hints, tips etc would be greatly appreciated! Have been looking forward to planning for so long! I've loved planning for our Paris trips so although I'm a bit daunted by how much there is to think about, I'm itching to get started too! Even just the amount of boards to look through for WDW is quite daunting! I don't know where to start!

Hi very exciting to be booking your trip this weekend! We have always stayed off site and usually head to the parks in the morning then back to pool etc in the afternoon. We generally head to one of the parks that doesn't have EMH in the morning as it will be busier as on site guests will already be in the park if it has EMH. We usually go in May and I believe the queues are quite similar to September and we find the queues very manageable especially when using fastpasses and we just make sure we head to the big rides first (such as toy story mania).

In terms of dining you can make reservations as an off site guest on line on the disney website, all the hotels are easy to get to by car and well signposted and you can park in the hotel guest car park for the time that you are dining in the hotel (you do need to show photo ID on your way in so make sure you have your driving licence on you).

In terms of planning I would start to think about what parks you want to visit disney / universal/ sea world etc and then you can start to work out what tickets you need just make sure you allow enough time to enjoy the parks - the first time we went we run around for 2 weeks trying to fit everything in so maybe have a think about what parks etc you would like to do the most!

Hope that helps a bit!!!

 

[ROBEAR84]

Hi very exciting to be booking your trip this weekend! We have always stayed off site and usually head to the parks in the morning then back to pool etc in the afternoon. We generally head to one of the parks that doesn't have EMH in the morning as it will be busier as on site guests will already be in the park if it has EMH. We usually go in May and I believe the queues are quite similar to September and we find the queues very manageable especially when using fastpasses and we just make sure we head to the big rides first (such as toy story mania).

In terms of dining you can make reservations as an off site guest on line on the disney website, all the hotels are easy to get to by car and well signposted and you can park in the hotel guest car park for the time that you are dining in the hotel (you do need to show photo ID on your way in so make sure you have your driving licence on you).

In terms of planning I would start to think about what parks you want to visit disney / universal/ sea world etc and then you can start to work out what tickets you need just make sure you allow enough time to enjoy the parks - the first time we went we run around for 2 weeks trying to fit everything in so maybe have a think about what parks etc you would like to do the most!

Hope that helps a bit!!!

Thanks for the reply Tinks.

We have already decided to stick to the Disney and Universal Parks only. Sea Worlds not my thing at all and as DH and In laws have done it several times they're not fussed either. Think DH said they usually do MK on the first and last days and then the other parks in between, with a couple of 'home' days with perhaps just a mall visit or something. Oh, almost forgot! the only none park day out will be the Space Kennedy Center. Though that will be without MIL and baby anyway.

I think I'll need a holiday after this holiday!

I'm trying to just get our day planner sorted as it won't be long before we can make our dining reservations, so then need to decide! Was thinking of doing 4 character meals/breakfasts. As SIL doesn't like characters, it'll just be me, DH and the kids for those so don't want to be leaving them every other day but at the same time I really want to make the most of character dining for the kids, they love it! but the options at DLP were limited (or extortionate!)

 

[DLPDreams]

Hi

I recognise you from the Paris threads

I too am planning our first WDW holiday but I'm waaay early as ours won't be until August 2015 (have to go in school holidays as can't take children out of school). My planning has become quite feverpitch lmao at the moment purely because I know we can book flights soon (so need to commit to the amount of time we are there) and then not long after, accom too, so again need to plan where we want to stay etc.

I have found without a shadow of a doubt that WDW just cannot be compared to DLP in terms of size and the way you tackle it. I am a planner but have often gone to DLP with only a rough plan and managed. I don't think you can do that at WDW - you can get by but will probably miss bits you wanted to do.

One thing I realised is although people say it isn't that bad, the transport takes a while - they say give yourself an hour if you are in a different park to get to a dinner reservation for example!!

I would recommend (although really heavy reading) the Unofficial guide to WDW - I'm wading through it - learnt lots of good stuff, but it is hard going! And also looking at touringplans.com for a plan of your stay and crowd levels.

You are very lucky to be going when you are as Sept has some of the lightest crowds due to school terms. I don't think you'll have much issue with queues very much - possibly at weekends but not much even then.

One thing I will point out, as WDW have gone over to FP+ and this is being totally rolled out and the old paper FPs are being discontinued, one of the major downsides of not staying onsite is that you can't prebook your FPs. If staying onsite you can prebook these up to 60 days in advance (not that I'll know what we are doing properly by then!!). At the moment, you can only book the morning you go if not staying onsite. At the moment every guest just gets 3 FPs but I've read in quite a few places that this may change once the system is completely up and running. Now, this may not be an issue at all as you are going when it is relatively quiet but just thought I'd mention it.

I, like you, love staying 'in the magic' and for that reason we will be staying onsite for most, if not all of our stay. Would your family not consider a Disney villa at somewhere like OKW or SSR? That is what we will be doing and there are 6 of us. You could even do it for just part of your stay if you liked.

Good luck planning - if I had a chance, I would got mid/late Sept in a heartbeat. My very first trip to DLP with my DDs was that time of year and it was perfect - the best trip we've had as it was quieter and we got so much done, even with reduced park hours

I should add that the people on here are great - between them there is nothing they don't know (or can't find out)! I have been amazed by how helpful everyone has been!

 

[ROBEAR84]

Hi

I recognise you from the Paris threads

I too am planning our first WDW holiday but I'm waaay early as ours won't be until August 2015 (have to go in school holidays as can't take children out of school). My planning has become quite feverpitch lmao at the moment purely because I know we can book flights soon (so need to commit to the amount of time we are there) and then not long after, accom too, so again need to plan where we want to stay etc.

I have found without a shadow of a doubt that WDW just cannot be compared to DLP in terms of size and the way you tackle it. I am a planner but have often gone to DLP with only a rough plan and managed. I don't think you can do that at WDW - you can get by but will probably miss bits you wanted to do.

One thing I realised is although people say it isn't that bad, the transport takes a while - they say give yourself an hour if you are in a different park to get to a dinner reservation for example!!

I would recommend (although really heavy reading) the Unofficial guide to WDW - I'm wading through it - learnt lots of good stuff, but it is hard going! And also looking at touringplans.com for a plan of your stay and crowd levels.

You are very lucky to be going when you are as Sept has some of the lightest crowds due to school terms. I don't think you'll have much issue with queues very much - possibly at weekends but not much even then.

One thing I will point out, as WDW have gone over to FP+ and this is being totally rolled out and the old paper FPs are being discontinued, one of the major downsides of not staying onsite is that you can't prebook your FPs. If staying onsite you can prebook these up to 60 days in advance (not that I'll know what we are doing properly by then!!). At the moment, you can only book the morning you go if not staying onsite. At the moment every guest just gets 3 FPs but I've read in quite a few places that this may change once the system is completely up and running. Now, this may not be an issue at all as you are going when it is relatively quiet but just thought I'd mention it.

I, like you, love staying 'in the magic' and for that reason we will be staying onsite for most, if not all of our stay. Would your family not consider a Disney villa at somewhere like OKW or SSR? That is what we will be doing and there are 6 of us. You could even do it for just part of your stay if you liked.

Good luck planning - if I had a chance, I would got mid/late Sept in a heartbeat. My very first trip to DLP with my DDs was that time of year and it was perfect - the best trip we've had as it was quieter and we got so much done, even with reduced park hours

Hi, I remember you too although it's been a while since I've even been on there!

I did look into a Disney villa but as there's 8 of us we really need the space so they weren't really big enough (although technically they are, me and DH would wind up on the sofa!) also, we're not quite so flexible with flights due to MILs condition. She requires oxygen on the flight so if someone has already booked it, she has to find another flight! so booking accommodation and then looking for flights isn't a viable option. Believe me, if it were just the 5 of us, I'd be doing what you are!

I did even look into booking an onsite hotel just for a couple of days but in the end I decided it would just be less money we'd have to spend whilst there as we'll have the villa with the in laws for the full stay anyway as it'd be alot of upheaval for MIL to move just for the sake of it.

Just have to think of lots of magical things to make up for being offsite. Already thinking we might do Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for DD and the Pirate version for DS! and we'll almost certainly be heading to a MNSSHP with them too (taking baby sitters with us has it's upside - DD2 can stay with them if she's too tired!)

I've just amended my DLP planner spreadsheets to make them WDW instead! it's the little things! I think there's going to be a lot to do but I really do love it! In laws are either going to love it or hate it I think! they've never really planned past where they are heading each day so I think they're a little apprehensive about my planning at the mo. It's difficult when I've never been and they've been so many times. I have to think about the kids though, I want it to be amazing. We're really lucky to even be going and it is thanks to MIL that we are. I wouldn't usually take them out of school either but this probably will be the only chance they get to go with their grandparents so I will await my fine and telling off from school I really wanted to push it into the school hols but financially and crowdswise (especially due to MIL) it just wasn't viable unfortunately.

I'll have a look for the Unofficial guide, have just ordered the Brit Guide! bedtime reading for the next 8 months sorted!

 

[DLPDreams]

Hi, I remember you too although it's been a while since I've even been on there!

I did look into a Disney villa but as there's 8 of us we really need the space so they weren't really big enough (although technically they are, me and DH would wind up on the sofa!) also, we're not quite so flexible with flights due to MILs condition. She requires oxygen on the flight so if someone has already booked it, she has to find another flight! so booking accommodation and then looking for flights isn't a viable option. Believe me, if it were just the 5 of us, I'd be doing what you are!

I did even look into booking an onsite hotel just for a couple of days but in the end I decided it would just be less money we'd have to spend whilst there as we'll have the villa with the in laws for the full stay anyway as it'd be alot of upheaval for MIL to move just for the sake of it.

Just have to think of lots of magical things to make up for being offsite. Already thinking we might do Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for DD and the Pirate version for DS! and we'll almost certainly be heading to a MNSSHP with them too (taking baby sitters with us has it's upside - DD2 can stay with them if she's too tired!)

I've just amended my DLP planner spreadsheets to make them WDW instead! it's the little things! I think there's going to be a lot to do but I really do love it! In laws are either going to love it or hate it I think! they've never really planned past where they are heading each day so I think they're a little apprehensive about my planning at the mo. It's difficult when I've never been and they've been so many times. I have to think about the kids though, I want it to be amazing. We're really lucky to even be going and it is thanks to MIL that we are. I wouldn't usually take them out of school either but this probably will be the only chance they get to go with their grandparents so I will await my fine and telling off from school I really wanted to push it into the school hols but financially and crowdswise (especially due to MIL) it just wasn't viable unfortunately.

I'll have a look for the Unofficial guide, have just ordered the Brit Guide! bedtime reading for the next 8 months sorted!

Fair enough - sounds like you MIL knows what she needs. I am sure you won't miss out that much not being onsite, especially at that time of year

My DD1 starts middle school in September so there is no way I can take her out of school. But she is clearly older than your two .

I am not sure about the Brit Guide (I had it for DLP and did find it useful for our first trip, but clearly not subsequent). A few people on here recommended the unofficial one so I went for that. My DH says it's an encyclopedia (and it is!).

BBB looks great (we have done a similar thing in DLP at the Disneyland Hotel and the girls loved it). Not sure about the Pirates as have no boys - but that wouldn't stop DD2 .

We are going with my parents so also have babysitters should we require them .

 

[ROBEAR84]

Fair enough - sounds like you MIL knows what she needs. I am sure you won't miss out that much not being onsite, especially at that time of year

My DD1 starts middle school in September so there is no way I can take her out of school. But she is clearly older than your two .

I am not sure about the Brit Guide (I had it for DLP and did find it useful for our first trip, but clearly not subsequent). A few people on here recommended the unofficial one so I went for that. My DH says it's an encyclopedia (and it is!).

BBB looks great (we have done a similar thing in DLP at the Disneyland Hotel and the girls loved it). Not sure about the Pirates as have no boys - but that wouldn't stop DD2 .

We are going with my parents so also have babysitters should we require them .

Oh yes, my older two are 5 & 6 so it's not AS much of a problem, as much as I'd rather not. Thankfully the school are pretty good usually, although I know it's not to do with them now.

A nice delivery man just brought me my books!

 

[zavandor]

The park(s) with the EMH is the park to avoid for the day: the majority of onsite guests head there making that park very crowded.

My only suggestion is to head to easywdw.com and study it. It has a crowd calendar recommending which park to visit each day and it has cheat sheets, with the best strategies for each park and suggestions on how to use FP+ (ever changing at the moment probably in 8 months it will be more stable).
And food reviews, helping to choose the restaurants.
Since you are 8 months out, you should begin to think which restaurants you want to book. Crazy but true. If you want Cinderella, for example, you must book it 6 months in advance and you might be unlucky anyway, since onsite guests have a little advantage for dining reservations.