Where do I start?

[MrsCAD]

My family of four have decided that next year Christmas will be spent in WDW , now my question is, how do I start planning? We have been to WDW one time, but it was only for one day and stayed at AKL and only went to MK. This trip will need to be economical, but not totally cheap since I have almost a year to plan it.

TIA for any and all help!

 

[tzuhouse]

I'd start by reading these boards and jotting down notes of places you want to make sure you get to and little things that would be super special for your family, like waking up Tinkerbell.

Also, join Tour Guide Mike. I cannot even begin to tell you how much he helped us on our first trip in Dec. 05.

HTH
Mary

 

[WI_DisneyFan]

First of all, you have definitely come to the right place! These boards will be invaluable over the next 12 months leading up to your trip. The people are very nice, and are always willing to answer any questions you have.

Now then, I would probably start by deciding where you'll want to stay. If money is an issue, then the Pop or All Star resorts are a great value while still getting all of the benefits of staying onsite. Or one of the moderates might be within your budget as well, depending on which one you choose. So in my opinion, that is your first step. Figure out how much you want to/are able to spend on lodging, and then go to the WDW website to get some ideas on what you can get for your money

I always feel this helps you set your budget right away, since lodging and transportation are always the most expensive aspects of any trip. Once you have that settled, you get to have fun planning on what parks you want to visit and when; you can look at all of the different restaurants and figure out one or two to splurge on; and there are always tours and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party to consider as well.

Have fun, and don’t be afraid to ask any questions!!!

 

[mm6mm6]

You're here so you're off to a great start!

#2, get the WDW free vacation planning DVD.

#3, pick a resort to stay at. My suggestion is this, comparing apples to apples, the Value Resorts are $99 a night. The Moderates are $149 a night. Then you jump to Luxury with AKL being one of the least expensive at around $329 a night and then going with The Yacht & Beach Club or The Floridian at around $600-$800 a night. When I checked my pocketbook, I found I was limited to either the Value or the Mods. I went with the Mods and even upgraded to a guaranteed Water View. Pick the theme you like the most (Caribbean Islands, SouthWest, or Mississippi River/Louisiana) and go with that resort.

#4, figure on a minimum 6 night/7 day stay, more if you can afford it.

#5, sign up for the Dining Plan. It just can't be beat, specially for a first timer like you and your family!

#6, get yourself a blown up calendar of the days you'll be there. Make this yourself. Start with MK on your first day and plan a day at each park (that's four of 7 days right there), reserving a second day at MK because it's so big and usually needs at least two days. Then count on a water park/Downtown Disney day and one extra day to do something again that you really liked.

#7, start planning your dining and getting your Advanced Dinner Reservations in order. Do this on your calendar.

Then take a deep breath and constantly remind yourself that you cannot do it all in one trip and that you're going to take your time and smell the flowers!

And enjoy!

 

[5mins2disney]

My suggestion would be to come visit the DIS Orlando Hotels & Attractions board on the DIS and find some awesome offsite options for housing that are 1) way nicer and 2) much less expensive than staying onsite!

 

[themudd4]

#3, pick a resort to stay at. My suggestion is this, comparing apples to apples, the Value Resorts are $99 a night. The Moderates are $149 a night.

Holiday season rates are higher than even peak rates...these prices may be off...You can get a rough idea of your rates by visiting www.disney.go.com and entering your preferences...and can also go ahead and book your room and package.

My suggestions...book your package far in advance since this is one of the busiest times for Disney (and I do recommend the DDP)...You can save a little by booking through AAA (That is where I book through). Yes I would get the planning video and get a cup of coffee...you are going to get adicted to this board like the rest of us planning our next great trip!

Guide books are great as others have stated. TGM will plan out your vacation on your schedule...so that may be a little better for you...I also really like the unofficial guide (think it is most imformative), and the passporter(Love all the family favorites and pockets included).

 

[Indy's Girl]

Also, the more info you give us about your family, the more help we can be to you and your needs. How old are your kids? Does your family like the big rides or not so much?

After lodging and transportation, I think one of the most necessary things to do would be to make ADR's (advanced dining reservations) for the table service places you want to eat, whether you are on the dining plan or not. Christmas will be so busy that it will probably be much much harder to just walk up to a ts and get seated.

#1 Decide if you want the dining plan, which might just be a wonderful choice for your family. To get this, you have to be staying onsite and book a package which is room and tickets together. Everyone in the room must be on the DDP (disney dining plan) so you cannot get it for just the adults e.g.

#2 If you choose the dining plan, you can download the brochure to get an idea of what places are included on the plan and what the plan itself includes.

#3 Whether your are on the DDP or not, get a guidebook (a PP mentioned the Unofficial Guide and Passporter, I second those recommendations ). You can sometimes get these from your local library if you want to check them out instead of buying one right away. These will have reviews of the different table service and counter service restaurants so you can start narrowing down your choices.

#4 go to allearsnet.com where you can find, among other valuable info, menus for the different restaurants and sometimes pictures of their interiors. This could also be useful in choosing whether or not to do the DDP, as you could make an approximate guess of what each person would eat at the restaurants you choose, and see if it is cost effective to get the plan.

#5 Post your questions, thoughts etc on the Restaurant board here on the DIS. People will give you great feedback and advice. There is also a great thread where people post their pictures of food from all over WDW so you can get a look at the food before you go.

#6 Once you have the restaurants chosen, plan out what days you want to eat at which (taking into account where you will be that day) E.g. "we will be at AK on _____, so that would be a good time to eat at Boma at AKL. Also think about an approx. time you would like to eat.

#7 Now you are ready to call disney dining and make your ADR's! ANYONE can do this 180 days in advance, whether you are staying onsite or not. One of the benefits of staying onsite however is that you get to make all your ADR's up to 10 days of your trip on the 180th day. If you are offsite, you will have to call back each day. (E.g. your trip is 12/20-12/27. Onsite call 180 days before 12/20 and make all ADR's for all days, offsite cal 180 days from 12/20 to make ADRs for 12/20, call the next day to make ADRs for 12/21 etc). This is especially beneficial to onsite guests who want to make highly coveted ADRs at places like Cinderella's Royal Table or Le Cellier because they get a jump on offsite guests.

This seems like a ton to do just for dining, but I am having fun doing mine and am always looking for ways to do more planning because that is half the fun of a Disney vacation, and makes waiting so much more bearable!

 

[donna6635]

You also might want to check out the allears website and subscribe to their newsletter. You can get a ton of useful informatiom from this site. Hope you enjoy the planning, I'm planning my first Christmas trip for next December too!

 

[pepe of ohio]

Nothing too hard or confusing about planning a trip. The basic fprmula is first, pick your resort, that depends on your budget. Second pick the length of your stay, the longer the trip the more you'll see and be relaxed. For us that about it. We know we're going to see all four parks, we either have hoppers or annual passes and we do a half day visit to 2 parks a day. We like splitting up what we see. We plan our meals in the general area we'll be in for that period. We also do mid day breaks back at the resort for pool time and pool picnics, we hit the grocery store and stock up.

As for extra things and ADR's, we play some putt putt while there, we tour some resort lounges and as for ADR's, we do not like our meals all dyed in wool because our plans can change in a heart beat and we only reserve the Hoop Dee Do and 50's Primetime, a couple of the hard to get dinners. Our main goal is to relax, tour comfortably, we have down days built in our schedule for shopping, movies, CR game room, DTD evening and maybe a water park.

As I said its easy, just the basics, we stroll the parks and pick up where we left off from a previous visit but our stays are of the 8-12 night variety which leaves tons of time and freedom to not push ourselves. Hope this gives you some idea as to not go off the deep end planning every meal and minute while there and coming home tired and beat.

 

[byoung]

If you are going Christmas week, remember it will be the most crowded time of the year.

 

[themudd4]

As for extra things and ADR's, we play some putt putt while there, we tour some resort lounges and as for ADR's, we do not like our meals all dyed in wool because our plans can change in a heart beat and we only reserve the Hoop Dee Do and 50's Primetime, a couple of the hard to get dinners. Our main goal is to relax, tour comfortably, we have down days built in our schedule for shopping, movies, CR game room, DTD evening and maybe a water park.

Not sure if you are planning on only eating CS or eating what you have in your room from the grocery, but if they are planning any TS meals (ESPECIALLY AT CHRISTMAS TIME) they will most certainly need ADR's. These can be made 180 days out...and I suggest you do just that. I am a fan of the DDP, and so I also always use ADR's. Holiday's are the busiest times...even during the value season I would suggest ADR's. If not you may have very long waits if you can even get in. I do suggest planning where you are going to be for what days, then making your ADR's accordingly. Even tho, if you are wanting CRT for breakfast you may need to make your ADR's for that and plan around it. I personally think that by having your ADR's you will be more relaxed knowing you and your family will not have to worry about where and when you are going to have dinner...you have it booked already!