Where do I start?

[CRITCHK]

Hi We are looking to book our first family trip to WDW in 2011.

Have a family trip to DLP sorted for Nov and need your help with the new project.

DH I have only ever been to WDW once in June 1994 as a young naive couple who had done no planning got up at 10am each morning and found it very busy at the parks.

Now we are 30 odd we will have an almost 4 year old and a 5 1/2 year old. So we are looking to do some serious planning to get the most out of our trip.

Here is some things we know want / don't want:
We want to do this on a budget. Plus take as little spends as possible
We only want to do WDW.
We want to go when it is as quite a possible, but not Sept as back to school. Possible Jan or Feb
We would like to go for 14 or 21 nights.
We don't want to stay at Disney as this will, be very expensive plus the food costs will mount up as well.
We don't want to hire a car as the insurance is a rip off and to park at the parks every day is going to be expensive.
We would like to stay at a hotel near WDW and use the free scheduled shuttle they offer, but am worried this may be infrequent and limited.
We would a hotel with a free breakfast, but this is not a priority as can take some cereal with us to eat in our room.
We would like to be able to come back to our hotel for a relax and lunch on some occasions or just do half days of the kids are tired.
We would a hotel were we can walk to a few eating places such as KFC MCdonalds Wendys Carls JR Dennys Pizza Hut,Taco Bell etc.
Also would like to be near a supermarket to stock up with snack drinks and maybe make rolls to eat in the parks etc.

I know we may be asking too much.

But are not really sure how to start and would really like some ideas and advice?

We should have about £1300 of Tesco vouchers so would be able to go with Virgin or Cosmos, but would book something else and save the vouchers if it was better value?

 

[Pegasus928]

Hi - and welcome. I'm sure between us all we may be able to offer some advice.

Here is some things we know want / don't want:
We want to do this on a budget. Plus take as little spends as possible
We only want to do WDW.
We want to go when it is as quite a possible, but not Sept as back to school. Possible Jan or Feb
We would like to go for 14 or 21 nights.
We don't want to stay at Disney as this will, be very expensive plus the food costs will mount up as well.
We don't want to hire a car as the insurance is a rip off and to park at the parks every day is going to be expensive.
We would like to stay at a hotel near WDW and use the free scheduled shuttle they offer, but am worried this may be infrequent and limited.
We would a hotel with a free breakfast, but this is not a priority as can take some cereal with us to eat in our room.
We would like to be able to come back to our hotel for a relax and lunch on some occasions or just do half days of the kids are tired.
We would a hotel were we can walk to a few eating places such as KFC MCdonalds Wendys Carls JR Dennys Pizza Hut,Taco Bell etc.
Also would like to be near a supermarket to stock up with snack drinks and maybe make rolls to eat in the parks etc.

The budget will obviously be determined by what you do when you are there. Eating on site will bump up the costs, but then so will eating off site if you do it often enough and at the wrong places.
I personally don't know about staying in hotels as we always rent a villa, but I would guess that choosing one on International Drive would be a good bet. There are plenty of eating places on here, as well as supermarkets and shops nearby, and the I-trolley runs quite frequently I am led to believe.
Don't rule out a hire car straight away though. Yes it may seem expensive at first but when I weigh up the cost of the car and parking against the inconvenience of buses, taxis and shuttles it's an expense I am only too happy to pay. I have never had to rely on public transport in Florida but have heard enough stories from those who have to know that it doesnt appeal to me at all.

 

[aaronandterri]

virgin have capped the amount you can spend in one go with tesco vouchers to 700£ in deal vouchers from september 1st

 

[joolz1910]

virgin have capped the amount you can spend in one go with tesco vouchers to 700£ in deal vouchers from september 1st

And is £400 with Cosmos per person.

 

[CRITCHK]

Many thanks for your replies

Anyone now what the hotels free shuttles to WDW are like, are they workable?

 

[WiganTony]

Not sure if you would be able to get all of the above, but for the last few points, have a look at the cost of the Downtown Disney Hotels - these all offer regular bus services (every 30 mins I think) to the parks. Comfort Inn at Lake Buena Vista is also within close proximity and runs shuttle buses to the parks.

Depending where you stay, Crossroads is at the opposite end of Hotel Plaza Boulevard to DTD (approx 25 mins walk from DTD) which has a number of restaurants (TGI, Sweet Tomatos, Mc Ds< Chevvy's (Mexican), Fuddruckers) and shops including a Goodings supermarket.

Regarding budget, check out the cost of indirect flights as these can save you money against the cost of direct flights. A very quick search for weekend flights for 2 weeks LHR to MCO comes in with £370 one stop against £460 direct.