Where to begin? I want to start planning our next vacation at the campgrounds

[TrueLove's1stKiss]

I want a book about camping at the Fort, does one exist? I keep coming here daily to read & I'm craving more info about the fort. I just don't know where to begin? We tent camp a couple times a year, we are very budget conscious & it seems to be the most cost effective way to vacation.

As far a s Disney goes we stayed at a value 2 years ago, we had an awesome trip but the hotel wasn't anything great, & it was very tiny for the 4 of us! I want to go back desperately, but this time I'm considering camping! I realize that the nightly fees aren't a ton cheaper than the values but I also realize all the fun & activities that could ave us on park tickets. We also would love to visit universal & maybe go to the ocean for a day, is that far?

I just got through chatting online with a CM about camping. I was told Dec-Jan for comfortable tent camping. I was also told that we can do a dining package while camping which I thought wasn't possible (am I getting it confused with free dining). I'm not even sure if we'd do dining this time, last time we did because it was FREE. We would like to stay about a week & will only have park tickets a couple days. I thought your park tickets had to match your dining days & he said no, you only have to have a 1 day ticket & dining was based on check in & out dates...I'm confused has this changed I swear it used to be this was when we did it (again unless I'm confusing it with free dining).

We live in CT so how long if we drove down, (we flew last time) but I think I'd want to drive with all the camping gear. I have the fondest memories of a road trip with my neighbors when I was in 8th grade, we went to Disney among many, many other fun places! I think we would either break up our trip into 2 segments & sleep in a motel or take shifts & DH & I take turns sleeping. How do I budget for this trip, I'm clueless as to how much it would cost. Driving over flying saves how much, considering gas & all?

It will likely not happen until 2011. My DH conveniently has time off , the same time that the kids have time off of school. We could leave after school/work Dec. 23, when would we arrive if we drove straight through? Then we have until New Years Day, returning to school/work on Jan 2. I'm considering this as the majority of our Christmas gift & am an avid clearance shopper so I could come up with some thrifty gifts so that they don't feel like they didn't get any thing to open Christmas morning. How busy is it Christmas week? When can I book it? It wouldn't let me online, too far in advance.

Lead the way please. Where should I begin planning this trip?

 

[becky1960]

If you can get a AAA discount you can cut that Value comparison in half with a tent site. Christmas is one of our favorite times to go, but its the busiest time of the year and the parks are very, very crowded. We have been many times so we dont have to have a lot park time. One year we had reservations for Christmas dinner at Mk and could barely get thru the crowd .

Another point to make is that if you are going Dec 23--be sure to make reservations very early..

 

[Born 2 Fish]

I dont care what anyone says , the best way to start a plan is to start with a fishing pole and then plan out everything from around the fish'n pole

Thats always worked for me,

 

[SimbaKY]

Sounds like a wonderful trip you will be planning...
First off the dining that the CM was chatting about is offered when you buy at least one park ticket in your package. The free dining offers usually come when you have a resort/park ticket combo.
If you are budget minded this time and you will be staying in a tent - you will have a grill that the Fort provides (charcol) and since you will have a car - you can get groceries at Walmart on the way - Publix, IMHO is $$$.
We were at the Fort last December (1st week /Cabin) and it was a little chilly, but this past winter was far from normal.
Remember your decorations! That time of the year campers at the Fort go all out!

 

[TrueLove's1stKiss]

Thanks for the tips! I didn't know that there was a discount with AAA to camp there. I want to get AAA anyway, so that will make it totally worth it! I do think we will cook some meals on site, but not all. The clean up from cooking is my least favorite thing about camping! The talk about the crowds does scare me a little. I really prefer it when it is quieter. But you can't have everything & if DH actually agrees to this then it's a done deal. But first I have to get all the nitty gritty figured out the most important being total cost, then I can present my case! LOL I need to figure gas, tolls, food (some to cook at our site some meals out), lodging fees, park tickets, & anything else we might want to do. How can I come up with a realistic number?

BTW- Keep the info flowing I'm still reading!

 

[We4mickey]

If you are planning over the Christmas holiday. I would make your reservations as early as you can. Also you are going at peak season, so rates will be up and discounts will be rare. The parks will be extremely busy, but the fort will be beautiful with all the decorations everyone has up. Really the fall or early spring are good times to go as well.

 

[vroomagain]

When we in January (not to the Fort) it was freezing! Apparently, it was a freak occurrence but it is a possibility. Pack accordingly (a pair of cheap black gloves cost me $8).

I loved the parks in January but if I am camping in January the next trip I will bring a heater!

 

[TrueLove's1stKiss]

Hmm, all lots to consider. Still processing over here!!!

 

[3girlsfun]

I guess my first question is, do you have all the camping gear? If so, then I would budget for the campsite fees, I would go with your "regular" weekly grocery budget as an estimate, and then I would make a list of the meals you would want to eat out. (Obviously this far out, it can change, and probably will, but, I would write out a "fake" itinerary so I could get an idea of what meals I would eat out.)

The itinerary would also help you see how many park tickets you would need, how many days you will be hanging at the fort, and then also will you want to attend MCMCP? If so, you will need to budget for that. (Although, I am sure it would be crazy busy the week of Christmas!)

To estimate your gas, you can go to Mapquest, put in your home address to your destination, and there is a little "button" on there somewhere that estimates your gas for you.

Then, I would estimate $100 for a hotel room down, and then $100 back.

For me, the budget would look something like this:

park tickets:
activities:
campsites:
camp food:
eating out:
travel hotels:
gas:
souvenirs:
new camping gear:
decorations:

I will say this, me, DH, and ODD went to Disneyland btwn Christmas and New Years a few years ago...NEVER again will I be caught dead in the parks then. It was terrible. We couldn't move, literally. It took us forever to get from one thing to the next. We were only there because I was taking a class for school, so we only had the one day tickets, we left early at like 5pm bc I couldn't take it anymore, and we didn't get there until like 10am. I swear it was so bad it turned me off of Disney for a few years. I just couldn't handle people that close to my ODD in her stroller. It was one of the most stressful times in my life!

 

[retired and happy]

You asked about a book on camping at the Fort. I don't know if one exists, but I would prefer to learn from the forum, from people who have done it. And every family is different, every trip is different. I see you have gotten some good advice so far Is this a surprise for the kids, or will they be involved in the planning? A group of lists or maybe a notebook of considerations might be helpful. Consider what you need to bring and what you can pick up after you are here (or there). What clothing...don't overdo that. There are laundries in every loop, although they can be costly. Medicines and medications. Hold the mail. I'm sure more will come.

 

[TrueLove's1stKiss]

Maybe during the holiday isn't the best time for us. We do have all the camping gear. I'm begining to think that maybe we should consider a cabin when they are offering a really good deal, like the 40% off being offerend right now, this year is out because we have to save up for this trip. If that deal comes around next year I might jump on it & go in August. We'd melt in the tent in August and typically we could not afford a cabin, however the campsite offers so much & cooking our own meals would save a ton. Hmm I think I like this idea more & more.

 

[katiekomo]

I'm a Fort newbie, but a park veteran, so feel free to take my advice with a grain of salt!

If you are going to WDW to visit the parks I would suggest NOT going Christmas Day or the week after. Unless you are an extreme Disney veteran (and even then, I would never go back at that time) or unless you don't mind HUGE crowds of people and standing in line for a LONG time. Of course, you might just want to go to the parks to soak in the atmosphere and not ride anything.

If you can swing it, I suggest the week before Christmas. You have the same holiday cheer and decor, but FAR less people. We did this one year and drove back on Christmas morning. (Santa left us stockings in our seats after we'd visited a rest stop and we had Christmas dinner at a Holiday Inn! Still the #1 Christmas we talk about nostalgically.)

Also, as others have mentioned, that is peak season... so no deals or specials.

But if you do decide to go during the week after Christmas, I would suggest buying the Unofficial Guide to WDW. Then signing up on their website (touringplans.com). I think the book is around $20 and with the book you get discount on the website... so your total investment is around $30. From my experience you'll save quite a large amount of time with their touring plans (and there is one specifically for touring during the peak times) and the book has great advice.

There are lots of other great books and resources, but that's helped me the most.

If you're going to enjoy the atmosphere of the resorts and/or the Fort (and not the parks) it might be delightful! I would love to spend that week just resort hopping, pin trading with colorful CMs and noshing on treats at the resorts (extra bonus: save on park tickets).

HTH!