where to begin???

[demoicurn]

i am planning an 11/04 trip to wdw and don't know where to begin.... i am a dad to 4 and 6 year old kids... the plan is for a 5day stay, but not sure if we should book ourselves or go via a travel agent... we want to stay in the park... preferablly w/the tram service... but not sure which resorts have that service and isn't outside our budget.... how soon should we book the vacation and meals w/the characters.... looking at the prices of resorts, i like the carribean, but would love the polynesian.... i want to be able to have fan and to minimize any stressful situations for the family... any info would be greatly appreciated.... ty

 

[jcemom]

Welcome to the DIS! I'm sure you'll find a lot of helpful advice here! As far as resorts go, you may want to check out the information and maybe post some questions on the Resorts board:
http://disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?forumid=12
I know I've gotten some great advice and answers to my questions over there.

There is monorail service to the Polynesian, Grand Floridian, and Contemporary Resorts, but all of the resorts have some combination of bus, boat and/or monorail transportation available (for example, the monorails only go to Magic Kingdom and Epcot, so even at the "monorail resorts" you will have buses to the other parks and downtown disney).

Many here have used Dreams Unlimited and were very happy with them. You can get a cost estimate emailed to you:
http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com/
You may also want to check out Mousesavers:
http://www.mousesavers.com/index.html
to see what deals may be available. I would recommend signing up for their newsletter as it often contains links to specials not available to anyone else!

Most PS (Priority Seatings) for meals can be made 90 days in advance. Depending on when you will be going in November and how busy it is, you may or may not need to make them that far in advance. There is so much information available here:
http://allearsnet.com/din/dining.htm that should be able to help you decide where you would like to eat. Along the left are links to menus, photos, and which characters you can find at which meals!

Hope this helps!

 

[djm99]

As far as the question of how soon should you book, if I've learned nothing from this board I've learned that its almost never too early to start booking for a great vacation. IMO (in my opinion) If you have a whole year in advance you could have a more magical vacation in regards to many options (ultimate hoppers, meals, etc.). Not to say these options aren't available to a person who only planned for 1 month ahead, but the options may not be affordable to that person because they only had month. Disney also has a on payment plan with deposit (Layaway sort of speak) that you can pay on over time or wait til you get there to make full payment. Plus, just keep checking back to see any new discounts.

Hope this helps!!!