Where to start!!! First time to WDW in 6 years...

[kuhltiffany]

So, a wild conversation turned into a trip being planned to WDW this summer. We haven't been in 6 years and I know everything has changed! It will be myself and 2 kids, 13 and 14. Kids are boy/girl, so 3 beds or a king with another bed would be great. Travel from Ottawa, ON. Dates, anytime between Aug. 19 and Sept. 2.

The only thing I do have is 2 x the 5 day, 1 park per day passes from last year that don't expire. I have about 7500 AM right now.

I know there is a free dining offer but I'm not sure if it's worth staying onsite and paying for all park tickets?

Any suggestions and advice appreciated!

 

[starvenger]

Good dates - I believe many kids in the US are back in school at that point, so it should be less crowded.

Remember - it will be hot and humid. I think that this heat, more than anything else, will inform your decision on whether to stay onsite or not.

If you like taking breaks midday, then staying onsite is probably the option you want. By doing this, you can go back to the room, take a dip in the pool, then come back in the late afternoon.

If however, you're stamina monsters that love to power through the day, then you can save money by staying offsite. Pack your insulated water bottles, snacks, cooling towels etc and have at it.

Happy planning!

 

[kuhltiffany]

OK, I was fully prepared to piece together a trip with various points programs, but DH was in an exceptionally agreeable mood (I think because he's staying home alone) and told me to make it as easy as we could to tolerate the heat. So we booked at All Star Sports (not much left for free dining), the kids chose more time vrs. nicer hotel room for Aug. 20 to 31. Now just to learn about FP and stalk flights...

 

[kenthanson]

I find most people make a bigger deal of stressing over adrs and fast passes then I have and I've always enjoyed myself over the 5 trips over the last 8 years. Obviously your first fast pass should be flights of passage in ak and then after that whichever rides tickle your families fancy then get those. I know it's not for everyone but when it's that hot I would really make it a point to rope drop so you can get ahead of the crowds and thrn you can relax from lunch till late afternoon when it's super hot.

 

[bababear_50]

Hi Hon
Have the kids ever shared an interest in the *Dark-Side* Universal Studios?
Just a suggestion.
Hugs Mel

Suggestions for Florida heat and humidity in Aug/Sept
Do rope drop EMH (Extra Magic Hours) in the Am.
bring lots of t-shirts
bring cooling toggs
https://www.amazon.ca/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...argid=kwd-300793101536&ref=pd_sl_9i42tyiwcw_b
bring refillable water bottles--drink 1/2 bottle every 1/2 hour
plan time at the pool-afternoon
plan time at the parks after the sun goes down in the evening
Laundry facilities by the Grand Slam pool/Surfboard Bay
Eat lots of fresh fruit/veggies to help stay hydrated.
I personally found AK (Animal Kingdom) the hottest park to deal with(I was pushing a manual wheelchair with a young lady in her 20's).....never again.I lost 10 pounds of sweat that week.
A nice movie at AMC Dine in theatre in air conditioning is fun too.
Have a great time celebrating the new *Teens*.
Hugs Mel

 

[kuhltiffany]

The "Dark Side" is where we've been the past 6 years, we've done both Florida (many times) and California . With the Avatar attraction (really need to look that one up), the kids have finally been convinced to do Disney again! We have always stayed onsite at Universal and had their front of the line pass though, I'm really going to miss that...

Thanks for letting me know about the laundry, I'd rather pack half the clothes and do laundry part way through, and the kids are old enough to supervise themselves in the pool so that will be a perfect spot!

Hi Hon
Have the kids ever shared an interest in the *Dark-Side* Universal Studios?
Just a suggestion.
Hugs Mel

Suggestions for Florida heat and humidity in Aug/Sept
Do rope drop EMH (Extra Magic Hours) in the Am.
bring lots of t-shirts
bring cooling toggs
https://www.amazon.ca/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...argid=kwd-300793101536&ref=pd_sl_9i42tyiwcw_b
bring refillable water bottles--drink 1/2 bottle every 1/2 hour
plan time at the pool-afternoon
plan time at the parks after the sun goes down in the evening
Laundry facilities by the Grand Slam pool/Surfboard Bay
Eat lots of fresh fruit/veggies to help stay hydrated.
I personally found AK (Animal Kingdom) the hottest park to deal with(I was pushing a manual wheelchair with a young lady in her 20's).....never again.I lost 10 pounds of sweat that week.
A nice movie at AMC Dine in theatre in air conditioning is fun too.
Have a great time celebrating the new *Teens*.
Hugs Mel

 

[ottawamom]

Do you want maps? I'm heading down next week and can bring you back some. I'll be venturing out through Kanata after we're back so I can meet you to drop them off.

 

[ottawamom]

Water parks are an absolute must do at that time of year. Check out the pricing on those. Park hopper + vs waterpark annual pass vs pay per day.

 

[kuhltiffany]

Do you want maps? I'm heading down next week and can bring you back some. I'll be venturing out through Kanata after we're back so I can meet you to drop them off.

That would be awesome, thanks! DS has Autism, so anything that helps to prepare him is helpful.

 

[kuhltiffany]

Water parks are an absolute must do at that time of year. Check out the pricing on those. Park hopper + vs waterpark annual pass vs pay per day.

Funny you say that, in last minute of booking I added on the Park Hopper Plus, as it wasn't very much to do so. We've never tried the waterparks so they sound fun!

 

[DavidL]

@kulhtiffany - You've booked already? Where are you staying? We're going to be at All Star Movies from Aug 19 to Aug 25.

We were at Disney in March of this year. We did all of the theme parks, but we've never been to the waterparks, so we've booked a stay at All Star Movies in August, at which time we are going to do a Waterparks ONLY trip to Disney. If you see a family of 4 all wearing matching shirts at the waterparks, it could be us.

I see that ottawamom offered brochures. We picked up handfuls of brochures while we were there last month. I could put a bunch of them into an envelope and send them to you via snail mail as well. (We're in London ON)

 

[FigmentSpark]

Update your Touring Plan membership, if you don't have one. They have a great tool to customize plans for WDW (and for Universal). This has always been very useful to me.

https://touringplans.com/

 

[kuhltiffany]

I did book already, I checked things out hypothetically when free dining was released, then when I looked again last night options were going fast so I grabbed a cheap room quickly! We'll be at All Star Sports from August 20 to 31.

Thanks for offering the brochures, ottawamom is close to us so we can meet up easily.

We've never done the water parks so are definitely looking forward to them!

@kulhtiffany - You've booked already? Where are you staying? We're going to be at All Star Movies from Aug 19 to Aug 25.

We were at Disney in March of this year. We did all of the theme parks, but we've never been to the waterparks, so we've booked a stay at All Star Movies in August, at which time we are going to do a Waterparks ONLY trip to Disney. If you see a family of 4 all wearing matching shirts at the waterparks, it could be us.

I see that ottawamom offered brochures. We picked up handfuls of brochures while we were there last month. I could put a bunch of them into an envelope and send them to you via snail mail as well. (We're in London ON)

 

[bababear_50]

Typhoon Lagoon planning page
have a look at the map and photos
Hugs Mel
http://www.wdwinfo.com/maps/typhoon.htm
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/guides/typhoon/typhoon.htm

We rented the *Getaway Glen Umbrellas*
nice perk at not a tooooo....... unreasonable cost.
We paid $40.00 but that was a few years ago.
Getaway Glen Umbrellas
Have it made in the shade with 2 reserved loungers, 2 beach chairs, a drink table, a beach umbrella and towels. This convenient option—accommodating up to 4 Guests—is a great way to kick back and relax while you’re enjoying your day at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park.

Rental Information
Getaway Glen Umbrellas are available for rental on a first-come, first-served basis. For advanced reservations and information, call (407) WDW-PLAY [(407) 939-7529]. Guests under 18 years of age must have parent or guardian permission to call.

 

[Donald - my hero]

That would be awesome, thanks! DS has Autism, so anything that helps to prepare him is helpful.

Curious if your son might enjoy the distraction that the Touring Plans app is able to provide while in the lines? You can input the posted times on the signs and then time your own, actual time and enter it into the app. The more you interact with the programme the more *badges* you earn. Even just by entering the posted times. It allows you to see live action REAL times for lines which will let you make better use of your time. You can also use it to see which FP+ are available and then use the MDE to snag them. It's a great little programme and you can get it for about $10

You're going to have a BLAST! Just follow the excellent advice given here to keep cool and hydrated -- if you don't like the taste of the Florida tap water you can get those drops to add to your water bottles.

 

[mort1331]

Tip I would have for you. Start looking at and planning your meals. Then compare pricing, it might be worth upping your reservation to reg dining plan if your want to be doing sit down meals or buffets. With 3 disney adults those meals add up quick, but we like having the varitey.

 

[mshanson3121]

NM. I see after you've already booked. So everything I wrote was moot, lol.

 

[Sue M]

Sounds like a great trip. I also agree on getting the park hopper + tickets. The water parks are great. Get there early for a good spot with shade/umbrella. Look at the online maps so at rope drop you know where to head. You’ll want to go in the morning anyway. By 3:00 you can count on the almost daily T Storms. All pools will close.

 

[kuhltiffany]

Luckily we're leaving Mr. "Must have sit down meals" AKA DH at home, the kids and I much prefer eating on the fly. The only restaurant we wanted to try was BOG and I managed to snag a breakfast reservation today

Tip I would have for you. Start looking at and planning your meals. Then compare pricing, it might be worth upping your reservation to reg dining plan if your want to be doing sit down meals or buffets. With 3 disney adults those meals add up quick, but we like having the varitey.

 

[hdrolfe]

Luckily we're leaving Mr. "Must have sit down meals" AKA DH at home, the kids and I much prefer eating on the fly. The only restaurant we wanted to try was BOG and I managed to snag a breakfast reservation today

We had two days at Disney a few weeks back and I got a 9:30 BOG breakfast while we were standing waiting for rope drop the day we were at MK, it was a great use of a quick service credit. I enjoyed it a lot (magic how they find you in the dining room). Kiddo didn't eat much but he never does when we travel. If you can pre-order the food you should. Otherwise we ate only at quick service when we were hungry and it worked out well. I had friends travelling at the same time and the husband was a little annoyed at having to get to certain places for sit-down meals at certain times when he would rather have more time to relax by the pool that afternoon.