which trip option would you choose?

[Bob Gnuheart]

In order to stay on budget for our October WDW trip we need to make a decision.

We are either going to stay at a value resort and take standard admission tickets *OR* tent camp at Ft. Wilderness and do park hopper tix.

We're doing deluxe dining for sure, so the accomodations or park tickets is where we will trim the fat.

What do you guys think?

Thanks

 

[sk!mom]

No way would I tent camp. WDW is exhausting enough without the added exhaustion of tent camping.

I'm not a camper, though.

 

[Darcy03231]

Here's another vote for the hotel room. There's no way I would tent camp either. What if it rains? I think that would make it pretty miserable for everyone.

 

[Cloud9]

You didn't stated who is going with you. Are there children involved? If there are you might not want to go comando and do everything from sun up to sun down.

I would vote to for a value to the soft bed.

 

[mmaikisch]

I think there is so much to do in the parks, that you won't really need the park hopper tickets. My family got the park hoppers one year and didn't even park hop =) From then on we only get the base tickets and that is plenty for us. It's also nice that we can take our time through the parks and not feel rushed to see and do everything. Much more enjoyable for us =)

 

[Bob Gnuheart]

the kids will be 8 when we go. They are used to camping and we have inflatable camp mattresses.

Went to Disney last year at Coronado Springs and park hopped, which was great, but the basic dining plan left us hungry. We're not big eaters, but the days were long and that snack wasn't cutting it after doing breakfast early then later dinner.

Thanks a lot

we saw a isney special on the travel channel and it looked like there was a lot to do in Ft. Wilderness (bikes, etc).

 

[peyjax]

I like to camp, however something about camping and deluxe dining just does not add up.

 

[Crystal824]

I would most definitely stay at a value and not park hop, but that's just me. I'm not much of a camper.

 

[irene_dsc]

Have you camped for the length of time you are planning for your trip? Do you get a good night's sleep and feel rested? I know weekend camping trips are pretty much my limit, personally, but YMMV. The idea of camping at WDW is intriguing to me, tbh, but I wouldn't want to lug our huge tent, etc on a plane, and the drive is too long for our family. (We aren't big on road trips.)

The big work on camping, ime, is the cooking, which really wouldn't be an issue if you are doing the dining plan.

 

[oddBotkins]

I choose not to do the park hopper. I just plan each day in advance on where we're going and schedule the ADRs accordingly. I usually decide where we're going based on EMH and expected crowd levels. There is plenty to do each day one park at a time. If I'm in EPCOT then the ADR is in EPCOT, If I'm at AK I usualy make the evening ADR for a resort restaurant, i.e Boma, Jiko...

 

[2disneyboys]

I love camping. We go on around 6 camping trips a year.. and I mean TENT camping, not pulling the RV or pop up.

With that said, I would not want to go camping and WDW at the same time.. Obviously a lot of people like to as I understand the WDW campground is a pretty hot spot, but not me.

As far a park hopping, we don't ever buy one of those, so my answer would be no park hopper regardless of where you stay.

 

[NU2WDW]

OMgosh, no contest. Skip the park hop option. I don't know how old your kids are -- our 3 were all preschoolers our last trip and we certainly didn't miss hopping. For our trip next month, we did get park hoppers but I'm already starting to think it may have been a mistake to pay the extra.

If you're seasoned campers and really love to do it, maybe it would work out. But the thought makes me go --

Have a FANTASTIC trip, either way!

 

[FoundMyPrince]

In order to stay on budget for our October WDW trip we need to make a decision.

We are either going to stay at a value resort and take standard admission tickets *OR* tent camp at Ft. Wilderness and do park hopper tix.

We're doing deluxe dining for sure, so the accomodations or park tickets is where we will trim the fat.

What do you guys think?

Thanks

We briefly talked about tenting in WDW. That was before our first tent camping experience. I quickly figured out that it's not for me! I think I heard every bug in the campground and we all awoke at the crack of dawn (like 5:45a.m. in the summer). It was mildly miserable. I cannot imagine doing that for more than 2 nights.

When we're at WDW we stay late at the parks and are very tired by the end of the day. I want a comfy bed. I want a long shower to "de-stink" myself - and I don't want to hike to one. I want a/c when I'm hot, and I want a dry surrounding (it rains too much for a tent in Florida).

I'm not a camper.

Skip the park hopper and enjoy a soft bed, long shower, dry surroundings, quiet room with every luxury your budget can afford. Just plan out your trip so you can take advantage of Early Hours/Late Hours and spend as much time as you can at each of the parks - and make dining reservations according to the days you'll be at certain parks (cannot hop to EPCOT for dinner when at HS for the day).

 

[nelep]

I love camping. We go on around 6 camping trips a year.. and I mean TENT camping, not pulling the RV or pop up.

With that said, I would not want to go camping and WDW at the same time.. Obviously a lot of people like to as I understand the WDW campground is a pretty hot spot, but not me.

As far a park hopping, we don't ever buy one of those, so my answer would be no park hopper regardless of where you stay.

I TOTALLY agree! We too are tent campers. We just got back from Fort Wilderness CABINS. DH and I kept looking at all those tents and thinking how horrible it would be to have to sleep in a tent and shower in a community shower after an exhausting day at the park. Although some people love it - go figure.

We found no need to park hop. Too much time wasted getting from park to park. At the end of the day, we felt like there was still so much we could have done at the park we were in. We couldn't imagine leaving and going to another park in the same day.

 

[katyjeka]

We would always buy park hopppers when traveling to WDW until last December. We went with the basic ticket, and found it actually worked better for us. We would go to a park early in the morning, ride quite a bit, and collect fast passes. After an afternoon break, we would return to the park and use the fast passes collected earlier in the day. It makes for a great evening. We are traveling again this year with 8 people, and with the money we're saving we plan on renting boats, and buying a few extra souveniers. Whatever your choice, have a great trip.

 

[Cinderella94]

Definitely the value!

 

[momma2minnie]

I vote for hotel. No tents for this girl!

Agree with the PP about needing to de-stinkify and have a nice soft(ish) bed to catch me at the end of the day!

You said the kids are used to camping but is that after a long day pounding the pavement,in the heat/humidity?

Would also skip the hoppers and plan accordingly as far as ADR's. You mentioned DDP and liking Fort Wilderness...maybe plan for an early evening at a park and spend it there and take in the Hoop-Dee-Doo-Revue.

Just my opinion. Have a great time whatever you decide!

 

[srwarden1928]

We do not camp. I went once when I was 18--glad to have the experience, dont need to repeat. DW has never been and never will.
Of course we wouldnt do DDP either--way too much food--especially way way WAY too many desserts.
I might upgrade to a moderate in place of the DDP. We are staying at a value this summer, so nothing wrong with values.

 

[brymolmom]

Stay at the Value OR drop deluxe dining to basic dining.

I would also drop the hopping.

 

[cglaura]

Are you heartset on doing alot of sit down dinners? You could really trim the budget by maybe doing more cs meals?

I know the dining plan is a good value if you maximize with good ts dinners, etc. but if you are just looking for good food to fill you up there are alot of cs places that offer much more than just burgers and chicken nuggets.

And as you said you aren't big eaters, you may just be able to split some meals with an extra side. Here are some menus with prices if you have not checked them out yet: DIS AllEarsNet

I've actually never been tent camping, so I can't give an opinion there, but if it were me, I'd go value, no hopping, no dining plan. You can always add hopping while you are there if you decide you need it.

Whatever you decide hope you have a great trip!