topic Re: DIsneyworld trip help in Community Chat

DIsneyworld trip help

Beautiful life — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 15:14:26 GMT

‘We are planning on going to DIsneyworld in JAN 2019. Looking to find a two bedroom

hotel/condo reasonable priced. I was hoping to stay on Disney property but prices are extremely high. Family of four going.

Tips on DIsneyworld would be great. I’m using points to pay for the plane tickets.

transportation might be using Uber to get to Disney instead of a car rental.

Thank you

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

Peppertime — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 15:40:34 GMT

You might want to look at the Disney resort hotel villas since you want two rooms. We've stayed at a few of them and have been very happy particularly because of the proximity to the parks (the advantage of staying on-site). You will also get extra magic hours if you stay on a Disney property. Disney does have deals and some of them include the Villas so you could save some money there. Just be on the lookout for package deals on their website. Whatever you decide, hope you have a great time!!

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

deeva — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 15:42:33 GMT

Wish I had advice on where to find a condo. We are going this fall, but we always stay on Disney property. For us the convenience is worth the cost.

It’s usually much cheaper to rent a car at an off site location instead of the airport. Those Uber trips will get pricey.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

kaydee50 — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 16:08:07 GMT

I would definitely stay on site. In January there should be good deals. We have stayed at the All Star resorts, Disney's cheapest, and they were fine. The extra cost of the rooms will offset what you would need for transportation to/from the hotels not to mention the convenience.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

Peaches McPhee — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 16:17:45 GMT

Pre-buy your park tickets on line before you go. No cost savings, but it will save hassle and time once you get to the park.

Check on your hotel's shuttle services. Many offer shuttles to the park. (I was just there, and was pleasantly surprised to see that our little hotel offered free shuttles.)

Like outlet shopping? There are two centers in Orlando, right on International Drive (the main tourist route).

Speaking of International Drive, there is a free shuttle going up and down all day long.

(Every free service is worth it, given how much you'll spend on Disney tickets.)

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

Zhills — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 16:26:16 GMT

I live close enough to commute to Disney but I was talking to a family waiting in line and he informed me that it was cheaper for a family to stay in Disney than to get housing outside. You pay... rent, car rental, gas, insurance, parking and a lot that we don't normally think to include. He said that from a hotel, you just walk into the lobby and get on the tram and can go back to your room and rest without wasting so much time and having to pay parking again.

He said they had done both and on site is actually cheaper and much more convenient.

I don't know they handled food but I'm sure the Disney site will tell you.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

riley1 — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 16:47:02 GMT

Definitely try and stay on Disney property. As mentioned by others, in the end it will be cheaper than paying every time you need a car or parking, etc. Have a great time!

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

Burnsite — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 17:42:39 GMT

Firestripes, There are six or seven hotels near the Disney Springs area (which used to include Downtown Disney/Pleasure Island). They are cheaper than the Disney World resorts located near the parks and should be a good deal in Jan, which (if the weather isn't cold, as it sometimes is) is a nicely uncrowded time to be at Disney World. Even the Park resort prices plunge in this slower season so they are worth checking.

In Disney Springs, Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista is called an "official" Disney resort and should have more frequent shuttle service. It is across the Street from one entrance to the shopping part of Disney Springs. I saw a rate there of ("from $109) just now. The other hotels include a Hilton, a Doubletree. a Best Western and a Holiday Inn. Several have free breakfasts. It's a good compromise in being just next to a Disney property but not as costly as the official resorts near the parks. I've stayed at All Stars and have had a great time. It's around $150 for me most seasons, but I live in FL and residents have access to discounts.

My brother rented a house recently to take his grandkids to DW, and the rental price was very reasonable, but as an earlier poster also reported, parking was more expensive (and constant driving back and forth much more exhausting) than he had anticipated.

Mousesavers is a great internet site for bargain hunters---I never book without checking out their updated info. Highly recommend that you check it out.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

CANDLEQUEEN — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 19:00:08 GMT

@Beautiful life. You may also want to post this on the Travel Forum. I think you will receive a lot of suggestions there as well.......

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

gmkb — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 21:39:59 GMT

There is a transportation service from the airport to hotels. It is called MEARS. You might want to look into that rather than a car rental. Car rentals in Orlando are relatively inexpensive, but you will pay $20 every time you park your car at the parks.

There are resorts that offer shuttle to the parks. STAR ISLAND is one I know of and they have 2 bedroom units. Staying on Disney property is always easier because they all offer transportation.

We live in the area and I can tell you January is a chilly month here. Be sure you have a light javket with you or you will find yourself buying a sweatshirt at Disney prices.

Enjoy.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

equss — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 21:40:54 GMT

@Beautiful life wrote:

‘We are planning on going to DIsneyworld in JAN 2019. Looking to find a two bedroom
hotel/condo reasonable priced. I was hoping to stay on Disney property but prices are extremely high. Family of four going.

Tips on DIsneyworld would be great. I’m using points to pay for the plane tickets.
transportation might be using Uber to get to Disney instead of a car rental.

Thank you

Stay in the park if there’s any way you can do that. Saves so much time and aggravation. If you belong to costco definitely check out costco travel because they through in some nice extras like character dinner, gift cards, etc

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

ScrapHappy — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 22:21:14 GMT

@equss wrote:
@Beautiful life wrote:

‘We are planning on going to DIsneyworld in JAN 2019. Looking to find a two bedroom
hotel/condo reasonable priced. I was hoping to stay on Disney property but prices are extremely high. Family of four going.

Tips on DIsneyworld would be great. I’m using points to pay for the plane tickets.
transportation might be using Uber to get to Disney instead of a car rental.

Thank you

Stay in the park if there’s any way you can do that. Saves so much time and aggravation. If you belong to costco definitely check out costco travel because they through in some nice extras like character dinner, gift cards, etc

I'm a big fan of Disney World. Been there many times, got married there and we are DVC Members. I highly recommend you stay on property. Accomodations are in 3 categories: Deluxe, Moderate & Value. The Value resorts are: Pop Century, All Star Music, All Star Movies, All Star Sports, Art of Animation. Another option is the Fort Wilderness Campgrounds. There are many perks to staying on property. You can take advantage of the extra magic hours (when the parks open early and when the make stay open later), you get a magic band which gets linked to a MDE (My Disney Experience APP) to make your Advanced Dining Reservations, Fast Passes...everything is linked to it. It's also your door key. When staying on property, you can make your Fast Pass selections at 60 days out, which does help a lot for the hard to get rides like Flight of Passage in Animal Kingdom. Non- Disney guests have 30 days. Dining reservations can be made at 160 days out. Which again, places like Cinderellas Round Table dining is difficult to get. Also you can take the Disney's Magical Express from the airport to your hotel and take you back to airport on departure day (it's not called Mears anymore). Disney has it's own transportation (buses) which take you everywhere. They also have a "Minnie Van" which is used like a taxi. Parking at Magic Kingdom and other like AK and Epcot are, right now, $20 and you now have to pay for parking at Disney Resorts if you have a car/rental car. January 2019 is not typically the busy season so you may be able to get some "deals." . Sometimes free dining is offered. I don't know how often that is offered. I believe one was just offered, may be another in the future? There's also the Dining Plan which you pre-pay for meals but that is something we've never done and you'd have to do the math to see if it works best for you. Many people buy Disney gifts at Target when they offer the 10% discount (usually around Christmas)..that and if you have their red card is a nice discount and people use it towards their trips. There is a website, Disboards.com, which is full of information that will be very helpful. If you need any other help or have more questions, don't hesitate to ask...I love Disney. Hope you have a magical trip!

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

lovesrecess — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 23:40:41 GMT

We usually stay at Saratoga Springs which is a Disney resort...we like the 2 bedroom ones; they have 2 full baths, kitchen, and LR. If you want to stay in a chain hotel, look at ones on International Blvd Or those that say "main gate" in their name. Almost all of them have Disney shuttles to and from the park....and some have airport transportation as well. Check the Disney site and follow the links...they offer some really good deals...we are going again in November with other family members and it is free dining for the whole week...saves a bundle and it determined when we would go since they only do it twice a year. There are perks like Extra Magic Hours if you stay at a resort also.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

Beautiful life — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 23:45:01 GMT

I’m overwhelmed. Thank you everyone for your help.

‘I’m going to purchase the season pass that is for both parks; DISNEYWORLD AND DISNEYLAND. We are planning on going back the following year before the passes expire. We live close to DISNEYLAND.

IM QUOTED AROUND 3500 for 6 nights/2 rooms

close to Disney. I’m hoping to find it cheaper..... I’m going to keep looking.

meals included.... that’s nice how did you get that deal?

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

dooBdoo — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 23:53:51 GMT

@CANDLEQUEEN wrote:
@Beautiful life. You may also want to post this on the Travel Forum. I think you will receive a lot of suggestions there as well.......

@CANDLEQUEEN, Great idea about the "Travel" forum except that it usually works better to ask the moderators to move the thread rather than creating another one.

The new platform has newer guidelines stating that "crossposting" isn't permitted ("crossposting" is starting the same topic in multiple threads).

Unfortunately, if duplicate threads show up, more often than not all but one will be deleted by the moderators and then the valuable information on the other threads is lost.

Great info on this thread! I hope you have a wonderful trip, @Beautiful life!

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

ScrapHappy — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 23:53:02 GMT

@Beautiful life wrote:

I’m overwhelmed. Thank you everyone for your help.
‘I’m going to purchase the season pass that is for both parks; DISNEYWORLD AND DISNEYLAND. We are planning on going back the following year before the passes expire. We live close to DISNEYLAND.

IM QUOTED AROUND 3500 for 6 nights/2 rooms
close to Disney. I’m hoping to find it cheaper..... I’m going to keep looking.

meals included.... that’s nice how did you get that deal?

Free dining is a promotion put out by Disney, usually in the fall and winter months. Free dining for 2018 is November 24-27 and December 7-23. 2019 dates, if there will be any, have not been announced.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

homedecor1 — Wed, 13 Jun 2018 00:39:06 GMT

We planned a family trip there (10 of us) we stayed on property. I called the DisneyWorld trip planner and the rep helped me decide what was best for our needs. (407-939-5277)

We ended up staying at Pop Century. Room was fine (no thrills) and the kids stayed at Animation. I liked the transportation was available park to park,we ate different places in the parks, breakfast was a big one to keep us fueled. We did the parks -- came home by 1 and hung out at pool, then went back around 5. We went in May (hot hot hot never again)

Of course, jan. is a great time to go -- kids back in school, cooler temps & lines not too long! We are going November 18-24 and staying at Carribean Beach (I think).

Also, when we were there parking was $20/day. Outside hotels ranged from $158-259/night depending where you stayed & what you wanted in the room. I found more cost effective to stay on site unless you need a car for other attractions. I will tell you we took a UBER from our hotel to Disney -- total disaster took over 2 hours🤔😳 because something going on at ESPN complex!

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

VaBelle35 — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 23:57:09 GMT

My sister and brother (and their kids) stayed off property at a rental condo about 30 minutes away, which does not include the time from parking the car and getting into the park, which can be another 30 minutes or more (we went in the summer so it took forever for them to find parking and walk in). I'm sure they didn't save money. I know they ate breakfast at the house but we ate every other meal and snack in the park, so I don't think you are saving on food by staying somewhere with a kitchen.

I stayed at the Disney Yatch Club. Took the boat to Epcot every morning before the park opened to get in line. I will say that I saw the most characters at park opening than any other time of the day. I think because they came in and out of the building by the boat entrance.

We did Cinderella's Royall Table. One of the better meals of the entire trip and worth every penny. It's a great experience for adults and kids.

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

VaBelle35 — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 23:59:34 GMT

@gmkb wrote:
There is a transportation service from the airport to hotels. It is called MEARS. You might want to look into that rather than a car rental. Car rentals in Orlando are relatively inexpensive, but you will pay $20 every time you park your car at the parks.

There are resorts that offer shuttle to the parks. STAR ISLAND is one I know of and they have 2 bedroom units. Staying on Disney property is always easier because they all offer transportation.

We live in the area and I can tell you January is a chilly month here. Be sure you have a light javket with you or you will find yourself buying a sweatshirt at Disney prices.

Enjoy.

I went in December one year and it was in the low 50s. I still have my $60 Mickey sweatshirt from 1990ish. It is one of those long ones that you wear over leggins that comes down to your knees.

I wear it when I shovel snow. It makes me happy and Mickey still looks good for his age. I got my money's worth out of him

Re: DIsneyworld trip help

drizzellla — Wed, 13 Jun 2018 00:21:33 GMT

There is a travel agent that handles hotels rooms. They rent "points" from Disney Vacation Club members. They are called DVC-Rental dot com. It is cheaper than using Disney direct.

And by staying in Disney you can use the Magic Express to take you from the airport to your resort. It costs you nothing for the Magic Express. And staying in a Disney Vacation Club room, you will have a full kitchen and washer and dryer.

May be worth looking into.