So, next year (probably around Christmas) I'm thinking of taking the family to Disney. My wife has never been. My daughter will be seven, and I think that's the perfect age - old enough to appreciate and remember, young enough to buy in to the fantasy. I haven't been since I was in my early 20s and we stayed with family friends nearby. And lots of things have changed in 20 years; my experience is too dated to be a guide. I want to stay at the resort to get the full Disney experience for my daughter. I figure a day at each Disney park and a day at the Harry Potter park. Maybe some other nearby parks as well. Any suggestions? I have a year to put this plan together, so I should be able to do this thing up nice. TIA.
Any Disney World advice?
- Thread starter Bodhisattva
- Start date
My wife and I go quite regularly and I would say in a nutshell, stay on board at Disney as you will get the full experience and be able to take advantage of what they call Extra Magic Hours. See the parks early in the day, take a break midday and go back in the evening. That way you would get plenty of breaks for rest and do not get Disney overload. If you are taking a day to see another park, Universal and SeaWorld are excellent and if you can spare it, take them to Discovery Cove for a dolphin swim. That is a lifetime memory. Not sure how long you are going for, but you might want to figure in a rest day as you will get worn out by the vast size of the parks.
Last but not least, if you are planning to go at Christmas, try going before Christmas as the park is sooooo crowded between Christmas and New years that you cannot breathe it is so packed. You have families that are out of school plus many fans of schools that are in Florida bowl games between Christmas and New years. Feel free to PM me with any questions.
Bohdi, I am a Disneyphile and used to work there as well. I will give you a longer reply this evening after work.
We went last year right after Christmas, it's not that bad. Just get to the park thirty minutes prior to opening time. We rode every ride multiple times. Try tour guide mike Web s ite. It will tell you which days are less busy.
Take your finger, stick it in your eye, swirl it around......
j/k -- If you are staying at a Disney Property -- Go in the morning -- leave mid day, go do something else, then come back late afternoon.
You will enjoy it TONS more --
Spend some time visiting the different resorts.....some great detail put into them (Wilderness Lodge, Polynesian, etc) -- ride the boats, ride the monorail -- it's cheap -- it's fun -- and you can dine in the different resorts....
Best months to go? February and October
j/k -- If you are staying at a Disney Property -- Go in the morning -- leave mid day, go do something else, then come back late afternoon.
You will enjoy it TONS more --
Spend some time visiting the different resorts.....some great detail put into them (Wilderness Lodge, Polynesian, etc) -- ride the boats, ride the monorail -- it's cheap -- it's fun -- and you can dine in the different resorts....
Best months to go? February and October
Make sure it is not gay day. We almost made this mistake. We made the Disney universal trip a few years back, my daughter was 8. It was awesome. Carry a backpack in, put tickets in ziplock bags in case of rain, and if you want great meal jut leave th park and go to a restraunt.....much cheaper. Something we do is always get a Christmas ornament in Magic Kingdom, it is. Great reminder every year of the awesome family time we spent together. I honeymooned at Disney so it has. Special place for my family.
This. It's very convenient to get up, take a quick shower, and go catch the bus to the park.
A day per park is about right; Especially if little kids are involved, Epcot would be a short day. The Magic Kingdom could handle a second day, though. You can get park schedules in advance so you can plan your days--The Electric Light Parade, for instance, isn't an every night thing, and the extended hours rotate.
Two years ago we did five days/four nights beginning Jan 31--The crowds weren't too bad, and we got a great rate. Our first day was when we played MSU in the CapOne Bowl, so we also saw lots of Bama fans about.
Also, definitely get a meal plan--the food is pretty good, but the menu prices would make even a 1%er wince.
Most definitely stay at a resort (moderate priced resorts offer a great experience for a little less coin), get hopper passes, and DO get a meal plan. We have three children, and have done Disney twice with them now. We did Christmas back in 2010...just be prepared for massive crowds and major congestion, especially at night.
Try to make dinner reservations several months in advance if you want a nice table dinner a the various parks. All of the Disney parks have nice restaurants. Also, Downtown Disney can be tons of fun- lots of live music, great restaurants, and cool shops all in a family-friendly environment. Also try to schedule at least one day to crash- your legs and your patience will thank you!
On a personal note, we enjoyed our stay at the Coronado Springs Resort the best. It's a moderate resort that is located in a nice, central location that makes the bus rides shorter to the parks. Has some great restaurants and amenities as well. Our kids loved it as well, and that was really the most important thing.
Try to make dinner reservations several months in advance if you want a nice table dinner a the various parks. All of the Disney parks have nice restaurants. Also, Downtown Disney can be tons of fun- lots of live music, great restaurants, and cool shops all in a family-friendly environment. Also try to schedule at least one day to crash- your legs and your patience will thank you!
On a personal note, we enjoyed our stay at the Coronado Springs Resort the best. It's a moderate resort that is located in a nice, central location that makes the bus rides shorter to the parks. Has some great restaurants and amenities as well. Our kids loved it as well, and that was really the most important thing.
Universal was pretty cool the last time I made it down, was probably my favorite park. MGM was nice as well (I think it changed to Disney Studios or something like that now). We ended up being there late one evening and most the crowds had left so we rode the Star Wars ride about 6 times in a row with no wait.
The Animal Kingdom would likely be something your daughter would love, although I assume that was already on your list of visits. Also agree on the Downtown Disney comment above.
The last time we went down it was around Thanksgiving and you get some of the Christmas vibe without as many people. We've taken a lot of trips around that time of the year and it has worked out well as most people are going to be with families instead of out to theme parks/tourist locations.
The Animal Kingdom would likely be something your daughter would love, although I assume that was already on your list of visits. Also agree on the Downtown Disney comment above.
The last time we went down it was around Thanksgiving and you get some of the Christmas vibe without as many people. We've taken a lot of trips around that time of the year and it has worked out well as most people are going to be with families instead of out to theme parks/tourist locations.
Do NOT get a meal plan. Put your meal budget on a Disney gift card and you'll have more flexibility and won't waste money on uneaten desserts and other things. I've done the math each time I've been and would have saved ~$11 per person per day without the meal plan.
if you feel like doing the high end version of the trip check out the Concierge level at the higher end hotels. "free" food and booze. Essential the concierge rooms are ~75-100$ more a night (on top of already high prices) but they have breakfasty food in the morning (Cereal, juice, bagels no real hot foods, Coffee and what not) then snacks till evening and drinks always, at night they bring in appetizers from the good restaurants on property. Beer and wine are always available and free. The Polynesian concierge also has an awesome rum punch every evening. Highly recommended.
I'm with Jon the concierge service. Concierge at the Polynesian is particularly wonderful. You basically get breakfast and lunch/afternoon snack at no additional charge, then you can choose whether you want to eat supper at a restaurant in one of the parks, there at the hotel (or one of the other hotels) or eat their heavy hors d'oeuvres that they put out in the concierge lounge instead. They also put out alcohol/cordials in the evening as well as desserts. In the morning, prior to heading to the parks, you can grab a few complimentary bottles of water to take into the park with you and just refill them from the water fountains in the park and not have to shell out a ridiculous amount of money on water. The concierge service totally makes up for the price by the number of meals and snacks you WON'T have to pay for in the parks. You're also going to want the Park Hopper option on your multiday tickets. This will allow you to visit multiple parks in the same day. I also do not recommend the Meal Plan if you go concierge for the reasons I stated above - there's just already plenty of food options available to you in the concierge lounge, then you can pick and choose which sit-down restaurants you want to visit.
With a seven year old, I recommend staying at one of the monorail line resorts (Polynesian, Contemporary or Grand Floridian). She's going to want to go to the Magic Kingdom more than just one day. If you're on the monorail line, it's soooo simple to walk onto the monorail and skip over to the MK for a couple of hours. If you go during the Christmas season, all the decorations are out and the parks and hotels are simply stunning, so make some time just to visit the other hotels and take in the decorations. If you choose to stay at a moderate or value resort, you won't get the concierge option, and while they are lovely too, you will need to factor in a little bit of extra time for bus travel (although the bus system works almost flawlessly).
You'll want to plan out, in general, what your schedule is going to be ahead of time. We always plan based on what our nightly entertainment and supper plans are. For example, if we want to take in Fantasmic at MGM (I still call it that), we would plan to eat a sit-down supper a couple of hours beforehand in that park (we like The Brown Derby). If we want to take in Illuminations at EPCOT, we'll plan dinner at one of the World Showcase restaurants. Some of these evening shows have dinner packages you can arrange that gives you your restaurant reservation and reserved seating for the show. We did that the last time we saw Fantasmic and it was wonderful to be able to enjoy our supper and stroll right past the crowd waiting to get in to the theatre and go straight to the best seats in the house.
They have a nice service at all the parks now where the Disney photographer takes your family's picture at certain photo worthy locations (in front of the castle, in front of the tree of life, in front of the sorcerer's hat, etc) and they give you a card that allows you to access your photos online later and purchase which prints you like. It was nice not to have to ask strangers to take those particular pics and to later be able to pick and choose a few really great shots. Just a convenience.
For your little girl's sake, please schedule a character breakfast. If she's into the whole princess thing, do your best to get the princess breakfast in the castle. It's a really special thing for a little girl. We took our girls when they were 6 and 8 and they were blown away by getting to have some one on one time and pictures with all the princesses. If she prefers the regular characters, then Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary and The Crystal Palace in the MK are the best breakfasts for the likes of Mickey, Pooh, etc.
Make the most of your Extra Magic Hours. By staying on property, you get to enter certain parks early or stay later on certain days. The crowds are light and you can ride certain rides over and over. I also recommend making smart use of Fast Pass for certain rides to save time.
For information and planning purposes, I highly recommend www.intercot.com. Get yourself an account and dive right in. If it has anything to do with Walt Disney World, you will find it there.
Any questions between now and then, please feel free to PM me.
With a seven year old, I recommend staying at one of the monorail line resorts (Polynesian, Contemporary or Grand Floridian). She's going to want to go to the Magic Kingdom more than just one day. If you're on the monorail line, it's soooo simple to walk onto the monorail and skip over to the MK for a couple of hours. If you go during the Christmas season, all the decorations are out and the parks and hotels are simply stunning, so make some time just to visit the other hotels and take in the decorations. If you choose to stay at a moderate or value resort, you won't get the concierge option, and while they are lovely too, you will need to factor in a little bit of extra time for bus travel (although the bus system works almost flawlessly).
You'll want to plan out, in general, what your schedule is going to be ahead of time. We always plan based on what our nightly entertainment and supper plans are. For example, if we want to take in Fantasmic at MGM (I still call it that), we would plan to eat a sit-down supper a couple of hours beforehand in that park (we like The Brown Derby). If we want to take in Illuminations at EPCOT, we'll plan dinner at one of the World Showcase restaurants. Some of these evening shows have dinner packages you can arrange that gives you your restaurant reservation and reserved seating for the show. We did that the last time we saw Fantasmic and it was wonderful to be able to enjoy our supper and stroll right past the crowd waiting to get in to the theatre and go straight to the best seats in the house.
They have a nice service at all the parks now where the Disney photographer takes your family's picture at certain photo worthy locations (in front of the castle, in front of the tree of life, in front of the sorcerer's hat, etc) and they give you a card that allows you to access your photos online later and purchase which prints you like. It was nice not to have to ask strangers to take those particular pics and to later be able to pick and choose a few really great shots. Just a convenience.
For your little girl's sake, please schedule a character breakfast. If she's into the whole princess thing, do your best to get the princess breakfast in the castle. It's a really special thing for a little girl. We took our girls when they were 6 and 8 and they were blown away by getting to have some one on one time and pictures with all the princesses. If she prefers the regular characters, then Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary and The Crystal Palace in the MK are the best breakfasts for the likes of Mickey, Pooh, etc.
Make the most of your Extra Magic Hours. By staying on property, you get to enter certain parks early or stay later on certain days. The crowds are light and you can ride certain rides over and over. I also recommend making smart use of Fast Pass for certain rides to save time.
For information and planning purposes, I highly recommend www.intercot.com. Get yourself an account and dive right in. If it has anything to do with Walt Disney World, you will find it there.
Any questions between now and then, please feel free to PM me.
What's this about the show/dinner reservations? We're going in a month and I want to get in on this.
If you call the WDW-DINE number and ask about the Fantasmic Dining Package they'll hook you up!
D they offer such in Epcot? Magic Kingdom? And what are the names of those if so? My wife has never been and I want to make sure we don't miss the big shows when the park closes. I will definitely call them tomorrow.
They used to offer it for Illuminations at EPCOT and Wishes at MK, but I think those were temporary.
Never tried the Brown Derby, we go to Mama Melrose's in Hollywood Studios. Great foodI'm with Jon the concierge service. Concierge at the Polynesian is particularly wonderful. You basically get breakfast and lunch/afternoon snack at no additional charge, then you can choose whether you want to eat supper at a restaurant in one of the parks, there at the hotel (or one of the other hotels) or eat their heavy hors d'oeuvres that they put out in the concierge lounge instead. They also put out alcohol/cordials in the evening as well as desserts. In the morning, prior to heading to the parks, you can grab a few complimentary bottles of water to take into the park with you and just refill them from the water fountains in the park and not have to shell out a ridiculous amount of money on water. The concierge service totally makes up for the price by the number of meals and snacks you WON'T have to pay for in the parks. You're also going to want the Park Hopper option on your multiday tickets. This will allow you to visit multiple parks in the same day. I also do not recommend the Meal Plan if you go concierge for the reasons I stated above - there's just already plenty of food options available to you in the concierge lounge, then you can pick and choose which sit-down restaurants you want to visit.
With a seven year old, I recommend staying at one of the monorail line resorts (Polynesian, Contemporary or Grand Floridian). She's going to want to go to the Magic Kingdom more than just one day. If you're on the monorail line, it's soooo simple to walk onto the monorail and skip over to the MK for a couple of hours. If you go during the Christmas season, all the decorations are out and the parks and hotels are simply stunning, so make some time just to visit the other hotels and take in the decorations. If you choose to stay at a moderate or value resort, you won't get the concierge option, and while they are lovely too, you will need to factor in a little bit of extra time for bus travel (although the bus system works almost flawlessly).
You'll want to plan out, in general, what your schedule is going to be ahead of time. We always plan based on what our nightly entertainment and supper plans are. For example, if we want to take in Fantasmic at MGM (I still call it that), we would plan to eat a sit-down supper a couple of hours beforehand in that park (we like The Brown Derby). If we want to take in Illuminations at EPCOT, we'll plan dinner at one of the World Showcase restaurants. Some of these evening shows have dinner packages you can arrange that gives you your restaurant reservation and reserved seating for the show. We did that the last time we saw Fantasmic and it was wonderful to be able to enjoy our supper and stroll right past the crowd waiting to get in to the theatre and go straight to the best seats in the house.
They have a nice service at all the parks now where the Disney photographer takes your family's picture at certain photo worthy locations (in front of the castle, in front of the tree of life, in front of the sorcerer's hat, etc) and they give you a card that allows you to access your photos online later and purchase which prints you like. It was nice not to have to ask strangers to take those particular pics and to later be able to pick and choose a few really great shots. Just a convenience.
For your little girl's sake, please schedule a character breakfast. If she's into the whole princess thing, do your best to get the princess breakfast in the castle. It's a really special thing for a little girl. We took our girls when they were 6 and 8 and they were blown away by getting to have some one on one time and pictures with all the princesses. If she prefers the regular characters, then Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary and The Crystal Palace in the MK are the best breakfasts for the likes of Mickey, Pooh, etc.
Make the most of your Extra Magic Hours. By staying on property, you get to enter certain parks early or stay later on certain days. The crowds are light and you can ride certain rides over and over. I also recommend making smart use of Fast Pass for certain rides to save time.
For information and planning purposes, I highly recommend www.intercot.com. Get yourself an account and dive right in. If it has anything to do with Walt Disney World, you will find it there.
Any questions between now and then, please feel free to PM me.
The Disney Picture thing used to have a bug in the system. By using Firefox to preview your pics you could actually right click and "save as" to get them free
doesn't work anymore howeverWe did the Lelo and Stitch Character breakfast at Ohana bc my kids were really into them at the time. Food was great and the experience was good, but expensive.
We also chose the Polynesian as our favorite Disney Hotel. We've done the concierge level 3-4 times now. I go to Orlando 5-6 times a year for business and often drive instead of fly and bring the family. Wife and kids hit the park while I'm working and then I meet them there at night for dinner. When my business is done we check out of the business hotel my company pays for and head to the Poly for 1-2 days.
Depending on how the preview works: Hit Print Screen, open Paint, paste & crop down to just the pic. Free picture.The Disney Picture thing used to have a bug in the system. By using Firefox to preview your pics you could actually right click and "save as" to get them free
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