going to Disney World!

[thefed]

I think we're gonna bite the bullet and goto Disney World with the kids and my pregnant wife next month...last 'family time' before the new child.

Looks like disney tix dont get discounted...travelocity has always treated me well for airfare and hotels....so the question is...how do i LBYM when i goto disney?

 

[Dimsumkid]

I did this for the California Disney. My company had discounted tix for employees only, but I found better deals at the local Costco and Safeway chain. If you can't find anything, wait until you get there or ask people you know in the area to check for you. Was able to save a lot on food eating at the local Costco instead of buying expensive park food. My son (6-7 yrs old at the time) loved eating all the pizza he could handle there.

 

[bright eyed]

mousesavers.com prob has most comprehensive info on tickets etc. I haven't been to disney world, only the local joint here in SoCal!

Whenever we travel, I try to eat breakfast and lunch on our own - ie eat breakfast in the room (cereal, muffins, bagels) and pack a lunch, then do a decent dinner. You can always find the local grocery store and load up/reload as needed. I also keep one of the smaller coleman "5 day" coolers in the room for extra food storage - you get free ice from the hotel! The ice stays good for at least 5 days. Just keep lots of the large freezer storage bags for things that might be sensitive to water. Oh, and best of all, bring a small brita pitcher and refillable water bottles - that alone will save you tons!

Oh - and congrats on the new arrival! you sure a busy fella wink wink!

 

[Moemg]

The Disney Area was way overbuilt with hotel rooms so getting a bargain is pretty easy . You want to stay in the Lake Buena Vista area at a hotel with regular transportation to Disney World . It's much easier than driving . We usually stay at the ones near Downtown Disney .That way you can go to Disney for awhile stop back at the hotel and rest and return to Disney for the fireworks & parade . There are lots of inexpensive restaurants in that area just not inside Disney . Travelzoo usually has good deals on hotels in the Disney area and some include breakfast .. They also have lots of condos around that area to rent . Disney is not LBYM but to see your kids faces it will be priceless .

 

[MasterBlaster]

YouTube - Kris Allen - 'I'm Going to Disney World!' - American Idol Commercial

 

[LightningDawg]

DW

We have been to Disney World many times when our kids were younger.
We always packed sandwiches, snacks and brought them in either in fanny packs or a bag (like a diaper bag). We stayed both in the park and outside the park. If you stay in the park, the Contemporary is nice as the rooms are somewhat larger. We also enjoyed Fort Wilderness Campgrounds which have glorified trailer homes with kitchens. On International boulevard, Embassy Suites is nice, and next door to Friendly's restaurants which the kids love (free ice cream). Lots to do on Int. Blvd. Driving and parking at DW is actually easy and they have trams that take you to the front gate.

For lunch, we would always go to an escalator next to Space Mountain, which takes you to a slow moving ride which is covered. A great place to sit and rest and eat lunch. No one ever rides it as it is not really a ride but more like a tram that goes into Space Mountain.

Bottom Line: this vacation is not restful and not inexpensive, but the kids love it. I'll never forget my oldest daughter tearing up and telling us that she wanted to move there, on the day we had to leave that first time.

 

[bssc]

We went in December. I also second Mousesavers.com. The important thing is to figure out which rides you want and hit them. We also go the Parkhopper so we could do one park in the morning, rest while the crowds were out at noon and then hit another in the afternoon.

Great trip and we got it out of our system.

 

[JPatrick]

You are pretty much doomed to serfdom once Disney gets finished with you.
We went in Dec 09 with our 2 adult kids. You may be able to score a condo with sites like SkyAuction. Ours was $329 (7 days) for nice two bedroom near the back gate. Saved a lot by doing breakfast and most suppers in the room. Lunch in the park really was not that bad price or quality wise.
Consider the park hopper because you really do need to visit all the parks.

 

[Moemg]

Another good site for bargains is Book it .com
Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Resort formerly Regal Sun Resort - Lake Buena Vista

 

[Bestwifeever]

Your boys are still pretty young, aren't they? They will be happy to see the Mouse, go on a couple of rides, and then swim at the hotel pool the rest of the time!

Have a good time and you're going to make so much money on those FedZorbs that Disney dollars will be chump change to you soon.

 

[thefed]

Well I've narrowed it down to Floridays Resort (2 bedroom condo/suite) or Caribe Cove (same). I plan on getting a car, regardless.

For 8 days, 7 nights , 4 people airfare, hotel, and taxes I'm looking at $1325 for Caribe or $1900 for Floridays. Both get good reviews...anyone been to either?

 

[frieswiththat]

We have stayed at Floridays several times and like it a lot. There is a Publix just down the street to get breakfast foods, snacks, bottles of basic wine or beer, soda etc... When you're exhausted from too many long days at theme parks there is a DVD player and nice TV to watch a movie with pizza delivery. We have stayed at numerous time-shares in that area. The Disney area is terribly overbuilt with idiotic time shares that you can rent very inexpensively. Floridays is a really nice one but they are variable. Have never stayed at Caribe Cove but I do know it and it looks nice.

Do be aware- daily housekeeping is not included. They will try to sell it to you as an add-on for $30/day. I decline it as we can pick up our own towels and make the bed. Units have washer-dryer and basics for cleaning and a decent fully equipped kitchen. I get most everything else at the Publix.

There is minimal-to-no discounting on Disney tickets unless you're willing to sit through a time-share sales pitch (NOT!) There is a very nice Florida resident promo going on right now ($130 for 4 days admission) but they really do check for Florida ID, so suspect that won't work for you.

For cars, I have done very well bidding on Priceline in the past, as I have no brand loyalty when it comes to rental cars. Recently snagged an economy rental from Hertz for $10/day, though that was unusually low.

 

[urn2bfree]

Agree with mousesavers as a saving resource
I would recommend AGAINST paying up for Parkhoppers, get multiday MAgic your way BASE tickets and Orlando Fun Tickets often has discounts on those. This assumes you are not going to the water parks or DisneyQuest--unless you will go to more than 2 of those the water park fun option is not worth paying up for.
Right now you can 5 days base ticket for their 4 day price. If you get to Disney and find you want to park hop you can always add it to your ticket but once it is on there you cannot take it off....
One park each day is more than adequate without hopping, esp if you plan it right- staying off site you want to avoid the park with extra hours for the guests staying on property.
Allears is a good free internet planning source.
I am so good at Disney planning I may try to make a living at it once I retire!!!

 

[caninelover]

Also - if you have a smartphone there are a lot of apps (like Ridehopper) that will post wait times for rides & attractions, a major help when planning what to do & when to do it during the day. If you don't have a smartphone, on regular Verizon phones (as long as you have mobile internet access through them) they have something similar (forgot what it was called) that you can download and use free for a few days as a trial period.