Disney World [CLOSED DUE TO POLITICS]

[Alfisti]

Originally Posted by dreamingat30fps

I believe it's standard to tip the mouse 30% for mediocre service and 50% for ok service.

Tips, auto-added tips, resort fees, taxes, usage fees, towel fees etc... you guys know how to surcharge I give ya that.

[2000cs]

When I was 9 my dad had a job interview trip in Newport Beach, CA. He brought me on the trip and we stayed at the Disneyland Hotel. He gave me a book of ride tickets (park was free then), and each morning I would get on the monorail, ride it into the park, and spend the day going on rides, etc. I must also have had some cash to pay for food/drinks. He spent those days interviewing. As a 9 year-old living in Memphis, that was magical.

He took that job and we moved. As a teen my friends and I went about every weekend to see the bands and go on a few rides. Again, the park was free then, so we only had to buy tickets for rides and buy food.

Disney is so expensive now I don’t know if we’ll go back to any of their parks. But then the grandkids aren’t old enough to ask yet.

[happyjack]

only additional advice that i'd offer or emphasize is that you'd better plan, plan, PLAN this trip. disney has changed A LOT in the last 10 years and from everything that i've heard recently from families taking young kids for the first time is that you'd better have every day mapped out, and all of your "must" rides and meals reserved well in advance.

if you show up there these days without the reserved rides, it's highly likely that you wont be riding much of anything except the carousel and peter pan because everything books in advance...or you end up in a 3 hour line.

that said...5-6 year olds have decent energy but if you're there for a week, it's good to plan an off day, or a couple of off-afternoons where you just chill at the hotel pool and let the kid(s) decompress with some unstructured fun. the early excitement of walking into the park and seeing everything for the first time will wane by 300 - 400 in the afternoon. plan a later afternoon break back at the hotel and then schedule the time to be back in the park for a ride or two after sunset and to watch fireworks.

staying on a disney property does bring perks WRT meal plans and refillable drink cups, parking, shuttle buses, etc...for a first timer, it's definitely better to stay on the property.

[XutvJet]

I'm south of Saint Augustine, FL at the moment. We're about 1.5 hours north of Disney. Been here nearly two weeks on the beach with about 60 relatives. My kids are 13 and 17 and we've come here every year since they've been born. They've never been to Disney. They used to ask when they were much younger but then their friends started going and they all said the same thing, prepare to wait and wait for hours for everything. My kids weren't interested after hearing that. They have a ton of fun at the beach, at the pool, and the other stuff we do.

I've been to Disney twice. Once in 1983 at 9 right after Epcot was built and again in 1990 at 16. I don't remember a thing. Disney World and that system is an entirely different animal now. Sounds like total and utter chaos to me. Thank god the wife and kids aren't interested. Five family members got tickets to Universal for today. $400 a person and they have no speed pass. And it's 100 today. Yikes!

[floridaorange]

Chiming back in - as someone pointed out - it is a lot of fun to go with your kid, I took my son at that age and pushed him all over the park in a stroller. I didn't bring my wife and we got a lot more done that way - perhaps a divide and conquer approach might work better for you guys too…. Bringing a smaller child is kind of asking for it. Have the wife go shop with the little one at Disney Springs. While you guys run all over the Magic Kingdom.. Bonding time!

As for locals telling you how awful Orlando is - we have a lot of haters here who don't really know how to live well. I feel sorry for them, stuck renting an overpriced apt or condo in metro west working some dead end job.

My family has been here for 3 gen's, have a big family all over Florida, it's fantastic if you are well connected or have a great job.

[3.0L]

Took my 4 grand kids (and their parents) to Disneyland in Anaheim some years back... for 1 day.

One day was more than enough. Not only was it very expensive, it was also VERY crowded. Late in the afternoon my wife and I "camped out" at a snack bar near where the current live band elevates out of the ground while grand kids continued having fun. It was one of the few places where we could find some relief from the crowds.

I'll never go back. Disneyland isn't as much fun, like it was in the late '50's.

[infinitekidM2C]

I have a family of four and went a couple years ago. You can dm if you have any specific questions. I stayed at the Grand Floridian. 10K should be fine. I didn't go on the cheap and stayed a week or so.

With respect to planning, 6 months in advance is probably the minimal for the hotel but you're going in the fall so that might help. Stay inside the "world" trust me. And try to get a hotel with monorail access.

You're in that grey zone with your kids' age. Any younger and it's too much as there's still a lot of walking and you'll probably be doing stuff each day. But she's probably super into Disney right now so may as well strike while the iron's hot.

[happyjack]

Originally Posted by infinitekidM2C

You're in that grey zone with your kids' age. Any younger and it's too much as there's still a lot of walking and you'll probably be doing stuff each day. But she's probably super into Disney right now so may as well strike while the iron's hot.

this is an excellent point. i dont remember the ride height restrictions, but if you're only going to do disney once for your kids, then maybe wait until they can ride all the "big kid" rides?

although...i still remember how much my then 4 year-old daughter LOVED seeing princess belle and wanted to go see every one of belle's live reading sessions...and we wouldnt have had that moment if we had waited until she was 10-12 years old.

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by MoeTE87

Wife and I are in the same boat. Our daughter will be turning 5 next month and we have been working with a Disney vacation planner for the past 6months or so. The latest price quote for a 2 bedroom suite on the grounds, $20k. Wife and I almost flipped our shit we couldn't believe it. Mind you, that is with my parents, her parents and us. All passes to the different resorts and stuff. Plus, that price didnt even include, food, drinks or airfare.

We had some friends that recently went and said it's not worth it right now. They paid top dollar and hardly any special attractions were open and they felt short changed.

We were thinking about going April 2023 but have reconsidered going and looking at lake houses and a boat instead since we would rather spend that $20k on something better than giving it to someone for 5-7 days.

Best of luck!

hot DAMN $20k??

I'm hoping since it's just 3 of us (my son will be 1.5 years so he won't count) that makes a dent in the pricing.

So ticket pricing it seems like will be ~$1.6k for 2 adult adults and 1 child 3-9 for 4 days. Maybe $6k for resort stay for 7 nights? Besides that I feel like I SHOULD be able to fit in food and other miscellaneous things for under $3k.

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by infinitekidM2C

I have a family of four and went a couple years ago. You can dm if you have any specific questions. I stayed at the Grand Floridian. 10K should be fine. I didn't go on the cheap and stayed a week or so.

With respect to planning, 6 months in advance is probably the minimal for the hotel but you're going in the fall so that might help. Stay inside the "world" trust me. And try to get a hotel with monorail access.

You're in that grey zone with your kids' age. Any younger and it's too much as there's still a lot of walking and you'll probably be doing stuff each day. But she's probably super into Disney right now so may as well strike while the iron's hot.

Yeah honestly I would have held off (or not gone at all) if it weren't for my daughter being in her Disney phase and asking me about it. Doesn't help that her other 4 year old friend just got back from Disney. I figure with her turning 6 by the time we do go, that'll be a good age for her to enjoy it to the fullest.

Ideally I would have knocked both kids out in one trip if we waited till my daughter was 9 and son was 5. But good to know that $10k is fine. Some of the numbers being thrown around here gave me heart palpitations

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by happyjack

this is an excellent point. i dont remember the ride height restrictions, but if you're only going to do disney once for your kids, then maybe wait until they can ride all the "big kid" rides?

although...i still remember how much my then 4 year-old daughter LOVED seeing princess belle and wanted to go see every one of belle's live reading sessions...and we wouldnt have had that moment if we had waited until she was 10-12 years old.

I think I was reading most of the "big kid" rides have a height requirement of 48". She's a pretty tall 4 year old at 42" right now, so I'm hoping by the time she's 6 she'll hit that 48" mark.

Now if she's brave enough to ride some of those big kid rides.... that remains to be seen.

[UncleWede]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

Now if she's brave enough to ride some of those big kid rides.... that remains to be seen.

So, she'll be riding with Mom then, got it

[infinitekidM2C]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

Yeah honestly I would have held off (or not gone at all) if it weren't for my daughter being in her Disney phase and asking me about it. Doesn't help that her other 4 year old friend just got back from Disney. I figure with her turning 6 by the time we do go, that'll be a good age for her to enjoy it to the fullest.

Ideally I would have knocked both kids out in one trip if we waited till my daughter was 9 and son was 5. But good to know that $10k is fine. Some of the numbers being thrown around here gave me heart palpitations

At 6 she'll be loving it.
Re the price, you can go crazy anywhere. Just be mindful. We only ate dinner out and usually packed food for lunch. So first thing we did was order groceries from instacart. You get sick of eating out anyways.

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by UncleWede

So, she'll be riding with Mom then, got it

Her riding with mom means I get stuck with the infant

[Tyga11]

Not trying to derail your thread OP but I couldn't imagine spending $10k+ on a week in Disney World. Just seems like a crazy amount of money and I wouldn't be able to enjoy myself unless I'm getting some crazy VIP experience. Do you at least get to cut all the lines for that kind of money?

We used to stay in the Disney Sports Resort or whatever it was called. It's probably a dump now but it was $100 a night or maybe even less 20 years ago and was fine. My dad used to take me to Waffle House every morning for breakfast and sometimes we just stayed in a Howard Johnson.

Had the time of my life I don't think 5-6 year olds will care about staying in the fancy disney resort paying $900 a night for a room and they rip you off for food / etc.

If you're a baller though do what you please lol

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by Tyga11

Not trying to derail your thread OP but I couldn't imagine spending $10k+ on a week in Disney World. Just seems like a crazy amount of money and I wouldn't be able to enjoy myself unless I'm getting some crazy VIP experience. Do you at least get to cut all the lines for that kind of money?

We used to stay in the Disney Sports Resort or whatever it was called. It's probably a dump now but it was $100 a night or maybe even less 20 years ago and was fine. My dad used to take me to Waffle House every morning for breakfast and sometimes we just stayed in a Howard Johnson.

Had the time of my life I don't think 5-6 year olds will care about staying in the fancy disney resort paying $900 a night for a room and they rip you off for food / etc.

If you're a baller though do what you please lol

Times have definitely changed. I have stayed in a Howard Johnson or two back in my younger days when we first moved to the US.

The fancy resort isn't for the kids, that's for my wife and I at least we'll have a nice place to come back ro every night after a day full of chaos.

I do agree $10k for a week at Disney is insanity... but seems that's the going rate for a luxury trip down there. Of course you can probably slide that scale +/- $5k.

Let's see what we get. I've reached out to one of those Disney vacation planners (they don't charge anything for their services so I figured why not). I let her know our budget is $10k, so we'll see what we get for that. If it's nothing special I may tighten that budget a bit.

[TXSTYLE]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

I'm not a fan of Disney World... tons of screaming children makes my skin crawl... but my daughter is approaching 5 years old and keeps asking when we're going to "Dimsey". Just had a newborn 2 months ago, it's a bit too early for us to go travel there for daughter's 5th bday. So thinking about potentially travelling travelling there for her 6th birthday in late fall 2023.

1) How soon is too soon to start planning a trip to Disney? I've heard of resorts and some of the popular restaurants (something about dining in a castle) that get booked up immediately as they become available, so in an effort to make this a "magical" experience for her, I'm willing to begin the process as soon as necessary.

2) Has anyone ever used one of those Disney vacation planners? Any good? I'm seeing the "Vacationeers" as one of the top rated Disney trip planners, so considering talking to them.

3) Any other tips? We'd probably be doing a 7 night, 6 day trip. 4 days at the parks with a couple down days to mentally recover from screaming children. Thinking of a budget under $10k for 4 of us (me, wife, 6yr old daughter and 1.5yr old son at time of travel).

First of all.... Your opening comment is absurd. Obviously, kids and children = DISNEY!

Now then... You absolutely must use a
expert Disney Travel agent. I can't even get into all of the benefits why. But I will simply say that it is of zero additional cost to you! Disney compensates then.

I can speak from very recent experience since my family of 4 recently went. We stayed at the Polynesian for 5 Days. It was a magical experience and worth every nickel of the $10k we spent.
We will do it again and use the same agent too.

[F30lolz]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

I'm not a fan of Disney World... tons of screaming children makes my skin crawl... but my daughter is approaching 5 years old and keeps asking when we're going to "Dimsey". Just had a newborn 2 months ago, it's a bit too early for us to go travel there for daughter's 5th bday. So thinking about potentially travelling travelling there for her 6th birthday in late fall 2023.

1) How soon is too soon to start planning a trip to Disney? I've heard of resorts and some of the popular restaurants (something about dining in a castle) that get booked up immediately as they become available, so in an effort to make this a "magical" experience for her, I'm willing to begin the process as soon as necessary.

2) Has anyone ever used one of those Disney vacation planners? Any good? I'm seeing the "Vacationeers" as one of the top rated Disney trip planners, so considering talking to them.

3) Any other tips? We'd probably be doing a 7 night, 6 day trip. 4 days at the parks with a couple down days to mentally recover from screaming children. Thinking of a budget under $10k for 4 of us (me, wife, 6yr old daughter and 1.5yr old son at time of travel).

My wife, son (15) and I will be going to Disney around the same time as you (October 2023) for a week but we’re staying at the campsites and will tent or pop up camp it for 7-8 nights and do 3 park passes for roughly $1900. Been to Disney maybe 30 times but the last was March 2021 and stayed at the Coronado Springs Resort which is considered moderate but the main tower can be considered deluxe. I’ve attached some pictures below.

1) IMHO I would start looking into resorts now to get a feel of availability and figure out what’s priority. Value, moderate or deluxe resort? Close to Magic Kingdom or any particular park? When booking, they require $200 down so you can pay it off up to 30 days before your check in date.

2) I have zero experience so I cannot be of any help.

3) Download the Disney app so you can get a feel of the map of where everything is located and it’ll give you current wait times for all the rides. You’re allowed to bring in your own food and drinks as long as they aren’t in glass so I pack a backpack with water/juice and some snacks. Normally, we’ll have a ‘quick service’ meal during lunch. October isn’t that bad but IMHO the best time to go is the 2nd week of January. Went a few times during that timeframe and there were zero lines but this was back in 2005-2015 as since then we’ve been going around Feb/March and September. Your son won’t require a ticket so he would be free for all park entries but he won’t remember anything unfortunately. We took our son the first time when he was 2.5 years old but remembers little things surprisingly.

I’m assuming you’ll be flying into MCO (Orlando International Airport)? Too bad they did away with the Magical Express where they pick you up in a Disney shuttle bus (was operated by Mears which is a huge transportation company in the Orlando area) and delivered your bags straight to your room (IIRC) all for free. Planning on renting a car from the airport or paying for a shuttle? Disney charges at least $15 to $25 per night for parking at one of their resorts but they’ll waive the minimum $25 theme park parking per day. Funny, they didn’t charge us parking when we stayed at the Coronado Springs Resort.

Feel free to send me a message if you have further questions. Sorry, not sure why I don’t have any interior pics ATM.

Edit: $3k cost for 8 nights at the Coronado Springs Resort with 2 Disney parks and 2 day/2 park pass for Universal and that included our food and transportation cost. Again, this was March 2021 when they were doing massive discounts to get people out from under the lockdown.

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by F30lolz

My wife, son (15) and I will be going to Disney around the same time as you (October 2023) for a week but we’re staying at the campsites and will tent or pop up camp it for 7-8 nights and do 3 park passes for roughly $1900. Been to Disney maybe 30 times but the last was March 2021 and stayed at the Coronado Springs Resort which is considered moderate but the main tower can be considered deluxe. I’ve attached some pictures below.

1) IMHO I would start looking into resorts now to get a feel of availability and figure out what’s priority. Value, moderate or deluxe resort? Close to Magic Kingdom or any particular park? When booking, they require $200 down so you can pay it off up to 30 days before your check in date.

2) I have zero experience so I cannot be of any help.

3) Download the Disney app so you can get a feel of the map of where everything is located and it’ll give you current wait times for all the rides. You’re allowed to bring in your own food and drinks as long as they aren’t in glass so I pack a backpack with water/juice and some snacks. Normally, we’ll have a ‘quick service’ meal during lunch. October isn’t that bad but IMHO the best time to go is the 2nd week of January. Went a few times during that timeframe and there were zero lines but this was back in 2005-2015 as since then we’ve been going around Feb/March and September. Your son won’t require a ticket so he would be free for all park entries but he won’t remember anything unfortunately. We took our son the first time when he was 2.5 years old but remembers little things surprisingly.

I’m assuming you’ll be flying into MCO (Orlando International Airport)? Too bad they did away with the Magical Express where they pick you up in a Disney shuttle bus (was operated by Mears which is a huge transportation company in the Orlando area) and delivered your bags straight to your room (IIRC) all for free. Planning on renting a car from the airport or paying for a shuttle? Disney charges at least $15 to $25 per night for parking at one of their resorts but they’ll waive the minimum $25 theme park parking per day. Funny, they didn’t charge us parking when we stayed at the Coronado Springs Resort.

Feel free to send me a message if you have further questions. Sorry, not sure why I don’t have any interior pics ATM.

Edit: $3k cost for 8 nights at the Coronado Springs Resort with 2 Disney parks and 2 day/2 park pass for Universal and that included our food and transportation cost. Again, this was March 2021 when they were doing massive discounts to get people out from under the lockdown.

Awesome thanks for all the suggestions! Glad I'm not crazy in beginning the planning process now.

[DocL]

We used to go every other weekend to Disney World when my kids were younger, and they were free at their age. My wife and I had annual passes which we definitely got our money worth. We never stayed on Disney property because we needed a larger room, and don't like to eat out all the time.

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Orange Lake Resort, which is a ten minute drive to Disney. We aren't timeshare holders, but I signed up for the IHG credit card and rewards program. We would get a two or three bedroom condo unit. They have full kitchens, washer/dryer, two full bathrooms, and are clean and updated. There isn't maid service, but I never liked people entering my hotel rooms to begin with. There is a nice pool on site, and a ton of places on the main road to shop at for food and supplies.

To save money at the park, we would bring our own drinks, food, and snacks. We'd get the kids an ice cream or cookie. Sometimes I would make it out of park only spending $5.00 getting a popcorn as we left for the monorail ride back to where we parked.

Parking has now become another beast of it's own. We used to park at the Contemporary Hotel. We'd pull up to the guard house and say we wanted to eat with the characters. Of course if you don't have a reservation they say you have to valet park. Not me. We'd drive up and pass the valet and then go to self parking because the gates were always up. We could either walk to the park, a five minute walk, or take the Monorail if we didn't want to push the double stroller.

It was also a good place to park because at the end of the day we could relax in the lobby and use the restrooms to clean up. The kids would be asleep before we got them into the car lol.

We haven't gone in a few years because I don't like the way they are getting involved in politics. Just my opinion and I don't want to start a debate.

Thanks for spending your hard earned money in Florida. We appreciate the tourism dollars.

Check out the resort, and feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions. As I said before, we haven't been there in a few years and we used to abuse the Fastpass system, but I think they changed the entire process.

https://holidayinnclub.com/explore-r...ge-lake-resort

[Our03z4]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

In our situation those weeklong cottage trips with another family and similar aged kids are in addition to a Disney trip, not in place of one.

It's not so much that I can't tell my daughter no... I tell her no probably too often. But this is one of those things I'd like to do for her since I take special care to not spoil her on a normal basis. My motivation here is that my parents never really took me anywhere special (mainly because we grew up poor). So while day to day living I make sure she understands that she can't have anything she wants (at least as much as a 4 year old is able to understand), for special once in a blue moon type trips like this, I don't mind splurging a bit to create memories for her (even if all I remember is screaming kids and a hole in my pocket).

I always wanted to go as a kid but I grew up poor as well so it wasn't going to happen. I don't feel like I was left out, not one bit. Do I want to go now? Never in a million years.

Save yourself a ton of money and headache and don't go. Everyone I know that has gone with their kids wouldn't go again. They say the crowds are insane and the cost is ridiculous. Even people that love the place aren't happy now and apparently it's getting worse. Maybe consider the cruise, I have heard good things about it. That would still make your daughter happy, keeps the logistics simple and the headaches low.

I might be bias since I grew up only 15mins from a top amusement park. Actually have passes and had them as a kid.

[Hegge]

Originally Posted by ntg44

To be fair, he also has 4 kids, within 8-16 year old range, so it's a bit of an unfair comparison. But I know when they go, from what he's told me it's absolutely insane.

But there are so many variables like which hotel to stay at, and attractions visited, so I could very well be wrong.

Tell him to stop having kids.