Amethyst Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 We are in the very early stages of thinking about heading to Orlando for vacation. We don't do big vacations very often so this would be huge. We would probably go some time in July. My kids are ages 20, 18, 16, and 13. We will drive from Scranton PA to Orlando. We'll have to stop somewhere on the way down and another night for the way back. So here's what I need to know: -Can we do both Disney World and Harry Potter world? Or would that be exorbitantly expensive? I know they are not related parks so I think we'd end up spending more if we end up going to two parks, am I right? -what are the best things to do in Orlando for this age group? -what is the best way to go about planning a trip? Websites that would be helpful? It seems like there is so much information it is overwhelming. -what is the nicest hotel experience you've had in Disney. Part of me wants to stay in Disney World, but I know we can get much cheaper outside. But if the hotel experience is something special unto itself, then I'll pay more. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 We are in the very early stages of thinking about heading to Orlando for vacation. We don't do big vacations very often so this would be huge. We would probably go some time in July. My kids are ages 20, 18, 16, and 13. We will drive from Scranton PA to Orlando. We'll have to stop somewhere on the way down and another night for the way back. So here's what I need to know: -Can we do both Disney World and Harry Potter world? Or would that be exorbitantly expensive? I know they are not related parks so I think we'd end up spending more if we end up going to two parks, am I right? -what are the best things to do in Orlando for this age group? -what is the best way to go about planning a trip? Websites that would be helpful? It seems like there is so much information it is overwhelming. -what is the nicest hotel experience you've had in Disney. Part of me wants to stay in Disney World, but I know we can get much cheaper outside. But if the hotel experience is something special unto itself, then I'll pay more. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks! "Harry Potter World" isn't a whole park. It's just a smallish section of Orlando's Islands of Adventure. It's not even a full day on its own. Buying a single day at each of multiple theme parks in the most expensive way to purchase admission. You will end up paying full price (about $100 per person, per day) for every day. It's much more cost efficient to buy multi-day passes at either WDW or Universal, since the cost per day goes up by signficantly less than a full day's price. I'd have to know more about your kids' interests before making recommendations. My own kids are 15 and 18 and still love the whole Disney experience. (Both have been to the World of Harry Potter and been disappointed, by the way.) I like www.allears.net for information. Despite the fact that we live in Orlando and my husband works for The Mouse, that website tends to be our first stop when we need quick information about the parks. The Disney hotel experience is definitely something special. (For what it's worth, we've stayed on the Universal property, too, and while it's nice, it doesn't come close to Disney.) We have frequently taken a "staycation" by booking a few days at a WDW hotel and had a great time there without setting foot inside a theme park. We are especially fond of the Polynesian, but we've had good experiences at a variety of properties. Much depends on your budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 Can you do another time other than July? That would be in the hottest part of the summer and busiest time for the parks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 Disney World is composed of 4 separate parks (Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot). Most people buy a multi-day pass and spend a day at each park. The more days at Disney, the cheaper by the day. I would do Disney over Universal (which Harry Potter is a part of) for a first trip to Orlando. For your age spread, just go to Disney for several days and you'll have a great time. We usually stay off property, usually in a Marriott resort with a condo. Cheaper than on property and lots more space, with great pools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 Can you do another time other than July? That would be in the hottest part of the summer and busiest time for the parks? Hot but you can go "in" to a lot of attractions for a breather. We've been 4th of July week and the crowds were big but manageable with some planning. Wait? OP, are you talking about THIS July? If so, you need to ramp up your planning big time. You might want to post in the Disney Social Group, here on the boards social groups, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IrishMum Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 You can have a look at what we did in Florida & Orlando in 2011. We traveled from Australia, especially for Harry Potter World. We didn't even do Disney, as we are more Universal kind of people. Staying in Disney with that many will cost you heaps. We rented a house, and it was lovely. I had a great site about Disney, I'll find it for you. Edit to add Disney Trip Planning Forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer in MI Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 Wait? There's something to do in Orlando besides Disney?!?! :) We are HUGE Disney fans. So, we'd go that route. I have a GREAT condo we stay in in Windsor Hills. http://bestcondostay.com/index_files/Page396.htm Tell Gary you know Jennifer from Grosse Pointe Park, MI. I don't think that'll get you a discount, but we have rented from him for five years now! So who knows! The condo is amazing. It's in a gated community that has parks, pool, movie theater, etc, etc, etc. Seriously gorgeous. You can see the fireworks for Disney at night from the balcony. We are staying there again in August for four nights and it's $350! Full kitchen, three bedrooms, 1400 sq feet. Off season we've paid $467/week there. We also did Discovery Cove last year. Look into it. We paid $199/pp and got a day at DC plus 14 days admission to Sea World, Aquatica, and Busch Gardens. We loved ALL the parks. Dd now wants to be a marine biologist because of the people she met at Sea World. And, dd actually swam with the dolphins at DC!! Awesome!!! And, if you decide to do Disney, please let me know!! Ilove to talk about Disney!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 We also did Discovery Cove last year. Look into it. We paid $199/pp and got a day at DC plus 14 days admission to Sea World, Aquatica, and Busch Gardens. We loved ALL the parks. Dd now wants to be a marine biologist because of the people she met at Sea World. And, dd actually swam with the dolphins at DC!! Awesome!!! We're going to Discovery Cove in a few weeks.... summer rates are much higher. We're paying $319/person. Looking forward to swimming with the dolphins! It includes Sea World and Aquatica for 14 days. You can add Busch Gardens for another $20 but we're not into Busch Gardens.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 Can you do another time other than July? That would be in the hottest part of the summer and busiest time for the parks? My husband just got off for the week of July 22, so that's when we'll be going. No other option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 Wait? OP, are you talking about THIS July? If so, you need to ramp up your planning big time. You might want to post in the Disney Social Group, here on the boards social groups, too. Yup, this July. Yup, I'm feeling overwhelmed already trying to plan this. Thanks, I'll check out the social group. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 "Harry Potter World" isn't a whole park. It's just a smallish section of Orlando's Islands of Adventure. It's not even a full day on its own. Buying a single day at each of multiple theme parks in the most expensive way to purchase admission. You will end up paying full price (about $100 per person, per day) for every day. It's much more cost efficient to buy multi-day passes at either WDW or Universal, since the cost per day goes up by signficantly less than a full day's price. I'd have to know more about your kids' interests before making recommendations. My own kids are 15 and 18 and still love the whole Disney experience. (Both have been to the World of Harry Potter and been disappointed, by the way.) I like www.allears.net for information. Despite the fact that we live in Orlando and my husband works for The Mouse, that website tends to be our first stop when we need quick information about the parks. The Disney hotel experience is definitely something special. (For what it's worth, we've stayed on the Universal property, too, and while it's nice, it doesn't come close to Disney.) We have frequently taken a "staycation" by booking a few days at a WDW hotel and had a great time there without setting foot inside a theme park. We are especially fond of the Polynesian, but we've had good experiences at a variety of properties. Much depends on your budget. I've been saying Disney for months, but when I stopped to think about it, the only thing one of my kids ever pushed for was Harry Potter World, so when I started planning I realized that Harry Potter probably made more sense. I realize it's part of Universal, so maybe we should aim for doing Universal instead of WDW. I dunno. I'm the only member of the family who has ever been to WDW and that was about 25 years ago. It's apparently changed a lot. The Polynesian hotel (25 years ago) was always the hotel (of the 3 hotels at the time) that appealed to me most. But staying there this summer is something like $2000+ a night, so that's out of the question. Thanks for the link. I'll definitely check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 The Polynesian hotel (25 years ago) was always the hotel (of the 3 hotels at the time) that appealed to me most. But staying there this summer is something like $2000+ a night, so that's out of the question. I don't know where you saw that number but a standard, at the Polynesian, during the week you are going, is just under $600. Pricey but not $2000! As to Harry Potter, it will be a small portion of the day. Dh and the kids went there last year. They said the crowds were horrible in that part of Universal, much worse than they've ever seen at major attractions at Disney, at the same time of year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 I don't know where you saw that number but a standard, at the Polynesian, during the week you are going, is just under $600. Pricey but not $2000! As to Harry Potter, it will be a small portion of the day. Dh and the kids went there last year. They said the crowds were horrible in that part of Universal, much worse than they've ever seen at major attractions at Disney, at the same time of year. I did one of those searches on their website that asks how many people in my party (4 adults, 2 kids becuz of ages) and when we would be checking in and out. They popped up a bunch of different hotels and I quickly eliminated Polynesian becuz of that price. Maybe I did it wrong? Sad to hear about Harry Potter World. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 You can have a look at what we did in Florida & Orlando in 2011. We traveled from Australia, especially for Harry Potter World. We didn't even do Disney, as we are more Universal kind of people. Staying in Disney with that many will cost you heaps. We rented a house, and it was lovely. I had a great site about Disney, I'll find it for you. Edit to add Disney Trip Planning Forum. I'm going to check these out now. Thanks for the links. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 Wait? There's something to do in Orlando besides Disney?!?! :) We are HUGE Disney fans. So, we'd go that route. I have a GREAT condo we stay in in Windsor Hills. http://bestcondostay...s/Page396.htm�� Tell Gary you know Jennifer from Grosse Pointe Park, MI. I don't think that'll get you a discount, but we have rented from him for five years now! So who knows! The condo is amazing. It's in a gated community that has parks, pool, movie theater, etc, etc, etc. Seriously gorgeous. You can see the fireworks for Disney at night from the balcony. We are staying there again in August for four nights and it's $350! Full kitchen, three bedrooms, 1400 sq feet. Off season we've paid $467/week there. We also did Discovery Cove last year. Look into it. We paid $199/pp and got a day at DC plus 14 days admission to Sea World, Aquatica, and Busch Gardens. We loved ALL the parks. Dd now wants to be a marine biologist because of the people she met at Sea World. And, dd actually swam with the dolphins at DC!! Awesome!!! And, if you decide to do Disney, please let me know!! Ilove to talk about Disney!!! Bummer. The link didn't work. The condo sounds very interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 We're going to Discovery Cove in a few weeks.... summer rates are much higher. We're paying $319/person. Looking forward to swimming with the dolphins! It includes Sea World and Aquatica for 14 days. You can add Busch Gardens for another $20 but we're not into Busch Gardens.... When I went to Orlando 25 years ago, I remember enjoying Sea World even more than Disney. So I'm tempted to add something like that. But I know that dh would not ever in any possible way be interested in getting in the water with dolphins. But does Discovery Cove offer other things besides swimming with the dolphins? I'll go check it out... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 http://bestcondostay.com/index.htm Try that OP. I'm trolling for ideas for a trip in a few years ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer in MI Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 When I went to Orlando 25 years ago, I remember enjoying Sea World even more than Disney. So I'm tempted to add something like that. But I know that dh would not ever in any possible way be interested in getting in the water with dolphins. But does Discovery Cove offer other things besides swimming with the dolphins? I'll go check it out... You don't have to swim with the dolphins at Discovery Cove. It would save you quite a bit if you didn't, actually. There is SO much else to do there! We had an amazing time and wish we could have stayed longer!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 Stay onsite at Universal and you can get into Harry Potter World and hour early in the morning. Be at the gate and get your whole hour. You also get to use the short lines over and over again in the parks. There are two parks at Universal. It's not Disney but if their big wish is Harry Potter World it's worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 I also wanted to mention that I'm interested in ideas of places to stay for the ride to and from Florida. We'll be stopping one night over on the way there and another night on the way back. So any suggestions for nice (mostly meaning clean) hotels to stay at somewhere in North or South Carolina, somewhere near 95 with a pool. Some place interesting to see or eat at nearby would be a bonus. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 I second Windsor Hills. We've stayed in several different condos/houses out there.... All excellent, clean, and WAY cheaper than any hotel with much more room. I'm a Disney fanatic and we have season passes. That being said, I've been itching to hit a universal and Sea World lately too. Disney is just magic though.... They think of everything! However, you are planning very late for Disney and would likely have trouble getting dining or recreational reservations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 I did one of those searches on their website that asks how many people in my party (4 adults, 2 kids becuz of ages) and when we would be checking in and out. They popped up a bunch of different hotels and I quickly eliminated Polynesian becuz of that price. Maybe I did it wrong? Sad to hear about Harry Potter World. :( Maybe.... did you have the box marked for packages? Then it would include other things. I plugged in 5, not 6, so that may be part of it. You may need two rooms, which would show the price of 2, not 1, for places that only accommodate 5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 When I went to Orlando 25 years ago, I remember enjoying Sea World even more than Disney. So I'm tempted to add something like that. But I know that dh would not ever in any possible way be interested in getting in the water with dolphins. But does Discovery Cove offer other things besides swimming with the dolphins? I'll go check it out... There is plenty to do... lazy river with fish in it, petting stingrays, a small beach. There are other things too. Oh, and the price includes breakfast, lunch, snacks, beverages (including alcohol) and sunscreen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splash Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 My older kids really liked Harry Potter world and universal. It was more crowded but worth it to them. They also though the roller coasters were more exciting there. They loved Disney as well but were glad we did the Harry potter and universal that year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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