displace Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 We moved about one year ago back south, and I'm mentally prepared to take a family trip to WDW. We've been to a lot of other amusement parks and I wanted to wait until DS was a little older before forking over the $$$. He'll be 6, and we're considering getting a resident yearly pass. There seem to be so many options and I hope any other residents might give their opinions on them. Considerations for us include: 1) We afterschool, and will likely be going at various times for school days off, and I hope to avoid the summer heat if possible. So to me, I think the only passes that would suit us would be the annual or premium annual pass as the blackout dates seem to coincide with a lot of school holidays for the seasonal pass. Does that seem right to you or are the blackout dates really do-able and not a big deal (esp if we want to avoid summer visits anyway?). We'll probably go for a weekend each time, staying only from rope drop until early afternoon and just coming back later, with maybe fireworks or something occasionally as an evening visit? 2)It seems like a lot of people choose to stay at the resorts, but looking at their prices, I don't think I would do that. IDK, I guess we usually spend about $70/night in the "area", so if we got a cheap Disney hotel would it be much different price-wise or benefit wise? I've looked at a few discount Disney websites but the prices of the rooms at WDW still seem to be a lot more expensive than $70/night. Am I missing the best places for value? 3)Also, for days out we tend to maybe eat one "snack meal" (hot dog/burger type of food), and bring the rest of the food with us in snacks/fruit/juices/sodas/water, plus eat out dinner and hotel breakfast. These food plans seem expensive at Disney. I'm a little confused as a lot of people say they save money, but I can't imagine eating so many meals at Disney to make them worth it. Plus I tend to hate spending time at crowded places standing in line for food, IYKWIM. It's faster to just grab a granola bar and PB&J. Do the annual passes give a discount on all food at the parks? The website lists where the pass can give discounts but I'm confused as it lists specific restaurants in different parks. I haven't been to WDW since I was a young child so I can hardly remember it, and now everything seems so different. In general, I'm a rough vacation planner (where we're staying, which place we're going, bringing food, maybe a place to eat for dinner), and it seems like a lot of people do planning at WDW to an extent that I don't think I could accomplish. If we see a long line, we skip the ride. If we're hungry, we eat. If we're tired, we'll likely leave. Is that laisez-faire attitude okay for WDW or would we enjoy and accomplish more by planning? I'm hopeful since we live so close-ish our multiple trips will make it not matter if we don't see everything we want at first (or second) go. TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama Geek Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 I can't be a whole lot of help as I am not a big Disney person, but how close do you live to Disney? We are an hour away and don't stay in a hotel, but we don't go consecutive days either. My SIL has and still travels the hour back and forth. When I was young we stayed off site and an inexpensive hotel and it was no big deal. I have never stayed on site there. We will pick a year and buy season passes and plan to make several trips with our families. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 We live about 2 hours away. I prefer to drive up the night before (or maybe early in the morning?), stay one or two days, then drive back at the end of whatever day when finished. The shortest would probably be a one-night stay, and possibly after having passes maybe staying a few days at a time but multiple times through the year, esp in winter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SebastianCat Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 We also live an hour away and just make day trips. We've never stayed on site, never used a meal plan, and we've survived. I know the fast pass system has changed recently, so I would look into how that might affect your visits. But other than that, you'll be fine skipping on the extras, especially if you plan to visit more than once or twice a year. I can see how some people really love to plan every detail of their Disney trips, and Disney makes it almost "fun" to plan to that extent, but if this isn't your family's main vacation and you're not planning to stay 5-7 days, you will still enjoy yourself without the extras. I will say, however, that the blackout dates are there for a reason - the crowds are usually horrible on those days. I know that with a child in school you don't have the flexibility to just skip school and go whenver you'd like, but I would really, really try hard to avoid going on those dates. Our favorite times to go are January, November before Thanksgiving, and early December (before schools are out for their break). The weather is usually beautiful and the crowds are usually very light then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 We have a beach condo about 2 hours from Disney. We have done a day trip and we have done a couple night stay, too. It just depends what we are in the mood for. We have stayed in the park and outside. When we stay outside, we use a timeshare that my parents have so we have full kitchen and multiple bedrooms. We do that if we are staying a week, not usually in conjunction with time at the beach condo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFSinIL Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 I would check out the new Magic Bands and Fast Pass Plus stuff going on there now, as I believe folks staying on a. Disney property have first dibs now on the. Fast. Passes for the major rides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink and Green Mom Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 We live about an hour and half away door to door. We have the passes without blackout dates. Two reasons: (1) my kids were in school this year so we had to work around that, and (2) we are fairly new to the area and have lots of company/family visit us to coincide with their trips to Disney. Those trips always take place during blackout periods and we wanted to be able to meet up with family/friends at the parks as well. We've never done a food plan. We don't take food with us either, we just do casual dining (burgers, etc.) when we are there. Annual pass supposedly gives some food discounts but I have yet to find one. I have stopped trying. Parking is free with our annual pass. Fast Pass - annual pass holders can book fast passes on line up to 7 days in advance. People staying on Disney property can book either 30 or 60 days in advance. We were there for a few days last month on heavy crowd days. We reserved our fast passes just a few hours in advance of each park visit and there was only one ride we couldn't get (Toy Story at Hollywood Studios). Here is my take on planning - if you are going to have an annual pass and go often, you don't have to be a hyper planner. If there are lines, you can go next time. If I was spending $100 per day per person just on tickets to enter the park and this was a major vacation event for my family I would plan everything down to the minute to make sure I saw everything. This was our first year of annual passes and they expire in a few days. We are "Disneyed out." Even the kids. I think over the past year we did two separate overnight trips of 3 or 4 days each, and maybe half a dozen single day trips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 We have annual passes and aren't bothered by the black out dates as they are the most crowded. Fast passes and magic bands aren't an issue anymore as they are giving those to pass holders now. We have them and can book our fast passes in advance of our trip and change them even while we're in the park. I love it! We have never stayed on site and don't use the dining plan. We stay somewhere affordable off site or just drive down for the day (we're two hours away) and we eat our big meals before and after the park. We only get the free water cups and snacks while in the park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 Two hours away is a little tough to drive back and forth each day. You will probably want to stay close. We are also 2 hours away. 1. We have had premium annual passes for over 10 years with the exception of about 4 months. We still go about 5 times a year so the passes save us money. We chose premium because we also love the waterparks. That is essentially the only reason to get them. Otherwise, the regular annual passes will work fine. One needs to go to the waterparks about three times a year to break even. 2. The annual pass usually saves us about 20 to 30% on the resort. To me, the resort is as much a part of the Disney experience as the parks. I rarely stay offsite. Getting the discount is a challenge sometimes. Get online and check the regular room fees. Then sign in as a Passholder and check the rates under the Passholder deals site. See if there is a difference before booking. Passholder rates usually come out about 3 months in advance, but it varies. 3. On all junk....I mean merchandise.....you will get 10% off with your annual pass and a photo ID. For those of us who are addicted to D&B handbags, this can be quite a savings. Also, a Disney Visa card from Chase gives discounts of 10% at most places. Since you have a 6 year old, I cannot imagine you making it through the parks without a bit of junk thrown in. For years, my DD only wore Disney t-shirts and shorts. And I still wear the socks every day. 4. If you stay on site, your son will be allowed to sign up for the pirate cruises, Alice in Wonderland tea party, and a couple of other resort events. One does not have to stay at the actual resort having the event, just one of the. Disney resorts. From about age 5 to 10, these were my DD's favorite thing to do. She enjoyed these events more than the parks. 5. As you become a Disney professional, you may want to engage in some of the extra tours and events. Being a Passholder usually gets one at least 10% off these events. For example, I recently saved 20% on the Segway tour at the Wilderness campgrounds. 6. A Passholder can make Fastpasses online even if he is not staying at the resort. Figuring out how to do all this is quite a learning curve. Nevertheless, get the pass and stay on site the first time. By doing this, each family member gets a magic band free. Otherwise, they are about $10 each. Register the bads online and tie in your annual pass for each person to his band. From then on, as long as you maintain the pass, you can make Fastpasses every time you plan to go to the park, even if you do not stay on site. HTH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2att Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 We have done passes 4 times during the years we've lived here. We always get the seasonal passes, because the blackout dates are when the park is most crowded and we don't want to go then anyway. We are 2 hours away and most usually would do day trips, though occasionally we would stay for a night or two. When the kids were small and we would all fit in one hotel room we did stay onsite. The hotels are nicely themed, but room-wise they are just a small box and not very comfortable. Once we got to the point of the youngest being older than 2 and needing more than one room for all of us, we never stayed onsite again. There are a number of rental companies that do short term rentals of condos or even homes that are 10 minutes from Disney. The accommodations are incredible and the price is often similar or even less than one of the onsite box rooms, but you get 2 or 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, a full kitchen, etc. Do a search for Windsor Hills and you will come up with all sorts of options. We would also pack lunches to save money. Disney's counter service food is not that tasty and not very cheap. A small cooler with sandwiches, fruit, chips, water, etc. usually set us up nicely. We would buy snacks in the park as an afternoon treat, and usually we just stopped somewhere for dinner on the drive home. We never did or had the desire to do the dining plan. One of the nicest things about having yearly passes is that the kind of laid-back touring you like to do works well. If a line is long, you just skip it because you can always come back next week, or next month, when it is less busy. If you plan on going a lot, buy an annual pass for one of you because parking is free with AP's ( but not with Seasonal passes). At $17 a pop to park now, it adds up quickly. But do the math first and see how many times you will have to go to break even on that--this last time we had passes it was not worth it for us because we didn't go as often as we used to when the kids were smaller. We have great Disney memories. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 11, 2014 Author Share Posted July 11, 2014 Wow! Thanks for all the great tips! I was a little concerned about the approach I was going with this but it seems like I can find an excellent happy medium for our family, even if we don't stay on site or get meal plans, etc. I would consider staying onsite depending on how cheap I can get the resorts (advertised prices even for the $90 seem to be unavailable). But with the pass and a discount that would be more reasonable. I'll definitely have to look into that. I'll carefully go over the blackout dates. Summer is not a big deal to not go for us (though water parks may be great), but that winter vacation with DS off of school for 2 weeks and the weather usually so nice, plus spring break, makes me really need to think about it. These passes will likely eat up our vacation budget for the year so we'll likely skip other types of vacations we would normally do (air travel to new places, etc). That means when we'd normally travel somewhere else for spring break we'll be home instead (and hoping to go to WDW, even with the crowds). Good to hear about the discount on merchandise and the other tips too regarding the pirate cruise/discounts. We tend to be a "one toy per vacation" family, since the vacation IS the souvenir. But I was thinking of buying Disney themed cheaper toys and distributing them there. Any other tips or opinions more than welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monstermama Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 OP, maybe I'm reading this incorrectly, but you've never been to Disney World before? Disney can be a whole 'nother ballgame from other theme parks, and it can be a very polarizing experience - some people hate it, and some people (like me!) love it. At Disneyland, you can buy a normal park admission ticket and then, while there, pay the difference to upgrade it to an annual pass. I'm guessing they might do the same for Disney World. Since this'll be taking up your entire vacation budget for the year, it may be prudent to go for a long weekend with the family, visit all the parks, and get a feeling for what it's like before committing to it. With what you've listed, I wouldn't do the food plan. It can definitely save you money, but that's usually with a lot of planning and over the course of a longer trip. If you'd rather just wander around and pick out what looks good, you'll almost always be better off paying out of pocket. You can look at the menus for all of the various quick service / table service / food carts here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 I should clarify that I haven't been to MK since I was very young, 4-ish. I remember a few things: 1) I was on the teacup and it went way too fast and whoever went with me spun it and I was scared. 2) I was too short to ride the rides I wanted and had to sit out on a lot of things. 3) we didn't get to see the castle up close. I went to Epcot and universal studios as "recently" as a young teenager with school. And we brought DS as an infant to animal kingdom and islands of adventure. We've been to a lot of other amusement/theme parks here and in other states which I understand is not the same as MK. Until recently DC have been so young that the majority of my time at places like that I just feel stressed in a million ways and see it as an expensive day. Recently I've started to enjoy them in general and am looking forward to a visit to all the WDW parks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kari C in SC Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 We have the Florida resident weekday passes that have blackout dates. We have found that we don't ever really want to be in the parks at busy times of the year anyway. The passes are right around $220, I believe. What I do is wait till they offer free dining in the fall. Then I book a value resort at rack rate to get free dining. You have to purchase a two day ticket. Then go to the service window and upgrade your 2 day pass to the weekday pass. I believe it was about $200 for a 2 day pass and $220 for the week day pass. All said and done, for a 6 night stay at a value resort, free counter service dining and weekday passes for 4 people, it cost $1500. Then we use the tickets at least 10 more days over the next year. We actually do not live in Florida anymore, but still have our residency from owning our house there. I figured out this was a fairly inexpensive week for me, my kids, and my mom while my dh goes and takes care of work on our property. If we had just gone down to where our house is and stayed in a hotel with eating out and a few fun things, we would have spent at least $1200. This way we are at DISNEY and we have passes for a whole year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 Wow! What a tip! I was thinking of x-mas for the tickets but may have to change that plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 BTW, any recs on parking for downtown Disney? Both times we went it was a 30-60 min or more parking joke. I saw people walking from the talent-something-or-other acting place but didn't think we could park there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelenNotOfTroy Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 BTW, any recs on parking for downtown Disney? Both times we went it was a 30-60 min or more parking joke. I saw people walking from the talent-something-or-other acting place but didn't think we could park there. Go in the morning. Also, there is parking around the back where the Orlando buses stop, past Disney Quest and Cirque du Soleil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 BTW, any recs on parking for downtown Disney? Both times we went it was a 30-60 min or more parking joke. I saw people walking from the talent-something-or-other acting place but didn't think we could park there. I really hate to tell you this, but the parking at Downtown Disney right now is even rougher than usual. They have begun a multi-year renovation project, transforming Downtown Disney into Disney Springs. Eventually, they will be adding a parking garage, but right now, large swaths of the parking lots are closed. Cast members who work in the office-type buildings across the street are being asked to park in lots farther away and take shuttles in so that some of the office parking can be opened up for guests. So, be prepared to follow signs and directions and walk a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Oh no wonder! I told DH why wouldn't there be a parking garage here? They really need it! Seems like I am so intuitive :) I bet I'll have to pay to park in a garage next time. We usually have gone there for lunch or dinner but I guess some people hang out there as its own attraction. It's neat and fun but we aren't big shoppers so we just look around. Going into stores is too tempting! Until the family saw the ghiraradelli (sp?) place. Oh boy! That was a mistake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 We were there a few weeks ago, and we have to be back next weekend. Downtown Disney is a big construction mess right now. I would avoid it all costs. Parking garages are already in progress in the front parking lots. Also, along the lake is under construction for more stores. In the meantime, expect a lot of dust and congestion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 We've been seasonal pass holders for several years and we live 3 hours away. We go to Disney probably 5 times per year. One of those is a week long vacation, a couple are 3-4 night stays. And a couple are quick, 1-2 night weekend trips. Here's the cheapest/easiest way that we've always done it..... We get seasonal passes (they are cheaper than annual passes). There are blackout dates, but we wouldn't go during those times anyways. The most crowded times are blacked out and I wouldn't touch Disney with a 10 foot pole during those times anyways. So it works out perfectly for us. Our favorite times to go are Halloween week, mid December to see the Christmas décor, any time in January or February that's not during a holiday, and early May. The weather is great and the crowds are lower. Homeschooling works perfectly for us in this way. We go when school is in. Where to stay..... For our week long stay, we do one of two things: (1) Stay on property. Or (2) Book a condo in Windsor Hills, which is like a couple of miles outside of Disney. Since we are staying a week, we like it to be more comfortable and easier. Staying on property allows us to use the bus system, puts us closer to all things Disney, gives you the Disney "experience", and allows you to utilize Extra Magic Hours. Cons are that the rooms are quite a bit more expensive, smaller, and have no kitchen. We NEVER do the big deluxe resorts or even rarely the moderates. We like to go to Disney too often for us to pay that much money....so it is Value Resorts for us. Another option on our week long trips is getting a 2 or 3 bedroom condo (we get it in Windsor Hills). This is SO SO SO nice. No, we don't get to utilize the bus system (which I hate anyways....too long of waits, too crowded) and we don't get the Extra Magic Hours (if you plan your days well, this won't be too big of a deal) but the trade offs are worth it. We get a place big enough for all of us to spread out, the kids can go to bed before us and we don't have to be extra quiet, and we have a kitchen to help us save on meal costs. Plus, it is usually a LOT cheaper, cleaned immaculately, and still very very close to the main gate. It's even closer than some of the actual Disney resorts. There's a large resort pool, a really cool castle playground, etc. This year, as we did last year, we are staying in our camper in Fort Wilderness (Disney's campground) for our week long stay. We love it there. For our shorter 1-2 night stays or our 3-4 night stays, we get whatever we can find with a microwave and mini fridge. Sometimes this means using Priceline, sometimes booking a hotel outright, maybe getting FL Residents deal at a Disney resort, getting a condo, etc. Whatever is cheapest but clean with good reviews. How we save on food......I keep mentioning a kitchen, microwave, and mini fridge because this is how we save. We eat breakfast in the room (I bring muffins, we do microwaveable sausage, toast, eggs if we have a kitchen, bananas, yogurt, bagels, etc). Basically whatever we would eat at home but I make sure we all eat protein to last us until lunch time. I bring all snacks. We do get the occasional Mickey ice cream bar or something as a treat. We bring lunch into the parks. I bring ice packs from home and put it in the freezer at the condo or hotel. We pack our lunches and throw in an ice pack and we are good to go for lunch that day! For dinner, we usually eat in the parks. Sometimes that's a cheaper counter service meal, sometimes I make reservations for a character meal or another table service meal. If the park is closing pretty early (like Animal Kingdom) we may just eat after the park closes.....either pick up something, stop at a restaurant, or make something super simple (like hotdogs and salad) at the condo/room. Souvenirs......we don't buy a lot of these anymore. Once you've seen all the souvenirs then you've seen them LOL. The kids do occasionally want something, but not too often. And they use their own money they have saved. The best thing about having passes......we can take our time! If Peter Pan is 45 minutes long, we just don't wait. Ever. Our "rule" for max wait time is about 15 or 20 minutes. UNLESS it is a new attraction. We waited longer to see Anna and Elsa back in February. And if we cannot get fast passes to the new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, we'll be willing to wait longer for that the next time that we go. We know that if we don't see it this time, we can always see it next time. We don't go overboard trying to make it to rope drop. We'd rather sleep in a bit and get there around 10 or 10:30. We do usually stay until closing though....whether that be 8 PM or midnight. We love Disney as the crowds thin out in the evenings and the weather is cooler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 BTW, any recs on parking for downtown Disney? Both times we went it was a 30-60 min or more parking joke. I saw people walking from the talent-something-or-other acting place but didn't think we could park there. We were just there a few weeks ago. It's currently a mess! They're building a parking garage, but that construction means fewer parking places while it's being built. Maybe it will be finished by the time you go. No advice there, just sympathy. We have passes to the water park, but added Disney Quest to ds' pass (we did this with several friends). When we left Typhoon Lagoon and went across the street to Downtown Disney, we drove around the parking lot for quite a while. It helped that it was a weekday after 6, but it was still a mess trying to find a spot. In addition to the construction, they had a huge area blocked off for no apparent reason (though we guessed it was valet parking for Cirque du soleil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 Ok thanks! Never heard of Disney quest so will have to see what that is. :). I feel like I'm studying for an exam. Haha in an elective class though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.