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If you've done a Disney trip with Carolina Homeschoolers...please help


Meadowlark
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I'm sure this has been talked about before, but I can't find any threads after searching so bear with me.

My question is: How do you know what kind of savings you're getting going through them, versus going with a great travel agent? Not to be a skeptic, but I'm pretty skeptical. When I priced the trip out with them, it came to over $10,000 for a family of 8. I can't imagine Disney would be THAT much more expensive if we planned it ourselves, would it?

If you've gone with them, I'd love to hear all about it. Everything from price comparison to the group experience to if you would do it again, or venture out on your own. I must say, having things semi-planned is appealing because I feel like you need a Ph. D just to go there. Any input is appreciated. Thank you!

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We have never traveled with “Traveling Homeschoolers”, but we go to Disney about 3 Times/year. We’re Disney Vacation Club (DVC) members and Annual Passholders. I consider myself to be quite knowledgeable in all things Disney. Our homeschool is actually named after Bay Lake at Disney!  We will actually be at Disney the week of Nov. 11 too.

I looked over the Traveling Homeschoolers (TH) site.  Here are my thoughts :

TICKETS - The ticket prices they list are a great deal. There is only 1 way for general public to get discounts on Disney tickets. You need to buy through undercover tourist.com. The TH pricing beats theirs!

TH - $355/ person for 5 day park hopper vs $449 for 4 day Park Hopper with extra day at Undercover Tourist

ROOM - I can’t speak to the pricing  we’ve never stayed at those resorts.  We stay at the deluxe resorts with our DVC points.  I would encourage you to check eBay.  Search “DVC” or “Disney Vacation Club”.  You could also look at DVC rentals.com  Many DVC members rent out their points or they have a stay booked but can’t go.  They’re looking to get anything out of it so it doesn’t go to waste.  

It appears that the rooms are all standard and not suites.  With your family, I would highly recommend trying to get a 2 bedroom suite.  Old Key West is on the cheaper end for the deluxe resorts, and they’re the most spacious as well.  The 2BR suite will give you 1 master BR, a 2nd BR with 2 queen beds, a pull out sleeper sofa, and sometimes a chair that will pull out to a twin bed. You would also have a full kitchen and laundry room!

ITINERARY - It does seem like they have some really neat stuff scheduled.  We are not good at following someone else’s schedule, so that part doesn’t appeal to me.  I have looked at the educational opportunities that Disney offers, and I’ve considered it ... but, we have learned to relax at Disney and not over schedule.  We make dinner reservations, but we like to play the rest by ear, so it probably wouldn’t be a good fit for us.  However, it does sound awesome.  

I would be glad to answer any questions you have about planning if you decide to go that route.  I love to talk Disney!  Hoping someone else will chime in with some experience with Traveling Homeschoolers!

Have a “magical” night!

 

 

 

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I purchased Disney tickets twice through her, though not recently. Both times they were, significantly if I recall correctly, cheaper than I could get through places like Undercover Tourist. I did not purchase packages with hotels or anything, just tickets. We would attend an instructional thing put on by Disney part of one day in exchange for the lower prices.

We drive in and don't stay on site (we get Bonnet Creek condos), and agents never had great deals without packages for stays and travel. I did check one company. That may change the picture for you. 

 

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I haven't used Carolina Homeschoolers, but my two cents of advice is to look at staying off-property. It's not nearly as hard as people make it sound, and it might save you enough that you could do longer tickets and stay longer, meaning you don't need to be as stressed and rushed about your plans. We've stayed at a Condo in Reunion that would sleep your whole family, was totally gorgeous, with a pool and hot tub right outside, and I think it came to maybe $120 a night, all said and done. When you compare that to people paying $300-500 a night for multiple rooms and stuff on-property, me, I'm kinda cool with just staying off and driving in. Where we stayed had three bedrooms with a king, 2 queens, 2 twins, and there was probably a sleeper sofa. And it had a washer/dryer and a kitchen. You can also rent a house in Florida easily. Price it out and see, but you really might like what you get for the money by staying off-property.

If you're going for a good number of days, you could buy one of your tickets as an annual pass. That would get you free parking and discounts at the many restaurants, gift shops, etc. Given the number of people in your party, you'd probably at least break even and maybe come out ahead. AND it would get you the photos for your trip. Parking adds up if you're paying it over 5-7 days, so with that and the restaurant discounts it would probably save you a bit. You'd have car rental but no parking.

Last trip down, we stayed at a Hyatt over by Disney Springs, had a huge room and wonderful breakfast every day included, and I think we paid $80 a night on priceline. Seriously. It's not hard to figure out which hotels are the Disney Springs hotels. We didn't even rent a car this time. We just used Uber the whole trip, easy peasy. I don't know if your family is as easy to fit in an Uber, but it can be a great solution when you want to go back to the hotel/condo and only have one vehicle. I got coupons from Lyft for $5 or $10 off each trip for the first 20 trips that week, so I paid very little for my rides even, lol. I tipped generously because I had a huge medical stroller with me. With the coupons and generous tip, I was at usually around $15 for a trip to the Hyatt from anywhere at Disney. And remember once you're there, you can hop on Disney busses anyway. And Disney Springs hotels, many of which have suites, have free busses too. 

I don't know if it's on your radar, but definitely look into the pirate makeovers for your boys. If your girls don't want the Bibbidity BopBoo thing, they might like the mermaid makeover. We did the pirate makeover, and it was SO fun, totally worth the money.

My other two cents? It's good to have plans, but we really just enjoy being there. The pirate map adventures in Disney take a fair number of hours but are just really fun memories to have together. The detective adventures in Epcot also were so, so good. We LOVED doing those. You don't really need a TA to plan out every step. They can, but you also know yourself and what you'll enjoy. I think people are way too critical about the food. A lot of MK food sucks (imho), but there were restaurants that people were slamming in Epcot that were WAY better than people said. The food at Hollywood Studios is also better than people said. There's a lot of fun to be had even on a more constrained budget. We've been a number of times in the last 18 months or so, and some of the trips we spent a lot and some we were much tighter. This last time ds and I were pretty frugal. We ate at places we hadn't eaten before like the Restaurantosaurus and we still had LOADS of fun!! And the food was fine. 

I'm just looking at that $10k, and I just don't know. It seems high to me. Some people love Disney resorts. To me, I'd rather have the money in things I can eat or more days. Now if I were super-flush, yes in a heartbeat. But if that price is making it less fun or less doable, there are ways to trim and still have a great great trip. 

 

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I will add that staying off property can often be more expensive. 

If you’re flying in you’ll need to rent a car. If you’re staying on property The Magical Express will take you from the airport to your resort. All additional transportation needs are free on property. (Bus, ferry, monorail) - no rental car needed  

If you rent or drive yourself - You will need to pay daily for parking at the parks.  (Minimum of $22/day) Add the expense of gas to drive yourself around and a lot of time lost finding your way around and waiting in traffic.  (You can drive to FL, Park at the resort for free, and let Disney take you where you need to go!)

You will not get Magic Bands for free. You will need to deal with keeping up with tickets or pay for Magic Bands yourself.

You will not be allowed in parks during Extra Magic Hours. 

And finally...  staying at a Disney Resort is an awesome experience!

Just some thoughts to consider. 

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My husband and I stayed off-property 2 years ago. We did not have any issues without magic bands - simply did not use or feel the need for them. The tickets were plastic cards, like credit cards - just got scanned at the entrance. 

We took Uber to whichever property or park we wanted to start from and then used the monorail and buses. Uber was very reasonable, even without coupons. We took a shuttle bus from the airport to the hotel. It was a bit pricey, maybe $90 per person for 2 way ticket (for trip back), but I don't remember the exact amount.

We really like the Polynesian hotel, but we don't stay there. We ate lunch at the packaged food area near the pool and sat in the main building area to relax. The monorail stops right at that building. 

I can't remember what our hotel was at the moment, but it was something like Fairfield Inn. Breakfast was included, and the room cost around $100 a night for the two of us. The hotel has some kind of agreement with Disney that includes free daily shuttle buses to the parks as well as other perks, but we did not usually take advantage of those. We did not feel a need to get a rental car. Taxis and Uber are plentiful.

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Definitely look into staying offsite. If you do it early enough and the right time of year it's hands-down cheaper than onsite if you're already driving (we can drive from NC to Orlando in a long day. Much cheaper than airplanes, and easier to pack for littles, what with their carseats, stroller, pack n play, etc). Even with parking fees. And I just cannot stress how much nicer it is to have a whole house for your family and luggage to spread out in, your own pool, a kitchen - even if you don't plan to cook, it's a good home base for simple breakfasts and snacks. We didn't really miss having magic bands. In fact, it was easier to just keep all the card tickets in one pocket of my purse. My kids take their bands on and off at inopportune moments.

Don't get me wrong, there's a lot to be said for staying onsite and always being in the Disney bubble. I absolutely love it, in fact! But our last two trips we've stayed offsite and I'm now a convert, at least for our family's current size and situation.

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For a family of 8, if you are willing to stay off site, I would suggest that you consider renting one of the Houses in Summer Bay Orlando. A Timeshare approximately 25 minutes from the Disney parks, depending upon which park.

We stayed in one of their smaller 2 Bedroom units, but there were only 4 in our party.

You would probably save a bundle.  They have some Houses there which would be great for your very large family and I think each of the Houses has a small pool.

Beautiful grounds.  Our 2 BR unit had a fully equipped Kitchen and although my wife wasn't planning to cook on her vacation, she ended up cooking a quick Breakfast most of the days and some snacks in the evening when we got back to our temporary home.

We stayed there the last week of April 2016.  We rented through MagicalHolidays on eBay.  Highly recommended based on our experience.

Yes, Disney is quite complicated and you need to prepare for it as if you are going into battle, to get the most out of the expensive tickets each day. There is a book I highly recommend to you:  "The Unofficial Guide Walt Disney World" wI have the 2016 edition here so I got the title correct for you. Buy the latest edition available.

Get to the parks as early in the mornings as is possible.   My wife cooking a quick Breakfast for us not only saved us money but we got to the parks much earlier than the day we ate in the Denny's near the Publilx Market near the entrance to Summer Bay Orlando.

Buy the "Park Hopper" tickets. We were not intending to park hop, but one day we were unexpectedly in all 4 parks (EPCOT was a disappointment on that trip) and another day I think we were in 2 parks.

STUDY and then enjoy your trip!

 

 

 

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From someone with a bunch of kids:

We have been to Disney many times.  I ALWAYS cost compare staying onsite vs off.  We have always chosen onsite.  We also fly. I hate driving so much.  No way I could do that long of a drive without stopping(We are in the Chicago area)  So figuring gas/tolls/hotels for 8 people, it's worth a couple hundred dollars to me.  I ALWAYS get cheap flights-think $79 one way-Then my vacation begins the minute we board that plane.

Staying offsite-Parking is expensive and can be a hassle.And HOT.  My husband is a great driver, but after a long day wrangling kids, he has said many times that he is so grateful for that bus. We are a huge group(needing carseats).  Uber can not happen for our family.

We stay in 2 connecting rooms at a value resort since our family has expanded past a family suite.  Value resorts are well maintained and are beautiful.  We visit other resorts for meals, etc.

I have priced offsite as comparison.  The savings for us easily get consumed by travel, parking, etc.

I don't know if you were planning with a dining package included?  We always go during free dining.  It does save our family a lot of money (and me a lot of stress) because everyone can order whatever they want.  I use the snack credits for breakfast foods.We have milk,juice,fruit,cereal,snacks, delivered to our room from Garden Grocer at the beginning of our stay.  That saves a ton of money.

We actually spend VERY LITTLE money once we get there.  Tips here and there.  The kids have prepaid cards for their souvenirs.

Disney can seem overwhelming.  It's worth some research.  But, the research can be fun!  I love the planning too. ?  

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We have used them for several years and will again for the November trip.  

Tickets- no question best price

hotel- we stay on property and either book her deal or check out the other deals offered by Disney.  We like using DVC rentals from dvcrentalstore or dvc request. For your size I would recommend -  look at bonnet creek (off property and several sites always have great deals. You have a washer/dryer, full kitchen).

Disney Fort Wilderness-  you can rent an rv and they companies will set it up for you. There are two companies I recommend so PM if interested.  We love the campground. 

Try renting DVC.  We love having the kitchen and washer/dryer.  Plus, space to spread out. 

 

If you can- do the breakfast she offers at the coral reef.  It is really nice and the kids love be eating right next to the tanks. 

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Mmm...now I'm really thinking! I know there is a mixed bag-some people who LOVE on-site and some people who LOVE off-site. I think for this stage in our lives, on-site might be what we want. Packing everyone up in a rented vehicle, parking, etc sounds just...hard. When my husband and I went about 9 years ago, we loved the bus system.

I think with the Carolina group, it's hard to know if it's that great of deal. Sounds like yes, the tickets are at a discount. So that's a bonus. Other than that, I'm not sure how to tell. She also had add-ons like the Epcot dessert party with your own terrace, private night at Typhoon Lagoon, the Hoop de something revue party, and other things that are specific to that group. Sounds nice, but pricey. I have no idea if those things would be a savings going with the group, or if we'd come out ahead just doing them by ourselves. 

Anyone else go through her? 

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We've stayed on and off site now, though without a big family so that may make a difference, though I'm not totally sure - I mean, when you go in the morning, you're still loading everyone up and out, whether it's to walk to a bus stop and stick together or to get in the van and drive 15 minutes away. I thought offsite was easier to plan overall and it was definitely cheaper. I get the idea that staying offsite, you end up paying for parking, but when it's that much cheaper, then you're still saving. No one *needs* magic bands. The cards that come with the tickets are fine. We ended up saving on food massively. We ate one big meal in the parks every day and ate the others in our place with a kitchen. We ate breakfast in the kitchen before we headed out for the day. We noshed on Publix roast chicken and green beans and spaghetti and frozen meatballs and other meals like that in the evening - because we'd eaten something cool and fun in our one meal out. I carried snacks with me for the day as well. We drove already so we had our car... but if we had rented, I think it still would have saved us significant money.

Staying on property was nice too, of course. And fun. And it was very nice to have your food all planned ahead of time and to not drive. I think we're finished with our Disney tripping, but if we were to do it again, I am almost positive we'd stay offsite again.

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2 hours ago, Meadowlark said:

Mmm...now I'm really thinking! I know there is a mixed bag-some people who LOVE on-site and some people who LOVE off-site. I think for this stage in our lives, on-site might be what we want. Packing everyone up in a rented vehicle, parking, etc sounds just...hard. When my husband and I went about 9 years ago, we loved the bus system.

I think with the Carolina group, it's hard to know if it's that great of deal. Sounds like yes, the tickets are at a discount. So that's a bonus. Other than that, I'm not sure how to tell. She also had add-ons like the Epcot dessert party with your own terrace, private night at Typhoon Lagoon, the Hoop de something revue party, and other things that are specific to that group. Sounds nice, but pricey. I have no idea if those things would be a savings going with the group, or if we'd come out ahead just doing them by ourselves. 

Anyone else go through her? 

We wee do! Feel free to ask or pm any questions.  We have gone through her for years. 

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On May 31, 2018 at 7:38 AM, Bay Lake Mom said:

...

You will not get Magic Bands for free. You will need to deal with keeping up with tickets or pay for Magic Bands yourself.

You will not be allowed in parks during Extra Magic Hours. 

And finally...  staying at a Disney Resort is an awesome experience!

Just some thoughts to consider. 

I have so many friends locally who didn't enjoy Disney when they stayed in economy resorts. If that is what the op is considering, she'll want to be very careful. They can be more noisy and the immersion that some people like comes across as relentless noise to others. Some of my friends say they felt like cattle. I've concluded for myself I have deluxe tastes and that I need to be realistic about that. I can get deluxe equivalent accommodations off-property for the cost of economy on-property. That's my reality. So I have annual passes and I stay off-property. 

Yes you'll want magic bands.

Food is always the hidden/surprising cost with Disney. Price out breakfasts, snacks, etc. 

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3 hours ago, Meadowlark said:

Mmm...now I'm really thinking! I know there is a mixed bag-some people who LOVE on-site and some people who LOVE off-site. I think for this stage in our lives, on-site might be what we want. Packing everyone up in a rented vehicle, parking, etc sounds just...hard. When my husband and I went about 9 years ago, we loved the bus system.

I think with the Carolina group, it's hard to know if it's that great of deal. Sounds like yes, the tickets are at a discount. So that's a bonus. Other than that, I'm not sure how to tell. She also had add-ons like the Epcot dessert party with your own terrace, private night at Typhoon Lagoon, the Hoop de something revue party, and other things that are specific to that group. Sounds nice, but pricey. I have no idea if those things would be a savings going with the group, or if we'd come out ahead just doing them by ourselves. 

Anyone else go through her? 

The spot they use for the Epcot dessert party is very nice. With that many people and all the heights you're dealing with, you might like the ease of having that. You can see the entirety of the Hoop Dee Doo Revue on youtube to see what you think. It's funny, but I decided my ds wouldn't really get it. But it's fun. We have a good water park near us, so Typhoon Lagoon didn't interest me. Do the math on the dessert party alone. How much extra is that? I've never priced it. If it's $80 a person times your 8, that's a lotta money honestly. Half your kids may want to be in bed by then. You may be like why'd we pay for that. It will be nice to have, but it's a huge chunk ($500 maybe in your $10k) budget. It means you're not flexible. The challenge with Disney is being flexible, knowing your kids and how they're going to roll. More days make you more flexible. 

You'd probably not do some of the things on that list if you were choosing it for yourself. Is O'hana on the plan? I didn't get why it was so popular till we finally went. Make sure it's on the list, lol. 

Your trip will be magical, no matter how you do it. :wub:

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11 hours ago, Meadowlark said:

Mmm...now I'm really thinking! I know there is a mixed bag-some people who LOVE on-site and some people who LOVE off-site. I think for this stage in our lives, on-site might be what we want. Packing everyone up in a rented vehicle, parking, etc sounds just...hard. When my husband and I went about 9 years ago, we loved the bus system.

I think with the Carolina group, it's hard to know if it's that great of deal. Sounds like yes, the tickets are at a discount. So that's a bonus. Other than that, I'm not sure how to tell. She also had add-ons like the Epcot dessert party with your own terrace, private night at Typhoon Lagoon, the Hoop de something revue party, and other things that are specific to that group. Sounds nice, but pricey. I have no idea if those things would be a savings going with the group, or if we'd come out ahead just doing them by ourselves. My girls were offered a free session at Bippity Boppiti 

Anyone else go through her? 

3

 

We went 10+ times as the kids grew up. We did almost none of the add-on experiences, and things like the dessert party seem outrageously expensive to me when they come on top of what I'm already paying, and when there's just so much to do already. We did the Candlelight Processional meal one year, where you eat at a sit-down restaurant and then get a ticket for guaranteed seating with a much shorter wait. That didn't cost any more than just eating at the restaurant, although I think it may have been a limited menu? We did the princess meal at the Norwegian castle, which I think only cost extra meal tickets at the time, but can be worth paying cash for if you can afford it. Terrible food but wonderful character interaction, and saved a lot of time hunting down specific characters and waiting in line (I've heard the food has improved since then, my girls are grown now). They were offered a free session at Bippity Boppity, hair and makeup, while they were still in practice mode, and that was great fun but we never would have paid for it, lol.   

On 5/30/2018 at 9:10 PM, Meadowlark said:

My question is: How do you know what kind of savings you're getting going through them, versus going with a great travel agent? Not to be a skeptic, but Im pretty skeptical. When I priced the trip out with them, it came to over $10,000 for a family of 8. I can't imagine Disney would be THAT much more expensive if we planned it ourselves, would it?

1

 

That seems quite high, make sure you're punching in the right numbers. I never did it but I do remember looking at it various years. It was never quite worth it to me because in those days we could get great packages at better times of the year, and we decided we'd rather be in the parks instead of, um, learning and stuff, lol, but it was also not on the high side if I recall correctly. 

I'll summarize a couple of trips to give you an idea. In 2015, our family of four (all Disney adults) stayed on site six nights at a value resort with quick service dining and park hopper tickets for 5 days, $2,900 inclusive. In 2017, I missed out on free dining (cries) and we would have paid about the same without food. We had points for a condo, so wound up paying $1,828 for 6-day park hoppers through Undercover Tourist, and about $600 for food. 

We all agreed that we would never stay off-site again. No magic hours, no busses (dh really enjoys the break from driving), we don't use any of the condo amenities, it lacks pixie dust. We are fine with value resorts - we like the theming, we don't find them any noisier than most other hotels, we don't really care that they're small because we pretty much only sleep in them. My kids are pretty much grown now, but even when they were small and returned to the resort for naps, all they did was sleep and swim. Other kids do better with some space to relax and play in the room (we packed toys the first year, they were never unpacked). 

Play around with online booking and see what you come up with. If you are flexible on dates, and don't want to spend hours online, call the Disney travel line and they will run various scenarios based on number of people, times you are available to go, and so on. 

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3 hours ago, katilac said:

 

FYI for those who don't know, you can find all of the Disney menus and prices online. 

Oh I know, I know, lol. For me it's more you get there and you EAT. Like I had no clue, the first time I went, how many MICKEY BARS we were gonna go through! And those babies are all $5 a pop! And we were eating like 3 a day per person! And then you want drinks, because of course you're HOT and the drinks are good... frozen slushy things, all kinds of stuff. There goes another $5 a pop, multiple times a day. 

And maybe we're weird, lol. Ds has autism, so if he's overwhelmed, overhot whatever, we're gonna have to solve that. So basically Mickey bars are stability insurance with him. Maybe the op's dc won't be like that. But rest assured, every time you turn a corner, every time you walk another 100 feet, there's gonna be another vendor offering you Mickey bars, funnel cakes, popcorn, something... :biggrin:

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3 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Oh I know, I know, lol. For me it's more you get there and you EAT. Like I had no clue, the first time I went, how many MICKEY BARS we were gonna go through! And those babies are all $5 a pop! And we were eating like 3 a day per person! And then you want drinks, because of course you're HOT and the drinks are good... frozen slushy things, all kinds of stuff. There goes another $5 a pop, multiple times a day. 

And maybe we're weird, lol. Ds has autism, so if he's overwhelmed, overhot whatever, we're gonna have to solve that. So basically Mickey bars are stability insurance with him. Maybe the op's dc won't be like that. But rest assured, every time you turn a corner, every time you walk another 100 feet, there's gonna be another vendor offering you Mickey bars, funnel cakes, popcorn, something... :biggrin:

It's been really helpful for my kids at places like this to say upfront something like "we will have 1 meal (maybe we have a sit down res) and 1 snack/treat at this park (or whatever the plan is for that day).  I will not spend more than $10 on a souvenir.  " We might carry granola bars/nuts/dried fruit and a couple water bottles that can be refilled in a back pack."  It helped preventing a discussion every time we saw some other exciting and compelling treat and the kids got to be more methodical about picking something really special and shopping around a bit.

To me, talking about food or buying stuff every 10-15 minutes takes away the enjoyment of what is there to see and do.  And you could drop infinity dollars if you wanted to.  A single trip to the state fair where both my kids wanted to eat across the park and whined about everything had us change our strategy on trips like this or I just wasn't doing them until they were older.  

As the kids got older we might give them a small amount of money to budget for the day and say we got lunch, anything else you want here is coming out of that $10-$20 in your pocket.  Or they might bring their own money.

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11 minutes ago, FuzzyCatz said:

It's been really helpful for my kids at places like this to say upfront something like "we will have 1 meal (maybe we have a sit down res) and 1 snack/treat at this park (or whatever the plan is for that day).  I will not spend more than $10 on a souvenir.  " We might carry granola bars/nuts/dried fruit and a couple water bottles that can be refilled in a back pack."  It helped preventing a discussion every time we saw some other exciting and compelling treat and the kids got to be more methodical about picking something really special and shopping around a bit.

To me, talking about food or buying stuff every 10-15 minutes takes away the enjoyment of what is there to see and do.  And you could drop infinity dollars if you wanted too.  A single trip to the state fair where both my kids wanted to eat across the park and whined about everything had us change our strategy on trips like this or I just wasn't doing them until they were older.  

As the kids got older we might give them a small amount of money to budget for the day and say we got lunch, anything else you want here is coming out of that $10-$20 in your pocket.  Or they might bring their own money.

Oh I totally agree, lol. We actually had that discussion, but it was a little different. It costs $50-ish a day to rent a stroller unexpectedly at Disney for my ds (who has autism, who has a significant support level). So our deal was that he could basically have Mickey bars any time he wants, because 10 Mickey bars a day vs. a stroller, which would you rather have. :biggrin:

And really, it's just fun to eat at Disney. We like the snacks. The people I've taken all liked to have snacks pretty frequently too. We'll eat breakfast at the hotel, hit the parks for opening, then go have a cinnamon roll and water to share ($10 total), do some more rides, eat lunch, ride, have snacks, ride, have snacks... 

Ds is just skinny, with pants that fall off. Maybe that's it? LOL I don't know. It's how we roll. Snacks at Disney are an excuse to stop, take a break, be in the shade, slow down, rest. Yes, they're totally cool with you taking snacks, drinks, etc. I've done that, but usually we just stop and buy snacks there. But I'm not buying X8. Definitely it's something to think through. I would plan 2 snacks a day per person, personally. I agree more is kinda indulgent, but having some will be nice. Some snacks go really far too, like at Hollywood Studios the ice cream shop by RocknRoller Coaster has the absolute biggest ice cream sandwich you've ever seen. They serve it in a bowl, and we couldn't even EAT it all, not one person, even as a substitute dinner! That was crazy fun, lol. So there a "snack" would serve 2-3 easily or be dinner. I wouldn't share Mickey bars though. :biggrin:

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1 hour ago, Kinsa said:

OP, does your family camp at all?  As a fellow large family of eight,  we found that staying at Fort Wilderness is very affordable,  plus you get the bonus of staying on-property. (And it's eally not the same as rustic camping at all.)

I grew up camping all over.  all the time.  That's just what my family did. I had never heard of this camp group and just googled it quickly.  The first picture I saw was a beautiful scene of a tent near some water.  The first thought that popped into my mind was the incident a few years or so ago where a small child was attacked by an alligator on the Disney property.  I don't know if I would be brave enough to camp here.

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Disney's campground is very large and well-liked. We saw it from a distance when we did our fishing trip there. I get what you're saying about gators, but man even if a gator WANTED to tromp around a thousand campers, what are the odds he would pick YOU? Low. Too many other tasty morsels. And the water was just in the pics to be scenic. Reality is it's a big, big campground. You can pull up maps online I think. Most people are not sitting at the edge of the water dangling their feet in at night. Disney has totally stopped all that. They have physical barricades now at the resorts where that used to be possible. The beaches are no longer conducive to that at all. Well I'm just saying what I saw looking at the resorts from the water, but we were there in the months after that and it had clearly been put to a physical stop. 

So yeah, the camping would be a great idea. You can even rent an RV down there and take it to the campgrounds. I checked into that. And they have cabins you can rent that have bunks, kitchens, the whole nine yards. You'd be really close to the Hoop Dee Doo, if that's what you were wanting to do. I'm not much of a tent camper, but I'd do an RV down there, sure. Great value and you'd be on-property. 

Remember, the thing about getting down there is it's not like everyone just spends all day in the parks. You want to enjoy where you're at, because you might actually want some resort days or half days where you just hang. We did that a lot when we were at Reunion at the condo. We were having such a nice time, we'd just sleep in, enjoy the view from the balcony, drink tea (I was hanging with a girlfriend), solve the problems of the world, hit the hot tub... We almost wondered why we were going in to the parks, we were having so much fun, lol. Someone mentioned renting a house, and those usually have their own private pool. And if being at the campground is fun and relaxing for you, that's cool too. They have the boats to MK. At night they do the Chip and Dale sing-alongs. That's why I wanted to go, for the Chip and Dale sing along... :biggrin:

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2 hours ago, arliemaria said:

I grew up camping all over.  all the time.  That's just what my family did. I had never heard of this camp group and just googled it quickly.  The first picture I saw was a beautiful scene of a tent near some water.  The first thought that popped into my mind was the incident a few years or so ago where a small child was attacked by an alligator on the Disney property.  I don't know if I would be brave enough to camp here.

That did happen near there, but when we stayed on property, it was in the cabins there and we saw the tent and RV sites... they’re not mostly right next to the water. The child in that tragedy was literally at the edge of the water of that huge lake. The campsites are all many, many yards away, and most of them would be a 15 minute walk or significantly more - many people rent a golf cart to get around there because it’s not walkable from their campsite to the pool, bus stops, and the boat that takes you to Magic Kingdom - which I’m pretty sure is where that happened.

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