If you've got the meal plan you can eat at the expensive restaurants instead of the cheapos. We've always made sure our meals included the Brown Derby, Cinderellas Castle and the Hoop-de-doo Review.
But make your reservations prior to check in if you can or the very first day you are there at the latest.
Went there over thanksgiving with our three kids (2,4,6) and the 6 daus there were much more pleasant then our yearly hikes to Sesame Place ;)
We stayed at the All Star Movie and its true of the three it was last in line. Sometimes a near full bus would pull up, but an empty one would be close on its heels. I never found it to be an issue.
We did almost all our sit dows with characters. It was worth it and probably the one thing the kids liked best. Tips are not included and significant at the inflated meal "price," didnt really plan for that. The AllStars arent in the center of the hustle but we found no problems getting around.
We did one day at AK, one at Epcot, one at HS and three days and an evening at MK. That was a good mix for that age group.
Fast Pass is cool but we could only get one at a time so we found ourselves running from one end of the park to the other.
We brought our own stroller and had the kids sleep in it when they really needed to. If we had to hit the room mid pm I would have murdered someone. If thats your plan, extra $$ for park hopper would be well spent.
Lines and crowds were much smaller then I would have guessed over the holiday weekend. Off peak must be awesome.
I would also recommend brining good snacks/food to supplement the plan. We did a lot of quick breakfasts or lunches in the room or parks from bagels or pb&j. If you space your two meals well it works.
Also, book the character dining asap. I mean asap.
The only downsides were the cost (duh) and the fact my wife wants to go again in 2 years or so. Consider yourself warned!!
Paul_VR6 wrote: Went there over thanksgiving with our three kids (2,4,6) and the 6 daus there were much more pleasant then our yearly hikes to Sesame Place ;)
No doubt about that. My hometown is about 10 minutes from Sesame Place. I remember when they were building it, I was already too old for it when it was finished. My sister worked there for a few summers. When they built it, I don't think they expected it to be so popular, as they built it on the outskirts of a mall, where there is very little open space. So there's nowhere to park, and everything is crammed in. Combine a ton of families with little kids walking around in the heat, you get shinny happy people. Sesame Place also doesn't draw employees like Disney. Disney draws people from all over the world, Sesame Place draws local kids.
We had thought about trying to let our kids see the place a few years back, but damn it's expensive!!!
OK, you guys have got to keep it down in here. My wife has found this thread and she's talking about going to Disney for Christmas & New Years.
We used to do it that time of year every year, but the upcharge for the holidays of virtually everything from flights to hotels & all made us quit.
We'd do a couple of days of Disney then scoot down to Key West and then stop back at Disney in a different resort for a 3-4 more day break and then head back to New Orleans (ya gotta break up that long drive somehow) and then back to DFW.
Key West & N.O. were the bank busters!
Kids aren't home so it can happen, but I'm dreading to see what the costs would be booking everything this late, cause I'm flyin' this time not driving.
I assume resort check in time is around 3pm. We have enough days on our park passes to cover the day we arrive. Providing the plane arrives on schedule we'll be there in the AM. Can we pick up our park passes, head into the park and let them deal with the luggage via the magical express?
I think so. You will just have to check into the resort first to get your credit card-esqe passes.
We drove, so I don't know about the way they do luggage from a flight.
If you fly, they have a free "magical express" bus from the airport to your resort. Bags get delivered to your room. So I'm guessing we can get our park passes, and will have to go into the park with only the gear we carried on the plane.
Disney will take care of you better than any other place I've ever been. Your resort will take care of your bags. If you need to leave a few things, get a few things or change, they have ways to take care of you.
This one is more for the adults, but Downtown Disney also houses the House of Blues, one of the area's best concert halls. Over the years I have seen some great shows there: Anthrax, NOFX, Run-DMC, etc. It's right next to the giant Cirque du Soleil building.
lots of good stuff in downtown disney. there are clubs if dancing is your thing, a theater, etc.
They just opened Splitsville, a new bowling alley in downtown Disney. It's bowling, but it sounds like it could be fun.
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/destinations/downtown-disney/entertainment/splitsville/
dining plan quick question.
You get a refillable mug on the dining plan. What drinks are an option? IE, my son drinks a metric ton of milk daily, is there an option to fill the mug with milk if we choose the right location to fill it?
In reply to sachilles:
No on milk with the cup. Those are individual containers in the coolers. But tea, coke (puke!), coffee, and water are the freebies.
Thanks!
We went to Disney for three days last November with our kids who were 5, 3.5, and 6 months old at the time. We cheated, though, we have a timeshare (on non-Disney property) that's about a mile from the park entrance. That saved us a ton of money vs. a hotel on the property, and allowed us to fuel up on breakfast at our timeshare, head over to Disney, and then head back to our timeshare for dinner, so our outlay for food at the park was pretty minimal. Especially with our youngest being so young, that was a long enough day for us. The kids would relax at the timeshare/pool for the rest of the day, and limiting our time at Disney let everyone relax in the evening and recharge.
However, in your situation where you're going down to see Disney exclusively, I think that staying on the property will allow you to enjoy the extended hours, and get the most out of Disney for the money. We drive down to Orlando at least every other year, so we have the luxury of breaking up the Disney experience over a few years.
Even being early November, it was hot - like mid 80s. Couple that with Florida's humidity, and you really need to be prepared with drinks, sunblock, hats, etc. A stroller is a great idea, because even kids who no longer need one will likely need one after walking/standing all day. After being there all day, I could have used a stroller! Make sure you and your family stays hydrated, everyone gets cranky quickly when they're overheated. Plan bathroom breaks accordingly, as well - before you get in line for the ride 
We also packed some snacks for the kids, as being hungry won't help the situation either.
We had a 3 day unlimited pass for all the parks. We focused on the Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom for two of those days, which were great. The third day I took our oldest son to do the Test Track ride at Epcot (which was a disappointment for me, but I might have been expecting too much from the one car-related ride!), and then we went back close to dinnertime as a family for some more rides, the Fantasia show, and the Magic Kingdom fireworks (which were unbelievable).
The most important advice I can give mirrors what I've seen a couple different times in this thread - no matter what you have planned, be responsive to how your child is feeling/doing. Disney is an awesome place, but it's no fun once you've hit the wall. Heading back to the hotel for a quick lunch, power nap, and then heading back to the park can make your day that much better.
FastPass is a life-saver, especially for the more popular rides. The Disney wait time apps were a huge help, as well. We did some planning before the trip for the things we thought the kids would want to see, but we were very flexible. If you're not flexible, Disney will be your worst nightmare.
We had a great time, and it was a good intro to Disney. I know we'll be back!
So we are booked. May 1 arrival, May 7 departure. Staying in a standard room at Caribbean beach resort. 7 day park hopper tickets. Dining plan with one quick service meal and one sit down meal per day. $2760. Air fare via jet Blue from Burlington Vermont for $720 total for all three of us. While we may only use 6 of the 7 day passes, it was only $30 total to go to the 7th day, so we might hit a park one last time the day we leave as our flight is on the later side. Character breakfast at Crystal palace on the first morning of our trip, which happens to be a morning magic hour day.
If you are thinking about going, order the informational DVD as it will get you on their mailing list for the promos. Their promo saved us about $400 off the rack rate, which is better than a sharp stick in the eye. Only 118 days until the trip.
OK, help me aging memory out.
Last time I went was late 1980's so this was before Animal Kingdom was there. Yet I seem to remember getting on a boat from our hotel(polynesian resort) and going to some island that was like a zoo and had a bunch of animals. I could swear it it was fort wilderness. It was just a big loop with various animals like a wildlife park. Did they have something like that at fort wilderness ages ago, and then when they opened Animal kingdom, close it down? Is it still there? or is this just a figment of my imagination?
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