Orlando/Disneyworld Thread (Part 3)

KarenG

ANewBeginning wrote: »

Hi

I would go for September, as flight prices drops then. in general June and September tend to be the decent prices with decent weather attached.

Fly with a good carrier too. No Monarch etc - take it from someone who knows lol Check out Virgin Atlantic for good direct flights at OK prices. I have paid £453 each for June. Might also be worth checking out packages if your kids are small as often you get free or hugely reduced kids prices.

Also hotels do kids eat free for kids under 12 too

hope that helps

xx

In fairness, I don't think everybody agrees that Virgin Atlantic are as good as they once were. Hopefully the new planes may address that.

I've never flown with Monarch so can't comment on those, but some of the other charters get good write ups, sometimes better than Virgin.

Me, I fly with whomever is cheapest I've had good and bad flights with Virgin, BA etc.

I wouldn't personally recommend June for Orlando as it's super hot and some of the US schools are already on summer vacation, which makes the parks much busier than when the UK holidays are on.

delwynshd

I personally wouldnt fly charter at all now to Florida

The new A330 planes are really nice with Virgin

Del

blue_monkey_2

Del, it's the little things that count, like the kids not getting a KiD pack on the plane. I deliberately took no bags for my kids because I knew they got them on the flight, but they did not give them to us and when i asked where they were they simply said they had run out.

My son was Air Sick and I had to run around looking for Air sickness bags, they are not in the back of seats like they used to be.

One magazine for the TV and Duty Free between 7 of us. The

TV did not work properly and for the entire flight there was just ONE kids movie on. There are 2 Kids channels, one for Pre-schoolers and one for older kids with stuff like Hannah Montana. A 7 YO Boy is not going to watch that or Little Einsteins - on a flight that is predominately for families with kids, I think that is really bad tbh and wish I had known as I'd have taken the netbook and a DVD player to keep them entertained.

I will fly Virgin but I do not think they give the extra little touches that used to make them a class above the rest. Hopefully the new planes will address that.

Mab2009

KarenG wrote: »

Walmart is really really close but not walkable due to no pavements and highway set up - you'd possibly get run over :eek:

Do reconsider hiring a car for the whole time, please. Yes, you will pay to park at the theme parks - but if this saves you 3 hours per day commute, when you've paid a fortun to get there and get into the parks - isn't that worth it?

I've never once found hiring a car has cost me money in the long run, and I've done both options many times.

Hi KarenG,

Thanks for the above.:)

I was already re considering the car hire thing. I would like to hire a car for the whole stay but not from the airport. Is this possible? I'm panicing about driving and think after a long haul flight it would be my worse nightmare. Could we pick up the car locally and just have the transfers from and to the airport?:question:

Thanks again for your advice.

blue_monkey_2

Mab2009 wrote: »

Hi KarenG,

Thanks for the above.:)

I was already re considering the car hire thing. I would like to hire a car for the whole stay but not from the airport. Is this possible? I'm panicing about driving and think after a long haul flight it would be my worse nightmare. Could we pick up the car locally and just have the transfers from and to the airport?:question:

Thanks again for your advice.

Yes, we have done this with Virgin, collecting the car the day after we arrive in the afternoon from Swan & Dolphin so we can go to Hollywood Studios in the morning, get car mid afternoon and then drive back to then hotel. We have it for a week and have been told if we want to extend the car for more than a week we can do that locally.

Sooooo.... I am going to throw something else into the mix.

We are staying onsite (Disney), you might want to consider a split stay and stay in Disney for one week so you can use the buses to get around and get to or from the airport if you do not want to drive/get taxis and do all of Disney when you are staying onsite and the other things the week after when you have the car and are staying elsewhere. There are lots of suites/villas available for week 2.

ETA: Not sure if you have booked but Disney have the dining plan on for Jan when you are there: http://wdtc.disneyinternational.com/Special-Offers.asp?ID=8

You can get stay here: http://wdtc.disneyinternational.com/Select-Rooms.asp?ID=5502&Offset=5 or here: http://wdtc.disneyinternational.com/Select-Rooms.asp?ID=5506&Offset=5 a 2 bed apartment (sleeps 1-8) (infant should stay free) for £1876 or there is a 3 bed that sleeps up to 9 for £3380. You need to book your tickets with Disney though and I would advise on staying at Disney on Week 1 if you do a split stay otherwise getting the Park tickets is a huge hassle and you might not be able to get them early. We booked for week 3 and did not know we and had a nightmare trying to get the tickets early so this is why I advise staying at Disney on week 1 - the tickets will then be vaild for 14 days from DATE OF FIRST USE.

While £1876 a week seems expensive to look at here on screen, its only £33 pp per day for your party, the food you eat in Disney is free for your stay. You get a card and the 'set meals' are loaded onto it and you just hand over the card to pay for your food (you'll need to leave a tip in restaurant still). At those 2 resorts you get a decent meal plan, 1 counter meal, 1 table service or character meal and one snack (can also be used to buy bring home souviner treats for freinds/family). If we had paid for all the meals/snacks we ate, for 2 adults and 2 kids, the cost would have been around £800 for the week and we paid £926 so we cosider it an absolute bargain. Plus we saved £50 on airport transfer costs as we went on the bus. Obviously you can double this cost and you'll see what an amazing deal it is. You are not tied to one Disney hotel for food and can eat all over so there is a lot to choose from but, for us, it was nice to do for the week as we did not have to worry about spends and we could get around easily and free.

You do not have to eat the meal in any set order and you can use them for any choice of meal (Character breakfast table meal instead of evening meal for example). For a sit down meal in Disney you are looking at $35-$60pp - under 3's eat free, for a counter meal $8-12. It was nice that it was all paid for before we went and because we was SC we just had cereal/toast in the morning. Plus they take you too and from the airport in their Disney buses.

And if you DO take that option, book the meals as soon as you are able as they sell out fast. You can book 187 days before you want to make the reservation, make the most of this and book early as guests who do not stay onsite can only book 180 days before.

delwynshd

Mab2009 has booked a package with Virgin to the LBV Village

The hotel does free shuttles to the parks twice daily

They didnt really want to drive there is a few of them travelling so they opted for a 3 bed apartment

Del

blue_monkey_2

delwynshd wrote: »

Mab2009 has booked a package with Virgin to the LBV Village

The hotel does free shuttles to the parks twice daily

They didnt really want to drive there is a few of them travelling so they opted for a 3 bed apartment

Del

Del, when people ask about accomodation, do you tell people about the free dining package if it is on when they go?

I only ask becuase it's such fab value if you stay on OKW/SSR, I know Virgin offers it because I've seen it on their website. Not moaning, I just think that for non-drivers there is no better place to stay plus you get the Disney bus transfers which collect your luggage for you at the airport too.

I stayed in the Radisson on Parkway with free shuttle and you have to be watching your clock to make sure you do not miss the evening shuttle and this can sometimes mean missing the evening parades or having to leave the parks before Spectromagic or you finish a meal. It's just stress. We didn't bother in the end and got taxi's instead. I just wondered why you'd not suggest staying onsite, that's all.

delwynshd

Oh we did but the cost was alot higher as the customers would of had to have 3 rooms

If the dinning plans are on within the customers travel dates I always push that yeah, there are shuttles to the park twice on a morning and twice on a evening I think the last shuttle is at 2235 from Disney

Del

Mab2009

Thanks Blue Monkey and Delwynshd,

i'm really pleased with the accommodation that we've booked I just thought about hiring a car for ease. I really didn't want to drive to start with but the more I speak to people and read this thread the more people are conviencing me that i'll be fine. The dinning plan is a really good deal but we're quite happy to cook meals in the apartment and after a long day in the park (and i plan on having very long days in parks to make the most of it) I don't think i'll want to go back to the apartment get showered and changed and go back out for something to eat. I also don't drink much with having the kids with me so I don't mind driving even if we do go out on a night.

I do however appreciate your help and hope this comes across

poet123

blue_monkey wrote: »

Del, when people ask about accomodation, do you tell people about the free dining package if it is on when they go?

I only ask becuase it's such fab value if you stay on OKW/SSR, I know Virgin offers it because I've seen it on their website. Not moaning, I just think that for non-drivers there is no better place to stay plus you get the Disney bus transfers which collect your luggage for you at the airport too.

I stayed in the Radisson on Parkway with free shuttle and you have to be watching your clock to make sure you do not miss the evening shuttle and this can sometimes mean missing the evening parades or having to leave the parks before Spectromagic or you finish a meal. It's just stress. We didn't bother in the end and got taxi's instead. I just wondered why you'd not suggest staying onsite, that's all.

Can I ask a few Q's?:D

Can you eat at any Disney restaurant in any hotel/park or just the same category of hotel?

Are the shuttles regular and to every park?

What is the airport shuttle like?

Did you buy flights separately?

We have always stayed offsite in a villa, but there may only be 3 of us next year, so the above looks like a good option for our first week. Then we could just have a car for the rest of the holiday. We usually go down to the islands for the rest of the holiday.