Holiday to America adivce?

alm721

Hi all I wonder if anyone has any advice. I'm planning on booking a surprise holiday for me, hubby and 2 kids ( 4 and 13) to America in July 2011. We want to go to disney for a while but also would like a few days on the beach and I would quite like to spend a few days in new york and possibly in the everglades.
We have never been to America before (in fact I've only been abroad once or twice) and I really have no idea where to start. Can anyone let me know wheter the above is a resonable expectation or whether its too much and it would be better to not try and do so much. This will probably be a one off for us as we generally can't afford the expense so I want to try and get the most out of it if you see what I mean. I'm quite happy to move about accomodation wise but obviously dont want to be moving too frequently. I'm guessing hiring a car is essential but are the places I've mention doable in a car?
Hubby will want to go to all the disney parks so I'm guessing will spend most of a week there, We will prob go for a fortnight but could prob go a bit longer if necessary.
Whats the best way to try and book this? through a travel agent or all seperatly?
I realsie there are loads of questions here and I have loads more so apologies but I'f anyone has advice I'd really appriciate it. I am looking at the disney thread but that seems to have more details about cost of day tickets etc and I' dont think I'm really up to that point if you see what I mena.

Many Thanks

C_Mababejive

Hi,,

Well the first thing you might need to check out is the scale and distance thing.

See

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer/AM_Route_C/1237608339450/1237405732511

If you were to get a train direct from NYC to Orlando ,that journey would take 24 hours !

Now it might be that this could be a good,economical option and it might be you could stop over on the way.

Failing that,you'd have to fly.

Flying?

https://www.jetblue.com is an option...

NYC deserves and will need more than 2 days..

Pinklepurr

It can be a daunting prospect when you don't know quite where to begin!

For a start, will you be able to take the kids out of school or will you go during the school holidays? Prices rocket in the school holidays making it the most expensive time to travel.

The itinerary is similar to one I have been considering. NY is the most amazing, vibrant city and 3-4 nights should be plenty for a first visit. You could get most of the major sights done in that time. Most first timers like to see Statue of Liberty, Empire State etc. However, it is a lot of walking. Do you think your 4 yr old could cope with it? If you were to go to NY then it would be very easy to add to the start or end of your holiday.

Disney could be done in a week but you'd need to be selective about deciding what parks to visit, particularly if you want to see more than just a glimpse of what Disney has to offer. We've always hired a car in Orlando which is easy and gives you the greatest flexibility. We've always hired a villa too. The thought of being crammed into a tiny hotel room for a week would drive me mad. It depends what you are looking for really. There is a huge range of accommodation, from budget to luxury.

The only beach area I've visited is Cocoa Beach on the East coast - about an hour or so away from Orlando. It was nice for a day trip but I think I would have felt my time was wasted being on the beach for any longer than that. Others may have better suggestions. However, it may be good to have a few days on the beach to relax and slow the pace before you come home.

I do think that to try and add the Everglades onto this trip as well might be a bit much. What does everyone else think?

Do you have an idea of what you would like to spend? It is likely to cost you in the region of 5k for this sort of holiday - possibly less if you go for budget accommodation.

Virgin Holidays will have a brochure out soon covering 2011. If you were to do DIY and book your own flights and accommodation separately then the flights will go on sale 11 months before travel date. I've always used Expedia and been happy with the service.

Happy Planning!

jeanniebeanie_2

Wow! Big ask to 'do' all the theme parks, time on the beach and move State as well in just over two weeks!

I think a good starting point might be a look at http://www.thedibb.co.uk/
and try to work out how much time you (and especialy the kids) might want at parks.
I agree with Kenny- at least one day per park, but remember there are 4 Disney Parks, 2 Universal (plus new Harry Potter Land will be open by then!)Seaworld, not to mention the Water Parks, Downtown Disney..............Then there's shows, shopping.........

On the other hand if the parks don't appeal so much then Kenny's plan is do-able!
Have fun planning!

ferf1223

I'd fly to NYC (preferrably on a carrier which would see us connecting in NYC on the way to Florida anyway and take a stopover there), stay for 3 or 4 nights, then fly to Florida for the remainder given your circumstances. I think it's doable, and there's a book called The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World (there's a new edition every year) which has a lot of great tips on getting the most out of Disney. Some if it is too regimented, but they do give you a lot of ideas of ways to save time and get more out of the parks. Amazon.co.uk stock it - I ordered it a few years ago when we were considering Disney and it had a crazy amount of info in one place.

You have plenty of time to review your options and plan...I would avoid Virgin Holidays though...I've never seen them be anything more than vastly overpriced for the same holiday you could book yourself.

lynzpower

jeanniebeanie wrote: »

Wow! Big ask to 'do' all the theme parks, time on the beach and move State as well in just over two weeks!

I think a good starting point might be a look at http://www.thedibb.co.uk/
and try to work out how much time you (and especialy the kids) might want at parks.
I agree with Kenny- at least one day per park, but remember there are 4 Disney Parks, 2 Universal (plus new Harry Potter Land will be open by then!)Seaworld, not to mention the Water Parks, Downtown Disney..............Then there's shows, shopping.........

On the other hand if the parks don't appeal so much then Kenny's plan is do-able!
Have fun planning!

Me & OH just came back from one week in Orlando. Ive been before as a kid, but OH never been. We felt really it was very full on! You would not be able to do that with little ones - they would be shattered.

The dibb is a really good resource. Depending on your kids ages and likes, when you go, you can easily sack off a couple of the theme parks, but I think youd want to spend 4 days in Disney alone, it really is huge with so much to see.

Personally I wouldnt do new york with the florida trip. You can do orlando and the ever glades with hire car in Florida, and you could visit Miami if you want some "city" .Port Augustine looks great too, we didnt have time on this trip but hope to go back.

alm721

Wow thanks that they very helpful responses, can now see that I was may slightly overestimating how much I was likely to fit in:rolleyes: I didn't realise disney was so big! I was kind of thinking it was like eurodisney with a couple of parks :rotfl: Right I think i need to focus this a bit more. The main point of the trip would be disney and universal studios etc (as much for hubby as for the kids;)) so I think we would be best focussing around that. I would prefer a villa as hotel rooms don't do it for me well not with the kids anyway. We would hopefully go around 9th July so would get back around the times when schools are just breaking up (guess it will still be expensive then anyway though). Any othe rsuggestions please keep them coming they are a great help and I'm going to check out the websites suggested.
Thanks again

Philippa36

We went to Florida 2 years ago and split the fortnight with a couple of days at the beach and the rest of the time at the parks.There is more than enough to do in Disney/Universal/shopping/sightseeing not to need to leave the area!
The beaches aren't the best I've been to in the US, but if you want to go to the coast then its an easy drive away.

There are a million villas out there, just make sure you pick one thats close to the theme parks or you'll spend a lot of each day driving back and forth.

As everyone else has suggested, NYC needs a week to really appreciate and you'd definitely have a better time if you go there on a different holiday!

Have a great time planning it all - we loved it!

Diamond_Olly

A few years ago we flew into Boston, had a few days there, then flew down to Orlando - did the theme parks. Then picked up a car and drove to the Gulf Coast for the last days. Flew back to the UK from Tampa. We had a fantastic time but felt like we needed another holiday afterwards to recover!! Its certainly possible to do what you want to do but I think you'll struggle to do it in 2 weeks. To be practical, if you want to do New York, I'd just choose 2 things out of your list - say NY and Disney/Orlando. You could do all the Florida things in 2 weeks but you might need to cut down your time in the theme parks. You don't tend to stay in the Everglades - its a national park. Try here as well for some helping in planning the trip - http://www.visitflorida.com/ Best to decide what your priorities on the trip are and plan it that way.

Pinklepurr

For a range of villa and condo accommodation which is close to Disney then take a look at Windsor Hills Resort. They have 2/3 bedroom condos (with use of resort pool). 3 bed townhouses with private splash pool and 3/4/5 bedroom villas with private pool. Just google Windsor Hills and there will be lots of choice. We stayed here in a Townhouse and loved it. It was close enough to take a break from the Disney parks during the day (5 mins drive from Animal Kingdom / 15 mins drive from Magic Kingdom) and access to lots of restaurants nearby when you want to eat out. It is a secure gated community and the quality of the accomodation is excellent. If we go again we wouldn't hesitate to rent here again. There is a similar resort called Windsor Palms which is slightly older and a little further away but same type of accommodation.

I found the Disboards a very useful site for information. I also read the "Brits guide to Orlando" which was brilliant. I'd recommend reading up and getting your head around all there is to offer before booking anything.

jeanniebeanie_2

The best advice here is 'do your research before you book.'

I would just like to add that although it is possible to 'do' a park in a day, many people, especially with kids, like to arrive at park opening some days then leave in the afternoon to chill at thier villa, swim, grab a meal outside the park etc. Then other days lie in ,swim, have a restaurant brunch or shop then get to a park in the afternoon and stay for fireworks or dinner until park close.

In July it will be busy, hot and humid. Not to put you off- I still love it! But good pacing and planning can make all the difference!