5 years MFW - Lets get cracking...

nattypants

I was very emotional when my youngest left both Primary, and then Secondary school.....I found myself wishing I had a third youngest still gong through the system!

Are you getting broody for more stickies HDK?;)

nattypants

PS. Belated :bdaycake: to your Mum and great going on Florida research!

lulabelle1

Hey HDK, let me know if you need any pointers with Florida holidays..... We've always taken care of it ourselves and have never gone through a travel agent.

We had ds2's nursery graduation on Friday evening and I had a few tears..... They grow up too quickly.

HelenDaveKids

Yes, think will be tears a week on Tuesday... and this is our 3rd and final primary schooler. But no, definitely not stickie broody!

Mum was 70, and with Daves dad now being 80 it makes you realise how old they are getting. Although my parents are very "young"

Yes definitely please Lula, have been reading on the florida forum to get some tips but its so confusing so would really appreciate some help / guidance.

DD1 in concert today at Rufford country park, there all day (10.30 till 5.30) had a picnic and the whole day cost £3 (free entry just pay to park). Was fantastic hearing her play in the concert band, as well as feeding the ducks and wandering around the sculptures / gardens.

lulabelle1

I didn't realise there was a Florida forum, I probably should have checked this for our holiday!

I would recommend booking the flights once you're settled on your dates, from experience they tend to go up in price the longer you wait - especially if going during school holidays.

I've only flown with virgin and ba to Florida, my preference is BA. You might get slightly cheaper charter flights (monarch etc) but they tend to charge additional fees for everything and it can easily end up costing more.... With virgin/ba everything is included, all drinks, meals, snacks, ample luggage allowance etc.

Once the flights are booked, you can take your time to sort out accommodation, car, tickets.....

Tickets - I've used Orlando ticket deals and floridatix, I just use whichever is cheapest on the day I decide to buy. I usually wait until a few weeks before we go. Both issue real tickets which is important, otherwise you have to q for ages when you arrive at the park for the first time.

Car - I've always ended up using Alamo. They tend to be cheap ish and have good cars, good service, no hidden extras etc.

Accommodation - I've been fortunate that I've always had staff perks or called in favours and usually stay in a timeshare resort which is fab as we get a 2 bed apartment that has everything you need, several pools etc. it's great for the boys as they like to play with other children at the pool. If it wasn't for the boys I'd prob prefer to rent a private villa. What kind of thing are you fancying for the accommodation?

Have you thought about which parks you would like to visit while you're there? How long will you go for?

It's a dilemma as you feel like you should get tickets for all of the parks, but tbh if you do that, you don't really get your monies worth as there are so many of them. Also, consider if you want to spend all day every day at a park..... It's knackering. We didn't spend much time at the parks when we went this time and we still had a fantastic time. The time we spent at universal/islands of adventure was prob the most stressful time of the holiday! Although, the rides were good......

Florida has some amazing beaches on the west side - Clearwater, st Petes, the sand is beautiful and the sea is warm and green. Lovely!

Enjoy the planning, send me a pm if you have any q's etc although I'm sure the Florida forum will prob be better at providing MS advice than me. I also know the best malls, but you'd expect no less!!

nattypants

Lula - you're like trip advisor if I ever go away anywhere, I will be contacting you!

lulabelle1

Perhaps I should, launch a new website, asklula.com x

HelenDaveKids

Brilliant Thanks Lula.

I was thinking a villa, as theres 5 of us, and dd1 and 2 are over 12 so seem to be classed as adults. I want a cheap option, although definitely whatever choose needs a pool. I did look at hotels and haven't excluded

DD1 and 2 desperately want to see Harry potters world so need universal studios tickets but don't feel that we can miss disneyland, so thought either 7 days of each group or a 14 day combo? I'll try those sites thanks. xx

Ba was coming out at £4000 which caused a sharp intake of breath, but found travel up on travel supermarket for £2,500 but need to read up to make sure that not too good to be true? I will try virgin.

I'll will definitely look at alamo, thanks

Thanks Lula,

lulabelle1

Harry potter land is fab, it's due to have a new part opening next summer. The butterbeer is lush.

I would have thought a villa will give you best value for money plus you'll have lots of space too. I've never fancied a hotel with the children, I like (and need) my space too much.

7 day Disney is pretty much the same price as 14 days.... Ridiculous really. You can buy a 14 day ticket for universal/islands - it's pretty much the same price for 14 days as it is for 1 day, so quite handy as you can come and go as you wish.

For 5 of you, I'd budget approx £2,000 for Disney/universal/islands. It's crazy. I hope I haven't ruined your weekend with that nugget of info.......

HelenDaveKids

No, don't worry Lula, I discovered that yesterday and been having palpitations since! Oh well, been on my to do list for a few years so now seems the best time. May as well go for it.
Struggling with how much money we'd save by going 4 days earlier than the school breaks up, as DD1 will be 15 and really don't want to take her out of school but we are talking hundreds!!

DD1 and 2 massive HP fans, I wouldn't like to guess how many times the books have been read and films watched.

The length of time on plane bothers me a little, most we've done is 8 hours (kenya) and that seemed forever.