Orlando Florida/Disneyworld (Part 2) *CLOSED*

lrr_2

trickytrolleys wrote: »

thank you, you've all been a great help, really do appreciate it.

Great idea about the money - i'm going to do that !

your welcome...

Rowan1946

Taking a car makes a huge differance, for us, its not a drinking holiday, its early mornings to the parks with a freshening up in the afternoon then hitting another park or attraction in the evening, a car make it hugely easier.

angelheart

lrr wrote: »

I know what you mean

I feel very safe there and more so than I do in Spain for example. I split my money into the nomber of days I am there, any money left rolls onto the next day etc so by the end you will know if you any extras left for shopping. The people there are very friendly, just ask them if you get stuck. Taxis are fine if you have a lot of shopping to carry but if you dont just use the buses. Although its really big there its really easy to find your way around.

Hope this helps

I can only second this. I went on my own with my son when he was nine and I didn't drive, didn't want additional stress. Mears transport were fantastic, cheaper than taxi's, I'm going again in December and not driving. The additional cost of a car, I feel is better spent on the holiday. You will have a fantastic time. :A

sturll

NickyDee wrote: »

Just wondered if anyone has had any experience of the new ESTA requirements on their holidays this year?

We are going in June and I have logged on and each application was authorised:

• Do I just need to take the reference numbers with me, is that it?
• I didn't put the flight or accomodation details in the system, does that matter?
• Should I receive anything in the post/by e-mail?

No.
No.
and
No.

You have done it, print a copy for your records then forget all about it. You don't need anything at the US Border. They will know if you have applied or not.

If you are of a paranoid disposition then take your proof but you won't need it.

Easy really - made difficult by all the sensationalist media. Far better than those stupid green forms if you ask me.

Orchidvilla_2

Had some guests go out to our villa and they flew VA they all did ESTA but still had to fill in green card on the flight.

jackieblack

trickytrolleys wrote: »

i might take my license just in case then!! I was just worried about driving on the other side of the road, not knowing their rules and ive never driven an automatic, i thought the public transport would be really frequent.

I too was worried about the driving the first time we went, but it was MUCH easier than i thought it would be.

I look at it this way, even if you only spend 15 minutes longer getting to and from the parks each day (and its likely to be more than that), thats half an hour a day, over two weeks that adds up to 7 hours!
Personally, I would rather have that 7 hours actually at one of the attractions we've paid a small fortune to visit, otherwise its like losing almost a whole day of your holiday!

dazzer68

just to make some comments on recent points here,
ive been to disneyworld 3 times, just me and my partner, and stayed in allstars resort,yes it is larger than life disney, but isnt that why you stay in a disney hotel? and find it great for what we want from a room (basically a bed and shower) as you spend all day at the parks.if i want a fancy hotel and sit by a pool all day id go to spain!
we have never had a car, the cost of transport is cheap if you need to go anywhere that the disney free transportation cant go, and yes we have a great holiday,(we have driven in australia, spain, canaries and arent scared of it, its just not needed in disney world, unless your going off property everyday)
the 14 ulitmate ticket is the best value for money ticket, and you will use it all, theres 2 water parks, as well,as 4 theme parks, and disney quest at downtown where you can use it, so dont feel youve bought the wrong ticket you havent.a 14 day universal ticket would be the wrong one, that can be done in a couple of days.

sturll

dazzer68 wrote: »

just to make some comments on recent points here,
ive been to disneyworld 3 times, just me and my partner, and stayed in allstars resort,yes it is larger than life disney, but isnt that why you stay in a disney hotel? and find it great for what we want from a room (basically a bed and shower) as you spend all day at the parks.if i want a fancy hotel and sit by a pool all day id go to spain!
we have never had a car, the cost of transport is cheap if you need to go anywhere that the disney free transportation cant go, and yes we have a great holiday,(we have driven in australia, spain, canaries and arent scared of it, its just not needed in disney world, unless your going off property everyday)
the 14 ulitmate ticket is the best value for money ticket, and you will use it all, theres 2 water parks, as well,as 4 theme parks, and disney quest at downtown where you can use it, so dont feel youve bought the wrong ticket you havent.a 14 day universal ticket would be the wrong one, that can be done in a couple of days.

You are missing the point though. 14 days at Disney is far too much. all the parks can easily be done in 5 days. Not only that but without a car you miss Florida - arguably one of the best tourist states in the USA.

Not only that but you are assuming that people only go to Florida for Disney - they don't and in reality if i listed all the amazing things in Florida Disney would probably only amount to 10% of the activities.
I have spoken to many many people who have been to Florida and stayed at Disney and used public transport and have loved it - The holiday of their lives. But when i have sat and said "did you do this, did you do that" They are often left feeling a bit short changed that they hadn't done it or that they missed so much.

The long and short of it is simple. You might not NEED a car to enjoy Florida, but you could definitely do with one and lets be honest, having one can only improve on it.
If you can drive, and you choose not to get a car (for any other reason than financial) then you are a muppet.

teallach

We've hired a car as the pros by far outweigh the cons. One of my colleagues has been to Florida on holiday for about 12 of the last 14 years and it's a no-brainer as far as he's concerned. He says that: when you're stuck at a bus stop in the searing heat waiting for a bus which is so full, you have to stand, the bus then stops goodness knows how many times before you get to a park and then the same on return, only having to wait that bit longer cos the buses are full of people leaving at the same time as you....that's when you know you should have hired a car:rotfl:
My problem up till now is that I can't get my head around the scale of the place but when I read that Universal is approx. 15miles? away from Lake Buena Vista, that's when I realised that I couldn't be bothered with public transport!

dazzer68

sturll wrote: »

You are missing the point though. 14 days at Disney is far too much. all the parks can easily be done in 5 days. Not only that but without a car you miss Florida - arguably one of the best tourist states in the USA.

Not only that but you are assuming that people only go to Florida for Disney - they don't and in reality if i listed all the amazing things in Florida Disney would probably only amount to 10% of the activities.
I have spoken to many many people who have been to Florida and stayed at Disney and used public transport and have loved it - The holiday of their lives. But when i have sat and said "did you do this, did you do that" They are often left feeling a bit short changed that they hadn't done it or that they missed so much.

The long and short of it is simple. You might not NEED a car to enjoy Florida, but you could definitely do with one and lets be honest, having one can only improve on it.
If you can drive, and you choose not to get a car (for any other reason than financial) then you are a muppet.

different strokes for different folks.
admittedly, we could never say we have been to usa, or florida, as we have only done the theme parks, and havent seen true florida at all, but then ive never been to scotland either! just saying, if you dont have a car, and you only buy one ticket, youll still have agreat holiday. we are disney fans and thats why we go to wdw, if i liked skiing id go to the alps.if i wanted to sit on abeach all day florida wouldnt be my choice,as i can do that at home. but as i say horses for courses, and you really need to go and find out what you like by yourselves.