Florida Parks - Disney, Universal Studios etc

Ashagill

Hello,
I'm tagging along to my partners siblings family holiday, with all their children. They are planning to hit lots of Florida Parks: Disney Land, and Universal Studios. But someone said the tickets to these places can get up to $800 dollars per person which seems crazy. We aren't struggling financially, but don't like to be stupid, just because we are on holiday...

I went once before in 2000 with my family, and my money-saving late father made us go and watch a timeshare presentation for some holiday homes as they were awarding free tickets to the parks after. What a guy. But that was 20 years ago.

Does anyone have any tips on how to get genuine tickets to these places for a bit more reasonable dosh?

Many thanks.

cubegame

They are expensive and sadly that's the end of the story.

You may get a better deal via a US website via buying in the UK but it normally is about equal.

The cheapest reliable source for tickets is Walmart stores.

Duckyduck

It depends how you look at it, the 14 day tickets to Disney, Universal and Seaworld/Busch Gardens purchased in the U.K. are all similar prices to 3 day tickets in the US, so if you stick to Disney or Universal it’s can be a pretty good value holiday. Disney has 4 parks, 2 water parks and 2 mini golf courses and photos included in the ticket so plenty to keep you entertained for a while.

Florida seems to be to be of those places where agents still have an advantage over going direct. Attraction Tickets Direct and Undercover tourist are 2 I’ve used without any issues. Undercover tourist sells the US versions of the tickets, so good if you only want to go to a park for just 1 or 2 days.

The Seaworld/Busch Gardens/ Aquatica ticket sold in the U.K. is valid for 14 days and includes free parking and free bus to Busch Gardens but costs the same as a 1 day ticket at the park. They have the biggest thrill rides so it’s fantastic value.

Definitely get your Disney tickets in advance so you can make fast pass reservations (30 days in advance), as this makes a huge difference to your holiday getting to skip some of the long lines. You can take your own food and drinks into Disney so can save money there.

The DIBB forum is an excellent resource for all things Orlando so would be a good place to check for info.

SweetPotatoPie

Have s look on Attraction Tickets Direct and Floridatix. These are usually the cheapest. Still looking around 600 mark. Tickets are expensive unfortunately but they are well worth it. Use cashback sites also. Buy well in advance to ensure you can link them and book fast passes etc. As somebody has mentioned - look on the Dibb.

meer53

I use Undercover Tourist too. Good prices, just make sure you don't book last minute to allow time for the tickets to come before you travel. Last time we booked they sent out physical tickets, think you can get e-tickets now though.

peachyprice

Disney is the real killer and IMO not worth it. If you want a few days in the parks and some days away from the rest of the family I would just get Universal tickets, they have 14 day tickets with the 2 parks and the water park included for a lot less than a comparable ticket.

cubegame

peachyprice wrote: »

Disney is the real killer and IMO not worth it. If you want a few days in the parks and some days away from the rest of the family I would just get Universal tickets, they have 14 day tickets with the 2 parks and the water park included for a lot less than a comparable ticket.

That's because you can comfortably do each of the Universal parks in half a day though!

steve1500

cubegame wrote: »

That's because you can comfortably do each of the Universal parks in half a day though!

Impossible, certainly in the summer

cubegame

steve1500 wrote: »

Impossible, certainly in the summer

The point remains that the reason they are cheaper than Disney is that they are smaller than Disney.

Jackson7148

Ashagill wrote: »

Hello,
I'm tagging along to my partners siblings family holiday, with all their children. They are planning to hit lots of Florida Parks: Disney Land, and Universal Studios. But someone said the tickets to these places can get up to $800 dollars per person which seems crazy. We aren't struggling financially, but don't like to be stupid, just because we are on holiday...

I went once before in 2000 with my family, and my money-saving late father made us go and watch a timeshare presentation for some holiday homes as they were awarding free tickets to the parks after. What a guy. But that was 20 years ago.

Does anyone have any tips on how to get genuine tickets to these places for a bit more reasonable dosh?

Many thanks.

I'll be totally honest with you, yes the Disney parks ARE expensive, but definitely worth it! A common misconception about Disney parks are that they are made for children. While the Universal parks are amazing, they are fairly small and you can get everything done within a day, easily, with enough time to go back and do your favorites over again. But with all of the shows/parade/character encounters available in the Disney parks you are definitely getting more for your money, especially if you're travelling with children.
Me and the Mrs regularly go to Disney parks just the two of us and we are 32 & 28 and we enjoy every second. My advice is to shop around because the likely hood is, that you will be able to get a better price. But please don't avoid going to Disney because of the price because it truly is an unforgettable experience!
Hope you have fun when you go :rotfl:

Sharon87

If you do do Disney it's cheaper to do a 7 day ticket or more than just a day ticket for value of money. We did a Disney ticket for one day and it was around £100-£120 per person for one park (Magic Kingdom). It's cheaper booking in bulk.

We enjoyed ourselves and Disney is a huge place and to see everything you need a week at least.

It's up to you whether you want to do the parks or not, there's lots of things to do in Florida apart from theme parks