The Great 'Disney Cost Cutting' Hunt

silvercar

Janiebabes wrote: »

I know this is slighty off mark... but any Euro Disney stuff out there which saves us a few £?

Already booked the hotel (cheaper Sante fe), tickets included & we are ferrying to save pounds as the eurostar & flights cost too much, but any other advice would be fantastic!

Janie xxx:beer:

your hotel is a 20 minute walk minimum or bus ride from the park.

when you get off the train/ metro, leave your luggage in left luggage at the entrance to the park, go straight into the park and collect your luggage on your way out when you go to the hotel.

ktrahearn

Hi Wooleycats,

Please can you let me know about this website with Mike the tour guide. I am going to Orlando in October & would really appreciate some new hints & tips.

Many thanks.

vivatifosi

charlieandlola2007 wrote: »

Even a low-price ticket becomes expensive if you don't get value for money from it.

Best bit of advice so far...

Disney ticket options can be really daunting. Its definitely worth speaking to others with similar size/age families and likes and get an idea as to the best options for you, especially now its not possible to transfer tickets on.

Edinburghlass_2

ktrahearn wrote: »

Hi Wooleycats,

Please can you let me know about this website with Mike the tour guide. I am going to Orlando in October & would really appreciate some new hints & tips.

Many thanks.

Here you go...

http://tourguidemike.com/tour/index.asp

you do have to pay for the help so you have to work out if its worth it for you, I'm more of a "commando" person myself

losthour

Just back from Disney so got a few tips:

Flights:

Went with Broadway Travel and flew with Monarch for £300 return.

Hotel:

Stayed at Travelodge which was £262 for 14 days again through Broadway. Seemed fine, especially as we weren't there much. Has free breakfast and free shuttles to Theme Parks.

Tickets:

Use themeparkticketsdirect - seem to be the cheapest about. We did 14 day Disney Ultimate at £159 and Orlando Flex Plus £131. Cost us £290 each! But if you go elsewhere you can be looking at over £300 easily.

Restaurants:

All you can eat restaurants are great value as are most places except in the parks where they rip you off so take food with you to them if you can. Coupon books are available all down International Drive.

Car Rental:

Only did 2 days car rental but used Alamo via Holiday Auto's. Quidco gave me £11 back Petrol is still laughably cheap there at £2 a gallon even though they moan a lot...Thing that cost me was being under 25 so it pays to be older

Shopping:

Did little of this but went to Prime Outlets which seemed cheap for my Nike Trainers. Half the price of the UK anyway...

Few things to beware of that will catch you out:

1. If you are driving to parks, be prepared to pay about £5 a day parking.
2. At the water parks lockers usually cost about £2.50 a day.
3. When we got to the Travelodge, we had to pay a 'Mandatory' £17.50 service charge for our stay so no tip for the maids...
4. Beware of a price when you see $10 a meal or any product. Always add sales tax at 6.5% and a tip at around 10-20% to get the REAL price.
5. Public transport is pretty good there IMO so you can do it without a car. The I-RIDE lets you go down International Drive for 50p a time or £1 return effectively. Lynx buses always run frequently and are cheap. Disney internal buses are good and run at 20 minute intervals.
6. Should you have children- take or buy a pushchair out there. Do NOT hire one at the parks silly prices.

If I think of more I will post it as the thread goes on. We had 2 weeks out there and the whole thing with park tickets and eating out all the time only cost us about £1250pp. Enjoy...

OllieT_2

d.ylan wrote: »

Can anyone expand on good resources they've used to find good direct villa owners previously? There are a few sites I've seen but some of them seem a little sketchy, and I have to wonder if the charges increase through using one of these sites if they're working as agents (or not if that's not the case)?

Quite a few of your posts mention booking villas direct so any tips on that front are greatly received!

Visit a site already mentioned thedibb.co.uk and look at villa rentals. The owners are mainly British I think which can make communications easier!! Use Google Earth to look at REAL distance from Disney parks ( they are all 15-20 mins!!)
On a previous holiday we had a villa with full size pool etc, not sure we made full use of facilities. This time having done extensive research I have booked a 3bed/3bath townhouse very close to the parks for 3 weeks for £1000. Gated community, private splash pool. Now just need Virgin to release flights!!!:rotfl: :T

anne_b_3

We have visited Disney 5 times and are about to take our 6th trip in August. Disney tickets are by no means cheap but we have found a great site www.discountorlandovacation.com which can be paid for in dollars and tickets can be collected or delivered direct to your hotel in Florida. Unfortunately we had to buy ours through Virgin this year to take advantage of a Disney offer staying on site and FREE Disney Dining.
We stay in hotels with suite facilities. These are invariably nearer to the theme parks whilst still offering more spacious accommodation as in a villa,the children prefer this type of holiday as they meet new friends around the pool and the facilities usually include transportation which cuts down on the cost of the car parking fees that the theme parks insist on charging. Villas can often keep the cost down but this has to be seriously weighed up against all the extra travelling and lack of local facilities (meaning after a long day if you dont want to cook you have to go back out again to find a restaurant). It is also nice to have a bar or pool to sit around with other adults to talk to which you dont get in a villa.

Fewhit

Hi there,

I am currently writing this from my parents villa close to Disney and as a Florida-holic I thought I'd share a few tips.

Plan ahead! - The key to a good Florida holiday.

We always get to the parks as soon as they open and head for the most popular rides first so we are not wasting our time queuing later. If possible take your own lunch, food at the parks can be quite expensive for a family every day. Look at the park maps online beforehand to plan your day and book ahead for restaurants if required. Check out the free discount books available at the airport which include coupons for a variety of things, we always use them, espeicially for the airboat rides. When buying souvenirs, don't buy at Disney, its much cheaper to buy them at the many souvenir stores on the 192, but don't forget to leave room in your suitcase beforehand.

Seaworld is a must, I have been to Florida on numerous occasions but I will never get tired of Seaworld. Check out 2nd free day with admission and offers for members of military. I always get my park tickets through a link off my parents villa website, its the cheapest I have found (except Seaworld/Busch Gardens etc is slightly cheaper to buy direct at the moment), but unfortunately I don't think I can provide these details on this website. Also if you get the opportunity visit Busch Gardens instead of Animal Kingdom, same idea but more appealing, espeicially for teenagers, having said that animal kingdom is the best Disney park for meeting the characters.

I would highly recommend booking a villa, and booking it direct with owners, there are hundreds of villa owners advertising on certain specialised websites
(just google). Villas will probably save you money depending on your circumstances, and you get your own space and pool. I know first hand that the majority of villa owners spend an awful lot of time and money on their properties, and most are located on (and have beautiful views of) golf courses and are only a short drive to Disney (literally 20 mins).

A few more quick tips... In Busch gardens get their early and go straight to the cable cars, ride this to the back of the park and then work your way back to the front going on all the rides first and then later on, when its busier, spend time looking at the animals. Also adults can get free samples of budweiser beer at both Seaworld and Busch. If you see a shuttle launch then go to Jetty Park for great views, also get a boat ride at clearwater beach to see the dolphins (try haggling).

Oh and if possible go to the parks out of term time, I know this is not possible for all, but try your best to go when both the British and the American kids are still at school as you get more done at the parks.

Hope this is of help (sorry for the long post) :j

GentleGiant_2

Any sites where we can buy Annual passes (especially if they include parking!)

That is if the British can buy annual passes??

The sites, I have looked at do not seem to list them

madcow2006

shandypants5 wrote: »

Justa quick check before I buy.

Can anyone beat £134 for an orlando flexticket plus from these people?
http://www.americanattractions.co.uk/orlando-flexticket/plus.php

Or is there a better way to buy the tickets taking advantage of exchange rates and such?

My only stipulation is that whoever I buy from must send me the REAL tickets not vouchers, as I dont see the point in vouchers.
If you have to que up for your tickets on the first day then you may as well take your cash and pay on the first day?

We used officalticketcenter.com for our tickets when we went to Orlando a few years back & got good prices on them all. Have a look at their website.

Cheers Madcow