Going to Disney

[nw2sltfsh]

My father in law and Step Mother in Law suprised my husband and I with a trip to Disney on June 10 (airfare, Hotel and park tickets) for Us and the 2 kids.
I have never been to Disney - so I have a few questions - How much "spending" money should I bring for a Sat - Thursday Trip? Is all the hype worth it? What is the best and worst part of Disney from anyone that has been there?

 

[socal57che]

World or Land????
world=fla
land=ca

 

[socal57che]

I'm not saying everyone should do this,.....but.... if you have trouble standing for long periods ask for a front of the line pass (at guest services on main street) so you can go through the ride's exit and board immediately. (essentially cutting in line) By law they cannot ask you why. There are way too many things to do end see for you to spend an hour or more in lines.
I'll post more if you're coming to california. (annual pass holder)

 

[nw2sltfsh]

Originally Posted by socal57che
World or Land????
world=fla
land=ca
World
The front of the line thing sounds good - but it wouldnt be honest and could be bad karma
The kids dont know yet - I havent decided when would be a good time to tell them - they are 6 and 8

 

[aquarium1]

You can pick up speed passes at many of the rides. They tell you to come back at a certain time, and then you get to go on the ride at that time. Lets you play all over the park, until ride time. If you miss your time, I think they get you on the next go round. We never missed.
Also, there are "Vip" passes you can purchase about $100+ each person I think, or more, and they will take you through the tunnels, on carts and such, and you get to go on the ride when you get to them. No one knows you haven't been standing in line for an hour or more either. Seems like a very good deal, especially if going during the busy season, if you can spare the dough.
Good luck and have fun! Do your research ahead of time online(disney.com I think) and you'll enjoy it much more. Send for the maps they give out, and plan your route. Noontimes or during high heat should be spent napping or swimming at your hotel pool, and then shuttle back to the park in the early afternoon. If you arrive at the opening, shuttle to hotel at noon, swim, etc, go back around 4 and stay until the fireworks at around 10ish or later. Last busses leave a half hour or so after the park closes.
ps, make a plan on where to go if anyone in your party gets lost. My daughter lost us. They take them to the main street (courthouse?) building and keep an eye on them. I had frantic minutes of running and asking, only to have them smile and say, let me take you to your daughter...

 

[beth]

I'd bring around $1000. Not that you will spend that, but you can never tell if an emergency comes up. Of course, if you have credit card such as Visa, you will need only a few hundred cash. You can use a credit card for most things these days, including Disney.
All the hype can not even describe the Disney experience. I will tell you that it is plenty crowded during the time you plan to visit, and plenty HOT too. If you like the heat and don't mind waiting in long lines, then no problem, but likely this will be the only downside to the vacation.
You want to plan your visits to the park in such a way that you do not exhaust yourself or the kids. The official Disney World travel guide is a good reference to get and keep with you.
Are you staying onsite?

 

[nw2sltfsh]

We are staying at the Port Orleans Resort that is in downtown Disney. The place looks incredible.
I am hoping that the kids are tall enough to ride the good rides - but who knows no matter what they should have a great time
Thanks Beth I was thinking the same thing about 1000 to be on the safe side.
We chose the date because the hope is that alot of schools will still be in session so maybe not quite so busy (I know keep dreaming!!) While at the same time allowing my kids to be out of school since PA schools end in early June.
A wondering child is my biggest fear so I already told my husband we will be taking pictures of the kids each morning before we leave the hotel. and I am seriously considering buying one of those firefly phones that only allow them to call Mom and Dad

 

[ohioguy06]

Epcot is wonderful fot adults and make sure u take the kiddys to to animal kindgom i stayed there couple moths ago and to wake up every morning with wildanimals outside my window was asweosme it was like being on a safari

 

[lovethesea]

a friend of mine stayed there last year. They said it was wonderful. Since you are staying in a Disney resort, they got to come early and stay late. That is nice, since its cooler and not as crowded at those times.
If I remember correctly, she said that at check in, they were given "credit cards". Basically a card used anywhere in/on Disney properties. This card was then void at checkout and all charges settled onto their credit card. They like this because they didn't have to worry about who had cash/credit/debit and splitting up at times. A personal choice I am sure, but it something to consider.
I also think they purchased a book (I will find out the name) that told them the ins and outs of Disney. (like when you arrive, go in the opposite direction of everyone else due to commerical design of the park) You and the kids will be constantely bombarded with "stuff" and thats the worse part of it.
What a great gift......!!!!

 

[nw2sltfsh]

Originally Posted by Ohioguy06
Epcot is wonderful fot adults and make sure u take the kiddys to to animal kindgom i stayed there couple moths ago and to wake up every morning with wildanimals outside my window was asweosme it was like being on a safari
I already told the hubby Animal Kingdom is a must - my children love animals and so do I - we practically have a zoo in our own home now - but still I have to go to animal kingdom

 

[ohioguy06]

to me a day trip there is so you can see the shows and enjoy everything there i spent two does there and epcot but most of the time was spent at animal kingdom

 

[kart racer]

We went in 2000. My daughter knew about Disney but we left a day eary to go to Sea Word which she did not know about and absolutely loved it. We did like was mentioned earier, go to the park in the morning then come back to the hotel during the midde of the day and then off to somewhere else in the afternoon. You are doing it right, stay at a Disney hotel so you can take the shutte buses everywhere and not have to drive.

 

[birdy]

We just took my 2yr old twins there in January, it was so much fun.
at 6 and 8 there are going to be very few ride they are not going to be able to go on. We took my 6yr old neice on the Tower of Terror lol (she wanted to go!).
I could write a book on my suggestions for things to do and things to miss at Disney World, The Magic Kingdome is soooo big that you really need two full days to do everything especially if you haven't been there before.
FastPass- someone else mentioned this, but if you plan things well and have someone who can run around the park getting passes at the right time then this can save you lots of time in the long run, basically you run your ticket through a machine a the more popular rides, It will give you a specific hour to come back and you have a special line you can go through.
The best time to go through Fantasy land ( hands down the most crowded part, because it is the "kid" area), would be during a parade, or late in the day, the morning and middle of the day is just awful long lines and huge crowds.
Honestly- unless you think it would really interest you, Future Land, really doesn't have anything that much fun except Space mountain, So if you are running short on time then skip that area.
Try to go to a few shows but not all of them, same with Parades.
Go to the Disney website it is really really good for looking at rides and planning your days.
My favorite park is MGM studios, the kids love all the shows and I LOVE , Tower of terror and the Rock n Roller Coaster.
Have a great time.

 

[cartman101]

If your going with your kids then you have to go to the Magic Kingdom, really cool there, lots and lots of rides for the little ones. That place is really boring for me because i have been there MANY of times and I'm 16, plus I lived in florida

. How many parks you want to visit? You should go to Typhon lagoon at disney world they have a big saltwater pond that you can go swimming with the sharks and stingrays, heres the funny part, all those sharks you see can be kept in HOME aquariums

. But its pretty neat there. MGM is probably my favorite park, they have a really fast rollar coster there and you can see how they make movies and stuff. But if I were you I would go to one disney park and then head over to Universal, that place is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Have fun and let me know what you choose to do.
Edit: I also agree with Birdy about how big the Magic Kingdom is, but I think you can do it all in one day

 

[beth]

Originally Posted by NW2SLTFSH
.
A wondering child is my biggest fear so I already told my husband we will be taking pictures of the kids each morning before we leave the hotel. and I am seriously considering buying one of those firefly phones that only allow them to call Mom and Dad
This is a very good idea! It does happen. It happened twice to me and that is scary.
Onsite stay is so awesome. You picked a good hotel. While you are at Disney you will never even need to use your car as you can use Disney travel everywhere. And since you are staying onsite, you can even get access to the parks a little earlier to beat the crowds and the heat. Get to bed early.
Get this book: Birnbaum's Walt Disney World 2006 (Birnbaum's Walt Disney World). Well worth the money.
There is no bad ride at Disney, so your kids will not be deprived, even if they have to miss a few "older kids" rides.
The best advise I can give you is not to hop around from place to place inside a park. Doing so will exhaust you. Start out in the park, look at your park map, and plot a circular course around the park, hitting everything as you go around. If you pick rides by just choosing this or that, you will be walking back and forth form one place to another and be exhausted.
If you break up park vists with a day at one of Disney's water parks, then you can cool off and relax a bit. Disney has two water parks. My favorite is Typhoon Lagoon. There is a reef area at Typhoon where you can actually swim. Not exactly the best, since I have snorkeled at real reefs, but it will be a cool experience for the kiddies.

 

[lovethesea]

the book my friend used is called......."The Unoffical Guide to Walt Disney World"
She said it was fantastic. It gave the good and bad of Disney. She said you won't be disspaointed at all........it gave info on dining, lines, times and even how to navigate the park in a family friendly way.

 

[cartman101]

NW2SLTFSH if your fan of Hermans Hermits, my mom and her sister are BIG fans of him, then you should check out Epcot cause he will be there when you are there. Hey, you may see my mom there

 

[dragonladylea]

Took the family last year and we did it all basically, Disney, Universal, Busch Gardens even went deep sea fishing for the day but the best was Discovery Cove in my opinion. The look on my sons face when the Dolphin was pulling him thru the water is priceless and something he will remember forever. You have to make advance reservations and its not cheap but well worth the money.

 

[beth]

Originally Posted by lovethesea
the book my friend used is called......."The Unoffical Guide to Walt Disney World"
She said it was fantastic. It gave the good and bad of Disney. She said you won't be disspaointed at all........it gave info on dining, lines, times and even how to navigate the park in a family friendly way.
This version is also good....but IMO not as user friendly as the other version. I am thinking of this more as a guide than a book. Something you can reference there for info. Both are good though. There area also some good webpages.

 

[treybom]

okay well disney wordl is officially the bets place on earth no doubt! ive been there 4 times its just soo fun like amazing