Disney- Some helpful tips
We’ve now hit Disney 4 times in 3 years. Let me start this by saying that I was a Disney hater before our first trip. It seemed so over advertised, over priced and overwhelming. Then we took our first trip in May of 2009. I was forever changed (as was Dave). We saw how much fun our daughter had, and how little work it was for us to create the look of joy she sported. Now I look at Disney as easy, full of opportunities, and have found ways to go without breaking the bank.
Here are some random tips I’ve been thinking of writing down somewhere. A few of you have asked me questions over the years, so figured this would be a good place in case it helps anyone else! If you ever need any help or have any questions, feel free to ask!
On property vs off property:
· We have done both. If you stay off property, there are a few places to look. Formosa Springs is literally a 5 min drive from the resort (closest subdivision to WDW that I have found) with luxury houses for rent at a steal of a price. We rented for a week and had a huge furnished house, with pool & hot tub for a great price. There are loads of nearby condos/resorts off site as well. I have friends that have stayed at Wyndham Bonnet Creek and have raved about it. Free shuttle to Disney from the resort included.
· Plus side of staying off property: Cheaper rates. You can dine off property and save money there too. You have the flexibility of hitting other attractions in the area (Universal, Sea World, NASA, etc)
· Cons of staying off property: Daily parking at Disney if you drive ($14/day as of now), trams from parking lot to resorts are a pain with a stroller, limited to general park hours, and convenience factor. You might also have to rent a rental car and bring car seats with
· Plus side of staying on Property: Magical Express (free transportation to/from MCO/WDW). This also means no rental car or car seats needed (money savings and no dealing with car seats is a bonus). Convenience- shuttles daily from some resorts and monorail for resorts at MK and Epcot. Extra magic hours- parks stay open late or open early for WDW resort guests- huge bonus is little to no lines
Resorts we’ve stayed at:
· Polynesian- Monorail resort. We have stayed here twice and liked it. The resort itself is spread out so you might have to do a lot of walking based on what long house you are in. I recommend checking out this site: http://www.tikimanpages.com/tiki/ if you decide to stay here. It gives tips/recommendations on longhouses, etc. Definitely call in adnvance of your stay to reocommend a longhouse/room and get a good one. Poly has connecting rooms if you are traveling in a group, and they have a kids club on site with babysitters if you’d like. The location of Poly is the best. You are located next to the TTC (Shuttle center) so you can easily walk there to take a ferry/bus/monorail as well as take the monorail or boat straight from the Poly as well. It’s the perfect location. The hotel itself has average accommodations. You’ll pay a higher price (Deluxe resort) without a deal, but you are paying for the location (worth it, with a deal). We enjoyed Poly and would go back.
· Contemporary: We just stayed here and loved it. It’s similar to Poly, but more “modern themed”. It reminded me a lot of a Marriott. The room sizes were about the same as Poly as was the room layout. The location is great if you’ll be going to MK a lot- as there is a walking path from MK to Contemp. We used this many times to avoid long lines and it was only a 10 min walk. There is a splash pad at the pool for little ones and the girls both loved this. We loved Contemp and already booked out next visit to stay there next year!
Monorail resorts/other notes:
· We like the monorail resorts b/c we have the double stroller. Most of our days are at Magic kingdom and Epcot, so we can monorail to both without having to fold up the stroller and unpack/repack it each time. That was a huge time/stress saving! With older kids, I’d stay anywhere else. The monorail resorts are usually a little pricier, so if I didn’t have the hassle of strollers, I think I’d look at the Epcot resorts or the others! I’ve heard great things about the Beach Club, Yacht Club, and Boardwalk as well.
Dining plan/Dining:
· We’ve done it all 3 ways: No dining plan, QS dining plan and Disney Dining Plan (TS and QS). I think this one is just personal preference. If you’re staying off site, don’t do it. You’ll likely only eat 1 meal at WDW each day and you can save your money. We liked QS dining plan b/c we usually booked our trips at the last minute and didn’t have many dining reservations.
· If you can – ABSOLUTELY book dining reservations at your 180 day out mark. It’s nearly impossible to eat at a sit-down restaurant at Disney without a dining reservation unless you want to eat at like 4 or 9 at night. So do your homework there! You can always cancel, so you are better off making reservations and booking later. We have done 2 trips at the last minute (booked less than 4 weeks out). I was still able to get some dining reservations, so if you can’t get your first choice, keep trying back. Disney now requires you to cancel 24 hours or greater to avoid a penalty, so people cancel and make changes! Keep trying! I got some great dining reservations that way!
· Some character dining we have done over the last 4 years: Ohana bfast (it was ok, food good, but characters were Lilo/Stitch/Pluto/Mickey whom M only knew of 2 at her age); Tusker House (one of my more favorites with the Mickey/Donald/Minnie/goofy bunch); Chef Mickey’s (the hardest one to get- but probably my least fave. It’s popular so they rush you- I’d do TH over this one personally); Hollywood & Vine (for the older toddler, thought this was a good one- Jake the Pirate, June from Little Einsteins, Agent Oso and Handy Manny) Breakfast at all of these was pretty much the same- a buffet with the same options at all. You’re mainly paying for the character photos/etc.
· We have also done Askershus and Cinderella’s Royal Table. Askershus is Belle’s castle in Norway (Epcot). We did this twice and had a great experience the first time (tho this time was mostly an overtired 15 month old’s fault). There is a parade that the girls get to walk around the restaurant with the princesses and a pro photo of one of the princesses and your kids is included in the meal. We loved the food here- you order from a menu, and there is an appetizer buffet. The princesses are: Belle, Aurora, Cinderella (though, she’s not a regular here, we got her both times), Snow White and Ariel. This time we did CRT (inside Cinderella’s castle). If you want to do this one, my experience is that you have to book it on your 180 day out day or it’s impossible to get in. Food was awesome! We did breakfast and loved it. There is something pretty cool about eating in Cinderella’s castle, I admit. You get a pro photo with Cinderella and a wand (or sword for boys) with your package. The princesses that visit with you are Cinderella, Belle, Snow White, Aurora, and Ariel. If you can’t get in to CRT, Askershus is a good back up! Maddyn loved both!
· We’ve also done the “Experience” dinner packages: The Luau at Polynesian (We loved this and it’s great food and entertainment for the little ones); The Hoop de do revue at Wilderness Camp Ground (it was fun but in the boonies); Fantasmic (at Hollywood Studios, you can eat at a preferred restaurant and get preferred seating. We did Brown Derby- AMAZING meal
· The hardest to get dining reservations (from my experience): Cinderella’s Royal Table at Magic Kingdom, Chef Mickey’s in Contemporary, Le Cellier Steakhouse in Canada, Fantasmic Dining Restaurants and packages, and Ohana dinner at the Polynesian.
Allergies:
· With shellfish, tree nut, peanut and egg allergies – Disney makes dining very stress free. With every single Table Service (think sit down meal) a chef comes out to tell you what you can/can’t have on the menu with your allergies. They promise to personally make your meal to avoid cross contamination as well. It’s worry free! Quick Service- they still have improvements to make there. All the desserts seem to come from a plant with tree nuts or peanuts, but most are egg free. We have found luck with the ice cream dessert bars/sandwiches for no-nuts. The staff at all restaurants/snack carts/etc is equipped with an allergy book so you can look up anything. I have found this to be our number one reason to keep going back to Disney. Traveling with food allergies is stressful- esp with 2 young kids. It’s great Disney is on top of this.
Parks:
· With the girls this age, we spent most of our time at Magic Kingdom. Maddyn loves thrill rides (age 3) and did anything that her height allows her too. She loved Big Thunder Mtn Railroad, and Splash mountain. Her other faves were over in Fantasyland: Teacups, Peter Pan and then the Pirate Ride in Adventureland. Hal (15 months) and Maddyn when she was younger (17 months) LOVED Small World, Pooh, and the Carousel. Fantasyland is expanding in Fall 2012 (can’t wait!!!) and will have lots more rides. But for now, the amount of rides you can take little ones on is great!
· For adults- I love the Philharmagic (3D movie of all the good Disney movies) and it’s easy to overlook, so be sure to check it out. Maddyn likes it too now, but when she was younger (and Hal now) they just sit there- didn’t really want to wear the glasses.
· We aren’t big fans of Animal Kingdom. I think it’s b/c we go to the Zoo a lot here in Chicago, so I don’t like spending a day of our trip visiting all the animals. If we didn’t have access to a zoo, then I’d likely have a different opinion. The rides here we do with the little ones are: Tough to be a bug, Lion King show, Nemo Show and the rides over in Dino land.
· We did do Dinosaur this time since Maddyn was old enough. The ride physically is fine (bumpy), but the overall ride is scary- probably too much for her age still (age 3). We’ve done the Safari a few times, but see my note above (as well as the petting zoo, etc).
· Epcot is more fun now that M can do more rides. She LOVED Soarin and Test Track (as did we). She and Hal have also loved Nemo and Turtle Talk with Crush. We did the log ride in Norway too. Would recommend any of these!
· Hollywood Studios- enter studio, run to Toy Story, get the fast pass. This ride is NOT worth the 60-90 min wait. It’s a fun ride, and I say this as I’ve done it probably 15 times. But it is not worth a 60+ (usually the average) wait. Do yourself a favor and get the fastpass! People literally line up at ribbon drop to get them. So if you can, get there early. Fastpasses for the day are usually all gone an hour after the park is open. M also loved Tower of Terror, Little Mermaid, Star Wars (this was my favorite ride, pretty cool), Beauty and the Beast. She didn’t really get the Muppets. Hal and maddyn (when she was younger) LOVED the playhouse Disney/Disney Jr show as well.
Holiday and Halloween Parties:
· We’ve done Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party and Mickey’s Not so scary Halloween Party on various trips. These are extra money. But, from experience the three times we’ve gone- worth every penney. The crowds were non-existent and we were able to walk on rides. So worth it!!!
Tickets/ Park Hopper:
· We do Park hoppers. Mostly b/c we like to move around. Especially when we do AK – we only spend a half day there, and then go back to MK or HS or somewhere else later in the day. We also do a few dinners at Epcot, so it’s nice to hit MK in the day and then head to Epcot at night.
Fireworks/Parades:
· Parades at MK- people line up early. We don’t and have still been able to get good seats. In MK, you can get get seats over in Fronteirland and get there later, vs lining up 3 hours early on Main St.
· We have found the best place to watch Wishes Fireworks is in Fantasy land behind the castle, across from Friar Tucks and next to Dumbo. You can see everything and there are no crowds at all!!
· Another tip- lines are usually lower during parades and fireworks!
Napping/Baby:
· If you plan to nap at the parks- there are lots of playgrounds/shaded areas that make good quiet stroller napping places. In HS there is a seating area to the right, behind Tower of Terror. In MK there used to be Pooh’s cove (it’s under construction now) and there is a playplace over by Splash Mountain that’s shaded too. Epcot has loads of shaded areas, since it’s so spread out. AK has a wooded shaded area over by Dinosaur we like.
· If you are nursing/brining a baby- every park has Baby Centers- use them!! They are clean and spacious and have highchairs, changing tables, kid-friendly bathrooms, etc.
That’s all I have for now. I’ll add more if I come up with anything! Hope that helps out someone!
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