couple questions

[firedog31]

HI, me and my girlfriend are planning a trip for 2 weeks to disney in july of 2009, never to early to start. I have not been in almost 13 years and she has never been so I have a couple of questions that i hope can be answered.

1. Do you really save that much money by using one of the disney dining plans, we are thinking about it but are not sure.

2. Do the disney hotels offer transpotation to the other parks such as universal and islands of adventure, we are staying at the disney theme movie hotel.

3. She has slight problems with her blood sugar, can anyone recommend places t eat inside the parks that might be better than others.

4. How far away are busch guardens and sea world from the park and do the hotels offer transportation to these also.

Thank You for the answers if possible and I hope everyone has a great time at DISNEY.

 

[Nemo14]

I can answer a few of these;
As far as the dining plan goes, it really depends on your eating style. If you generally just eat at one of the counter service places, it's probably not for you. But if you plan to try some of the finer restaurants there, then it's probably a good deal for you. Remember that you'll need reservations at these, and you can and should book 180 days before.

As for the other parks (Universal, Sea world, and Busch Gardens), Disney does not provide transportation to these, but I understand that you can arrange transportation through the Lynx(or possibly Mears?) busses to Sea World and Universal, both of which are right in the Orlando area. Busch Gardens, however, is in Tampa - a roughly 2 hour drive away. Your best bet would probably be to rent a car for the days that you'll be doing the other parks.
Hope this helps!

 

[barbara]

Bush Gardens does have a shuttle from many Orlando hotels to Tampa-its $10 round trip, check their site for info

 

[ELopez]

Welcome! :wave:

1 - I've never used the dining plan, but you could search these forums and find lots of info and opinions!

2 - Disney only does transportation on their resort property. We've used Lynx (the city bus system), as well as a car service, though.

3 - There are so many places to eat, including snack carts, fast-food type restaurants, and table service meals. My favorite in magic Kingdomis Columbia Harbour House (a fast food, fish place). I like the clam chowder and tuna sandwich. I also like the Crystal Palace (a buffet with the characters Pooh, Piglet, Tigger & Eeyore).

4 - Sea World is in Orlando, but Busch Gardens is in Tampa. I'd say about an hour and a half away.

Since you have plenty of time, I strongly suggest the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. It has info on other area attractions, too.

Good luck and enjoy all the planning!

 

[Philo]

1. Do you really save that much money by using one of the disney dining plans, we are thinking about it but are not sure.

I spent a while working this one out and for me it worked out about $100 cheaper to not use the dining plan over 12 days for 2 adults but that was before the system changed to include (or was it exclude?) tips. We never eat a lot anyway so deserts would be wasted on us. As it turned out, we couldn't use the plan anyway because we split our trip between two Disney resorts and apparently this causes some problems? Not sure how or why but it does.

2. Do the disney hotels offer transpotation to the other parks such as universal and islands of adventure, we are staying at the disney theme movie hotel.

You get free transportation to all the Disney hotels, Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Epcot, Disney Hollywood Studios, Downtown Disney, Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon through the buses, boats or monorails.

3. She has slight problems with her blood sugar, can anyone recommend places t eat inside the parks that might be better than others.

I think most places will be accommodating. When you make your ADR's in the new year just mention the blood sugar issue and they will look after you. I'm not really sure if hydration has an effect on the problem but remember to drink lots of water!

4. How far away are busch guardens and sea world from the park and do the hotels offer transportation to these also.

As other people have said, getting Mears or a taxi to SeaWorld or to Universal isn't that bad - the other way is to get to Universal, Wet & Wild etc is to get a taxi to Seaworld (which is quite nearby) and then use the I-Trolly (basically a very regular bus service which runs up and down I-Drive for a very small cost) to go north towards the other attractions. Busche gardens is a long way off but you can easily jump on a bus from i-drive to get there.

Have fun planning! Did you get the vacation DVD? If not I'd go and order one now! There always good to watch.

 

[firedog31]

Just want to say thanks for the info, it has really helped us out!

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Thats what we're here for !!!

 

[bradandsarabr]

How long are y'all going to be in the area?? Considering that gf has never been & its been yrs for you, you may consider by-passing the other parks & concentrate on the vast world if you are there for less than 7 days.

 

[TakeMe2TheMagic]

DH and I enjoyed using the dining plan. I recommend using it, it saved us alot of money.

As far as going to the other parks: I would recommend maybe going to sea world but universal, islands of adventure and bush gardens maybe a bit of a stretch while trying to enjoy the four Disney parks as well. I guess it depends on how long you are staying.

On a side note, if you are going to use the dining plan you must be on Disney property (obviously) to use your dining credits.


What ever you decide have a great trip

 

[firedog31]

We are going to be down at the parks for two weeks the, reason we are trying to hit as many as possible ans still get the full enjoyment out of them is who knows when we will make it back again. Thank You again!

 

[DisneyMusician2]

If you eat TS every night, sa I do when I am on vacation, the Dining Plan ends up being a great value.

If you don't intend to go TS alot, forget it.

Also, it is something that can be added on, so you might want to see where you can get reservations before you add on the plan.

 

[RiversideBunny]

If this is your first trip to WDW in a long time, then don't use the Disney Dining Plan. It will lock up your schedule too much. You need to stay flexible.
Use mainly walk-up Counter Service for meals.
You can reserve an individual character meal, such as Crystal Palace or Chef Mickey's if you want, but otherwise keep your intenirary open for maximum enjoyment of the trip.

Good luck.

 

[Tiggerfanatic]

Another thing to consider - if you're planning on staying the full two weeks at a Disney Resort, the Dining Plan gives you meals for each night of your stay. In other words, if you stay for 14 nights, you will have 14 CS meals, 14 TS meals and 14 snacks. When you take a day for Sea World or Universal, you will have to buy your food at those parks, and you may have a hard time using all you Disney DP credits.