First time trip planner - ever.

[Model3 McQueen]

So my girlfriend and I are trying to save up for a trip to WDW sometime at the beginning of next year. I'm a Disneyland regular (vising maybe once or twice a year) but have only been to Disneyworld once over 15 years ago. Due to personal restrictions I haven't really been able to travel in my adult years, but am now ready to start saving up and take a trip to visit Florida! There is one thing however - I've never actually planned a trip before.

So I had a few questions that hopefully you can help me answer..

1. Is 5 days enough or should we go for 7? The ticket price difference is $30, i'm leaning towards 7 but she's leaning towards 5.
2. What is a good hotel for these purposes:
-It's just the two of us
-Transportation is important as we want to visit all 4 parks
-Price matters. We want something convenient, and are okay with spending some money for it but not an awful amount. Things like Breakfast and happy hour don't matter to me.
3. I'm up in the air about vising the surrounding areas / beaches. In this case we'd have to get a rental car. Will that really hurt the bank?
4. Universal - is it worth it to visit for a day or would that be too inconvenient to travel to? WDW is our main purpose for the visit, but i'd love to see the Jurassic ride.
5. How does transportation work? I know Disney provides a shuttle from Orlando Airport but i'm not informed beyond that. Will they give us a ride to a hotel or just a certain drop off area?
6. Ride refurbishments: How can I see which rides will be down? I'm not going to lie, I have a few MUST attractions that NEED to be operational or we wont want to go. This mainly includes Expedition Everest and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.

And lastly, how much should we save up for a 7 day Florida visit? Leave Saturday, come home Sat or Sun.

I can get a 7 day WDW pass for like 464 (10 days is 484, which I would love but that's realllyyyy pushing it ). We'd be leaving from Arizona. My dad said he can refer me for a Southwest credit card so I can start building up mileage. There's a chance I'll be able to build up for a free flight or two before our trip!

Thanks a ton everyone!

 

[becca_]

1. Why not go for 6 days? Lol. Seriously though, 7 would be the better option to me but it of course is more $$.
2. I'd go with Port Orleans Riverside or Port Orleans French Quarter. They are both in the "moderate" category, which is a step above value. They are decently priced and POR usually has discounts.
3/4 I cannot really help with
5. Once you have your flight information, you can call Disney (there's an online form that I know exists just not sure of the link) and let them know you'd like to take Magical Express to and from the airport. Upon arrival, you will not need to grab your bags from baggage claim (as long as you fly in before 10pm). You will take the bus to your hotel. Then on the day you leave, they will drive you back to the airport 3 hours before your flight.
6. I think this website has a schedule, otherwise just google it!

When I went with my boyfriend in January 2018, we paid for Tuesday-Monday at Coronado Springs and one night at Beach Club, with 1 AP and 1 7day ticket, plus the Quick Service Dining Plan (my mother paid for our flights with her SW points) it was approx. $2300 each.

Best of luck planning! If you need more help you could always try a Travel Agent - they are free and extremely helpful

 

[yensid67]

Hey McQueen...Planning a Disney trip is half the fun of the trip! Just don't get overwhelmed! There are enough knowledgeable friend on here to direct you in the right direction!

1. Is 5 days enough or should we go for 7? The ticket price difference is $30, i'm leaning towards 7 but she's leaning towards 5. Depending on what parks you want to visit. I am assuming Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios are a MUST. What about Magic Kingdom and Epcot? ANY interests to visit those parks?
2. What is a good hotel for these purposes:
-It's just the two of us
-Transportation is important as we want to visit all 4 parks
-Price matters. We want something convenient, and are okay with spending some money for it but not an awful amount. Things like Breakfast and happy hour don't matter to me.--If you want to stay on property, I would suggest a Value Resort or Moderate. They will be the cheapest.
3. I'm up in the air about vising the surrounding areas / beaches. In this case we'd have to get a rental car. Will that really hurt the bank?--There is so much to do outside of the parks, but you will have a full week in the Disney Parks. I would get a rental car, not too expensive. You might want to remember that Disney charges at least $13/night to park your car if you stay on property! So staying off site might be a better option with free parking!
4. Universal - is it worth it to visit for a day or would that be too inconvenient to travel to? WDW is our main purpose for the visit, but i'd love to see the Jurassic ride.--I personally don't like Universal ride options...mostly thrill rides and not many! I would focus on WDW at least 1 park a day(4 days) that would leave 2 days to do non park things on International Drive. (assuming Sat Fly, sun-fri parks, sat fly)
5. How does transportation work? I know Disney provides a shuttle from Orlando Airport but i'm not informed beyond that. Will they give us a ride to a hotel or just a certain drop off area?--Magical Express picks you up at airport and drops you off at resort. But if you had a rental car you would get to your resort or off site hotel quicker!
6. Ride refurbishments: How can I see which rides will be down? I'm not going to lie, I have a few MUST attractions that NEED to be operational or we wont want to go. This mainly includes Expedition Everest and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.--You need to go to Disneyworld.com and search for refurbs. They will give you a list.

And lastly, how much should we save up for a 7 day Florida visit? Leave Saturday, come home Sat or Sun.

--I am going in May 2019 2 days WDW, 1 Day Sea World, Penguin Tour, Orlando Eye, Madame Tussauds and Capones Speakeasy Dinner Show, off site Hotel(mid point Orlando) and rental car for 1550.00/$750.00 person! If ya want help or have other questions, please PM me!----Will

 

[winstongator]

1-day universal tickets with their hopper option, a necessity to see all the wizard if world, are quite expensive, over $150. I would not add just one day there. I’d also skip the beach. Focus on wdw for this trip. There will be other trips. Where you’ll feel the difference of 5 vs 7 days is with the hotel. 7 days at a value resort is likely cheaper than 5 at a moderate.

I always have my car (live in FL and drive to wdw) but I like the Disney buses. There is sometimes a wait, but I try to be on the early side - don’t count on a bus being there within 5 minutes.

 

[Monty]

I'll answer in sequence:

1. Is 5 days enough or should we go for 7? The ticket price difference is $30, i'm leaning towards 7 but she's leaning towards 5.

• I always prefer to stay longer. Airlines often are cheaper if your trip extends over a Saturday night, which can make it cheaper.

2. What is a good hotel for these purposes:
-It's just the two of us
-Transportation is important as we want to visit all 4 parks
-Price matters. We want something convenient, and are okay with spending some money for it but not an awful amount. Things like Breakfast and happy hour don't matter to me.

• If you stay onsite, any of the hotels is fine for the first two, after a full day at the parks all you'll care about is a bed. For price, the values are your best bet, but amenities improve progressively with price. When staying value, I prefer Pop Century.

3. I'm up in the air about vising the surrounding areas / beaches. In this case we'd have to get a rental car. Will that really hurt the bank?

• Renting a car adds to costs. If your primary interest is WDW, you can certainly keep yourselves entertained without going elsewhere. Pricing is also geared to make other attractions less appealing. WDW and Universal (probably other attractions as well) front-load their ticket pricing to make it more attractive to stay with one or the other. As you note, the last few days of your 7-day ticket are much cheaper.

4. Universal - is it worth it to visit for a day or would that be too inconvenient to travel to? WDW is our main purpose for the visit, but i'd love to see the Jurassic ride.

• As pointed out above, they make it expensive to go to both.

5. How does transportation work? I know Disney provides a shuttle from Orlando Airport but i'm not informed beyond that. Will they give us a ride to a hotel or just a certain drop off area?

• If you stay onsite, Disney's Magical Express will take care of picking up your checked bags and transporting them to your resort room for you. You get off your plane at MCO and head straight to your bus check-in. The bus will drop you off at the main entrance to your resort hotel. Bring essentials for the parks with you in your carry-on, so you can change if needed before your luggage arrives. The luggage will "magically" appear in your room while you're enjoying the parks (usually within three hours of landing).
• Onsite transportation is provided for free from your resort to each of the parks and Disney Springs.
• When leaving WDW to go home, if you're eligible (domestic flight on participating airline), you can check in to your flights and check your bags at your resort. Then you can spend some time at the parks if you have time before catching your DME bus from your resort to MCO.

6. Ride refurbishments: How can I see which rides will be down? I'm not going to lie, I have a few MUST attractions that NEED to be operational or we wont want to go. This mainly includes Expedition Everest and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.

• WDWMagic keeps a list of upcoming refurbishments that have been announced at https://www.wdwmagic.com/refurbishments.htm There may be rides that go down without notice, but that's always a risk. For the most part, this list will be as accurate as any.

 

[Model3 McQueen]

1. Why not go for 6 days? Lol. Seriously though, 7 would be the better option to me but it of course is more $$.
2. I'd go with Port Orleans Riverside or Port Orleans French Quarter. They are both in the "moderate" category, which is a step above value. They are decently priced and POR usually has discounts.
3/4 I cannot really help with
5. Once you have your flight information, you can call Disney (there's an online form that I know exists just not sure of the link) and let them know you'd like to take Magical Express to and from the airport. Upon arrival, you will not need to grab your bags from baggage claim (as long as you fly in before 10pm). You will take the bus to your hotel. Then on the day you leave, they will drive you back to the airport 3 hours before your flight.
6. I think this website has a schedule, otherwise just google it!

When I went with my boyfriend in January 2018, we paid for Tuesday-Monday at Coronado Springs and one night at Beach Club, with 1 AP and 1 7day ticket, plus the Quick Service Dining Plan (my mother paid for our flights with her SW points) it was approx. $2300 each.

Best of luck planning! If you need more help you could always try a Travel Agent - they are free and extremely helpful

Thank you so much for your input! 6 days isn't an option on my work's benefits site, it's either 5 or 7 haha. That is extremely nifty to know, I'm so glad Disney transports from the airport. That was one of my major concerns. Also thanks for the ballpark, I was thinking it'd be around 2k each but probably more now that i really think about it. I'll be sure to check out Port Orleans!

Hey McQueen...Planning a Disney trip is half the fun of the trip! Just don't get overwhelmed! There are enough knowledgeable friend on here to direct you in the right direction!
--I am going in May 2019 2 days WDW, 1 Day Sea World, Penguin Tour, Orlando Eye, Madame Tussauds and Capones Speakeasy Dinner Show, off site Hotel(mid point Orlando) and rental car for 1550.00/$750.00 person! If ya want help or have other questions, please PM me!----Will

Thanks Will! I'll definitely take my time, do my research, and enjoy every second of it why so expensive for a rental car??? I didn't think it was that much..

1-day universal tickets with their hopper option, a necessity to see all the wizard if world, are quite expensive, over $150. I would not add just one day there. I’d also skip the beach. Focus on wdw for this trip. There will be other trips. Where you’ll feel the difference of 5 vs 7 days is with the hotel. 7 days at a value resort is likely cheaper than 5 at a moderate.

I always have my car (live in FL and drive to wdw) but I like the Disney buses. There is sometimes a wait, but I try to be on the early side - don’t count on a bus being there within 5 minutes.

I really appreciate your input. $150!?!? No way in heck am I dishing out that much for one day in a park. I guess that answers that. Too bad. I like your thought process, skipping the beach is probably the friendlier option. And that was certainly a concern - the cost of hotel and food for staying 2 more days. But I think we could manage.

I'll answer in sequence:

1. Is 5 days enough or should we go for 7? The ticket price difference is $30, i'm leaning towards 7 but she's leaning towards 5.

• I always prefer to stay longer. Airlines often are cheaper if your trip extends over a Saturday night, which can make it cheaper.

I would certainly agree. It's my girlfriend I have to convince haha. Maybe now that I know we wont be visiting Universal I can convince her otherwise.

2. What is a good hotel for these purposes:
-It's just the two of us
-Transportation is important as we want to visit all 4 parks
-Price matters. We want something convenient, and are okay with spending some money for it but not an awful amount. Things like Breakfast and happy hour don't matter to me.

• If you stay onsite, any of the hotels is fine for the first two, after a full day at the parks all you'll care about is a bed. For price, the values are your best bet, but amenities improve progressively with price. When staying value, I prefer Pop Century.

Thanks! I'll check it out and do more research on the hotels.

3. I'm up in the air about vising the surrounding areas / beaches. In this case we'd have to get a rental car. Will that really hurt the bank?

• Renting a car adds to costs. If your primary interest is WDW, you can certainly keep yourselves entertained without going elsewhere. Pricing is also geared to make other attractions less appealing. WDW and Universal (probably other attractions as well) front-load their ticket pricing to make it more attractive to stay with one or the other. As you note, the last few days of your 7-day ticket are much cheaper.

4. Universal - is it worth it to visit for a day or would that be too inconvenient to travel to? WDW is our main purpose for the visit, but i'd love to see the Jurassic ride.

• As pointed out above, they make it expensive to go to both.

Yeah, and at $150 I just don't think it's worth it. Not to mention Uber or whatever i'd have to use to get there.

5. How does transportation work? I know Disney provides a shuttle from Orlando Airport but i'm not informed beyond that. Will they give us a ride to a hotel or just a certain drop off area?

• If you stay onsite, Disney's Magical Express will take care of picking up your checked bags and transporting them to your resort room for you. You get off your plane at MCO and head straight to your bus check-in. The bus will drop you off at the main entrance to your resort hotel. Bring essentials for the parks with you in your carry-on, so you can change if needed before your luggage arrives. The luggage will "magically" appear in your room while you're enjoying the parks (usually within three hours of landing).
• Onsite transportation is provided for free from your resort to each of the parks and Disney Springs.
• When leaving WDW to go home, if you're eligible (domestic flight on participating airline), you can check in to your flights and check your bags at your resort. Then you can spend some time at the parks if you have time before catching your DME bus from your resort to MCO.

I must admit i'm a bit surprised at the conveniences Disney provides so you can enjoy your trip even more. I think on the first day we may probably shop around and go to the must-see locations outside of the parks, so them getting our luggage would be a good option.

As far as onsite transportation - how does that work? I know they have buses, monorails.. boats? Do most of the well placed hotels have all of these options available?

6. Ride refurbishments: How can I see which rides will be down? I'm not going to lie, I have a few MUST attractions that NEED to be operational or we wont want to go. This mainly includes Expedition Everest and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.

• WDWMagic keeps a list of upcoming refurbishments that have been announced at https://www.wdwmagic.com/refurbishments.htm There may be rides that go down without notice, but that's always a risk. For the most part, this list will be as accurate as any.

Thank you a ton for taking the time to type this all out. I'll respond in RED to your quoted text above.

 

[cdeev8690]

I could give you my long-winded advice and it probably won't be too different than what others have written above me so I'll just give you this :
Since it's your first trip. I'd recommend the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. The 2018 version is available on Amazon and the 2019 version is on preorder. It answers a lot of the questions you're asking with extensive detail. I have the version from 2016 and it's filled with dog-eared pages, notes, and highlighter markings. I still go back to it here and there and recommend it often to friends who are looking to prepare themselves for a trip to the World.

After you've read through it and have a good base of knowledge about the World, that's when I'd go to the internet for some additional info, like restaurant reviews, special events, room photos.

 

[Model3 McQueen]

I could give you my long-winded advice and it probably won't be too different than what others have written above me so I'll just give you this :
Since it's your first trip. I'd recommend the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. The 2018 version is available on Amazon and the 2019 version is on preorder. It answers a lot of the questions you're asking with extensive detail. I have the version from 2016 and it's filled with dog-eared pages, notes, and highlighter markings. I still go back to it here and there and recommend it often to friends who are looking to prepare themselves for a trip to the World.

After you've read through it and have a good base of knowledge about the World, that's when I'd go to the internet for some additional info, like restaurant reviews, special events, room photos.

Awesome! I just looked up the book on Amazon and certainly the majority of reviewers agree with you. I might just have to make this my next read.

 

[tractor tipper]

One day two park at Uni. is about $150 but you have access to two parks which can be done by two people in a day. If you want to ride Hogwarts' Express you will need the two park ticket.

 

[Model3 McQueen]

One day two park at Uni. is about $150 but you have access to two parks which can be done by two people in a day. If you want to ride Hogwarts' Express you will need the two park ticket.

Why is Universal more expensive than Disney? Or am I missing something

 

[Monty]

As far as onsite transportation - how does that work? I know they have buses, monorails.. boats? Do most of the well placed hotels have all of these options available?

Each resort has its own transportation to parks and Disney Springs. Usually only one of bus/boat/Monorail to a particular location. Values only have buses, Moderates are all buses except boats from Port Orleans to Disney Springs and Deluxe have a mix, Monorail from Monorail resorts to MK and EPCOT, boats between the EPCOT resorts and DHS/EPCOT and MK and all the MK resorts and buses everywhere else.

I think that’s it. LOL

ETA: All the above will be adjusted when the open the new skyliner.

 

[tractor tipper]

Why is Universal more expensive than Disney? Or am I missing something

OK, went to UNI site one day two park ticket is $170, WDW one day with park-hopper varies from $164 to 174 to 184 depending on time of year. Is UNI more expensive; yes, no, maybe. Two parks vs. four. How much do you see in a day. UNI only goes to a 5 day ticket then goes to an annual pass from what I can see.

 

[NeedMoreMickey]

I’ll throw one suggestion for saving. Since you are planning on flying Southwest they have a shopping rewards program where you can earn points. You have to sign up and agree to receiving emails but that’s fine with me I just use my work computer. There is a dining section where as long as you use the card you have registered you can earn points, our local pizza place is on the list. I wanted to order things from Lands End so went through the Southwest site linked to Lands End and its that easy. Sometimes it’s 1 point for one $ or more, my purchase was 3 points for one $. Quick 600 points. My husband need a yard trailer from Home Depot and I got points. If you are going to shop online anyway may be worth a look

 

[yensid67]

Thanks Will! I'll definitely take my time, do my research, and enjoy every second of it why so expensive for a rental car??? I didn't think it was that much..

The AVIS Rental Car is only $245.00 for the week...its $1550.00 total for the week!

 

[Missing_Aria]

I'm not sure if you've found them yet or not but seriously check out the Disney Tourist Blog. If you're worried about it they've definitely covered it. It's a great resource because it helps the type A planner (like me) who tends to drive themselves crazy planning, while reminding them to chill the heck out and have fun. They're great for telling you how to make the most of whatever Disney vacation you have planned without driving yourself nuts.

 

[Missing_Aria]

So I had a few questions that hopefully you can help me answer..

I'm also going to answer question by question:


1. Is 5 days enough or should we go for 7? The ticket price difference is $30, i'm leaning towards 7 but she's leaning towards 5.

7, definitely, you'll kick yourself otherwise.

2. What is a good hotel for these purposes:
-It's just the two of us
-Transportation is important as we want to visit all 4 parks
-Price matters. We want something convenient, and are okay with spending some money for it but not an awful amount. Things like Breakfast and happy hour don't matter to me.

If it's just the two of you I recommend Port Orleans Riverside. Ask to stay in the Bayou because then you'll be on the last Port Orleans stop. It'll take a bit longer for you to get home but you'll get to the parks quicker. Port Orleans resorts are bit farther away than most of the resorts but thematically they're amazing and will fully immerse you in being in an alternate world. Riverside also has the advantage that there are FAR less children there. So if you don't have kids and you don't want to deal with the children of others too much then Riverside is a godsend. You can take the boats to Disney Springs and from there you can get to Epcot if you want an alternate means of transportation there but it's a bit long that way so we only did that once when we'd already planned to go to Disney Springs.

3. I'm up in the air about vising the surrounding areas / beaches. In this case we'd have to get a rental car. Will that really hurt the bank?

You don't have to get a rental car, Uber and Lyft are definitely an option if you use them wisely. That said, if you're only going for a week I'd seriously scratch this idea unless you plan to take a day of rest when buying park tickets and want to use that day for this purpose. In that case Uber and Lyft should be fine.

4. Universal - is it worth it to visit for a day or would that be too inconvenient to travel to? WDW is our main purpose for the visit, but i'd love to see the Jurassic ride.

My girlfriend and I planned to do that this last trip (Harry Potter ftw) but ended up not going because we really needed our free day to rest and recover due to her catching a 24 bug from some kiddo in the park. It shouldn't be too bad to get to though. Again, Uber and Lyft are your friends.

5. How does transportation work? I know Disney provides a shuttle from Orlando Airport but i'm not informed beyond that. Will they give us a ride to a hotel or just a certain drop off area?

Every hotel has buses, some also have boat/monorail access. There is a huge difference between the various boat service though so if you want to know about a specific resort check out the Disney Tourist Blog. They have transportation assessments of each and every resort at Disney, including the non Disney owned resorts at Disney Springs.

6. Ride refurbishments: How can I see which rides will be down? I'm not going to lie, I have a few MUST attractions that NEED to be operational or we wont want to go. This mainly includes Expedition Everest and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.


We didn't have too much of an issue with this and we went in late September which is definitely Disney's 'down' season (if there is one). While some rides were occasionally down, I never saw one down for more than a few hours at most. They seem to try to plan for regular maintenance throughout the year when possible.

 

[Model3 McQueen]

OK, went to UNI site one day two park ticket is $170, WDW one day with park-hopper varies from $164 to 174 to 184 depending on time of year. Is UNI more expensive; yes, no, maybe. Two parks vs. four. How much do you see in a day. UNI only goes to a 5 day ticket then goes to an annual pass from what I can see.

I'm fine not going to Uni but I would like to see the Jurassic Park ride and Harry Potter land. I can get DW 7 days for 460 so to me it's not worth it to go to Uni but we'll see.

I’ll throw one suggestion for saving. Since you are planning on flying Southwest they have a shopping rewards program where you can earn points. You have to sign up and agree to receiving emails but that’s fine with me I just use my work computer. There is a dining section where as long as you use the card you have registered you can earn points, our local pizza place is on the list. I wanted to order things from Lands End so went through the Southwest site linked to Lands End and its that easy. Sometimes it’s 1 point for one $ or more, my purchase was 3 points for one $. Quick 600 points. My husband need a yard trailer from Home Depot and I got points. If you are going to shop online anyway may be worth a look

Thanks!

I'm also going to answer question by question:


1. Is 5 days enough or should we go for 7? The ticket price difference is $30, i'm leaning towards 7 but she's leaning towards 5.

7, definitely, you'll kick yourself otherwise.

2. What is a good hotel for these purposes:
-It's just the two of us
-Transportation is important as we want to visit all 4 parks
-Price matters. We want something convenient, and are okay with spending some money for it but not an awful amount. Things like Breakfast and happy hour don't matter to me.

If it's just the two of you I recommend Port Orleans Riverside. Ask to stay in the Bayou because then you'll be on the last Port Orleans stop. It'll take a bit longer for you to get home but you'll get to the parks quicker. Port Orleans resorts are bit farther away than most of the resorts but thematically they're amazing and will fully immerse you in being in an alternate world. Riverside also has the advantage that there are FAR less children there. So if you don't have kids and you don't want to deal with the children of others too much then Riverside is a godsend. You can take the boats to Disney Springs and from there you can get to Epcot if you want an alternate means of transportation there but it's a bit long that way so we only did that once when we'd already planned to go to Disney Springs.

3. I'm up in the air about vising the surrounding areas / beaches. In this case we'd have to get a rental car. Will that really hurt the bank?

You don't have to get a rental car, Uber and Lyft are definitely an option if you use them wisely. That said, if you're only going for a week I'd seriously scratch this idea unless you plan to take a day of rest when buying park tickets and want to use that day for this purpose. In that case Uber and Lyft should be fine.

4. Universal - is it worth it to visit for a day or would that be too inconvenient to travel to? WDW is our main purpose for the visit, but i'd love to see the Jurassic ride.

My girlfriend and I planned to do that this last trip (Harry Potter ftw) but ended up not going because we really needed our free day to rest and recover due to her catching a 24 bug from some kiddo in the park. It shouldn't be too bad to get to though. Again, Uber and Lyft are your friends.

5. How does transportation work? I know Disney provides a shuttle from Orlando Airport but i'm not informed beyond that. Will they give us a ride to a hotel or just a certain drop off area?

Every hotel has buses, some also have boat/monorail access. There is a huge difference between the various boat service though so if you want to know about a specific resort check out the Disney Tourist Blog. They have transportation assessments of each and every resort at Disney, including the non Disney owned resorts at Disney Springs.

6. Ride refurbishments: How can I see which rides will be down? I'm not going to lie, I have a few MUST attractions that NEED to be operational or we wont want to go. This mainly includes Expedition Everest and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.


We didn't have too much of an issue with this and we went in late September which is definitely Disney's 'down' season (if there is one). While some rides were occasionally down, I never saw one down for more than a few hours at most. They seem to try to plan for regular maintenance throughout the year when possible.

Thanks so much for your responses! I want 7 days I wont argue with that That's another vote for Port Orleans. Wouldn't Uber and Lyft be super expensive given the beach is an hour or two away? I'm sorry your girlfriend got sick on vacation that's the WORST. Good to know that all hotels have free transport options! Appreciate your help!

 

[Missing_Aria]

Thanks so much for your responses! I want 7 days I wont argue with that That's another vote for Port Orleans. Wouldn't Uber and Lyft be super expensive given the beach is an hour or two away? I'm sorry your girlfriend got sick on vacation that's the WORST. Good to know that all hotels have free transport options! Appreciate your help!

To be honest I have no idea how far away the beaches are but if that's the case then I would probably just rent a car for the day you plan on going to the beach. I hear the resorts are going to start charging daily for parking (according to Disney Tourist Blog) so I'd avoid getting one for the whole trip unless you feel like you really need it because the hotels' transportation is great. The various transportation drivers even have special trading cards sometimes if you ask


And yeah I was just grateful she was feeling better the next day. We were there during the food and wine festival so we just went to Epcot the following day and took frequent breaks so she didn't wear herself out. She's super pale and sensitive to southern climates so it might not have even been a kiddo contaminating her, may have just been mild heat exhaustion or something. But yeah, even if you don't plan on going to Universal you may want a day of rest where you don't have a ticket. If nothing else it makes for a good day to explore Disney Springs or the surrounding area as you mentioned before (check out the Coca Cola tasting bar at Springs, promise the view is completely worth it even if you hate soda).

The problem I run into when planning a Universal trip into my Disney trip is that when I go to Orlando I WANT to see Disney World, everything else is just kind of secondary (yes even Harry Potter). I still really want to see Diagon Alley and get a butterbeer at Universal, buuuuuut once I'm in Orlando I remember that La Fou's brew is literally the nectar of the gods and I know how to make alcoholic butterbeer at home. I think at some point in the future I'm just going to have to plan a trip specific for Universal, but I'm probably going to spend that whole trip thinking longingly of Disney. That might not be you though so if you really want that Universal day then go for it! <3