first trip don't know where to start

[dustbunnywrangler]

we would like to go to WDW in the fall and I'm completely overwhelmed......Any advice would be greatly appreciated. There are four of us going I have two boys 6 and 9. We are on a budget, but are going to splurge and would like to stay in the park - I don't know when we will get back again so I want to make the most of this trip. We were thinking of the Pop Century, a 5 day hopper, and a meal plan. travel agent came back with 3400 +/- to go not including airfare. Can we get a free meal plan?? Is the hopper a good Idea?? Is this to much money for what we want? Thanks for your help : )

 

[smk]

I am going to jump out on a limb and suggest that you forgo the hoppers and the dining plan. Before I get knocked down, hoppers are not necessary, nice, but not necessary to have a good time. The DDP is also a waste IF and that is only for you to decide, IF your family are not big eaters. Table service meals are nice but quick servie meals in the parks when you are touring your first time are quite fine too. Kids meals are really more than enough to have for lunch for the whole family, Pecos Bills and the fixins bar alone is enough to make a smaller hamburger one an adult can get full eating. Four people eating lunch at Pecos could run thirty bucks but you will leave full, in my opinion. Pack some standard breakfast food from home, pop tarts, cereal, fruit snacks to take in your backpack and you are all set until lunch. Allears.net has each and every menu item and cost, take a look at it and see what you can do with a little money.

So, look things over and do what is best for your family. I have done WDW on the cheap many times and still come away with having the time of my life, so no worries! Spend a little, spend what you are comfortable with and in the end you will not feel like you cheated on your family vacation if you take out some things that are not needed. Promise. Just do what fits your budget and have a good time!

 

[JillC LI]

Just a few thoughts -
Pop Century is a great resort.

While 7 days is long enough not to NEED a park hopper pass, we find that the hopper passes are a convenience that we would not give up because we like being able to go to two parks in one day (and we stay at Value resorts and try to get free dining as well so cost cutting is a concern for us).

Check out the historical data on when free dining promotions were offered years past. Although there is no guarantee they will be offered this year, at least you can plan your trip around past promotion periods when there is a greater likelihood that it would be issued this year (if it is issued at all).

If you can catch the Food & Wine Festival while you are there, it is well worth it. It is included in your entry to EPCOT, unlike the Halloween Party which is a separate hard ticket and will cost you more money. If you decide to attend MNSSHP, I recommend that you sleep in that day, spend time at the pool, do NOT purchase a park ticket for that day, and head to to the Magic Kingdom at 4pm with your Halloween Party tickets because even though the party does not officially start until 7pm, you can get in at 4pm, giving you a full 8 hours in the MK that day without having to pay for a park ticket that day (just the MNSSHP ticket).

Make sure you are using a travel agent that does not charge a premium for the use of their services. Many of us on this board swear by Kingdom Konsultants.

6 and 9 are great ages for a first WDW trip. Our first one was when the kids were 5 and 7, and they were old enough to remember everything (and not to need strollers) but young enough to believe all the magic.

 

[jlsHouston]

I would skip the Park Hopper option for a first trip. We finally bought it on our 5th visit to the parks and it worked well by that time but more for dining and fireworks rather than park rides...

 

[FigmentFan1975]

When we went a few years ago, we had kids about that age - a 6 and an 8 year old. I would suggest not doing Park Hoppers to save that expense. You can still take a break in the afternoon and return to the same park in the evening. For a first trip, there is plenty to do at a park all day, and hopping from park to park takes time out of your day. I ran your dates (Sept. 21-28) with 5-day tickets, staying at a standard room at Pop, and came up with a price of $2,008 (no hoppers and no dining plan). I think it would save money to pay out of pocket for dining, unless you want the convience of having it paid for ahead of time, or if your family are big eaters. Adding one character meal might be nice too. But doing a lot of dining reservations ahead of time, and having sit-down table service meals every day, with young kids, is not worth it in my opinion, on a first trip. Too much worrying about where to be at a certain time... But even adding the quick-service plan, that only comes to around $2,700 total, so its still a lot less than the $3,400 you were quoted.
Have Fun planning!

 

[Figgy1]

When we went a few years ago, we had kids about that age - a 6 and an 8 year old. I would suggest not doing Park Hoppers to save that expense. You can still take a break in the afternoon and return to the same park in the evening. For a first trip, there is plenty to do at a park all day, and hopping from park to park takes time out of your day. I ran your dates (Sept. 21-28) with 5-day tickets, staying at a standard room at Pop, and came up with a price of $2,008 (no hoppers and no dining plan). I think it would save money to pay out of pocket for dining, unless you want the convience of having it paid for ahead of time, or if your family are big eaters. Adding one character meal might be nice too. But doing a lot of dining reservations ahead of time, and having sit-down table service meals every day, with young kids, is not worth it in my opinion, on a first trip. Too much worrying about where to be at a certain time... But even adding the quick-service plan, that only comes to around $2,700 total, so its still a lot less than the $3,400 you were quoted.
Have Fun planning!

Welcome that's great advice!

 

[susan schell]

I am also planning a trip in Sept., but I am waiting on the free dining offer. I hope this will be coming out in the next week for that time of year. If you stay at pop century you will get the quick service dining, but you can upgrade to disney dining plan. Since this is your first trip you could skip the park hopper and just do a park a day. Hope you have a wonderful trip. Disney is such a magical place and you make so many memories that you will cherish forever.

 

[Figgy1]

I am also planning a trip in Sept., but I am waiting on the free dining offer. I hope this will be coming out in the next week for that time of year. If you stay at pop century you will get the quick service dining, but you can upgrade to disney dining plan. Since this is your first trip you could skip the park hopper and just do a park a day. Hope you have a wonderful trip. Disney is such a magical place and you make so many memories that you will cherish forever.

Welcome and I hope you get free dining! Book now you can always change when the offer comes out!

 

[dreamfinder]

First trip? Read the Official Guide. Why? The Unofficial Guide despite being superior in almost every way, including the ability to be used as a door stop, may very well overwhelm you at first. Once you have read the official PR speak and looked at the pretty pictures, then try the Unofficial Guide for hints tips and tricks on how to maximize your time and do what you want to do.

we would like to go to WDW in the fall and I'm completely overwhelmed......Any advice would be greatly appreciated. There are four of us going I have two boys 6 and 9. We are on a budget, but are going to splurge and would like to stay in the park - I don't know when we will get back again so I want to make the most of this trip. We were thinking of the Pop Century, a 5 day hopper, and a meal plan. travel agent came back with 3400 +/- to go not including airfare. Can we get a free meal plan?? Is the hopper a good Idea?? Is this to much money for what we want? Thanks for your help : )

Do you need the meal plan? Look at what it actually offers. Unless you eat to the plan, you may do better to just pay out of pocket. If you are fine sharing drinks, or drinking water with CS meals, don't eat dessert with each meal, etc then the dining plan might not be a good fit for you.

I agree on skipping the hopper. Going in with a plan from someone like touringplans.com can be a much better use of your money. In my mind, especially if you have never been there before, the time spent walking to the front of the park, waiting for transportation to the other park, then getting into the park and to your destination will greatly outweigh any benefits. It works more if you are a vet, and only want/need to do a few rides at a certain park.

Going with a travel agent can be a good thing for a first time trip, but I strongly suggest looking for one that specializes in Disney trips. Your local TA may not know all the ins and outs, and will most likely not try to save you money. Most of the Disney TAs will rebook your trip to apply any new discounts that come out, and they all know the importance of booking things like ADRs at a certain time.

 

[docdebbi]

if this is your first trip, you may not know all the ins and outs of discounts. book your room way ahead and keep checking this site and allears.net- as well as some others if you want- for notice when the discounts are announced. then call back and have them apply the discount to your existing reservation, or you can change your reservation then if a different hotel has a better discount. but at least you have your foot in the door and room reserved, then you can add a discount.
having your reservation early also helps so that you can make dining reservations at 180 days out from your first day and up to ten days after that to get anything you want that is hard to get. without your room already booked you can't add the ten days. discounts often don't come out until after the 180 day mark.
i also recommend only booking a room not a package for several reasons. as most posters have said, the dining plan, even "free", does not save that much. a package costs more than getting a room and tickets separately, and you get a lot of "stuff" that you probably won't use. also the cancellation and change policy is more liberal, and you don't pay for the room until you are leaving, instead of 45 days ahead of your trip. i recommend getting your tickets for a few dollars less at one of the reputable online dealers like undercover tourist or maple leaf. you can get an even bigger discount at undercover tourist if you go there through the link on allears. every couple dollars helps!
finally, think about booking art of animation instead of POP. your young kids won't remember most the eras depicted there, but AOA is a really impressive resort. while you would want to stay in the little mermaid section because you don't need a big family suite (which are more expensive), your boys I think would enjoy the Cars section decorations and the big blue pool which is much cooler than the pop pool. there's even water playing in the pool that can only be heard underwater.
that's enough to bite off for now, as it gets closer, ask more specific questions, we're always happy to share any knowledge and OPINIONS we have, and believe me we have opinions!

 

[SecondStarTilMorning]

My advice is thus:

Don't get park hoppers- your kids will be plenty exhausted visiting one park per day. You can always upgrade your tickets later at no extra charge vs getting hoppers up front.

Don't get the dining plan- Paying out of pocket gives you more flexibility and is most likely a cheaper option. Hit up walmart before you check in to your hotel if possible and get snacks, bottled water etc. to save $$$

Book a room only discount and purchase your tickets separately from undercover tourist. It will save you money and give you more flexibility in case of last minute changes that need to be made.

Consider staying off-site at wyndham bonnet creek and renting a car (can be had as cheap as $10 a day). It will be around the same price as POP century and has just as good of a location (1 bedrooms go for around $100 or less per night if you know where to look). For a family of four you'll get an 850 square foot beautiful room with a kitchen, laundry, large balcony, and living room area with a sleeper sofa and a california king bed. Sure beats a double bed to share at the POP century!

It's just an option to consider though, if you can find a way to afford Port Orleans or Coronado Springs you'll get much larger rooms and larger beds.

 

[luv]

1. If thou art going to useth a TA, useth one that specializes in Disney.

I cannot stress this enough. Other TAs will not keep up with discounts you haven't heard about and apply those as they pop up. Kingdom Konsultants is used by many here and I never hear anything but good stuff.

2. Get thee on amazon and order thyself a copy of "The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2013." Considereth a copy of Birnbaum's.

The UG has tons and tons of Disney info. Birnbaum's is Disney's book and is very cute and fun, but not helpful with good info.

3. Doeth the mathematics.

Dining plans are not usually the cheapest way to go. Might be. Wait...if you use a Disney TA, they will do the math for you and find the cheapest route. So I refer back to #1.

4. Asketh all questions...

...except those requiring math. It's a pain and very individualized thing to find out what is cheapest. Nobody wants to do it for themselves, much less for someone else, lol. But ask your questions, even if they seem ridiculous to you. "Should I go to Peter Pan or Space Mountain first when I get to the MK?" and "How long will it take to get from the AK to the Hoop Dee Doo?" will not seem silly to anyone here.

5. Expecteth to spend more.

Whatever you plan on, the trip is going to end up costing more, lol. Build in a cushion.



You're going to have a great time!

 

[mhaftman7]

Forgive me if I sound rude, but a lot of what I read..... er....skimmed thru seems like a bad idea. Being that it is YOUR first trip and no one here knows your likes/dislikes, here is my advice, so take it with a grain of salt:

Get the DDP. Get the upgraded one with a sit down meal every day. I ate steak everyday with it and I felt it gave more financial flexibility due to only having a tip as an out of pocket expense.

Get the Hopper option. Your kids may or may not want to spend an entire day at one park. They may not have interest in certain rides etc. Especially when it comes to the Animal Kingdom. While there are many things to do, they aren't usually open late.

As far as the resort goes, Pop or the All Star resorts are good enough if you don't plan on spending much time there. My family just needs a place to rest our heads and go swimming at the end of the day.

If you have an Android powered device, download the FREE Mobile Magic app from Disney. You can search the maps, restaurants (most with menus), and rides, plus more for each park.

Most importantly, have fun and take as many pics as possible!

Just my 2 cents.

 

[bethymouse]

All-Ears.net
I agree. A very good resource!

 

[bethymouse]

I'd skip the park hopper. There's so much to do in each park that you don't want the pressure of wasting your hopper too. See,
agree.
Park hopping can be exhausting and the transportation wastes precious time.

 

[bethymouse]

Book it so that you may be able to get the advanced dining reservations you want! Do that right away, especially if you're interested in Be Our Guest at the Magic Kingdom. If free dining becomes available, then you can change it. Good luck! Have fun!

 

[ratherbeinwdw]

we would like to go to WDW in the fall and I'm completely overwhelmed......Any advice would be greatly appreciated. There are four of us going I have two boys 6 and 9. We are on a budget, but are going to splurge and would like to stay in the park - I don't know when we will get back again so I want to make the most of this trip. We were thinking of the Pop Century, a 5 day hopper, and a meal plan. travel agent came back with 3400 +/- to go not including airfare. Can we get a free meal plan?? Is the hopper a good Idea?? Is this to much money for what we want? Thanks for your help : )

That's too much. With children that young, the most I would get would be the Quick Service plan. I wouldn't even do that. You can get a room at AoA plus 5 day Magic Your Way plus Hopper for 2187.00, and that's before a discount. They will almost certainly offer a discount for September. It may be free dining or a room discount. Our room at AoA in September was only 97 weekday and 113 weekend. That was the Mermaid rooms. It's listed at 130.00 right now, but as I said, it will almost certainly have some kind of discount by then.
Make sure and book your room and tickets separately. Then you can cancel the room up to five days and sometimes less before your trip with no explanation, and your tickets will be good until you can use them. You do not have to have a dining plan to make advance reservations. I would pick one character meal your children would really enjoy and do quick service for the rest. With children that young, you will save a ton of money. I would make the ressie at 180 days out. Go ahead and make two or three. You can cancel them up to the day before with no penalty. I suggest Crystal Palace, 'Ohana, Chef Mickey's or Tuskers for their first character meal. CP is our favorite but it will depend on which character your kids like the most. Check each restaurant on the Disney site to see which characters are at which location. They each come to your table and sign autographs and pose for pictures with everyone in your party--adults and children.
There are several less expensive restaurants in each park. The ones with fixin bars will allow for sharing and everyone still getting full for a reasonable amount of money and they are good. They also offer vegetarian options.
There are only three that I know of where you can get a refill on your drink--Restaurantosaurus in AK, Sunshine Seasons in Epcot, and Backlot Express in Hollywood Studios. On a hot day, this can be useful. I love my cold ice tea on a hot day.
If you were only staying four days, then I would agree with others that you may not need the park hopper, but anything more than that I think it's a must if you can afford it. By that fifth day, you will probably want to visit more than one park in a day to ride things you missed the first time, but you probably wouldn't want to stay in one park the whole day. We always hop and it really doesn't take that much time, especially during the middle of the day. It's really easy to hop from MK to Epcot on the monorail and from Epcot to HS on the launch. The only park that hopping might take time, if you don't have a car, is going from AK to any other park. However, if you do have a car, it's a quick trip to the other parks.

 

[luv]

Regarding Park Hoppers: If you aren't sure, don't get them. You can always add that feature when you're there and it won't cost you more. That way, you only pay if you need it. It is entirely possible to have a great vacation without hopping, but you might want to hop!

 

[Ember]

I'd skip the park hopper. There's so much to do in each park that you don't want the pressure of wasting your hopper too. See,
agree.
Park hopping can be exhausting and the transportation wastes precious time.

This! I agree with the pressure of park hopping. Our first trip with our boys we paid the extra money for park hopper and then we felt like we needed to get the most for our money and hop around. This left us exhausted and frustrated and missed quality park time lost to travel between parks time. The only time it was nice was when one of the parks closed much earlier than MK and then we could hop back over to MK for late night rides and fireworks. But that contributed to the overall exhaustion and need for a vacation from our vacation. We should have spent a solid day or two just at MK, but hopped around and missed out on a lot of rides even though we were there for a week. That being said, everyone is different and your boys are older than mine were so if you are a go, go, go clan then go for it

 

[NewtoDisney2009]

Welcome! My best advice is to get a copy of the Unofficail Guide to Disney! It will cover most of the basics! Pick your restaurants and plan to book them 180 days before your trip! Try to get an extra day or 2 for your vacation you will not regret that decision! I do not hop I don't find the extra cost worth it for me! Good luck planning!

i second this! But we do hop. We like the options!

 

[WWWD]

Read....Read.....Read.....Find your interests, learn about must-dos at Disney (don't want to return from your trip and have someone ask you if you loved Fantasmic and you have no idea what they're talking about).

Don't try and see it all - you will not succeed. Walt Disney World is 47 square miles.

Learn everything about Fast Passes and utilize it! For example, know when you can get another one.

Buy everyone in your family a great pair of walking shoes and break them in. If you are the type that like new shoes for vacation, wear them around the house to keep that new look. New shoes = blisters and very sore feet.

You will have levels of stress at Disney (crowds, heat or tired kids), take a breath and remember it's a vacation so have a blast. All the stressful moments disappear when later reflecting on your Disney memories. WDW has a way of grabbing you and staying with you always.