BuffettNews.com

The all-star resorts. My brother and his family stayed there (kids were 9 and 7 at the time) and they had as much fun in the pool as they did the park. Go figure.

Everything everyone says sounds good. The only thing I would add is at Epcot, if you think your kids wouldn't be into the countries (I admit, it can get a little boring for kids), it's a really good place to have a meal to take a break from the future part of the park.

Another big suggestion I have is to get the book, "The Unofficial Guild to Walt Disney World". We've used it several times and it really works. They break your trip down (If you have one day to visit with kids, two days, three days, etc.). Sometimes it seems that you may be criss-crossing the parks, but the system seems to really work. We never really waited on any line too long. That along with Fast Pass and you've probably got it made!!!

The mid-afternoon trip back to the room for a nap/swim break is also highly recommended. Everyone gets refreshed and is able to go back to enjoy the parks and fireworks if they have them!!

Hope you guys have a blast!! Going to WDW always makes me think about growing older but not up!!!!

If you have already booked, this first tip won't be much use to you, but go to www.yourmagicaljourneys.com. They are a free travel agent kind of place specializing in Disney vacations. They'll keep an eye on all the best deals for you, and find you the best rates. Another good resource is www.intercot.com, kind of a Buffett News for Disney World. Just about any ?' you may have can be answered there. The value resorts (Music, Movies, Sports and POP Century) are very affordable, have kid themed pools, game rooms, food courts, etc. The only Moderate resort I have stayed at is Carribean Beach. Again, themed pool, food court, poolside bar, RM type music (think steel drums) piped throughout the grounds. My favorite resort. Most resorts at the value/moderate level have 2 twin beds in the rooms, however, one of the All-Stars (maybe Movies?) now has some 2 room family suites. Park hopper tickets may be something you want to look into. It's easy to say you're only going to one park a day, only to find out you want to go to dinner or a show at another park. It's not that much of an expense to have the option of multiple parks per day. The dining plan is definitely something to look into, but most restaurants take reservations starting 90 days out, so you may be in for slim pickings. If you have any interest in EPCOT, get the kids passport. You can buy them in any world of the World Showcase, and each world has staff (castmembers) that will sign them in the language of that country. Great way to keep the kids interested. Also, each country represented in the World Showcase at EPCOT has their own counter service restaurants (think beverage carts or to-go windows) that sell beer from that country. A popular activity is to start at either Mexico or The UK and drink your way around the world. Just be cautious, because you can definitely be f'ed up if you make it through. Each country also sells their native foods and has gift shops. A must is Fantasmic! at Disney MGM (maybe name changed to Disney Studios). 2 shows nightly, water/laser/pyrotechnic. Awesome. Also at night, fireworks at Magic Kingdom and fireworks show at EPCOT. You may want to see if Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party has any tickets available while you're there. Trick-or Treating along Main Street in Magic Kingdom. Fast Pass is awesome, but all a matter of timing as some of the big rides run out early. Your weather should be damn near perfect in October, and crowds should be low. I have much more, but don't want to take up the space. Contact me if you want to know anything. You're in for a great time.

When I went to Disney 20some years ago... we stayed at what I belive was called fort wilderness....was actually like house you stayed in with full kitchen and everything. I even think they slept like 7 people too.,

Ok, The polynesian is the absolute best!!!! The Boardwalk is 2nd. If you are traveling with kids the Animal Kingdom Lodge is a great choice. As adults you should realize you are heading to EPCOT during the food and wine festival. Can you drink around the world? Sure you can! Have fun and FINS UP!

ContinentalDrifterIII wrote:Ok, The polynesian is the absolute best!!!! The Boardwalk is 2nd. If you are traveling with kids the Animal Kingdom Lodge is a great choice. As adults you should realize you are heading to EPCOT during the food and wine festival. Can you drink around the world? Sure you can! Have fun and FINS UP!

I once saw a guy who successfully drank around the world in too short a time and looked completely insane by the time he got to Mexico... I have the picture to prove it. As an adult, I realize I will be there during the food and wine festival and I am pumped!! Fins Up in Epcot town in less than 4 weeks!

I sent you a PM.

I highly recommend staying on property. The moderate resorts, Caribbean Beach and Port Orleans are nice, but if you can swing higher, the Polynesian is beautiful and the Contemporary is very convenient, although they are doing some renovating right now. The Boardwalk is a great location, I've stayed there many times. You can walk right into the World Showcase portion of EPCOT (my favorite) and through EPCOT you can make use of the monorail as well.

I also recommend saving the money on a car rental and making use of the internal transportation. The monorail and buses work very well, especially the time your going when crowds should be less.

I have more info, much more, but let me know, I don't want to hog the thread!

BTW, you MUST go to EPCOT for Illuminations. The fireworks show will blow the little ones away.

Plus, if you can watch it from the Rose and Crown Pub, you can enjoy a few brews as well!

I just took the family eariler this year. I strongly reccomend getting the dining plan. With two aduls and two children, we saved over $800 over 5 days. The dining plan paid for itself within a day and a half. And it seemed like all we did was eat. The nice thing is that you can get anything you want off the menu, so things that you would normally like to get but think, "I'm not paying that much for that" you don't have to even take it into consideration. Tips are included in the plan also.
There is no need for a car. Disney picks you up at the airport and the in park bus system is great. You never wait more that 10-15 min for a bus and they are always clean. We stayed at the value restort (All Star Movies) and we were very happy. Keep in mind that at the value resorts you are getting just a regular room. However, Disney does everything first class and we found that if you are not happy with anything they will do whatever they can to make you happy. We did not have any "Adult" activies planned and did just the thing for the kids, and my wife and I had a great time. I don't care who you are, adult or child, you can not not have a good time at Disney. Enjoy your trip.

the "moderates" mentioned are good bets.

for your first time at disney though you might want to stay on a monorail hotel.

Disney transportation lines wont be as bad in october

DONT FORGET TO CHECK IF MICKEY'S VERY UNSCARY HALLOWEEN IS GOING ON IN THE MK THEY WILL CLOSE THE PARK EARLY YOU WONT GET THE "FULL DAY" YOU PAID FOR AND ITS A RIP OFF TO PAY FOR THE EVENT! CHECK THE TIMES OF THE "PARTY" AGAINST THE DATES YOU ARE GOING!!!

The disney evening "parties" where they reopen the park are rackets, over priced, and nothing all that special. You save money by buying park hoppers. Its worth it.

Also in september and october they have deals where a family of four for 5 nights with meals and tickets included for like 1500 bucks or somehting....

When we took our son for his first trip to Disney- we stayed about 8 days so we opted for the more budget friendly resort on Disney property and stayed at the All Sports. It was just fine. Clean, great pools, lots of fun for the kids, great big restaurant with several different places to pick so everybody is happy. Tiki bar by pool We did not buy the "drink refill cups" because it is only good for your resort not the parks.. We just bought drinks at gift shop at resort and keep in small fridge that was in our room. Worked out great. We used Disney transportation to parks all week so we diidn't rent a car. No need- Be up early waiting in line for bus- get to park early--go to back of park first and work you're way counterclock wise through the park. But do take advantage of the fast pass, which means you may be cutting across the park to get on the good stuff but it is worth it. There is a science tobeing able to do and see it all- -be up early early for first bus-have a plan each day for the park you're going to- and be ready to mow over the people with strollers and yall should be just fine! Get a good spot for parades and fireworks EARLY- we used this downtime to eat/ relax while waiting. Water parks were awesome!! Gotta get ther early early too , to get chairs saved for your stuff. Epcot Laser/firework show is a must!! We never went back to room during the day. You can sleep when you get home! Take a cab off property one night to Margaritaville!! Look for the "hairy leg" in Pirates and tell Mickey and Minnie Hi!! -Have Fun

I stayed at hte Carribean Beach resort and it was nice. THere may be one that is more fun for the kids, but I would reccommned checking AAA. Sometimes they can get you a good deal on a package.

I bought cheap theme park jumper tickets on ebay- saved alot $$$

SunsetChef wrote:I bought cheap theme park jumper tickets on ebay- saved alot $$$

Just FYI..

Be careful with that.. Disney now takes a scan/fingerprint of your right index finger along w/scanning the tickets/passes each time you enter a park! If the tickets had been previously used and the person merely sold them for the time remaining on the ticket then if the park has their fingerprint on file and linked to that ticket then you may not be able to use them yourself.

HsvParrothead wrote:

SunsetChef wrote:I bought cheap theme park jumper tickets on ebay- saved alot $$$

Just FYI..

Be careful with that.. Disney now takes a scan/fingerprint of your right index finger along w/scanning the tickets/passes each time you enter a park! If the tickets had been previously used and the person merely sold them for the time remaining on the ticket then if the park has their fingerprint on file and linked to that ticket then you may not be able to use them yourself.

there was a story about that in the newspaper up here not too long ago! a family bought tics on ebay and got ripped off!

good tip Kev!

flipflopgirl wrote: there was a story about that in the newspaper up here not too long ago! a family bought tics on ebay and got ripped off!

good tip Kev!

Yeah.. figured it could.. besides there's no way with todays tickets to know how much time is even on the ticket until you get on site at the resort (no calling ahead to verify, they have to scan them to read it) and none of the tickets states how many days they were even originally intended for (except annual passes with show the exp. date) because you use the same ticket throughout your stay or tickets are used up.

And just to give my 2 cents to the thread.. I grew up around Orlando, practically grew up in Disney Parks and have taken my own daughters (6 yr olds now) there three times recently for week long trips (June '06, June '07, August '07).. A lot of good points have been made here.. just to add a lil advice and current FYI for ya..

With the girls we've stayed at Animal Kingdom lodge twice, Port Orleans - French Quarter Resort and one night on one of the trips at All-Star Music (because Orleans wasn't available until our 2nd night there.. Depending on your budgets and when/if you are going to or are not going to book you can usually find some REALLY GOOD room rates on the moderate resorts when you wait to book within a couple of weeks of your trip (it's risky just like anything else) but this last trip in August we managed to get Port Orleans for a nightly rate of only $90.. granted, didn't book until the week before but Disney is ALWAYS running special rates in order to fill resorts that have not already filled up at the "2 minute warning".. I really enjoyed Port Orleans - French Quarter, I found that it had all the conveniences/amenities that we enjoy about the "deluxe" resorts but at a much more reasonable price.. also enjoyed the fact that the commute times to parks was much less involved than Animal Kingdom Lodge.. Honestly, Animal Kingdom Lodge is an incredible resort stay - however, because of it's location in relation to the rest of the theme parks.. it is a much longer ride to reach the theme parks (outside of Animal Kingdom itself) plus, the resort is CURRENTLY undergoing a lot of construction on the West side of the property as Disney is expanding and adding the new "Animal Kingdom Lodge Villa's" to be part of the Disney Vacation Club... so, there is a very good chance that at this time instead of giraffes and zebras outside your balcony you will instead find construction men. I've also stayed in the Beach Club back on my honeymoon and outside of the company I was with.. I really enjoyed it as well and it was within a short walk of Epcot.

As for car rental? Don't waist your money... As others have said, Disney can pick you up at the airport and with the bus transportation provided there is no where on the resort that you can not get to through the free transportation already provided. We always drive to Orlando but the van stays parked for the whole week once we arrive. Also, even if you can "technically" get to the theme park parking lot "quicker" then using the bus.. by the time you park, lock-up and wait for a tram to carry you to the park entrance.. well, you could have already been inside the park and playing. ESPECIALLY at Magic Kingdom where in order to get inside the park, if you drove, you would have to A) Park in the lot B) Take a tram to the "Transportation Center" and C) Take either the monorail or the ferry around/across the Seven Seas Lagoon just to reach the front gates themselves.. or you can A) Board a bus at your hotel and be dropped off at the front gates... it's a no brainer!

Also, you might want to know that currently the Haunted Mansion is under renovation and I believe they told us it wouldn't re-open till November? Seems like there was another that was down till November as well.. cause my girls were really disappointed about it.. hmm, if I recall I'll post it.

Also, for dining I will say this.. I've never used any of the "dining programs" before but from what I've read others say about them here.. sounds like a good idea.. cause if I had realized the benefits to use of any items from even "dine-in" restaurants with servers and everything.. I would have looked into it.. because honestly... there are only sooooo many ways you can dress a damn cheeseburger from the "counter service" joints by the end of the week.. food selection for the most part is the same throughout ALL the theme parks.. and presented in much the same way.. choice of two types of sandwiches that you dress yourself.. there are a couple of variations but are hard to find when your just "stumbling upon" them.. right off the top of my head for some fish items there's a good place called "Columbia Harbour House" in Liberty Square of the Magic Kingdom right across from the Haunted Mansion (fish and chips, fish sandwiches, chicken sandwiches, clam chowder) and a good lil Tex-Mex sorta place called "Pecos Bills" in Frontier Land (BBQ Sandwiches, Taco Salads) across from Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.. and the "Starlight Cafe" in Tomorrowland, across from the Speedway has some different selections as well (1/2 Chicken, Ribs, salads).. otherwise, take advantage of the World Showcase in Epcot... that's pretty much you only hope for TRUE diversity in dining inside any of the parks. So keep these other places in mind because about the time your standing in front of a counter deciding whether to have the "cheeseburger" or the "bacon cheeseburger" for the 20th time.. you will think back on this and thank us!

Also, dont know if this applies to your or not.. but if your a smoker... stock up before you get on the resort.. only place to purchase tobacco are in the gift shops at the hotels, one shop at Downtown Disney or the two gas stations on the property.. either way you'll pay about $6/pack... and anything outside of the hotel gift shop is not very convenient within your daily plans. Just sayin, I was still a smoker the first time I took my kids last year and once I ran out it was a pain to get more!

Anyhooo.. Lot of rambling... hope some of it helps!

but this last trip in August we managed to get Port Orleans for a nightly rate of only $90.. granted, didn't book until the week before but Disney is ALWAYS running special rates in order to fill resorts that have not already filled up at the "2 minute warning".. I really enjoyed Port Orleans - French Quarter, I found that it had all the conveniences/amenities that we enjoy about the "deluxe" resorts but at a much more reasonable price.. also enjoyed the fact that the commute times to parks was much less involved than Animal Kingdom Lodge

I agree. I think very highly of POFQ. It's an intimate resort that feels much better then a mod. The commute is really nice and although it has a great kids pool, one of the reasons we chose it, it's size keeps it from getting too crazy. Another strategy is to book it at the best price you can get and keep checking. Just don't pay off the resort til you have to. You can keep checking for a better price. If they find one they will switch your ressies to the better rate. In the best world Polynesian and Boardwalk are great but the price is high and when you are in the parks with kids you really don't spend huge amounts of time in the rooms. If I was going on a couple's only trip I'd consider upgrading to the higher price but for a family trip a mod is fine.

surfpirate wrote:First time ever going. Family of four .... Mom, Dad, 8 year old boy, 10 year old girl. Probable travel dates ... fly out and arrive Wednesday evening, OCT 17. Disney Days THURS/FRI/SAT/SUN. Return Monday afternoon/evening OCT 22.

I figure we'll stay onsite Disney somewhere (but where?!). No plans to travel to off-Disney sites anywhere, so I have no intention of getting a rental car. I guess (?) our focus will be strictly Disney, primarily Magic Kingdom, but perhaps Water Parks also ..... maybe Epcot. I have no plans for nightlife, i.e. adult fun/nightclubs ... this is strictly for the kids, who have been promised a Disneyworld vacation for years but we've not done it yet.

I want to do this moderately priced, not high end, not low end. Lodging should have pool for downtime relaxation.

I need advice, particularly regarding lodging, food, packages, etc. Kids are different as night and day. Older one loves rides. Younger one not so much. Both are water bugs like their dad. Younger child still wide eyed and amazed by magic and fantasy (Santa Claus, etc.). Older child pretends to be more cynical and worldly, but I think she'll buy into Disney magic as well.

Any tips and hints greatly appreciated. Thanks!

~~~~~ surfpirate

Have been to Disney $ times in the past 6 years. We have two boys that are now 7 and 14. Stayed offsite twice and it was great. Westgate lakes resort is only 5 minutes from Disney. On-site, we stayed at Caribbean Beach and most recently at Port Orleans French Quarter. We like Caribbean Beach but you can end up VERY far away from the food court and main pool. Also, if you are at a bus stop towards the end of the route, you may have to trouble getting on a bus.

We really like the Port Orleans French Quarter. It is the smallest of the on-site resorts and it is in the "moderate" price range. Only 1 bus stop and a nice food court. The pool area has a bar and hot tub. There is a nice bar with entertainment in the food court also. The other nice thing is that they have free boat transpotation to Downtown Disney. You'll have a great time!!!

Continental Drifter III how was your trip to Disney world? How was the food & wine festival at EPCOT? I'm sure you had lots of fun!!!