Disney vacation?

[Lolobug]

Originally Posted by Fairycat Because of the in-laws we have done 2 day trips to Disneyworld and it can be done Personally, if you are looking for deals and just one day in the parks I would probably stay off site. I mean why spend money if you aren't going to get the advantage of hanging out at the hotel. I also hate the transportation at the resorts, so for me I would stay off site and just drive in. I agree check out Disboards for help with finding good offsite hotels. Magic Kingdom is the best park for that age, so I would stay there all day, they tend to have the longest hours too. As for the parks you might be super surprised what your 17 month old can do and will want to do. My DS was pretty much raised at Disneyland, had his first trip to Disneyland Paris at 19 months (he is getting ready for his third trip next month), and first trip to Disneyworld at just over 2 years old. He loves the parks that might be because he is so used to amusement parks, but he always had a blast! Rides like Dumbo, Small World, and even the tea cups are huge hits with DS. Watch out for some of the fantasyland rides, some are darker then you might expect and can get scary. If you aren't sure about a ride, check out the ride along videos on youtube. You can see the whole ride inside, and prepare a child for what they will see. It helped get DS over his fear of POTC, he loved the ride but hated the drops (WDW only has one) I agree a carrier is a great item to have on hand. DS would nap in the carrier and we would go on rides that might scare of bore him, like Haunted Manison or Carnival of Progress. We found carriers so much handier, since strollers constantly have to be reparked, get moved by cast members and if little one falls asleep in it, your stuck. The carrier you just keep movng on Money saving tips, bring snacks, bring refillable water bottles, pre-buy small toys cheap and then just get one big item, share treats and plan at least one splurge. ETA: With younger kids plan to go slow, but I think WDW has a area the kids can run around and play, it is never a bad idea to give them a chance to just run and play, to break up the time, otherwise they get really bored in the ques. Oh and the baby care center is great! They have changing tables, nursing stations, baby food to purchase, microwaves and more. you won't need all that but still thought I would mention it, since most of them are great. I love that they usually have small toliets too.

Awesome advice, thanks mama!

[Lolobug]

Update! We are considering making this a Disney vacation, staying in the park, eliminating a car, spending a few days in the parks. Help! Suggestions!

[Lolobug]

So basically, I've never ever been, have no idea what I'm doing. Don't want vacation to be non-stop craziness- combination crazy and relaxation. Option to eat in my own place would be great! Thx!

[Lolobug]

I think our cousin and her family are joining us. So we will have 4 adults, 4 kids... Can we stay on property with this many?

[WishingTree]

We're going this February with 2 adults and 4 kids and a lot of the hotels won't take that many, so 8 maybe harder! We've decided to stay offsite in a rental house since we'll be in the parks for 3 days. Its a 5 bedroom house, full kitchen, pool table, swimming pool, lots and a 10min drive to the park. It costs around $120 a night. We live about 3 hours away from Disney, so we'll have our own car. Parking is like $14 a day so thats something else to consider in choosing to stay offsite. You should be able to go to Disney's website and under the accommodations tab, put how many are in your party and they will give you a list of Disney hotels that would accommodate your group size.

[dagmomma]

When are you going? If it is Oct you can do the Halloween party and if it is in Nove or Dec you can do the Mickeys Very merry Christmas Party--I would do these esp if you are only doing Magic Kingdom. That is what I would do.

The park also has Villas for 5+ people so they will suit large parties.

Gl it sounds like a fun trip.

[dagmomma]

Just read you are staying longer. If you go on Disney website they have package deals right now. We got a moderate resort (carribean) with free meal plan (1 snack, 1 sit down meal, 1 counter service meal per day per person).

With one of those meals we got a character breakfast so that the kids can eat breakfast with the disney characters and see them and not have to wait on line to see them. They have all different character meals including princess ones and whinnie the pooh I believe. The character meal was a special treat and a must for us.

[Lolobug]

Originally Posted by dagmomma Just read you are staying longer. If you go on Disney website they have package deals right now. We got a moderate resort (carribean) with free meal plan (1 snack, 1 sit down meal, 1 counter service meal per day per person). With one of those meals we got a character breakfast so that the kids can eat breakfast with the disney characters and see them and not have to wait on line to see them. They have all different character meals including princess ones and whinnie the pooh I believe. The character meal was a special treat and a must for us.

How do the meals work? What if we wanted to go to a restaurant in the park- is that covered?

[dagmomma]

Originally Posted by Lolobug How do the meals work? What if we wanted to go to a restaurant in the park- is that covered?

Those are the sit down meals--restaurants. You do have to make reservations at the restaurants though.

We have 3 reservations bc we are there for 3 nights. We are eating at T-Rex in Downtown, The Contemporary for character breakfast, and Hollywood and Vine in Hollywood studios which gives us preferred seating for Fantasmic (Hollywood studios night light show). They are all covered.

The Counter service is a counter meal like cafeteria kind of you can us it anywhere--there are a ton of counter service meals--like fast food but a wide variety of foods. All covered

Snack--forget how this works really but it is a free mug you get for the week where you can refill anywhere anytime free, some fruit and something else All covered

I think I am going to have some breakfast food at the hotel even though the Character breakfast is a breakfast buffet. May have some other snacks as well but this would probably be plenty for us.

These are the special offers right now http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/special-offers/

But if you check the website and depending when you go they always have some sort of offer going on esp during non-peak seasons.

Does not look like they are offering the free meal plan atm but I would cont to check website depending on when you are going.

[Free Thinker]

We went this summer and I was really impressed at how much my 12 month old could do! We went to each park for one day, one day at sea world, and one day at Discovery Cove. It was a great vacation! My tips are to take a carrier for the baby, a Gemini or non-padded lightweight ring sling (or both if you will wear them often). Take snacks and drinks as they are $ in the park. Make a list of a handful of things you can all do, and make those priorities, there is no way you will be able to do everything, and use the fast-passes if you can. Get there at opening, I didn't realize it owuld take so long to get to MK (parking lot, then wait in line for the monorail, then in line for bag check, and then for getting in, took about 45 minutes from the time we were parked to actually be IN the park), so if MK opens at 8:00, get to the parking lot by about 8:15-8:30. We got more done the first 2 hours the park was open, then took an afternoon break, then came back for fireworks. Our philosophy was to have an enjoyable day, not try to 'get our $$s worth' by doing everything and stressing ourselves out and over-tireing the kids.

If you are only going the one day I would not stay on property, however I would suggest making it the vacation spot, and spending 3-4 days in the parks, b/c they are the most family-friendly thing you can do! And you won't be bored either With that many people, you can each get a value room. You may also want to look into renting a condo or house in the area www.vrbo.com , we did this as we are a big family, and we plan to do it again next summer. We looked at our options for on-site, and it's just too $$ w/ a family our size for the small rooms, so we will be renting again.