Going To Disneyworld...

[GO-NAD!]

Well, looks like it's time to live up to my side of the bargain. I got my Studio 20's - we go to Disneyworld in May . Oh well, my daughter will go out of her mind when we get there and that'll make it all worthwhile . I'm sooooo looking forward to visiting the Bibbety-bobbity-boutique .

So, any of you Floridians (or anyone else, for that matter) have any suggestions for maintaining my own sanity? We'll be staying on the resort, which will be convenient I suppose. Anything on or off the resort to attract a 40-something audioholic? If we venture outside, is there anything nearby that would interest me? We may go to Seaworld, although I'd rather not see the killer whales "being fed", if you catch my drift....

 

[darien87]

I've only been once and we stayed off site since all the local hotels ran shuttles to and from the parks. It was pretty convenient. Of all the parks, the wife and I, (no kids), liked Epcot the best. We must have went there 4 times.

I don't know if you have your passes yet or not, but some people say not to bother with the park-hopper tickets, but they were cool for us. We ended up going to one park for about half the day, and then we would go to one of the other ones for the second half. But since you have a daughter, you might not need that.

I couldn't tell you what to do outside of the parks as we didn't really do any exploring other than eating out at the local restaurants that were near our hotel.

 

[bandphan]

Not for a 40 something audiholic, but alcoholic When are you coming to our refugee camp, errr Orlando?

 

[GO-NAD!]

Not for a 40 something audiholic, but alcoholic When are you coming to our refugee camp, errr Orlando?

Did you say alcohol?!?! Where!? Count me in! Actually, I don't drink that much anymore - I guess I finally grew up. I do enjoy the occasional wobbly pop, single malt and/or glass of plonk.

However, since this is a "family" vacation, I don't expect to see that much freedom . We'll be there 6 -12 May. Better not forget the SPF 5000 and a hat to cover the monkey's bum...

 

[Craig234]

The most enjoyable place for an adult IMO is the International Gateway at Epcot. You can spend a couple days there no problem.

If you go, first thing in the morning, go in the park to a kiosk and reserve your lunch and dinner restaurants - France and Mexico are good.

Italy is not bad, a big loud room though.

For kids, the magic kingdom is like Disneyland.

The MGM studio is pretty optional IMO - a bit of fun like the Indiana Jones show.

The adults should also enjoy the top resorts to visit - try the all you can eat country style meals at the big wooden Wilderness Lodge, and the Grand Floridian is a nice looking big white resort. There's also a lake you can rent a motorboat on and horserides.

 

[billy p]

Day-1 12 hrs at Magic Kingdom
Day-2 12 more hrs at Animal Kingdom.
Day-3 Took it easy...lol...we went to typhoon beach....yea no freaking kidding!
Day-4 Hollywood Studios 8hrs
Day-5 Had to go back to Hollywood Studios...we didn't spend 12 hrs on 1st visit...I guess my wife thought we needed to get our monies worth...lol
Day-6 Epcot Centre another killer day...not as much fun as the other 3 parks imo better suited for us Adults lots of exhibits with beer and home of my favortie ride Soarin, it was way....

Make sure you get the "fastpass" which allow you to do other things while you wait for your ride and then bypass the long lines. Another good idea was to buy a Disney Travel planner booklet, it kind of helped us plan our days, but we still ran around like crazy. If your doing the meal plan just be careful when planning all your meals as we had breakfast at Tusker House in Animal Kingdom and it counted as a sit down meal, so we had to pay for dinner our last night.

Oh and still bring lots of money....
and have a great and safe trip...regards, Bill

 

[majorloser]

You're in my neck of the woods.

How many people? Ages? How much money do you want to spend?

I know some awesome restaurants not far from "The Mouse Penitentiary". And there's also one of the highest rated restaurants in Florida on the Disney complex, Victoria & Alberts at the Grand Floridian. They even have a special "chef's table" in the kitchen if money is no object.

You might want to plan at least one day to visit the "Universal Studios" and "Islands of Adventures" theme parks. There's some nice restaurants on that complex, too. Emeril's is one of my favs for that place.

 

[droht]

Assuming your daughter is under 10, I would definitely plan on a couple of days in Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom for a day, water park for a day, maybe two if she is really into it.

Epcot is defintely more of an adult thing, but I think the aquarium/Nemo attraction is there. Depends which characters she really likes.

Best advice I can offer is not to try and do too much. A tired kid is not a happy kid. We try to do long mornings at the parks, late lunches, then relax poolside. It doesn't get you most bang for your buck, but going to Disney (for most folks) is about kids having fun, so we try to optimize that. Most kids don't know or care if they did and saw everything in the guidebook.

Our daughter really loved the Cinderella-themed meals in the castle. Definitely worth it. All of the character activities seem to go over well.

You can book your meal reserations now if you want, which is a good idea to get times you want for nicer dinners or popular character meals.

 

[GO-NAD!]

You're in my neck of the woods.

How many people? Ages? How much money do you want to spend?

I know some awesome restaurants not far from "The Mouse Penitentiary". And there's also one of the highest rated restaurants in Florida on the Disney complex, Victoria & Alberts at the Grand Floridian. They even have a special "chef's table" in the kitchen if money is no object.

You might want to plan at least one day to visit the "Universal Studios" and "Islands of Adventures" theme parks. There's some nice restaurants on that complex, too. Emeril's is one of my favs for that place.

It's just the 3 of us and my daughter is 7. We aren't overly concerned about fancy restaurants, but we like to eat "well". So thanks, I'll keep the suggestions in mind.

 

[GO-NAD!]

Assuming your daughter is under 10, I would definitely plan on a couple of days in Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom for a day, water park for a day, maybe two if she is really into it.

Epcot is defintely more of an adult thing, but I think the aquarium/Nemo attraction is there. Depends which characters she really likes.

Best advice I can offer is not to try and do too much. A tired kid is not a happy kid. We try to do long mornings at the parks, late lunches, then relax poolside. It doesn't get you most bang for your buck, but going to Disney (for most folks) is about kids having fun, so we try to optimize that. Most kids don't know or care if they did and saw everything in the guidebook.

Our daughter really loved the Cinderella-themed meals in the castle. Definitely worth it. All of the character activities seem to go over well.

You can book your meal reserations now if you want, which is a good idea to get times you want for nicer dinners or popular character meals.

That's great advice! My daughter's a real "girlie" girl. The princess crap really is her thing. I like the idea of starting out early and finishing early, but the wife's not much of a morning person. We'll have to see how that goes I think Epcot would interest me, but I'm not sure how it'll go with the ladies....

 

[bandphan]

DIAMOND DOLLS

 

[majorloser]

Prepare to Leave Florida Broke After the Mouse

The character breakfast is a great idea. You should be able to make arrangements for all dining reservations inside the complex through your DW resort. Also, make sure you take advantage of the parks transportation. The buses leave at all hours and can get you to anyplace in the whole complex with your resort ID's.
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/resorts/benefits/resort-transportation/

With a young kid like that, I'd probably skip Epcot all together. Not much in the way of rides and half of the park is really a tour of different countries. But "YES" they have booze there, so that's a plus.

I'd probably even skip Animal Kingdom, too.

If the weather is nice enough to enjoy a water park, they should have Blizzard Beach finished with renovations by then. Otherwise you have Typhoon Lagoon.

Hollywood Studios is nice. Lot's of rides and attractions to keep you going.

But when Universal is right down the road and it's hard to compare to the best.
http://www.universalorlando.com/Home/home.aspx#


The Mouse has had many years to learn how to rape every penny out of the tourists pockets. I've lived here my whole life and have been going since the park opened in late '71.

 

[billy p]

Sounds like your not to excited about the upcoming trip. Trust me you'll have a great time too. Fwiw..we stayed at the Caribbean Resort, the accommodations where decent and the main pool was a blast, but we didn't go there for the resort or sitting poolside. You could do like me and carry the camera and travel bag and sit down and enjoy your surroundings kind of like when we go to the mall....jk.
You'll have a good time it's Disney for crying out loud....

 

[njedpx3]

Man it sounds great! Your daughter will enjoy. Since the economy is down, you can sometimes save a bundle by going through a travel agency and getting a special package. I am sure you probably thought of this but here is at least one to look at:

http://www.wdwpackages.com/custom/

Enjoy,

Forest Man


P.S.- I always enjoyed taking the family to Busch Gardens

 

[GO-NAD!]

DIAMOND DOLLS

Huh?

 

[GO-NAD!]

Sounds like your not to excited about the upcoming trip. Trust me you'll have a great time too. Fwiw..we stayed at the Caribbean Resort, the accommodations where decent and the main pool was a blast, but we didn't go there for the resort or sitting poolside. You could do like me and carry the camera and travel bag and sit down and enjoy your surroundings kind of like when we go to the mall....jk.
You'll have a good time it's Disney for crying out loud....

Oh, I know I'll enjoy it. I just have to "stay in character" and make like it's a huge sacrifice on my part. Gotta build up some brownie points, so when I finish my in-ceiling subs for the living room stereo, I can propose another pair for the HT without getting my head bitten off.

 

[GO-NAD!]

Man it sounds great! Your daughter will enjoy. Since the economy is down, you can sometimes save a bundle by going through a travel agency and getting a special package. I am sure you probably thought of this but here is at least one to look at:

http://www.wdwpackages.com/custom/

Enjoy,

Forest Man


P.S.- I always enjoyed taking the family to Busch Gardens

The wife has already booked it - don't know what kinda deal she got. With the US/CAN dollars pretty much at par, a lot of the sting is taken out right there.