DM72 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 We'll be going to Disney and Universal next month. As a 38 year old, I'm a little ashamed to admit, I can't wait. I need a vacation. BAD. I'm probably looking foward to The Harry Potter Ride at Universal the most. I heard that whole Harry Potter World is something else. As for Disney, well, it's Disney. Does anyone have an idea on how much it will probably cost for 3 people per day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terpskins10 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I don't know too much about costs, but I will say there's absolutely no shame in being excited to go to Disney World. Doesn't matter if you're 5 or 50. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeysc23 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Love Disney. I don't think it ever matters what age. My whole family went to take my sister who was 11 at the time for her first visit. It was awesome. Disney is for all ages. Use their website it's very well done and you can price out everything with all the options (like park hopper etc.). My fiancee and I are going right after our wedding for a mini disney trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IONTOP Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Larry is the expert on this... Hope he shows up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DM72 Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 I was just looking at the Crystal Palace at the magic Kingdom. That place is expensive. $43.56 per adult and $21.99 per child. I'm thinking that will be the only high end place we eat at mainly because my 19 year old and my 12 year old nephew have the tendacy to play over food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rictus58 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 A few tips If you are looking at getting into crystal palace, you need to make a reservation NOW. That pretty much goes for any character dining establishment. http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/listing/ Tickets are expensive. The more days you buy on your ticket, the less you pay per day. You pay more for extras (like park hopping). But it can come in handy if you go a alot. You know what you want to do in each park, hit those rides, then move on. http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/tickets-passes/ That site will price it out for you. The prices listed don't include tax. I get my tickets here.. http://www.undercovertourist.com/orlando/attractions/tickets.html They ship quickly...and are slightly cheaper than ordering from disney direct. Their price includes taxes. How many days would you want to spend at WDW? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rdskn4Lyf21 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 For your sake go while school is still in....the lines can be brutal there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southtown Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 This website usually has a bunch of good info and money saving tips for all the Orlando parks on it: www.mousesavers.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88Comrade2000 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Now that I live here, I just to spend some time. Went to Epcott last weekend just to see all the Toparies from the Flower Festival. I have the annual pass for all the Disney Parks, Universal and Kennedy Space Center. I recommend you look into Fast Pass which gets you through lines quicker. I also recommend that you go to the parks when they open. Hit the main stuff first and then go back to see what you can see. You can probably catch a couple of good sites before the lines build up. ---------- Post added May-23rd-2011 at 05:52 PM ---------- Oh, if you are into souvenirs plenty of shops outside Disney where you don't have to spend a fortune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RememberOsaka Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I'm probably looking foward to The Harry Potter Ride at Universal the most. I heard that whole Harry Potter World is something else. Too funny....I don't think that I'd ever even heard of the Harry Potter World at Universal until I read your thread. My wife left this morning for a conference in Orlando and just minutes ago called and said that Wednesday night they are closing down Harry Potter World for a private event for them. As neither of us are real Potter fans, I'll post her review when she returns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 To me, the first big question is "are you staying at a Disney hotel?" They're expensive. Especially since the ones I stay at are their most expensive grade of hotel, and because June is like their third most expensive time of the year. (Disney is busiest, and the prices are highest, when school's out. (duh.) Most expensive time is Christmas, followed by Thanksgiving, then June.) OTOH, I'll also say that staying at a Disney hotel really adds to the magic. There's a lot to be said for, when you decide to leave the park, simply getting on a boat that takes you across the lake to your hotel. But as a very rough estimate, I'll also estimate that for four people, a "room and ticket" package may run you $1,000 a day. Actually, scratch that. I just ran a quick price quote. Three adults Wilderness Lodge (One of my favorite Disney hotels, and one of their top grades). Courtyard view (your room will overlook the central swimming pool). June 12-18 7-day tickets with Park hopper (you can go to more than one park per day) Water Park (you can go to their two water parks, or several other things.) Total price $3731. Not exactly free, but not $1000/day, either. More like half that. (That seems like a real bargain, to me. I've taken Mom a few times, last few months. We've just been two people, and it's the off season, and we've only gone for four days. And our bill has been about that. I wonder if they've lowered their prices, due to the economy.) So to me, that's the first question: Are you staying at Disney? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DM72 Posted May 24, 2011 Author Share Posted May 24, 2011 A few tipsIf you are looking at getting into crystal palace, you need to make a reservation NOW. That pretty much goes for any character dining establishment. http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/listing/ Tickets are expensive. The more days you buy on your ticket, the less you pay per day. You pay more for extras (like park hopping). But it can come in handy if you go a alot. You know what you want to do in each park, hit those rides, then move on. http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/tickets-passes/ That site will price it out for you. The prices listed don't include tax. I get my tickets here.. http://www.undercovertourist.com/orlando/attractions/tickets.html They ship quickly...and are slightly cheaper than ordering from disney direct. Their price includes taxes. How many days would you want to spend at WDW? I will make those reservations first thing tomorrow. And we already have park tix. My sister is retired military so she got them pretty cheap. ---------- Post added May-24th-2011 at 01:17 AM ---------- To me, the first big question is "are you staying at a Disney hotel?" They're expensive. Especially since the ones I stay at are their most expensive grade of hotel, and because June is like their third most expensive time of the year. (Disney is busiest, and the prices are highest, when school's out. (duh.) Most expensive time is Christmas, followed by Thanksgiving, then June.) OTOH, I'll also say that staying at a Disney hotel really adds to the magic. There's a lot to be said for, when you decide to leave the park, simply getting on a boat that takes you across the lake to your hotel. But as a very rough estimate, I'll also estimate that for four people, a "room and ticket" package may run you $1,000 a day. Actually, scratch that. I just ran a quick price quote. Three adults Wilderness Lodge (One of my favorite Disney hotels, and one of their top grades). Courtyard view (your room will overlook the central swimming pool). June 12-18 7-day tickets with Park hopper (you can go to more than one park per day) Water Park (you can go to their two water parks, or several other things.) Total price $3731. Not exactly free, but not $1000/day, either. More like half that. (That seems like a real bargain, to me. I've taken Mom a few times, last few months. We've just been two people, and it's the off season, and we've only gone for four days. And our bill has been about that. I wonder if they've lowered their prices, due to the economy.) So to me, that's the first question: Are you staying at Disney? Yeah, we're staying at the Shades of Green which is for military and their families. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Ah. Never stayed there, but based on my opinion of Disney, I'd bet that they're both very nice, and a good bargain. (But it means I don't get to give you a ton of advice about which Disney hotel is best.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperSkinette Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I don't have too much to add because everyone else has covered the bases, but I hope you have an amazing time! They really do have anything for anyone of any age-- my 4 best friends and I decided to hop down there for a mini-vacation last May, right in the middle of finals period. Even though we were a group of 20-year-olds, we still rocked mouse ears all day and had a fantastic time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pointyfootball Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Yeah, we're staying at the Shades of Green which is for military and their families. Shades of Green is very nice. Much cheaper too! We went two summers ago, and my wife and I tried to do it economically as we were doing other vacations that summer. So, we went through Armed Forces Vacation Club (basically timeshare rentals), bought our tickets @ shades of green. Reason we did condo was so we could have a kitchen. Our total cost for our family of 4, including airfare from BWI, rental car, 1 BR condo (couple/few miles from park) was about $2700 (Air-600, park hopper tickets-$1000, condo $250ish, car rental-$150, food-$700) if memory serves me correctly. We went in August (bit warm), but our daily plan was to get to the park we were going to right when it opened. Would then stay until like 1-1:30, head back to the condo, relax @ pool or let kids hang out watching TV out of sun, then head back into park for like 6 and stay until 10 or so. Only get 7-8 hours of park time a day, but in the end it was the best because kids really didn't melt down (that much!), we got to do a lot of rides in that 1-2 hours of the park opening and we stayed out of the worst heat. Disney's a great time, especially if you just accept that you'll have to wait in lines, everything will cost money, and you will be hot. I always felt that although Disney is expensive, they put an incredible amount of effort in to making it a great time for their guests. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rictus58 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 If you have a smart phone, there is an app built by undercover tourist which provides you with wait times for the rides. Since you are going in june, It would probably be in your best interest to really plan your time at the parks to get the most out of it. There are websites which will provide you with a "touring guide" It will be very crowded. Take advantage of the "extra magic hours". Morning Extra Magic Hour occurs one hour prior to regularly scheduled park opening. That means if the park is scheduled to open at 9 a.m. to the general public, the Extra Magic Hour begins at 8 a.m. Transportation for the park offering Morning Extra Magic Hour will begin 30 minutes earlier than the opening time. Here's a list of those dates: Morning Extra Magic Hours-June 2011 Magic Kingdom - 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28, 30 Epcot - 3, 10, 17, 24 Disney's Hollywood Studios - 1, 8, 18, 25 Animal Kingdom - 4, 6, 11, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27, 29 Blizzard Beach - 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 Evening Extra Magic Hours Magic Kingdom - 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 24, 26 Epcot - 7, 14, 21, 28 Disney's Hollywood Studios - 6, 13, 20, 27 ^The parks stay open later, and they usher out people who don't stay on-site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hdf561 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 My wife is a Disney nut....I only went to disney once as a kid...and since I have been married to my wife (together for 10 married for 7) I have been 4 times....I really like Disney...the customer service is like no other, but we always stay on property to get the extra perks. As for Universal I was not impressed, the Hulk ride was cool, and the various movie rides were ok but its no Disney. If your looking for god info on Disney www.allears.net is a great site. Also talk to an actual Disney person on the phone and they can typically give you a deal. Have a good trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
No_Pressure Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 The lines are worse there than anywhere else. The last time I was down there they had a fantastic system of fast passes or whatever they called them. Unlike Universal where you have to purchase the fast line passes, at Disney you would get a ticket telling you to return at a later time. At Disney World you could get tickets for 4 rides and go on one after the other quickly if you timed it right. When I tried the same thing at Disney Land in Anaheim last summer they had changed it so you could only have one fast pass at a time since it was tied to your park ticket. They do a good job of keeping things around for adults to do, and if you're taking little kids they'll never forget it. Ever. I went on Pirates of the Caribbean at Disney Land and though I went on the one at Disney World when I was 4 the one in Disney Land brought up a whole bunch of memories, it was a really weird feeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 OK, now that you're going. My recommendation is that the next thing you do is make restaurant reservations. You mentioned Crystal Palace. (It's probably my favorite restaurant at Disney.) There are four restaurants at Disney that I know of, that pretty much follow the same formula. The restaurant is a buffet. But it's not school lunch cafeteria food, they have chefs there. (Although every Disney restaurant serves macaroni and cheese, cheese pizza, and Mickey Mouse waffles, for the kids.) So you can get mac and cheese, or sauteed pork in a Marsala wine sauce. The buffet will also have a central "carving station", where a chef will slice you off a piece of their marinated beef roast or ham. (Or, at breakfast, will cook you an omelet to order.) But probably the big attraction of the restaurant is the characters. Disney characters will wander through the dining room, and they will come around to your table, and pose for pictures and sign autographs. (Bring a camera. With spare batteries.) Some things about the characters. They follow a pre-scripted pattern through the dining room, that will take them past every table in the place. This can be confusing or upsetting, if Mickay Mouse makes his way towards your table, then makes a left turn and begins walking away. He;ll get to your table, but his path may take him completely around the dining room before he comes to your table, from a different direction. Your waiter will tell you what the pattern is, so that you can expect it. When you see Mickey in this place, then he's not headed for your table. But when you see him over here, then he'll be at your table in a few minutes, and you might want to wait, rather than making a trip to the buffet. When it's your turn with the character, then his time is yours. If you want to take one picture with Eeyore with each individual member of your group, and another picture with the entire ensemble, and another one with just the kids, and you've got 7 autograph books to sign, and can Aunt Estelle give him a hug, and so on and so on, there won't be a person standing there with a stop watch, telling you that your time's up. And the characters have lots of experience with amateur photographers. You point a camera at them, they'll strike a pose and hold it for two minutes while you think about pushing the button, and waiting for the camera to focus, and for the flash to go off 7 times, and so forth. But one side effect of all this is that the characters don't move really fast. They may spend 3-4 minutes, per table, getting to you. Some tables, it may be more like 8-10 minutes. (Same thing at their "meet the character" places in the park. They let you take your time with the character, but this also means that the line moves slow.) Crystal Palace is in Magic Kingdom, across a pond from the castle. It's built like a greenhouse: Glass front wall and lots of skylight. Great view of the castle. At night, watching the castle change color can be a great entertainment while you eat. They have the Pooh characters: Pooh, Tigger, Piglett, and Eeyore. (The front porch of Crystal Palace is also a pretty good place to watch the fireworks over the castle.) Chef Mickey's is in the Contemporary hotel. If you aren't staying at the Contemporary, then it's a monorail ride away from Magic Kingdom, or from TTC (Ticket and Transportation Center, the Magic Kingdom's parking lot, and the terminus of the monorail to/from EPCOT.) They have "The Fab Four": Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto. Chef Mickey's is the toughest reservation at Disney to get. Tusker House, at Animal Kingdom, is one that I just ate at for the first time, a few weeks ago. It has Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, and Goofy. Some of their items on the buffet have a more African slant. (It's a lot easier to get reservations for than Chef Mickey's.) 1900 Park Fair, at Grand Floridian (also just a monorail from Magic Kingdom/TTC) seems to have changed since I ate there, five years ago. Dinner time, they have Cinderella, Prince Charming, "and Cinderella's relatives". Breakfast, they have Alice (as in "in Wonderland"), Mad Hatter, and others. ---------- Other places you might look at: Part of EPCOT is World Showcase. There's like a dozen pavilions, sponsored by various countries, like Mexico, Canada, Italy, France, and Japan. I think that every one of the pavilions has like three restaurants: A fast food place, a moderate place, and a fancy sit-down place with waiters. So there's like 30 restaurants in EPCOT, offering all kinds of specialties. (Except the American pavilion, which has a fast food place, and that's it.) (Our family, though, seems to fint the ethnic stuff too exotic. We stick to the American stuff.) (Although I do really like Le Cellier, at the Canadian pavilion. It's just like American. ) My recommendation is to spend some time at waltdisneyworld.com (it will redirect you to a more complicated url), and make reservations now. If you decide, later, that you want to go someplace else, other than where your reservations are, you can do that. Most of the restaurants, most of the time, you can simply go there, without reservations, and they'll hand you a pager (very short range, you have to stand there and wait) and let you wait an hour or so to get in. So you always have the option of waiting in line. But if you have reservations, then the reservations give you a better choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rictus58 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Larry, I have to disagree with you on Chef Mickeys being the toughest reservation to get. Cinderella's royal table is tougher to get. You better be on the phone @ 7am the day they open up reservations or you won't get in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Explanation of Fast Pass: When you go to one of the more popular rides (say, Space Mountain), there will me three lines you can chose. I'll just make some numbers up, and say you're at Space Mountain, and it's Noon. There will be a "wait in line" option. And a sign will tell you how long the wait is. Or, you can go and get a Fast Pass. If you go there, a machine will give you a ticket that says "come back at 2:30". Now you have a reservation. You can go someplace else, some place that isn't as crowded, come back at 2:30 (or really, any time from 2:30 - 3:30), and get in the third line, the line for people with fast passes. That line will basically skip the main line. (You might have to wait a few minutes, but not long.) So, your choices may be: Get in line, and wait an hour. Get a FastPass, and come back in two hours. Or "A already got my FastPass, and now I get to skip the line." The signs will tell you how long the wait is, and will tell you that "If you get a FastPass right now, it will be for (whatever time)." FastPass restrictions: To keep people from just gobbling up all the FastPasses, they have restrictions on them. To get a FastPass, you have to stick your park ticket into the machine. And each person in your group has to have a FastPass. Five people? You need five FastPasses. You can send one person to go get five passes, but that one person will need all five park tickets. And each park ticket can only have one FastPass at any time. Say that, at Noon, you go to Space Mountain, and get a FastPass that's good for 2:30. Once you do that, then that park ticket can't get any other FastPasses (at Space Mountain, or elsewhere, like at Splash Mountain) until 2:30. So no, when you're waiting for your appointment at Space Mountain, you can't go and get a Fast Pass for some other ride. It's not unusual for some of the more popular attractions to use up all their fast passes for the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinfan2k Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Larry what do you know about All star Movies Resort? We are looking to stay at one of the more cheaper disney resorts in dec? any suggestions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Only places I've ever stayed have been their deluxe resorts. (And the cabins.) I know some folks who've stayed at a lot more Disney hotels than I have, and they considered it one of their favorites. but that's just secondhand. FWIW, I can tell you that if you go there in the first half of December, it will be a LOT cheaper. Disney prices are highest when school's out. (Duh.) most expensive time of the year is Christmas-New Years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickalino Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 I don't know too much about costs, but I will say there's absolutely no shame in being excited to go to Disney World. Doesn't matter if you're 5 or 50. Why not 51 ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinfan2k Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Only places I've ever stayed have been their deluxe resorts. (And the cabins.) I know some folks who've stayed at a lot more Disney hotels than I have, and they considered it one of their favorites. but that's just secondhand. FWIW, I can tell you that if you go there in the first half of December, it will be a LOT cheaper. Disney prices are highest when school's out. (Duh.) most expensive time of the year is Christmas-New Years. Oh we are Larry. Right now we are looking at the first 10 days of December. We are really looking to spend no more than 125-150 per night at a hotel. All star resort was 800 for 6 nights during early Dec Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.