Planning
Your Disney Vacation
Planning your Disney vacation can mean have a little fun or a whole lotta fun. Whether you've been there or not, things change all the time, so you need to do some studying and thinking about what you want to do when you get there.
Who is going?
Are you going with family that inclues small children? Only adults? Young adults and teens? All by yourself? What you plan has a lot to do with who is going. Here are some things you need to consider:
Adults with small children
Not every ride or activity in the Disney Parks are fun for small children. You need to know before you go what you'll want to ride, where you want to eay, where you should stay and so on. Let's break it down piece by piece.
- Rides - Check out the Rides & Shows link at the left of the page. Depending on the age and nature of your kids, they may not like some of the fast and jerky rides such as Space Mountain. They may prefer Small World, Peter Pan's Adventure and so on. Look at the list of rides and make a list of which ones you think your kids will enjoy. If you're visiting multiple parks, type up a list of prices by area, then plan your day to catch each ride you want to do. Allow time to play and see other shows and events in each area. I recommend that you get everyone to agree to follow the plan -- that way if you have more than one kid you can avoid some of the whining that happens when one doesn't get his or her way -- keep to a plan and everyone will get to ride what they want. Also, once you finish your plan you can go back and re-ride your favorites.
- Shows - No doubt Disney is the master of shows. Almost all shows are suitable for kids (except at Pleasure Island.) However, a lot of the shows are popular and you have to make plans. For some you have to show up an hour early to get a good seat. Look at your daily schedule and ask around to see when might be a good strategy -- sometimes if there are multiple shows one is less attended. For Fantasmic at WDW you can get a better seat just by eating at one of the sit-down restaurants. Call a few weeks in advance and aks about the Fantsmic Dining Package. My family likes to eat at Hollywood & Vine -- then you get vouchers that allow you in a "secret" entrance to a reserved good seat for the show. Shows that cost money sometimes sell out quickly. If you want to do the Hoop-de-do Review or a Luau or the Christmas Candlelight Processional you should call well in advance of your trip to make reservations. If you wait until you are are the park, and if it is a busy day, you may be out of luck.
- Meals - There are some fancy and expensive restaurants at Disney that your young ones might not appreciate. There are also some (relatively) inexpensive places to eat as well. Without mentioning specific places, check the Dining Link for more info. In general, the sit down restaurants are more expensive. For quick, less expensive meals, try the counter restaurants. One way we've saved on meals is to take breakfast food with us and have breakfast in our hotel room. you can rent a refrigerator (sometimes you can get one without charge) and store milk, OJ and sodas there. Add some corn flakes and a couple of plastic bowls and you have a meal. You can bring your own essentials or purchase them at the stores in each resort. The lower priced resorts have the bettwe (more family friendly) food stores.
- Where to Stay - Maybe this is a personal bias. I've stayed on Disney property and off. Its more expensive to stay at a Disney Resort (usually) but you can avoid renting a car, you have less transportation headaches, and you can come and go to the parks easier. I like staying on campus because we like to go in the morning, come home when the crowds get too big, take a nap, and go back for the evening activities. If you stay off campus, make sure your hotel has a reliable shuttle (some claim to, but they are infrequent) or plan to park. If you plan you vacation through AAA, you might get a free parking pass. Watch out for the low-ball prices hotel rooms, in my experience they can be nasty. Hey, when I'm on vacation I want to have the least number of hassles -- so I stay on campus, in a cozy roon, with little to worry about except what fun thing to do next.
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