Did you know how user-friendly Disney World's website is? It is awesome, I love it. It really appeals to the planner in me! Now- to be fair there are tons of awesome travel agents who can take care of all the details for you, and allow you to make payments, etc. But I prefer to plan and handle these things myself and save a few bucks. Disney's website lets me do this and also allows me to make payments.
Disney can be expensive! Especially if you want to go all out...one way to help ease the blow is planning far in advance and making some managable payments. On Disney's website you can basically create your dream vacation, put down a $200 deposit to hold it, and then make payments when and how much you want- bam! Awesomeeeee!
Here is a break down:
1. Look for specials!!! Late August/September is when Disney usually offers the FREE dining plan (which is a HUGE savings) but throughout the year they also offer free nights/discounted rates and more! So check out those specials! Also, sign up for the email list and they will email you the specials!
Extra tip: When I first started planning my vacay I went through the process of creating several different vacations on the Disney website before finally picking one and saving it (which can be done if you create an account with them) and then I just left it saved for a few weeks while waiting until I could put the downpayment down. During that wait I guess Disney noticed I had saved a vacation and they sent me an offer to book and get a reduced rate on the hotel I had picked! Whoo! So try it!
2. Picking out what you want- we have talked about resorts....but then Disney will want you to pick out your tickets!
You will have several options, how many days, park hopper, water parks, holiday experiences...
How many days?? Well, it is honestly not much more money to add days, so I would suggest getting a ticket for every day of your stay, including the day you arrive....the parks do stay open late on occasion! One exception would be your last day if you are traveling early like us...we are using are last day as only travel, because there will not be enough time to visit the parks. :(
We are staying 8 days/7 nights and purchasing a 6 day ticket. Allowing for 3 days at Magic Kingdom, 1 at each Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom and then 1 day offsite at Universal, then our travel day.
We chose no park hopper, mainly because our kids our younger and it will take us time to get through the parks, for sure. I know we can spend an entire day at each park, but if you have teens or older kids you may want to consider oark hopper, or if you can only stay a few days.
We also chose no waterpark optition. Again, we live in Texas, next to the nations #1 waterpark (its like 3 waterparks....), so we didnt care to visit one.
3. Dining plans!!!!
Okay, there seems to be a lot of mixed feelings on Dining Plans, apparently they dont save you that much money. But for us, it seems very convienent! We love eating out on vacations and are planning one sit down meal each day. And several of them are expensive character experience meals, so for us we will most likely save a pretty penny by purchasing the plan, and we wont have to worry about buying each meal, as it is just a credit on your room key.
Again, if your vacation is shortened you may not want to waste your time or money on eating at sit down places a lot. I have read that it can take an hour and a half each time you eat at a sit down restaurant. But again, we have the little kiddos and that is a welcome break in the day!
They do offer different dining plans. The quick service plan includes 2 counter service meals a day (think walk up and order places) and 1 snack a day. This would be good if your want to go, go, go.
The Dining Plan is 1 counter meal and 1 sit down meal and 1 snack a day, again, this was our choice.
They also have a deluxe plan with more sit down meals, but I feel that is going overboard on time unless you are coming to Disney to eat!
Also, you can add this in your vacation package and have it paid off before you go, an added bonus for us! We do plan to have some light groceries delivered to our hotel room, like snacks and breakfast bars, but more on that later.
4. You will then have the option of choosing to add your flight. You should know if you do choose to add one, they do not seem to offer southwest, which for us is an option that is non-stop! So we are booking our flight seperately. You can also not book your flight out as far as your vacation in many instances, because most airlines only have a schedule for about 5 months out, and again, I say you need 6 months minimum for Disney Vacation planning. And finally, if you do book your flight through them, be prepared to pay for the flight in full along with your $200 deposit at checkout, you can not make payments on the flight with the rest of your vacation.
5. Finally you can arrange your airport transfer. I have read awesome things about Disney's Magical Express, and its FREE! Once you check in your bags at your home airport, you will not have to pick them up again until you arrive back home after your vacation! Disney hadles all checked bags and they magically make their way straight to your hotel room within a few hours! Wowza! No waiting at the baggage carousels!! Once your arrive in Orlando you will follow the signs and the Mickeys on the floor to your bus, and then you will get dropped off at your hotel. Once at your hotel you can go drop off your carry ons in your room and then head straight to the parks, they take care of your checked luggage! On checkout day you get to check into your flight and check your bags at your hotel, so no fuss at the airport! I LOVE this, and its FREE! So why not? So be sure to choose this option on your vacation planning, it has the option to enter your flight info later when you know it!
Hope this helps you understand booking your vacation through Disney's website. I found it very easy to use, and will always use this option! Soon to come: the Disney planning timeline!!
Happy Planning,
Terri
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