Disney for a newb! AKA, please help :)

[aspentosh]

So... Neither H or I have ever been to Disney. We'll be heading to FL to visit my dad and stepmom in February (dates are totally flexible, but probably mid-Feb) and want to go to Disney for a couple days. DD will have just turned 3 at the end of January (arg to that since costs skyrocket).  I've read through a bunch of the Disney posts from Nov and Dec but it's all so overwhelming with all the character meeting and acronyms. Anyone care to help me out?? lol

The details:
-mid-February visit
-2-3 days (drive from my Dad's house in the morning, which is 1.5hrs away, and then will leave to head back north early afternoon on the last day)
-I don't care about packing the days. We'll be back to FL regularly and would like to make this an on-going thing (probably not every year)
-DD is afraid of things with masks or big heads and isn't into much TV so won't care about seeing most people/characters/princesses (ETA: she doesn't mind seeing them from a few feet away, but she won't want to have pictures taken or high five them probably)

The questions:
-Where to stay for around $200 a night? (Port Orleans comes up a lot)
-If you only had 2 days, do you try and hit all the parks? Or which would be best? Park hopper pass?
-Anything we shouldn't miss? (Parade?  A restaurant?)

I am sure these are stupid questions but it's seriously overwhelming!

[ilikedonuts]

Would she be okay watching parades from a distance even though they are full of characters? The Festival of Fantasy Parade at MK (daily at 3pm) is really cool with some awesome floats!

'Ohana is a good dinner that doesn't have characters (so she won't have to deal with being afraid the entire meal). Its at the Polynesian.

I would pick two parks (one on each day). If she was really into princesses and characters, then I'd do two Magic Kingdom days, but since she's not I think you'd be fine doing 1 day each in 2 different parks.

[aspentosh]

Dec 21, 2014 15:39:56 GMT -5 ilikedonuts said:

Would she be okay watching parades from a distance even though they are full of characters? The Festival of Fantasy Parade at MK (daily at 3pm) is really cool with some awesome floats!

Yes! I should probably have said she isn't into being CLOSE to those people. Seeing them from a parade, or even 10 feet away is fine. But she's not going to want to snuggle up to them and be in a picture  

[mainelyfoolish]

If I only had two days, I would spend them both at the Magic Kingdom. My second choice would be one day at MK and one day at Hollywood Studios (the Fantasmic show is really neat).

If you stay on-site, you can book your fast passes 60 days out...so in other words, make your reservations ASAP if there are popular rides/attractions that you want to get fast passes for.

The week of President's Day is going to be super crowded. If you can go the second or fourth week in February, the crowds will be smaller. I really like this crowd calendar: www.easywdw.com/category/calendar/02-february-2015-crowd-calendar/

[londoncalling]

Check out the crowd calendars on Easy wdw. We adhered to the most recommend parks and were very happy with wait times. Obviously you may not be able to follow precisely because of doing just a few days.

www.easywdw.com/category/calendar/02-february-2015-crowd-calendar/

With a kid that age I would plan on Magic Kingdom and maybe one other park or just two days at Magic Kingdom so you don't feel like you have to run all over and have time to do the parade and move leisurely.

Don't bother with hoppers. You won't get your money out of them in 2 days unless you just want to hit all the major attractions and then move parks.

Are you going to plan on heading back to your resort for a mid day nap, or just going as long as your DD can hold on/stroller nap?

Eta: dd2 was 2.5 when were there in September and she enjoyed MK the most. Hands Down. And of course MK is the only dry park.

[aspentosh]

Awesome website! See, this is why I need you all

I'll have to look into fast passes. Added to my to do list!

And we will probably try and nap on the go since she still will sleep in her stroller if she's really tired. But I won't mind heading back to the hotel if that works better.

We will definitely not try and squeeze in a ton of the stuff and run to the next park. I have a feeling this will be a leisurely stroll around where we can all take in everything.

[londoncalling]

We liked Port Orleans, but I've also stayed at Pop Century (a value resort) and had good experiences both times. The problem with Pop is two double beds. Port Orleans has queens.

What attributes In the hotel are most important to you? I'm guessing with 2 nights you aren't going to need tons of extra amenities.

[water*drop]

Magic Kingdom was definitely DD's favorite park, so we'd probably do both days there. She surprised us and loved the characters that she knew well (she was scared of the other ones), but she also loved some of the rides at Magic Kingdom, the parades, and the shoes in front of the castle.

[aspentosh]

Dec 21, 2014 16:41:44 GMT -5 londoncalling said:

We liked Port Orleans, but I've also stayed at Pop Century (a value resort) and had good experiences both times. The problem with Pop is two double beds. Port Orleans has queens.

What attributes In the hotel are most important to you? I'm guessing with 2 nights you aren't going to need tons of extra amenities.

Pool would be awesome, but otherwise not really picky. Two larger beds would be nice (queen at least) since DD sleeps in a bed and we like our space. I heard in one of these threads that Coronado was sort of cramped, so I didn't look into that one. 

We're more the type to go cheap on the hotel if we won't be there much. Usually convenience (closeness to where we are going) is key. But I've heard the experience of Disney hotels is one you don't want to miss, so I don't know that I want to do value. ETA: Oh and food! Access to dining is important  

[londoncalling]

We were happy at Port Orleans and had no trouble with busses or the multiple bus stops. We shared a bus with French Quarter twice in a week. I'd actually look at French Quarter. It's a smaller resort with one central bus stop.

As much as I thought the early mornings sucked to get to the parks early and be there for opening, it was completely worth it. We got a lot of rides done in the morning and then were able to have quieter afternoons wandering the park or revisiting favorite things we had done in the morning.

[Redpoppy]

Is it just costumed characters or anyone? I just say this because DS has been afraid of costumed ones but doesn't mine the "human" ones like Tinkerbell, Aladdin, and the princesses. He usually warms up to costumed ones by after a few days, or is okay if we go up with him (not the first trip though, he scream bloody murder and ground mickey waffles into my shirt at the character breakfast we started our trip with). I agree with the sentiments to just go to Magic Kingdom both days. My parents are in Florida so we also don't rush trips since we can always go again. I don't know if it will be that way when you go but parking and traffic was a total cluster by downtown Disney in July. If going there is on your list, having a hotel with boat service can be nice, like Port Orleans. I also wouldn't want to be on a bus that drives by there.

[water*drop]

Dec 21, 2014 16:44:37 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

Dec 21, 2014 16:41:44 GMT -5 londoncalling said:

We liked Port Orleans, but I've also stayed at Pop Century (a value resort) and had good experiences both times. The problem with Pop is two double beds. Port Orleans has queens.

What attributes In the hotel are most important to you? I'm guessing with 2 nights you aren't going to need tons of extra amenities.

Pool would be awesome, but otherwise not really picky. Two larger beds would be nice (queen at least) since DD sleeps in a bed and we like our space. I heard in one of these threads that Coronado was sort of cramped, so I didn't look into that one. 

We're more the type to go cheap on the hotel if we won't be there much. Usually convenience (closeness to where we are going) is key. But I've heard the experience of Disney hotels is one you don't want to miss, so I don't know that I want to do value. ETA: Oh and food! Access to dining is important  

I didn't find Coronado to be cramped at all (definitely less cramped than the Holiday Inn we stayed at the night before we got there), although we were in a king room.

[londoncalling]

If you are thinking about either port Orleans then look here www.portorleans.org