Help a Disney newbie *updated*

[rivers3]

My family and I (2 adults, 2 kids- 4 and 2) are interested in a potential WDW trip in February 2017- likely the week of Feb 6-11.  Neither MH nor I have been in over 20 years so we are a little overwhelmed!  We would be driving down (12hours) and were thinking of staying 5 nights in a Little Mermaid room at Art of Animation? Thoughts? The main reason I choose AofA is my older son is totally obsessed with Cars and Nemo but I can't justify the extra cost of the Cars suite when we really don't need the extra space/bath at their ages.  I think we would like to do the dining plan mostly for ease. I've been browsing the restaurant menus online and some planning websites and came up with a "goal" sample itinerary.  We need to book in the next few days for the 180 day window.  Do I need a travel agent? Is this realistic?

M-arrive, check in, explore resort, QS dinner at Disney Springs

T-Magic Kingdom- Crystal Palace breakfast, Chef Mickey's early dinner (No idea about character meals but thought my kids would like it on the first day)

W-Animal Kingdom- QS breakfast/lunch, Tusker House dinner

Th-Epcot- QS breakfast/lunch, Tutto Italia dinner

F-Hollywood Studios- QS breakfast, Fantasmic Dinner show at Hollywood + Vine

S-Check out of hotel, spend day at Magic Kingdom, QS "finale" lunch at Be Our Guest, head out whenever the kids are completely exhausted and try to get 4-6 hours of driving in)

I haven't even begun looking at Fastpass stuff because there is just so much information and research to do and this 180 day dining reservation thing is stressing me out!

Thanks for any feedback

[ilikedonuts]

Good plans! 2 ADRs is more then most people like in 1 day (my family has been known to do 2 though occasionally), but I would just do an 8am crystal palace and then maybe a 4:30 Chef Mickeys so that way they are spread out. Or you could skip chef mickey's because a lot of the characters are also at Tusker House. My advice would be to book both still and decide what you want to do closer to your trip (keep both, cancel 1, etc).

You don't need a travel agent if you think you can handle it all. Some book ADRs and FPs for you. Some don't. Just depends on the travel agent.

[cajunmom]

It looks pretty good. I really enjoy having the dining plan although there are many people that don't care for it. It is a lot of food but you can use your snack credits on things in packages that you can save or you can get some fruit at the kiosks during the day.

You don't need a travel agent if you're reasonably organized on your own. Just keep track of your dates/when you can book things and have an idea of what you want along with some alternates and you'll be fine. Your kids are young so I'm sure you're used to being flexible, anyway.

Be our guest is awesome. We love it.

[curbsideprophet]

www.distripplanner.com

I would plug your info into this calculator and see what is has to say about the dining plan. I was never able to make it come out ahead for us so we have never used it.

Upgrading to the Cars suite might be a better option for you.

[revolution]

I would book a Cars Suite - discounts for Feb should be out the end of Sept/beginning of Oct so you should get a better rate eventually.

You can book now and just put a deposit down, and then when a sale pops up in the Fall for winter dates, call and ask for the discounted package they have out. If you use a travel agent, they will watch for the sales and apply them for you.

I would get the Disney Dining plan with what you have going on, but I am a fan of the dining plans. I like to have it all paid for and dealt with up front. And we enjoy the table service restaurants.

-Get a reservation booked soon and then you can set up your account in My Disney Experience. They will give you a count down on the days you have left and let you know when you can book your dining. Or your travel agent can book it for you at 180 days out.

-after that madness is done, then you can think about fast passes. I like to use a few different boards and touring plans to get a general idea of what I might want to get FP's for and how to plan my day. And to look at anticipated crowd levels at each of the parks.

Good luck and have fun! So far it looks like you have planned it out well.

[revolution]

Jul 29, 2016 19:10:20 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

www.distripplanner.com

I would plug your info into this calculator and see what is has to say about the dining plan. I was never able to make it come out ahead for us so we have never used it.

Upgrading to the Cars suite might be a better option for you.

I've never seen this calculator - I like it!  

[Deleted]

That's a lot of buffet dining. I might pick something else for 1 or 2 meals so everyone gets to sit together & eat.

[rivers3]

Thanks for all of the suggestions! We ended up finding a local Disney travel agent through my husbands coworkers. We met with him and he was fantastic so we booked through him. He convinced us to change to POP Century as we could still walk over to AofA to see the Cars area but the rooms will likely be discounted for Feb unlike the Little Mermaid rooms. We kept most of the dining plans but swapped Chef Mickeys for O'hana and moved Tusker House to brunch so the characters would be there. Also, we swapped some of our days around to avoid extra hours days at the parks since our kids can't make it that long at their ages and should hopefully be a little less crowded. Beyond exited. Only 180 days to go 😀

[rxbeth]

Aug 10, 2016 8:01:08 GMT -5 rivers3 said:

Thanks for all of the suggestions! We ended up finding a local Disney travel agent through my husbands coworkers. We met with him and he was fantastic so we booked through him. He convinced us to change to POP Century as we could still walk over to AofA to see the Cars area but the rooms will likely be discounted for Feb unlike the Little Mermaid rooms. We kept most of the dining plans but swapped Chef Mickeys for O'hana and moved Tusker House to brunch so the characters would be there. Also, we swapped some of our days around to avoid extra hours days at the parks since our kids can't make it that long at their ages and should hopefully be a little less crowded. Beyond exited. Only 180 days to go 😀

I am going in March with my 4 year old (girl) and 2 year old (boy) and staying at Pop Century.  I'll be interested to see how it goes for you and how all the planning works out.  It's my first time.

[curbsideprophet]

Glad you have a plan you are happy with!

[hollymichelle]

Hi, I lurk on the H&G boards. I have never noticed this Disney board until now. It's right up my alley so I thought I would chime in.

I love Pop and they will discount where AOA does not. AOA is right across the bridge. You can get a decent view of Illuminations from that bridge as well.

Try to get your Tusker House ADR around 10:30 so you get breakfast and lunch. For your AK QS, if you like BBQ try Flame Tree. The portions are huge so you can share & save your QS credits for use elsewhere.

Instead of Hollywood and Vine, you might check out Sci-Fi Dine-In. I love the atmosphere & the food is great. Try the homemade candy bar for dessert. You really don't need a fast pass for Fantasmic. Just get there a little early.

Also, I like to get a pre-park opening ADR for BOG. Get your castle pics with no one else in the background, eat, then ride 7DMT a few times with no wait. Hop over to Peter Pan right before opening and get those done before the lines get long. BOG breakfast is QS. It's expensive, so a very good value for your QS credits.

Your kids are pretty small. You know about rider swap, right? The first time I went I had no idea so I thought I'd mention it just in case. I love Disney, so glad I found this!