Feb 2021 trip - When can I book the hotel?

[karinothing]

We are planning a trip in Feb 2021, it doesn't seem like the Disney Resort website is letting me book hotels that far out (seems to stop in December 2020 unless I am missing something).

Also, when do I realistically need to start planning? I have approx. 1.1 million questions.

[crumbs]

I just checked my booking site and it seems to only go through January 2021. I would assume February 2021 would show up at the beginning of April.

I would start doing research now into the parks you want to visit, and which restaurants you want to go to so when you hit your 180 days out you can make those reservations.

We watched a lot of YouTube videos of rides to determine what we thought our kids could handle and what they wanted to do before we had to book Fast passes.

[karinothing]

crumbs, are you a Disney agent? I have no flipping clue what I want to do. My kids will likely do all rides they are capable of doing (they are 4 and 8). We haven't been to Disney but have been to we do a lot of other amusement parks from open to close and I have to drag them away sobbing at the end of the day (because they don't want to leave lol).

So I think I want to do all four parks, but that is about all I know! Disney has regular counter service restaurants I can to sans reservation right? Like at Hershey there are a million restaurants. They aren't nice or anything, but they have tables and a counter. My children will likely survive on dole whips and granola bars

I basically want someone to plan this trip for me because it feels very overwhelming.

[crumbs]

Yes I am!

How long are you planning to go for? Last time we did 5 days, 2 in Magic Kingdom, 1 in Epcot, animal kingdom and Hollywood studios. We knew we’d never get through everything during this trip and just had the mindset to do what we could and not stress about it.

My kids are the same age my oldest is a chicken and there was a bunch of things her sister would have loved to go on, that she wouldn’t have gone near if her life depended on it 😒. I created a list of the rides I thought they would want to go on and which ones my youngest was too small for, then at least I knew not to bring her over only to tell her she couldn’t ride.

We did the dining plan, which included snacks, quick serve meals (quick fast food Restaurants ) and table serve (sit down). We wanted to do a few character dinners and they are expensive on their own so it was worth the money, plus we brought my parents and my dad was horrified to not have three separate meals a day. Honestly the kids would have been perfectly happy with chicken nuggets and Mac and cheese all day, and it’s much cheaper!

The whole process is SO overwhelming so feel free to ask me anything!

[TamiTaylor]

Mar 2, 2020 9:45:24 GMT -5 karinothing said:

We are planning a trip in Feb 2021, it doesn't seem like the Disney Resort website is letting me book hotels that far out (seems to stop in December 2020 unless I am missing something).

Also, when do I realistically need to start planning? I have approx. 1.1 million questions.

You can book a room a 499 days in advance.

[karinothing]

Mar 2, 2020 19:24:30 GMT -5 TamiTaylor said:

Mar 2, 2020 9:45:24 GMT -5 karinothing said:

We are planning a trip in Feb 2021, it doesn't seem like the Disney Resort website is letting me book hotels that far out (seems to stop in December 2020 unless I am missing something).

Also, when do I realistically need to start planning? I have approx. 1.1 million questions.

You can book a room a 499 days in advance.

Isnt it 499 in advance now? I dont it available in the website. Am I missing something. The calendar doesn't go past December 2020 for me.

[karinothing]

crumbs oh yeah. I dont think we care about character meals, my kids barely watch Disney movies other than Star Wars. They are ride junkies though!

Thanks for the help. I have some research to do then I am sure I will be back for more questions.

[TamiTaylor]

Mar 2, 2020 20:31:57 GMT -5 karinothing said:

Mar 2, 2020 19:24:30 GMT -5 TamiTaylor said:

You can book a room a 499 days in advance.

Isnt it 499 in advance now? I dont it available in the website. Am I missing something. The calendar doesn't go past December 2020 for me.

Full disclosure I am a TA.

You won’t be able to search past the end of year on their website. You can book a room, not a package at 499 days in advance. You can modify it at a later date (when packages have been released) to a package (with dining and/or tickets.). You can call (or have a TA call) Disney and book a room over the phone. The deposit will be the equivalent of one nights stay plus the tax.

Disney usually releases packages for the next year in late spring or early summer. It’s usually around June.

[karinothing]

Mar 2, 2020 20:55:22 GMT -5 TamiTaylor said:

Mar 2, 2020 20:31:57 GMT -5 karinothing said:

Isnt it 499 in advance now? I dont it available in the website. Am I missing something. The calendar doesn't go past December 2020 for me.

Full disclosure I am a TA.

You won’t be able to search past the end of year on their website. You can book a room, not a package at 499 days in advance. You can modify it at a later date (when packages have been released) to a package (with dining and/or tickets.). You can call (or have a TA call) Disney and book a room over the phone. The deposit will be the equivalent of one nights stay plus the tax.

Disney usually releases packages for the next year in late spring or early summer. It’s usually around June.

Thanks! How much of a benefit is there to booking a room now and modifying later?

[TamiTaylor]

Mar 2, 2020 21:07:59 GMT -5 karinothing said:

Mar 2, 2020 20:55:22 GMT -5 TamiTaylor said:

Full disclosure I am a TA.

You won’t be able to search past the end of year on their website. You can book a room, not a package at 499 days in advance. You can modify it at a later date (when packages have been released) to a package (with dining and/or tickets.). You can call (or have a TA call) Disney and book a room over the phone. The deposit will be the equivalent of one nights stay plus the tax.

Disney usually releases packages for the next year in late spring or early summer. It’s usually around June.

Thanks! How much of a benefit is there to booking a room now and modifying later?

Are you wanting a particular hotel or room type/level at a specific hotel?

[karinothing]

Mar 2, 2020 21:27:44 GMT -5 TamiTaylor said:

Mar 2, 2020 21:07:59 GMT -5 karinothing said:

Thanks! How much of a benefit is there to booking a room now and modifying later?

Are you wanting a particular hotel or room type/level at a specific hotel?

I have no idea what I want or need! Ha ha ::sobs::