HELP w/DisneyWorld Trip

jdunack

Hello Ladies -- 

Was hoping someone could give me some help/insight into planning a trip to DisneyWorld.

We're thinking of going in the fall (more likely end of October/beginning of November).  Has anyone been at around this time?  If you have, how were the crowds/wait times/etc?

I'm beyond torn about where to stay.  My first thought is to stay at a resort that the monorail runs through for the convenience of traveling with toddlers, but they are insanely expensive! Other option is to stay at the Art of Animation which has the bus transportation to the parks, but unsure.

Also, has anyone used the Disney Dining Plan? If you have, which have you used, and do you think it was worth it?

ANY insight/thoughts/help anyone could give would be EXTREMELY appreciated!

mysticl

We went at that time of year for our honeymoon.  That should put you there for the Food and Wine Festival at Epcot which is absolutely amazing.  

I haven't stayed at one of the resorts.  For a couple of conventions I stayed at the Hilton and for our honeymoon we stayed at DoubleTree Suites.  They both fall under Downtown Disney hotels.  So while they aren't exactly on property they still have the shuttles.  On our most recent visit we stayed at a condo resort that was off property and it was incredible.  We had a ton of space (2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, full kitchen) for way less than the Disney hotels.  We did have to drive to parks but that wasn't bad and the amount we saved on the hotel more than made up for the cost of parking (we also drove to Orlando so we had our car with us).  I liked not having to sit around waiting for a shuttle when we were ready to leave.  

I've never used a Disney Dining Plan, so no input there.  

mamagreene

Hi! I am a huge Disney fanatic :-) and also happened to be a travel agent! We have went on over 10 Disney trips most of them in the fall :-) and I booked hundreds of other clients so I might know a little bit about this :-) the fall is a great time to go. We always prefer a Disney resort because you can get extra magic hours or you get into the resort an hour earlier get to stay three hours late depending on which park it's at that night. They also provide great transportation to the parks, and it adds to the resort vacation feel :-). The disney monorail resorts are very nice, but a little pricey! Another option is the wilderness lodge, it the cheapest priced deluxe resort that is in the Magic Kingdom area. It is not on the monorail, but it has a boat transportation to Magic Kingdom. The nice thing about the boat is you don't have to fold the stroller like you do on the buses. If the deluxe resorts out of your price range I really recommend trying to moderate. They have a really nice themed resorts, and awesome pools! With slide and poolside parties every day. If you need to accommodate a family of five Port Orleans Riverside is the only moderate resort they can do that. But there are other options if you have less than five. Coronado Springs, Caribbean Beach, and French Quarter all accommodate for guests. And that's for gas over the age of three years old. I really recommend staying more days and only doing base tickets. With little kids park hopping can just be too much! We like to get up early hit the parks as soon as they open even arriving before they open. Then we lunch at the parks and head back to resort for afternoon a swimming to put the kids down for a short nap before we head back around dinner time to do parades fireworks and Reidmore rides. The parks are quietist in the first thing in the morning busiest from noon until about six or 7 PM. The dining plan is a great idea if you plan on doing a lot of character meals as the price really adds ups that there is a lot of savings in the dining plan. If you have any other questions feel free to contact me :-). [email protected]. If you booked a fall trip with me I could actually get you free dining :-)

rnbeth477

We've stayed at Port Orleans - Riverside with our family of 4 and it's a great place.  Buses to the parks and downtown Disney, plus a ferry boat that travels back and forth to downtown Disney.  It's our favorite place we've stayed so far.

No experience with dining plan.

Here are some great links I've found:

https://blog.touringplans.com/2012/01/17/free-stuff-at-disney-world/

https://sliceofsouthernpie.com/2013/07/08/disney-world-secrets-tips/

https://www.parents.com/fun/vacation/theme-parks/disney-world-with-babies-toddlers/#page=2