Contemplating a Disney vacation...need advice

[Anonymous]

For two adults and a 4 year old boy. Both adults have been before, but it's been a while and I know a lot has changed. Four year old has never been. A couple of questions:

1. Best time to go (a.k.a least crowded/least expensive): We were looking at either Veterans Day week, Thanksgiving, or the week of Martin Luther King Day in January. Any other times slow? We're trying to take advantage of our son's last year in preschool and not having to work around the set elementary school break schedule. Summer is also out, since we seem to suffer from the heat in the DC area alone, let alone Florida.

2. Where did you stay? We would prefer to stay on property at WDW (don't plan on renting a car). Depending on what kind of deals are available, we'd like to keep the cost to under $300/night. Given my son's age, I'm guessing the Magic Kingdom would be the major draw, but also realize that the hotels closest to it are also the most expensive. Would like something that embraces the Disney atmosphere for my son's benefit so he can feel the "magic". Nothing too "deluxe", but not bottom rung, either.

3. Speaking of MK, what other parks are recommended for this age for a boy? I loved Epcot, but don't know if there is much there for him to enjoy, which is a bummer. Is the Animal Kingdom worth it? What about Hollywood Studios? I heard there is a Disney Jr. focus there, which I think he'd like.

A lot, I know. Thanks in advance!

[Anonymous]

None of those times are particularly slow.

My 4 yo was just as happy staying at Pop as when we stayed at the Contemporary. If you can get a cheap enough room on the monorail, that is probably worth it to you, the parent, for convenience. I found riding the buses at Pop entirely doable and worth the savings on room rates, even as a solo parent and carrying a stroller.

At 4, my son liked MK and AK best, and then select bits of Epcot and the Studios. If you don't want to pay for hopper passes and won't go to every park, I'd pick AK ahead of the other two. But my kid knows very few Disney characters, so that aspect of the Studios was not a factor for him.

How tall do you think he'll be when you visit? 40" and 44" (measured wearing reasonable shoes, but Disney is strict about the top of the head, and not just fluffy hair, touching the measuring stick) are the big cutoffs for rides.

www.yourfirstvisit.net, and the book that blogger wrote with the easywdw.com blogger, should be a good resource for a lot of your questions (although I think yourfirstvisit is overly focused on designing THE perfect DO-IT-ALL exhaustively-planned Disney trip; I'm more of a "missing out on something is an excuse to come back!" person)

[Anonymous]

We just went with our 3.5 year old. I'd go when school is in session-- March-May (avoiding spring break weeks). Far less crowded, not quite as hot. We stayed in the Wilderness Lodge, which was fine. They have an awesome water play area for the little kid set, the lodge is beautiful and the rooms were nice. And it's a boat ride to the MK, which becomes part of the fun.
For DD, the MK was definitely the highlight. We spent most of our time in Fantasyland for all the kiddie rides. We also spent part of a day in Animal Kingdom. I feel like we barely saw the park but she did enjoy the safari and the Lion King show. We didn't go to Epcot or HS but I sort of wish we'd done that for the Disney Jr stuff. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

We paid about $200/night for a deluxe resort on monorail through a travel agent (it was an agency only deal). Also, we went last year during MLK weekend and it was very crowded for parts of the weekend- surprisingly even the Tuesday after.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous]For two adults and a 4 year old boy. Both adults have been before, but it's been a while and I know a lot has changed. Four year old has never been. A couple of questions:

1. Best time to go (a.k.a least crowded/least expensive): We were looking at either Veterans Day week, Thanksgiving, or the week of Martin Luther King Day in January. Any other times slow? We're trying to take advantage of our son's last year in preschool and not having to work around the set elementary school break schedule. Summer is also out, since we seem to suffer from the heat in the DC area alone, let alone Florida.

2. Where did you stay? We would prefer to stay on property at WDW (don't plan on renting a car). Depending on what kind of deals are available, we'd like to keep the cost to under $300/night. Given my son's age, I'm guessing the Magic Kingdom would be the major draw, but also realize that the hotels closest to it are also the most expensive. Would like something that embraces the Disney atmosphere for my son's benefit so he can feel the "magic". Nothing too "deluxe", but not bottom rung, either.

3. Speaking of MK, what other parks are recommended for this age for a boy? I loved Epcot, but don't know if there is much there for him to enjoy, which is a bummer. Is the Animal Kingdom worth it? What about Hollywood Studios? I heard there is a Disney Jr. focus there, which I think he'd like.

A lot, I know. Thanks in advance![/quote]

1. Veterans Day will be less crowded than the week of MLK and both will be exponentially less crowded than Thanksgiving week. Thanksgiving is a zoo, and only a little less crowded than Christmas, Easter or the week of the 4th of July. I would NOT go during Thanksgiving.

2. I have stayed at delxue resorts on property for less than $300 a night by getting the room on-sale. If you are going during the week of Veteran's Day or another "off season date", you can find most hotels in the moderate to value range for less than $300 at the rack rates. You can see rack rates at this website: http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/disney-rates-2015.htm#moderate

Watch the special offers, though, because they frequently offer hotel rooms for 25-50% off for off season dates. (Veteran's Day week is off season.) Lots of websites keep track of the discounts but my favorite list of discounts is the one that Mouse Misers keeps: http://www.mousemisers.com/

Choice of hotel is up to you, but check out the value resorts. I stay at them by preference with littler kids. The theming is over-the-top, which they love, the pools are okay, and we don't spend a ton of time in the hotel room anyway.

3. At that age, my kids adored Epcot and Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. They liked them MORE than the Magic Kingdom. At Epcot, there are lots of gentle rides that a kid can enjoy. The rides in the World Pavilions are all suitable for that age, as is Spaceship Earth, and the Land ride, and Soarin', and the Nemo ride in the Seas, and Journey into Imagination. The Phineas and Ferb game is a blast for adults and kids. The street shows are awesome. There's lots of stuff to look at when you walk around.

At Hollywood Studios, he will enjoy the Disney Playhouse Jr. show, the Toy Story ride, the Indiana Jones show, the Muppet 3D show, the Jedi Training Academy, and maybe the Star Wars ride.

At Animals Kindgom, the Lion King show and the Nemo show are incredible. My kids like the Jungle Jammin parade. You can get really close and it's easy to get a good spot for it. The safari ride is awesome. The animal walk-throughs are awesome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:None of those times are particularly slow.

My 4 yo was just as happy staying at Pop as when we stayed at the Contemporary. If you can get a cheap enough room on the monorail, that is probably worth it to you, the parent, for convenience. I found riding the buses at Pop entirely doable and worth the savings on room rates, even as a solo parent and carrying a stroller.

At 4, my son liked MK and AK best, and then select bits of Epcot and the Studios. If you don't want to pay for hopper passes and won't go to every park, I'd pick AK ahead of the other two. But my kid knows very few Disney characters, so that aspect of the Studios was not a factor for him.

How tall do you think he'll be when you visit? 40" and 44" (measured wearing reasonable shoes, but Disney is strict about the top of the head, and not just fluffy hair, touching the measuring stick) are the big cutoffs for rides.

www.yourfirstvisit.net, and the book that blogger wrote with the easywdw.com blogger, should be a good resource for a lot of your questions (although I think yourfirstvisit is overly focused on designing THE perfect DO-IT-ALL exhaustively-planned Disney trip; I'm more of a "missing out on something is an excuse to come back!" person)

WDW is so big that you cannot possible do everything in one week. You just can't. Don't make yourself crazy trying. Pick out some must dos and then relax a bit and go with the flow sometimes. That combination serves us well.

[Anonymous]

Contact a Disney planner and ask them for help. It's free to you.

[Anonymous]

I have heard that the week right before Thanksgiving week is he least crowded week in the resort; you should still expect crowds, however because Disney does everything in it's power (discounted rooms, free meal plans) to maximize tourists all year long.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:None of those times are particularly slow.

My 4 yo was just as happy staying at Pop as when we stayed at the Contemporary. If you can get a cheap enough room on the monorail, that is probably worth it to you, the parent, for convenience. I found riding the buses at Pop entirely doable and worth the savings on room rates, even as a solo parent and carrying a stroller.

At 4, my son liked MK and AK best, and then select bits of Epcot and the Studios. If you don't want to pay for hopper passes and won't go to every park, I'd pick AK ahead of the other two. But my kid knows very few Disney characters, so that aspect of the Studios was not a factor for him.

How tall do you think he'll be when you visit? 40" and 44" (measured wearing reasonable shoes, but Disney is strict about the top of the head, and not just fluffy hair, touching the measuring stick) are the big cutoffs for rides.

www.yourfirstvisit.net, and the book that blogger wrote with the easywdw.com blogger, should be a good resource for a lot of your questions (although I think yourfirstvisit is overly focused on designing THE perfect DO-IT-ALL exhaustively-planned Disney trip; I'm more of a "missing out on something is an excuse to come back!" person)

OP here. My son is exactly 44" now, so I guess he'd qualify for the more advanced rides. We've actually never taken him to any amusement park, so all of this would be new to him. Not sure if he'd embrace it or run screaming (I'm hoping for the former).

[Anonymous]

I checked the crowd calendar at Touring Plans website. Crowd levels for the week of Veterans Day are around 6/10. Crowd levels for the week of Thanksgiving are around 8/10. MLK weekend through that Monday are 9/10. After that Monday, it drops off to 5/10 on Tuesday and 3/10 for the rest of MLK week.

I usually go with anything 7 or under when I am planning. If it was me, and my kid was 4, I would seriously considering flying in on MLK Day and enjoying the rest of the week with very low crowds. Veterans Day week will also be pretty decent.

[Anonymous]

OP, I would say at a cheaper resort or off and rent a car. On resort, you get free parking. I would go in October - we went last fall in September and it was still really hot. October still has the pools and water parks open. We found the moderate resorts really run down. I would not stay at the French Quarter again. Food was terrible. In less you have tons to spend, stay at the value resort or off nearby. Either way you are going to have to drive and take transportation (theirs can take forever). We got a really cheap rental car so it was worth it so we could go off property to eat, get stuff, etc.

There is so much to do he will find something he likes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I checked the crowd calendar at Touring Plans website. Crowd levels for the week of Veterans Day are around 6/10. Crowd levels for the week of Thanksgiving are around 8/10. MLK weekend through that Monday are 9/10. After that Monday, it drops off to 5/10 on Tuesday and 3/10 for the rest of MLK week.

I usually go with anything 7 or under when I am planning. If it was me, and my kid was 4, I would seriously considering flying in on MLK Day and enjoying the rest of the week with very low crowds. Veterans Day week will also be pretty decent.

I agree it's a much more enjoyable experience when crowds are low.

[Anonymous]

I was the person who mentioned above that there were significant crowds at MK the Tuesday after MLK day this year. It was still fun though but we went only because our kids were on break from school. If I had a preschooler I would go at a different time.

[Anonymous]

Since your kid is not school age, you will be much happier going at a time which is not a school vacation. I would recommend mid Nov -- skip thanksgiving week, then the week after thanksgiving to about a week before christmas. January and Feb are good except for MLK and presidents weekend.

You will be much happier...

[Anonymous]

I agree with all those saying to pick a visit time that isn't a school vacation time. Exactly which week to pick depends on how you prioritize crowds vs weather vs special events (being there for Halloween or Christmas or Food & Wine, etc) vs costs.