August 2018 for 14 nights

[Guest]

I need to find a starting point for my learning.
We are going in August 2018 staying in Orlando Solterra.
I know that disney is comprised of several parks and i know that there is also another park called universal.
Other than that my knowledge is very limited.
I'd love to put together an agenda for all 9 of us (All ages from 80 to 8)

My questions are
1. What are the parks we MUST visit and what are those that can go further down the list
2. Do we need to "do" parks every day or will it be too much
3. What else is there to do ?
4.what tickets should we buy?
5. whats the cheapest place to get tickets?

thanks so much
hopefully this will help all other 2018 newbies too?

[Karl01]

Disneyworld consists of 4 theme parks, 2 water parks, a shopping and restaurant area and lots of hotels. It is a huge place and can take 15 minutes to drive from one side to the other. Universal consists of 2 theme parks, a shops and restaurants area, a few hotels and 1 waterpark. It isn't on the same scale as Disneyworld. In the same area is Seaworld, Discovery Cove and Aquatica. Further afield is Busch Gardens in Tampa and Kennedy Space Centre.
I don't think anyone can say what is a must do, it all depends on what everyone in your group will like, so you need to research what is at each park. There is no way that you can do everything though, you won't have time. You could easily spend 10 days at Disney World itself if you want to see everything, maybe the whole 2 weeks. Universal will take 3 - 4 days. It might be worth you buying an Orlando guide book. You don't need to do parks everyday, you can have rest days or maybe spend a few hours in a theme park in the morning and then have some pool time in the afternoon. You just have to take it at a pace that you are happy with. Beware of the crowds, if you go to Disney be sure to use the fastpasses. As far as tickets go, don't buy on the gate because it wastes time and is more expensive. There are several third party websites that you can buy tickets from in the UK as well as direct with the company. Good luck with your planning.

[0420wilmut]

Your first time planning will seem very overwhelming.
I'd suggest visiting all the Disney theme parks inc one of their water parks and both Universal parks too.
For our first visit 15 years ago, I purchased A Brits Guide and The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney books - both gave me a basic understanding of what to expect. It's definitely important for you to have a basic plan for each day. I would advise learning about Disney fastpasses too.
It's very easy to get overwhelmed. A good friend of mine went with her family for the first time recently. She was very overwhelmed before they went - they planed the basics and went with an open mind and quite simply had a ball! They are now saving and planning a second trip with a list of what they want to improve on.
Don't forget you can ask away on here too. Dibbers adore helping newbies and have stacks of advice to give.
Happy planning!

[Guest]

Thanks so much to Karl01 and 0420wilmut,

You have given me a great starting point
I will buy a guide

[Custancia]

The Unofficial guide was really really helpful when we first visited 2010 definitely recommended.

The other thing to be aware of is that it is Very hot and humid in Orlando in August. And there are often short heavy downpours during the afternoon. It's worth being able to be prepared for the weather, with mornings and evenings being a little cooler (but still hot) This might mean you have to pace yourself a bit more, or as we do, aim to do less or hotel/pool time mid Afternoon. Things like a 15 min walk from an attraction on one side of a park to another side, is more tiring in the heat.

Don't let this put you off though, you just need to aware.
We might unknowingly cross paths as we are going in Aug 2018 too

[halloweenbaby2]

With a two week trip don't try and do everything. The first time we went we only did the Disney Parks and even 2wks really wasn't enough as there was still things we missed doing. We also decided not to do Universal on our first trip as our daughter wouldn't be tall enough to get on a lot of the rides. We did it the next time though and really enjoy it.
The guide book is good advice, I'd also recommend reading trip reports off here - you will pick loads of tips up and get a feel for what you want to do.
Build in some rest time so that you don't burn out - we go to a water park on rest days.
Good luck and keep asking questions

[Guest]

thanks Custancia and Halloweenbaby2 and amandajane10

[amandajane10]

On our first visit with the kids we did the Disney Parks inc the water parks, Universal, Discovery Cove and Seaworld. I would have a look and see which Parks appeal to you and how busy you want to be. We were out every day but you might want more rest days. You could easily just do Disney for 2 weeks with rest/Pool days in between.

[Nazzer]

I would recommend brits guide to orlando. I used it my first time it's an excellent read.

[Tor32]

10 if us went on our first visit ranging from 4 to 70 so feel free to ask away. We did some basic prep before we went away but I hadn’t found the Dibb by then so you’ve made a good start! We tried to do Disney, Universal & Sea World. We barely touched the surface and when we went the second time in 2016 we did Disney and Kennedy and found it so much more relaxing. A basic guide book is a great place to start. Enjoy.