Beginner - Need help

[Rafael2020]

Hello, I am wanting to plan a trip to Florida for summer 2022. I have never been and when I look at some of the prices they are crazy. Can anyone recommend the best way to book for value for money as we have to go in the school holidays?
There are 2 adults and 2 children, we would like to do 17 days roughly and we would like to visit Disney and Universal. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Including car hire, accommodation and best tickets for the parks etc. Thank you x

[Gryff]

Do you want to stay in a hotel on or off site or is an apartment town house or villa more your thing
Your need for a car will be dependent on where you stay as resort fees and car parking can ramp up the costs although we’d never go without a car
Tickets are the expensive item and the options change frequently we are annual pass holders so I’m afraid I’m not sure what the best options are right now
Car hire Andy on here Discount Florida Car hire has some great deals but car hire is only really bootable around 12 months out and never book without a free cancellation
Policy many of us seasoned car hirers book and cancel and rebook on a regular basis
I’m sure more will be along soon with more advice

[Disneybear]

I think new bookings for packages in 2022 are only available with Tui and Virgin at the moment, but haven’t looked extensively. Who are you looking to book with? And what airport are you looking at? In my experience London tends to be cheaper. I tend to book packages with BA as they always come out the cheapest for me but they only sell 11 months out. Staying off site (not a universal or Disney hotel) will save you money buy as Gryff mentions, car hire costs need to factor in car parking fees at the theme parks (typically around $24 per day), fuel and car insurance. Alternatives to car hire are using Uber/Lyft and utilising your hotel shuttle service which can save money but it’s not as convenient.
Theme park tickets are usually the most expensive element to the holiday for us, and we don’t do Disney and universal in the same trip for this reason. If you want to do more then one theme park then adding on seaworld tickets is a cheaper alternative. Seaworld usually have good ticket deals which include aquatica water park and Busch gardens with free parking. You can also usually add on discovery cove non-dolphin swim ticket for not much more.

ETA I recommend picking up a ‘brits guide to Orlando’ guide book for a good overview of all your options if you’ve not already got one.

[toots82]

Hi and welcome,

You honestly have a million options and also a load of stuff to think about.

- do you want to fly indirect to maybe save a bit there, or are you wanting direct flights (if you're flying from London anyway that may not matter, we are Scotland so it can make quite a difference to us)

- will someone drive? this opens up to villa stays and lots of off site options but then uber etc can be good too...my dh drives so I'm clueless about that.

- do you want to stay onsite and be in the bubble? both disney and universal have onsite options and different levels and prices of accommodation.

Honestly, what I would do is read some trip reports, read some onsite and offsite and get a feeling for it all and see what peaks your interest. From there you can start searching the forums for more info and asking for more advice. Personally we love a split stay, a week onsite in Disney, a night at Universal at one of the hotels which give express passes then finish off in a villa for space and chill time. Still pop into the parks but loads of pool time too.

[Gasman66]

Welcome to the DIBB
and please remember there is no such thing as a daft question on here, so do not be afraid to ask away... happy planning...

[teamsingo134]

Can't help with booking in school holidays etc but I would say if this is your first visit, once you have the bug it won't be your last.

One of your biggest costs will be park tickets, I would seriously think do you want to try and cram 6+ parks in, in 2 weeks or take it all in and just do Disney or Universal?

The temptation to do it all is huge but after 10 days you can end up burning out and it ends up not being enjoyable.

As a family with 2 kids we now look to do one or the other, not only to make it more of a holiday than a let's cram it all in trip, but the cost saving of only taking one set of tickets can be quite a lot.

Also think if you have 2 lots of 14 day tickets, you can't do all parks at the same time.

[Tinkerbell]

Originally Posted by teamsingo134

Can't help with booking in school holidays etc but I would say if this is your first visit, once you have the bug it won't be your last.

One of your biggest costs will be park tickets, I would seriously think do you want to try and cram 6+ parks in, in 2 weeks or take it all in and just do Disney or Universal?

The temptation to do it all is huge but after 10 days you can end up burning out and it ends up not being enjoyable.

As a family with 2 kids we now look to do one or the other, not only to make it more of a holiday than a let's cram it all in trip, but the cost saving of only taking one set of tickets can be quite a lot.

Also think if you have 2 lots of 14 day tickets, you can't do all parks at the same time.

See more...

I agree, don’t underestimate the time you’ll need in the parks, scheduling Fastpasses etc at WDW and how tiring it can be.

I started a thread the other day on doing Orlando on a budget. Lots of good tips on there already

https://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/sho... php?t=1186442

How old are the children? Spend some time looking at the various parks and see which ones suit your family the best. For instance I’ve done WDW lots of times with younger children and my mum. Next time it’s US as it’s , for me , a slightly more adult vibe. Do you like water parks etc

As for crazy prices covid is a big unknown at the moment so prices now , iIMHO, May not reflect what is actually going to happen.

Good luck and keep asking the questions

[mick]

Originally Posted by Gasman66

Welcome to the DIBB
and please remember there is no such thing as a daft question on here, so do not be afraid to ask away... happy planning...

See more...

This is certainly true.

Can't really add much to all this advice - my speciality is driving over there. Know nothing about WDW hotels and haven't been to a park since 2010.

You will however need an ESTA so PLEASE use the official site https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/ as there are other sites which will get you an ESTA but will charge a fortune. Do them around 6 months out. They last 2 years from approval or until you get a new passport.

Mick

[Blue nose]

I would say price it up for this year so you can see what you might have to pay. Price direct flights v indirect. Price onsite accommodation v off-site plus parking/car hire.

We did our first visit with just Disney
onsite and 14 only days plus one day Discovery Cove meant we saw most things, Didn't feel rushed and saved on tickets for other places.

Depends on age of kids and more importantly their height. Our DS would have just made the universal rides but DD wouldn't so we felt it wasn't fair to go and her miss out

We're planning a split say either this year or next to do both next time.

Happy planning and Keep asking 👍

[luckystrikes]

Welcome to the dibb, I have to say joining this forum is one of the best things you could have done to help you. Loads of knowledgeable and friendly people. Ask any question you have and someone will have an answer for you.

First thing I would say is looking at pricing it up and booking yourself will save you loads. You will need flights, accommodation and tickets as a minimum but depending how you plan on getting around then you may want to hire a car (personally we go for a villa so always hire a car).