Overview:
Once
again we decided to go in September, during the value
season to avoid the long lines. We went with another couple
with a child. So we had 4 adults and 2 children. We stayed
7 nights and spent 6 days at the park. We were able to
get the 50% airline discount on the room and we were also
able to get the Military discount on Tickets through
Shades
of Green. These discounts were available because we
had someone going with us that worked for an airline and
another that worked for the Department of Defense (DoD).
Rooms:
We originally were going to stay in one of the Cabins at
Fort
Wilderness. The only Home Away from Home that offered
the Airline Discount during our travel period. The rooms
appear to be somewhat small for 4 adults and 2 children,
but how much time do you plan on spending in the room!
We wanted something with a full kitchen to save money
on meals. Plus, the Fort Wilderness has tons of activities
available.
However,
due to one of the dangers of going so late in the season
we ended up being upgraded to another room. The danger,
Hurricanes and if you recall the Hurricane Season of 2004
was an extremely devastating season. Disney gave us the
option of cancelling without penalty or upgrading at no
extra charge to a 2 Bedroom Condo at
Old
Key West Resort because Hurricane Ivan's path could
possibly turn in toward Orlando. We decided to take a
chance and it worked out for us because the Hurricane
ended missing Orlando and we had wonderful weather the
whole week we were there. (Our thoughts and prayers
go out to all that were affected by any of those storms).
The campground was closed for precautions, so we
never got to see it first hand.
The
room that we had at Old Key West was great for the rate
we got it at! We had 2 separate bedrooms: one with a King
Size bed and one with 2 Doubles. Also, we had a fold-out
sleeper in the living room. Most important we had 2 full
bathrooms, which we would not have had in the Cabin. Being
another Home Away from Home, it had a full kitchen.
Tickets:
As
for tickets, we got the
Stars
and Stripes tickets from Shades of Green. This is
basically, the Ultimate Hopper Pass offered by Disney
at a discounted price for the Military. There is one huge
advantage to the Stars and Stripes over the Ultimate Hopper
Pass and that is you do not have to buy the tickets for
the “travel days”. With the Ultimate Hopper
Pass, you have to buy tickets for the day you check in
and the day you check out. This could be a couple of wasted
tickets, if you check in late and check out early to travel
because you paying for time at the park you are not using.
You can do a check out and check back in trick (see below)
to get around this, but that is another thing to worry
about.
Split-Stay
Trick for Ultimate Park Hopper Passes
If you only want a UPH for part of your stay, you can
always split your stay into two or more reservations,
and only add the UPH to one of the reservations. This
allows you to take advantage of the advance purchase discount.
Advantages of Staying on
Disney:
The biggest advantages to staying at a Disney resort is
the "Magic Hour" and Disney Transportation.
The Magic Hour was a great way to get the “big must-ride”
rides out of the way. I would imagine this being an even
bigger advantage during the peak season. We stood in line
for only 10 minutes for one ride the whole week we were
there. In fact, the longest wait times we had were at
the water parks.
We
were all a little disappointed with the Disney Bus Transportation.
It seems like we were always waiting for a Bus. Which
after repeating this between 2-6 times a day, it gets
old quick. It's a shame the MonoRail does not run between
the Resorts and Parks. I am not sure if the wait times
we had are the same for all resorts
(we
would love to hear from you about your experiences).
Another
advantage, although it was not available during our visit,
is the E-ride. When you check in to your Disney Resort
find out if there will be any E-Ride nights during your
stay. This is a night that the major attractions at the
Magic Kingdom will stay open for an extra 3 hours for
Disney resort guests. Wait times will be very short as
the tickets are limited to the first 5,000 guests. Currently
it is a $12 charge and only held at certain times of the
year. Well worth the price
Also,
if you plan on purchasing souvenirs at the parks, you
can have them delivered to your room for free. This is
another perk available to those that stay in a Disney
Resort. Just keep in mind, they need a couple of days
to deliver it to your room. So, check with the Front Desk
of your resort to get a better idea of how much time is
needed.
About
the Parks:
We
started out each day at the park that had the Magic Hour,
until we had seen the four major parks. We would spend
4 or so hours at that park and then come back to our room
for lunch and to relax. Then we would hit a different
park later that day. The only exception to this was Animal
Kingdom and we stayed longer at that park for two reasons.
One the park does not stay open as late, so it’s
best to do it in one day. The second reason was that we
could eat there really cheap
(check
out the tips section for more info). This schedule
really worked well for us.
The
days we went to the water parks we did it a little different.
We took a cooler with drinks and lunch in with us and
spent the first half of the day there. Then we went back
to the room changed and hit another park. I really enjoyed
Blizzard Beach, which was much better than Typhoon Lagoon.
If you can only get to one water park go to Blizzard Beach.
The only thing I liked about Typhoon Lagon was the wave
pool which was aesome, but it’s rides are disappointing.
Had we gone to Typhoon Lagoon first and then Blizzard
Beach, I may not be so down on it. Of course, if your
going to relax and lay out in the sun either would be
fine for that. Thinking back on it, I would spend around
4 hours at Blizzard Beach and an couple of hours at Typhoon
Lagoon (playing in the wave pool and checking out the
swimming with the sharks snorkel pool).
We
also visited Downtown Disney a couple of times in the
evening. We spent a few hours at Disney Quest. This is
a pretty cool arcade, which once you pay to get in (included
in the Ultimate Hopper/Stars and Strips, or you can use
an option on a Hopper Pass) the games are free. I can
see a teenager really enjoying this place. They have some
interactive games that you don’t see at most arcades.
We also enjoyed the many shops at Downtown Disney.
