Don and his true love, Jasmine

Last week, I posed the question on Facebook “What do you want to know about planning a trip to Disney World?” You asked … and we answered. I got my husband, Don, involved because – truthfully – he is the REAL expert.

How can you relax at Disney?
Don: Have a plan.   Stay in one area of the park at a time €¦trying to  €œcriss cross € back and forth will add MILES to your walking!   If you’re staying on property, you can always go back to your room mid day.   We often take  €œnaps € on the train (we’ve ridden around 4-5 times before) and the Liberty Square Riverboat has a small interior area with padded benches!   Best advice  €“ relax and enjoy your surroundings!

Stephanie: Every year we say that we are going to slow down and take a more comfortable pace. We never do. The pools are wonderful (although we’ve never used them) and since they are heated – we are going to make an effort to jump in at least once this time. Other than that – we don’t relax. I’d be lying if I said we did.

How much does the trip cost?
Don: It depends on what time of year you go and where you stay.   There are 3 levels of on site resorts:   Deluxe, Moderate and Value.   There are also value seasons and they often run sales (I.E. 40% off rack rate of your room, free dining, etc.).   Disney USUALLY runs the same sales every year.   You can check out the historic discounts here.

We stay in the value resorts and go during the value season.   Our current trip cost approx. $2,100 for 8 days and 7 nights AND we got free dining!   We’re going during the value season and staying at the POP Century resort (value) and that price includes 8 days of tickets for 2 adults and 2 children.

Stephanie: I’ve read before that you can plan on $1,000 per person. If you want a worst case scenario, use that figure to plan. But, it is highly probable that if you go at the right time of year and stay on property, you can do it for much less.

What website should I be using to find out the correct info and estimate the cost for a trip?
Don: The Disney website will allow you to pick your dates, hotel, tickets, etc. and give you the current price.   There are several other websites where you can join forums and ask questions, etc.   Our two favorite forums are WDW Info and the DISboards.   There are other sites that also provide a WEALTH of information:   MouseSavers, WDW News, Maps, and Menus.

Do you have a meal plan?
Don: Yes, we think the meal plan is a GREAT value.   There are others that disagree, but for our family it works out great.   There are several options. We use the  €œMagic Your Way € which includes 1 snack, 1 counter service meal and 1 table service meal per person, per day!   It’s more food than you can ever eat!

Stephanie: We’ve done the dining plan with the table service meal twice and the dining plan with all quick/counter service once. It made a world of difference to have the one table service meal worked in. There are so many options for counter service, but after 8 days – I wanted a good, sit down meal.

The plans are a lot of food, but we like to eat …. and we’re on vacation, so bring it on!

Do you eat/snack in the room?
Don: YES!   And €¦most people are not aware that you can take food and drinks into the parks with you.   We usually stock our backpacks with snacks for the day as well as water bottles (you can refill at drinking fountains).   We also take the small kool-aid packages to mix with the water for the kids.   We usually have pop tarts, snacks, bottle water, soda, etc. shipped to the hotel BEFORE we arrive!   There is no additional cost €¦we don’t have to carry all this stuff on the plane with us, and some stores will ship for FREE!   (Remember to check out the office supply stores like Office Depot, Staples, etc.   they usually have everything we need and offer free shipping).

Where do we stay?
Don: We stay in the value resorts.   We’ve stayed at All Star Movies and our favorite POP Century Resort.   We just can’t justify spending the extra money on a high end resort when we’re rarely there!   I will say €¦it would be nice to stay at a resort on the monorail line one day!

Best Character meal?
Don: There are several that we really like.   The most popular is Chef Mickey’s located in the Contemporary Hotel.   It has the  €œfab five € characters (Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald and Pluto).   We also like Cinderella’s Royal Table located inside Cinderella Castle!   For breakfast and lunch they have ALL the princesses.   Beware  €“ this books up VERY fast and you must make your reservation 180 days out to ensure seating (MOST character meals book up very early €¦make reservations as soon as you can).

What are some great spots to visit outside of the parks?
Don: Off property  €“ we don’t know, as we always stay on property the entire time!   On property, there are MANY things to do outside of the 4 parks.   The deluxe resorts are always fun to visit, especially during the Christmas holidays €¦tons of decorations, etc.   Downtown Disney is always a fun place to go.   We do most of our souvenir shopping in Downtown Disney and there’s always entertainment going on.   I would also check out the Boardwalk, tons of entertainment, etc.

Do you use the phone apps?   Do they work?
Don: There are a couple that we use.   There is one call  €œLines € by touringplans.com that gives you wait times, fast pass availability, etc.   We’ve found that their  €œestimated € times are not very accurate towards the end of the day, but you can also see where other people have posted exact times from within the parks and those are VERY accurate.   The more people that post wait times, the better it is for everyone, so please post times while you’re in the park!   Disney also has an  €œofficial € wait time app, but it’s not very good.   Disney does have a dining app which is GREAT if you want to find a table service restaurant with availability either before your trip or during.

What is our favorite area to stay at the POP Century Resort?
Don: There is an up charge for  €œpreferred rooms. €   Preferred just means you are closer to Classic Hall (dining room, bus stop, front desk, etc.) €¦.the rooms are EXACTLY the same, you’re just paying for location.   You can book a standard room and still get close to Classic Hall.   We prefer buildings 3, 4, 5 or 6 facing the lake (if you face the pool, you get the noise from other guest playing in the pool).   You can request certain buildings, locations, etc. up to 5 days prior to your arrival.

Do you rent a stroller?
Don: We used to, until they had a MASSIVE price increase!   Single:   $15/day,   Double $31/day.   We purchased a stroller that collapses down and it works great.   Remember  €“ if you rent, you don’t have the stroller if you’re visiting anywhere outside the parks.

Stephanie: I’ll use a stroller until their heads pop out the top. Since we don’t go back to the room to nap, it’s a lifesaver for us – especially at night when the parks stay open late. We don’t want to go back to the room, but we CAN NOT carry around a sleeping child or two.

There are a lot of places off-site to rent a stroller, but if you will use it again   – I recommend just buying one on your own. We have a Maclaran Double Triumph. I love it!!! Folds perfectly flat which is great for navigating on and off of the bus. It retails for about $300, but we found it on Craigslist in perfect condition for $80.

What are some inexpensive ways to surprise the kids?
Don: There are several things we do.   The one they like the most is Mickey leaving them things at night!   We’ll pre-purchase t-shirts, glow sticks, etc. and leave them out at night €¦it’s like Christmas morning at Disney World!

Stephanie: If you’ve been before, you’ve probably been suckered into buying the “light toys” that they sell during parade time. We always grab those from previous years without the kids knowing and toss them into our backpacks. When it gets dark, we pull them out and the kids have a new toy! Since they haven’t played with it in a year (you know how that goes!), it’s magical all over again! Remember to replace the batteries!!!