Please Explain Disney (cruise, hotels, rail, calculate)
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I actually like February and early March ... it's after the Christmas holidays, so most people have gotten their traveling and vacations out of the way, and it's before all the Spring Breaks start happening.
Early December is also a good time. Crowds are moderate, but IMO it's worth it to see Disney in all its Christmas glory. The crowds really aren't too horrible, because it's between the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays when the crowds really ramp up.
We have found early Feb and last weeks of August to be the best crowd-wise. The heat in August forces you to slow down, which I REALLLLY love. We have discovered so many cool things outside of the parks just by slowing down. We go to Fort Wilderness, enjoy Trail's End, then go to the stables. Watch them shoeing horses, etc. Then grab a few cold ones and make our way to the beach to play some tetherball. It is the ultimate in relaxation. Nobody ever there on the beach, it's like a deserted island.
We love Splitzville....adults have a few drinks and some sushi, the kids bowl for an hour.
Boat rides up and down the Sassagoula are so relaxing (especially if there is a light rain!).
We go to Animal Kingdom Lodge and watch the animals on the savannah, or, if we are staying there, the pool at Kidani (and kid area) cannot be beat!
Mini golf is always fun, as is a nice stroll around Crescent Lake.
We have the kids go to Sandcastle Club for 3 - 4 hours and we grab dinner and then bar hop on the Boardwalk. Great people watching Plus, the fun acts - magicians, etc.
I hate what Disney is doing to the parks so we do not spend our money there, but their resorts and extra amenities are still worth my vacation time and money.
Biggest perk, IMO - Magical Express. We both HATE driving and being in a car. To be able to park our car at the home airport and not have to take the wheel again for a week+....worth all the premiums I pay to be at Disney..
I've been to Disney roughly a dozen times in my life, as my mom is a big fan (goes at least once every other year) and took me a number of times when I was younger. Although I have a lot of positive, nostalgic feelings about trips in the past, I feel it isn't the same place it was when I was young, and am questioning whether it's really worth the price to go anymore.
I don't remember 1-2 hour waits for many attractions those times I went as a kid, which seems to be common these days - even during "low season." I remember when you used to be able to go right up and get a FastPass without having to book it two months in advance. It's hard (and IMO, not a lot of fun) to plan out a theme park day that far in advance. I also remember going every other year, and there were always multiple new attractions/shows/etc to see each time. At my most recent visit last fall, I hadn't been to WDW in 5.5 years, and there very little at the parks that was new to me. From what I hear, Disney is choosing to invest in "Vacation Club" properties for the folks that pay money to go every year rather than new attractions in the theme parks. I remember when you used to be able to book a room at a "value" resort for under $100/night during low season, and a room at a "moderate" resort during value season now costs more per night than an oceanfront condo my husband and I rented on Maui a few years back. I remember when all multi-day tickets were non expiring and allowed park hopping, and didn't charge an extra fee for either option.
I think a lot of Disney's ongoing success isn't that they (currently) offer a high quality product worth the money, but on the reputation they have built. Most parents of young kids feel they owe it to their kids to take them at least once during their childhood - even if they have to take out a second mortgage to do so - and there are also the folks who have the nostalgia and enjoy going year after year. At our most recent trip, my husband and I took a day to go to Universal, and IMO Universal has done a much better job at adding new, exciting, cutting edge attractions to their theme parks than Disney. Disney's Hollywood Studios (WDW's movie-themed park) looked old and dated compared to either of the Universal parks.
However, I can explain a few things about Disney that make it appealing for a vacation. To my knowledge, it is the only theme park vacation you can take and get a fully immersive experience. You can take the Disney bus from the airport, stay at a Disney resort, and take Disney transit to the theme parks/Dowtown Disney/water parks/etc without having to rent a car. I don't think a Disney vacation would feel the same staying off site. I mentioned my mom usually goes at least once every other year, and usually finds something new to do each time - be it a behind the scenes tour, seeing a new festival by going at a different time of year, etc. For her, it's not the same vacation seeing the same attractions again and again. And last fall, it was a blast seeing my 2 year old experience it all for the first time. However, the part he enjoyed the most was meeting characters, and didn't care a lot about "rides." His favorite "ride" was actually the spinning tea cups (which were miserable in the heat/humidity), of which a similar ride exists at a kiddie ride park close to home. I think he got just about as much joy from the WDW trip as he did when we took him to see Disney on Ice a few months later, though we only had to pay $25 a ticket for the latter
The family finally did the Disney trip. I don't get it! Ridiculously expensive, two hour waits for most rides, crowded, cranky people everywhere. I can see doing this one time for the experience, but people who do this over and over again for days? I just don't get it!
Some people really enjoy the experience. personally i wouldnt go to Disney if it were free.
I remember when Disneyworld opened and everytime a relative and their family came to town they'd get me to take them to Disney, first couple of times wasnt bad but later visits were just a been there done that scenario of walking miles in the hot humid Florida weather and paying an arm and a leg for the experience..
FWIW - I really think WDW is a very (or at least up until the last year or so) affordable vacation. We typically go for 10 - 12 days and don't spend much over $3000. Granted, we stay where it is cheapest...either a value or a heavily discounted moderate/deluxe. We eat breakfast in our room, snack for lunch, and a nice table service dinner. Plus alcohol, tips, and kids clubs.
I don't think that $3000 is so bad for a long vacation somewhere "tropical" and "all-inclusive". Am I misguided?
We priced out a week in Northern Wisconsin at a resort. Looking at $1200 for the cabin, $300 for the rental car, $100 for gas, minimum, $300, minimum for food for the week, and then to rent a boat it's $175/day plus gas. So, figure 2 - 3 days of that is $550 or so. Totaling just under $2500. For a rustic cabin in the woods. Which, is great, but palm trees and constant activity is more my speed than fishing and listening to crickets. Add in the local tourist traps (local jam, anyone?), renting watercycles, kayaks, buying bait, a fishing license, etc....it comes out to be close to the same cost. for 5 days less in a less ideal (IMO) location.
Just throwing it out there. I have rarely found Disney to be anymore expensive than any other vacation I price out. But, I also know where and when to look for deals. Which definitely helps. Paying rack rate is never the best option..
I thought Disneylands/worlds are meant for little girls under the age of 14. Do adults really spend thousands of $ there waiting for all sorts of "rides" in the heat?
Really? There are no better destinations to visit in the US/North America than a giant man-made theme park filled with fake castles?
That's the problem with vacations and traveling today. The world is becoming so homogenized and commercialized that once you get off the plane to somewhere it's almost like you never left.
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Plus, the fun acts - magicians, etc.
