We are going to Disney World!!
Why is that a big deal, you may be asking? Millions of people visit the world-famous park every year, why should my trip be any different?
Truth is - it's probably not. But I've been researching Pinterest, YouTube videos (definitely check out Adam Hattan's video's! These have been invaluable to me and have helped me make up my mind on a lot of things we're planning!), talking to friends, and getting in contact with travel agents and I thought I'd share my process with any other mom's of toddler/preschool age kids that are asking themselves the same question we've been fielding: Will it be worth it? If I had a nickel for every time I was told "she won't remember it" I wouldn't have to save a penny for this trip.
Newsflash: She probably won't. But she won't remember when we celebrate Christmas this year either. Should we cancel it? I'm going to go with a big fat no on that one! Now, ultimately, every family and every child is different and you have to do what is in your family's best interest! No mom-shaming allowed! If you know your kid won't remember it and that's reason enough for you to decide to wait, by all means, wait! There is no right or wrong answer here!
Another reason I've decided to blog throughout this process is because we are a middle to low income family and I want to show you how we are going to do all the things with some elbow grease and savings! Just because you're not in the top 1% doesn't mean you can't take your family on a magic carpet ride!
So where do we start? Well, my Mary Kay training has taught me something important when it comes to planning your Disney Vacation. Decide. Set a date. Plan. Work. That's the recipe for success! I've already said "I've made the decision." So the next step is:
Set A Date
What goes into that? Your family's variables. Are there kids going? Are they in school or homeschooled? What weather does your family enjoy? How are you around large crowds?
For us, we have one little, Caroline. She'll be roughly 4.5 years old when we go, so no school to contend with. Both she and my husband are hot boxes, so warm weather is out. If I put the two of them in 80+ temps we won't leave the pool except to go to the air conditioned hotel room. From my research, I've found that around January the temps in Orlando range from mid-50's to mid-70's with "chilly" evenings! Perfect! January also boasts low crowd numbers if you avoid the Run Disney weekend. Which is ridiculously perfect for us, because we don't like to be among the masses. Let's just say Mom's watched a few too many "my child was abducted" stories and Daddy's a worrier as is. Less crowds = Less anxiety.
Plan, Plan, Plan, and Plan again!
Mary Kay always taught us, to fail to plan is to plan to fail! And if you're attempting to be budget-friendly, trust me. The planning stage is intense. I found an old notebook that hadn't been used yet and have been jotting down itineraries, quick tips from websites and video's, lists of rides, etc. It's also helped to narrow down what day we will be doing "what." Because we can't be gone for long, and we generally get antsy being away from home for too long, we are planning a 3 night/4 day trip. We went to Vegas to watch my best friend get married this past April (and yes, C had a blast! Maybe I'll post on that too, later.) and found a rhythm that really worked for us. We take the earliest flight out on our way to our destination and the latest flight available on the way home, which helps to maximize your days.
The trick with Disney is that some events are only offered at certain times and/or certain days. We are planning to do lunch at Akershus Hall with the Princesses the day we arrive. If all goes as I'm projecting (actual flights aren't available yet), we will land at MCO around 8:55. The lunch at Akershus (in Epcot) is only available by reservation from 11:55-3:30, so when my 180 day mark hits and I'm allowed to make Advanced Dining Reservations, I'll be shooting for a late lunch around 1. Having 4 hours to get to the hotel and make our way to lunch should be more than enough. We should even be able to see some stuff on our way there without too much of a rush!
Which reminds me to mention that you need to know your transportation options. We plan to utilize Disney's Magical Express which will collect our luggage and deposit them to our room for us - all we have to do is let them know to expect us, make sure our Magic Bands are in our carry-on's, and jump on the Disney Express to check in officially! You can also rent cars, or, I read that you can Lyft/Uber from the airport as long as you aren't on airport property (you'd have to cross the street) - it's possible that that information is now outdated and you can get picked up right at the door, but double check it!
Ok, so you know when you're going. You know how long you'd like to be gone, and you know how you're getting to and from the airport. Where are you going to stay?
Husband and I have decided the monorail availability is worth paying a little extra for one of the pricier hotels. With C still being little and possibly needing a nap during the day, we don't want to worry about buses or boats. Keeping in mind, of course, that the monorail doesn't service all of the parks, so we will still need a bus for our day at Hollywood Studios. Back in 1996 I stayed at the Polynesian with my family and wow. It was absolutely gorgeous. But ever since C was a little baby and saw a commercial for the Grand Floridian...I instantly cried tears of hope to take her there one day. Then there was the commercial with Cinderella running down the main staircase at the GF and *done* that will be my hotel with my little princess.
I know what you're thinking now, "I thought you said you were middle/low class - how in the world will you stay at a Deluxe Resort?!" Because PLANNING. January is off-season. Which means Disney will typically offer an incentive to Stay, Play, and Dine with them for a discount. Which means booking entirely through Disney, you can get the same stay that I'm planning for around $3200 (not including flights). Not picky about the monorail? For under $2000 you're at the Caribbean Beach. And because you're planning this a year in advance - you've got a lot of time to save up! I should also add that the Stay, Play, Dine packages include your Disney Dining Plan which means you're getting 1 Table Service, 1 Counter Service, and 1 Snack per day, per person. And it's going to save you around $700 if you're paying for 2 adults and 1 child.
You can also rent a room with the Disney Vacation Club! Make sure you go through a trusted site for rentals, but they can save you a pretty penny! For example: A standard room at the GF around the time we want to go is about $640/night. Or, you can stay at their DVC villa for roughly $850...for 3 nights. Keep in mind that the best selection of DVC rooms book up around 11 months in advance - or at least that's when you're advised to book to get the room you want - so you'll want to be exploring those options yesterday. Check out YouTube to see reviews of the hotels! This is where Adam has been a stinking God-sent for me. (This is my favorite video of his so far, btw, if you want to see the GF and these adorable human beings, click here!) After watching his tour of GF and the GF DVC Villa, I was able to make a much more informed opinion about our upcoming trip! Remember those commercials that made me cry? They don't take place in the Villa's. The shops and restaurants are not in the Villa's. They're all close by - but if you want to be in the moment, you may want to plan on one of the Disney Packages and not rent the rooms! You should also know that DVC rooms are not included in any of the ticket/dining special offers that will be floating across your TV screen. Just more to think about and plan for ;)
What else is worth the extra cash to you, since you're saving up for a whole year or so? For me, I want the Early Morning Magic experience! For my family, it'll set us back around $200, but it will be worth every penny to have an all you can eat breakfast, access to 3 rides we will want to go on anyway, and have Fantasyland all to ourselves for a couple of hours. Remember - we don't like big crowds - so the extra money is absolutely worth it for us! And because "she won't remember it," I'm going to want A LOT of pictures! And what better way to get them than having a professional photographer with us (almost) every step of the way? The Memory Maker package will cost you about $150 if you book it in advance, but you don't pay a penny for any of the photo's that are taken, you can actually be in them without taking a selfie (although, I do love a good selfie! I wonder if the Photographer would selfie with us?), you're not using as much of your own camera/phone battery (ask me how that could save you around $30), and they add magic to your photos! Your little Prince/Princess holding Tinkerbell. Who doesn't want that?!
In my magical notebook that I'm using, I've written lists of events/rides that I think we might be interested in or that I know nothing about. Then, after C is asleep, or sometimes while we're curled up together, I jump on YouTube and do a search for that ride or event. Some things come highly recommended by seemingly everyone on the internet, and yet...I don't think we'll be spending time doing them. For instance, Fantasmic. There are very few reviews I've seen that say not to watch it. And maybe we will - but remember, we have 3.5 days to get in 3 parks and everything we have to see. Don't fill up your day with stuff the internet told you to do, just because you read it online. I have also realized that my memories of Haunted Mansion and my desire to jump on it again are pretty much going to have to stay where they are for a bit. After watching some of the video's and inviting C to watch them with me, it's going to be too scary for her and the last thing I want to do is traumatize my child because *I* want to go on a ride. If we were going with a group and I could pop on with someone else, I probably would add it to the list, but the truth is that it's just the three of us and I don't want to miss a moment with my two loves! All of this planning has also helped me to realize where our "rest" portion of the trip is going to come in.
Until late 2019, Star Wars Land is not open. Which means Hollywood Studio's is going through a lot of renovations and to be honest, we probably would skip it all together except it's where the Disney Jr Live! Stage Show is, as well as Hollywood & Vine's Character Breakfast. This is where knowing your days comes in handy. Doc, Sofia, Handy Manny, and Jake are only there at breakfast. Which means our day 1 is out as well as the day we are doing Early Morning Magic. Which actually works out, because if all goes as planned, Hollywood Studio's will be our day three and we will be ready for some rest that late afternoon/evening back at the resort. And it allows for everything we've been dreaming about and still being able to close out our trip with a second swing through the Magic Kingdom!
If you're taking a late flight, why not get extra time in one of the parks? The Magical Express will let you know the day before what time to be ready for pick up. If we don't need to be to the hotel until 4pm, I'd imagine we can spend all morning up until 2:30 or so at MK before hopping on the monorail to say goodbye to the happiest place on earth!
WORK
Ok you're planning, planning, planning some more - don't stop! Keep planning lol! But now you need to fund this vacation. I'm a visual person. If I don't see it, it isn't real. So I've dedicated one of my dry-erase boards to vacation planning. Mary Kay also teaches us that "A tracked number never lies," so if you're making your ADR's with 180 days to take off and you haven't saved a penny yet...you're probably going to be stressed way more than I care to be. With a type of working vision board, you can check off the things you're working for. Get the kids involved! Let them color in the $150 Memory Maker box!
Pick up things here and there! I just signed up with Poshmark to sell some of the items in my closet that I don't need/want anymore. What will I do with that money? Ummm search Poshmark for Disney apparel. Go ahead, I'll wait. Cute, right?! There's vacation clothes and even accessories! One Christmas I got hand sanitizers as part of a "beauty" basket my Nana gave me (don't judge me, I love my purse size sanitizers!) Well, one of them happens to be on a clip that can hang off a backpack! Which I will need for Disney! So I've not got a box started with it in it and I'll be adding dollar store poncho's, a portable batter charger, wet wipes, small Kleenex packages, and more to that box as I pick them up. You're not going to notice the $10 charger from TJ Maxx now, but if you wait until takeoff and you're dipping into souvenir money - it won't be pretty.
Even your work requires a plan. How many months until everything needs to be paid? If you're renting with DVC the room needs to be paid for almost immediately and the dining plan option must be added (paid in full) no later than 2 weeks from check in. How much do you make in a month? For me, my only "work" is Mary Kay. Which means if I want to save $250/month, I need to sell double that. Plus my bills. I need to be busy with around one beauty experience per week. Hey, did you need any Mary Kay, by the way? lol! If you aren't in DS and have a conventional job, like Husband does, I'll be looking at his salary paycheck, seeing where there's extra, and seeing if I can cut back anywhere else. Which I think we all could do. Seriously, does anyone leave Target spending less than $60? And what happens to all that stuff you had to have once you get it unloaded from the car? Be strong! Your trip depends on you! Which reminds me, while you're at Target, pick up a Disney Gift Card! You'll save 5% if you use your RED Card, be fulfilling that Target check out quota, and being super proactive all at the same time! I figure if I buy $700 in gift cards to pay for our dining package, I'll save around $35. Which doesn't seem like much until your in a souvenir shop and your little is hugging a stuffed animal. Then you'll be glad you had it!
There's SO much more, but you're looking at all of the Pinterest boards anyway, right? No need to re-read everything they've already said! If you're interested, here's what I'm pinning on my Our 1st Disney Trip! board!
What will we tackle next? I'm thinking apparel. I've never been one of those girls with great fashion, but doggone it, for Disney I must look my best! And I've already been looking at the perfect footwear for comfort and style...according to the reviews ;) Until next time! GO PLAN!
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