I am sure lil99 will chime in with more, but my wife and I took our 4 year old last December, and here is what I'd say...

• Deluxe was worth it to us because there were a couple of nights that had extra park hours (and lower crowds) if you were staying at a deluxe resort. One night was Magic Kingdom and one was Epcot. We stayed at the Boardwalk and it was cool at Christmas. (If there is no promo like this, it might not be worth it.)
• We also spent money on the after hours Christmas party at MK one night. Again, worth it for lower crowds and extra hours. Also recommend this because it gets you to MK on a day when you can go to other parks during the day or even work a rest day in with the party that night. (Do Epcot the day after this if you can since it opens late.)
• The after hours things (if available) make the hard to come-by rides much more manageable. Things like Seven Dwarves, the Frozen ride, etc, are much easier to make happen (sometimes multiple times).

So...it might depend on what the promos are, but we leveraged every after-hour opportunity to the last minute and rode lots of things. Our four year old hung on like a champ until after midnight some nights, and as a result got to ride a lot of rides multiple times.

Another resort option is Disney Vacation Club. This is their timeshare and owners can rent them out either directly or thru rental stores. You can rent a studio to a 3 bedroom. They get all the benefits of staying deluxe like early entry. A lot of renters find this is cheaper than booking a deluxe hotel. You also get free resort parking unlike hotel stays and of course free park parking.

Thanks! How would I book one of these?

Try DVC Rental or Dave's Vacation Rental. You may find rentals for a specific date and resort, but most will be rentals that you pick resort, type of room and date. They will find a owner that can satisfy those request. The furthest out that a request can be met is 11 months. Much harder to find dates that are near. Stays can be for as little as one night.

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We are thinking of going in early Dec flying in on Sun, parks Mon-Thurs, fly out on Fri. Any recommendations on which hotel for 2 40 year olds and our 10 year old daughter?

Is it worth getting a deluxe resort if we spend most of the day at the parks or better to just get a moderate? We plan on hitting each park for one day. Any recommendations?

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Shoot me an email (in profile) and I will happy to assist. If you are going to stay at the parks most of the day and don't really need deluxe accommodations, the Value and Moderate resorts will be a good option. They have plenty of amenities and many have been recently updated.


Some things to keep in mind when renting DVC points....

-The cost is non-refundable! Make sure of your plan before you make your reservation. DVC rules are very strict and will not provide you with a refund if you have to cancel (even if it's for a reason beyond your control such as a hurricane). Strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance to protect your investment.

-There is limited availability at the many resorts. Many DVC rooms will sell out early (especially during peak vacation times).

-Daily housekeeping is available for an additional fee and must be added to the cost of your rental at the time of booking.

-You will not make the reservation with Disney directly. The property owner must do it for you. It is very important that you rent from a reputable source.

-Payment is due in full at the time of booking.

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-The cost is non-refundable! Make sure of your plan before you make your reservation. DVC rules are very strict and will not provide you with a refund if you have to cancel (even if it's for a reason beyond your control such as a hurricane). Strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance to protect your investment.

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I think the DVC rental store has a refund policy for credit if something comes up. I'm looking at doing this b/c I have a family of 6. You can possibly get a deluxe suite for a comparable price to Art of Animation. Going this route does give me some pause though for the other reasons you mentioned.

Send me an email and we can at least discuss options.

I understand the DVC rental works well for many families. I also realize most people think they are going to get a monorail resort, but are often staying at Saratoga Springs or Old Key West (both are good resorts).

I believe most if not all deluxe studios have a max of 5 unless one is under 3. I would look for a 2BR where you have a full kitchen and washer/dryer. Plus 2 full bathrooms. Disboards has a excellent travel forum. We have also used Undercover Tourist for discounted tickets when we don't have annual passes and just used them for a rental car that was much lower than Costco. We have owned DVC since 1997.

I know some of you have been waiting for this to come back to Disney parks. Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique returns August 25th.

https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2022/06/bibbidi-bobbidi-boutique-returns-august-25

DVC member here: Max occupancy for a deluxe and 1-bedroom DVC rooms is 5 people. Under age of 3 doesn't count in the number.

As far as renting points, I've rented my points on Disboards.com a couple of times and was lucky both times the renters were mature adults.

Where's your home resort? Ours is Boardwalk. Leaving in 10 days, but staying at Saratoga.

Copper Creek

Staying at Baylake end of August. Big fan of Saratoga since it's walking distance to Disney springs (if you're room is near the lobby/pool area)

Yep, I'm stuck with a 2-bedroom or one of the value resort suites. The value family suite is still the cheapest but for not that much more it looks like we can rent a 2-bedroom at one of the resorts with access to boat, skyliner, etc. The last time we went the washer/dryer and fridge were money.

Looking to go again in about 18 months.

Yeah w/d and the kitchen was money when we went with my in-laws last thanksgiving

So you don't need a ticket to the park for the mickeys very merry Christmas party, you just need tickets to that event, correct? I read you can go in as early as 4 pm, so basically 8 hours in magic Kingdom? How bad are the lines and wait times and what not during that event?

Sea Speed said:

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So you don't need a ticket to the park for the mickeys very merry Christmas party, you just need tickets to that event, correct? I read you can go in as early as 4 pm, so basically 8 hours in magic Kingdom? How bad are the lines and wait times and what not during that event?

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You need a ticket for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. If anyone is interested, you can purchase the tickets through me.

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/magic-kingdom/mickeys-very-merry-christmas-party/#drawer-card-drawerPartyDatesDetails

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Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party will take place from 7:00 PM to midnight.
Ticket holders will be admitted to Magic Kingdom park as early as 4:00 PM on the valid date of their ticketgiving them even more time to enjoy some park favorites before the event begins! These date-specific event tickets do not require an additional theme park ticket or theme park reservation.

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Right but you don't need a ticket for magic Kingdom thst day as well, just for the Christmas party, correct?

Is there value in it as far as rides and meet and greets go?

You do not need a ticket for Magic Kingdom if you have a ticket for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. You will be allowed in at 4pm. If you would like to enter prior to 4pm, you will need a ticket to Magic Kingdom. Disney sells a limited number of tickets to the event, so the crowds will be smaller. As the evening goes on, the standby lines for rides is minimal.

There are unique characters (dressed in Christmas attire), a special parade and fireworks show, hot cocoa and cookies, etc. When it comes to meet-and-greets, I would the lines can be significant. The characters will not be dressed up in this gear on normal days.

Gotcha. Could be worth it if the kids can be troopers until midnight haha

Are there baby sitting services in the area where some sort of vetted sitter would come to your hotel and watch a baby while you are at this thing? My 1 year old wouldn't make it but the other kids would love it.

Just a rec for Chris..I was a first time Disney-goer and he made the scheduling and everything waaayyyy easy for me. I thought I had everything planned out and he let me know what would and probably wouldn't work (trying to have lunch at other boardwalk but staying at MK). Which I 100% am thankful for since I had no clue just how spread out everything was.

He was great for a first timer and will use him again next time we go. Even had suggestions a "Disney lifer" never thought of.

We've been to several times very merry Christmas pre-Covid. We didn't go last year because you still couldn't be close to the characters and you had to wear a mask. The character meet and greets seem to be getting back to pre-Covid days. There are some characters that you will only get to see and take pictures with during the Christmas party and not at the park during regular hours.

for example

• All 7 dwarves (this is probably the most popular one I remember correctly, the line for 7 dwarves start at 5pm and the pictures start at 7
• the princesses and their princes
• Cinderella's fairy god mother and step sisters

Lines for rides definitely dies down as the night goes on especially after the first parade especially

My wife and I did the exact same days right after New Years this year….flew in on Sunday and back on Friday. Went to Disney Springs after arriving then did one day in each park. Had Park Hopper option but only used it on the last day when we finished up AK early and went back to HS. Friday we rented a car at the airport and drove to Kennedy Space Center before coming back for our evening flight (highly recommended). Weather was perfect the entire time except the arrival day was on the warm side…cold front came through that night.

We stayed at Port Orleans French Quarter. We thought it was great. Certain parks may have one extended night each week if you stay at a deluxe, and the deluxe resorts tend to be located where you don't have to bus to each park (though we didn't have any issues with the system at POFQ). We did take advantage of the earlier opening hours for all Disney Resort guests…you'll definitely want to take advantage of that.

Ok, help me understand magic bands. We're staying offsite, but did get Genie plus. Are the bands worthwhile? Wafts the point?

It is just a way to store your info and pay for stuff etc I believe.

On that note, is there a benefit in doing genie or genie plus or whatever that is? Is it worth the cost or is it easy to use?

Also you can get the magic band 2 for like $19 on eBay. Looks to be cheaper than from Disney and the ones I saw say they comendirectly from Disney, however that works.

Sea Speed said:

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On that note, is there a benefit in doing genie or genie plus or whatever that is? Is it worth the cost or is it easy to use?

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it is a bit confusing, esp if you were used to fast pass. i think it's worth it (esp for the top tier attractions) but look up some guides so you know how to maximize the benefit

Magic Bands are nice to have. Kids love them. If you are staying offsite, you can't use them to pay for things in the park though. To me the benefit of them is for kids to open hotel doors and pay for things in the parks. Makes them feel like a big shot.

Genie+ is absolutely worth it in Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. We still buy it for Epcot and Animal Kingdom but I think its value is questionable in those parks. I also am a fan of buying the individual lightning lanes. Some people complain about the nickle and diming, but I don't go often and don't mind paying for the shorter lines. If you do buy it be sure to watch some of the videos on youtube about strategies. You have to be smart about how you use it to really be effective.

Best strategy: Book a Private VIP Tour. Endless lightning lane privileges. Best seat in the house for fireworks. Private transportation between the parks.

For those interested, vaccination requirements have been update starting on October 14th sailings.

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Beginning October 14, 2022 (Disney Wish, Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy and Disney Wonder)

This policy will apply to Disney Magic sailings beginning November 7, 2022.

GUESTS AGES 12 AND OLDER

• Full vaccination not required but highly recommended
• Testing for fully vaccinated Guests not required
  
  • To be exempt from testing requirements, fully vaccinated Guests must upload their proof of vaccination to the Inspire Diagnostics Safe Passage website by midnight prior to embarkation day.
• Testing for unvaccinated Guests required
  
  • Unvaccinated Guests must provide results of a COVID-19 test taken 1 to 2 days before sail date. The test may be an observed antigen test through a proctored telehealth service with digital results. A rapid or lab-based PCR test, or Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT) are also acceptable.

GUESTS AGES 5 TO 11

• Full vaccination not required but highly recommended
• Testing for fully vaccinated Guests not required
  
  • To be exempt from testing requirements, fully vaccinated Guests must upload their proof of vaccination to the Inspire Diagnostics Safe Passage website by midnight prior to embarkation day.
• Testing for unvaccinated Guests required
  
  • Unvaccinated Guests must provide results of a COVID-19 test taken 1 to 2 days before sail date. The test may be an observed antigen test through a proctored telehealth service with digital results. A rapid or lab-based PCR test, or Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT) are also acceptable.

GUESTS AGES 4 AND YOUNGER

• Full vaccination not required but highly recommended
• Testing not required

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https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/why-cruise-disney/experience-updates/us/

A quick note......

Disney ticket prices will be going up in early December. If you are looking at a Disney vacation for the rest of 2022 or 2023, reach out to me book and save a some money.

As someone who's never been on a cruise, never wanted to, but now has a two year old and wants an easy vacation, are Disney cruises worth the price over Royal Caribbean? My son does love Mickey mouse. But not sure he knows a single other Disney character. Also, I'm in houston so is it worth it to fly to Miami for those ships vs just out of houston?

We just got back from a Disney cruise - three day to Bahamas out of Port Canaveral. We took our 3 and 4 year old and it was great. We didn't use the child care services much, but the boats are a blast for younger kids - movies, pools, and food are great. Your 2 year old is probably a little young and if not toilet trained, it limits what you can do with the pool. We did not get off the boat in Nassau with the kids - just not enough to do there for them. However, Castaway Cay is fantastic and was great for the kids. They loved the beach, slides, food, and even riding the tram.

Disney does sail from NOLA and Galveston, so you don't need to go to Miami. I think Galveston sailings are only to Cozumel. NOLA goes east and west. We've sailed out of NOLA once to Cozumel, and it was good, but I prefer the Carribean.

It is expensive, but the quality of the boat, food, and entertainment is top notch. I am not a cruise person. But had a blast.

I agree for younger kids Disney is fantastic. We did a 4 day one out of Galveston when our kids were a little younger. We met our kids miss a day of school and that cruise was quite a bit cheaper than ones that happen when kids are out of school. Service and food are really good too.

htxag09 said:

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As someone who's never been on a cruise, never wanted to, but now has a two year old and wants an easy vacation, are Disney cruises worth the price over Royal Caribbean? My son does love Mickey mouse. But not sure he knows a single other Disney character. Also, I'm in houston so is it worth it to fly to Miami for those ships vs just out of houston?

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done about 6 disney and 20+ royal caribbean. disney cruises are not worth the price over royal caribbean.

disney can be every bit of 2x as much. you may get disagreement from disney fanatics (which i get, btw). but i think a reasonable worth would say it's definitely not worth it unless you're obsessed with the mouse.

Ticket pricing going up December 8th. Contact me to get your Disney vacation booked.