[MickeyRon]

Everyone please help! Here is what I have...

We are staying off property due to cost... only 300.00 for 8 nights! I have a Character Breakfast at Ohana's and lunch at the royal castle, could not get breakfast :cry: my 5 year old will be very disappointed!:cry: We also have reservations for Hoop Dee Doo... Is this good? I have heard great, but I have never been... read lots of reviews, but it always seems a little lame???:dazed So let me know...

We have 4 day hoppers, not plus. We are coming with our 5 year old daughter and our 2 neices, and 1 nephew... and of course their parents for a total of 8 of us! Child ages rages from 5 - 12... What are must sees and those that can wait???

HELP!

[MickeyRon]

sorry forgot to tell you that we are going in October 10th - 17th to be exact! Please tell me we won't hit major crowds!

[trishb]

Let me be the first to welcome you to DC! You will love it here!

My only advice is to do a little homework, pick up a guidebook before you go to be familiar with the basics...and enjoy every minute of your trip. Don't get hung up on doing everything there is to do, just Relax and smell the popcorn!

[iluvwdw]

Originally posted by trishb
Don't get hung up on doing everything there is to do, just Relax and smell the popcorn!

And the bakery as you enter the MK on Main Street USA!!!!

Welcome to DC, rengland! You will find all of the Disney information you could ever want here!!! Oh, and as for guide books, I cannot recommend the PASSPORTER and BIRNBAUMS enough...these will be MUST HAVES each year for me!!!

Oh, and you will be leaving WDW on a great day...my b-day!!! :laugh

[ajbdk5]

Welcome to Disney Central rengland!:)

Okay, first you mentioned that your daughter is heart broken because you couldn't get the Princess breakfast in the castle.

I would like to recommend the "Princess Storybook" breakfast in EPCOT or the "Cinderella's Gala Feast" dinner at 1900 Park Fare in the Grand Floridian resort. The 1st will have a variety of princesses(Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine, Mulan), the 2nd has Cinderella, the Prince, a couple of the mice and Fairy Godmother.;) Since you have a few girls going, I bet one or both of these meals would be a huge hit with them!

Also, I really like the Hoop-Dee-Doo, and quite a few others here do too. If you already have the reservations, I think you should keep them, it's a fun WDW experience!:)

Good Luck and Happy Planning!

Amy

[roncss]

rengland, welcome to DC:D :D . I agree with iluvwdw. The guides are important, especially Birnbaum's for your first trip. You will probably not be able to see and do everything, so be sure to enjoy what you are able to get done. Another Character Breakfast we really like is at Crystal Palace in MK. It is Winnie the Pooh, Tigger and that crowd. We just enjoy the heck out of that one. Hoop De Doo Revue is also a lot of fun. I think the kids will also enjoy most of it. And the food is usually above average!! Enjoy. For an extra treat, catch a boat at Wilderness Lodge or at the Ticket & Transportation Center and take to Ft. Wilderness, where the HDDR is.:) :)

[BDavis932]

Welcome aboard....you've come to the right place for information. That week in October is MY FAVORITE time of year to go.....can I go with you???? j/k!!

If it were me, I would change to dinner at O'hana...

The price is great and the all you can eat shrimp, steak, turkey, and pork are awesome!!

Also, if you can get in to 1900 Park Fare or the Princess Storybook Breakfast at EPCOT, I would skip lunch in the castle.

Another option would be breakfast at Chef Mickey's....that is always FUN for any age.

Everyone has suggested guidebooks, and my personal favorite is Birnbaums...you can pick this years copy up 1/2 off at the Disney Store or on Amazon.com right now. But I would also suggest going to www.wdwig.com. There is everything from menus and pricing at all the restaurants to free things to do at WDW on that site....check it out....but be sure to stick around Disney Central and ask away....we're always glad to share our Disney experiences!!!:)

[jbtoursejg]

I agree with BDAVIS about the 'Ohana dinner being better. I also noted that you have a 4 day park hopper pass. This means that 1/2 of your days will be doing things other than park toruing. I would suggest that you spend a day at Fort Wilderness camp grounds. They have bikes to rent, horses and a petting zoo, and lots of other fun things to do. You may even want to do this on the day that you have Hoop-dee-do tickets so as not to miss a night in the parks. I might also suggest that you not plan to spend one full day in each park. If you split up your day, such as EPCOT in the morning until early afternoon then (after a break if you take one) you could do Magic Kingdom or MGM for later afternoon and evening. This way if one park has certain things you really like you can do them twice and not have to do major schedule changes. Have fun!!

[LRTJS]

Glad you joined us! Welcome! Since it is your first trip with small ones you will want to make sure you cover Fantasyland. I would think covering the major attractions would be more important to them then where they eat! It always was to my kids. I have all 3 major guidebooks and my favorite by far is the Unofficial Guide. You will want to catch Mickey's Philharmagic that starts Oct. 8. Do you have the video from WDW? That can really help you plan for the major attractions. I think you are wise to save money this time by staying off property. You can do things like the Hoop de doo which you might not be able to otherwise. But, start saving soon as you get home for next time!!

[mduarte13]

I was not sure if you meant "rides and attractions" "food" or both, so I will give you my thoughts....

For younger kids, attraction wise, I would not miss It's a Small World...and while the adults may find this annoying (personally I can deal with 1 or 2 rides), the kids just love this!

Mickey's Philharmagic, Spectromagic Parade at night, and of course you will catch the new Wishes Fireworks display.

If you can get the Princess Storybook breakfast (in Norway), I would cancel the PS for lunch at the castle. Cinderella may not even show up at lunch time.

Chef Mickey's in the Contempory is great fun!

In MGM, the Prime Time Cafe and Sci Fi Drive in are fun.

[disneydana]

Welcome to DC rengland!! I'm also a big fan of the Unofficial Guide because it has tons of information. I usually use the one designed for traveling with kids and use it along with Birnbaums. Planning for this trip, I have used www.tourguidemike.com and have really liked it. Be sure to plan because that is how you will get the most out of your trip.

On my kids first trip, we skipped EPCOT and just did the other parks. This trip we are seeing EPCOT. Personally, I would plan on two days at the MK since your kids will probably like that park the most. I think it takes two days to see all of it, whereas, you can probably do the other parks in one day. Another suggestion is to try some resort restaurants with character meals on the days you are not spending in the parks--oh, and go to the Boardwalk too on your days off.

Have a great time planning--that is half the fun!!:) :)

[baloo]

Welcome to DC! I agree with everyone that you should definately have a plan of what you want to do before you get to a park but be flexible, it makes for a much more enjoyable time. The crowds at the time you will be there (by the way, we're going to be there from the 10th-15th and the 3 day cruise from the 16th-19th) are usually not to bad to deal with but you can take advantage of the Fastpass on some of the rides at each park. This helps get some things in that otherwise you wouldn't have gotten to do.

Happy planning. :D

[gcbdad]

Welcome aboard rengland. I know that you will find lots of great information on this site but one site I have been to that has lots of great information is wdwig.com.

[JK5]

:) You'll enjoy the time of year you're going! Warm enough to swim cool enough to enjoy:) Since you're traveling with little ones make use of the fast pass and baby swap. My kids love this, especially my older ones they benifit from the baby swap the most. Guide books are a must. If you don't want to purchase one check out your library. This site has a lot of great stuff too. Check out parade times before you go as well as fireworks for each of the parks then you can plan accordingly if you want to see them. You can get the park hours and special events online at disneyworld.com. Have a great time. My crew won't be far behind you. We're going the week of Halloween :)

[MickeyRon]

Okay... Here we go... of course you all have been so helpful, but also have created numerous questions!

So I have the 2002 copy of Birnbaum's and I just received from a friend today the Unofficial Guide 1998 edition. So are these too old? Also, are any of you familier with a website that wants 30.00 to join to recieve the online guide? If so is it worth the 30.00 it is a guide and coupons???

Who ever suggested the other Disney opportunities outside of the parks can you please elaborate what is available... is it expensive or most of these activities free? remember we are off property...

Question: It seems that on property vs. off property = off property = Cinderella's of the mouse house... is this true? Just seems that you finally make it to the Ball, but in the nick of time! All get to enjoy, but in this case Property guest seem to be the ones with the glass slipper??? true?

I have been reading up on the Hoop dee doo... HELP I hearing many mixed reactions... now seems to be weighing more neg than pos???? This one has me baffled, not sure what to do with those reservations....

I'm sure I will have more questions!

ALL THANK YOU SOOO MUCH I CAN TELL YOU WILL BE MAKING OUR VACATION 100% BETTER...:) :heart :) :heart :)