[Lilacwine]

Hi everyone!
I stumbled across this site while searching for deals on a trip to Disneyworld this summer. I must say, you guys are great! There's so much information here I hardly know where to begin! My name is Maria, and I haven't been to Disneyworld in probably 15 years. And I live in Miami, believe it or not! So this summer I'm planning a trip with my friends, and I would like to stay at one of the Disney Hotels (first time) for at least 5-6 nights.
But I'm getting very confused about the options. Park Hopper, Annual passes...:dazed I'm just not sure what the differences are. Does anyone know a site where I can sort these out and figure out what the best deal for me is? Any advice is greatly appreciated. I noticed the travel agency some of you are recommending. Would you say that I could trust them to come up with the best deal? My husband is in the military, but sadly, the armed forces salute expires before we go. (anytime in May) Well, thank you for any help you can give me! (This is a GREAT site!)
Regards,
Maria

[lopo]

First of all, Maria, welcome!

Are you familiar with Shades of Green (the site related to Disney for military people)? If not, I recommend that you visit the site (http://www.armymwr.com/shades/index.html); it is an excellent resource for those who qualify for their services.
In addition, you may find the info you'd like regarding the various passes available at this link: http://www.disneycentral.com/forum/s...er=descending. There are lots of other great places to look for help and/or advice (although you may find the most personal service here at DC!):p , so if you think of any other questions, etc., just let us know. I am sure that one of us will help you.

[Lilacwine]

Thanks for the info! Looks like the Shades of Green hotel has a lot to offer. They have 6 day hopper (3 plus option) for $270, or a "lenght of stay" (6 days) for $251. Good deals? I think the latter offers pretty much the same access as the former, except for the "plus". Does anyone have an opinion as to which is the better option?
Maria

[mickey]

I believe that Shades of Green is currently closed for a remodel and construction. They are apparently offing deals for military members to stay in other Disney hotels. I would call Shades of Green directly, or their official travel agency first, and find out what kind of deals you can get there. Don't settle for an off-property hotel, make sure that they book you into a Disney resort. After you do that, come back and tell us what kind of rate they gave you, and we can see if there is a better deal out there that we know of. You can also email Dreams Unlimted and ask them. They don't have a phone number, so you have to use email.

Shades of Green: 1-888-593-2242
Contus (military travel agency): 1-888-593-2242
Dreams Unlimited Travel

As for park passes, I would look at a Floriday resident annual pass. Look Here for pricing. Since I am not a Florida resident, I am not sure of pricing. There are quite a few FL people here who have an annual passport, and I am sure that they can chip in. Your other option would be a five day hopper or a five or six day hopper plus.

Let us know if you have any other questions. And welcome to DisneyCentral.com!

[mickey]

Originally posted by Lilacwine
Thanks for the info! Looks like the Shades of Green hotel has a lot to offer. They have 6 day hopper (3 plus option) for $270, or a "lenght of stay" (6 days) for $251. Good deals? I think the latter offers pretty much the same access as the former, except for the "plus". Does anyone have an opinion as to which is the better option?
Maria

Sorry, you were posting the same time I was responding to your last post. The only difference is that the plus allows you three additional choices of other things to do. The "pluses" are:

* Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park
* Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park
* Disney's River Country Water Park (Open Seasonally)
* DOWNTOWN DISNEY® Pleasure Island
* Disney's Wide World of Sports™ Complex ( Days of operation depend on event schedule)

So, if you think you are going to go to one of the water parks of Pleasure Island more than once during your stay, then the extra $29 is probably worth it for you. I would assume that when you said "a group of friends", you meant that it was all adults. If so, you will probably be going to PI, so it may be worth it to buy the plus hopper, and save a little money (PI is about $21 per visit). As far as a "good" deal goes, those prices are just slightly less than standard Disney pricing. You can see all of the ticket options

I hope that helped.here, with the exception of the FL annual passes.

[Lilacwine]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I am so excited about this vacation I can't think straight! You are a lot of help. I will definitely come back after I talk to them as you suggested, and tell you what they said. Pleasure Island is a for sure thing! I am so looking forward to going with friends instead of family. Don't get me wrong, family is GREAT, but without the little nieces and nephews I bet it is a whole different experience! Well, I am going to go do some research! Thanks again, you are SO helpful!!!
:D

[Cinderellafifi]

Make sure you investigate about your husband getting into the parks for free if he is active military...I read something about that somewhere.

If you don't think you will return to Disney again within the next 12 months, don't bother with the Fla. Annual Pass. Go ahead with the hoppers or length of stay pass because it includes so much more for your money.

Check into the military discounts for the single purchase tickets. I think you get into PI for half price. So, once you do the math, you can figure out which is more economical. I am betting that for the amount of time you are going and for what you are going to WANT to do - the length of stay is for you.

Just for your info, we purchased Annual Passes with our Fla. Resident and Disney Club discount and it came out to $515.00 for two adults, with tax. We were lucky cause we got 100 extra days due to when we purchased.

You are going to have a great time! Let us know where you go and what you do!

[lvbug]

Originally posted by Lilacwine
Hi everyone!
Does anyone know a site where I can sort these out and figure out what the best deal for me is? Any advice is greatly appreciated. I noticed the travel agency some of you are recommending

Welcome Lilac,
You know the best site for info about Disney is right here at Disney Central : ) But, if you are looking strictly for discount info www.mousesavers.com is excellent (just remember to come back here)

As far as travel agencies, I don't know what others are recommending, but, I am using Dreams Unlimited (www.dreamsunlimited.com) and they were very helpful answering everything right over the internet. Plus they supposedly review your itinerary to make sure you are getting the best price. They also make all of your PS reservations for you.
lvbug