Orlando trip - need help

Upthewalls1

Hi all,

I'm planning a trip for our family for the end Oct/beginning Nov 2024. We've been twice before but the last time was about 7 years ago and I know a lot has changed since then. We are a party of 6 adults. That is myself and hubbie, two 22 year olds, a 20 year old and a 16 year old. For those trips I did a lot of research but I'm caring for my mother who has Alzheimers and lives with us and working and I've tried researching and getting my head around certain aspects of how the parks work now and I'm just addled as I don't have the time to research it properly.

Flights will be out soon for our dates which I will get booked as soon as they are, we will be looking to stay in a Villa which I'll organise and dh will research and organise car hire so I'm not worried about those aspects. Park tickets are fine too. We will be doing Universal and Disney as there are aspects of both we feel we cant miss out on (they have you caught every way lol) Also, we aren't interested in booking character dining etc.

What I am really anxious about is that I've heard you have to book the dates you're going to the different parks in advance... Is that right? Is that for both Disney and Universal? And how far in advance is that? Also, are there no free "fast passes" or whatever the equivalent is now? Do they all have to be paid for. If so we wont be paying as going to all the parks makes for a very expensive holiday but we really want to do both. The last time we were in Orlando we booked a night in the Universal Hard Rock hotel but at that time there were only 5 of us (bringing eldest daughters bf this time) and some of the kids were classed as children so we all fit in one room and it made it worth it financially. As far as I can tell this time as we would need 2 rooms it wouldn't work out any better for us to do this to get passes and parking. Having said that I'm not getting a chance to really look into it in detail so I'm not sure.

I looked into booking through a travel agent but it was working out significantly more expensive than I think it will be direct and they didn't seem to be able to quote for our exact requirements.

I'd be really grateful if anyone would take pity and explain the new fast pass/park booking scheme to me and offer any other advice in my situation. We've had a very hard few years and I want to make the most of this holiday and not mess any part of it up.

Thanks for reading x

Doodah7

Break it down into different categories: flights, accommodation, car hire, entertainment etc. and look at each one.

For a house, look on vrbo.com and there are hundreds of properties available all over Orlando. Just on the parks, are you sure your adult children will want to spend an awful lot of time there. Parts of Disney is VERY kiddie. They may be more interested in going to the Space Center or shopping or simply lying by the pool after a few beers the evening before!

Dav010

We brought our kids a few years back, some were the ages yours, some younger. I’d agree with the earlier poster, the older ones were pretty much done with Disney after the first day, by the end of the 10 day stay, they would have scratched their eyes out rather than go to a park for the 7th time. So don’t overdo it. We also stayed in a villa approx 15 min drive from the park, it worked out better than a hotel, but Christ I hated having to drive everywhere, I was glad to do it for everyone else but it ruined my holiday, if I was to do it again, I’d stay in a hotel in Disney.

duck.duck.go

If you have disabled in your group then the parks should give that person and a carer a way of skipping queues (Disney and universal did couple years back)

Fast passes are per ride now and expensive

As someone said above consider NASA it’s an hour and half drive away and there’s almost weekly rocket launches now which might be more interesting for the older ones, if the launch is before 8pm when the national park closes you can walk down beach here to within a few km of a launch

endofrainbow

Flights aren't necessarily cheapest when first released.

McSween

We stayed in Jacksonville for 14 months in 2015/16. Now we have two children and my wife doesnt want to go back, yet. Id love to, not bothered with Disney or Universal but have some friends we could visit. Onviously, we’d bring the kids to the above but i do not know how people do it for extended periods (vloggers etc)

Pixied

Hi

I've just booked Orlando for next Oct/Nov. Flights are out.

It is definitely overwhelming, at first :)

Join 'Orlando Tips For Irish' on Facebook, they are so helpful.

Also join Tour America, Magic Vacations, Cassidy Travel etc.. on Facebook. They have had Orlando deals for the last few weeks.

We're going to Universal. You can book the park tickets at any time before you leave. And you can book through a travel agent. A 14 day pass is cheaper than the shorter passes apparantly. I was quote about €1800 for 5 x 14 day Universal Park ticket. We may do a one day to Disney trip, but buy the ticket there.

I have booked a premium Orlando hotel for the first few days because it willgive us all free fast passes to skip queues for our stay whilst in the premium hotel. then we are off to a cheaper Universal hotel so we can avail of the free bus into Universal.

It is daunting at first but it will get easier :)

Str8outtaWuhan

Went this summer so pm me if you have any particular questions. They are removing that book each day thing from Disney in 2024

June11

I agree with some earlier posters - We travelled last year with 2 x 17 year old's and they had zero interest in Disney. They were more interested in Universal and Sea World which is great for anyone seriously into Roller Coasters. We based ourselves in Universal Hotels at end of International Drive and opted for Universal Annual Passes -(make sure validity dates suit your travel time as there are block out dates on the seasonal pass) these worked out cheaper than 5 day passes at the time and come with additional discounts - we had a family suite on top floor which I would recommend - it had microwave, coffee maker and Fridge. With annual pass you can get discounted hotel rates 30 to 60 days out from your arrival date. We booked the rooms further out than that to be sure of getting them and then cancelled that booking and booked when the annual pass room rates came out. We bought Lynx bus tickets which were posted directly to us in advance and tickets for IRide so we had lots of options to get around. You can also travel by Uber which we did a few times. With annual passes you also get 10% off food in the Universal Hotels. Didn't bother with the Express passes in Universal this time (we were there before) but the 2x 17 year old's opted for single rider passes a lot of the time which were actually great and worked out better than Express passes. NASA is well worth a visit - we got to see a rocket launch which was amazing - we booked the entrance tickets on a deal earlier in the year and then booked coach transport which picks you up and drops you off at a couple of places in Orlando. We have been 3 times and have never booked transport, however if you are staying in a Villa this might not be practical and you will probably need a car if you are a bit out of the way.

Irishder

Going myself in June, Myself, Wife, two sons (17 and 10). Flights booked, travelling through London could not justify the direct price. Plan is to rent a villa in Kissimmee and rent a car. We are only planning on doing universal only so will get the 14 day pass. Might do NASA. Need to get in gear and pick a villa now, there is so much choice. Really looking forward to it.

For tickets i think i am going to go with attraction tickets direct .com. Any other suggestions?

jmcgold

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121565877#Comment_121565877

I used a crowd called theparkprodigy.com for our tickets to universal. Good price and includes early park access. They responded quickly to any queries.

Irishder

Thanks had a look there, I'm looking for the 3 park 14 day tickets and it look like they don't have them, probably end up going with attractionticketsdirect.com

Vicxas

The park booking thing is gone as of the start of January and you can park hop between parks to your hearts content. Last time we went last year we booked the flights in Feb and they were the cheapest. Car rental was cheapest in June/July and we went through magicalvacationhomes.com for the villa.

Fast passes are a bit weirder. You use the app to book rides up to 60 days in advance, problem is other people will sweep them up quick. So i suggest you get a fast pass for each day. However they cost money per person per day. Think its like 15 dollars more, for the newer and most popular rides they charge even more.

Then theres virtual queues for those rides, where you dont queue but get a time slot and group number. Can be a little stressful but you can definitely kill time in the parks.

Would suggest attractiontickets.com for the tickets. They're normally the best price for both sets of parks.

Irishder

Apologies for hijacking this thread. We are travelling in June Dub --> LGW---> Orlando

I booked through BA but travelling DUB --> LGW with aer lingus

I see on the news yesterday that Aer Lingus are cancelling their Dub --> LGW route in March.

Where does this leave us? I rang BA and they said its not cancelled yet

Will they cancel the full trip or give us a few options?

steve-o

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121642700#Comment_121642700

They will probably send you an email telling you that you have been rerouted to Heathrow and you need to get a bus from Heathrow to Gatwick. Don't click "accept"! In these circumstances it's useful to do some research and find the option that suits you best and call them. Any options will have to be on BA or their close partners. You could ask for the direct Aer Lingus flight, but they may say no to that, so the next best options would be from Dublin on American, connecting in the US.

Kathnora

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121565877#Comment_121565877

I can recommend NASA. It's about 60 miles by car but an easy drive through rural area. I can imagine your sons will find it very interesting too. NASA provides a simulator space flight experience. Getting up close to a space shuttle and other rockets is amazing. Don't miss it!

McSween

Things changed here yesterday. We might go end of October 😀

based near snn. Deal we see is snn-ewr-mco and return mco-yyl-lhr-snn. 2500€. For two adults 2 children. United must be finishing the snn route so cannot come back with them. I added car hire on expedia and shows as 3150 for medium suv. We kight do a villa for 7 days and visit friends in jacksonville and daytona for remainder. A shame direct flights not plentiful at this tjme

naughtysmurf

We’ve done snn - ewr - mco return with united a couple of times & it was grand and reasonably priced, don’t think I’d fancy your return leg though, it will be exhausting

naughtysmurf

@McSween, have you looked at pulling your dates back by 2 weeks, may be able to do United in and out of SNN

McSween

i havent. we are factoring anticipated mid term dates in to this so unfortunately two weeks earlier wont work Appreciate the suggestion

McSween

The last leg of return is lhr to snn after arrival from canada, a near 3 hour wait. Id happily stay in premier inn the night but wife says might as well get home.

i dont really say any other brilliant flight options just yet

endofrainbow

Flight schedules usually change in October which is probably why you can't return with United (seasonal route). don't forget you will need an ETA for Canada (even if just connecting).

naughtysmurf

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121492559#Comment_121492559

If you’re arriving late afternoon or evening into MCO / Universal hotel, you’d be better off $$$ going to one of the cheaper hotels for the first night, check in to the Deluxe early the following morning, no point paying the extra if the parks are closed when you arrive, your bodies will think it’s midnight anyway, you can check in after 7am next morning , leave your bags & hit the parks

we have stayed at the Hard Rock, returning in May 25, villa booked but doing two separate 1 night stays at HRH to avail of 4 days of express passes

Marcusm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121642869#Comment_121642869

This is good advice not to passively accept the inconvenience of the reroute via bus. Saba also serves MCO from LHR but you’d need to check your dates.

Irishder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121642869#Comment_121642869

Thanks so much for the advice. Got a mail from Aer Lingus saying the flight was cancelled and they said there would be a follow on email with options.

I rang customer support and they said my only option was to go to Heathrow then travel to Gatwick, told them that was not acceptable.

They then offered me Dub-->JFK-->MCO told them no

They tehn offered Dub-->Boston-->MCO Told them no

THey finally agreed to Dub-->MCO direct. going and coming back a day earlier

Thrilled with that outcome, i owe you a pint.

naughtysmurf

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659247#Comment_121659247

Quite the result

you mentioned earlier that you’re only doing Universal but renting a villa, as I understand it, there are no villa rentals close to Universal as the area around Universal isn’t zoned for this, just so you’re aware, you’ll have a bit of a drive from where most of the villas in Kissimmee are & further if you choose one of the communities off highway 27, you could easily be 25km-40km away.Maybe search for 2/3 bed condo’s if you want to be closer. The villa we rented is in Indian Wells, 20km from Universal & 10km from Disney Springs, it’s an older community but we are fine with that & pretty close to everything so just going to Uber everywhere, alway had a car in the past

Irishder

Got a townhouse in Regal oaks, its about 20km away from Universal so not too bad. 14 day 3 park hopper ticket also booked through attractionticketsdirect.com. last thing to do now is book car hire. Any recommendations, i am hearing some horror some horror stories with people being charged extra fees at the desk when they try get the car. Also are we better off getting excess insurance from the hire company or is the 3rd party excess insurance better?

The costs definitely stack up don't they!

jmcgold

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121700286#Comment_121700286

I've booked through Alamo - they offered the best rates and you can do a "skip the desk" option whereby you go straight to the ca-rpark to pick your car. They were recommended to me by a guy I work with who does Orlando regularly.

I'm expecting a bunch of additional costs over there. Disney parks seem to be a science in themselves. Thought I'd get away without having to buy the genie+ etc., but now not so sure.

naughtysmurf

The first link, we’ve used three times, found them very good, everything you need is included, no upsell at the counter, if you choose their Alamo option, you can skip the desk & go straight to the garage & choose your car & drive to the exit where they scan your barcode

https://www.uscarhire.com/

This one is very popular on The Dibb with UK travellers & well reviewed, afaik it includes all your insurance etc

https://www.discountfloridacarhire.co.uk/

Irishder

Regarding Car hire, i see Universal are doing a deal where you get a free upgrade to premium parking if you book with Budget/Avis through thier website. Prices look good also. I am just a bit confused on what insurance i need. Is basic insurance covered? I usually get 3rd party excess insurance when renting in europe. Does that work in the US also?

fabvinny

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121700286#Comment_121700286

Have been there twice,used Alamo both times. No issue with them,no push to upgrade even though we got an upgrade the second trip. another family that traveled with us had huge issues with extra costs when they arrived but i cant remember what company that was.