That Blozzz

Well it has been an interesting and rainy summer here in Northern New York. I have not been keeping up with much with my blogs. Karen and I have finally decided on our vacation for this year. It was a little more than I planned to spend but we ended up booking a Disney World Vacation.

We booked directly through Disney and we booked 8 nights at the Coronado Springs Resort. Our package includes the dinning package, airfare, and 7 days worth of tickets in the theme parks. This is our second time in Disney World and the first was just a 3 day trip. The trip is planned for August 24th through September 1st and we are super excited.

We have been searching for Disney tips and planning just about everything. Here are a few tips that I will share for those who are planning a trip.

1. If you have the dining package, book reservations for table service restaurants as early as possible. (up to 90 days ahead) We had trouble getting reservations for many places we wanted. We found out on some forums that people book more than one dinner in a night and cancel the ones they don;t want when they get there. Others are selling their reservations. Neither practice is fair or right but each to their own.
2. Bring your own snacks and bottled water or other drinks. At $2.50 and up per bottle, you can spend a small fortune in water. You can get free ice water at most food stands but the water taste bad. If you are flying, you can ship stuff ahead to the resort. We are going to order a case of water and a case of organic milk in non-perishable packages from Amazon. You can also ship it yourself but if you find free shipping, it will be cheaper.
3. Plan and plan more ahead of time. Disney’s website offers a free itinerary maker to plan your trip. We planned out the theme parks to match the extra hours offered by Disney for their resort guests.
4. If you have something to celebrate even if it is not the exact date, let Disney know. Our anniversary is in June and we are celebrating late due to work schedules. We were told that their may be perks like free snacks, gift cards or other treats. It does not always happen but the cast members jobs are to make your stay magical.
5. Watch email and phone messages. Many people have received free upgrades prior to their trips. It seems to be the value resorts that this happens but you never know. This is rare but their are many claims of receiving them.
6. Be willing to compromise to get what you want. If they do not have a dinner open for one of your restaurant choices, call the reservation phone number and see if they have a late lunch or something a different time. We end up booking our big meal for lunch one day because that was all that was open.
7. Plan carefully so you are in the same location any certain day as where you are eating dinner. It would suck to figure out that you have to travel an hour to get to your reservation.
8. Be sure to take advantage of Disney shuttles. They are free to all guest not just resort guest.
9. Have loads of fun and don’t stress.

If you have any other tips that you would like to add to help us and others, please leave a comment.