Taking the girlfriend and my kids to the World in late May, and for those who make the drive, which way do you go? I have done the 78 to Brimingham to Atlanta to Orlando way, and the Birmingham to Dothan Alabama through Tallahassee way. What is the easiest way for you, and is 78 almost finished in Alabama yet?
I went the Atlanta way a couple of years ago and it was terrible, but it was the day after Xmas so the heavy seasonal traffic may have been the problem. We drove back the old way through Alabama and cruised home without any delays. We are going again, leaving as soon as I get home from the CUSA championship game so I would also be interested in hearing how the drives are after 2 years.
whoyarootinfor Wrote:Taking the girlfriend and my kids to the World in late May, and for those who make the drive, which way do you go? I have done the 78 to Brimingham to Atlanta to Orlando way, and the Birmingham to Dothan Alabama through Tallahassee way. What is the easiest way for you, and is 78 almost finished in Alabama yet?
Don't go through Tallahassee...I-10 is the most boring stretch of road around.
birmingham/dothan/talahassee is how i go to in-laws in jacksonville. we go to orlando from there usually.
frontier has forced NWA to drop their fares to orlando starting in may. somewhere around the $165 per range.
tigerjeb Wrote:birmingham/dothan/talahassee is how i go to in-laws in jacksonville. we go to orlando from there usually.
frontier has forced NWA to drop their fares to orlando starting in may. somewhere around the $165 per range.
ucf here we come!!!
Who knows the best kept $$$ saving secrets to going to see the mouse? Two girls here and the oldest is ready to go but the youngest would be old enough to enjoy it next summer. Any ideas to help spend less green?
eltigre Wrote:Who knows the best kept $$$ saving secrets to going to see the mouse? Two girls here and the oldest is ready to go but the youngest would be old enough to enjoy it next summer. Any ideas to help spend less green?
#1 Go in late Jan when gas prices are usually cheapest of the year.
#2 Stay off site. I love the resort hotels inside the world but truthfully, you are so tired at the end of the day you really just need a place to sleep.
eltigre Wrote:Who knows the best kept $$$ saving secrets to going to see the mouse? Two girls here and the oldest is ready to go but the youngest would be old enough to enjoy it next summer. Any ideas to help spend less green?
It will be expensive, but
http://www.mousesavers.com has some suggestions on saving money. I'm taking my family for Spring Break (It is going to be crazy!).
rssumme Wrote:eltigre Wrote:Who knows the best kept $$$ saving secrets to going to see the mouse? Two girls here and the oldest is ready to go but the youngest would be old enough to enjoy it next summer. Any ideas to help spend less green?
#1 Go in late Jan when gas prices are usually cheapest of the year.
#2 Stay off site. I love the resort hotels inside the world but truthfully, you are so tired at the end of the day you really just need a place to sleep.
It won't save you money(which was the question) but I would totally disagree about staying off site. If you really want to get home and go to sleep then stay on site and be home in 10 minutes. Just went last Oct and stayed on site and we were never more than a 10 minute monorail/boat ride from our hotel. It does cost more but its so convenient. Its nice to be at the park in about 10 minutes too. Not sure how old your girls are but if they are not too old-bring a stroller or buy one at the park(we bought one at our hotel on site for $30 yes we forgot to bring our own) and it was cheaper than renting one for $10 a day. This alone could have made our trip 50% more enjoyable. Kids get tired.
Thanks for the tips and the link. I was thinking I could buy a buick or take the girls to see the mouse. I want to see him too. I want to meet their marketing department then punch each one in the face before enjoying a $7 hot dog.
eltigre Wrote:Thanks for the tips and the link. I was thinking I could buy a buick or take the girls to see the mouse. I want to see him too. I want to meet their marketing department then punch each one in the face before enjoying a $7 hot dog.
Look into the meal plan too-some people swear by it and some people hate it. It worked pretty good for us. My kid always had something she wanted, I of course could eat just about anything and other than my wife who is super picky and hardly does not eat it was pretty good. Its actually too much food. The restaurant on top of the Contemp. hotel on site is really good-probably the best at all of Disney
I currently live in Orlando and I've made the drive back to Memphis twice in the last 6 months while taking each route (Birmingham/Dothan/Tallahassee/I-10 and Birmingham/Atlanta/I-75).
Personally I felt the Birmingham/Atlanta/I-75 route was the quicker of the two. With this route it's freeway driving all the way through. HWY 78 from Memphis to Birmingham is an easy drive now that the highway is nearly complete (no exiting and re-entering the freeway like before).
The other route while more of a straight shot, takes you through the heart of lots of small towns (Troy, Al among others) in which you'll have to deal with stop and go traffic along with other traffic issues. You really don't get to "floor it" until you reach the Florida state line and I-10.
My last trip in November I left my fiancee's apartment in midtown around 9:30am and going the 78/I-20/I-75 route I made it back to my house in Orlando around 10:20pm local time (9:20pm central). Traveling with young kids though obviously will require more frequent stops.
Last time we made the trip to Walt Disney World (May 05) we went Birmingham->Dothan->Tallahassee.
Dothan is almost halfway between Memphis and Orlando.
Memphis to Dothan, AL- 437 miles
Dothan to WDW- 361 miles
If you want to break the trip in half, drive to Dothan and get a cheap room somewhere on the west stretch of Ross Clark Circle. You can get a room for around $40 and there's a Shoney's (breakfast buffet) on that stretch of road.
Check here for places to stay:
http://www.dothanalcvb.com/./component/o.../search,*/
You can get up pretty early the next morning, grab breakfast, hit the road and you'll be at WDW in approximately 6 to 7 hours. Depending on how you drive, maybe closer to 6.
Now, aside from that, here's something to think about that's
not politically correct. If you're talking about late May as in Memorial Day, you're going to have a LOT of company. You may or may not have a problem with it, but the kids will be exposed to stuff you might not be ready for them to see.
rssumme Wrote:eltigre Wrote:Who knows the best kept $$$ saving secrets to going to see the mouse? Two girls here and the oldest is ready to go but the youngest would be old enough to enjoy it next summer. Any ideas to help spend less green?
#1 Go in late Jan when gas prices are usually cheapest of the year.
#2 Stay off site. I love the resort hotels inside the world but truthfully, you are so tired at the end of the day you really just need a place to sleep.
Don't stay offsite. They now have so many different categories of hotels that you can stay anywhere from $79-$1,000 per night, depending on the season. The "cheap" hotels aren't much more than a bed and bathroom, but the grounds of those hotels are fun for kids and they have good pools, etc. Plus, if you don't stay on-site, you have to pay $10 per day to park.
If you fly in (I personally can't imagine not flying, but I have the advantage of a direct flight on Southwest), you can save money by using their airport shuttle service (free if you are staying on site), which will save you a rental car.
Also, they periodically release discount codes for hotel savings (around 40%). You just have to research onliine.
I took my girls this Christmas. I would go thru Dothan; it seems the quickest way. Also, I highly recommend staying on-site. I know it's more expensive but it definately adds to the experience. We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and had a view of the Giraffe Savannah out our window. The kids loved waking up and watching the animals.
I also recommend dinner at Cinderella's Castle if you are lucky enough to get a reservation. We managed to have Christmas dinner there and it's something my kids will remember forever.
Stay on site by all means. When I was there several years ago, they would open one of the parks every day an hour early for on park guests, and you could get in the park and hit the most desirable rides before the masses ever get in the park.
Here is what our plan was. Get up and eat early, head out for the 8 a.m opening of your selected park (they opened to the general public at 9), play and have fun till around noon, by then you are TIRED!!! Go back to the hotel, lounge by the pool, let the kids swim, take a nap, what ever, then head back into the parks around 6 and stay out till 9 or 10. It was really a good way to see everything and not wear yourself to a frazzel.
Also, on site guests get ID cards that you set up with your credit account at the hotel. You don't need any cash, just show your card and it goes on your bill. Anything you buy in the park, they will deliver to your room. You don't have to carry it around with you all day.
We were there for a week and never went back to the car one time while we were there. Hotel price included park hopper passes too. Disney is the master of making a vacation fun and easy.
Enjoy!!!
mapdude Wrote:Stay on site by all means. When I was there several years ago, they would open one of the parks every day an hour early for on park guests, and you could get in the park and hit the most desirable rides before the masses ever get in the park.
Here is what our plan was. Get up and eat early, head out for the 8 a.m opening of your selected park (they opened to the general public at 9), play and have fun till around noon, by then you are TIRED!!! Go back to the hotel, lounge by the pool, let the kids swim, take a nap, what ever, then head back into the parks around 6 and stay out till 9 or 10. It was really a good way to see everything and not wear yourself to a frazzel.
Also, on site guests get ID cards that you set up with your credit account at the hotel. You don't need any cash, just show your card and it goes on your bill. Anything you buy in the park, they will deliver to your room. You don't have to carry it around with you all day.
We were there for a week and never went back to the car one time while we were there. Hotel price included park hopper passes too. Disney is the master of making a vacation fun and easy.
Enjoy!!!
We had the same experience a few years ago. Staying on-site ended up being the right choice. The room we had was very basic, 2 beds, a television, bathroom, and it was a bit cramped. The size of the room wasn't an issue because by the time we got back to our room, everyone was so tired we just took showers and fell asleep. We caught a shuttle bus (7:30am I think) to whatever park was opening early that day. As Mapdude said, it was a nice perk getting into the park an hour before they opened the doors to the general public. His idea about coming back to the room to rest is one we should have tried. We stayed at the park all day and when evening comes, you're tired and people are getting cranky and wouldn't you know it...there's still another 2 hours before the fireworks begin. We held off going until ours were 9 and 6. I felt like any kid that required being carried or pushed in a stroller would be too young to remember much about their trip.
The extra-hour thing has changed. Now, resort guests get into a selected park either one hour early or get to stay in the park three hours late. For example, when we went a few weeks ago, Sunday was an extra hour night at Magic Kingdom, so it was open three hours late if you were staying on-site, Friday was an extra hour night at Epcot, Saturday was an extra hour morning at MGM. It just depends on what day it is. (Can you tell that we go WAY too much??)
A good website for all things DisneyWorld is
http://www.allearsnet.com
Quote:Now, aside from that, here's something to think about that's not politically correct. If you're talking about late May as in Memorial Day, you're going to have a LOT of company. You may or may not have a problem with it, but the kids will be exposed to stuff you might not be ready for them to see.
You mean to tell me that Memorial Day is the day? Gay day? How long does it last? That is not good news, not that there is anything wrong with that.
whoyarootinfor Wrote:Quote:Now, aside from that, here's something to think about that's not politically correct. If you're talking about late May as in Memorial Day, you're going to have a LOT of company. You may or may not have a problem with it, but the kids will be exposed to stuff you might not be ready for them to see.
You mean to tell me that Memorial Day is the day? Gay day? How long does it last? That is not good news, not that there is anything wrong with that.
Yep, Memorial Day weekend is gay days. We spent our honeymoon there that week unaware of the "event". I'm glad we didn't have kids at the time.
There's a website, gaydays.com, i think, that gives their schedule (which parks they'll visit on each day).