We're going to Disney!

[Magic Marker]

We booked a trip to Disney World for the September holiday. It is during off peak and boy do they mean it. There are so many shows that have limited showings or not even playing. Parades are sparse and for some reason extended Magic Hours don't coincide with the late night shows.

I guess this is Disney's way of cutting costs. Granted we got a resort room that normally goes for $150/ night for $90. We are very excited even though we go almost every year.

This year I booked the Epcot Around the World Segway Tour. We get to ride Segways caravan style around Epcot. I'll be sure to report back how that was. At $95/ person, I hope they do a good job.

[snork]

Nice! We're going the last week in August. My wife is a school teacher, so no off-peak vacations for me:mad: :o We are actually Disney Vacation Club Members (Disney timeshare), so we'll be staying at the Boardwalk Villas behind EPCOT which is our personal fave.

I went last September (first time in going in Sept) with a couple buddies for a golf trip, it was still surprisingly busy considering school was back in.

Let me know how the Segway tour is. I've seen it going around first thing in the morning and it's one of the things my wife wants to do. It's supposed to be pretty good.

Check out http://allears.net That's my favorite site for Disney info.

Also, did you guys get the free Disney Dining Plan if you booked through Disney? If not, call back...I think the promo is still running. Being DVC we're ineligible:tdown:

[njjuliano]

We road tripped ours this time this past February. I've never thought I could spend more than a day, 2 days tops for Disney, till I went with my wife. Its a whole different experience when you go with someone who knows how to "do Disney." Flying, or driving?

[Magic Marker]

We road tripped ours this time this past February. I've never thought I could spend more than a day, 2 days tops for Disney, till I went with my wife. Its a whole different experience when you go with someone who knows how to "do Disney." Flying, or driving?
We always fly. It isn't worth it to drive since that sucks up two vacation days.

[reedl]

I have done the Segway tour, and it is interesting, but it was barely worth the $65 I paid years ago. The major issue is that they give you the slow key, so you cannot go very fast or turn quickly. On the day you are going to do the Segway tour though, make sure that you tell them at the front gate that you are doing this tour, as they will let you in earlier than the masses. And remember you need to pay for admission to Epcot for the Segway tour!

I would suggest the Magic Kingdom "Keys to the Kingdom" tour which is absolutely amazing. You need to pay for admission to the Magic Kingdom, but they take you underneath the main street USA, and behind the scenes at other places. Real Cool.

The other incredible tour is the "BackStage magic" tour which is a full day. It goes to Epcot, Magic Kingdom, and the Disney Studios. I enjoyed it as you learn a lot about Disney's Stuff. You get to go inside places that you never thought you would be able to. Seeing the inside of the US pavilion in EPCOT is real cool, what with all the audio-animitronic devices. Seeing them closeup is amazing because of the detail they put into them that you never see from the audience.

Also if you are into diving or snorkeling, the Sea Aqua Tour is very impressive. You do not need to the certified, but you will have a good time as long as you are comfortable using a mask. The most interesting thing about this tour is that they leave you off inside Epcot (at least they did with my wife when she did it), do you get free admission to Epcot in the deal.

I do not know if they will continue doing this (what with the monorail accident that they had), but ask to ride in the front of the monorail if you can. It is real cool to ride up there.

If you have AAA, make sure they know that since you will get even lower rates than the "off-season" discounts.

If you have any more questions, just ask. I have been there probably 40 times in my life.

[snork]

Thanks for the input reedl. I've been about 20 times and having DVC for the past 3 yrs we pretty much take a 5-6 day trip once a year. I've seen the segway tour and I thought they were going slow just b/c they're were "following the leader", I guess not. Perhaps the first tour we'll take is the Backstage Magic tour...the real deterrant is that it's a 7 hour tour, so just not sure if we want to burn a full day just yet, I'm sure it'd be worth it though.

[njjuliano]

We always fly. It isn't worth it to drive since that sucks up two vacation days.

This was our first road trip down, with 2 younglings in tow. It was actually nice. We decided to take 3 days down (and up), so total of 6 hours driving a day, and a relaxing stop every night somewhere along the road. It was surprisingly easy, and relaxing.

[Tribeca_06]

have fun!