Park Advice

I anm looking to holiday in orlando for the first time next year,i have to children aged 6 and 8 years old.

What parks do you think are a must for kids of this age?

Dont know whether to stay on international drive or in one of the Disney hotels any advice appreciated.

I am a bit dubious about driving as never driven abroad before, is a car essential if staying in disney?

Sorry for all the questions.

Thanks for any advice

Park Advice

Hi, you should do all the parks they are all different and have things for everyone, if you choose a disney hotel you get transportation to the parks, but a car is a must especially if you want to see the rest of orlando, as you can choose where to eat and also for shopping it can be difficult to get to the malls/outlet without a car of course you can get a taxi but the costs add up. I dont drive but my daughter and sons girlfriend are both driving (just getting used to our automatic) this time so that the boys can go off to golf and we can go shopping!!! its not the same as driving over here honestly plenty of maps and the road signs are really good, one more thing sea world is a must (well everyone i know thinks so) we have done it every year no matter what. read some of the reviews for hotels, i was disappointed with disney all hotel rooms are the same didnt seem to justify the additional cost (thats purely my opinion of course) loads to choose from and after all you are only sleeping in them, some good ones on international drive with good facilities and they also do the shuttle buses to the parks as well but sometimes only one choice of time going and coming back.......i know you will enjoy it whatever you choose laura

Park Advice

I too couldn%26#39;t justify the cost of staying on property, like Laura said you%26#39;re only sleeping there!

Also agree with Sea World - main tip I can give you is plan your day around the shows - some of the shows are only on once!

Don%26#39;t forget that if you want to make character dining reservations, this can be done 180 days in advance - Cinderella%26#39;s Royal Table is notoriously difficult to get, often booking up withing 3 minutes (we were VERY VERY VERY lucky to get reservations 18 weeks in advance).

We%26#39;ve always rented a car when we%26#39;ve gone, but to be honest, even if we were staying at Disney, we still would as there is so much to see and do that ISN%26#39;T Disney - including shopping, and you don%26#39;t want to load your bargains onto a cramped bus!

Hi

We are going on thursday with two kids aged 7 %26amp; 6. We are staying in Disney (wilderness lodge) because we find it so much easier than driving. We do not worry about hiring a car and spend most of our time in Disney apart from one day at Sea World and one or two at Universal Studios.

If you stay in Disney you get free and regular transportation between all the parks and hotels and you are dropped off right outside the main entrance - it is more expensive to stay in a Disney hotel but I think this alone, with young kids, makes it worth the money.

Best parks depends on your kids - my daughter aged 6 loves the magic Kingdom and my son likes faster rides so likes Universal. But there is something for both of them in all parks.

Hope this helps

Trish

Mine were 9, 6 and 1 last year and they loved all of the parks. As far as the older two, they liked Islands of Adventure and Epcots World Showcase the best, but it all depends on your children%26#39;s interest.

Mine thought the Disney character stuff was too ';babyish'; for them and they love Marvel comics (Spiderman, Fantastic 4, X-Men, etc.) so IOA had more to offer. As far as Epcot, not all kids like that kind of thing, but mine are into learning about different cultures/countries (even though it%26#39;s just a theme park), so they loved the World Showcase.

Also, I think kids of any age will love the water parks.

Rent a car for sure. I can%26#39;t see you going all the way there and not wanting to do a bit of shopping, or visit SeaWorld andUniversal- both fun for those ages.

You can still stay at Disney if you want, just drive to the other places. Driving is pretty easy there, as is parking as the spaces are huge.

I%26#39;d rec staying in a Suite type hotel in LBV, like the Doubletree Suites near DTD, Staybridge Suites, or in a condo nearby like Cypress Pointe. More space, some of the suite places have free breakfasts, the condo places you can either cook a little or just do breakfast/drinks/snacks there and have a washer/dryer. Restaurants are walking distance nearby for the evenings.

Or go the whole hog and rent a townhouse or Villa someplace like Windsor Hills or Terre Verde. Lovely resort feel/amenities, your own space/pool/w/d, and all for less than one room in a Disney resort.

I personally wouldn%26#39;t stay on I drive myself. The restaurants and things there are fine, but most of the resorts there are past their best (but not all) and some are downright dangerous lately.