advice

[pgcg]

Very broad questions. 3 adults and 4 kids (7,7,5,4) first visit, arriving on 12/6/02, staying at either Polynesian or Universal's Portofino. We are thinking we will do 1.5 days at MK .5 day at MGM and 1.5 days at Universal and .5 at Seaworld.

1st question: Polynesain or Portofino? Big difference in price, both seem nice, maybe leaning towards Portofino just because of costs.

2nd question: what type of park tickets will I need. I would like to have some flexiblity with the tickets in case we decide we would like to spend more/less time in the various parks noted above and also to be able to come in and out in the same day??

We have booked the MVMCP for 12/6 and Chef Mickey's breakfast for 12/8 (daughters birthday), Happy Limo for transportation to/from airport.

3rd question: does this all sound doable/worthwhile - are there any suggestions for a better trip??

Thank you all - I have thoroughly enjoyed reading all the advice/suggestions throughout this web site.

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Looks like you'll need a 4 day park hopper. That will allow you to go to any of the 4 main parks as many times as you want over a 4 day period. If you end up only using 3 days you can save the 4th day for another trip.

Portofino is a beautiful resort but not convenient for traveling to and from Disney World. The roads coming in and out (I-4) are very busy and are often gridlocked. If I were you I'd pay the extra for Poly, or another Disney resort that is onsite.

Now, if you were going to Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure I would definitely recommend staying at Portofino!

4 days is definitely worthwhile... of course the more days the better.

 

[LKS]

Well, the poster did say they would spend 1.5 days at Universal. And of course, by staying at Portofino, they would get front of the line access there.

Yes, it will be more inconvenient to get to the MK, especially without a car (assumption based on statement about using HappyLimo for airport transportation.) I don't know if Portofino has a shuttle to WDW, but I'm sure the Poly doesn't offer a shuttle to Universal and Seaworld. Either way, the transporation for this trip will be a mess. Without a car, you will have a more relaxing vacation either doing Universal and IOA and staying at Portofino, OR doing all WDW parks and staying onsite at a WDW resort.

You are also looking at some inefficient ticketing. For .5 day at Seaworld, you will pay a full days price (which often offers the second day for free), for 1.5 days at Universal, you will pay for 2 days. To do a half day at MGM you will pay for a full day too, unless you are planning to park-hop from the MK, and then you will need a parkhopper pass and I think they start at 4 days. Do note though, that with any ticket you get, you can go in and out of the same park on the same day.

Bottom line, IMHO, for a 4 day trip, you should either do all WDW parks - MK, MGM, EPCOT and AK, or do 3 days at offisite parks - Universal, IOA and Seaworld with just the one day at MK. My kids loved Epcot and liked AK. Didn't know if you had heard that Epcot is not for kids, but it's not true. It was their second favorite park after the MK. They could live without MGM really since it's mostly shows. We haven't been to Universal, by my kids also love Seaworld. Again, there are a lot of shows, but they are animal shows - completely different - and there are lots of hands on activities like feeding dolphins and Sea Lions.

Good luck deciding! It's tough, but I think with your current plan you are spreading yourselves too thin and it will be a hectic trip.

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

When I stayed at the Poly years ago, there was bus transportation to Sea World ~ I thought it was Mears?

 

[LKS]

Ok, well, there's not going to be a free shuttle. There's always transportation - you could even take a cab. Sorry I wasn't very clear.

 

[Ratpack]

I have to agree with LKS, you will be spending more money on tickets that you will not be able to use. I personally would do either a Disney trip or a Non Disney trip. Then tickets would be easier and more cost effective. The way you have it planned, you would need a total of 7 times 2 for MK, 1 for MGM, 1 for Seaworld and (I am guessing) 2 for Universal. That is 42 tickets at an average price of around $40 - $50. That comes to around $1900. For about $1600, you could get a 4 day park hopper for everyone and enjoy all the Disney parks as much as you wanted. With a hopper, you can go to all four parks in one day and do this over and over for 4 days. In my opinion, you do have yourself spread out too much and you will miss a lot of stuff. Also, you will spend a lot of time on the road from place to place.

 

[ahutton]

It has been quite a while since we've been to Universal. I recall my cousins at 5 & 7 were very scared by many of the attractions. Have they increased the stuff to do for younger ones, what height restrictions do they have?

 

[MELSMICE]

I have to agree with Ratpack & suggest doing either a Disney trip or non-Disney trip. 1/2 day at any of those parks is just not enough time. In fact a full day at any of the parks is not enough to see & do it all. You will be very, very limited in what youll get to see & IMHO you'll be more stressed over trying to follow your schedule & not have time to relax & enjoy.

Because I am a Disney lover/fanatic, obviously, I would opt for the Disney vacation & get a hopper pass of some sort. Will you only be in the area for 2 days or will you actually be there longer?

Good luck with whatever you decide, but honestly, it's not worth it to try & see & do it all. We have been there numerous, numerous times & still have not done it all.

 

[travelitis]

I have to agree with other posters who suggest making it a WDW only trip. My kids are 10, 8, and 4, and we're still waiting before we go to Universal. The oldest 2 would enjoy it, but the 4 yr. old will be much happier at WDW. Even 4 days is not enough time to do it all at WDW. Keep in mind that I used to an on-site is the only way to go kind of gal, but now I prefer off-site. Don't read my post thinking I'm so brainwashed in favor of Disney that I'm some Disney Stepford Wife. In 2004 we plan to take our group to Universal as well as NASA and WDW. BTW, I would absolutely hate not renting a car for the kind of trip you propose. We wouldn't even consider it.