First Trip Questions

[Kialovesbooks24]

I'm planning my families first trip and i am looking for some input on a few things, we are planning on going in either beginning to mid November 2025 or the first week of December 2025. I am looking for some input from those who have traveled around that time of year.

Firstly we have decided on Port Orleans French Quarter, i am a bit stuck on what date frame to choose.
November 12th-22nd or November 30th-December 9th

Secondly I am also struggling with how many park days we will want. Everyone says 5 should be good but honestly i am considering 8, that way if we decide we want more days in the parks its not a big deal, it should be noted one of the 10 days we are there i plan to take my kiddos to see the ocean since this will be their first time away from Minnesota.

Thirdly, what beach would be the best to take them to?

Fourth, Quick Service Dining Plan, worth it or nah?

Also i have teens and my kids will be 14, 15, and 16 when we leave for our trip and its just the four of us.

And lastly I'm wondering if Mickeys Christmas Party would be worth the investment or if i am better off saving that money and spending it elsewhere. Any input would be very much appreciated.

 

[Travel60]

That is a very busy time of year so you might start by seeing what days you can get where you want. Five days at the parks would be MORE than enough for me but you know your kids. They may also enjoy an afternoon/evening at Disney Springs.

To see the ocean, go east (west is the Gulf). Almost due east is Port Canaveral. If there happens to be a Disney ship in port, you might enjoy seeing that. Also, Cape Canaveral (Kennedy Space Flight Center) is just north of there. Your teens may be the perfect age for a visit. Make a day of it - check to see if there is going to be a launch and plan around it.

 

[FallsChurchDad]

For our first big family WDW trip, we did 9 park days. We certainly didn't _need_ that many park days, but the extra cost of days 7-8-9 were very low, and it made all of our park days much easier to navigate, when there were still so many unknowns for us. We actually visited in early November and loved that time. We didn't do the Xmas party since we had so many park days. We also didn't do park hopper - the extra days made it nicer to just do one park per day and otherwise take breaks at the resorts / Disney Springs.

Since then, we have done shorter WDW trips but combined with other non-Disney activities, including Universal, which we all loved.

I would think QSDP is not worth paying for, especially when you've got 3 (or 4?) Disney adults who obviously won't drink alcohol, but if you have flexibility on your arrival date and you want to get a Disney Visa, you might be able to get free QSDP. Note that Disney lets you bring in outside food, and you can save time as well as money by bringing your own food. We typically bring breakfast for rope drop + sandwiches/snacks for an early lunch, then we eat a big meal in the late afternoon where we go all out, with something the kids (and we) will remember.

Are you flying or driving down? If driving, that expands your beach options. If flying (even with a rental car), you'd probably want to mostly just go due east.

Whatever you decide, I am sure you will all have a blast!

 

[Ds4angels]

Daytona Beach is a good one. You can check out the beach, some cool stuff to do there. There's waves for the kids to jump in.
Clearwater beach is about a 90 minute drive. Less waves then the Atlantic. My kids like the gulf to snorlke in. We went to Walmart to buy snorkle kits, they had a blast.
Both beaches are good and I think your teenagers would like either. Have them do a little research to see what one they would like best.

 

[BlueGreen5]

I'm planning my families first trip and i am looking for some input on a few things, we are planning on going in either beginning to mid November 2025 or the first week of December 2025. I am looking for some input from those who have traveled around that time of year.

Those times should be enjoyable. The weather should be nice. It is always busy during Thanksgiving breaks, so maybe try to schedule when most kids should be in school to cut down on crowds, if possible. You'll probably have the option to attend a Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party event, if that's something you'll be interested in. Those tend to draw crowds, though.

Secondly I am also struggling with how many park days we will want. Everyone says 5 should be good but honestly i am considering 8, that way if we decide we want more days in the parks its not a big deal, it should be noted one of the 10 days we are there i plan to take my kiddos to see the ocean since this will be their first time away from Minnesota.

The price difference isn't that huge to go from five to eight, as long as you think there's a good probability of using most or all of them. Obviously, if you're only going to use five, paying for eight makes no sense, even if its not that much more. We are big fans of hitting a park for a few hours on more days over cramming more into less days. It's a matter of personal preference.

Thirdly, what beach would be the best to take them to?

Blizzard ...that's my only response. Sorry, we have never been to the beaches because they are a few hours out. I understand the appeal, though, if you do not have access to one from time to time!

Fourth, Quick Service Dining Plan, worth it or nah?

I tend to say "no." It's a use it or lose it thing. If you completely use it and in the right way (there's plenty out there about how to maximize credits), you can save considerable coin. But, that means you are using credits on something that maybe you don't really want, but are taking because it's the best value. The alcohol option is the best example of this: it's a better "value" to get an alcoholic drink with your meal, but there are sometimes where you just want a Coke. Or maybe you just want popcorn for a snack, but again, that's horrible value for your credit, so you go with something you don't really want. Again, this is personal preference, but we prefer to just pay out-of-pocket for something that one of us really wants. I can't recall ever regretting that decision.

Also, keep in mind that you would have to pay for it on your beach day. While you can still use the credits on another day, it's just more you have to use in less days in order to justify the expense. If you go home with credits, it's absolutely not worth it.


Hope something in this helps! Enjoy your trip!

 

[Kialovesbooks24]

For our first big family WDW trip, we did 9 park days. We certainly didn't _need_ that many park days, but the extra cost of days 7-8-9 were very low, and it made all of our park days much easier to navigate, when there were still so many unknowns for us. We actually visited in early November and loved that time. We didn't do the Xmas party since we had so many park days. We also didn't do park hopper - the extra days made it nicer to just do one park per day and otherwise take breaks at the resorts / Disney Springs.

Since then, we have done shorter WDW trips but combined with other non-Disney activities, including Universal, which we all loved.

I would think QSDP is not worth paying for, especially when you've got 3 (or 4?) Disney adults who obviously won't drink alcohol, but if you have flexibility on your arrival date and you want to get a Disney Visa, you might be able to get free QSDP. Note that Disney lets you bring in outside food, and you can save time as well as money by bringing your own food. We typically bring breakfast for rope drop + sandwiches/snacks for an early lunch, then we eat a big meal in the late afternoon where we go all out, with something the kids (and we) will remember.

Are you flying or driving down? If driving, that expands your beach options. If flying (even with a rental car), you'd probably want to mostly just go due east.

Whatever you decide, I am sure you will all have a blast!

we will be flying in but i plan to rent a car for a day or two out of the time that we are there.

I've heard mostly the QSDP isn't worth it cost wise but more for convenience which is why i had considered it

beach wise i am open to driving 2 hours max

 

[Kialovesbooks24]

Those times should be enjoyable. The weather should be nice. It is always busy during Thanksgiving breaks, so maybe try to schedule when most kids should be in school to cut down on crowds, if possible. You'll probably have the option to attend a Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party event, if that's something you'll be interested in. Those tend to draw crowds, though.



The price difference isn't that huge to go from five to eight, as long as you think there's a good probability of using most or all of them. Obviously, if you're only going to use five, paying for eight makes no sense, even if its not that much more. We are big fans of hitting a park for a few hours on more days over cramming more into less days. It's a matter of personal preference.



Blizzard ...that's my only response. Sorry, we have never been to the beaches because they are a few hours out. I understand the appeal, though, if you do not have access to one from time to time!



I tend to say "no." It's a use it or lose it thing. If you completely use it and in the right way (there's plenty out there about how to maximize credits), you can save considerable coin. But, that means you are using credits on something that maybe you don't really want, but are taking because it's the best value. The alcohol option is the best example of this: it's a better "value" to get an alcoholic drink with your meal, but there are sometimes where you just want a Coke. Or maybe you just want popcorn for a snack, but again, that's horrible value for your credit, so you go with something you don't really want. Again, this is personal preference, but we prefer to just pay out-of-pocket for something that one of us really wants. I can't recall ever regretting that decision.

Also, keep in mind that you would have to pay for it on your beach day. While you can still use the credits on another day, it's just more you have to use in less days in order to justify the expense. If you go home with credits, it's absolutely not worth it.


Hope something in this helps! Enjoy your trip!

i was hoping to aim for before thanksgiving break, I've heard the crowds aren't nearly as bad the week before and the week after which is why i was considering those two date frames, we had considered October but i am definitely more of a Christmas person than a Halloween person.

one of the main reasons i am debating doing more park days is that way i don't feel pressured into cramming everything into one day for each park, we can spread out our time

i want to take the kids to see the ocean, not a thousand percent sold on making that trip but considering it heavily

only reason i am considering the QSDP is i am HORRIBLE at saving money for food, i can def see how it would be cheaper to pay OOP instead

 

[Mle8308]

i was hoping to aim for before thanksgiving break, I've heard the crowds aren't nearly as bad the week before and the week after which is why i was considering those two date frames, we had considered October but i am definitely more of a Christmas person than a Halloween person.

one of the main reasons i am debating doing more park days is that way i don't feel pressured into cramming everything into one day for each park, we can spread out our time

i want to take the kids to see the ocean, not a thousand percent sold on making that trip but considering it heavily

only reason i am considering the QSDP is i am HORRIBLE at saving money for food, i can def see how it would be cheaper to pay OOP instead

I would not do the DDP because all your kids would be considered adults and one of the only ways to really break even is to order alcohol at each meal, and they can't. If you are open to driving 2 hours to a beach, I recommend Clearwater. It's white sand and beautiful. However, Daytona Beach is well known and a shorter drive. And if you are horrible at saving money for food, every time you have a little extra money, go buy a Disney gift card. It's like saving money because you will only be able to spend it at Disney. Only downside is if for any reason you had to cancel, you would be stuck with Disney gift cards. One more thing, look at dates for Jersey Week and events going on in the parks in November. I think there is a Marathon weekend in there somewhere (I may have my dates mixed up), but Jersey week is very busy. The week after Thanksgiving tends to be one of the least crowded times of the year.

 

[mommyk8]

I would do the park days and then go to the beach for a night or two at the end of your trip

 

[Kialovesbooks24]

For our first big family WDW trip, we did 9 park days. We certainly didn't _need_ that many park days, but the extra cost of days 7-8-9 were very low, and it made all of our park days much easier to navigate, when there were still so many unknowns for us. We actually visited in early November and loved that time. We didn't do the Xmas party since we had so many park days. We also didn't do park hopper - the extra days made it nicer to just do one park per day and otherwise take breaks at the resorts / Disney Springs.

Since then, we have done shorter WDW trips but combined with other non-Disney activities, including Universal, which we all loved.

I would think QSDP is not worth paying for, especially when you've got 3 (or 4?) Disney adults who obviously won't drink alcohol, but if you have flexibility on your arrival date and you want to get a Disney Visa, you might be able to get free QSDP. Note that Disney lets you bring in outside food, and you can save time as well as money by bringing your own food. We typically bring breakfast for rope drop + sandwiches/snacks for an early lunch, then we eat a big meal in the late afternoon where we go all out, with something the kids (and we) will remember.

Are you flying or driving down? If driving, that expands your beach options. If flying (even with a rental car), you'd probably want to mostly just go due east.

Whatever you decide, I am sure you will all have a blast!

i am now thinking maybe 6 park days 3 rest days and 1 beach day