Planning for next trip solo???

[Trudijane]

Hi -

Just found this board. I just got back from WDW (it was my 4th visit). I live in California, my good friend, and her 12 year old son lives in N.Y. and we shared a "Timeshare" that's owned by a guy friend of hers (Old Key West Resort). Due to circumstances, I wound up spending 75% of my time alone and met up with "them" later as their plans were kind of wishy-washy and I was enthusiastic about doing as much as possible during my 5-day visit. I would have rathered shared WDW with someone (as i've done in the past); but I found that I enjoyed it anyway...doing and going anywhere I wanted to......

Anyway, I'd like to go more regularly and not wait 5 years for the next time....I'm a kid at heart in my 40's and just LOVE WDW. Since I won't have a timeshare available to me next time;; I'm wondering how one would plan a trip for "one" as economically as possible. I don't want to "rent" a car because it was great being transported by Disney busses ... and I don't need a fancy, fancy hotel room either.

How do others plan their solo trips? Lodging about $50/night? (or less) within or outside of Disney (but near a Disney shuttle)? Does anyone ever get together from these boards; share a villa or something but essentially be on their own?

I'd appreciate any feedback....thanks!

Trudijane

 

[Disney753]

Hi.
welcome to the board...I do Disney solo most times and have found more than enough to keep me busy. To save money I tend to go at off peak times. I will be going on 1/24 and 1/25, staying at POR for those two nights for 89.00 each night then on the the Wonder from 1/26-1/30.....Then ASmu from 1/30-2/7 which is 55.00 per night. Yes these prices are with my AP but I do go 1-3 times a year. To me Disney is no more expensive than any other vacation if you have an AP. Depending on the duration of your stay I think the AP pays for itself after 8 days. I am planning to do another solo at Halloween.
There are lots of tips and good info here and everone is so willing to help.

 

[rickc77]

Hi and welcome to the DIS.... If there is anything you need to find out about Disney Trips,
well this is the place to get the answers.

In regards to solo trips, I have only gone on five so far and find it so much more enjoyable
then losing time discussing who wants to do what and also always trying to make sure that
everyone is happy. (So much time is lost when this occurs)

Ok...now let me tell you what I normally do when planning a solo trip:

a) Search for Disney codes (a disney code allows you to sometimes get
a discounted rate on a disney resort depending on availability)
these come in very handy to a disney traveler.
b) Search for you best flights using expedia, orbitz or any other internet
flight reservation software.

I personnaly always try to go during value season in order to save on
the cost of the trip. I have received quotes between 49 and 55 dollars
for a value resort (All-Stars resorts) during value seasons)
Disney is setup where they have different prices during the course of the
year Value Regular Peak Holiday .

I too enjoy to always stay on Disney property, so as I already mentioned I
will keep my eyes open for discount codes and then contact disney to see
if they still have room availability within a specific value resort for the
dates that I am interested in:

Value season for 2002 is 1/1 - 2/13, 8/25 - 10/2, 11/3 - 12/19
Regular season for 2002 is 4/21 - 8/24, 10/3 - 11/2
Peak season for 2002 is 2/14 - 4/20
Holiday season for 2002 is 12/20 - 12/31

Once I have the report dates selected, I will then start watching the
flight prices since those are constantly changing.

As for the tickets, I needed to determine how many trips I planned to do within
a one year time span.....if more then 7 days worth, I would suggest a
annual pass (This would allow one person to enter the main 4 parks as many time
as they wish within a one years term) Annual Pass holders are also sometime
offered discounted rooms if available) If I was only interested in going
for 7 days in one year, I would probable just get the standard 7 day park pass.

The only extra money that you will need to keep in mind are:
-Tips
-travel from airport to resort expense
-food
-souveners

(packing supplies) That's a whole new topic......there is allot of
great ideas on this site.

Sorry for a very long reply, but I just thought it would help.

Feel free to ask or email and between all of us here on the site,
I'm quite sure that all of your questions can get answered.

Solo trips are the best....do what you want, when you want, and if
you enjoyed something...well just do it again.

Have fun,

 

[nativetxn]

Rick77 and Disney843 you've given TrudiJane some excellent advice, I don't think there is anything I could add to this.

Getting a room for around $50/night isn't impossible but will take a lot of diligent researching. The only value resorts at WDW right now are the All Stars as Pop Century has not yet opened. You might want to check for discount codes at www.mousesavers.com.

You could also contact www.dreamsunlimited.com and make your reservations through them. They will keep checking the rates to insure you get the lowest one.

Like Rick said, if you plan to spend more than 7 days in the parks through out the coming year you may want to purchase an annual pass. This will get you unlimited access to all 4 parks plus you will qualify for annual pass rates on resort rooms and discounts on merchandise at Downtown Disney.

I'm so glad you found the DIS, Trudijane. I hope you will visit us often. Welcome!

 

[Trudijane]

Hi Cindy, Rick, et al.

Thanks for the initial advice. I really appreciate it.

First, I probably would not be going more than once a year between 5-7 days. Live in San Francisco..so it's a big trip. Bu who knows really....

Have some questions from your responses. I don't understand some of the appreviations ....like POR ... Wonder ... ASmu.....AP? Forgive me but I don't understand what they mean 'yet' !!!

And, how do you search for Disney Codes? What are they. I have mousesavers.com and I've heard from an AOL board that All-Stars seems to have value rates....

For me, I know how to search for good airfares. I got a great deal on airfare on Christmas through Priceline. Altho you have to be sure you're going when you book with them. So the main expense I'm really trying to figure out is lodging ... didn't have to pay for any since I stayed in someone elses timeshare...but had to share more than I would have liked to in a sense......

So - these are my first questions...and also - how for in advance do I need to book for let's say an off-season reservation.

Thanks SO much.

Trudi

 

[rickc77]

Hi Trudi,

Don't ever worry about the types or number of questions you have, It's just allot of fun helping each other out. You will be surprised to see how much knowledge is on this web site.

The Wonder and Magic are Disney cruise ships.

OK.....let's start with your travel......it sounds like you have already a good understanding on how you would get to disney so that just leaves us with how will you get from MCO (Orlando Airport) to Disney Resort.

a) rent car and drive
b) Book a towncar (yourride, Tiffany, mears, ect....)
c) Select which resort:

Value:

Disney's All-Star Movies Resort - A cleverly-themed Resort where movies are mammoth.

Disney's All-Star Music Resort - Music is the magic at this colorful Resort.

Disney's All-Star Sports Resort - Giant icons prove sports are the spectacle.

Moderates:

Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort - Six islands of colorful tropical fun along a sparkling lake.

Disney's Coronado Springs Resort - The enchantment of Mexico and the American Southwest comes to life.

Disney's Port Orleans Resort - French Quarter - Stately Southern beauty and French Quarter allure, all along a rippling river.

Disney's Port Orleans Resort - Riverside - The charm of the South and the allure of New Orleans come together along a winding river.

Deluxe:

New! Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge - A brand-new adventure unfolds in this awe-inspiring African paradise.

Disney's Beach Club Resort - A relaxing retreat reminiscent of the Northeast shore.

Disney's BoardWalk Inn - This luxury hotel captures the essence of a lively seaside resort.

Disney's Contemporary Resort - A true Disney masterpiece with sleek monorails gliding through the 14-story tower and over attractive garden wings.

Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa - Welcome to the ultimate in Disney luxury.

Disney's Polynesian Resort - A South Seas fantasy celebrating the warmhearted traditions of "aloha."

Disney's Wilderness Lodge - Inspired by great lodges of the American Northwest.

Disney's Yacht Club Resort - Immerse yourself in an invigorating 1880 Eastern seaboard setting.


Codes: Mousesavers.com has always been a great resource for me.
They will inform you of the codes to use and what the
savings will be. Once you have a code for the dates that
you want, you just need to contact Disney and tell them to
add the specific code to your reservation

Tickets: Since you plan to go less then 7 days, you are fine with
either buying your tickets at the park or you can get them
threw the Disney web site. Keep in mind that what ever tickets
you do not use, you can always use them on your next trip.
The tickets do not expire when no used.


Hope this helps.......

 

[nativetxn]

AP=annual pass
ASMu=All Stars Music
ASMo=All Stars Movies
ASSp=All Stars Sports

These are the three value resorts

POR=Port Orleans Riverside, a moderate resort
PORFQ=Port Orleans Riverside French Quarter, another moderate slightly smaller than POR
CBR=Caribbean Beach Resort
CSR=Coronado Springs Resort


AKL=Animal Kingdom Lodge
WL=Wilderness Lodge
CR=Contemporary Resort
GF=Grand Floridian

There are lots of other abbreviations you will be seeing, just ask and we'll help you out if you don't know what the abbreviations mean. I learned all of these same abbreviations from others on the DIS about two years ago. Everyone was new once

We love to answer questions, ask as many as you wish. If we don't know the answers we'll help find someone who does.

Katholyn

 

[Trudijane]

What a great board!!!

Thanks for all the abbreviations....

OK, now that I have all the value places, moderate, etc....how can I find out what discounts might be available at off-peak times. How far in advance do I need to plan?

Also, when I was on AOL online, I had some difficulty (at first) with coordinating plans at the timeshare I stayed at and so someone was offering me a small villa IF there was a cancellation at a great price; there wasn't ... andI stayed at the time share with my friend and her son (that's a long story)...but that option was became available to me for a few days..I guess people need to rent out their villas & timeshares.....especially for Christmas.

The other question, how many of you have done WDW alone -- has anyone done it alone but coordinated the trip with another Disney enthusiast - such as those on these boards? My main gripe about sharing it with a very close friend and her son was that she had to save pennies the whole trip thus missed out on a lot of neat things. Never wanted to eat out in a restaurant, etc......

Looking forward to hearing back...and when I have time, I'll be reading backwards......the old posts.

Thanks!

Trudi - who cries during the Mickey mouse Parade

 

[nativetxn]

I have made several solo trips and I always manage to meet up with at least one other DISer while I'm there. We just had our second DIS convention and there were about 250 people from these boards there at the same time. That was just a <b>magical</b> time. It was so much fun.

There are threads on this board for solos and kidfree travelers to make arrangements to meet for a meal or just to meet up. It's lots of fun touring with another Disney fanatic

As far as finding the best rate. Do you know when you plan to visit WDW? You will probably find the lowest resort rates (and smaller crowds) if you visit the 2nd week of January through the first week of February, the week after Labor day until Thanksgiving or the first two weeks of December. I would make a reservation as soon as I decided when I would be going. You have to pay a deposit equal to one night's lodging when you make a reservation but the dates can be changed without penalty if you need to and the deposit is refunded if you cancel.

I've never used mousesavers but I've heard really good things about them. That's where you would find the codes. Or you could use Dreamsunlimited to make your reservation and they would get you the best rate for your approval. They will also make your priority seatings if you want.

Planning a trip is really a lot of fun

Katholyn

 

[BostonTigger]

Hey Trudijane, welcome to the Dis. Just as a side note, your going to get addicted to this site so don't fight it and give in. You know the one thing that helps me save for all the extra's is the Disney Dollar. You can buy them at any Disney Store and they can be used only at the Disney Stores and any of the parks, so spending them before your trip is hard...unless you hit the Diseny Stores a lot. I start buying them when I make my reservation for my trip. The last time I went down to WDW I took $750 worth of Disney Dollars and it made spending a lot easier. It's a lot like pre-purchasing your souvi's...kind of like spending Monopoly money. Just a little tip...hope this helps.



Steven

 

[rickc77]

Hi Trudi,

About 5 or 6 years ago I decided to start going to Disney Solo. The reason I decided to start going solo was due the fact that I was starting to get tired of doing everything that others wanted to do. As you had mentioned within a prior post, sometime friends will go to disney but cannot afford to enjoy some of the resteraunts. By going solo one is able to do whatever they please. If you are tired on day 3...well, just roll over and sleep for another hour, and if you are up to it jump into the pool before you start your day. The cast members always seem to know if you are solo and are so easy to speak with.

The best part of solo trips is just the thought that you can do whatever you want, and if you enjoy something you are able to do it again without having to explain yourself.

In response to your question: "-- has anyone done it alone but coordinated the trip with another Disney enthusiast "

Yes, one can gather so much information from this web site it is just incredible.

Any questions that you may have, please feel free to ask, and between all of us, I'm quite sure we will be able to help you.

have fun.....