help! new to all this and my brain hurts

[catsoc]

:redconfus

We are going on a big extended family break to orlando on 28th June for 2 weeks. There will be 6 adults and 2 kids (aged 8 & 10) We want to 'do it all' including theme parks, waterparks, swimming with dolphins (kids only) kennedy space centre, golf (men only) etc We will be staying in a villa in Kissimee and have a hire car.

Any advice on what tickets to get - don't want to spend loads of money and end up not using them, also any advice on where to go - especially for the dolphins?

I have to organise the itenery for us all - including 1 adult who has food allergies

[LeonieM]

I'm sure that Simon and Susan will be along and they're the ones to help you. They do a service whereby they work out an itinerary for you. I could tell you what we found useful, but at the end of the day, you know what you can and can't afford and how many days you want to be active/resting.

What I can tell you is that swimmig with dolphins is very pricey, and even non-swimming adults pay around £100 just to get into Discovery Cove for the day. My friend recommends going to the Gulf Coast as it's far cheaper there. However, unless you're already going there, it's not an option.

I also don't know whether they'll let just your kids swim - they may want an adult of the family group to accompany the children, even though they take groups of up to a dozen per dolphin.

I personally recommend Universal - we actually had more fun there than at Disney this time! ATD have being doing 3 days for the price of 2 recently. I don't know if it's still running, but you'll be hard puhed to beat that! Alternatively, if you want to go to SeaWorld and/or Busch Gardens as well, you'll be better off with the Orlando FlexTicket. There are now new ones which include the new Aquatica water park.

Most people also recommend the 14-day Disney tickets, as it gives you ultimate flexibility in which park you go to and when. We've personally never done that, but that was our choice.

If you have half a day, we went to Boggy Creek and did one of their airboat rides. Now, we paid $45 each for a personal tour which lasts 45 minutes. Its great if you're a small group (there were 4 of us), because you get more time, you can ask questions, and take a while taking photos and stuff. If not, a group go out in a boat for about $20 a head for a half-hour tour. It was a hot day that we went, and moving quickly on the water was very refreshing!

Over to the others for their advice, now!

[LeonieM]

Oh, and regarding car hire, you are a large party. You don't say whether you're going to hire one big one or two medium sized ones. Just remember that you will have to get your luggage in as well, and the 7-seater and upwards don't actually have much luggage room in them!

We got 7-seater 'Grand Caravans' as free upgrades, and even though there are only 3 of us, we couldn't get all the luggage in the back because the rear row of seats wouldn't go down flat! My brother had to take some of our luggage in his own car!

Also, if you get two cars, you'll be able to go out on separate trips - say the women want to go shopping and the men don't, for example. When we went shopping, my brother took himself off shooting one day, and to Kennedy Space Centre on his own another day.

I can't actually think of any vehicles which will take 8 people - you'd actually have to go for a full mini-van, I think - and I've yet to see one of them with any luggage space in it!!

Shop around and get plenty of advice on the car situation. You also need to know that if you have a large vehicle, you will be charged extra for tolls - and Universal charge extra to park for the big vehicles!!

[Susan Veness]

Hi catsoc, and Welcome to the ATD forums! We're really glad you joined us and you'll get lots of great advice as you're planning your holiday, so please do ask any questions you may have! :)

First, you simply CAN'T do it all. You could be in Orlando for 6 months and still not do it all. The best thing to do might be to sit down as a family and decide which parks you MOST want to see. Use the general idea that you'll need a full day at every park--and two full days at Magic Kingdom and Epcot--for a decent overview (again, you won't see it all in a day...or two!). You're going during a very busy time (the start of the summer break), so you'll be further slowed down due to the heat, humidity and crowds.

BUT...you can have a great time if you pare back your 'requests'! I would strongly urge you to pare back to 6 or 7 parks, at least one water park, some shopping and a 'rest' day. If you want to swim with dolphins, make that one of your 'park' days or 'water park' days.

Once you know for sure which parks you most want to see and which 'extras' you want to do, you'll have a very good idea of how many days on any given ticket you will need. If you're totally overwhelmed, consider a 4 Park Orlando Flex Ticket and Disney's 7 Day Premium. ;)