Last minute Disney trip
 

We are discussing the possibility of a trip to Disney World for Columbus Day weekend (this is not last-minute to me, but apparently is in the World of Disney); after battling the on-line booking service, I finally called (the first woman said even she was having trouble with the system) and finally later one of her colleagues said the best she could do is a cabin at Fort Wilderness--is this okay? If I had planned ahead, we would have stayed at one of the deluxe resorts. Our daughter is 7, has never been to Disney and I would guess we will spend most of our time at the Magic Kingdom which I understand is close to Fort Wilderness.

Any insight here would be appreciated; also if we decide to go, should I keep calling to see if other resorts open up?

Thanks in advance,

Mary in D.C.

mary, that doesn't sound right. Is Columbus Day weekend around the 13th? If so, the Disney website is showing availability for just about ALL of the hotels.

Take a look (under "check rates" click on "rooms" and input your dates) http://tinyurl.com/3yj7v

Columbus Day is October 9, but thanks for the URL, I'll check.

Mary

I would recommend that you do keep calling Disney central reservations - things change all the time. We encountered that a couple of years ago - we wanted all-star movies but could only get a reservation for all-star music but we kept calling and we did get what we wanted. I have stayed at value, moderate, and deluxe Disney resorts but never at the Ft. Wilderness cabins - it actually is something I hope to do sometime.

Since you are going at a busy time, you will definately want a good touring plan. It really does make a huge difference and shortens your waits considerably. We used www.tourguidemike.com on our 2005 trip - it is on online subscription service that helps you develope a touring plan.

We just came back from WDW and, this time, we used www.buildabettermousetrip.com which does custom touring plans for you. The price was reasonable, especially since they'll make dining reservations etc. for you.

Here is a link with pictures of the cabins: http://disneylinks.net/Resorts/FortWilderness/

You should probably check out this information about the Campfire Sing-Along with Chip & Dale (free) at the campground: http://www.buildabettermousetrip.com...-campfire.html

You can see the Electric Water Pageant from Ft. Wilderness - here is some info: http://www.buildabettermousetrip.com...erpageant.html

Here is information about finding Disney Princesses at WDW: http://www.buildabettermousetrip.com...rincesses.html

Did you see that there is a discount code for the time of your visit?

When you speak to Disney reservations, request code ZBG for Magic Your Way or ZBH for Magic Your Way Plus Dining.

For check-ins 10/1/06-12/23/06 you can get a special discount on a Magic Your Way vacation package. 11/19/06-11/23/06 and 12/2/06-12/8/06 may be excluded from this offer. Some hotels may have limited or no availability for certain dates.

The greatest discounts are on Deluxe resorts.

The discount can be used for a regular Magic Your Way Package and for the Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining.

You must book by 9/30/06. Requires a 3-night minimum stay. The number of rooms allocated for this offer is limited. Tickets must be used within 14 days of first use unless you add the No Expiration option for an extra cost. No group rates or other discounts apply.

mary, I just checked again using dates around the 9th, and yep - they've got plenty of availability. I would be surprised if there wasn't since they're discounting and running Florida resident specials.

aj - good catch on the discount code!

Good luck mary, I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for.

Hi AjColorado, thank you; as you can see, I know nothing about Disney and, other than to Europe, never plan vacations this far in advance! Am beginning to rethink this. . .

I found Disney reservations so unhelpful today--they couldn't do anything with their systems and it is so frustrating as earlier in the day, I actually had a room at the Beach Club that I had saved, but then it disappeared.

Thanks for the discount code, maybe I'll try that tomorrow or I may bag this whole plan and plan further ahead!

Thanks again,

Mary

dsquared--thanks, I am going to keep trying, but it's for the weekend so we are going in on the 6th and out on the 9th and that may be the problem.

but I greatly appeciate any help and info!

Mary

dsquared or anybody--maybe I'm doing this wrong; anybody know the way around the Disney on-line reservation system, when I plug in future dates, it is only giving me the choice of one resort, with an alternate so it is really laborious; is there a way to plug your dates in and see all the available rooms?

thanks,

Mary

I booked my last disney vacaion through this site:
http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com...tm#blue-dreams
They were great. They keep checking back for lower prices and will make your priority seatings at the restaurants as well.

mary, using the link in my first post, go to "check rates", click on "rooms", input your dates, input the number of adults, input the number of children, and then you'll get a new field to input your childs age. Then click "go" and it should return a list of all available resorts. I tried it with early October dates, 2 adults, one 7 year old child and it worked.

If it doesn't work for you, the only thing that I can think of is that it's a problem with cookies on your computer - however, I'm absolutely no computer expert :-) , so perhaps someone else here knows.

Good luck.

Hi Mary,

I fly down from DC with the kids 3 times a year for long weekends. We almost always stay in the Polynesian concierge building but have had excellent visits staying in the very onsite, Starwood properties of the Swan and Dolphin which offer a variety of excellent discounts. Look at Mousesavers.com for WDW deals. I'll bet that something will turn up. Have fun! Threehearts

Yes, look for deals on Mousesavers. Disney Reservations has good employees and bad employees. If you get a bad one on the phone, make an excuse to hang up quickly then just redial to get someone else. And believe me, if you check Mousesavers and the Rates and Codes board on disboards.com, you'll probably know more about the available discount codes than the reservationist.

Disney's reservation system isn't very user friendly. We've got two small kids and have booked several trips there this year. Their website and their phone-in reservation system are not on par with other hotels. Then again, with their built in demand, they don't have to be.

You might want to note that Friday October 6th is one of their Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween events. That means the Magic Kingdom closes at 6. Admission after 7 is with a separate ticket. But, it is worth it. Most kids (and plenty of adults) come in costume and they have numerous trick-or-treat stations.

Our kids had such a great time last year we're taking them back this year on that same weekend.

thanks everybody; I've given up on-line--Ryan, you are right, it is an awful system; Travelocity and Expedia have lots of Disney rooms so I guess that's where they are!

Mary

Go directly to the Hotel where you want to stay and make your reservations!! The Dining Plan is so hassle free that you may want to opt for this. The Wilderness Lodge is okay and is close to FantasyLand via a boat taxi only, unless you have a car.
We found that AAA also would be a good bet for getting a reservation and you'll get AAA discounts as well. Have fun!

Forgot: The hotel will also book your Disney ticket package and have everything ready for you when you arrive.