I am about to schedule a 14day visit to ORLANDO theme parks using a 7 day hopper and a 4 park Flex. 2 adults 2 children G9 & B6.
Any suggestions ?

Nigel I've just booked 2 suites at the Holiday Inn Family Suites in Lake Buena Vista for 1 week stay.It is ideal for a family vacation and 1 mile from Disney with free transportation to the park if needed.A 2 bedroom suite with kitchen is $129 a night. Check out their site.....

www.hifamilysuites.com

Charlie,
Thanks, I've managed to get Embassy Suites also Lake Buena Vista (cost on par with your's). Any tips on how to organise your visits to the parks. What to do and when - young children in mind !!

Thanks

Nigel my wife and I are the grandparents and we were in charge of securing accommodations for this family adventure,and thankfully thats all....laughing.My daughter and her husband (maybe the 3 grandchildren) will make the decisions on who,what and where.

Nigel one last thought.....I found a web site with very helpful tips on visiting Disney,you may want to check it out I,learned much from it.

www.mousesavers.com

My husband and I just visisted Disney World in June. Although it's just the two of us, we always make a point to start out early in the parks and then go back to our hotel in the afternoons. We stayed "off-property" on this last trip and had a rental car so that we could drive ourselves to the parks and back. Lots of off-property hotels offer transportation to Disney, but it's not always a great thing. The hotel we stayed at basically dropped you off in the morning and had one pick up time in the evening. You have got to have some rest in the middle of the day if you want to keep Disney fun! This way we can rest, swim, etc. and basically, just get away from the parks and crowds for a while. If I had kids, I would be doubly sure to take a mid-day break. There is so much to see and do in each Disney park, but you can't stay in them all day long without being exhausted. The parks are lots of fun, but they are also very tiring.

I would highly recommned that you read a copy of the "Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, 2002". This book offers excellent tips on how to best manage the parks (with and without kids) and also gives great tips on dining, hotels, etc. Have a great trip!

We are just coming from there, and believe me, you will go mad. There is to much to see and to much to do. After 2 days you will have seen enough of it. Except for Epcot, all the parks are very crowded.We are great theme parks fans and have a year pass for Disneyland Paris, but what we saw around Orlando ... we never saw anywhere else. After 4 days you will not want to see any other theme park. International Drive is a great carnival. You will be very, very tired. We had a 4-day hopper and it was more than enough. However, the parks you have to see are: Islands of Adventure and Bush Gardens. Our kids of 16 and 13 had a good time, but we, the parents were exhausted.

having been to disney several times, and having been a travel agent, my first advise to you is...you can't possibly do everything! Also, I fully agree with Lee...you must take a break in the afternoon and go back to your hotel and rest...also to get out of the heat. There is so much to see and do, it's impossible to say it here, so get the disney guide or fodors travel guide, and just decide on a few thing that are 'must do's'.

Hi - If you do advance planning be sure to check what times the parks close. They do close at different times during the year. If you are planning to head to the parks early in the day and back to your hotel for an afternoon rest it is important to know what times the park close. Patty

Agree with earlier posts...get there early, when the park opens...get back to the hotel before 2 PM. The kids will want to play in the pool anyway, and you'll all keep your sanity.

Make sure you do Blizzard Beach!