WDW in February from South Africa
Jan 3rd, 2002, 05:22 AM
#1
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WDW in February from South Africa
I'm coming up in Feb from Durban, South Africa and I'd like to know what the weather is like in early Feb at WDW. Will my 7 year old daughter still be able to swim and do Blizzard Beach and the water parks?
Also - our currency has been the hardest hit ahgainst the USD and while it was 5 rands per USD a few years ago, it's now 12 rands. For the price of ONE hot dog at WDW I could buy a family meal back home. Any tips on doing the parks on a tight budget?
Also - our currency has been the hardest hit ahgainst the USD and while it was 5 rands per USD a few years ago, it's now 12 rands. For the price of ONE hot dog at WDW I could buy a family meal back home. Any tips on doing the parks on a tight budget?
Jan 3rd, 2002, 06:06 AM
#2
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Omar,
My family and I went to WDW the first week of last February. We were able to swim 3-4 of our seven days there, the other days were too chilly. We swam at the hotel (All-Star Movies) pool. Two of the three water parks were closed for seasonal repairs/renovations, and I am thinking that Blizzard Beach was one that was closed. Also, you may want to check out some of the other websites geared to WDW......just check the archives here. Hope this helps.
My family and I went to WDW the first week of last February. We were able to swim 3-4 of our seven days there, the other days were too chilly. We swam at the hotel (All-Star Movies) pool. Two of the three water parks were closed for seasonal repairs/renovations, and I am thinking that Blizzard Beach was one that was closed. Also, you may want to check out some of the other websites geared to WDW......just check the archives here. Hope this helps.
Jan 3rd, 2002, 06:07 AM
#3
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Blizzard beach is going to be closed in February. One of the other water parks should be open. The pools at WDW are heated, so people have been known to swim there even during fairly cold weather. The highs are usually 60F-70F during the day but can dip to freezing at night. Additionally, you may hit a real cold spell (I was there one year when it was below freezing for 5 days.) Everything will be expensive in the parks, but if you have a car and can drive to Kissemee (sp?) everything is MUCH cheaper. Have fun.
Jan 3rd, 2002, 06:22 AM
#4
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Hi Omar...the poster above is correct about Kissimmee...the main road there is Highway 192 (Irlo Bronson Highway) and it has many inexpensive restaurants...a place called Shoney's offers a huge breakfast buffet at a very reasonable price that keeps you going all day...Western Corral and a few other steakhouse chains also have huge lunch and dinner buffets...there's a shopping center called The Crossroads right off I-4 across from Disney Village that has a fabulous Goodings supermarket ...there you can buy sandwiches (very large), yogurt, etc. also at very reasonable prices...this shopping center also has a McDonald's, Taco Bell, and a few other restaurants...the McDonald's a few steps from International Drive has a very large playground that kids love.
Jan 3rd, 2002, 02:32 PM
#7
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Hi Omar, Disney can be a wonderful place for a child, especially if this will be your first trip. Some $ saving ideas- go to a grocery store or Walmart (a discount store where you can buy almost anything) and buy value packs of bottled water, you can get 12 packs of zephyrhills for less than $8, compared to $2.50 per bottle at the parks. Also if your daughter will enjoy disney character autographs buy an autograph book outside of the park. Make sure you buy everything you need such as extra film, headache medicine, sunscreen (even in Feb.), outside of the park, the markup is terrible. Bring kid friendly healthy snacks such as fruit roll ups, granola or trail mix or even candy and energy bars, to avoid temptation from the various icecream, popcorn, and other snack vendors in the park. Always eat breakfast before you come, you could have cereal in the hotel, or one of the inexpensive breakfast buffets located all over Kissimmee (watch out for hotel ones as those are sometimes considerably higher). If you can you might want to leave the park for lunch and/or dinner, fastfood, sandwich shops, and chain restaurants are all going to be vastly cheaper than in-park food. If you want to eat in the parks look for counter not table service restaurants. Some good inexpensive by disney standard places are- in the Magic Kingdom- Columbia Harbour House (my personal favorite), The Plaza Pavillion, and Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe. In Epcot- Electric Umbrella, Liberty Inn, Sunshine Season Food Fair located in the Land (my personal favorite). In MGM- Toy Story Pizza Planet, ABC Commissary, Backlot Express (my favorite). Animal kingdom is not known for its restaurants but Pizzafari, and Restaurantsaurus are inexpensive. If you choose to splurge on a meal, pick one of the many at Epcot Center. They have the best dining choices. My favorite is Le Cellier Steakhouse in Canada- pricey but wonderful. Have a great trip. I know the park very well, as we have annual passes and go often. If you need any more info or have a specific question feel free to email me at the above address.
Jan 5th, 2002, 06:46 AM
#8
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Thanks for the tips everyone. Although Kissimee is less expensive, once I'm in the parks I'm staying put - I guess Becky's advice will be put to good use.
I have visited WDW previously, in July 1999 when our currency was much stronger and my daughter, Hannah, was nuts about Casey's hot dogs on Main Street USA. Guess there's no getting around $5 dogs.
Thanks again, everyone.
I have visited WDW previously, in July 1999 when our currency was much stronger and my daughter, Hannah, was nuts about Casey's hot dogs on Main Street USA. Guess there's no getting around $5 dogs.
Thanks again, everyone.
