Going to Disney's Magic Kingdom - suggestions needed (Orlando, Kissimmee: how much, buy)

[tricon7]

My family (which lives here in Orlando) will be taking advantage of the special 3-day pass for $99 in a few weeks, and we plan on going to the Magic Kingdom first. We'd like some suggestions on how to make our trip easier/more enjoyable or more economical. I know the $99 gets us in the door, but what about parking? Is that extra? And I know that most - if not all - of our eats will have to be bought in the park, and I imagine it's as expensive as airport restaurants (or more), so we have to budget for that. With two adults and three children (six, five, and three) it can add up. And who is going to go to Disney and not buy gifts and trinkets? Gotta budget for that, too.

Anywho, I'm just wondering how much extra I should budget beyond the $99 per person for "all the rest"? For those of you who have gone recently, how much extra beyond the ticket price did you wind up spending? Is there anything I missed?

[Mr Idealism]

Anticipate at least $25 per person for lunch/snack/dinner. That's basically just getting and sharing a counter service meal (burger, chicken strips, etc). If you plan on having a seated meal, it will be substantially more, as will be popcorn or sweets. The best advice I can give you is go to the disney site and get acclimated to the different attractions ahead of time. It's imperative to get to the park when it opens or prior and get fastpass for the most popular attraction first. I'm not sure if you're 3 year old can ride any of the "Mountains" but those would be the busiest, besides Peter Pan. You'll have to pay $10+ to park as well. Enjoy!

[Soundsgood23]

my girlfriend and I go all the time. We happen to have the season passes, but that's irrelevant right now. what is important is that you are correct in that there are plenty of 'hidden fees' associated with a trip to the magic kingdom. Parking for a regular car or minivan is $14 dollars per day. This parking pass will allow you to access any of the parking lots in the disney complex for the day, so if you have the park hopper pass, you can park at any of them for free once you pay the first fee.

Secondly, in my opinion, the most budget friendly eatery in the park is probably the tomorrowland cafe. You can get a burger and fries and a drink for about $12-14 dollars a person, and they have kids meals for less. Its not great, but its cheaper and higher quality than the others. Now, if you really want to save money, you can either bring some snacks and eat for free, or you can take a break from the park, skip out for lunch, and then come back in afterwards (not only saving money, but also avoiding the craziness of a noontime lunch rush, which will be slightly nightmarish). You're ticket and parking pass allow you to do all of this!

Anyways, thats a long enough post for now. You'll be able to get a sense for how much to budget from that. Add in another couple bucks for a gift for each child ($10-15 would suffice) and you've got yourself a disney trip! Shame it's so expensive, but I guess that's what makes it a disney trip huh? Once in a lifetime haha. good luck!

[chopchop0]

Originally Posted by Soundsgood23

Now, if you really want to save money, you can either bring some snacks and eat for free, or you can take a break from the park, skip out for lunch, and then come back in afterwards (not only saving money, but also avoiding the craziness of a noontime lunch rush, which will be slightly nightmarish). You're ticket and parking pass allow you to do all of this!

Very doable, considering celebration, and downtown disney aren't that far away. Lots of casual/fast food places along SR 535 in the buena vista area

[hallbabies]

I think parking is $14 for all day. I tend to bring in my own food, and go to any eateries to ask for free water cups. I also like to order a serving of their fries, i think those are under $3 and if you get a new batch they are better than McD's

Other than that, I would avoid the park with early entry for resort guests that day, since that park will tend to be more crowded. Have fun!

[tricon7]

Originally Posted by hallbabies

I tend to bring in my own food, and go to any eateries to ask for free water cups.

How do you bring your own food in? I would think that's forbidden.

And what is Fastpass? Is that a price above the $14.00 parking pass? What does it get me beyond just a parking privilege?

[Mr Idealism]

Originally Posted by tricon7

How do you bring your own food in? I would think that's forbidden.

And what is Fastpass? Is that a price above the $14.00 parking pass? What does it get me beyond just a parking privilege?

Tricon, I'm not trying to be a dick, but seriously head over to wdwinfo.com, mousesavers.com, or allearsnet.com to get accustomed to WDW. I would hate for you to go into it without knowing anything. People plan a year in advance to go to WDW, and though that might be a bit hard core, it helps to do your homework. The disboards.com forum is a great source of information. A lot of the people on here don't really like disney all that much.

[beckycat]

Originally Posted by tricon7

How do you bring your own food in? I would think that's forbidden.

And what is Fastpass? Is that a price above the $14.00 parking pass? What does it get me beyond just a parking privilege?

You may bring your own food and drinks into the park. We normally pack a lunch and then get ice cream or some snack there. I just called to make sure they haven't changed the policy. The price for food for a family of four is just way too expensive for what you are getting. The Fastpass is included in your admission. It's gets you to the front of the line of certain rides. You print the pass at one of the stations and it gives you a time to come back so you don't have to wait in line. Parking is $14 just to park.

[Rabflmom]

Originally Posted by chopchop0

Very doable, considering celebration, and downtown disney aren't that far away. Lots of casual/fast food places along SR 535 in the buena vista area

My advice-----do not leave the park. You will lose at least 2 hours of your time in the park.....it means a ride on the monorail or boat to the ticket center, then a ride on the tram to the parking lot your car is in, then a 15 + minute ride to get out to rt 192 and Kissimmee or Celebration-( if ya really want Mc Donalds there is one on property but still has property prices in my book) then you have to repeat the trip into the parks....only in the afternoon the tram sits and waits for it to get more people. Once we sat for 20 minutes before heading to the Ticket area.

Inside the park you can get burgers for about $7 (tell them you don't want the fries with the meal and they will charge just a price for the burger-maybe $4). You can bring in small soft coolers so you can bring in bottled water and fruit etc. .....but you also can just ask for a glass of water from any restaurant(free) because they don't want people keeling over from heat. Some of the curb restaurants have a toppings center so you can buy the burger and load on the toppings and split for 2 kids etc.
Our plan of attack when the kids were little was to eat a good breakfast in the morning,get popcorn about 10 or 11, plan lunch to be about 3 or 4, and if staying late get a snack like popcorn,mickey bars, stuffed pretzel, or funnel cakes which usually can be shared.

[Rabflmom]

Originally Posted by beckycat

You may bring your own food and drinks into the park. We normally pack a lunch and then get ice cream or some snack there. I just called to make sure they haven't changed the policy. The price for food for a family of four is just way too expensive for what you are getting. The Fastpass is included in your admission. It's gets you to the front of the line of certain rides. You print the pass at one of the stations and it gives you a time to come back so you don't have to wait in line. Parking is $14 just to park.

Fast p[ass sort of gets you past part of the line but not necessarily the front of the line. It tells you what hour to return to ride the ride. It is a separate line from standby and it will make less waiting but we have waited in fast pass line for 10-20 minutes on times when every one showed up at same time with fast passes. LOL .