Our Next Trip

     In less than four months we leave for our big family Disney vacation. Usually family vacations are myself, my husband, our two kids, and usually my grandmother, and brother. This time however we are going big. We decided to do a vacation though Christmas; we will be doing a five night Bahamas cruise on the Disney Dream, fallowed by three days at Disney World theme parks, then two days at Universal Studio. Coming along on this trip will be our normal six travelers along with my in-law, our niece, and my mother added up that is 10 people. So for anyone who has never planned a trip for so many people believe me it not stress free or cheap.

All the stress and planning can make anyone’s head hurt however to make life a little easier there are some tips for three people or 10, when we originally planned this trip we were planning for six and we were not adding a lot of the extras we have now added.

Add On- VIP Tour Guides

• With so many people and so few days at the park I want to try the VIP tour guides for the three days we are there along with the two day tour of Universal Studio. These tours do not come cheap and they make my heart flutter at the cost so be sure that you can budget this before booking.
• Disney at 355 dollars per hour with a minim of six ours it adds up quickly.
• Universal Studios has a two day two park VIP Tour that cost around 4050.00 dollars for up to 10 people. We have done the daily Universal tour at California this one will be a bit different from what I understand.

Research Plan and Budget:

• Do all the numbers and research yourself find all the deals and discounts you can before booking, then visit a travel agent and see what cost they come up with.  We use the AAA travel and I love our agent she is the best and we use her for more than Disney trips.
• Sometimes your travel agent will find the same trip you did for less because they have special rates and deals with Disney. However if your cost is less than what the agent can find then you have lost nothing by having them look, you are not locked into buying though an agent just by having them look a trip up.
• Never spend more than you can budget all the extras sound fun and exciting but before you know it the cost has outweighed the fun.

Cruise Discounts:

• This is not our first Disney Cruise so we received a 10% discount per stateroom that had sailed before with Disney. Please note that the discount will only apply to people who have sailed before, this trip we have three stateroom but only two where discounted. You will also receive in stateroom gift for sailing with Disney again.

Make a list and check it twice:

• Cost, time, and cranky children means you need a must see list this is a list of what you have to see while on your vacation have each person in your family pick three to five things depending on how many days you will be at Disney of their must do on the trip and then if nothing more make sure you do these items for me it is Tower of Terror This is always on my list and anything with Stitch is on my daughters. This way you know that you and your family will see what they want the most and the rest can be done another visit.

Timing really is everything

• We chose to go to Disney world  during the most busy time of the year the week of Christmas, when I first planned my trip I did not know this, I was thinking like any rational person that Disney world would be the busiest during summer and I was wrong another reason we chose the VIP Tour. Usually mid-September and mid-January are the best times to visit the parks the summer and holiday rushes are over and the spring rush is not yet in full swing.  The days before and after Christmas are usually the most costly to fly also something to keep in mind if you cannot drive to your vacation.

Bundle just like cable:

• We booked everything this trip though Disney well everything besides Universal Studios. We have traveled on a Disney cruise by booking our own air fare, transportation, and hotel before and while it is doable the stress and the worry can make the bundling worth the cost. This time we let Disney take care of it all the price was within reason. However while bundling can save money always be sure to check out all other options.
• If you plan on going to other parks such as Universal Studio see about moving hotels you may be able to save money by staying at a Disney hotel while going to Disney parks then moving to a Universal Studio hotel for the days you are at that park.

Schedule:

• I am a list nut I like everything in order and a schedule ready and vacationing is no different. That list I said earlier schedule it. List out each day and mark by day what you want to do, where you want to eat, and what you want to see, this way you have an idea of what you days will be like.

These are only a few tips I plan on doing a tip of all tip list that will have all the tips for the best trip in one nice area .Above all make sure you and your family enjoy yourself these are so many deals and ideas out in the world that it can be overwhelming, just take a deep breath have a glass of wine and research.