hi,
ive been to florida twice before when i was younger with my family. me & my boyfriend want to go next year or the year after. I just want to know who offers package holidays but without car hire & if possible can do transfers to the hotel?

Ive been on the travelcity direct site & on the FAQ's it says that you dont need to have car hire & can select transfers instead but this doesnt seem to be the case.

So can anyone please let me know who offers this but without car hire?!

Thanks

If you phone Travel City Direct, they will quote you for a transfer instead of a car. Their phone prices are the same as their internet prices, so it won't matter. However, with any company, you don't have to take the 'free' car, just because it is offered. Just don't pay the extra charges for insurance etc.

Hi Everyone,

We are going to Orlando on 15th April for 16 nights, staying at Caribbean Beach Hotel 1st week and villa afterwards - me, hubby and 2 boys 14 and 10. Anyone else going same time/place, can offer advice re what teenagers will like best. Not sure if the disney parks too young for my eldest. Any advice would be much appreciated. First timers and a bit nervous as well as excited! Sue

Hi we go the 2 weeks before you..
my kids are 13 and 10 and love Universal and the waterparks. We are trying the new Aquatica park and doing Universal and busch gardens, the other days will be laying by the pool. We'll probably give Disney a miss this time, but saying that this is our 5th time.
Test track at Epcot, is worth a visit.

If this is your first time don't forget Seaworld a mix of thrill rides and nature . Both my kids still loved going there when 15 and 16 . Hope you have a great holiday .

Your children are definitely not too old for Disney parks. Our two boys were 22 and 18 last summer and they still love them all even on our sixth visit! Obviously though they don't head for Dumbo! There are plenty of rides for older children. However they both really like Universal too and we had 4 days there.

Ok thanks guys, I feel a little better now!

hi all
looking for somewhere central , cheap , pool , clean and inc bfast - for me dh and dd
any ideas ?
thanks

Hi, i need to book a trip to Florida, staying in International Drive this August for a wedding. I've been searching and searching and the best price i can come up with is a package deal for £740.

My question is, do i go ahead and book this or do i wait a couple of months / get a late deal? Would it be cheaper?

Any one experienced this?

Many thanks

C

Hi Claudia,
August is School Holiday time so I'd be surprised if the price comes down closer to departure.

I recently booked a package for the Easter Hols and the price had increased because I dealyed booking for a couple of days.

This is just my opinion, somebody else may tell you differently,

Jordy

We've decided we want to stay at a Disney hotel in 2009. It will have to be in August due to school holidays which means it might be crowded but I'm hoping being onsite will help with that. Have people experience in booking DIY holidays to Disney hotels? Does this work out much cheaper than a package? I'm not that bothered about a car - I've been to Florida twice before (staying on I Drive) and have never found them essential.

If you want to go in August, book the very latest date you can do and still get back for the new term. The second half of August is far less busy than the first half, as many US schools go back in August not September. The nearer you get to September the less busy it will be.

Have never booked diy so can't help you there. Without a car, you are restricted to Disney area. Only method of escape is taxis so budget for those! (However considering how much a car costs to rent, you can take quite a few and still save money!)

If you wait to book until September, they may offer free dining again, which is a massive benefit.

Hi Planning to go to Orlando with young kids aged 7 and 5 and have some questions, hope you can help:

1) What are the crowds and weather like last two weeks in May; there arent any major US holidays (whats Memorial day ?)that will impact the crowds is there?

2) Planning to stay first week in Disney Animal Lodge, is it worth getting the savannah room ?, is it worth staying at the hotel as opposed to any other Disney hotel. Last time we spent first week at All Stars Movies, and whilst I enjoyed the benefits of staying on site, thought the food )food court) was very poor.

3) 2nd week plan to stay on I-Drive to be closer to Universal and outlets. Last time we went, we stayed at Holiday Inn, and whilst the location was good, the hotel was not up to scratch, so need advice on a decent hotel on that side of Idrive that is accessible on public transport/shuttles as we will not be driving. The Crowne Plaza has been suggested but thats on the opposite end of the premium outlets isnt it ?

4) When is the best time to book ? Next March or in the next few months - opinonions invited

5) Any charters that one shouldnt travel with ? TCD fly with XL, have read poor reviews of Thomas cook/Mytravel, First Choice seems better, and Virgin prices dont compare any thoughts ?

6) Finally, last time we travelled someone on here suggested a great disney website for advice but i cant recall the name, can anyone help ?

Thanks for all your help

Memorial day is the equivalent of our Whit Monday ie late May bank Holiday.
It will be busier that week/weekend than other weeks in May, but we found May to be reasonably okay crowds wise and very nice weather wise with no rain at all.

Can't really answer re hotels or international drive as we always stay in Villas in Kissimmee and have never stayed on I-drive.

Charter companies are all much of a muchness in my opinion.

We have stayed at both the All Stars and the Animal Kingdom Lodge, also the Wilderness Lodge. We paid for a savannah view room and I would say it was worth it, because it is pretty amazing to look out the window or go on the balcony and see giraffe and zebras right there! The food court is much smaller than at the AllStars, because it also has the buffet restaurant Boma, which is excellent and should be booked in advance, and also an expensive waiter service one we didn't try as our teenagers didn't fancy the menu.

To check on crowd levels, go to http://www.touringplans.com and subscribe.

http://www.allearsnet.com is the most useful Disney site in my opinion for advice and information and you can subscribe to their weekly newsletter free.

Thomas Cook is currently upgrading its longhaul planes to match Thomson and First Choice with 33ins legroom pitch. TCD will be doing the same with new planes for summer 2009. So all the charters will be better than the scheduled and much of a muchness.

If you are planning to go over the school half-term holidays, then I suspect you will need to book well in advance, as these sort of dates fill up quickly. TCD is already on sale for summer 2009, I know.

Please ask if you want to know anything about AK lodge.

Regarding Memorial Day- this year it is on Monday May 26th- it is the start of summer vacation for the great majority of schools in the South and the Midwest, so yes it will be busy on that weekend and for the rest of the summer.

Suebar,

We are going to Clabay Parc at Tower Lakes 10th to 28th April with 2 Girls 9 and 12. looking forward to it now.

Pudsey,

Hi, yes I know getting a bit close now, excited. Where exactly are you staying - is it a villa? We have a villa in Kissimee 2nd week we are there, same time as you. Sue

Suebar,

Staying in Haines City Calabay Parc at Tower Lakes in a villa.