Getting There
Transportation to the Orlando area is one of the biggest ticket items on your family's Central Florida vacation budget.
In this day and age of discount airlines you may actually find that it's cheaper to fly. Southwest*, Frontier, and Allegiant Airlines all offer direct flights from the OKC area. The flights are just over 2 hours and I've recently booked a round trip Frontier flight with a checked bag for $140.00. If you book during off-peak season there are roundtrip flights on Frontier for $104.00. Discount airlines charge for seat selections but if you don't choose a seat there isn't a charge and they've always seated my son and I together so we don't pay for seats. They also charge for bags and it pays to be selective about what bags you bring. If you're traveling with others you can coordinate packing to save money. My extended family takes an annual vacation together and I am responsible for bringing the hair straightener while my cousin brings the shampoo.
Driving is also an option. It takes about 22 hours to get from OKC to Orlando and there are interesting things to see and do along the way. You can route south through New Orleans or east through Nashville for added mini-vacation stopovers. Be sure to factor in the cost of fuel and hotels along the way when calculating your drive or fly decision.
Money Saving Tip: Sign up for a Frontier Airlines credit card and you'll get two roundtrip tickets as a sign-up bonus.
*Southwest only has seasonal direct flights on Sundays. They do not charge for bags or seats.
Staying There
When deciding where you'll stay consider the type of vacation experience you'd like to have. If you plan to go to the theme parks every day of your visit it will probably make more sense to stay at a hotel on Disney's property because you'll get free parking, early entry perks, and on-property transportation. The Swan and Dolphin Resorts offer teacher discounts. There are also camp sites at Fort Wilderness with fees starting at $55.00/night. Hilton brand hotels (Hilton, Hampton Inn, Embassy Suites, Doubletree, etc...) offer their military and government discounts to teachers so you may want to look at the Doubletree at Disney Springs. Starwood Hotels (Sheraton, Four Points by Sheraton, Sheraton Suites) also offer teacher discounts.
However, if a theme park visit is one component of a multi-faceted vacation experience that involves the beach, a visit to Kennedy Space Center, or just a relaxing day around town you may want to stay closer to a beach. We have a condo available for short-term rentals in Melbourne, Florida visit www.livingwellvacations.com for more information.
Visiting Disney World
Disney is expensive but, in my opinion, worth the ticket price because it truly is magical. However, the $4.00 bottles of water are just silly so let's talk about how to save when visiting Disney World.
First, take plastic, refillable water bottles. You can also take a backpack with snacks. Also, take a poncho because it rains in Florida a lot and you're not going to want to leave the park during a shower or pay for a Disney poncho. If you've got littles take an umbrella stroller.
If you're an annual Disney visitor get the Chase Disney credit card and start racking up those points. If you're an occasional visitor, every few years or perhaps only once in a lifetime the points card may not be your best solution. There are discount tickets available but before purchasing those it's important to decide how many days you'll spend at the park(s) and what exactly your kids (or you) want to see and do. For example, if you have teenagers you may not want to visit the Magic Kingdom. When my son was four he was awed by the Magic Kingdom parade, if you've got littles don't skip that park!
If you know that there is a specific park you want to visit you'll want to buy a ticket for just that park. We like the park hopper pass because we like to hit the highlights of two, three, and sometimes all four parks in a single day - Rockin Rollercoaster, Tower of Terror, and Star Tours at MGM then off to Epcot for lunch, Space Mountain, and Guardians of the Galaxy. Next, Animal Kingdom for a safari ride, dinner somewhere in between, and we finish at Magic Kingdom for the fireworks show. It's a fast, furious, and fun experience that's not for the faint of heart! My son is ten and can keep up but I don't recommend park hopping with littles. Check out the Undercover Tourist for discount tickets.
Disney also offers educational youth programs. They require a 10 student minimum but some creative planning with other Epic teachers could result in an awesome learning experience. I'm game if anyone wants to try to put this together.
The in-park souvineers are wallet-busters and it's difficult to avoid them but I saw another blog where the mom bought Disney branded merchandise beforehand (from less expensive places, like Wal-Mart or Target) and then the night before they visited the parks Tinkerbell brought her littles a gift. I don't buy souvineers for my son, if he wants something he needs to spend his own money. I do, however, give him opportunities to earn trip money in the months leading up to a vacation.
In the end, I think the best way to save money at Disney is through prior planning. Sometimes, I like to take off-the-cuff unplanned vacations but when the ticket prices are high it's better to know exactly what you'd like to do so you're not paying for things that don't interest your group. Good luck and enjoy your vacation!
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