Orlando Vacation Home

When we were planning for our WDW family vacation in 2002, we saved Disney Dollars. We realized the grandchildren would ask us for souvenirs if their Mom and Dad said "No," so we decided we better plan ahead! We wanted to give each grandchild the same amount of Disney spending money, and build anticipation for the trip as well. For a year in advance, each time there was a birthday, a lost tooth, a good report card or special event, we cashed in real dollars for Disney Dollars at our local Disney store and put them in a card. By the time we got to WDW, they had more money than we did! They all had a great time spending their Disney Dollars in the parks on snacks and souvenirs. It was nice to be able to say, "YES, you can spend your Disney Dollars," instead of "NO, we can't afford it, it's too expensive!"

As we are planning a trip to Disney next May, my children (ages 9, 8 and 6) have asked me to email Santa, the Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy to ask for Disney Dollars so that they can save for their spending money. They have also informed their grandparents of this wish.

To involve my children in the moneysaving, we did two things. We posted a chart on the fridge and every week their earned allowance is tallied. The money is paid out in Disney Dollars for the trip and will be their spending money. We also decorated a coffee can with Disney stickers and ALL loose change from every family member gets dropped in. We figure come time for the trip it will pay for several meals!

When packing for vacation, my husband, son and I use two largesuitcases (plus our carry-ons). For the two large suitcases, wesplit all of our clothes in half. Half of everything goes ineach suitcase. Most times, when the airlines lose luggage, theydon't lose every piece belonging to one family. You should havehalf of your clothes when you arrive if you do lose one piece ofluggage. I would much rather end up having to do laundry thanspending my extra cash on all new clothes.

Coming from Canada, with a 45 percent (loss) exchange rate at the time, moneysaving ideas were a must for our trip in Fall 2002. Before our trip I had printed off coupons for every restaurant and store we planned to visit.. The more I saved, the more I wanted to save. I packed everything from cereal to laundry soap so that I would not have to buy it in Orlando at an already inflated price, and with a high exchange rate for me. The best savings I got was on water. We purchased a case of 30 bottles of water at our local Wal-Mart for under $8 (Can). To have bought that at WDW, 30 bottles @ $2.50 US = $75, then add our exchange rate to that and we would have paid about $130 Canadian. Since we anticipated a lot of outlet shopping, we each brought two large suitcases. The 30 bottles were spread out among them, so the weight was not an issue. (But honestly, for that kind of savings, I would have carried them on my back.) Next time though, I'll pack two cases of water. Your website was invaluable to us while planning our vacation. Our daughters (ages 7 and 9 at the time of the vacation) agree that we had a year of WDW fun and excitement before we ever left our home in chilly Nova Scotia. By the time we got to WDW, they were READY. Our most valuable expenditure was in time spent preparing for the trip.

My 3-year-old daughter and I will be going to Walt Disney World for the first time next month. To get into the Disney spirit, I've been having the "Disney princesses" send her little cards every couple of days. Disney has some great greeting cards with pictures of the princesses at their Magic Artist site: http://disney.go.com/magicartist/index_main.html. I print a blank card and write a little note from a princess saying how excited she is to hear that my daughter is coming. Sometimes I mention a specific ride that we can go on (i.e., Snow White's Scary Adventures, The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, etc.) that features the princess. Then I enclose pictures. Some pictures are of when my daughter met the princess at Disneyland. Some pictures are of the specific ride that I mentioned in the card, and some are just images of the princess that I found on the internet. My daughter loves this and we've been taping the cards on our wall next to the calendar where we're marking off the days until our trip. It's been a fun way for me to get her excited about the trip.

I just love your tips for getting children excited about their Walt Disney World trip. But what if your child is married and 28 years old? What I do is count the number of days until my daughter and her husband's trip, and then I send her an email that goes something like this: "Only 55 days to Go!" I send it every few days, and just change the number. She loves the emails and says they make her smile! See? You are never too old for the Magic.

Mini M&M's tubes are great for storing quarters (and pennies)! Ibuy the candy for my daughter and when she's done, I "steal" thetubes. Every few days, I fill one up with quarters, and put itin my WDW luggage. When we get to WDW, I'll put one of each(pennies and quarters) in my waist pack each morning, and Idon't have to dig through my pockets for change. I also putchange tubes in the car so we'll be ready to pay those peskytolls. I'm ready to press some pennies, y'all!

I have an important tip for all of you taking a trip during the fall rainy season. My husband and I went last fall and found that one pair of tennis shoes is not enough. If you get caught in a rainstorm, you might be fine in wet shoes the rest of the day, but when you put them back on later that night, it makes for uncomfortable dancing! Buy and break in that second pair of shoes so you have something to wear around while your wet shoes dry.

I will not travel without Ziploc bags, scissors, thread, firstaid supplies, a list of everyone's phone numbers, medical cards,an old pair of prescription glasses (in case I break the ones Iwear), clothes pins for the hotel room curtains, earplugs (toblock out the snoring husband!) and two small flashlights. Oneother thing I must take is extra instant coffee, creamer and oneof those gizmos that will heat just one cup of coffee rapidly.

I have one more tip related to Mary Cronin's idea. I hate walking on my treadmill. Has anyone actually recorded the walk from Spaceship Earth to the American Adventure to play back while walking the treadmill at home? My tape would always have to include a stop at Boulangerie Patisserie in France! YUM!

I read Mary Cronin's advisory to walk in order to be in shape for WDW, and I couldn't agree more. My wife and I are in our mid-50s and we have always wondered just how far we really do walk while at WDW, so we bought a pedometer and I wore it on our trip October 18-25. On the 18th and the 25th, our walking was limited to three hours each day due to our arrival and departure from WDW. Our first full day, which included Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, we logged 8 miles -- for the week we were just shy of 40 miles! Believe me, we do not race around the parks. We walk at a normal pace, and we were astounded at the total. Our advice: start walking.

Don't count on the weather forecast being accurate for your whole trip. We visited the week before Christmas. Checking the weather the day before we left, it said the high each day would be about 70 and the low about 50 (give or take a degree or two). After we arrived, the temperature was a little cooler than we expected. This wasn't too bad since we had sweatshirts packed for the evenings. The next couple of days, however, it was really cold even in the afternoon. We absolutely froze our tails off after the sun went down! If you're going during the winter, and in particular during the holidays when the parks are open until late in the evening, take long underwear and winter jackets even if it appears you won't need them! Better to have them and not need them than to not be able to enjoy the parks due to the cold! The weather can change in a hurry.

I have a great tip for those who must spend one night on the road on the way to WDW: Pack EVERYTHING (PJs, toiletries, clothes, etc.) for the first night and following day in backpacks for each person. Each person can carry his/her own pack into the hotel, and no one has to unload the suitcases from the car. This makes it easier on everyone both that night and the next morning, when someone (usually me!) would otherwise have to repack the trunk. This system also works well on the way home.

A tip for those times during the year when it rains every day: Each morning we packed our "rain backpack" with a poncho for everyone (four of us), as well as a couple of old ripped ponchos. But most importantly, we included a pair of water shoes or water sandals (Teva-like) for everyone. On the way to the park there was one backpack per person. However, our first stop in the parks was to rent a locker and put the "rain backpack" into a locker. Then when rain threatened or we got caught in the rain (since we had umbrellas with us) we would head to the locker to trade our sneakers for the sandals and ponchos. Then after the rain, we would switch back to our sneakers if we wanted. We also found we stayed the driest if we wore our backpacks on our chests, allowing the poncho to cover us and the backpack, and also used the umbrellas. At least for us, the umbrellas did not seem awkward or cumbersome -- it was actually easier to be careful to avoid fellow guests than having our heads heating up inside the poncho hoods that very much limited our vision. Inside the attractions we had the extra ponchos to place on the wet seats and wrap up the wet umbrellas for stuffing into the "rain backpack."

If you don't want your cookies smashed and your bread turned into dough, you could pack in a hard-sided suitcase -- or do what we do. We put all of our crushable items into Tupperware or Rubbermaid bowls, and then wrap them in our clothes. Your snacks don't get smashed, and you don't have to worry about your clothes being full of crumbs. On the return trip, if I have anything breakable, I put it in the Tupperware surrounded by socks. It arrives home safe and sound.

There are so many excellent guide books on WDW it would be hard to choose from the many available. Head to your public library, check some out, put those not on the shelf on reserve and look them ALL over before you decide to buy one. You might decide a general guide with great maps is for you or one on doing Disney with children or for seniors or for singles or one that rates the rides or gives you a great strategies for missing the crowds. Whatever you decide, you can easily order the book that best meets YOUR needs to take along from your local bookstore or online book dealer. The maps alone could easily make it worth your while and the info on things outside of WDW can be very valuable. I compared the various strategies for doing Disney and planned out some alternatives for avoiding lines that hit the things MY family wanted to see. I also discovered some interesting strolling musicians and odd little shops that I would have missed in the wild rush to do the rides.

When at all financially possible, consider booking the Dream Maker Plus Silver Plan. Yes, it's a little more than you would normally spend -- but what a great way to experience Disney Dining, without having to pay attention to the prices. I am normally a burger queen (due to the fact that it's the cheapest thing on the menu), but with the Silver Plan we were able to do a character breakfast every morning, as well as really experience the dinnertime restaurants. You can really get your money's worth by using your wishes for the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue or the Spirit of Aloha dinner show at the Polynesian (these are $50 per adult). Since each Magical Wish includes an appetizer, main course, dessert, and drink (or milkshake), we only ate two meals a day -- our character breakfast, and an early dinner. It was great!

I don't know how many folks travel with teens but I travel with my 16-year-old son. We usually stay at the All Stars and the only place for us to change privately is the bathroom. This can cause problems if you have had a shower and it's all steamy. So to solve the problem and give us a little more privacy, I go to the dollar store and buy a cheap white or colored shower curtain. Then I get two of the 3M hooks (with Command adhesive) that have the pull tab to remove them from the wall. We then hang the shower curtain between the sink area and the bedroom area. When we aren't using the area we hang the shower curtain on one hook. But when one of us wishes to change, we just hook the curtain up and we have a nice private area to change. I discovered this about 10 years ago when I was traveling with three kids. This way the two girls could change in one room and the two boys in the other.

A tip for parents is to carry a few
changes of clothes for the kids. There are a few places where
there are fountains that come out of the ground (like around
Donald's Boat at Mickey's Toontown Fair) and some rides on which
you can get very wet. This way the parents can take their kids
into a restroom and change them into dry clothes so that they'll
enjoy the rest of the trip to the park without having to run
around in wet clothes or underwear.

When I traveled to Disney World last
September, my wife (who could not go because she was very
pregnant) packed our 4-year-old's clothes in gallon-size Ziploc
bags. Julie, my wife, put a set of clothes (shirt, shorts,
underwear, and socks) in each bag. Each morning my 4-year-old
could see the bags and pick which shirt to wear for the day. The
bags work great because you can squeeze most of the air out and
keep the clothes dry. We also did this on the Disney Cruise in
January '03. It works great!

Although we have had many experiences, both good and not so good
in the course of our 30+ trips, one of the worst was when I
thought we'd have to break in to our own home. That's right, I
lost our house key. Of course, I didn't realize it until we were
all packed and waiting for the bellman to come and check the
bags. We tore the luggage apart and still couldn't find the key.
We eventually called our house sitter (and kitty-sitter) who was
able to unlock the back door a few hours before we were
scheduled to land. All's well that ends well, but the tears and
stress almost wiped out the magic of the trip. Now, I make sure
that I carry a spare key in the pocket of my carry-on bag and
check it before we leave the house. That way this will never
happen again!

When packing for the children I pack a zip-lock bag for each outfit. It holds their shorts, shirt, socks, undies, etc. When we get to the resort it is very easy for them to unpack they just open the drawer and in goes a bunch of zip locks! In the morning they just pull one out and there are no issues about what goes with what etc! I iron all their clothes and they stay wonderfully pressed in the bags. They also save a tremendous amount of space in their suitcases, which leaves room for the really important things like stuffed animals and game boys!

I also bring a folding clothes drying rack and a collapsible mesh hamper, both of which can be found at Target or Wal-Mart. These items are indispensable to me. I use the clothes drying rack for hanging up wet bathing suits or laundry on the balcony or in the rooms. The mesh hamper has handles so it is easy to carry down to the laundry room--I even have one that has separators for whites, colors, etc. I can't tell you how many people have stopped me in the halls and asked me where I got it!

We just returned from our trip to Disney World. The night we went to Fantasmic I knew we would be sitting for a while waiting for the show to begin. The best investment I made was buying one of those soft folding stadium seats. I carried it with me like a purse. Even used the side mesh pocket to carry drinks to our seats. We waited for over an hour and a half for the show to begin but I didn't mind

When we went to WDW on vacation last year, I packed one suitcase full of snacks and non-perishable food (i.e. mini cereal boxes, cereal bars, various pre-packaged snack packs, juice boxes). Our entire family was able to eat a quick breakfast before going to the parks, have mid-day park munchies, and late evening snacks. The suitcase was then used to bring home dirty laundry at the end of the trip.

For our past couple of trips to WDW and elsewhere we have double labeled our bags. One set of labels we had pre-maid with just our last name on them in a bold green color. The other luggage tags we bought at the hardware store and they are in neon colors

We always pack a plastic garbage bag in our suitcase to use for wet swimsuits and other items that are not completely dry before you leave for home. Also, pack a suitcase inside of a suitcase if you are not taking that much so you will have something to pack souvenirs in. I usually pack a small duffle bag to use as my carry-on when I return so I can make sure my breakables get home safely. One of our larger suitcases is used just for dirty clothing and it goes right to the laundry room when we get home. We roll the dirty clothes to make more room in the suitcase.

We have been going to WDW since our children were toddlers. Now they are all teenagers (and beyond), but this tip is still good. We have them bring plastic beverage holders that can clip onto a fanny belt. They start out with water, but if we ate a meal in the park, frequently there would still be some beverage left from the meal. The kids would fill the bottle with the leftover drink and take it with them. This has worked well over the years.

I just wanted to let you know of a kind of countdown we do prior to our trips to WDW. I save your "Mousy Mindbogglers," and about two weeks out, begin printing one each day to hang on the refrigerator for the family to guess the answers. It's fun and sometimes surprising who guesses which one first. By the way, our "children" are 18 and 22. We also post a countdown calendar on the refrigerator and each morning put a Disney sticker on the current day... silly, I guess, but we've been doing this prior to each trip and it, too, is fun.

Scotchgard those canvas sneakers before you leave home for WDW! Apply several coats, and allow plenty of drying time between applications. Dry feet make those sudden Florida downpours a whole lot more bearable!

On our last visit we packed empty plastic luggage bags that you are supposed to pack your clothing in and then roll up to get the air out. I find that utilizing them that way leaves you with wrinkled clothes when you arrive. I use them to put dirty laundry in. When filled, seal them and then roll them up to get the air out. This will leave you with plenty of room in your luggage for souvenirs.

We put our dirty clothes in a duffel bag. We just use it like a hamper during the trip, and then you can wash the duffel bag along with the clothes afterwards. Plus, if you lose the duffel bag it's cheaper to replace -- though, for some reason, the airlines never lose that item.

Can you stand one more tip on not losing your house keys? My luggage has a small zippered pocket on it. I always keep a spare house and car key in that pocket. That way, whenever I get back to the airport from a trip (Disney or otherwise) I have a back-up set of keys available if needed.

Before you go, program 407.WDW.INFO and 407.WDW.DINE into your cell phone(s). Remember to use those especially if you're on your night or weekend minutes, since it's free! It's SO easy to call these from wherever you are -- hotel room, in the park, etc. -- and find instant answers to your questions.

If you travel with any individual, especially children, who is afraid of or does not like loud noise, purchase disposable foam ear plugs from a hardware store before leaving home. These are easy to take in and out, cheap (less than a $1.00 a pair) and can be kept in a pocket or fanny pack. Don't forget to purchase several pairs, just in case one pair is lost.

I just read your article on planning for a large group. In October 2002, I brought my entire family (parents, sisters and their families) of 15 to WDW. In order to include everyone in the decision-making process, my family (the fanatics) prepared questionnaires that were sent to each family member, regardless of age (we ranged 9-80). The first questionnaire was broad and had different categories of likes and dislikes (parades, fireworks, swimming, parks, sleeping late, buffets vs. sit down vs. fast food, etc.) to determine what each person wanted to do. The second then gave each person three choices of what to do each day, morning, afternoon, and night -- one of which was ALWAYS "be on your own." We all stayedat the same hotel (Polynesian) and came and went according to what we had chosen. All 15 of us were only required to be together for three meals during the five days we were there. The groups constantly changed, and a fabulous time was had by all!We definitely recommend polling your traveling companions so everyone feels involved.

My 4-year-old son has a real problem with loud noises, but refused to wear ear plugs. We would put a pair in and he would pull them right back out. Before we left I contacted a store that specialized in hunting equipment and ordered a pair of the smallest child-sized headphones used at target ranges to muffle sound. They fit him perfectly and when we were in the parks, if there was even a hint of loud noises coming, we would just slip them on. My son actually went through the Haunted Mansion four times without a hitch. It was the best $17 I ever spent and I got quite a few comments of, "Oh, I wish we had thought of that."

When I know a trip to WDW is approaching, as I reach the last of the shampoo, conditioner, etc., I stash the almost empty bottle aside, then pack it for the trip. When I run out, I discard the bottle and there is automatically more room for Mickey stuff to bring home!

I'm going to WDW with my family and we are meeting my sister and cousin there. To get them even more excited about the trip, I sent them a box of little presents to open daily, every day of the month before we meet at Disney World. I have included small Disney items -- for example, a postage stamp, sticker, countdown calendar, and Disney bracelet. One of my favorites is a placemat that I made simply by taking a gift box and cutting off the sides. I put numbered pictures on both sides and even included some Hidden Mickeys! The pictures are of places all over the "World." I included instructions for them to try to decipher where each picture was taken. (This is kind of like your game of "Where in the World Are We?") On one side, I put pictures from all over, but the other side I filled up with pictures only taken in Epcot! I covered the whole thing with contact paper. Since they haven't been to WDW in years, this will be a fun little way for them to get reacquainted with the parks!

Every year, from vacation to vacation, I save change. I have ended up with anywhere from $75 to $210 at the end of the year. I reserve this money for tips. It's money I never missed and money I won't miss giving out as a tip to our driver, to the bellman, to the taxi driver and so on.

I shop at a grocery store that has a store discount card. Each week, in addition to my loose change, I "deposit" the amount saved at the grocery store. Boy, has THAT added up fast. My trip next month is paid for. Now I can Christmas shop.

I'd like to expand on Joanie's idea of saving change. I, too, am a change saver. But let's carry it one step further -- I never spend change! I pay for all my purchases with bills, even if I have the change in my pocket to cover it. At the end of the day, all my change (sometimes as much as $3-$4) goes into a water cooler bottle in our bedroom. Last year, we cashed in over $600 in change and it made the trip to WDW. Eventually, the jug may contain enough to cover Annual Passes so we can get to the World more often!

I wanted to share something I have done that I am probably entirely too proud of -- haha! My boyfriend and I are set to leave for the World in three weeks, and I wanted to do some kind of countdown for him. My mother had bought me a wooden box Advent calendar last year. It counts down 25 days, and each day is marked by a little door that opens up to a small "chamber" in the box. I have filled each mini-chamber with a picture or small token to represent his favorite attractions and new things we want to try this time around! Some examples of the tokens are little animals for the Kilimanjaro Safari, Christmas light bulbs for the Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights, and a piece of Ghirardelli chocolate for the ice cream shop at Downtown Disney.

We just returned from another great trip to our favorite place on earth... Disney World! We homeschool, so since we have a more flexible schedule, we have taken several trips there this year. The only problem we've encountered is that our three children (7, 9, and 13) never seem to get tired of souvenir shopping, or those yummy Mickey ice creams, and let's face it... Mickey ice cream isn't cheap. So, to save tears and money out of Mom and Dad's wallet, we've implemented a pretty workable plan. All three children are responsible for earning their own spending money, or saving their gift money for our Disney vacations. We provide breakfast, lunch, and dinner... anything else the children pay for themselves. Not only do they enjoy freedom from the words, "No, you can't have that," but they are learning how to handle and manage money at the same time. Who would have thought... Disney, three kids, and no tears!

I decided to try something new to organize myself for this lasttrip. I typed up a daily schedule that included our touring plan, the characters and where they could be found, our priority seating times and confirmation numbers. I also typed what I wanted to order at any counter service restaurants (thanks to the menus on AllEarsNet.com). After I printed this out, I attached it to the back of the park map (from PassPorter) that we would be at that day and laminated it. I could hand that to my mom with some money, and she would know what to order for me. It was great not to have to take my kids through the lines atthe counter service restaurants! The whole thing folded up to 4" x 8".

We generally start planning at least a year in advance. I have a plastic tub that is labeled "WDW stuff." I place our heavy-duty hotel mugs in it so they are already packed. I also buy things throughout the year for the trip: toothbrushes, toothpaste, magic gloves and whatever else we normally use during our week-long trip. I also go to my local laundromat and pick up boxes of laundry detergent for $.50 a box. One box cleans two loads and is a lot cheaper than the hotel laundry dispenser. I also pack several dryer sheets in a freezer bag and place them in my suitcase. It keeps the clothes smelling nice and I have dryer sheets for use while there. One nice thing about the bin is that, for those times that we drive to WDW, we just put the lid on it and pack it in the van. After we arrive to the hotel we empty it out and use that as our clothes hamper for dirty clothes. It works great for those trips to the hotel laundry.

We are going to Disney World this May. I wanted to give our two boys Disney Dollars for their Easter basket. Since we do not have a Disney Store very close by, I wanted to find out if I could order them -- but knowing I was under a time constraint (less than two weeks) I was worried they would not arrive in time. I was told that I could order via fax. I faxed in my order first thing Monday morning, and what do you know? The very next morning, there was the Fed Ex guy with my Disney Dollars! The best part was that the shipping was free! You can fax your order complete with the denominations ($1's, $5's, or $10's), name, address, and credit card information, to 1-407-566-5645. Thanks, Disney, for the first class service... AGAIN!

Just a little more information regarding obtaining Disney Dollars by fax: I faxed an order last Wednesday for $100 in $5 denominations to be charged to my credit card and I promptly received a call from Joe at Disney Ticketing who informed me that $50 is the maximum amount that can be charged to your credit card. It seems that anything over $50 has to be processed as a cash advance on your credit card -- yikes! We remedied the situation by charging $50 on the credit card and $50 on my debit card. I received the Dollars via Fed Ex the following Monday morning with a $3 shipping and handling fee, but no processing fee.

I just finished reading your March 15 newsletter about the Annual Passholder [room] discounts only being available for 10 days. I myself am an Annual Passholder staying for 11 days. I had the same problem with the 10-day limit, but my Grand Gatherings coordinator had a way around it. He booked me for 10 days with one reservation and one day with another reservation. He was wonderful! Also, thanks for putting out such a great newsletter. I can't wait to receive it each week.

If you "lock" your luggage with electrical ties, bring along a pair of nail clippers in your carry-on to cut them when you arrive. Getting them off without something is tough!

We are annual passholders and try to go oftento Disney and stay at an onsite resort. The convenience of thatis worth the extra money. The night before we check into ourDisney resort, however, we stay at one of the seven DowntownDisney hotels within walking distance to Downtown Disney. Weusually don't get there until after 6 p.m. so it seems like awaste to pay for the Disney resort for just a few hours of use.The hotels in Downtown Disney aren't very expensive compared tothe Disney resorts and we feel that is a good use of our lessthan half-day at the World. Plus Downtown Disney is the bestplace for things to do. They usually have some sort of fun goingon, like a dance party for the kids, or performers of some kind.There are fabulous goodies to eat and great shopping. The GuestServices here is the best place to buy tickets and passesbecause it's hardly ever crowded. You can take care of so manythings the night before and then wake up at the crack of dawn,drive to your choice of Disney resort, drop off your luggagewith them and start right out for the parks having had a goodnight's sleep and fun the night before. It's really a great ideato consider, especially if you live in Florida and have your carwith you.

We have found it very difficult in the past to manage maps, stroller, our other child and all the gear that goes with them. To maximize space, we trimmed the park maps from the PassPorter Walt Disney World guidebook and had them laminated in an 8x10 sheet. We then placed velcro dots on the map and the canopy of the stroller. The night before, my husband and I would circle the attractions we really wanted to get to, including Fastpass information, and write our Priority Seating number and any other info we might need during the day. Our map was always available and in plain sight. We had many folks tell us what a great idea this was. A few Cast Members were even surprised to see how accurate and up-to-date the PassPorter's maps were.

Similar to Lisa Dunn who wrote last week about staying at a Downtown Disney resort on her first day in the World, we live in California and rarely arrive earlier than 9 or 10 p.m. on the first night. I realize rooms arepre-selected prior to arrival, but since we stay for nine or 10 nights, I've found when we check in early in the day, we sometimes have an opportunity to ask for a special location if our preference hasn't been already accommodated. That's less likely at 10 p.m. when most folks have already checked into the hotel. We have recently stayed at either the Hyatt in the Orlando airport or one of the other airport hotels. Because we are still running on west coast time, we re usually ready for dinner or a swim when we arrive and there are plenty of places to eat. I've found the room rates extremely reasonable at the near-airport locations -- often breakfast is included and the transportation from the airport to those hotels is free.