Have you come across a website of a company or individual advertising themselves as an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner? If so you probably wondered if 1) their service was legitimate, and 2) whether or not it would actually save you time and money.

The answer to both questions is yes, but like all businesses you should look for references and reviews before signing up. Your Disney Vacation has the potential to be the highlight of your family’s year, so you don’t want to hand over the most important responsibilities until you know more about whom you will be working with.

One of the first things people are suspicious of is the price of this service. All Disney Vacation Planners work on a commission structure, so they do not actually charge you for anything. I forget where I read it, but planners earn approximately 3% to 5% of the package price the customer pays. That means they would earn about $150 for a $5000 package. Not much, but it can be a nice secondary income for a stay-at-home-mom or someone else trying to earn extra cash.

Now when it comes to saving money a reputable planner could very well save you hundreds of dollars. Typically there are a handful of Disney vacation specials going on at the same time. This can make it difficult to navigate what discount is best suited for your family. Your planner will ask you about your preferences and budget prior to making any reservations. They will then run the numbers through different scenarios to find the cheapest option for you. This by itself can make it worthwhile to work with a planner.

One thing to note is that most Disney Vacation Planners work exclusively with Disney World hotels since this is where their commissions come from. Thus, if you are planning to stay off-site you should tell them up front. Disney World offers a wide range of hotels and resorts for every budget so don’t completely rule out staying on the property for cost reasons.

The best planners will help you with all the little details to make your trip memorable. This includes creating a park itinerary that will save you time, booking character dining experience meals, and answering any questions you have about what to expect when you arrive. Having a single contact person for all this information is definitely a luxury. Busy parents and working couples will appreciate being able to call someone with questions as opposed to digging through the internet for answers.

I have not personally used a Disney Vacation Planner for any of my trips. This is mostly because I enjoy the planning process as it provides valuable insights for this blog. That being said, if you want to inquire about partnering with a  planner then I would start with Small World Vacations. They have the strictest requirements for their agents, so you can feel confident about getting an experienced representative. Each member of their team has stayed 3 or more nights at 4 or more Walt Disney World resorts within the last five years, and each is also a graduate of the College of Disney Knowledge for travel agents.

In short, Authorized Disney Planners can be a tremendous asset to first-timers and busy parents. You will definitely save time and more than likely money by outsourcing the reservation process. Just make sure you interview your planner before signing up, and be as transparent as possible about your trip. This will allow you to get the most out of your experience!

The internet is creating some really cool ways to share information. My latest addictions are called Infographics. In short they are visual charts or graphs packed with interesting tidbits of information.

I was especially excited to come across this Disney World Vacation piece at InfographicList.com. It is great starting point for anyone planning a trip to WDW, and groups of 4 or more can really save money with these tips…

It’s that time of year again! Disney World is making final preparations for the 2011 Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. This has always been one of the best times to visit Disney World, and now you can take advantage of special package deals that include a free dining plan.

The free dining plan offer is available when you buy a 5 day / 4 night Magic Your Way Package. Arrival dates that coincide with the Halloween festivities include October 2nd though the 6th AND October 23rd through November 1st.

If you are traveling on a shoestring budget then you will probably opt for the Value Resort package, which includes your hotel room, park tickets, and a Disney quick service dining plan. According to the website, the package price for 2 adults, 1 junior, and 1 child comes to $1,442…or $73 per person/per day.

Now if you prefer the additional accommodations of a Moderate Resort, then for $16 more dollars per person/per day you can upgrade to the Moderate Resort package. This package gets you the full Disney Dining Plan for a total price of $1,773.

Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is held every fall at the Magic Kingdom park. Note that you do have to purchase an additional event ticket to attend the party. Ticket prices in October range from $57 per person for week night shows to $68 dollars for the weekend dates and Halloween night.

The party includes a special parade, fireworks display, and Halloween displays and effects within the Magic Kingdom. Disney characters will be out in full force dressed in their own Halloween costumes. Your children can also dress up and enjoy trick-or-treat around the streets of the park.

The event occurs approximately 3 times a week (mostly on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays) beginning on September 13th and running through November 1st. If you are booking a short stay then be sure to check the dates to make sure the event is running during your visit. Also, any of the dates have the potential to sellout, so buy your tickets online if you know you are going to be there!

So this is kind of cool…Disney World has just released a new vacation package option called “New Memories”.  Basically it includes your resort room, tickets to the park, and a keepsake photo album.

You get to customize the photo album with family pictures taken at PhotoPass kiosks around the park. Here a Disney World photographer will take your picture in front of the most memorable stops on DW property. This can eliminate the need to carry an extra camera…which is especially handy at the water park.

To kick off the launch of the New Memories Vacation Package, Disney World is throwing in free dining plans for those who book for dates between August 28th and September 24th. Obviously these dates won’t work for families with school-age children, but it is a nice option for other families and couples.

According to the website, you can get a 6 day/5 night package at a moderate resort with the standard dining package for $2047 (family of 4). You can also select to stay at a value resort with the quick-service dining package, which drops the price to $1605.

So is the New Memories Vacation Package a good deal? Well normally you would pay around $80 for the photo book, so there is some value there. The bigger savings is with the dining plan promotion, saving you approximately $125 per day with 2 adults and 2 children. So in the end it pays to wait for a special deal to come along.

No doubt it can be intimidating to try and organize all of the projected costs for your Disney World vacation. However there is a great online tool you can use to get an instant quote on your hotel room, theme park tickets, and dining accommodations.

Deep inside the Disney World website there is a handy resource called the Vacation Package Guide. By entering a few simple parameters you can get an accurate quote for a custom made vacation package that suits your needs.

Just recently I used this tool to price a six day vacation for a family of four with children ages 2 and 5.  The results were were well suited to my needs and the price was surprisingly affordable.  Here is an overview…

Customized Package for July 10, 2011 to July 16, 2011
Resort Category: Disney Value Resort Hotel
Resort Hotel: Disney’s All-Star Music Resort
Room Type: Standard Room
Package Type: 6-Day Magic Your Way Package Plus Disney Dining Plan
Package Price Start at: $2,000 USD

This package averages out to be just under $100 per person/per day and includes hotel, food, and park tickets. So the only thing left to calculate is travel costs, rental car (if any), and souvenirs. I would project $1,000 for plane tickets and $400 for a rental car. Throw in some cheap souvenirs and gas money to put the whole trip at $4,000. That’s a pretty good price for a summer vacation in my opinion.

Now the cool thing about this Vacation Guide is you can customize the results to match your taste. For example, under the hotel price category the system offered this suggestion…

This resort recommended for its:
-Affordable comfort and convenience
-Celebration of the love of music and affordable family suites

It then provided an option to upgrade my accommodations without changing anything else in the package…

You might also like:
Resort Category: Disney Moderate Resort Hotel
Resort Hotel: Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – Riverside
Room Type: Standard Room
Packages Start From $2,340 USD

These types of suggestions were also provided for food and park tickets, making it simple to upgrade or downgrade features to meet your budget and preferences.

So the bottom line here is that you don’t need a scientific calculator to get a Disney World vacation quote. There are resources like this one available for free right on the DW website. This is the perfect way to get pricing for your trip while you are still planning your vacation. Oh, and I forgot to mention…no email or registration is required to use it!

Happy Planning!

If you are just coming off your Christmas vacation at Disney World then you are probably already thinking about your plans for 2011. While it is good to plan ahead, there are some minor hurdles to keep in mind when making plans for next year.

The first thing you’ll notice is that the dates for the 2011 Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party have not been released yet. Now if you look back at the 2010 dates you’ll see that festivities were scheduled for most Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays from November 8th through December 19th. It is somewhat safe to assume the same daily schedule will be the same for 2011, but the best bet is to stay through a weekend between November 11th and December 18th, 2011.

By following this advice you will likely have at least two dates to choose from for attending the Christmas Party. Unfortunately though, you won’t know specific date options until July when the official schedule is released. Last year the schedule was posted on July 27th.

For budgeting purposes you also should factor in the additional cost of attending Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. Advance tickets prices in 2010 were $53.95 for ages 10+ and $47.95 for ages 3 – 9. Same day ticket purchases cost an additional $6. Sellouts are typically not an issue for those buying in advance, but the December 19th party did sellout last year…so try not to wait until the last minute. To complicate things some more, the final five performances are usually blocked from advance ticket sales.

There is good news for those who are not ready to make their Christmas reservation this early in the year. If your schedule is flexible and you can afford to wait until mid-August then you can take advantage of the room rate discounts that are typically offered in late summer. The cheapest deals fall between the week after Thanksgiving through mid-December. Of course this is a time when school is still in session so not everyone will be able to take advantage of these dates.

So in short, beginning on January 1 you can book your room reservations, vacation packages, and park tickets. However, if you can wait until late summer you will have access to the Very Merry Christmas Party schedule and access to potential savings opportunities on select rooms and dates.