Looking for Cheap All-inclusive Disney World packages...any Advice Appreciated!

I looked on Kayak.com for a week long vacation to Hawaii and found several package deals that included airfare-hotel and rental car for under $2000. Look around on vacation websites and you should be able to find something.

That's not going to be feasible - Disney discounted during Christmas. Christmas week is the busiest time at disney. Parks get filled to capacity. Discounts are rare during that week, and you're definitely not going to find free dining during that time. I'd recommend trying to find another week that will work for you.

DIsney is not cheap. If you can't afford to go and not go into debt, then wait until you can. You and your children will enjoy it much more.

We've been about 8 times. I work directly with airlines on flights and directly with WDW on events, hotels etc. Our average Disney trip was about $5000, rarely any lower than that if at all. There are 3 of us in our family, sometimes we pay for a friend or family to go along with us so the children can enjoy.

If you are not familiar with working your own deals with airlines, etc, then maybe you need help with an agent but that will add to your costs. I arrange travel almost daily but there is no way I can give you an estimate on airfare. Look up the major airlines, plug in the dates and see what you come up with. You get better deals if you book at least 21 days in advance.

We've always stayed at the Polynesian which is on the monorail line and upgraded rooms, etc. I don't know about a meal plan, we don't go that route. We enjoyed the OHana Polynesian character breakfast, Chef Mickey, and the Luau.

You might want to start planning for NEXT Christmas. Believe me, things are booked way in advance, especially the holidays and your choices at this point for hotels, airfares, etc are probably pretty slim.

Good luck

DisneyWorld has several value resorts on property: Pop Century, All Star Music, All Star Sports and All Star ???. Check on these. I have been getting emails and pop ups with "the free Disney dining plan" popping up for hotel stays an a non-discounted rate. Call the WDW phone number on their website and they can tell you what is available. ALSO--you have picked the MOST EXPENSIVE WEEK to travel to WDW. and also the most crowded!! The Magic Kingdom normally is filled to capacity on Christmas morning and they have to send people to other parks until the crowds lessen. The rides and attractions are all crowded and the lines are long. The parks and the hotels are decorated beautifully for Christmas and their are special events and programs. We have spent Christmas at Disney a few years (my daughter was in their college program and had to work over the holidays). The park is already decorated for the holidays, the special shows are starting - The Candlelight procession starts Nov. 25-Dec 30. If your kids aren't in school yet, pick an earlier week in December to go. The prices and airfare will be better and your kids can wake up in their own beds on Christmas morning.

We just got back from our 5th Disney trip October 20th. I would recommend checking out the Disboards.com. You can find out tons of info there.
I have always planned my trips ourself. I went to a travel agent the first time and walked out. Some people swear by them but I was able to get a better deal on my own.
If you are on a budget I would recommend booking a Value resort. My favortie is PoP Century. PoP is the newest of the Value resorts until the new one opens in 2012 and it has it's own bus which is a plus.
They have just extended free dining so you may be able to get it. I would recommend adding one TS meal per day to it though so you can go to a few sit down character meals. I usually book everything myself directly through the Disney.com site. It will let you compare hotels there also. Flights around Xmas are going to be expensive but we flew Southwest and were very happy with them. You can also call Disney directly and they will answer any questions for you.
I think the average cost for a family of four at a value including food is about $1600.00 (with park tickets) but that can very depending on the season. Disney has the year divided into seasons. And the price goes up or down depending on what season you are in.
Also I would recommend going to the Mickeys Very Merry Christmas Party. It's about $250.00 for the family of four to go but it is awesome! It is a special party that you can get into at 4PM and there is a special parade and other special events on that day too.
Our trip we were upgraded from POP to a moderate resort Carribean Beach club which was beautiful.

When we did Disneyland in April, I found that there is really nothing cheap about it.

If you are going to stay on site at WDW, it's not going to be cheap. You pay more to be in the middle of the action.

The meal plans don't save you anything, either. The food is so overpriced, I would suggest bringing lots of snacks & light meals if you are on a budget, with it seems you are.

The time frame during which you want to go is a peak time, so you are probably not going to get discounts, honestly. You are going to be dealing with higher prices for air, and there will be A LOT of people at WDW. That's if you can even book the trip this late in the game.

Personally, for us, we didn't want to scrimp, so we accepted that we would be spending a boatload of money, & stopped worrying. We stayed offsite, brought in food & even then it was still expensive. We accepted that it would be crowded. Disney is not cheap, even if you try to go cheap, honestly. If you can, I would wait until a less busy time, and start a Disney fund.

As many have said already, now is NOT the time to go if your looking for a deal. This is the start of their peak season and many of the "budget" rooms are rented and the theme parks are going to be full.
Consider going in the early summer to fall to get the best deals out there. It's the hottest time of the year but can't beat the prices and the parks aren't as full.
Good luck!

You may want to wait and do this next year if you must go that week. It is peak time and there will be few, if any, deals to be had. It's so close that you're going to pay top $$ for airfare and everything else. You should get on some travel "clearinghouse" type sites to see if you can scoop up anything last minute. My advice would be to wait, get a decent airfare and plan for several months to a year out for deals. Many onsite properties are probably already booked, but you may find some deals through mousesavers.com or an online travel site for hotels that are in the Disney resort area with free transportation. Good luck, but for any real deals, you need to plan further out. Ultimately it's going to be expensive! Remember, you can take food and beverages in, so that could save you tons. Also, consider renting a nearby condo or house, renting a car and paying fir parking. All of that may still be far cheaper than staying onsite. Check out VRBO.com.

We have gone with two (then three, and now four kids) We stay at the All-Star resorts. They have pullouts and beds enough for six, and two bathrooms as well as a little kitchenette. We saved a ton of money just eating breakfast in the room. Depending on the age of the kids, I would advise against the dining plans because my kids at least just don't eat enough to justify it and we end up wasting a lot of food (and money) Ever time we go, we buy the book, Walt Disney World with kids by Kim Wright Wiley. She puts out a new version every year and has up to date info on rides and shows and such. Really helps plan the trip. It also has ratings on rides, average wait times, and height and scare factors on all the rides. She also has GREAT tips on saving money and budgeting your time. I don't know how fixed your dates are. Christmas is a VERY busy time. We went in February last time and had 60's and 70's weather and little to no wait times on almost every ride. Good Luck! We LOVE Disney and go almost every year. Right

Check out MouseSavers.com. It's all about Disney and should answer all your questions. Have fun! BTW, we went over New Years Eve one year and to make "ringing in the New Year" extra fun, we were on a rollercoaster as the clock struck 12! My boys still talk about that. About 15 minutes before midnight, everyone stands around, you can get on any ride you'd like. I think we rode that coaster 3 times in a row before anyone was in line again! :) Have a great time!

We have booked twice through the Disney site. It was a great deal both times, it was cheaper to book it ourselves rather than going through AAA. Right now I believe they are offering a free dining package. As far as where to stay on site, we've stayed at both Pop Century and the All Star Movies resorts. They were both great, especially for a family, and the price is reasonable, they're both "value" resorts. We also booked our airfair through this site. You can go on and figure out your whole package and change it as many times as you want before booking, but you don't have to book in order to plan it. Hope you have a great time!