Today I was listening to Len and Jim’s talk about the next year at WDW and they were talking about the 50th (in 2021) and it got me thinking… We are already planning on being there during the 50th as I just so happen to share my exact birthday with WDW (and by planning, I mean we plan on going) but it also makes me nervous as Jim says Disney is expecting to sell out EVERY room.
I know it sounds crazy being that far away (and yes, I know it’s FAR too early to really plan) but it made me curious to see how far in advance some of you have actually booked your vacations to the World. I don’t think we’ve ever done over 10 months.
I started planning last February for a trip in November 2016. I think if you want to go for the 50th, you should book your room the minute they release them for that time period. You should be able to get your choice of room then because most people aren’t planning 18 months in advance.
We booked our October trip in June last year! So that’s 16 months out. Once we decided to go, I like to get it done and dusted. We only go every 2/3 years, so I’m excited to get started, before hubby changes his mind!! Looking at 2021, we should be just about due for another trip…I would love to be there for the 50th. We are going to be in DLParis for its 25th!
@larrielaine@AllmadhereUK@Ladythomas You are all very early planners! Glad to know I’m not the only crazy one here . I will definitely be looking at booking the trip as soon as Disney allows it. I read somewhere that if you call reservations, they’ll allow you to book up to 499 days in advance. I’m pretty excited for their 50th as I get the feeling there’s going to be more than we ever dreamed going into it.
I’ve been doing meta-planning for an “adults-only” trip since we got back from a trip in Nov 2015, and I’m guessing the earliest we’ll be able to go is 2019.
Going in August of this year. Started planning in late 2015! Ended up working out well. I kept an eye on offers and when free dining was available as a bounce-back, I took a one day trip down to book the trip this August with free dining!
It saved us close to a thousand dollars, even factoring in my flight, hotel and one-day park ticket and upgrading from the free Quick Service to the Table Service plan. I was the only one who went, but I was able to book a reservation for all five of us on the bounce back.
Plus I got to add the 2016 Disney Alex and Ani to my collection, which I hadn’t expected to do. Icing on the cake
I was able to do mine at 501 online… It was available early for some reason. I had everything in my cart and kept updating my dates every few weeks, then every few days. As soon as they let me get the right dates in I hit that checkout button!
13 months out was my furthest. I actually booked at 11 months - as soon as our friends were in the DVC window to reserve for us. Most of my trips are planned only a few months out…
How do you know what bounce back offers will be available? And when you are there, how do you purchase a bounce back offer? We’ve never been given any info on bounce backs when we were at WDW.
I don’t think that I ever stop planning trips, though many of them may not actually happen. I don’t think I’ve ever started seriously planning more that a year or so in advance.
On that note, 2021 is definitely looking to be a rather busy year. My mother has the same birth year as WDW so that year she will be celebrating her 50th (obviously) and my twin sister and I will be celebrating our 30th. We already want to sail on the first sailing of the new ship that debuts that year AND be in WDW for the 50th festivities. Maybe I should start saving now… =)
I found out about this offer in advance on another Disney planning site. There are a few that will publish that information, but it seems a little strange to direct traffic their way when I’m on the Touring Plans forum.
In the big packet of paper you’ll find in your room, you should find the bounce back offer info. If not, call the front desk to ask about it and they’ll get you the information. You have to book while still at WDW or within 24 (I think) hours of leaving.
Our trips have always been planned 2 years in advance. When we stayed offsite we actually booked things around a year out, but last time we were onsite and booked the day free dining came out - April 2015 for an August 2016 trip.
. I will definitely be looking at booking the trip as soon as Disney allows it. I read somewhere that if you call reservations, they’ll allow you to book up to 499 days in advance. I’m pretty excited for their 50th as I get the feeling there’s going to be more than we ever dreamed going into it.
If not soon, we do have some Disney Rewards that expire in 2021 so, our hands might be forced to GO AGAIN!!! 