Disney World Planning Advice

I'd definitely say book the flights separately, Disney's prices for them seem eye watering. You may be able to get much cheaper flights to Tampa or Melbourne. Watch out for labour day. Long weekend ending September 2nd. Parks will be busier that weekend (although not as horrific as they have been) and prices will get affected.

I'd go for a hotel with the Skyliner. It's quick, less stressful than the busses and you get great views (only serves Epcot and Disney studios though). Pop Century for a Value resort, Caribbean beach for a moderate.

Consider changing to a hotel on I-drive or one of the universal ones for when at Universal. You'll save a lot of money and you probably wouldn't get much use of the dining plan there. Also consider how many days you really need a hire car. They're expensive and if you're not expecting to leave Disney property for a extended period, you don't need it for those days (there are a lot of pickup points where you can easily get a car partway through the holiday, including actually at universal hotels).

Other general advice:

Use the extra magic hours. Get to a park 1 hour before general opening and the biggest rides will have 15minute queues instead of 60 minute+ (do the two avatar rides at AK, Rise of the Resistance and/or Slinky Dog at Studios, 7 Dwarves mine train or princess meets at MK). Don't forget Guardians of the Galaxy and Tron need boarding passes to ride (they open 7am on the day personally I experienced GotG filling the allocation 1 second after opening). The boarding re-open 1pm for evening slots and these generally are easier to get but may conflict with evening shows. Do not miss GotG, amazing coaster.

Remember to price in up to $30 a day for parking. It can genuinely be cheaper to get an Uber.

Allow for rest days that are relaxing (water park day or a second day at a park taken easy). Easy to overdo it and to overheat (often won't realise it until you're stressed and start snapping at people). Allow time to cool down and get drinks/snacks/food. It's well worth someone carrying a water bottle that you refill at fountains. Refreshers from Starbucks come in bucket sizes and cost about the same as a much smaller soda in the parks.

Buy Magic bands on Day 1 (the hotel will have them or Disney Springs has a dedicated shop if you want a big selection of special edition designs) . Saves having to deal with kids managing their tickets for the hotel and entrances and them automatically beaming ride photos/vids to your phone on newer rides is a neat trick (plus the expensive ones react to the shows).

Check out Disney Food blog for ideas on where to eat. Even with quick service dining plan you have a huge variety of interesting food places and snacks, it'd be a waste just to have burgers every day in the park. Here are some ideas for snacks that are part of the dining plan (strongly recommend the Dole whip float and funnel cake) : disneyfoodblog.com/202…ts/

Well its a huge trip,and needs careful planning to get the most out of it,I have always gone west coast but I woud say there is so much more to see and do,10 days in Disney?? Careful what you wish for..
Disney 4 days Universal 2,is easily enough,and Coco beach is 45 min away,surf vibe and get your wind bback to go again!
Have fun!!!

Disney is great been there many times what I would say is don’t do every day in the parks you will all get exhausted. Try VRBO and rent a house nearby, it will help you chill a little. We took our two when they were younger and did lots of things including kayaking on the west coast. Asked the kids what they enjoyed most about the holiday and the parks were not in the top 6 or 7.

Take plenty of money, US is more expensive than ever and remember the best part of Orlando is, the road out enjoy your holiday.

Plan for plenty of rest breaks. And plan to spend a lot more than budgeted - the US has become stupidly expensive and makes UK price increases look tame in comparison. Plus the tip culture is out of control. I visit 2-3 times a year for work and I still struggle to understand how it could have changed so much (lived there until 2008). (edited)

August is VERY VERY hot, not the best time to go.

I went in February a few years ago and we had lovely warm weather.

Just read a few forums about August in Florida and see how many people say how awful it is.

Just got back from 3 weeks in Orlando doing Disney, Universal, Discovery Cove etc. anything specific you'd like to know.

My advice would be get a private villa in Kissimmee and a hire car. That way you're not restricted to doing the Disney parks because you will want a break at some point. When I went we only purchased a 3 week Disney ticket and then there was little kiosks everywhere you could sell any unused days so we did that to fund our universal tickets as we had seen enough of the Disney parks. I'm not sure if they're still a thing though.