Affordable Walt Disney World Vacation Updates

THE DISNEY NEWS
December 30, 2004 - Issue #248
Copyright © 1999 - 2004 by John P. Gross. All rights reserved.
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Hi Everyone!

As another year comes to a close, we would like to thank the
members of the Affordable Disney team: Beth, our travel agent,
and Omar, our ticket agent, who always work hard to help our
members have fun and affordable Disney vacations.

We would also like to express our appreciation to all our members
and readers for supporting us in 2004. As we prepare the 9th
edition of our "Secrets To An Affordable Walt Disney World®
Vacation," we will continue to strive to make our book a valuable
resource for those who seek to vacation at Walt Disney World
without breaking the bank. Our goal will always be to produce, in
the words of one of our affiliates, "the best e-book ever written
on Disney World Discounts!"

May all of you have a healthy and prosperous 2005!

Now... Lean back, prop up your feet, and take a Disney break!
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We continuously update our information and you can find the
latest additions in our Addenda:

WALT DISNEY WORLD:

* WDW Resort rates for this group start at $74! Includes
Spring Break and Easter!
* WDW Resort rates for this group start at $49 January thru mid-
February
* Universal Orlando: Free Passes for Kids (Ages 3-9)!
* Disney Cruise 2005 Early Bird Specials from $359 per person!

DISNEYLAND, CALIFORNIA:

* Kids Fly Free on this airline!
* Stay at the Disneyland Hotels and receive FREE Disney Dollars!
* Kids receive a Disneyland Three-day Park Hopper for FREE!
* Adults can buy a Disneyland Park Hopper at the child's price!
* Universal Studios Hollywood Buy A Day Get 2005 Free!

Log in today. Not a member? Join our Disney family here.
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DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT THEM!

Disney offers special deals to Disney's Visa cardholders. Plus,
you'll get 25 Disney Dream Reward Dollars FREE after your first
purchase! For more details, click here.

Universal offers special deals to Universal Entertainment
MasterCard cardholders. Apply now and receive a movie ticket
with your first purchase! For more details, click here.
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NEWS FROM AROUND THE "WORLD"

DISNEY'S RESORT AIRLINE CHECK-IN SERVICE

"Beginning May 5, Disney's Magical Express will allow guests to
check their bags at their hometown airport, bypass baggage claim
at Orlando International Airport (OIA) and board luxury motor
coaches to the Walt Disney World® Resort - as their bags
"magically" appear in their room upon check in...

Disney's Magical Express service makes guests' return to OIA
hassle-free as well. This convenient system lets guests avoid
airport check-in lines by enabling passengers on domestic flights
to check their luggage and receive a boarding pass before
departing their Disney hotel. Guests with flight departures later
in the day no longer have to worry about their luggage after they
check out of their hotel. They can simply check their luggage at
the Resort Airline Check-in Desk and then enjoy the last day of
their stay..."

The Swan and Dolphin hotel, the Downtown Disney resort hotels,
and Shades of Green are not are not participating in Disney's
Magical Express. American Airlines, Continental, Song, Delta,
Ted, and United are currently in the program, but Disney plans
to add others soon. The service may be included with packages
and room-only bookings. Three weeks before arrival, you will
receive all the details and luggage tags to attach before
leaving home.


EXTRA MAGIC HOURS

WDW Resort guests, including those staying at the Swan and
Dolphin hotel and the Hilton at Downtown Disney can spend an
hour in the morning or hours in the evening at the theme
parks during Extra Magic Hours. Guests will need to show
their Key to the World card. Here's the schedule, which is
subject to change:

Sunday - Disney-MGM Studios (evening)
Monday - Epcot (morning)
Tuesday - Disney-MGM Studios (morning); Animal Kingdom (evening)
Wednesday - Magic Kingdom (evening)
Thursday - Epcot (evening)
Friday - Magic Kingdom (morning)
Saturday - Disney's Animal Kingdom (morning)


DISNEYLAND

Starting January 4, those who book their package through the
Walt Disney Travel Company can enjoy the park one hour
before the gates open to the general public. Special
activities include:

* Disney Character Meet & Greet
* Mickey's Toontown Morning Madness Cavalcade (parade)
* Mickey's Toontown Town Hall Meeting (Mickey makes everyone
an Honorary Citizen of Toontown)

You must have a multi-day ticket to enjoy one morning during
your stay.

(Source: Promotional e-mail from Disneyland® Resort and Walt
Disney World® Resort, 12/28/04)
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A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR

Our Ticket agent has DISCOUNT TICKETS not available at the gate
or Disney's website! Plus! Great prices on tickets to other
Florida attractions!

NOTE: Disney's new ticket prices kick in January 2, 2005, but you
still have a chance to purchase tickets at 2004 prices! Omar
writes:

"We will have plenty of 4 and 5 day hopper Plus passes and 5 day
regular hoppers at the old system and price. Disney will be
honoring them... I should have them for a couple of weeks after
January 2nd until we sell out."

"I thought I knew all the tips for saving money at WDW, even
being a member of the Magic Kingdom Club for over 15 years, but
just learning about [your ticket agent] saved our family over
$300!!! Thanks." Janet Handy, Bel Air, MD

Details on how to purchase these special passes will be provided
with your Disney access codes. Join our Disney family here.
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Walk in and win January 15 at the Disney-MGM Studios and win at
"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire."

"Everyone who wants to participate in Walk In and Win Week must
be at the Main Entrance of the Disney-MGM Studios at Walt Disney
World® Resort in Florida by 7:30 am on Saturday, January 15."
(Source: http://millionairetv.com/, 12/21/04)

For more details, click here.
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NOTE: Links to newspaper articles change quickly and without
notice. If you receive a "File Not Found" error message, search
the newspaper's archives for the story. If web addresses are
broken into more than one line, copy and paste all lines.
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AFFORDABLE DISNEY BOOKS

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* Hurry! Sale Ends: December 31 at 12:00am EST.

To check out the bargains, click here.
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Amber writes:

"My Mom will be going with us to Walt Disney World, but
doesn't think she can walk it due to her bad knee. She's
wanting to get something from her doctor for a wheelchair.
Do you know what we need at Disney to get one?"

You do not need anything to rent a wheelchair at WDW. But BE
SURE to arrive early at the park to get one before they're
all gone. You can get one at the Disney hotel when you check
in if you want one all the time. Otherwise, see our book for
rental sources that will deliver your wheelchair to you.

Beth, our travel agent, adds:

The Scoop on Wheelchairs and Scooters (ECVs)...

Even people that don't normally use a wheelchair or scooter
may want to use one for their theme park vacation. Let's
face it: all that walking is tough on EVERYONE, and a person
who is mobility- challenged to start with may find that
their inability to move around quickly and easily under
their own power makes for a mighty tough trip!

All Disney theme parks rent wheelchairs at the entrance to
the park. The push style comes in regular and wide and costs
$7 a day, $1 of which will come back to you as a Disney
dollar when you return the chair. You can NOT take the
chairs from park to park, but if you keep your receipt from
the first rental of the day and then present it at the next
park they will not charge you again. The same holds true for
ECVs, and the price is $45 a day ($10 of which is a
refundable deposit).

You can't reserve the chairs and ECVs, though, so if you
change from one park to another and they are all gone at the
second park then you're out of luck. If that's not an
option, then tactic number two would be to get a chair from
your Disney resort. This is, of course, assuming that you're
staying at an onsite Disney resort. They all have a limited
number of chairs available for FREE, and you can keep the
chair your entire length of stay. You don't have to worry
about getting it each day at the parks and you save money -
but you will have to use the chair lift on the buses for
transportation. More importantly, you can't pre- reserve the
chairs at the hotel, either. It's first come, first served.

So if you don't want to bring a chair or scooter from home,
then your final option is to rent one from a local agency.
I've used several and their daily rates run about the same
as Disney's, but you usually get a price break if you keep
it for a whole week. You have to provide your weight in
order to get the chair or scooter best suited for you, and
the company will have it delivered to your hotel for no
charge. It's usually there when you arrive, but even
companies that require you to call on arrival get them there
quickly. Then you just leave it at bell services when you
depart and the company will be by to pick it up. It works
really well, and while you don't save much (if any) money,
at least you have a working chair or ECV for your entire
length of stay.

All Disney rooms have doors wide enough to accommodate a
normal wheelchair and many scooters. If you're using
something extra- wide, you may have trouble not only with
the doors, but also with the lifts on the transportation.
Keep that in mind. All Disney hotels also have handicap-
accessible rooms as well. There's a department that handles
those requests, so they can accommodate most every need,
from roll-in showers to shower stools to raised toilet seats
- whatever you need. If you do need a special room, though,
be sure to reserve well in advance because they are limited
in number.

I'd be happy to provide additional information on wheelchair
or scooter rental, so feel free to send questions."
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MONEY SAVING TIP

AAA Taxi Limo: Orlando limos, sedans, and airport transportation
407/363-3949 or 1-800-417-8298

Get $5.00 off each way with this coupon
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YOU CAN AFFORD DISNEY WORLD!

If you THINK a Disney vacation costs too much ... WE AGREE!
That's why we created the ULTIMATE Disney savings site. Save up
to 40% on your total trip. Learn about discounts on tickets,
food, Disney merchandise, hotels ON Disney property, travel,
parking, and MUCH more. Too much to list here. See it all
here.
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Got Coupons?

The 2005 Edition of the Orlando Entertainment Book is now
available for purchase. Order today and get $5.00 off and Free
Shipping! For details, click here.
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Own A Piece Of The Magic Kingdom

Disney framed stock certificates are works of art. They feature
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See You Real Soon!

John

AffordableDisney.Com.
johngross@affordabledisney.com
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