Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Affordable Walt Disney World Vacation

THE DISNEY NEWS
Updates From Affordable Walt Disney World Vacation
March 25, 2009
Copyright © 1999 - 2009 by John P. Gross. All rights reserved.
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Hi Everyone!

NOTE: If you want to visit Walt Disney World when there is no deal for the general public, you will need to follow the discount strategies that are revealed in our online book, "Secrets To An Affordable Walt Disney World® Vacation," to make your vacation affordable.

Now on with the show...

In this blog...

* Deals and specials - new sweepstakes, hotel discount for Floridians, Orlando theme park vacation package, Disneyland vacation package, California theme park promotion, Legoland San Diego special, and two Caribbean cruise deals

* News from around the "World" - Space Mountain to close for the rest of the year

* Beth, our travel agent, reveals what you need to know about paying for your vacation with your debit card

* Universal Orlando CityWalk Calendar and Venue Entertainment - April 2009

* Money saving tip: save at Downtown Disney's Illuminations candle shop!
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NEW THIS WEEK

WALT DISNEY WORLD

3 new sweeps added this week to win a Disney / Florida vacation! That makes 42 active sweepstakes and contests to win a Walt Disney World / Florida / Disneyland / Southern California vacation!

These Disney area hotels are reducing their best rate by 15% for Florida residents.

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ORLANDO THEME PARK VACATION PACKAGE

Buy 3 Nights, Get 2 Free and tickets to three Orlando theme parks! Nearly 24 hotels have joined with this popular Orlando venue to provide accommodations. Sample price: Family of four - $34 per person, per day! Must book by June 30, 2009 for travel through Sept. 7, 2009.

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DISNEYLAND VACATION PACKAGE

FREE nights and FREE tickets!

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CALIFORNIA THEME PARK PROMOTION

Save BIG at this popular Theme Park: Get one night FREE and second day FREE admission!

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LEGOLAND SAN DIEGO

Get a FREE membership to Legoland for your child good for one year's admission to Legoland with this Disney promotion. Save $99!

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CARIBBEAN CRUISE

# 7-night Western Caribbean cruise from $649. Plus! Get a $100 onboard credit!

# 7-night Caribbean cruise includes stateroom accommodations and kids sail FREE in all room categories for only $499! Offer expires April 10, 2009.
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Below are just some of the deals drawn from over 50 pages of current specials posted at our password-protected members-only site:

* A week at Walt Disney World from $1375 for a family of four
* FREE night at Disney Deluxe Resort
* CityPass discount for Affordable Disney members
* Non-Disney theme park/cruise vacation packages
* BIG room discount at the Las Vegas Mirage Casino & Resort
* Disneyland California package deal
* Universal hotel discounts
* Spring Training package
* Disneyland California hotel special
* Universal Orlando discounted vacation packages
* SeaWorld Discovery Cove discounts
* Luxury Cruise promotion
* WDW luxury resort deal for residents of this northeast state
* FREE nights AND tickets at these hotels near Disney
* Orlando Theme Park Package with hotel and tickets to 3 parks
* Luxury Cruise Special: Kids sail from $99 and $250 to spend
* Disney World: $1375 for a family of four for 7 nights
* Advance Purchase Rates at this Orlando Luxury Resort Hotel
* Free Disneyland Gift Card valued up to $150
* 100 free upgrades in hotels all over the world
* Massive cruise sale with FREE air
* AMTRAK special for Florida Residents
* Walt Disney World 3 nights FREE
* Room discounts, FREE tickets and Package for military
* Room discounts and Package with Dining for Annual Passholders
* 2 Days for the Price of 1 at Universal Hollywood
* Unlimited visits throughout 2009 for $65 at SeaWorld San Diego
* Annual Pass deal for Florida Residents at Busch Gardens
* BIG Amtrak sale
* Downtown Disney Resort Hotel discount
* SeaWorld Hotel suite sale
* Kids eat FREE at Universal hotels
* Universal Blue Man Group discount
* Disneyland Annual Passes on a monthly payment plan
* Disneyland 4th night FREE
* Kids sail FREE on Disney cruise line
* Kids stay and play FREE at Disneyland Paris
* Disneyland California package with $150 Disney gift card
* Universal Hollywood All You Can Eat Pass
* Save 50% at these deluxe Walt Disney World resorts
* 2010 Disney cruises now booking
* Get a FREE ticket to the Walt Disney World theme parks in 2009
* Nickelodeon Family Cruise
* Kids eat FREE membership card
* Disney cruise early booking discounts
* Vegas Resort & Casino special
* Disney hotel room special for Floridians

If you are not a member, you can join our Disney family here. Members can use the following URLs to log in:

Lifetime Deluxe Member
Lifetime Basic Member
Deluxe Member
Basic Member
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NEWS FROM AROUND THE "WORLD"

WALT DISNEY WORLD

This Day in Disney History

Disney Retirement

Revisiting Fantasmic! dinner package at Disney's Hollywood Studios

Epcot Flower and Garden Festival: Opening weekend

Rocketing through Space Mountain - Space Mountain will close for refurbishment April 19 until the end of the year!

What if you don't like theme park rides? Disney World offers plenty for the non-rider

Disney, Orlando International Airport reach deal on Magical Express shuttle

Downtown Disney's Tren-D sells icons with edge

Walt Disney World Monthly Calendar.
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OUTSIDE WALT DISNEY WORLD

Peter Pan Flies High in Branson

With apologies to the recent Facebook craze, here are 25 Random Things About Central Florida Attractions

Royal Caribbean And Universal Orlando Resort Partner To Offer Ultimate Land And Cruise Vacation

Stunt performer hurt at Universal's Islands of Adventure

SeaWorld Orlando releases video of Manta test run

SeaWorld Dolphins put on an underwater show with bubbles - cool video!
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DISNEYLAND CALIFORNIA

Disneyland’s new ‘Celebrate!’: A sneak peek at ’street show’ debuting Friday

Disneyland passholders: Watch out for birthday blackout dates

Disneyland Resort Calendar
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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. Certain newspapers require a free registration to view their articles online. If web addresses are broken into more than one line, copy and paste all lines.
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MONEY SAVING TIP

The Iluminations candle shop at Downtown Disney is having a closeout sale: save 50-70% on all merchandise!
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PAYING WITH DEBIT CARDS

Beth, our travel agent writes:

"You're determined not to rack up massive debt - or at least, no more than you already have - by using your credit cards. Good for you! But be aware that the debit card in your pocket may not work exactly the way you think it does.

The card may display a Visa or MasterCard logo on it, but there are differences. The big one is, no matter how much money is in the account tied to the card, there is probably a daily limit as to how much you can 'charge' to the card. This is to protect you and your assets in case the card is lost or stolen, but it can be a real pain when you're trying to pay off something like a vacation.

I've seen daily limits as low as $250 and as high as $2000, but most seem to be $1000 or $1500. That means that even if you've got $10,000 in the account, you can't make a $2500 purchase. The limits are strictly adhered to... I've had people with $1000 limits tell me to go ahead and charge $1000 a day until the trip is paid, then they forget and use the card to buy lunch. The $1000 charge for that day will then fail. (If I know it's a debit card, or it's a card that's worked in the past, I'll try a lesser amount and that usually does go through.)

The thing is, if you're not aware of this little quirk, you might wait until your final payment is actually due to give me your payment info. Really, when you're going to use a debit card, we should start a few days ahead of time so we can do one charge a day, get the whole thing paid by the due date, and still leave you a little wiggle room on the debit card in case you need gas or groceries. If you plan ahead, that works. You can also call the bank that issued the card and get a one-time approval for a larger charge. The approval is usually only good for 24 hours, though, so you need to set it up and then tell me to charge the card immediately.

If worse comes to worse, we can charge the largest possible amount on the due date and then start charging more each morning until paid off. Although Disney has the right to change your rate or even cancel your reservation for not being paid in full on time, I've yet to see them actually do that. As long as there is money on the reservation and it's clear that payments are being made consistently you've probably got at least 10 days before they'll cancel you."
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CityWalk Calendar And Venue Entertainment - April 2009

**SPECIAL EVENTS**

Universal CityWalk is the Official Mardi Gras After-Party!
Mardi Gras Event Nights
When the party ends at Universal Studios, the fun is just beginning at CityWalk! On Mardi Gras event nights your Mardi Gras ticket gives you free admission to select CityWalk clubs.

*Pat O’Brien’s VIP Upgrade: $20 plus tax per person
-Includes balcony access, 2-for-1 Bud drafts, $7.95 Hurricane specials, a light appetizer buffet and more!

Now Open at CityWalk - Element, Burger King Whopper Bar, Moe’s Southwest Grill and Panda Express
Element - Share in the lifestyle of skateboarding at Element featuring skateboards and accessories; shoes; mens, juniors and boys apparel; sunglasses and watches.
Burger King Whopper Bar - Visit the world’s first, only at Universal CityWalk, and enjoy the flame-broiled burger you love with over a million ways to HAVE IT YOUR WAY®!
Moe’s Southwest Grill - Get ready for giant burritos, cheesy quesadillas and flavorful salads prepared right before your eyes. Welcome to Moe’s!
Panda Express - Wok on over to Panda Express, with original Orange Chicken and zesty Beijing Beef wok-ed up fresh, hot and fast. Experience Pandamonium!

**RESTAURANTS AND CLUBS**

Bob Marley - A Tribute to Freedom
Legendary Thursdays ~ 8PM - Close
1/2 price select appetizers and Red Stripe Beer specials

Happy Hour
Daily 4PM - 7PM

Entertainment
Mystik NRG ~ Monday - Friday
Chain Reaction ~ Saturday and Sunday

CityWalk Promenade
Live Entertainment ~ Fridays and Saturdays

CityWalk’s Rising Star
Entertainment
Karaoke with Live Band ~ Tuesday - Saturday
Karaoke with Back-Up Singers ~ Sunday and Monday

the groove
Nightly Happy Hour ~ 9PM - 11PM

Teen Nights at the groove
Come listen to live DJs spin all of today’s hits, and experience state-of-the-art sound, lighting and video. Open to teens, ages 15-19 with proper student ID. Text TEEN NIGHTS to 64646 for on-going updates.

Wednesday ~ April 1; 8PM - 12AM (Admission: $12)
Friday ~ April 10; 7PM - 11PM (Admission: $15)

Entertainment
80s Night - DJ Doc Wells ~ Thursday
DJs nightly

Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville
Happy Hour Monday - Friday from 3PM to 5PM at Lone Palm
Half-priced domestic drafts and house margaritas

Entertainment
Blue Stone Circle ~ Tuesday - Saturday
Hypersona ~ Sunday and Monday
Lone Palm ~ Live entertainment on select evenings

Latin Quarter
Ladies Night with Rumba 100.3FM - Thursdays
Reggaeton/freestyle dance party from 10PM - 2AM
Ladies drink free (select beverages) from 10PM - 12AM

Entertainment
Alejandro Kartal ~ Nightly on the patio
DJ Leony ~ Thursday - Saturday

NASCAR Sports Grille
Happy Hour ~ Tuesday and Wednesday - All Day

Featuring the following sporting events on BIG screens:
– All NHL and NBA games
– Kick off of 2009 NASCAR season
– MLB spring training

NBA City
All sports, all the time!
Happy Hour daily ~ 4PM - 7PM

Pat O’Brien’s Orlando
2 for Tuesdays ~ Every Tuesday, 4PM - 10PM
2 for 1 Hurricanes; 2 for 1 domestic drafts and drink specials
Half-price select appetizers

World Famous Dueling Piano Players - Live music nightly

Red Coconut Club
Nightly Happy Hour
Sunday - Thursday: 8PM - 10PM; Friday and Saturday: 6PM - 9PM
$5 Martinis and complimentary valet parking

Ladies Night every Thursday ~ 8PM - Close
Ladies receive complimentary admission and $3 cocktails all evening

In Crowd Hospitality Sundays ~ Sundays at 10PM
Free admission for members of the hospitality industry all evening
Drink specials starting at $2 with your ID or hospitality pay stub

Entertainment
Herb William’s Band ~ Thursday - Saturday
DJ’s ~ Nightly

Universal Cineplex 20, an AMC Theatre
Fast and Furious - April 2, 2009
State of Play - April 17, 2009
Fighting - April 24, 2009

**Dates and times subject to change. (Source: Press Release, 03/23/09)
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MONEY SAVING TIP

The ILluminations candle shop at Downtown Disney is having a closeout sale: save 50-70% on all merchandise!
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Affordable Disney Books

Disney and other new books 50-90% off the list price. To check out the bargains, click here.
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Got Coupons?

With the Orlando Entertainment Book, you can save big on travel, groceries, shopping, movie tickets, and more! Save at hotels and restaurants near Walt Disney World, on car rental, airfare, admission to Universal Orlando, SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa! For details, click here.
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Affordable Disney Movies and CD's

Save 40-70% on your favorite Disney Movie or CD! Cheap shipping, too! Click here.
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Affordable Accommodations

Enjoy Special Rates at select hotels, condos and vacation rentals near Disney. Plus! Receive up to a $100.00 rebate! For hotels, click here.
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Own a piece of the Magic Kingdom

Disney framed stock certificates are works of art. They feature Walt Disney and the Disney characters. Unlike stock brokers that require you to purchase several shares of stock, OneShare sells one share of stock and mails you the certificate. You can frame the stock certificate yourself or OneShare will frame if for you at a nominal cost. Click here.
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See You Real Soon!

John

AffordableDisney.Com.
johngross@affordabledisney.com
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Disclaimer: We cannot guarantee the accuracy of information contained in THE DISNEY NEWS. Always check to be sure. The views and opinions expressed by others in THE DISNEY NEWS do not necessarily reflect the views of AffordableDisney.Com.
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