Hey Howdy Hey Richard and welcome to planDisney!
I love talking with anyone about the experience of planning their first trip to Walt Disney World Resort. This process should be such a fun experience to not only plan your trip but also get super excited for the Magic you have coming for you when you visit! Sounds like you are off to a great start knowing the season you are wanting to visit. Let's talk about where to go from there.
The next step that I would suggest is trying to come up with a budget for your vacation. Knowing how much you would want to spend on your trip can really help clear up your options from here. I would highly recommend after deciding on a budget, trying to figure out how many days you would like to be in Walt Disney World. From there, I would look into resort hotels. Disney has a wide variety of
Disney Resorts Collection hotel options with three-tiered levels from
Value Resorts,
Moderate Resorts and
Deluxe Resorts all with their own theming and amenities to suit. You will also have an option for
More Great Accommodations from Walt Disney World hotel affiliates but still close to the Magic with their own benefits. Just make sure you keep an eye on the room capacity sizes. Most suites on-site can sleep six adults comfortably so you may need to look into dividing up your party to get the most available options.
The very next step would be considering how many park days you will need. With
four Theme Parks and two Water Parks, there will be a ton of options for you. I would highly recommend at least spending some time in all four Theme Parks. Here you will surely be able to spend a full day experiencing all these parks have to offer.
From there, a lot of the other planning will be smaller things such as your dining reservations, anything else special you would want to experience such as specific attractions, shows or entertainment. You can look into Genei+ to help plan and navigate you in the parks as well.
With a footprint comparable to the city of San Francisco, planning a trip to Walt Disney World at times can be intimidating. There are a lot of
free planning videos that Disney has you can reference. I would also recommend looking into a travel agent to help you plan your trip. As long as they are an Authorized Disney Vacation Planning Agency, they usually do not require any fees and are paid by Disney. You won't have to worry about any hidden fees but all the benefits of having an expert help you through this process. Of course, if you have any further questions you can always ask us, we are happy to help!
Good luck planning your trip for next summer and let us know if you have any further questions!
Happy planning,
Nick