Florida / Disney World area Golfers, Help me out

[Archie_P]

Hello all. First post :)

 

I'm planning a trip to Disney World on Christmas Week 2019. It's going to be my first time flying with my golf equipment and playing golf out of state (Illinois).

Do you guys have any course suggestions around the Disney World (Orlando, Florida) area? I don't really have a budget on tee time.

Also, first time travel and airline tips would help.

 

Thanks a bunch!

[Baitkiller]

1) shipstix

2) peeps say to play off property. I dunno for fact but makes sense considering the assraping you get everywhere else in the park.

3) shipstix

[hublee]

Check to see what package you have at Disney. Sometimes golf is included in your package as an activity or something cannot remember. Disney courses are not bad not great but ok. A lot of fun places to play around Disney if you can drive.

[Loki]

If you want to be without your clubs for a week, use shipstix. Otherwise, just take em on the plane with you.

[Baitkiller]

Disney = kids. Kids = 10 metric tons of crap and limited time. Add in Christmas and you get more crap and less time. Any chance to play golf at all = legit keeper wife. Second thought is if only one round..rent clubs. Two rounds? Shipstix. Too much crap to check and haul.

Pics of wife?

 

[Jungleland]

As a FL resident be prepared for a zoo at the parks, attendance is nuts between Christmas and New Years. The golf will be a bit busier then usual and if you go into the parks you’ll get on 1/2 the attractions due to the massive crowds. Just go into it with the right attitude and chant serenity now a lot.

[RichieHunt]

Yes, it will be a zoo out there. I believe on the week after Xmas, Disney stops accepting new people without reservations at 6:00AM (or something ridiculous like that) because the park is so jammed. The other parks are just as ridiculous and tourists can't believe it until they actually get there and see it for themselves.

 

I would probably avoid the Disney courses. Waldorf Astoria club is excellent and very $$$$ and is nearby. You're not too far from Celebration, Grand Cypress, Southern Dunes, ChampionsGate CC (don't bother with the resort courses, play the CC instead) . Courses like North Shore and Eagle Creek are cheaper and not too far away.

 

Travel tips...unless you have a hard case travel bag, go thru Ship Sticks if you have any value in your equipment. And you're probably better off taking Ship Sticks anyway because it will save you the hassle of having to carry your bag to the airport and then from the airport while you have all of this other luggage, the kids, etc. Ship Sticks can deliver to hotels, golf clubs, etc. And there's usually plenty of Shipping stores that will ship it back home for you. What I usually do is go to a Shipping Store that can do Ship Sticks and pay $20+ for them to put the clubs in a box.

 

The only negatives of Ship Sticks are:

 

1. It's more expensive than going on most planes with your clubs.

2. You will usually have to ship it out days in advance. So if you want to play on say a Saturday and your clubs need to arrive in Orlando on Monday...you're SOL. The same with when you ship them back. So if you like to play/practice most every day, you're going to be without your clubs on the day(s) they are being shipped. Ship Sticks does overnight, but it's like any overnight shipping...it's ridiculously expensive.

 

Basically the big thing here is you and your wife...for the sake of your own sanity and health need to be conscious about pacing yourselves and the family. I've met so many people who not only disliked going to Disney, but so did their kids. And the reality was that they didn't pace themselves and felt obligated to do as much as they could because they had already spent good money. Whereas if they just accepted the fact they picked a poor time to go and paced themselves they would at least enjoy the experience even if they didn't get to do everything they wanted.

 

 

 

 

RH

[mitman25]

If you are staying on property you will be able to book fastpasses 60 days in advance. I highly suggest doing that. That way you will have 3 short lines at least. Food reservations are 180 days. Like people have said it is one of the busiest weeks of the year. At some times they reach max capacity, so you best bet is to get in early so that you will definitely get in. Be patient and understand it will be busy and there will be long lines.

As far as golf most everyone has that covered.

[markheardjr]

Prices will be a bit high being holiday season but you can pick/choose how much you want to pay. There's plenty of options from $45 to $145 you can find. If you want to stay close to Disney, but not play Disney, you can check out Hawk's Landing, Celebration and Falcons Fire which at that time should be in the $65-$90 range for non-residents. You can find other places like Waldorf Astoria, Ritz Carlton, Orange County National, etc for more. Worth noting you can already book your times at places like Celebration and Waldorf Astoria for December.

 

Shoot me a PM when you get closer if you want a playing partner. I get Dec 21st - Jan 6th off work.

[jli2636]

Just found this thread and wanted to piggyback on it. I saw the comment about between Christmas and New Years being the busiest, how is it in early December? We are heading down first week of December 2020. My father in law who doesn’t play much wants to possibly play so we might do 9 holes on property with the sunrise special deal($35 for 9 holes w/cart, breakfast sandwich and coffee or juice pre round and then a beer or soft drink post round). But I also will want to play a round by myself one day possibly. Won’t have a car as we are doing the magic express, likely will use shipsticks since not many chances to play in late Nov/Early Dec here. Looks like resort guest rates range from $60-$99 when we are going depending on what time of day. Was hoping to stay under $70, for convenience without having a car, would I be better off just playing a course on property? I think we are staying right next door to LBV.

[RichieHunt]

I don't know about Disney itself in early December, but you should be able to find decent golf without it being a zoo in Orlando during early December. Things start to get crazy in Orlando around February.

 

 

 

RH