Bringing Mom to WDW for MY bday, Sept '09! Day 4 Part 1..AK and Tusker House 12/30!

[disneygirlinnj]

Chapter List:
Planning 1: some of the detail (this post)
Planning 2: To Free Dine or Not to Free Dine
Planning 3: The Tables in Wonderland Decision
Planning 4: The BF wants to eat WHERE?!
Planning 5: Tentative Itinerary #1 (of many)
Planning 6: Scrap all Plans... Upgrade to Deluxe Dining?!
Planning 7: Deluxe Dining Calculation Babble
Planning 8: Random Babble About Picking ADRs
Planning 9: Tentative ADRs for Deluxe Dining
Planning 10: Officially have Deluxe Dining...and no more 40% hotel..and online ADRs are working!
Planning 11: More Finalized Itinerary, and MNSSHP..what day!?
Planning 12: Doin the Happy Dance..got all 17 ADRs!!! WOOHOO!!!
Planning 13: Got my Birthday Breakfast before Park Opening!!!!!
Planning 14: HELP! I need flight advice!
Planning 15: Kouzzina threw a wrench in my ADRs!
Planning 16: Kouzzina and flights are BOOKED!!!!!!!
Planning 17: Trip is PAID!!!! Happy Dance!!!
Planning 18: I'm a big JetBlue fan today
Planning 19: Attempting to journal my trip!
Planning 20: How the heck do I get there?!
Planning 21: JetBlue makes me happy like that dancing banana!
Planning 22: One Man Down...
Planning 23: Tweet Tweet!
Planning 24: Buy TiW this trip or wait until next trip?!
Planning 25: The arrival of DME docs!!!!
Planning 26: All Documents are in my Possession!
Planning 27: To Do List and VENT!
Planning 28: Updated ToDo List
Planning 29: Update ToDo and some photos
Planning 30: Car Service Booked and ToDo Yet Again!
Planning 31: MK Stuff to Do and Flashback time!!
Planning 32: Part 2 of Magic Kingdom Flashbacks!
Planning 33: Epcot Stuff to Do and Flashbacks!
Planning 34: MGM Stuff to Do, Flashbacks, and Online Check-In!
Planning 36: AK ToDos, Flashbacks, 5 More days!!!!!
Planning 37: Four More Days!! And a few odds and ends
Planning 38: 3 More Days and I'm freaking out!!! & Night time recap
Planning 39: 2 Days and Procrastination!
Planning 40: Leaving Tomorrow! & Started Packing & DONE!
Trip Report 1: We're BACK!!!!
Trip Report 2: Day 1, Part 1.... Getting to Disney and Checking In!!!!
Trip Report 3: Day 1, Part 2... MK and GF Tea!
Trip Report 4: Day 1, Part 3...The best dinner ever...Citricos!
Trip Report 5: Day 2, Part 1...Starting off the morning with breakfast with Eeyore and gang, and an empty MK!
Trip Report 6: Day 2, Part 2...Fantasyland, Liberty Square morning
Trip Report 7: Day 2, Part 3...MK and lunch at Tonys
Trip Report 8: Day 2, Part 4...The biggest dining disappointment of the whole trip...Kona dinner
Trip Report 9: Day 3, Part 1...Beautiful morning at Epcot!
Trip Report 10: Day 3, Part 2... Lunch at Tutto Italia
Trip Report 11: Day 3 Part 3..Epcot, DTD, POFQ
Trip Report 12: Day 4 Part 1...AK and Tusker House breakfast

Hey everyone! Well I'm back!!! I haven't been on the boards as much (except WISH) but slowly but surely I'm working my way back into the DIS.

As some of you know...I'm already heading to Disney in January for the half marathon. Pre trippie is in my sig. Can't wait!

However.... we received a PIN about a month or two ago for 40% off hotel. I saw the card and put it off to the side knowing that we wouldn't be able to go. And the card just sat there...and sat... and a bunch of other stuff piled up on it and it was forgotten.

I started cleaning off all the useless stuff off my dresser and noticed the card and it got me thinking... hmmm.... CAN I pull of another Disney trip? 40% off hotel is a LOT... hmmm.... I've always wanted to go for my bday.... mom has been bugging me to go again... F&W is on my bday...they're running the bday celebration... hmmm...

My mom can't stop talking about our last Disney trip (Trippie Here) and I wanted to do something nice again for her. What better way than to go back to the World?

So I don't say anything to mom and throw the card in my bag on the way to work. Figured I'll crunch some numbers when I get there. Well? that's ALL I did almost that whole day. And it looked promising! I calculated for 8 days/7 nights like our last trip..I can stay at Pop for $400!!

Immediately I called Disney and booked a trip. Connie helped me out and was awesome!

So yup...I'm going to Disney 9/26-10/3. I know it's a ways away and I can always cancel if I had to but i at least wanted to book something before the 40% pin expired at the end of March.

The next day I was thinking more and while we loved Pop when we went, I kinda wanted something more laid back and low key and not as chaotic. I know mom would enjoy that too. So i called and changed the ressie to POFQ, and got about $500 off. When's the next time we'll be able to stay at POFQ so cheap?! I can deal with the few hundred extra, especially after researching POFQ.

As for passes...I'm going to get my mom an 8 day park hopper. For me? I'm going with the annual since I'm going back down in January. Save me some money for that trip!

Airfare? I already have one free flight on my credit card points. By the time I need to book I SHOULD have another one. If not though I'll just buy one and then use the free one for January.

It's my bday on the 27th when we're down there and I'm going to get the $75 gift card to buy some fun stuff. It's also Food & Wine and I've been dying to go for that since I've never been.

If free dining is offered, I'm going to pass. It was a LOT of food last time we did it and I think we'll spend around the same amount of money on things we actually want to eat. And since it's F&W? I'll be eating around the world... a LOT!

So that's my trip in condensed version form. I'll be back with what I'm thinking for ADR's and stuff. Since I have time though I'm not too worried!!

 

[HeatherBelle614]

Ok, I found you earlier and subbied, but I just got around to commenting!

I can't wait to hear more about your trip!! There seems to be a lot of us going in September!

 

[disneygirlinnj]

Ok, I found you earlier and subbied, but I just got around to commenting!

I can't wait to hear more about your trip!! There seems to be a lot of us going in September!

Thanks Heather! Is that your wedding photo on the train tracks? It's beautiful!

Heading over to yours now

** oh and I just reread my first post..it's a mumble jumble of everything...oops!

 

[HeatherBelle614]

Yup, that was one of my bridals! I'm going to post some more when our anniversary comes up in June; thanks for the compliment!!

 

[Hedy]

I'm here!
I, too, got that PIN and booked a trip. I'm unsure if my mom is joing me yet, or not.

 

[disneygirlinnj]

Yup, that was one of my bridals! I'm going to post some more when our anniversary comes up in June; thanks for the compliment!!

Can't wait to see them...I started reading your report and then work got in the way.

I'm here!
I, too, got that PIN and booked a trip. I'm unsure if my mom is joing me yet, or not.

Awesome! Are you going in October? (I think I saw it in your sig)

 

[HeatherBelle614]

Work is not a valid excuse to not have DIS time.

 

[disneygirlinnj]

Work is not a valid excuse to not have DIS time.

Haha, I know! I hate that work gets in the way...

OK...so I just posted this as a full topic in the dining boards but I wanted to post it here too...Not really sure what to do about free dining!

So I'm leaning against going with free dining when we go down and everyone I talk to is telling me I'm crazy... Can I run my thought process by you guys and please give me honest opinions.. if I'm nuts...tell me.

My mom and I are going 9/26-10/3, and I used the 40% off pin for POFQ. That saved me about $480 on the room. I knew free dining might happen that week but when I first calculated it, I didn't think we'd eat everything offered. So now Free Dining just happened and I was trying to do calculations again and am all confused as to what to do. Since the dining plan is $40 a person a day, we'd be getting about $560 worth of free food....which sounds like a bargain compared to the $480 we saved on the room, right?

Here's where my dilemma comes in.... my mom and I aren't huge dessert people. We'll MAYBE split one at every sit down. We're bigger on appetizers so even if we were on the Free Dining, we'd have to pay OOP for at least one appetizer a meal. Plus it's the F&W Festival and I want to eat around the kiosks a few (or many!) times. Most of that will be OOP as well since I'm sure we'll use up our snack credits quick.

I just tried to calculate the amount of food that we'll actually 'want' to eat off the free dining... I'm not including dessert in the TS or QS meals since we wouldn't eat them normally.

QS Breakfast... around $22 a day for both of us
QS Lunch (if not Breakfast)... around $25 a day for both of us
TS Dinner... (for 2 entrees and drinks..no dessert)... anywhere btween $32 and $50 a day for both of us.
Snack.. about $7 a day for both of us

On a 'cheap' day that adds it could be about $65 or so. On an expensive day it could add up to $82.

So that's what makes me think there's no point in me doing free dining? Can someone convince me otherwise? lol

 

[DisneymoonJess07]

Hi! We are going as well in the free dining period, and we chose to do it since we have specific food requirements.

I guess my argument is like this: it's free. So instead of $65 to $80 a day, you pay nothing. Or if you only want to use it for breakfast and lunch and do something else for dinner? You get free breakfast and lunch and then can spend some money on dinner. It's free. FREE. So your obligation (i.e. I paid for this, I better get my money's worth) is not there.

 

[disneygirlinnj]

Hi! We are going as well in the free dining period, and we chose to do it since we have specific food requirements.

I guess my argument is like this: it's free. So instead of $65 to $80 a day, you pay nothing. Or if you only want to use it for breakfast and lunch and do something else for dinner? You get free breakfast and lunch and then can spend some money on dinner. It's free. FREE. So your obligation (i.e. I paid for this, I better get my money's worth) is not there.

Thanks for stopping by!

Yeah, I'm still torn..just due to the fact that I saved about $480 on the hotel and if I pick free dining, I lose that $480 savings. plus I'll be getting an annual pass for myself so I was thinking of buying the dining experience card (or wahtever it's called) and we get discounts on restaurants there too.

Ugh...still thinking about all this!

but now gonna head to your trippie instead to take my mind off it..haha

 

[HeatherBelle614]

I'd go with the free dining. You're going to be there during the time period, already. And, I've seen some people box up desserts to take back with them. Plus, you can easily take the already packaged CS desserts back to your hotel room for a snack later on. Use those desserts as snacks, and use your snack credits for drinks or items to take home to friends/family. Many people on the boards go to the Goofy Candy Company at DTD on the last day and use all of their snack credits; you can get the Mickey shaped rice crispie treats dipped in all kinds of fun stuff, 3 long pretzels dipped in goodes, or marshmellows (dipped, too.) They're easy to put in your carry on bag, and voila, treats for the people back home!

 

[DisneymoonJess07]

I thuoght you could do both? Or am I misremembering? If you can't do both, then seriously don't do the free dining if it might not save you that much and you want more freedom to eat.

Yay for more visitors

 

[HeatherBelle614]

I thuoght you could do both? Or am I misremembering? If you can't do both, then seriously don't do the free dining if it might not save you that much and you want more freedom to eat.

Yay for more visitors

You can't do both; only one deal..either FD or 4/3. I wish we could use both deals!!!

 

[DisneymoonJess07]

It's not 4/3, it's a pin code though...isn't that different? 4/3 and FD aren't on the same time frame anyway?

 

[HeatherBelle614]

Disney will still only allow you to use one deal; we had two pins - one for free dining and one for 40% off. I tried to use the 40% off with the new free dining deal, and it's a no go. Unfortunately, whether it's a pin or a deal they're offering to everyone, you can only use one.

 

[DisneymoonJess07]

Makes sense

 

[disneygirlinnj]

apparently disney doesn't want us saving TOOOO much money booo!

 

[DisneymoonJess07]

i think though that either way you go, you will be saving lots of $$$!

 

[disneygirlinnj]

OK! It's official!

So just got off the phone with Tables in Wonderland. I'm going that route!

I was getting conflicting information on websites but the lady reassured me I get 20% off every participating restaurant, all day, and that includes alcohol. So yeah, I'm paying $75 for it but I'll be using it for 2 people this trip and 5 people for my trip in January. It should pay for itself by the end of this trip. She even emailed me a full listing of every counter service, snack counter, TS place that I would get the discount. and it includes alcohol? Sign me up! (No...I'm not a big drinker but I'm going to meet up with one of my friends that lives in FL and we're going to attempt to carefully Drink Around the World)

 

[disneygirlinnj]

Oh, and here's a pic of me and mommy on our last trip (her first trip in like 12 or 15 years!) in December of '07.