Best graduation present ever! July 2012 PTR

[solana131]

Hi everyone! Welcome to my 2nd PreTrip Report. This was a totally out of the blue suggestion that turned into my second trip this year. Before February I hadn't been to Disney since 1992. And now I am going twice in one year! So lets get this thing started.

My name is Suzi. I am 32 years old and am happily (most days) married with a beautiful little boy.

This was from our Feb trip at the Poly. We had a amazing time for DH & DS's first trip and my first onsite trip. Aren't they cute? Well they are not coming with me this trip Don't get me wrong, I love my husband and my little man, but this trip will be in July and there is NO WAY I want to have a 5 year old to drag around in that heat!

This trip is all for my little cousin Danielle.

She isn't so little anymore, but she is the youngest girl cousin I have and even though we aren't supposed to play favorites, she is mine. She was flower girl at my wedding, she is the best big cousin to my little guy and does things with him all the time.

We just all think the world of her and I am so happy to be able to give her this graduation gift. Dani is a straight A student, is very busy in school clubs, music, and above all else sports. She has been given a full-ride scholarship to Bates College here in Maine due to her field hockey abilities. So as a congrats, I am taking her to Disney! This will be her first trip (other than a 3 day trip for Nationals one year in which she never went to a park) and we couldn't be more excited.

We will be going July 18-23. I wanted to do mid week because the crowd calendars are actually showing the weekends as less busy, so if we can stay over the weekend instead of the typical Sat-Sat it might be an advantage.

I think we are staying at Port Orleans French Quarter. On my Feb trip we took a day and toured that lovely resort and it looks like a winner for this trip. I would love to stay at the Poly again, and with a new PIN offer I just got, we could....but thats the only one I have ever stayed at and I kinda want to see something else. Am I crazy? I just think I could save the extra money and do something special for her while we are there.

I am kinda nervous about this weather. I am not a sun worshiper by any stretch of the imagination, and add in the crowd levels But I think I will manage. With just Dani along instead of a little child, we can take frequent breaks, hit the parks early and then go back and take a mid day break. With my son there is no way we could take advantage of the evening EMH, and this time we will definitely do that. I am getting Park Hoppers again so that leaves us with even more options.

I have not officially booked as of yet, but will do so tomorrow. I am just waiting to talk to Dani about resort choices first. At first I wanted to keep this a surprise for her, but I need her input and lets be honest.....I can't keep a secret when I am this excited!

So I still have some things to work out, but I hope you will join me along the way. Lurkers are not allowed.....come and say "hello".....I won't bite, I promise

 

[KatMark]

Suzi, I'm here. I'll be back later to read the intro (have a deadline to meet).

 

[DMGeurts]

I am totally here Suzi!!!

I am so excited - and congrats to Danielle - her hard work paid off!

I can't wait to hear all about what you have planned!

D~

 

[Lidian]

I'm totally in! Major grats to Dani! Can't wait to hear what you ladies decide!!

 

[KatMark]

As promised, I'm back. What a great intro, and what a great cousin you are! That sounds like a great trip. We've been over 4th of July. And while hot, if you take afternoon breaks and drink lots of water (and a little hint...put a cold washcloth on your neck as you are walking the parks...it helps cool you down), you'll be fine.

We've visited POFQ, but never stayed (as you know we have another moderate we stay at), but I think it will be a great choice for the two of you.

 

[jennyjinx3]

I'm back! What a pretty girl your cousin is, and I can't wait to read all about your planned adventures! I think our next trip after Sept (we all know there will be another ) might be at another resort too. We are 5 so it would probably be POR but excited to hear about your plans at POFQ!

 

[Chicago Mo]

i'm in.. Holy Moley 2ce in one year!!!!
so jealous!

 

[solana131]

Suzi, I'm here. I'll be back later to read the intro (have a deadline to meet).

As promised, I'm back. What a great intro, and what a great cousin you are! That sounds like a great trip. We've been over 4th of July. And while hot, if you take afternoon breaks and drink lots of water (and a little hint...put a cold washcloth on your neck as you are walking the parks...it helps cool you down), you'll be fine.

We've visited POFQ, but never stayed (as you know we have another moderate we stay at), but I think it will be a great choice for the two of you.

Yay! Kathy's here!
Thanks for the tip about the washcloth. I found these cooling cloths on Amazon that I purchased. Cool Off Citrus Ice Towlettes. Not sure whats in them (witch hazel, aloe, chamomile, lemon oil, etc) but it says "To enjoy maximum cooling: Remove towelette and shake lightly. Then press Cool Off™ on the back of your neck, inner arms, or back of knees for several seconds to fully penetrate and build the chill...then wipe your forehead and other desired areas. To reactivate the cool, splash a little water on the skin where you used the towelette. You'll find your inner cool again". Sounds good to me And I already have the water bottles with filters in them, so we can just fill up at the drinking fountains. I think we will be fine.

I am totally here Suzi!!!

I am so excited - and congrats to Danielle - her hard work paid off!

I can't wait to hear all about what you have planned!

D~

Thanks D~ I tossed and turned last night thinking about which hotel to book. I remember doing this same thing for the Feb trip, and with the same two resorts! I think I will stick with POFQ since it saves me money and she won't care. That way I will know for next time which will be better. But now I am thinking it might be neat to stay in one of the new Royal Rooms at POR. Its not like I can stay in a princess room with Bradey ever....so it might be neat. I just like the feel of FQ better and the single bus stop. Am I right that the buses always stop at FQ first then make the rounds at POR? Thinking with the crowds and heat it might be better to stick with FQ for that reason alone. Then again....Poly would make all that go away....ARGH! I'll talk to Dani tonight about it and see what she says.

Anyhoo...sorry about that D~, just thinking out loud. Glad to have you along. Now I wish I had stuck with the June date for my bags NO problem, I have others I can use. There will always be another trip!

I'm totally in! Major grats to Dani! Can't wait to hear what you ladies decide!!

Hi Liddy! I will be paying close attention to your TR to see how the heavy spring break crowds were. I'm more nervous about crowds than I am about the heat and thats a big concern for me.

I'm back! What a pretty girl your cousin is, and I can't wait to read all about your planned adventures! I think our next trip after Sept (we all know there will be another ) might be at another resort too. We are 5 so it would probably be POR but excited to hear about your plans at POFQ!

Hey there! Have you seen the new POR trundle bed rooms? They look really neat. They did away with the "trundle" bed and now have a fold down table bed instead like at the Art of Animation resort. That would be cool. And the new coloring in the Alligator Bayou rooms looks nice too. I have a feeling that nothing will beat the Poly, but they have so many neat resorts to try!

i'm in.. Holy Moley 2ce in one year!!!!
so jealous!

I know it, right?! My credit card companies are gonna love me Welcome aboard!

 

[solana131]

Quick question:

Do they still have the opening ceremony at MK on the EMH mornings? And if so, is it performed at regular opening, or EMH opening?

 

[DMGeurts]

Interesting question... I'd like to know the answer for that too.

D~

 

[solana131]

So, the Disney Gods are really happy with me apparently. I opened my email tonight and I had ANOTHER PIN offer in there. The one I had before was a great deal on a package and this one was a room-only offer. I took it. We are now booked at.......

Oops, no pictures on this computer, you will have to wait until tomorrow

 

[jennyjinx3]

So, the Disney Gods are really happy with me apparently. I opened my email tonight and I had ANOTHER PIN offer in there. The one I had before was a great deal on a package and this one was a room-only offer. I took it. We are now booked at.......

Oops, no pictures on this computer, you will have to wait until tomorrow

AAAAHHH!! I must know!!

 

[DMGeurts]

SERIOUSLY!!!!!!!! You CAN'T do that to us Suzi!!!! Sooooo not fair. I can't even stalk the Dis today because I have to work...

D~

 

[Lidian]

Hi Liddy! I will be paying close attention to your TR to see how the heavy spring break crowds were. I'm more nervous about crowds than I am about the heat and thats a big concern for me.

I have several "crowd" pictures from our experience that will be coming up in my TR. However, next year Easter falls earlier -- so I expect crowds to be HORRIBLE. Just letting you know so you don't arrive and like at the hordes of people.

Quick question:

Do they still have the opening ceremony at MK on the EMH mornings? And if so, is it performed at regular opening, or EMH opening?

I honestly don't know. We've only done one MK EMH, and I think that was May '11, and I want to say they had the morning show. I'll have to go back and check -- but things change so much, without notice. So even if I can confirm it happened in May '11, it doesn't mean it still happens. Perhaps someone will pop in and confirm one way or another. (I'm pretty sure the single AM EMH we did at MK had the show -- that was the only time I ever made it for "RD". )

 

[solana131]

AAAAHHH!! I must know!!

SERIOUSLY!!!!!!!! You CAN'T do that to us Suzi!!!! Sooooo not fair. I can't even stalk the Dis today because I have to work...

Hey, I learned this whole suspense thing from you and Liddy, so deal with it!

I have several "crowd" pictures from our experience that will be coming up in my TR. However, next year Easter falls earlier -- so I expect crowds to be HORRIBLE. Just letting you know so you don't arrive and like at the hordes of people.

Yeah, like that one before your Tusker House meal.....holy cow! That scares me

I honestly don't know. We've only done one MK EMH, and I think that was May '11, and I want to say they had the morning show. I'll have to go back and check -- but things change so much, without notice. So even if I can confirm it happened in May '11, it doesn't mean it still happens. Perhaps someone will pop in and confirm one way or another. (I'm pretty sure the single AM EMH we did at MK had the show -- that was the only time I ever made it for "RD". )

Its not that big of a deal. I will just ask a CM when we get to the Poly.

 

[solana131]

So, as I posted above to Liddy.....we will be checking into....

The Polynesian!!!

I know, I know, I really wanted to try something different. Really I did (still do in fact) but maybe the hottest, most crowded time of the year is not the time to experiment. I just think with my plans of hitting EMHs at one park in the morning and another for the evening, we are going to be traveling quite a bit. So my thinking was this: the rooms don't matter, the pools are all great, so they don't matter, it is the transportation that is key this trip. So that was a no-brainer. Out of all the resorts on property I feel that the Poly has the best transportation options with the TTC right next door.

So looking forward to this:

And this:

And this:

When I left Dani last night I told her we were staying at POFQ and she was happy. I think I am going to leave it at that and surprise her on the Magical Express when we get there.

 

[Lidian]

Hey, I learned this whole suspense thing from you and Liddy, so deal with it!

I've never written anything suspenseful in my life! It's all D.

Yeah, like that one before your Tusker House meal.....holy cow! That scares me

It scared me, too! But AK is always, always bad. So I'm really not surprised.

Its not that big of a deal. I will just ask a CM when we get to the Poly.

Huzzah!

That's awesome that you scored a good deal at the Poly! She'll be tickled PINK when you arrive!!! I can't wait to hear how excited she is!

 

[solana131]

That's awesome that you scored a good deal at the Poly! She'll be tickled PINK when you arrive!!! I can't wait to hear how excited she is!

I am so happy to be able to do this for her! She is such a sweet girl. She is the youngest of 3 girls and they don't have alot of money. Her mom is going through two different types of cancer right now, so money is really really tight. They would never be able to do anything for her. The fact that she got a full ride scholarship is so totally awesome and I am so proud of her! This trip will be alot of fun and I can't wait to surprise her with the best hotel there! Wish I could've kept my mouth shut to be able to totally surprise her, but thats not how I roll

Oh, and I told Bradey about it this morning. He wasn't happy, but he understands that this is a special trip just for Dani and he gets to go camping with Grammie and Grampa for the week. Plus, I might've promised him a trip next year. But that doesn't count because I was already planning on doing that. I want to see the Christmas lights.

 

[KatMark]

Although I am in the minority by not being a fan of the monorail at all, I do think you made a wise decision for this short trip with your cousin. And she will LOVE the Poly!

 

[Icecoldpenguin]

HELLO!

I am new and just joining in. We are both going to Disney in July I will be there for my honeymoon and I am leaving just before you get there but I wanted to follow along with you.

I think it is great that you are doing this for your cousin that is such an amazing thing to do.

I can't wait to read more. I am happy you are getting to stay in the Poly I have stayed there once and it was ok we were concierge level and I did like it but my heart is at the wilderness lodge.

I do have a question how do people get PIN codes? I have heard of them here on the Dis but I do not know much about them.

can't wait to read more

Teresa