Compromise is a Disney word: Taking one for the team over Thanksgiving 2016* August PTR link! 5/28

[xlsm]

That sounds like a perfect start to your trip! A little dose of MK, and all is right with the world!

I love seeing the holiday decorations and I'm pretty much obsessed with the holiday themed cups!!

Six more days for us...DH came home sick with a cold yesterday. I told him I was going to quarantine him in a hotel. Or...quarantine MYSELF in a hotel.

 

[ArielSRL]

There's are so many things about this update I love! First off, the photo at BC (I told you you would make me long for it). Even though Splash is great, BTMRR is my fave so I love that Chris asked to switch the FP and you guys got to ride it on your first day, though I am disappointed to hear about the refurb details. Still glad it got pushed back though. Did I mention it was my last MK ride of the 2016 trip?? Love it! Glad you got a ride on HM (none of us did in June even though we discussed it for a few minutes; DH and I currently have AJ convinced to try it next trip but we'll see how it plays out) and Jingle Cruise! Love the teaser of the Muppets thing. Muppets = DH's fave. Love the slushie! We are ALL about the MK slushies! Oh and last but not least, love, love the selfie!

Looking forward to more!

 

[dmea10]

Following along! Cannot wait to hear about the rest of your trip.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Hi and Ooohh you have a trip approaching fast!!!

I know! I made my fast passes this week. I have been meaning to update my pre-trip report but the holidays are getting in the way!

I can't even imagine the craziness it must have been trying to plan those two scenarios out! Glad it sounds like it worked out in the end!

You first day sounds perfect! We love to kind of do a quick sneak peak on the first day if possible. Just a taste of what is to come!

 

[Whit64130]

y feeling? It's cute. I love Tiana's outfit. I like that there are some different characters in it and Chris really liked Louis's part. We happened to walk by during that point a couple more times during the trip and he'd stop to watch. But I didn't find it as catchy as the old show which I watched almost every time we went. I might watch this again at some point, but won't make it a must-do for every trip.

Tiana was my favorite in this show! I'm like you though now that I've seen it not really a must do for every trip.

And it wasn't all that bad, actual wait was just under 30.

I noticed that a lot this trip. The wait was actually quite about shorter than the posted times. One night we did TSMM and posted time was 45 mins. It ended up being only a 20 min wait.

Chris inside, in the same exact queue as before the refurb! The ride was awesome as usual and I *think* I noticed a couple new things? Like, bats in the beginning and an explosion towards the end? I'm sure they refreshed paint and things like that also, but unless I missed something huge (and that's something I commonly do), that was it!

I didn't really notice myself but I was expecting something a little more major for that length of time.

we got on a non-existent line for the Peoplemover

I missed the People Mover this trip By the end of the trip wait time was around 30 mins.

 

[pepperandchips]

Well ok, if I'm being truthful I'm just technologically challenged and no matter how many times Steve shows me, I just don't know how to do a spreadsheet

But see then I don't have to rip up my index cards

just a pretty BC picture on our way to the bus

Gorgeous! I always love these little pathways. It's so funny how just adding a water fountain into the waterway makes such a change.

Oh and before we hit that beautiful castle, here's one of the standard MK decorations that also makes me happy:

Makes me happy too! Can't wait to lay eyes on those beautiful decorations myself!!

But I didn't find it as catchy as the old show which I watched almost every time we went.

And now I can't irritate my family from proclaiming wherever in the park we are within hearing range of the show "DREAMS COME TRUE... DREAMS COME TRUE!"

handing them some small card from his man-purse

Omg I died laughing

I know this isn't my dining report that I haven't started yet, but I wanted to share this picture of the delicious slush as well as show the cute Christmas cups they have.

NOW HERE'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!

Speaking of which I just sent you our flight info for February ; )

@ariane37 are you a TA?

Great update! I think it's always best to start off your Disney trip with some MK action. And I can't wait to check out the changes to BTMRR as well. Looking forward to the next update!

 

[emilyindisney]

Following along- sounds fun so far! I feel your pain about all the planning confusion. You just want everything figured out and settled. Glad it all worked out in the end!

 

[ariane37]

I'm a little late to the party, but I'm excited to hear about your Thanksgiving trip! We are considering going next year during this time due to school break. But, we're a little worried about crowd levels over Thanksgiving break. I'm glad to see that the Christmas decorations are already up. I can't wait to hear more!

Thanks for coming over! I'll say a few times during this that crowds were a bit larger this year than last year during Thanksgiving week, but we feel they're still manageable. Like you the week works for us with the school break-even though our kids don't have the whole week off they only miss 2 days (except Ricky only ended up missing 1 day this year). Other than going early Dec. I don't know that there's a better time to see the Xmas decorations; it seems all of Nov. is quite busy now! I'd definitely recommend Thanksgiving week to anyone, you just need a good plan. I hope you enjoy my TR

Your selfie doesn't suck AT ALL! I think it's a great shot!

Sounds like you are off to a good start. It must be so much easier navigating the MK for 2 people…no arguments about what to do and where to go next. I swear, half our day is sometimes spent standing still, discussing (…ahem…arguing) where we are going next. Like I'm sure my DD would want to see that Muppets show but my DS, like yours, would have no interest. I guess that's the upside of spending a couple days with just one kid

Aw, thanks! I think it's just that I hate all pictures of myself lol.
OMG it is SO much easier going with only 1 person, especially compared to going with 2 kids! That was one of the "pluses" of being there alone with Chris for a few days. Once I got it in my head that those days would be a bit slower it was really easy. I let him take the lead with a few exceptions and then I only had to get 1 person to agree with me We're no strangers to the standing still discussing what to do next. In fact the boys were happy to see each other for about 8 hours, and then it was business as usual!

I lurked on your PTR Going next Thanksgiving and can't wait to read all about your trip.

Well thanks for saying hello I think I've seen a few of your posts regarding your Thanksgiving trip next year, and I hope my TR gets you excited!

 

[ariane37]

%@**^@ is Not a Disney Word but it's one of my favorites,

One of mine too, and all of it's synonyms

Nice size room especially with the murphy bed. Is the couch a bed too????

It's a tad tight with 4 people, especially with one of them being a teenage boy, but given the amount of time we're actually in the room it works for us. And yes, the couch is a bed! That's where Ricky sleeps. A huge perk is the boys don't have to sleep together since they try to kill each other when they do.

What luck, though why was it down for so long if something actually changed. I'll never understand a disney refurb.

I know, right Just like when IASW was down in August. They'd already added the screens at the end so I don't know what the heck they were doing.

And this is why we're friends. We're a little to no wait kinda crew too.

The list of reasons is ever-growing

Love all the Jingle Cruise pics. I'm totally going to have to use that tidbit with the fan to make myself look oh so smart

Maybe you should use it to convince someone that you need a trip down there while the Christmas decorations are up and Jingle Cruise is actually going on, too!

I love seeing the holiday decorations and I'm pretty much obsessed with the holiday themed cups!!

Soon you'll be seeing them in person! And drinking from lots and lots of those cups!!

There's are so many things about this update I love! First off, the photo at BC (I told you you would make me long for it). Even though Splash is great, BTMRR is my fave so I love that Chris asked to switch the FP and you guys got to ride it on your first day, though I am disappointed to hear about the refurb details. Still glad it got pushed back though. Did I mention it was my last MK ride of the 2016 trip?? Love it! Glad you got a ride on HM (none of us did in June even though we discussed it for a few minutes; DH and I currently have AJ convinced to try it next trip but we'll see how it plays out) and Jingle Cruise! Love the teaser of the Muppets thing. Muppets = DH's fave. Love the slushie! We are ALL about the MK slushies! Oh and last but not least, love, love the selfie!

Looking forward to more!

Maybe when you go in June you'll notice more changes on Big Thunder than I did? I keep looking on the boards to see if anyone report what they'e seen as far as changes and I find nothing. IDK, but I'm thinking what I saw actually were all the changes......still, a great ride though
You have to ride HM in June! Even if you and Chad have to ride by yourselves, you can't let another trip go by without doing it
Thank you on the selfie, I think sometimes I feel too old to be taking them lol.

Following along! Cannot wait to hear about the rest of your trip.

, so happy to have you! I hope I keep you interested enough to keep coming back!

 

[ariane37]

I know! I made my fast passes this week. I have been meaning to update my pre-trip report but the holidays are getting in the way!

Tell me about it, they're getting in the way of me updating quicker and staring my dining report! I hope you got all the FP's you wanted

I can't even imagine the craziness it must have been trying to plan those two scenarios out! Glad it sounds like it worked out in the end!

It was the biggest Disney headache I've ever had lol! It did work out in the end and our trip was great, but I tell you as much as I hate skipping Thanksgiving we won't be planning any more family Disney trips during the school basketball season!

I noticed that a lot this trip. The wait was actually quite about shorter than the posted times. One night we did TSMM and posted time was 45 mins. It ended up being only a 20 min wait.

People are always saying on here how their wait was shorter than the actual posted wait, so we took a few chances this time and got on lines that were longer than we normally like to wait. Most of the time it worked in our favor so I think they inflate the wait times more often than not. It's a pleasant surprise at the end!

I didn't really notice myself but I was expecting something a little more major for that length of time.

I did too and I feel like it was nothing. Oh well, at least it was open.

I missed the People Mover this trip By the end of the trip wait time was around 30 mins.

Crazy, right? We rode like 2 more times and the wait was posted at 20 but the line kept moving so neither time was actually more than 10

Makes me happy too! Can't wait to lay eyes on those beautiful decorations myself!!

Not only do you get to see all the decor, you're staying at my favorite resort So jealous!

And now I can't irritate my family from proclaiming wherever in the park we are within hearing range of the show "DREAMS COME TRUE... DREAMS COME TRUE!"

LOL well you CAN, you just won't have any background singers

Omg I died laughing

Ha! I know there's a better word for his bag but I couldn't think of it! Satchel? Rucksack? I like man-purse best!

NOW HERE'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!

I did that just to tease you!!!

@ariane37 are you a TA?

Following along- sounds fun so far! I feel your pain about all the planning confusion. You just want everything figured out and settled. Glad it all worked out in the end!

Hi there, thanks for joining I'm not normally obsessive about our schedule and I don't normally worry, but compared to other times we've gone Thanksgiving is a whole different ballgame and I was really feeling the pressure!

 

[ariane37]

Illuminate Our Night!​

I left off as we were leaving MK to go chill at our resort briefly before dinner. We really didn't have that much time so it was a phone call to Steve and Ricky, who filled me in on how his travel basketball game went (they won), a little unpacking and then we were off. I asked Chris to take a picture of me by this cute Ariel statue right outside the Villas entrance since she's one of my favorite Princesses:



We had a very short walk to dinner as we were trying something new to us that was right at the Beach Club - Cape May Cafe! I had originally booked this because Ricky LOVES mussels and Steve loves seafood, even though Chris and I don't. When it became clear it would only be the 2 of us today I asked Chris what he wanted to switch to. He wanted to see the menu and felt there was still enough on the buffet for him, so we kept it. I'll save my review for my dining report (whenever that becomes a reality) but we both liked it and I want to go back with the whole family because I think Ricky and Steve would really enjoy it.
I will share that I finally tried a beverage that's talked about often here on the Dis:



And I was in heaven!!! This is my new favorite beer and I promise to love it forever and ever
After we finished it was all of 7:00 and Chris was ready to call it a night. I could have hung some more but figured I might as well finish unpacking and rest up for our first full day. On our way back I walked a circle in the Villas building, checking out the other couple rooms including a game room and this cute little sitting room:



Then after Chris was settled upstairs I went down to the Marketplace to buy 2 refillable mugs. Even though we weren't on the DP I knew these would be used a lot and be worth it. We ended up filling them every evening and sometimes in the middle of the day, so we certainly got our $$'s worth. Plus the boys use these and all the older mugs we have at home all the time, so I got to add to my collection!
While down there I took some pictures of the awesome lobby holiday carousel. It was different from last years' so I assume it's different each year. This year, each horse was themed after a character:



Pluto's horse with Chip and Dale on his back:



Mickey's horse!



Let me tell you, it smelled really good in there!
Once back up in the room I finished unpacking and we watched TV. Right before 9 I realized that while Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM had been early, Illuminations would be starting shortly and wondered if we had any view from our balcony. We'd had great luck with Wishes from our WL balcony in August, Wishes was a quick 2 second walk outside our Poly room in Jan. and we had a great view of Illuminations from our FIRST room at BWV last Nov., so I kept thinking eventually we'd have a room with no view.
Not this time!



Woo-hoo! Illuminations off to the left from our balcony! That's a somewhat weak picture so here are a couple from later in the week:





I know none of them are great pictures but I did get better as the week went on. And I was psyched we could see them!

That my friends concludes our arrival day, and I thought it was a real good one.

UP NEXT: MOMMY GUILT REALLY DOES WORK AND A "PRETTY" GOOD DIS-MEET AT HS!​

 

[emilyindisney]

Woo Cape May! It's nice to have so many good sit-down dining options within walking distance. Cape May is great (and that beer is awesome!)

 

[ArielSRL]

Love Ariel, love the Ariel photo, love the skort....lol. Love me some Cape May breakfast. I think I will try dinner at some point, as well. I love me some crab legs! And yay on the view.

I need to decide if I want to get a mug or two on our trip. We barely used them at SSR but that resort is so spread out. I think we will use the splash pad and pool a lot at WL so we will be over by the refill station quite a bit. Of course, I'll probably get a few adult beverages during those times, so we may not necessarily need the mugs. Maybe for the boys. Hmmmmm.....

 

[Saphire5742]

I wasn't, but I tried not to seem too happy to be going, for Steve's sake lol.

And were you successful? I know I wouldn't be, lol

Steve obviously couldn't follow us past security, but he did wait at the airport until we boarded. Here he is watching over us

Ok, that is kinda creepy

I know I know, great picture right? Makes you want to rush down during the holiday season to see all the decor I promise, the pictures get better!

I sure hope so!

Before long we were pulling in to MK and then walking down Main St. and I was happy, because who isn't happy standing in front of the train station with this in front of you?

How can anyone not be happy with this view? But I guess there are some weirdos out there

We walked through Liberty Square again and one of the Muppets performances was about to start

How I wish the Muppets had been there back in May. I really hope they stick around.

Fun fact about Trader Sam: the red and white "skirt" he's wearing? That material is from the original Jungle Cruise boat roofing. I don't remember when they said they changed to the plain material the boats have now, but it's something we learned on the KTTK tour

Interesting little tidbit. Thanks for sharing

I know we didn't do a ton but that wasn't our goal today. I knew we'd be tired since we were up so early, and I just wanted a little introduction to MK to get the party started

Sounds like a good first day to me

Can't wait to see Disneyland all decorated next year. But it depresses me a bit that I have to wait a year. Also that it's 6 months until my next vacation in June for my nephew's Bar Mitzva.

Very cute pic!

While down there I took some pictures of the awesome lobby holiday carousel. It was different from last years' so I assume it's different each year. This year, each horse was themed after a character:

That's adorable!

Woo-hoo! Illuminations off to the left from our balcony!

I remember that FB post. Lucky you!

 

[xlsm]

I love your picture with the Ariel statue!!

The Beach Club looks so pretty...the sitting room is really nice. I want a nook like that! I'd fill the shelves with books!
That carousel is really cool, and I can't wait to see it in a few days. I'm also excited to get our refillable mugs - the boys and I use them all the time at home. Matt thinks they're too small, but we get our money's worth during our visits, so my cabinets runneth over. I keep seeing pictures on blogs and things of the holiday mugs in the parks, with Snow White on them. It makes me sad that those aren't refillable. I think there should be options. I miss the days of resort specific refillable mugs. I lost my old Wilderness Lodge mug in a move a long time ago, and I still think about it. (wow, didn't realize I could spend so much time talking about mugs, LOL!!)

Nothing better than a fireworks view! Anything that stretches the magic a little bit more is a big win for me, and seeing fireworks from your room is definitely magical!

 

[cinderkelly]

here's one of the standard MK decorations that also makes me happy:

I absolutely loved the Christmas decorations! It was my favorite time of year to be there

The ride was awesome as usual and I *think* I noticed a couple new things? Like, bats in the beginning and an explosion towards the end

I may be totally crazy but I thought the track was smoother I thought they were going to do more effects closer to the BTMRR at DL but I guess not. Mi did notice the bats though!

Fun fact about Trader Sam: the red and white "skirt" he's wearing? That material is from the original Jungle Cruise boat roofing. I don't remember when they said they changed to the plain material the boats have now, but it's something we learned on the KTTK tour

I love those tidbits of information!

I asked Chris to take a picture of me by this cute Ariel statue right outside the Villas entrance since she's one of my favorite Princesses:

Such a cute photo of you. Everybody had such awesome Florida hair except for me, my hair and Florida don't like each other

And I was in heaven!!! This is my new favorite beer and I promise to love it forever and ever

Omg mine too! I could have 4 or 5 of them, no problem

Then after Chris was settled upstairs I went down to the Marketplace to buy 2 refillable mugs.

Since we are staying at the BCV on our next trip how big of a PItA was it to fill your mugs? We had them on our last visit at the BWV and only used them once. It didn't help that they gave us a room 48 miles from the main lobby....
I'm still on the fence about dining plan or no dining plan.

While down there I took some pictures of the awesome lobby holiday carousel.

So pretty! I was sad, the BC was about the only deluxe resort we didn't visit to see the decorations

Woo-hoo! Illuminations off to the left from our balcony!

Awesome view! I'm a little nervous about staying at the BCV, we had a studio at the BWV and it wasn't our favorite. I'm kinda guessing the layout of the two are the same. We are renting points so can't switch...like you the WL ended up being a favorite for us, it was amazing.

 

[Whit64130]

I asked Chris to take a picture of me by this cute Ariel statue right outside the Villas entrance since she's one of my favorite Princesses:

Pretty!

We had a very short walk to dinner as we were trying something new to us that was right at the Beach Club - Cape May Cafe! I had originally booked this because Ricky LOVES mussels and Steve loves seafood, even though Chris and I don't. When it became clear it would only be the 2 of us today I asked Chris what he wanted to switch to. He wanted to see the menu and felt there was still enough on the buffet for him, so we kept it. I'll save my review for my dining report (whenever that becomes a reality) but we both liked it and I want to go back with the whole family because I think Ricky and Steve would really enjoy it.

So...I can't wait for the DR. I mean I can but as a non seafood lover myself just wondering if y'all left hungry

 

[jandlinz]

Sounds like an amazing first day. I bet we passed each other by BTMRR and never noticed each other. I love your picture with Ariel.

 

[smiley519]

Sounds like you guys had a great arrival day! I love the decorated carousel pictures. And that's so awesome that you were able to see fireworks from your hotel room!

 

[KathyM2]

So cool that you could see fireworks right from your room!!! That is the best!