October 2015 PTR: a “Halloweenie” and her Fearless Companion conquer their first HHN!

Lynne G said:

It's September, so that means, we'll be traveling next month! Wahoo!

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I will dance to that!!

Lynne G said:

And, I think you will like the Plaza. I'll have to see if I have a picture of the Mickey pants empty. My kids would be giving me the stink eye if I ever tried to take a picture of our food.

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Ha ha! My guys know better than to take a bite before the photo is taken .

ArwenMarie said:

Anyway, we'll see! Have to wait for the final bills to come in from this trip before we decide anything LOL!

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I will cross my fingers that the numbers come in at or below your budget. Christmas would be an awesome time to go!

JaxDad said:

Hi Gina! We stayed at WL several years ago and loved it! The theming is awesome, and it's fun just to walk around the lobby. The pool was good for us, as was the pool bar! The room was great too. It had bunk beds for the kids, which they loved, and we actually had a view of the MK fireworks from our balcony! As far as restaurants, we really liked Whispering Canyon. A lot of people don't like the antics, but we thought it was fun, and the food I had (some kind of seriously carnivorous platter) was tasty and a decent value.

We also did one trip staying at the Poly. I think that was my favorite. There is something cool about being on the monorail, plus I loved the theming there too. (It was back when the lobby was also themed.) We did the character breakfast at Ohana, watched fireworks and the electric light parade on the beach, swam in the volcano pool, etc. It was really nice. I know it has changed since then, and I think they are still doing construction, so it may not be quite as special now.

We did one trip in a FW cabin. We liked it, but FW is a whole other experience. We had other family camping there, so we spent a lot of time at the campground, including the pool, the Hoop-Dee-Doo Review (awesome), and the Chip n Dale bonfire and movie. The cabins are really just somewhat themed single-wide mobile homes, and again I would only recommend FW if you plan to spend a lot of time there. It is a little inconvenient moving around (we actually rented a golf cart).

I still can't believe we're talking about Disney on a Gina thread!

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We love the vibe at the Poly, too. Ohana's character breakfast is a family favourite, and we always remark at how much the theming there appeals to us.

Camping, blech .... not even camping in Florida appeals to me.....neither tent nor cabin! I will admit, I'm not very good at roughing it nor am I the "outdoorsy" type (the beach excluded......there, I could be outdoors ALL the time!).

lol, we definitely have to get back to the Universal chat here, or the mods will be kicking my PTR to the curb. I'm actually wondering where my TR should actually go....an offsite stay, with Universal, HHN, MNSSHP and a few offsite attractions thrown in for good measure. Maybe the Orlando Hotels & Attractions Board?

tink1957 said:

Enjoying your PTR Gina...like keisha said it's too bad we will all miss each other by a few days...maybe next time we can do big homie meet-up.

Hope you have a blast at the beach

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Thanks Vicki!

We ended up switching the plans at the last minute, and headed to a little waterpark camp/resort for the day. We enjoyed a nice, low-key day enjoying their pools and waterslides, with a little nature tossed in for good measure. We cooked lunch on the hibachi, tossed around the football, soaked up the sun.....it was fun. Today we went bowling and out for Chinese food afterward. Tomorrow, its back to work . No more vacation until Orlando!

That stinks that we will miss meeting up with you as well. A big ol' Dismeet in would be a ton of fun!

Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:

lol, we definitely have to get back to the Universal chat here, or the mods will be kicking my PTR to the curb. I'm actually wondering where my TR should actually go....an offsite stay, with Universal, HHN, MNSSHP and a few offsite attractions thrown in for good measure. Maybe the Orlando Hotels & Attractions Board?

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Or the Budget Board! You're awesome at that!

JaxDad said:

Or the Budget Board! You're awesome at that!

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Why, thank you JaxDad!

But I must admit, while I pop over there occasionally, I don't spend much time over on the budget board.......some of those posters can be downright harsh . The good folks on the Universal/SeaWorld forums and over on the Orlando Hotels & Attractions board are so much kinder!

lol currently trying to squeeze a few extra days @ end of trip to try & work in MNSSHP on 10/11, dependent upon DH's work situation.

i'm all about getting a great deal, but the budget board is almost as scary as community board at times.

speaking of deals, again it appears the best car rental deals are 30 days out may be an urban DIS myth. I've never had good luck in that regard, despite so many saying it's when the offers roll out.

keishashadow said:

lol currently trying to squeeze a few extra days @ end of trip to try & work in MNSSHP on 10/11, dependent upon DH's work situation.

i'm all about getting a great deal, but the budget board is almost as scary as community board at times.

speaking of deals, again it appears the best car rental deals are 30 days out may be an urban DIS myth. I've never had good luck in that regard, despite so many saying it's when the offers roll out.

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I agree with you on the car deals. I find I get the best deals at six weeks out although my only experience is the last two years. I am going to try priceline at the last minute this year and see if I can get the cost down.

Gina..I seen Congo River has a groupon available this morning. Got golfing for four for $24with 25% off code.

tristyp said:

I agree with you on the car deals. I find I get the best deals at six weeks out although my only experience is the last two years. I am going to try priceline at the last minute this year and see if I can get the cost down.

Gina..I seen Congo River has a groupon available this morning. Got golfing for four for $24with 25% off code.

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betterbidding was helpful as to a mini van rate over busy marathon weekend a couple of years ago. got it approx. 3 weeks out = brand new mini van w/hertz but long wait to pick it up @ MCO, worth the tradeoff lol.

keishashadow said:

lol currently trying to squeeze a few extra days @ end of trip to try & work in MNSSHP on 10/11, dependent upon DH's work situation.

i'm all about getting a great deal, but the budget board is almost as scary as community board at times.

speaking of deals, again it appears the best car rental deals are 30 days out may be an urban DIS myth. I've never had good luck in that regard, despite so many saying it's when the offers roll out.

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Are you flying or driving, Keisha? Does squeezing in a few extra days involve changes to flight plans? I have always envied those that can drive, and be super flexible with their arrival and departure dates. I hope the efforts to extend the trip work out for you!!

lol, I am glad there are other people who are a bit put off by the budget board posters. I know I'm kind of a sensitive soul, but still .

tristyp said:

I agree with you on the car deals. I find I get the best deals at six weeks out although my only experience is the last two years. I am going to try priceline at the last minute this year and see if I can get the cost down.

Gina..I seen Congo River has a groupon available this morning. Got golfing for four for $24with 25% off code.

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If my current price for Alamo holds on as my best option, it will be the furthest out that we have ever gotten our best rate. It was booked June 25th.....3.5 months from arrival. I have never used priceline, but I do watch Hotwire after getting a great rate on a van a couple of vacations ago.

I saw that Groupon too!! And I was all set to buy it (though I didn't have a promo code....do share!!) since you know how much I *adore* Congo River....but then I booked a new dining experience for HHN (more on that later) so there goes my budget!!!

keishashadow said:

betterbidding was helpful as to a mini van rate over busy marathon weekend a couple of years ago. got it approx. 3 weeks out = brand new mini van w/hertz but long wait to pick it up @ MCO, worth the tradeoff lol.

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Maybe that's part of the problem for my rate....we're there over Columbus Day week. Is that a "big" holiday in the States? (its our Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada....a big deal for us northerners)

So, like I hinted at above, there's been a new addition to the plans as of this morning. After reading about the new Scareactor Dining Experience being offered on select dates to AP holders and RIP Tour guests only, I shared the information with Steve this mornign and he JUMPED at the chance to attend (surprisingly enough, of the six select dates it was being offered, our HHN date was one of them).

For $49.99 each, we will enjoy a buffet dinner at Monsters Cafe complete with the HHN Scareactors (photo ops galore, I hope!), and a free Photoconnect digital download per person (not sure how they will handle that yet for us, as we have the Photoconnect AP....perhaps we will get free prints instead?).

http://thrillgeek.com/new-scareacto...orror-nights-25-at-universal-studios-florida/

After all the Disney character meals that Steve has happily attended (endured?) for my sake over the years, I am more than willing to stretch the budget a little more for this experience for him. I gotta say, it does sound rather cool .

I called this morning, and booked it by phone. We're all set . Bring on Jack, Freddy and all the ghouls!

I'll be doing the unmasking tours that day, so maybe I'll let you see some pictures before your adventure at HHN. Great addition though. Since it's the first year offered, I hope it is good. Was not fond of the food at Monster's, but I am assuming it will be a great buffet, since maybe not the same food. The restaurant though, is really fun to see all the things they have in it. I think we enjoyed looking more than eating. Oh well. You always have to try a place first, then know when to rave or just go, nah, not again.

Wahoo! The first HHN goers will be giving their thoughts before we know it. And, did you see, MK is already having decor up. So looking forward to that party again. And did you see the new Sorcerers card for the party, so cute. Since you only get one per person, I may give mine to my DD, but then again, maybe not. I had as much fun doing the game as she did. Guess that's why the wand is hers, but I got a kick out of it too.

. how many days to go?

Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:

So, like I hinted at above, there's been a new addition to the plans as of this morning. After reading about the new Scareactor Dining Experience being offered on select dates to AP holders and RIP Tour guests only, I shared the information with Steve this mornign and he JUMPED at the chance to attend (surprisingly enough, of the six select dates it was being offered, our HHN date was one of them).

For $49.99 each, we will enjoy a buffet dinner at Monsters Cafe complete with the HHN Scareactors (photo ops galore, I hope!), and a free Photoconnect digital download per person (not sure how they will handle that yet for us, as we have the Photoconnect AP....perhaps we will get free prints instead?).

http://thrillgeek.com/new-scareacto...orror-nights-25-at-universal-studios-florida/

After all the Disney character meals that Steve has happily attended (endured?) for my sake over the years, I am more than willing to stretch the budget a little more for this experience for him. I gotta say, it does sound rather cool .

I called this morning, and booked it by phone. We're all set . Bring on Jack, Freddy and all the ghouls!

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Awesome Gina! I have a feeling this is going to be an epic trip!

The code was just a 25% off any deal with Groupon for today only. I used 25off as the code.

gina make sure to include reveiw on the grub @ monsters. let's just say their food was really scary the few times we've braved it. bizarre that U hasn't offered anything like it and why so limited? should be fun for you

anything over 5 hrs RT & we fly lol. I work SWA for points and often double book different dates & cancel one since i know there is no harm/no foul

Lynne G said:

I'll be doing the unmasking tours that day, so maybe I'll let you see some pictures before your adventure at HHN. Great addition though. Since it's the first year offered, I hope it is good. Was not fond of the food at Monster's, but I am assuming it will be a great buffet, since maybe not the same food. The restaurant though, is really fun to see all the things they have in it. I think we enjoyed looking more than eating. Oh well. You always have to try a place first, then know when to rave or just go, nah, not again.

Wahoo! The first HHN goers will be giving their thoughts before we know it. And, did you see, MK is already having decor up. So looking forward to that party again. And did you see the new Sorcerers card for the party, so cute. Since you only get one per person, I may give mine to my DD, but then again, maybe not. I had as much fun doing the game as she did. Guess that's why the wand is hers, but I got a kick out of it too.

.

how many days to go?

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This will be a first time for us at Monsters....I hope the meal is edible at least. When I booked our tickets this morning, I asked if they knew yet what foods would be served. They told me the menu for the Scareactor Dining Experience is supposed to include the following (I might have missed a few items too, she talked really fast!!):

6-7 different types of salads (spring mix, romaine, pasta, etc.)
Roasted pork
Beef striploin
Rotisserie chicken
Chicken marsala
Pasta of the day
Corn on the cob
Broccoli
Rice pilaf
Roasted potatoes
Mashed potatoes
2 "warm" desserts: peach cobbler & bread pudding (both served with ice cream)
3 "cold" desserts: chocolate layer cake, strawberry cheesecake, and key lime pie

It looks good on paper, anyway!!

The Sorcerers card is adorable....I guess, with two of us at two parties, that means we can potentially get four of them? I will have to see if I can pay it forward and pass a couple along to someone who would like one (but won't be at one of the parties to get one). I haven't seen the pics of the decorations yet....is there a thread on the Theme Parks board that shows some photos? I can't wait to see the parks decked out in the autumn finery!!

36 days to go for us!! And your countdown is just right behind ours!!

ArwenMarie said:

Awesome Gina! I have a feeling this is going to be an epic trip!

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I hope so . I always worry, when so much time and money is invested in a single week's vacation, that something (weather, sickness, etc.) will foul it all up. Fingers crossed all of our special plans go off without a hitch!

tristyp said:

The code was just a 25% off any deal with Groupon for today only. I used 25off as the code.

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Ooooh, good deal . It's paining me not to buy the Congo River deal for two!!

keishashadow said:

gina make sure to include reveiw on the grub @ monsters. let's just say their food was really scary the few times we've braved it. bizarre that U hasn't offered anything like it and why so limited? should be fun for you

anything over 5 hrs RT & we fly lol. I work SWA for points and often double book different dates & cancel one since i know there is no harm/no foul

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I will certainly give an honest summary of the food at Monsters after our trip . I promise to come back with the good, the bad, and the ugly (but let's hope the only ugly are those creepy scareactors ). I really, really hope Universal takes all the necessary steps to do this event right. It's an awesome concept.....so different and with so much potential.

I wish Southwest offered assigned seats....their cancellation/change policies are fantastic.

Happy Labour Day everyone . I hope you all are enjoying a relaxing last long weekend of summer. I always find Labour Day to be a bit melancholy....unlike most parents, I was never eager to see the end of summer fun so heading back to school made me a bit blue. It’s especially emotional this year, as this is potentially Jake's last back to school, ever. A very strange feeling for a mom!!


Weather here is grossly hot, humid and oppressive. While I hate to complain about the heat (Lord knows the cold and snow will be here before we know it), what we have today is a little much . Poor Steve is working all day today, and inside the plant it’s even worse than outside. He will be mighty grateful for the a/c when he gets home later tonight (on the upside, because it’s a statutory holiday in Ontario, he gets paid double time plus holiday pay.....so his 12 hours of work nets him 36 hours of pay today.....a nice boost to the budget a month before our trip!).


There's been a couple of changes over the past weekend.....one to the trip, the other to family life in general.


Now that this trip is just over 30 days away, we've been chatting a lot about the little details like flight times and what not. Our arrival back in Buffalo at 8 pm on departure day was causing us a bit of concern, especially after experiencing our first flight delay (and a very long middle-of-the-night commute home from Syracuse) in May. Buffalo is a 4 hour trip for us (plus any time spent at the border) so at best, we were looking at a 1 am arrival home even if we limited stops en route and our flight was on time. So we have been tossing around the option of spending the night in Niagara Falls .... which will allow us to enjoy a nice meal in Buffalo before crossing back into Canada ... and making the trip home on Sunday morning, rested and in the daylight. Turns out we had accumulated enough credit card points to cover our night’s stay at the Falls in its entirety, so I booked the additional day our vacation has just grown by a night. Since we don’t return home now until early Sunday afternoon, I have taken the Monday off work as well to give me an extra day to get organized before getting back to the grind.


We also found out on Friday that Steve returns to 12-hour continental shifts on a permanent basis, effective today. After being on shifts for 20+ years, he was moved about a year ago into a special assignment position which switched him to straight 8-hour days. While we knew the special assignment wasn’t permanent, we got mighty used to the normalcy of family life with him working 7 am to 3 pm weekdays. The special assignment is now over (the project he was given to design has been successfully implemented and running on its own with the desired results) so it’s back to shift work for my Steve. 12 hour continentals are quite tough on the body.....its Monday/Tuesday days, Wednesday/Thursday off, Friday/Saturday/Sunday nights, Monday/Tuesday off, Wednesday/Thursday days, Friday/Saturday/Sunday off, etc.....so it’s going to take some getting used to again for all of us. While we are super grateful that Steve is blessed with a good job with excellent benefits, we still had a bit of a pity party on Friday when we heard the news and had to self-medicate with ice cream sundaes. I am going to miss being able to spend every evening with my favourite guy.


Other than that, there’s nothing much new to report. After this weekend is over, I suspect time will start passing really, really quickly. My FP+ date for the first MNSSHP night is less than a week away!

Hello Gina and Happy Labour Day to you...although I use the word 'happy' with tongue-in-cheek. Another school year begins so we take a deep breath and plunge in!
I just wanted to send you a heartfelt 'thank you' for the part you played in making our vacation in Orlando so wonderful. I planned our trip for an entire year and your trip reports really shaped our itinerary. It was our first time to Universal, SeaWorld, Aquatica and Discovery Cove. We didn't do any Disney parks because we wanted to check out 'the other side' of Orlando. I'm so glad we did! Your tips and suggestions, your opinions and dining reviews are so valuable and I am grateful for the time and effort you put into sharing them. Discovery Cove was a highlight and, if it wasn't for you, I'm not sure it would have crossed my radar. So, from a fellow Ontarian, thank you....and you can bet I'll be reading your next trip report!

Hi Gina, sorry to hear about the change in Steve's hours. That must be hard, 7-3 are dream hours. I imagine shift work is hard on the body, ugh. I'm glad you were able medicate with some sundaes though

I'm sure time will start going very fast now before your trip with fall coming.

It's Labor Day here too and the kids start school tomorrow. I think I am in a worse mood than they are! I love love love the summer, the freedom, the weather, no homework, no making lunches, no uniforms, on and on. Oh well, back into the groove.

Jumping in to say hi! Haven't read everything yet, just saw that you had started your PTR! Looking forward to hearing all about it!

Hi Gina! I'm just checking in! I know you must be getting excited for your rapidly approaching trip!

This may be embarrassing for you, but I also wanted to correct your spelling...it's "Labor Day," not "Labour Day." :-D

I have not made any Orlando plans, but still may take the kids for a night or two this Fall and do Escape Room and maybe the Outta Control Magic Comedy Show (again). I have some Marriott points burning a hole in my pocket!

I'm also MAYBE considering a trip to Canada next summer, eh! I have friends on Vancouver Island, and may do a Seattle/Vancouver trip. I'm a long way form really planning and making it a reality though. I'd like to take the kids on a whale-watching trip, plus do some hiking and maybe more whitewater rafting. That was a big hit this year.

twinkletoe said:

Hello Gina and Happy Labour Day to you...although I use the word 'happy' with tongue-in-cheek. Another school year begins so we take a deep breath and plunge in!
I just wanted to send you a heartfelt 'thank you' for the part you played in making our vacation in Orlando so wonderful. I planned our trip for an entire year and your trip reports really shaped our itinerary. It was our first time to Universal, SeaWorld, Aquatica and Discovery Cove. We didn't do any Disney parks because we wanted to check out 'the other side' of Orlando. I'm so glad we did! Your tips and suggestions, your opinions and dining reviews are so valuable and I am grateful for the time and effort you put into sharing them. Discovery Cove was a highlight and, if it wasn't for you, I'm not sure it would have crossed my radar. So, from a fellow Ontarian, thank you....and you can bet I'll be reading your next trip report!

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I am so happy that you had such a great non-Disney vacation!!! There are so many incredible things to do in Orlando, I always think people are selling the area short if they never visit any of the SeaWorld, Universal or independent attractions. Discovery Cove is my favourite, too....we'd love to add in another visit to DC to our April 2016 plans . Have you got another trip in the works yet? (perhaps to escape our cold Canadian winter? ... though the forecasters have apparently promised us an El Nino to warm things up this year!)

Hope back-to-school went well for you this morning. We get to delay it for one additional day...Jake's college classes don't start until tomorrow .

ArwenMarie said:

Hi Gina, sorry to hear about the change in Steve's hours. That must be hard, 7-3 are dream hours. I imagine shift work is hard on the body, ugh. I'm glad you were able medicate with some sundaes though

I'm sure time will start going very fast now before your trip with fall coming.

It's Labor Day here too and the kids start school tomorrow. I think I am in a worse mood than they are! I love love love the summer, the freedom, the weather, no homework, no making lunches, no uniforms, on and on. Oh well, back into the groove.

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Yep, the only thing I enjoy about the return to classes is the predictability of the schedule....it just seems to make life go a little more smoothly. But that's not enough to make me stop bemoaning the end of the wonderful summer season!!

mrsabbott said:

Jumping in to say hi! Haven't read everything yet, just saw that you had started your PTR! Looking forward to hearing all about it!

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Hi mrsabbott! Welcome aboard! Don't be shy, feel free to jump right in and join the chatter .

JaxDad said:

Hi Gina! I'm just checking in! I know you must be getting excited for your rapidly approaching trip!

This may be embarrassing for you, but I also wanted to correct your spelling...it's "Labor Day," not "Labour Day." :-D

I have not made any Orlando plans, but still may take the kids for a night or two this Fall and do Escape Room and maybe the Outta Control Magic Comedy Show (again). I have some Marriott points burning a hole in my pocket!

I'm also MAYBE considering a trip to Canada next summer, eh! I have friends on Vancouver Island, and may do a Seattle/Vancouver trip. I'm a long way form really planning and making it a reality though. I'd like to take the kids on a whale-watching trip, plus do some hiking and maybe more whitewater rafting. That was a big hit this year.

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Oh, my friend......you forget that here in the Great Canadian North, our neighbours are on their best behaviour as we savour our favourite holiday of the summer: Labour Day! (What can I say? Our country apparently really likes the letter U ) Much as I yearn to be an American in the sunny south, I think I'll forever be a Canadian girl when it comes to spelling.

An impromptu offsite trip this autumn sounds marvellous! There's some great deals on Groupon right now too that could round our your trip quite nicely!!

Sadly, I have never made it to the west coast for a tour of that part of our massive country....though Jake has (he travelled to Vancouver in summer 2010 with a friends family, and very much enjoyed the whale watching trip!!). Still on my bucket list, along with the eastern Canada (I want to see the Bay of Fundy). You must plan to take those kiddos to Niagara Falls at some point, too.....that Natural Wonder is not to be missed (and its such a great place for families to visit).