PTR/TR: Can't wait to get to Diagon Alley! March 2015

[coastgirl]

Thought I’d start a short-ish PTR as I can’t contain my excitement right now.

We are heading back for our third trip to Universal during our March break. My dh and I, and our soon-to-be 12yo dd and 14 yo ds. We are total Potterheads. Our previous two trips to Universal were for Hogsmeade, though we had 14 day passes in both cases and got to explore lots. (Old TRs linked in my sig.) On our last trip (Aug 2013), we could see King's Cross rising behind the hoardings, and were so excited about it, but didn’t anticipate getting back so soon.



(Yes, that's my three in the matching t-shirts. I think there will be resistance to the t-shirt thing this year--at 12 and 14--but I have something more subtle in mind. )

It’s been kind of a surprise trip in lots of ways. We were hoping to go to Europe with the kids in May but my ds has a class trip that messed with our dates, and I am waaay too cheap to fly to Europe during the high season. So…in November, when we got the class trip dates I was depressed and on a whim went to the Southwest site, and immediately got a great price on 4 tickets to MCO lined up with our March break. Let me tell you I have NEVER booked a flight on my first visit to any website. Usually I agonize and compare for months, but I guess I’ve done enough agonizing in the past to know a good deal when I see one, so I grabbed it.

We fly out on Monday March 9 and home on Friday March 20. 11 days in Orlando. We plan to get the 14 day unlimited passes for Universal (with an AP for dh for the discounts and parking), and not much else. I started a new job in the spring, and I LOVE it, but it’s very demanding. Dh is in the same boat. So we are looking forward to some fun, and some downtime. The last two trips we rented pool homes, and enjoyed that a lot, so that’s the plan for this trip also, though we haven’t actually firmed up the home yet.

News today: For the first four nights, we have booked the new onsite hotel, Cabana Bay Beach Resort. Woot! Haven’t stayed onsite at Universal before because our budget doesn’t stretch to deluxes. But the new resort looks like a ton of fun, and the family suite was only $120/nt with the AP discount. So we arrive around 11 am at the airport, head to the resort with most of the day ahead of us, and then get the early admission perk for the next three days. It’s actually exactly the same price as a regular old airport hotel room we have booked for the night before we fly. Can’t beat that.

I’ve read a lot of the chat on the resorts board, and a lot of folks won’t stay there because there’s no express pass…but honestly, it doesn’t work on the two rides we most care about (Gringott’s and FJ), so it’s totally no skin off our nose. I love the pool setup there, with the water slide and lazy river. I was dithering about a water park ticket, kinda wanted it, kinda didn’t, but a fancy pool with waterslide and lazy river for the first 4 days sounds perfect.

On Friday we’ll move into our villa (what ever that turns out to be) for a slower week, with a few more visits back to the parks.

So, so excited about Cabana Bay—it adds something new for us, and doesn’t strain the budget at all.

 

[Kmoss]

yay!! so exciting! following

 

[nextidiot]

Subing. We will be there 3/12 through 3/19 but not sure which parks, which days. I hope to start my PTR next week but I am also afraid to because it kind of commits me to doing a TR. I usually like to digest my vacation a while before reliving it on the DIS.

 

[coastgirl]

Welcome KMoss and nextidiot. (Maybe I'll call you Jokey! Nextidiot sounds a little mean when I say it!) I think it's cool to find so many people who are going the same time, just found someone on the Cdn board who'll be there the same week as you, Jokey, and our second week. I wasn't going to do a PTR/TR, but I love the planning part. And the old TRs are really nice to read (though sometimes a chore to write) and I love to read other people's TRs, so it only seems fair that I at least try!

Spent tonight looking at villas. I'm afraid I left it a bit late...a lot of the ones I like aren't available.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Hi ya JoAnne, good to "see" you again! . Your PTR (and later, your full trip report) will be a fun way to pass the time until we travel in May .

Yay for a great rate on Cabana Bay! I can't wait to hear about your experience there . The recreational areas look perfect for your children! (and us big kids, too )

The last time you were in Orlando, you traveled with your dog, correct? Will you be bringing the family pooch along for this trip as well? What pool home communities are on your short list so far?

Happy New Year from your "western" neighbours!

 

[coastgirl]

Hi Gina!

Nope, pupper's not coming this time. It wasn't too bad to bring her, and we will miss the little fuzzball, but it does give us a lot more flexibility. (E.g., we couldn't stop at a restaurant before we checked in/after we checked out!)

I have a bunch of enquiries out, but our short list really boils down to Emerald Island, Windsor Hills, and Veranda Palms. Veranda Palms is newish, and we've not stayed in that area (east of the others, and south of Irlo Bronson), but it looks quite nice, and there's one house in particular that ticks all our boxes. I don't know for sure if their clubhouse and everything is operational, but we don't really care, we're happy to be in our own bubble.

I was really dithering about not having tickets to Seaworld, and Aquatica even more so, but I have to say, the pools at Cabana Bay (and especially the lazy river) look like they'll be enough to give me the taste at least of my favourite thing about the water park.

Happy New Year to you too!

 

[Kmoss]

to reading all! Read your last one and super excited to read the actual TR! Hubs and I and my daughter went in Jan of 2011 and him an I are going back at Thanksgiving! He only wants to stay where we stayed the last time and will do a few days at Disney again, onsite, but the majority of the time will be at UO. I am am HP nutcase and have since turned him and absolutely have to ride the Hogwarts Express! It looks like some things are different and improved even since then! Wahoo!!

 

[coastgirl]

My dh wasn't a fan either, but the kids ate them up (I had read them as they came out) and he kind of had to follow along. My dd actually coerced him into reading the series (he just has Deathly Hallows left) and my dh does NOT read fiction. But now he has Hagrid on his keychain and he's the one who requests the movies on Friday night. To quote another show we watch too much of, "Resistance is futile."

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

I was really dithering about not having tickets to Seaworld, and Aquatica even more so

Did you know that the SeaWorld/Aquatica combo AP's are being offered for buy one, get one free? $180 gets you TWO annual passes, good for one year from activation. Free parking, park discounts, etc.

http://seaworldparks.com/en/seaworld-orlando/book-online/tickets/bogopasses/

Just thought I'd toss that out there, in case you might be interested. I think the website says that the BOGO offer must be purchased by the end of February.

 

[coastgirl]

I know the rates are really good, and it's hard to resist. But we've done the flexpass on the last two trips, and this time we "only" have ten days, so I'm committed to more pool time. (Note: smaller umbrella, in a drink!) I have also investigated the combo including Busch, because we haven't been there before--which is also great value, and very tempting. Things may change, but for now the family would rather have more down time.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

I know the rates are really good, and it's hard to resist. But we've done the flexpass on the last two trips, and this time we "only" have ten days, so I'm committed to more pool time. (Note: smaller umbrella, in a drink!) I have also investigated the combo including Busch, because we haven't been there before--which is also great value, and very tempting. Things may change, but for now the family would rather have more down time.

Yup.....I totally get it!!

 

[pigletto]

So this is where everyone is!

Excited to be reading and planning with you all

 

[schumigirl]

Pool time is always good.......looking forward to reading along with you

 

[coastgirl]

Thanks. I started reading your last TR a couple of days ago, will have to finish up!

 

[coastgirl]

Two happy developments this week.

We booked a villa! I really like the way it looks, stylish and uncluttered. It's in Indian Ridge, not gated, but the reviews say the community feels safe. This one is newly reno'd, and checks all our boxes-- nice private back yard (backs on a conservation area), games room with pool table, hot tub and a nice big pool. It's very close to the two villa areas we've stayed at before, Emerald Island and Sunset Lakes.

And I just got a call from my dear niece. My sister and her family live in BC, which is where my kids were born. We moved when the kids were 2 and 4, and niece was 7. Since then we've only seen her twice--once in 2007 when both our families vacationed at Disney together, and again last summer when she and her mom came here for a week. She's 17 now, and a big Potter fan. I've been trying to talk her moms into sending her to Orlando with us this time. I sent her a temptation email this week, with a link to the villa and Cabana Bay, and it worked. Bless her heart, it's 3 flights + a 12 hr trek from BC. We arrive at 11 am and she arrives at 11 pm the same night.

She's such a great kid. She was very close with my kids when they were little, and we don't get nearly enough "cousin time". I'm so pleased that she'll join us. And she's really excited too--she really wants to get her wand at Ollivander's, and I've promised her the same thing I promised my kids: we'll keep going as long as it takes for you to get picked! She's cute as a button, though, and I expect she'll be a good "pick".

So, yay!

 

[livingthedream]

I've been on this board more regularly since planning our August-September trip to Universal. I've been reading your trip reports with interest because it sounds like our lives mirror one another a fair bit, and this most recent update makes it sound like our lives parallel even more!

My husband was raised in Nova Scotia, and that's where I met him. We go back regularly to visit his mother and sister in Sydney. Our nephew has now graduated university and is trying to make his way in Halifax now.

Both of my children were also born in BC, and we moved to Saskatchewan when they were 2 and 4. The boys still have cousins in BC, and despite the distance, they are close in that they can pick up right where they left off even if its been a few years since they were together.

We were in Disney in 2007, we've stayed both on and off-site, and we are now focusing on a slower, more relaxing Universal vacation. Small world!

It is so exciting to have found your "home away from home" while in Orlando, isn't it? Its a terrific feeling! And I think it is awesome that you are willing to bring your niece on your family trip. Not only will she be excited, but it will be a nice dynamic for the kids.

Enjoy your trip planning! Looking forward to your next instalment!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Two happy developments this week.

We booked a villa! I really like the way it looks, stylish and uncluttered. It's in Indian Ridge, not gated, but the reviews say the community feels safe. This one is newly reno'd, and checks all our boxes-- nice private back yard (backs on a conservation area), games room with pool table, hot tub and a nice big pool. It's very close to the two villa areas we've stayed at before, Emerald Island and Sunset Lakes.

And I just got a call from my dear niece. My sister and her family live in BC, which is where my kids were born. We moved when the kids were 2 and 4, and niece was 7. Since then we've only seen her twice--once in 2007 when both our families vacationed at Disney together, and again last summer when she and her mom came here for a week. She's 17 now, and a big Potter fan. I've been trying to talk her moms into sending her to Orlando with us this time. I sent her a temptation email this week, with a link to the villa and Cabana Bay, and it worked. Bless her heart, it's 3 flights + a 12 hr trek from BC. We arrive at 11 am and she arrives at 11 pm the same night.

She's such a great kid. She was very close with my kids when they were little, and we don't get nearly enough "cousin time". I'm so pleased that she'll join us. And she's really excited too--she really wants to get her wand at Ollivander's, and I've promised her the same thing I promised my kids: we'll keep going as long as it takes for you to get picked! She's cute as a button, though, and I expect she'll be a good "pick".

So, yay!

That's awesome! The villa sounds lovely.....woiuld you be willing to share a link to the specific home you booked? (I love looking at the fabulous accommodations options in Orlando!)

And how nice for your niece to experience such an amazing trip! Your kids must be so excited to have their cousin along. That's quite a flight adventure for a young lady....betcha she'll be pooped when she finally arrives that evening.

 

[schumigirl]

Nice update, glad you got your villa sorted

How lovely you get to spend time with your niece and I hope she does get picked at Olivanders

 

[coastgirl]

Livingthedream, that's amazing! (Yes, "It's a Small World" is ringing in my head now!) Have you found the Canadian community board yet? Friendly bunch of Canucks over there.

Gina, DN is an amazing traveller. Her other March Break option was Machu Pichu, but she chose us instead. A couple of years ago she did a class trip with Me to We to build a school in South America, and she also did a European school trip. It's still a brutal itinerary, though. I hope she gets some sleep--and I hope my kids do too, because once she gets to Orlando there will be much squealing and excitement.

Schumigirl, thanks for the good wishes--I will certainly do what I can to help her get her wand!

As for the villa, we have allergies, and I loved, loved, loved that there's hardwood in the bedrooms. Also the kitchen looks so nice.

One of the things I like is that we are dealing directly with the local mgmt company. Last time we got stuck in between the owner and the prop mgr when the AC broke down. Also there seems to be a new tendency to damage insurance instead of a damage deposit--we saw some places that had a flat fee (usually somewhere between $40 and $80), and others with damage deposits as high as $500. I like the flat fee better, because you know what you're in for, and there's no waiting around for money back, or the exchange shrinkage of a two-way transaction. (I really hate getting refunds in USD because I lose the exchange fee in both directions.)

I also booked our breakfast at 'Ohana last night. It's an Orlando tradition for us, and it'll be more fun with DN. It also gives us a chance to catch a free ride on the Monorail!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Here's the villa.
We have allergies, and I loved, loved, loved that there's hardwood in the bedrooms. Also the kitchen looks so nice.

Gorgeous!