Most Wonderful Time Of Year - NY, Universal, DW - we are back!

[AussieTink]

Hello everyone! I thought I would start this Pre Trip Report as a way to introduce myself and also help anyone who is thinking of, or going to Disney World! On this trip we will be going to New York, Universal Orlando and Disney World! Onto the introductions -

AussieTink - favourite Disney character - Tinkerbell; favourite WDW resort - Wilderness Lodge; favourite ride - Pirates of the Caribbean.

DMum - favourite Disney character - Eeyore; favourite WDW resort - Contemporary; favourite ride - Peter Pan.

DSis - favourite Disney character - Pluto; favourite WDW resort - AKL; favourite ride - Test Track. My sister was actually part of the Disney International Program in 2013 and was VIP/front desk at Coronado Springs Resort, so she is excited to revisit as a tourist and catch up with US cast mates.

Here is a photo of DSis and I - when visiting her while she was in the College Program.



To be continued - New York Itinerary!

 

[AussieTink]

Trip overview: We are flying out to LA on the 30th of November, then jetting across to New York for 5 nights. I want to thank everyone who commented in my previous thread about New York - got some good opinions from everyone. We are staying in Midtown Manhattan, and have just come up with our itinerary (this depends on how jet lagged we are):

Day 1: Shopping; Wicked Musical

Day 2: New York Public Library, Bryant Park, Grand Central Station then walk the Brooklyn Bridge, watch the Christmas Tree lighting on TV

Day 3: Central Park; Shopping; Rockefeller and Christmas Tree

Day 4: 9/11 museum; Century 21

Day 5: Checkout; Shopping

As you might be able to tell - we love our shopping! I will be trying to ignore our exchange rate while we are over there - maybe just pretend we are dollar for dollar hehe!

Next to come - our Orlando plans!

 

[AussieTink]

Morning! I'd like to start off by asking if anyone has tips for jet lag? I remember last trip when I arrived at our Disney resort I made sure I walked bare foot in the grass - had read this was good for you to do. This time I have bought a 'Jet Lag' spray - has some essential oils in it and you are meant to spray it on your face.....will see if that helps!

Back to our plans:

So on December 5th we fly down to Orlando, arriving about 6pm, where we are spending 4 nights at Universal Orlando at the Hard Rock Hotel. We love this hotel, and have stayed there the past 2 times we have visited Universal. The hotel has a pretty cool vibe and is well themed, I like the little touches they put in the rooms too. We especially love the Front of the Line pass you get for staying on-site, and is really useful during busier times in the parks. I also love how close the hotel is to the parks and the City Walk, just a short stroll away and usually see some squirrels.

Our first day in Orlando we are planning a shopping day - visiting the Mall at Millenia (I have not been to yet, but DSis and DMum have) and the Outlets. I have great memories of the Outlets, some nice bargains to be had. Have been looking online to print out coupons to take, which I better remember to print out soon. I know the Outlets have a coupon book you can get while there and you can also print some out. Mall at Millenia I am not quite sure of though.

We have not yet seen the new Simpsons area or the new Harry Potter part in Universal - so something new to do and see. DSis has not yet experienced the new Transformers ride either, considering we both love the Spiderman ride, I'm sure this will be a hit for her. It will also depend what the weather is like if we do Jurassic Park - that drop is INSANE! I always fear we are going to get soaking wet, but have managed to stay dry. I am pretty sure the Universal Macy's Parade starts the day after we arrive so that is good timing!

I think Universal is a bit hard to find food options - we need to find Gluten and Dairy Free options. Our past trips we sort of just had quick service type meals, or a meal from the room service menu. Might have to do some more research about food options at Universal. Again the Outlets and Mall is quite difficult to find food as well. I am hoping to bring a heap of snack food type options overseas with me so that I can just pop some bars in my bag and if can't find food when hungry then at least have something to snack on.

Next to come - our Disney World plans!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Your trip looks awesome!

Nice picture....but enquiring minds wanna know......who is who?

 

[PrincessInOz]

I'd like to start off by asking if anyone has tips for jet lag? I remember last trip when I arrived at our Disney resort I made sure I walked bare foot in the grass - had read this was good for you to do. This time I have bought a 'Jet Lag' spray - has some essential oils in it and you are meant to spray it on your face.....will see if that helps!

I tend to drink a lot of water on the plane and keep well hydrated. I also try to stay away from caffeine for the flight.
At the other end, I stay up and go to bed when it is night time. It means that I stay up for well over 40 hours (assuming you leave Oz in the morning) but when I get up the next morning, my body clock is reset to the US time. YMMV.

I think Universal is a bit hard to find food options - we need to find Gluten and Dairy Free options.

Are you talking about inside the UO Parks or Universal in general? There are a few restaurants at CityWalk and also at the resorts. I would imagine that you'd be able to find G and D-free options somewhere. In any event, good luck with it all.

 

[AussieTink]

I tend to drink a lot of water on the plane and keep well hydrated. I also try to stay away from caffeine for the flight.
At the other end, I stay up and go to bed when it is night time. It means that I stay up for well over 40 hours (assuming you leave Oz in the morning) but when I get up the next morning, my body clock is reset to the US time. YMMV.

Are you talking about inside the UO Parks or Universal in general? There are a few restaurants at CityWalk and also at the resorts. I would imagine that you'd be able to find G and D-free options somewhere. In any event, good luck with it all.

Hi PrincessInOz! Thanks for your reply! In the photo I am on the right in the green shirt

Agree about keeping hydrated on the plane and when arrive. Good idea about the no caffeine - I usually like a softdrink for something different on the plane - so maybe I will opt for something other than coke.

 

[AussieTink]

Hello again! So we are up to our Disney part of the trip, YAY!!

Then on December 9th we are off to Disney World! WAHOO!! This will be our 4th visit to the world, and every time we have visited we do a split stay at different resorts. (My DSis was lucky enough to stay at different resorts on her Disney International Program). So this trip we are firstly staying at The Beach Club; then to Art of Animation and finally onto the Contemporary. We have never stayed at the Beach Club, so I am hoping it lives up to what I am dreaming of!

We were able to make all our dining reservations a while ago, and I am pretty sure we got everything we were after. Recently made our fast pass selections and were surprised at being able to get all the ones we wanted, including "hard" ones like Anna & Elsa and the Dwarf Mine Train. It will be interesting to see how the Fastpass+ system works out, I am so used to the old paper ticket system (and will miss bringing home the unused fastpass tickets as souvenirs).

We are also attending Mickeys Very Merry Christmas Party on the 15th December (DMum Birthday!). The last time we went to this party it was absolutely FREEZING (think thick coat, gloves!!). I have been checking the weather on my app every few days and the weather seems to be quite warm - so much so that we are now packing shorts. I am hoping for nice weather, not too cold, not too hot, just right!

Also excited to see the last showing of the Osborne Lights.

When we were planning our trip, we wanted to challenge ourselves, do something we haven't done before - so on one of our days we have a 4 parks in 1 day challenge! Should be fun. We want to commemorate going to all 4 parks in 1 day - any ideas? A photo in each park? A souvenir? Something to show we conquered them all.

 

[PrincessInOz]

We want to commemorate going to all 4 parks in 1 day - any ideas?

There are a number of options for this.
1. I don't know if they still do it....but Guest Services used to have buttons for each park with the park icon. It was always a fun thing to collect...for free.
2. If you have Memory Maker, then getting a photo in each park is an option. Aside from in front of the park icons (or the closest thing for DHS now), we always like to conquer all the 'mountain' attractions at each park and then collect the PP ride pictures. The other thing we did was collect pictures of us with the 'must try' foods at each park. Beverley for Epcot, Dole Whip Float for MK, Butterfinger Cupcake for DHS, Jungle Juice for Animal Kingdom.
3. Souvenirs are always good. There are the 'exclusive' merch you could get from each park.

 

[mindy32]

Sounds like an amazing trip!

Have you done the Rockerfeller centre tree lighting before or just want to skip the crowds etc? We went in 2012 and whilst crowded, cold and a long wait, it was still a highlight!

No real tips on jet lag, we've been lucky and managed to mostly avoid it as we've arrived in the morning and stayed up until the evening (long day!) to get used to the time zone quickly.

 

[AussieTink]

There are a number of options for this.
1. I don't know if they still do it....but Guest Services used to have buttons for each park with the park icon. It was always a fun thing to collect...for free.
2. If you have Memory Maker, then getting a photo in each park is an option. Aside from in front of the park icons (or the closest thing for DHS now), we always like to conquer all the 'mountain' attractions at each park and then collect the PP ride pictures. The other thing we did was collect pictures of us with the 'must try' foods at each park. Beverley for Epcot, Dole Whip Float for MK, Butterfinger Cupcake for DHS, Jungle Juice for Animal Kingdom.
3. Souvenirs are always good. There are the 'exclusive' merch you could get from each park.

Thanks PrincessInOz for your suggestions, some great ones in there! The buttons could be a good idea.

Sounds like an amazing trip!

Have you done the Rockerfeller centre tree lighting before or just want to skip the crowds etc? We went in 2012 and whilst crowded, cold and a long wait, it was still a highlight!

No real tips on jet lag, we've been lucky and managed to mostly avoid it as we've arrived in the morning and stayed up until the evening (long day!) to get used to the time zone quickly.

Hi mindy32! We have not done the tree lighting before, but think we would rather skip the crowds and keep warm in our hotel room. It does sound like you had a great time seeing it! Yes agree about staying up until the new time zone night time, hopefully we then manage to actually sleep when it's time to sleep haha!

 

[AussieTink]

Hello! I thought I would just pop in with some updates of random things since I have pretty much explained our trip.

We recently bought a sim card for 1 of our phones, a few choices out there, but in the end we picked one with unlimited data - I can see us using A LOT of data in New York. Probably using maps and seeing what is around us, where to eat etc.

On that note - any tips for using the New York Subway (train)??

I have also printed off a map of NY and am currently trying finding places to eat/get groceries/pharmacy etc on the internet and then putting them on the map, so can see what is around our hotel. There are sure a lot of Starbucks! So far I have dotted the Starbucks (because they are meant to sell spring water); found where the wholefoods market store is; in process of finding places to eat that offer gluten and dairy free (this is a bit hard as most of the 'wow that looks great!' places are out further than walking distance); mapped a few pharmacies as I think they also sell food and snacks and also toiletries etc. But there is still a fair bit of research to go with these...

One thing we want to do in Disney which we haven't done before is find Hidden Mickeys! I bought the app for my phone, so I'm hoping this might be a little bit of fun. When we were planning this trip we wanted to do things we hadn't yet done - so hidden mickeys and the 4 parks in 1 day plans were thought of.

Not long before we fly out!

 

[Zosha]

Your trip looks great AussieTink! I feel excited for you just reading your plans!

 

[SafferMom]

Your trip looks amazing.

Pharmacies (esp Walgreens) do sell food and snacks. We found lovely precut fruit there almost every day. We of course added ice cream - the food group that the USA does SO WELL!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Wholefood stores are scattered pretty regularly throughout NYC and you will easily find others with GF and DF options -lots of wholefood cafes, etc as well as easy to-go snacks from Walgreens, many deli's etc. Simpsons Food Court in USF has some salads and other options that might be worth checking out for GF. I am pretty sure Mythos at IOA had GF and DF options too as does Confisco Grille. Universal doesn't guarantee that there isn't cross contamination which might be an issue if you are full-on celiac but I think if you are careful you'll be right. Lots of blogs from people on the internet if you google it. You can bring food into Universal if you let the security guy know it is because you have an allergy/intolerance (whereas normally other than very snacky things like meusli bars they don't let you). Butterbeer in HP is full of dairy though GF so that's no good for you (and no Fortescue icecreams-noooooo-they were so good-but since my DD wasn't with us I wasn't looking for DF so maybe they have DF sorbets?). I know pots in jackets near the Knight Bus had GF filling options. Plenty of places in CityWalk also had GF marked next to them on menus.

Have an amazing trip.

 

[AussieTink]

Hello again!
Quick update, since I haven't updated in a little. So we leave TOMORROW! It has been organising and packing central here. It is very cold in NY but reasonable temps in Orlando, so we sort of have to pack for all seasons! Big coats, gloves and jeans, but also shorts and shirts. I'm a little worried I have packed way too much, but I'm taking a lot of snack foods over - so that will decrease once I eat them all.

Slight bit of drama yesterday when we went to pickup our final documents from Flight Centre. We had been in the week before to sit down and finalise everything - and confirmed everything for about the third time - it was all correct. Upon receiving the final documents it was realised they had actually only booked 3 nights at Universal and not 4! And we were put into a completely different off-site hotel away from the parks. A bit of chaos ensued before they found a room at our original hotel - the whole Universal property is literally booked out! On our second day, we just have to transfer to our original booked room. So a bit of inconvenience but I am glad we are at the same hotel the whole time now.

Other than that, just packing and making sure printed out all documentation, loading movies up onto ipad, re-checking park hours (December hours changed a lot!).

 

[PrincessInOz]

Hello again!
Quick update, since I haven't updated in a little. So we leave TOMORROW! It has been organising and packing central here. It is very cold in NY but reasonable temps in Orlando, so we sort of have to pack for all seasons! Big coats, gloves and jeans, but also shorts and shirts. I'm a little worried I have packed way too much, but I'm taking a lot of snack foods over - so that will decrease once I eat them all.

Slight bit of drama yesterday when we went to pickup our final documents from Flight Centre. We had been in the week before to sit down and finalise everything - and confirmed everything for about the third time - it was all correct. Upon receiving the final documents it was realised they had actually only booked 3 nights at Universal and not 4! And we were put into a completely different off-site hotel away from the parks. A bit of chaos ensued before they found a room at our original hotel - the whole Universal property is literally booked out! On our second day, we just have to transfer to our original booked room. So a bit of inconvenience but I am glad we are at the same hotel the whole time now.

Other than that, just packing and making sure printed out all documentation, loading movies up onto ipad, re-checking park hours (December hours changed a lot!).

Sorry for the last minute chaos!

But YAY for your trip starting tomorrow. Enjoy the delicious anticipation and have a great time.

 

[SafferMom]

Enjoy your trip

 

[AussieTink]

Evening all!
We have arrived at the city of bustle, honking and lights. Unpacking suitcase and getting ready for bed.

Our flight to LA was delayed for about an hour due to the in-flight entertainment system not working. They weren't able to fix it, but we had all loaded our technology up with movies, music and tv shows. Flight time was about 11.5 hours as they made up time for delay.

Customs we had delays with, very confusing and took us way too long to clear. Previous years we have never waited as long as we did today. We had a connecting flight to NY, and were literally racing through the airport. Luckily, the flight was the same Qantas plane from LA, so there were a lot of people running late! Thankfully they boarded late, and said they'd wait for everyone!

Because of the delay it was only 4.5 hours to NY. We had booked a car with Luxor Limo and our driver was waiting for us. Not very talkative but went the back way to avoid all the build up on highway (forgot how crazy NY drivers are!) Took us just under an hour to drive from JFK to our midtown manhattan hotel, so we were super happy with that.

Nice clean room, booked a 1 bedroom so we could all have separate beds, and me on the pullout sofa. Also have a full kitchen, and free wifi (YAY!!). We thought it had room service, but turns out you just ring nearby places and get it delivered to your room. Doesn't seem as freezing as we were thinking! However tomorrow is 90% chance of rain. We are planning to shop til we drop, so hope the rain stays away.

I will try to do an update each night, feel free to ask any questions!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Yay for arrival safely - we have had mixed experiences at LAX - one time a horrendous wait. Good to hear the accommodation is nice -I'm short listing this one for future ref. Hope the rain keeps away but if tomorrow is a shopping day I guess it matters less as you'll be indoors a lot. Have fun. Don't spend all your pocket money at once - lol!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Just realised you didn't specify where you are staying in midtown ??? (sounds like our kind of place)