What I learned today!

[jamieguffey]

This isn't really a tip but it is going to be fun.

Signed up on twitter today and will be tweeting from the world!

Follow me twitter.com/jamieguffey

Of course for the next week you will get my life stuff but a week from today you will read my trip report as it happens.

Okay so it is kind of a tip what a cool way for the family to "watch" you!

 

[kate1283]

Since that was so easy I decided to go ahead and look at our airline reservations. We are flying with Airtran. The one thing I didn't have was the confirmation number for the airline. I don't know if I got it at some point and lost it but I didn't have it. I called Disney Travel Company and after a short wait they gave it to me.

What number did you call at Disney to get the airline confirmation number? I'm flying with Airtran too and I don't have a confirmation number anywhere!

 

[jamieguffey]

What number did you call at Disney to get the airline confirmation number? I'm flying with Airtran too and I don't have a confirmation number anywhere!

407-939-7675

It took a few minutes because they had to call someone else to get it but they took care of it. If you think about it ask them if this info was ever given to us? This is kind of an important number to have.

 

[jamieguffey]

I just played around with twitter and now I am all set up with and email address to send my pics to twit pic. So Now I can tweet photos and everything. I am using my blackberry so the grandparents will be able to keep up with us as it happens how cool!

 

[jamieguffey]

Work is going to DRAG terribly this week! For today's tip I figured I would put together an index for all of the other (better) tips in the thread. Who can read 400+ replies.

CarolAnnB says you can call reservations to request a location at the resort.

Dremwvr says that Frogg Toggs - Driducks are worth the money!

chell says DO NOT FORGET MOLESKIN!

chell sends us to allears for the packing checklist.

Sandy321 says make sure you have a towel or washcloth for wet seats.

Kathy Z says a washcloth is good but a swimmers towel (Shamwow) is better.

sohappy says to pack a ziplock for your swimmers towel.

Minnie1156 says to make sure you send your packages back to the resort instead of carrying them around

1stWDW Describes the view of the firewroks from Fantasyland

DisneyLiz44 explains how a fastpass can help with the little ones ride anxiety

bjakmom says to have your kids practice being measured if you are worried about them meeting the height requirements.

DianaLeslie suggests HL30 from Herpecian L as a very good lip sunscreen

mom2rtk gives you some tips on leaving the parks at the end of the night.

MHSweb79 Suggests using a cab at the end of the night to avoid the buses altogether.

mrstomrice Says that you don't need to stress about water at the parks because any of the counter serves will give you water for free.

Alesia suggests silicone bracelets for your kids with your cell number on them. (I Bought Mine)

There are a lot of different tips for helping recover your kids if lost.

Sandy321 Says to find a spot that will be "your spot" to take pictures every year if you plan on making a habit out of a Disney Vacation.

mrstomrice suggests a couple of good spots for doing Sandys spot pics

nateryan Says there are some good Iphone apps for Menus, etc.


Alesia gives the best description of the Electric Water Pageant Ever. (One of my favorite posts.

DISDANCEMOM Says to be on the lookout for the character breakfasts buses for the breakfasts before the park opens.

Alesia Says to pack the glow stuff in your checked luggage (I am guessing to avoid security drama)

MHSweb79 reminds you to make sure you rememeber to make sure everything in your carryon meets airport security standards (can't say this one enough!

mrstomrice suggests putting all of your ADRS into your cell phone calendar

HerdOHuds Says any guest services counter can reactivate your KTTW card if it gets demagnitized

MidgeD79 Says that the over the door organizers don't always fit and mrstomrice confirms.

Alesia Says there is NO GOOD reason for not doing ME

Disney again says that telling your kids to take a deep breath will help them stand tall for height checks.

chell Says to make sure you also take a picture of the back of the park tickets as well


These are just a few of the ones I picked out. Hopefully there will be TONS more over the next 7 days!

 

[kate1283]

407-939-7675

It took a few minutes because they had to call someone else to get it but they took care of it. If you think about it ask them if this info was ever given to us? This is kind of an important number to have.

The CM I talked to didn't give me the number. She said they don't give them out because the airlines use e-tickets, so we don't need a confirmation number, just our IDs.

 

[heathere3]

The CM I talked to didn't give me the number. She said they don't give them out because the airlines use e-tickets, so we don't need a confirmation number, just our IDs.

Umm, how are you supposed to call the airline and confirm your flight 24 hours before then? I'm really confused. And I *know* they still recommend checking the 24 hrs before.

 

[kmartin555]

I can't believe your trip is so close! Have a wonderful time! I am following you on twitter now, be sure to keep up the tweets!

 

[kmartin555]

One thing that you have to take into consideration though is the time of day. If you are travelling before or after BB park hours then this will not work as the buses only run during park hours (plus 1hr b/f and 1hr after).

Also, if you are going to an early morning character breakfast there are special buses for that (at least during peak season). You get on the bus marked Character Breakfast and tell the driver which breakfast you are going to and they will usually take you right there (with possible stops for other guests along the way)

I have a ressie for Akershus at 8, park opens at 9. In Sept, will the buses run that early?

 

[Alesia]

One thing that you have to take into consideration though is the time of day. If you are travelling before or after BB park hours then this will not work as the buses only run during park hours (plus 1hr b/f and 1hr after).

Also, if you are going to an early morning character breakfast there are special buses for that (at least during peak season). You get on the bus marked Character Breakfast and tell the driver which breakfast you are going to and they will usually take you right there (with possible stops for other guests along the way)

That isn't entirely true. Buses to the MK start about 6:30 every day. Buses to the other parks start about 7:00 every day. They are just the normal buses. Sometimes you can get them to drop you by a resort, but not always. It never hurts to ask, but don't be surprised if you can't.

 

[Alesia]

I have a ressie for Akershus at 8, park opens at 9. In Sept, will the buses run that early?

No problem, be at the bus stop at 7:00

 

[Piglets Mommy]

The CM I talked to didn't give me the number. She said they don't give them out because the airlines use e-tickets, so we don't need a confirmation number, just our IDs.

Umm, how are you supposed to call the airline and confirm your flight 24 hours before then? I'm really confused. And I *know* they still recommend checking the 24 hrs before.

I'd call again, and try to get a different CM. You will need your confirmation # to print your boarding pass 24 hrs. before you fly. Unless Disney is doing that for you, and send ing it with your ME packet, but that doesn't make sense, as they are 2 completely different entities, and you'd have your ME tags well before your 24 hour mark. I'd hate to see you stranded at the airport b/c you were given the wrong info from a CM.

 

[marciemi]

Just chiming in here on the Air Tran thing. I went through the whole thing a couple months ago. Realized I didn't have a confirmation code, called Disney, they gave me one and I called Air Tran just to confirm that it was right (before putting it in my plans) and they told me that code was Disney's code, not mine for my flight (since I couldn't get it to work online to view my reservation). The Air Tran agent then gave me the correct code.

A couple weeks later I decided to go ahead and book seats (and pay for them). Used my new code to pull up my reservation, went through the whole process, and got rejected. Told I must call Air Tran to make my seat res. I called them and this time got a very snippy agent who told me that I couldn't purchase seats, I couldn't have my confirmation number (and whatever agent had given it to me was wrong) and that I couldn't check in at the 24 hour mark - I had to check in AT the airport. Period. And that Disney couldn't help me as it all had to be done through Air Tran's site directly (and my CC wouldn't work because it wasn't the one on the reservations - Disney's was).

So I called Disney anyways and they were very friendly, and very helpful and managed to book seats for me with NO charge and confirm my correct number so now I can check in at the 24 hour mark. I would definitely call Disney and ask for their Transportation department (I got transferred a couple times). I would also try Air Tran in the meantime and ask them since they can access it too (although apparently they're not "supposed to"). But I agree that you do need to have it and think this is a flaw in their system. It's just me and DS16 traveling so if we weren't sitting together, it wouldn't be the end of the world. I actually wanted to book to be nearer the front of the plane since we're trying to make an ADR that evening. But if I had young kids and they told me I couldn't checkin until at the airport?? Makes no sense!

Good luck!

 

[jettyspagetti]

I love reading all your tips!! I've been to disney so many times, but only once since marrying and starting a family. Being the type A person that I am I researched so much before the trip and I think that helped us maximize the fun time and minimize unexpected snags. I'm getting ready for our second family trip next month and love all the tips you've had, some I knew, some I didn't. Since you seem to have a similar planning style as mine, my tip for you is to take notes in your binder of what worked, what didn't and things you wish you knew. I saved out planning binder from last time and i'm so glad I took notes instead of relyingn memory. Knowing where the play areas are and how much we spent on which things- yes I am anal retentive enough to save and catagorize receipts from last time
Also if you have children that will be sharing beds and they are not used to it-practice before you leave home. My children have pretty strict betime routines and we followed them as close as possible on our vacations but we neglected the bed sharing. We prep now by having family sleepovers and mix up sleeping arrangements on a few nights starting a couple weeks before an uncoming trip. It helps get everyone used to the change!!

Have a great trip!

 

[jamieguffey]

Less than a week I can't believe it. After months of planning, now the real worrying starts what am I forgetting. My wife wants to make sure we have everything we need. The kids still don't know anything although the endless brainwashing of one disney movie after another is starting to wear on them I think. Aladdin, Hercules, Cars, Dalmatians, Tinkerbell, Toy Story, Monsters Inc, over and over and over. I took them to the site I posted about the character greetings and have grilled them over and over about which character is which.

Well the good news is I have my handy dandy binder. The one I put together 2 months ago when I was clear headed. We are pulling it out tonight and going through the checklist. We are pretty solid I think but the checklist will confirm any weaknesses.

So the tip for day 6.

Plan your trip months in advance. I know it's not anything new but the closer we get the more glad I am that I put that binder together way back when. Back when I was fresh, back when my head was not clouded with what ifs and worries of Hurricanes (I now officially despise the name BILL, even though he is likely going to head north still it is a worry I don't need).

Do not go without a planning binder! I carried that thing with me everywhere I went for about 2 solid months. I packed it and unpacked it made maps and replaced them when they wore out. But as things approached we got busier and busier and I had to leave it behind. Now as the home stretch approaches I pulled it out and everything was there. We are ready to go! (I think)

Everyone has there own way of organizing. For me it was a 2 inch binder with 8 pocket type dividers one for each day. As I found new stuff I printed it and threw it in the dividers. Every so often I would sit down with my collection and organize it. Punch Holes and make it part of the official Griswold(Sorry Guffey) family vacation planner.

(As usual this is where I hope the vets take over and really tell us how to organize the binder!)

 

[jamieguffey]

I know this has probably been posted ad naseum but it is definitely important to know!

I just saw on allears.net that you will soon be able to make your ADR's 180 days out. It is effective October 27th so if you are planning a trip next April start getting prepared to make your ADR's.

I am not sure why this was ever stopped but it sure does spread things out and set you Disneyaholics up nicely. After going through the death crush at day 90 and not even being able to get Ohana anyway I hope I get to take advantage of the 180 day thing!

 

[lexmelinda]

After going through the death crush at day 90 and not even being able to get Ohana anyway I hope I get to take advantage of the 180 day thing!

Ohana has expanded hours if you're still interested.

I figured Disney went to a 90 day window on behalf of the sad non-planning masses who never call til last minute and are always wondering who those freaks are that would think to call 180 days in advance (at 7:00am) at take all the ADRs at Le Cellier.

I guess the 90 day window didn't work any better for them.

 

[mom2rtk]

Ohana has expanded hours if you're still interested.

I figured Disney went to a 90 day window on behalf of the sad non-planning masses who never call til last minute and are always wondering who those freaks are that would think to call 180 days in advance (at 7:00am) at take all the ADRs at Le Cellier.

I guess the 90 day window didn't work any better for them.

No, I think those non planners were still surprised to find no openings a week out.... They thought this would solve it!!!

 

[joy13]

I think the 90 window was while they were getting they new ADR system set up - which culminated with being able to make online ADR's. Now that they system is up and running, I'm assuming they can now go back to 180 days.

 

[jamieguffey]

Is this news to anyone else?

Apparently, there is a little test going on at Animal Kingdom to trial a centralized Fastpass System? Read the article i have linked below. It only shows pictures of a couple of FP Stands for just 3 attractions but the article mentions 6 stands?

http://www.disunplugged.com/2009/07/27/disney-testing-centralized-fastpass-at-animal-kingdom/

Is there anyone out there that just got back who could confirm if this "test" is still going on?

This seems like an nice convenience, that is unless it just brings everyone to one central spot and the line for the fastpass is longer than the line for the ride? The commenter's at the bottom of the article do bring up some good points. Sometimes you go to get a FP and see that the standby wait is manageable so you forego the fastpass. They also mention that from the pictures it does not show the return time of the FP which in my opinion is a non factor as long as they don't start holding you to the end time?

One thing is for sure It certainly will save me a lot of running, seeing as how I will almost positively be the FP Runner.

Now if I can only talk them into getting me a Toy Story mania FP while we are at Hollywood and Vine having our character breakfast....