YES! We are going again! Spring Break 2016 PTR! Complete: TR Link

[deedee2177]

Sorry! Totally fell behind on responding to everyone!! I've been so wrapped up in my November PTR that I have neglected this one.

Yay for making all the ADRs you wanted!! So exciting! Good choices!
I too am looking out for Skipper Canteen. I can't wait until it opens!

I'm curious to see the menu and decide if it's a place the group will want to check out.

Re: Crowds, Sorry girls, I hate to be a Debbie Downer, but I don't think it's just ADRs. Disney's resorts are pretty much full, too. For about a month now, anytime a client comes in looking for a Disney hotel in October or November, it's been next to impossible for me to find them any availability most of the time. And I heard that this September, the parks had record attendance for that time of year. I'm pretty nervous about my historically VERY quiet first part of December now, too.

Ugh! This is what I'm afraid of...maybe more people are just onsite because of the promotions but not as many people will be traveling down and staying offsite...maybe? Probably not but a girl can wish! Luckily since it will be just me and Keith on this trip we can be pretty flexible if we need to be.

Joining in a little late, and I admit I haven't been Dising much lately, but I'd like to tag along!

You are always more than welcome to tag along!!!

i agree

I think this time because of the Osbourn lights going away people are flocking there..

I am not happy about the crowd levels right now

Last time we went in November it was the week after Thanksgiving...the weekend was pretty crazy but still tolerable and as the week went on it got less and less crowded. We will see how it goes for this year with us going the week before Thanksgiving...I'm hoping it helps that we are leaving the Friday beforehand when I would imagine people will start coming in that will be there for Thanksgiving week.

I'm super interested to hear how the crowds are for you next week, Mo, since I know that the week before Thanksgiving (when you're going) and the 2 weeks after Thanksgiving (when I'm going) are historically a very quiet weeks crowd-wise. Please check-in when you can, or once you're home!

You will have 2 of us reporting back

Which is the whole reason i picked this week LOW CROWDS! who told people about it? LOL
We did the same week in 2011 it was WONDERFUL. now? im scared!!!

Just remind yourself we are pros!! We can handle this!

 

[deedee2177]

Shocking!!! There have been some major changes!!!!

I know this PTR has been severely neglected, but now that our November Trip is behind us I can begin focusing on the planning for this trip (side note: November Trip Report Link in my signature).

So many changes….where to begin???? Ok, Mom and Sister are back to only joining us for a few days instead of the entire trip. Two reasons for this, (1) Sister’s work schedule and (2) Mom doesn’t want to be away from Dad that long…his health is not like it used to be. I will take what I can get with them though and I’m happy they can join us for a few days!

Me, Keith and the kids will be leaving on the afternoon of 3/27/15 (Easter Sunday), probably hitting the road about noon so Emma (Step Daughter) can spend some time with her Mommy on Easter Sunday. We are renting an intermediate SUV (right now the price is $288, but I will keep checking back to see if that changes). Hoping to be down to Disney by 9pm or so, which we will head straight to bed.

Now onto where those beds will be located…another big change!!! We decided to stay onsite!!!!!!! We will be staying at…….



Keith and I just loved staying onsite and I know it is more money, but I love the convenience and I love the Disney Bubble. Not to mention I know the kids will get a kick out of it. The last time they stayed onsite was during our November 2012 Trip and we stayed at AoA.

Mom and Sister will be driving down on 3/28 and leaving 3/31, so a very short trip for them but still looking forward to the time together. They plan to stay offsite, but little do they know that Keith and I decided to pay for their 3 nights at Pop!!! After talking about it, it just makes better sense and better use of our time to all be at the same resort. Not to mention this gives them access to all the benefits of staying onsite.

I have created itineraries for each of them that show when they will be checking into Pop Century, and I plan on giving this to them on Christmas as part of their Christmas Presents. I know my Sister will be beyond excited, she hasn’t been to Disney in over 10 years and she has never stayed onsite. My Mom will just give me a hard time for spending too much money…oh well…too late!

So, with these changes of course that changed up some of our ADRs, but I think I will save those changes for the next update. Not to mention I’m trying to finalize just a few…imagine that.

I know this update was not very long but it contained a lot of the changes that have happened.

Thanks for sticking around. Well, I hope some of you have stuck around! ​

 

[DonnaBeeGood]

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[deedee2177]

Best Christmas present ever! Seriously, I'm glad you enjoyed staying on site that much, and it will simplify things for everyone for those days. Yay!

I can't wait to see my Sister's reaction when we tell her on Christmas Day! I agree with you 100% it will definitely simplify a lot of things and maximize the amount of time that we can spend together, especially since they will only be there for a couple of days.

 

[deedee2177]

So, with all the sickness that has been going on at my house and the Pre-Christmas madness I completely missed my double digit dance!!!!! We are at 96 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[DonnaBeeGood]

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[Elevationist]

WHAAAAAAAAAAT! I missed a double-digit dance party?! I gotta fix that!

 

[deedee2177]

OMG - double digit dancing! I might be getting close myself, I haven't even thought about it!

WHAAAAAAAAAAT! I missed a double-digit dance party?! I gotta fix that!

Thanks for dancing along!!!

 

[Chicago Mo]

Hi there!!! I WISH i could get my parents to Disney!!!! So happy your staying on site.. nothing beats it!

and single digit dance!!

 

[deedee2177]

Hi there!!! I WISH i could get my parents to Disney!!!! So happy your staying on site.. nothing beats it!

and single digit dance!!

Thanks for dancing along!!

 

[Chicago Mo]

Thanks for dancing along!!

Wouldn't miss it!!!

 

[deedee2177]

What? An Actual Update???

Ok, Gang I know I have been MIA for quite some time but life has been nutso. However, I want to get back to updating both this PTR and TR on a regular basis! So, my last update include me sharing with you guys that we would be surprising my Mom and Sister about them stay at Pop Century! The surprise went exactly as expected. My Sister was so excited and close to tears, she has never stayed onsite and is so excited to be doing so! My Mom of course told us that was too much money and we shouldn't have done that...I respectfully told her to hush and moved on!

Here here is how it is lining up for the resort so far:

Where: Pop Century!!

1 Preferred room for me, Keith and kids 3/28/16-4/2/16
1 Standard room for Mom and Sister 3/28/16-3/31/16
I tried to get Preferred Rooms for both of us, but only a Standard Room was available for Mom/Sister's dates. I will keep checking to see if one becomes available, but if not Mom/Sister are just fine with a Standard. They are just excited to be staying onsite!

Since my online Check-in is only 9 days away I started to think what requests I will be asking for. I think I'm going to request the 60's building with a lake view for our room. Figured the 60's building will be best since it's right in the middle that way we are equal distance from the other buildings and wouldn't be hard for Mom/Sister to come to us.

For my Mom/Sister's Room I'm going to request "near transportation" and a top floor.

#1 Change:

The original plan for us was to leave on 3/27 around noon (after Emma spent Easter morning with her Mommy) and drive straight through to Disney. Once Keith and I started talking about this a bit we decided it might just be best for us drive about half way on 3/27 and get a hotel and then drive straight to the Magic Kingdom on 3/28. I think this will work better for the kids so we are not getting to the resort late and it breaks up the trip a bit. I think once the kids are a bit older (well Joey) they will handle the drive better.

I was looking over our route and I'm thinking we are going to get a hotel in the Richmond Hill, GA area. This gets us a little past the 1/2 way point. We will grab a quick dinner and call it a night. The plan is to be on the road by 7am the next morning (maybe a bit earlier). I imagine our morning will consist of literally rolling the kids out of bed, changing them out of PJs and getting them in the car. They can have some breakfast while heading down the road.

We will grab a quick lunch before heading straight into the Magic Kingdom. I'm hoping to arrive by noon. We will only have a few hours because we will be heading out to meet up with Mom/Sister at 5:30 at Disney Springs for our ADR at Rainforest Cafe! I will make some Fast Passes for that time so we can make it on some of the rides, but I will share the details of those in a later update.

#2 ADR Changes (shocking, I know):

Speaking of ADRs I made a few changes. I will pause here while you all pick up your jaws!

3/28/16: 5:30 Dinner ADR at Rainforest Cafe at Disney Springs!! I think my Sister is the most excited about this. She hasn't eaten at one of these since she was little.

Because of us not coming in until the afternoon of 3/28 we decided to cancel our BOG Lunch ADR because we didn't want to risk missing it if we got caught in traffic.

3/29/16: 2:25 Lunch ADR at 50's Prime Time!!

I'm excited about this one! I've never eaten there before and have always wanted to try it but Keith usually wins out and we end up at Sci-Fi

3/30/16: 11:25 Lunch ADR at The Plaza

This is another one I've wanted to try, but it never worked out for some reason.

The 3 above ADRs are for all 6 of us. The remaining ADRs are for me, Keith and the kids.

3/31/16: 12:25 Lunch ADR at Sci-Fi
3/31/16: 5:30 Dinner ADR at San Angel

Keith always squeezes Sci-Fi in somewhere. LOL. Actually we will probably end up cancelling one of these. I asked Keith which one he wants to keep and he is really torn. So, we will just have to see who the final winner is at the end!

4/1/16: 10:40 Lunch ADR at BOG

I'm not too crazy about this time, but it was the only available time and so far I haven't come across a good alternative. I have read a couple of places that people recommend ordering ahead of time or you could end up being in line for quite a bit. Anyone have any experience with this? I'm thinking since our lunch reservation is so early we might not run into that problem...but who knows. I just don't think we are going to know what we want that far in advance. I wonder how long you have to order in advance? Can you do it through the night before? HMMM..all thinks I need to figure out.

Well, there you have it an actual update. I'm currently working on finalizing my Fast Pass selections and will provide an update on those soon (hopefully). I have to get them in order considering I will be selecting them next Wednesday night!!

Thanks for following along!!




​

 

[DonnaBeeGood]

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[Chicago Mo]

Hey there! Good idea to stop for the night! you can get a better boost for the day!!!
I love all your Adr's LOVE LOVE!!!

Nice to see you again!

 

[Elevationist]

My Sister was so excited and close to tears, she has never stayed onsite and is so excited to be doing so!

Awww, that is SO SWEET!!

My Mom of course told us that was too much money and we shouldn't have done that...I respectfully told her to hush and moved on!

Moms, right? Typical.

I was looking over our route and I'm thinking we are going to get a hotel in the Richmond Hill, GA area. This gets us a little past the 1/2 way point.

Let me know if you'd like any help!

Well, there you have it an actual update. I'm currently working on finalizing my Fast Pass selections and will provide an update on those soon (hopefully). I have to get them in order considering I will be selecting them next Wednesday night!!

Welllll? How did it go???

I have read a couple of places that people recommend ordering ahead of time or you could end up being in line for quite a bit. Anyone have any experience with this?

Yep! I did this in April, and MAN am I ever glad that I did! It was so nice to walk right past the very very long line of people waiting for the ordering kiosks. I was shown directly to a register that is set aside for pre-orders, paid for my lunch, and went straight to a table. Once you are within 30 days of your ADR, the option to pre-order will pop up on MDE. Here's a little FAQ about it: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/faq/dining-reservations/advance-order-dining/

 

[deedee2177]

I'm not sure why, but I'm starving right now, so these look fantastic!

Funny...I was hungry too after that update.

I'm excited to try this one too - I've never eaten there before.

We have eaten at the RF Cafe at Animal Kingdom a couple of times and have enjoyed it over all (the last time the service wasn't up to the usual standards, but food was still yummy). My Sister has eaten at one outside of Disney, but she was really young so this was the only place she asked to eat at during the trip so I made sure it got on the ADR list.

And this one is looking very tempting too. I'm going to see how my appetite is doing as see what's available last minute...

I've had this on my list before but it always seems to get dropped. I'm hoping that is not the case this time, because I've been wanting to try it out.

Yummy - I am looking forward to a milkshake and other yumminess!

This is always on our list every trip...one of Keith's favorites.

I know I pre-ordered last time, but cannot remember how. Must be bed time; maybe it will come to me as I dream of Princesses...

I think I'm definitely leaning toward pre-ordering especially since we are going during a really busy time (Spring Break).

Hey there! Good idea to stop for the night! you can get a better boost for the day!!!
I love all your Adr's LOVE LOVE!!!

Nice to see you again!

We stopped halfway during our last trip and it really helps...we can get up the next morning and head straight to the Parks and feel a bit more rested.

 

[deedee2177]

Awww, that is SO SWEET!!

My Sister has definitely had a tough few years, but has really turned her life around so I'm so happy Keith and I are able to do this for her!

Moms, right? Typical.

I knew she would react that way, but I told her it was too late and it was already done. However, she is now soooo excited. I just wished we had been able to get them a Preferred Room as well, but there were only Standard Rooms available for them for their dates. Mom doesn't care she is just glad we will all be at the same resort.

Let me know if you'd like any help!

I would love for you to work your magic again...I will send you an email.

Welllll? How did it go???

I make my selections this Wednesday night...I finally have my choices lined up. I will share in my next update.

Yep! I did this in April, and MAN am I ever glad that I did! It was so nice to walk right past the very very long line of people waiting for the ordering kiosks. I was shown directly to a register that is set aside for pre-orders, paid for my lunch, and went straight to a table. Once you are within 30 days of your ADR, the option to pre-order will pop up on MDE. Here's a little FAQ about it: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/faq/dining-reservations/advance-order-dining/

Thanks for the link!! I definitely think I will be ordering ahead of time. I don't think Keith will be eating anything since he is Mr Picky, but I'm pretty sure I know what the kids and I will want. I just know I want to avoid any lines (especially Spring Break lines)!

 

[deedee2177]

Fast Pass Selection Update!

I can't believe it's this time already!! I will be making my Fast Pass selections this Wednesday Night and doing my online check in on Thursday morning!! Ok, I have a very unique situation when it comes to our tickets. I will only be making selections for me and Keith at this time and here is why:

Keith and I can make them because we have our AP's. Though I am a bit worried about the options showing up 60 days in advance. So far when I go out there it only shows 30 days in advance. However, when I called and spoke with a Disney CM she assured me the 60 days would pop up at the 60 day mark since I do have a resort reservation.

We did a room only reservation so we have to buy the kids' tickets separately and I'm waiting on my bonus from work to buy theirs. Unfortunately this won't be until closer to the trip, but I'm trying not to stress about it too much.

Mom and Sister will be buying their tickets mid-next month, so I need to wait on making their selections as well.

So, not ideal at all, but it's ok because after all is said and done the main thing is we will all be a Disney World and by kiddos will have a blast regardless. And that is what this trip is all about....the kids!!

Here is what what I'm hoping to line up and by some miracle get my the rest of the game with their times come around:

3/28/16 Afternoon: Magic Kingdom
Thunder Mountain
Splash
Mine Train

*Only Keith, the kids and I will be at Magic Kingdom on this day as Mom/Sister come in this evening.

3/29/16 Afternoon: Hollywood Studios
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Frozen Sing-Along

*All six of us will be together at this time. The plan is to go to AK in the morning on this day, but I won't be making any FP selections for there...saving them for the afternoon at HS.

3/30/16 All Day: Magic Kingdom
Splash
Peter Pan
Mine Train

*All six of us will be together on this day and the plan is to spend the entire day at MK.

3/31/16 Morning: Hollywood Studios
Star Tours
Toy Story
Tower of Terror

*It will be back to just Keith, the kids and I at this point as Mom/Sister will be heading home on this day. The plan is to head to Epcot for the afternoon on this day, so I will attempt to make some FP selections at the kiosk once we get there....most likely Test Track if possible.

4/1/16 All Day: Magic Kingdom
Mine Train
Thunder Mountain
Wishes

Well, there you have it...Fast Pass selections that I will be making later this week. I'm not too optimistic about being able to copy them all over for everyone else, but I know it will all work out in the end.

Now onto the Online Check-in Selections:

Keith, kids and my room: I'm not 100% positive yet...I know I want a lake view and think I will request the 60's building. However, I also would like to request the a top floor...hmmm will need to make up my mind by Thursday morning (60's building or top floor).

Mom/Sister's Room: Close to transportation and top floor.

Well, there you have it....my "Almost to 60 day update"! I still can't believe we are at this point already!! Thanks for following along!​

 

[Elevationist]

I can't wait to hear how it all works out for you! (And I got your email, I'll send you something by the end of today! I'm on break at the moment!)

 

[Chicago Mo]

Oh oh! your doing the frozen sing along!!! LOVE THAT!
and wishes! make sure you get there EARLY! that was a big mistake on our part..