10 days of Disney Magic and Dining..let the countdown begin!

[idoeyes1]

I have been reading the Disboards for almost 7 straight months since I booked our trip back in Dec 2010. After reading countless trip reports, it's time to write my own PTR!

I am 33, an eye doctor, and a planning fanatic. Not just for Disney trips but in general. But Disney has so much to plan for and details to get right, its a planners dream! My husband (40) had never been ontime to anything until he met me. Our first trip to Disney together (my 4th trip and his 1st) was in March 2006. We had only been dating a short time and were still on "good behavior" with each other....that is until day 4 of our trip hit! We had been going non-stop for 4 days and were both very cranky, tired and I had enough of his slow pace and he had enough of my go-go-go pace. We had our first major fight right in front of Cinderella's castle while waiting for the fireworks to start!

Needless to say, we weathered our first fight and have been married for 4 1/2 years. My DH is now ontime to most things and I have learned to chill a little. Although I secretly think he likes that I have everything planned and taken care of for our vacations and he gets to enjoy the benifits! It's been 5 years since our last trip and we are both excited to go back. DH's nephew is currently in the college program and working as a pastry chef at the Contempoary Resort. So this gave me the perfect opportunity to plan another trip to Disney...to see his nephew of course! We are going to WDW from Sept 9th - 18th 2011. Can't wait!!!!

 

[ZFamily5]

popcorn: I'm in! I can't wait to hear all about your trip plans!

 

[idoeyes1]

So before we made any solid plans, we looked back at our first trip that was 5 days long and included the DXDDP and decided to learn from our mistakes.

1. You can not see Disney in 5 days. Well, you can but then fights happen

2. You MUST plan some relaxation time into your trip, it is a vacation after all not a marathon

3. We need to lose 10 pounds before we go. We love to eat and although a lot of our meals are a 2TS credit restaurants we will be eating a lot and want to be able to gain the 10 pounds back guilt free and with our clothes still fitting when we get home.

4. The right pair(s) of shoes are SO important. I have plantar facisitis and I could barely walk in the mornings when getting out of bed.

5. Compromise is just as important on vacation as in marriage. It makes for a happier vacation for everyone!

So with this in mind, we started planning our 10 day Disney Extravaganza!

 

[ZFamily5]

So before we made any solid plans, we looked back at our first trip that was 5 days long and included the DXDDP and decided to learn from our mistakes.

1. You can not see Disney in 5 days. Well, you can but then fights happen

2. You MUST plan some relaxation time into your trip, it is a vacation after all not a marathon

3. We need to lose 10 pounds before we go. We love to eat and although a lot of our meals are a 2TS credit restaurants we will be eating a lot and want to be able to gain the 10 pounds back guilt free and with our clothes still fitting when we get home.

4. The right pair(s) of shoes are SO important. I have plantar facisitis and I could barely walk in the mornings when getting out of bed.

5. Compromise is just as important on vacation as in marriage. It makes for a happier vacation for everyone!

So with this in mind, we started planning our 10 day Disney Extravaganza!

How did you enjoy the DXDDP?

 

[idoeyes1]

We LOVED the DxDDP. My husband and I like to eat out and enjoy food. We really liked being able to eat anywhere and not really have to worry about the cost since it was already paid for. When we were there in 2006 tips were still included in the plan, sadly that is no longer. So we have to plan for the tips but it saved us about $400 in 2006 as opposed to paying OP

 

[ZFamily5]

We LOVED the DxDDP. My husband and I like to eat out and enjoy food. We really liked being able to eat anywhere and not really have to worry about the cost since it was already paid for. When we were there in 2006 tips were still included in the plan, sadly that is no longer. So we have to plan for the tips but it saved us about $400 in 2006 as opposed to paying OP

Would you recommend it for our family? I'm 14 and my sisters are 11 and 6. We are all adventurous eaters, but would it be to much for us?

 

[idoeyes1]

If you like to spend time at sit down restaurants, then yes. If your family is more eat on the run I would say no. We did two sit down meals a day and the third one we did a quick serve or snack depending on how many credits we used that day. If you know where you are going to eat, check out the menus on allears.net and figure out how much you might spend on the meal and compare to what you spend for the DxDDP. We are going in Sept and the QS plan was free, so it was only $80 a day to upgrade to the delux and we will cover that in one meal!

 

[idoeyes1]

Once we figured out when we were going (Sept 9th-18th), the next big decision was where to stay. There was never a question of on or off property, the answer is always ON!!! I love not having to drive on vacation. Last time we stayed at the POR and we both really enjoyed it. The highlight was the french toast in the morning at Boatwrights. It was like a donut with syrup! We hardly spent any time in the room and used the pool for 5 minutes one night so I really debated back and forth about staying at a Mod resort vs value. But, this time we are building in two relaxation days and it will be much hotter and we will be using the pool more.

After pricing out about 15 different options with hotel, tickets, and DxDDP we decided it wasn't worth an extra $600 to stay at the moderates. That was money we could spend on a tour, trinkets, or something other than sleeping! Since it just the two of us, space really isn't a problem even in a tiny room. We knew we were going to be eating at some of the deluxe resorts and could see them while there for dinner.

Sooooo, we finally decided on POP CENTURY! I love the theme, there are three different pools to swim at and most of the reviews are positive. I can't wait to take pictures of all those great giant icons!

And let me just apologize now for spelling errors in my posts, its not one of my strenghts especially when I trying to type between patients

 

[ZFamily5]

If you like to spend time at sit down restaurants, then yes. If your family is more eat on the run I would say no. We did two sit down meals a day and the third one we did a quick serve or snack depending on how many credits we used that day. If you know where you are going to eat, check out the menus on allears.net and figure out how much you might spend on the meal and compare to what you spend for the DxDDP. We are going in Sept and the QS plan was free, so it was only $80 a day to upgrade to the delux and we will cover that in one meal!

I'm thinking I'll price out the deluxe plan, but we'll probably just stick with the regular dining plan.

Once we figured out when we were going (Sept 9th-18th), the next big decision was where to stay. There was never a question of on or off property, the answer is always ON!!! I love not having to drive on vacation. Last time we stayed at the POR and we both really enjoyed it. The highlight was the french toast in the morning at Boatwrights. It was like a donut with syrup! We hardly spent any time in the room and used the pool for 5 minutes one night so I really debated back and forth about staying at a Mod resort vs value. But, this time we are building in two relaxation days and it will be much hotter and we will be using the pool more.

After pricing out about 15 different options with hotel, tickets, and DxDDP we decided it wasn't worth an extra $600 to stay at the moderates. That was money we could spend on a tour, trinkets, or something other than sleeping! Since it just the two of us, space really isn't a problem even in a tiny room. We knew we were going to be eating at some of the deluxe resorts and could see them while there for dinner.

Sooooo, we finally decided on POP CENTURY! I love the theme, there are three different pools to swim at and most of the reviews are positive. I can't wait to take pictures of all those great giant icons!

And let me just apologize now for spelling errors in my posts, its not one of my strenghts especially when I trying to type between patients

Yay for Pop Century! I've never stayed there, but based on what I've heard, it's great!

 

[idoeyes1]

We have the when, the where and now for the best part for a compulsive planner...DETAILS! After reading so many posts on having the right plan before you go I joined touringplans, looked as easywdw, downloded some books on my kindle and started the narrowing down of where to go on which day. Even though we are staying at the resorts, it seems that we are supposed to avoid the EMH parks at all costs. I obsessed over all the details and finally came up with a plan. Because before you can plan all your ADR you need to know where you are going to be on each day. Here is my plan:

Arrival Day: Rather than pay for an extra night at the kennel for my two doggies (so we have more money to spend there!) we are dropping them off when the kennel opens and 7:30am on Friday and then heading to PHL for our 10:00 flight. My DH is not a really great morning person so I figured on the first day of vacation no need to get up at 5am! We are hoping to be at our resort by 2:30 or 3pm and enjoy some time at the pool. No park on the first day. Then off to Wlderness Lodge for a romantic dinner at Artist Point at 7pm. Last year we raced from the airport, to the hotel and right to the park. While it works for some, I wanted to get a good nights sleep before we start the real running on Day 2.

Day 2 : Animal Kingdom. We are starting with a 8:10am breakfast at Tusker House. I thought it would be fun to start our first full day with some characters and hopefully be ready for RD when breakfast is over. We will spend the day there until 5pm and head over to the Poly for a 6:40 dinner at O'hanna. Then we will head over to which ever park is open late to get back to POP.

Day 3: First of 2 days in Epcot. Hoping to get to the park for RD and spend most of the day in Future World. We have lunch planned at the Coral Reef and dinner at Le Cellier. Last visit we really only had time for the "rides" at Epcot and I would like to enjoy all of the Disney details we missed on the last trip. And then we will end our day with Illuminations!

Day 4: Rest day. Sleep in. Swim. Possibly go to DTD if we feel like it. Explore the resort more. Get dressed up and head to GF for dinner at 6:30 at Citricos.

Day 5: Get up early for 8:20 breakfast at Crystal Palace and be ready for RD at MK. I plan to get some of the big rides done in the morning and be back at our room by 1pm for a nap. Why you ask? Because we are going back for MNSSHP!!!!! I have to say I am really excited for this!!! I want to enjoy it all and make it til midnight so I will need a snooze mid day. We then have ADR at CRT at 4:20 and will done in plenty of time to get in line for pics with the seven dwarfs! I also obsessed over costumes for DH and myself and finally realized we are doing it big and going as Mickey and Minnie! Found a great costume for DH online but couldn't find one for me that wasn't a mini (no pun intended) skirt. So finally on etsy I found a really great dress that could be custom made to you size and whatever length you want. Can't wait to get it!

Day 6: First day at DHS. Since we will be up late I wanted to be able to sleep in a little and so we are taking two days for the studios. Another event I'm really excited about is our 11:30 Dine with an Imagineer at the Brown Derby. Thought it would be a great experiance and it is included with our dining plan! Now that Fantasmic is playing ever night I think we will try to see it this night since we are getting to the park later in the morning anyway.

Day 7: Our second rest/sleep in day. I really want to do the Wild Africa Trek but don't seem to have the extra $378 in the budget. I am hoping our favorite nephew can get us a discount on tours. If so, it would be half price and we will do that mid morning. Then another romantic dinner planned at the California Grill at 8pm. Sadly there are no MK fireworks that night but it will still be great!

Day 8: Back to DHS to finish what we didn't get to do on day one. Lunch planned at Sci-Fi diner and dinner at 50's Prime time. . If we didn't go to DTD on one of our two days off we will probably head there after dinner.

Day 9: Day 2 of Epcot. This time we will focus more on the countries. Have lunch at Marrakesh and dinner at Biegarden and will probably watch Illuminations one more time from a different spot.

Day 10: Cry because we have to go home. Will probably sleep in a little, go to the pool and then pack to leave for the airport. And I guess on the plane ride home I will have to start planning my next vacation because 5 years between visits is TOO LONG!!!!

If you have any suggestions for our plans there is still time to change things around excpet for MNSSHP. 58 days to go!

 

[ZFamily5]

We have the when, the where and now for the best part for a compulsive planner...DETAILS! After reading so many posts on having the right plan before you go I joined touringplans, looked as easywdw, downloded some books on my kindle and started the narrowing down of where to go on which day. Even though we are staying at the resorts, it seems that we are supposed to avoid the EMH parks at all costs. I obsessed over all the details and finally came up with a plan. Because before you can plan all your ADR you need to know where you are going to be on each day. Here is my plan:

Arrival Day: Rather than pay for an extra night at the kennel for my two doggies (so we have more money to spend there!) we are dropping them off when the kennel opens and 7:30am on Friday and then heading to PHL for our 10:00 flight. My DH is not a really great morning person so I figured on the first day of vacation no need to get up at 5am! We are hoping to be at our resort by 2:30 or 3pm and enjoy some time at the pool. No park on the first day. Then off to Wlderness Lodge for a romantic dinner at Artist Point at 7pm. Last year we raced from the airport, to the hotel and right to the park. While it works for some, I wanted to get a good nights sleep before we start the real running on Day 2.

Day 2 : Animal Kingdom. We are starting with a 8:10am breakfast at Tusker House. I thought it would be fun to start our first full day with some characters and hopefully be ready for RD when breakfast is over. We will spend the day there until 5pm and head over to the Poly for a 6:40 dinner at O'hanna. Then we will head over to which ever park is open late to get back to POP.

Day 3: First of 2 days in Epcot. Hoping to get to the park for RD and spend most of the day in Future World. We have lunch planned at the Coral Reef and dinner at Le Cellier. Last visit we really only had time for the "rides" at Epcot and I would like to enjoy all of the Disney details we missed on the last trip. And then we will end our day with Illuminations!

Day 4: Rest day. Sleep in. Swim. Possibly go to DTD if we feel like it. Explore the resort more. Get dressed up and head to GF for dinner at 6:30 at Citricos.

Day 5: Get up early for 8:20 breakfast at Crystal Palace and be ready for RD at MK. I plan to get some of the big rides done in the morning and be back at our room by 1pm for a nap. Why you ask? Because we are going back for MNSSHP!!!!! I have to say I am really excited for this!!! I want to enjoy it all and make it til midnight so I will need a snooze mid day. We then have ADR at CRT at 4:20 and will done in plenty of time to get in line for pics with the seven dwarfs! I also obsessed over costumes for DH and myself and finally realized we are doing it big and going as Mickey and Minnie! Found a great costume for DH online but couldn't find one for me that wasn't a mini (no pun intended) skirt. So finally on etsy I found a really great dress that could be custom made to you size and whatever length you want. Can't wait to get it!

Day 6: First day at DHS. Since we will be up late I wanted to be able to sleep in a little and so we are taking two days for the studios. Another event I'm really excited about is our 11:30 Dine with an Imagineer at the Brown Derby. Thought it would be a great experiance and it is included with our dining plan! Now that Fantasmic is playing ever night I think we will try to see it this night since we are getting to the park later in the morning anyway.

Day 7: Our second rest/sleep in day. I really want to do the Wild Africa Trek but don't seem to have the extra $378 in the budget. I am hoping our favorite nephew can get us a discount on tours. If so, it would be half price and we will do that mid morning. Then another romantic dinner planned at the California Grill at 8pm. Sadly there are no MK fireworks that night but it will still be great!

Day 8: Back to DHS to finish what we didn't get to do on day one. Lunch planned at Sci-Fi diner and dinner at 50's Prime time. . If we didn't go to DTD on one of our two days off we will probably head there after dinner.

Day 9: Day 2 of Epcot. This time we will focus more on the countries. Have lunch at Marrakesh and dinner at Biegarden and will probably watch Illuminations one more time from a different spot.

Day 10: Cry because we have to go home. Will probably sleep in a little, go to the pool and then pack to leave for the airport. And I guess on the plane ride home I will have to start planning my next vacation because 5 years between visits is TOO LONG!!!!

If you have any suggestions for our plans there is still time to change things around excpet for MNSSHP. 58 days to go!

All your ADRs sound great to me! The only thing I suggest (and you probably already know this) is to make sure you don't schedule your lunch and dinner ADRs too close together, or you won't be hungry again! I'm excited to hear what you think of Tusker House. The last time we went I was 5, and I want to try it again on our next trip, but I haven't seen many reviews. Also, on the morning of your Crystal Palace ADR, make sure you take LOTS of empty Magic Kingdom pictures! There a some on my TR if you want to check them out. I think that's the best part of the early morning ADRs, getting to be in the parks before everyone else!

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Hello Dr. Becky!! I am here! Your plans look wonderful. There is a wonderful family on here (memom and Brooklynnmommy) who stays at Pop at least once/ twice a year. They just got back and started a TR: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2758143. Thought you might want to check it out for pictures.

Your plans look great and I love that you fought in front of Cinderella's castle...(well, it's sad, but makes a good story!) We (dh and I) always fight at DTD. I have it planned well this trip, so I think we can avoid a fight!

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

PS- I love your title!

 

[idoeyes1]

I just got conformation that my Minnie Mouse dress I am having made for MNSSHP just shipped! I can't wait to dress up and enjoy Halloween again like a kid. 51 days until Disney!

 

[ZFamily5]

I just got conformation that my Minnie Mouse dress I am having made for MNSSHP just shipped! I can't wait to dress up and enjoy Halloween again like a kid. 51 days until Disney!

Yay! Can't wait to see pictures!