1st PTR, 1st TR, 1st DL Trip, Inaugural (1st) Avengers Weekend!!!

[TorontoGirl]

Hi Everybody!

I didn't join the DIS until after my 1st DCL 7 Night - I met some really cool people who were on here and asked why I wasn't yet LOL...so I joined and learned a lot for my next cruise and my next WDW trip!

DH and I have been to WDW 9 times in less than 6 years from our 1st trip for our Honeymoon in Oct/Nov 2008 to Jan 2014 for the inaugural Dopey challenge and that includes 3 DCL cruises!

And yet I have never done a trip report...

OK - here goes! Here is my 1st PTR for my 1st TR for my 1st trip to Disneyland!
It's also the inaugural Avengers Weekend - so another 1st

 

[TorontoGirl]

In mid February 2014 there started to be some rumbling on social media - Twitter and Facebook and the like about something called #SmashtheHalf

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I was SO EXCITED!!! There had been so many rumors about a Star Wars RunDisney event that this was unexpected - I was literally shaking as I refreshed my twitter feed on Feb 25th as it was announced.

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So on March 25 at work I was on the RunDisney.com constantly rebooting as I worked to make sure I could register as soon as it opened at 12pm sharp! Sometimes it comes up a few minutes early so I was ready!

And then I made a critical mistake...I registered for the Half-Marathon first

The 5K sold out in less than 20 minutes! I kid you not! By the time I had registered my DH and I for the half the 5K was sold out and I missed our chance to do both races My own fault, but live and learn I guess Good News: We were registered for the Inaugural Avengers Super Hero Half Marathon!!!

I am a planner and with my 1st few WDW trips The Unofficial Guide to WDW was like a bible to me, I love my Passporter Guide book too So of course I went out and grabbed The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2014. I thought - hey it's a smaller location, only 2 parks, no problem - this should be a breeze! Man was I wrong! So many things to learn and adjust to...at the very least that I can't plan things out so far in advance. DL is just not set up that way. But 1st things 1st - hotel accommodation!

We looked at Unofficial and we started checking prices for the time we wanted to go at hotels within walking distance of the parks. Prices seemed higher than WDW and we wanted to get the most for our money - we would be staying 7 nights so it had to be nice, not just a crash pad.

Then my DH said what about here? He showed me a King Bed suite at La Quinta Anaheim Inn & Suites for $119 a night with...wait for it...a jetted tub! The sky's had opened - a jetted tub for after a half marathon - PERFECT! We knew that was a higher price but decided the tub would be worth it and booked! SCORE!

 

[poppinspal]

I'm headed to Disneyland for my first time just for this race!


I was a nervous ball of energy for registration day. Like I was trying to get front row tickets for the hottest concert in town.

Looking forward to hearing about your experiences as well.

 

[TorontoGirl]

I'm headed to Disneyland for my first time just for this race!


I was a nervous ball of energy for registration day. Like I was trying to get front row tickets for the hottest concert in town.

Looking forward to hearing about your experiences as well.

It's going to be an awesome race! I feel like a newbie all over again learning about DL!

 

[TorontoGirl]

So jump ahead to just a few weeks ago...

After months of training and a few stressful months at work and starting a new job with nail biting wait to see if my vacation gets approved with the new boss..and then...VACATION APPROVED!!!!

So I decide I better start hard core planning - 60 days is coming for dining reservations and I better confirm what I have booked and figure out what else I still need

I booked my hotel back in March 2014, as soon as I knew I would be signing up for the Avengers Half Marathon. I booked a King Bed 2 Room Suite with Jetted Tub for $119 a night. My DH and I knew that was pricey for 7 nights but we wanted the tub to prep and recover from our race right in our room instead of having to go down to the pool/hot tub public area. We could have gotten a cheaper hotel right across the street from DL for less but a standard room not a suite or anything special. The tub and larger room to stretch and so on was the point. Plus we are there for 7 nights not just the race.

I had heard they were renovating so I thought to call and confirm my ressie as well as confirm the room with all the renovations going on. Turns out that the jetted tubs are being taken out of all the rooms (they were having too many issues with them) and those room may not be ready for Nov anyway. I was NOT pleased to say the least as they are sold out for Fri and Sat for King bed suites now plus the price has gone sky high since they figured out that it is a race weekend.

Marlene at the front desk was WONDERFUL! She offered me a $40 off per night my original rate for the inconvenience of not getting the jetted tub and confirmed with the Manager that I will still be getting a King bed 2 room suite (I requested no bunk beds, a couch in the second room) and all suites there come with fridge, microwave & coffee maker PLUS free breakfast that includes waffles YUM!

[URL=http://s1027.photobucket.com/user/tcomacd/media/guest-room.jpg.html][/URL]

So I am now getting a newly renovated King Bed 2 Room Suite with Couch sitting area for $79/night (plus fees and taxes) for my 7 night stay!

Not bad huh?

 

[yupikgal]

What a nice looking room! We have never stayed at the La Quinta, how far is it from the parks?

You will be there the weekend right before we get there, are you staying afterwards or before? Sorry, I just got home from work, and reading thoroughly is not my strong points after work.

Enjoy your time & good luck with the marathon!!

 

[TorontoGirl]

What a nice looking room! We have never stayed at the La Quinta, how far is it from the parks?

You will be there the weekend right before we get there, are you staying afterwards or before? Sorry, I just got home from work, and reading thoroughly is not my strong points after work.

Enjoy your time & good luck with the marathon!!

Google Maps says it's 0.8 to 0.9 of a mile away from the park - compared to how far everything is at WDW I figure we will be fine

There is a resort bus service for a small fee but we get free use of it for the run weekend and may just walk most of the rest of the trip.

We are there from Thu Nov 13 - Thu Nov 20th & Thank you!