401 days and counting .... I am going crazy waiting PTR

[goofytiggerfan]

Hello everyone! I am starting a PTR for our upcoming Disney World trip in September 2012! This is my first one so bear with me I am very new at this. our trip begins September 9th-15th 2012 @ POR Royal Suites This is our first Moderate resort and I am sooooo excited. Now I should give you the cast of characters. It has been 2 years since our last trip and I am fiening Disney World haha.

First there is me. My name is Danielle I am a stay at home mom to my two Disney crazy children. I am currently going to school full time for my Bachelor's degree in Psychology. I am the avid Disney planner and am known to be slightly obsessed with all things Disney. My favorite ride is Space Mountain and my favorite characters are Goofy and Tigger. I have been going to Disney since I was 2 weeks old we had few yearly breaks in between. Our last trip was our honeymoon for 2 weeks with the kids.

The next character is my husband Jay DH he is not an avid Disney fan, but loves it when we are there. He has only been 3 times in his lifetime. Still trying to talk him into DVC (someday). He works part time for now while he is in school full time for his BA in Business Administration. He is also fixes cars and does landscaping part time when people ask for it. He is a huge Harry Potter fan and I am trying to set aside a day to try to get to Islands of Adventure to see HP

The next character is my daughter Adrienne she is 8 and loves Disney just as much as me. Her favorite ride is Haunted Mansion and she has been to Disney 5 or more times already since she was born. She loves doing the Princess boutique has done it twice now.

The last character is my son Lucas he is a Disney Lover aas well. we watch Playhouse Disney all morning and then Disney movies all day. He loves Toy Story, Cars, and Mickey & Friends. His favorite ride so far is Journy Into Imagination it was his first ride and 2009 was his first "big boy" trip he was a month old his first Disney trip. He is looking forward to our "Mickey Boat" trip in December 2011.

In the next post I will give the details to our trip so far and what I plan on doing with our days which could be extended if we get free dining Hope to see you and have as much help planning as I can get. We are also going on the Disney Dream this December with a side trip to DTD so I will interupt this trip report for some side notes on that trip if anyone would like to hear about it. I am the Designated Planner of the trip.

 

[goofytiggerfan]

This is my tentative plan for our days as it could and most likely will change by our trip. I like to relax on our trip so I am not a follow every detail type person. I do know that must do rides will need a dash for fast passes, but that is as far as I go with we have to do this be here for this. In 2009 for our 2 weeks we had DxDP, I made ADR’s for Breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the two weeks. Yeah I figured out I went just a smidge overboard. I canceled most of them towards the end because we were ADR’d out. I had not been to Disney for a while before hand and never seemed to get to do dining besides quick service so I wanted to try out as much as I could, but I did find some restaurants we will definitely do again and some definitely not. We are going to do MNSSHP, the PL, and BBB at some point too. We have PH and WPF&M passes for 7 days.

Sunday September 9th – Arrival Day- We will check into POR and then check out the resort and pool for a bit. * I am thinking about decorating the room for the kids with some small gifts so send the kids to the pool with the Hubby while I unpack and set up.

Monday September 10th- MK day – Get there for rope drop, possibly have ADR’s at CP to get there before rope drop and get photopass with the castle before the rush. Head to Tommorrowland first to ride Astro Orbiter and Space Mountain before the lines become obnoxious. (Hopefully will not happen, as we have never had this issue in Sept.)

Tuesday September 11th – HS and AK- Spend the Morning in HS and Afternoon in AK . Quest at closing of AK.

Wednesday September 12th – AK and HS day- I like to split these two parks in half because AK gets to hot in the afternoon so we will do AK until after lunch and then head to HS for the rest of the afternoon until closing. Quest if time.

Thursday September 13th – TL, Epcot,and DTD- TL until we get tired, change and head to Epcot for a bit, and then spend the rest of the evening in Quest.

Friday September 14th – BB, Epcot, and DTD- Same thing here do BB until done , hop on the bus to Epcot after we change for a little bit in Epcot, then Quest.

Saturday September 15th – Epcot and MK- Do the rides in Epcot and then head over to MK for the rest of the evening then head to my grandparents and home the next day.

I am hoping free dining comes out so I can extend our trip to 10 days a week is just not enough for me. Haha. Any opinions on my plans so far. I can take the criticism.

Stay tuned for possible ADR’s and I would like opinions.

 

[goofytiggerfan]

401 days and counting​

​

​

This was from September 2009 we had the Photopass Photoshoot done at the Wilderness Lodge. This is going to be a must do from now on for all trips to Disney we had a blast and the photographer took a lot of pics. I got a discount for Pre-ordering the Photopass CD before hand.​

 

[goofytiggerfan]

400 Days and counting

A normal sight on our trip in 2009, hope to see this again in 2012...My son loved the characters we were not sure how he would be with his first time and all, but he settled in quite nicely. ​

 

[goofytiggerfan]

Possible ADR’s by Park or Resort: ^ never had or would like to try, * is what we must do again or must try
Animal Kingdom:

Quick Service- We actually have never eaten in Animal Kingdom

Flame Tree BBQ ^

Pizzafari ^

Resturantosaurus ^

Table Service-

Tusker House- ^ Never been

Hollywood Studios-

Counter Service-

Toy Story Pizza Planet- my son is a Toy Story fan *

Studio Catering Company

Table Service-

Hollywood and Vine- we liked the breakfast buffet and my son is still a playhouse Disney fan. *

50’s Prime time Café- Had fun the last time and the food was good. *

Sci-Fi Dine In – My son loved eating in the car not sure if we will do this again.

Epcot-
Counter Service-

Cool Wash Pizza ^

Electric Umbrella ^

Sunshine Seasons ^

Table Service-

Tutto Italia- Loved this in 2009 definitely must do!! ****

Teppan Edo- Must try we love our local Hibachi **

Akershus- we liked this Princess interaction better than CRT *

Via Nappoli- Never been yet *

Magic Kingdom-
Counter Service-

Cosmic Rays- Always do when in MK for Lunch *

Casey’s Corner- I love that they have corn dogs. *

Pinocchio Village Haus- ^ Never had

Table Service-

Crystal Palace- * always do love the character interaction and the buffet is not bad.

Liberty Tree Tavern- ^ Never done

Tony’s Town Square- ^ never done

Beach Club-
Beaches and Cream - * must do the Kitchen Sink

Cape May Café- ^ never done would love to try it out

Contemporary-
Chef Mickey’s- * Must do we loved this character interaction and watching the monorail come through.

Grand Floridian-
1900 Park Fare- *Breakfast is a must do ( my husband likes that they have omelets and not just scrambled eggs)

Polynesian-
Kona Café- ^ I have never been and want to try it out. (Tonga Toast sounds and looks delicious)
O’hana - We have done and might do again depends on Husband

Port Orleans Riverside- Where we are staying so I am sure we will have food from both places.
Boatwright’s
Sassagoula’s Floatworks

Wilderness Lodge
Whispering Canyon Café- * Must do

There is so much to eat in Disney it is hard to chose just a few so any opinions any one has on which are must trys or do's please speak up.We are going to have the DXDp. In December I have already said to my grandparents we are going to Beaches and Cream just for the kitchen sink as I have always wanted to get it and thought our family would enjoy eating it as a family. I may have to add in Be our Guest as it may quite possibly be open when we go in 2012. I hope so.

 

[Goofypop]

Flame Tree BBQ ^ This is a must do for my wife each time. She loves this place!
Resturantosaurus ^ Not too bad. Run of the mill burgers like anywhere esle in Disney. Great for AC though on a hot day.
Tusker House- ^ Never been Wonderful Donald's Safari Breakfast here!
Toy Story Pizza Planet- Horrible pizza and it is just another QS but with a loud arcade. It really doesn't have anything to do with Toy Story on the inside. I was very disappointed to not even find a rocket ship claw machine with the little green men inside.
50’s Prime time Café- Great place. We finally decided o try it the last time and we loved it.
Sci-Fi Dine In – This is another must do for us. We love the atmosphere here.
Electric Umbrella ^ Really the only place to go in Future World for a quick bite. Decent place.
Teppan Edo- We're doing this one too for the first time. I can't wait.
Cosmic Rays- Nice place if you can deal with the different lines for different things.
Casey’s Corner- This is a tradition for us. First lunch in MK each trip.
Pinocchio Village Haus- ^ Get a seat next to the window so you can watch the boats going into IaSW.
Liberty Tree Tavern- ^ This was better with the characters. It's still great, but the characters made it more so.
Beach Club- We ate here for breakfast one day. Not too bad.
Beaches and Cream - * Good luck finishing the Kitchen Sink.
Chef Mickey’s- * A must do for my kids......okay wife too.
Whispering Canyon Café- * We loved this place. I even about got drilled in the forehead bu a broom handle piece that was broken during the pandemonium of lunch.

Btw, we'll be arriving on your second to last day. September 14th, 2012. We're staying at the All Stars Movies just to finish off staying at the last of the Values. (until AoA opens ) Where are you staying?

 

[goofytiggerfan]

Flame Tree BBQ ^ This is a must do for my wife each time. She loves this place!
Resturantosaurus ^ Not too bad. Run of the mill burgers like anywhere esle in Disney. Great for AC though on a hot day.
Tusker House- ^ Never been Wonderful Donald's Safari Breakfast here!
Toy Story Pizza Planet- Horrible pizza and it is just another QS but with a loud arcade. It really doesn't have anything to do with Toy Story on the inside. I was very disappointed to not even find a rocket ship claw machine with the little green men inside.
50’s Prime time Café- Great place. We finally decided o try it the last time and we loved it.
Sci-Fi Dine In – This is another must do for us. We love the atmosphere here.
Electric Umbrella ^ Really the only place to go in Future World for a quick bite. Decent place.
Teppan Edo- We're doing this one too for the first time. I can't wait.
Cosmic Rays- Nice place if you can deal with the different lines for different things.
Casey’s Corner- This is a tradition for us. First lunch in MK each trip.
Pinocchio Village Haus- ^ Get a seat next to the window so you can watch the boats going into IaSW.
Liberty Tree Tavern- ^ This was better with the characters. It's still great, but the characters made it more so.
Beach Club- We ate here for breakfast one day. Not too bad.
Beaches and Cream - * Good luck finishing the Kitchen Sink.
Chef Mickey’s- * A must do for my kids......okay wife too.
Whispering Canyon Café- * We loved this place. I even about got drilled in the forehead bu a broom handle piece that was broken during the pandemonium of lunch.

Btw, we'll be arriving on your second to last day. September 14th, 2012. We're staying at the All Stars Movies just to finish off staying at the last of the Values. (until AoA opens ) Where are you staying?

Thank you for following along and your opinions on my ADR possible choices. September is such a great month to go to Disney. How long are you staying? We are staying at Port Orleans Riverside in the Royal Suites that are going to be open in 2012. Our first time in Moderate resorts. We ( or maybe just me) are hoping that some of the expansion in FantasyLand will be open. Do you and your wife have some things you must do on a Disney Trip?

 

[goofytiggerfan]

399 days and counting

Adrienne meeting her idol. She was soooo excited to meet her. This is one of my favorite pictures from 2009... ​

 

[newmommy_2010]

I am here! Can't wait to hear more. We are going on our trip Oct. 2012! So I am doing the countdown with yoU!

 

[goofytiggerfan]

I am here! Can't wait to hear more. We are going on our trip Oct. 2012! So I am doing the countdown with yoU!

Thank you for joining me.... I can't wait to share more. Where are you staying and for how long?

 

[newmommy_2010]

Thank you for joining me.... I can't wait to share more. Where are you staying and for how long?

We are going Oct. 14-19 right now but we may add a day on somewhere. Haven't completely decided but we are booked for the POP Oct. 14-19 for now with the dining plan!

 

[goofytiggerfan]

Apparently the Dis decided to add a post for me haha..... Sorry I will be updating soon I promise.

 

[goofytiggerfan]

398 Days and Counting​

Halloween 2010 my daughter decided to be the Queen of Hearts.

I am sorry I have not updated I promise to write up an update tonight. I am trying to get ready for my son's birthday party on Saturday, do homework, and there is just soooo much to do.Thank you again for following along​

 

[ZFamily5]

I'm in! I want to start a PTR for our June 2013 trip, but I thought it might be a little too early for that! Can't wait to hear more! We just got back from staying at POR and LOVED it! Such a great resort!

 

[goofytiggerfan]

I'm in! I want to start a PTR for our June 2013 trip, but I thought it might be a little too early for that! Can't wait to hear more! We just got back from staying at POR and LOVED it! Such a great resort!

Thank you for following along! I could not wait any longer I needed to share my plans with someone Haha I think my ptr is a bit early too. O well

 

[goofytiggerfan]

Hello sorry about the delay life has been crazy. I am trying to set up and get ready for my son’s 4th birthday picnic along with having visitors my sister in law and her 2 young children so picking up the house with 4 children running around has been nuts.

This is where we are staying and for how long, POR Royal Suites, we have these booked for September 9th to the 15th with DxDP and 7 day PH & WPF&M. We have never stayed in a moderate resort as a family before so this is a first .

When I was very young we stayed in POFQ, but that was before they were moderate resorts.

I am hoping and praying that they extend the free dining on August 15th to US for September 2012 .

Onto awesome Disney news, apparently I found the Canadian link yesterday on the Dis for free dining in September 2012 for the dates we are going I got sooooo excited, but after 30mins of waiting on the phone the CM’s in the reservation line informed me it was the Canadian site and that we do not have those dates yet. Nevertheless, I have priced out our vacation with FD through the Canada website just to get a pricing idea and if I extend the dates for September 9th to the 18th so 9 nights at POR in the royal suites with upgraded to Dxdp we will be saving $37.12 . With that being said I am not paying in full for dining but just the upgrade cost and I am now adding on 4 more days! So for $37 less I now have a 10 day, 9 night Royal Rooms, DxDp , & 9d PH vs. a 6n, 7d Royal Room, DXDP, &7d PHw/ WPF&M . The reason I did not add on the WPF&M to our 10 day is because we went in 2009 for 2 weeks and did not use almost a weeks’ worth of the days for the WP so I feel the longer we go it is not worth the extra $230 to add it on. Am I crazy for only saving $37 instead of so much more?

My package total POR Royal Suites, without free dining and only for 7d, 6n with 7d PH, WPF&M, & DxDp- $4208.20
My Package with FD POR Royal Suites, with 9n, 10d with 9d PH and Upgrade to DxDp – 4171.08

What do you think crazy or not crazy?

 

[goofytiggerfan]

396 Days and Counting​

Our 2009 trip entering Epcot, this was my sons first Epcot visit and his first ride was Journy Into Imagination and he loved it.

I just want to wish my Great Grandfather a Happy Birthday, wish he was still here to celebrate, but 2 years ago he sadly was taken away from us thanks to Lung Cancer. We always stayed at his house when we were not in Disney and visiting Florida. I miss him so much.​

 

[goofytiggerfan]

395 Days and Counting​

Our first MNSSHP in 2007. My son's first Disney Trip he was a month old. This was an exciting trip.​

 

[goofytiggerfan]

I decided that I would use a TA for our reservations and recently transferred my reservation over to The Mouse For Less (TMFL) . A big reason I decided to go with TMFL is their gift packs that they give out for booking at a certain amount. This is what we qualify for

Dates: All MYW package dates
Book by: 8/31/11
The Magic for Less Travel will offer a FREE Deluxe Pixie Dust Pack to all guests who book a new Magic Your Way package priced at $3500* or more. The Deluxe Pixie Dust Pack includes two neck wallets for your party, a $25 Disney gift card and your choice of one of the following: a subscription to TourGuideMiKE's Automated Vacation Planner, Disney Music CD (Disney’s Greatest Volume 2), 1 individual adult ticket for miniature golf at either Disney’s Winter Summerland or Disney’s Fantasia Gardens, 1 certificate for a free 5x7 print on the photopass site, 2 autograph books or a Birnbaum’s Guide to Walt Disney World book (for guest with travel dates through September 2011 only).
*The price of the vacation is based on the final price you pay for your vacation package after any discounts and before any non-commissionable options like airfare are included. Due to customs regulations, we cannot mail gift certificates to guests located outside of the US. An e-mailable gift certificate of the same value will be substituted. Pack contents are subject to change(The Mouse for Less.Com)

Although I wish that, the gift card was upgraded to a $50 one I will honestly take what I can get at this point. The second reason is I get so busy with my kids and homework that I know I will overlook some kind of discount and miss it. I am trying to do this trip on a budget I do not want to spend more than $4400 on dining, tickets, and rooms. I know that is a high budget, but I have from January to final payment to figure it out. I say January because we have the Disney Cruise in December to save for right now, adding more money each week will cut into my bills money, and I cannot afford to fall behind.

Some background on this trip a basically how it all came to be….. January of this year I booked a trip for August 28th to September 3rd 2011 (a couple more weeks and I would have been in my happy place) BUT my husband did not want our children to miss the first week of school and this was the only time we could go because of our break from school. So I changed it to December 2011 knowing it was going to be changed to 2012, once the window to book in 2012 was open, we realized we could now not afford to go to Disney this year. After debating the time of year, we decided that September is the best month for us to go although I would have loved to do Disney during the Christmas decorations. But since we are going in December for the Disney Cruise we have decided to just resort hop to see the decorations and maybe a big maybe sneak a peek in Magic Kingdom for the day. The issue would be it is stupid expensive for tickets compared to Universal for the day to see Harry Potter. But if I pray hard enough maybe my husband will get this job he has been wanting which will help me get Disney tickets and next year sometime hopefully DVC property….. So any spare prayers for me would be greatly appreciated. So with that in mind we loved the MNSSHP and the kids love dressing up for halloween we figured its better for now to stick to the cheaper side of the year at Disney and wait to expand our horizons with DVC and try out the more expensive sides of the year.

Up Next: Must do rides and figuring out Disney Movie days for our countdown…..Stay Tuned.

P.S. Pray for Free Dining in September 2011 to be released tomorrow I have got my eyes peeled

 

[oboedm]

Subscribing! I was thinking about starting a PTR for our trip next Oct but then thought it was crazy to start this early. However, I am starting to re-think it! You may have inspired me! =) We are doing a cruise as well as a WDW next Oct, so I would love to hear about your trip/plans for the Dream as well. We are probably doing the same itenarary, or close to it. =)


Anyway---

TH is good for breakfast and it gets you into the park early, which is fun. We also think Yak and Yeti is a must do.

We always do LTT tavern and WCC for lunch. The antics for WCC are toned down for lunchtime, and we like the boatride from MK to WL.

We usually do Akershus as well... but for breakfast. Once again, getting to the park before it opens! =)

Kona for breakfast is also one of our must dos! My hubby gets the sampler and I get the toast. We then share the food.