42, The Meaning of Life: May 2017 Trip

[Carie Young]

Our next Disney Trip - My 42nd Birthday: Planning Stages
May 5 - 12, 2017

K watching Fireworks from our room at Bay Lake (1/2016)
​

Who are we?
As a family, we are Disney Geeks, we LOVE all things DIS. We are members of D23, Visa Rewards Card, Movie Club, Book Club, and most recently Disney Vacation Club.

We have a dog named Elsa and currently, we are singing Moana songs for carpool karaoke after seeing the movie too many times in the theater.

Past & Upcoming Trips:
September 2014 - Coronado Springs
October 2015 - Saratoga Springs
January 2016 - Bay Lake & Animal Kingdom - Kidani
May 2017 - Boardwalk Villas
December 2017 - Beach Club or Boulder Ridge Villas (shhh... surprise trip!)

Kadence (7) -

• Favorite Current Movies: Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, Moana
• Favorite Current Characters: Moana and Vanellope Von Schweetz
• Favorite Disney Junior Show: PJ Masks
• Favorite WDW rides: Test Track, Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain
• Favorite Places to Eat: Cinderella's Royal Table and Chef Mickey's
• Favorite Resort: Bay Lake Tower

Martin (dad) -

• Favorite Movies: Aladdin, Pirates Curse of the Black Pearl, Star Wars Force Awakens
• Favorite Characters: Captain Jack Sparrow and Genie
• Favorite WDW rides: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain
• Favorite Places to Eat: Akershus, Be Our Guest, 1900 Park Fare
• Favorite Resort: Bay Lake Tower

Carie (me) -

• Favorite Movies: Lady & the Tramp, Pirates Curse of the Black Pearl, Star Wars New Hope
• Favorite Characters: Genie, Mad Hatter, Princess Leia
• Favorite WDW rides: Haunted Mansion, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, Kilimanjaro Safari
• Favorite Places to Eat: Liberty Tree Tavern, Ohana, 1900 Park Fare
• Favorite Resort: Animal Kingdom Villas

Table of Contents -

• MagicBands
• To Dining Plan or not to Dining Plan?
• Day 1 - Arrival & Hollywood Studios
• Day 2 - Epcot & Boardwalk
• Day 3 - Magic Kingdom (Our LONGEST Day)
• Day 4 - Boardwalk Pool AND Epcot Flower & Garden

 

[Carie Young]

MagicBands - we them!

I love MagicBands, I love anything that makes my life easier, especially on vacation.

I love them so much they have now become a collection and memory of each trip. This trip K & I are going with these two limited additions for 2017...

Valentines Day presents!! Woohoo!​

M is planning on using his Pirates Band again for this trip.

If you can't tell, I am a big fan of the MagicBands, since we stay onsite and are on the meal plan, they really make life easy, we will use them for:

• Magical Express - we put our bands on once we arrive at the airport, scan down at DME terminal and hop on a bus.
• Quick Check-in - Since we arrive before normal resort check-in time, we have bags stored, quickly check-in at desk and then head to a Park. The front desk texts our room# to us once available.
• Dining Plan - We have always went with a dining plan.
• FastPass+ - We preplan at the 60 day, so they are preloaded, again, just easy, plus if we add additional at park, it's easier than losing a card or paper copy.
• Shopping - charging items to the room
• Memory Maker - made easy...scan and go.
• Lost kids? - as a mom, I always think, what if? We taught K, if for whatever reason she cannot find one of us to go to a cast member. With her MagicBand, all of our contact information is easy to get versus trying to get it out of a scared child (thankfully we haven't had to test this yet, fingers crossed we never will)
• Souvenir - yep, now that they come themed, they make great memories

Do you like MagicBands? Let me know your thoughts, any other tips?

 

[TheInvernessie]

Ooh I love this! I'll be reading along with another May 2017 trip!

 

[ariane37]

Joining! We're doing another kid-free trip May 18-22nd. Don't think I love the MB's quite as much as you lol, but I'm interested in seeing the new ones when ours come for our trip next month

 

[Carie Young]

Thanks for reading along! I am very new to the boards, so appreciate any tips, advice or know-how!

Do you ladies have PRT's for your May trips? I'd love to follow!

 

[TheInvernessie]

Do you ladies have PRT's for your May trips? I'd love to follow!

I do! It isn't much yet as it is my first but, May 2017 here we come!

http://disboards.com/threads/two-jersey-girls-go-to-disney-a-may-2017-ptr.3576582/

 

[Carie Young]

To Dining Plan or not to Dining Plan?

So, I know there is a lot of debate over to dining plan or not to dining plan and also which of the dining plans... I also know quite a few will disagree with our decision, but we are going with the Deluxe Dining Plan.

Character Dine at 1900 Park Fare​

My reasoning:

• I like having everything paid ahead of time and we don't have to worry about if it will go over budget or not - even our souvenir money. As far as tips, we use our rewards points from our Disney Visa to get a gift card, so again, no money out of pocket once we arrive.
• I like having the 3 table service credits so we can do special dining experiences like Cindy's and SOAloha and then use snack credits for a breakfast here and there.
• I like table service for character meals so we are hitting 'two birds with one stone' and save time vs. waiting in meet-n-greet lines
• I like that in the Florida heat we know we have spaced out AC breaks and a place to sit and relax for a bit
• We love trying new foods, and Deluxe allows us to explore with no worries
• TS restaurants often come with their own entertainment (characters, live music, dancing, etc).
• I am an Event Planner, so, I like having everything in a flexible structure and checking things off to-do lists. Exploring menus and making dining reservations is an extension of the vacation for me (Plus, we are not wasting time deciding on where to eat that day instead of enjoying rides or shows).
• Also, I can have my DD, K, help decide where we eat when she isn't distracted by rides and Mickey.

It is a lot of food, and we really don't use all of the snack credits (more souvenirs for home), my wish is that they will come up with a dining plan in between regular and deluxe that does either 2TS & 1QS or 1TS & 2QS and only 1 snack.

What are your thoughts on dining plans? Do you use them?

 

[Carie Young]

Day 1

We arrive in Orlando around 11:15 am, I am giving us three hours to get to Boardwalk, drop-off our carry-ons at bell service and walk to HS for lunch. With all of the construction and things closed (and my DD not quite there with Star Wars yet), we are only in HS this day. Below is how I am hoping it will go, we can't get FP's until 3/6.

• Lunch - 50's Prime Time Cafe - My DH and I ate here on our lone adult only trip and loved it! Good comfort food, and the theming is well done. We have been wanting to bring DD to it and now that she is not as into DisneyJunior, we can avoid the chaos at Hollywood & Vine. Don't get me wrong, I think it is a unique character dine, and my daughter stalked Sofia every time we were there, but the noise! I don't know which character dine is louder, there or Chef Mickey's!
• Indiana Jones Stunt Show
• Star Tours (FP)
• Frozen Ever After
• Meet Olaf (either in the afternoon or right after dinner)
• Dinner - Sci-Fi Dine-In - This is a new one for us, any suggestions for what to eat?
• Toy Story Mania (FP)
• Meet Moana
• Tower of Terror (FP)
• Fantasmic - if we can get a 4th FP, thoughts????

Should we make Fantasmic one of our 3 FP's vs hoping for a 4th? Or, do we lose one of the others to guarantee good seats at the show?

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Hello! I am following along! I have (2) DD's currently 8 & 6, so right in between K! I am in the process of planning our September trip. Can't wait to hear all of your planning!

What are your thoughts on dining plans? Do you use them?

We LOVE the dinning plan. I know it isn't for everyone but it works for us. And for many of the same reasons you like it. I like not worrying about how much everything costs. Having a semi-set plan for places to eat. I couldn't do the Deluxe plan. Too much food. But I don't judge! I was doing some "Disney Math" for our Sept trip, and depending on where you go, it can really work out! Or at least I think it will for us

We arrive in Orlando around 11:15 am, I am giving us three hours to get to Boardwalk, drop-off our carry-ons at bell service and walk to HS for lunch. With all of the construction and things closed (and my DD not quite there with Star Wars yet), we are only in HS this day. Below is how I am hoping it will go, we can't get FP's until 3/6.

3 hours sounds about right. My girls love Star Wars but still with all of the construction, I am pretty sure we will only do a half day at HS.

Dinner - Sci-Fi Dine-In - This is a new one for us, any suggestions for what to eat?

We did this on our trip last February. Our girls loved it. They got a kick out of sitting in the cars and being able to watch tv while eat. When we went, the milk shake counted as our drink on the DP! So take advantage of that! (if you like milk shakes!) DH had gotten the burger of the day and it was HUGE.

Should we make Fantasmic one of our 3 FP's vs hoping for a 4th? Or, do we lose one of the others to guarantee good seats at the show?

I have found that Star Tours doesn't always need a fast pass. But you never know. We have yet to see Fantastic, so I don't know what the seating is like.

Can't wait to hear more of your plans.

 

[Carie Young]

Thanks for following and appreciate your insight!

Hoping my DD gets more into Star Wars, I think Leia is the best princess role model for girls (though I have a soft spot for independent Mulan, Merida and Moana)

Have you started a Pretrip thread? I'd like to follow.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Thanks for following and appreciate your insight!

Hoping my DD gets more into Star Wars, I think Leia is the best princess role model for girls (though I have a soft spot for independent Mulan, Merida and Moana)

Have you started a Pretrip thread? I'd like to follow.

I do! It's in my signature, but here is a link as well. https://www.disboards.com/threads/september-is-a-good-time-to-celebrate-40-10.3578875/

Leia is a great role model. My girls like Star Wars Rebels as well, and they have created 2 more great email role models, Hera and Sabine. Maybe try that with her, it's a cartoon, so a bit more mild-isa... And they have watched Clone Wars with DH and love Ashoka. So Star Wars is not short of email role models for sure!

 

[ariane37]

I think 3 hours is fine as far as enough time between getting from MCO to HS. Now as far as Fantasmic, IMO you don't need a FP. BUT, we also don't care to sit in the front rows and if you do, then you may want one unless you don't mind lining up at least an hour early! Once we went in 30 minutes early; got a really good seat but waiting that long was aggravating. SO the next time we only went in 15 minutes early and still had a great seat. Plus whenever we've tried to get additional FP's at HS, there's usually only Muppets, Star Tours and Fantasmic left lol so you probably won't have trouble getting it as a 4th

 

[Carie Young]

I may have created a monster... I just got the book 'Hidden Mickeys' from amazon and my DD (7yrs) will not put it down, she keeps telling us, did you know... oh we need to go to ... and I will add this one to my list. We may have to extend our trip

 

[Carie Young]

Day 2 - Epcot

Okay, walking to Epcot this day for an early breakfast. We are planning on heading to Epcot two-ish days during the trip since we are staying at Boardwalk.

• Chip n Dale's Harvest (Garden Grill) - We enjoyed a dinner here on our last visit, like that it's family style and it's classic characters. Never been for breakfast, has anyone else? How is it?
  
• Soarin' - 1st ride
• Joy & Sadness Meet & Greet
• Turtle Talk Crush
• Seas w/Nemo
• Sea Tanks ?
• Spaceship Earth (FP)
  
• Jamminators (Future World East)
• Test Track (FP)
• Friendship Launch at Mexico
• Japan Pavilion
• Matsuriza (Japan drumming)
• Teppan Edo - Our DD is obsessed with Food Network & Cooking Channel (she wants to be Trisha Yearwood when she grows up so she can sing and cook) so we thought this would be good for her to watch them cooking right in front of her.
• Morocco Pavilion
• French Pavilion
• Serveur Amusant (French Acrobats)
• LEAVE EPCOT
• Spend evening on Boardwalk
• Big River Grille - hoping, but you can't make reservations? Has anyone eaten here? Can we call to make reservations?

Which is it better to Fastpass Turtle Talk or Seas w/Nemo? Any other suggestions?

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

I may have created a monster... I just got the book 'Hidden Mickeys' from amazon and my DD (7yrs) will not put it down, she keeps telling us, did you know... oh we need to go to ... and I will add this one to my list. We may have to extend our trip

I just got this for my girls and they loved it while they were in Disney. They hasn't looked at it since we have been home. I might pull it out when it gets closer to our next trip.

• Soarin' - 1st ride

• Joy & Sadness Meet & Greet

• Turtle Talk Crush

• Seas w/Nemo

We did this on our last trip. It worked well to hit Soarin' first and then directly to Joy & Sadness. Joy & Sadness meet & Greet did take awhile even that early. So, def a good idea to go early!

Which is it better to Fastpass Turtle Talk or Seas w/Nemo? Any other suggestions?

Typically you don't need a fastness for Seas w/ Nemo. And Turtle talk is weird, you still have to wait. I guess it's better for Turtle Talk but really, you don't need a FP for either.

Are you totally skipping over Frozen Ever After Ride?

2:30 p.m. Teppan Edo - Our DD is obsessed with Food Network & Cooking Channel (she wants to be Trisha Yearwood when she grows up so she can sing and cook) so we thought this would be good for her to watch them cooking right in front of her.

Has your DD watched the kid cooking shows? My two DD's love them!

I haven't eaten at any of the restaurants you picked out. But I do want to try Teppan Edo one day, along with Garden Grill!

 

[lobolabo]

I'm going to jump in and follow this. We're going in May also.

The Sci-fi drive in is pretty cool, though I haven't eaten there in years.

 

[xlsm]

I've been following, because I'm a May traveler too (our trips overlap by a couple of days on the front end of yours), but haven't posted here yet for whatever reason...but I am now!

We did Garden Grill in December. Our experience was mixed...HERE is the start of the post about it on my December TR. The character interaction was amazing, food was eh.
Third FPs are tough at Epcot...Nemo and Crush are usually walk on, so I tend to pick Character Spot as my third, but it mostly gets skipped. I am always frustrated picking FPs for Epcot!!

I like your DHS plans...SciFi is one of my favorite restaurants, mainly b/c of the theme, but the salmon blt there is SO GOOD.

 

[Carie Young]

Typically you don't need a fastness for Seas w/ Nemo. And Turtle talk is weird, you still have to wait. I guess it's better for Turtle Talk but really, you don't need a FP for either.

Are you totally skipping over Frozen Ever After Ride?

I figured we wouldn't need one for Nemo or Crush, but they don't have an option (that I can tell, since I can't make selections yet) for Joy & Sadness. We are going to Epcot on another day as well and with the tier FastPasses, I had to divide and conquer. I was trying to get most of the front done this day and then concentrate on Flower & Garden and Frozen the second day.

Has your DD watched the kid cooking shows? My two DD's love them!

She LOVES Kids Baking Championship, Pioneer Woman and Trisha Yearwood; she is starting to like The Chew as well (mainly because I'm a Cleveland girl and love Michael Symon). She has wanted to be a cook since she was 2. My Dad and DH made her a kitchen in our basement last year for Christmas so she can 'host' her own shows. Did I mention she is an only child and, on my side, an only grandchild aka - spoiled?

I haven't eaten at any of the restaurants you picked out. But I do want to try Teppan Edo one day, along with Garden Grill!

This will be our first time to Teppan Edo, we went to Garden Grill for dinner last dinner and enjoyed it - lots of the veggies come from The Land gardens. But never been for breakfast, heard mixed reviews, but hoping for the best.

 

[Carie Young]

I'm going to jump in and follow this. We're going in May also.

The Sci-fi drive in is pretty cool, though I haven't eaten there in years.

Thanks for following! Do you have a trip thread also? Where are you staying?

 

[Carie Young]

I've been following, because I'm a May traveler too (our trips overlap by a couple of days on the front end of yours), but haven't posted here yet for whatever reason...but I am now!

Thanks for following! Do you have a thread for your May trip? Would love to follow along too.

We did Garden Grill in December. Our experience was mixed...HERE is the start of the post about it on my December TR

Read through your review, I liked the dinner we had there, but hadn't seen much on the breakfast, the news on the cinnabun is disappointing, thanks for the heads up!

I like your DHS plans...SciFi is one of my favorite restaurants

Good to hear, Hollywood & Vine gives me a headache, so I was hoping the theming in here would work for DD & DH and less chaos for me