A Disney-addicted mom: 2nd annual August trip and Marathon Weekend *Update 10/7*

[Native NYer]

If you're planning on paying for car service, a rental car makes sense. We used to just do DME, but after our trip last August with a rental car, we decided we would NEVER do a week at Disney without one. The car will give you lots of freedom.

 

[natebenma]

We almost exclusively rely on Disney transportation (with an occasional cab for resort-resort trips) but I agree with everyone else. If you are not going to be using DME, and would have to pay for a car service, then you may as well rent a car instead.

As you pointed out- you can make a grocery stop on the way to the BLT villas. You will have the car at your disposal for trips to AK, HS and DTD oto other resorts if you have any plans (like Jiko).

 

[DrMomof3]

Oh yeah, I know what you mean about the kids not really caring! I didn't mean expensive toys. We used to go to the Everything's $1 Shop and got some playing cards, travel games and activity books, never spending more than about 5 or 6 dollars. When the kids would start to say they were bored we'd pull out one of the cheap things we'd picked up and it would keep them occupied for a while. Lots of those dollar shops even have Disney themed things and it turns out to be cheaper than using your printer ink to make something. Of course these things worked for my kids but won't for everyone's- just an idea.

I'd definitely go with the rental car if you are going to be paying for the car from the airport anyway. I'm fine with no car for Karen and my adults only trip but I don't know if I'll ever do Disney with no car with kids again!

At least it's not just my kids. . They love going to Disney but I dont think they even noticed all the extras from last summer.
thanks for agreeing with me on the rental car.

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

If you're planning on paying for car service, a rental car makes sense. We used to just do DME, but after our trip last August with a rental car, we decided we would NEVER do a week at Disney without one. The car will give you lots of freedom.

I feel like such a snob for rejecting free transportation. Much of the time Disney does a decent job. I guess if you go often enough you see the other side!

We almost exclusively rely on Disney transportation (with an occasional cab for resort-resort trips) but I agree with everyone else. If you are not going to be using DME, and would have to pay for a car service, then you may as well rent a car instead.

As you pointed out- you can make a grocery stop on the way to the BLT villas. You will have the car at your disposal for trips to AK, HS and DTD oto other resorts if you have any plans (like Jiko).

We've always said that one of the advantages of Disney is no driving. But now we're finding that the inconsistencies of bus transportation are annoying. And taking the bus with 3 crabby kids and 2 strollers + purse, diaper bag, drink/snack bag = no fun!

We won't drive to Jiko, though. Date night = wine = no driving!

 

[DrMomof3]

Updates:
I officially cancelled V&A dinner. I was a little sad but it was the right decision. We are having dinner at Jiko at 7:10pm instead.
A really nice DISer hooked me up with discount codes for Budget and I reserved a minivan for $302 including taxes and fees. Tom isn't 100% sold on the idea yet but what he doesn't know won't hurt him! he's so stressed about house buying that he won't even talk about the trip!

Amanda

 

[natebenma]

Updates:
I officially cancelled V&A dinner. I was a little sad but it was the right decision. We are having dinner at Jiko at 7:10pm instead.
A really nice DISer hooked me up with discount codes for Budget and I reserved a minivan for $302 including taxes and fees. Tom isn't 100% sold on the idea yet but what he doesn't know won't hurt him! he's so stressed about house buying that he won't even talk about the trip!

Amanda

What's your timetable on the house buy, BTW.

I know there are going to be a lot of steps along the way.

If you need help with the move, let me know- Glad to lend my assistance

 

[Native NYer]

You got a fantastic deal on a minivan! Glad that worked out.
Good luck with purchasing your home.

 

[-Hope-]

Jiko will be fabulous and V&A isn't going anywhere and I'm sure you'll have another chance to go.

Great deal on the minivan- and I'm sure Tom will get on board. Maybe as your loading the kids and all your luggage into at the airport and he's wondering why the car he wanted instead of DME isn't arriving.

 

[DrMomof3]

What's your timetable on the house buy, BTW.

I know there are going to be a lot of steps along the way.

If you need help with the move, let me know- Glad to lend my assistance

We're close to contract signing. Mortgage paperwork is done so we're just waiting for that. Closing in NY usually takes 60-90 days but it might be sooner. Moving is easy! We already live in the house we're buying!!!

 

[DrMomof3]

You got a fantastic deal on a minivan! Glad that worked out.
Good luck with purchasing your home.

Some really nice person hooked me up with discount codes!

Jiko will be fabulous and V&A isn't going anywhere and I'm sure you'll have another chance to go.

Great deal on the minivan- and I'm sure Tom will get on board. Maybe as your loading the kids and all your luggage into at the airport and he's wondering why the car he wanted instead of DME isn't arriving.

Tom will be fine with it. He sometimes just needs me to take care of everything and then tell him about it later!

Amanda

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Followed you from my TR. All caught up... but I am not sure what to comment on; you've worked out all of your questions...

Great job on the 1/2 in NY! You should be fine with end of Aug crowds.

EMH or not EMH -- well you could have two plans for each day. You could plan on EMH and if you aren't out of the room in time go to plan B. (which would sound ridiculous to a non-planner, but

The only glitch I see with this is that you said you were making lunch ADRs. This would be where Iyou could save money. For lunch, we usually get two meals to split for the four of us. We don't want to waste time eating sit down at lunch.

Good luck with the house closing, and keep being the great advocate for your son despite the Wicked Witch of the West (Okay, West Chester County)!

 

[DrMomof3]

Followed you from my TR. All caught up... but I am not sure what to comment on; you've worked out all of your questions...

Great job on the 1/2 in NY! You should be fine with end of Aug crowds.
EMH or not EMH -- well you could have two plans for each day. You could plan on EMH and if you aren't out of the room in time go to plan B. (which would sound ridiculous to a non-planner, but
The only glitch I see with this is that you said you were making lunch ADRs. This would be where Iyou could save money. For lunch, we usually get two meals to split for the four of us. We don't want to waste time eating sit down at lunch.
Good luck with the house closing, and keep being the great advocate for your son despite the Wicked Witch of the West (Okay, West Chester County)!

Welcome Debby!!!
I know. I haven't done much trip planning of late. We just returned from a mini-vacation in Baltimore. My DH strongly prefers sit-down meals with our crew. We have a TIW card so the kids share meals and we'll have the full kitchen for left-overs. I could always make ADRs and then cancel them. I also know that you can get same day lunch ADRs, especially at Epcot. We do this frequently. LTT and the Plaza are usually available last-minute. Hmmm. Maybe the 2 plan idea is a good one....

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

Happy Easter to everyone who celebrates!
We've had a hectic few weeks!!! Work has been super busy. Then we had Passover, which is a lot of work. Add Spring Break and Easter and life hasn't slowed down a bit!
We just got back yesterday afternoon from a few days in Baltimore. I finished my training in Baltimore and Jessica was born there. It was nice to return. Baltimore is a nice little city. I find it very family-friendly. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency right on the Inner Harbor. The hotel was nice and we got a decent deal using AAA. We were in a room with a single King bed but there was a sofa/window seat which comfortably fit Nathaniel and Jessica. Zachary slept in a pack n play (I should probably put "slept" in quotes since sleeping is NOT Zachary's strong point!). The room had a lovely view of the harbor and fit us pretty comfortably. The adults also got a free buffet breakfast each morning which was nice.
We left Wednesday morning and drove down to Baltimore. I swear we weren't 20 minutes from home when the "Are we there yet?" started. We have a DVD player in the car and the kids had some video games but I didn't really spend time preparing lots of car activities. I guess I should have! When I lived in Baltimore, Tom lived in NY so we took turns driving back and forth. Nathaniel and Jessica lived with me and we survived the drive many times. I guess I was surprised by how impatient the kids were. I suppose I did the drive late on Friday night and then during nap time on Sunday afternoon so that helped....
It's just over 200 miles to Baltimore but it took 4+ hours because of stops. Mostly bathroom breaks. Tom and I took turns driving. It wasn't bad. I've thought about driving to Disney but after this trip, I'll never convince Tom!
We checked into the hotel in the mid-afternoon (we stopped in the suburbs for lunch and a quick Target run). Our room was ready and we got unpacked and settled. Nathaniel and Tom hung out in the room while Jessica and Zachary and I took a little walk. We found a cool overpass that went straight from the hotel to the Inner Harbor. Very convenient. When we headed back it was time for our crab dinner. We went to our favorite crab place. The kids loved it! Awesome!!!!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

Thursday morning we headed down to breakfast. Then we walked over to the National Aquarium. We had already decided to renew our family membership to the Aquarium. It was only a little more expensive than entry for 5 people. This ended up being a great decision. We got a Dolphin Show pass for 11:30am. If we hadn't become members, the ticket would have been for 3pm!!! The Aquarium requires you to park your stroller. For babies they'll give you a baby carrier (I think it's a Kelty backpack). This was annoying for us. Zachary is too big for a baby carrier but he got tired and needed to be carried. Made me miss Disney! I love the Aquarium but it was ridiculously crowded. It was hard to move and it was scary because I worried about losing the kids. The Dolphin Show was enjoyable. They have a new baby calf who is only 2 weeks old. We caught a glimpse of the new baby. Very cute!
After the show we found a "counter service" type place and grabbed lunch. We ate sitting outside overlooking the water. Very nice! We headed back to the hotel for a nap. It did NOT go well and Zachary never napped. We gave up and decided to drive the kids over to our old neighborhood. Zachary, of course, fell asleep in the car. Tom and the kids went to a big playground while Zachary and I hung out in the car. He actually slept over an hour in his car seat!
We decided to go back to the Inner Harbor and grab dinner at Cheesecake Factory. We got there at 6pm and there was an hour wait for a table. We waited outside on the steps watching the boats and people walk by. Our waiter was a little weird but very, very good. After dinner the kids begged for a boat ride on the Dragon boats (paddle boats). It was fun! Then off to bed.

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

Friday arrived too soon! After breakfast we headed over to the Maryland Science Center. The line to get in was ridiculously long and the kids were being quite whiny. When we finally got in, we headed to the kids room. They never wanted to leave! It's such a great place!!! For all the Aquarium gets the hype, the Science Center is amazing. Especially for little kids. We ate lunch in the cafeteria (another long line!) and then headed back to the kids room. We finally dragged the kids out so Zachary could nap. I put all 3 kids in our bed and turned on the Disney channel (and turned the lights off!). Zachary fell asleep and took another good nap.
Friday night we had tickets to the Yankees-Orioles game. We all got decked out in Yankees gear and headed over toward the stadium. It was definitely drizzling out. We stopped at a restaurant across the street from the stadium and got dinner. While we were there, we learned that the game was rained out. We walked the kids over to the stadium so they could see it and then walked back to the hotel.
I decided to let them watch Disney Channel and ordered ice cream from room service. They got a little hyped up and stayed up too late but we all enjoyed ourselves.
Saturday morning we ate breakfast, packed up, and headed home. It drizzled the whole way home on Saturday.
Overall an enjoyable trip!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

1. For any road trip over an hour, travel books and games are necessary!
2. When our minivan finally dies (hopefully we have a few more years left!), we might be better off NOT getting a car DVD player and instead giving each child the ability to control his/her own entertainment. Finding a movie that made everyone happy was not always easy!
3. Afternoon nap in the hotel goes better with lights out and a movie on. That keeps the big kids entertained enough that they'll stay quiet and it keeps Zachary still enough that he'll fall asleep!
4. We're not ready to make a long road trip. Flying is worth the cost! (For us!)
5. The key to an enjoyable family vacation is to get the kids OUT of the room early in the morning. They did NOT do well hanging out in the room in the morning. That's why Disney is good for us. The parks open early enough to get us out and moving.

I'm sure there's more but that's what I can think of for now...

Amanda

 

[Dsnygrl1205]

Sounds like a great weekend in Baltimore! We love the aquarium and science center there and we always eat at the Cheesecake Factory when we go. It's one of my favorite weekend getaway spots!

 

[natebenma]

Sounds like you had a nice family weekend in Baltimore. Does the family membership package you purchased have reciprocal privelges at any local places for you?

 

[DrMomof3]

Sounds like a great weekend in Baltimore! We love the aquarium and science center there and we always eat at the Cheesecake Factory when we go. It's one of my favorite weekend getaway spots!

Too funny that we did all of your must-dos! I really liked living in Baltimore.

Sounds like you had a nice family weekend in Baltimore. Does the family membership package you purchased have reciprocal privelges at any local places for you?

I'll have to check Dee. We don't have a children's museum near us and we are already members at the Bronx Zoo. We'll likely be back in Baltimore another weekend since we all enjoyed it.

Amanda

 

[-Hope-]

Sounds like a great trip! Glad you guys had a good time.

Somehow technology is never what keeps my kids happy in the car (despite the fact that they are techno junkies at home). A few years ago my mom bought the kids individual dvd players before a trip to Colorado. 14 hours in the van each way and they each watched on movie. Travel games, coloring books/drawing paper, and small toys have always work best for us.

I love that you have a list of "lessons learned". I try to learn something from each trip we take (sometimes even day trips) so travel gets easier and easier.