A Disney-addicted mom plans a trip in August, 2010! *New pics #574*

[3princesses+aprince]

Umm, I know exactly what you mean. We landed in Orlando 1 hour ago on this day last year. We were all checked in to our rooms by 10:30am, so we were probably standing in the lobby right now 1 year ago. I'm missing too, trust me!!!! Good thing I have another trip to look forward too, or i'd probably be deeply depressed this week

 

[klacey1]

Don't worry, Amanda! You'll be there soon! At least you have at least one trip in the very near future to look forward to!
You just have to occupy yourself with lots of little trip planning things-- that'll stop the antsy-ness!

 

[DrMomof3]

Umm, I know exactly what you mean. We landed in Orlando 1 hour ago on this day last year. We were all checked in to our rooms by 10:30am, so we were probably standing in the lobby right now 1 year ago. I'm missing too, trust me!!!! Good thing I have another trip to look forward too, or i'd probably be deeply depressed this week

I know! If I weren't planning a trip in the not-so-distant future, I'd be SO sad!!!

Don't worry, Amanda! You'll be there soon! At least you have at least one trip in the very near future to look forward to!
You just have to occupy yourself with lots of little trip planning things-- that'll stop the antsy-ness!

Good point!

I'm obsessing over airfare right now and all I can say is that it sucks!!! Way too much $$$. We can fly Southwest from an airport 1.5 hrs away for "only" $1500. And that's the best I can do without changing planes. I'm not willing to change planes for a 2.5 hour flight with 3 little kids. I'm waiting another week or so to see if Jet Blue decides to have a summer sale. Otherwise SW it is.

Amanda

 

[lexmas]

I'm obsessing over airfare right now and all I can say is that it sucks!!! Way too much $$$. We can fly Southwest from an airport 1.5 hrs away for "only" $1500. And that's the best I can do without changing planes. I'm not willing to change planes for a 2.5 hour flight with 3 little kids. I'm waiting another week or so to see if Jet Blue decides to have a summer sale. Otherwise SW it is.

Amanda

Airfare is just crazy now. And I can't imagine airfare for 5...and all your kids are over 2 so you absolutely have to buy a ticket anyway, huh. That's just no fun. I can forsee myself driving at some point in the future for just this reason. It's a 24 hour drive, but it's just so expensive I won't be able to justify it at some point! I'm crossing my fingers for you that Jet Blue comes out with a sale!

 

[DrMomof3]

Airfare is just crazy now. And I can't imagine airfare for 5...and all your kids are over 2 so you absolutely have to buy a ticket anyway, huh. That's just no fun. I can forsee myself driving at some point in the future for just this reason. It's a 24 hour drive, but it's just so expensive I won't be able to justify it at some point! I'm crossing my fingers for you that Jet Blue comes out with a sale!

I just don't want a repeat of our trip to Maine last summer. It was an 8 hour drive and was NOT a fun trip. Between the frequent "emergency" bathroom breaks and the poop explosion (too gross to explain further), I'm not sure my DH will ever take another road trip!

What do y'all think about this?
Someone on the transportation board suggested taking a late flight to MCO and then spending the first night at the Hyatt in the airport. The late flight on Saturday night is much cheaper! The Hyatt seems to be $112 for the night. Then we could fly JetBlue out of White Plains (10 min drive) for $1550.
I haven't run it by Tom yet....

Amanda

 

[dismagiclover]

What do y'all think about this?
Someone on the transportation board suggested taking a late flight to MCO and then spending the first night at the Hyatt in the airport. The late flight on Saturday night is much cheaper! The Hyatt seems to be $112 for the night. Then we could fly JetBlue out of White Plains (10 min drive) for $1550.
I haven't run it by Tom yet....

Amanda

I think this sounds like a great plan. You get the quick drive to the airport, flying JetBlue with the leather seats and the television for all, and the ability to arrive at Disney bright and early in the morning. You probably already know this, but you should still be able to use Magical Express too. Just give them the earliest flight arrival time to MCO for Sunday morning (I bet those red eyes from the west coast get in early). You will have to schlepp your own luggage, but I'd still say go for it!

 

[DrMomof3]

I think this sounds like a great plan. You get the quick drive to the airport, flying JetBlue with the leather seats and the television for all, and the ability to arrive at Disney bright and early in the morning. You probably already know this, but you should still be able to use Magical Express too. Just give them the earliest flight arrival time to MCO for Sunday morning (I bet those red eyes from the west coast get in early). You will have to schlepp your own luggage, but I'd still say go for it!

Thanks Jenny. The only issue now is whether we'll be allowed to have a family of 5 in one hotel room....

In other news....

I am a C25K graduate!!!!

Not that I'm actually running 5K in 30 minutes. But I finished the program!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

OMG! I just realized something....

100 DAYS!!!!

That's right. We'll be at Disney in 100 days!

Amanda

 

[dismagiclover]

Thanks Jenny. The only issue now is whether we'll be allowed to have a family of 5 in one hotel room....

In other news....

I am a C25K graduate!!!!

Not that I'm actually running 5K in 30 minutes. But I finished the program!

Amanda

Congratulations! That is awesome news. I wouldn't worry too much about occupancy. Your kids are little enough that 5 in the airport hotel room for one night shouldn't be a problem.

 

[DrMomof3]

Congratulations! That is awesome news. I wouldn't worry too much about occupancy. Your kids are little enough that 5 in the airport hotel room for one night shouldn't be a problem.

Thanks!

The evening JetBlue flight got more expensive overnight. As did the JetBlue return flight. That's no longer a viable option unless they have a sale. I'm thinking about staying in one of the Islip Airport hotels on Saturday night so we can take the 7:35am flight on Sunday morning. That way we'll still get a decent day (even if it's a resort/swimming day) on Sunday. The other option has us landing at 3:40pm in MCO on Sunday. By the time we get to the hotel, it'll be dinner time. What to do???

Amanda

 

[lexmas]

Congrats! On both accounts! 100 days AND the C25K! You should be thrilled!

 

[DrMomof3]

Congrats! On both accounts! 100 days AND the C25K! You should be thrilled!

Thank you! We're down to double digits!!!

Amanda

 

[-Hope-]

Wow- less than 100 days!! That's so awesome.

And the C25K is amazing! You must be so proud of yourself!

 

[klacey1]

Ah, I wouldn't be too upset about not being able to fly out of Westchester. The NYC airports are a pain to get to, but last year, we had a horrible experience that made me swear off both Delta AND the White Plains airport! I would have paid for a town car to LaGuardia or JFK and gotten up an hour earlier not to go through the experience we had!
I do hope the fares go down for you-- $1500 just seems SO high!

ETA: WOO HOO for double digits!! Congrats on completing the program, too!!

 

[BabyEeyore]

I am a C25K graduate!!!!

Not that I'm actually running 5K in 30 minutes. But I finished the program!

Amanda

YAY!!!

OMG! I just realized something....

100 DAYS!!!!

That's right. We'll be at Disney in 100 days!

Amanda

ALSO YAY (especially now that you're in the double digits)!!!

 

[DrMomof3]

I'm really close to booking our airline tickets. Here's the new plan: we're going to fly Southwest on Saturday afternoon/evening. The flight lands around dinner time. I have a discount code for $25 off per ticket which makes the flights about $1400. Not cheap but the best I've found with a direct flight. With the 40% off room discount, I think we might do a split-stay and spend the 1st night at someplace cheaper than BCV and then move to BCV the next morning.
Now I need some opinions on where to stay. Criteria: Must have queen beds and sleep 5 (although technically Zachary doesn't count).
DH would normally not let me stay at either WL or AKL because it's all buses (except boat to MK from WL) so I'm leaning towards those 2. I think touringplans.com recommends AK on Sunday so maybe we should stay there? The bus to AK from AKL should be easy. I'm also considering Contemporary (but we've stayed there before) or CSR (but not sure if my DH will like it). Opinions????
I'm getting SO excited. I think I'm going to book the plane tickets tonight once the kids are in bed.

Amanda

 

[-Hope-]

Did you know that if Southwest's fares go down between now and your trip you can get the lower price? I read it here on the DIS and then double checked their site and sure enough, it's true! So watch for last minute deals because sometimes if flights aren't sold out they offer discounts.

 

[lexmas]

So, did you book your airfare? I want a $25 off code, how did you possibly get that?

As for hotels, I am a little bit that AKL and WL are your "budget" hotels. But if you're going to AK on Sunday and don't want a long bus ride, then I think AKL would be perfect. Plus, it's just so pretty! I'm pretty sure WL is much cheaper though, if that factors in.

 

[DrMomof3]

Did you know that if Southwest's fares go down between now and your trip you can get the lower price? I read it here on the DIS and then double checked their site and sure enough, it's true! So watch for last minute deals because sometimes if flights aren't sold out they offer discounts.

Thanks Hope! I had read that here. I've become fanatical about checking the airline websites!!!

So, did you book your airfare? I want a $25 off code, how did you possibly get that?
There's a link somewhere in the transportation section. It's a Florida vacation thing. You click on the Southwest thing and they email you a discount code. I know my explanation isn't great but it was easy and I got my discount code within 24 hours!


As for hotels, I am a little bit that AKL and WL are your "budget" hotels. But if you're going to AK on Sunday and don't want a long bus ride, then I think AKL would be perfect. Plus, it's just so pretty! I'm pretty sure WL is much cheaper though, if that factors in.

Not budget at all! But I was willing to spend $150 to stay at the Hyatt at the airport (it was going to be a little cheaper than that) or $150 to stay in a hotel in Islip for an early morning flight. Why not spend $200 and stay on Disney property??? I may still choose CSR because it's a lot less. On the other hand I've always wanted to try WL and/or AKL and DH is totally against it (in general). He's all about convenience (re: NOT buses and no rental car) so staying at resorts that are dependent on buses (I know - boat to MK but that's not an easy sell) is not really going to work. For this "bonus" night, I get to choose! And I'm excited about that. The most responsible thing to do is to choose CSR. On the other hand I've been doing lots of online surveys to get Disney gift cards and I've almost earned enough for one $25 gift card. I should have at least 2 or maybe 3 gift cards by our trip. That's the $75 between CSR and AKL!!!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

I paid $1422 for airfare. It's still less than $300 per person which isn't terrible. We leave Islip at 3:10pm and arrive at 5:50pm. Not sure if we should just eat dinner at the airport before taking ME or wait until we get to the hotel. A part of me was thinking that if we end up at AKL, we could finally try Boma. On the other hand I think the kids will be exhausted and starving so we might be better off just getting QS or eating at the airport. If we ended up at WL, Whispering Canyon sounds interesting but, again, it'll be late. And since my family doesn't eat pork (except me - they don't know what they're missing!), the platter is not an option.
I'm always happy to hear opinions!
Touring Plans definitely recommends AK on Sunday. In fact, all 3 other parks are on the "avoid" list. I think the stars are aligning to tell me AKL! If I end up at WL, we'd do MK on Sunday anyway. The crowd calendar only gives the day a 4 so we should be ok whatever we choose (apparently the local schools start the next day).
My other excitement is that I now get to make an ADR for dinner on Sunday. I'm leaning towards the Mexican restaurant. We had a lovely dinner there last year and the kids have fond memories. Which means this time it'll probably be a disaster, right?
We could eat along the Boardwalk, too. I can start researching it. HOORAY!
I can't believe I got an "extra" day to our vacation. I really like the idea of arriving the evening before and starting fresh the 1st day. And these flights aren't SO late that the kids will be exhausted. No early morning wake-up (I hate getting up at 4am for vacation!).

Amanda