A skeptical family of First-Timers take on WDW Nov 15-22** NOV 28 update

[NikitaZee]

We did the Kim Possible Mission once and my kids loved it. Ours was in Germany - there was a great little surprise at the end.
My challenge this trip is to do some new things. We have gone with the kids 5 times, and it really doesn't get old, but there are a couple of new things we're trying. One is the nightly movie at the Polynesian - actually I think it's between the Polynesian and the Grand Floridian, with roasted marshmallows and s'mores over the fire pit. We're going mid-November, so there will be a couple of early closing nights at MK and I think that'll be fun.
We're also going to rent a cabana for a half day at the Polynesian. They look so nice and inviting.

 

[disneylovin24]

So....Final Thoughts:
1. I figured Disney would be cool after reading Dis and the guide books but it was WAY BETTER than I expected.

So happy you loved it Im sure you are really going to enjoy it when you see how much your kids do!


2. The Value resorts (or at least Music) was perfectly clean and nice and acceptable

They are definetely clean and acceptable but just wait untill after you stay at the Poly I have no problems with the Values but I think we have always been deluxe peoople because we spend a lot of time just relaxing at our resort.

3. AK was spectacular, I have no idea why people don't like it?

I wouldn't say I don't like it, it's just noy my favorite park. I do enjoy it more then DHS. For me though, you just can't beat EPCOT and MK AK does have some great rides though!

4. Soarin and Toy Story are VERY over-rated. Cool and I'd do again, but WAY NOT the best attractions at Disney.

I havent been on Toy Story yet but Soarin is one of my personal favorites.

5. One of the biggest surprises was that I usually miss my family dreadfully when I don't see them for a day or two, but I didn't even think about them because I had sooooo much fun I might have only called or texted hubster 2 or 3 times!

How can you find time to miss you family when your doing Disney in 2 days

6. The biggest surprise of all though was that I honestly went into this "preview" trip to scope out the locations of rides and such for my kids and I HONESTLY didn't think I'd "ride" anything. After riding my first attraction I knew this was no Six-Flags and I WANTED to do all the rides. I really really thought it would be like Six-Flags types of rides but cleaner.

Im not a Six Flags type of ride person either but I LOVE LOVE LOVE all of the WDW rides.

7. I LOVED WDW, all 4 parks, and I can't wait for November!!!!! WDW was way cleaner, friendlier, and much more magical than I had ever imagined!


]

 

[FosterA]

Loved your mini trip report! I think you will come to find that your regrets aren't really regrets. I don't think November will be your last time at WDW. I think your family will love it and you will go back, so anything you miss, you'll be able to see "the next time".

Fantasmic - I would say see it and get the dining package. That takes about 1 hour of waiting and a lot of stress out of your day. We did Brown Derby (but you don't have to go that expensive). They make the dinner reservations early so you'll have plenty of time to enjoy the rest of DHS before the Fantasmic show. You don't have to get to the arena until 30 minutes before (rather than 90 minutes, just to ensure a seat). You get pretty much prime seating (ours was a little to the right, mid-ways up). And it really is a must-see Disney show. Do it!!

I am sooo looking forward to seeing Fantasmic. As of now, I have not reserved a dining pkg. I plotted out a schedule, more or less, and I think the day we plan on doing it, there will be 2 showings. I hope anyway. The thing is that we would need to do the second later showing and I don't think that one is covered in the dining pkg. I may be wrong on that of course. Either way...thanks for bringing that up, I may need to look back into it.

 

[FosterA]

We did the Kim Possible Mission once and my kids loved it. Ours was in Germany - there was a great little surprise at the end.
My challenge this trip is to do some new things. We have gone with the kids 5 times, and it really doesn't get old, but there are a couple of new things we're trying. One is the nightly movie at the Polynesian - actually I think it's between the Polynesian and the Grand Floridian, with roasted marshmallows and s'mores over the fire pit. We're going mid-November, so there will be a couple of early closing nights at MK and I think that'll be fun.
We're also going to rent a cabana for a half day at the Polynesian. They look so nice and inviting.

I also am totally loving the idea of the movie and smores! I read about that somewhere else on the Dis and made a little mental note of that idea. Sounds like a perfect relaxing night!!
The Cabana sounds good too!
Have a great trip!

 

[Cin]

I'm in too. Ha ha my hubby was the same way in his knowledge of Disneyworld, or should I say lack thereof. He thought it was an overpriced Six Flags and "for little kids" and told me he didn't want to know anything beforehand and grumbled. About day 4 of our vacation he commented he wished he had let me tell him about WDW. By the time we came home after 7 days he was saying "that Disney man was a genius". It was his first trip too.

 

[FosterA]

I'm in too. Ha ha my hubby was the same way in his knowledge of Disneyworld, or should I say lack thereof. He thought it was an overpriced Six Flags and "for little kids" and told me he didn't want to know anything beforehand and grumbled. About day 4 of our vacation he commented he wished he had let me tell him about WDW. By the time we came home after 7 days he was saying "that Disney man was a genius". It was his first trip too.

Oh Goodie, there is hope for David then!!
So has your husband since gone back a couple times? What attraction convinced him that this was no ordinary place?

Thanks for reading!

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

I'm in too. Ha ha my hubby was the same way in his knowledge of Disneyworld, or should I say lack thereof. He thought it was an overpriced Six Flags and "for little kids" and told me he didn't want to know anything beforehand and grumbled. About day 4 of our vacation he commented he wished he had let me tell him about WDW. By the time we came home after 7 days he was saying "that Disney man was a genius". It was his first trip too.

I have a feeling that's how my DF will be if I can ever get him there. He wants to do Day 1 by himself, so he can tour the park his way.... I'm not real excited about that idea, but I told him as long as he walked into the park with us and I could see his first reactions that I guess that would be okay.

 

[Cin]

He loved the technology in general and the attention to detail that Disney does so well. He was really taken by the dancing water fountains in EPCOT that are timed to the music. Also notice the twinkling lights in the sidewalk that go along with it. They are by the innoventions building. He must have liked Splash Mountain because the second time we rode, he took his phone out and starting taking video of the ride. He loved Rock N Rollercoaster and rode it several times back to back with an ear to ear smile. We haven't been back yet, it's only been 9 mos since we went and he does want to go again. He really wants to go to the Richard Petty Driving experience and drive a real race car. He also wants to play a round or two of golf and he loved lounging around at the pool bar sipping margaritas. He isn't really into the parks like I am but he did enjoy the details and theming and landscaping. We stayed at All Star Music (which I loved since it had giant guitars on our building and my hubby is a guitarist, which was why I requested that building) but we dined one night at Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, and my hubs fell in love with the resort there and said he definitely wants to stay there the next time. Yeah, he said "next time" meaning he wants to return!!!! I was so excited.

 

[Disney Freebird]

I enjoyed your "mini trip report inside a trip report". We're going in a couple of weeks, and I am so excited. You and your family will have an amazing time in November!! I can't wait to read that report!

 

[Chicago Mo]

you have to do this too!!!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=42072856#post42072856

 

[kylmac]

Aimee-I am so excited for you and your family! My kiddos are 9 and 12 and even though we have been to Disney quite a few times by now, they still get excited about going. Hopefully, your husband will be hooked. We ended joining the Disney Vacation Club as we were doing trips and cruises so it just makes sense to us. We also love Hawaii and with Aulani that was also a no brainer. You are going at a good time as well as the crowds should be lower and you will see plenty for the time you have there. We have never stayed at the Poly but I have always wanted to-did the luau and had a great time. Since you are a planner then you should have no problems-get fast passes and use them. Book your restaurants ahead of time but be flexible as well.
Can't wait to hear more!
Elizabeth
PS. I never went to Disney until I was in my 30's and I grew up in Georgia-we just never had the money (my father is a penny pincher as well).

 

[FosterA]

Thanks everybody for reading along and for all the great tips and sharing your stories!

Chicago Mo, I'll have to look into that link about Santa!

 

[Oliquig]

Joining in! Lookslike its going to be a great trip. My niece will be 11 when we go, she's been once before, but your kids aren't too old at all. I'm pretty sure everyone becomes 8 the moment they step through the gates.

 

[FosterA]

Joining in! Lookslike its going to be a great trip. My niece will be 11 when we go, she's been once before, but your kids aren't too old at all. I'm pretty sure everyone becomes 8 the moment they step through the gates.

Thanks for joining in!!
I'll have to go take a look at your report too

We've been on a little beach tip the last few days and I'm just now getting settled back in. I hope to add to my report in the next day or two to keep you all filled in

 

[guitarob]

Joining in! Lookslike its going to be a great trip. My niece will be 11 when we go, she's been once before, but your kids aren't too old at all. I'm pretty sure everyone becomes 8 the moment they step through the gates.

Very true. I definitely become the world's oldest 6 year old. But with me, it starts about a day before we leave, and doesn't end until we get on the plane to come home

That's part of what is so great about WDW. It lets (makes) you become a kid again.

 

[FosterA]

Well Hello Everybody

Today I went on the Disney site to check out some things and it said 99 DAYS UNTIL VACATION I guess you would say I'm in the double digits now! finally!! I figured this would be a good day to update my report.


So far I've really just shared my little mini-trip report about my "scouting" trip back in February. Now I'll move on a little more into the here and now. I'm going to take any and all advice I can get from you experts because I am in no way experienced with this Disney thing!


Like i said before, I scored a bounceback offer when I went in Feb and applied that to my upcoming Nov. trip. It will cover 40% off the 15th-19th at the Poly but we will be paying the 20th and 21st at rack rate. yuck! There's been a lot of excitement on the boards lately about the free dining being extended and I thought long and hard about taking that offer instead but I really don't think it's a good idea. The Dining Plan just doesn't really fit our family well and I still think I did pretty good with the 40% off most of our nights so I think I'll stick with that. I am keeping my eyes peeled for a PIN code or something that may include Nov 20 and 21 but I'm pretty sure those wont be included in any specials since I believe they are "holiday pricing".
So....I just need to be satisfied with my bounceback offer for 5 of my 7 nights. I worked the numbers once and I think it saved us about $900. pretty nice

Now, I did score EXCELLENT plane tix last month. I had been stalking Orbitz and all the other sites and was getting very discouraged because flights are soooo high. When I went in Feb, I flew Jet Blue and it was $250 total and that included taxes and fees. So, I was using that as my "baseline" more or less and was really hoping to find something like that again. Well no such luck! Everything I saw was more in the $380 and up roundtrip range per person. I was really starting to stress. Not only that, but these high priced tix were for un-desirable hours too like getting in very late and leaving very early. Ick!
Well one morning I got up and plugged in my dates and departure city into Orbitz and up popped $180 apiece!! I couldn't believe my eyes. A full $200 LESS than what it's been all along. Like I said, it was very early and I was still sipping coffee so I made my daughter come read the screen for me to make sure I wasn't seeing something wrong. I was like "$180!!", everything has been at the very least $380 up until then. Not only was the $180 roundtrip an excellent price, it was decent times too! We depart Austin at 7 am. and land in Orlando at noonish and the way back we leave Orlando at noonish and get back to Austin at 4 pm ish. One layover in Houston for maybe 45 minutes. Leaving at 7 a.m is sort of early with having to be there 2 hours ahead of time and such but it still beat the 5:45 departure times I had been looking at!
Needless to say, I grabbed my credit card and bought these tickets! yippee. That obstacle had been crossed. It was so weird to see that low price because not an hour later it was gone and everything was waaaay back up there again. I'm so glad I jumped on it while I did.
So at this point, I had my room and park tickets ordered and got 40% off most of our nights. I have my plane tix bought at an excellent price. All is good. Now, it's just save the $ up for food!

I'm going to write another chapter in a little bit with what ADRs we have and sort of a rough itinerary because I want ya'll to look at it and tell me if anything needs to be tweaked or if I'm forgetting something obvious!

I also need help with possibly requesting a building/room at Poly. I know there is no guarantee but it sure would be nice to get an upper level room with balcony maybe overlooking pool or what about overlooking marina? Not really sure and am open for suggestions.

 

[PixieMama]

Wow, you scored a great deal on airfare! Yippee!

 

[swwake]

Hooray for great airfare! I'm assuming Continental, since you're going through Houston. Or is it Southwest? Our airfare was ridiculously expensive, but I am constantly watching, hoping it will come down.

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

Sweet deal on the plane tickets! Someone was sending you some Disney .

 

[disneylovin24]

YAY for that deal on the plane tickets! That is crazy that the price popped up the few seconds you were on!