A year without Disney? Who am I kidding?!(a PTR) LINK TO TR!

[DisneyCrafter]

Just another short update to share with you!

We officially changed our dates for our September/October trip to September 30-October 10. I'm hoping FD gets announced soon but I'm doubtful. We can make ADR's this coming Saturday so I am going to sit down this afternoon and really lay out an itinerary and decided where/when we want to eat.

I have the TP's finished for the short weekend girl's trip I am taking with my sister over Easter. I will share those with you soon as well.

Hope everyone's week is off to a great start!

 

[Mommy2LittleVols]

YAY for a girls weekend! You guys are going to have a wonderful time!

Your treat from Goofy's is making my mouth water. Yum!

Great idea to watch Wishes from the Poly. Very romantic!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

What a great way to spend the evening! I'm so glad you got to experience so many Disney things before the cruise.

 

[DisneyCrafter]

YAY for a girls weekend! You guys are going to have a wonderful time!

Your treat from Goofy's is making my mouth water. Yum!

Great idea to watch Wishes from the Poly. Very romantic!

I think my sister and I are going to have SO much fun. We always have a blast when we're together! But-did you hear about the problem with that Southwest flight? So NOT excited to ride on an airplane in less than 3 weeks with them. Ugh!

That treat from Goofy's was soooo good. I might have to try the pretzels next time. Yum!

What a great way to spend the evening! I'm so glad you got to experience so many Disney things before the cruise.

I am so happy we flew into Orlando 2 nights early so we could do Disney things for a day!

 

[Mommy2LittleVols]

Yes! I heard about the Southwest thing this morning. Very scary!!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Yes! I heard about the Southwest thing this morning. Very scary!!

My father in law had to fly Southwest yesterday. I would have been so nervous!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Cruise TR Day 3,Part I:
​

Our cruise officially began today! We woke up from yet another uncomfortable sleep and I looked out the window to be face to face with yet another gloomy day. I told myself several times before the trip that no matter the weather, we were going to enjoy our vacation. We both got ready, finished packing the few things that needed to be put in the suitcases, and loaded up the car. We then drove around to the front of the building for breakfast. Disappointment, again! Ah, well. We can’t be all that sad, the hotel was more than we could ask for at $50 a night!

After breakfast we programmed the GPS and we were off to Cape Canaveral! The drive didn’t take long, maybe 45 minutes. The drive was uneventful but at one point I was excited to see orange trees for the first time ever in my life. Ha ha! I was worried about the construction going on to repair a bridge from a tanker explosion a few weeks prior but it was really simple. You got off on an exit and right back on at that same exit. I suppose it would have been frustrating had there been lots of traffic but the words were pretty clear.

Eventually we saw the Budget building and then turned around to go back to the closest gas station to fill up. I had budgeted $50 for gas not knowing how much it would take and low and behold it filled up with only $11. I want that car! We did quite a bit of driving from Sunday evening to Monday morning and I was so surprised! We then drove back to budget a block or two away and returned the car. Side Story: Here is where I should have inquired further about why the charge was higher than I pre-paid online but I didn’t even look. (Bad idea.) When we got home I saw we ended up paying nearly $60 more because “we” pressed yes for full coverage insurance. I CLEARLY remember telling Greg and looking at the screen while Greg pressed NO to the coverage. But, alas, we paid it and moved on with our lives. Anywho, back to the fun!

The shuttle came to pick us up after about 5 minutes and the driver was a very nice gentleman who happened to live in the Midwest years ago so we had a nice chat about our (then) recent snow storm and he told us that the weather was supposed to be very nice that week. By this point, the sun had come out and it was getting warmer! Good news for us!

He dropped us off at the port and we handed our luggage over to the workers there and were on our way. We had to show our passports and cruise documents to the people working at the front door and then we went through security. I had forgotten about a bottle of Coke that I put in my purse but apparently they didn’t care about it and it went through with no problems! We made our way up to the waiting area and sat for around 20 minutes before they started checking people in. We were one of the first 20 or so people in line for that (we had gotten to the terminal around 10:30a.m.) and in about 5 minutes we had our SeaPass cards! Guess what we had to do then? Go back and sit and WAIT! Oh boy! After about another 25 minutes we were FINALLY able to board the ship!!!

*continued in next post*

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Cruise TR, Day 3, Part II:​

This was the view we got when we walked onto the ship! It was nice but not as large as I was expecting. The entire centrum area was very small. I’m not sure what I was expecting, though, because this ship is one of Royal Caribbean’s smallest AND oldest.

It was only around 11:30a.m. at this point so we decided to try and make our way up to the Windjammer Buffet as that is where they were serving lunch. Notice how I said TRY. The centrum elevators only bring you to floor 7 at the most and we needed to get to floor 11, how? Well, go back down to 5 and take the elevators through the doors that you enter to get to your cabin. Ohhhhh! Once we got it figured out we found a seat in the buffet area and ate our first meal of maybe 10000000 for the entire cruise.

After finishing our lunch we headed out to the pool area and ordered our first drink to celebrate officially being on the cruise!

It was windy, it was warm, and it was BUGGY! We last only around a half hour at most before we decided to go inside and find where our cabin was located and hope that we could be let in soon! Once, we found it we had to wait around 15 minutes before they let us in. Well, I’m not saying the picture and the actual size are the same but they are pretty close!!!

This picture was taken on our last night. We most definitely did not have our luggage yet and I was regretting not setting our suits aside because it was WARM! We decided just to grab our books and head back out to the deck and hope that when we went back to check in a little while our bags would be there. The next time we went back to check, there they were! At this point it was nearly time to head up to deck 7 for the standard safety speech they give. We attended that with a view of:

Disney taunting me again! Ugh! (For those that were wondering there were not Disney ships in port that day or on the day we returned, either.) After attending that, we went up to the pool for the sail away party.

It was nice to be in the action and we had quite a few laughs at those already feeling the effects of alcohol! Eventually we went back to the room to get ready for dinner and the show.

We attended the show before dinner if I remember correctly. It was actually quite nice. They had a guest comedian on this cruise and he was hilarious! We knew we would most definitely be coming back on Thursday afternoon for his show!

Once the show was through, we headed over to our dining room. (Or maybe we did go to dinner first, hmmm…)Because we had “My Time” dining we were never guaranteed to sit at the same table or be served by the same waiters each night but we were-except for the last night. Our first 3 nights we had FABULOUS waiters and the last night we were all but forgotten. I don’t have any food pictures as I was too nervous to take them and get weird stares. The food had great presentation and at best mediocre flavor at each meal. The best part of my meal the first night were the sourdough rolls, Caesar salad, and minestrone soup. Oh well, what can you expect for a $200 cruise for 4 nights including food?

After dinner I believe we headed back to our cabin and went to sleep. It was around 10p.m. this night and the excitement of the day had finally caught up with us! We were going to be at Royal Caribbean’s private island, Cococay the next day! (Or would we be? If the seas we rough we very well could miss it!)

 

[DisMomAmy]

I think my sister and I are going to have SO much fun. We always have a blast when we're together! But-did you hear about the problem with that Southwest flight? So NOT excited to ride on an airplane in less than 3 weeks with them. Ugh!

Just think of it as though Southwest will have the safest planes because they will have been so thoroughly inspected.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Yay for making it onto the ship!! I'm sorry the food was sub-par! But you got quite a deal!

 

[Joyciemc]

Excited for the cruise to start!
I think it's great that you were able to start off with a bit of time around WDW, if not in the parks!

Hope you made it to Coco Cay!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Yay for making it onto the ship!! I'm sorry the food was sub-par! But you got quite a deal!

It's okay about the food. We never went hungry-that's for sure!

Excited for the cruise to start!
I think it's great that you were able to start off with a bit of time around WDW, if not in the parks!

Hope you made it to Coco Cay!

Starting off at WDW definitely put us in a great frame of mind for our cruise!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Not that I already don't have enough on my plate, I decided to take an online (self-paced) course on being a travel agent. The library I work for offers a number of classes through UniversalClass for free! I think it's a great way for me to decided whether or not pursuing a travel agent license is right for me!

Anyway, my sister and I will be leaving for our weekend in Disney in just 2.5 weeks, so I though I would share our Touring Plans with you!

Magic Kingdom: Friday April 22
*M.S. Electrical Parade 10p.m., Wishes 11p.m.*
**Park open until 3a.m.**
Pirates of the Caribbean
Splash Mountain
Haunted Mansion
Philhar Magic
Space Mountain

On this day, our plane lands in Orlando around 1130a.m., we'll definitely yellow tag our luggage (if we check any) so we can head straight for ME. I'm sure the airport will be insanely crowded being a holiday weekend. We'll check in at Pop, have lunch and head over to the MK. It will probably be around 3p.m. at this point and I know the crowds will be intense so I don't have much on this list. Plus, I know my sister would like to see the parade and fireworks. If we get anything else accomplished this day, it will be a bonus. Also, I'm not sure we'll make it to 3a.m. but it's nice to know we do have all of that time if we need it.

Hollywood Studios: Saturday April 23
*Park opens at 8a.m.*
Rock’n Roller Coaster Fastpasses
Rock’n Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Toy Story Mania
Great Movie Ride
Tower of Terror Fastpasses
Rock’n Roller Coaster
Muppet Vision 3D
Tower of Terror

Being a holiday weekend, it is ESSENTIAL that we make it to the park for rope drop. We may end up going back to the room in the afternoon to take a nap, especially if we were out late the night before.

Epcot World Showcase: Saturday April 23
*Park open until 9p.m.*

I'm very excited to show my sister the World Showcase. She is especially excited about the Japan pavilion because I told her about the big store they have there. The plan this evening is to just walk around, eat, and shop!

Animal Kingdom: Sunday April 24
*Park opens at 8a.m.*
Expedition Everest Fastpasses
Expedition Everest
Safari
Dinosaur
Kali River Rapids Fastpasses
Expedition Everest
Maharajah Jungle Trek
It’s Tough to be a Bug/Festival of the Lion King
Kali River Rapids
Festival of the Lion King/It’s Tough to be a Bug

My sister is most excited about this park so I am very much looking forward to taking her here on this day. We'll make it for rope drop and spend as much time here as we need to-or that my sister would like to. I'm guessing we'll leave early to mid afternoon and then we'll go back to the resort for a swim or nap before heading out to another park for the evening.

Magic Kingdom: Sunday April 24
*Park open until 3a.m.*
Jungle Cruise
Pirates of the Caribbean
Splash Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Haunted Mansion
Space Mountain

Again, not much planned for this Magic Kingdom night, but between the two evenings we are spending here, I think it will be plenty of time to get the "must-dos" completed. I do have a small list of "If we have time..." I really just want my sister to pick what she'd like to do so we may be riding things like Space Mountain and Splash Mountain as many times as possible, she's a thrill ride JUNKIE!!

Hollywood Studios: Monday April 25
*Park opens at 8a.m.*
Rock’n Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror

I asked my sister if she could pick any park to visit again what would she pick and she said the one with Tower of Terror. (Did I mention it's her first visit?) Although I know she'll love Animal Kingdom, she loves thrill rides and those you can ride over and over and it never gets old. (You just get sick...) We'll plan on making it for rope drop and ride those each once before finally making it to...


Epcot Future World: Monday April 25
*Park opens at 9a.m.*
Soarin’ Fastpasses
Test Track
Spaceship Earth
Club Cool/Innoventions
Soarin’

I figure this is a good place to spend the rest of our day because there is lots to explore. I want to take her on Soarin' and Test Track obviously. We both say "nay" to Mission Space, I can't do the motion simulation and she can't do the confined space. I want to have her try Beverly and I know she'd love to do Sum of All Thrills, if possible. ME won't pick us up from Pop until about 6p.m. so we'll plan on leaving the park around 4p.m. to give us plenty of time to get back.

So as you can read, we're going to be tired, we're going to be constantly on the go, and I'm sure we'll have an argument or two, but we're going to have fun!!!

Coming up soon: Dining for April and Tentative Dining for September/October!


P.S. Here's a picture of my sister and I taken on my wedding day back in 2009:

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Since I just shared the Touring Plans with you for our Girls' Weekend Trip coming up in just 16 days, I'd thought I'd share with you my picks for food for the weekend as well. There will be no TS dining for a few reasons, number 1 being lack of time and 2 being cost. I still think that we will be eating very well! A lot of these I'm sure my sister will share with me or maybe she won't. She's convinced that she is going to spend the majority of the money she brings on souvenirs with food being an after thought. We'll see how THAT goes once she begins to see the amazing food there is available in WDW!

Friday:
Lunch: Chicken Penne Alfredo: Pop Food Court
Snack: Pineapple Dole Whip: Aloha Isle
Snack: Freshly Made Potato Chips with Cheese, Bacon, and Ranch: Friars Nook
Dinner: Hot Dog: Casey’s Corner
Snack: Cream Cheese Filled Pretzel: Lunching Pad
Snack: Ice Cream Float: Auntie Gravities

Saturday:
Lunch: Buffalo Chicken Sandwich: Studio Catering Company
Snack: Mozzarella Sticks & Frozen Drink: Boardwalk to Go Kiosk
Snack: Fiesta Margarita: Margarita Stand: Mexico Pavilion
Snack: Karmel Kuche: Germany Pavilion
Snack: Kaki Gori: Japan Pavilion
Dinner: Mediterranean Sliders Combo: Tangerine Café
Snack: Pastries: Boulangerie Patisserie
Snack: Grey Goose Slush: Les Vins de Chefs de France

Sunday:
Breakfast: Chai Freeze: Royal Anandapur Tea Company
Breakfast: French Toast Sticks: Tamu Tamu Refreshments
Lunch: BBQ Chicken Salad & Onion Rings Basket: Flame Tree BBQ
Dinner: Pepperoni Flatbread & Caesar Salad: Contempo Café

Monday:
Lunch: Tacos de Carne: La Cantina de San Angel
Dinner: Beef and Broccoli: Pop Food Court

I know it seems like a lot of snacking but planning things I'm going to eat when I'm in WDW is a big part of what gets me excited to go! Plus, I hope to have LOTS of food pictures! There are so many treats that I hope to try this trip as I never have room to eat them when I go with DH because we're always too full from the TS dining! Are there any snacks that you absolutely HAVE to have when you're in WDW or even something that you'd like to try on your next visit? Oh, I can't forget about my Mickey Head Icecream Bar, I ALWAYS get one of those in Hollywood Studios!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Your plans look good & your snacks look GREAT!! You're making me hungry!!

I love dole whip floats, Zach loves Kaki Gori & I loved visiting the caramel shop in Germany in January - can't believe I missed it in March!! That will be on the top of my list for November. Disney popcorn is always a must too.

 

[Joyciemc]

Your Easter trip sounds like so much fun! I think you've done a great job of planning around the crowds and showing your sister what WDW has to offer!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Your plans look good & your snacks look GREAT!! You're making me hungry!!

I love dole whip floats, Zach loves Kaki Gori & I loved visiting the caramel shop in Germany in January - can't believe I missed it in March!! That will be on the top of my list for November. Disney popcorn is always a must too.

I make myself hungry just looking at it. Yesterday, Greg texted me and was bragging about this lunch he had yesterday (that was free b/c the restaurant was advertising their grand re-opening after a fire) so I said that when I'm in Disney I'm going to take pictures of my food and sent it to him.

Your Easter trip sounds like so much fun! I think you've done a great job of planning around the crowds and showing your sister what WDW has to offer!

I just hope we can wake up in the morning after a short amount of sleep!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

How exciting that your trip is so soon! All of your plans sound great! I think you've made great use of the time that you have there. It looks like your sister is going to be able to see it all!

I love the food list, too. Those chips from Friar's Nook sound so good! I am definitely putting that on my list of things to try!

 

[DisneyFirefly]

I can't believe your trip is coming up so soon! Your plans look great so far Can't wait to hear about it when you get back!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

How exciting that your trip is so soon! All of your plans sound great! I think you've made great use of the time that you have there. It looks like your sister is going to be able to see it all!

I love the food list, too. Those chips from Friar's Nook sound so good! I am definitely putting that on my list of things to try!

I'm just worried about sleep at this point. If we go to the MK right when we get to WDW, we won't make it much past MSEP and Wishes, which are at 10pm and 11pm. If we choose to take a nap when we arrive and go to the MK later on, it may be nearly impossible to wake up to make rope drop for DHS on just a few hours of sleep. But if we stay late at MK we will most likely have a shorter wait time than we will if we arrive in the late afternoon. I think at this point, I'll just have to gauge it by how we're feeling.

I can't believe I didn't come across the chips before! I hope I'm hungry enough to try them! Yummy!

I can't believe your trip is coming up so soon! Your plans look great so far Can't wait to hear about it when you get back!

12 days! I think I'm annoying my sister because I sent her a "Disney tip of the day" text message every day. Ha! Ha! I'm not sure if I'll make a separate TR for the trip or if I'll just complete it on this PTR. I'll have to wait and see how I feel about keeping up with 2 threads.