Abd balance paid! Woo

[HappyGrumpy]

Paid off our Quest for the West trip yesterday. Aug 25 to the 31 and we so excited! First ABD so I am looking forward to seeing if we fall in love with it like we have DCL. I love Disney coolaid

 

[Tozzie]

Paid off our Quest for the West trip yesterday. Aug 25 to the 31 and we so excited! First ABD so I am looking forward to seeing if we fall in love with it like we have DCL. I love Disney coolaid

Congrats and have a great trip!!!!!

 

[tksbaskets]

Paid off our Quest for the West trip yesterday. Aug 25 to the 31 and we so excited! First ABD so I am looking forward to seeing if we fall in love with it like we have DCL. I love Disney coolaid

LOL I'm right there with you! We are going on the Aug 2nd Quest for the West. It is also our first ABD trip. As you can see by my sig we love DCL too. Now we are frightened we'll have such a good time we'll want to go on another ABD trip. Cha-ching!

 

[sayhello]

LOL I'm right there with you! We are going on the Aug 2nd Quest for the West. It is also our first ABD trip. As you can see by my sig we love DCL too. Now we are frightened we'll have such a good time we'll want to go on another ABD trip. Cha-ching!

I'm sorry to tell you, it's almost a certainty! Once you experience ABD, you'll want to do it over & over again! I am!

Sayhello

 

[tksbaskets]

I'm sorry to tell you, it's almost a certainty! Once you experience ABD, you'll want to do it over & over again! I am!

Sayhello

Loved your trip report. What type of shoes did you bring? I noticed you had a bit of hiking on your adventure too.

I'm worried I'll be infected with 'Adventure-itis'!

 

[HappyGrumpy]

LOL I'm right there with you! We are going on the Aug 2nd Quest for the West. It is also our first ABD trip. As you can see by my sig we love DCL too. Now we are frightened we'll have such a good time we'll want to go on another ABD trip. Cha-ching!

Cha-ching is right! We are so back and forth on buying a DVC so we can use the points for all of it but after all my research it seems that that is not the best way to maximize the points for their value. Regardless the mouse is getting my money and I gladly hand it over to him!

 

[tksbaskets]

Cha-ching is right! We are so back and forth on buying a DVC so we can use the points for all of it but after all my research it seems that that is not the best way to maximize the points for their value. Regardless the mouse is getting my money and I gladly hand it over to him!

We do the same with our points. We have not used them for DCL or ABD. I too open my purse and let the dollars fly to Mickey. We'll save money when our sons don't go with us any more (they are 18 now) Both have assured us that they will continue to cruise with us

 

[sayhello]

Loved your trip report. What type of shoes did you bring? I noticed you had a bit of hiking on your adventure too.

I'm worried I'll be infected with 'Adventure-itis'!

Thanks, tksbaskets, glad you enjoyed the report!

I carried 3 pairs of shoes. For "normal" walking around, I used either my New Balance walking athletic shoes or a pair of Keen sandals (the sandals also worked perfectly for the rafting day). Both are extremely comfortable & supportive.

For the actual hiking, I have a pair of New Balance hikers. The ones I linked to aren't the exact ones I have, but they're the same idea. They are suede, and have a nice, luggy sole that has a lot of tread, but are very light & built like athletic shoes.

Adventure-itis. Sounds correct. Highly contagious.

Sayhello

 

[tksbaskets]

Thanks for the shoe tips. I've got time to order and break them in. Perhaps the proper footwear will stave off Adventure-itis

 

[kristilew]

As long as we're back on shoes....I've been searching and test-walking for a month and have found these awesome shoes http://http://www.zappos.com/product/7569837/color/56934 by Privo. Soooo cushy, great traction, and little massage bubbles on the insole. They're going with me to Paris next week and definitely on the Southwest trip. Not good for a serious hike, but just about everything else.

For hiking boots, still love my Vaques http://www.zappos.com/product/7135243/color/1679.

I've about given up on a "light hiker" though still testing a pair of Merrills.

 

[HappyGrumpy]

As long as we're back on shoes....I've been searching and test-walking for a month and have found these awesome shoes http://http://www.zappos.com/product/7569837/color/56934 by Privo. Soooo cushy, great traction, and little massage bubbles on the insole. They're going with me to Paris next week and definitely on the Southwest trip. Not good for a serious hike, but just about everything else.

For hiking boots, still love my Vaques http://www.zappos.com/product/7135243/color/1679.

I've about given up on a "light hiker" though still testing a pair of Merrills.

OMG I though I was the only person who discovered Privo and love them over Merril! They are all I wear now. I have 3 pair of flip flops and 2 pair of the "kloe" I had planters faciitus last year and I could not wear anything but Privo. They are AMAZING!! Zappos is the bomb!

 

[LoveMickey]

Kind of off the topic, but have you looked at the Web Cam for Brooks Lake Lodged? They still have snow.

 

[glassslipper2004]

On the shoe topic, I bought myself and DD11 North Face light hikers. They are blue (#1 priority in getting myself to buy shoes I am almost never going to wear) and promise to be quite a bit sturdier than the old tennis sneakers I would otherwise be stuck with. The thing that pushed me over the edge was that I was able to buy them in kids' sizes (only a 4 - how is that possible?) so they were a lot cheaper than the adult ones. DD11 likes them quite well, but I haven't worn them much yet.

Sayhello, do we need to have hikers on for the first day of Southwest Splendors, or will walking sandals do?

 

[sayhello]

Sayhello, do we need to have hikers on for the first day of Southwest Splendors, or will walking sandals do?

First day is the trip from Phoenix to Sedona, with a stop at Montezuma's Castle. Walking sandals will be perfectly fine for that. Dinner is at the hotel, so you won't even have to do the "hike" from the hotel up to street level for town. (The hotel is "sunk" into a river ravine, so it's a bit of an uphill schlep up the driveway to get to the main drag). But I'm joking there, as you can do it easily in normal shoes.

Walking sandals would be perfect for the first day.

Sayhello

 

[glassslipper2004]

Thanks! I know from last summer that the guides do a good job warning you the night before about what you will need the next day, but with this trip you just start right out so I wasn't sure how to plan. No need to wear sneakers on the plane if I don't have to, was my thinking.

Just two more months to go!

 

[kristilew]

SayHello, thanks for being the official keeper of Southwest Splendors wisdom! I was going to ask the same question about the first day. From what I can tell, it looks like the only days we'd really want our hiking boots is the Delicate Arch hike and the Grand Canyon day. Was that your experience?

Also, am I reading the booklet correctly that there is a day where we spend three hours on the bus twice? It was hard to tell if it was one long stretch or two.

TIA!

 

[glassslipper2004]

Sayhello, I think Disney owes you a referral bonus - you are definitely one of the people whose comments enticed me to take the Southwest Splendors trip!

 

[LoveMickey]

OOps - sorry I thought this was a Quest for the West thread.

Have a good day.

 

[sayhello]

SayHello, thanks for being the official keeper of Southwest Splendors wisdom! I was going to ask the same question about the first day. From what I can tell, it looks like the only days we'd really want our hiking boots is the Delicate Arch hike and the Grand Canyon day. Was that your experience?

Also, am I reading the booklet correctly that there is a day where we spend three hours on the bus twice? It was hard to tell if it was one long stretch or two.

TIA!

Heheheheh! I enjoy spreading the Southwest Splendors love!!!!

I, personally, wore my hikers on the day we went to Red Rock State Park, but they really weren't necessary. Just be careful not to wear something that might get stained, because the ground really is red! But yes, besides that, the only day you'd need the hiking shoes would be Delicate Arch (definitely, in my opinion) and the Grand Canyon, but only if you plan on hiking down into the Canyon at all. Most of the organized stuff was up on the Rim, not down in the Canyon.

And yes. The day you go from the Canyon to Moab is a *long* day. A 3 hour drive, then a stop in Monument Valley for a couple of hours, and then 3 more hours to the Red Cliffs Lodge. But the stop in Monument Valley is really great, and a lot of fun, and breaks the day up nicely. And the scenery on the way is just so phenomenally incredible! I never knew the desert could look that beautiful & spectacular. I wouldn't say the time flew, but it sure wasn't boring!

Sayhello, I think Disney owes you a referral bonus - you are definitely one of the people whose comments enticed me to take the Southwest Splendors trip!

Be sure and tell ABD that!!!! I sure hope you have Chris or Chery or Mike (our shadow guide). They were all fabulous. But I hear that about all the guides!

Thanks! I know from last summer that the guides do a good job warning you the night before about what you will need the next day, but with this trip you just start right out so I wasn't sure how to plan. No need to wear sneakers on the plane if I don't have to, was my thinking.

Just two more months to go!

Yep. It's a day to be comfortable, no doubt about it.

I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but you are going to *LOVE* this trip!

Sayhello