AKL Bound...See you next Saturday!!!

[bertegirl]

Saturday, May 9th
Fly there

Sunday, May 10th ( Mother’s Day)
MGK
Crystal Palace 8:05
1900 Park Fare 4:50

Monday, May 11th
Photos at AKL 8:30
Epcot
Tutto Italia 12:15

Tuesday, May 12th
Pool
Kona 9:35

Wednesday, May 13th
AK
Jiko 7:30

Thursday, May 14th
DHS
Playhouse Disney 9:20???
Ohana 6:45

Friday, May 15th
Mgk
BBB 9:20
CRT 11:45

Saturday, May 16th
Fly home

 

[bertegirl]

So I am trying to find out information about the fireworks, spectro, etc. Not even sure what takes place where. Does anyone know when the calendar for May will come out?

 

[bertegirl]

Does anyone know if a 1 year old can go on any rides?

 

[bertegirl]

I am starting to worry about making our dining reservations. Hopefully the dates will be available when we call in December.

Still debating on AKL with view or WL? We just have no idea what to even expect when we get there. Maybe thats a good thing. We just keep hearing the WL might be easier with our 2 small children? Although I know my 4DD would love to see the animals each day.

 

[jmskinner]

Hi there! Just stumbled upon your PTR and thought I would join in. So, have you or your hubby been before, or is this a total newbie family?

There are a lot of rides you can take a one year old on. Especially in the MK, but all parks have them. My first trip to wDW was 2 years ago. The DH had been before, but not me and my DS. What I really fell in love with was the fact there were so many rides you could all do together. That was Walts vision.

Sorry, but can't help you choose a hotel. I haven't gotten the oppotunity to stay at one of the deluxes, but have visited both for the restaurants and they are both gorgeous. WL is closer to MK, so shorter travel times there. Plus you can take a boat or bus to it.

Oh, and WCC is probably my favorite restaurant. And your kids will love Chef Mickey's. Haven't tried the others.

Not sure when the new calendars come out. I would think it would be soon though.

If you have more questions, I would happy to answer them. Hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[Rebecuberduber]

Hi! You're going to love Disney! I'm not an expert on hotels and dining, but I just wanted to chime in to say our family dynamic is much like yours, a three-year-old and a one-year-old, and we had a blast!! Disney is so thoroughly kid-friendly, no matter what age of child. Our one-year-old loved it and keeps asking to go back, "waterfall? Ride horsie? No White?" She was 18 months when we went. It was such a magical experience and all the things I worried about with small children were absolutely no problem. Neither were too scared of any of the rides or characters. Even Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribean were fine for our two, but play it by ear with yours. Don't do these rides first thing. We also brought little Wallmart harnesses for the two to wear in lines and coming in and out of shows. You can't take strollers through lines or in shows, so it was nice to have a way to keep them close during these transitions. I heard a suggestion to bring bubbles to keep them entertained in lines. Bubbles are mess-free (mostly!) and can come in small bottles, easy to carry around. This was a wonderful thing to fall back on if the kids were getting cranky or impatient in line. Wow, I really didn't mean to rattle on like this. I just meant to encourage you that it's going to be great, and Disney with small children wasn't nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. It really wasn't difficult at all!

 

[bertegirl]

Thanks so much for all the great ideas. The bubbles is something I need to remember. We decided on the WL after lots and lots of reading last night. I think for the ages of our kids its the best bet. Nope, we have never been. I grew up in southern California so we have done disneyland. I have been told there is no comparison, especially in size so I am excited to get there. Has anyone used the Magical Express...anything we need to know? We are still waiting for Disney to get the dining reservations for May fixed and then we can make some reservations. I bought Disney Dining the book, so going to check out some of the other choices, too! I am glad to know the 4 of us can have fun. I found a harness once that looked more like a stuffed animal. Might need that for our 13 month old to be. Funny to think about since he is not even crawling yet. I am still trying to find out more about Sprectro. Read its a must do, but is it fireworks or a parade? Anyone know! Well the 6 month mark is getting closer. We are counting down the months days and minutes until our 1st Trip!!!

 

[jmskinner]

We did Magic Express on our first trip and loved it. They mail you tags for your luggage. You check your luggage in at your airport and don't see it again until you get to the hotel. Usually 3 or 4 hours after you arrive. So, don't pack anything you might need once you get to the hotel. As someone that now drives to the parks, I really miss the ME. It was so nice to look around and not have to worry about following signs to somewhere you have never been before. Just a couple of weeks ago I was trying to get to Typhoon Lagoon, and missed my turn and ended up in the Magic Kingdom parking lot.

I think the harnesses are a wonderful idea. Rebecuberduber was right about what happens when shows let out. Even my 9 year old will grab my hand after a show because he is afraid of losing me. Shows like Lights, Motor, Action; and Fantasmic seat thousands. Also, make something to make your stroller stick out. A special ribbon or something. I get a kick out of all the strollers you see parked.

Spectromagic is a parade, at night in the Magic Kingdom. Highly recommend this. Lots of lights and the kids will love it. It is actually the only parade at any of the parks we have seen, except for the one for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party. We just never take the time to stop and watch, but I plan on doing so soon.

Hope this helps!
Melissa

 

[bertegirl]

Thanks can't wait until May. The Magical Express sounds great. Especially since my Iowa Farm Boy doesn't drive well in traffic. I do all the driving when we go to my home in California. The parades sound great. My DD4 loves fireworks! We ordered her a Belle outfit from Disney. Great timing they were on sale after Halloween for the trip. Yippie! My parents are getting us gift cards for Christmas. That will be nice when we want to do some shopping or more eating then the DDP lets us do. I got my Disney Dining book by Frommers. What a great book for anyone who has never been. It tells you the name of the dining location, type of food, price, characters, etc. Even how long the wait can be on a normal date. We found dining locations we want to check out that we didn't even know existed. Still hoping we can get into CRT on Friday morning. I will be up at the crack of dawn!!!

So we officially switched to WL Woods View. Think it was a better choice with our ages going. The boat ride WL alone sold me.

Anyone know anything about the pools there, though? Do they have a children's pool by chance? Also wondering if anyone has any great dining ideas? I get mixed reviews on all the character dining experiences. My DD4 loves everything so no real favorites, except Belle!

Can't believe we are almost to the 6 month marker. With the holidays coming, May will be here before we know it. Of course I say that now when there is no snow on the ground yet.

 

[bertegirl]

Can someone with little kids under age 4, tell me if the park hopper is worth the extra money? We have a 5 day base ticket right now. I am just afraid MK is the only place my kids are really going to like and that maybe after a few hours at Epcot, we might wish we could return later on that sameday to MK. Thoughts anyone?

 

[bertegirl]

Hopefully I can get the reservations we want or I may have to alter my choices.
ARRIVE WED. MAY 6TH
5:15 PM

THURSDAY MAY 7TH
MAGIC KINGDOM
B
L PECOS BILL CAFE
D CRYSTAL PALACE

FRIDAY MAY 8TH
DISNEY HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
B PLAYHOUSE DISNEY
L
D OHANA

SATURDAY MAY 9TH
EPCOT
B CHEF MICKEYS
L
D SAN ANGEL INN

SUNDAY MAY 10TH
ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE
B
L
D BOMA

MONDAY MAY 10TH
MAGIC KINGDOM
B CRT
L
D WHISPERING CANYON CAFE


TUESDAY MAY 12TH
FLY HOME 7:25AM

 

[littleboss]

My family is also going to Disney for the first time in April though. I read that your family will be buying girt cards for spending. That is what we are doing too. Kids get $25 for birthday and $50 for x-mas. I think $75 for spending for them will be good. I have made shirts for each day so no need to buy them and I will buy their Mickey ears, so that will not be out of their money. We also have been saving all our change always break the dollar, and every month I have been cashing it in to add to the trip and it has always been over $100 except for once.

 

[bertegirl]

Thats a great idea. We use our check book more than anything so I round everything to the next dollar. When April comes I will re-balance my checkbook and we can take out all the extra I have...We did this once before for an entire year and it amounted to almost $200.00. You don't even notice it at the time! The gift cards are a great idea. We stocked up on the Disney website. They recently had t-shirts for $1.99 or $3.99 and backpacks for $7.99. I put all the items in our closet until the trip!

 

[littleboss]

I know I have been buying summer cloths on clearance, bought 4 pairs shorts at Target for only $3.00 and putting everything into the suitcases. My husband thinks I'm crazy. I already have all the shirts made, bought all the small stuff like soap, sunscreen, ponchos......all packed all ready! Am I crazy?? Or am I just getting pre-paired. Okay now I'm thinking I'm crazy, I should be X-mas shopping instead of Disney shopping.

 

[Rebecuberduber]

Can someone with little kids under age 4, tell me if the park hopper is worth the extra money? We have a 5 day base ticket right now. I am just afraid MK is the only place my kids are really going to like and that maybe after a few hours at Epcot, we might wish we could return later on that sameday to MK. Thoughts anyone?

In my opinion I would forgo the park hoppers. We found entering and exiting parks to be kind of a hassle for small kids what with strollers and waiting for buses, etc. I think there's plenty for small kids at any one of the parks that you shouldn't need to hop around. At any rate, if you finish a park earlier than expected, you can always go swim at the hotel. Our little ones loved this almost as much as the parks itself, sometimes, and it was always nice to unwind by the kiddie pool while the little ones played at the end of the day. (I think most if not all resort pools have kiddie areas -- could be wrong. Might want to check yours.)

On the other hand, during busier times, many people swear by returning to the resort in the afternoons to rest, and then returning to a park in the evening. Afternoons are the busiest and hottest times of day. If you decide to go this route, it might be nice to have the hopper option so you can return to a different park in the evenings. It would make more sense since you'd be leaving the park anyway. Sorry for being long-winded again

 

[jmskinner]

We have always park hopped, but ours was 7 the first time we went. We would go to the parks, head to the hotel after lunch for a break and then back to a park. We always went to a different park, but it really wouldn't be necessary to go to a different park.

The one thing I can recommend. If you plan to go to a certain park on a morning EMH day, make sure you get there when the park opens, or close to it. We kept goofing up on our last trip and getting there when the rest of guests were allowed in and it just seemed overcrowded.

Oh, and you are not crazy to already be shopping for your trip, just addicted. But so are the rest of us.

 

[bertegirl]

Thanks for the advice. I think we will pass on the hopper. If we want to go back we can always go back to the same resort or just relax at the hotel like mentioned. So we got into CRT and CM exactly when we wanted. I was so totally excited. Forgot that Sunday is going to be Mothers Day while we are there. Not sure if the parks will be extra busy or not. We were planning AK for that day. Just need to think about some reservations. Maybe Boma that night? Any suggestions???

 

[scottny]

Hi,

just found your report. your plans look good so far.

 

[bertegirl]

So we are now staying at the Poly May 6 to 12th. Great deal with the new code. We have 5 days of base tickets and the DDP. I can't wait. The Poly looks so relaxing and the pool will be great for our 2 little ones.

We got our reservations made for CRT and Chef Mickeys. Think we will try and do Playhouse Disney Dining, 1900 Park Fare, Ohana character breakfast and dinner and Kona. We decided to hang out more at the hotel and eat on the monorail when possible. My DH wants to try Earl's? What do you think...

I am going to do garden grocery to get water, diapers, etc. All the things we need that take up a lot of space. It cost less to deliver than another suitcase would cost.

We also bought a Photopass. That will be so nice to actually have pictures of all 4 of us at one time. Thanks Disney=)

I have to say a huge thanks to our TA. She got us a better rate than Disney CM. Plus lots of other goodies and she has taken the headache out of doing reservations!

 

[englishrose47]

Hi Glad you figured out the link I followed it over !! I agree about the hoppers with young kids its a lot!!We ate at H&V for breakfst last year and liked it !! I've seen a lot of negatives about it but more the dinner than the character meals! In september Chef Mickey is a must do ! When I go solo I usually only do CP that is character as I like to try more grown up places and save the others for family trips !!