All You Need is Love: an offsite, non-Disney PTR (counting down to May 2018)

[chicagoshannon]

We are driving and the weather here is supposed to be good once we get past Tuesday. We leave super early morning (3-4am) Thursday.

We will be eating at Sweet Tomatoes this trip. It's tradition. We have 2 Disney buffets scheduled ,Crystal Palace and Garden Grill. No other planned Disney meals. This may be our last time for buffets at Disney because Madeline is considered an adult now but does NOT eat like one.

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

I thought I read healthy in your dining report, but then got to Krispy Kreme so knew you were back on track

We enjoy the Ale House and Bahama Breeze which must be near the SVR, I can't remember you going there?

 

[I-4Bound]

Now I'm hungry! We love sweet tomatoes and Twistee Treat. Our new favorite go-to is Pollo Tropical. We discovered it a few trips back and just can't get enough of it. Cheap and so yummy!

 

[dalmatian7]

Omg the cookie dough!

Sam's lost vAlue for me once Wegmans started carrying more "club size" items and their store brands really expanded. A few times a year I need candy in bulk so I go with my mum to Sams. Even bulk water is price competitive.

I have never been to Costco so I don't know how they compare, but before committing to a membership you may want to see how it compares to what you normally pay. I think every area has stores competing differently.

 

[Heluvsme]

If you're big breakfast people..... Hash House A Go Go is awesome!!

Dawn

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Great list! I absolutely love Kobe's and Ale House (and now I'm craving a zingers mountain melt)

The zingers are one of my favorite Ale House menu items, too! I have never tried the mountain melt, but only because they are cruel enough to put the calorie counts on the menu . Have I mentioned lately how much that annoys me?

I hope for not TOO much weather, but a little bit just makes the trip more exciting for us as we drive from winter into summer. Not so much reversing that on the way home though...

Last year our start was a bit tough with strong winds in northern New York, and then snow in PA. We ended up stopping early because of that.

Not as much snow here as usual. Was just outside cleaning up after a light dusting of 10cm (4") today:



(I really need to find a replacement for photobucket soon!)

Hey, that's not too bad at all! I think the last time you posted a winter pic, you could almost walk off your balcony and onto the snowbank without hardly even taking a step down . Considering we're all the way into February, this must be considered a reasonably "easy" winter by Ottawa standards.

We are driving and the weather here is supposed to be good once we get past Tuesday. We leave super early morning (3-4am) Thursday.

We will be eating at Sweet Tomatoes this trip. It's tradition. We have 2 Disney buffets scheduled ,Crystal Palace and Garden Grill. No other planned Disney meals. This may be our last time for buffets at Disney because Madeline is considered an adult now but does NOT eat like one.

The whole "Disney Adult" thing is really, really tough for families.....especially for girls. Jake could eat as much as me when he was 10, but pre-teen girls generally have far less voracious appetites, making the Disney dining price tag really tough to swallow (pardon the pun). I guess the consolation is that you're getting the character experience (saving long lines and time at the parks), which is always worth something. Crystal Palace is one of our personal faves.....such good food and fun character interaction!!

I thought I read healthy in your dining report, but then got to Krispy Kreme so knew you were back on track

We enjoy the Ale House and Bahama Breeze which must be near the SVR, I can't remember you going there?

It's all about balance, right? We have to throw in some donuts and cookie dough to balance out all the good stuff so our bodies don't go into shock .

So far, we've never been to Bahama Breeze. The menu just doesn't hold a lot of appeal for us (I know, we're weird). If we ever do decide to give it a try, we'll probably do so here in MI as there's one literally a mile and a half from our house. It's always, ALWAYS busy (if the jammed parking lot is any indication) so maybe its better than we anticipate it would be?

Now I'm hungry! We love sweet tomatoes and Twistee Treat. Our new favorite go-to is Pollo Tropical. We discovered it a few trips back and just can't get enough of it. Cheap and so yummy!

Another friend of mine mentioned Pollo Tropical, too. Maybe that's another one we should do a little research on .

Omg the cookie dough!

Sam's lost vAlue for me once Wegmans started carrying more "club size" items and their store brands really expanded. A few times a year I need candy in bulk so I go with my mum to Sams. Even bulk water is price competitive.

I have never been to Costco so I don't know how they compare, but before committing to a membership you may want to see how it compares to what you normally pay. I think every area has stores competing differently.

I think I read that a Sam's membership is only $45, so I think it will be worth a try for the first year anyway (especially if I can find a good Groupon offer .... fingers crossed that one reappears between now and spring!!). Sam's seems to have some good prices on gift cards, too.....many more than are available at our Costco.....so that might make a Sam's membership a good savings for us all on its own .

If you're big breakfast people..... Hash House A Go Go is awesome!!

Dawn

We have done both breakfast and dinner at Hash House before and LOVE it! I am secretly hoping that the current Travelzoo offer, which expires on March 30th, will be renewed into spring. If that's the case, we'll definitely be buying a voucher and swapping one of our planned breakfasts out for HH!

 

[Joanna71985]

The zingers are one of my favorite Ale House menu items, too! I have never tried the mountain melt, but only because they are cruel enough to put the calorie counts on the menu . Have I mentioned lately how much that annoys me?

Oh that is mean! I don't think I've ever noticed before (but I don't know if I want to)

 

[bobbie68]

Hi everyone...Just caught up on everything and I am so glad to hear about all these restaurants to try down there. We usually don't have a car so we eat on property or have a sandwich in the room sometimes. This year we are driving to Florida (first time) so will have a day or two for other places. We are doing club level at Royal Pacific for the time we are there.

We are an on the go park family. We can spend up to 10 hours in a park if we choose. When I tell my family and friends what we do for most of the week they just sigh. They don't understand how we can vacation like that. I tell them though that I don't have to feel guilty about eating all the awesome food we come across because I walk it off

....this captures it all!! I have a few in the house that could do that also my DD (who I love to death and is my life) could look like that on a daily basisThanks Gina I needed that today

 

[Callie]

Gina, do you have Costco near you? I absolutely LOVE my costco card. Granted I share it with my mom and sister which helps. I find so many good buys there.

All of this few talk is making me feel sick. We are here now, and ug, I miss my home cooked food that is mostly chicken, eggs, turkey, fruit and veggies (weight watchers food). Am I crazy? We only eat about two meals a day too.

Ordered Olive Garden to go for a secret shop and couldn't even eat half of it.

 

[dancin Disney style]

Hola! Mexico is fabulous. It’s hot and sunny. Food is amazing and we have been so well treated by all the staff that we have met so far. Here’s where we spent our afternoon....

They have a lagoon that is between the infinity pool and the beach.

 

[JenLanDisney]

Oh, wow, Dancin Disney. That looks fabulous.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Oh that is mean! I don't think I've ever noticed before (but I don't know if I want to)

Definitely don't look LOL. You won't like what you see.

Hi everyone...Just caught up on everything and I am so glad to hear about all these restaurants to try down there. We usually don't have a car so we eat on property or have a sandwich in the room sometimes. This year we are driving to Florida (first time) so will have a day or two for other places. We are doing club level at Royal Pacific for the time we are there.

We are an on the go park family. We can spend up to 10 hours in a park if we choose. When I tell my family and friends what we do for most of the week they just sigh. They don't understand how we can vacation like that. I tell them though that I don't have to feel guilty about eating all the awesome food we come across because I walk it off

....this captures it all!! I have a few in the house that could do that also my DD (who I love to death and is my life) could look like that on a daily basisThanks Gina I needed that today

If you are going to be at Universal and looking for some dining options, I would absolutely recommend the pasta buffet at Trattoria del Porto at Portofino Bay. It is simply fabulous, and they have characters there on select evenings as well. Its right around $23 per person, and its all-you-care-to enjoy (including a full antipasto bar, soup, and bread). Toothsome in Citywalk is also a must-do, if you haven't been there before. The milkshakes are Ahhhhh-mazing!!!

I hope today started out on a better note for you . Mondays really can be the pits. I was off yesterday (unscheduled......my boss cancelled the work day at the last minute.....long story ) so today ended up being my "Monday". And for some reason, even though the week is just getting started, it already feels long . This was totally me over breakfast this morning.......

Gina, do you have Costco near you? I absolutely LOVE my costco card. Granted I share it with my mom and sister which helps. I find so many good buys there.

All of this few talk is making me feel sick. We are here now, and ug, I miss my home cooked food that is mostly chicken, eggs, turkey, fruit and veggies (weight watchers food). Am I crazy? We only eat about two meals a day too.

Ordered Olive Garden to go for a secret shop and couldn't even eat half of it.

Yes ma'am, we have a Costco just 3 miles from our current front door. LOVE that store.....we generally go shopping there every week. We find great deals on everything from bottled water to housewares to clothing!! Unfortunately, once we move, we'll be 14 miles from the nearest Costco which is one of the only downfalls to our new home. While we will definitely keep our membership (at least until our next renewal) and still make the trek there to stock up, I'm not sure we'll be there nearly as often. Sams Club will only be 6 miles away, so we'll likely give Sam's a try for a year too. I found a printable coupon (valid until the end of March) which will get us a $20 gift card with a one ear membership ($45). So, our membership there will only cost $25. That's worth a gamble .

We find it impossible to eat out 3 meals a day, for a 7 day stretch while on vacation .... so you are absolutely NOT weird. At some point, our stomachs revolt and we start to feel positively green . On our first trip, when we did the Disney Dining Plan, we thought we'd burst by the time our last day of our trip rolled around. We ended up bringing home a suitcase full of packaged snacks from Goofy's Candy Company because we had a plethora of snack credits that we had to either use or lose.

Hola! Mexico is fabulous. It’s hot and sunny. Food is amazing and we have been so well treated by all the staff that we have met so far. Here’s where we spent our afternoon....
View attachment 300600
They have a lagoon that is between the infinity pool and the beach.

I am SO jealous....but so happy you are having a great start to your vacation!! You deserve it, my friend!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Well, it took a while, but it finally happened! I somehow managed to catch a little dip in rental car rates today : while not a large reduction in price, I was able to snag a full size car with Dollar for $238 including tax (and 3% cash back through Ebates). That beats our existing rental with Alamo (through Costso), which is $256 for a full size. I haven't cancelled the Alamo/Costco rental yet, as Steve might prefer to spend a little more and have the ability to select our own vehicle (not to mention the Costco reservation also includes a free extra driver....not something we "need" or usually use, but nice to have just in case, KWIM?) but its now nice to have a couple of different options. And it is encouraging to know that the long-awaited rate drops might actually be starting. I would LOVE to get the rental down to somewhere close to the $200 mark, but I think that might be a bit too lofty a goal. I guess time will tell.

I also realized something else today: we've crossed into

It seriously just seemed like we were chatting about how we'd soon be in the double digits, and somehow we sauntered into the 90's and they just vanished entirely .
We are at 87 days to Orlando . 45 days until we move. 27 days until we close on our condo. OMG!!

We still have one final hurdle to clear on the condo before its officially official (and before I can start the process of booking the moving company, switching our utilities, starting the packing, etc): we are waiting on the results of the appraisal, which should be in sometime later this week. We are not expecting anything adverse (and our agent is confident that the results will be favorable), but until the report is in, we still can't call the deal "done". I will admit, I will feel better once that final loop is closed. Waiting sucks.

@dancin Disney style is currently in Mexico enjoying some fun in the sun. @Callie will soon be on her way home from Orlando. @sk8jdgca and her kiddos will be on her way southward shortly, as will @chicagoshannon . It's gonna be quiet in here!! I may have to post a few extra funny cat pics to keep things rolling .

 

[Joanna71985]

If you are going to be at Universal and looking for some dining options, I would absolutely recommend the pasta buffet at Trattoria del Porto at Portofino Bay. It is simply fabulous, and they have characters there on select evenings as well. Is right around $23 per person, and its all-you-care-to enjoy (including a full antipasto bar, soup, and bread). Toothsome in Citywalk is also a must-do, if you haven't been there before. The milkshakes are Ahhhhh-mazing!!!

I keep saying I need to try this place! Especially as I love Italian. But now I need to try Toothsome as well

 

[chicagoshannon]

We leave super early tomorrow morning. I'll let you know if we try the cookie dough place. I think some of us are going to try!

 

[dalmatian7]

I'll be here. Trapped in winter in PA. That Mexico picture is painful to look at. I am calling in sick today because we are getting a storm and I don't feel like fighting ice on the way home. maybe I can get DH to commit to cruise dates today.
I think I could do just an eating tour of Orlando. okay a dessert tour of Orlando

 

[Ruthie5671]

@dancin Disney style is currently in Mexico enjoying some fun in the sun. @Callie will soon be on her way home from Orlando. @sk8jdgca and her kiddos will be on her way southward shortly, as will @chicagoshannon . It's gonna be quiet in here!! I may have to post a few extra funny cat pics to keep things rolling .

I'm here in the freezing cold state of Kentucky. Working. To pay for our 2019 trip which I basically already have planned in my head. Hehehe.

 

[pigletto]

I’m back from Tampa so I will happily chime in! We had a great weekend away but it was too short. We stayed at a FABULOUS AirBnB beach house on Treasure Island. It was obviously too cold to go in the water, but it was lovely to walk along the beach in the sunshine. We also went to Universal for the day on Sunday and I got my Potter fix. Overall, it was a whirlwind weekend and it made me so desperate for a nice warm loonnnnggg trip. I would just love to plan an onsite Disney trip for our next one as we haven’t stayed onsite in 5 years. But realistically with 5 people we would need two rooms (dd and her boyfriend would take one) and then the cost would get astronomical. It’s just never worth it for me when we can stay at the Vistana or Bonnet Creek and have so much room to spread out.
My parents gave me a VERY generous birthday gift and paid for me to join them and one of my sisters on a cruise this September. It’s a 12 day British Isles cruise ... all expenses paid. I just need to bring spending money. So I do have that to look forward to.
I will start looking into prices and plans for our family to go to Orlando next Dec,Jan, Feb or March.

I’ll stop now since this isn’t MY trip planning report . I’m glad you are finally seeing some rate drops!! That always feels like playing the lottery to me . I’m easily amused

 

[JaxDad]

Hey Gina! I'm still here. We went to Universal this past weekend and had a fun time! The weather was great for the parks, but not really great for the pool (except maybe for ex-pat Canadians), so we spent a LOT of time in the parks. My daughter finally decided to try roller coasters and was hooked! We had EPs so did Mummy, Hulk, and Rip Ride Rockit many, many times, plus of course the Potter stuff and other miscellaneous rides and shows. We stayed at Royal Pacific, ate at Toothsome and Finnegan's, and hit the outlets on the way home. It was a great last trip on our APs!

 

[pigletto]

Hey Gina! I'm still here. We went to Universal this past weekend and had a fun time! The weather was great for the parks, but not really great for the pool (except maybe for ex-pat Canadians), so we spent a LOT of time in the parks. My daughter finally decided to try roller coasters and was hooked! We had EPs so did Mummy, Hulk, and Rip Ride Rockit many, many times, plus of course the Potter stuff and other miscellaneous rides and shows. We stayed at Royal Pacific, ate at Toothsome and Finnegan's, and hit the outlets on the way home. It was a great last trip on our APs!

We were there on Sunday too ! We found the crowds really light. Likely due to so many people staying home to watch the Super Bowl. It’s like a religious holiday down there