Alpine Magic in 2010

[RSM]

We were really looking forward to doing "Flavors of France" in 2010, however, ABD threw a monkey wrench into those plans by not offering this itinerary. After hours and hours of searching for comparable family friendly tours that would keep a very active 7 year old boy engaged, we found nothing that excited us. We even looked at combining some of the active biking tours such as Austin Lehman, with Paris on our own. Unfortunately, all the options seemed either too active (20+ miles of biking) or too heavy on museums and walking tours. So, basically, we re-thought our reluctance to go with ABD for all the reasons posted on this board. In looking at the adventures in Europe, the one that intrigued us the most was Alpine Magic. So, we decided to combine Alpine Magic with four additional nights (5 days) in Paris on our own. We booked the June 20, 2010 trip. So, there will be at least 2 adults and one 7 year old boy (who loves to make new friends) on the trip. It will be our first ABD. Still need to iron out the logistics between Zurich and Paris, but it's really a matter of do we fly or take a train across France.

BTW--Disney really should give Gibson4 a commission for this sale. If not for their blog/trip report posted on this site, we probably never would have considered doing Alpine Magic as we had our heart set on Paris and southern France. But now that the decision is made and the trip is booked, we are very excited although we are a good 10 months away.

Disney does have the 85 day guarantee, where they will not cancel a trip within 85 days unless there is some unforeseen natural disaster or security issue. So, hopefully other families sign up for a great time.

 

[sayhello]

RSM, congrats on your trip choice! I agree, that trip report was magnificent, and made me realize what a great itinerary Alpine Magic is. I'd barely even looked at it before. It's definitely moved way up on my list. I think you're going to love it!

Disney does have the 85 day guarantee, where they will not cancel a trip within 85 days unless there is some unforeseen natural disaster or security issue. So, hopefully other families sign up for a great time.

That guarantee is actually new for 2010. I'm glad to see ABD do that. At least there's a point at which folks can stop worrying about whether their trip will be a go or not. Their old policy was that they could cancel the trip, pretty much for any reason, including low enrollment, up until the day the trip actually started. 85 days is not as good as a lot of the other tour companies, but it sure is better than their old policy!

Sayhello

 

[Tozzie]

We were really looking forward to doing "Flavors of France" in 2010, however, ABD threw a monkey wrench into those plans by not offering this itinerary. After hours and hours of searching for comparable family friendly tours that would keep a very active 7 year old boy engaged, we found nothing that excited us. We even looked at combining some of the active biking tours such as Austin Lehman, with Paris on our own. Unfortunately, all the options seemed either too active (20+ miles of biking) or too heavy on museums and walking tours. So, basically, we re-thought our reluctance to go with ABD for all the reasons posted on this board. In looking at the adventures in Europe, the one that intrigued us the most was Alpine Magic. So, we decided to combine Alpine Magic with four additional nights (5 days) in Paris on our own. We booked the June 20, 2010 trip. So, there will be at least 2 adults and one 7 year old boy (who loves to make new friends) on the trip. It will be our first ABD. Still need to iron out the logistics between Zurich and Paris, but it's really a matter of do we fly or take a train across France.

BTW--Disney really should give Gibson4 a commission for this sale. If not for their blog/trip report posted on this site, we probably never would have considered doing Alpine Magic as we had our heart set on Paris and southern France. But now that the decision is made and the trip is booked, we are very excited although we are a good 10 months away.

Disney does have the 85 day guarantee, where they will not cancel a trip within 85 days unless there is some unforeseen natural disaster or security issue. So, hopefully other families sign up for a great time.

I also booked this itinerary after doing a bunch of research and looking at lots of tour companies and reading reviews of people who have actually taken tours with other companies. I am going (hopefully they don't cancel it) on the June 6th departure. I also agree that Gibson4 should get a commision just like sayhello should for the Southwest Splendors trip. This itinerary was one of four that I was considering for this year but after seeing the pictures that Gibson4 posted I knew this trip was it.

 

[RSM]

Glad to see people starting to book trips. Hopefully, with fewer dates offered the trips fill up and there won't be a need to cancel.

Tozzie, here is hoping to a great time.

 

[28willys]

I did this trip with my family on August 16. All I can say is that it is INCREDIBLE!!!! You see soooo much! Stresa is beautiful and laid back. The hotel is beyond elegant!! Isola Bella is beautiful. The scenery is absolutely gorgeous!! Zermott was magnificent. My family all want to go back there!! Lake Como, Lake Lucerne (and the glorious 5 star hotel).......there is just so much to see and it is all incredible. The bus rides fly by because all you want to do is look out the window! Our two guides, Marco and Jason were phenomenal!! They definitely made our trip!! The zip lining in Zermott was a thrill. My husband, bro in law, and daughter even went back later to do the other courses because it was so much fun!! The husky camp is an absolute thrill. Those dogs are so cool and getting to interact with, and run with them is just incredible!! Pasta making in Como at the incredibly gorgeous Villa Mirabella. The cool thing is that you have so many neat things to do with the group, but you also have a lot of time on your own to explore. The guides are great about recommending other things to do and they can even set them up for you. This trip is fantastic and anyone who books it will be so glad they did once they get there!! I would highly recommend this trip to anyone considering an abd trip!!

 

[Carol]

Couldn't agree more with 28willys. We did this trip in June and it truly was amazing. Everything 23willys said and more. There is something for all ages. We fell in love with Stresa and would love to go back to Italy. I also would recommend this tour to everyone. And if you are fortunate enough to have Jason and Marco for your guides, bonus!

 

[Diskidatheart]

This trip is high on my list. My DW wanted to see Italy for the longest time, so we decided to do the Italy Family Vacation instead for 2010. I'm hoping that this trip is available for the next couple of years as I really, really, really want to do it.

 

[RSM]

The endorsement of this trip by so many is encouraging. I am also really happy to hear that there is ample time to do things on your own. The group activities sound great, but it is also nice to have some time on your own to explore as a family.

28Willys--Thanks for the advice on paragliding in Zermatt in another thread on this site. We will try to time it to avoid cancellation due to windy conditions.

 

[28willys]

The endorsement of this trip by so many is encouraging. I am also really happy to hear that there is ample time to do things on your own. The group activities sound great, but it is also nice to have some time on your own to explore as a family.

28Willys--Thanks for the advice on paragliding in Zermatt in another thread on this site. We will try to time it to avoid cancellation due to windy conditions.

RSM-Just don't pass up the zip lining to do the paragliding. The zip lining was my daughters fave!! In fact after we were done as a group, we headed up to Glacier Paradise, then my daughter, husband, and bro in law went back to the zip lining park to do the red and black courses! It is so much more than ziplining. It is a huge rope course also. The scenery is beautiful!!

 

[RSM]

Thanks 28Willys. We wouldn't dream of missing the ziplining and ropes course. We have a small indoor one where we live and our 7 y/o son loves it. So, we will try to fit the paragliding in during our free time.

A couple of questions if you don't mind: How did you like Glacier Paradises? and when you were in Lucerne did you have the time or opportunity to do the Mt. Pilatus tour? I think our 7 y/o would like to do the toboggan run.

 

[28willys]

Thanks 28Willys. We wouldn't dream of missing the ziplining and ropes course. We have a small indoor one where we live and our 7 y/o son loves it. So, we will try to fit the paragliding in during our free time.

A couple of questions if you don't mind: How did you like Glacier Paradises? and when you were in Lucerne did you have the time or opportunity to do the Mt. Pilatus tour? I think our 7 y/o would like to do the toboggan run.

Glacier Paradise was phenominal!!! Way worth the money to go!! It was sooo cool. My kids really enjoyed it too. It is just incredible being up there that close to the Matterhorn. They were still skiing (which we would have done had we been able to go up in the morning, but by afternoon the snow wasn't any good.). You take three seperate cable cars to get to the top. We had a very good lunch up there as well (although it was quite pricey).

Mt. Pilatus - We would have had the time to do the tour, but the weather while we were in Lucerne was never really clear enough to go. It was very overcast and Jason didn't think it was worth the money to go because you wouldn't be able to see anything. The husky camp is fantastic!! A complete blast. On the last afternoon, my husband and daughter went to the transportation museum (younger daughter and myself thought it seemed corney and preferred to shop). They LOVED it!!! The pictures were really cool as well, and I think I would have liked it. Any mode of transportation you can think of (planes, trains, busses, etc) and a lot of it is hands on, interactive type of stuff.

Hope this helps. If you have anymore questions just let me know.

 

[jamie@dvcstore]

Hi RSM,
Congratulations on booking your trip. I am sure you will have a wonderful time. The thing about having your mind set on one thing and changing it is the change will likely work out to be much better than you ever anticipated.

The trip seems a long ways off though it will be here before you know it. Have fun planning and be sure to post when you get back. Have a great trip.
________
WENDIE 99

 

[1whooper]

I have also booked The Alps trip!! We are going on the July 4th tour with an extra day on each end of the tour. Any suggestions for the extra days?

 

[RSM]

Congratulations 1whooper. We are really looking forward to this vacation. It is hard to believe that this is only ~6 months away. After the holidays, time will fly. That includes having to make that final payment in March. By mid March or so, we should know if our June 20 trip is a go, or if ABD will cancel. I haven't checked in a while, but I am hoping it is filling up.

 

[Tozzie]

Congratulations 1whooper. We are really looking forward to this vacation. It is hard to believe that this is only ~6 months away. After the holidays, time will fly. That includes having to make that final payment in March. By mid March or so, we should know if our June 20 trip is a go, or if ABD will cancel. I haven't checked in a while, but I am hoping it is filling up.

I am going on the trip right before yours and when I booked my airfare I asked how full my trip was and they told me 40% which made me happy. I am hoping with less trips being offered they won't be cancelling any this year.

 

[1whooper]

The airfare is about $1200 for this trip from the NY area. I am waiting till Jan. to see if I can get a better deal. This tour is 67% booked so I don't think it will be cancelled.

 

[RSM]

I just paid a portion of the balance for the 6/20/2010 Alpine Magic trip. I asked the ABD agent how many people were on this trip and he said 14 currently. He said that 20 pretty much guarantees a go ahead, but they have run with less than 20. He indicated that he was confident that this trip would go ahead as now through the end of February is their heaviest booking time. So, hopefully there are at least 6 more out there who book this trip--it really does look like a great itinerary--this is a plug for anyone still trying to decide. We really don't have much of a contingency should this date be cancelled and it will be a pain to change airline reservations and the add on in Paris at the end (reservations for airlines and add-ons done on our own using FF miles and hotel points).

 

[Bobo912]

I just paid a portion of the balance for the 6/20/2010 Alpine Magic trip. I asked the ABD agent how many people were on this trip and he said 14 currently. He said that 20 pretty much guarantees a go ahead, but they have run with less than 20. He indicated that he was confident that this trip would go ahead as now through the end of February is their heaviest booking time. So, hopefully there are at least 6 more out there who book this trip--it really does look like a great itinerary--this is a plug for anyone still trying to decide. We really don't have much of a contingency should this date be cancelled and it will be a pain to change airline reservations and the add on in Paris at the end (reservations for airlines and add-ons done on our own using FF miles and hotel points).

RSM did you find out if there are any more kids? When I called ABD around the end of Nov, your DS was the only child on the trip so far (they told me one family with a 7-year-old, so I'm assuming that's you guys). My DS wants to go to Yosemite, so that is probably the trip we are going to take this year. But if I could find a really good deal on airfare, or ABD has a promotion that appeals to me, after the free cruise offer expires, I would still love to do this trip. Although I'm thinking if we go to Yosemite we'll save so much on airfare that we can do a second major trip this year (probably not something as expensive as ABD for trip #2 though), especially, since we are not going to WDW this year like we usually do. We've OD'ed on WDW and need a break. My trip was cancelled on Jan 6 last year, so you've made it past that date, at least. Your trip has around twice as many booked as my Australia trip had last year when it was cancelled. I think that is promising. It's kind of funny though that whenever you speak to someone at ABD, they are just about to come upon their heaviest booking time. They told be back in Nov that Dec and Jan is their busy time.

 

[RSM]

Hey Bobo912, I completely forgot to ask about other kids. I think I freaked a little when I heard there were only 14 at this point in time and the July 4 trip is about 2/3 full. Having other kids on the trip would be great, but we've also been on enough vacations that if DS hangs with us only, that is alot of fun too. As long as the trip goes, we will have a blast.

We don't have alot of flexibility with dates, so if this doesn't go, we will either do it on our own (a lot of work) or we have been looking at a Tauck Bridges trip that goes on 7/1. It is the "Cruising the Blue Danube". With some modifications to flights we could do Paris first, then go to Budapest. Hopefully it doesn't come to that, but you never know.

Anyways, good luck and have fun planning your adventure to Yosemite and any other vacations you may do this year.

 

[sayhello]

I just paid a portion of the balance for the 6/20/2010 Alpine Magic trip. I asked the ABD agent how many people were on this trip and he said 14 currently. He said that 20 pretty much guarantees a go ahead, but they have run with less than 20. He indicated that he was confident that this trip would go ahead as now through the end of February is their heaviest booking time. So, hopefully there are at least 6 more out there who book this trip--it really does look like a great itinerary--this is a plug for anyone still trying to decide. We really don't have much of a contingency should this date be cancelled and it will be a pain to change airline reservations and the add on in Paris at the end (reservations for airlines and add-ons done on our own using FF miles and hotel points).

The good news is, my Southwest Splendors trip in 2008 went with 14 people, and my Alaska trip in 2009 went with 15. So they *have* been known to go with as few as that. It seems to vary trip by trip. I sure hope your trip goes as planned! It looks fabulous!

Sayhello