And they lived happily ever after - trip with a WDW virgin

[GirlDreamer]

I guess an introduction is in order. I'm a 29 year old Norwegian girl that ended up moving to England to live with my boyfriend. I moved in with my boyfriend in august last year, and this trip will be our first proper trip together as a couple.

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We're now planning our WDW trip, sept 3.-17th. I've been to WDW several times, both working as a CM in the Norwegian Pavillion and just going on holidays there. My boyfriend has never been to either WDW or the US before, so this trip will involve a lot of firsts for him. He's really excited though, so I can't wait to see how he'll react to it all

This trips has been in the works for a long time now. It probably startet early october 2011, when I sat on the bus to work listening to my iPod. I always shuffle all the songs. Then the next song starts and I believe it was wither the music for Illuminations of Wishes. And I just knew I had to try and go back as soon as possible. I told my boyfriend that I wanted to start to save up for a trip, not counting on him coming along as he's had reservations against going to the US for years after the terror attacks. To my surprise he said he would come with me anyway, after having talked to him about the likelihood of that happening again.

So I started to browse websites to find a price estimate so we knew how much we would need to save. We agreed early that we wanted to try and save to go in september, as I love that time of year with low crowds and early MNSSHP's to attend. I stumbled across a very nice deal on the UK Disney site, and as I didn't know I didn't have to pay the full amount right away, we agreed to just book the trip and pay with my savings. So we booked our trip on Nov 1st 2011.

Our package only cost about £3200 for both of us, which is a little less than $5000 acording to my currency converter. This is what we got included in the price:

Roundtrip flights
Moderate Hotel for 14 nights
14 day Ultimate Tickets
Free QSDDP
$150 Disney Gift Card
Preffered Viewing on Wishes and Illuminations
+ some discounts on some dining places

 

[GirlDreamer]

I've made some rough plans for our trip, but we're not going to follow those frantically if we wake up one day and want to do something else. It's just a suggestion based on crowd estimates.

We've already made the TS reservations we wanted, even if they're not all at optimal times. We would have wished for some of the breakfast reservations to have been a little bit earlier so we can make rope drop for some parks. We've only made 3 TS reservations as we're not that interested in going to so many restaurants and because we're also on the QSDDP.

Our reservations is for

Wed sept 5th @ The Crystal Palace 8.20am
Thur sept 6th @ The Hollywood and Vine 12.05pm
Mon sept 10th @ 'Ohana 7.45am

We also want to go on the Behind the Seeds tour at Epcot, as my DBF loves gardening, but as that is a tour that is offered several times a day, we'll probably just book it on the same day.

We're also going to book the segway tour at Epcot as well, hopefully we'll be able to do that today, so we can get it on the day we want it.

We've already purchased tickets for MNSSHP and Cirque Du Soleil, so those days are set in stone.

 

[reyasmommy]

Your plans look great... Your BF is going to LOVE it and September is my favorite time to go. Unfortuantely I don't think we'll ever be able to go during that time of year again now that my daughter is in school. Booooo

Happy Planning!

 

[rachel09985]

Awesome spreadsheet and I love how you put tea time in there!! Haha.

I'm looking forward to more!

 

[GirlDreamer]

Hehe, tea is a UK way of saying dinner

 

[GirlDreamer]

My DBF booked the Segway tour in EPCOT today We got it on sept. 10th, just like we wanted

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[GirlDreamer]

I think I forgot to share the most important thing about our trip, which is the reason why I called this thread "And they lived happily ever after".

I guess we're not really doing this the same way most others are, but hey, what's the fun in doing something the same way as "everyone" else? The thing is that we're getting engaged on our trip It's something we've both agreed on, so there'll be no surprise for any of us. My boyfriend wanted us to wait and get engaged on the trip, just to make it a little more special, and I kind of agree. He's a little bit old fashioned, so he's asked my dad for his blessing and he wants to do the proposal properly on one knee, even if he already knows the answer. And who am I to take his dreams away?

Until a few days ago though, I had no idea when the proposal would happen during the trip. But he tends to just blurt things out, so he let it slip that he would propose on our first full day there, which will be in MK. He's asked me where it would feel most special to me, so I said probably in MK after the fireworks as that has a special meaning to me. He knows I don't want something public though, so we'll probably end up hanging around for a bit, waiting for the crowds to go away.

I do want to do something special for him though. He's been so amazing and he's there for me no matter what. I usually come home from work very late, and he's more than happy to make me a meal so I can sit down and relax. He also does most of the cleaning and he never complains. He's been such an amazing support when I've been through some hard times. So I'm thinking of ordering something from the Disney Florist to wait in the room when we come back the evening he's planning for us to get engaged. Just to say thank you for everything he's done for me. I've been wondering if I should order these roses:

I must admit it was a little bit annoying to go through the Disney Florist site. It seems to be mostly aimed for males ordering something for their girl, as it the descriptions sais things like ‘Step into a fairytale and surprise your Princess with a Cinderella proposal!’ Most of the stuff is either aimed to be gifts for women or children, there's not much for him at all. That's why I'll probably go with the roses. He's also a very sentimental guy, and he loves flowers, so I know it would be very appreciated from him

We've ordered the ring, and it should be ready a couple of weeks before our trip We ordered a bridal set as we both agreed that it would be very nice to have matching engagement and wedding ring:

 

[Rhiannona]

Awww so cute, I hope you two have an awesome time!
You could always order the chocolate covered strawberries or request a special cake to be made.

 

[GirlDreamer]

Hehe, I'm not much of a strawberry fan myself and my DBF sais he disliked the idea of chocolate covered strawberries. The cake idea sounds nice though, I'll have to do some research for that. From my first look though, it seems like you can only order cake if you have a reservation at a TS restaurant. Would be awesome if I could order a cake like the chocolate cake in the Main Street Bakery

 

[GirlDreamer]

So I've been thinking a little bit more about the surprise for my DBF. I've been thinking that he would probably appreciate an experience just as much, as those are memories he would have for a long time. He loves animals and nature, and I think the tour he most wants to do is the Wild Africa Trek. It is a little bit expensive though.

So I was thinking about maybe booking the Seas Aqua Tour in Epcot as he's mentioned that one of his dreams is to swim with sharks. It's still a bit on the expensive side as I probably will book for both of us as he probably would love to share the experience. And I have to admit it would be kind of cool for me as well The other tour I was thinking about is the Backstage Safari in AK, which would be about half the price, but it wouldn't fulfil his dreams about swimming with sharks. I'm sure he would be just as amazed to swim with all of the other sea creatures as well. Knowing him, he could probably spend a whole day in a Sea Life senter and still be sad to have to go home when they close

Does any of you have any experience with any of these tours? If so, I'd love to hear about your experiences. Especially if anyone knows what times these tours start.

 

[GirlDreamer]

Wow, I must say these last few weeks have been a true emotional roller coaster. I guess that's a big part of the reason why I decided to surprise my DBF with a tour. I decided that if everything turned out well, then I would definitely book him a tour. He really deserves that as much love and support that he's given me through thick and thin.

I've had some serious problems at work, and I was afraid I was going to loose my job. The reason was that one of my colleagues for some reason decided to report me for stealing. Naturally as a big company they have to take accusations like that seriously, so they suspended me while they were having their investigations. Obviously they couldn't find any proof on this on the CCTV recordings, so everything is fine now. But the whole thing just made me so depressed. It was so humiliating to be picked up by security at my work location and escorted to the security building and placed into a room that reminded me of a prison cell. It was completely bare, with just a bench along one of the walls. There they told me of the accusations, and proceeded to go through all of my personal belongings. Then I was suspended and the worst weeks of my life began. I just had to sit at home and wait, having no idea how long it would take or when I would next hear from them. I had to go back for an investigation meeting two weeks later, and explain everything in detail and tell them why I had money with in the first place. They made it sound as if I should have shown someone how much money I had with me. And the funny part is that I only had about £4 on me, which is about $6. But that was enough to keep me suspended. I had to wait two more days after that meeting before they told me that they found no evidence so I was cleared.

I was really happy it ended well as I love my job and want to work there for years to come yet. I was also worried how it would affect my vacation as it was below the 45 (or is it 48) day mark and I knew we wouldn't cancel it as it was paid off with savings already last november. But it sure would have put a big damper on my vacation. Now I just have to work to get over this and get back to normal. My managers have been fantastic, and a lot of my colleagues have been great as well. But I'm still worried that some of them will have believed the person who accused me. I just can't stand the thought of always being watched and that as soon as something might be missing I will be the first one they suspect.

My DBF has always been by my side and he's been my rock when I really needed his support. He's never complained and he does whatever I ask him to. He's just been absolutely fantastic. That's why I decided that if I still had my job when all of that was done, he sure deserved to have one of his dreams fulfilled. So I've now booked the Seas Aqua tour for both of us, so he can have his dream about swimming with sharks come true

 

[sewmess]

This sounds like an exciting trip for you both!

From a supervisor's pov: stick with those that have supported you and try to cut ties with those who haven't. From a WDW fan - once you're back at WDW, whatever you have to go back to will seem light-years away.

September is my favorite time for Disney trips: we usually go at the end of the month, though. It'a been my birthday gift for at least three years now.

I'm looking forward to living vicariously through your romantic trip. My DH is a huge Disney fan, but I think Disney romance is a bit out of his comfort zone.

 

[GirlDreamer]

Oh yeah, it's going to be really exciting

Since I've booked the tour on one of our Epcot days, I've booked a new reservation for CP, so we can get to Epcot when they open and have a few hours in Future World before the tour. I'm not sure how or when to tell him about his surprise though. I'm not sure if I should give him any warning or just realise what's happening as we're checking in for the tour.

 

[princess_ariel_85]

Joining in!

Love the spreadsheet. It's nice to be able to see plans laid out like that.

You two sound like an amazing couple, sorry you had to go though the awful accusations at work. Glad your DBF was there to support you through that. I like the idea of the cake, the Boardwalk bakery do some lovely cakes. If you want info on some good cakes to get whilst you over there you could always nip over to the Weddings/Honeymoon section of the DIS (unless of course you already have lol). They could even give other suggestions on what you could do for your DBF.

Looking forward to hearing more! x

 

[GirlDreamer]

Thanks for the advice. I've been to the wedding section, but haven't read any of the cake threads yet.

Right now I'm waiting for my Mickey mail to arrive as I've heard it normally arrives about 30 days before the trip. I'm not sure when to expect it as we live in the UK though. And I managed to get my DBF as the main person on the reservation, so it might arrive in his name, so I've given him strict orders not to open it until I'm home if that's the case.

I'm also waiting for some money to come back into my account as I had some problems while booking the Seas Aqua Tour. I almost started to believe we weren't meant to be on that tour It was several things that made it difficult to book this tour. Firstly, I ordered a travel card from the UK post office, with about $600 on it. Then a few days later I transferred enough money to pay for the Aqua Tour which would be $280 for both of us and then I tried to call to book it. For some reason the transferred money didn't show up on my account, so my card was declined. So I had to hang up and try a bit later as I had to do this on my break at work. At my next break, I had received a text from my bank about suspected fraud on my account and that I had to call them asap. Luckily it turned out to be nothing, it was just my attempt to book the tour that set it off, as it's in a different country than I live in. So I transferred money once again to pay for this tour and called again. I waited for about 10-15 mins to get through, but couldn't speak to the CM due to too much static on the line. So I ended up having to call to book again on the bus on my way home from work as I couldn't do it at home when my boyfriend was there. Finally, at my third attempt at booking it, it all went fine, so I guess the number 3 really is a magical number

But my problems haven't stopped quite yet. It took a few days before the transaction showed up on my account, probably because it was made in a different country. But both the declined and the successful transaction is now showing on my account. Meaning that at the moment, I've been charged twice for this tour. I've called my bank though, and they've assured me since the first one was declined, my money should show up in my account soon. I just hope it's sooner than later as it is quite a bit of money. Especially so close to the trip.

 

[tarcc]

Hello, i'm subscribing ! Loved reading your pre-trippie, can't wait to read more. Looks like you'll both have an amazing time & congratulations in advance to your engagement

Teresa x

 

[GirlDreamer]

Thanks

I had to call Disney about that double transaction. It turned out the tour had been booked and the money charged from my account even when the card was declined, so when I called the second time it was made as a second booking. The CM I talked to was very nice and helpful and fixed it in no time, so no I just need to wait for a couple of days for the money to appear on my account again.

I think all the plans are set now and my itinerary has been updated Now I just need to make sure that I've got everything I need printed. I'm just starting to get nervous about the Mickey Mail as it still hasn't arrived and it's now 22 days until we go. I guess I'll have to call Disney UK if it doesn't show up in a few days.

Now it's only 12 days until we can do online check in though

 

[Fratthouse]

Following along! Early congrats - and let me just say, the ring is BEAUTIFUL!!!

I agree that September is the best time to go - which is why we have a trip planned for the same time So jealous you get to spend two weeks!! Hope you have a wonderful trip. "The place where dreams come true" will have a whole new meaning for you