Pre-Trip #30:
RV Planning Another Adventure?? (Part Two)
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camp v. 1. to pitch or occupy a camp. 2. to live temporarily in a camp or outdoors often used with
out. 3. to take up ones quarters : LODGE. 4. to take up ones position : settle down.
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The first thing I did the morning after Ed and I had our little brainstorming session was to hop onto the DIS for a little lurking. I was venturing into unknown territory
the
Camping at Disney board! Fortunately the research I had done when checking out RV rentals clued me in to some of the lingo and camping etiquette. As expected, I discovered that the DIS-camping community is a unique and friendly bunch. Ill be stopping by there more frequently as our summer trip approaches.
I looked at lots of pix of various campsites (fun!) and read opinions about
Fort Wilderness and all its loops. Hmmm. It looked as though the
preferred pet loops (those sites with full hook-ups that allowed pets and were closest to the Settlement Depot and the Marina) were in great demand. I jumped off the computer, picked up the phone, and dialed the
CRO.
I drew a pleasant CM named Meghan who answered all of my newbie FW questions and was able to set us up with a ressie for
Sunday, August 17 through
Wednesday, August 27, checking out on Thursday morning. (BTW, Im glad I asked if check-in time was the same as the resorts. It's not.
Check-in begins at 1pm. (Check-out is the usual 11am.) Next came the tricky part, the making of special (room?) requests. It wouldnt be a
bona fide call to the CRO without those!
Having never camped a day in my life, I had absolutely no idea what to ask for in a campsite, other than the above. So, I just asked Meghan to make a note that we had an autistic child and would prefer a more quiet location if possible.
Maybe they could give you the end of the loop, she offered, that may be more quiet. I had no idea either, but she also noted on our ressie that we had an autistic child with us, so hopefully the all-powerful-site-assigner that day will be able to help us out.
I would be willing to walk a bit further to the bus stop if it meant less bustle and noise around our site.
You may want to consider renting a golf cart, she added, I stayed in one of the cabins recently and it really came in handy
I could hardly get my kids off of it! Forget the kids, I laughed, Its the husbands who hog the new toy all week, Im guessing! She also said that the next time she and her family stayed at FW, they were going to rent an RV so they could bring their dog.
I like that; when you talk to a Disney reservationist and they tell you that they have stayed at this resort or that resort and they treat you more like a fellow WDW fan than a pesky customer that they simply put up with. (Weve all run into a couple of those over the years, havent we?) Its nice to know that the person to whom youre entrusting your precious reservation doesnt just work for Disney, he or she loves WDW as a guest, too.
Regrettably, Ill have to see how we do without the electric golf cart, though. Rental is pretty steep
around
$48 per night. Despite the obvious convenience, I just cannot justify an extra $500 for a golf cart. That trip is going to be a no-buying trip, Ed warned. No pins, no t-shirts, no extras! Ah well, Ill just have to look at it as a well-needed opportunity to burn some extra calories, preferably supplied through another Free Dining promotion!
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So whatcha got here, people is your basic trip-within-a-trip-within-a-trip report! Talk about yer mul-ti-tasking! Step right up and watch as the lovely lady attempts to juggle, not one, not two, but three WDW trip reports at the same time!!
I considered color-coding the planning for the different trips, but my posts are usually so lengthy, I like to write them out on Word and then copy/paste. Cant do a huge chunk of color that way. Oh well.
Folks, if you start to get confused (Jordan) just let me know and Ill try to clear up any fog!
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So tomorrow (Saturday) its exactly
Seven Weeks!!
...until our family trip. Nuthin much to do planning-wise, thats all been done since June! Just a few things picked up here and there to go into the Disney box
toiletries, wet-wipes, rain ponchos
you know the drill.
One thing I did today was to stop at Staples Office Supply and pick up a couple of packages of the
self-seal laminating sheets for my daily itinerary cards. Check. Also bought a few more sets of the
roll-up space bags. Check. Love these! We can fit all our clothes in
half the luggage space once the air is squeezed out of the bags!
My goal is one large rolling duffle bag and one carry-on bag per person; the space bags help us to accomplish this. I always say Im not going to over-pack because we have the washer and dryer in the villa, but I like to be prepared for the variable November weather, so I usually wind up bringing a bit more clothing than we need. Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.
And even though we mail most of our souvies home at the point of purchase, theres always the stuff that we either want to wear/use while were there, so I like to bring along a foldable medium-sized nylon duffle in case we need extra luggage room on the flight home.
Well, thats the news. Now that were back on our regular school schedule, I no longer feel like Im walking through Jell-O. The days are beginning to slip by pretty quickly now, thank goodness! Before you know it, well be packing our space bags and making rude noises when the air gets rolled out!
Until next time
Kathy
)!
I'm not a camper either - I can't wait to see how this adventure turns out! Oh My!
Remodeled house and you still get the trip to WDW!!! What a great summer you'll have! I know what you mean about living in cramped quarters - we were in a 700 sq. ft. 2BR/1Bath house until Zach was born - we figured he could just share a room with Alex. Then the diagnosis of PDD-NOS and Zachary was sleeping in a pack-and-play in the livingroom! $60,000 later - we have a 3BR/1 1/2 Bath house with a new family room and much more space (still not enough - but good school district and bad housing market so we aren't going anywhere). 
to a fellow NJ Disser. I am in Hawthorne, in Passaic County. I am really enjoying your TR. Looking forward to the next one!!!
I am in total shock.
Especially if the dish involves Chicken Feet and Cheese 
Ahh. Me time!
Can I come live with you?
