ARGH! Getting so frustrated - a couple of questions!

[CelestriaSky]

Well, after our first visit to Disney last year, my parents took the plunge and bought a DVC! I'm so excited and we are going for the first time in less than two weeks.

My mother has basically saddled me with the entire planning of this vacation. I had her call about a month ago to inquire about park passes. The people going are me (33), my son (4) and my parents. The person she spoke with quoted the annual pass rate for DVC members for all three of us and my son Well, my mother just called and said that in order to get the DVC rate, you have to have a state issued ID card verifying your address. This is NOT what we were told earlier in the month.

For you veterans - what's the story on this? Our thought was to go this October and then the beginning of next October so that we would get our money's worth. I really don't want to buy 7 day passes if I don't have to. I just want some clarification. I'm about to just cancel the whole thing all together I'm so frustrated with my mother and family I have been looking forward to this for so long and it's just DRAMA!

Plus, at the last minute she's balking about getting the dining plan - are the kitchens really worth it in the one bedroom to actually cook full meals?!? We had the dining plan last year and it was so nice to be able to plan your days in the park around where we were going to eat and not have to worry about going back and stuff. Anyone have any experience with that?

And one last question - we are staying at SSR - where should I request our room? We'll probably be using the pool a bit - what's the most convenient?

Thanks so much for helping me out! I feel like I want to bang my head against the wall!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Anyone can buy an annual pass. In order to get the DVC discount, though, every adult must have the same address as the owner and be related - son, daughter, mother, father, etc. You have to provide a state issued ID, like a driver's license with the same address as the DVC owner.

At SSR, each area has a pool. There are two themed pool areas - Grandstand (the newest section to open) and the Springs (adjacent to the Carriage House and Artists Palette). Congress Park is closest to DTD and some of the Paddocks area is also close to DTD.

We found the Disney Dining Plan to have too much food for us. On our last trip (since we were AP holders), we purchased the Disney Dining Experience card and got 20% off most table service meals and a few counter service meals. Worked out much better for us.

 

[JimC]

DVC discount is for members and family residing in the member's household.

One bedroom villas have a fully equipped kitchen. If you get an AP you can also look into the DDE (Disney Dining Experience) program. We use that instead of DDP (Disney Dining Plan). But you need to consider both and decide what is best for your family.

 

[salmoneous]

The annual pass discount is only good for family members living in the same househould. If you live in the same address as your partents, you will have to show ID to get the discount. If you don't live with them, you aren't eligible for the discount.

Hope that helps,
Sal

 

[bobbiwoz]

If even one of your parents buys the AP and then the Disney Dining Experience card, that card takes 20% for everyone on the bill, I think the limit is 10 people. This is mostly for sit down eating, or at specific adult beverage places.

If you can't get the DVC discount try one of the discount places to buy 10 day passes, non expiration. Here's a thread that I found with a link to undercover tourist. I've bought tickets there and have been very satisfied. There are other discount places as well...AAA (I think, we are not members of AAA but guests of ours have purchased tickets from them).

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1195816&referrerid=&highlight=Discounted+park+tickets

I hope that what you have are just pre trip jitters. SSR is beautiful, the F&W festival is great, and MK's Halloween decorations are especially beautiful this year. Are you going to a MNSSHP? Maybe you can get a DVC discounted ticket for one of those...enjoy the resort for the day and do the MK at night.

Enjoy your trip!

Bobbi

 

[CelestriaSky]

Thank you so much for your post! It's not jitters, I'm just frustrated! I know that once I get down there I will have a great time - it's just that stuff I've been bugging my mom for for months is now becoming an issue - KWIM?!?

Yes, we do have tickets to the Halloween Party and I'm *SO* excited about that! My little boy is just over the moon with excitement. The other thing that I'm dreading is that last year we flew but this year my mom thought it would be "fun" if we drove the 10 hours (we're coming from the DC area). So I'm preparing myself for that bit of "fun" - haha!

I hope that what you have are just pre trip jitters. SSR is beautiful, the F&W festival is great, and MK's Halloween decorations are especially beautiful this year. Are you going to a MNSSHP? Maybe you can get a DVC discounted ticket for one of those...enjoy the resort for the day and do the MK at night.

Enjoy your trip!

Bobbi[/QUOTE]

 

[Disney Doll]

The DVC AP discount is only for family members residing at the same address as the DVC owner(s). If you and your son do not live with yor parents, then you will not be able to get the discount. However, do look into their different ticket pricings... I believe they call it Magic Your Way, because essentially the more days you buy on yor ticket, the cheaper it becomes. If you are planning on being there a total of 14 days in the next year (7 days this October and 7 days next October), your parents can buy their AP using thier DVC discount and you can buy yourself and your son a 14 day non-expiring ticket, so you can use it both this year and next year. It might not end up being a bad deal for you.

The DDP sounds like a lot of of food to me too. I have no experience with it, but we have gotten the Disney Dining Experience card and have VERY GOOD luck with that. According to the letter of the law, the DDP takes 20% off of the bill for up to 10 people. I will tell you that we have used it with groups of more than 10 people and they have still taken the 20% off for the whole group....it depends on the restaurant. Even if they stick right to the letter of the law with it, it's still a savings. I believe it costs $50, and we recouped that amount within the first 2 days. Having a 1BR villa is nice for making breakfast and snacks, but you are not going to want to leave what you are doing to go all the way back to the room to make lunch and dinner.

SSR is a fairly large resort with more than one pool. I believe they have 2 "major theme" pools and a few quiet pools. I would say request "near theme pool" or "near quiet pool". We stayed there on the April trip I spoke of above and had a lovely time. It is a beautifullly themed resort.

We have been to MNSSHP and it is cute...your son will love it. Make sure you are in position to see the night-time parade...it is different from their usual parade. The beginning part of it is really cool, with the Headless Horseman. Don't miss it. The F&W Festival is terrific too. We have enjoyed that for many years.

When I was a kid, we used to drive to Florida every year from CT. A 10 hour drive is nothing compared to a 24 hour drive spread over 2.5 or 3 days. Leave at midnight...you'll be there by lunchtime and DS will have slept for a good part of the trip.

 

[BroganMc]

it's just that stuff I've been bugging my mom for for months is now becoming an issue - KWIM?!?

You should have seen me in the weeks leading up to my year-long planned trip to London this past August. All the things I thought were easy turned out to be a far more complicated. (I was dealing with power conversion issues so had to do a crash course in electronics just to get the right answer.)

Relax. These bad news complications are just God's way of letting you down so you can have a really great time later. Keeps your expectations in check.

I'm dreading is that last year we flew but this year my mom thought it would be "fun" if we drove the 10 hours (we're coming from the DC area). So I'm preparing myself for that bit of "fun" - haha!

I'm in your neck of the woods, a bit farther north near Columbia, MD. My dad (he's 75) and I drive down to Florida twice a year. My brother and sister also drive down with their kids (age ranges for them went from 2-8).

Once you get south of Richmond I-95 is a breeze. North Carolina is a quick 2-3 hours. South Carolina seems the longest since you cut through the fattest part of the state, but it's only about 4-5 hours. Georgia is over in the blink of an eye in just under 2 hours. In Florida it is pretty smooth unless you happen to be hitting Jaksonville at rush hour. By the time you get to Daytona you are about an hour away. (Late in the day the sun will be in your eyes though as you're heading due west on I-4.) The only time Florida begins to resemble traffic up here is when you get down to Miami. THAT's a nightmare!

Now my dad and I usually stay over one night on the road. We're terrible packrats so it takes us longer to decide what to pack and actually leave the house. But my siblings are known to drive straight through.

There are some great places to stop along the way. Usually we take a rest break in Roanoke Rapids or Rocky Mount, NC. We've been staying in Florence, SC last two trips. Otherwise we stop off at Lake Marion (mid-way point for SC). South of the Border (just south of the NC border to SC) is a kitschy stop that must be seen at least once. It is on the the survivng classic driving destinations of the old 50's & 60's. Currently run and updated for modern audiences. They have shops, diners, mini-golf and a motel. I remember it well from our first trip to Florida when I was 8. We got there near 11pm. It was the only place open for miles, lit up like a beacon, and offered hot tacos and chile to some very bored, tired and cold Northerner kids.

Savannah, GA has a lot of nice places. And I've made several overnight visits to Jacksonville and St. Augustine. We've even stayed in Sanford (where the AutoTrain from Lorton, VA arrives in Florida).

Oh and no matter what, an absolute must is to stop at the Florida Welcome Center for your free cup of fresh orange and grapefruit juice. They're only open 9-5pm so you have to time your driving just right. Back when I was 8, we arrived to bright sunshine and OJ. Now my dad and I will stop off and picnic there.

I'm not sure how old your son is, but if you're looking for something to keep him from wailing buy one of those cheap portable DVD players. Get some wireless headphones, load up his favorite movies and you'll have complete silence for the journey. My siblings swear by them, inclding the one with 4 kids all a year apart. ("Stop touching me. MOM, [my brother/sister] won't stop bothering me!" is a frequent chorus in the car otherwise.

Have fun. I'll be at the MNSSHP on the 8 and 16th and SSR 14-23. Bringing my sister and her two boys (6 & 8) along for the 16th week). They're so excited, everyone is dressing up.
I hope that what you have are just pre trip jitters. SSR is beautiful, the F&W festival is great, and MK's Halloween decorations are especially beautiful this year. Are you going to a MNSSHP? Maybe you can get a DVC discounted ticket for one of those...enjoy the resort for the day and do the MK at night.

Enjoy your trip!

Bobbi[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]