Aussie Disneyland Planners come on in and lets plan together :)

[LesleyP]

99 DAYS!!

Yay you're in double digits!!!!!

I remember I started counting down it was 144 days and now I've only got 35 days left. Hurry up December!!

 

[kylieh]

99 DAYS!!

I remember getting to 100 days for our last trip. It was so exciting. Double digits, 3 and a bit months At this point it could be fun to do a pre-trip report. Then in 3 months or at the time you go you can see how much you plans have or haven't changed.

Yay you're in double digits!!!!!
I've only got 35 days left. Hurry up December!!

And Lesley, just over a month. I am so jealous. I have a whopping 145 days to go.

 

[gogo65]

6 weeks to go for me
i booked our flights in January (because we are going on FF points) so it has been a long time coming. Although I started planning in Jan 08 when we returned from WDW.
I can't believe it is getting so close

 

[mareeld86]

Yes I am going to do a trip Report!
I said i would start it when I got to 100 days so I will start first thing in the morning so keep an eye out for it!!
I have to take a picture of my Home made Advent calender I made.
We started counting down on that at 101 days but i was counting down from the moment i got back from my last trip.

 

[princessmiki]

I am feeling a bit lost at the moment with no Disneyland trip to plan and look forward to - am I the only one?

we got back last month and i soooo wanna go back, this is the first time i been on the board since before we left(couldnt face it).....yeah i suffering real bad. i am already checking out the cheap fares for next year

so aussie girls you are not alone!

for everyone that is leaving shortly you are going to have a blast

 

[ColB]

20 Days to go for us. My DS5 is telling me how many days to go every hour!

 

[Kalice]

We've got 22 days to go. Getting past excited and am now a little nervous, so much to do between now and departure. We've made no dining bookings (booked everything at WDW) and now wondering whether that's a mistake I know one thing for sure, we'll need a holiday when we get back Now, to get back to that list!

 

[arje]

Kalice, it might be worth starting to make some phone calls for your dining. We have had to move a trip from next December to this December (starting booking late last week), so obviously our time is limited. I am already struggling getting bookings for things we wanted. We managed to scrape in some bookings for xmas morning and dinner last night, but most decent places are packed.

 

[Kalice]

Arje, What sort of bookings do you recommend? We don't want to be rushing around from parks to make reservations. There are 7 of us, so will be hard to please everyone. We are staying at HOJO, so thought we'd go to mimi's a couple of times. I was thinking about Goofy's but not sure whether the older kids will appreciate it. I've had a quick glance at the sticky about dining, but it didn't really clarify anything.

 

[arje]

I apologise Kalice I thought you were talking about WDW dining not DL, as I noticed you were going there as well . I'm struggling with the WDW stuff at the moment. I'll slink back into the corner now!

But having been to DL around this time of year, you'll still need to get in early, but might still do alright. For example, Goofy's Kitchin might be tight but Ariels at DCA and Blue Bayou should have the odd spot or so to book. Still worthwhile trying to get in sooner rather than later.

 

[darren123]

Just booked and paid for our airfares this morning Disneyland here we go in 68 days. Flying V Australia Thanks to everyone for your reviews on them.

 

[Kalice]

Arje,
Did all the WDW bookings 90+10 out. Just worked out what parks we were going to and planned ressies around them. Turns out 2 days in HS (fantasmic- mama melrose and a lunch another). We're not purchasing park hoppers going to see if we can get by without them, we'll purchase them there if we need them. Once I had all my bookings I just mucked around with the online system a bit and changed a couple, SOOO many options! I'm not even sure where to start with the DL bookings, as I said the information regarding dining in DL is not as in depth. We will do a character breakfast, if we can book it, but don't even know where to book them? No info on the Disney website that I can find.

 

[platypus67]

we got back last month and i soooo wanna go back, this is the first time i been on the board since before we left(couldnt face it).....yeah i suffering real bad. i am already checking out the cheap fares for next year

so aussie girls you are not alone!

for everyone that is leaving shortly you are going to have a blast

I know how you feel. We've done three trips since Dec 07 and I'm already planning the next one. Not sure if it will be DLR or WDW this time, but the plans are for Dec 2010 and then onto Canada for a white Christmas. Will have to wait and see what the budget will allow, but I'm hoping for about five weeks with atleast 5 days at DLR or a week at WDW.

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I know how you feel. We've done three trips since Dec 07 and I'm already planning the next one. Not sure if it will be DLR or WDW this time, but the plans are for Dec 2010 and then onto Canada for a white Christmas. Will have to wait and see what the budget will allow, but I'm hoping for about five weeks with atleast 5 days at DLR or a week at WDW.

Hey Platypus, that sounds like the perfect trip, something I was considering exactly with the White Christmas in Canada. Have you done Canada before, I would love to hear your plans.

 

[platypus67]

Hey Platypus, that sounds like the perfect trip, something I was considering exactly with the White Christmas in Canada. Have you done Canada before, I would love to hear your plans.

We try to spend every second Christmas in Canada with my family. We were supposed to go this year but due to hubby changing jobs DD and I went for Thanksgiving instead and will plan the family trip for Dec 2010. We quite often do DLR on a stop over but in 2007 we flew to Orlando and drove up the coast. We had planned on spending 3 or 4 days in Washington but due to storms had to cut the trip short for fear of being stranded. We may try to do the same thing next year. I have sketchy plans for a couple of options so will cost them all and see what we decide. All depends on the budget.
I will start to do some serious planning and costing early in the New Year. We will definately leave by Dec 8th before the fares jump for the holiday period. I will probably book all our US domestic stuff first as soon as I can so we can use our FF points and then keep an eye on the fares to LA.

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

We try to spend every second Christmas in Canada with my family. We were supposed to go this year but due to hubby changing jobs DD and I went for Thanksgiving instead and will plan the family trip for Dec 2010. We quite often do DLR on a stop over but in 2007 we flew to Orlando and drove up the coast. We had planned on spending 3 or 4 days in Washington but due to storms had to cut the trip short for fear of being stranded. We may try to do the same thing next year. I have sketchy plans for a couple of options so will cost them all and see what we decide. All depends on the budget.
I will start to do some serious planning and costing early in the New Year. We will definately leave by Dec 8th before the fares jump for the holiday period. I will probably book all our US domestic stuff first as soon as I can so we can use our FF points and then keep an eye on the fares to LA.

Oh okay, you have family in Canada, how lovely. How long is the drive from Orlando up to New York and then on to Canada?

If you come across any major bargain flights give me a shout out will you? Ta.

 

[platypus67]

Oh okay, you have family in Canada, how lovely. How long is the drive from Orlando up to New York and then on to Canada?

If you come across any major bargain flights give me a shout out will you? Ta.

No worries.
When we drove in 2007 we did three nights in hotels. (The third being just outside of DC) We took it pretty slowly. Stopping quite often along the way. We didn't go to New York City. We went up through Pennsylvania and then through to Syracuse and crossed the border at Watertown as my family are in Kingston which is just across the border from there.
You can do the drive we did anywhere from 30 hours straight to four or five days. Just depends on how much you want to see. If we do it again next year we will plan on two or three days to DC and then a couple of nights there and then a couple of nights in Lancaster Pennsylvania. Our plans however, will be pretty dependant on the weather.

 

[becpee]

We are just home from our 3 weeks away, how depressing
We flew with V-Australia and all but a hiccup this morning with our bag going missing making us miss our connecting flight out of Sydney they were great.
Food was very good, service was good and flights were comfy.
DS3 slept nearly the whole way there and even I got 40 winks.
I'll have to change my pre trip report to a trip report
My DH made my whole holiday when he told me that the first time he walked through the gates at Disneyland he felt a little emotional and he really had to stop and check himself for a minute
My DS3 cried coming home, didn't want to come home to the "red bricky house" as he calls it, I am a little happy to be home though, as we are going to plan our next trip, not sue where to yet.
My DH want to do Disneyworld when DS3 is a little older, he is a mad keen golfer and when he saw the ads for Disneyworld with all their courses he said "thats it, we're going there".

 

[Jade+3]

We have been home a few days now and slowly getting back to reality. We had an awesome time. After a month I thought we would be ready to come home, but I could have easily stayed for longer.

Disneyworld was fantastic. I had been before, about 11 years ago and it was not at all like I remembered. We had 9 days in the parks, and still did not do everything we wanted. Magic Kingdom was our favourite, followed by Epcot. The weather was surprisingly warm, well hot actually. There is no way I would go to Florida in the summer, and this is coming from a Queenslander.

We rented a condo at Windsor Hills. The condo was in a great position, right near the pool. It was fantastic having 3 bedrooms, kitchen and laundry. Orlando itself we found rather uninteresting. We did a bit of shopping, but nothing we could not have done in California. We did do a day trip to Daytona to visit the Nascar track.

It did take a couple of days to get used to WDW. When we are at DL we usually come and go throughout the day. Due to the size of the parks we found that we would get there early, and stay all day. The long days did get a little tiring for the kids (4, 3 & 9mths). Next time we go we will definately stay at a Disney property so it is easier to come and go.

Our next adventure was the Disney Cruise, which we almost did not make due to DS3 having an upset tummy. He was given the all clear to travel by the ships doctor and we had no more tummy issues on board. We did the 4 night cruise. Castaway Cay was absolutely beautiful. I could have easily spent the whole cruise there. The kids enjoyed the pool and the kids club. We all ate and drank way too much. Good thing we had DL to come, so we could burn some calories.

Whilst we enjoyed the cruise, I doubt we would do another one. We did discover that we really are not cruisers, especially DH who is not good at doing nothing. Also, as we are a family of 5 we either need to get 2 connecting staterooms, or 1 large stateroom, which does make the experience rather pricey.

DL was fantastic as always. Our last day was the first day of the holiday season, so we got to see all the decorations, and Its a Small World and the lights on the castle. The kids got their photos taken with santa. We stayed at HoJo's. The pool area was definitely a hit.

Legoland was excellent. There was so much that the kids could go on, and there were no lines.

We had a few hiccups with VAustralia on the flight home. The kids did not get their meals, despite me confirming them 3 times. They also did not have any immigration cards on board. We waited close to an hour at the domestic transfer desk at Sydney airport. Must say at LAX it was nice not having to check in at the Tom Bradley terminal.

I think it will be a few years before we go again as DH has said no more strollers. He wants to wait until everyone is tall enough to ride everything. The kids are already talking about returning so who knows, we may just be able to convince him.

 

[Kalice]

Becpee & Jade, Thanks for the reports, sounds like everything went well. Jade, I was looking at google maps last night (both DLR and WDW), and WDW looks massive not just the parks but the whole property. We're staying on site, it's expensive but based on your report it looks like we've done the right thing. Reading your accounts makes it more exciting, two weeks to go!