Back from Florida!!!!

[riu girl]

We drove down to BUF Dec 16, flew to MCO Dec 17.
Picked up our National rental (red vibe) and drove down to Siesta Key (south of Tampa).
The condo we rented (direct from owner) was great and the beach..what can I say, it was incredible. We spent two weeks in this area and spent 3 days at Busch Gardens as well as toured an amazing state park, went to the beach a ton. I really liked Busch Gardens. The crowds were non existent and the grounds seemed much cleaner then Disney.
Then stayed at Saratoga Springs Dec 25. This is an incredible resort with an amazing POOL!!!!

Dec 31 - Checked into Pop Century for 8 nights. The first 6 days were HOT (almost too hot to tour theme parks) so we altered the touring plan so we could get in a lot of pool time. We were still able to tour the 4 theme parks as well as CRT, DTD, Ohanas for breakfast , family magic tour, Coral Reef.
Overall it was a great time. Since we had so many days to tour, we went on just about every attraction/performance/parade etc. Fantasmic was amazing. As were so many of the attractions. We met a ton of characters.

The theme parks were quite crowded Jan 1-5 but then were much quieter Jan 6/7 (weather was also MUCH cooler on Jan 6/7 vs. Jan 1-5). A CM told me that the crowds Jan 1-5 were much higher then disney anticipated.

Coral Reef restaurant was amazing (atmosphere and food). As was Ohanas. I liked the decor of CRT but the server was really trying to rush us.

All and all it was a fabulous trip. The only downside was that I saw a lot of parents with unhappy faces and they seemed to be yelling at each other and their kids A LOT!!. I was shocked the first few times I saw this. A lot of people didn't seem to have a touring plan of any sort. One woman I met on the POP - MK bus told me that Jan 3 they had to leave MK right after they arrived since she was too overwhelmed by the crowds. I spoke to her on the bus Jan 4 and they were trying MK again, but already she looked TOTALLY stressed. A lot of people seemed overwhelmed by the crowds. The heat Jan 1-5 probably didn't help matters.

But thanks to DIS, I had an awesome touring plan that included a lot of pool/down time. It was an easy 8 nights at POP/theme parks. POP was great. We had a room where we could watch the Epcot fireworks.

We are tentatively planning a Florida vacation Dec 16/06 - Jan 6/07 but I am having a hard time finding an inexpensive rental car for this time period. So we will have to wait and see if I can get a cheap rental. So far I can only find something in the $1000 range. After paying $229 for 15 days, $1000 is just too much.

Thanks again for all the help planning this holiday.

Suzy V

 

[hockey mom]

Welcome home Suzy.

Sounds like you had great weather and a great time. Did you get a chance to tour any of the resorts while the deorations were still up.

look forward to seeing all your pictures at the next Disney meet.

 

[SnowWhite]

Was just thinking about you guys yesterday, thinking you were just getting home!!! Glad to hear everything went so well, the kids must have hated to come home ( and you as well!!) Fantastic that you are already planning your next trip!! We were thinking of going again this year but it may have to wait till next.
So did your daughter enjoy CRT? My big regret is that we didn't do CRT. Rob was the first one calling in that morning when making ADR's but we had chosen PSB for the Princess selection, however we only met 2 and didn't enjoy our meal that much. DD was dressed as Cindy for Halloween so we already had the dress and tiara with us too.

Can't wait to see 3 weeks worth of pics!!! Just finished filling "Our Disney Vacation" frame with pics! We need to start planning the next DisMeet!!

 

[chowboys]

We are looking for a condo to rent for a few days for our trip in July. Can you please pm me the owners info. Is it right on the beach?

I would really appreciate it.

 

[riu girl]

Snow white:
CRT: DD8 is a tom boy so I didn't know what she would think about the princess lunch. She actually wore a dress with cinderella on it (not a costume but a cotton dress). Once the princesses were introduced and starting coming around to the tables she became interested in them, especially Snow White (since DD feels that Snow White is very in tune with nature).
I was upset that DS5 was basically ignored by the princesses. I had to make a point to make sure he had a little interaction to (although he probably would have preferred to be ignored since he is a pretty shy kid).

The food was fabulous though and the portions large.

The architecture and the whole ambiance was what I enjoyed the most.

For any girl interested in the princesses, I would say that this is must do (if budget allows). It sure beat waiting in the horrendous long line in toontown to see princesses. That alone was worth it.

Hockey Mom: Regarding Christmas decorations, on the last trip 12/04, we took a half day and drove around to several of the resorts to see the decorations, so this trip we just toured SSR and the Poly.

chowboys: the condo we stayed at has a two week minimum stay, but if you go on the siesta key chamber of commerce web site, you can pull up resorts that will rent for a few days. The beach is one of the finest I have been to. I'm sure you would love the area. If interested there is a ton of nightlife/restaurants in Siesta Key Village (north end of the island). The key itself is about 8 miles long and sports dozens of lodgings opportunities. Check out the chamber of commerce web site that will list daily rental places and please feel free to ask me anything about the key. Also on the chamber of commerce web site, make sure you request the Siesta Key 2006 guide book/maps. They will mail it all to you at no cost and they are incredibly informative.

Suzy

 

[Pokemom]

Chowboys - We rented a condo at the Sarasota Surf & Racquet Club last Christmas and they were very easy to deal with. Condo was very nice and right on the beach with a nice pool right next to the beach. They do weekly rentals, but you may be able to rent on a daily basis also.

 

[Canadave]

Welcome back Suzy....sounds like a great (relaxed) trip...good luck with your car rental search...which building were you in at POP?

 

[riu girl]

We were in the 50s section, 3rd floor room 3328, tramp building facing the lake and fireworks. It was much quieter on the back of the building. I definately prefer the back of the building vs. the front.

We thought POP was a fabulous resort. The staff/grounds/pools/food court, everything, no complaints at all. We used the disney busses all week since we didn't have a rental with us at this point and the longest we ever waited for a bus (to or from the parks) was 5-10 minutes tops. More common wait times were under 5 minutes.

Regarding finding a rental car for next trip, so far the least epensive I have found is $668 for 3 weeks. That being said, several of the rental agencies have not released pricing for our dates yet so I feel confident that we will get something for less. Even at $668, I would be ok with that since I was hoping for about $500. So its only $168 more then I had hoped for.
I emailed the owner of the condo in Siesta Key last night for price and availability for the three weeks. Hopefully the condo will be available then I can book that also. I can't wait to get back to the beach at Siesta Key. I have been to nicer beaches in the Caribbean, but this was by far the nicest beach I have been to in the US/Canada.

Suzy V

 

[mbb]

We too, were wondering how everything was going on your vacation

I'm glad that everything went well, Siesta Key sounds lovely! So does Busch Gardens..every year, we say "this is the year we'll do Tampa"...and it never happens! LOL

 

[BitsnBearsMom]

Welcome back... sounds like you had a nice relaxing trip!

 

[cabmom]

Welcome home Suzy!

Can you tell me how much you paid for Busch Garden tickets? We are probably going to go in March.

Thanks,

Marilynn

 

[riu girl]

We ended up buying the fun cards (unlimited visits during 2005). By the time we got to Busch (Dec 19) they had stopped selling them for 2005. I showed an email to the guest relations staff that stated they would still be available for sale Dec 19.
SO, they sold me 2006 fun cards but activiated them early.
Therefore, when we go next year, we will be able to go to Busch again and not have to buy any tickets.

The 2006 fun cards cost us about $52 US adults and about $47 US kids (3-9) plus tax.

If you go on the Busch gardens web site they have a ton of different ticket options, but since we wanted to go for at least 3 days, the fun cards were the best value for us. And now with the bonus of having them also for our 2006 trip, we are just so happy about that.

I have also read that CAA sells them at par (I think one day passes only) so you might want to look into that.

Have a wonderful holiday.
The park was lovely. Like Disney, it was very quiet at opening and for the first few hours afterwards but got a little busier after that. BUT not busy like Disney.