Boo to me! - Solo Halloween PTR 10/22-29 - Link to TR posted!

[DisneyFirefly]

I really don't know. I looked at their menu and didn't see anything that really grabbed my attention, so I'm not sure yet We'll see

 

[PrincessInOz]

 

[DisneyFirefly]

75 more days!

My airfare has gone up $80 in the last couple of weeks. Southwest is advertising a sale from Chicago to Florida cities, but I don't think they've updated the pricing yet, since it was still the same. I'm hoping it'll go down, either through a sale or a ding fare, as I can't afford $580 for my airfare. That's over half of the cost of my whole payment to Disney

In other news, I got the bags I ordered. I took a picture the day they came so I could post it, but I forgot.

The purple one is my park bag and the black and white one is my laptop bag. I'm very happy with my laptop bag, and I'm going to bring a small backpack with to the parks in case I get tired of the tote bag.

And this is the bath and body stuff I've picked up for the trip (and a random Netflix movie). The black net thing is a laundry bag. I don't plan on doing laundry while I'm there, but it'll come in handy to keep my things separated after I've worn them. It's body wash, shampoo/conditioner, hand soap, deodorant, laundry bag, loofah, toothpaste, and toothbrush, all from Dollar Tree

I also picked up some fabric to make a skirt for a Halloween costume. I'm going to make it sometime in the next couple of weeks, and will buy a couple things for it, but that's about it.

Aside from that, nothing much is happening in terms of my trip. Since Disney put up pricing for 2011 packages, my best friend and I looked at what we want to do for next year. We're planning on going down on Halloween and staying until the day after the first MVMCP, as long as they're not too far apart. We want to hit both parties and the F&WF. It's fairly expensive, but we have over a year to plan and save for it. So, yeah. I'll be starting a new PTR once I come back in October

But anyway Not starting that until October or November at the earliest.

 

[PrincessInOz]

You and I are in the same boat.....er....airplane. I'm still waiting on DH to book his ticket before I can do anything about mine! In the meantime, the prices are going up....

 

[DisneyFirefly]

You and I are in the same boat.....er....airplane. I'm still waiting on DH to book his ticket before I can do anything about mine! In the meantime, the prices are going up....

Yeah, I'm so afraid of my fare going even higher If it goes above $600, I think I may have to see if I can squeeze into a narrow chair, but I know my belly would spill over, which, on Southwest, is cause for being asked to leave the plane if it's full. I hope your DH books soon I plan on booking mine with the paycheck after this one (two weeks from Friday), so hopefully it won't be too pricey I have no credit cards, so this entire trip is cash.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Cash is KING! That means that you'll have no debt or bills to come home to at the end of the holiday!

 

[DisneyFirefly]

Oh, I know, and I'm very happy about that... It's just that now I don't know if I can afford my airfare because I'm only paying cash and I'm worried that if I wait too long, it'll go even higher

 

[PrincessInOz]

Not long now.


BTW - I was most remiss before! I love the purple bag! Can't wait to get to meet it in person....

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Our airfare was only 335 round trip for BOTH of us until I decided to add an extra day and it made it 640 dollars. That's what I get for booking the airfare so early. Oh well, live and learn.

PS I love the dollar tree! I get a lot of my household items there on a regular basis.

Oh be sure to post pictures of the skirt you make! I am going to make a tote bag for my trip but I have at least 3 other sewing projects to get done before I make mine. 4 if I dont want to show up empty handed to my cousin when we see her on our trip.

 

[DisneyFirefly]

Not long now.


BTW - I was most remiss before! I love the purple bag! Can't wait to get to meet it in person....

I love the purple bag, too I'm hoping it won't be too heavy to carry around all week, which is why I'm going to bring a small backpack. My dad found one of the little nylon Where Dreams Come True bags at a garage sale and got it for me, and it's in good condition, so that's the other bag I'll be bringing.

Our airfare was only 335 round trip for BOTH of us until I decided to add an extra day and it made it 640 dollars. That's what I get for booking the airfare so early. Oh well, live and learn.

PS I love the dollar tree! I get a lot of my household items there on a regular basis.

Oh be sure to post pictures of the skirt you make! I am going to make a tote bag for my trip but I have at least 3 other sewing projects to get done before I make mine. 4 if I dont want to show up empty handed to my cousin when we see her on our trip.

What airline are you guys flying? That early price is amazing, but yeah, shooting up to $640 because of one day sucks If you guys are flying Southwest, you may want to take a look at their Chicago to Florida sale and see if your dates are included in it. You may be able to get a credit

I definitely will It's just still a sheet of fabric at the moment That's the only thing I'm really making. I'm buying the top for it from Old Navy and the shoes from Payless. I can fix things, but I can't really sew, so my mom's going to teach me (even though her sewing machine is 30 years old and isn't similar to most new machines). What projects are you working on?

 

[Nermel9]

I love the bags!

You're airfare is $580 right now for just you, or is that for the 2 seats you want? Either way, that's pretty crazy, airfare is ridiculous right now. Have you tried any other airlines? Jet Blue is usually pretty cheap, they're the only other airline I like because they don't charge for checked luggage. And they have tv's!

Everyone buys their toiletries so early! I don't know how you can do it, and look at them for the next few months, that would drive me crazy, I really can't let myself buy stuff until I'm at least a month away from my trip, but I prefer to do it even closer, a week or two away! I'll have to check out the Dollar Tree near me, I usually get everything at Target for my trips, but as cheap as Target is, it still adds up!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

What airline are you guys flying? That early price is amazing, but yeah, shooting up to $640 because of one day sucks If you guys are flying Southwest, you may want to take a look at their Chicago to Florida sale and see if your dates are included in it. You may be able to get a credit

I definitely will It's just still a sheet of fabric at the moment That's the only thing I'm really making. I'm buying the top for it from Old Navy and the shoes from Payless. I can fix things, but I can't really sew, so my mom's going to teach me (even though her sewing machine is 30 years old and isn't similar to most new machines). What projects are you working on?

AirTran. We've never flown them before. I've flown United and American. Unfortunately, we didn't book southwest b/c we actually booked our airfare before the window for our trip time became available with SW.

I am making 2 crayon rolls (which actually are pretty easy) and 3 tote bags-one for me, one for my cousin and one for my SIL! I took a sewing class at JoAnn Fabrics and I learned the basics but I definitely have been teaching myself along the way!

 

[DisneyFirefly]

I love the bags!

You're airfare is $580 right now for just you, or is that for the 2 seats you want? Either way, that's pretty crazy, airfare is ridiculous right now. Have you tried any other airlines? Jet Blue is usually pretty cheap, they're the only other airline I like because they don't charge for checked luggage. And they have tv's!

Everyone buys their toiletries so early! I don't know how you can do it, and look at them for the next few months, that would drive me crazy, I really can't let myself buy stuff until I'm at least a month away from my trip, but I prefer to do it even closer, a week or two away! I'll have to check out the Dollar Tree near me, I usually get everything at Target for my trips, but as cheap as Target is, it still adds up!

It's for the two seats that Southwest would charge me for. If I don't buy the second one and then they decide I'm too fat and need it, I think they'll charge me the fare as it is that day, not the original fare I paid for the first ticket. I've looked at American, United, Delta, JetBlue, AirTran, Continental, and a couple others I've forgotten at the moment. The cheapest fare is still Southwest when you consider that American, United, Delta, and Continental will also make me buy a second seat and I have no idea what JetBlue or AirTran's policy is toward customers of size. They don't have anything published on their websites and I'm worried that if I buy one seat, they'll kick me off the plane anyway, even without a published policy.

As for the toiletries, I just put them in my carry-on until I'm going to get ready to pack. The only ones that aren't in there are the shampoo and the body wash. I'm worried about the shampoo leaking, and the body wash already does But yeah, all that only cost me like $9. I love Dollar Tree

AirTran. We've never flown them before. I've flown United and American. Unfortunately, we didn't book southwest b/c we actually booked our airfare before the window for our trip time became available with SW.

I am making 2 crayon rolls (which actually are pretty easy) and 3 tote bags-one for me, one for my cousin and one for my SIL! I took a sewing class at JoAnn Fabrics and I learned the basics but I definitely have been teaching myself along the way!

Aw, that sucks My airfare is probably going to be the last thing I buy unless a Ding fare comes up, since it's so freakin expensive

That's awesome My mom learned when she was a kid, and I learned a little bit here and there, but I've never really been one to make my own clothes or anything like that. I don't have a problem with it, I've just never had the inclination

 

[Nermel9]

It's for the two seats that Southwest would charge me for. If I don't buy the second one and then they decide I'm too fat and need it, I think they'll charge me the fare as it is that day, not the original fare I paid for the first ticket. I've looked at American, United, Delta, JetBlue, AirTran, Continental, and a couple others I've forgotten at the moment. The cheapest fare is still Southwest when you consider that American, United, Delta, and Continental will also make me buy a second seat and I have no idea what JetBlue or AirTran's policy is toward customers of size. They don't have anything published on their websites and I'm worried that if I buy one seat, they'll kick me off the plane anyway, even without a published policy.

I flew Jet Blue for the first time in May, on the way there we were on a smaller plane with only 2 seats per aisle, so my DH and I were pretty comfy sitting together. On the way back there were 3 seats in the aisle, and I had the window seat, and my DH had the middle. I kept saying "watch some big tall huge man have the aisle seat". Sure enough, some giant guy had that seat. He was large in every sense of the word...really tall, overweight...he definitely did not look comfortable. No one said a word to him, and he was definitely in my DH's seat a little. Luckily my DH doesn't care about these things so he wasn't bothered, and he ended up talking to him for most of the flight. He was really nice...he actually kept complaining about how small seats on planes are!

So I don't know what Jet Blue's policy is, but I know their whole thing is that you have more room than other airlines, so maybe you could email them and get an answer? If they didn't kick this guy off, I doubt they would kick you off!!

 

[DisneyFirefly]

I flew Jet Blue for the first time in May, on the way there we were on a smaller plane with only 2 seats per aisle, so my DH and I were pretty comfy sitting together. On the way back there were 3 seats in the aisle, and I had the window seat, and my DH had the middle. I kept saying "watch some big tall huge man have the aisle seat". Sure enough, some giant guy had that seat. He was large in every sense of the word...really tall, overweight...he definitely did not look comfortable. No one said a word to him, and he was definitely in my DH's seat a little. Luckily my DH doesn't care about these things so he wasn't bothered, and he ended up talking to him for most of the flight. He was really nice...he actually kept complaining about how small seats on planes are!

So I don't know what Jet Blue's policy is, but I know their whole thing is that you have more room than other airlines, so maybe you could email them and get an answer? If they didn't kick this guy off, I doubt they would kick you off!!

I did wind up calling both JetBlue and AirTran, and AirTran's (unpublished ) policy is that you have to buy two seats. JetBlue's policy is that it's at the passenger's discretion UNLESS their neighbor complains. The woman I spoke to said that if that happens, the flight attendants will try to reseat the fat person, but if the flight's full, they'll have to buy a second seat. I found a fare with them for under $300, but the times are NOT what I want. In order to get the times that I wanted (early morning flight there, late evening flight back), I'd be paying what I was looking at with Southwest for two seats

So, depending on how their fares are doing at the end of the month (no credit cards, so that's when I'd first be able to buy the ticket), I may wind leaving Disney at 6am on my last day

 

[DisneyFirefly]

I must be insane or something. I'm thinking about adding another day to my trip because of this stupid airfare fiasco. My thinking is that if I have to spend $600 on airfare, it had better be a really good trip

So right now, I'm thinking about arriving in the early afternoon on October 22nd instead of the morning of the 23rd. It would actually be a cheaper airfare (around $500 instead of almost $600), but I'd obviously have to pay an extra night in the hotel, which I don't think I'd mind doing. Essentially, it would only be about an extra $30-40 to have a whole extra day at WDW (hotel cost minus fare difference).

I haven't made the decision yet, as I can't buy my airfare for three weeks anyway. What do you guys think?

 

[PrincessInOz]

Firefly, I say go for it! If you're spending all that money to head to the World, then make the most of it. I only wish I could add some time but then my trip is at the mercy of DH's work schedule. I can't complain .... I'll be at the world with your lovely purple bag (and you)

 

[DisneyFirefly]

Firefly, I say go for it! If you're spending all that money to head to the World, then make the most of it. I only wish I could add some time but then my trip is at the mercy of DH's work schedule. I can't complain .... I'll be at the world with your lovely purple bag (and you)

I'm leaning toward it... As long as the fare stays that way (or drops, which would be awesome), I'll call Disney and change my arrival date. I sort of made a dinner reservation for that night, so that just in case I do decide to come in on the 22nd, I'll be able to have a nice dinner. I picked Captain's Grille at the Yacht Club so that I can also wander around the Boardwalk and still get back to Pop easily If I decide not to come in on the 22nd and stick with the 23rd, I can just cancel it.

And yes, I and my lovely purple bag will accompany you around the parks

 

[DisneyFirefly]

This afternoon, I woke up and turned on my iTouch to check my email and I had a Ding fare from Southwest, so I checked it. It was a $93 fare from Chicago to Orlando, but for any day September 1-30 It's the second I've seen in recent weeks, so I'm hoping that they'll start releasing October Ding fares soon, since August is now almost half over. I also realized the other day that I can't buy my airfare until late September anyway, unless a Ding fare pops up before then or I get approved for the credit card I applied for the other day (I don't have any, and am actually not sure if I'll get this one, long story as to why).

Sooo... I'm going to call Disney tomorrow and change my arrival day to the 22nd! I've decided you know what, screw it, I want to spend as much time in Disney as possible. Also, Saturday flights seem to be more expensive and crowded than Friday flights. Even today, leaving on Friday instead of Saturday would save me $75, which I could use toward another night at Pop and then just another $50 for the rest of the hotel cost. It stands to reason that there'll be Ding fares, too, since I've seen two for Orlando just in the last few weeks, but they've been for September, so I can't use them.

So, here's my updated itinerary:

Tuesday, October 12
Check in online!

Friday, October 22
Flight on Southwest sometime in the morning or early afternoon (leaning toward 7:40am, arriving at 11:15am)
DME to Pop, check in, drop bags off
Go to Downtown Disney and shop
Grab lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express
Dinner at Raglan Road at 6:30pm

Saturday, October 23
Go to MK whenever I wake up
Stop at Guest Services to upgrade my tickets to 5-day park hoppers
Lunch at Tony's at 12:25
Dinner at Cosmic
Stay for evening EMH

Sunday, October 24
Sleep in, then check Disboards and email and such (I'm bringing my laptop and broadband card)
Maybe go swimming
Lunch at the Pop Food Court
Head to MK to enter at 4 for MNSSHP (this is dependent on 4pm entry, obviously)
Dinner at Crystal Palace at 6 with PrincessInOz, LuvChefMic, and their husbands

Monday, October 25
Head over to Epcot to meet up with PrincessInOz and maybe LuvChefMic
F&W festival
Hop over to MK for EMH
Grab a late dinner at Casey's, if they're open

Tuesday, October 26
DHS in the morning
Lunch at Sci-Fi at 11:45
Head to MK whenever I'm done with DHS
Dinner at Liberty Tree with PrincessInOz and LuvChefMic at 5:20
MNSSHP!

Wednesday, October 27
Morning at DAK
Hop over to MK after going on exactly TWO rides (Kilimanjaro and EE )
Lunch at Liberty Tree at 12
Dinner at Harbor House
Maybe hop over to Epcot

Thursday, October 28
Morning EMH at MK
Breakfast at Crystal Palace at 9:35 (conveniently AFTER EMH )
Lunch at The Plaza at 1:25
MNSSHP!
Dinner at Pecos

Friday, October 29
Wander over to Downtown Disney after I wake up and check my bags in with DME
Lunch at Earl of Sandwich
Dinner at the airport
Fly home

Should I change my ticker? I can't decide, since I like seeing it half done

But yay, 71 days left!

 

[Nermel9]

Yay I'm glad you're adding a day! I'm hoping the Friday flights are a little less crowded too, and yeah, when I changed my flight from Saturday to Friday, the price dropped a lot so there must be a reason!

When I added a day, I made a new ticker, I didn't like starting over, but at the same time, I like seeing that I'll be there a day earlier! But I'm a little too obsessed with my ticker, it might not be normal! Like today, I'm excited that it actually says 2 months on it!