Buckley trip Day 10, Going home & Final thoughts

[Dana_Buckley]

Day 10 Saturday June 8 - Going home
Early wake-up 6:45am. Had to finish packing, call bellman, check-out, get car (which we never used) and drive to airport for flight at 10:15am. Everything could not have gone more smoothly. The bellman arrived in 10min, I was already checked out, the car was waiting for us & no traffic. Dropped the car off & went to check the bags, only waited about 15min. Flight home was fine. From Atlanta to San Diego DS slept about 1 1/2 hours after lunch. I was a bit sad to go, but I was ready to be home.

Final thoughts:
I won't go when it's HOT! It really affected us more than I thought it would. We had fans & misters, but we were HOT!
I will plan more time for MGM and spend more time at AK.
I also want to go to a waterpark, but we were just too tired to head back out at 3 or 4 o'clock to go. We have a nice waterpark here, so it wasn't imperative that we go at WDW.
I would like to explore World Showcase more.
I will definately try to stay at Polynesian again, maybe not concierge though.
I wouldn't keep a car, we never used it.
I would like to actually 'dine' more than we were able to. DS just would not cooperate at dinner time. He was exhausted.
We also didn't get to see Illuminations or Fantasmic, but we will try next time.
If it is cooler next time we go, we should get to see more of the parades, too.
And DS will be older, so we should be able to go on the bigger rides, HM, BTMRR, SpaceM, SplashM, etc..

We had a really great vacation. DH spent a lot of time with DS, which he doesn't always get to do. (I'm home everyday) We had some very memorable moments and a lot fun together. Just swimming everyday was great for us. I tried to use all the info and advice I could, and I think we did a pretty good job. Thank you to everyone who has answered my questions along the way. It'll be a few years before we get back, but we will get back!!

 

[susy]

Dana,
Our first two trips with our DS were in Nov and Jan. This makes a HUGE difference. In May it was VERY hot (and we are used to the heat being from FL). I would plan your next trip for Dec (first two weeks). That is supposed to be the least crowded time and you have MVMCP and all the decorations!! Our DS is 4 and loves Splash and Thunder Mountain. He also loves the Haunted Mansion, Star Tours, and Kali River Rapids. We always take breaks, even with shorter park hours. We still get to see everything we want and never have had practically no waits at all during the last three trips! We are going Labor Day Weekend, but plan on spending a lot of time at the resort.

 

[Nanajo1]

What a wonderful trip you had. You did a great job telling the story. I enjoyed reading it. I think you did remarkable to do all you did with a 2yo.

 

[pumba]

and doing it with a little one makes more work work work....but your 2 year old sounded like he did fantastic.....now having it hot makes it harder to even walk somedays......thanks so much for your thoughts and food choices on this trip...

 

[vald1977]

Thanks for taking the time to report on your trip ! Too bad about Daytona Beach being so rundown. At least you hotel seemed nice. I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed the Kona Cafe so much. I would really like to go to each hotel for a meal next trip and this was the place I wanted to go to from the Polynesian. I think we will have to correlate our ps with the EWP as it seems it was a big hit with your ds. Glad you enjoyed Chef Mickey's as well. Maybe we will try that one for breakfast next trip. Thanks again !

 

[yepod]

Thanks for the great reports!

We recommend December also. First week is DISCON, (at least last & this year, so that's another neat thing to do).
I'm sure your DS would like MVMCP (our DD did)!

Now you're a veteran & can help others with their questions

 

[meeko_33785]

Taking such a young child to WDW can be tough, but it's someting you'll never forget. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

 

[PattyH804]

Hi Dana,
I enjoyed reading your report very much. Our first trip as a
family was when our son was 2. Our second trip he was 5 and
wanted nothing to do with any rides that were inside a building. His sister was 2 and did everything.
We enjoy going during the Food and Wine Fest at Epcot. It is
usually late october into november. This last time the kids really
enjoyed just running around while we ate and drank our way
around the world. It was alot better for them rather than sitting
at a table in a restaurant.
I agree with you not to go when it is too hot. We lived in FL
for awhile and it can get pretty bad. Now we live in TX and it's
not much better, but it sure doesn't get real sticky here.
Patty

 

[Credit Man]

Enjoyed your report. Thanks for posting.