Cruising, Wining, and Disney Dining - Two 2012 PTRs in One! **TR LINK UP**

[klacey1]

I hate reading about last days :-( Yours will be a blast! Zach is a strictly meat and potatoes guy and LOVED Chefs de France! He said it was the second best steak and best sides of our trip. So if Kris isn't an adventurous eater, I think he'll still have options!
AHHHH I can't believe how good we're doing!! Beating the Bruins this weekend felt amazing! It's terrifying though-- I'm trying not to get my hopes up that they actually have a shot at the Cup! We go two weeks from Friday to see them play the Sabres!
Your $$ pacing is really good! Kudos to having a lot paid off so far in advance!

 

[vikkii19]

Just finished reading all 29 pages, great idea about chomping away at the Disney fund. I should really start doing that too.

You'll love AKV, we stayed there this past November and loved it. We actually just had a waitlist come through for BCV, but needed an extra night, so we'll be at AKV at the same time (Sept 30th) in a value studio too.

A few posts back you were debating between Narcoosee's and Cali Grill. Our last trip we were on the DxDP and tried all signature restaurants. With that said, I would pick Cali Grill over Narcoosee's. We were really disappointed with Narcoosee's, we just didn't really care for the food that much and the service was the slowest of all (2.5 hours). When we went to Cali Grill, we were brought back to the back room where the wine is, at first I was disappointed that we didn't have a view of the castle. But in the end we loved that little room, there were only 5 tables and we got to see parts of Illuminations. Another plus was it was so quiet in that room, when we were done dinner and leaving we couldn't believe how loud it was in the rest of the restaurant. We still got to get up from our meal and go watch wishes from the observation deck. Oh and the food was excellent.

 

[Imagineer5]

Wow nice job on the budget, I'm jealous! I also am doing the sw rewards thing with the surveys.

Fun last day! Good to know EPCOT is a best day for that day, I stopped my touring plans subscription but might start it Up again. I hope you will get the pixie dust and not have to change rooms, but at least you have that entire extra day/night!

 

[HeatherLassell]

Hey Jenny have hours been released to travel agents yet for October?

 

[Enchanted88]

Thank you! I'm loving living in a bigger city!! It's soooo much more convenient!! haha

MK EMH are wonderful!! Ben and I didn't last for the whole thing last time, but it was our first night there, and I didn't want to drag for the rest of the week! We were soooo tired that night! lol But, I'm definately planning on conquering that this year!

And YAY for being so close on paying everything off! I'm sure it will be a huge weight off of your shoulders when you do! I know it will be for us! I'm just looking for cheap plane tickets now, if those even exist! haha

 

[jenny105]

Yea for paying off the room!!

Doesnt sound like you have too much more to pay for and you will be done!

Thanks! We're so close to paying everything off!

You're doing great with trip money!

Thanks!

I hate reading about last days :-( Yours will be a blast! Zach is a strictly meat and potatoes guy and LOVED Chefs de France! He said it was the second best steak and best sides of our trip. So if Kris isn't an adventurous eater, I think he'll still have options!
AHHHH I can't believe how good we're doing!! Beating the Bruins this weekend felt amazing! It's terrifying though-- I'm trying not to get my hopes up that they actually have a shot at the Cup! We go two weeks from Friday to see them play the Sabres!
Your $$ pacing is really good! Kudos to having a lot paid off so far in advance!

I hated writing about the last day and my trip hasn't even started yet!

Good to know about Chefs de France. Thanks! We looked at the menu Wed night and he saw beef tenderloin & said 'that's what I'm getting!'

Ugh after an impressive win, they get lazy and get their butts kicked by the Devils. I hate the Devils. I'm not getting my hopes up for the playoffs. If they don't advance to the conference finals, this season was a failure.

Thanks!

Just finished reading all 29 pages, great idea about chomping away at the Disney fund. I should really start doing that too.

You'll love AKV, we stayed there this past November and loved it. We actually just had a waitlist come through for BCV, but needed an extra night, so we'll be at AKV at the same time (Sept 30th) in a value studio too.

A few posts back you were debating between Narcoosee's and Cali Grill. Our last trip we were on the DxDP and tried all signature restaurants. With that said, I would pick Cali Grill over Narcoosee's. We were really disappointed with Narcoosee's, we just didn't really care for the food that much and the service was the slowest of all (2.5 hours). When we went to Cali Grill, we were brought back to the back room where the wine is, at first I was disappointed that we didn't have a view of the castle. But in the end we loved that little room, there were only 5 tables and we got to see parts of Illuminations. Another plus was it was so quiet in that room, when we were done dinner and leaving we couldn't believe how loud it was in the rest of the restaurant. We still got to get up from our meal and go watch wishes from the observation deck. Oh and the food was excellent.

Thanks for the feedback about the restaurants! The only reasons I want to try Narcooses are because it's right on the water & it's practically the only place in Disney you can get lobster. California Grill sounds great but I've heard rumors it may be closing at the end of the year? If that's true I may have to try it before it's too late. Decisions, decisions!

Of course if Be Our Guest is open by then, my decision is made for me!

Wow nice job on the budget, I'm jealous! I also am doing the sw rewards thing with the surveys.

Fun last day! Good to know EPCOT is a best day for that day, I stopped my touring plans subscription but might start it Up again. I hope you will get the pixie dust and not have to change rooms, but at least you have that entire extra day/night!

I plan on asking them if we can stay in the same room when we check-in. Is it too much to ask for that and a free upgrade?

Hey Jenny have hours been released to travel agents yet for October?

Not yet. I'm thinking by next week. It's usually around the 15th.

Thank you! I'm loving living in a bigger city!! It's soooo much more convenient!! haha

MK EMH are wonderful!! Ben and I didn't last for the whole thing last time, but it was our first night there, and I didn't want to drag for the rest of the week! We were soooo tired that night! lol But, I'm definately planning on conquering that this year!

And YAY for being so close on paying everything off! I'm sure it will be a huge weight off of your shoulders when you do! I know it will be for us! I'm just looking for cheap plane tickets now, if those even exist! haha

Since it's our last night, I'm going to push myself to last through MK EMH. I can sleep on the plane the next day.

I'm so happy that we're close to being paid off! Good luck finding airfare!

 

[jenny105]

Hi everyone!

First of all, can you all join me in a double digit dance? 98 days til our cruise!

I have another bit of happy news. My SW points credited yesterday and we booked our flights! I was bouncing around the house, I was so excited! We picked the second earliest time they had. The first flight was 6:30 AM and I am not the type of person to wake up at 3 AM to go to the airport so we passed on that. Our flight leaves at 11:10 AM and gets in around 2 PM which is perfect for us. Since we're staying at a Courtyard by the airport the night before our flight, we don't need to wake up too early and won't be super tired when we get to Disney. I'm hoping to get to AKV by 3:30 or so, check-in, have a late QS lunch at Mara & explore the resort, and then head out to MNSSHP that night.

We picked the latest flight possible to go home. Our flight leaves at 7:55 PM so we have an whole day to spend doing whatever we want. I'm thinking ME will probably pick us up around 5 to go back to the airport. The flight gets in around 10:30. I'm sure we won't feel like driving the 90 minutes home so we booked a room at the same Courtyard by the airport for that night. (I got a TA rate for both nights, $55/night!) That way we can get some sleep and drive home in the morning.

I'm so excited the airfare is booked! It makes the trip seem more real and so much closer! Plus, I can make ADRs next month!!!

205 days to go!

 

[HeatherLassell]

Hi everyone!

First of all, can you all join me in a double digit dance? 98 days til our cruise!

I have another bit of happy news. My SW points credited yesterday and we booked our flights! I was bouncing around the house, I was so excited! We picked the second earliest time they had. The first flight was 6:30 AM and I am not the type of person to wake up at 3 AM to go to the airport so we passed on that. Our flight leaves at 11:10 AM and gets in around 2 PM which is perfect for us. Since we're staying at a Courtyard by the airport the night before our flight, we don't need to wake up too early and won't be super tired when we get to Disney. I'm hoping to get to AKV by 3:30 or so, check-in, have a late QS lunch at Mara & explore the resort, and then head out to MNSSHP that night.

We picked the latest flight possible to go home. Our flight leaves at 7:55 PM so we have an whole day to spend doing whatever we want. I'm thinking ME will probably pick us up around 5 to go back to the airport. The flight gets in around 10:30. I'm sure we won't feel like driving the 90 minutes home so we booked a room at the same Courtyard by the airport for that night. (I got a TA rate for both nights, $55/night!) That way we can get some sleep and drive home in the morning.

I'm so excited the airfare is booked! It makes the trip seem more real and so much closer! Plus, I can make ADRs next month!!!

205 days to go!

YAY! Very exciting! I can't wait to book my flights. It just makes everything complete!!!

 

[smile4stamps]

Hi everyone!

First of all, can you all join me in a double digit dance? 98 days til our cruise!

I have another bit of happy news. My SW points credited yesterday and we booked our flights! I was bouncing around the house, I was so excited! We picked the second earliest time they had. The first flight was 6:30 AM and I am not the type of person to wake up at 3 AM to go to the airport so we passed on that. Our flight leaves at 11:10 AM and gets in around 2 PM which is perfect for us. Since we're staying at a Courtyard by the airport the night before our flight, we don't need to wake up too early and won't be super tired when we get to Disney. I'm hoping to get to AKV by 3:30 or so, check-in, have a late QS lunch at Mara & explore the resort, and then head out to MNSSHP that night.

We picked the latest flight possible to go home. Our flight leaves at 7:55 PM so we have an whole day to spend doing whatever we want. I'm thinking ME will probably pick us up around 5 to go back to the airport. The flight gets in around 10:30. I'm sure we won't feel like driving the 90 minutes home so we booked a room at the same Courtyard by the airport for that night. (I got a TA rate for both nights, $55/night!) That way we can get some sleep and drive home in the morning.

I'm so excited the airfare is booked! It makes the trip seem more real and so much closer! Plus, I can make ADRs next month!!!

205 days to go!

Yay for flights!! It sounds like you got some great flight times for maximizing your Disney time without being exhausted!

I can't wait to see the October hours!! ADR's are in 40 days for me!!

 

[jenny105]

YAY! Very exciting! I can't wait to book my flights. It just makes everything complete!!!

Hope you get to book yours soon!

Yay for flights!! It sounds like you got some great flight times for maximizing your Disney time without being exhausted!

I can't wait to see the October hours!! ADR's are in 40 days for me!!

Yes, I can't do the early flights. If we took the 6:30, I know the room wouldn't be ready when we got there and we'd be too sleepy to do much of anything else. The flight home is a little later than we'd have liked but no biggie!

The October hours should be on the TA website by next week. If I see them, I'll post the link. 25 days to go til I can make ADRs!

 

[AuroraRose]

Hopping over from the October 2012 thread, and I have to go back and actually read everything, but I am subscribing since we're date and resort twins!!

 

[jenny105]

Hopping over from the October 2012 thread, and I have to go back and actually read everything, but I am subscribing since we're date and resort twins!!

There is so much to read, I started this thing back in July. All my posts are purple though so it makes them easy to find. Maybe I'll see you around the resort!

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

didnt realize you had t his going but im in.

So on a recommendation from another DISer (if you're reading, thanks Dan!) I joined Sunshine Rewards. You can take surveys, shop, and click links for reward points. The great thing is you can cash them in for Disney gift cards! If you choose to cash them in for Paypal deposits, you can redeem it for any amount you wish. I've only been a member for a few days and I'm already up to $7 in rewards.

your welcome....i just cashedin a 100 dollar one...

have over 700 lifetime from them which is nice.

 

[smile4stamps]

Hi Jenny! The previous poster reminded me I wanted to ask you again about the different rewards programs!

Which ones give you Disney gift cards as rewards? Is there 1 or 2 that you feel are easier to earn the rewards? Do you have a referral code for them so I can give you points if I sign up?

Thanks!

Also... what was your tip again for getting chosen for the surveys? I always seem to do 10-15 minutes on surveys and then get denied...

 

[Dancegrl624]

Congrats on booking your flights! I was so excited once we had ours booked. We personally LOVE the super early flights. We'll be getting in at 8:45am!!! We have the whole day to enjoy! We only have 2 options for MNSSHP. One is our arrival day and the other is a Friday night. I was ok with not doing the party this year, but my family has their hearts set on it.

 

[jenny105]

didnt realize you had t his going but im in.



your welcome....i just cashedin a 100 dollar one...

have over 700 lifetime from them which is nice.

Hi Dan!! Glad to see you over here. Do you have any WDW trips coming up anytime soon?

I cash out every month. So far everything has been for Disney gift cards except $20. Lynn (my DVC renter) is going to kill me when I give her all these gift card numbers to pay for our dining plan.

Hi Jenny! The previous poster reminded me I wanted to ask you again about the different rewards programs!

Which ones give you Disney gift cards as rewards? Is there 1 or 2 that you feel are easier to earn the rewards? Do you have a referral code for them so I can give you points if I sign up?

Thanks!

Also... what was your tip again for getting chosen for the surveys? I always seem to do 10-15 minutes on surveys and then get denied...

Hi!

Sunshine Rewards will let you cash out for Disney gift cards. The lowest denomination you can cash out for is $25. So far I've been able to get $100 worth. They have 10 daily surveys and tons of freebies to sign up for that will net you $. The surveys run on a stop light system (green, yellow, red). Whatever has a green light is qualifying & paying out more often than not so it makes it easier to figure out which surveys to take.

Another site I like is MyPoints. You get points for opening emails, shopping, taking surveys. It adds up quickly. They don't payout in Disney Gift Cards but I've cashed out for Landry's gift cards which can be used at Rainforest, T-Rex, and Yak & Yeti.

I stretch the truth a bit on surveys. Nothing major but if it's a movie survey and it asks me if I've taken the same type of survey in the last 30 days/3 months/whatever, I always say no. I do that for every survey. As soon as you say yes, you get kicked out!

PM me with your email address and I'll send you the referral stuff.

Congrats on booking your flights! I was so excited once we had ours booked. We personally LOVE the super early flights. We'll be getting in at 8:45am!!! We have the whole day to enjoy! We only have 2 options for MNSSHP. One is our arrival day and the other is a Friday night. I was ok with not doing the party this year, but my family has their hearts set on it.

Thanks! Kudos to you for doing the early fights! I like to get to the hotel and get settled a bit and I can't do that when no rooms are ready cause it's so early. I'm a cranky traveler I guess. We had a couple options for MNSSHP but we decided on the first night because then we can snack on all that candy the rest of the week. Do Tony and Madison want to go to the party? That's a late night for Cole!

 

[Dancegrl624]

Thanks! Kudos to you for doing the early fights! I like to get to the hotel and get settled a bit and I can't do that when no rooms are ready cause it's so early. I'm a cranky traveler I guess. We had a couple options for MNSSHP but we decided on the first night because then we can snack on all that candy the rest of the week. Do Tony and Madison want to go to the party? That's a late night for Cole!

I was just re-reading my past trip journals and I think on our last trip, we got a text that our room was ready around 12:15pm or so. On our last Sept trip we landed at 8:50am which is just 5 minutes later than we land on this trip! We got to Pop around 10:30 or so and they had rooms ready, just none that met our requets. I'll always wait around until the room that I want is ready. I'm too picky!

Madison and Tony REALLY want to do MNSSHP again. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to as well, I'm just concerned about Cole. I always have the option of taking him back to the hotel and Maddie & Tony can stay and enjoy the party. As long as I can see the parade again I'll be happy. The day of the party (if we plan on going), we will try our best to sleep in (very hard to do at WDW!) and take it easy for the day...swim, shop, etc. The thing I'm looking forward to the most about POFQ is the boat to DTD. I HATE taking the bus to DTD...the stop at Pleasure Island/West Side, stop at TL....it takes forever to get back "home". If we do MNSSHP, we will definately make a stop at DTD that day.

 

[Enchanted88]

YAY for getting your plane tickets!! It just makes it that more real!! And also, YAY for being so close to your cruise!! I'm excited to hear how that goes! Ben and I really want to go on one, one day!

With the way times are posted for our potential flights, we are going to try to get the latest one back as possible, too! If we can get a later one, we will probably go to the MK or DTD until it's time for the ME to pick us up!

Last year we left early, and it was too depressing! haha
You'll read that in my PTR if I EVER get there! haha

But, this week should be less crazy, so i'll fit in a good update then!haha

 

[jenny105]

YAY for getting your plane tickets!! It just makes it that more real!! And also, YAY for being so close to your cruise!! I'm excited to hear how that goes! Ben and I really want to go on one, one day!

With the way times are posted for our potential flights, we are going to try to get the latest one back as possible, too! If we can get a later one, we will probably go to the MK or DTD until it's time for the ME to pick us up!

Last year we left early, and it was too depressing! haha
You'll read that in my PTR if I EVER get there! haha

But, this week should be less crazy, so i'll fit in a good update then!haha

I love taking the late flight back. It's so depressing to leave the resort early. I need another day of fun and then I'll be ready (not really) to go! The thing I hate most while waiting for the ME bus is watching all of the people who are just beginning their vacations. Jealous!!

I hope you get a chance to update soon. I enjoy reading your TR/PTR

I was just re-reading my past trip journals and I think on our last trip, we got a text that our room was ready around 12:15pm or so. On our last Sept trip we landed at 8:50am which is just 5 minutes later than we land on this trip! We got to Pop around 10:30 or so and they had rooms ready, just none that met our requets. I'll always wait around until the room that I want is ready. I'm too picky!

Madison and Tony REALLY want to do MNSSHP again. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to as well, I'm just concerned about Cole. I always have the option of taking him back to the hotel and Maddie & Tony can stay and enjoy the party. As long as I can see the parade again I'll be happy. The day of the party (if we plan on going), we will try our best to sleep in (very hard to do at WDW!) and take it easy for the day...swim, shop, etc. The thing I'm looking forward to the most about POFQ is the boat to DTD. I HATE taking the bus to DTD...the stop at Pleasure Island/West Side, stop at TL....it takes forever to get back "home". If we do MNSSHP, we will definately make a stop at DTD that day.

It's awesome that your rooms were ready so early. One year we drove to Disney and got there around 11 am. We were all exhausted and our room wasn't ready. We had to fight with the front desk to get us one asap because we didn't feel like moving at that point. Considering we're staying in a DVC unit this trip & those are notorious for not being ready early, we decided to go with the later flight.

I love the boats too! Whenever there's an option to take a boat somewhere, I take it. That's why I loved staying at WL. I took the launch to MK, Contemporary, and FW. The only time I don't take it is in the Boardwalk area. Too many stops!!

 

[jenny105]

Hi everyone!

I forwarded my flight information to Lynn and she responded & said that she set us up for Magical Express. I haven't taken that since my 2009 trip and Kris has never used it so that'll be a brand new experience for him. Do they still show the cute little video??

It's Monday so it's time for a daily plans update! My last one...for now.

10/8 - Day 9 - Our departure day

We booked the latest flight possible back to NJ and our flight doesn't leave until 7:55 PM. That means ME will probably pick us up around 5 so we have plenty of time to enjoy WDW before we leave. It's making me sad to even think about this day. We'll either spend the time revisiting MK & Epcot, which are our favorite parks, or maybe we'll hit up DTD for some last minute souvenir shopping. If we do decide to go to MK and we have any TS credits left, I'd like to go to Whispering Canyon Cafe for a late lunch. I've never been there and it sounds yummy & fun! Plus, WL is my favorite resort and I'd love to visit. After that we'll head back to AKL to catch ME. Then our trip is over. Is it weird to be sad about that when the trip is still 6 1/2 months away??

So this has nothing to do with Day 9 but I was thinking about my birthday dinner. Again if BoG opens in time, that's where we'll be headed, but in the meantime I was thinking of trying one of AKL's restaurants. I would never eat at one of them if I wasn't staying there & I'd rather do that then traveling back and forth between the MK area via WDW bus. Does anyone have any feedback on Jiko or Sanaa? Do you prefer one over the other? They both sound great and I'd like to try something different. Thoughts?

201 days to go! 3 weeks til ADR day!!