Dork Wars Episode II: The Revenge of Joaquin - Nov. 12 / Jul. 13 PTR *UPDATE 6/30*

[IheartDDuck]

I'm totally scrappy.

The Treehouse villas seem so cool. I'm not really outdoorsy, but they still look awesome!

And, Saratoga Springs looks really pretty.

Trust me, I'm not extremely outdoorsy either, but the Treehouses look really cool.

Your resort choices are so cool!!! Mary Ellen really does make the THV look awesome, her photos always make me want to stay there too (and I am not a nature person AT ALL!!!) .

Thanks! I know, she takes the best pictures of everything.

Yeah for the treehouse villas and then AKL! To me that is a perfect combo of resorts because they are so different.

Whatever you do, just avoid that internal bus and request a villa near the walking path to the Grandstand section and pick up the bus there. And don't forget to check out ALL the great pools while you are there.

I thought the two resorts were really good choices, and we're making sure to take full advantage of the pools while we're there.

I will take note of that request. My parents are driving down too, so we'll have their big eight seater Armada if we need it too.

Woo hoo, I love Saratoga Springs!! It's been fun staying at all of the other DVC resorts but I can't wait to stay there again (after BLT in April, of course!). Good luck with the wait list!

Awesome about the split stay too. 10 days, I'm jealous.

I've only stayed at Saratoga once before believe it or not. I love the resorts that are extremely convenient location wise normally, but this one worked out for November. I'm hoping the wait list comes through, because I'd love to be walking distance from Epcot, but if not, it's not the end of the world.

Woo Hoo!! Treehouse Villas and AKL Villas! I'm falling more and more in love with AKL with all the Dising I do (not sure if thats a word but it is now
I can't wait to see pics of the Treehouse Villas, I think my D(almost)H would love them!
I've never stayed at Saratoga Springs but I actually live about 25 mins from the real Saratoga Springs lol and friends of mine own DVC there! I know it's a huge resort, I want to check it out during our May trip!

I love AKL. It's one of my favorite resorts on property.

I'll make sure to take good pictures of the THV while I'm there.

Saratoga is a very pretty, very BIG resort. It's worth checking out.

 

[Nermel9]

Your resort choices are great! I want to stay at SSR so bad for some reason, it just looks so pretty! It's weird, I always thought it was so ugly, but now that I've read so many TR's with people staying there, it's become one of my dream resorts!

And staying at a treehouse sounds amazing, and Animal Kingdom! I want to stay at AKV SO bad! Hopefully on my next trip I'll be able to rent points there, because I just need to stay there!

 

[teekathepony]

Saratoga Springs looks awfully pretty. It may not be your ideal resort, but it also doesn't look as though it will disappoint!
And for your July trip -- Treehouse Villas AND AKL! So jealous!

 

[IheartDDuck]

Your resort choices are great! I want to stay at SSR so bad for some reason, it just looks so pretty! It's weird, I always thought it was so ugly, but now that I've read so many TR's with people staying there, it's become one of my dream resorts!

And staying at a treehouse sounds amazing, and Animal Kingdom! I want to stay at AKV SO bad! Hopefully on my next trip I'll be able to rent points there, because I just need to stay there!

SSR is a really pretty resort. Contrary to how it may appear, I am excited to stay there again. It's been a while for me.

AKV is worth the stay for sure. I would make sure though that if you are able to rent the points, stay at Jambo House. I have nothing against Kidani Village, but with the setup of the resort, Jambo house is just a lot more convenient. But I'm also the kind of person that really likes to be within walking distance of the refillable mug station.

Saratoga Springs looks awfully pretty. It may not be your ideal resort, but it also doesn't look as though it will disappoint!
And for your July trip -- Treehouse Villas AND AKL! So jealous!

It definitely won't disappoint. I was just hoping more for Boardwalk or Beach Club out of convenience more than anything else. With a short stay, I like convenience if possible.

I'm super excited about July, especially with where we are going to be staying.

 

[DVCWDWMEMBER]

All right, so everyone wants some details on these trips, and I'm here to oblige. And apparently my Mom (DVCWDWMEMBER), doesn't seem to remember where we're staying, so I figure that I would refresh her memory.

November 2012 -

We will be staying at Saratoga Springs Resort.

It was not my ideal resort, but this is Thanksgiving weekend with HUGE crowds, and we were happy to take what we could at the 11 month window. We are waitlisted at the Boardwalk and the Beach Club, but I'm not holding my breath that those will come through.

July 2013 -
We will be having a split stay. The best of both worlds if you will.

From July 4th to July 9th we will be staying at the Treehouse Villas.

Very excited to stay there, because we have yet to. I've only seen them from the outside. It's the perfect environment for our first few days.

From July 9th to July 14th we will be staying in a 2 Bedroom at the Animal Kingdom Villas.

So we get the combination of the rustic Treehouse Villas and the plushness of the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Very exciting, and I've been getting more and more excited since reading Mary Ellen's (MEK) trip report.

So that's where we're staying. Up next, we'll start talking about November to get that out of the way first, since I know you guys are really excited to hear about July.

So glad you refreshed my memory almost got confused where we are staying I can't wait for us to get away over Thanksgiving. We need the break. am looking forward to our family trip in July. I have been wanting to stay at the treehouse villas for as long as we have been going to WDW..... eons

 

[IheartDDuck]

So glad you refreshed my memory almost got confused where we are staying I can't wait for us to get away over Thanksgiving. We need the break. am looking forward to our family trip in July. I have been wanting to stay at the treehouse villas for as long as we have been going to WDW..... eons

Glad I could refresh your memory. Sometimes, we all need that.

I think you have wanted to stay at the Treehouse Villas since you took your first test on your stone tablet......

 

[marDgreen88]

Oh my goodness, I read this the other night and I could have sworn I'd commented by now? What a mess I am.

SO I'm here!

I'm so so jealous that you're staying at AKL! Ugh, I can't even explain how much I would love to stay there. So awesome.

 

[katt789]

YAAAAYYY I'm so pumped to hear all about your trips!! I love all the goober pictures! Especially the "serious about our food" one! Ha! It's great!!

 

[IheartDDuck]

Oh my goodness, I read this the other night and I could have sworn I'd commented by now? What a mess I am.

SO I'm here!

I'm so so jealous that you're staying at AKL! Ugh, I can't even explain how much I would love to stay there. So awesome.

Haha, that's okay. Seriously, there is so much that we read on the DIS, I'm surprised that we don't get more confused and forgetful.

AKL is definitely one of my favorite resorts, mostly for ambience. It's just beautiful.

YAAAAYYY I'm so pumped to hear all about your trips!! I love all the goober pictures! Especially the "serious about our food" one! Ha! It's great!!

We are truly such goobers. Any trip that will have that many of us there will be full of goober pictures.

Joaquin is the best kid to get pictures like that from. He's such a funny kid.

 

[DVCWDWMEMBER]

Glad I could refresh your memory. Sometimes, we all need that.

I think you have wanted to stay at the Treehouse Villas since you took your first test on your stone tablet......

I think I still have that stone tablet somewhere. I'll look for it

I am really excited about staying at the Treehouse Villas

 

[IheartDDuck]

I think I still have that stone tablet somewhere. I'll look for it

I am really excited about staying at the Treehouse Villas

Wow, that's AMAZING that you still have that stone tablet! You pack rat.

I'm really excited to stay at the Treehouse Villas too. It will be a lot of fun.

 

[IheartDDuck]

All righty, I'm just going to talk briefly about how we are planning on arriving at our destinations for these trips. I mean, it's boring, but I gotta think of something to say before I start BUSTING OUT THE PLANS!

November 2012 -

This trip was a little bit of a challenge, because we're traveling at high travel time. Because we're flying out on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and flying back the Sunday after Thanksgiving, the prices were not very forgiving. We paid a bit more for this flight than we would normally pay, but I also knew that canceling is not an option, because my Mom really needs this trip.

So the first thing I did was book the flight out, because it was affordable. I figured I would play the game and wait for a flight back to lower. I don't really care about flying two carriers if that's what necessary.

Our flight down is with....

Good old reliable Southwest.

We will be flying out of Midway on Wednesday November 21st at 9pm. That time is NOT ideal, I was hoping for the 8pm flight, when it was over $80 more one way than the 9pm. I've been watching it like a hawk to see if I can switch the flight, but nothing yet. That's okay, we're arriving a little late, but we're getting there, right?

Our flight back is with....

This flight was the one that hurt, but it was still the cheapest option out there. The benefit to it is that the flight doesn't depart Orlando until 8pm on Sunday November 25th, so we get an entire extra day basically. That's how I wanted it. This will fly back into O'Hare.

Automobile? Don't mind if I do.

I admit freely that I prefer to have a car at WDW. I used to not care so much, but the more I've had one, the easier it is for us. I have also become an expert at booking and rebooking cars. It's a gift.

I normally try to use my corporate website to do this, because of the lower rates that we get on rentals.

So when I first booked a car, it was a little over $220 with tax for the four days. I booked it with Thrifty, knowing full well that the price would lower. That was for a compact car.

I'm looking again a few weeks ago, and they had a wild card selection, mid-size or better, for a little over $170 with tax. Sold! I cancelled the prior reservation and rebooked with this one.

So about three days ago, I'm looking again. And I find a small SUV rate for $130 with tax. Um, duh! Cancelled again and rebooked.

I prefer the car, because with flying in so late, we take out having to wait for ME to take us to the resort. We divide and conquer. Mom waits for the one piece of luggage we're bringing and I go and get the car. Plus, I can get us there faster than ME can. I don't know why, but I can.

So there's November!

July 2013 -

This one is complicated. You better hunker down for this. Just kidding! No not really, you better get ready.

Mom and Dad are going down earlier than we are. They are going to be leaving around Friday June 28th to take their time and drive down there. They are checking in at...

Yup, the are getting to the Wilderness Lodge Villas Tuesday July 2nd. They don't have solid plans for the drive down yet, but they going to plan some stops along the way to fill the time. Mode of transportation?

My Mom's Armada. This is a stock Nissan photo, but the only difference is that hers is dark grey. Benefits? Seats 8 people. They are going to be bringing all of the luggage down for us. Because, the rest of us are flying down, and we figured, two people, giant car, why not bring all of the luggage? One less thing for us flyers to worry about. Oh, and Dad is also bringing the golf clubs for him and Jason.

As for the flyers. Well we only have our flights down to Florida. That means Jason, Jeni, Joaquin, Gavin, and myself. Farrell not yet, because she's not a done deal. We hopped on the tickets because the one way was only a little over $100 a person. I mean come on, flights aren't that cheap anymore, so you get a flight like that, you take it!

We are flying down with....

American Airlines again. Our flight leaves at 6:50am on Thursday July 4th. Mom and Dad will come pick us up at the airport, and we'll head to the resort. The Villa may not be ready, but that's okay.

The flight back will be arranged once I find the combination of the right price and a late flight on Sunday July 14th. We want to have as full of a last day as possible when we're there.

We'll be getting to the airport with a limo service, because the price of parking at O'Hare is ridiculous! Plus, the boys will really like a limo I think.

Up Next: November Itinerary

 

[DVCWDWMEMBER]

I need a few suggestions for our drive down to Florida. Rick and I are taking our time and want to stop at a few places before arriving at WDW on July 2nd. the plan is to either leave Thursday night or very early Friday morning. That gives us several days to travel...... which route should we take? I thought about heading to St Augustine FL, I have heard great things about the City. Does anyone have any other suggestions?????

 

[MEK]

Good to see you are on top of your travel plans.

I considered renting a car for October, but once we added the June trip I nixxed it in the effort of cost shifting.

June - we will be driving. I am serious about this. Not going to change my mind unless I can get $79 each way and we KNOW those days are gone.

 

[IheartDDuck]

Good to see you are on top of your travel plans.

I considered renting a car for October, but once we added the June trip I nixxed it in the effort of cost shifting.

June - we will be driving. I am serious about this. Not going to change my mind unless I can get $79 each way and we KNOW those days are gone.

With the whole rental car thing I always set a price in mind that I'm okay with paying. In the end, if I am still higher than my "ok" price, I'll cancel the rental entirely and just go with ME and buses. But, my plans have always worked out in my favor. I've always been able to get really good prices on cars.

You never know, you might get $79 each way! But realistically, I know, it's been almost impossible to get good prices on anything flight related. I'm okay with driving, I just don't always love wasting the time.

 

[Lil'Mermaid75]

AKV is worth the stay for sure. I would make sure though that if you are able to rent the points, stay at Jambo House. I have nothing against Kidani Village, but with the setup of the resort, Jambo house is just a lot more convenient. But I'm also the kind of person that really likes to be within walking distance of the refillable mug station.

You and me both!!! I don't want to have to walk that far for my refills.

 

[IheartDDuck]

You and me both!!! I don't want to have to walk that far for my refills.

It is a serious part of my resort strategy. I don't have a refillable mug for nothing you know.

 

[DVCWDWMEMBER]

We still have to wait a few months before we can make our reservations for the two bedroom at AKL and are hoping for sure to get Jambo House. It will be much easier for us with the kids too.

 

[Lil'Mermaid75]

It is a serious part of my resort strategy. I don't have a refillable mug for nothing you know.

But of course..... HA HA

 

[IheartDDuck]

We still have to wait a few months before we can make our reservations for the two bedroom at AKL and are hoping for sure to get Jambo House. It will be much easier for us with the kids too.

For sure. Plus, I love Jambo House too. We'll get it, I'm sure.

But of course..... HA HA

Truth. I need unlimited Diet Coke / Coke Zero.