Eatin' & Cruisin' 2012 - Update 10/30 - Trip cancelled :(

[hurleysweety]

Great PTR! I am enjoyong it. We are doing a land/sea too and it will be our 1st cruise!!!!

Welcome!!! Thanks for reading!

Are you doing a PTR as well? Which cruise itinerary are you doing?

Following along! I'll live vicariously through your November fun until I can have my own!

Welcome and thanks for following along! I love new readers!

Ok maybe a stupid question, but I literally don't know anything about DCL. You can make adult meal reservations 75 days in advance? But if everyone's in the same boat (pun intended), how did other people book the places before you? Anyway, I hope something opens up for you guys.

Hey! Ok, so if you are a platinum castaway member or a concierge guest, you can book 180 days in advance, the next is gold at 120, then silver at 90, and then all us regular people (haha) in cat 4-12. And with a 4 day cruise, we only have one day available for Palo brunch (since they only do it when you are at sea). If we had a seven day cruise, we'd have three days worth of brunches to choose from. Definitely an advantage with the longer cruise!

Wow, look at me knowing stuff about DCL! I guess my two weeks perusing the DCL forum on here has at least taught me something!

Ok, back to work!

 

[blessedmom4]

If I EVER get to go on a cruise, I know who to ask for info! YEA for the cruise being paid in FULL!! Hoping there aren't any more scorpions so you can have wonderful, sweet sleep!

 

[hurleysweety]

If I EVER get to go on a cruise, I know who to ask for info! YEA for the cruise being paid in FULL!! Hoping there aren't any more scorpions so you can have wonderful, sweet sleep!

Isn't it strange how fast we learn something we're excited about??!

And thanks for your excitement about the cruise being paid for! This is the first trip that we have deposits, and balances and such since we have always stayed on my in-laws time share or just had a room only for a couple nights and paid for it up front. Not used to these deadlines!!

We haven't found one scorpion, yet. I've been searching every night with my handy dandy UV flashlight! My sister said she has friends who put their bed posts in buckets, and put the dust stuff in the buckets so anything will just crawl in there and die pretty much. So we're going to try that so that we can sleep peacefully, even if it means having a funny looking bed!

 

[hurleysweety]

Oct 31
Arrive in ORLANDO!!
Grab our rental car
Check into CBR
Eat somewhere (probably a TS at a resort)

Nov 1
EPCOT for food and wine!
Might just do that all day??? In that case, you might have to roll me out of the park that night... [read -not from drinking, but eating!]

Nov 2
MK Morning(there is a party here tonight, the last MNSSHP, so we are hoping that people will skip out since its only open til 7 OoooOR that people going to the party won't come in the morning...silly people!)
?? Night

Nov 3
Hollywood Studios Morning
Epcot Night (are we crazy people going to food & wine on a Saturday night!?)

Nov 4
Check out of CBR
Use our last QS at Pepper Market for breakfast
Drive to Port Canaverl
See DREAM ship and freak out, try my best to not completely embarrass my DH
Drop car off at parking place, take shuttle to terminal
EMBARKATION & Sail Away Party!!

Nov 5
Nassau, Bahamas

Nov 6
Castaway Cay - serenity bay, here we come!

Nov 7
Day at Sea - relax and eat and relax and eat some more!
PIRATE PARTY NIGHT!

Nov 8
Disembarkation Day
Take shuttle to parking place
Drive to WDW to TBD hotel and check in
Epcot for Food & Wine
MK for night

Nov 9
Epcot Morning
Resort Hop afternoon to see all the beautiful decorations!
HS night for OSBOURNE LIGHTS!!! (hoping they are up - have only been reading about them for years and extended the trip just to see Christmas decor)
MK MVMCP is on this night - probably won't get tickets because of the unjustified $$ for us, IMO, but hoping it draws away crowds from other parks??

Nov 10
Bright and early rise&shine for departure at something like 8am - yikes!
Return home, promptly check disboards and start TR!
Pretend very very hard not to be sad.

 

[hurleysweety]

So we have 68 Days until our Trip Begins!!!

And we've made some decisions about things too! First off, we are getting trip insurance for the entire trip. We have never purchased trip insurance before, but since it is highly recommended with a cruise, we are going to pay the price for it now and hopefully we won't be using it. The thing that matters most to me is the medical coverage should anything go wrong on the cruise. But since it isn't that much more to add our entire trip in there, we decided to do that. I don't mind paying for that kind of peace of mind. I can be rather clumsy and absent-minded sometimes - especially when focused on less important matters, like which food and wine booth I want to visit first.

Next, we have decided not to book any special events for food and wine. We had a great time last year and didn't have anything extra booked. One day, we'll take a F&W specific trip, plan it months in advance so we can stay at BCV, and attend party for the senses and over indulge in all that fun. For now, we'll eat at the booths, attend the free festivities (HGTV, free seminars in the festival center, eat to the beat concerts) and enjoy those extra $$ in our wallet.

Lastly, we are still deciding on our ADRs. My main dilemma has to do with our arrival night and departure morning. We get in at 6pm on Halloween. We'll rent a car so we'll be at the resort by 7:30pm at the latest, making a 8:15-8:30 ADR completely doable. Also, it will be around 5:15-5:30 our time, so we'll be ready to eat. So we could use the TS credit on this night and use our extra QS credit on departure morning (probably at Pepper Market since it will not be a park day and we figure we'll get a great bang for our buck there).

However, DH has suggested many times that we eat a QS that first night, and double up a TS one night and eat at a signature restaurant. I would love to eat at Narcosees!! We could easily spend $130 there. Not sure if its the best use of our credits, though. Then on Sunday morning, we will just grab something light and indulge our hungry stomachs at Cabanas after we board!

Thats all for now - oh, but I must add, I finally saw Hunger Games last night! I've been wanting to see it since I read the book (after it came out). Ever since I (reluctantly at the time!)saw the first Harry Potter (at the age of 16 or 17...without much knowledge of the series at all), I have decided to always read the book before the movie. I then proceeded to read each of the harry potter books, and then watch the movie up until book 5 or 6, then I got to see the last movie, both parts in theaters like the total geek that I am. Perfect.

When I saw the preview for the Hunger Games movie, it looked kinda weird. Then it came out, people raved and I jumped on the bandwagon (yes, I'm a trendy book reader...except for 50 shades...ew). So I'm almost done with the last book, and here I am four months later and I finally get to see it. It was great - I wish it was longer but I know including every detail is hard. Can't wait til the next one!

Warning: total n00b picture below:

 

[hurleysweety]

Can you believe it? I'm gonna learn to sew!

Now I know many of you are thinking - BORING! But I think it is a great and frugal skill to have. I don't know how many times I have bought something and thought, I could have totally made that - especially when I'm buying patterned pillow covers, basic skirts, open cardigans, etc. Plus, I'm hoping I can figure out how to make a fish extender!!!

I'm currently researching and shopping for a sewing machine. I really want something awesome that will last me more than a couple years, but also something that won't put a dent in my wallet - read, I would love one for under $100. I've asked the disboutiquers for their help - so we'll see!

On another note, I popped into Joann Fabrics today and stumbled upon their 60% off section that had all their leftover college/back-to-school products. I found a "beach safe" and almost freaked out. I've kinda been looking for one, but didn't really know where to look. This one is a name brand, GoVault. Here is a stock photo:

It's a great way to store your things while you're on the beach. Since its just DH and I, we figure it would be peace of mind while we're playing in the ocean or renting a water trike or snorkeling or whatever. I sound like a spokesperson for it! My total price was $12! Score.

Ok, time for dinner. I'm making italian chicken that was once a freezer meal, meaning I dumped a bunch of ingredients in a freezer bag and then pulled it out this afternoon. I dumped it into my covered baker (LOVE pampered chef) and into the oven with diced red potatoes and then bam, delicious dinner is served! DH says it smells amazing. We'll see how it tastes now...haha. Bye all!

 

[blessedmom4]

I am SOOO excited you are going to learn to sew!!! One of these days...

 

[hurleysweety]

I am SOOO excited you are going to learn to sew!!! One of these days...

Thanks! I know I can do it and I'll enjoy it. I just hope I make it past the frustrating part of learning and get to the fun part of creating!

 

[hurleysweety]

We got our passports!!!

If I count correctly, it took less than three weeks. I am so excited!

As many of you know, the room only discount for Fall came out today. And like my pity party of a title says, they were poopy.

I was really hoping for a great rate - however I'm pretty sure that doesn't happen for any resorts during food and wine. At first, I was so disappointed that I considered staying off-site. I don't have a problem with that - its just never made sense $$ before to do it that way since we rent a car. So if you only save $20-30/night, but then maybe have a hidden resort fee, or have to pay for parking at the resort, well it adds up, and fast. I spent a couple hours doing some research (probably more than needed, but thats why I'm on a forum writing a PTR - right? ) I found some really nice hotels - hotels I didn't know existed and seem like a hidden gem. There is a villa that has four bedrooms and sleeps 14 people!! Oh, and its right next to CBR. Its a timeshare place, but apparently there are a variety of ways to stay there - Wyndham Bonnet Creek. I'm hoping we have a chance to drive by and check it out as a villa that sleeps 14 sounds like a super fun vacation with family and friends. But anyway, after checking all these rates, I realized that WDW might actually be the cheaper option.

So instead of my dream of staying at beach club, yacht club, poly or contemporary (in that order, for food and wine) and saving 30% - has turned into a stay at all star sports, saving 15%. Not complaining at all here - just got my expectations outta whack again. I don't mean to sound ungrateful at all! Please don't take it that way - I just really shouldn't read all the rumors on the discount codes thread until I know they are true and cover my dates. I'm also very happy for all those people who are savings lots of $$ on a previously booked trip. What a fun day to learn that kind of news! And in the end, I gotta remember - we all get to go to Disney, heck, we all get to go on vacation. And when you look at it like that, how can you not sit back and smile?

I feel like everything is coming together now. It always takes us so long to get the itinerary just right. Adding days here and there. I don't think we've ever taken a vacation that hasn't had a split stay. And so far, its worked out okay. On our last trip we stayed at three different resorts - so maybe that's our tradition - gee I hope not. LOL :

Goodnight, everyone!

 

[DLR29]

Bummer about the discounts but I'm glad you have a good attitude about it. I think for my WDW trip in Jan, my friends and I are looking to stay at the ASSp (we're cheap college kids), so I'll be looking for a mini review. :thumpsup2

 

[hurleysweety]

Bummer about the discounts but I'm glad you have a good attitude about it. I think for my WDW trip in Jan, my friends and I are looking to stay at the ASSp (we're cheap college kids), so I'll be looking for a mini review. :thumpsup2

I went on the discount code board and it looks like I'm not the only one. So it makes me feel a bit better. For fun, I tried to book the room for 2013, and thought that is probably when you have to book to get Beach Club/Yacht Club/Boardwalk...Everything was available and it was kinda awesome just to see all the different rooms available!

In other news, we haven't officially decided on ASSp just yet. I called DH to confirm that I could put down the deposit and he asked if we had other options. Currently, I feel like we don't. We can upgrade to a mod for only a bit more, but I think we were both looking forward to something new. So who knows at this point! I change my mind too much!

 

[hurleysweety]

Gahhhh, I HATE math. Well..I actually love math, I just was terrible at it in school.

With Disney trips, though, math means that you can see exactly which money is going where and see what plan works best for your trip. I love and hate Disney math because it either justifies or rules out upgrades, special experiences, and even simple things like extra conveniences.

First, I spent about two hours last week trying to justify upgrading to the DxDP. With a free dining package booked, it would cost $272 for 2 people to upgrade for 4 nights. We would then have 12 credits a piece. We would eat at 4 signature restaurants, and 4 table service restaurants to get our max value. Since we love dining experiences, we didn't mind the extra time it would take away from the park. We also didn't mind that we would have 8 credits a piece for the food and wine festival.

So I did what any good DISer does - I calculated and added up the amounts for 4 2TS places and 4 TS places plus 8 snacks. I didn't add the resort mug since it is the same in both plans. I guessed which appetizers, entrees and desserts we would order and eat. I didn't always pick the most expensive item, either. I didn't include drinks as we don't drink soda, and rarely will we order an iced tea or lemonade. Too hard to guess, don't see the value there, for us. I rounded up the total and the total for 4 nights came out to $889. The estimated tip at an average of 20% would be around $178.

I then calculated the same 4 TS restaurants, minus the appetizer, and added 4 QS meals at an average of $14/each, and 4 snack credits PP. Snack credits in both scenarios were $6 to account for the high-end F&W snacks, which we would use the credits on (we would pay OOP for the cheaper ones). I rounded up again and got a total of $394. The estimated tip at an average of 20% would be around $79.

So my total OOP cost to upgrade is the cost plus the difference in tip - $99 + 273 = $371.

The extra food value I receive when I upgrade is the value of DxDP - value the DDP which is $451.

So the actual overall value (extra food that I for upgrading) is the food value ($451) - the cost of upgrading ($371) = $80.

So basically, this tells me that for $377, I will "get" $80 in extra free food.

So IMHO, DxDP is not a deal for us. You have to do the math and see if it will work in your favor for your family. Sorry 2TS signatures, you'll just have to remain on our "someday" list.

BTW - if you see flaws in my "calculations" please let me know!

 

[hurleysweety]

Ode to the Rental Car Game - aka the crazies checking rates all hours of the day, every day, leading up to the trip.

Now on our first trip, in June 2008, we were on our honeymoon at a young 22 and 24, and therefore, rental car companies charged us up crazy for our 5 day rental. I don't want to think about the cost. But we were staying off site and a condo and didn't have a shuttle. We knew very little about WDW, all we had was TGM and lots of excitement. Also, enterprise wasn't located in the terminal and we had to take a shuttle. BOO.

For our last three trips, we have happily rented from Alamo. For our average 8-10 day travels, we've paid anywhere from $125-$150, which usually started at $400+. Mostly because of awesome people on the Transportation Board. Go have a look and check out the thread specific to your vacation travel dates. Currently I follow the November 2012 thread and am also constantly checking up on reservations that I've already made. People share their dates, car type, and codes they used. Its a great way to collaborate so everyone finds the best deal for their family.

So far, I have
Dollar - mid-size..............$195
Dollar - SUV....................$261
Alamo - mid-size..............$290

Yikes, all more than I want to pay. But better than a week ago when I was getting $500 for Alamo and $400 for Dollar!

So if you are renting a car, then be sure to get the best rate! Search the transportation forum for answers to your unique situations and I'm sure someone out there has some great advice. I've learned so much from those people.

 

[hurleysweety]

I began to write this post yesterday and turned out I was too exhausted. Yesterday I woke up early to hit 50% off goodwill day with a few of my college girls. I was excited to take some of them to the goodwill 50% off chaos experience for the time. Well everything was going well until I slipped and fell hard onto the concrete floor. We're talking, feed out from underneath me, hands full so stuff went everywhere - and probably not the best place for that to happen either. Anyway, that was the first store so I knew I would be shopping all day like that. Ok - move on, wait inline, put up with some rude people - trying to stay full of joy and positivity for the girls. As we're parking at our third store, I got backed into. It was an hour long ordeal since DH had to come down since the guy was not treating me very nicely. He was even trying to get people on his side (he was backing out of a oil change place) and was treating me like a young high school student who didn't know how to drive (claiming I came out of nowhere).

Long story short, no one injured (he hit the back of the driver's side, and no one was sitting there, thank goodness). It was clearly his fault for not looking and he admitted fault eventually, couldn't believe he was trying to say we were both at fault - we had filed the claim and they accepted responsibility not even 2 hours later.

My poor car though - 5 years and no accidents. And for me? 10 years and no accidents. But overall, the situation was the best that it could have been given the circumstances. I was shaking and my heart was racing (with having kids in the car n all, even if they are grown kids!). But I was surprisingly calm. If you've been in worse accidents this might sound like nothing, but to me this was a big deal. Just had to vent about my weekend a little. A little irked the guy was rude to me and then totally backed down to my DH. Trying to stay positive and remember that I don't know him and shouldn't be judging him - hopefully we were a positive influence on Him with our honesty and also, the piece of paper that we gave him with just our phone # on it was ripped on from a sermon notes from last Sunday.

Also trying to focus on our trip that is now
51 DAYS
away!

Hoping to have a much more upbeat post soon!

 

[hurleysweety]

Well, guess I'm writing this TR to myself. LOL. Oh well, I like to look back on the planning. It is always so funny to me to see what I was worried about, what I couldn't decide on, what I was excited and not-so-excited about.

So in light of my not-so-good news updates, I thought I'd have fun and make a list of the snacks I want to try at F&W this year.

We'll start with DH's favorite food. Well, favorite dessert, from last year. Lamington cake at Australia.

As described, "Lamington is a cube of butter cake, covered in chocolate frosting and shaved coconut." It is delicious. DH ate three in one night, waiting for Illuminations.

Next up, the lobster roll. It was probably one of my favorite at F&W last year. I only had one because of the high price. Yay for snack credits this year.

I mean, what seafood-loving person wouldn't like to delve into this creamy, fresh lobster mixture on a crunchy outside, soft inside, roll? Its a decent portion too.

Next up, another repeat from last year, the bratwurst at Germany.

This is a pretty big portion. And while the sausage is always hot, and flavorful (we probably had 3 on our last trip), the pretzel bread makes this awesome.

Next up, SUSHI! We like sushi, but we're not the pay-for-trendy-seen-and-be-seen type sushi. We just like fresh sushi, so food and wine is a wonderful opportunity for us to eat it. This will be a new roll for us this year, although, we might get the basic tuna roll too.

It is described at "Crispy Chicken Breast with Sushi Rice and Spicy Mayonnaise" and sounds like a delicious combination. Hoping that there isn't too much breading - I'm not a big fan of fried sushi. Defeats the "healthy" part of it, LOL!

Next, another new to us dish. I love Swedish meatballs, but rarely make or eat them. Usually in restaurants it ends up being too much sauce.

But this dish looks good and flavorful. I also like the small portion on this one as meatballs can be a very filling entree.

Another dish that looks awesome is the Mahi Mahi from Singapore. I like that it is seared and served with Jasmine rice.

It is on the left on this plate. On the right, you can see another favorite I'm wanting to try, the mushroom filet from Canada. I just hope the seasoning isn't too weird as I picked this more for DH who is more sensitive to seasoning. Hopefully I can read some reviews before we get there and find out!

Later, I'll post about drinks! Hope you're all having a great day!

 

[MrsBearcat]

So sorry you got backed into but at least he finally admitted fault!

 

[hurleysweety]

So sorry you got backed into but at least he finally admitted fault!

Aww, thanks! I'm glad he did too, hopefully we regained his faith in young people by how nice, honest, and calm we were through the process. I could definitely see someone being very angry and hot tempered if they were me in that situation.

I feel like such a weirdo, but I'm sad that I have to drive another car right now. It's like my car has a personality and it's sick, I just want it to get better. Well, that and my tailbone. Not a very fun past three days when it hurts to...sit. LOL!

And thanks so much for reading, too!

 

[MrsBearcat]

Alright here's the therapist in me coming out....

#1 Ibuprofen (advil) at least twice a day to relieve and inflammation around your tailbone
#2 Sit on a soft pillow to cushion the area making sure to change positions frequently!

and most importantly

#3 Disney planning or watching Wishes on youtube makes everything all better!

 

[hurleysweety]

Alright here's the therapist in me coming out....

#1 Ibuprofen (advil) at least twice a day to relieve and inflammation around your tailbone
#2 Sit on a soft pillow to cushion the area making sure to change positions frequently!

and most importantly

#3 Disney planning or watching Wishes on youtube makes everything all better!

Awww, thanks for your kind help! I have been taking lots of ibuprofen and making sure I switch sides alot when I'm sitting, too. I've finally started to walk normally yesterday, LOL. Before that I was doing like a weird waddle, I wet my pants, sort of thing.

 

[hurleysweety]

Today I'm doing much better. Got my rental car and although they were able to get me the same make/model, it is 6 years newer, and I don't like it at all! Site lines are awful. I've always liked my car, but now I realize how much I love it. Can't wait to get it back from the shop! Was hoping for some pixie dust, but you know how those rental car people can be! There was a beautiful highlander in the parking lot. That would have been awesome for toting around my high school kids this weekend (we have a sleepover/service project event). Oh well!

Cruise News
Found out from my cruise meet that we can upgrade at port and let them know my new room # so we can still participate in the FE exchange. Probably won't since we really like our room and location. But if a cat 4 mid-ship is available, I don't know how to say no!

I've successfully talked DH into rebooking on board to take advantage of 10% discount, 10% deposit, and OBC. We'll also mention our TA to get her OBC too. Hoping 2014 itineraries are available by then. If not, 3 day dummy date, here we come!

We are not booking any excursions. Totally not what I had originally planned. We budgeted for it and everything, but nothing sounds good to us. Maybe we're weird. Maybe its because we're only going to 2 ports, one which is castaway cay. At Nassau we are going to do a walking tour and visit a lot of the "free" and "cheap" places as well as do some shopping. I imagine we'll be on the actual island for about 4 hours.

On castaway cay, we might do the 5k, we might rent bikes, or we might rent floats for the day. Depends on how we feel when we get there. I would love love love to do the jet ski excursion, I just think that paying $95 for an hour long excursion is kinda expensive, IMHO.

Land News
Need to get touring plans in place. We know which days/which parks, but no concrete plans in those parks. Parades and entertainment won't be a must this trip until after the cruise - because I couldn't be more excited then for the last night of our trip and our first chance to see Osborne Lights. I have done everything I can in the past 4 years on the disboards to prevent myself from seeing those lights in any type of picture. I've only seen a few glances here and there. I'm hoping it will be as magical as everyone says it is, and that it will be the best ending to a trip EVER!

As for food, I still only have 2 concrete ADRs - Tutto Italia, and Chefs de France. Both are repeats, so I want to make the other 2 new for us. Wondering if we should brave a character buffet meal? Or we'll probably get enough of that on the ship.

After the cruise we won't have a DP, so we'll be eating at our favorite low cost restaurants, Earl of Sandwich, and enjoying the lounges at the deluxe resorts. Can you say, reeelaxx!?

Trying very hard not to check WDW website every day, since I would love to upgrade from a value for the last two nights. But really can't justify the cost right now. Maybe I'll get another client and then hello AKL. I can dream, right? For now, I'm content with all that we do get to do. Please tell me CBR is awesome and that we should be happy that we even get to go!

Thanks for reading!