Excuse me for a moment while I SCREAM!!! Budget & plans just crashed and burned!!!

[C.Ann]

Received a phone call from my DD late last night and now ALL of the planning I have done for our trip is totally USELESS !!!!

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!!!!!

She has suddenly decided to go back to college - THIS year - and will be starting in a few weeks!! Our trip was planned for Dec. 4th to the 15th - but now she's been advised that she'll have finals beginning ON the 15th... The advisor said it would be okay if she missed a couple of classes towards the end of the session but she would have to be back before the 15th.. Soooooo...

I tried re-working the trip last night (actually I was up until 3 a.m. this morning) and I literally want to TEAR MY HAIR OUT!!!

At first glance, it looked like Nov. 28th to Dec 9th would work (even a tad lower airfare) UNTIL I checked the rental cars and they are DOUBLE for that period because the rental starts the day after Thanksgiving.. Seems that getting a rental ANY time during that last week of November causes this HUGE increase, so that put us back into a Dec. arrival again..

Because of airline scheduling, the ONLY possibility looks like Dec. 1st until the 12th - but we would have to take a LATE flight down (we would arrive in Orlando about 5 in the evening) and we would get back home about 9 p.m. on Friday Dec. 12th..

I'm SOOOOOOOO frustrated at this point I just want to scream my ever lovin' head off!!
--------------------------------------------

Does anyone know of a way to get a reasonable car rental that last week of November? A compact car jumped from $316 to WELL OVER $500!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for letting me whine...........

 

[BethR]

I am sorry to hear this C.Ann. I know how excited you have been about this trips (these trips? )

Hopefully something else can be worked out...

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by C.Ann
Received a phone call from my DD late last night and now ALL of the planning I have done for our trip is totally USELESS !!!!

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!!!!!

She has suddenly decided to go back to college - THIS year - and will be starting in a few weeks!! Our trip was planned for Dec. 4th to the 15th - but now she's been advised that she'll have finals beginning ON the 15th... The advisor said it would be okay if she missed a couple of classes towards the end of the session but she would have to be back before the 15th.. Soooooo...

I tried re-working the trip last night (actually I was up until 3 a.m. this morning) and I literally want to TEAR MY HAIR OUT!!!

At first glance, it looked like Nov. 28th to Dec 9th would work (even a tad lower airfare) UNTIL I checked the rental cars and they are DOUBLE for that period because the rental starts the day after Thanksgiving.. Seems that getting a rental ANY time during that last week of November causes this HUGE increase, so that put us back into a Dec. arrival again..

Because of airline scheduling, the ONLY possibility looks like Dec. 1st until the 12th - but we would have to take a LATE flight down (we would arrive in Orlando about 5 in the evening) and we would get back home about 9 p.m. on Friday Dec. 12th..

I'm SOOOOOOOO frustrated at this point I just want to scream my ever lovin' head off!!
--------------------------------------------

Does anyone know of a way to get a reasonable car rental that last week of November? A compact car jumped from $316 to WELL OVER $500!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for letting me whine...........

Who are you renting from?

 

[Disneycrazymom]

I am so sorry that it is falling apart, but good for her to go back to school. Have you thought about not getting a car at all? We have used Tiffany Town Car several times to pick us up at the airport, stop for water,beer,snacks, and take us to the hotel. Disney transportation is good to the parks and the car service will take you back to the airport.

 

[LisaRay]

I'm so sorry to hear about your plans being messed up!!

About the car rental that is the same day we have been looking at picking up a rental and prices have been pretty high. Not as high as you mentioned but high! I think we are going to rent for 3 days and then return it onsite. there are many places onsite (dolphin, DTD hotels, or car care center) and then we are going to rely on the buses for the middle part of the trip and then just rent again on the day before we leave for 1 day to get us back to the airport. I have found some codes that give you one free day if you rent for a 3 day weekend. Some were better than others. but we are getting a full size for 3 days for $95 and then the last day rental is $40. not great but cheaper and it will get us there and back plus a few days to do any offsite things like shopping!

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Ann,
I have found an intermediate for your time frame, using the AARP code and BJ's 20.00 coupon for 376.96 for that time frame.
Or....a compact no coupons, no codes for 382.52 with National.

Use your codes. If you are a member of AARP, BJs, SAMS club, Costco etc. there are some pretty good coupons out there.

If I can help, let me know.

 

[Lewisc]

Ann, try travelnow.com. Thrifty is $166 for a compact. I don't like Thrifty much but you can make the reservation and then later try to get a good rate from a different agency.

 

[C.Ann]

Thanks all! Sorry to whine first thing in the morning like this, but I'm really getting frustrated beyond belief!!

I agree - it's GREAT that she has decided to go back to school (her current job, although a good paying and rather prestigious job) is reeking havoc on her family life and thus the sudden need for change.. I'm happy for her - and proud of her for taking this huge step - but for some reason that I can't explain (just a gut feeling) - I HAVE to take this trip THIS year.. I know that sounds strange - and I can't explain it - but I feel this sense of urgency in terms of this trip..

Anyhow... Gail H - which time frame were you talking about? November or December? The codes that I have for the various rentals kept coming back that they weren't valid for the November dates.. I also just ordered the new Orlando Entertainment book for 2004 last night - but I don't know if that will help with the Thanksgiving holiday time-frame..

If we could go Nov. 28 till Dec. 9th that would be PERFECT!!

Hmmm.. Renting a few days at a time? That's a possibility.. We're staying OFF-SITE though.. Does anyone know if any of the off-site hotels have shuttles that will pick you up and drop you off at the airport?

Please everyone - keep the suggestions coming.. I'm about ready to cry! I'm even willing to shave off a few days of the vacation if need be.. We had hoped to do 5 days WDW, 1 day IOA, and 1 day Sea World - with 2 "free" days for shopping, resting, etc. - but I'll do whatever I have to do to make this trip work!!!

Thanks again!!

Back to plugging in dates on the hotel and car rental sites.......

 

[Lewisc]

I put Nov 28 to Dec 9 on travelnow.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

I put the Dec. dates in.

 

[sgtdisney]

Is it possible to go without your daughter. Or, still go and have your daughter come back early? Or was this supposed to be a mother/daughter trip?

 

[Cindy B]

As a returning adult college student myself, I understand her need to go back to school. I also understand that she wants to work it all out with her professors... could she take an online course accredited with her school? I'm taking a course at my college this semester online, and I don't have to step a foot in a classroom!

Or can the class she is taking available come January (spring semester as well).

I actually went the online route for my class since it conflicts with my Disney trip.. (I would have missed my first teaching class) if I did the classroom setting. I understand that, but if she is missing ten days, thats a LOT of work to make up.

As a parent, employee, wife, and mother, school is harder, and with my time demands I need to space things out accordingly. I would never miss 10 days (effectively two weeks of school).unless there was a medical emergency.

You can always check rental codes, for the car, or just drive yourself down.. That could feasibly work as well. I drive over 1000 miles each way to get down there.

 

[DMRick]

As a mom of an adult graduate this past May, (yeah and she did 4.0..she's now an RN!!) I think you might want to look at January break. It would be very hard for her to go back to school, just get on a study schedule, and take such a long break. Plus, she may not want to, and doesn't know how to tell you (my kids have gotten good at telling me they don't want to go to Disney AGAIN on their vacation..silly kids). She'll have to be doing a lot of studying, etc. at the time you want to go. January is nice, low crowds (avoid MLK weekend), and cheaper prices all the way around.
Best laid plans of mice and men : (

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[momoftwins]

C.Ann, if you have a Disney Visa they are offering 20% on Alamo cars. It says to use Rate Code BY and Promo code 299044. When I did your dates, 11/28 thru 12/9, I got a rate of 321.00 for a compact car. I input to pickup and dropoff at MCO.

Hope this helps.

 

[vhoffman]

Your daughter's educational plans may have messed up your vacation budget, but how much is she paying for her education? Missing ten days of school can really play havoc with her education, especially at the end of the semester. That's when everything comes due, reviews are held for finals, etc. You simply can't make up those days by reading a few chapters, etc. I'd find another time to go. If she manages to juggle both and just squeaks by in her coursework, well, that's worse than not going to school at all. A bad grade stays on your record forever.Presumably she's going to school to better herself, not to leave a trail of black marks against her.

 

[Maleficent59]

Sorry to hear about the change in plans but congrats on your daughter returning to school.

You may want to call the car rental places directly. I called Budget, told them I have a Costco membership (Sam's Club has a similar discount) and these are the prices quoted for your trip for a compact car (including all taxes and surcharges):

11/28 - 12/9 $554.88

Alternatively,
11/28-12/1 $121.74
12/1-12/8 $197.83
or
12/1-12/9 $245.26

They were very accomodating about giving different quotes and splitting the days. It's a lot less expensive if you split up your rental. Good luck!

 

[Zsmom]

Have you tried expedia for renting a car? If not, there are hotels that offer bus service to attractions and airports. Go to
www.orlandoinfo.com Click on accommodations, and it will bring up practically every hotel in the orlando area. Click on the more... info link and it will bring up everything you need to know about that paticular hotel. You can also order an orlando magic card which will give you discounts on area hotels and restaurants. I don't think it applies to the disney restaurants or hotels, though. Good luck

 

[C.Ann]

Okay - I'm back again!! And thank you ALL for the suggestions, advice, and even looking up dates and rentals for me!! What a great bunch you are!!

There's an UPDATE on the situation.. My DD called and two of the three classes she was going to take are FULL - so that leaves only ONE class she'll be taking in the fall - the others won't start till January.. She's waiting for a call back on that one class and because it's held in a satellite location, it may be meeting only ONE night a week..

So - I have been on the Southwest Airlines site plugging in EVERY available date to fly down from Nov. 27th to Dec. 5th - and return dates anywhere from Dec. 4th to Dec. 12th..

I have also configured everything from a 7-day trip to a 11-day trip (that's including arrival day and departure day) and will now begin the hunt for car rentals and hotels..

If we can do the 7-day trip, we'll toss aside the IOA and Sea World.. If we go beyond the 7 days, we MAY try to squeeze in one or the other.. The MAIN focus of this trip though is to be in Disney World for all the Christmas festivities and to attend the MVMP, so if we have to take the 7-day trip, that's fine with me!!

There's a good possibility we can pull this off with her only losing ONE day of class if we're flexible about how long/short the trip is going to be - AND if I can get the airline tickets TODAY or TOMORROW ( because there has already been drastic changes on what flights are available just since last night!!)

Wish me luck!! I'm going to have to do all of these searches FAST !!!!!!!!

-------------------

Oh - forgot to respond to whoever it was that wanted to know why I didn't go by myself.. This trip is my Christmas gift to my grown DD and my 5yr. old granddaughter so there would be no point in me going alone... However..............next Sept./Oct. is looking REAL interesting - for ME !!

 

[sgtdisney]

Originally posted by C.Ann
Oh - forgot to respond to whoever it was that wanted to know why I didn't go by myself.. This trip is my Christmas gift to my grown DD and my 5yr. old granddaughter so there would be no point in me going alone... However..............next Sept./Oct. is looking REAL interesting - for ME !!

That was me that asked.. And in that case it makes perfect sense why you can't without your DD. I hope it all works out for you and you have a wonderful time!

 

[DMRick]

There's a good possibility we can pull this off with her only losing ONE day of class

Remember..if the couse only meets one day a week..it may be equvalent to her missing 3 classes..depending on the course and length. You can't go during her Jan break..if early enough the decorations will still be up. January is a great time IMO for Disney.

At least the car rate will be a lot lower (remember..7 days may really be 8 if you fly in the morning and out at night like SW flies to our airport..so pay close attention to the am and pm's..I've never found one like shown on Mary's site where 8 is cheaper than 7.).

Also, flying SW does give you a chance to cancel and not pay a penalty if you book now and have to change.

AO and a 7 day hopper might make more sense than an AP, if you do water parks, etc, and only plan the two trips. Unless the AP rates come out and make a big difference in price. And unless you intend to do parks every single day of both trips.

Good luck with the scrambling!