Four Days to do ALL the Christmas Stuff!

[GPC0321]

Well, I've spent the better part of today obsessively planning, so I figured I'd share the fruits of my labors here at the place that has turned me from casual Disney fan to certified (certifiable? lol) Disney Trip Planner Extraordinaire. I owe practically everything I know about planning a Disney trip to the Disboards. This place is amazing!

Our last trip was Easter break 2016, so it's fitting that on this, the last day of Easter break 2017, I'm posting the official plan for our upcoming December trip.

So first:

Who is going?
43 year old me, my almost 75 year old mom, and my 73 year old dad.

What are we doing?
Christmas/Holiday Stuff! Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, Candlelight Processional, Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam, Holidays Around the World. Basically, if it's Christmasy and we can fit it in, we're doing it!

Where are we staying?
The Villas at the Grand Floridian! Needless to say, I started putting all of this into motion a LONG time ago, and connected with a wonderful VGF owner who was able to secure our reservation for us and has been completely amazing. I have never even been to the resort (except gliding through the monorail station), and I honestly never thought I'd EVER get to stay there! So, so, SO excited about this!

When are we going?
We'll be there December 17th through the 20th (a Sunday through Wednesday).

Why are we going?
Three reasons:
1. We've never seen WDW at Christmastime and have always wanted to
2. We'll be celebrating my mom's 75th birthday (actual birthday is Dec. 23)
3. It's Disney. Do we really NEED a reason? No. Of course not.

How are we going?
Flying! We drove last Easter and...well...let's just say I'm glad we're flying! We'll be flying Southwest (our first time with this airline; I'm optimistic). Anxious for them to release the December flights, which they say they will be doing on May 18th. Based on the research I did last December and current flights, I'm hoping for a 6:00am-ish flight down to MCO and a 4:00pm-ish return flight to RDU (Raleigh, NC). Oh, and this will be our first time riding the Magical Express, and I'm excited about that!

I've got the tentative (growing firmer every day) itinerary worked out:

Saturday 12/16: Staying at a hotel near RDU that offers "Park-Sleep-Fly" so we'll be close by early in the morning and can leave our car parked their instead of the airport. We live 2.5 hours from RDU, so this is really our best option. Our flight to Orlando is actually shorter than our drive to the airport from home!

Sunday 12/17:

• Early flight out of RDU (1 hour and 40 minute flight)
• Arrive at MCO (around 7:50am if all goes well) and catch the Magical Express!
• Arrive at the Grand Floridian!
• Brunch at Narcoossee's (I'm thinking in the 11am-12pm time frame just to be safe)
• Enjoy the resort
• Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party! (Doing the Holiday Wishes Dessert Party too!)

Monday 12/18:

• Sleep in! (We'll be exhausted, I'm sure!)
• Head to Epcot around noon or a little after (no rush) to eat our way around the Holidays Around the World food booths and check out some of the storytellers and other Holiday fun.
• Hop to Hollywood Studios for the Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! Dessert Party and nighttime show.

Tuesday 12/19:

• Sleep in again!
• Lounge around the resort and pop over to Magic Kingdom whenever the mood strikes. Want to catch the Trolley show and the Main St. Philharmonic at some point.
• Start making our way to Epcot by 4:00pm
• CP dinner package at Tutto Italia sometime around 6:00pm (obviously depends on ADR)
• Candlelight Processional at 8:15pm
• IllumiNations (FP+ if it's not included in the CP package this year)
• Get most of packing done before going to bed

Wednesday 12/20:

• Can't sleep in this morning!
• Get luggage all packed up and take down to bell services.
• Head to Magic Kingdom for rope drop and get some good pictures (we'll have Memory Maker)
• Crystal Palace breakfast at around 10:00am
• See and do anything we missed or want to see and do again.
• (Got this idea from another DISer) Go see Mickey to hug him goodbye. (*sniff*)
• Be back at the Grand in time for Magical Express (hoping this will be about 1:00pm)

So, that's the game plan right now! There are a few surprises I haven't told the parents about. The dessert party during MVMCP is one. Memory Maker is another. AND I'm hoping to get a cake done for Mom's birthday that can be delivered to our brunch on arrival day!


Next up: Booking flights on May 18th!

 

[LilTinkFan]

I want to go at Christmas this year so badly. I'm going to enjoy reading along.

 

[iivye]

I'm following too! I'm planning a 4 day trip Dec 8th so I love your plan. I'm also waiting patiently for Southwest to release those flights.

 

[GPC0321]

Welcome!

I've already tweaked and changed things since posting the plan above. Mostly crunching numbers and getting a little overwhelmed by the expense of it all! My dear mom wants to help pay for the trip, but I really want to treat her and Dad cover the whole trip myself. Park tickets and the resort are already paid in full. Plane tickets should be covered by my SW Visa's sign-up bonus.

But now, with the addition of MVMCP and wanting to do the Dessert Parties and the brunch at Narcoossee's, and the Candlelight Processional dining package (which changes daily! I cannot decide to save my life!)...well...let's just say it's STILL an expensive trip even with the "big three" (tickets, resort, flights) already paid for!

I'm thinking the Narcoossee's brunch and the Jingle Bell Jingle Bam Dessert Party will be the first on the chopping block. Also thinking about switching our CP dining package to the Captain's Grille breakfast.

This is why I always have to start planning so early! LOL!