From the North Atlantic to the World - a May 2012 Pre-Trip Report

[Feckless]

Hey all! Thought I would take a stab at the whole pre-trip report thing, since I am enjoying my planning soooo much. My family thinks I'm crazy, but hopefully in a good way.

Here are the cast of characters:

This is me, mom and hard working professional, who needs at least one nice vacation somewhere warm a year to maintain sanity, with the two kiddos in on our last night during our trip in 2009:

This is my DD, who does NOT like princesses, and loves every thrill ride she can get into, and my DS, who doesn't like things jumping out at him, but otherwise is game for anything! He loves army stuff and Star Wars.

Here's one of the whole family at Sci Fi Cafe:

We had a good holiday in 2009, but definitely I was the one who enjoyed it the most. I had an ambitious commando plan, and it worked really well - we went during August, and it was super busy, but we walked on pretty much every ride. We are from a very temperate place so we found it completely BOILING HOT. In fact, as soon as we left MCO, my DS wanted immediately to turn around and go home! We are hoping that May will be a better time, for both heat and crowds.

We skipped a destination holiday in 2010, but decided to hit Cuba in 2011 and had a great time. The kids did great with the heat (the pool helped) so I decided to try to combine the best things about our Cuban holiday with the best things about Disney and give it another try!

First, the best thing about our Cuban resort was the pool. So, where else should I pick for our getaway but the Beach Club:

We booked our room nine months before our check-in. When we told DH's cousin our plans, they decided to tag along with their family! They have a boy the same age as DS, and a 7 year old DD. They booked the same dates, except at Beach Club Villas. We decided to book Club Level, since I have changed my commando ways (although not my planning ways!) and are planning loads of resort time. For the amount the room is costing, we are going to be spending tons of time there! LOL

Coming up, DINING plans!

 

[Feckless]

Contents:

Chapter One: Introduction http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=43102751#poststop

Chapter Two: Dining Plans! http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=43103065#poststop

Chapter Three: Discount Central! http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=43374560&postcount=15

Chapter Four: To Dining Plan or not to Dining Plan? http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=43560627&postcount=17

Chapter Five: Last Minute Tweaks to the Plans! http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=44629972&postcount=26

 

[Feckless]

So, with this new 180 day rule, the next big decision we had to make after the resort, and CL vs. regular room, and dates for travel, was DINING. As the date got closer and closer, I tried to take in more and more reviews, menus, etc. I got some great advice to make ADRs for every night, since I can always cancel but some of these will be difficult to get as time passes! Plus, with all the resort time, the plan was to book a bunch of Epcot restaurants. Luckily I decided that in order to keep my stress levels as low as possible with respect to wasting time in the parks (to tamp down the commando in me as much as possible) we would get the 10 day park hopper passes, so we can have park time every day we are there, even if it is just popping over to WS to do some shopping. Heaven!

The first thing I did was to buy the 2012 Unofficial Guide, and read the restaurant section. Then I renewed my subscription to Touring Plans to check the preliminary crowd levels. Then I spoke to my family and got ideas about our must do places. I tried to get the other family to participate, but they seem to be more sane than I. LOL With the help of IPO, I decided to include them on our reservations - easier to cut them from the reservation than to add them later! I ultimately came up with the following plan:

Day One: Arrive about 1 p.m. Biergarten reservation for 8 pm. Reasoning is that it is a buffet, with banquet seating, and would be a fun way to start the trip.

Day Two: Epcot Day. I am planning all our park days to start early and end around lunchtime. If we have steam, we will hit another park later, but no biggie. At first I wanted an ADR for Tutto Italia, but unfortunately they are not booking tables because of the refurb. We have been waiting for that restaurant since 2009, so that is a big disappointment. We settled on Via Napoli at 7:15 pm.

Day Three: Resort Day. Cape May Cafe character breakfast for 9:30 a.m.

Day Four: Magic Kingdom Day. Crystal Palace ADR for 8:00 a.m. Park opens at 9, wanted to get in the park before it opens and hit rope drop after breakfast if possible. Hopefully the kids will deal with the early morning!

Day Five: Resort Day, maybe after hitting the EMH at DHS if we are up. 'Ohana ADR for 6:30 pm so we can catch the electric water pageant (9 p.m.) and Wishes (10 p.m.) from the beach at the Poly. Meat on a stick - whats not to love...

Day Six: Universal Day. We are hitting it super early as the kids are really excited about WWHP. I am making an ADR for Captains Grille for 8:30 p.m. on the off chance we would be back, but this will probably be canceled.

Day Seven: Animal Kingdom Day. Boma dinner at 6 p.m. Buffet + animals + African flavours = WIN.

Day Eight: Resort Day. Marrakesh at 7:00 p.m. Might change this to Teppan Edo, but I really like the atmosphere in Morocco.

Day Nine: DHS Day. Sci Fi Cafe lunch at 1 p.m. (kids request!)

Day Ten: Resort Day. We are going to end our trip with dinner at Brown Derby at 6:30 p.m. with Fantasmic afterwards. I could NOT handle the thought of doing lunch or dinner at 3:30 p.m. so the package was not for us. Since it seems from the hours published that Fantasmic is every night, we are hoping that it will not be too crowded.

On the resort days, we are trading off with the boys doing a golf day and the girls doing a spa day, while the others have the youngsters.

IPO has all of the plans - just have to call in my CC number and we are all set! Very exciting!!!

 

[vikkii19]

Joining in. Great plans so far. Hoping it's not as hot in May, but at least you'll have storm along bay to cool off in.

 

[Feckless]

Thanks Vikki! Nice to see another Atlantic Canadian joining in. We went to Cuba in May and didn't find the heat half as oppressive as Orlando in August, but there was a lovely sea breeze there. I figure Universe of Energy and Hall of Presidents will have to substitute. LOL It is so nice to be planning a holiday somewhere hot during our loooong winters!

 

[Feckless]

Called in my credit card number this morning, which was my last step for IPO to make my dining reservations. The CM said that they will be making the ADRs at 5:30 a.m. on November 3rd, which is when my dining window opens. Here's hoping that I can get my 'Ohana reservation! I can live without any of the others, but I have my heart set on that one. Maybe I should move it up closer to the beginning of the trip so that I have the best chance? Overthink much???? LOL

So far, my experience with the concierge service has been awesome - with one glaring exception: THE COST.

Second guessing my Marrakesh ADR as well. I'm thinking that Teppan Edo would be a better choice... We all ate at a similar restaurant at our resort in Cuba and despite the kids' original misgivings, it was excellent.

Rain, rain and cold today. Thinking about sun and pool and parks is making my day better!

 

[Feckless]

Heading to Ottawa for a business trip tomorrow, and taking the kids! Looking forward to visiting our nation's capital. Had the option to stay at the Chateau Laurier, on which I think the building in the Canada pavilion at Epcot is based, but I wanted to stay in the hotel where my meetings are. I will get a picture though for comparison since it is just across the street!

Next trip on a plane will be DISNEY!!!!

 

[Feckless]

Got the email first thing this morning from the IPO. Luckily I double checked, and there were some mistakes - primarily that our whole group wasn't booked in to about half the ADRs. Also, it turns out that we COULD book Tutto! Very excited, and I hope the refurb is actually finished. Because of that, I changed our Marrakesh ADR back to Via Napoli. Also, we booked 6 pm for the Brown Derby on our last night, which is great for catching Fantasmic.

Sent all the plans to the other family, told them it was all booked, but haven't heard anything! Oh well, if they don't want to do it, they can cancel... Also reminded them again to book CRT if they want to for their DD. I can't be responsible for everything! LOL

Very strange booking a vacation while on vacation, but given that we are back and forth over and over again about where to eat each day here, I am super happy that we have booked what we have for Disney.

 

[Laffites Landing]

Joining in. Of course my family and I will be at the Yacht Club just a month after you are at the Beach club so I'm more interested in what you are doing than most.

I like many of your dining plans. I also have a copy of the 2012 Unofficial guide (not to mention the 2011 unofficial guide).

You know what I'm wondering about, parks wise, how much of that Fantasyland expansion will be done.

Oh and also I wonder if Test Track is going to be running when either you or I are there.

Guess we'll see.

Allen

 

[natebenma]

I'm here!

Great start! Obviously, I applaud your resort choice!

Love your dining reservations! Sci Fi and Boma are favorites! Your plan for the night at the Poly is great. Been there. Done that. Loved it!!! Captain's Grille was a great discovery on our last trip. Cape May is my favorite character breakfast, although CP before park opening is on my Disney bucket list.

We have never been to Tutto, Via Napoli, Biergarten or Brown Derby, but I have read wonderful things about them.

Sounds like your research and planning have served you well.

I look forward to hearing about your plans for Universal. We visited last summer, so I would be glad to chime in with my input!

 

[Feckless]

You know what I'm wondering about, parks wise, how much of that Fantasyland expansion will be done.

Oh and also I wonder if Test Track is going to be running when either you or I are there.

Guess we'll see.

Allen

Thanks, Allen! I'm already upset that BTMR will be closed so I'm crossing my fingers on TT. I guess you don't mind about BTMR since you have one at DL! It was my kids favorite last time so it sucks for us. The Fantasyland expansion isn't such a big deal for us but it would have been awesome to have the new Seven Dwarfs ride. Oh well, an excuse to come back, right???

 

[Feckless]

I'm here!

Great start! Obviously, I applaud your resort choice!

Love your dining reservations! Sci Fi and Boma are favorites! Your plan for the night at the Poly is great. Been there. Done that. Loved it!!! Captain's Grille was a great discovery on our last trip. Cape May is my favorite character breakfast, although CP before park opening is on my Disney bucket list.

We have never been to Tutto, Via Napoli, Biergarten or Brown Derby, but I have read wonderful things about them.

I look forward to hearing about your plans for Universal. We visited last summer, so I would be glad to chime in with my input!

So happy to see you here, Dee!

The Universal plans are definitely the head scratcher at the moment. We are going to get the Express passes and try to hit the best things about the two parks in one day without going crazy. I was thinking of keeping it simple and just doing one park but my kids are Simpsons fans (shhhhhh! Don't tell the perfect parents!! LOL). I'm totally picking your brain!

 

[Feckless]

Just heard back from the other family and the reason I didn't hear before is I was sending emails to the wrong frickin' email address! D'oh!!!

So, they are happy about tagging on our plans for now, knowing that we can change or cancel prior to going. They are also planning a CRT lunch (they are NOT early risers! LOL) and are talking about getting the dining plan. I'm not sold on the dining plan - I like the idea of putting $1500 on a Disney gift card before I go rather than paying for the plan, since we are going to be doing mostly counter service and as well using the lounge for breakfast.

Anyway, glad to know that they just weren't answering me because of my obvious mental illness - Disney addiction!

 

[Laffites Landing]

Thanks, Allen! I'm already upset that BTMR will be closed so I'm crossing my fingers on TT. I guess you don't mind about BTMR since you have one at DL! It was my kids favorite last time so it sucks for us. The Fantasyland expansion isn't such a big deal for us but it would have been awesome to have the new Seven Dwarfs ride. Oh well, an excuse to come back, right???

I hope they have the BTM back up and running for you in May. I know it's going down for an extended time but that does mean it will be down thru your visit?

I'm pretty sure it will be up for ours in June. My family does want to ride it, if only to compare it to the one out here in Anaheim. I have heard that it's pretty much the same ride but we'll get on it once if it's open.

We just got back from Disneyland over the weekend and rode BTM in the rain. Fun stuff, quite uncomfortable but quite an experience for the whole family. Rain out here isn't like summer rain in Florida. It's cold and often includes a brisk wind with it. We survived to tell about it so I guess that's good.

I'm enjoying following through with you both here and over at the YC/BC thread!

 

[Feckless]

So, I was in the shower this morning and I was thinking that I hadn't been maki big enough payments on the holiday, that I haven't booked our flight yet, and generally getting stressed about the cost of BC, and of CL, and dining when we get there, along with the extra cost of going to the Dark Side for WWOHP. Just after lunch, there was the post on my Facebook Page from the Disboards saying that new discounts were announced. I checked and for the first part of our stay, they were showing BC at 30% off and 25% for the second part. I got on the phone IMMEDIATELY (not sure what my office accountant will say when she sees the long distance charges! LOL) and waited and waited to speak to a CM. When I got through, another short wait to check availability. When he came back on (it was only a few minutes but it seemed like hours) there WAS availability for BC CL on our dates and I got a $1880 discount!!!! I was so happy I closed my office door and danced a little jig. My DH can't believe it. It really makes the remaining balance so much more manageable. The CM tried to upsell me on the dining plan because he said with our reservations we will end up saving money. I have to do the math and see!

Anyway, it looks as if a big obstacle was lifted and the trip is a definite GO!

 

[natebenma]

So, I was in the shower this morning and I was thinking that I hadn't been maki big enough payments on the holiday, that I haven't booked our flight yet, and generally getting stressed about the cost of BC, and of CL, and dining when we get there, along with the extra cost of going to the Dark Side for WWOHP. Just after lunch, there was the post on my Facebook Page from the Disboards saying that new discounts were announced. I checked and for the first part of our stay, they were showing BC at 30% off and 25% for the second part. I got on the phone IMMEDIATELY (not sure what my office accountant will say when she sees the long distance charges! LOL) and waited and waited to speak to a CM. When I got through, another short wait to check availability. When he came back on (it was only a few minutes but it seemed like hours) there WAS availability for BC CL on our dates and I got a $1880 discount!!!! I was so happy I closed my office door and danced a little jig. My DH can't believe it. It really makes the remaining balance so much more manageable. The CM tried to upsell me on the dining plan because he said with our reservations we will end up saving money. I have to do the math and see!

Anyway, it looks as if a big obstacle was lifted and the trip is a definite GO!

Woo-hoo on the savings!!!

Congrats!

We have had the regular dining plan the two times we stayed at the Beach Club, Club Level. It was perfect for us. We would have a great breakfast in the lounge early each morning which would take us through to an early (11 am) counterservice lunch most days, and then a table service for dinner.

I didn't do the Disney math to see if we saved money on the dining plan or not, but I suspect we did. You could always go through a few menus and price out the meals you think you would get. Definitely a fun way to spend a couple of hours, dreaming and researching meals to come!

 

[Feckless]

So, I went through the menus on Allears and priced out what I thought that it would cost for the meals that we have reserved, and it came out to $1675 for the 10 days for the one TS meal per day. Imagine!!! The Dining Plan for the four of us will be $1800. Only one of our TS meals is 2 credits on the DDP (Brown Derby). We are staying CL, so we don't expect to have a cost for breakfast every day, but we will expect to be having 2 other meals on the two days that we will be having TS breakfasts. I think that the DDP for us, even with staying CL, might be a good choice. However, I will wait and see, since we can always add the DDP without penalty before we go since it is an up sell. The other thing is that room service seems to be very reasonable at the BC, and we will probably order from that a few times since we have a bunch of resort days planned. Since room service is 2 credits, we would definitely be paying for that OOP, which might screw up our overall cost/benefit ratio (but would even out the 2 dining credits we will be using!)

With everything I am reading, it seems like the DDP is for convenience for most people, so I'm thinking there might be something wrong with my math! But as it stands, it looks like we might buy the DDP.

Also, I saw the Exotic Driving Experience ads - showed them to DH and he was definitely interested!!! LOL He and the dad from the other family will be all over the Ferraris! I think we will make that a part of the trip for sure and call it an early Father's Day present.

Time is flying by at an exponential rate! Before long, the Mickey Ears will be on top of Spaceship Earth.

 

[CamoMama]

This trip will be my first one to WDW, but I have to agree, the DDP is more about convenience than savings for me. We used the DDP at DL in California last year and it just really made my life easier and I think it's going to be a staple for every trip.

 

[Feckless]

Next thing I want to nail down is what/how to get some welcome presents for the kids for our arrival. I was thinking about this a while ago, but didn't make a decision. Then I was looking into getting DD at least a Guide to the Magic, but when I emailed about shipping it was $22! Just to ship! They said the could ship it to the resort for $7 so I thought one each for the kids would be a nice start. I know I need to get a metal cap gun from Frontierland for DS, and both want Duffy bears, but I'm sure they would want to pick those out themselves. Maybe a little certificate printed out saying that it is good for one Duffy from Mousegears, with a picture? I have to go check and see what others have done! I think IPO can help with this, so I'm going to drop them a line.

Also checked into transport to US, and have decided a taxi or a town car is the way to go. No shuttle if we can help it, especially when going early to see Harry!!!

Bad news is that it's possible both BTMRR and TT will be closed when we are there. Booooo! Hoping for BTMRR to open a bit early...

Next is searching for cheap(er) airfares. Heaven help me! So expensive for four but that's the price we pay for living where we do.

 

[Feckless]

So, the lovely folks at BC IPO have come through again, and have told me that not only will they buy me plushes and BC t-shirts (if they are out) to have ready for my arrival, they will also allow me to ship from other outside retailers. They will check the invoice I send them against what they receive and keep everything for me. Could NOT ask for more. So, right now, I have a bunch of stuff picked out on the Disney Store website (plushes, pins, vinylmations) the Guide to the Magic for each of them, a BC t-shirt each, an arcade card, some Disney Dollars, a light up Mickey balloon, a refillable mug, and a homemade gift certificate for a Duffy bear, which I will email to IPO and they will print. I KNOW that my kids would rather pick out their own special Duffy at Mousegears so I am not going to deny them that! Everything will go into a sand bucket that they will put in the room soon after check-in. Since the kids are likely to be in the pool during check-in, that should work fine.

I really have to say that I am totally happy with the customer service, and am thrilled with my CL experience so far.