Going to Discovery Cove, SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Aquatica & Universal-IOA & Studios.

[cajunaggie]

We will be traveling to Orlando in May 2011 under the 'ruse' of graduation trip for my cousin (Grad 17) who is graduating from high school. We took her sister to WDW in '09 for graduation so we asked Grad 17 what/where she wanted to go/do & she said, "Not WDW!" Once we overcame our shock (as she has never been to WDW) we came up with the above trip. All this planning started in Sept '10 so we have had lots of time to look @ dates, places, deals, etc.



Right before Christmas break, Grad 17 was informed of when actual graduation will occur (May 28th) & her last day of school (May 12th) so we now had our dates of travel...Yay! Now here lies the problem, mom has been with her company for over 5yrs so vacation time is/was not a problem...however, I left January 1st & took a new position. I made sure I informed the Board of Directors that this trip was planned with the knowledge that I had plenty of vacation with my previous employer & I will be the BEST Executive Director ever All, is well & my vacation is approved so now husband has to confirm his vacation time. Umm, seems like the bosses daughter got engaged over Christmas & wants to get married in Jamaica the same week we want to come to Orlando. Forget the fact that husband put in for his vacation in October '10. So about 2 weeks ago, husband got the "all clear" from his boss to proceed with vacation plans...it seems that Jamaica is not available on the days that they want. BUT ORLANDO IS WAITING FOR US!!

 

[cajunaggie]

So, we have more than 12 days in Orlando...or so it seems. Our plans were to head out (driving) on Friday the 13th (que erie music) to arrive in Orlando on 14th. Play 15th- 24th, heading home on afternoon of 24th & getting home on Wed 25th.
Now here is the glitch, I was accepted into "Partners in Policymaking" which is a state leadership program held in Baton Rouge (we live in North La) & we have class on 13th-14th. So my quick thinking invloves me going to BR for class & husband drives down on Sat 14th with kids...no big deal? Umm, husband does not like the idea of him having to: get dogs to my sister's house for kenneling (I didn't want 2 big dogs), packing the car, picking up Grad 17, having to keep son "happy" (has Autism so we are constanly trying to avoid meltdowns) & drive by himself with said kids for 4hrs to BR.

 

[cajunaggie]

Husband will have to do this & get over it. I have arranged to get rental car a day early so I will pack it on Thursday before I leave for Baton Rouge But the rest is up to him...he can handle it, he just likes to "act" like he isn't capable.

Due to owning a timeshare we are able to book @ Sheraton Vistana Resort for...$179 for 7 nights. That is less than $26 dollars a night!! For a 2-bedroom (gotta give Grad 17 some privacy). We are super excited...I am just working on getting the "right" location @ Sheraton-that place is HUGE. I will keep you posted on how things go & what I did. Son (as mentioned earlier, has Autism) but also has Muscular Dystrophy. So for us the "right" location is NOT on the bottom floor & near recreation center. We plan on using the pool & other amenities as often as we can. (Water is very soothing for those with Autism but son tires quickly so being long distance from rec center is sad thought when he can't walk.)
I put a call into Sheraton today because when I got our confirmation room #, we are quite a bit away from everything. Great if you want peace & quite, but we need closeness.

 

[cajunaggie]

We check out of Sheraton Vistana Resort on Sun, 22nd & head over to Universal. We are staying on-site @ Royal Pacific Resort 22nd-24th.

I want to thank everyone for all the information that I gathered from the DIS boards on making these decsions. I had another resort picked out but it ended up not being available for our dates & after searching/reading/studing (should have earned a Degree from DIS University by now), I was able to choose the two places listed above. I know we are going to be soooo pleased.

 

[cajunaggie]

I 'know' that we are going to do Discovery Cove with the 14 day add-on of SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, & Aquatica. I just haven't gotten a discount on DC yet.
I keep looking but nothing is coming up. I am giving myself till March 1st (give/take) before I just cave in & pay the posted price, which is $229 pp right now.
Any help on this would be awesome?? I have an AmEx too, so I am checking their sites as well. Last year they did $50 off pp ticket-that would be super if they did that again. I know that Grand Reef is opening in June '11 & posts that I keep seeing say that once a definite opening date is set, DC may release some discount tickets.

While we are @ Universal we will be going to IOA & Studios. I have only bought 2 day park-to-park...thought about getting 3 day since we will actually be @ RPR for 3 days but I think we will manange. Plus that will allow us to sleep in on our last day, play by the pool for a little, etc.

Grad 17 & mom are the MOST excited about going to WWOHP. We have re-read the books, watched the movies again, & visiting everything HP that we can to prepare for this experience. Husband just laughs...he is excited about the rides

 

[BeyondHorizons]

This sounds like it will be an awesome trip!

 

[MaineFam3]

cajanaggie, I saw your post about searching for a Discovery Cove (DC) discount and have some info to share on that. We are also planning to go to there in mid-May. DC was offering a discount in Dec but I wasn't ready to commit that early. Knowing about the AMEX discount offered last year, I called DC and asked if they knew if it would be offered again. The staff member stated that if AMEX does, it would probably start in March. She said I could call back in late Feb/Mar to check on any updates. Hope this helps. Enjoy your trip!

 

[cajunaggie]

Appreciate the info about Amex & DC. I will certainly wait a little bit.

 

[cajunaggie]

I am debating on whether or not to rent a car to drive to Orlando from North La.

The cost I am looking @ for 14 days is ~ $480 for an Impala size car.
Now, I have a new (2010) car myself but I just HATE the idea of putting all these miles on my car. My car will be fine for the trip: just got new tires, oil/engine check will be fine, it is roomy enough...just the miles!

Husband is making the argument that "This is exactly why we bought a new car, for making trips." Plus, he says that $480 will come in handy for all kinds of souviners @ DC & WWOHP. I must say, husband is making a really good point...hard for me to admit.

The other headache would be having to get a handicap hang tag for the rental. My car has my sons handicap plates so we don't have to worry with a plastic hanger on the rearview mirror or going to the DMV again.
This brings me to another question...do you have to pay more for handicap parking @ DC, SW or Aquatica?

 

[cajunaggie]

We are using AAA for our Universal RPR booking. I was unsure about forking over the $$ to stay on property but there are so many perks when you do.

I feel that we are getting a good deal overall.
We are checking in on Sunday, May 25th-since you can't technically check-in till 2-4pm, we are arriving @ ~ 7am, going up to Club Level to eat breakfast & drop off our luggage. Enjoy early access into IOA & get over to WWOHP.

On the Club Level, we also will get a 'snacks' from noon - 3pm (my research indicates this is light crackers, cheese, etc). Then there is hot & cold hors d'oeuvres w/complimentary beer & wine from 4:30-6:30...this seems to have pastas, fruit, cheeses, seafood, etc & a 'sweets' hour from 8-9....think cookies, cheesecake, etc. I don't think we will be coming back from the parks to get lunch but will defnitely be partaking of hors d'oeuvres & sweets hours.

AAA also gives you souvenir cups that you can get refilled in both parks for ~$.89, a discount book for different eateries & other souvenirs, plus w/your AAA card you can 10-20% off alot of stuff.

 

[cajunaggie]

I must admit that husband & I have not done the best job @ capturing memories on film...we have done many things with our son, but don't carry the camera around with us. Thanks to smartphones, we do have LOTS of pics on our phones but they really don't do much for other family/friends that wish to enjoy in experiences...Grandmaw has voiced this many times as she lives over 4hrs away.

So prior to this trip, I have used my 'bank points' & got a digital camera. It is not the cheapy one that you can normally but yourself for $59...I saved up lots of points for over 5 years! It is a Nikon Coolpix & I have been playing with it for about 6 months & love the pics.

I also just purchased a Kodak PlaySport camcorder. It is waterproof up to 10ft, w/the 32Gb memory card-it will record over 9hrs on a single card. I got two extra batteries (seems that batteries run out fastnot a problem for me!) We used this for the first time @ Swim School this weekend & it is taking wonderful underwater videos & STILL photos.

I am determined to make sure that we capture memories on film this trip. I also hope to make DVD's of our trip too. I would like to give Grad one, send one to Grandmaw & have one for us.

 

[JLR]

I am debating on whether or not to rent a car to drive to Orlando from North La.

The cost I am looking @ for 14 days is ~ $480 for an Impala size car.
Now, I have a new (2010) car myself but I just HATE the idea of putting all these miles on my car. My car will be fine for the trip: just got new tires, oil/engine check will be fine, it is roomy enough...just the miles!

Husband is making the argument that "This is exactly why we bought a new car, for making trips." Plus, he says that $480 will come in handy for all kinds of souviners @ DC & WWOHP. I must say, husband is making a really good point...hard for me to admit.

The other headache would be having to get a handicap hang tag for the rental. My car has my sons handicap plates so we don't have to worry with a plastic hanger on the rearview mirror or going to the DMV again.
This brings me to another question...do you have to pay more for handicap parking @ DC, SW or Aquatica?

If you have a new car, I would drive it. You will not put $480 of wear on the engine of your car driving to and from Orlando. You hae something your son is comfortable in, you know where all the bells and whitles are, you have the plates, etc. Long distance driving is not as wearing on a car as in town driving. I'd say save yourself the hassle and the money!

It sounds like you will have a fun trip!

 

[cajunaggie]

I just wanted to let it be known that I used AAA to book our trip because of the 'perks' mentioned above, however, I also like to that I get to secure my dates but can payout my vacation. You have up until 45 days before your departure date to have everything paid in full.

Another plus, I booked in a AAA store but when I came home I checked the AAA website & the package I booked was $80 less on-line. I called AAA the next morning & the fixed the problem! More $$ for butter beer.

I am also still waiting for a "deal" on Discovery Cove. On Friday I called both AmEx & Dicovery Cove to see if anything is coming out soon...not to thier knowledge. I was told that with Discovery Cove you can "cancel your package up to 30 days before arrival with NO penalties." What this means is, I can book my trip & secure our day but keep watching for any deals. If something comes up before April 16th (we are going to Discovery Cove on May 16th), I can cancel & rebook @ the cheaper rate. This made me soooo happy...we are officially booked now for Discovery Cove!

Thanks for the input about a rental care. I am going to take our car & I have just rolled that ~$400+ back into our spending budget for the trip. I had only planned on eating out 2 nights while we are in Orlando so this will allow us to maybe add 2 more.

 

[Metro West]

Pretty enjoyable so far..........

 

[keishashadow]

We enjoyed our stay @ the Vistana, sign up for diamond lane checkin (see the resort website or find the link here in orlando hotel forum) to speed things along...highly recommend the cascades sectionand unplugging your phone in the room as you will receive numerous calls from the TS folks offering free tours/promos.

re AAA package @ Universal onsite...you can call loews directly and ask for the AAA discount rate (if available). Note that the cup discount is available to anybody buying the special cup in the parks (many of us bring them back every trip) and you just need to bring your AAA card along with you to get the in-park discounts. Lastly, make sure to sign up for the Loews reward program on their site.

We used the AMEX discount for Discovery Cove last October and did buy the photo package, really glad i didthis time. IMO it's a good idea to get an early dolphin swim time so you can enjoy the rest of the day. You can have all the candid shots taken during the day added to your CD too.

 

[cajunaggie]

We are officially in "limbo" mode. Resorts are booked, tickets are purchased, not renting a car but just got the family vehicle maintained so it is good to go, booked the aunt/uncle place to stay @ en route to Orlando...kind of bored now.

I am getting little things that we will need/want for our trip. Got everyone laynards for tickets, money, etc. I got Texas A&M, hubby got OU, grad got HP 'I must not tell lies' & son got a plain burgundy one (he probably won't wear it but will get upset if everyone else has one & he doesn't.)

Have picked up a few articles of clothes for everyone...it seems like all of us needed a new swim suit.

We went & tried on some Crocs yesterday & me & hubby actually feel in love. Son has been wearing these for years (they worked great with his leg braces but he still wears them now due to the easy on/off). Hubby is sooo hard to buy shoes for & has always insisted on wearing the same old (over 5 yrs) Birkenstocks. When we went to WDW I was able to get him to buy A pair of 'boat' shoes, which he now wears more than the Birks. So I was much amazed when he actually liked the Crocs. He likes the ones that are similar to boat shoes but have the Croc insole. I tried on the ballet style & they were so light but yet supportive! I will be buying us all pairs next week for our trip.

 

[clearskies]

CajunAggie,

I am joining to follow along. Since we had experiences with the same parks except for Discovery Cove you can ask me any questions. It was only our first time to Universal and Aquatica. We had visited Sea World and GBT in prior trips.

I would love to go to Discovery Cove but boy the price is steep. How much of a discount have they offered in the past with AMEX? Perhaps if it is not too bad I'll watch for a discount for our trip later this year.

 

[natebenma]

Joining in! I look forward to reading about your plans as they come together.

We just booked a 5 day/4 night trip yesterday for July 11-15 to the Portofino and plan on visiting Universal, IOA and SeaWorld.

So far we have airfare and the hotel booked, but we will be looking into various ticket options.

Keep the info coming!

 

[cajunaggie]

CajunAggie,

I would love to go to Discovery Cove but boy the price is steep. How much of a discount have they offered in the past with AMEX? Perhaps if it is not too bad I'll watch for a discount for our trip later this year.

I have seen where AMEX has done $50 off pp. This was a promo they did @ end of last year...like Sept - Dec.

We are timing our trip to go before all the prices go up for peak season. We have loved traveling to Orlando in May because it is warm enough but not sweltering.

 

[cajunaggie]

It has been awhile but as I stated earlier, "in limbo mode".

Got excited this weekend because I took Graduate to her school of choice, LaTech (not MY school of choice-give you one guess where I would send her??). But nevertheless, she is headed to LaTech in the fall. We got to tour the campus with her mom, see the dorms, talk to other potential freshman, I was even able to introduce to her some students that I knew on campus (the were counselors for MDA camp). Then we went to the spring football game.

All this got us pumped up about graduation being just around the corner & our trip!

I have purchased a couple of other things to get ready for the trip: got son a snorkel mask like the ones they use @ DC so he could 'practice' wearing it (hopefully it will reduce likelyhood of having a "meltdown" @ DC), picked up some water shoes for the water parks, & got some sunblock-lots of sunblock!

In the next couple of weeks, I have to book our cabana for Aquatica, & get our reservations for Al Capone's dinner show.

I am going to go on record that some people may laugh about people that "make all these plans" but hubby & I were talking the other night & he joked about how everthing is already done for our vacation. I am keeping plenty of time open for random activities but by knowing what park we will be visiting on what day, I have been able to pretty much pay for anything & everything that we may need.

Tickets=check
Parking=check
Hotels=check
Cabana=check
Meals=check

Love planning.