Happy New Year, Mickey Mouse! Pre-Trip Report
The Cast -
KitKat (me), 26 Afraid of heights, but does the roller coasters anyway. Loves all things spinney. Not a big fan of boring history-type stuff. Do we really have to go to the Hall of Presidents AND see the American Adventure?
B-bop (the husband), 25 Loves all things old school Disney. Wishes Horizons was still around, lives for Carousel of Progress. Come on guys, Country Bears will be fun
Sissy (my sister), 28 Keep me away from those teacups! Cant do spinney stuff, especially without her Bonine and Sea Bands. Would spend all day going back and forth between Tower of Terror, Rock-n-Roller Coaster and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
Dairy Dan (High School Friend of B-bops), 25 - He got his nickname because there was an ice cream truck that drove past my house as a kid and it was called Dairy Dans. Hasnt been to Disney since he was 9, says hes up for anything oh the fun well have breaking him in! Hest.
The Idea
Back in 2004, Sissy was moving away from Boston for a new job. What should we do for a sending off (and to spend that signing bonus she got)? A trip to see the Mouse, of course! We spent the 4 nights in July at Coronado Springs and had the most amazing time. This just had to become a family tradition. But how? When?
Months flew by. Every once and a while I would pick up the little photo book that I made of our trip and think about our trip. And then it finally hit me. Hey Sissy, remember how we got that credit from Jet Blue on our last trip because they changed the price of the flight we were on after we booked? $174 worth of credit, I believe. Doesnt that expire soon? Wait, it expires in 3 weeks? It would be such a shame to let it go to waste. Looks like we just HAVE to plan another trip. Its the responsible thing to do. ; )
So the wheels were in motion. When would we go? Well, B-bop starts grad school in the fall, so September through December was no good. And while we had a great trip last July, we really didnt want to battle that Florida heat and humidity again, so no June through August either. Hmm hey, B-bop. Dont you get a nice long break from school from late December through mid-January? Yes, honey. Isnt Disney known for low crowds in early January? Yes, honey. Theres a chance it could be fairly cool there in January...might even have to wear a coat. Hey, we live in New England we can handle it! Hey Sissy, what do you think about Disney from January 1st 7th? Sounds perfect. OK, lets plan.
Our trip in July was the first trip to Disney that we planned by ourselves. And we had not known of the plethora of information lovingly called The DIS (gasp)!! So we went to DisneyWorld.com and booked a room and ticket package there rack rate. But not this time. This time we would be prepared. Where do you two want to stay? Well, at a deluxe of course! Hmm, do we really want to spend all that extra money on a room that we will just be sleeping in for the most part? Um, yeah. OK, Ill check it out. Those DVC resorts look really nice. So, off to the DIS Boards I went, specifically the DVC Rent/Trade board. Wait a second here you can rent points from an owner at $11 per point. And at Old Key West, its 8 points a night during the week. 8 x $11 = $88. So, youre telling me that I can stay at a Deluxe for the same price as a value?? Wow sounds like a good deal to me. So, thats what we did. We found a great DIS member to rent points from for Sunday through Thursday nights. What about Friday night? How about Animal Kingdom Lodge? It would be so fun to see that animals. Hello, CRO, one night room only at the AKL please. What, you only have deluxe savannah rooms available? Oh, I see, its marathon weekend. How about Wilderness Lodge? Yes, well take it. And add the AAA discount to it too while youre at it. Thanks, and yes I think I will have a magical day!
So with our room reservations all set up and a quick call to Jet Blue to use up our voucher before it expired, this trip was really coming together. We arrive at 12:10 pm on January 1st. Sissy, what time do you land? 12:11 pm. Excellent. We leave at 8:55 pm on the 7th. Sissy 8:45 pm. Could this get any better? (Well, it was perfect until the airline called us in July b/c they cancelled our flight and put us on the 6:45 pm.) Oh, wait its only June. Wow, time sure drags when youre waiting to go see the Mouse. What shall we do to pass the time? Decide where we will feast. B-bop where do you want to eat? Artists Point and Boma, please. Sissy? Le Cellier and Princess Storybook Breakfast, please. Hmm, 50s Prime Time Café was fun last time, so lets throw that on there again since we do need to eat in MGM. And how about a little Liberty Tree Tavern? Okie dokie. Wait for it, wait for it . finally, the coveted 90-day mark arrived and I was able to make everything we wanted and at all the right times!
But wait fast forward to Thanksgiving weekend. B-bop and I were spending it with my in-laws in B-bops hometown. We decide to have dinner with our good friend, Dairy Dan. Hey Dairy, were going to Disney the first week of January. He thinks thats awesome. Well, there is one spot left in the room, wanna come? Really? Of Course! Check to see if you can get the vacation time he got it! Excellent, 4 is such a nice even number. OK, Kitkat, get on that phone with Disney and add Dairy to the hotel reservations and ADRs.
What else? How shall we get to OKW from the airport? We used Happy Limo last time. They were good. But lets try Magical Express this time. No problem. Tickets? 7-day park hoppers, please. OK.
So heres the plan:
Arrive Sunday around noon. Head over to OKW, check in, and then straight over to Epcot. 7:30pm dinner at Jiko. Then over to the MK for 11 pm Spectromagic and EMH until 3am!! Monday is MGM day. 5 pm dinner at 50s PTC, Fantasmic at 8:30 pm and EMH until 11 pm.
Tuesday well head over to MK for the day, but not before a quick trip to Epcot for morning EMH. The monorail will get us to where we want to be. 5:30 pm dinner at Liberty Tree and Wishes at 9pm. Wednesday will be spent at AK. The girls will head over to the Grand Floridian for afternoon tea at 2 and then well all meet up again for a 6:30 dinner at Boma. Well probably head over to Downtown Disney and Pleasure Island late night. Thursday will be a full day at Epcot with a Princess Storybook Breakfast and dinner at Le Cellier on the menu. Catching Illuminations at 9 and then over to Jellyrolls for some songs. Friday should bring us to MGM until mid-afternoon. Then our transfer to the WL and back over to Epcot for a little dinner Around the World. Saturday is the real wild card. We have no plans or reservations. Our flights leave at 6:45-ish pm. That gives us until about 3:00 in the parks. Phew Im tired just thinking about this schedule, but were all adults here, right?
Sounds like were ready to go. Now, all we have to do it get to the airport on time for a 9 am flight the morning after New Years Eve
The Cast -
KitKat (me), 26 Afraid of heights, but does the roller coasters anyway. Loves all things spinney. Not a big fan of boring history-type stuff. Do we really have to go to the Hall of Presidents AND see the American Adventure?
B-bop (the husband), 25 Loves all things old school Disney. Wishes Horizons was still around, lives for Carousel of Progress. Come on guys, Country Bears will be fun
Sissy (my sister), 28 Keep me away from those teacups! Cant do spinney stuff, especially without her Bonine and Sea Bands. Would spend all day going back and forth between Tower of Terror, Rock-n-Roller Coaster and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
Dairy Dan (High School Friend of B-bops), 25 - He got his nickname because there was an ice cream truck that drove past my house as a kid and it was called Dairy Dans. Hasnt been to Disney since he was 9, says hes up for anything oh the fun well have breaking him in! Hest.
The Idea
Back in 2004, Sissy was moving away from Boston for a new job. What should we do for a sending off (and to spend that signing bonus she got)? A trip to see the Mouse, of course! We spent the 4 nights in July at Coronado Springs and had the most amazing time. This just had to become a family tradition. But how? When?
Months flew by. Every once and a while I would pick up the little photo book that I made of our trip and think about our trip. And then it finally hit me. Hey Sissy, remember how we got that credit from Jet Blue on our last trip because they changed the price of the flight we were on after we booked? $174 worth of credit, I believe. Doesnt that expire soon? Wait, it expires in 3 weeks? It would be such a shame to let it go to waste. Looks like we just HAVE to plan another trip. Its the responsible thing to do. ; )
So the wheels were in motion. When would we go? Well, B-bop starts grad school in the fall, so September through December was no good. And while we had a great trip last July, we really didnt want to battle that Florida heat and humidity again, so no June through August either. Hmm hey, B-bop. Dont you get a nice long break from school from late December through mid-January? Yes, honey. Isnt Disney known for low crowds in early January? Yes, honey. Theres a chance it could be fairly cool there in January...might even have to wear a coat. Hey, we live in New England we can handle it! Hey Sissy, what do you think about Disney from January 1st 7th? Sounds perfect. OK, lets plan.
Our trip in July was the first trip to Disney that we planned by ourselves. And we had not known of the plethora of information lovingly called The DIS (gasp)!! So we went to DisneyWorld.com and booked a room and ticket package there rack rate. But not this time. This time we would be prepared. Where do you two want to stay? Well, at a deluxe of course! Hmm, do we really want to spend all that extra money on a room that we will just be sleeping in for the most part? Um, yeah. OK, Ill check it out. Those DVC resorts look really nice. So, off to the DIS Boards I went, specifically the DVC Rent/Trade board. Wait a second here you can rent points from an owner at $11 per point. And at Old Key West, its 8 points a night during the week. 8 x $11 = $88. So, youre telling me that I can stay at a Deluxe for the same price as a value?? Wow sounds like a good deal to me. So, thats what we did. We found a great DIS member to rent points from for Sunday through Thursday nights. What about Friday night? How about Animal Kingdom Lodge? It would be so fun to see that animals. Hello, CRO, one night room only at the AKL please. What, you only have deluxe savannah rooms available? Oh, I see, its marathon weekend. How about Wilderness Lodge? Yes, well take it. And add the AAA discount to it too while youre at it. Thanks, and yes I think I will have a magical day!
So with our room reservations all set up and a quick call to Jet Blue to use up our voucher before it expired, this trip was really coming together. We arrive at 12:10 pm on January 1st. Sissy, what time do you land? 12:11 pm. Excellent. We leave at 8:55 pm on the 7th. Sissy 8:45 pm. Could this get any better? (Well, it was perfect until the airline called us in July b/c they cancelled our flight and put us on the 6:45 pm.) Oh, wait its only June. Wow, time sure drags when youre waiting to go see the Mouse. What shall we do to pass the time? Decide where we will feast. B-bop where do you want to eat? Artists Point and Boma, please. Sissy? Le Cellier and Princess Storybook Breakfast, please. Hmm, 50s Prime Time Café was fun last time, so lets throw that on there again since we do need to eat in MGM. And how about a little Liberty Tree Tavern? Okie dokie. Wait for it, wait for it . finally, the coveted 90-day mark arrived and I was able to make everything we wanted and at all the right times!
But wait fast forward to Thanksgiving weekend. B-bop and I were spending it with my in-laws in B-bops hometown. We decide to have dinner with our good friend, Dairy Dan. Hey Dairy, were going to Disney the first week of January. He thinks thats awesome. Well, there is one spot left in the room, wanna come? Really? Of Course! Check to see if you can get the vacation time he got it! Excellent, 4 is such a nice even number. OK, Kitkat, get on that phone with Disney and add Dairy to the hotel reservations and ADRs.
What else? How shall we get to OKW from the airport? We used Happy Limo last time. They were good. But lets try Magical Express this time. No problem. Tickets? 7-day park hoppers, please. OK.
So heres the plan:
Arrive Sunday around noon. Head over to OKW, check in, and then straight over to Epcot. 7:30pm dinner at Jiko. Then over to the MK for 11 pm Spectromagic and EMH until 3am!! Monday is MGM day. 5 pm dinner at 50s PTC, Fantasmic at 8:30 pm and EMH until 11 pm.
Tuesday well head over to MK for the day, but not before a quick trip to Epcot for morning EMH. The monorail will get us to where we want to be. 5:30 pm dinner at Liberty Tree and Wishes at 9pm. Wednesday will be spent at AK. The girls will head over to the Grand Floridian for afternoon tea at 2 and then well all meet up again for a 6:30 dinner at Boma. Well probably head over to Downtown Disney and Pleasure Island late night. Thursday will be a full day at Epcot with a Princess Storybook Breakfast and dinner at Le Cellier on the menu. Catching Illuminations at 9 and then over to Jellyrolls for some songs. Friday should bring us to MGM until mid-afternoon. Then our transfer to the WL and back over to Epcot for a little dinner Around the World. Saturday is the real wild card. We have no plans or reservations. Our flights leave at 6:45-ish pm. That gives us until about 3:00 in the parks. Phew Im tired just thinking about this schedule, but were all adults here, right?
Sounds like were ready to go. Now, all we have to do it get to the airport on time for a 9 am flight the morning after New Years Eve
