***Hey, Hey! Come right in and plan, OFFICIAL OCTOBER 2017 thread!!!***

[Farro]

Hi @bluecastle! Welcome to the ever growing October group!

I agree, it's hard to plan this time with Animal Kingdom being such a wildcard, but at least we are all in the same boat.

I don't think a date is set for the closing of The Great Movie Ride, it's more of a strong rumor at this point.

I wouldn't put hope on another discount coming out, that way if one does it's a pleasant surprise!

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

@bluecastle I'm having a hard time coming up with a good plan too, I only have 3 park days to play with. Here are my two options and I have one 6 year old, one 18 month old, and one Disney scrooge DH who likes Star Wars, Avatar, and Epcot (more than he'll admit).

Thur arrival day: Check in, pool, dinner at resort
Fri - Epcot AM, F&W for lunch. Resort break. MK PM for MNSSHP (getting there at 6:30-7, too crowded earlier)
Sat - AK all day with resort break after lunch. ROL in evening, hopefully with dining package.
Sun - MK AM with PPO breakfast or maybe EMM if it becomes available. Resort Break. HS evening with FP. Doubt littles will make it to SWGS, but if they do, great.
Mon - Resort breakfast ADR, pool, checkout.

Or should we do this?

Fri - Epcot AM, MK MNSSHP PM
Sat - HS AM (no FP), resort break, AK PM with FP for 1 Pandora ride, EE, sunset KP, ROL dining package
Sun - MK AM, resort break, Epcot PM with more F&W and maybe Illuminations.

I feel like I should take a poll! We don't currently have the dining plan and are only doing one TS meal a day to save time and have some flexibility.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Hi all!
Please add me to the list: 10/15-10/22 our very first F&W and MNSSHP!
We are staying at BWV, also a first, and are so excited to be staying on Crescent Lake. We have mostly stayed in the MK area, especially WL, so we are looking forward to being able to mosey into WS whenever we want
Anyhow, I am very sad about Splash Mtn. being closed as it is my favorite ride. I have also read that the Great Movie Ride is closing too? And not just for a refurb, closed for good. Does anyone have any specific info on that?
As for ADRs, I was ready at 6 am on my date, and was able to get BOG for our last night. That was not my plan, but I was just glad to get it. I highly recommend starting your ADRs by going directly to your last night when trying to book that one!
What I have so far (all dinners)
10/15 Beaches and Cream
10/16 Yak and Yeti (son-in-law request)
10/17 F&W and maybe a counter service
10/18 open, perhaps dinner at Trattoria al Forno
10/19 party night, perhaps late breakfast at Trails End
10/20 probably dinner at Sanaa (haven't made ADR yet)
10/21 Be Our Guest

As you can see, my plan is still a bit unplanned! With 4 party nights during our week and the early MK closing that comes with that, our usual touring style of late afternoon FPs and late evenings is not going to work. Add to that, having no idea how late AK will be open, I am feeling challenged to come up with a plan I feel good about. There are also so many "new since our last trip" attractions ( new Soarin, FEA, nightime shows etc.), F&W, and HP, I am feeling a bit overwhelmed! One last thing, I am feeling like I want to do more counter service than large sit-down meals this trip so that is also a reason for my hesitation to book dinners each night. My DD wants Sanaa, so I will definitely make that one as soon as I figure out my plan!
Going to catch up on this thread now!
By the way, does anyone think there is any chance the room only discount that ends 10/7 could be extended beyond that date? I highly doubt it, but was wondering if there have ever been discounts for mid-October. TIA for any advice or opinions!

We'll be at BCV the same week as you're at BWV. The only ADR we've made so far is B&C on 10/17. We're considering Trattoria al Forno on the 19th also and Yak and Yeti, but not reserved yet.

 

[disneydreamer781]

Ok. I may need my head examined as I have already made changes to my ADRs just after a little more than 1 day!

Check-in 10/24/17 Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village Studio Savanna view
10/24: Sanaa (1st timer) 9:25 PM Arrival Day (good luck with this one since we arrive at 6:05 PM. May just cancel and do Sanaa lounge.)
10/25: BOG Breakfast (1st timer) 8:30 AM (may not keep) & Jungle Skipper Canteen Dinner 5:35 PM GONE - NOW CALIFORNIA GRILLE @ 5:25 PM CX'D & CHANGED TO 5:00 TO GIVE US TIME TO GET TO ONCE UPON A TIME (before or after fireworks? - still have trepidation about doing this restaurant at this time of day so I may chicken out and book something else) and HEA Fireworks.
10/26: Coral Reef Restaurant 11:45 AM GONE - NOW JUNGLE SKIPPER CANTEEN DINNER AT 4:40 PM. (MNSSHP night)
10/27: Boma Breakfast (1st timer) 8:00 AM (hoping to do Nomad Lounge for Dinner at DAK & ROL)
10/28: Jiko 8:30 PM...praying for that sustainable fish to change over from Ahi Tuna. Sorry but I don't like my fish rare.

Check-in 10/29/17 Boardwalk Villas - 1 BR Boardwalk View
10/29: Rose & Crown Lunch 1:30 PM (eat here every trip. It's tradition.) & hopefully Illuminations Sparkling Dessert Party (also 1st time) that evening Boardwalk Margarita night cap.

Still to get:

10/30: Hollywood Brown Derby Dinner 5:00-5:15 PM then SWGS. A good night for AbracadaBar me thinks!
10/31: This is so up in the air right now. Since I now have Cali Grille on 10/25 (1st timer) it's NOW BETWEEN CITRICOS OR NARCOOSEE'S. Citricos (1st timer) 7:00 PM, or Narcoosee's 9:00 - 9:30. The idea being that I would like to catch Hallowishes Fireworks and I want a good place to see them.
11/01: Flying Fish Dinner 6:30 - 7:00 PM...having pork belly dreams and of course another good reason for an pre- or post-meal AbracadaBar visitation and topping off the night with a Boardwalk Margarita.
11/02: Departure day still trying to decide on late breakfast or very early lunch.

 

[Farro]

That would have been so funny @disneydreamer781 - we are scheduled for Skipper Canteen at 5:05 on 10/25! (our arrival day) We would have been eating at the same time!

We will also be at Animal Kingdom on 10/27, say hello if you see us!

 

[Farro]

And now I was able to to just go back in and change my Skipper Canteen dinner to 6:10 pm, the time I originally wanted was 6 but wasn't available Thursday morning, so I chose 5:05.

Yay! We plan to bop around Disney Springs on arrival day and this gives us more time to get to Magic Kingdom.

 

[disneydreamer781]

That would have been so funny @disneydreamer781 - we are scheduled for Skipper Canteen at 5:05 on 10/25! (our arrival day) We would have been eating at the same time!

We will also be at Animal Kingdom on 10/27, say hello if you see us!

Will do!

 

[Felicis]

So we are there the first week of October. Anyone done a waterpark at that time of the year? Are they still really busy? At the moment we are thinking of EMH at whichever park it is till about 11, then a quick lunch then heading to a water park for the afternoon.

 

[Kara_W]

We're thinking of doing a waterpark day too! We spent an entire day in the AKL pool last time we went in mid-November, so I'm guessing it will still be warm enough at the waterparks first week of October.

 

[Farro]

@Felicis @Kara_W I think you guys will be fine doing a waterpark the first week of October. It is still usually pretty hot and humid!

 

[Schilltastic4]

We decided last week to surprise the our children with a trip in October. They've been talking about wanting to fly (we typically drive 20+ hours each way) someplace and our son turns 13 this year. We were playing around with flights and dates and decided to just go for it! I'm super excited but also a little nervous about busyness during that time of year.

We are staying 10/9-10/18....anybody have any tips or tricks to share? I'm really concerned about crowds.....

We plan on doing the MNSSHP once and EMM once or twice depending on offerings. What else is there this time of year to do? We typically travel in December/January/February.

We're trying to decide between park hoppers or park hopper & more because of the water parks.....we've never done water parks, are they typically crowded?

We've got 'Ohana on the boychild's birthday for breakfast because Stitch is his absolute FAVE!

We're doing BOG but nothing else really jumps out as a must do for the kids.

Do they still do EMM at HS? Hubbin thought he had read that they did an after dark event that was similar in concept to the EMM but I cannot find it.

We are lightweights when it comes to creepiness, so we're skipping Universal this go 'round. Disney doesn't do gory creepy, right?
they re

Thanks for reading this far! I'm so geeked and being already in the 180 day window makes plotting and planning so much fun already! Hopefully the release the tickets soon and we can get them purchased

 

[Cluelyss]

We decided last week to surprise the our children with a trip in October. They've been talking about wanting to fly (we typically drive 20+ hours each way) someplace and our son turns 13 this year. We were playing around with flights and dates and decided to just go for it! I'm super excited but also a little nervous about busyness during that time of year.

We are staying 10/9-10/18....anybody have any tips or tricks to share? I'm really concerned about crowds.....

We plan on doing the MNSSHP once and EMM once or twice depending on offerings. What else is there this time of year to do? We typically travel in December/January/February.

We're trying to decide between park hoppers or park hopper & more because of the water parks.....we've never done water parks, are they typically crowded?

We've got 'Ohana on the boychild's birthday for breakfast because Stitch is his absolute FAVE!

We're doing BOG but nothing else really jumps out as a must do for the kids.

Do they still do EMM at HS? Hubbin thought he had read that they did an after dark event that was similar in concept to the EMM but I cannot find it.

We are lightweights when it comes to creepiness, so we're skipping Universal this go 'round. Disney doesn't do gory creepy, right?
they re

Thanks for reading this far! I'm so geeked and being already in the 180 day window makes plotting and planning so much fun already! Hopefully the release the tickets soon and we can get them purchased

We've traveled this same time for several years and it's very manageable. Just have a good plan and you'll be fine.

HS EMM is no longer being offered, and it is unlikely that Disney After Hours will be offered in the fall with all the early party closes.

And the name of the party says it all - Mickey's Not So Scary. No gore, 100% family friendly and our absolute favorite WDW event!

 

[Schilltastic4]

We've traveled this same time for several years and it's very manageable. Just have a good plan and you'll be fine.

HS EMM is no longer being offered, and it is unlikely that Disney After Hours will be offered in the fall with all the early party closes.

And the name of the party says it all - Mickey's Not So Scary. No gore, 100% family friendly and our absolute favorite WDW event!

Thanks so much! I have the hardest time finding the EMM offerings on the wdw site. We've done MVMCP several times over the span of several years and we super love it! I'm hoping that MNSSHP is just as fun!

 

[Cluelyss]

Thanks so much! I have the hardest time finding the EMM offerings on the wdw site. We've done MVMCP several times over the span of several years and we super love it! I'm hoping that MNSSHP is just as fun!

We've done both parties, and while Christmas is my favorite holiday and favorite time to be in the World, the Halloween party is so much better than MVMCP. The parade and fireworks are far superior IMO, and seeing everyone in costume just can't be beat. Have a great time!!!

 

[tac08]

Try Touring Plans. I was able to score a couple of times I was looking for through them.

Thank you for the suggestion! I was able to score a better lunch time at BOG using Touring Plans!! No luck with Sci-Fi yet, but I've got plenty of time.

 

[Farro]

Hi @Schilltastic4! Welcome to the thread and the front page!

As you can already see, we are a helpful bunch so ask away.

 

[disneydreamer781]

Today was ADR day for the second leg of our trip and I got everything I wanted even though it was really scary trying to get something at Ohana. One second there was a 5:40 which I hesitated on and then it was gone. I ended up with a 5:25 instead on Halloween night. I don't think I have ever experienced that before when doing ADRs but then again I don't usually book Ohana or BOG. First time at Ohana and I totally forgot to put on the reservation that I had a banana allergy. The ONE reservation I should really have put that and I FORGET! I can't cancel and rebook so don't what to do about that now. Hopefully I can let them know when I get there. Has anyone forgot to put an allergy on the reservation and then let them know later or is there another way to let them know beforehand? I can only put "other" anyway since "banana" is not on the list and I didn't expect it to be. It's only raw banana that I'm allergic too. I've had banana bread and that doesn't affect me at all.

I was successful in getting HBD and Flying Fish for the days and times I wanted and also got Kona Cafe for breakfast on our departure day.

As far as the Illuminations Sparkling Dessert Party goes, I've been looking and I'm not finding any pattern of what nights it is done because I don't know if any nights have sold out. Is it every night or just certain nights? I really want Sun 10/29 and dread having to change around my ADR schedule again. Only seeing dates for May so nothing much to go by. I would think June dates should be coming along soon.

 

[Cluelyss]

Today was ADR day for the second leg of our trip and I got everything I wanted even though it was really scary trying to get something at Ohana. One second there was a 5:40 which I hesitated on and then it was gone. I ended up with a 5:25 instead on Halloween night. I don't think I have ever experienced that before when doing ADRs but then again I don't usually book Ohana or BOG. First time at Ohana and I totally forgot to put on the reservation that I had a banana allergy. The ONE reservation I should really have put that and I FORGET! I can't cancel and rebook so don't what to do about that now. Hopefully I can let them know when I get there. Has anyone forgot to put an allergy on the reservation and then let them know later or is there another way to let them know beforehand? I can only put "other" anyway since "banana" is not on the list and I didn't expect it to be. It's only raw banana that I'm allergic too. I've had banana bread and that doesn't affect me at all.

I was successful in getting HBD and Flying Fish for the days and times I wanted and also got Kona Cafe for breakfast on our departure day.

As far as the Illuminations Sparkling Dessert Party goes, I've been looking and I'm not finding any pattern of what nights it is done because I don't know if any nights have sold out. Is it every night or just certain nights? I really want Sun 10/29 and dread having to change around my ADR schedule again. Only seeing dates for May so nothing much to go by. I would think June dates should be coming along soon.

IIRC, during F&W the Illuminations party was offered nightly. Or at least nearly.

You can also call dining to have the banana allergy noted on your reservation, no need to rebook

 

[disneydreamer781]

Just curious as to why Disney states on the Illuminations Dessert Party info that you are able to book 180 days in advance yet there aren't any dates listed beyond May.

 

[jimandami]

Can we join? October 11-18 with a split stay: 2 bedroom villa at OKW followed by 2 bedroom at BWV....can't wait! We have everything booked except Pirates and Pals cruise and hopefully ROL dining package...still waiting on those to open.