"I"m Only Going Because My Teacher Told Me To" Nov. 2016 PTR * update 12/2 TRIP REPORT STARTED! *

[ariane37]

Very envious of your adults only! And then the freedom you have bc you are going back in November! I like the first day plan change. Love me some margaritas so I hope you get a few good ones.

I totally get you on the heat thing. That's why we didn't do the daytime parade at MK.

Well after your DH falls in love with Disney next June, maybe he'll be begging to do an adults only trip!! When we first started going as a family I NEVER thought Steve would love it (almost) as much as I do, and I really never thought he'd want to keep doing adults only trips there.

And yes that heat is a killer! It zaps your energy even before you've done much of anything But if I tell myself I'm walking towards relief like to a restaurant or indoor ride, my legs will keep going lol. Standing still is like death though! Couldn't do it in Georgia either

I hear you. Alex (my hubby) and I plan to take a WDW trip just the two of us once our son is grown. We plan to do a lot of travelling at that point actually (fingers crossed), but WDW is at the top of the list. We've had so much fun the few times we've sneaked off to Disneyland by ourselves.

For the next several years though, it's all about family vacations (with a few adult-only weekend trips thrown in). Disney World this year, and then Philadelphia (of all places!) in 2017. My little guy has asked to visit the historical sites there including a side trip to Gettysburg and a tour of Eastern State Penitentiary (we're weird and we like visiting reportedly haunted places!). He also has New Orleans on his bucket list and wants to visit the Myrtles Plantation...for the ghosts of course .

But nothing will ever top WDW for me . Wish we could visit every year.

I think that is totally awesome that your DS wants to visit historical places! I love doing that; loved doing it as a kid so my family did it a lot. And before Steve and I had kids we also did it - touring the mansions in Newport, RI is a favorite as well as smaller towns like Salem, Mass., and St. Augustine Fl. are adorable and filled with history. I also like to walk through really old graveyards...... and every place Steve and I go/went that has ghost tours we've taken them.-Savanah, Ga., Salem (of course), Plymouth, Mass. The one in Plymouth had a stop at an old penitentiary but you don't actually go in. Oh! And years ago my mom took my sister and I to Andersonville, Ga., it's a big, huge cemetery on the battleground from the Civil War. So your sons wish list sounds fantastic to me
Family trips are wonderful and that's all we did when the boys were younger, often taking all 4 boys. And we still do! After Chris was born we didn't go away ourselves until March of last year when he was 9! We did 3 nights in Disney and it was hard to be away but um......we had fun I totally get you on doing family trips until DS is older, it's tough when they're younger to go more than a night or 2. But sneaking off to DL by yourselves sounds like a great once in awhile thing to do! One of these days I'll get back out there..........

 

[ALEXandFAB]

I also like to walk through really old graveyards...... and every place Steve and I go/went that has ghost tours we've taken them.

This is totally us! For our vacation last year, we spent a week in San Francisco. Did two ghost tours, in addition to visiting two reportedly haunted locations...Alcatraz and the Winchester Mansion. We've also taken a couple of weekend trips to San Diego and done some ghost tours there including the Whaley House (which is super interesting).

Noah (my son) is also known for asking to stop by cemeteries to visit the really old graves. He says he feels bad that probably nobody remembers the people buried there any more . So we take him every now and then .

 

[ArielSRL]

Oh I can only hope DH falls in love with WDW! But I'm not gonna bet on it. Lol

 

[Jfsag123]

OMG, I'm so frustrated with myself because I keep missing things! The DIS has been messed up about sending me notifications and then I forget to check, fall behind by a bunch again and somehow miss that YOU'RE GOING TO WDW NEXT MONTH!!! I both celebrate and despise you for that. Just kidding! But seriously, how exciting! And to have it be an adults only trip! And at the Wilderness Lodge! Just better and better. So now this is kind of a double PTR.

And I really did lol at the Zaxby's Fan Club community post idea a couple of pages back. I had buffalo chicken for dinner tonight (though of course, NOT from Zaxby's since we don't have them here) and thought of you guys.

 

[ArielSRL]

OMG, I'm so frustrated with myself because I keep missing things! The DIS has been messed up about sending me notifications and then I forget to check, fall behind by a bunch again and somehow miss that YOU'RE GOING TO WDW NEXT MONTH!!! I both celebrate and despise you for that. Just kidding! But seriously, how exciting! And to have it be an adults only trip! And at the Wilderness Lodge! Just better and better. So now this is kind of a double PTR.

And I really did lol at the Zaxby's Fan Club community post idea a couple of pages back. I had buffalo chicken for dinner tonight (though of course, NOT from Zaxby's since we don't have them here) and thought of you guys.

For my birthday...DO NOT send me Zaxby's gift cards! HAHAHAHA

 

[Jfsag123]

For my birthday...DO NOT send me Zaxby's gift cards! HAHAHAHA

Darn! You spoiled my idea.

 

[Whit64130]

However, since I did accidentally make some for Wed. when we fly out early I need to cancel those b/c we have 3 day hoppers and I currently have FP's for 3 days so I can't make them for Monday until I cancel one day (following?) However, MDE won't let me cancel Wed. UGH! I'm sure it's a stupid momentary glitch but it's happening while I'm trying to do stuff so it needs to stop asap!

Glad you were able to get things straightened out!

I know I'll be hungry as soon as we get to the resort, so we'll most likely just check out Roaring Forks.

I really liked Roaring forks as far as QS. I mean its just a standard QS but had several different varieties to make our party happy.

I made an 8am breakfast ADR for Trail's End.

CUTE!

We'll do a few rides before it gets crowded: my main goal is to get Steve on Astro-Orbiter for the first time! It's not my favorite but he really wants to ride. We tried a few times in January and the line was always at least 30 minutes which is beyond our waiting tolerance.

The first time I rode this was 2012. Don't know how we missed it when I was little. Didn't do it this past year either but my goal for one of our upcoming trips is to ride it at night when all the lights of MK are on.

Another thing we may try to do this day is catch the new castle stage show, Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire. I haven't checked the times yet but my main concern is standing still in the heat. As I've said, we've done August before and I've made it out alive. But the key for me is NOT standing still too long.

It is funny how I have swore off August and early September heat myself but if anybody suggest going on a trip during those dates I would have my bags packed in a jiffy!

All of your plans look great!

 

[Whit64130]

Just realized I forgot to comment on the Trail's End that I quoted. I can't wait to hear how it is since it is one of our possible choices!

 

[kclark9830]

Well, Since You Asked.........​

OMG guys I don't even know how to start this without getting right to the point, but I want to keep the "mystery" going for a paragraph or two lol. But let's just get this out of the way-

I"M NOT PREGNANT ​

I say that because whenever someone says "I have some news" or "OMG you won't believe it", people (including myself) tend to go, "YOU"RE PREGNANT!!" And even in our mid-40's when my girlfriend said that to me last month I was right in my response, she IS indeed pregnant. Surprise!
Anyway on with my story. Yesterday Steve and I were running errands and I was telling him about a friend of mine who had just booked an Aug. Disney trip this past Wed. She posted on FB that she was "eating free" thanks to a friend who told her about that (not me) so I commented and asked where she was staying (POP), when she was going. After she answered I then asked if she'd done her FP's yet since she's within her 60 days and her answer was along these lines, "someone told me I should download an app to my phone to check on those but I haven't; maybe I should call you?" so I told Steve she was giving me agita and I had to talk to her; anyone see where this is going yet?

Here's his response:

"Hm, maybe the two of us should go down for a couple days in August...."

Are you with me NOW??

And here's my response - really, what else could it possibly be???

"OK!!!"

SO WE ARE GOING TO DISNEY NEXT MONTH! 48 DAYS FROM TODAY TO BE EXACT!!! AND IT'S JUST THE 2 OF US!!!!

If I knew how to use gifs I would have one here of some cool character doing an awesome dance, but since I don't you'll have to just picture my head on this guy

Whew! So like I said, we go 48 days from now. This is the most last-minute Disney trip we've ever planned so I feel like I have lots to do! I can make my FP's, we discussed getting another AP, of course figuring out where we want to eat and whether to make ADR's or not. Plus our park days........and then on top of that getting everything lined up for the boys who we're leaving behind. And believe me, I say that with 100% no guilt

So now you'll have to forgive me for the next few weeks while I divert this PTR from November and do a little August PTR'ing instead, as I'm not quite up to starting a whole 'nother PTR at this point. I completely understand if you want to tune out until we get back to our regularly scheduled discussion, but I'd love for you all to join me as I plan for my (whoops! our ) summer quickie!!

AUGUST 2016 MINI ADULTS-ONLY TRIP DETAILS​

WHEN: August 27th-31st

WHERE: Wilderness Lodge!!!!**

TICKETS: 3 Day PH but upgrading to AP's when down there

ADR's: A couple in mind but have to firm up tonight

PARK DAYS: Also pretty much roughed out but firming up tonight

**When Steve first brought up the trip he said we'd try a value. Our whole reason for not doing a big Aug. trip this year is b/c we're painting our house, building a new deck, buying kitchen appliances for my stepson and his fiancé who just bought a house And I admit it, it's been killing me waiting until November. So this morning after we booked our flights I booked POP and I was fine with that. We stayed 3 nights in a LM room 2 years ago and while it wasn't our favorite and we don't really feel any need to go value again, it certainly wasn't terrible and didn't ruin our trip. So about 3 minutes after I booked POP Steve asks if they have a bar.......and says he thinks he'd like Queen beds like usual......again, who am I to argue? I was so surprised when he said to book WL instead because I've tried getting him to stay there a couple times and he says he just doesn't like the look of it He checked it out again and as soon as he saw the Territory Lounge he was A-OK! I'm absolutely thrilled! Another new-to-us resort we get to try and cross off my wish list!

I really need to work on our plans tonight. I've been all day lol, reading the WL resort thread trying to familiarize myself with the resort because I really know nothing about it. I'll be back soon with more plan details!

​

How exciting!!! Yay!

 

[jandlinz]

I haven't been around much because of summer activities. I come back to check in and BAM! You have yourself a whole other trip! Wow! That's really amazing. WL looks wonderful.

 

[allysetraskos]

OMG so excited for you lol
I would just about die if my husband said that to me hahah
Have fun!!!

 

[ariane37]

I really liked Roaring forks as far as QS. I mean its just a standard QS but had several different varieties to make our party happy.

The first time I rode this was 2012. Don't know how we missed it when I was little. Didn't do it this past year either but my goal for one of our upcoming trips is to ride it at night when all the lights of MK are on.

It is funny how I have swore off August and early September heat myself but if anybody suggest going on a trip during those dates I would have my bags packed in a jiffy!

All of your plans look great!

Just realized I forgot to comment on the Trail's End that I quoted. I can't wait to hear how it is since it is one of our possible choices!

The Roaring Forks menu looks fine for us since we won't be eating there a lot. I'm just happy to have a QS inside. I've enjoyed our stays at the BW (well, except the last one lol) and it isn't a hardship walking outside to the bakery or anything, but it's just nice not to have to!

I just happened to check wait times about 20 minutes ago and Astro Orbiter had a 50 minute wait It is a Saturday though. Steve didn't want to wait 30 minutes in January so that's why I think we'll try hitting it first thing before any wait builds. But if he likes it, riding it at night is probably as cool as riding Dumbo or BTMMR at night except possibly even better since you're higher

LOL about swearing off Aug/Sept. A couple years ago I swore I'd never go in the summer, and then the kids got bigger and we had to rethink when worked best for us as a family. I honestly thought I was going to die when we went in Aug. 2014. I prepared so hard, walking here in the middle of the day when it was in the '90's with my Frog Togg wrapped around my neck And I bought 4 of those little misting fans which we never ended up using (didn't use the Frog Toggs either down there(. I did not look pretty down there but we returned last Aug. and now this Aug., so yup, the draw of Disney wins over the soaking wet sweaty nasty feeling of Florida in the summer months!

 

[ariane37]

Just realized I forgot to comment on the Trail's End that I quoted. I can't wait to hear how it is since it is one of our possible choices!

Oops, I did the same thing you did and quoted your quote and forgot to comment! I've wanted to try breakfast and dinner here for ages. Lately it seems every dining report I read has an excellent review of one meal or another there so I'm totally excited about this

 

[ariane37]

How exciting!!! Yay!

Thank you! I'm beyond excited

I haven't been around much because of summer activities. I come back to check in and BAM! You have yourself a whole other trip! Wow! That's really amazing. WL looks wonderful.

Oh, summer activities......like being able to get up early every morning, even though there's no school, to get kids ready for camp Don't get me wrong, I'm happy they go but camp started the week after school ended and hasn't stopped. I just want to sleep in a bit on a Monday morning!

I can't wait for WL. I've wanted to try it for SO long and was pleasantly surprised when Steve agreed. He's stuck on the Epcot resorts and even getting him to try AKL and the Poly back in January was a bit of a struggle lol.

OMG so excited for you lol
I would just about die if my husband said that to me hahah
Have fun!!!

Thanks! It's funny, he's suggested trips before but I've always kind of had a feeling when the suggestions were coming. This time I honestly didn't so it caught me completely off guard. It's very fun planning 2 trips at the same time but a bit confusing!

 

[ariane37]

Final Day Plans ​

One negative of quick trips: as soon as you start laying out plans for your first day, you're laying out plans for your last day But it's not so bad when your next trip is 3 months later!

Our final park day is Tuesday, 8/30 and as much as I'm looking forward to the whole trip, I'm kind of looking forward to this last day the most. On our first adults only trip in March 2015 Steve and I did a tour, the Keys To The Kingdom, and we loved it. On our trip in January we skipped a tour since we were doing Club Villain so this trip we're doing another tour I've had my eye on!

8/30 Tuesday, EPCOT/HS
9am-1/1:30pm, Undiscovered FutureWorld Tour

FOOD
Breakfast: I'm going to have to eat before the tour or else I'll get very hangry around 10-10:30. We have to arrive no later than 8:45 so I'm going to try getting up and ready early enough to eat at Roaring Forks, but will probably make sure I pick something up the night before to have in the room just in case
Lunch: regardless of what I eat for breakfast, I will be ravenously hungry again when the tour is over and so will Steve. My plan is to boat over to the BW (because we'll have been walking a lot on the tour and will most likely be drenched with sweat; otherwise we'd walk) and eat at either ESPN or Big River Grille and Brew Works. We ate at ESPN last Nov. and really liked it. The first time we stayed at BWV back in 2010 we ate at BRG and from what I remember, that was good, too.
The main reason for leaving EPCOT for lunch though, is to get dessert here:



If you aren't sure what or where this is, it's the new ice cream place that opened on the Boardwalk in place of Seashore Sweets by the Flying Fish. It's recently opened so wasn't there on our trips last year and the reviews have been excellent, and the ice cream flavors they have sound different and yummy! So I'm hoping we can do this. There's always the chance - a VERY big chance - that I'll be too hungry and hot to go all the way there to eat, and we'll end up just eating in EPCOT anyway which won't be a bad thing. Plus there always ice cream in France, which most definitely isn't a bad thing.
Dinner: Not sure yet

After lunch we may leave EPCOT, we may not. I'm thinking it'll depend how gross/tired we are after the walking from the tour. I know I'll want to change and we'll both most likely want to shower before we hit HS at night, which is where I've made our FP's for.

Our first FP is at 6:35, for my favorite ride in all of WDW:



Our 2nd FP is at 7:35 for RnRC. If we're there before it's time for our first FP I will be checking out the standby line for TOT. The thought of only riding it once on a trip is a little sad, and we normally spend more time in HS than just a few hours even on our shorter adult trips. Given the tour and wanting to spend additional time in EPCOT other than just for the tour, I had to sacrifice somewhere. And also give in to Steve on doing his resort day which we normally don't do but is not a bad idea.

Besides riding my beloved TOT, our goal here is to see the SW fireworks again. Well, not so much again since the ones we saw in January were different and now it's the newer show. We both thought the ones in January were pretty close to the best Disney fireworks display we've seen, and that's coming from 2 non-SW fans! So we're both looking forward to the new version. They're scheduled for 8:45 which means we'll probably go find a spot after we ride RnRC, or soon after. Steve isn't big on waiting around for long periods of time for parades and shows and in January we walked into a perfect spot for these fireworks literally 3 minutes before they started. But I hear this show has more projections on the Chinese theater and less actual fireworks in the sky, and the best spot(s) for viewing are different than the best spots for the previous show, so I need to look into this a bit more.
And since HS closes at 9pm and our flight leaves at 9 something in the morning Wednesday, that'll be it for our short trip! Back to dinner for a minute: Since it'll be around 2 when we eat lunch I know we won't want dinner until at least 6, and we'll be in HS then. But since our first FP starts 6:35 and I definitely want to ride TOT and RnRC before the fireworks at 8:45 I don't know that I want another TS at 6. If they run late we could miss that TOT FP. I'm also not big on the HS TS. On the other hand it's pretty safe to say I almost despise HS QS. That is just my humble opinion, I know many people eat it and don't become violently ill. So I'm not sure what we'll do. I may have to have both Ample Hills ice cream AND a carrot cake cookie at HS this day and then we can grab something when we get back to WL at either Roaring Forks or the Territory Lounge.

Oh, at some point we have to get our AP's. Last year we did it at Disney Springs GS and it was quick & easy. Since we're not planning on going there this trip we'll have to do it in a park which I've read can be hit or miss as far as the CM's doing it right, knowing what to do, etc. It's been awhile since I've had to read up on anything to do with AP's but now I want to figure out which park will be the better one to upgrade at.

 

[ArielSRL]

Sounds like a fun last day.

Just a suggestion: Instead of dinner...maybe the SW dessert party? Sounds like it is going to be the best viewing spot for the show without having to wait very long...and food and drink is included! I am truly hoping it is still going on in June because if so, we are most definitely doing it.

ToT is my fave, too, with BTMRR a close second. I'm almost didn't get to ride it in June with the downpour going on at DHS while we were there. Fortunately my parents watched the boys so I could run up and take advantage of my FP.

I need to see if I can fit a visit to Ample Hills into my schedule in June....

 

[Raeven]

I can't wait to visit Ample Hills it looks so good!

 

[ariane37]

Sounds like a fun last day.

Just a suggestion: Instead of dinner...maybe the SW dessert party? Sounds like it is going to be the best viewing spot for the show without having to wait very long...and food and drink is included! I am truly hoping it is still going on in June because if so, we are most definitely doing it.

It's like you read my mind about the dessert party I'd been thinking about it and started following the thread about it on the Theme Parks board after reading a couple excellent reviews. However, the reviews were of the old dessert party, before they started holding it inside. Not that inside is bad AT ALL, especially during hot months! My reservations about booking it are mainly based around not being SW fans. From what I've read you should arrive like 90 minutes prior to the fireworks beginning and I don't know that I want to kill that much time in there. I know there's a lot to look at inside and you can meet characters, but we wouldn't be interested in doing either. I could see getting there an hour before the show but I'm not sure how negatively that impacts you, if at all. I'm thinking it may only keep you from snagging a table inside, not sure it has anything to do with the order the CM's escort you out to the viewing area. I should have thought about it a little more a little earlier because from the looks of the thread I wouldn't be surprised if our nights are all sold out, but I could still try. We did the Wishes dessert party a few years ago and were really disappointed and haven't looked into another dessert party since, but the SW desserts look so good and then the alcohol??!! It just seems quite a few steps above the other dessert parties!

I can't wait to visit Ample Hills it looks so good!

Doesn't it?? I love the ice cream in France, but the flavors at Ample Hills are intriguing! I'm also doing it in the name of research: If Steve and I try it next month, we'll know if it's safe for the boys to try when we go with them in November and stay at BCV

 

[Whit64130]

And I bought 4 of those little misting fans which we never ended up using (didn't use the Frog Toggs either down there(. I did not look pretty down there but we returned last Aug. and now this Aug., so yup, the draw of Disney wins over the soaking wet sweaty nasty feeling of Florida in the summer months!

I went prepared last September with the misting fans and frog toggs but didn't use them either. We were in and out to much during the day to even bother with them.

Oh, at some point we have to get our AP's. Last year we did it at Disney Springs GS and it was quick & easy. Since we're not planning on going there this trip we'll have to do it in a park which I've read can be hit or miss as far as the CM's doing it right, knowing what to do, etc. It's been awhile since I've had to read up on anything to do with AP's but now I want to figure out which park will be the better one to upgrade at.

How easy is this to do? and when should I do it? I have read things about doing it as soon as you use your ticket to get in, but we were planning on doing rope drop that day. Then I have read to do it before I leave on the last day. I had planned on when we head back to the room that first day for a break upgrading as we are leaving the park before we come back for MVMCP.

 

[lelesmith11]

Wait.. I'm jumping in.. but where do I get the small kitchen sink in the parks??..
We b there Nov 5 -13 . Vry excited to read yr post..