I'm Ordering a big BLT for Thanksgiving 2010 NEW 12/3 started TR! see link

[Native NYer]

Love that each family member picked their not to be missed attraction/experience at each park.

It was hard to chose one thing at each park. I love so many things.

MK: Haunted Mansion
Epcot: Soarin'
DHS: TSM
AK: FOTLK

 

[DisMomAmy]

I love your acronym! BLT MAGIC... genius!

My top picks for each park would probably be:

MK: This is the toughest one... there are so many good things! BTMRR?

Epcot: Soarin' & the whole WS

DHS: RnRC

AK: EE

 

[irish dancer]

Love the BLT MAGIC theme!

Hmmmm, only one attraction per park - that's tough but here goes.......

MK - have to do a top 5 here, Tiki Room, HM, PoC, BTMRR and Wishes
Epcot - Soarin (FW) Holiday Storytellers (WS)
DHS - TSM
AK - FOTLK

 

[mommytothreeboys]

One attraction per park, huh?

MK: Does the afternoon parade count? If not, then HM.

Epcot: Soarin (FW), Morocco (WS)

DHS: ToT

AK: Everest

Wow...that's hard! I love it all so much, it's tough to choose! Choosing which one to skip would be easier.

 

[mousescrapper]

Love the analogy!!! That will be a great way to remind everyone what you are hoping to get out of the trip!

Hope it reminds me the most so I don't get too lost in the planning I forgot to just go w/ the flow too....

Hmmm, one thing per park? That is a tough one...

MK -- riding Haunted Mansion or Splash Mountain
Epcot -- Soarin'
DHS -- Star Tours (I love that ride, but I think it will be closed for a refurb while you are there)
AK -- Safari

So much harder to decide than I thought it would be.

It is way hard! I agree....how about just picking 1 favorite ride overall...that was the conversation last night in the car

Hmmm. That is a toughie...

MK: Castle Lighting Ceremony
Epcot: Soarin' (FW) Holiday Storytellers (WS)
DHS: TSM
AK: EE


Kathy

OK love how you (and Missy) sneaked in two choices for Epcot w/ splitting into FW and WS

MK: Wishes (or whatever fireworks is showing at the time)
EP: Stop in at the Japan dept. store and buy little rice bowls and plates
DHS: TSM
AK: Safari

-o/n u[k.klmkl,,kllllkoyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy-=-[p5o7yu67pyuok mmmmmmjmmmmmmmmm

That was Liam saying hello.

You and your rice bowls...love to see a picture of your collection

and ajfdhjyfuiretkljadkjqwoi4820423iekw "hello" back to Liam

Love that each family member picked their not to be missed attraction/experience at each park.

thanks...figuring it will be so crowded...if we go in w/ the right expections we will still have a BLAST!

It was hard to chose one thing at each park. I love so many things.

MK: Haunted Mansion
Epcot: Soarin'
DHS: TSM
AK: FOTLK

I love your acronym! BLT MAGIC... genius!

My top picks for each park would probably be:

MK: This is the toughest one... there are so many good things! BTMRR?

Epcot: Soarin' & the whole WS

DHS: RnRC

AK: EE

I agree MK is the hardest!

Love the BLT MAGIC theme!

thanks!

Hmmmm, only one attraction per park - that's tough but here goes.......

MK - have to do a top 5 here, Tiki Room, HM, PoC, BTMRR and Wishes
Epcot - Soarin (FW) Holiday Storytellers (WS)
DHS - TSM
AK - FOTLK

tiki room fan huh...that is so cute! Nathan would love to go w/ you!

One attraction per park, huh?

MK: Does the afternoon parade count? If not, then HM.

sure, Matt picked the parade in AK as his top choice!

Epcot: Soarin (FW), Morocco (WS)

DHS: ToT

AK: Everest

Wow...that's hard! I love it all so much, it's tough to choose! Choosing which one to skip would be easier.

I agree...I certaintly can think of the skip lists this yr...not neccessarily cause the things are bad either....


I love that you all took the ONE thing challange and I certiantly see a theme w/ Soarin, thrill rides and the fact that there are so many great things it is hard to narrow it down...

wait till you see everyone's general TOP 5 choices and this yr and I asked them to broaden their thoughts picking beyond just attractions and rides...you'll love 1 of Matt's totally cracks me up!

OH and BTW....for those of you w/ iphones or smart phones....which app's have you used and liked...Matt just got a new phone through work and it's a DROID...so we'll for sure add some Disney app's before we go

1 more day till buying the plane tickets...wish me luck tomorrow (Tues 6-15)!

J~

 

[Charleston Princess]

Good luck on the plane tickets tomorrow, Julie!

 

[hhockman]

Hey Julie! Okay so I just spent a couple of hours catching up. I only read your posts with links except for the last page, so I'm not sure what I missed in chatter, but I have the overall gist.

First of all, GOOD LUCK WITH PLANE TICKETS TOMORROW (or rather today as it's 1am).

Second, you are doing an amazing job. I am so impressed.

Third, I guess I'll chime in on park favorites if I can get my brain to work right this second...
MK: Buzz Lightyear or POC...probably both
EPCOT: Yep, Soarin'
DHS: No question, TSM
AK: Expedition Everest, but if you're not doing "thrills" I'd say the Safari

Looking forward to the rest of your PTR. I'm hoping I'm actually back to checking in every couple of days. Can't wait to hear about plane tickets tomorrow!

 

[mousescrapper]

Good luck on the plane tickets tomorrow, Julie!

First of all, GOOD LUCK WITH PLANE TICKETS TOMORROW (or rather today as it's 1am).

UM....I thought SW was going to open up through end of Nov today 6-15.....not yet on their site and no emails in my inbox...

8:00 am CST time...UGH...I really want to book these tickets. be back later w/ an update...hopefully.

J~



EDIT...so since I can't figure out SW site except for the ticket purchasing part...I just went on the transpo board and it says 10 am CST for the new fares...just under 2 hrs...should have stayed in bed

 

[mousescrapper]

Hey Julie! Okay so I just spent a couple of hours catching up. I only read your posts with links except for the last page, so I'm not sure what I missed in chatter, but I have the overall gist.

First of all, GOOD LUCK WITH PLANE TICKETS TOMORROW (or rather today as it's 1am).

Second, you are doing an amazing job. I am so impressed.

Third, I guess I'll chime in on park favorites if I can get my brain to work right this second...
MK: Buzz Lightyear or POC...probably both
EPCOT: Yep, Soarin'
DHS: No question, TSM
AK: Expedition Everest, but if you're not doing "thrills" I'd say the Safari

Looking forward to the rest of your PTR. I'm hoping I'm actually back to checking in every couple of days. Can't wait to hear about plane tickets tomorrow!

welcome back to the boards

you didn't miss much if you just read through the posts listed on pg 1...just some misc life stuff....

what are you doing posting at 1 am? hope to see you around more and thanks for joining in!

love your picks and I see you have re-started your TR...I'll be there.

J~

 

[irish dancer]

UM....I thought SW was going to open up through end of Nov today 6-15.....not yet on their site and no emails in my inbox...

8:00 am CST time...UGH...I really want to book these tickets. be back later w/ an update...hopefully.

J~



EDIT...so since I can't figure out SW site except for the ticket purchasing part...I just went on the transpo board and it says 10 am CST for the new fares...just under 2 hrs...should have stayed in bed

I'm waiting right along with ya! I did get an email from SWA though telling me they're booking through 1/7/2011 but still not updated on the site, even when I follow the link in the email. Trying to be patient.

 

[mousescrapper]

I'm waiting right along with ya! I did get an email from SWA though telling me they're booking through 1/7/2011 but still not updated on the site, even when I follow the link in the email. Trying to be patient.

yes just hanging on the boards watching the time tick away...

 

[Charleston Princess]

Only thirty-five more minutes, Julie!

 

[mousescrapper]

AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

I can't believe it....the time changes the dates open up then I click search for flights and BOOM!

This portion of the Southwest Airlines website is undergoing maintenance and is currently unavailable.
Please try again later. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.


are you kidding me?

OK almost 1 hr later and still no luck....planned CP's Epcot day though that was fun...well off to take a shower and get ready to take Nathan to his 12 pm dr appt...will check again before we go...let's hope it's up for sure when I get back after 1 pm....UGH!

 

[irish dancer]

SWA certainly was a pain in the neck today!! After all the problems I finally got through and the fares are high! We've decided to make it a road trip unless something else comes along. It was over $1700 for the 5 of us going Fri-Fri, it was even more on the Sat. I know we can drive for under $1000 so we'll just save the airfare and car rental and use our own.

Never driven so this will add a new planning element. Off to research.........

 

[mousescrapper]

SWA certainly was a pain in the neck today!! After all the problems I finally got through and the fares are high! We've decided to make it a road trip unless something else comes along. It was over $1700 for the 5 of us going Fri-Fri, it was even more on the Sat. I know we can drive for under $1000 so we'll just save the airfare and car rental and use our own.

Never driven so this will add a new planning element. Off to research.........

OK irishdancer you had better sit down (or maybe you all should ) if you think over $1700 for 5 was bad how about over




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$3000 for 6 people ​

Ok so I knew it was going to be bad...but I was still hopeful...

Oh man what a pain in the XXX this was to do today....

so I last checked in at around 11 am CST and was unable to check the site again before leaving for Nathan's appt and then after attacking some really icky bugs living in my mailbox/post...I came in and found the site to be working...

so here is me 1) thinking I can open two windows of SWA and book our's and the GP's airfare flights at the exact time...uh no

I then went into massive panic mode shorly after...

I put in our departure, destination, dates, amount of people and hit search...

Friday 11-19 not to bad but not either...I figured the $150 sounded good and called to confer w/ Matt unless he wanted to go eariler or later for a little less and still avoid a layover...he said to go w/ the $150 at 8:20 am and then I move down the screen to our next flying date Sunday 11-28 and

I see 4 flights w/ prices and everything else sold out...I completely freaked...

6 am something

10 am somethings

and 9 pm something Bekah in the background "take the night flight Mom I'll help carry sleeping kids"...me "who will carry you?"

Of course I'm on the phone w/ Matt what do we do...$318 to fly out at 10:45 ish (I think)...crazy high and we'd have to bolt from our room straight to the DME bus after getting up...no lesuire check-out...

I then go to the other window to check the fares/times for my inlaws flights...they will do better than us w/ the senior rate plus flying home on the Wed before Thanksgiving (the flights were surprisingly cheap!)

I then go back to the 1st window which I thought had our info to discover it was changed to the GP's info....what

so after some crazy back and forth I then realized the sold out column meant on those "get-away" fares not the flights...called back Matt again.... (i think he was getting annoyed I must have called him 5 times during this process)

and told him there was plenty of flight options but we are looking at $351 to fly home....YUCK what can we do...

driving is just not an option for us....w/ 4 kids or our schedule (not to mention Nathan this is not easy...he can last maybe 4 hrs well)

so I booked it

then after some other crazy things like needing to call my MIL and ask her her actual birth yr for the TSA info and then my FIL cause something was screwy w/ the card code he gave me...

I booked 8 seats on 3 diff flights...

I felt more giddy w/ joy that is was done than holy carp that is a ton of money ($3134.40 to be exact) I guess good thing all along I knew we'd have to charge this portion and pay down...too bad it will end up costing like way more in the end....but let's not think about that...

so we are heading down on Friday 11-19 at 8:20 am w/ arriving at MCO by 11:55 am...this seems to be a standard flight going down for us on the past 2 trips now...hoping for no major delays and be at POP no later than 2 pm

and then our return flight on Sun 11-28 will be at 2:50 pm and arriving back in Chicago at 4:40 pm...this allows a non paniced departure and hopefully some time to mill around and check-out calmly...plus not get in super late even w/ potential of delays...​

we'll pay to park our van so coming and going from the airport should be fine too...

the GP's will fly home on their Wed flight similar to our going home flight times ...

still need to call Disney and DVC MS to set up the DME stuff....tonight or sometime tommorrow...

well I am glad to put this crazy flight stuff behind us and just move foward w/ the trip planning....plus MIL offered if needed to help pay for some of our flight cost...so we'll discuss that later.

BTW they are flying for under $600

coming soon as promised before our TOP 5 general WDW to do lists....

thanks for reading,

J~

 

[mousescrapper]

Never driven so this will add a new planning element. Off to research.........

OK depending on what time you can drive and how far you can go...here is my advice....

we have driven to WDW once but that was no kids and over 10 years ago...

but after just long hauling it down to Atlanta..it can be done....how does DS do in the car for long periods...

if you can leave say Thursday or Friday night after dinner and do the I-80 through Indy/Louisville KY w/ minimal stops for a late night dinner and potty breaks you could make it to Atlanta early morning the next day....the hardest part will be the early morning section and mountains

then you could stay in a hotel there breakfast and sleep say till 1 pm ish...then drive the rest of the way in...maybe CP can chime in here...but I think you'll have just over 1/2 day drive now into Orlando...get to OKW and just drop...have dinner, swim and chill out...

Then you can start your Disney vacay the next day...

I know you have to pull the kids the week of Thanksgiving wondering if you could pull them on the 19th too and be there that day by driving all night on Thursday then you can still start your trip on the 20th as planned...

JAT hope that helps a bit...

 

[Charleston Princess]

$3000 for 6 people ​

What an ordeal!!! Glad you finally were able to book those tickets, though!

if you can leave say Thursday or Friday night after dinner and do the I-80 through Indy/Louisville KY w/ minimal stops for a late night dinner and potty breaks you could make it to Atlanta early morning the next day....the hardest part will be the early morning section and mountains

then you could stay in a hotel there breakfast and sleep say till 1 pm ish...then drive the rest of the way in...maybe CP can chime in here...but I think you'll have just over 1/2 day drive now into Orlando...get to OKW and just drop...have dinner, swim and chill out...

From Atlanta to Orlando, it is about seven or eight hours depending on how fast you drive and traffic. It is a relatively painless stretch of driving though -- all the way down I-75 and then, you get on the turnpike towards Orlando -- it's about as easy a drive as you can get although a bit boring as the landscape is totally flat.

 

[Native NYer]

That's a lot for flights. But at least you got it booked. Hopefully, the prices will come down and you'll get a SW credit.

 

[irish dancer]

$3000 for 6 people ​

J~

All I can say is and and

OK depending on what time you can drive and how far you can go...here is my advice....

we have driven to WDW once but that was no kids and over 10 years ago...

but after just long hauling it down to Atlanta..it can be done....how does DS do in the car for long periods...

if you can leave say Thursday or Friday night after dinner and do the I-80 through Indy/Louisville KY w/ minimal stops for a late night dinner and potty breaks you could make it to Atlanta early morning the next day....the hardest part will be the early morning section and mountains

then you could stay in a hotel there breakfast and sleep say till 1 pm ish...then drive the rest of the way in...maybe CP can chime in here...but I think you'll have just over 1/2 day drive now into Orlando...get to OKW and just drop...have dinner, swim and chill out...

Then you can start your Disney vacay the next day...

I know you have to pull the kids the week of Thanksgiving wondering if you could pull them on the 19th too and be there that day by driving all night on Thursday then you can still start your trip on the 20th as planned...

JAT hope that helps a bit...

Luckily DS is great in the car as long as there is a movie playing. We've done 16hrs straight through to HHI and he did great! He's not the best at sleeping in the car though so that's an issue. The girls OTOH, they sleep no problem.

Our tentative plan is to leave right at 2:40p when the kids get out of school on Fri. Drive as far as Chattanoga (10hrs), sleep and then finish the trip Saturday which was our original arrival date. We'll then do the reverse leaving Sat and getting home Sunday. Will also keep an eye on airfares just in case. By driving though we'll have the flexibility to leave whenever we want so if it looks like it would be OK for the kids to miss Fri too then we'd head out earlier and get to the other side of Atlanta the first day to make the second much shorter.

 

[ladybugmom]

Whew!! I'm tired just reading about your ordeal booking flights!! YIKES on the price!!! Glad you got what you needed, though!!