Its a Very Merry Engageymoon! A December 2011 PTR *6/15 So Sad*

[BerrysGirl]

So, no judging, but our first stop this day will probably be to La Cava. I looooooooooove tequila. Like really really really love it. And their margaritas do not dissappoint. So, I need to have another. And probably another.

In November / December I really want to "Drink the World" for my 25th birthday. I know I want a unique Margarita at La Cava but can't settle on which one. I was looking at the Avocadarite (sp?) It has Avocado in it? Do you have any suggestions?

 

[JessicaKnits]

In November / December I really want to "Drink the World" for my 25th birthday. I know I want a unique Margarita at La Cava but can't settle on which one. I was looking at the Avocadarite (sp?) It has Avocado in it? Do you have any suggestions?

I don't know about the avocado one but the cucumber one was delightful if you don't like sweeter margaritas, very gool and refreshing!

 

[JessicaKnits]

Well, of the Disney/Work variety. So I just found out today that my company is "changing its mind" about letting me have that week off of work. So, I pitched the work equivalent of an epic tantrum (basically saying that I was very disappointed as a hard working employee, my company goes back on its word, yada yada). Then I called Adam on lunch and cried a bit more. So, what does this mean for us? Good question. Since it was Friday afternoon, not much got resolved today. They are saying perhaps early October (which is pointless to go because air fair is positively INSANE for October by now, not to mention any ADRs worth having are booked up, and one of the main reasons we go is the dining). What I am trying to hope for now is mid-November, although it isn't looking good. Anyone know how long they keep the Christmas decorations up for after January 1st? Obviously no Candlelight Processional, or Christmas party, but I would be happy to have my pictures by the tree at least.

 

[Villainess]

Oh no!!! That is awful! Is it set in stone that you cannot take off or are they being wishy washy ... how dare they interfere with Disney!

 

[JessicaKnits]

Well, its been awhile since I posted last. Sorry for the delay, but I spent last week in Asheville, NC visiting family. Apparently NC is where they keep all the sunshine and the heat! I am quite glad to report that I must have packed the sunshine in my suitcase when I left, because the weather has been absolutely perfect since I have been home!

So, where were we? Oh yes, I left off when I was positively fuming over the fact that my dream trip was absolutely being ruined over miscommunications within our management department that were a result of quite a bit of reshuffling being done in recent weeks. So, what does that mean for our vacation? Well, not much that's good. December 10th - 17th will not be happening for us sadly. However, not all is lost. IF I agree to work both Thanksgiving AND Christmas Day, then we can go December 30th - January 7th or 8th. This makes me quite possibly the least happy person preparing a trip to Disney. We are not folks that enjoy crowds (Okay, I would probably just use Ridemax and go with the flow. The man in charge though, I've met 4 year olds with better ride waiting skills). But more importantly, we will miss out on all of the Christmas festivities that I was so excited about. The other option is to just scrap the whole idea, and go for February. A very frustrating revelation to say the least. Anyone gone for New Years Eve before? What was your experience.

 

[JessicaKnits]

Well, it wasn't an easy decision. But we are going to go December 30th - January 8th. Which means we get to be in the Magic Kingdom for New Years! So, after I got over the fact that crowds will be heinous, I realized that this is really an amazing opportunity. How many people get to say that they witnessed New Years Eve at Disneyworld. Ok, well a lot. But its still really cool. By arriving towards the end of the madness, we will hopefully get to enjoy some really light crowds once everyone clears out after the first few days. So with that being said, I will spend most of today and this week re-working our plans that were made thus far with our first trip. Hope you all will still hang around for the ride!

 

[JessicaKnits]

So, not too much has changed here, except our dates and our special events planned.

The Cast:

Me (Jessica) will be 24 at the time of our trip. As mentioned before, I sell insurance by day, and knit up a storm at night! I didn't get bit by the "Disney" bug until I was 18, and it was on a post-graduation trip to Disneyland with friends. I was a TERRIBLE planner back then. Really, it was bad. It was on a weekend day, in the middle of June, and we didn't even bother getting into the park till almost noon. I have since learned from that experience, and I went on 3 subsequent trips to "The Land" before I finally got to make my pilgrimage to "The World" last summer.

And then there is my fiance, Adam. He will actually be just a few days past his 28th birthday when we make this trip. He is a contractor and is kind enough to build me lots of nice things around our home, and is quite handy to keep around. Adam has still not admitted to being bitten by the Disney bug, but I know he has been, otherwise he would not have agreed to go on this trip.

When:
December 30th - January 8th.

Where:
Coronado Springs. I really struggled with my decision. We stayed at Pop in August, and thought it was fabulous. Hideous to look at, for certain. But we really weren't in that room anyway. Also, their recent upgrades are really nice! Decided to go with the Coronado though for a few reasons. The first, being that its my (I mean "Our") engageymoon, and I wanted to splurge a little, but not a lot. Also loved the fact that there are numerous pools, and a hot tub. They also have the in room fridge, which I really missed on our last trip. We ended up tossing half of a specialty cake we had ordered because we couldn't finish it before it went bad. It also offers a table service restaurant. And lastly, its obviously a little nicer on the eyes than the pop.

In What:
A preferred King Bed room. I did quite a bit of research, and definitely want to stay in the Casitas section. So, preferred King made the most sense.

With What:
The Deluxe Dining plan. Struggled with this decision a bit too. After our last trip and going deluxe, we certainly came out wayyyyyyyyyyy ahead numbers wise. But, if we didn't have that dining plan, we also never would order 2 apps, and 2 desserts, or have 2 beverages at breakfast. But again, I wanted to splurge, so Deluxe it is!

Tickets:
Going with 10 day regular tickets

Special Events Planned:
New Years Eve!! Also, going for an extra day has allowed us the room to book a tour, which I will explain in an upcoming post.

 

[JessicaKnits]

So, in a perfect world, our very first day would go something like this:

We would be on a nonstop Airtran flight that arrives into Orlando around 11:42AM. (Yes, as a former travel agent, I have stalked the flight schedules). Won't know for sure until Airtran releases their flight schedules in a few weeks.
We would take the DME to our hotel, and plan to arrive about 1PM. Off topic kind of, but I LOVE the DME. It really isn't very express, but is FREE! And something about the little film you watch on the drive really gets me excited about being there.

We would make our way through check in at the resort, and then head off to Downtown Disney. I have always wanted to try Earl of Sandwich here, and this would be a great opportunity to do just that. We will probably end up splitting a sandwich, because we don't want to be too full for dinner.

Then, it will be off to dinner at Flying Fish. Once dinner is over, we are going to try and get in to Magic Kingdom and see the New Years Eve Fireworks on December 30th. A little birdie told me they were the same on the 30th and 31st. What a great tip! If Magic Kingdom is for any reason closed, we will just head over to the Poly Beach to watch!

 

[JessicaKnits]

Well, Day 2 brings us to the biggest day of our whole trip! New Years Eve! So, it goes without saying that it was a very big decision for me, where to spend the biggest day of our whole trip. The initial choice was obvious. Magic Kingdom. But, then after I found out that we could see those fireworks the night before, we immediately agreed that Epcot was the place for us. Plus, in Epcot we can have a nice glass of champagne (Ok, Adam will have some beer) and some impressive food on New Years Eve. Watched a few YouTube videos of the party, and it definitely looks like our kind of place!

So, we will be in it for "The Long Haul" at Epcot. The thing I enjoy about this park is that there is a lot of stuff to do indoors in the event of poor weather. There is also plenty to keep us entertained that does not involve waiting in line, which is great.

We're going to have breakfast at the Wave in the Contemporary Resort and Monorail it over to Epcot. We do not intend to go for rope drop as it would just be too long of a day for us. Instead, we will probably have breakfast around 9:30AM and then head over to the park which I'm hoping will still be fairly empty. We missed out on all the little side shows at Epcot on our last trip, so today will be the PERFECT day for them. We will probably spend the first few hours collecting fast passes and riding the big attractions, and then head over to the countries. Then, it really will just be a matter of trying to get the time to pass till midnight. To break up the day, we will most definitely be making a stop at La Cava for a margarita. I also plan to have lunch at Coral Reef.

As we make our way into the evening, we will head over to a dinner at Le Cellier and when we are done, we will probably stake our claim on a place to watch the fireworks.

 

[JessicaKnits]

Well, Day 3 of our original trip was going to be a sleep in late day, due to the MVMCP the night before, so it will look eerily similar as a revised day. I think we will probably sleep in till 9 or so. We will have no park plans made. I am excited because this means that we will have the opportunity to try out some restaurants "off the beaten path" on our dining plan. Really excited!

We will head off to breakfast at Olivia's Cafe at Disneys Old Key West Resort. I'm hoping to maybe convince DF that a Vacation Club timeshare would be a very worthwile investment, you know, for our future children.

Depending on what, if anything is available, I would like to try and book the Keys to the Kingdom Tour this day. As mentioned before, Adam is a contractor and is endlessly fascinated with how things are made. When he learned of the Utilidors on our last trip, he knew he just HAD to find a way to see them. He doesn't even know their are tours that allow for such things! Luckily his partner in crime does. This Tour will be a surprise, if it is available, which will basically make me the best fiance ever, even if only for a day.

Then its back to the hotel for a leisurely afternoon at the pool, or off to Downtown Disney for some shopping.

For dinner, we are going to give Ohana a try. Adam likes meat, and the more plentiful the better. Apparently, that is what Ohana has to offer. I made the mistake of completely talking up Yachtsman to him before last trip, and we had a horrid experience there, so will keep this one on the DL till we get there.

Next up for us, we are headed to Jellyrolls! We missed this on our last trip as well due to me being completely drenched despite my poncho. But I think it is a nice way to end the night on a non-park day.

 

[JessicaKnits]

Sadly, this pre-trip report will be coming to a close. I just found out that I am going to be traveling for my job to some place yet to be determined (that is nowhere near the vicinity of Wisconsin) starting in early August and lasting quite possibly through the end of December. It breaks my heart that I can't go for Christmas, but this is such a huge, incredible and completely unexpected opportunity. I would quite possibly be the dumbest person to walk the face of the earth if I turned it down. Thankfully, work has been MORE than generous with vacation compensation for after my travels, so much so that I will be able to take off 2 full weeks (and some spare change) starting in January. Believe me we are going to Disney! I've gotta go somewhere to spend all that hard earned per diem pay while I'm gone, right?! So, sorry to have so little in the details department, I will update as I know more, and most certainly post once we have things finalized which should hopefully be within the next two weeks!