It's all in the name of research!

[DisneyBoundinDec]

That's what I tell myself! I just HAVE to go to Disney as often as possible!

My name is Leigh and I am a self diagnosed Disney Fanatic! But really, aren't we all on the DIS

My love of Disney has really kicked in within the past 8-9 years. Especially since I have had children. I grew up in Florida so I have gone often, but usually day trips and never stayed on property until 2006. From that day forward I was in love!

Moving forward to earlier this year.. after numerous trips and a love for helping others plan their trips. I decided to become an Authorized Disney Travel Planner myself! Why not get paid for what I love to do! AND, I look at it this way, it pays for me and my family to go often!!

I have heard of Agent Education Programs that are offered through out the year and have been wanting to go to one for so long!! It's a 5 day training experience like no other!

I tried to go in June, but was too late to sign up. I was #7 on the waiting list and was hoping and praying that someone would cancel. But no one did. But no worries... We still took our annual trip to Florida ( I live in Maryland now) to visit family and of course had to go to Disney for a few days.

I then heard of an AEP coming up in August and was waiting.. and waiting.. for it to show up on our travel agent site so I could sign up for it.. but it never did.. and then I saw other Agents going and got upset again. It was not meant to be. It was only being offered to certain agencies at this time, and my agency wasn't one of them.

BUT then I heard that there was going to be two AEP's towards the end of the year. One in November and one in December for Earmarked agencies and THAT made me very happy!!

I actually would prefer to go in November or December anyway. Being from Florida I know how hot it is in August!!

SO, on August 8th.. bright and early! I saw it online and jumped for joy and signed up right away!! And then on August 12 I got the email I was waiting for!!

Congratulations!! You got in!!!

So, here I am.. 3 weeks out and so excited and ready to go to WDW by myself! No kids, no husband - to be able to see and learn and be fully immersed in Disney Magic for 5 glorious days!

I just received our week itinerary and boy is it jammed packed!! So much fun things to do and see I don't think I will sleep all week!!! Let's go see what I am going to learn about!

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

The Basic Info
Day One - Monday
Day Two - Tuesday
Day Three - Wednesday
Day Four - Thursday
Day Five - Friday
Day Six - Saturday

 

[stephielela]

Subbing!!

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

Subbing!!

Welcome! Isn't your trip coming up soon! like very soon!

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

So here are the basics. The AEP is from Monday, November 14 – Friday November 18th and we are staying here… The Coronado Springs Resort!

I have to admit that at first I was a little bummed out about staying here, especially since I heard the previous AEP was at the Yacht Club! But I am actually pretty excited about it now! I would probably never have stayed there otherwise and I have heard that it’s a beautiful resort and I really want to tour it and stay there to be able to sell it better for my clients. My goal is to stay at most of the resorts as possible.

I have stayed at Pop Century, All Star Sports, Caribbean Beach Resort, Port Orleans Riverside, Polynesian, and I will be staying at the Yacht Club for an adult’s only trip with my hubby in January. The resorts I want to stay at in the future are Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge (preferably a villa) and Art of Animation. I am hoping that I get to tour these while down there!

Since I’ve know the AEP dates since August I went ahead and booked my air. I knew I wanted to spend an extra day but wasn’t sure if I wanted to arrive a day earlier or stay a day later. I choose to stay a day later and will actually leave on Saturday. I wish I could have gotten a later flight that day, but I will have to do for now. I am not paying the $200 difference in airfare now!

So the plan is to get in around 10:30 on Monday. Take ME to Coronado and then I have until 4:00 to do what I want. Now, what do I want to do? Should I go to a park? Should I go to DTD? Should I just tour the resort?

My hubby gave me his old dslr and I can’t wait to use it down there so I know I will come home with thousands of pictures!!! It’s amazing how many you think you took until you actually get home and realize you hardly took any! Especially since I am in the middle of my TR from last year and wish I took tons more! But this time will be different.

Up next. Day one of the AEP

 

[jenseib]

I'm joining in!

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

I'm joining in!

Welcome Jen!

I am off to the pumpkin patch this morning and then back to planning! I need to decide what to do with myself for the 5 hours before the conference starts. I know we will be going into Epcot this night, so I may go over to MK

 

[stephielela]

Welcome! Isn't your trip coming up soon! like very soon!

Very soon indeed!

I have stopped by the Coronado on the bus before. It looks huge! We have considered staying there, I will be interested to hear your opinion!

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

Very soon indeed!

I have stopped by the Coronado on the bus before. It looks huge! We have considered staying there, I will be interested to hear your opinion!

See, I'm the opposite! I've had no desire to stay there! It seems too big for me. My favorite Moderate is POR. Nice and small!

 

[goofybabe]

I'm coming along on your adventure Have a magical time!

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

I'm coming along on your adventure Have a magical time!

Welcome!

 

[dilligaf212]

I am in too can't wait to read more

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

Monday – Day 1

I don’t know what I was thinking, but I booked a 7am flight out of BWI to Orlando. Well, I know what I was thinking, I wanted to Disney as early as possible, BUT that means I will probably have to get up at 4am! But I will suffer through it!!

So I plan on getting up and out the door by 5:00, parked and in the airport by 6:00. I will probably find a Starbucks and get a refill of my coffee and a bagel for the flight.

We are suppose to arrive at MCO at 9:30 and I am hoping it’s a quick ride over and I should arrive at Coronado Springs at around 10:15.

I am thinking I will go check in and get all my fun papers and lanyard and name tag for the conference and if my room is ready I will head on over and put my things down. I plan on taking TONS of pictures so I am sure I will be busy taking pictures of the lobby and the walk over to my room as well as the room once I get in.

I really do plan on using this as a wonderful learning experience. I would like to have a website made with tons of pictures that my clients can look through, especially of the resorts.

So from here until 4:00 I have to find something to to with myself. Hmm.. alone in Disney! With NO KIDS!!! I can’t even tell you how much I am looking forward to this! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE taking my kids to Disney. But there is so much that I never get to see because I always go where they want to go.

I don’t know yet if I want to go to Epcot or Animal Kingdom. They suggest we go to Animal Kingdom, which I may do but we do come back to AK later in the week. So I am still undecided. I’m not really sure I want to waste the time in Downtown Disney. I think I would rather go into a park.

So, once I figure out where I am going to go before 4:00, I will have about 4 hours until the conference officially starts at 4:00.

I plan to come back to the hotel around 3:00, maybe meet my roommate and relax a bit until we meet at 4:00.

Here are our plans for the night:

4:00 Meet in the lobby.

From here I assume we will be broken down into groups to begin the site inspections. We are lined up to tour

Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village

I am really excited to see these rooms! I have been to the resort and have eaten at Boma – DELISH! But have never stayed here. I would really like to stay here one day but the distance from all the other parks is what keeps me away. But one day I will.

After Animal Kingdom we are off to Boardwalk Inn and Villas

Again, very excited to see these as well. I have never stayed along the boardwalk area either. However, I am booked at the Yacht Club in January for an adults only trip!

After these 2 tours we are off to Epcot!

I hope we are taking the boat over, as I would like to experience that. We have a planned welcome dinner and then a desert party. I am going to assume the desert party will be out near France while we watch Illuminations.

Epcot closes at 9:00 but they have us returning back to Coronado at 10:30 so not sure if we are going to have some extra time in the park once it closes! That would be super cool!!!

So that is it for day one! A full day indeed since I will have been up since 4:00 but I cannot wait for it!!

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

I am in too can't wait to read more

Hello and Welcome!

 

[jenseib]

We rode a bus everywhere. And we came into Epcot back stage, which is what I bet you will do as well. You come in right at Norway and go right up to the dinner. For dessert, we were in France. Very cool. I think we exited out of Moroco back stage. The wouldn't let us go back on our own, we had to take the bus back because they talk to us on the bus.

You are already seeing 2 resorts that we didn't tour!

 

[goofybabe]

I love the world showcase but my family can only take so much of it so my vote is to wander aimlessly thru the worlds till you have to get down to the buisness at hand especially since all the Christmas decorations should be up .Ahh just beautiful!:

 

[jenseib]

I think you should go to whichever park is closest or DTD. If your plane lands at MCO at 9:30., I wouldn't even expect to bet at your resort any earlier than 10:30, but they say to allow 2 hours, so it could be later. It was just over an hour going to AS Movies and the only other time I rode it, it was an hour as well.
If you get there sooner, chalk it up to good karma.
Then checking in and exploring the resort will take some time. I would plan on not being able to leave for a park till noon...just to give wiggle room. Then you want to be back at 3, which means going to a bus stop at 2:30. So it only gives you a max of 3 hours park time or even as little as 1 1/2 to 2hours. You do want to be in the lobby (or where ever your meeting spot is) prior to 4. Once everyone was checked in, we left. They really keep you hopping.
I went to Ecpot that morning (as I came in the day before) and still didn't seem to have enough time, but is there ever anyways? I think I started walking back to Yacht Club around 2:30ish? (I have to look at my notes) I freshened up a bit and we got to the lobby a little early and there were already most of the others there.

2 of our TA's arrived on t hat day and they got to the YC around noonish and just got some lunch and explored a bit, getting settled in.

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

I love the world showcase but my family can only take so much of it so my vote is to wander aimlessly thru the worlds till you have to get down to the buisness at hand especially since all the Christmas decorations should be up .Ahh just beautiful!:

I think that is what I am going to do as well.. do you know that I probably haven't walked thorough China since Highschool!!!

I think you should go to whichever park is closest or DTD. If your plane lands at MCO at 9:30., I wouldn't even expect to bet at your resort any earlier than 10:30, but they say to allow 2 hours, so it could be later. It was just over an hour going to AS Movies and the only other time I rode it, it was an hour as well.
If you get there sooner, chalk it up to good karma.
Then checking in and exploring the resort will take some time. I would plan on not being able to leave for a park till noon...just to give wiggle room. Then you want to be back at 3, which means going to a bus stop at 2:30. So it only gives you a max of 3 hours park time or even as little as 1 1/2 to 2hours. You do want to be in the lobby (or where ever your meeting spot is) prior to 4. Once everyone was checked in, we left. They really keep you hopping.
I went to Ecpot that morning (as I came in the day before) and still didn't seem to have enough time, but is there ever anyways? I think I started walking back to Yacht Club around 2:30ish? (I have to look at my notes) I freshened up a bit and we got to the lobby a little early and there were already most of the others there.

2 of our TA's arrived on t hat day and they got to the YC around noonish and just got some lunch and explored a bit, getting settled in.

I think I am going to go to Epcot.. even if I only get in a few countries I will be happy! I don't think we get back here at all (besides tonight) but we won't be able to walk around. So I may try to get as much as I can in the few hours. I don't want to waste the time walking around the resort.. I can do that all week..

 

[DisneyBoundinDec]

Day 2!

I better get a move on! I only have 8 more days until my trip!!!

So day 2 looks to be busy.. busy.. busy! They really have us moving all day long!
First we are to meet for breakfast at 7:30 in the convention center. I am assuming it will be a buffet of sorts. But the 7:30 is killing me!

Now, I don’t mind getting up early. Its getting out the door that kills me! I can get up at 6:00, but I’m not usually showered and ready until around 10! I’m a bit of a dawdler! But I am sure I will be excited and ready to go on day one!

After breakfast we have sales meetings until 10:30 and then its off to visit the resorts!

In the morning we are off to see Fort Wilderness Lodge and Campground, then Wilderness Lodge.

I am excited to see the Wilderness Lodge. We walked through here in December of 2006 and since then I have always wanted to stay here. It just seemed so warm and cozy. Plus I promised my boys that the next time we went we would stay here.

After Wilderness Lodge we are eating lunch at Whispering Canyon Café. I have heard wonderful things about this place so am excited to try it! And I will for sure ask for ketchup!

This is what I am loving about this AEP experience. I am going to be seeing and doing things that I have not experienced yet!

After lunch we are off to visit the resorts along the monorail line. We’ll start with the Contemporary, on to the Polynesian, and then end at the Grand Floridian.

Once these tours are over we are on our own to either go back to our room for a quick break or to continue on to the Magic Kingdom to begin our evening event. Which is……… Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party!!!!!

I am so excited for this!! We went to this when Gabriel was 3 and I was PG with Rhett, but Gabriel was so young that we really didn’t get to fully enjoy the party. We pretty much only got hot cocoa and watched the parade. I can’t wait to see everything else!!!

After the party its lights out to start the day again bright and early for day 3!

 

[jenseib]

WWC is great and the food was awesome. We had a good time.