Just back from WDW/Daytona Beach

[riu girl]

IT WAS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!

Some highlights:
Dec 17 - Comfort Suites in BUF - Great hotel. Room was huge (2 double beds plus pull out and fridge microwave). Very clean and shuttle was great. Free brekkie in the morning was great (offered both hot and cold items). It was available by the time we left 4:30am. We packed up a big bag of food and took it with us.

Dec.18 - Independence Air - They were great (staff, flight attendants, crew) No problems at all. No delays. Were given snacks/drinks on the plane.

Dec 18 - Dec 23
All star Movies - This hotel blew my mind. The themeing was great. So clean, service so great. So what the room wasn't huge.. It worked for us (2 adults, 2 kids) And for only 55US/nt it was a true bargain.

AK and MK - These parks were amazing. The CM's were so great with the kids. No problems/complaints whatsoever.

DTD - This was so much fun. The kiddie rides/lego playground area was great. What a great way to spend a day.

Toured AKL/GF/POLY/Swan/Dolphin - These hotels were AMAZING. But to be honest, we were so happy with ASMo, we would book a value resort again to save money.
AKL- THe kids were invited to take part in the AKL kids program the day we were there. I told them we were ASMo guests and they said that was no problem. They took part in "tracking" an animal and learned a lot about animals. At the end of the program they were given necklaces with African beads on them. The CM was incredible.
Poly - DD7 spent a half hour feeding a bunny (in a bush by the pool)
GF - Amazing gingerbread house and decorations

Left on Dec. 23rd.
Can't wait to start planning for next trip.

I will post about Daytona Beach in a seperate thread.
Any questions/comments??????????
Suzy V.

 

[chasbos]

We are staying at the Comfort Suites on Jan 20 before our flight to MCO on the 21st. Glad to here it is a nice place to stay - does it have a pool?

What time did your flight leave in the morning? I noticed you were gone by 4:30 on the shuttle - also good to know because we fly out at 7:00 a.m on SWA and I want to be there in plenty of time so that the 6 of us can sit sort of near each other.

Glad you had a great trip.

 

[riu girl]

We had a 6:45 am flight with Independence Air.

The BUF airport is much smaller then the Toronto airport therefore, very easy to get around. The security line looked quite long though (and it was very early in the morning). I don't know why but they told us to go into a seperate line (families only they said) and we got through security in about 3 minutes flat. My kids are 4 and 7 and were very quiet in the regular line so I was surprised(but glad) that they took us out of it and put us in the family line.

The hotel offers a pool as well as a hot tub. The pool was not as warm as I like (I think it was probably under 80 F) but the hot tub was nice and hot. Although the water coming out of the jets was minimal.

Keep in mind that the hotel does not have an elevator. We were assigned a room on the second floor (it has two floors) amd had to carry our ton of luggage up stairs. Next time I will request a room on the first floor.

As I mentioend before, the breakfast is quite extensive (hot and cold). If you have time, try to make the effort to get to the lobby 15 minutes before your shuttle and enjoy it. The hotel offers a nice fireplace to look at while you eat. If we had more time, we would have sat and enjoyed a big breakfast before the shuttle bus. If you decide to pack some up to take with you, they offer fruit, individual packages of cereal, yogurt etc to take with you.

When you arrive back in BUF there is a comlimentary phone to call them to pick you back up. It is near the baggage claim area. We called and they were there in only about 10 minutes to take us back to the hotel to pick up our van.

Also about the BUF airport, after going through security (at the boarding area) there is a large indoor play area (ideal for kids ages 2 - 8 IMO). We were so early that we spent at least 45 minutes there before boarding.

Suzy V.

 

[chasbos]

Thanks for the info. We are planning on picking up the kids from school on the 20th and heading to Buffalo (it is about a 2.5-3 hour drive). They want to see the falls all iced over (but with this mild weather, I do not think they are going to see anything new). So we plan on being at the hotel around 7:00 -are there restaurants near the Comfort Suites or should we just eat while still on the Canadian side?

I will be sure to pack the girls bathing suits in our overnight bag. The pool will keep them busy for the night because I am sure they are not going to sleep.

Your hints on the airport are also greatly appreciated. My kids find Pearson so boring as an airport and we always fly international out of it and we have to sit around for 3 hours waiting for our flight with nothing to do and nowhere to sit! The play area will be a welcome relief again - we have been delayed in Amsterdam for over 9 hours before when the girls were 5, 7, 9 (we left the 2 year old home that trip) but they have McDonalds and a play area too and we managed to keep our sanity!

 

[riu girl]

There is no restaurant on site but they will shuttle you to any business within 5 miles for free . We were planning on ordering pizza but my mother packed us a big lunch to take with us so we ended us just eating that in the hotel room around dinner time.

We have also been delayed in the Amsterdam airport for several hours but without kids and had a blast. It is such a huge airport with so many neat stores and restaurants. But with kids that would be a different story I'm sure.

I think that the play area in the airport is sponsered by Fisher Price (but not sure) so it is geared to younger kids. But you know older kids, if they are bored they will play with younger kid stuff. The area had a couple of Fisher Price electronic reading books that might be ok for older kids. DD7 spent most of her time with these books while DS4 played with the younger kid ride on toys etc.

Have a great holiday.

Suzy V.

 

[hockey mom]

Sounds like you had a great time. I agree with you about ASM. We stayed there when Toy Story first came out and we loved it. We could have afforded more but chose to stay there.

 

[alohamom]

Chasbos, just a quick aside-Once I let my kids swim the night before a flight and one of them ended up with a water-plugged ear that made for painful flying the next day. I always make them put in ear plugs now-live and learn . We have stayed at the Comfort Suites a few times and really think it is a great deal-the breakfast is super as riu girl says. We are staying just a few days after you guys on the 30th, thanks to your tip on the low SWA flight prices a few weeks ago! :jumping4:

 

[chasbos]

alohamom - I will make sure the girls are all drained out of pool water before we head to bed! I had never thought of that happening! My girls really chew hard on gum already when we land so an ear ache would be torture!
Enjoy your trip - we are looking forward to ours.

 

[riu girl]

About the ears, our doctor recommended giving the kids (ages 4 and 7) 5 ml of a cold /cough medicine right before you fly. The doctor recommended Robitussin. I know that DD7 spent close to two hours in the pool less then 12 hours before our departure time and had no problems. The doctor said that this type of medicine helps fluids drain better and keeps passages open (or something like that) while flying. DD7 was also on antibiotics for a mild ear infection at the time and had NO problems flying.
Have an awesome trip.

Suzy V.

 

[Lynda Silk]

Glad to hear you had a good trip, riu girl! It was funny seeing your mention of the bunny at the Poly! We stayed at the Poly in October and I must have 15 photos of that bunny that my kids took!

 

[riu girl]

DD7 (nature girl) was fascinated with the bunny. At one point it actually ate out of her hand. She sat with it for at least 15 minutes with it right beside her. DD7 has a way with animals. I'm sure as an adult she will work with them.

Watching her interact with it was just one of a seemingly countless magical moments at WDW.

The pool at the Poly looked fabulous. You and your family were very fortunate to have stayed there in Oct.

Suzy V

 

[Lynda Silk]

Wow, I can just picture your dd with the bunny! You're right, that's a very precious memory from your magical trip! My kids would have been thrilled to have the bunny eat from their hand! Your dd must have a way with animals.

Yes, the Poly was beautiful and we all enjoyed the pool very much! We only stayed at WDW for 3 days before going on the 7 day Disney Cruise, so we thought the monorail would be handy for saving time since we weren't there for very long. We also loved the tropical feel of the resort; it prepared us nicely for our cruise on the Magic!

I can't wait to go back! I honestly thought that this would be our last trip to WDW for a while but I had such a good time in October that I can't wait to go back! It must be something they put in the water that makes you want to go back time and time again! The same goes for the Disney cruise; can't wait to be onboard again! Have to save up some money first though!

 

[riu girl]

The poly AND a Disney cruise. That must have been fabulous.

Yes, DD has a way with animals. By age 5 you should have seen the way she could handle a snake ( a garter snake from our yard). It is very odd to see her with animals. They seem very connected to her some how. Our property is a few feet a bird santuary, forest and water so the wildlife encounters are endless.

Good luck with saving for your next WDW holiday.


Suzy V.

 

[MaMudduck]

That's so good to hear you had a great time!

 

[jtdl]

Glad to hear your trip was awesome.

We will be in Daytona for 2 nights. Never been there. Going to a NASCAR race one day. Thought we would spend another day on the beach, but getting worried about the temperature! Any suggestions on what to do, what not to do, and where to eat?

 

[riu girl]

Weather aise: we were there Dec 23-31 and the weather really varied (from the high 40s to mid 70s) so make sure you bring a lot of different choices. We simply layered and took off layers as the day got warmer.

Eating: I'm sorry I can't help you with this. We had a hotel room with a full kitchen so we cooked all of our meals except two (a pizza on the main boardwalk), gross (covered in grease), and one breakfast at Denny's (too greasy also).

As far as activities we enjoyed hanging out at the main beach (in front of ocean walk) and walking the boardwalk, looking in souvie shops, arcades, going out on the pier
You can also drive your car up and down parts of the beach (weather and tides permitting)

If you are interested in nature based activities (as we are) there is a nice lighthouse to see with nature walking trails, the Marine Science Centre and a nice drive called "the loop".

Hope this info. helps

The beaches are nice. If you have younger kids, there is a really nice playgound in Tom Renick park (it is a couple miles north of the main beach area in Daytona on the A1A). Then you can just walk to the beach from there (1 minute walk). This is a nice part of the beach since it is in a "no drive" section so you don't have to watch your kids and look out for cars at the same time.
There is also a nice playground on the main beach area (in front of ocean walk) It is also a "no-drive"section.

We took a 75 minute trolley/boat tour one day. The tour guide was very informative and we learned a lot from him. You can purchase tickets at a kiosk on the first floor of the ocean walk shopping area.

Have a great holiday

Suzy V.