Just back.... Well that didn't go quite as planned!

[peabody58]

Just got back from a 4 night stay at SSR 1 BR at the Grandstand (6/23-28). What an interesting trip experience!

A little back story. This trip was originally planned for Jan '19 at BCV 1 BR. That trip was cancelled last minute due to DD's gall bladder and acute pancreatitis which sent my DW up to St Paul to help her out. Points go into Holding, and over night I become an expert on Holding points. Re-book for end of Feb at SSR. DD's gall bladder surgery gets rescheduled - yep, points back into Holding. Finally rebooked for May, after our April GCT 'Tulips in Netherlands/Amsterdam' River Cruise. The river cruise was AWESOME. A week after we get back, find out MIL (83 yo) has fallen several times (nothing broken), meds are all messed up and general chaos a mere 12 hours away. DW takes off to check on her mom. After a week, she summons me to join her as she is at her wits end. A few days later, MIL informs us she wants to go with us to GA and get her settled into Assisted Living. So starts the process of elder relocation and asset intervention. And our May vacation points again, you guessed it - into Holding. Well amazingly we got everything taken care of - Estate Sale, House sold, great Assisted Living home found for MIL, new furniture purchased, assets consolidated, etc., etc. We were ready for a vacation. Locked in 4 nights at SSR for just a few points more. What could go wrong now?

Trip starts without a hitch. We spent 2 nights with my Brother/SIL in Polk City before WDW. Received the Room Ready Text an hour early! All our room request items were met, and the room was in great shape. We make a quick grocery run to Publix, and head for the pool for some relaxation. Get back to the room around 7 PM, and DW starts having stomach pains. Somehow she got a stomach flu/bug. It hit her really hard. She spent almost the entire trip in BR or in the other BR. She would get really tired after only being up an hour.

Now don't go getting all weepy eyed for us. We were at Disney Resort after all and had all of what WDW has to offer.

Once making sure DW would be alright without me, I went into Disney Urban Explorer mode. For the rest of the trip, when I wasn't chilling with my wife, I went out walking, boating, busing and monorailing all over WDW. Walking to Disney Springs was super easy via the West Side walkway. I had a Clive Cussler novel with me. As I visited a resort, I would check everything out and then find a cozy spot to people watch and read a few chapters. Very relaxing. As my mission was to explore, I focused on the Disney detail, infrastructure efficiency and overall non-park resort experience. There is so much to see and do (most on the cheap) when one just takes the time to look. Had a great time talking with all the bus/boat drivers (I have been sworn to secracy on many confirmed rumors), CM's and the numerous guests I came across. Seeing a lot of the construction/building projects almost complete was invigorating. The Skyliner is amazing and I can't wait to try them out, Urban Exploring of course.

And then there is Disney Springs!! WOW. I enjoyed DS more than I ever had. Entertainment around every corner. Story detail and amazing views everywhere. I even finally got to eat at Earl of Sandwich (DVC discount of course)!!

As each day passed and DW's condition didn't improve significantly, we kept cancelling park days and dining reservations. We went from 2 park days, 1 water park and 4 dining reservations to just a resort stay. On Thursday DW felt well enough to do Miniature Golf or a movie at AMC 24. We'll just the bus ride to DS and walk to AMC wiped her out. So instead we had a really nice lunch at Splitsville (awesome place). By the time we made it back to SSR she was done for the day. We got a DVD from the community hall (Captain Marvel) and enjoyed a nice afternoon movie in our room. Yes, SSR still has DVD players (and ceiling fans). No alarm clocks.

Yeah it was a shame DW was ill and unable to actively participate. She did however state she still felt she benefited for this trip given the stress from her mother's move into Assisted Living. Which by the way, the MIL is doing 1000% better and is very happy.

I had a wonderful time checking out everything, riding boats and getting great exercise. Aside from not getting to ride Peter Pan's Flight, my Disney fix was satisfied (for now). I also picked up the DVC Resort Emblem Print Pattern Men's Dress Shirt. They finally had an XL in stock.

On the plus side, we saved 6 of our NE+ tics which will extend our vacationing options out for another year. And we saved a lot of $$ on dining. DW is doing a lot better now that we're back home. Again don't feel sorry for us (I've got a GoFundMe page for that ). Our AP Year starts in Oct and we have at least 25 park days lined up. We also decided that the heat and humidity in June is not our preferred time. As a result we are re-planning the end of our AP year big family GTG from Sept to Oct (it's only 10 more pts). We'll try to snag a RVV Tower Rm in Sept if possible.

So remember, despite curve balls being thrown at you, every trip can be magical if you just go with the flow and enjoy the moment. DVC overall from the booking/rebooking process, room assignments, CM support and resort amenities has been outstanding.

 

[Frederic Civish]

Sounds like a very interesting trip. So many people think 'Disney World' and they think only of the rides. Maybe with a parade or some fireworks and a wandering character thrown in. But the essence of Disney is the EXPERIENCE of all the OTHER things a Disney World. I tell people, you can get better 'rides' at almost any amusement park, but only at Disneyland and Disney World can you get all the wonderful, unexpected atmosphere and details of the Disney Experience. And rides often keep you from exploring these things and getting the full experience.

Hope your wife is doing better. Sorry she was so ill. My wife also has some moderate health problems at times (though she does well overall) and there is one trip we recently took on an Alaska Cruise where she developed a tooth abscess and needed an Emergency Root Canal. The problem started after we left Anchorage. And then I found out, as we visited Juneau and Skagway and Ketchikan and other places that, "Oh, yeah. We have a dentist. But he only comes in on the 2nd Wednesday of every month and the rest of the time is out at other towns. Can you wait a few weeks until he comes back?" I did find a nice very older, semi-retired dentist in Ketchikan, and he relieved the pressure, temporarily, but he didn't do root canals. It was a nightmare for my wife to try to eat or enjoy anything, and mostly she just tried to sleep in bed. Anyway, the day the cruise ended we flew to Los Angeles (change of plans to visit my daughter) and my wife went early the next morning to a 24 Hour Dental place, and they took care of it. Then we did enjoy the next 3 or 4 days at Disneyland.

Of course, my wife and I don't really go for the rides anymore, anyway. It is all so we can experience it with other people, and enjoy some of the other unique things at Disney.

 

[sjrec]

Glad your wife and daughter are feeling better-you certainly had a lot going on for a while. And you have another trip to look forward to!

 

[Happy99]

Glad to hear everyone is on the mend and we also enjoy just being there. Don't go on rides much unless our young adult children or extended family is with us. Thanks for sharing.
Couple of questions - what is NE+tickets? What room / area did you have, so many have reported the rooms to be shabby, I had a shabby one a couple of years ago.

 

[FindingTheMouse]

Glad to hear everything has settled down for now. My wife has medical issues that can flare up and cause her to not be able to enjoy the Disney parks the way we used to. There have been a few recently where I have done the Disney Urban Exploring thing on my own as well and I can say I love it as much as the parks. I absolutely enjoy walking the grounds of the many different resorts. There is always a nook or cranny that I haven't found or some new detail to admire. And Disney Springs is a great place if you stop and look around. Evening at DS is the best time, I have found, as there is usually music or some kind of entertainment around almost every corner.

 

[peabody58]

Couple of questions - what is NE+tickets? What room / area did you have, so many have reported the rooms to be shabby, I had a shabby one a couple of years ago.

NE+: No Expire Tickets. The '+' is the added portion of having the same number of WP/MG/etc. options as the number of Park Tickets purchaced. We bought the 10 Park Tics/10 WP+ package many years ago. We've gotten 3 trips out of them so far, and have two more trips available. Have yet to use any of the WP+ options. These tickets are no longer available.

Our 1-BR in the Grandstand (8414) was in great shape, very clean and the bed was really comfortable. No complaints at all.

 

[Alexander]

Sorry your wife wasn't well for the trip. Hopefully everyone is well now and you can get the next trip planned. We've done many resort-only WDW stays. Friends and family look at me like I'm crazy and how could we go to Disney and not go to the parks. We buy annual passes for the water parks, go mini-golfing, visit the resorts, pool-hop (where alllowed--we are DVC members), catch a movie, used to go to Disney Quest. There is so much to do and see without the hussle and bussle of the parks.

 

[jerseygal]

Glad to hear that your DW is doing better and you have many more fun trips planned! Sounds like you made the best of having an ill wife while on vacation!

 

[DVCjj]

Though the trip actually sounded to me like quite a nightmare, you have a wonderful go-with-the-flow attitude that I certainly hope to copy. It'll be a wake-up call for me when I get discouraged when things don't go smoothly.

Thanks for that.