"Look Ma! We're planning a Disney Trip!" - Nov 10-20 PTR (11/09 Final Update?!)

[skier_pete]

Mmmmm I can't WAIT to get into that candy shop!!

Me too! We've started playing this game where everyone in the family list their top 3 favorite Disney somethings...where we're driving in a car.

"Top 3 must-dos at Animal Kingdom" for example.

Well, we did "top 3 things to eat" I listed 'Anything at Karamel Kuchen'! (The other two were the fresh mini-donuts at Typhoon Lagoon and the lobster roll at the American booth for food and wine.)

Subbing and caught up! Love the plans. I got to see the Osbourn Lights last year for the first time, how unbelievably breathtaking!

and thanks for joining in. I sometimes think I'm typing to myself here, so it's nice to see posts. Can't say that a PTR is all that exciting though - though I'm hoping hard for the November discounts to come out soon. Stay tuned for a Day 4 plan breakdown...

 

[skier_pete]

With a 10-day Disney trip, we always try to have one “down” day. Now, this isn’t to say we spend our day lazing by the pool. Far from it, but what we really are looking for is a sleep-in day, and one where we don’t have to be on the go the WHOLE day.

So, I thought what better day than the one immediately after our (likely) longest day with our “off” day. However, I am going to put in a quick caveat…we have a day later in the week slated for going to Typhoon Lagoon. If the weather forecast makes it look like later in the week will be a problem for hitting the water park, we might switch and take the water park today. I hope this isn’t necessary, because that will make a long haul for the trip before our day off.

So, what do we do with a day off? Why, head to Downtown Disney of course! I actually hate going to Downtown Disney since the closure of Pleasure Island. I have sort of made it my personal protest to try and avoid spending money there. Unfortunately, without an AP this year, the only way we can get 10% off our purchases is to go to World of Disney. Since the stuff throughout much of WDW has become so homogenized, this allows us to do a good portion of our shopping at once.

I also want to check out the newly expanded Lego store. DD loves Legos as I did, and I have heard that you can purchase loose pieces, which are rather hard to come by.

I think we will likely have lunch @ either Earl of Sandwhich or Wolfgang Puck’s Express, both very good QS choices. DD and I will probably return to the hotel right after lunch for some longer swim time, while DW and DMIL will continue to browse the stores a bit. (DW probably the longest of the bunch.)

That evening, we have plans to go back to Epcot for dinner. The plan right now is probably to leave the hotel between 4 PM and 5 PM. Ideally, I am hoping to ride “Living With The Land” just before we eat dinner at “The Garden Grill”.

We really enjoyed the meal here, it’s a chance to see Mickey, and well as Pluto, Chip and Dale. The one thing is last time we had a seat in the upper ring, and you really could not get a good view of the dioramas as the restaurant rotated. I want to hold out to get a lower seat.

After dinner, I plan on us seeing Illuminations. This is a good day for it, as we already slept in, so a little later night is not a problem. There also might be a surprise or two in store for my family...but I can't say anymore just yet.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Days 3 and 4 seem to be pretty well planned.

I must admit that Epcot is probably my favourite park in all of the World. But I can well understand why it doesn't rate highly with you.

 

[skier_pete]

Days 3 and 4 seem to be pretty well planned.

I must admit that Epcot is probably my favourite park in all of the World. But I can well understand why it doesn't rate highly with you.

Well, as I said, it's third...but that's third by a small nose. MK has the nostalgia factor for me, and so many fantastic (and fantastical) rides. Animal Kingdom has hands down the best theming, and DD loves it so much that has brought it up in our estimation. Epcot is really wonderful, but also has many flawed attractions as well. The park in my view needs the most TLC of any of the parks.

You'll see my opinion of the "other" park shortly.

 

[skier_pete]

Days 3 and 4 seem to be pretty well planned.

I must admit that Epcot is probably my favourite park in all of the World. But I can well understand why it doesn't rate highly with you.

Well, as I said, it's third...but that's third by a small nose. MK has the nostalgia factor for me, and so many fantastic (and fantastical) rides. Animal Kingdom has hands down the best theming, and DD loves it so much that has brought it up in our estimation. Epcot is really wonderful, but also has many flawed attractions as well. The park in my view needs the most TLC of any of the parks.

You'll see my opinion of the "other" park shortly.

 

[skier_pete]

We’re approaching the ½ way point of our day plans…there is only one park we haven’t hit. It is without a doubt how whole family’s least favorite of the bunch. That’s Disney Hollywood Studios.

It’s really too bad, as I am a huge movie buff. I just feel like Disney really missed the boat on this park. The park layout is disjointed as is the theming. While I wouldn’t quite call it a half-day park, it is definitely a park that can be covered easily in a single day. Our last trip we only spent from Rope Drop until about 5 PM here…and the trip before we only went on our arrival day about 2 PM.

In fact, each of us could pretty easily list the things we really want to do in this park on one hand. For each of us, if we did the following, we would be happy to leave:
Me: TSMM, Star Tours, Indiana Jones Stunt Show, Tower of Terror, Rock N Roller Coaster
DW: TSMM, Muppets 3D, Animation Academy
DD: TSMM, HiSTK Playground, Playhouse Disney Show, Indiana Jones Stunt Show

That’s a grand total of 9 things…and easily achievably in a few hours.

But, this trip we are giving Hollywood Studios a full day for a few reasons:
1) My mom is joining us, and there are a few things she would definitely like to see…particularly the American Idol experience. The rest of us are not fans of the show, so we have had no interest in seeing it to date. (I watched Season 2 and that was it…while I enjoy the singing, there’s so much garbage filler on the show it’s painful to watch.)
2) The Osborne Lights are going to be a must do for us, as it was one of our favorite things from previous trips.

So, with those things in mind, here’s our likely itinerary.

Early arrival to beat feet to TSMM for a Fastpass and an early ride.

How about that - a picture of the hat with ZERO people in front of it...yup we always try to be at the front of rope drop for the Toy Story mad dash.

Probably from there we’ll head over to Star Tours – I want to catch this ride at least twice this trip to check out the new variable 2.0 version. Even though there are tons of variations I think twice is enough. (I may be the only one in the party that wants to do it twice though.)

Next up, HISTK playground, as we like to get this done early.

After that, the Muppets 3-D, followed by another set of FP for TSMM (yup, we try and ride it 3 times if we can.) I may also let DW and DMIL see the muppets while DD is in the playground. I like the muppets a lot. (Who my age doesn't?) But I've seen this show a bunch, and it's not my favorite 3-D show - I actually like the pre-show video better. DD doesn't like the 3-D stuff that much - so I might sacrifice this for later. (Since my family lets me do ToT and RNRC on my own.)

Shortly after that we will check out the Indiana Jones stunt show.

We will also likely do the Beauty and Beast and Voyage of the little Mermaid show. It’s awful hard to predict the order.

At lunch-time we are going to have a rare event – especially for this trip – we are going to try a restaurant we’ve never been to before – the 50’s Prime Time Diner! I admit, I am a HUGE fan of the Sci-Fi, and would pick to eat there every trip, but DD professes that it is too scary, and doesn’t want to go. I asked my mom, and she said she doesn’t care, so we thought we will try something new. This restaurant sounds like a lot of fun. I can’t wait to see DD have a temper tantrum when they punish her for not eating her vegetables!

In the afternoon, we’ll probably head over to the art of animation. They often have a lot of the more unusual characters out there late in the day.

We might also take on the Great Movie Ride as time allows…I am not sure DD will like this one, though. We will definitely catch a American Idol show as well. I might catch ToT and RNRC while they're doing the Playhouse Disney show...it's one of the few things at WDW I really hate to sit through. I console myself thinking maybe this will be the last time....

(A couple things we will definitely skip are the Backlot Tour and LMA Stunt Show. There’s 3 hours of time saved!)

Finally, I want this time to try and get over to the Streets of America before dark. I ‘d really like to see if we could get over there for the lighting of the Obsorne Lights. This was absolutely one of our top 3 favorite things about the Christmas season (with Candlelight Processional and the Castle Lighting being the other two) and I really am excited to see it again.

Once that’s done, there’s a pretty good chance we will head out of the park before closing…UNLESS they re-start having Fantasmic every night. Right now, this is an off night for Fantasmic. While DW and I both like the show OK, we haven’t bothered since they cut back to twice a week. However, my DM has never seen it…so while DW takes DD back to the room, if we haven’t completely exhausted my DM, we’ll probably head over to see Fantasmic.

At that point, it’s calling it a night and making it back to the hotel. There is an outside chance we also take a mid-day break, but I think that is unlikely. There are plenty of opportunities for sitting during shows, so even though it might be a longer day, I don’t think it will be as tiring a one.

 

[teekathepony]

I'm with you about DHS (Although not Epcot, it's my favourite! Hahaha). HS is my least favourite too. However my must-do rides are about the same as yours! I also usually do this park in a few hours, but we have a full day planned. Should be interesting!
Great plans so far!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Yup...same top attractions...except I like the Great Movie Ride too. Lame...yes....but it is 20 minutes downtime in air conditioning especially welcomed in the middle of the afternoon.

 

[skier_pete]

I'm with you about DHS (Although not Epcot, it's my favourite! Hahaha). HS is my least favourite too. However my must-do rides are about the same as yours! I also usually do this park in a few hours, but we have a full day planned. Should be interesting!
Great plans so far!

A couple fun things to do if you haven't tried before...try the Animation Academy at the art of Animation...it's low key but a lot of fun. (and inside) also the area right outside soemtimes gets these HUGE influx of characters late in the day. We discovered it in April last year and there were something like 20 characters hanging out there, including Mary Poppins and one of the Penguins, Pinnochio and Geppeto, Jasmine & Aladdin, Mickey, Pluto, Goofy, Mr. and Mrs Incredible and Frozone, as well as the Evil Queen from Snow white. I think it's something to do with the way they staff for Fantasmic. If you are into characters its pretty awesome.

Also, check out the streetmosphere performers, which if you have the time to slow down can be pretty entertaining.

Yup...same top attractions...except I like the Great Movie Ride too. Lame...yes....but it is 20 minutes downtime in air conditioning especially welcomed in the middle of the afternoon.

Yeah, I think my love of movies and how the ride claims to allow you to "ride the movies", the great movies are so emotionally thrilling, and though they pick some great movies this ride is so "not" thrilling. I like some of the conceits (having a character break the forth wall and take over the car is neat) but the best part is the movie clips at the end. I don't hate it, but it's just not a "must-do". I think DD is finally old enough that certain parts (the alien) wouldn't freak her out too badly, so we might give it a ride if time allows. It's a lot more likely than doing the back-lot "here's some old crap used in movies" tour.

 

[khertz]

DH & I just adore DHS for some reason, even though our list of must-dos there is about as long as yours. We just enjoy doing the Animation Academy over & over, and riding TSM, RnRC, ToT...Love it! It is usually where we choose to spend a bulk of our time. Might be different now that DS is along, so we won't be running back and forth between the two thrill rides for an hour anymore, and I don't think DS will sit patiently through the Animation Academy either!

I can't WAIT for the Osbourne Lights!!!

 

[skier_pete]

DH & I just adore DHS for some reason, even though our list of must-dos there is about as long as yours. We just enjoy doing the Animation Academy over & over, and riding TSM, RnRC, ToT...Love it! It is usually where we choose to spend a bulk of our time. Might be different now that DS is along, so we won't be running back and forth between the two thrill rides for an hour anymore, and I don't think DS will sit patiently through the Animation Academy either!

I can't WAIT for the Osbourne Lights!!!

Yup --- that's gonna change for you for sure. DW and I spend most of our trips having to split up for the "big" rides. It's a pain when you double your wait time. (OK, with baby swap its not quite double, but if you using FP, the baby swap doesn't really help much, anyways.) I my case, she won't do RnRC or ToT anyways, and neither will DD, so not really an issue. I keep trying to coax DD to try new things...we hope to get her on Space Mountain this trip!

PS - love your new avatar!

 

[coruth4]

Looks like we are going for the same time! We are also leaving on Thursday 10th but returning on the Saturday 19th. I need that Sunday to get the kids to unwind before going back to school!
Flying Southwest out of Manchester, we were able to get a great rate on flights down - $84! But teh flights home are a challenge right now - they are up to $283! So we are playing the waiting game for those - as well as free dining! That would be a huge savings for us! We are a family of 5 and the kids are old enough to count as adults - so BIG BIG savings!
We'll be playing the waiting game with you on that one!

 

[TheWrightTrip]

I've really enjoyed reading this thread! Lots of insight and info as I plan our first WDW vaca. We are going this same week we just arrive a few days later. We check in the 12th. Crossing my fingers for the fd promotion. That would help us out so much more than a room discount, as we hope to do a character meal every day. We'll have to just choose 1 or 2 without fd.

 

[khertz]

Yup --- that's gonna change for you for sure. DW and I spend most of our trips having to split up for the "big" rides. It's a pain when you double your wait time. (OK, with baby swap its not quite double, but if you using FP, the baby swap doesn't really help much, anyways.) I my case, she won't do RnRC or ToT anyways, and neither will DD, so not really an issue. I keep trying to coax DD to try new things...we hope to get her on Space Mountain this trip!

PS - love your new avatar!

My hope is that he won't have any trouble napping in the stroller in the morning, so DH and I can do a majority of our baby swap rides then while the other one takes a break in the shade with the sleeping baby and a Mickey bar. We'll see how cooperative DS is with that plan! But we are going into this whole vacation with no expectations. We have our plans, but know we are going to have to adjust as we go.

Thanks! It's my FAVORITE picture of DS!

 

[skier_pete]

Looks like we are going for the same time! We are also leaving on Thursday 10th but returning on the Saturday 19th. I need that Sunday to get the kids to unwind before going back to school!
Flying Southwest out of Manchester, we were able to get a great rate on flights down - $84! But teh flights home are a challenge right now - they are up to $283! So we are playing the waiting game for those - as well as free dining! That would be a huge savings for us! We are a family of 5 and the kids are old enough to count as adults - so BIG BIG savings!
We'll be playing the waiting game with you on that one!

I see your listed as staying in the all-star music suites. Bad news is those don't ever fall under the discounts. Good news is should free dining arrive, you could always just book two rooms at a value and still save a lot of dough!

I've really enjoyed reading this thread! Lots of insight and info as I plan our first WDW vaca. We are going this same week we just arrive a few days later. We check in the 12th. Crossing my fingers for the fd promotion. That would help us out so much more than a room discount, as we hope to do a character meal every day. We'll have to just choose 1 or 2 without fd.

Hey and . Anything I can do to help, I am always full of advice and even some of the times its good.

Seriously though - if you are going for a week, you really should do more than just the character meals. While they are fun, they get repetitive and the food is not usually the best. Mix it up a little. Don't know what age your kids are, but if they're young, dinner at the Coral Reef with the huge fish tanks is great fun. Just make sure when you get there to tell them you don't want to sit on the top tier. (You can ask for the lower teir, but might have to wait awhile.) As long as your kids aren't too young, dining at the Sci-Fi at DHS is great as well. (Our DD got scared by the movie clips, which are from old ('50s) monster movies.)

My hope is that he won't have any trouble napping in the stroller in the morning, so DH and I can do a majority of our baby swap rides then while the other one takes a break in the shade with the sleeping baby and a Mickey bar. We'll see how cooperative DS is with that plan! But we are going into this whole vacation with no expectations. We have our plans, but know we are going to have to adjust as we go.

Thanks! It's my FAVORITE picture of DS!

Don't know that I've ever seen "cooperative" and "baby" used in the same sentence before! You guys definitely have the right attitude.

 

[TheWrightTrip]

At the time of travel our kids will be 5, 3 and 15 months. Thanks for the Coral Reef suggestion! All 3 of the kids will love that. There are actually quite a few places at Epcot we'd like to try. I really wanna do Le Cellier but can't get a ressie there, although I'm trying every day! We are only doing 1 day at Epcot, and as of right now we're not hopping, so it's going to be so hard to narrow it down when the time comes!

 

[skier_pete]

At the time of travel our kids will be 5, 3 and 15 months. Thanks for the Coral Reef suggestion! All 3 of the kids will love that. There are actually quite a few places at Epcot we'd like to try. I really wanna do Le Cellier but can't get a ressie there, although I'm trying every day! We are only doing 1 day at Epcot, and as of right now we're not hopping, so it's going to be so hard to narrow it down when the time comes!

Yeah, I find just about the only use of hoppers for our family when we had APs last year was to take advantage of being able to eat at Epcot more often. But, I can't justify that on a regular trip. Some of our favorite restaurants are there, and it makes it tough to choose. We've eaten at Le Cellier twice and enjoyed it a lot both times. What we found is almost eveything there is fantastic, except the steak itself, which is just sort of OK. I certainly wouldn't use TWO TS credits to dine there, as that is what they've switched to for dinner, and also not a great place with kids.

 

[skier_pete]

Well, our family is mucho excited regarding the rumor of free dining coming out. I had all my plans in place based on some options - and the one I thought most likely appears to be the one that's going to happen.

If I am allowed the arrogance of quoting myself (from Post #17):

Option C: Free Dining starts 11/12 or 11/13:
Unfortunately, I consider this to be the more likely free dining scenario (assuming it even comes out). Because Veteran’s Day (11/11) falls on a Friday, I think they will offer free dining to start on the more typical Sunday November 13th, or possibly on Saturday. Either way, this complicates things significantly. Since you have to book a package for free dining which includes tickets, if the FD package didn’t start until Saturday or Sunday, this would mean we would have to put our first two or three nights on a room only deal. Therefore, our dining plan wouldn’t start until the 2nd or 3rd day full day of the trip, which would mean we would have to pay for some food OOP (out of pocket). Certain restaurants this doesn’t make sense, so this option requires me to plan based on the assumption that our first two nights are at restaurants I want to pay OOP.

In addition, if the package doesn’t start until Saturday or Sunday, neither do our park tickets. This could be a REAL problem, as we clearly don’t want to wait 3 days before going to the parks. The good news is Disney must anticipate this. You can actually pick up the park tickets from your package up to 3 days in advance when you go to guest services. We will thus check in with a room only ressie on the 10th, and start a new package on the first day of free dining. We’ll have to spend 1 or 2 days eating OOP…but them’s the breaks – I ‘ll take whatever Free Dining I can get!

So, while it isn't official yet, when I run the numbers I can see that the savings are enough that we CAN indeed afford to upgrade to a Moderate if we are getting the free dining even for just the 7 days.

This requires me to pay for three TS meals out of pocket, though one of them I was already planning on doing that anyways - the meal on our first full day at California Grill. In addition, Saturday at Sanaa will be OOP. This leaves me with needing one more, and that will likely be our 50's Prime Time lunch, which would probably be the cheapest of the remaining meals by far.

I still have to see what happens with 11/10 - 11/13. With no room only discount out yet, the likelyhood that we stay @ a mod for those 3 days with no discount is small...we can rent DVC points for just about the same price, and try something a little different for a couple of nights. I AM expecting room only to come out eventually as well, and hopefully those dates will be included. I'd prefer staying in the same resort.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Naturally it is the most complicated option for you....Hope the FD and accommodation works out for you.

 

[DisMomAmy]

I thought I'd already replied... must have read the DHS update on my phone.

We really enjoy DHS but in small doses. There isn't as much to do as the other parks, but the boys' favorite rides are RnRC & TSM. I can't wait to see Star Tours and especially the Osborne Lights in November!!

I think it's going to work out well for us to be at the Boardwalk because I've scheduled us to be at DHS several times for shorter periods. (I want to maximize our opportunities to see OL - we'll be catching in 2 of the 3 nights possible.)

I'm anxiously waiting to see how the discounts/package deals work out for you!! I've seen you over on the November thread too...