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

[skier_pete]

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

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...

Well, some really good news over the last few days with the Free Dining coming out. It's kind of amazing to think that I started planning this trip about 10 months ago, and the deals / pricing / booking are coming out really close to what I predicted.

So, I called @ 7 AM and after holding for 90 minutes, tried a different # on a different phone. Got through that in 30 minutes, while the original call was still on...so hung up the first one! (I think I made the mistake in the first place of putting in for an existing reservation.)

Got exactly what I wanted, POFQ for 7 nights (11/13-11/20) with Free Dining. $1049 savings off of rack rate - 3A / 1C. (Yay!) But, for me, it was more about being able to upgrade from an existing package @ POP for roughly the same price.

The nice thing was because I was able to change the existing reservation, I got to keep the old ticket prices (pre-price hike!), so saved a bit of money there as well.

Also booked a 3-day room-only at the start of the trip (11/10-11/13), which at the moment is also full rack rate. I am not expecting to have to stay at that rate for long. I will either re-book when the room discount rate comes out in a few weeks -or I will rent DVC and stay at OKW for a few days, so I expect a few hundred less than the current price.

Since I was anticipating FD not starting until 11/13, my ADRs reflect that already, so I am all set there. Happy days!

Also yesterday got a price drop on one of our SWA for $80 in credits. Now we have almost $300 in credits, except they all expire 5/23/11 - and we're not planning on flying anywhere between now and then. I'm thinking if we can't find a use for it, maybe we'll jaunt down to DC in the spring...flights would be free, and we could go for just rental car/hotel.

AND finally...today is double-digit-dance day.

 

[coruth4]

I took me an hour to get through this morning but definately worth it! I am also doing a room only stay from 11/10-11/13! I am glad to hear that there is the potential for room discounts too! hadn't even considered that!
I was also able to keep the remaining portion of my trip the same - keeping 9 day hopper passes to be picked up early so we can use them those first three days. And they let me get free dining even though I am in a family suite!
Even with the split stay - we are saving just over $1600!!

 

[skier_pete]

I took me an hour to get through this morning but definately worth it! I am also doing a room only stay from 11/10-11/13! I am glad to hear that there is the potential for room discounts too! hadn't even considered that!
I was also able to keep the remaining portion of my trip the same - keeping 9 day hopper passes to be picked up early so we can use them those first three days. And they let me get free dining even though I am in a family suite!
Even with the split stay - we are saving just over $1600!!

Good for you...that's awesome to hear - i didn't think the suites often got the discounts! I do think there will eventually be a room discount that comes out that isn't quite as good a discount as the free dining, but also covers a larger # of dates. Expect something along the lines of 20-25% off at Values/Mods. I admit I could be wrong on this, but my instinct says with so many black-out dates on the free dining, and so many people that would rather have the room discount, you'll still see it come out.

 

[DisMomAmy]

What a GREAT way to celebrate double digits!!! (Not single digits... )

Congrats on the free dining & resort upgrade!!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Oh... And thanks for the tip on Southwest... I checked today & got another $34 credit bringing our total up to $286 to use for our April trip!!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Glad to see things are falling into place for you. Well done on your ADRs and the free dining savings.

 

[skier_pete]

What a GREAT way to celebrate double digits!!! (Not single digits... )

Congrats on the free dining & resort upgrade!!

I wasn't picking on you for the single digits thing - just figured someone will point it out, it might as well be me> I guess you're just eager for it to get here. Our family too - we're leaving for Myrtle Beach in just 16 days, and all we can talk about is Disney.

Oh... And thanks for the tip on Southwest... I checked today & got another $34 credit bringing our total up to $286 to use for our April trip!!

Glad to help! I check back all the time. Too bad they've made it so difficult now to use the credits.

Glad to see things are falling into place for you. Well done on your ADRs and the free dining savings.

Thanks. It feels like things are well in hand. Now I just need a public room only discount!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Glad to help! I check back all the time. Too bad they've made it so difficult now to use the credits.

I know... I'm not sure I'll be able to use all eight credits we now have.

 

[teekathepony]

Hooray for double digit dance day!! (And the rest of the happy news!)

 

[khertz]

I have to get working on my countdown calendar this afternoon, we are down to double digits too!! It is still so bittersweet to me because as excited as I am about Disney, I'm NOT ready for my baby to be 1 years old! This year has gone by way too fast!!

I'm glad free dining worked out for y'all! How awesome that you predicted it right. When DH & I go in February we might stay at a Disney resort that time and I'm hoping we can get an AP room discount, but free dining would be nice too since it works with the dates we are thinking of if there are no room discounts available then. How does free dining work when you have an AP? Do you still have to buy tickets?

 

[skier_pete]

I have to get working on my countdown calendar this afternoon, we are down to double digits too!! It is still so bittersweet to me because as excited as I am about Disney, I'm NOT ready for my baby to be 1 years old! This year has gone by way too fast!!

I'm glad free dining worked out for y'all! How awesome that you predicted it right. When DH & I go in February we might stay at a Disney resort that time and I'm hoping we can get an AP room discount, but free dining would be nice too since it works with the dates we are thinking of if there are no room discounts available then. How does free dining work when you have an AP? Do you still have to buy tickets?

Hmmm...really, I found once our daughter turned 1 was when it got interesting. The first 9-10 months are all about eating, sleeping, pooping. She was so much more fun when she actual DID stuff. (Though I admit the 18-26 month window was a tough one.)

And Yup, free dining and APs DON'T work well together. To get free dining, you HAVE to take a ticket package, which is usually a minimum 2-day ticket. Now, you can hold those tickets and not use them until a later trip, but its still a pretty big extra cost - $150 or so per person. So depending on the length of stay and what level hotel you might be better off waiting for an AP discount - though from what I've seen these have been pretty darn inconsistent of late. With an AP, you can do the dining plan without actually buying tickets, just not for free dining.

One option is to book the free dining package as a "just in case" and as long as you cancel with <45 days, you get a full refund.

Another thing is to consider getting a TIW card - this gives you 20 % off at a bunch of restaurants, but not all of them. (I think a lot of the in-park CS is not included.) We looked at it in 2009-2010 when we had the AP - but because our first trip was on free dining, decided it wasn't worth it. 20 % is about what you save on the DDP anyways, so again if you can get a room discount, that combined with this might be better than free dining.

 

[DisMomAmy]

We saved about $200 ($275 savings minus the $75 we layed out for the card) between spring 2010 & spring 2011 with our TIW card. The majority of the savings was between the two family trips we took in April 2010 & February 2011. I also had two weekend trips thrown in there that added a bit to the savings.

On each of those family trips we saved about $125 so we did make our money back on the first trip.

It works out well for us because we usually stay off-site so we can't get free dining (or even paid dining). We usually eat at a TS restaurant each day & now have three Disney adults (one 10 year old) and one child.

You'd definitely have to do the math to see if it would work for you.

 

[skier_pete]

We saved about $200 ($275 savings minus the $75 we layed out for the card) between spring 2010 & spring 2011 with our TIW card. The majority of the savings was between the two family trips we took in April 2010 & February 2011. I also had two weekend trips thrown in there that added a bit to the savings.

On each of those family trips we saved about $125 so we did make our money back on the first trip.

It works out well for us because we usually stay off-site so we can't get free dining (or even paid dining). We usually eat at a TS restaurant each day & now have three Disney adults (one 10 year old) and one child.

You'd definitely have to do the math to see if it would work for you.

I considered a TIW card back in 2009 when we got the AP - but that first trip we got free dining. At the time, I wasn't sure how the next two trips would go. What turned me off to it was it didn't work at a lot of the in-park QS restaurants. Our April 2010 was going to be a low budget, and we were going to mostly eat QS. We figured the savings just weren't there. We got the DDP in October 2010 (only the 2nd time we'd ever "paid" for it). Ended up saving over 40% versus OOP using it. (Just picked the right restaurants and using Snack Credits for Food & Wine totally knocked it out of the park.) In the end, the DDP just works pretty darn well for us.

We also really don't want to stay off-site if we can help it. I'd rather stay at Pop Century on-site than the nicest off-site hotel. One my absolute favorite things about Disney is not having to drive a car. I drive 25 miles a day to/from work, and nothing says "luxury" to me like a vacation where I don't have to get behind a wheel. (I really get no pleasure from driving.) The buses, for how much of a pain they can be at times, are just so much better to me. Our small family size allows us to easier stay on site.

 

[DisMomAmy]

I considered a TIW card back in 2009 when we got the AP - but that first trip we got free dining. At the time, I wasn't sure how the next two trips would go. What turned me off to it was it didn't work at a lot of the in-park QS restaurants. Our April 2010 was going to be a low budget, and we were going to mostly eat QS. We figured the savings just weren't there. We got the DDP in October 2010 (only the 2nd time we'd ever "paid" for it). Ended up saving over 40% versus OOP using it. (Just picked the right restaurants and using Snack Credits for Food & Wine totally knocked it out of the park.) In the end, the DDP just works pretty darn well for us.

We also really don't want to stay off-site if we can help it. I'd rather stay at Pop Century on-site than the nicest off-site hotel. One my absolute favorite things about Disney is not having to drive a car. I drive 25 miles a day to/from work, and nothing says "luxury" to me like a vacation where I don't have to get behind a wheel. (I really get no pleasure from driving.) The buses, for how much of a pain they can be at times, are just so much better to me. Our small family size allows us to easier stay on site.

I know what you mean about staying onsite! I wish we could stay onsite every year but DH likes the space we have staying offsite. There's no way we could stay onsite in a villa every year. And since we own our timeshare outright, it's pretty cheap for us to stay in a 2BR villa for a week. I almost wish we didn't own it... But then I guess we wouldn't go to Disney as often as we do.

You're right about the TIW and the QS dining places. I wish it was accepted in more locations. We considered DDP for our November trip but with a 10 year old who eats like a bird it didn't make sense for us... especially with the April trip (can use the same TIW card for both trips).

I guess it really comes down to crunching the numbers for each family to see what works out best.

 

[skier_pete]

You're right about the TIW and the QS dining places. I wish it was accepted in more locations. We considered DDP for our November trip but with a 10 year old who eats like a bird it didn't make sense for us... especially with the April trip (can use the same TIW card for both trips).

I guess it really comes down to crunching the numbers for each family to see what works out best.

All very true. I keep thinking the same thing about when DD hits 10, we SO won't need adult meals for her...I really wish Disney either had a little higher age limit for kids, or had a "big kids" menu that was between the two ages. I guess they use 9 so that people can't lie and claim their 14 year old is still a "kid". Since I strive so hard for free dining, it wouldn't be an issue, but if we ever need to PAY for dining after she turns 10, we'll have to re-consider how we eat on property.

 

[exwdwcm]

followed you over from Khertz report!

We are going in mid/late October- pretty much the dates you went last year. We are going Oct 14-22nd! Our first F&W and first MNSSHP!

Anyhow- subscribing to your PTR. i just read your TR from last year so I could get a feel for the crowds that time of year- seems like you had a pretty good time and low crowds!

looking forward to hearing about this year's adventures!

 

[skier_pete]

followed you over from Khertz report!

We are going in mid/late October- pretty much the dates you went last year. We are going Oct 14-22nd! Our first F&W and first MNSSHP!

Anyhow- subscribing to your PTR. i just read your TR from last year so I could get a feel for the crowds that time of year- seems like you had a pretty good time and low crowds!

looking forward to hearing about this year's adventures!

Hey there!

If there was one thing I could change from our trip...i would NOT go to the Thursday MNSSHP. It was awful crowded, the worst crowds we had all week. I assumed the Friday and Sunday MNSSHP would be the most crowded. I later found out it is really the Friday and Thursday ones that are the worst. So, if you can, plan on going on either Sunday or Tuesday! I wouldn't quite recommend NOT to go and try it once, even though it seems very doubtful we'd do it again.

It was a great week - we've been that week 3 times now (2000,2006, & 2010) and they were all pretty awesome weather-wise! I little on the warm side, but not the usual summer humidity. I'm hoping November we can hit a nice sweet spot weather-wise.

 

[exwdwcm]

Hey there!

If there was one thing I could change from our trip...i would NOT go to the Thursday MNSSHP. It was awful crowded, the worst crowds we had all week. I assumed the Friday and Sunday MNSSHP would be the most crowded. I later found out it is really the Friday and Thursday ones that are the worst. So, if you can, plan on going on either Sunday or Tuesday! I wouldn't quite recommend NOT to go and try it once, even though it seems very doubtful we'd do it again.

It was a great week - we've been that week 3 times now (2000,2006, & 2010) and they were all pretty awesome weather-wise! I little on the warm side, but not the usual summer humidity. I'm hoping November we can hit a nice sweet spot weather-wise.

good to know! we are planning on the Tuesday MNSSHP- i figured it would be the least crowded, at least that has been our experience with MVMCP.

i am looking forward to nice weather. On our last trip- Dec 4-11th, we had the crazy cold blast and only had one day where we could wear short sleeves. The entire rest of the trip was spent in jackets, gloves, scarves and hats, literally that cold- in the 30s/40s. Looking forward to something mild for October, it can't be any worse than the 50 plus days of 100s we've been fighting through here in Dallas. Heck, 90 sounds cool to me at this point.

 

[joy13]

Hi Pete - I followed you over from Foster's pretrip report. We will be there at the same time 11/16 - 11/21. I also have an 8 year old daughter. My husband is staying home this trip (it's over hunting season), but my Mom is coming with us too - so similar experiences for sure! Your days sound great so far - I wish we had 10 days - but I'll take what we can get. We have been to Disney several times since 2005 (every other year) and we just love it!

 

[skier_pete]

good to know! we are planning on the Tuesday MNSSHP- i figured it would be the least crowded, at least that has been our experience with MVMCP.

i am looking forward to nice weather. On our last trip- Dec 4-11th, we had the crazy cold blast and only had one day where we could wear short sleeves. The entire rest of the trip was spent in jackets, gloves, scarves and hats, literally that cold- in the 30s/40s. Looking forward to something mild for October, it can't be any worse than the 50 plus days of 100s we've been fighting through here in Dallas. Heck, 90 sounds cool to me at this point.

It's always mid-October when the heat breaks. Compared to what you got, it'll probably be great. We've done that trip 3 times in mid-October, one year was record heat...and still really not bad. I don't think you can go wrong then! Our December trip went from hot (80s) to rainy to cold (30s).

Hi Pete - I followed you over from Foster's pretrip report. We will be there at the same time 11/16 - 11/21. I also have an 8 year old daughter. My husband is staying home this trip (it's over hunting season), but my Mom is coming with us too - so similar experiences for sure! Your days sound great so far - I wish we had 10 days - but I'll take what we can get. We have been to Disney several times since 2005 (every other year) and we just love it!

Hi there! An 8 year old and a Mom, too! I think we'll both be having fun that week! I still haven't gotten to your dates on my schedule...so we'll see if we overlap at all. I have my Lime-green mickey tags - making me easy to spot.