Make a Wish (and other organizations) ~ Wish Trippers UNITE! Volume FOUR!

[owensdad]

90 mins to go then off to the airport, Owens wish begins!!!

 

[angeque143]

90 mins to go then off to the airport, Owens wish begins!!!

HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME!!!!

 

[PenelopeL]

I think it's a dollar or 2 per bag. You usually tip after he hands you your boarding pass and claim check tickets. I usually don't skycap but I did last year when flying back from Chicago because I had my baby with me and didn't feel like standing in line. If you stay on property, you sometimes tip the maid and the bellhop. Staying at GKTW, I would say they wouldn't except tips anyway. I would say just at restaurants, bars, etc. Hope this helps!

Thanks for this info. It is so helpful! I was worried I would offend someone by not tipping them when I should, but I guess it's not too different from where I live.

Yep, No tipping needed at GKTW. Volunteers are NOT allowed to take tips for any reason.

Good to know. Thank you!

 

[PenelopeL]

90 mins to go then off to the airport, Owens wish begins!!!

Exciting! Hope your week is fantastic, and full of good times!!

 

[Perrinsmommy]

90 mins to go then off to the airport, Owens wish begins!!!

Have a WONDERFUL time!!!!

 

[mommy2girlswv]

90 mins to go then off to the airport, Owens wish begins!!!

I hope the little ones have great time, enjoy the warm weather...

 

[mommy2girlswv]

Skycap is the curbside checkin. Its so you don't have to go to the counter. You just check in at the curb. They take your bags and give you your boarding passes and luggage claim tickets and you go straight to security

Thanks, our airport is very very small. The airplane we are in to ATL and back from ATL only haves 52seats. I been to the airport few times to drop off and pick up people and I never saw curbside checkin at ours.
The whole airport map It's small...but it's our state airport.

 

[tinytreasures]

90 mins to go then off to the airport, Owens wish begins!!!

Have a wonderful time

 

[jwallaceent]

90 mins to go then off to the airport, Owens wish begins!!!

Have a great time...

 

[jj0plin]

Oh my gosh.... 10 days left!!!! Where did the time go??!? I better get busy!!

 

[mom2pixies]

Does anyone know if "Tinkerbell" can still be viewed at Tinkerbell's Treasures in MK? I know that they have discontinued waking her up each morning, but just wondering if you still can see the her 'light' race around the shop or peer into the keyhole of the dresser drawer to see her?-9999999999999

I just think Brooke would get such a kick out of seeing Tink. I know I would! She's my fave character!

 

[brookerene]

There was a Big Give that has journeyed our way...take a safari on over to our PTR to see it....!!!

 

[maroo]

Does anyone know if "Tinkerbell" can still be viewed at Tinkerbell's Treasures in MK? I know that they have discontinued waking her up each morning, but just wondering if you still can see the her 'light' race around the shop or peer into the keyhole of the dresser drawer to see her?-9999999999999

I just think Brooke would get such a kick out of seeing Tink. I know I would! She's my fave character!

Lauren got to meet Tink in Epcot - right now they have the fairies there in Epcot for the Flower and Garden Festival. Not sure where they will be when that is done, but it was cool to meet her! It was just like a regular character meet and greet!

 

[maroo]

I am back!

The paper on my desk is crazy and I sorta forgot to pay my internet bill at home (whoops! ), so I am internetless until they get my check processed. lol

But...I am going to catch up on this thread as much as possible and get caught up on all of my PM's!

 

[that's nice]

I am back!

The paper on my desk is crazy and I sorta forgot to pay my internet bill at home (whoops! ), so I am internetless until they get my check processed. lol

But...I am going to catch up on this thread as much as possible and get caught up on all of my PM's!

Welcome home Maroo!

 

[maroo]

I hope it's okay to ask this in this thread. We are getting ready to go on My son's wish trip, and it just occurred to me that he has never been to the beach, but has always asked what it was. This would be the perfect opportunity to get a little beach time in, since I'm pretty sure it will be a few years before another opportunity to go to the beach comes along. With that in mind, can anyone recommend a nearby beach (or the closest possible one) that would be a good place to take the kids while we are in Florida?

I think you got the beach answer...

But I just wanted to say to the Wish Trippers thread!

Just curious, how long does it take "usually" between when a child is referred for Make a Wish and when the wish is granted? I know there is probably a huge variation but just curious how long in general. I am referring my 15 yr old dd but I am not telling her until I hear back from MAW...I don't want to get her hopes up in case she is turned down
Thanks!

I don't think there is a good "usual"...I have seen anywhere from a couple of weeks to months and months. Depends on your chapter, funding, your doctor's speed in getting the forms back, etc, etc.

to the Wish Trippers thread!

Question.

How long will it take to get from GKTW to each park? How early should we leave GKTW to get to the parks for opening or shortly there after.

We will be parking in handicap parking, how close to the gates is this parking?

4 DAYS!!!!

I know you are already gone...but for anyone else wondering this answer or for the future lurkers...

Generally GKTW to any park is 20-30 min - but try to stay off the interstate if it is rush hour. Add another 30 min to get to the MK, since you have to take another mode of transportation to get there.

AK and DHS are really close to the front gate. Epcot seemed further away, but I think it was because they really did not have enough HA parking and it was always full by the time we got there.

MK is close to the TTC, but then you have to take the boat or monorail. We took the boat and it seemed easier (not having to push Jessica - who was in a manual chair) up the big ramp and getting her down the big ramp was a plus. And at the end of the day at MK - it is much faster to take the boat than the monorail back to the TTC.

We understand Christy, . Work DOES come first, unfortunately!!!

It does?!?!?








just kidding!

I don't know if anyone remembers me but I was here a couple months ago asking questions. DS was diagnosed with Wilm's tumor last year in June and he finished his chemo Nov. 29th.

Well we met with our wish coordinator a couple weeks ago and Disneyworld is a go! Our wish coordinator told us it would be in the fall but they called on Friday and they are checking into the beginning of May. I can't believe it might be so close. I'm busy reading and trying to figure everything out as fast as we can.

This will be DH and my 4th trip and DS's 2nd(although he was only 10 months the 1st time). DS on the 16th. I keep waffling on our decision to take the trip now since DD is only just-turned 1 but I keep wondering what if we wait and something happens. Plus it would be so nice to just have something fun to talk about and look forward to. How do some of you feel about waiting until kids are a little older to experience more vs going soon and having something a really positive experience to heal?

this is a toss up, in my opinion. I am not a parent, so take this with grain of salt...but it seems to me to be easier to take a smaller child to Disney that is still in a stroller that can sleep when they want in the stroller...easier than taking a young child that has to walk around the parks and gets tired and cranky. It just seems easier to take a younger child - especially if you do plan to go later as a family, too.

IF it was going to be the only time you would be able to go because of finances or travel issues or whatever, then I might wait...but if you can go ahead and go...then seems like the thing to do??

Not sure what other feedback you go on here...I need to keep reading....

Happy weekend everyone!

We started going through the WDW for kids books, and it is overwhelming! We are trying to see what type of rides we can bring Hannah on. Small World is a definite and possibly the jungle cruise.

For you WDW experts out there, can you come up with more possibilities for an almost 3yo who is unable to walk or sit up unassisted for long periods of time (usually needs to be held) who is also at a 1yo level developmentally? It can be at any of the parks or Universal (which I think they mentioned we could also go to).

She loves lights, colors, and music if that helps!

We just got back...so I might be able to help with this....

Magic Kingdom

At MK Lauren could stay in her wheelchair for these rides: Small World, Buzz Lightyear, Pooh (we asked them to turn OFF the bouncing), Flying Carpets (we did not ride this, but supposedly they have a wheelchair car??), Jungle Cruise (I have good pictures of this...I gotta get my pics organized!).

We also thought she could probably handle Dumbo riding in her Mom's lap, but we never tried it.

Peter Pan is possible, if she is small and you are able to transfer her while on a moving walkway...I did hit Lauren's head on the ride..., but she liked it. She is 70 pounds and transferring her on the ride while it was moving was not easy.

Of course the shows (Philharmagic, etc, etc) were all wheelchair accessible - but not sure how she will do with 3D attractions??

Epcot

We actually took Lauren on Soarin'. She sat between her Mom and I...We transfered Jessica (who has a spinal cord injury chest down and she was fine riding it with no assistance from us) and then transfered Lauren. She just leaned against her Mom and we seat belted her in. But Lauren did not really like it - too much motion on the screen for her.

Turtle Talk with Crush and Nemo are both wheelchair accessible rides. The Land is wheelchair accessible (but boring for most kids).

I can't remember anything else...we did not have much time there.



DHS

Toy Story - wheelchair accessible! (But it does whip around pretty fast in a few places - so you might want to ride it first - Lauren does not ride Toy Story because it is too much movement for her)

All shows - wheelchair accessible! Don't be afraid to ask for closer seating for her - the CM's will probably do that anyway, when they see you are a wish family - but don't be afraid to ask if they are going to put you in the back of a theatre.


AK

Safari - wheelchair accessible - but also very bumpy. It is a long ride...so I don't know about riding this twice...it would take quite a while. Lauren can't ride - too bumpy.

Lion King and the Nemo Show are so wonderful and she can stay in her chair for both of those. Ask for "the box" at the Nemo show. Best seat in the house!

The train to Rafiki's island is also accessible.



The wonderful thing about Disney is that the rides are fun...but so much of Disney has little to do with the rides. The shows, fireworks, character greetings, etc are all so disability friendly that you could go to Disney and never ride anything and still get so much out of your day.

Lauren rode very few rides on this last trip and she still had a blast!



Keep in mind that with the magic button you guys can ride anything more than once and not have much of a wait...so you can always ride it first and test it out for her.


Note for anyone else reading this...(as I am sure your child won't be into rollercoasters...)...I was SOOO impressed with Expedition Everest and Rock-n-Rollercoaster because they have swing away arms so that it is fairly easy to transfer in and out of the roller coaster - very neat for someone with upper body strength.

 

[maroo]

Welcome home Maroo!

Thanks, Tim! How was your trip?!?

 

[that's nice]

Thanks, Tim! How was your trip?!?

It was busy in the parks, as you know, but we got there early and pretty much did everything we wanted. I don't want to ruin the surprise but something happened to us that was so amazing... and the unexpected is one of the reasons I (we) love Disney so much. There is no way I can get out of writing a TR for this trip, but I guess that will help me pass the time, since we can't go or travel back to Florida for a while...

 

[maroo]

Feeling guilty here hope this is Okay to do.
I booked the 50s cafe on the 20th even though we don't have dates. It's okay to cancel if we don't get our dates we want right?
I figured I better get it now or we wouldn't get anything since it is star wars weekend.
I tried booking CRT for any day that week but it was all booked up

Don't feel guilty!

Book it and cancel as soon as you know you won't be able to use it. Typical families do this all the time and a wish trip is even more special to plan - go for it!

I Have a question about the GAC and our group. How will the GAC work with rides that Kade would not normally be able to ride, like Rock 'n Rollercoaster? Will we be allowed to jump the line even if he does not ride a ride?

Technically the GAC is only for the child it is issued to - BUT - we used it for all the rides for Lauren and her brother. Her brother took it to the CM and was very honest and told them it was his sister's wish trip and where should they line up and 100% of the time they sent him to the FP line or the exit. This was the same at Sea World (and we never went to Universal).

I think they get it... A wish child should not have to wait for their brother or sister to go on a ride that has an hour wait when they could be in and out and back with their family enjoying time together.

This does NOT go for any other GAC (as they are not transferable). This is only for the green light GAC that issued by GKTW for this one trip - and this "advice" is not official - this is just how it worked 100% of the time for Lauren's trip and for every other family that I know of that has tried it. I have never heard of a CM denying access.

Hi everyone! I am not sure if I'm posting in the right spot?! My little boy Griff has been granted a Wish trip to Disney World in April and we are all beyond excited!! Griff is 5 years old and was diagnosed with Leukemia last March. We also have two little girls (who love princesses) Addison, 4, and, Ansley, 2. Griff is most excited about meeting his favorite superhero, Spiderman, at Universal Studios. Any help in planning our trip is most appreciated, especially in scheduling Character Dining. Thanks so much!!!

to the Wish Trippers thread!!

I hope your son is doing much better now!

No. You will not. The GAC is issued for the person with the disability, and if that person does not go on the attraction that is misuse of the GAC. The trip and special privileges are for the child with the disability, not for the rest of the family.

I am sorry, I disagree with this - only for wish trips. I know a typical GAC is issued to the disabled person only - and misuse of it is not cool at all. But for a wish trip, all of the CM's that we came in contact with wanted the sibling to be able to spend time with their whole family and waiting in line forever just doesn't jive with this.

I realize you are a CM - and totally appreciate where you are coming from on this - as I know GAC's are misused all the time.

Disney only gives these families three days in Disney - and I honestly believe that if I were talking to a manager at the parks that they would really want the family to be together as much as possible and would bend over backwards to provide any and all access to the siblings, too. Just for wish trips.

I may get in trouble for writing this...if a Mod wants to adjust it, they can. But I have strong feelings about this and the precedent from many families in the past two years suggests a consistent "yes you can" for the siblings of children with GKTW issued wish trip GAC's.

I am not advocating anyone lie - I think the families should tell the CM at the ride that it is not their GAC but belongs to their sister/brother and they are on a wish trip and just see where the CM directs them.

 

[maroo]

It was busy in the parks, as you know, but we got there early and pretty much did everything we wanted. I don't want to ruin the surprise but something happened to us that was so amazing... and the unexpected is one of the reasons I (we) love Disney so much. There is no way I can get out of writing a TR for this trip, but I guess that will help me pass the time, since we can't go or travel back to Florida for a while...

I wasn't going to do a TR either...and I gave away most of our surprises on my FB page - but I think I might have to do at least a mini one...we had way to many adventures not to!

The crowds were INSANE.