Marathon Weekend 2023

[camaker]

Yeah and at CBR more than other resorts, it depends what you prefer to be close to. The Preferred rooms are in Barbados and Martinique which are closer to the lobby and pool, but further from the Skyliner stations that are near Jamaica and Aruba.

When I stay at CBR it's to take advantage of the Skyliner, so I actually request to stay in the Jamaica or Aruba sections. They're very convenient to either the main (Jamaica) or Riviera (Aruba) Skyliner stations. Each have their own bus stop and with Sodastream machines located in every other building, I rarely find a need to go across the lake to the food court or central building.

 

[Dom497]

With everyones posts about FP/Genie+, some of you might find this documentary very interesting:

 

[StacyStrong]

I can’t believe the prices aren’t up yet.

 

[accm]

I can’t believe the prices aren’t up yet.

I'd also like to know the time registration will open. When do they usually announce that?

 

[GreatLakes]

I'd also like to know the time registration will open. When do they usually announce that?

10:00am eastern. They generally open the queue a little before 10 and then start draining it at 10.

 

[nekonekoneko]

SAFD: Oh yes, the first thing I would do is get rid of the entire Genie/G+/ILL system. The whole thing is about as confusing as assembly instructions written in hieroglyphics. The FP system gave a benefit to people staying on-site. But the G+/ILL system more so penalizes people who are staying off-site. I'm not sure what I'd replace it with, maybe at least the FP+ system in the meanwhile?

Anyway, for everyone in the Disney hierarchy who liked the G+ system:

 

[GleepingBeauty]

Has anyone ever got the chEAR Squad package for their family? Is it even still a thing?

 

[RunWI1265]

Just booked my stay! I put on my big girl pants and braved the telephone (I have phone anxiety typical of millennials lol). The cast member was great.

You are braver than me. I have a reservation starting Dec 31 I’m waiting to modify because I’m avoiding calling

SAFD: I don’t think I’d do away with G+ all together if there wasn’t a better replacement. We were masters of FP+ and we definitely miss it, but we’ve also been able to work with G+. We have yet to use it with our entire family of four though, and during busier times. It’ll be a bummer if we only end up getting 2-3 passes a day as they now say is the average. One of my biggest gripes is how the time you select if most often not the time you are given once you select your entire way through the screens. And as usually lots of errors/crashes/glitches etc. I am willing to admit I don’t have the answers on what would make it the best system but I do know they should be putting out a fully functioning system, not one we have to learn to work around or work with the glitches.

 

[nekonekoneko]

Has anyone ever got the chEAR Squad package for their family? Is it even still a thing?

Ive gotten the chEAR squad for myself, and it's fine. runDisney has not offered it since coming back from the pandemic, though.

 

[opusone]

SAFD: so, I have used the G+/ILL system both in January for MW and this last week, and as someone who has never complained about any of the prior systems (even when they first came out), I really dislike the current system! It is really the worst of all worlds:

• You get times you don't necessarily want (even with ILL since the final time slot is oftentimes very different from what you originally picked no matter how fast you get through and pay)
  • If you like to plan, it makes it almost impossible to do so
  • If you like to wing it (but don't want to wait in standby lines all day), it's not optimal either because you will have to plan based on the next available LL time slot for the ride(s) you prefer
• Since you cannot pick times (again, even with ILL most times), you inevitably get return windows that overlap with other plans (dining or other LL bookings that may be far away)
  • Sure with G+ you can wait to book until the return times get later than the current window, but then you are also delaying your follow-on LL selection time
• It typically makes for a very inefficient day of walking back and forth across the park all day long - reminds me of all the back and forth of the old FP ticket system
  • You oftentimes have to pick between a closer ride with a later return or a farther ride with an earlier return (neither one is optimal)
• Although you can stack if your prior selected LL return times are much later in the day (which they often are), but then if you cancel an earlier LL booking, you cannot rebook on another ride (only cancelling your latest selection will open the LL window again) - this one really makes no sense (if I cancel any valid LL reservation, I should be able to book another available one... period)
• Since everyone is fighting for spots at the exact same time, if you don't have good cell coverage or WiFi at 7am (for resort guests) or if the system gets bogged down with the traffic load, you can be completely out-of-luck for popular ILL rides and/or get a really bad start for your first G+ reservation

To please both the planners and the wingers, I have a couple of options that would likely work better:

1) If not too complex, allocate the LL slots into two buckets (one for the planners, and one for the folks that like to decide day-of):

• Allocated LL slots (let's say pro rata 50% to the planners and 50% to the wingers, although the percentages could be adjusted as they see where the demand is)
  • For one 50%, mimic the old FP+ system for those who like to plan [60] days in advance (and can pick their time slots from the remaining available slots)
  • For the other 50%, keep those LL spots for the day-of crowd (but maybe use more of a MaxPass approach for those reservations)

2) If you can only have one system:

• Give everyone a chance to input their top [3] LL preferences and preferred times the day before (up until 12 midnight)
  • You could possibly even be able to select acceptable window-ranges for preferred times (+/-1hour, +/- 2 hours, anytime, etc.)
  • Since everybody has all day for the inputs, there would be no bogging down of the servers
• From 12 midnight to 5am, the servers could assign all the LL spots based on the preferences
  • Since the servers have a 5-hour window, there would be absolutely no bogging down of servers
  • Now, for the priority of selections, there are probably many ways to do this, but one suggestion would be:
    • Servers would first prioritize every person who made selections, or groups of people if selected together (would likely be a max of about 100k-200k people/groups each day, depending on how many folks paid for the service)
      • This prioritization could first be based on whatever buckets Disney chooses: Club 33/DVC first, on-site resorts next, AP/Disney Visa next, all others (obviously, I'm just making this up)
      • Then, within each bucket, the servers could just randomly order the people each day
  • Then, the servers go through and assign the LL spots
    • Go to the first person (or group of people) and look at their first selection. If available, the system gives them the LL reservation.
      • If not, I would think it would look at their 2nd selection and give them that, if available, and on to their 3rd if still not available
    • Go to the next person, do the same
    • After all the first LL assignments have been made, start going though the list again for the second LL assignments, and then onto the 3rd, if available
• When everyone wakes up in the morning, they would see all their assigned LL reservations and can go have fun
  • You could still have day-of LL selections available as people cancel

 

[LosAngelesRunner]

So my crew decided to stay in Saratoga Springs via renting DVC points! Excited to be in a bigger 2 bedroom villa for the Dopey, especially as it's close to DS and I won't be doing parks during the race days (as of now...). We should have a car while we're there, so not too concerned about the bus system issues I've heard about at SSR before. Otherwise, excited for registration to open up this month to lock in the Dopey and prevent me from getting cold feet!

 

[Herding_Cats]

SAFD: Used G+ during our trip for Spring break/SS. Let me just say that this system is SO FRUSTRATING. The inability to choose a time is awful. I had to sit and wait an hour and a half because the time slot I needed for FEA and TT wouldn't show up. And that negatively impacted my ability to book OTHER stuff sooner and stack my afternoon with LL stuff. I was a master for the FP+ system (I had to have a big talk with all of my kids and my in-laws before this trip about how we would have to wait in lines and not just FP everything) and the whole aspect of being at the mercy of the app (Oh hey! BTM for 2:30, click, select party, aaaand now it's 7:50?!) is awful. We definitely got more than 3 LL per day, but we are also hard-core rope droppers, know which attractions to go to first, and I read up a lot on strategies for stacking your afternoon/evening.

If Disney HAS to make money off this, they just need to go back to the FP+ system (with the earlier perk for on-site guests) and charge for it. If they need the window to be shorter than 60/30 days, fine. But people should be able to plan their day.

 

[Herding_Cats]

I'm stressing out about registration. Not about *getting* registered, but about whether or not I should. And if I DO register for something, what should I register for? DH is going to be super stressed out about the cost because we just got back from spring break, and won't want to spend the money. So that's going to be a fun conversation to have. Especially since he told me not to sign up for the summer virtuals 3 hours after I did it yesterday. OOPS!A

On a side note: if you live in a midwest state and have a Meijer nearby, they are running their $5 mperks reward for every $50 in gift cards (up to $500) through the 16th of this month. So if you used multiple mperks accounts and then combined your giftcards (it'll only let you go up to $1000) you could pay for some groceries.

 

[1lilspark]

Have to be at work at 11 on registration day so that eases some temptation lol (I set sail on the wish a few weeks later anyway so I hadn’t been planning to run but IF I were off I’d of seen if it was a convenient weekend for a friend who wanted to run )

 

[sandam1]

I'm stressing out about registration. Not about *getting* registered, but about whether or not I should. And if I DO register for something, what should I register for? DH is going to be super stressed out about the cost because we just got back from spring break, and won't want to spend the money.

My advice would be to look at what you want your trip to look like. Not the sun, moon and stars, I found a money tree in the backyard trip, but one that you would be happy with. Figure out what it is going to cost. Then look at where can you cut things out and not miss them much. And then figure out how you are going to make/save that amount between now and January.

Thanks to the SAFD which made me do post-MW accounting this year, I know approximately what this year's trip is going to cost me. My strategy for how to make and/or save that extra amount are as follows:

My ways to make money

• Picking up every extra day available over the summer at my second job - this money goes directly into a separate account
• Participating in My Points (surveys, videos, shopping) on a daily basis - I can make at least $400 doing this which I convert into gift cards
• Participating in Shopkicks (primarily going into stores and scanning items) - I can make at least $150 per year in Disney gift cards
• Playing the credit card/bank account bonus "game" - At least one bonus of $100-150 per year
• Sell things that I am no longer using/need online - I'm doing this A LOT this year

My ways to save money:

• Buying gift cards at a discount to use for registration. I can get 5-10% off on these. Even the minimum 5% of $660 is $33
• Buying discount gift cards for purchases that I would otherwise be making
• Using my Southwest credit card to get enough points for my flights to be "free"
• Using my Disney credit card when there are promotions that give me 5% back - this is my Expo money
• Watching for discounts on my hotel rooms and car rental, checking daily if needed
• Staying at and going to Universal instead of Disney - there are a whole bunch of reasons that I do this, but the savings can be substantial

All of these things do take time, but IMHO so does training for a race. If I want it bad enough, I will find the time and energy to do them. I work at a non-profit and since my salary is low, I've had to get creative on finding "extra" money for an "extra things" I want to do. Over time it has just become a way of life for me. (P.S. If you want more tips, head over to the DIS Budget Board as there are some masters there)

My goal is to have all of my race weekend expenses paid for - or have the cash/gift cards on hand to do so - by the beginning of September. That way as the training time increases, I can pull back on the time that I dedicate to the money aspect of the trip.

 

[Herding_Cats]

My advice would be to look at what you want your trip to look like. Not the sun, moon and stars, I found a money tree in the backyard trip, but one that you would be happy with. Figure out what it is going to cost. Then look at where can you cut things out and not miss them much. And then figure out how you are going to make/save that amount between now and January.

Thanks to the SAFD which made me do post-MW accounting this year, I know approximately what this year's trip is going to cost me. My strategy for how to make and/or save that extra amount are as follows:

My ways to make money

• Playing the credit card/bank account bonus "game" - At least one bonus of $100-150 per year
• Sell things that I am no longer using/need online - I'm doing this A LOT this year

My ways to save money:

• Buying gift cards at a discount to use for registration. I can get 5-10% off on these. Even the minimum 5% of $660 is $33
• Buying discount gift cards for purchases that I would otherwise be making
• Using my Southwest credit card to get enough points for my flights to be "free"
• Watching for discounts on my hotel rooms and car rental, checking daily if needed

All of these things do take time, but IMHO so does training for a race. If I want it bad enough, I will find the time and energy to do them. I work at a non-profit and since my salary is low, I've had to get creative on finding "extra" money for an "extra things" I want to do. Over time it has just become a way of life for me. (P.S. If you want more tips, head over to the DIS Budget Board as there are some masters there)

My goal is to have all of my race weekend expenses paid for - or have the cash/gift cards on hand to do so - by the beginning of September. That way as the training time increases, I can pull back on the time that I dedicate to the money aspect of the trip.

I have a massive spreadsheet dedicated to the weekend already, and I left in the things you listed that I already do. I'm pretty sure I started it in January when all of the expenses were fresh in my mind. It's based on renting DVC points (and there are sections for different room categories and different $/point) or staying at an All-Star resort, because once I add on a rental car and the resort fees for staying offsite, it's cheaper to stay DVC/on-site. It would be a run-cation, with no parks, maybe 1 sit-down meal, and a grocery stop or delivery. The bottom line is that for my to run Dopey, it's going to be $2-2500. Plus a little more if DH wants to run the 5k and 10k. We started playing the credit card game HARD right before covid started, and would pay for all of the flights (and maybe a rental car) with points. i have a few ways I can cut costs by $100 here and there down the line, but none of those pay for possibly $1000 in registrations in three weeks. And if DH doesn't want to go (or isn't able to because of work and his winter coaching commitments) that's an incredibly expensive trip for me to make on my own. Plus there's the fact that it's so far out. It was a lot easier to talk DH into MW this year because registration was in August.

I'm currently at SAHM, with a 2 year old (and even if I could FIND daycare, it's cost prohibitive to work and pay daycare in my area.) We are looking at me possibly working over the summer (and making the older kids "babysit" a few hours each morning) and I'm currently coaching a middle school baseball team, but that's money in a few months.

 

[GreatLakes]

My advice would be to look at what you want your trip to look like. Not the sun, moon and stars, I found a money tree in the backyard trip, but one that you would be happy with. Figure out what it is going to cost. Then look at where can you cut things out and not miss them much. And then figure out how you are going to make/save that amount between now and January.

To piggy back off of this we have started to spend much less time at Disney when we do Disney races. My wife and I are signed up for races at W&D but this is our current plan:

Stay offsite
Do only one park day with kid and grandma
Do one character meal outside of the park (hoping for Artist Point)
Hang out at the resort and the 4 or 5 pools they have
Go do other stuff around Orlando
Hit the party at Epcot Sunday night leaving kid and grandma at the hotel

 

[sandam1]

Got it!

It's based on renting DVC points (and there are sections for different room categories and different $/point) or staying at an All-Star resort, because once I add on a rental car and the resort fees for staying offsite, it's cheaper to stay DVC/on-site.

Wow, I wouldn't have expected the math to play out that way. Have you tried non-Disney timeshares? I've heard that good deals can be found there. Also, while I booked a rental car months before MW for this year, the cost dropped a lot (like by more than half) about four weeks out. So while you can't depend on that happening, that might not be a hard number.

none of those pay for possibly $1000 in registrations in three weeks.

Absolutely! But if you can get some discounted Disney gift cards (a Target credit card is the easiest way to get them at 5% off, but I know that some Chase cards have shopDisney deals to get 10% off), that would at least bring it down a little bit.

I'm currently at SAHM, with a 2 year old (and even if I could FIND daycare, it's cost prohibitive to work and pay daycare in my area.)

Have you looked into something like My Points or Shopkicks? I find that the time investment is relatively low and, if you are willing to pay the game, the rewards can be substantial. It isn't instantaneous money, but it does add up over time (like, say 9 months)

 

[DisneyParrothead]

I have a massive spreadsheet dedicated to the weekend already, and I left in the things you listed that I already do. I'm pretty sure I started it in January when all of the expenses were fresh in my mind. It's based on renting DVC points (and there are sections for different room categories and different $/point) or staying at an All-Star resort, because once I add on a rental car and the resort fees for staying offsite, it's cheaper to stay DVC/on-site. It would be a run-cation, with no parks, maybe 1 sit-down meal, and a grocery stop or delivery. The bottom line is that for my to run Dopey, it's going to be $2-2500. Plus a little more if DH wants to run the 5k and 10k. We started playing the credit card game HARD right before covid started, and would pay for all of the flights (and maybe a rental car) with points. i have a few ways I can cut costs by $100 here and there down the line, but none of those pay for possibly $1000 in registrations in three weeks. And if DH doesn't want to go (or isn't able to because of work and his winter coaching commitments) that's an incredibly expensive trip for me to make on my own. Plus there's the fact that it's so far out. It was a lot easier to talk DH into MW this year because registration was in August.

I'm currently at SAHM, with a 2 year old (and even if I could FIND daycare, it's cost prohibitive to work and pay daycare in my area.) We are looking at me possibly working over the summer (and making the older kids "babysit" a few hours each morning) and I'm currently coaching a middle school baseball team, but that's money in a few months.

I think the number one important question is: is your heart absolutely set on doing Dopey? Dopey registration is the most expensive by far, and doing Dopey means locking in to at least a 5-day trip to get to the expo for packet pick up, and then 4 days afterwards for the races.

 

[PrincessV]

SAFD: I am "that" old-timer... get rid of G+, LL, FP and any facsimile there of. Standby only. Forever and ever. Amen.

I've held some variation of WDW AP for 30 years, so I've experienced it in every way... and right now is the worst experience I've ever had in terms of crowd control and standby wait times. It's quite likely I won't renew when my current AP expires, I'm so over it.