Most Expensive / Moist Exhausting Continued - Final thoughts and wrap-up

[Rozz]

So sad to read your trip report is at the last morning in WDW!

 

[glennbo123]

Sorry Glenn, but if I have a choice between taking a half-hunched over picture of myself and a checkered dress shirt I'm going with taking a half-hunched over picture of myself.

Really? I'm hoping that the checkered shirt thing catches on.

Hi Glen , just passing time till I have to go to work !!Christine and I are going back and forth with our plans for December 2012 , as to where to stay !!It's between AKL, BMV and OKW or again there is the New Animation resort !! Hopefully by this December we will have decided !!

When is the new Animation resort expected to be open? I think that it's supposed to be able to accomodate larger-numbered families, which would be reaaaally nice.

I think the dryer's are just that way. I stayed at FW in Dec 2010 and I had to do some laundry and it seamed I was drying them forever.

Probably so....but definitely something to keep in mind -- don't wait until check-out morning to try to dry a couple of loads of laundry.

Looks like you guys still had fun on your last morning! It's always sad though. I cried at checkout one year when I went up to the CM a couple of years ago. For some reason they didn't have express checkout back so you had to physically checkout. Anyway good thing I had sunglasses on because I started to tear up when the CM said See you soon!

Aw, what a nice story. Walt would've loved that. It's definitely hard to leave...I wish I could live there!

Too funny!! Yeah, I think I'm probably out of luck on that one.

I think I saw a post recently where somebody said it was really hot now.

We can't wait to check it out. We haven't read the books but are definitely lovers of the movies!

You're good to go!

Oh yeah, I hadn't thought about the fact that you have 5. I have a friend who is a "party of five" and they have problems finding what they want for a reasonable price too.

As long as hotels let me stuff 5 of us in a room we'll do it (non-DVC I mean, of course), but I'm afraid they're going to start making me get 2 rooms.

You could have a big family blowout! Or you could go for a much longer trip!! Either way sounds fantastic!

Both of those options are being mulled over.

Evening Blue !!!

I'm not Blue, but I'd still like to say "Hi Rosie!"

So sad to read your trip report is at the last morning in WDW!

Thanks Rozz. It's sad for me to see it end too. It's been a lot of fun re-living it through writing this report.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

I'd love to try out some of the other DVC resorts, but with 5 in our family we're kind of limited because of occupancy. At Boardwalk we'd have to go to a 2 bedroom unit and I don't want to use that many points. Although I've thought about doing that and maybe inviting other people (parental units or siblings) since there'd be extra beds. I think Marv told me that some of the OKW 1-bedroom suites now have the sleeper chair and can therefore accommodate 5 people though.

Oh yeah, I hadn't thought about the fact that you have 5. I have a friend who is a "party of five" and they have problems finding what they want for a reasonable price too.

As long as hotels let me stuff 5 of us in a room we'll do it (non-DVC I mean, of course), but I'm afraid they're going to start making me get 2 rooms.

If I had one complaint about Disney (and really, I don't have many), it's that they seem incapable of building hotel rooms that can accommodate a family of 5. There aren't many affordable options out there. My DW and I were looking at a pie-in-the-sky trip to Aulani and were disappointed to see that once again, the hotel rooms there accommodate a max. of 4 people. Entering a 5th person meant we needed a suite...at $1,350 a night.

Sorry Glenn, but if I have a choice between taking a half-hunched over picture of myself and a checkered dress shirt I'm going with taking a half-hunched over picture of myself.

Really? I'm hoping that the checkered shirt thing catches on.

Don't knock it till you try it!

 

[All7OfUs]

Entering a 5th person meant we needed a suite...at $1,350 a night.

Guess that leaves us out. Which really peeves me to no end!! The clandestine sleeping bag on the floor trick suddenly becomes a very attractive option....

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Guess that leaves us out. Which really peeves me to no end!! The clandestine sleeping bag on the floor trick suddenly becomes a very attractive option....

We've pulled that trick before! (don't tell anybody)

I guess there's also the whole rent-DVC-points-from-an-owner thing, but I'm not sure how that all works. Aulani would have been a stretch for the budget anyway. I just get frustrated when the options for 4 people are plentiful, but that extra kid does away with many of them.

 

[glennbo123]

Don't knock it till you try it!

Exactly!

If I had one complaint about Disney (and really, I don't have many), it's that they seem incapable of building hotel rooms that can accommodate a family of 5. There aren't many affordable options out there.

That was a big factor in why we bought into DVC....but I didn't say it was necessarily an affordable option. Still, we can get all of us in a 1-bedroom suite, rather than getting two hotel rooms.

My DW and I were looking at a pie-in-the-sky trip to Aulani and were disappointed to see that once again, the hotel rooms there accommodate a max. of 4 people. Entering a 5th person meant we needed a suite...at $1,350 a night.

We're looking at that too, for 2014. And I have a solution that we plan to employ for that whole number of people problem....but I doubt that your kids'd like it.

Guess that leaves us out. Which really peeves me to no end!! The clandestine sleeping bag on the floor trick suddenly becomes a very attractive option....

What?!

We've pulled that trick before! (don't tell anybody)

Somehow that trick is a lot easier to pull off at a Super 8 than at Disney.

I guess there's also the whole rent-DVC-points-from-an-owner thing, but I'm not sure how that all works. Aulani would have been a stretch for the budget anyway. I just get frustrated when the options for 4 people are plentiful, but that extra kid does away with many of them.

I can talk to you about it if you ever want to try it. There's a "rent/trade" forum under the DVC section of the DIS. It can be a great option, but the only drawback is that you have to go through the owner of the points for all of the reservations and you may feel less in control.

When we bought in 2008 we got some "Developer" points (ie. one year only, not recurring like your usual points) at Saratoga Springs, but we couldn't use them so we rented them on that board. The family that rented them got a pretty good deal, and let me know that they had a wonderful trip.

 

[englishrose47]

When is the new Animation resort expected to be open? I think that it's supposed to be able to accomodate larger-numbered families, which would be reaaaally nice.




I'm not Blue, but I'd still like to say "Hi Rosie!"



.

I think the new resort opens next summer !!!3 of the 4 sections will be suites that accomodate 6 , 1 is just rooms !!I;ve seen pix of the designs and they are sooo cute !!As an AKL DVC er you would prolly like the Lion King Theme !!

Well Thanks Glenn , Blue and I always used to start the day off with a greeting !!!It's hard to resist old habits !! But I likeHi's from everyone even Marv!!!!

 

[All7OfUs]

What?!



Somehow that trick is a lot easier to pull off at a Super 8 than at Disney.

oopsie, you mean that was a taboo thing??

yeah, as it eliminates any chance of them eating- which unfortunately, mine do once in a while.

 

[eandesmom]

all of this is why we will buy. It's not an if, it's a when. You think 5 is bad...try 6!

I do think renting can be a great option for a lot of folks. It is interesting, we are in the very early stages of a large family trip (like 9-30 people lol) and it's moved (I HOPE) from august 2012 to December. We plan to own by then and so I spent some time figuring out how best to work it out based on our tentative dates.

MAN, over the holidays, even though it is wicked high points, DVC sure blows those rack rates out of the park. It will be interesting to see how it plays out but honestly I'm glad to know that this is coming down the pike as it likely will play into what we choose as our home resort to get the 11 month booking advantage.

I'd originally thought to do our points at Aulani. For us, it makes a ton of sense. Not so for most I realize. But, with this, I think I need to make it two contracts. One at Aulani and one at WDW.

We shall see....of course there is a nice little aulani deal out there to make it all very confusing and then there is the whole use year thing

 

[MAGICFOR2]

all of this is why we will buy. It's not an if, it's a when. You think 5 is bad...try 6!

I do think renting can be a great option for a lot of folks. It is interesting, we are in the very early stages of a large family trip (like 9-30 people lol) and it's moved (I HOPE) from august 2012 to December. We plan to own by then and so I spent some time figuring out how best to work it out based on our tentative dates.

MAN, over the holidays, even though it is wicked high points, DVC sure blows those rack rates out of the park. It will be interesting to see how it plays out but honestly I'm glad to know that this is coming down the pike as it likely will play into what we choose as our home resort to get the 11 month booking advantage.

I'd originally thought to do our points at Aulani. For us, it makes a ton of sense. Not so for most I realize. But, with this, I think I need to make it two contracts. One at Aulani and one at WDW.

We shall see....of course there is a nice little aulani deal out there to make it all very confusing and then there is the whole use year thing

Use Year - I was just going to say before you did - if you are doing two contracts and you plan to use all your points in one vacation sometimes, be sure you get the same use year - otherwise you can only get the 11 month window one at a time - can make it hard to get what you need for a family of 6. Just a thought - when I brought my DSIS, I found that getting two studios is less points than a suite, also. You get two kitchenettes and 2 bathrooms, just not alot of "living room" space.

 

[eandesmom]

Use Year - I was just going to say before you did - if you are doing two contracts and you plan to use all your points in one vacation sometimes, be sure you get the same use year - otherwise you can only get the 11 month window one at a time - can make it hard to get what you need for a family of 6. Just a thought - when I brought my DSIS, I found that getting two studios is less points than a suite, also. You get two kitchenettes and 2 bathrooms, just not alot of "living room" space.

Oh definitely same use year, if we do end up doing 2 however ideally Aulani is really intended for just Aulani and the other for WDW but it would give us the best flexibility at the 7 month window if they are same use year. I'm assuming in general, we won't be combining them if I end up with the breakdown I'm looking at now but you never know.

Studios are a great deal, if they work for your group's mix. We did 3 studios for our girls trip for that exact reason! However, with 6, we are pretty squarely in the 2 bedroom category but for Aulani will probably be in a 1b. The grand villas seem way over priced and pointed so even though there might be 30 of us, I don't see it as a good option. Yes, studio is less but it also loses privacy and washer/dryer so as a general rule I'd prefer the 1b.

We will see. Tentative plan would have us booking 2 rooms on points for the peak season dates and doing cash for the second set of dates which are at the value rate (and then hopefully with some kind of discount on top of that but you can't count on that). But of course that assumes we actually buy

Honestly though, if we don't buy, I'm not sure I see a 12/12 trip as being feasible financially for the dates we want so... the good news is I've lots of time between now and Jan 2012 which would be when I could book...if I own.

 

[GreatBiscuit]

Hey Glenn!

HOLY MOLEY am I behind!

First off, thanks for the HDDR lighting pic's. Always interesting to see how other folks have things setup. We use a dozen of those same lights at church..speaking of which I need to rent a lift and clean them. I'll add that the summer schedule.

I was sad to see you checking out, but glad you got some pool time in. That is just the worst thing when you are closing that door for the last time. I think you were wise to skip the park. We did MK on our last day and did not enjoy it. The rush to get in as much as possible before running back to the ME bus just took the joy out of it.

I'm sorry to see your tale coming to end. It's been a fun ride!

Plus everytime I read it, I hear Gomer Pyle in my head going Judy! Judy! Judy!. And you just can't put a price on that type of entertainment my friend.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

That was a big factor in why we bought into DVC....but I didn't say it was necessarily an affordable option. Still, we can get all of us in a 1-bedroom suite, rather than getting two hotel rooms.

I hear you. We couldn't get DVC to work with our budget (yet), but maybe someday... it's time for these kids to start earning their keep around here!

We're looking at that too, for 2014. And I have a solution that we plan to employ for that whole number of people problem....but I doubt that your kids'd like it.

If it involves leaving the kids behind...my wife loves it!

Somehow that trick is a lot easier to pull off at a Super 8 than at Disney.

I can talk to you about it if you ever want to try it. There's a "rent/trade" forum under the DVC section of the DIS. It can be a great option, but the only drawback is that you have to go through the owner of the points for all of the reservations and you may feel less in control.

When we bought in 2008 we got some "Developer" points (ie. one year only, not recurring like your usual points) at Saratoga Springs, but we couldn't use them so we rented them on that board. The family that rented them got a pretty good deal, and let me know that they had a wonderful trip.

Thanks, Glenn. I will definitely keep that in mind, and I appreciate the offer! I think I'd be in good hands if you were planning my vacation for me. Unless it involved a surprise trip to a cliff-diving class.

all of this is why we will buy. It's not an if, it's a when. You think 5 is bad...try 6!

I completely understand!

 

[englishrose47]

Glen I thought you shoukd Know Liesa and Marv are spreading rumors about you and Zebras on my ptr !!!!

 

[All7OfUs]

Glen I thought you shoukd Know Liesa and Marv are spreading rumors about you and Zebras on my ptr !!!!

Ooooh, I could never do such a thing. I was only repeating what I saw earlier....

 

[englishrose47]

Ooooh, I could never do such a thing. I was only repeating what I saw earlier....

Of course not Liesa you and I are both soooooo innocent

 

[glennbo123]

Oh my gosh, I’m so behind on replies…you people must think I abandoned you. I haven’t. Hopefully, I’ve done a better job of keeping up with all of your TRs/PTRs than the care and feeding of this one lately. It’s been tough though. With school winding-down we’ve had something to do every night this week, whether it’s a band or choir concert or awards ceremony or something else.

Note to Jen (CreightonsMomma), I saw on Brookelizabeth’s TR that Hyperspace Hoopla is taking place at the Hat this year, rather than the Jedi Training stage…so maybe visiting Star Wars Weekends won’t be as bad as you feared?

I think the new resort opens next summer !!!3 of the 4 sections will be suites that accomodate 6 , 1 is just rooms !!I;ve seen pix of the designs and they are sooo cute !!As an AKL DVC er you would prolly like the Lion King Theme !!

I think it’s very smart of them to finally have some other options for families with larger families. Maybe they might be something for us to look at if we want to add a day or two to a trip. Hmmmm.

Well Thanks Glenn , Blue and I always used to start the day off with a greeting !!!It's hard to resist old habits !! But I likeHi's from everyone even Marv!!!!

Even marv? Wow! (Just kidding Marv.)

oopsie, you mean that was a taboo thing??

yeah, as it eliminates any chance of them eating- which unfortunately, mine do once in a while.

It’s not taboo with me….we do the same thing. I was just giving you a hard time.

all of this is why we will buy. It's not an if, it's a when. You think 5 is bad...try 6!

Oh yeah, that’s even worse. (As in, more difficult.) I like your “not if, but when” attitude!

I do think renting can be a great option for a lot of folks. It is interesting, we are in the very early stages of a large family trip (like 9-30 people lol) and it's moved (I HOPE) from august 2012 to December. We plan to own by then and so I spent some time figuring out how best to work it out based on our tentative dates.

Wow, that’s a lot of people to plan for. You’re going to have to take that relaxed “go with the flow” mentality you developed for your last trip and factor it up a few notches.

MAN, over the holidays, even though it is wicked high points, DVC sure blows those rack rates out of the park. It will be interesting to see how it plays out but honestly I'm glad to know that this is coming down the pike as it likely will play into what we choose as our home resort to get the 11 month booking advantage.

I'd originally thought to do our points at Aulani. For us, it makes a ton of sense. Not so for most I realize. But, with this, I think I need to make it two contracts. One at Aulani and one at WDW.

We shall see....of course there is a nice little aulani deal out there to make it all very confusing and then there is the whole use year thing

I was wondering if re-sale prices would come down after the big push that occurred a month or two ago, but I haven’t seen it yet, at least not in what people are asking. There probably hasn’t been enough time for it to play out yet.

Use Year - I was just going to say before you did - if you are doing two contracts and you plan to use all your points in one vacation sometimes, be sure you get the same use year - otherwise you can only get the 11 month window one at a time - can make it hard to get what you need for a family of 6. Just a thought - when I brought my DSIS, I found that getting two studios is less points than a suite, also. You get two kitchenettes and 2 bathrooms, just not alot of "living room" space.

Yes, all the advice I see on the DVC boards says to keep the same Use Year for all of your contracts. There are some people who can make it work with different use years, but it can be difficult and requires a lot of planning and attention to various deadlines.

Oh definitely same use year, if we do end up doing 2 however ideally Aulani is really intended for just Aulani and the other for WDW but it would give us the best flexibility at the 7 month window if they are same use year. I'm assuming in general, we won't be combining them if I end up with the breakdown I'm looking at now but you never know.

Studios are a great deal, if they work for your group's mix. We did 3 studios for our girls trip for that exact reason! However, with 6, we are pretty squarely in the 2 bedroom category but for Aulani will probably be in a 1b. The grand villas seem way over priced and pointed so even though there might be 30 of us, I don't see it as a good option. Yes, studio is less but it also loses privacy and washer/dryer so as a general rule I'd prefer the 1b.

We will see. Tentative plan would have us booking 2 rooms on points for the peak season dates and doing cash for the second set of dates which are at the value rate (and then hopefully with some kind of discount on top of that but you can't count on that). But of course that assumes we actually buy

Honestly though, if we don't buy, I'm not sure I see a 12/12 trip as being feasible financially for the dates we want so... the good news is I've lots of time between now and Jan 2012 which would be when I could book...if I own.

Well, I’ll keep watching to see if you have an announcement of a new purchase or two. Then, the planning can really get into full-swing, when you’re trying to figure out how best to use your points.

Hey Glenn!

Howdy Biscuit!

HOLY MOLEY am I behind!

Well not anymore, you’re not.

First off, thanks for the HDDR lighting pic's. Always interesting to see how other folks have things setup. We use a dozen of those same lights at church..speaking of which I need to rent a lift and clean them. I'll add that the summer schedule.

You’re most welcome. Glad I could help with your “to do” list too!

I was sad to see you checking out, but glad you got some pool time in. That is just the worst thing when you are closing that door for the last time. I think you were wise to skip the park. We did MK on our last day and did not enjoy it. The rush to get in as much as possible before running back to the ME bus just took the joy out of it.

Ah yes, I think I remember that chapter of your TR. There was a big learning there though, correct? I think it occurred in Tony’s, if I recall correctly….was that on the last day? You were a changed Biscuit, who learned to relax a little.

I'm sorry to see your tale coming to end. It's been a fun ride!

Aw thanks!

Plus everytime I read it, I hear Gomer Pyle in my head going Judy! Judy! Judy!. And you just can't put a price on that type of entertainment my friend.

What can I say to that other than “Well go-o-olllly!”

I hear you. We couldn't get DVC to work with our budget (yet), but maybe someday... it's time for these kids to start earning their keep around here!

If you figure out a way for them to do that, let me know…I’ll want to try to duplicate it!

If it involves leaving the kids behind...my wife loves it!

Why yes, yes it does! Muhuhahahaha!

Thanks, Glenn. I will definitely keep that in mind, and I appreciate the offer! I think I'd be in good hands if you were planning my vacation for me. Unless it involved a surprise trip to a cliff-diving class.

Okay, I’m making a note and scratching cliff-diving off of the list. The good news is, that frees-up more time for Tower of Terror!

Glen I thought you shoukd Know Liesa and Marv are spreading rumors about you and Zebras on my ptr !!!!

Ooooh, I could never do such a thing. I was only repeating what I saw earlier....

Of course not Liesa you and I are both soooooo innocent

Thanks for the heads-up Rosie….you do such a good job looking out for me and keeping me informed of things like this (or when people start TRs without telling me). I looked in and the rumors, while completely untrue, didn’t seem too disparaging. The zebras may have a different opinion.

 

[KatMark]

Just popping in to say hi and see if there was an update. Hope you and the family have a nice long holiday weekend.

 

[glennbo123]

Just popping in to say hi and see if there was an update. Hope you and the family have a nice long holiday weekend.

Hi Kathy! Thanks for popping in. I do have an update ready, but I think I'll wait until the long weekend's over....it will probably be DISmal around here for a few days.

 

[englishrose47]

.
Thanks for the heads-up Rosie….you do such a good job looking out for me and keeping me informed of things like this (or when people start TRs without telling me). I looked in and the rumors, while completely untrue, didn’t seem too disparaging. The zebras may have a different opinion.

And of opening my mouth and insertin my foot!!!