mariezp
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2007
- Messages
- 2,674
How exciting! Big groups can be a lot of fun...although a lot of work too. Hopefully you have some help with the plans and don't have to do it all by yourself. Let me know where you decide to stay and I will add that info to the list.I have a group of 3 familys of 4 going. We are doing a Carnival Splendor MR 7 day cruise from Oct. 31 - Nov. 7 then on Nov. 7 we are heading to Disneyland.
Two of the families will be staying until Wed. the 10th and my family will be staying until about Sat. 13th. We have not booked our hotel yet. The two families have booked their flights but I have only booked our flight to LAX and not home yet. I am waiting to see what deals Disney comes out with for Nov.
Wow! It would be fantastic to have only 10 minutes to the airport! We'd probably still end up being there an hour early because we are such a bunch of nervous nellies about something going wrong and us missing our flight. As great as SWA's rates might be sometimes I agree with you that the extra stops cross country take some of the appeal out of booking with them. Free luggage is good incentive if you don't might the long flight.I totally agree with your plan of action on your flights. We're in Natomas, so our trek to the airport takes, if I'm being generous, 10 minutes. SWA is so convenient for flying throughout California, or even into our neighboring states. Going across country is a different story, though. I don't like all the stops that are required.
Having said THAT -- we did the Orlando trek last February. It took the better part of a day, but besides being so keyed up about going to WDW for the first time ever, it wasn't too bad. I felt like when I was a kid on a long drive... "Are we there yet? Are we there yet?"And yes, the luggage restrictions are what REALLY makes SWA good for long hauls. We did 10 days at WDW and needed all the space.
It could be just in my area but I haven't seen Disney run nearly as many Disneyland specials as WDW. Usually if I hear of a price increase coming I will try to buy our tickets before prices go up. I'm thinking they generally increase long about August. There are a few places that offer discount tickets outside of Disney. I've used Getawaytoday.com so you might check to see if they have any good deals on the tickets you need.So do you guys think it's worth it to wait to buy the park tickets until closer to November? Do they usually run specials that time of year? I was just wondering. Thanks![]()
For anyone who has a Discover card or might be considering getting one they do have a program running where you can sign up for their 5% cashback bonus on theme park purchases through September. We will be buying APs so that's a nice little rebate that I can add back to our Disney vacation fund.
I am running into the same problem. Our begin dates have had some price drops but still haven't managed to catch the return flight rates going down. Maybe this week will be our lucky week!I've been watching fares like mad but there really hasn't been any change for our dates. Currently, all of the sales or deals require travel by Nov. 16 or 17 and we're not leaving until Nov. 20, so I'm hoping the next round of sales will include us. I just can't imagine paying $85 more per person than we paid when we booked about a year ago.
Have you stayed at the Carousel before? I always thought if my bunch ever got tired of Desert Inn that Carousel would be one of my alternate choices. The rooms look really nice.... especially the View Suite.DH and I will be heading out November 18th-22nd, at the Carousel. I'm also hoping Christmas will be in full swing by then, as we just changed our dates specifically TO be there for that.
Over in the Halloween thread, since those dates have been released, they are saying that that season is starting a week early this year, so maybe the same will hold true for Christmas as well? I really hope so, otherwise we may just have to switch our dates back to a Halloween trip. I'm really looking forward to the xmas decorations, parade, fireworks, food, tour, etc. It's the only reason we're going. How about some xmas pixie dust for good luck? lol.
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I'm hoping for the early start date of the holiday season too.
I think Disney loves to keep everyone guessing!I think you'll be really pleased that you chose those dates, MattsPrincess! You have a lot to look forward to during the holiday season. Yes, Halloweentime is starting a week earlier this year than it did in 2008 or 2009. The last time it started early like this was in 2007. Not sure why they keep switching it up on us.
Last year, Christmastime began a week earlier than it had in 2008 or 2007. It started 2 weeks before Thanksgiving rather than only one week before. Let's hope they do that again this year.
So this means the official Christmastime season has to start on either November 12th or November 19th this year, and you will be in luck any way you look at it. Even if it starts on 11/19, all the trees and decorations will be up on the 18th when you go. It's just that the stuff like IASW Holiday, the snow on Main Street and the other nighttime highlights of the season won't start until the next day, as well as Santa and the carolers. But either way you look at it, you will be there when Christmas is in full swing and you will have a wonderful time!!![]()
You are so right! Even if a person were to catch just the decorations alone they would still be in for quite a treat! The park is awesome in it's Christmas splendor! Sherry, you are out and about so much around here you be sure to let us know if you hear anything official on the start date!
My DH is making plans of the traveling we will do when our kids are grown..... way in the far distant future. I'm hoping that he is up for some fun trips like the ones you have in mind.Hi NorCal Neighbor
OK I'll really make you jealous...we'll be four adults with no kids, probably acting like kids on our cruise. Our kids our grown and they normally travel with us so this cruise will be only our third trip we've done without them. For our Orlando flight we have only one stop in Las Vegas so not too bad.
We have 5 in our group. My husband and I, our 12 yr old son, and twin 7 yr old daughters. The tickets I bought are on SouthWest airlines. We will fly out of Omaha NE, change planes in Denver, and then on to CA. I'm not sure if it was a fabulous deal, but it seems in line. Our tickets were $109 per person 1way and the same back. Total was just under $1300 for the 5 of us.
Sounds like a pretty good deal to me! I was happy with our airfare with American last year and it was just about $1300 for 4 of us. I'd be happy if they would offer that again for this trip!
Some concerns/thoughts/questions I have right now are how to get from the airport to the hotel. Are there shuttles or cabs?
Which airport are you flying into? I know they do have cabs at LAX and SNA. We tried to prearrange a shuttle once and found it to be more trouble than it was worth. Since that one time we have always just grabbed a cab at the curb.
I am worried about how one of our daughters is going to do walking all day and wondering if maybe a stroller isn't a bad idea. Since we're only getting 2 days at Disneyland, I don't want the fact that she wears out easily mean that we don't get to experience as much as possible. She has aspergers, so I have a feeling the entire experience is going to be sensory overload for her anyway. She doesn't tantrum, so I'm not worried about her exploding if she gets overwhelmed. Instead she just spaces out and gets tired. So I'm thinking pushing her around in the stroller at that point might be easier than trying to direct her through crowds.
If you have any concerns at all by all means grab a stroller. Better for your entire family and it is your vacation. What keeps her happy will be that much less stress on everyone else. I used a stroller with mine until she was 7 simply because she was not used to so much walking. (10 plus days in the park) Of course, she did not use it constantly but when she needed it we had it and when she didn't we just stashed our stuff in it. I still miss my cup holder. The stroller also was most definitely a comfort when we had to try to make our way through crowds to know that there was no way we could become separated.
I hear about people taking coolers with snacks. When we spend a day at the zoo I take a sling backpack with me with water and snacks. But how practical is that for the rides? Do I have to hold on to it? Or does it stay with the stroller, if we have one? I thought about fanny packs for the kids with some snacks, and my son will want to have his camera. What is the most reasonable type of pack to carry around all day?
They do have lockers so you can always store coolers there for the day. You can leave items in your stroller, however, even in Disneyland, unfortunately, sometimes things can turn up missing. I would never leave anything of much value alone. You can take the slingback on most rides with you or the fanny packs would work well. The kids might also get a kick out of carrying their own things in their own pack. My daughter loeves to drag a stuffed animal to the park with her. Last time I found a backpack that looked like a poodle so she had a buddy with a place to store a few other small items to keep her entertained while waiting in line.
I'm still working on figuring out the best way to carry things for myself. I've done the fanny pack, the messenger bag and even as simple as packing extremely lightly with the bare minimum in my cargo pockets. I think it will all depend on just how much stuff you consider mandatory to carry with you. My DH loves his photo vest but I would just get lost with so many pockets!
And I had a thought about our clothes. Our trip will be 2 days of travel and 3 days of activities. I've read about people packing for a few days and then doing their laundry at the hotel? Then we would have less luggage and clothing to worry about (and less to lose in the event that something like that would happen). Anybody else have any thoughts or experiences with that?
We generally stay anywhere from 10 to 14 days so there is no other way I can pack without having to do laundry mid trip. I've never found it to be too much of a bother. As a matter a fact.... call me crazy.... I've almost come to enjoy it! I usually grab a book, a drink, a candy bar and head to the laundry room for the only alone moments I have in the entire 2 weeks. Love the time with my family but just a short few moments of silence can be heaven.
I spent the day re-researching hotels and comparing prices, distance, ammenities, and layout. I ended up back to my original choice of the Desert Palms. It's close, I like the layout of the room for our family (my choices were the Borrego suite or the Yuha Kid Suite), and the price was no more (and in many cases less) than other comparable hotels. We got the Yuha Kid Suite (king bed for us, and a separate room with bunk beds for the girls and a pull out sofa for our son) for $133 a night. I went ahead and booked it since this month there is a special where I get extra cash back on my credit card for any travel expenses. This means with the plane tickets and the hotel I will earn almost $100 back. We have been putting everything on our credit card and paying it back right away each month, and we're going to save the rewards to use for our souvenier fund! I think we're almost at $300 - my goal is $500 ($100 a person).
Ahh, the dilemmas of heading to DL for the first time! Where to stay! There are so many great choices that it is hard to go wrong. I remember doing the same thing way back when. Compare. Compare. Compare! 9 years later we are still staying at the same hotel that I chose the very first time. In your case, the rates you were quoted are very good so I would say if it looks like what you want and has the amenities that you need you have probably made a good choice. Don't you just love those rebates that add to the souvineer fund?!!! You've still got a few months so I bet you make your goal and maybe even some extra.
I, too, am going to wait to buy our Disney tickets for a while to see if any new deals come out. I know it's still 4 months away, but I'm getting excited!
4 months is gonna go by pretty fast! Do you mind if I am excited with you?

And yes, the luggage restrictions are what REALLY makes SWA good for long hauls. We did 10 days at WDW and needed all the space.





I thought they come out with deals in late august/early september??? Now Im scared!! Do I wait or do I order now???
