*~*~*Official October 2015 Thread!*~*~*

[Cierese]

We'll be going that week too. Our plan right now is to stay at Bonnet Creek. We go thru RCI and have a request in for it. If we can't get that then we will probably stay at the Sheraton Vistana. We stayed there before and found it to be a very nice resort!

We go through RCI also. Have ended up at Old Key West twice now. Hoping for a change of scenery, but we'll take what we can get. My kids love OKW anyway.

 

[TISHLOVESDISNEY]

Just booked our short trip in October!! Super excited! I'm going to try and squeeze a lot in just a few short days.

My plans too! I look forward to seeing what you cram into your short trip, bcuz I am struggling with a plan for us!

 

[shaz14]

We were thinking of adding Universal to the end of our trip. Now my friends who are traveling with is are not so sure if they want to because they just got back from there. Our family has never been but my kids are just really getting into Harry Potter.

For those of you who have been to Universal, do you think it's worth going? How much time do you think you would need to see everything?

I'm a loyal and devoted Disney fan, I've never even really looked into Universal before....

My kids will be 7 and 9 if that makes a difference at all.

 

[donac]

We will be arriving Oct 25th and maybe staying at the Wilderness Lodge until Wed Oct 28th when we will be meeting friends and staying at Pop Until Nov 1. We plan to be at the Halloween Party on the 31st to celebrate dh's 60th birthday.

 

[TISHLOVESDISNEY]

We were thinking of adding Universal to the end of our trip. Now my friends who are traveling with is are not so sure if they want to because they just got back from there. Our family has never been but my kids are just really getting into Harry Potter.

For those of you who have been to Universal, do you think it's worth going? How much time do you think you would need to see everything?

I'm a loyal and devoted Disney fan, I've never even really looked into Universal before....

My kids will be 7 and 9 if that makes a difference at all.

We did Universal/IOA in one day first week of December. Crowds on TP were rated 2 and 1.
I purchased express passes, but we really did not need them. Not sure what crowds are like for the days you are thinking-?
My kids, 19, 11 and 13, loved it there. DS2 rode all the 40 inch rides, a LOT of 3d rides there!!! Some intense, so I'd take the 3d glasses off and cover his eyes. He was fine then.
If your kids are ride crazy, they will like the change of pace at Universal.
When I asked my DS11 which parks he liked the best between Disney and UNiversal, he said he liked the rides at Universal, but "Disney is inside me."

 

[leshunlenese]

We did Universal/IOA in one day first week of December. Crowds on TP were rated 2 and 1. I purchased express passes, but we really did not need them. Not sure what crowds are like for the days you are thinking-? My kids, 19, 11 and 13, loved it there. DS2 rode all the 40 inch rides, a LOT of 3d rides there!!! Some intense, so I'd take the 3d glasses off and cover his eyes. He was fine then. If your kids are ride crazy, they will like the change of pass at Universal. When I asked my DS11 which parks he liked the best between Disney and UNiversal, he said he liked the rides at Universal, but "Disney is inside me."

Love that Disney inside me!!
We are doing one day we did the same thing in December but that was in 2011 and not sure how the crowds are in October but I know universal closes early when it has its horror nights! My five year old has to ride despicable me and transformers and if we don't do anything he has to meet spongebob! His Words not mine oh and Patrick. Harry Potter for me but he is obsessed with trains so he will like hog warts express

 

[PrincessDaisy96]

Does anyone have any have any ideas on how to do a celebration at the parks. I have heard about getting a button at town hall.
My DD5 will be turning 6 during the trip on Magic Kingdom day. We are planning on doing BOG Dinner and I was thinking about ordering a custom cake.
Beyond that...?? any suggestions

 

[TISHLOVESDISNEY]

Does anyone have any have any ideas on how to do a celebration at the parks. I have heard about getting a button at town hall.
My DD5 will be turning 6 during the trip on Magic Kingdom day. We are planning on doing BOG Dinner and I was thinking about ordering a custom cake.
Beyond that...?? any suggestions

Tell them when you reserve, they'll tell her Happy Birthday, plus get the button, everyone will wish her a Happy Birthday.
We had a FP for BOG lunch, and when I set it up, they asked for celebrations. I put my DD13, who had a Bday a few weeks b4, and my Anniversary, and I forgot I did it. When we checked in they said something to us, completely shocked us.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

welcome! We will be in Florida the same week We will be staying at the Beach Club those dates but I think we might be adding a couple of days on to the end for Universal I have been to Disney many times but I haven't been to Universal since I was a kid.

We haven't been to Universal since January 2012, but will be going for both our May and October week-long trips. We are very excited to see all the changes since we were last there!

We'll be going that week too. Our plan right now is to stay at Bonnet Creek. We go thru RCI and have a request in for it. If we can't get that then we will probably stay at the Sheraton Vistana. We stayed there before and found it to be a very nice resort!

Hey, if you happen to land at the Vistana, do send me a PM and we'll meet up for a drinka t the Tacky Tiki Bar .

We were thinking of adding Universal to the end of our trip. Now my friends who are traveling with is are not so sure if they want to because they just got back from there. Our family has never been but my kids are just really getting into Harry Potter.

For those of you who have been to Universal, do you think it's worth going? How much time do you think you would need to see everything?

I'm a loyal and devoted Disney fan, I've never even really looked into Universal before....

My kids will be 7 and 9 if that makes a difference at all.

We love Universal......will take it over Disney any day (it just fits our older family and our interests better). If you have never been before, I would definitely say to give it a go. At least two full days to do it justice....there's so much to see and do.

 

[PrincessDaisy96]

Tell them when you reserve, they'll tell her Happy Birthday, plus get the button, everyone will wish her a Happy Birthday.

Our Travel agent said she was putting this on all of our reservations and ADRs but I'm looking for other ideas as well
Things that I could do myself or options at WDW. We are first timers so I dont know what the options are

 

[Liz Z]

Hi Everyone,

My DD and i just got back from a wonderful stay at POFQ. So wonderful that we booked the BB offer so i can share the experience with my husband.

We will be staying at our timeshare 1st from Oct 11th to the 18th then checking in to POFQ on the 18th(my B-day ) to the 21st.

I do have a question and need some advice
would it be worth it to get the dining plan for those few days? i just purchased an AP and TIW, so i'm thinking the discount might be better. i understand it's about $63 for an adult per day.

Also has anyone heard of free dining being offered to the POFQ and what dates in October do you think if it is offered?

Thanks for all your help

 

[shaz14]

The free dining is usually offered for all hotels for a period of time, it isn't just for one hotel. There isn't really a way of knowing the dates, it is usually a big block of time though, like a month or two. Keep your eye out and subscribe to Disney's newsletters and everything. Once, I received an email from Disney with a free dining pin code. I'm not sure how they decide who gets those but it was a pleasant surprise! At the same time they also had a 30% off room-only sale. At the time I worked it out that it was a better deal to go with the free dining.

Good luck!

 

[Cierese]

Hi Everyone,
I do have a question and need some advice
would it be worth it to get the dining plan for those few days? i just purchased an AP and TIW, so i'm thinking the discount might be better. i understand it's about $63 for an adult per day.

Also has anyone heard of free dining being offered to the POFQ and what dates in October do you think if it is offered?

Thanks for all your help

As far as free dining vs. TIW vs dining plan.... here's my two cents.

We have done both, dining plan and out of pocket. I saved several hundred dollars eating where ever and what ever we wanted (we had a lot of TS and character meals). I would LOVE to add the TIW card and save extra.

As for you all, it really depends on your eating habits.

For us....Some meals we didn't have a choice because they were buffet. Some meals we ate were full meals with a shared dessert. Some meals were just appetizers and [alcoholic] drinks (neither of these are offered on dining plans). We did a few snacks at F&W, etc. We also tried to stay hydrated and drink almost no soda, so between the 4 of us (3 adults 1 kid), that's about $12 saved per meal alone. When we used the dining plan we had several meal credits and LOTS of snack credits left. When we paid out of pocket, we came home with CASH.

The last trip we took, I know I budgeted a bit less than what the regular meal plan would have cost. But DS and I ate at BOTH SWW meals, and places like Le Cellier, Via Napoli, Beirgarten, Crystal Palace, Sanaa, etc and still came in almost $300 under budget.

With that being said, we'll likely pay out of pocket from here on out.


Interestingly enough, I just saw this posted.... http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3366484

 

[smsraven]

We're booked at Pop Oct. 2-9. Our last trip was May 2013. This will be DH and kids second trip and my third. I can't wait!

 

[disneyfantotheend]

We will be at Animal Kingdom Villas Jambo Oct 20TH-27TH.

 

[AutumneB]

I'm doing my first ever solo trip October 17-24! Most will be at AKL, but since last 2 nights I'm currently waitlisted, I'm looking to maybe move to Beach Club or BLT.

Quick question though--I've purchased memory maker many times with a group but really don't want to spend the money just for myself. I saw on a trip report where someone split the cost with like 8 other people. Is this the spot to try and coordinate that when the time gets closer??

 

[shaz14]

As far as free dining vs. TIW vs dining plan.... here's my two cents. We have done both, dining plan and out of pocket. I saved several hundred dollars eating where ever and what ever we wanted (we had a lot of TS and character meals). I would LOVE to add the TIW card and save extra. As for you all, it really depends on your eating habits. For us....Some meals we didn't have a choice because they were buffet. Some meals we ate were full meals with a shared dessert. Some meals were just appetizers and [alcoholic] drinks (neither of these are offered on dining plans). We did a few snacks at F&W, etc. We also tried to stay hydrated and drink almost no soda, so between the 4 of us (3 adults 1 kid), that's about $12 saved per meal alone. When we used the dining plan we had several meal credits and LOTS of snack credits left. When we paid out of pocket, we came home with CASH. The last trip we took, I know I budgeted a bit less than what the regular meal plan would have cost. But DS and I ate at BOTH SWW meals, and places like Le Cellier, Via Napoli, Beirgarten, Crystal Palace, Sanaa, etc and still came in almost $300 under budget. With that being said, we'll likely pay out of pocket from here on out. Interestingly enough, I just saw this posted.... http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3366484

I think I misunderstood the original question. For $63 a night I would do that and then pay out of pocket for meals. We have done both the meal plan and out of pocket before. I am pretty sure we saved money doing out of pocket because my kids were really little and didn't eat much. Now that they are older, and we are traveling with friends who want the dining plan, we are going that route. I like the convenience of the dining plan when it comes to sit down meals. You can definitely end up with too many credits (or too many desserts ) though.

 

[Vernie822]

We'll be there! Leaving Oct 30 or 31 and staying til Nov 7th. We'll be at Pop.

 

[Cierese]

Quick question though--I've purchased memory maker many times with a group but really don't want to spend the money just for myself. I saw on a trip report where someone split the cost with like 8 other people. Is this the spot to try and coordinate that when the time gets closer??

I might consider doing a share... I did one in June, but was not the main person. I know there is a FB page that's nothing but shares for this. I haven't searched on Disboards yet.

 

[HikingBelle]

Just booked an October bounce back trip. This will be my first Food and Wine trip, and also hoping to do MNSSHP.