Pre-Trip Report: 3 Graduations and an Engagement? June 19-June 25, 2022

[Heatherhy01]

Hey there, hi there!

Welcome to my pre-trip report. This trip was originally suppose to happen in June of 2020, but we all know what had happened to make our plans change. We probably should have kept those original dates but after our entire family having COVID in April of 2020, we were not taking our chances. This trip may be the last time that I will have a big family vacation with our children all together, so I want to make the most of it.

Who: (From left to right) Me (Heather), Hubby (Rich), Youngest (Savannah), Oldest (Alexandra, aka Alex), Oldest's Fiance (Alexander, aka Boy Alex)
Where: WDW, Pop Century Resort
When: June 19 2022-June 25 2022
Why: My oldest has graduated with her Bachelor's and is now a teacher. My youngest had graduated high school and is now at college in Boston, MA. AND...My oldest got engaged over the past summer! Also, Boy Alex has just graduated with his Bachelor's Degree this past week in Aviation Maintenance.

The kids have grown so fast...PLEASE, anyone with littles yet, cherish and enjoy every minute because it goes quickly!! This may be our last big hoorah before hubby and I are left on our own. Oh, we have plans and our first bucket list item is Disneyland because we have never been but that is a whole different trip report for another time.

Tickets/Resort:

We have acquired 5 day base tickets with Genie+. We DO intend on purchasing one ILL at each park per day. I must admit that I am a little nervous about the whole Genie+ and being locked into my phone the entire trip. On one hand, I want to show Boy Alex all the things (this is his very first trip) but on the other hand, I do not want to overwhelm him by rushing around and want to relax and take in all the sights and smells.

We have chosen POP Century simply due to the Skyliner. We booked 2 rooms and we are hoping to be somewhat close to each other or possibly connected.

Transportation:

Our flight will leave PHL on June 19th at 5:30 AM and arrive at MCO around 8AM. We have about an hour drive from our house to PHL. I have made a reservation for Florida Town Car to take us to the hotel and back on our last day. Round trip is $160 which is comparable to MEARS. I wanted to be able to just grab the bags and go. Not to have to wait for a lot of people. We shall see how it goes. I will definitely have a full report upon my return. Our return flight is at 5:30 AM on June 25th. I know our butts will be dragging but we really do love the early flights. This will give us a full 2 days at home before either of us need to go to work.

Side characters:

We had a little addition to our trip! My BIL & SIL have to decided to join us along with my nephew. DSIL won a week's stay at a condo in Kissimmee in a raffle!

For months, we did not think they would be able to get the same week because it was booked. About a month ago, they received the email that there had been a cancellation, so the trip was ON!!!

We will not be together every single day but...we do plan on having some meals together at least.

Plans:
Our updated plans are as follows for now:

Sunday, 6/19: Disney Springs- Father's Day!! We plan on relaxing today on our first day. Enjoying the resort pool and having dinner and some bowling at Splitsville. 6:00PM reservation. (All of us)
Has anyone ever been there? Was it fun?

Monday, 6/20: MK- Dinner at Tony's @ 7:10PM (All of us)

Tuesday, 6/21: EP-Dinner at Tepan @ 2:40PM (Just my 5)

Wednesday, 6/22: HS-Dinner at 50's Prime Time @ 4:10PM (All of us)
Drinks at Oga's @ 8:30PM (Just my 5)

Thursday, 6/23: AK-Dinner at Y&Y @ 4:00PM (Just my 5)

Friday, 6/24: Breakfast at O'Hana @ 8:35 AM (All of us)
Dinner around WS at Kiosks (Just my 5)

We are going to stay on the look out (but will not hold our breath) to see if there will be ANY availability for Sci Fi on our HS day instead of Prime Time. If not, we also love Prime Time but have not been to Sci Fi in many years and I was really hoping for an opening.

Packing:

Now is the time for all things packing. I plan on packing shorts, sleeveless shirts, flip flops, plenty of socks. But do I need a sweatshirt?? I also want to purchase everyone cooling towels. Have any of you used them in the park? Do they work?

I need other suggestions for packing items that I may not think of but do not want to forget!

Thanks so much for joining me and following along! My family is definitely counting down the days!

~Heather
​

 

[Axelrodb1]

Following! I love reading PTR's close to when I plan on traveling, its helpful picking up little tricks and tips!!
I only had a few thoughts: we have done cooling towels but we find that little neck fans help SO much more! We bought ours on Amazon and loved them ours were bendy and we could aim them wherever we wanted.

I have done Splitsville, make sure you have a lane AND a dinning reservation. Not sure if that changed but when we went you had to have both since dinning didn't guarantee us a place to actually bowl.

 

[flipflopmom]

Hey there! Gosh you are sooo right, time is a’ flying! My girls are 15 and 22 and it’s hitting me in the chest.

We will be there the same time! We are driving down from VA on Friday the 17th, and driving back on the 25th, staying at POFQ.

As for the sweatshirt, I get chilly- actually? I freeze, so my opinion is based off of a very cold natured person! I get cold in restaurants and the room because my body does NOT adjust to temperature changes well. Last May, the girls and I flew down and I wore a spirit jersey and leggings on the flight and had them as my backups all week. Sometimes I pack a light jacket or cardigan in my park bag for those restaurants, etc.

We have used a cooling towel and my DH swears by them. We usually just bring 2 for the 4 of us and share them.

 

[AZMouseMom]

Bring some portable phone chargers. Being on your phone more for Genie+ can really drain your battery.

 

[tigerlilly]

Following! Congratulations to Alex and Alex! How exciting to have graduations and an engagement! You are so right on children just growing up before your eyes and bam gone.

We have done Splitsville here in California DTD and the food is great, drinks were fun and bowling was fun too. Especially for a large group.

We did cooling towels and they work fine. I am trying the fan idea or even a sun umbrella our next trip. I am getting old and my skin is too lol.

flipflopmom has the best advice for the sweatshirt/spiritshirt going down on the airplane. I always bring one because I don't adjust to the air conditioning either. One other idea....if you don't take one you could buy a fun one on your first day lol.

Your plans all look great.

I am having analysis paralysis when it comes to planning our Sept. trip. So I love reading others PTR.

 

[Heatherhy01]

Following! I love reading PTR's close to when I plan on traveling, its helpful picking up little tricks and tips!!
I only had a few thoughts: we have done cooling towels but we find that little neck fans help SO much more! We bought ours on Amazon and loved them ours were bendy and we could aim them wherever we wanted.

I have done Splitsville, make sure you have a lane AND a dinning reservation. Not sure if that changed but when we went you had to have both since dinning didn't guarantee us a place to actually bowl.

Thanks for following! My girls actually have the fans and the cooling towel so I hope that is enough to keep them at bay! Hubby and I will just muddle through, we are tougher than the kiddos. We have never been to Splitsville, we got a reservation for 1 lane for all 8 of us for one hour and forty five minutes. Our plan was to just eat while we were bowling, I hope that is doable?

 

[Heatherhy01]

Hey there! Gosh you are sooo right, time is a’ flying! My girls are 15 and 22 and it’s hitting me in the chest.

We will be there the same time! We are driving down from VA on Friday the 17th, and driving back on the 25th, staying at POFQ.

As for the sweatshirt, I get chilly- actually? I freeze, so my opinion is based off of a very cold natured person! I get cold in restaurants and the room because my body does NOT adjust to temperature changes well. Last May, the girls and I flew down and I wore a spirit jersey and leggings on the flight and had them as my backups all week. Sometimes I pack a light jacket or cardigan in my park bag for those restaurants, etc.

We have used a cooling towel and my DH swears by them. We usually just bring 2 for the 4 of us and share them.

I KNOW!!! These kids just blossomed right before my eyes!! Yay!! The official countdown has begun! It is almost time! I am nervous yet excited at the same time for our trip. The nerves are trying to coral everyone and being in charge of all of us getting on the rides. I may end up just packing a sweatshirt, sometimes I get iffy depending on where we are sat in a restaurant. If I am right by the AC, I will most likely get cold. SO glad to hear about the cooling towels. I have one for each of us, so hoping they give a little relief!

 

[Heatherhy01]

Bring some portable phone chargers. Being on your phone more for Genie+ can really drain your battery.

Thanks for the tip! We just purchased 2 fuel rods. Hoping they work well?

 

[Heatherhy01]

Following! Congratulations to Alex and Alex! How exciting to have graduations and an engagement! You are so right on children just growing up before your eyes and bam gone.

We have done Splitsville here in California DTD and the food is great, drinks were fun and bowling was fun too. Especially for a large group.

We did cooling towels and they work fine. I am trying the fan idea or even a sun umbrella our next trip. I am getting old and my skin is too lol.

flipflopmom has the best advice for the sweatshirt/spiritshirt going down on the airplane. I always bring one because I don't adjust to the air conditioning either. One other idea....if you don't take one you could buy a fun one on your first day lol.

Your plans all look great.

I am having analysis paralysis when it comes to planning our Sept. trip. So I love reading others PTR.

ooooh!!! I never thought of that! I really do like the Main Street Electrical Parade Spirit Jersey....... "Oh, hubby"...

 

[flipflopmom]

Thanks for the tip! We just purchased 2 fuel rods. Hoping they work well?

We got our first fuel rod in 2017, have since added a second and absolutely LOVE them. While it’s true that they are not as powerful as some of the other chargers, you can’t beat the convenience. We pop into hotel lobby at the end of the night and swap for fresh ones, swap at parks if we need to. One less thing to charge and have cords, etc lying around is good!

 

[Heatherhy01]

We got our first fuel rod in 2017, have since added a second and absolutely LOVE them. While it’s true that they are not as powerful as some of the other chargers, you can’t beat the convenience. We pop into hotel lobby at the end of the night and swap for fresh ones, swap at parks if we need to. One less thing to charge and have cords, etc lying around is good!

Great!!! We purchased them because we could swap them out in the park if we needed more juice. Otherwise, we planned on just charging them each night.

 

[Heatherhy01]

Hey There, Hi There!

We are down to the wire!

11 days!!!

We booked with Smart Park to park the car at the airport, I double checked with Florida Town Car to finalize our pick up, t-shirts are almost completed. Everything is coming along nicely!

Next will be the packing!

~Heather​

 

[Heatherhy01]

Hey there, Hi there!!

4 more days!!!!!

I repeat....4 more days!!

My family is super excited and so am I!! I am a little nervous about Genie+ and being able to get on what we want to but Hubby calmed me down last night. He calmly told me that we get on what we get on, it's not the end of the world. We need to relax and just enjoy! And if we need to go back another time...so be it!!!

Well, that was all the advise I needed to make me just chill out!

I will most likely not be posting again until my return. I haven't even started packing yet!

~Heather​

 

[MissDisney21]

Great advice from your DH - relax and enjoy!!! Hope you have a wonderful time! Looking forward to your return trip report.

 

[ctl]

Hey there, hi there!

Welcome to my pre-trip report. This trip was originally suppose to happen in June of 2020, but we all know what had happened to make our plans change. We probably should have kept those original dates but after our entire family having COVID in April of 2020, we were not taking our chances. This trip may be the last time that I will have a big family vacation with our children all together, so I want to make the most of it.

Who: (From left to right) Me (Heather), Hubby (Rich), Youngest (Savannah), Oldest (Alexandra, aka Alex), Oldest's Fiance (Alexander, aka Boy Alex)
Where: WDW, Pop Century Resort
When: June 19 2022-June 25 2022
Why: My oldest has graduated with her Bachelor's and is now a teacher. My youngest had graduated high school and is now at college in Boston, MA. AND...My oldest got engaged over the past summer! Also, Boy Alex has just graduated with his Bachelor's Degree this past week in Aviation Maintenance.

The kids have grown so fast...PLEASE, anyone with littles yet, cherish and enjoy every minute because it goes quickly!! This may be our last big hoorah before hubby and I are left on our own. Oh, we have plans and our first bucket list item is Disneyland because we have never been but that is a whole different trip report for another time.

Tickets/Resort:

We have acquired 5 day base tickets with Genie+. We DO intend on purchasing one ILL at each park per day. I must admit that I am a little nervous about the whole Genie+ and being locked into my phone the entire trip. On one hand, I want to show Boy Alex all the things (this is his very first trip) but on the other hand, I do not want to overwhelm him by rushing around and want to relax and take in all the sights and smells.

We have chosen POP Century simply due to the Skyliner. We booked 2 rooms and we are hoping to be somewhat close to each other or possibly connected.

Transportation:

Our flight will leave PHL on June 19th at 5:30 AM and arrive at MCO around 8AM. We have about an hour drive from our house to PHL. I have made a reservation for Florida Town Car to take us to the hotel and back on our last day. Round trip is $160 which is comparable to MEARS. I wanted to be able to just grab the bags and go. Not to have to wait for a lot of people. We shall see how it goes. I will definitely have a full report upon my return. Our return flight is at 5:30 AM on June 25th. I know our butts will be dragging but we really do love the early flights. This will give us a full 2 days at home before either of us need to go to work.

Side characters:

We had a little addition to our trip! My BIL & SIL have to decided to join us along with my nephew. DSIL won a week's stay at a condo in Kissimmee in a raffle!

For months, we did not think they would be able to get the same week because it was booked. About a month ago, they received the email that there had been a cancellation, so the trip was ON!!!

We will not be together every single day but...we do plan on having some meals together at least.

Plans:
Our updated plans are as follows for now:

Sunday, 6/19: Disney Springs- Father's Day!! We plan on relaxing today on our first day. Enjoying the resort pool and having dinner and some bowling at Splitsville. 6:00PM reservation. (All of us)
Has anyone ever been there? Was it fun?

Monday, 6/20: MK- Dinner at Tony's @ 7:10PM (All of us)

Tuesday, 6/21: EP-Dinner at Tepan @ 2:40PM (Just my 5)

Wednesday, 6/22: HS-Dinner at 50's Prime Time @ 4:10PM (All of us)
Drinks at Oga's @ 8:30PM (Just my 5)

Thursday, 6/23: AK-Dinner at Y&Y @ 4:00PM (Just my 5)

Friday, 6/24: Breakfast at O'Hana @ 8:35 AM (All of us)
Dinner around WS at Kiosks (Just my 5)

We are going to stay on the look out (but will not hold our breath) to see if there will be ANY availability for Sci Fi on our HS day instead of Prime Time. If not, we also love Prime Time but have not been to Sci Fi in many years and I was really hoping for an opening.

Packing:

Now is the time for all things packing. I plan on packing shorts, sleeveless shirts, flip flops, plenty of socks. But do I need a sweatshirt?? I also want to purchase everyone cooling towels. Have any of you used them in the park? Do they work?

I need other suggestions for packing items that I may not think of but do not want to forget!

Thanks so much for joining me and following along! My family is definitely counting down the days!

~Heather
​

 

[ctl]

Congratulations! I hope you all have an amazing trip.