Lastly I am looking for any suggestions or comments to my PTR as I am not sure if I am over planning or being too crazy in my park plan expectations. Thanks and So EXCITED!
First, let me say congratulations on your upcoming marriage. Its such as exciting time. Wedding and honeymoon planning can all be very overwhelming and stressful. Be sure to try and relax and enjoy every bit of it (even the stressful parts)!
There are a million different opinions on how to plan your Disney vacation. Let me give you a little bit of background on my experience with Disney.
DH and I took our first trip in May 2009. We stayed at CBR and had the dining plan. I had every detail of this trip planned out. I had spreadsheets and lists and everything. Well, I got off the airplane with a terrible migraine headache. Luckily our room was ready early and instead of hitting the parks, I hit the bed. Got up the next morning and regrouped. Was going to get back on track. Things were going well until that evening when the rain started. It rained all week long. Not just the typcal Florida downpours and then quit. No, huge stormsystem hung over our heads the entire week. The water retention ponds which were dry when I got there were so full by the end of the week, I could have swam in them. I ended up having to scrap all of my detailed plans and basically wing it in order to work around the weather. I was so upset that the vacation didn't go exactly to plan that it actually caused me great stress (I mean, crawling under the covers in the hotel room crying stress). I had put all that work into putting together my touring plan and it all just fell apart. Once I got over the fact that it wasn't going exactly to plan, I relaxed and just went with it. Although it was a soggy trip, we still have lots of great memories.
DH and I took our 2nd trip in Sept 2010. We stayed at POFQ and had free dining. Other than making ADR's for each night, I did not do nearly as much planning. I had a general outline of which parks we should go to based on our ADR's but we also had park hoppers so we had the freedom to move back and fourth. I have to say that this approach worked so much better for us. I didn't have the stress of feeling like we had to stick to a particular plan and freaking out if that changed. Of course, the weather was much different this time (no rain, but temp was a lot warmer). We actually planned to spend less time in Epcot this trip, but in the end spent more time there compared to other parks. We didn't tire ourselves out as bad. Took time our to relax and still did everything that we wanted to do. Overall, this was a much more relaxing vacation for us.
I'm currently planning my third trip for 6/9 - 6/16. We are staying off site and this time taking our niece and two nephews (ages 8, 10, and 14). This will be their first trip. I know that this time, the parks will be more crowded than my prior trips. However, we are still going to go with a more relaxed approach. We only have one ADR planned and will do counter service meals with the kids. Only set in stone plans we have is 6/10 Star Wars day at DHS and 6/12 we have to be at EPCOT for the kids to take their YES program class.
Based on my trips, this would be my advice:
There is nothing wrong with very detailed planning. However, recongize the fact that there are a lot of things that could happen to throw off even the best made plans. If that happens, don't let it stress you out and ruin your week. Just go with it.
I will say that I was not prepared for the amount of walking that we would be doing. I thought I was prepared but wow you really do a lot of walking! My feet were killing me after the first couple of days of both trips. Your plans seem pretty aggressive to me (fast walking/commando style touring). Just be prepared to really take care of your feet and legs (make your new hubby give you a nice foot massage). If you really overdo it too much the first few days it can really slow you down later in the week.
I know you said that you don't have any ADR's but it is your honeymoon. I would try and find somewhere nice to have a special dinner. It seems that you are being very budget concious but you could probably find a nice restaurant that won't break the bank. We ate at the Grand Floridian Cafe during our Sept 2010 trip and really liked it. It was nice to explore the Grand Floridian (which I will probably never afford to say at) and to have a nice dinner. You can view menus and prices on Disneys website. Also you can read views on Allears.net.
Good luck with your planning and I'm sure that you'll have a magical wedding and honeymoon!
