PTR InLaws 50th Anniversary Trip

[momjeeps]

Who are we? A Disney loving family of 6. I'll list ages at time of travel.

DH (47) - Dopey (everyone is in the morning)
ME (44) - Grumpy (I hate mornings)
DS (15) - Pikachu (gamer, smart guy)
DD (14) - Doolittle (animal lover)
DD (12) - Tink (fashionista artist)
DS (9) - Mater (mechanical car lover)

Here we are last November at WDW.


Family at Magic Kingdom by momjeeps, on Flickr

If we are being completely honest, I'm the Disney planning nut of the family. They all enjoy the trip. DH gives a little input here and there. But doesn't really get excited until the week or so ahead of time.

We both grew up in California, so have been to Disneyland, and now DLR many times. We were even AP holders when DCA first opened and got to go to the AP preview. This past year, November 2012, we finally got our dream trip to WDW. I had been for one day with a friend when I was maybe 20. But that was more than 20 years ago and I remembered very little about it. It was a day at Epcot and it poured most of the day. So this trip was really a first for all of us. We stayed offsite for two nights and Lake Buena Vista Resort Villages and Spa and loved it. Then we stayed 5 nights with Free Dining Upgraded to Regular Dining at AoA Cars.

This trip we will be celebrating my ILs 50th Wedding Anniversary. They are in their 60s and 70s. They love DL and its just about the only vacation they took the family on. They had dreamed of making it to WDW for their 50th but have decided for health reasons they just aren't up to the travel.

Their Anniversary is actually Oct 7. But they have said they'd rather go in the summer. Tentative dates are 7/12-7/19/2014 for our trip.

Others that will likely be invited to join us all there will be:

SIL and her two adult children in their twenties. (3 pp)
BIL his boys ages 19 & 20 I think. His daughter her husband and their three little ones ages 1-5. (8 pp)
Other BIL and his wife. (2 pp)

There is also a step daughter for one of the BILs that has a slight possibility if being there. And maybe a GF for the BIL. (2 pp)

That's a possibility if at least 23 people. Pray for my patience. My plan is to plan for our family and tell people to join us for some or all, their call. But having lots of flexibility to accommodate the in-laws that will both be on scooters. We haven't been with them to Disneyland for quite a while. But when we did, it went fairly smoothly. I'm sure all will be fine.

 

[momjeeps]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Quick Update - 7/17/2013
Planes, Trains or Automobiles?

 

[momjeeps]

Well, it took me quite a while just to get one photo in our intro and now I'm exhausted. LOL I got a little side tracked uploading photos to flickr. Still don't even have half of them uploaded. But I finally got to one that I wanted to use here.

I can't remember if I posted our tentative dates. We are looking at 7/12-7/19/2014 for our travel. Unless I get crazy and decide to do two weeks. A good possibility if I decide we can swing it. But for now we will go with the one week option. In later updates I'll discuss some of my tentative plans and budgets. Some of the where to stay questions, etc.

DH talked to ILs today. When we remembered that today was Disneyland's anniversary we thought it would be fun to be there for their anniversary next year. That is how we finally picked some dates. I work at a State Park here in Arkansas and we really slow down after the 4th of July due to heat, humidity and mosquitos! So late summer break is a good time for our family.

He also asked them if they'd rather have their special celebration meal be a character meal or Blue Bayou, our treat. They chose Blue Bayou. Yeah! I love the atmosphere. Everyone needs to dine inside POTC at least once! I haven't done it in years, so this will be a good excuse!

Well that's it for me for the night. I hope I pick up some subscribers at some point. Although its nice to have a PTR anyway just to kind of track some thoughts and plans. I'll do it either way, but socially its more fun! So if you're reading, don't be shy, jump in.

I'd love input on places to stay with six family members. I do not plan on planning lodging for the whole extended family. They are on their own!

Just because pictures make everything more fun. Here is my favorite ride photo shot. This was a complete surprise to me when we got our PP+ CD in the mail. It's my girls with a DISer friend that we met at the park. We had a blast with them!


Space Mountain Sillys by momjeeps, on Flickr

 

[momjeeps]

Here is a little bit of what is going through my head today. I had been tossing around plane vs car.

Car option just for commuting to destination.
Gas $800
Lodging $300
Food $200
Approximately $1300

Fly option $2750

Pretty big difference

Today I thought about the train. We'd spend about the same amount of time traveling as the car option, but really could only make it work with the two week itinerary.

Ticket cost $1184
Food $200

About the same cost as driving but the seats are fairly comfy and we could get some sleep. But probably not as much as driving and hotels. At least not the same quality of sleep.

But the kids have been begging to take the train again...

What do you think?

 

[momjeeps]

Where shall we stay? That is a huge question. I've tossed around several options, but nothing is set in stone. I'm considering making a hotel reservation. We will have a vehicle and we don't have small children so we aren't super stuck on location. We've stayed at BW Raffles once and it was OK. We could rent a room there that would fit Dopey's parents too. But the parking and breakfast there aren't great.

Other places I've considered are Hyatt Home Cypress or Embassy Suites South. Hyatt Home has a great breakfast included and a full kitchen. I really like that option and its only slightly more than BW Raffles. I think it's what I'm leaning toward.

We've also considered renting a house that the whole family will fit into. It would make the trip more affordable for other family members and we would really like for everyone to make it down to Disney. The challenge is getting a commitment from the rest of the family. There are so many factors between now and then and we really don't want to end up with the entire expense of renting a house if the others back out. There is also the challenge of the ILs health. There is a chance they won't be up to the trip down to DLR.

Either way our family will do DLR. We will incorporate it with a trip up to their area if needed. Then there is a whole other where to stay question.

So much is going through my head about this trip! I love planning. And DIS is awesome for info. Learned about way.com for cheap tickets and the go card for other theme parks. That will save us quite a bit!

 

[wiigirl]

Following along!

 

[momjeeps]

Woo hoo! Welcome wiigirl! Ding ding ding the first official follower award! I'm not sure what you've won LOL. Maybe a postcard next July!

 

[momjeeps]

Long time no post, sorry.

It seems the In-Laws are not going to be up for the trip down to DLR. So we are going to shorten our park time and go up and visit them. Then we will spend two park days and three nights at DLR. I just got done booking the BW Park Place Inn. I thought it'd be nice to be right across the street and walk to the parks. Our family of six should fit fine in the two queen room with the sofa bed.

It always seems more real once the hotel room is booked!

Now to figure out where we will stay up north near the In-Laws. Finding a room up there is not so easy. We may go with the option we chose last time and rent an RV. That we can park right on their property and still have our own space.

 

[momjeeps]

Well, not that anyone will notice. But this PTR will be closed.

We have decided to change directions completely and make the two week summer trip into two separate trips. The good news is we will be going to Disneyland for Spring Break in just 59 days!!!! Woo Hoo!

Then we will take just one week and go visit the In-Laws at their place this summer. We are going to rent a motor home once we get to California and stay on their property for a few days and celebrate their 50th Anniversary a little early.

Now on to a new PTR for Spring Break!