PTR: Work trip - Conference at Coronado Springs, Feb 2023

[MamaMouse0920]

BOOM, BABY

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaack! You thought you were rid of me after my September 2022 trip report, eh? Think again, foolish mortals.

Here's a little backstory for you before we get this Pre-Trip Report started:

So a couple weeks after we returned from our September trip, I'm sitting at work all mopey and miserable, deep in the throes of the Disney Blues... barely able to remember what a Mickey Bar tastes like.... or the distinct smell of Pirates of the Caribbean..... I'm seriously having severe Disney withdrawals when all of a sudden my (new favorite) coworker approaches myself and our other teammate (plus our boss) with a proposal for the 4 of us to attend a training conference being hosted in Orlando, FL... to which I obviously immediately said "say no more, I'm in!"

Little did I know, the conference is actually being held AT Coronado Springs Resort, and my work is paying the bill! Say whaaaat?!

Immediately (some faster than others... cough cough) we booked the conference, flights, our 5 night hotel stay at Coronado, and discounted Disney tickets (my work did not pay for the theme park tickets unfortunately, but the convention hosts apparently worked out a deal with WDW to offer discounted rates to conference goers- cha ching!). Is this real life?!?!!?! After convincing my husband (just kidding, he's awesome and is SO excited for me) that he would in fact survive staying home with our two gremlins young children, a whole lot of excited screaming later, we are now a little over a month away! That's right, friends - in 34 short days, my coworkers and I will be on our way to sunny Florida to visit our favorite mouse!

...oh and I guess we'll attend that pesky conference too.

In all seriousness I am SO thankful to my work for sending my teammates & I to this conference and can't wait to 1) visit my favorite place 2) do some team-building and bond with my coworkers 3) escape Minnesota winter, even for just a few days and 4) hopefully gain some knowledge in my work field.

Stay tuned for our tentative plans in my next post!

 

[AliceNDinah]

I'll be watching this thread! MN girl here too Think I need to come work with you, ha ha. Can't wait to hear more!

 

[Tatum20]

Wow that was quite lucky! We have a conference in Orlando too, but my work has never popped for theme park tickets, even at a discount as far as I know .

I am also an MN dweller, and I am counting down the days to spring break (just 63 more to go). Can't wait to vicariously live through another trip report.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

I'll be watching this thread! MN girl here too Think I need to come work with you, ha ha. Can't wait to hear more!

LOL, join me!!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Wow that was quite lucky! We have a conference in Orlando too, but my work has never popped for theme park tickets, even at a discount as far as I know .

I am also an MN dweller, and I am counting down the days to spring break (just 63 more to go). Can't wait to vicariously live through another trip report.

Whoops, I should have clarified that my work didn't pay for the park tickets! Just the hotel/airfare/conference. Still a hefty bill though (the conference I think was like $1,500, hotel $800 at a gov rate, airfare $600)... so yes, I consider myself very lucky!!

Thanks for following along!

 

[DLo]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more.

Welcome!! Happy to have you

 

[MamaMouse0920]

THE DETAILS.....

Who: Myself (Bethany), my boss (F), my female coworker (S), my male coworker (J), and his wife (S2). S2 has been to this conference before & is attending again this year (she is the one who told J about it, who then brought it to the group). My boss' husband & 2 tweens are joining as well, but I don't think we'll be seeing them much- I know the husband is a big Disney fan (I like him already! ) and has tickets to go to the parks while we're at the conference.

What: 2 days in the parks: one of them is a special "Twilight after 5pm" ticket so we can't get in until after 5 but the other is a regular full day Park Hopper ticket.

When: Feb 12th through 17th, 2023 (the conference itself is Mon 2/13-Wed 2/15, from about 8am-4pm each day)

Where: Coronado Springs Resort (where the conference is as well). Convenient! With us staying at the site of the conference & having access to Disney transportation, I don't think we'll need to take any Ubers except for the ride to/from MCO<>Coronado.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Loose itinerary..... Day 1 (2/12)

Our group is all over the place in terms of flights - F & her family are actually flying out on 2/11, but the rest of us fly out Sunday 2/12. J & S2 are on the early morning (like 6am early) flight out of MSP but S & I don't fly out til 1pm. Nice for a leisurely morning, but kind of poopy since we don't land until 5:20pm FL time After collecting our luggage and the 30 minute Uber ride from MCO>Coronado, we likely won't be checking in until 6:30. One thing I didn't realize during all this planning/preparing is that February 12th is actually Super Bowl Sunday! I'm already a little bummed to not get to watch it with Matt (my DH), but I will be downright devastated if by some miracle the Vikings are in it this year (I know, I know, highly unlikely I am a true Minnesota sports fan after all so I know better than to get my hopes up after a halfway decent season!). When I realized the dates, I immediately tried to get an ADR for Rix Sports Bar & Grill at Coronado but no luck - probably because everyone had the same idea! I know Three Bridges doesn't take reservations, so I guess our plan will be to just try to get a table immediately after we drop off our luggage.. unfortunately probably after kickoff (6:30). After dinner/drinks/football (does Three Bridges have TVs???), I'm sure we'll all be tired from a long day of travel and ready for bed by 10pm.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Loose itinerary..... Day 2 (2/13)

This is the first day of the conference, and afterward we have park reservations for Epcot using our "after 5pm" tickets. F's family isn't joining us for this park day, so it will just be the group of coworkers + J's wife. I plan to attempt the 7am VQ for GotG, but if I don't get it I will for sure be buying ILL because..... Guardians. Once we get to Epcot at 5 (or hopefully before.. I plan to hop on a bus by 4:00! If my coworkers join me, great but if not I have ZERO problem running through the parks solo this trip!), we'll head straight for GotG and that will likely be the only ride we go on this day. We're all more interested in eating/drinking our way around the world. The park closes at 9pm that night & with us not getting there til 5, we don't have much time to visit all 11 countries so I'm not sure how successful the night will go but we'll see! Since we're not focusing on rides, I don't plan on purchasing Genie+ for this day.



Some additional details/background info left out of the "WHO" section...

F & her family have been to WDW several times, and as I mentioned her hubby is a big fan - he sounds a lot like me with his love of planning, rope dropping, and maximizing every minute in the parks.

S has never been (and I'm not sure if she will go again, so I'm kind of treating this as a "once in a lifetime" trip for her). She is in her 40's unmarried/no children and has some mobility issues so is renting an ECV that will be dropped off at the resort 2/12.

J & S2 are newlyweds in their early 30s. They have been to WDW at least one time that I'm aware of (when S2 attended the conference a couple years ago and J was the tag-along). J has SEVERE (and I mean severe) motion sickness - he only plans to ride the "no height requirement" rides and is A-OK with just walking around the parks with a beer in hand. As a couple these are two of the most lackadaisical "go with the flow" people I've ever met, so let me tell you.. trying to get this trip planned has been a nightmare for this Type A planner In fact I just now found out J & S2 don't even have their flights booked yet.

Sigh.

I've tried pinning them down on ADRs, whether or not they want to link accounts in MDE so I can make LL selections for them, etc. but I haven't been able to get a firm answer. For now, I booked ADRs (more on those later) for 4 people and if J & S2 don't want to join, it will just be S & I.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Loose itinerary..... Day 3 (2/14)

Valentine's Day!!! I know I know, it's an overly commercialized, expensive joke of a holiday and yada yada but..... I secretly love Valentine's Day. I love the traditions my husband & I (and now, with our kids) do every year, I love getting dressed up and drinking champagne in the kitchen, I love the flowers and the chocolate... and really just any excuse to celebrate love is good for me!

Vday falls on another full conference day, but afterward I made ADRs for 4 people (again, could very well end up just being S and I) at Steakhouse 71 for 7:10pm. We had an ADR there during our September trip and it was:

So I'm excited to get back there again! Plus it felt kind of fancy & perfect for a romantic Valentine's Day dinner- even though my partner will be 1,500+ miles away S can be Matt's stand in!

After the conference ends at 4:15pm that day my plan is to head back to my room to freshen up/change and then we'll hop on a bus for MK and walk/take the monorail to Contemporary. I'm starting to really question how long I should bank on Disney transportation taking?? Any input?? As I'm sure you can imagine I'm the type of person where if you're not AT LEAST 15 minutes early, you're late so... I'd rather get wherever I'm going early and sit there than risk being late. Especially if that place is The Contemporary! With the ADR at 7:10, what time would you leave Coronado Springs, taking Disney transportation?

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Loose itinerary..... Day 4 (2/15)

This is the last day of the conference, and my boss & her fam are flying home immediately after it ends. Our boss is very nice & down to earth and at times I forget that she is in fact our boss and not just another part of the group, but I think after she leaves it will be a different atmosphere. "When the cat's away, the mice will play" and all that. More able to let loose and be ourselves, anyway.

The conference ends at 3:15 on its final day & I made ADRs for Maya Grill for 6:45pm. With it being the last day of the conference & our boss being on her way back to MN I expect the 4 of us will go straight from conference to Happy Hour and can roll ourselves to dinner at 6:45. I hear weather is totally a hit or a miss in February, but hanging out at the pool from 3:30-6:00 is also an option, weather permitting. One of the aspects of Coronado Springs I'm really looking forward to is the many dining/bar options - the possibilities for our first afternoon of freedom are endless!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Loose itinerary..... Day 5 (2/16)

Our full park day!! We have park reservations for Hollywood Studios that morning. I plan to wake up around 6:15am to get ready, buy Genie+ and be making my first LL selection at 7am while hopefully en route to DHS. Early Entry opens at 8:00am so whatever time the first bus from Coronado runs, I want to be on it. I plan to rope drop Rise of the Resistance - I have never seen a Star Wars film BUT S is a fan and (assuming she wakes up on time to join me ) she has expressed that she really wants to ride it. Plus I'd like to see what all the hype is about! After Rise I have no real touring plan, wherever the LLs take us we shall go. The only other firm plan we have for DHS that morning is an ADR at Oga's Cantina at 12:45pm. The timing of this should be perfect, cause after the 45 minute cutoff for Oga's we'll make our way to the buses to hop over to Magic Kingdom where we'll spend the rest of the afternoon.

After scanning in to MK at 2pm, I also plan to just follow the LLs. The only concrete plan there is our dinner ADR at Be Our Guest for 6pm. I'm excited for this one!!! It's too spendy for my budget when traveling with the family but this was the perfect excuse for me to check it out. The $$$ for just one person is a lot easier to swallow than 4! MK closes at 10:00pm that day and I'm guessing we'll shut her down. Our flight home the next day isn't until 2:40pm so lots of time to sleep in!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Loose itinerary..... Day 6 (2/17)

Our last day

As I mentioned, our flight is mid-afternoon, and with checkout at 11am I'm sure what we'll end up doing is either sitting by the pool for an hour after Check Out and take an Uber around noon or just head straight to the airport & hang out at the airport bar til we leave.

I'm sure I'll be sad to leave my happy place but by this time will be ready to see my babies!! This will be the longest I've been away from them (my husband too, now that I think of it!) BUT the good news is we have a surprise trip booked for September, so I'll be back in no time! I'm sure I'll make a Pre-Trip report for that one as it's going to be a longer visit but for now, hit me with all your tips/questions/comments/fun facts!


Thanks for reading, & I'll see you on the other side (once I write up the Trip Report, that is!)

 

[Tatum20]

As a couple these are two of the most lackadaisical "go with the flow" people I've ever met, so let me tell you.. trying to get this trip planned has been a nightmare for this Type A planner

Oh man, nothing is worse than planning a trip with people who don't want to go over every single option and compare/contrast for the optimal game plan! My husband has zero interest in the planning stage, and his extended family is more the, "I can't possibly know now how I'll want to spend the day tomorrow, let alone six months out" kind of people. So yeah, Disney is not their jam. I am sure there are lots of places you can have a wonderful, spontaneous vacation with no planning. But Disney isn't one of them.

BUT the good news is we have a surprise trip booked for September, so I'll be back in no time! I'm sure I'll make a Pre-Trip report for that one as it's going to be a longer visit but for now, hit me

You aren't, uh, bringing along the inlaws this time, right?

 

[MamaMouse0920]

You aren't, uh, bringing along the inlaws this time, right?

I definitely cackled when I read this No, no in-laws for the Disney portion of this trip but we are doing a combined Disney/Beach vacay, where the first half we'll be in Orlando and then plan to drive down to Ft. Myers to visit them. I tried so hard to convince my husband and MIL that we should get a hotel for the 4 of us when we're visiting but MIL insisted their 2BR was enough space....

So I'm sure I'll have lots to say when we return

 

[Paulaparm]

Sounds like a great time! Enjoy

 

[MamaMouse0920]

T-16 days til my work-trip and SALE ALERT!!!

I've been enlisting the help of everyone I know to create Best Buy accounts and buy the $50 gift card for $45.... 10% off is the biggest discount I've EVER seen on Disney gift cards! Better than Sam's Club/Costco or Target, anyway! So far I've been able to wrangle up $400 in gift cards between myself, hubby, my mom & dad, and Matt's parents! And only actually paying $360 ain't bad! Do you know how many Mickey bars you can buy with that $40 we've saved?!

If you haven't yet, RUN to Best Buy's website and try to stock up!! They only let you buy 1 per transaction, 2 per day (and they do cross-reference CCs so don't make the mistake we've made and try to use the same CC for different orders!), and even when using different CCs and different accounts we've had several orders get canceled for no apparent reason.. only to successfully work after trying again a few hours later.

Between my February trip & our September trip, I'll buy as many as the website will let me!

 

[clarrkkent79]

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I'm curious if you noticed convention impacts to the buses for the parks and Disney Springs. I'm attending a convention at Coronado, but debating if I want to actually stay there as it seems I'll see and feel the impacts and potentially strain on the bus system to/from CS vs. just staying at another property and driving to/from CS and using Skyliner/Monorail to get to parks.

Thoughts?

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Hi @clarrkkent79! No I didn't notice any strains on the busing at either of the conferences that I've attended hosted at Coronado Springs (both in February, both massive conferences/conventions). Obviously it will likely vary from convention to convention but the two that I've attended I actually didn't get the vibe that many of the conference goers were even interested in the parks at all - both from the brief conversations I held with tablemates etc. as well as the general indication of who was wearing a MagicBand and who wasn't.

I will say that for the convenience of being onsite where the conference is held, I would advise just staying at CS! Being able to leave your room a mere 15 minutes before you need to be there is extremely convenient, IMO. Plus the # of dining/bar options makes it well worth it - even if you don't plan on hitting the parks!!! On that same note, probably another reason why I didn't feel strain on the buses.. the conference goers don't even really need to leave the resort, there's so many dining options available to them right there!

But I also LOOOVE CS so may be a bit biased when I say I think you should stay there



If you wanted to peruse my two TRs where I attended the conferences for more detailed experiences, I'll link them here:

Conference Trip #1 (Feb 2023)

Conference Trip #2 (Feb 2024)

Hope this helps!