Recreating Memories- Surprise Mother & daughter trip

[A's Princess]

It is strange. Hope you get the rest of your hours this morning!

 

[princess&her4princes]

I just got a FANTASTIC CM on the phone and got the hours!!!!!!!!!

9/14: AK 8-9 a.m. EMH, DHS 7-10 p.m.

9/15: Epcot 8-9 p.m EMH
MK 7 p.m close (fireworks at MK at 9:30 p.m--dinner at Ohanas)
Epcot 9 p.m. close
DHS 7 p.m close

9/16: AK 5-8 p.m. EMH
MK 8 p.m. close
Epcot 9 p.m close
HS 7 p.m. close

9/17: MK 8-9 a.m. EMH
no eve hours
Epcot 9 p.m. close

9/18: 9 a.m all parks open

Yay...now onto some planning....woohoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, and I think I have my ADR day wrong....I think I have to wait until 6/16 (not the 15th)

 

[If U Had Wings]

It's always so exciting when the hours go up! Then you can really do some planning!

 

[Lynn5700]

YAY you got the hours. That is awesome!!!

Here, use this to calculate what day you can call and make your ADRS.

http://www.timeanddate.com/date/dateadd.html

 

[princess&her4princes]

Okay....here we go...trying to work this out....thoughts? ideas? they are always welcome!!!!

9/14 arrival day (I still think we should go to MK for a bit this day, just because, we're in Disney World!!), we'll have lunch at POP (Everything Pop) because most likely we'll be getting there about noontime, so we'll have lunch, check in, maybe (hopefully!) get settled.....and then we thought we'd go to DTD for a bit, which is usually how I start since we have the boys and we don't want to waste a ticket for just a few hours, but since it's just us adults and we could just meander..I think it would be fun to go to MK, not sure I can convince Mom though. She's convinced we'll be too tired......not so sure about Dinner this night, either? Somewhere on the monorail, I'm thinking the Wave at the Contemporary, so at least we can see MK!! LOL!!

9/15 Epcot 8-9 a.m. EMH, park closes at 9 p.m.
lunch at Tangerine Cafe- 1 CS
dinner --- okay, here is the deal, was thinking Ohana's so we can see the fireworks at MK (MNSSHP is going on) at 9:30, so have a late dinner and watch from Poly, OR stay in the park and have dinner at (I hope!) Le Celliar...thoughts?

9/16 MK closes at 8 p.m.
Lunch (Terrace Noodle) 1 CS
was thinking dinner at Ohana but if we did that the night before, were is good at MK? This is the only real day we'll be here.

9/17 Epcot 9 p.m. close
Lunch at Sunshine Season- 1CS
Dinner at Teppan Edo or Le Celliar..if we don't do Le Celliar our 2nd night (see above)...

9/18 all parks open at 9 a.m. (our last day!)
We are planning on going to DHS this morning, most likely ME will pick us up at POP at 3 or about then. So we'll have a nice good long time there. Not sure if we should have a sit down lunch/ counter lunch....thoughts?

This is pretty rough, so would love any input....yay, I can plan!!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!!!

 

[LaurenMic]

Hi Kristen!! Yay your hours finally got posted, that is awesome! Your plans look great so far. I like the idea of doing Ohana 9/15 and Le Cellier on 9/17. I heard if you try to book Le Cellier later in your stay your chances of getting it are higher. That worked for our trip! A sit down lunch at DHS on your last day could be a nice way to end the trip...we ate at Mama Melrose last trip and loved it, could work for you girls since this is a kid-free trip! Just some ideas, have fun planning!

I'm off to Disney tomorrow, woo hoo! Talk to you when we're back

 

[princess&her4princes]

YAY you got the hours. That is awesome!!!

Here, use this to calculate what day you can call and make your ADRS.

http://www.timeanddate.com/date/dateadd.html

Thanks Lynn! Okay, not sure why I had the 15th penned into my book...it's the 16th! Well, at least I have more time to plan, right? LOL!!

 

[Lady Lallie]

Okay....here we go...trying to work this out....thoughts? ideas? they are always welcome!!!!

9/14 arrival day (I still think we should go to MK for a bit this day, just because, we're in Disney World!!), we'll have lunch at POP (Everything Pop) because most likely we'll be getting there about noontime, so we'll have lunch, check in, maybe (hopefully!) get settled.....and then we thought we'd go to DTD for a bit, which is usually how I start since we have the boys and we don't want to waste a ticket for just a few hours, but since it's just us adults and we could just meander..I think it would be fun to go to MK, not sure I can convince Mom though. She's convinced we'll be too tired......not so sure about Dinner this night, either? Somewhere on the monorail, I'm thinking the Wave at the Contemporary, so at least we can see MK!! LOL!!

I think you should really try hard to convince her. It's not like you have to even go on any rides, you could at least eat dinner in MK if you wanted. I think Wave is a great idea or what about Kona?

/15 Epcot 8-9 a.m. EMH, park closes at 9 p.m.
lunch at Tangerine Cafe- 1 CS
dinner --- okay, here is the deal, was thinking Ohana's so we can see the fireworks at MK (MNSSHP is going on) at 9:30, so have a late dinner and watch from Poly, OR stay in the park and have dinner at (I hope!) Le Celliar...thoughts?

Oh yes, really really try to see the MNSSHP fireworks, I love them even more than Wishes. Another thing you can try, is to time a boat ride right over to the MK or the ticket and transportation so you can see the fireworks from the water.

/16 MK closes at 8 p.m.
Lunch (Terrace Noodle) 1 CS
was thinking dinner at Ohana but if we did that the night before, were is good at MK? This is the only real day we'll be here.

You could do the Plaza or Tony's. Marc & I really liked Tony's.

/17 Epcot 9 p.m. close
Lunch at Sunshine Season- 1CS
Dinner at Teppan Edo or Le Celliar..if we don't do Le Celliar our 2nd night (see above)...

Oh, Le Cellier, so yummy.

/18 all parks open at 9 a.m. (our last day!)
We are planning on going to DHS this morning, most likely ME will pick us up at POP at 3 or about then. So we'll have a nice good long time there. Not sure if we should have a sit down lunch/ counter lunch....thoughts?

This is pretty rough, so would love any input....yay, I can plan!!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!!!

Personally, I would do a sitdown meal on your last day, even though it takes up time it will give you a chance to relax a bit before you have to catch ME back to the airport.

 

[joelp]

I just went on to the WDW web site and it looks like the hours they have posted are differ somewhat what you have - so you'd better double-check ...

... and "They're there!!" ...

 

[joelp]

9/14 arrival day - I think it would be fun to go to MK, not sure I can convince Mom though. She's convinced we'll be too tired......not so sure about Dinner this night, either?

The hours for AK aren't posted yet - - but I'll bet there's evening EMH there ... so maybe head over to AK with a dinner break at the AKL at Boma!! ?? (and don't you love how this green font clashes with your pink ... ? )

9/15 Epcot 8-9 a.m. EMH, park closes at 9 p.m.
lunch at Tangerine Cafe- 1 CS
dinner --- okay, here is the deal, was thinking Ohana's so we can see the fireworks at MK (MNSSHP is going on) at 9:30, so have a late dinner and watch from Poly, OR stay in the park and have dinner at (I hope!) Le Celliar...thoughts?

Make ADRs for both and then see what you feel like doing that night ...


9/16 MK closes at 8 p.m.
Lunch (Terrace Noodle) 1 CS
was thinking dinner at Ohana but if we did that the night before, were is good at MK? This is the only real day we'll be here.

Again - make double ressies and play it by ear ... or have lunch at one of the Monorail resorts and then dinner at a CS in the MK ...

9/17 Epcot 9 p.m. close
Lunch at Sunshine Season- 1CS
Dinner at Teppan Edo or Le Celliar..if we don't do Le Celliar our 2nd night (see above)...

Tappan Edo ...

9/18 all parks open at 9 a.m. (our last day!)
We are planning on going to DHS this morning, most likely ME will pick us up at POP at 3 or about then. So we'll have a nice good long time there. Not sure if we should have a sit down lunch/ counter lunch....thoughts?

CS lunch places at DHS are just "OK" ... again, make a ressie and play it by ear ...

Now - normally - I wouldn't recommend making double-ADRs ... but since there's only 2 of you and it'll be during the wekk ... go for it ... (but also play nice and cancel the one you're not going to use once you decide you're not going to use it ... )

 

[julezdisney]

I would do one last counter service before catching ME. You'll be stuck on a plane so it might be nice to relax before the rush of the airport, etc.

 

[Lcaemom]

Hi Kristen...I am absolutely spent from a very long week but, I was just lurking on your PTR and while there were many things I wanted to comment...just too tired, until.......I got to the Ohana part, during MK fireworks...oh yes, yes, yes...you should definately try for that. We lucked out in 07 with a late dinner there and were very pleasantly surprized when the Wishes music started playing during dinner...and we could see Wishes right outside the window. It was one of the best memories of our whole trip.
LeCellier was good too but, hard to get. Looking forward to posting more soon...time for bed.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Hurrah for park hours so the planning can begin!

 

[MeMom]

Okay....here we go...trying to work this out....thoughts? ideas? they are always welcome!!!!

9/14 arrival day (I still think we should go to MK for a bit this day, just because, we're in Disney World!!), we'll have lunch at POP (Everything Pop) because most likely we'll be getting there about noontime, so we'll have lunch, check in, maybe (hopefully!) get settled.....and then we thought we'd go to DTD for a bit, which is usually how I start since we have the boys and we don't want to waste a ticket for just a few hours, but since it's just us adults and we could just meander..I think it would be fun to go to MK, not sure I can convince Mom though. She's convinced we'll be too tired......not so sure about Dinner this night, either? Somewhere on the monorail, I'm thinking the Wave at the Contemporary, so at least we can see MK!! LOL!!

9/15 Epcot 8-9 a.m. EMH, park closes at 9 p.m.
lunch at Tangerine Cafe- 1 CS
dinner --- okay, here is the deal, was thinking Ohana's so we can see the fireworks at MK (MNSSHP is going on) at 9:30, so have a late dinner and watch from Poly, OR stay in the park and have dinner at (I hope!) Le Celliar...thoughts?

9/16 MK closes at 8 p.m.
Lunch (Terrace Noodle) 1 CS
was thinking dinner at Ohana but if we did that the night before, were is good at MK? This is the only real day we'll be here.

9/17 Epcot 9 p.m. close
Lunch at Sunshine Season- 1CS
Dinner at Teppan Edo or Le Celliar..if we don't do Le Celliar our 2nd night (see above)...

9/18 all parks open at 9 a.m. (our last day!)
We are planning on going to DHS this morning, most likely ME will pick us up at POP at 3 or about then. So we'll have a nice good long time there. Not sure if we should have a sit down lunch/ counter lunch....thoughts?

This is pretty rough, so would love any input....yay, I can plan!!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!!!

Since your mom is iffy about going to a park, Downtown Disney sounds like a good way to ease into the Disney magic. Eat somewhere close to Magic Kingdom - The Wave, 'Ohana, or Kona maybe? - and then watch Wishes on the beautiful Polynesian beach. Your mom might choose to go on back to Pop if she's really tired.

That frees up your second night for staying longer in Epcot without using time moving from place to place.

That also frees your third night from transportation time, and you could eat in Magic Kingdom and see Spectro and Wishes. Were you looking for table service or counter service for that night? We love Crystal Palace.


If you went ahead and did Le Cellier on night two, then you get to do Teppan Edo on this night, right?

For your last day - as early as you can manage for Hollywood Studios if you plan to ride Toy Story Midway Mania. Since your time is limited there, I'd say go for counter service, although they don't have the greatest counter service options. You'd still be able to eat something somewhere and get in all the rides and shows you can before you get back to Pop. Table service will take a chunk of your shortened day.

Okay, that's all my random thoughts. You may like them, love them, or hate them, but it's always good to get other people's ideas and see what works best for your own situation. Since you only have three full days and two parts of days, I'd just try to maximize time by limiting travel, and it looks like you can get in everything you want to do quite easily.

Hope that makes sense and/or helps!

 

[princess&her4princes]

I don't have time to write everyone individually tonight but wanted to thank everyone for their input, there are A LOT of great ideas you guys posted, I really appreciate it!!! I need to make a spreadsheet of everyone's ideas and fill it and go from there....at least I have the week to do so and go from there....I think MeMom is on to something, less travel and the more we're in one place we can take advantage of more. Makes sense.....it's such a SHORT trip that we need to plan accordingly. There are some discrepancies of what the CM told me and what is on Disney's website as far as hours go and there still isn't any hours for DHS posted online. Weird....maybe I"ll give a call tomorrow just in case and go from there. Thanks again!!

I hope everyone is well and that everyone had a great weekend. We had a VERY FUN and FILLED one....yard work, Ethan's baseball game, graduation party last night late, birthday party today, took Ethan's training wheels off and he learned how to finally ride his bike without them...it was packed!! But a great weekend!!!! I hope everyone has a great week and I'll post soon with some plans once I get things figured out!!!

 

[SoonerGirl]

Sounds like you had a busy weekend! Congrats to Ethan for learning to ride his bike without his trainers!! Does he like baseball? Both my boys play on competitive teams, so once March hits we are pretty much at a ballpark every weekend through July. It's exhausting sometimes, but can be so much fun too!

 

[brookelizabeth]

Figuring out The Plan is always the most difficult thing to do, isn't it?

I think MeMom is good onto something-and she's got just a few trips under her belt to be an ultimate planner. I think your Mom would LOVE watching Wishes from the Poly beach. It's beautiful and relaxing, and you can SIT. That is a huge bonus if ya'll are feeling a bit tired.

I hope you are able to get all the ADRs you want! LeCellier is so yummy-it's such a nice treat!

In one way I think a TS would be great for the last day-relaxing before the plane ride; and on the other hand, I think CS at DHS so you can get more in that day. We did highly enjoy the Studio Catering Company (overlooks the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground) CS. They have a baked chicken meal that is VERY tasty. I would go there again!

 

[princess&her4princes]

I sent Mom and Jodi an email to figure out our plan of attack...here it is....

Monday 9/14
arrival day-- 7 am flight arrive MCO 10:23 a.m, arrive at POP approx. noontime?
Lunch at "Everything POP" (CS)
check in, getting unpack, set up, and go off exploring.....I have two thoughts here...

1) DTD-- lots of shops to preview our souveniers and have dinner there OR
2) MK for a bit....I know we will be tired, but excited too, just to get in the mood (it's open unitl 9 p.m) and have dinner at The Wave at the Contemporary on the earlier side so we can get home and relax a bit

Mom wrote back and said she thinks going to MK for a bit was a good idea! I figure even if we don't get there until 2 or so, hang out for 2-3 hours, then head over to The Contemporary to have an earlier dinner at The Wave, it would be nice. I know Jodi will do whatever, so looks like we may be going to MK our 1st night afterall! YAY!!!



9/15
Epcot (EMH 8-9 a.m, park open until 9 p.m)
Tangerine Cafe - lunch (CS)
two thoughts here:
1) take monorail from Epcot to a late dinner at O'hana's (at Poly resort) and stay for the firework show at MK (9:30pm) watch from Poly beach--heard GREAT things about this firework show!! (TS)
2) Le Celliar in Epcot (TS)

Mom thinks going to the Poly for a late dinner would be nice and to see the fireworks,so the question here is..what time do I plan dinne- 8ish? To be done and get to the beach on time?

9/16
MK (9- 8 p.m) - I would love to see Opening ceremonies at MK this a.m.-- should be there by 8:30....no issue if you guys want to meet me there, just never saw it and would love to

lunch at Terrace Noodles (CS)
dinner at Crystal Palace or Tony's Town Square (TS)

Mom isn't a big fan of going to either of these...anyone have any other suggestions? She really like "different" kinds of food...where could we go? Anyone have any ideas?? ANd I was thinking a sit down 1/2 way through the day may be a good idea, too, so maybe some place on the monorail? Since it's going to be SUPER hot, maybe that's an option and then go back to MK??



9/17
Epcot (9-9 p.m)
Sunshine Season (CS)
Teppan Edo (TS)



9/18
DHS (9 a.m opening)
check out of POP, have them hold our luggage
get to DHS on the early side so we can see/do what we want (and get FP for Toy Story Mania ride!)

Still trying to decide on a sit down or counter service this day, maybe I'll make a ressie for a sit down and cancel if we need to/want to...thoughts or place to sit down??

Magical express bus pick up for Mom & I approx. 3-4 p.m from POP to airport.....

Mom & my flight 7:20 p.m.

So, this is preliminary plan of attack for the trip....one more week and I can make ressies!!!!!!!

 

[Lady Lallie]

What about lunch at Grand Floridian Cafe on your MK day? It wouldn't take too much time to get over there by boat or by monorail. Also, I don't know if you would want to do the Grand Floridian Tea. I have heard good things about both of those!

 

[SoonerGirl]

I was going to suggest the GF Cafe as well, or you could take the boat over to the Wilderness Lodge and eat at Whispering Canyon.