Running for my Disney - Now a PTR!

[zanzibar138]

Glad to hear things are going well

Thanks for stopping by Fairy Floss

 

[zanzibar138]

I have some great news to report from my physio session this morning! I'm recovering so well, I'm at least a week ahead of schedule as far as rehab goes

I can start building up my walking, and gently using the bike/cross trainer and pool at the gym.

Now I just have to not screw it up by overdoing it

 

[PrincessInOz]

That's great news, Zanzibar. Keep up the good work....and yes, don't overdo it.

 

[zanzibar138]

Back to trip related news...

I've just found out that I can get the DL Hotel for a heavily discounted rate during Dapper Days! US $225 is still quite over budget for me, but I'm pretty tempted

Since I could only ever afford one night there, it would have to be on the Friday night (Friday seems to be the only day Dapper Days are actually on for the 'Fall' event), which falls right in the middle of our stay.

Because we're staying in a vacation rental, I doubt they would let us ditch that night. The original plan was to book the DLH anyway if there was a good rate, and Mum and Dad could just stay in the vacation rental and cover us for that one night. However, now that DH has decided to return home early, that won't work anymore. I'm not sure that I would really enjoy staying at DLH on my own. Mum could join me, but then Dad would be on his own at the vacation rental. And if they both joined me, then no one would be staying at the vacation rental, despite us still paying for that night.

So long story short, I really don't know if I can make it work.

I'm considering still getting involved with Dapper Days anyway. I love vintage clothes and dressing up, and it gives me the perfect excuse!

 

[PrincessInOz]

On one hand, I say go for it.


However, the more pragmatic response would be to save your money for next time when you can enjoy it with DH. Tempting rate.

Oooh! Dress up! I reckon you would make a terrific flapper. Will you take something with you?

 

[zanzibar138]

On one hand, I say go for it.


However, the more pragmatic response would be to save your money for next time when you can enjoy it with DH. Tempting rate.

Oooh! Dress up! I reckon you would make a terrific flapper. Will you take something with you?

Gee thanks for your help PIO I think I'm leaning towards not doing it - I already get to spend my birthday at the happiest place on earth with my parents I'm just being greedy wanting anything more than that

I was actually thinking more of a 50s look, like when the park opened Complete with gloves and hat of course. If I was going to do it I'd definitely take something with me. I'm so fussy about clothes, if I left it until we were in the US I'd never find anything I was happy with. It's not something my parents would really be into though.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Gee thanks for your help PIO I think I'm leaning towards not doing it - I already get to spend my birthday at the happiest place on earth with my parents I'm just being greedy wanting anything more than that

I was actually thinking more of a 50s look, like when the park opened Complete with gloves and hat of course. If I was going to do it I'd definitely take something with me. I'm so fussy about clothes, if I left it until we were in the US I'd never find anything I was happy with. It's not something my parents would really be into though.

Audrey Hepburn style? Fantastic. I hope your parents take a picture of you in the outfit so we can see it.

 

[zanzibar138]

Audrey Hepburn style? Fantastic. I hope your parents take a picture of you in the outfit so we can see it.

Exactly I'm sure if I go ahead with it there will be many photos! I will also be wearing two running costumes now

 

[PrincessInOz]

BTW - I lurk on the Catalina thread from time to time. I just noticed you posted there.
If you are thinking of going, it is not cheap. I think that one day we went cost me about $200+ per person. That was for the ferry, golf cart hire, semi-sub tour and food. I did want to do the zipline as well; but it was booked out.

We just rocked up to the LB terminal (the one near town; not at the port) on the morning and got our ticket. We were looking to take the first service out and it was nearly fully booked when we got there. We had to pay a little extra to get in the "Captain's seating" area in order to get on that first service out. If you were thinking of going....and on a Saturday, I would be tempted to get the tix in advance.

 

[zanzibar138]

BTW - I lurk on the Catalina thread from time to time. I just noticed you posted there.
If you are thinking of going, it is not cheap. I think that one day we went cost me about $200+ per person. That was for the ferry, golf cart hire, semi-sub tour and food. I did want to do the zipline as well; but it was booked out.

We just rocked up to the LB terminal (the one near town; not at the port) on the morning and got our ticket. We were looking to take the first service out and it was nearly fully booked when we got there. We had to pay a little extra to get in the "Captain's seating" area in order to get on that first service out. If you were thinking of going....and on a Saturday, I would be tempted to get the tix in advance.

Thanks! I'm thinking it's probably going to be too expensive. Realistically, even if we book tours or expensive meals etc at Disneyland to cope with the crowds, it's going to be cheaper than doing Catalina. The only thing that might change our minds would be if Dad is getting Disneyed-out. But he coped very well with 5 days at DLP, they even went back for more after I left!

 

[PrincessInOz]

If it did come to it, you can always hire a car for the day and head out. If you headed beach-side, you could always consider doing a twilight Gondola ride on the Naples canals later in the evening.

 

[zanzibar138]

Yeah there's plenty to do in the area if we need a break from Disney that doesn't have to cost the earth Will definitely keep the gondola ride in mind - sounds like our kind of thing

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Tough choice about the Disneyland Hotel.

I would either be tempted to book all 3 of you into the hotel and not worry that the vacation rental is empty, or else save your money and not do it at all. Pushed to make a decision, I think I would lean towards the latter. You don't have to be a guest of DLH to try out Trader Sams, and because you quite a few days in the parks, you don't desperately need the extra magic hour.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Are your plans still pretty much the same as they are written in your first post? Your itinerary sounds like it may have evolved a bit, and I'd be keen to hear an updated rundown of your current plans.

In saying that, I was thinking that I should update the first post of my PTR. I don't think anything written in it is accurate anymore

 

[zanzibar138]

Tough choice about the Disneyland Hotel.

I would either be tempted to book all 3 of you into the hotel and not worry that the vacation rental is empty, or else save your money and not do it at all. Pushed to make a decision, I think I would lean towards the latter. You don't have to be a guest of DLH to try out Trader Sams, and because you quite a few days in the parks, you don't desperately need the extra magic hour.

We plan to 'resort hop' on the run weekend, since we're not planning to do parks then. Trader Sams is on the list, as is Storyteller's Cafe (hopefully I can convince Dad and DH to do the character breakfast post-race!).

I believe we get an EMH with our 10 day hoppers (although it will only be for DL), but it's not a big deal for us anyway as we're not really 'rope drop' kind of people. I think one EMH will be enough.

Are your plans still pretty much the same as they are written in your first post? Your itinerary sounds like it may have evolved a bit, and I'd be keen to hear an updated rundown of your current plans.

In saying that, I was thinking that I should update the first post of my PTR. I don't think anything written in it is accurate anymore

I've just had a look at the first page itinerary and you are completely right - it's so out of date! I'll update it, then add a post with the updated details.

 

[zanzibar138]

Updated itinerary:

Wednesday 27th August
Fly Melbourne - LA. Meet up with my parents who are flying from Perth. Settle into our DLR accommodation for the weekend (I still need to book this first night)

Thursday 28th August
Expo day and packet pick-up for the 5k. Downtown Disney.

Friday 29th August
5k RunDisney event. Rest up after that in preparation for the 10k.

Saturday 30th August
10k RunDisney event. Possibly brunch at Storyteller's Cafe post-race. Resort hopping in the afternoon, including drinks at Trader Sam's.

Sunday 31st August
Pick up hire car and drive to Palm Desert.

Monday 1st September
Full day in Palm Desert. I intend to book a morning fault line mountain bike tour for all of us, then we'll probably take the cable car up the mountain.

Tuesday 2nd September
Early morning drive through Joshua Tree National Park to 29 Palms. I plan to also take a late afternoon drive to see the northern part of the park in more detail.

Wednesday 3rd September
Drive to Kernville, southern point of the Sequoia National Forest (not to be confused with the National Park). Stop at Calico Ghost Town and possibly Red Rock Canyon State Park on the way through.

Thursday 4th September
Full day for exploring the Sequoia National Forest, including a stop at the Trail of 100 Giants and probably a picnic lunch in the forest. There is a micro-brewery in town where we might have dinner.

Friday 5th September
Drive to Santa Margarita. If we want to in the afternoon we can check out Santa Margarita lake. We're staying in a cabin at a KOA, so hoping to have a bit of an American camping experience with a campfire and S'mores!

Saturday 6th September
We'll split up in the morning for the boys to go shooting, and us girls will go horse riding, both in the San Luis Obispo area. In the afternoon we'll drive to the coast and check out Morro Bay and Montana de Oro State Park.

Sunday 7th September
Drive to Camarillo, just outside LA. On the way we can stop at Santa Barbara Mission and gardens if we feel like it. We'll split up again when we get to Camarillo. Outlet shopping for the girls, another micro-brewery for the boys.

Monday 8th September
Drive to Universal Studios for the day, then carry on down to Anaheim. Whether we get to any parks on this day will be highly dependent on how long we spend at Universal, and traffic. Drop off hire car.

Tuesday 9th September
First full day at DLR. DH is planning to leave today, so we'll concentrate on stuff he wants to do, probably starting with Carsland. I've asked him to make a list of what else he specifically wants to do - rides, shows, dining, shopping etc.

Wednesday 10th September - Monday 15th September
My parents and I will get stuck into DLR! I'm making a list of stuff I want to do/share with my parents - they've only been to DLP so far.
* WOC dining package
* Fantasmic! dessert party, maybe for my birthday on the Sunday
* Lunch at Blue Bayou
* Possibly a tour, as a way of avoiding crowds on the Saturday
* Character breakfast at Plaza Inn (Mum and I might do this on the first day while Dad has DH to do something else with)
* Dapper Day on the Friday

Tuesday 16th September - Wednesday 17th September
My parents will fly to the San Francisco area today to begin their cycling tour. I will fly to Phoenix/Mesa. Looking at staying in the Apache Junction area. Hope to do a horse riding tour in the Superstition Mountains, and do the steamboat cruise on Canyon Lake.

Thursday 18th September - Sunday 21st September
Fly to San Antonio. One full day for a DisMeet, possibly at SeaWorld followed by TexMex lunch. Other things in the area I'm looking at doing are The Alamo and River Walk in downtown San Antonio, drive up to Hamilton Pool Nature Reserve for hiking/photos/possible swimming, and a possible adventure cave tour!

Fly home

 

[PrincessInOz]

Sounds like a full trip. Well done on the organisation and planning.

 

[zanzibar138]

Sounds like a full trip. Well done on the organisation and planning.

Yeah I don't think we'll get bored

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Your updated plans sound wonderful.

Like me, you are squeezing a lot into your limited time.

How exciting to have a Dismeet in Texas. It's lovely that the DIS is helping you make friends all around the world.

 

[zanzibar138]

Your updated plans sound wonderful.

Like me, you are squeezing a lot into your limited time.

How exciting to have a Dismeet in Texas. It's lovely that the DIS is helping you make friends all around the world.

It's great that I could fit in the little side trip to Texas And I just couldn't go right past Arizona without stopping off for a few days. I've always wanted to see the saguaros!