UKDEB
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As it's now only a month until our trip, I thought I'd venture a pre-trippie in an attempt to release some of my pent-up excitement. Based on previous form, promising a full trippie on my return would lack integrity to say the least. I'd like to think I'll take notes, but my good intentions invariably peter out after the first few days.
When:
Sunday, 2nd November - Sunday, 16th November
Who:
Deb: Aged 47. Reformed control freak who now just likes to go with the flow (well, to a point
). Foodie.
Matt: Aged 36. "It's five o-clock somewhere". Nuff said.
Here are a couple of really flattering shots of me indulging in my favourite pastime:
(At the bar in Brio Tuscan Grill, Mall at Millenia)
(At the bar in Tommy Bahama's Tropical Cafe, Pointe Orlando)
And a couple of Matt doing likewise:
(Sosa Cigar Bar, Downtown Disney)
(Heads Up Bar, Castaway Cay)
Where:
In 19 trips this will be only the second without any friends or family along. During the first (back in May, 2003) we rented a villa, but having bought into DVC in 2006, we have planned our first ever entirely onsite stay.
As has become our usual MO, we'll be staying at the Gatwick Sofitel the night before the flight. We like this hotel, although it'll seem strange not to have company as we get our holiday underway in the lobby bar.
Gatwick Sofitel atrium:
The timing of our trip was carefully planned to take in the International Food and Wine Festival, as well as some of the Christmas season, whilst avoiding the worst of the crowds. We were also keen to spend a couple of nights onsite at Universal in order to take advantage of our 2 year AP deal, and to enjoy the delights of CityWalk in the evening without having to worry about taxis.
The first week of our trip coincides with the last 7 days of the IF&WF which works out perfectly. We can spend the first 5 nights (Sunday - Thursday) in DVC accommodation, then move to Universal for the Friday and Saturday nights avoiding both the expensive weekend DVC points and the final weekend crowds at the IF&WF. We had hoped to book those first 5 nights at one of the Epcot resorts, but we weren't able to get availability at the 7 month window. As things stand we are booked for 5 nights in a studio at our home resort of Saratoga Springs (and are waitlisted for either BoardWalk Villas or Beach Club Villas), then 2 nights at Universal's Royal Pacific (having stayed twice at all three Universal resorts, this is now our top pick simply because it's the cheapest option), and finally 7 nights back at Saratoga Springs in a one-bed villa.
Our studio at SSR in August, 2007:
Grandstand pool:
Here are a couple of photos of our room at RPR during a previous stay:
And this is a library shot of a remodelled room - I think it looks lovely:
And just a couple of shots of our two-bed at SSR from January of this year. It was a dedicated two-bed, but our one-bed will be pretty much identical:
As it's just the two of us, our plan is to mooch around, taking lots of photographs and soaking it all up. Epcot is our favourite park and we adore the IF&WF, so we're very much looking forward to that. We've pre-ordered the PhotoPass CD, so we'll be doing our best to make the most of it.
Although we've stayed at SSR twice previously, we've never really had an opportunity to have a good look around, so we plan to do that during our second week and we'll also be taking a stroll over to Old Key West as that's one of the few resorts we've never visited. We're also sure to be taking the walk to Downtown Disney on more than a few occasions and T-Rex is on our list of new places to try.
We've eaten at all the MK table service restaurants over the years and we're not fanatical about any of them, so we occasionally head out to one of the resorts for lunch. Even then the options are limited, so we're going to try The Wave at the Contemporary this trip. From the reviews I've read, I'm keeping my expectations fairly low, but it'll be nice to do something different.
We're planning an evening of bar-crawling at CityWalk, although whether we make it beyond Margraritaville remains to be seen
Having peered through the window of the Red Coconut Club during the daytime on a couple of occasions, I think we'll pop in there for at least one drink - it looks quite swanky. Ditto Rix Lounge at Coronado Springs. I'd like to take a look at that if we get an opportunity.
Rix Lounge:
As well as T-Rex and The Wave, we have quite a few restaurants which we plan to try for the first time - Village Tavern at Mall at Millenia; Cuba Libre, Oceanaire and Maggianos at Pointe Orlando; A Land Remembered at Rosen Shingle Creek; and maybe Tokyo Dining at Epcot and Elephant Bar at Mall at Millenia. Whether or not we'll fit them all in remains to be seen - we've got quite a few old favourites on the list too including Tommy Bahama's Tropical Cafe, Capital Grill, Seasons 52 and several onsite). We're also looking forward to sampling the delights of the new tequila bar in the Mexico pavilion.
We've got tickets for MVMCP which we haven't done for 7 years, so that should be fun. I can't wait to see the castle all dressed up in its twinkling lights. There will undoubtedly be some rounds of golf squeezed in there somewhere and we may make a trip to the Cheyenne Saloon in Church Street Station - a place we didn't ever get around to visiting during its glory years. Oh, and shopping! How could I have forgotten that?
When:
Sunday, 2nd November - Sunday, 16th November
Who:
Deb: Aged 47. Reformed control freak who now just likes to go with the flow (well, to a point
). Foodie. Matt: Aged 36. "It's five o-clock somewhere". Nuff said.
Here are a couple of really flattering shots of me indulging in my favourite pastime:
(At the bar in Brio Tuscan Grill, Mall at Millenia)
(At the bar in Tommy Bahama's Tropical Cafe, Pointe Orlando)
And a couple of Matt doing likewise:
(Sosa Cigar Bar, Downtown Disney)
(Heads Up Bar, Castaway Cay)
Where:
In 19 trips this will be only the second without any friends or family along. During the first (back in May, 2003) we rented a villa, but having bought into DVC in 2006, we have planned our first ever entirely onsite stay.
As has become our usual MO, we'll be staying at the Gatwick Sofitel the night before the flight. We like this hotel, although it'll seem strange not to have company as we get our holiday underway in the lobby bar.
Gatwick Sofitel atrium:
The timing of our trip was carefully planned to take in the International Food and Wine Festival, as well as some of the Christmas season, whilst avoiding the worst of the crowds. We were also keen to spend a couple of nights onsite at Universal in order to take advantage of our 2 year AP deal, and to enjoy the delights of CityWalk in the evening without having to worry about taxis.
The first week of our trip coincides with the last 7 days of the IF&WF which works out perfectly. We can spend the first 5 nights (Sunday - Thursday) in DVC accommodation, then move to Universal for the Friday and Saturday nights avoiding both the expensive weekend DVC points and the final weekend crowds at the IF&WF. We had hoped to book those first 5 nights at one of the Epcot resorts, but we weren't able to get availability at the 7 month window. As things stand we are booked for 5 nights in a studio at our home resort of Saratoga Springs (and are waitlisted for either BoardWalk Villas or Beach Club Villas), then 2 nights at Universal's Royal Pacific (having stayed twice at all three Universal resorts, this is now our top pick simply because it's the cheapest option), and finally 7 nights back at Saratoga Springs in a one-bed villa.
Our studio at SSR in August, 2007:
Grandstand pool:
Here are a couple of photos of our room at RPR during a previous stay:
And this is a library shot of a remodelled room - I think it looks lovely:
And just a couple of shots of our two-bed at SSR from January of this year. It was a dedicated two-bed, but our one-bed will be pretty much identical:
As it's just the two of us, our plan is to mooch around, taking lots of photographs and soaking it all up. Epcot is our favourite park and we adore the IF&WF, so we're very much looking forward to that. We've pre-ordered the PhotoPass CD, so we'll be doing our best to make the most of it.
Although we've stayed at SSR twice previously, we've never really had an opportunity to have a good look around, so we plan to do that during our second week and we'll also be taking a stroll over to Old Key West as that's one of the few resorts we've never visited. We're also sure to be taking the walk to Downtown Disney on more than a few occasions and T-Rex is on our list of new places to try.
We've eaten at all the MK table service restaurants over the years and we're not fanatical about any of them, so we occasionally head out to one of the resorts for lunch. Even then the options are limited, so we're going to try The Wave at the Contemporary this trip. From the reviews I've read, I'm keeping my expectations fairly low, but it'll be nice to do something different.
We're planning an evening of bar-crawling at CityWalk, although whether we make it beyond Margraritaville remains to be seen
Having peered through the window of the Red Coconut Club during the daytime on a couple of occasions, I think we'll pop in there for at least one drink - it looks quite swanky. Ditto Rix Lounge at Coronado Springs. I'd like to take a look at that if we get an opportunity.Rix Lounge:
As well as T-Rex and The Wave, we have quite a few restaurants which we plan to try for the first time - Village Tavern at Mall at Millenia; Cuba Libre, Oceanaire and Maggianos at Pointe Orlando; A Land Remembered at Rosen Shingle Creek; and maybe Tokyo Dining at Epcot and Elephant Bar at Mall at Millenia. Whether or not we'll fit them all in remains to be seen - we've got quite a few old favourites on the list too including Tommy Bahama's Tropical Cafe, Capital Grill, Seasons 52 and several onsite). We're also looking forward to sampling the delights of the new tequila bar in the Mexico pavilion.
We've got tickets for MVMCP which we haven't done for 7 years, so that should be fun. I can't wait to see the castle all dressed up in its twinkling lights. There will undoubtedly be some rounds of golf squeezed in there somewhere and we may make a trip to the Cheyenne Saloon in Church Street Station - a place we didn't ever get around to visiting during its glory years. Oh, and shopping! How could I have forgotten that?
The resorts you are staying at look lovely. Can't wait to hear what you think of T-Rex 
Have a great time 
