Sun, Shopping, Sand, Surf, Sweat & Shamu: A Splashin Summertime Sabbatical at SVR!

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Our Diamond Lane requests have officially been submitted!!

"Top floor unit with a vaulted ceiling and skylight that is located away from the two highways and close to the Fountains pool. Also a nice view and reasonably close to a grill for barbecuing if possible".

I am not sure why, but submitting the Diamond Lane form just kicks off a little flutter of excitement in the pit of my stomach. If I wasn't sitting here in my jammies this morning, I may have had to run around the yard doing a little fist pumping . My neighbours should be grateful for my self control .



I am embarking on my regular weekly full cleaning of the house today, making everything gleam and shine. That's always a good way to get rid of my nervous energy!!

 

[dancin Disney style]

Second set of bands have shipped. DD realized I put our names on them. She is lucky I did not put some other less flattering name on hers. A soon to be a teen, she is not always nice to mom.

LOL....you just wait for 14, 15 and 16. it gets even better. I'm on teen number 2 right now and she's 15.

I hear ya!! You will have to keep me posted, though, if you do decide to pull the trigger. If you pick late August for an arrival, we could still arrange for that Ghirardelli's meet at DTD .

I know you have mentioned airfare and a car rental, but have you narowed down a possible place to stay?

So really funny, yesterday morning DH walks into the living room and makes this announcement...."I think we should drive down to FL before school starts". To that point I had said nothing about it. Our oldest DD can't go anyplace, she has to work. The 15yo immediately says "no way". Now if he had offered to fly to FL she would have jumped all over that. The girl takes after her mother on the fly VS drive subject. We have done the drive many times but I really hate it. Anyway, I'm still undecided and didn't even mention my thoughts to him the exchange between the two of them was just too funny at that moment.

I've done a ton of searching for a place to stay but nothing is really jumping at me. I would like to book through Rocketmiles to get the SW rapid rewards. The booking would probably give me enough(combined with what I already have) to get both my ticket and DD's ticket for her March Break trip BUT those prices are a little higher than I can get through other sources. They do have a really cheap price for Grande Villas. I just really prefer to have something a little more luxurious when on vacay. I have also looked at the Radisson in Celebration. Got any connections to get me into SVR for cheap?

I also looked at the Entertainment books yesterday. I think I'm going to order one....just in case. I had one last year and kept track of the savings from the coupons that we used. It was over $150 and I think I paid $7 for the book.

I've got a car....just in case. Now I'll get the book....just in case. I think I should book a flight....just in case.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

I've done a ton of searching for a place to stay but nothing is really jumping at me. I would like to book through Rocketmiles to get the SW rapid rewards. The booking would probably give me enough(combined with what I already have) to get both my ticket and DD's ticket for her March Break trip BUT those prices are a little higher than I can get through other sources. They do have a really cheap price for Grande Villas. I just really prefer to have something a little more luxurious when on vacay. I have also looked at the Radisson in Celebration. Got any connections to get me into SVR for cheap?

What would your check-in day be.....the weekend of the 23/24th or the following weekend?

Interval has some decent rates for SVR (and for Marriott's Grande Vista).

A one bedroom at SVR for the weekend beginning the 22/23/24 of August is $377. A two bedroom is $487.

For check-in the weekend of August 29/30/31 its $10-20 more than the above rates for the week.

The week beginning Sept. 5/6/7, its a low, low $257 for a one bedroom and $267 for a two bedroom!

Grande Vista is $357 for a one bedroom for the weekend of Aug. 22/23/24, $347 for check-ins the weekend of August 29/30/31.

Another place to check would be SkyAuction. I think that's where pigletto scored her awesome rate on a 2 bedroom villa at SVR.

 

[dancin Disney style]

We would be arriving either the 29th or 30th. How could I book through Interval....isn't that just for timeshare owners? Those are great prices for both resorts. I paid $500/week at the Marriott last year....but that was mid August.

I just looked though Skyauction....nothing there for me. By the time you add in the service charge and extras you end up at $700-800. I've never found much on that site though. I guess it's luck of the draw.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

We would be arriving either the 29th or 30th. How could I book through Interval....isn't that just for timeshare owners? Those are great prices for both resorts. I paid $500/week at the Marriott last year....but that was mid August.

I just looked though Skyauction....nothing there for me. By the time you add in the service charge and extras you end up at $700-800. I've never found much on that site though. I guess it's luck of the draw.

Well, shoot. I was thinking you had booked through a timeshare exchange company for last year's trip . My bad!

I wonder, can you become a member of II (an $89 fee for the year) without actually owning a timeshare?

 

[dancin Disney style]

Well, shoot. I was thinking you had booked through a timeshare exchange company for last year's trip . My bad!

I wonder, can you become a member of II (an $89 fee for the year) without actually owning a timeshare?

I would gladly join II if possible. I rented from someone on Ebay last year.

 

[bankr63]

Just catching up while enjoying a long weekend. Man this TR moves along quick!

I vote for 2hr on the PWC as well. That is an incredible deal. Speaking from experience you'll get your value in gas alone. We used my FIL's Yamaha (a big sweet 2 seater) at the cottage in Muskoka - the kids could keep me going for hours giving ride after ride, but FIL always kept it gassed up. Well one time I was near the marina and gas was down around a quarter, so I pulled in for a fill up. My jaw dropped when he told me the fill cost; more than my big SUV. But they are a blast to ride, and not very hard to get the hang of. About the toughest thing is bringing one into a slip or dock smoothly, but a rental place will probably have WELL padded docking. There are no gears, just reverse and forward, no brakes, and just a throttle to worry about.

Entertainment books are currently on sale for $6 or 2 for $10. Free shipping, too.

I am not sure if you would be able to visit the Vistana's farmers market or not. I am guessing the security guards might give you a hard time about getting in (they tend to be pretty thorough). bankr63, would you know for sure if access is restricted to resort guests only?

I wish I could get one of these, but the current version expires before the next trip. Hoping they have an early-bird special on the 2015 version.

I don't think that security will let you in for just the farmers market, but that's just a guess. Usually resort guests are expected to let security know if they are expecting other guests.

On the towel question, keep in mind that towels don't have to be returned every day, or at the end of day. So grab one day one and just swap when it is convenient. Also, I would love for you to try something for me. They always ask how many cards you want (most other Sheraton resorts have the card system). We've always asked for as many as we have people. It has never dawned on me to ask for twice as many. At Vistana Resort with self-serve we always grabbed two per person (one for lounging, one for drying). Try asking for 8 cards for your party of 4 and see what they say...

As an owner, I'm not convinced this towel program is a good idea. I had never heard that towel loss was a big issue, and I expect that the program will require the addition of one or two more staff to police the program. Even if we're talking two $30k positions, were they really losing $60k per year of towels?

I wonder, can you become a member of II (an $89 fee for the year) without actually owning a timeshare?

Pretty sure the answer to this one is no, but there are several people on TUG who have mentioned ditching all but their cheapest maintenance unit, (usually an EOY off season 1BR or Studio) so that they can maintain their membership. Their ownership is the price of admission to get access to all the great selloff deals available to the members.

Happy Civic Holiday to all my Canuck friends (note to the guv'mnt: we need to get a better name for this holiday...)

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

There are .... no brakes

Also, I would love for you to try something for me. They always ask how many cards you want (most other Sheraton resorts have the card system). We've always asked for as many as we have people. It has never dawned on me to ask for twice as many. At Vistana Resort with self-serve we always grabbed two per person (one for lounging, one for drying). Try asking for 8 cards for your party of 4 and see what they say...

Absolutely . I received an email from our pre-arrival co-ordinator today following the submission of our Diamond Lane requests, and apparently she will be personally checking us in when we arrive. I will be sure to ask her about getting multiple towel cards, and post the results both here and on the Vistana thread.

Happy Civic Holiday to all my Canuck friends (note to the guv'mnt: we need to get a better name for this holiday...)

I completely agree. I just looked up the description of the Civic Holiday on wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civic_Holiday

and wow, what a convoluted explanation. Apparently there's a whole lot of different names depending on where you are celebrating. So a Happy Colonel By Day to you tomorrow, Munro . (We here in the Friendly City apparently don't have anyone noteworthy enough to rename our holiday in honour of!)

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

After much fretting and web-searching, I bit the bullet and ordered two swimsuits last night (and three polos for Steve, and three t-shirts for moi...what can I say, the US prices on clothing are so much better than here!! ), to be shipped to our park and fly hotel in Syracuse (fingers crossed they arrive in time.....delivery estimates said somewhere between the 13th and 15 of August, so we are cutting it close!). I also placed an order for some Orlando summer essentials......things like John Frieda's Frizz Ease shampoo and conditioner, Banana Boat SPF 100 sunscreen, and Gold Bond's version of Body Glide....all to be delivered to Syracuse as well, so we will already have some of the really important stuff on hand when we land .

After a rainy, stormy Sunday, the sun is out and it looks like its going to be a glorious holiday Monday for us here . Not super hot, but at least its bright and pleasant. The kids are off to the beach, Steve will be sleeping for part of the day (he just got home from his 3rd midnight shift in a row), so I think I'll take to my gardens today and do some weeding and pruning.

I can't believe we're down to:

 

[Lynne G]

Wahoo! Time is moving along. I can't believe we have 2 more week-ends before we leave.

Great to have that all ordered. All should be at your hotel in NY by the time you arrive.

It was raining earlier today, but now the sun is very bright. I hope it stays that way, as DD is off to Dorney Park for some amusement and water park fun with her camp. It's not far from where we live.

With a low of 60 last night, it still feels like we are more in a fall weather pattern than summer. Oh well, it's been great sleeping weather.

Time to start figuring out what clothes the kids want to take. I know I'll be doing lots of laundry the next two weeks!

 

[grantclaire]

Up early on a Holiday Monday, coffee in hand, checking Disboards! DW comes downstairs " checking for flights " she says "nope checking in to see whats new with Gina" "who's Gina ?" Show her your pretrip report, I think she is hooked now too!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

With a low of 60 last night, it still feels like we are more in a fall weather pattern than summer. Oh well, it's been great sleeping weather.

Time to start figuring out what clothes the kids want to take. I know I'll be doing lots of laundry the next two weeks!

It *has* been good sleeping weather, hasn't it? (the irony here is that I was up for HOURS in the night last night....not sure why, but I was wide awake from 12:30 to 3 am ... thank goodness I didn't have to be up at the crack of dawn for work this morning).

Keeping the amount of clothes that we pack to a minimum is always challenging for me. Try as I might, I almost always take way more than we need (especially when we do so much shopping). I am vowing to pack lighter this trip, particularly when we have great laundry facilities in our villa. I am encouraging Sweetie to do the same.....we shall see how that works out!!!

Up early on a Holiday Monday, coffee in hand, checking Disboards! DW comes downstairs " checking for flights " she says "nope checking in to see whats new with Gina" "who's Gina ?" Show her your pretrip report, I think she is hooked now too!

Is your wife on the Dis too, Grant? Or do you share the one login? I keep encouraging Steve to sign up so he could post his thoughts on my reports and give you all the guys' point of view....but so far, he prefers to lurk rather than post.

You have reminded me though....I need to check my Jetblue flights to see if there has been any kind of price drop. I haven't done so in a little while, and this is the time that they might have a big dip to sell off the remaining seats, when the travel dates are now so close. Here's hoping they put a good push on to fill that plane and save me a little money .

I hope you are both enjoying a relaxing holiday Monday! The next stat day means back-to-school and the onset of autumn....so quite honestly, Labour Day always makes me feel rather melancholy . I love the summers and HATE to see them end!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

So far this morning, I have whipped up a couple of batches of homemade muffins, and some chocolate chunk brownies are just finishing in the oven. I don’t normally bake much in the summer months (my mom tends to send home a steady stream of her home baked treats) but today I just felt the urge to be domestic. Probably a bad idea to bake, though, right after I just ordered new swim wear .

I have been mulling over whether or not we should drive to Discovery Cove on the date of our visit (Monday, August 25th) versus taking an alternate form of transportation (town car service or a taxi). We’re not big drinkers AT ALL, but it’s nice to have the option to enjoy the alcoholic beverages that are offered should we choose to do so. It’s one of those extra costs that could be considered a Godsend or a waste, just depending. I ran a few online quotes for an assortment of town car services and Mears looks like it’s the cheapest at about $35 each way (not sure if they would give a preferable rate for a round trip, I would have to call to inquire). I think the taxi estimate was about $25. Driver gratuities, of course, would also have to be added to both. I am not sure if it would be easiest to have the town car scheduled for specific times, or just to call the taxi when we are ready. Or save the $60-$100 and put it toward something else.

Decisions, decisions.





It may just be one of those spur-of-the-moment things, where we check the weather the day prior and decide from there. A hot and sunny forecast with little rain projected and we book the town car or plan for a taxi. Unsettled weather predicted and we drive ourselves in the rental (though I hate the thought of leaving early due to weather......it’s the park we are all looking forward to the most, and I want to literally shut the place down at the end of the day!).









This is what I will be doing in almost exactly 3 weeks from right now:



Please, Mother Nature, bless us with the sunshiny weather we've been lucky enough to enjoy on the last two visits!!

 

[grantclaire]

The DW and I share the login. She really likes the Seaworld pictures,we have never been! Might add it to the to/do list!

 

[tristyp]

12 days to go.....It's like the twelve days of Christmas

That Discovery cove looks so beautiful. As I told you before I really wanted to do this. This will be a definite the next time we go in a couple years and ds4 will be older and it will be enjoyable for all. When i showed my wife DC she was in love as rides dont turn her on all that much.

 

[esmom]

Hi Gina-thanks again for all your thoughts ands experiences. I can't tell you how much you've helped in my planning our 1st SW/ DC trip! I was curious about the parking pass you bought early on. (I bought one too). I know you said after a big hassle, you were able to straighten everything out... But what did DC do?

I called to ask if the pass would still be valid and the service member assured me it would and then re-sent the email to me. The parking pass didn't change, it's the exact same as the one I received months ago. Do you think I should call again or just see if it works when we get there. My mother always told me " if you look for problems, you're sure to find them" lol. I just don't want to lose time on a one and only DC day because of a parking issue I could have solved at home.

Would you mind sharing what you did to ensure the parking pass would work?

Thanks!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Hi Gina-thanks again for all your thoughts ands experiences. I can't tell you how much you've helped in my planning our 1st SW/ DC trip! I was curious about the parking pass you bought early on. (I bought one too). I know you said after a big hassle, you were able to straighten everything out... But what did DC do?

I called to ask if the pass would still be valid and the service member assured me it would and then re-sent the email to me. The parking pass didn't change, it's the exact same as the one I received months ago. Do you think I should call again or just see if it works when we get there. My mother always told me " if you look for problems, you're sure to find them" lol. I just don't want to lose time on a one and only DC day because of a parking issue I could have solved at home.

Would you mind sharing what you did to ensure the parking pass would work?

Thanks!

Hi Michelle,

Guest Relations had my parking pass re-issued and the old pass cancelled (the new one I was emailed has a totally new number on it). In the end, there was way too much doubt as to whether or not the advance purchase pass would be valid, so they re-issued to be on the safe side. This one they said they KNEW would work, and like you, we wanted to avoid any headaches on a planned park day.

Fingers crossed it goes smoothly for both of us!

 

[ZehnJahren]

Just wanted to hop over and say - - YOUR TRIP IS GETTING SO CLOSE!!!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

The DW and I share the login. She really likes the Seaworld pictures,we have never been! Might add it to the to/do list!

Oh, do it!!! Seriously, its my favourite park in Orlando (after Discovery Cove). So much fun. So relaxed and so many neat things to do and see. I love this video, it just is such a good summary of all the awesomeness of SeaWorld:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUUd1ne1HGI

12 days to go.....It's like the twelve days of Christmas

That Discovery cove looks so beautiful. As I told you before I really wanted to do this. This will be a definite the next time we go in a couple years and ds4 will be older and it will be enjoyable for all. When i showed my wife DC she was in love as rides dont turn her on all that much.

Holding off until your 4 year old turns 6 will mean you can all do the dolphin swim on your first visit. That will be an incredible memory for the whole family and something you'll all want to experience together. Definitely worth the wait!!

I'm with your wife...I'm not much of a ride girl. I don't enjoy being shaken, flipped, spun around, or dropped from high places (not much fun, am I? ). I do love "experiences"....which is why DC appeals so much. And I adore the SeaWorld shows and exhibits. I could stand for hours in Sharks!!

Just wanted to hop over and say - - YOUR TRIP IS GETTING SO CLOSE!!!

I know!!!!

Not gonna lie.....I'm going to have a heck of a time focusing for the next 9 work days.

 

[pigletto]

I have so much to catch up on in here Gina! We just got back from the cottage (I don't even want to talk about the holiday traffic and oh my god did you see what happened to the Burlington Skyway?). It was an awesome fun filled weekend. Now it's back to trip planning.
I only got as far as you listing out your costs but I want to play too! First off, I think you've done an amazing job on your totals. Yes it seems high, but it's also TWO weeks and all kinds of adventures for four people! I also think it's great for you to cost it all out. I love seeing what other people get their trips for, and I don't think there is nearly enough offsite info out there. It helps people plan and see what they can get for their money.
My totals aren't nearly as good I don't think but staying offsite is going to save us a bundle.
So..
Air for 4 with Southwest.. about $1300
Disney ticket upgrade .. $600(we have two day tickets that we are upgrading to 6 or 7 day tickets)
Dog Boarding .. $300
Park and Fly hotel … $120
Two nights at Hard Rock Hotel.. $580
3 day Universal Tickets… $700
Rental Car for 9 nights $ 250
Sheraton Vistana Resort 7 nights $620

So the grand total for known vacation expenses for 10 nights/10 days is $4470

However, we haven't included food/gas/spending. Those are unknown at this point but we are going to do a big grocery shop for the Vistana stay and have budgeted $140 per day for meals . So that could be counter service at a park one day, or a table service offsite etc. The Universal days I've budgeted a bit more. So grand total for food, gas and spending money estimate is about $2000. That brings the grand total for 10 nights/ 10 days to $6470.

Some of these costs are variable (could save a lot more on food if necessary, and I hope to get the rental car lower). Not too bad I guess. Any amount over $5000 stings though. We'd save quite a bit if we didn't do the three days at Universal but that's what the kids want as their big Christmas gift so we decided to go for it.

Anyway.. now I am off to read the rest of the pages I missed!