Tagless DIS'ers / Formerly Tagless DIS'ers Unite!!!

[leahlovesdisney]

Hello Tagless/Formerly Tagless friends! I was without internet for a few days.

Welcome back Mean Queen, glad you had a good time! It got pretty cold here! Too cold to wear my Crocs on a long walk around the neighborhood, atleast.

 

[DeterminedOne]

Hello Tagless/Formerly Tagless friends! I was without internet for a few days.

Oooh, bet that was tough.

 

[LegoMom3]

Oooh, bet that was tough.

Back when we had Adelphia for cable Internet, we'd sometimes be without for a week or more... Apparently they had pretty outdated equipment. Then Comcast bought them out and that was the end of the extended outages, but it could still be spotty. Then they sent me notification that my monthly Internet bill was going up by $15/mo., unless I also subscribed to their TV service.... So that was the end of cable in our house, period!!

I switched to DSL with our local phone company and have never, ever had an outage with them.

Worst outage was fall of '06, when I was in the middle of posting regular updates to my WDW trip report!! Boy did I have major withdrawal.

Changing the subject, here are the TS restaurants that I think we'll do on our next trip!
* Boatwright's (at POR, where we're staying)
* Dinner at Chef Mickey's (did breakfast last time)
* Whispering Canyon Cafe (at Wilderness Lodge)
* Sci-Fi Dine-In (for lunch; we had an ADR there last time but ended up cancelling due to being too exhausted to venture out that afternoon...)
* Hoop-de-Doo Musical Review (using up 2 TS credits but that's ok; DH and I did this before the kids were born and it's time to go again, with them!)

This all depends on them offering Free Dining again, though! If they don't, I'll probably skip the dining plan all together and just budget for CS. Free Dining is a great deal for our family, but to pay for it for a 6-day trip is WAY expensive!!! Esp. now that DS11 is considered an "adult." I priced out various options the other night and nearly choked... Yes, DH told me to go ahead and book the trip, but since I'm the one who does the bills and the budget in our house, I know what I'm up against and that money doesn't just happen!

 

[LegoMom3]

That stinks. Hope you feel better.

What's everybody up to today? We just got back from breakfast. There was a huge hair in DH's pancakes. They were very apologetic and took them off the bill.

 

[LegoMom3]

Boy howdy, it looks like I'm the only one around!

It's loooonely in here...!

I guess everyone else is out actually having a life on this Saturday evening!

Anywho, I just figured out that IF Disney comes out with Free Dining for the general public again this year (here's hoping - they've already done Bounce Back and UK offers!) we can do 6 nights w/ 6-day passes (non-hoppers) for just over $2,000! For a family of 5 at Disney, that ROCKS!!!!

Well, since no one else is around, I think I'll go read some more of my PassPorter!

 

[Mean Queen]

Boy howdy, it looks like I'm the only one around!

It's loooonely in here...!

I guess everyone else is out actually having a life on this Saturday evening!

Anywho, I just figured out that IF Disney comes out with Free Dining for the general public again this year (here's hoping - they've already done Bounce Back and UK offers!) we can do 6 nights w/ 6-day passes (non-hoppers) for just over $2,000! For a family of 5 at Disney, that ROCKS!!!!

Well, since no one else is around, I think I'll go read some more of my PassPorter!

Ok, reading this makes me even more happy for my DVC membership and Annual Passes. And the lack of paying for airfare. Though if food is included, you get the better deal.

 

[Metro West]

I'm glad I have my AP for Disney too...especially when I hear how much it costs non-residents to come and vacation here...OUCH!

I'm just glad to be living in Orlando not far from Disney or Universal.

 

[LegoMom3]

duplicate!

 

[LegoMom3]

duplicate

 

[LegoMom3]

duplicate #3!!!

 

[LegoMom3]

Ok, reading this makes me even more happy for my DVC membership and Annual Passes. And the lack of paying for airfare. Though if food is included, you get the better deal.

I'm glad I have my AP for Disney too...especially when I hear how much it costs non-residents to come and vacation here...OUCH!

I'm just glad to be living in Orlando not far from Disney or Universal.

Yeah, yeah...go ahead and rub it in...! Will it help if I add that we're probably looking at close to $1,000 for airfare for 5?!!

I know if we were there and bought the discount APs, we'd be looking at around $1,000 for all of us. Of course that doesn't include overnight stays, which I'm not sure how much of that we'd be doing, once we were in driving distance. What is DVC like? Do you feel like you get your money's worth on that?

 

[Mean Queen]

Yeah, yeah...go ahead and rub it in...! Will it help if I add that we're probably looking at close to $1,000 for airfare for 5?!!

I know if we were there and bought the discount APs, we'd be looking at around $1,000 for all of us. Of course that doesn't include overnight stays, which I'm not sure how much of that we'd be doing, once we were in driving distance. What is DVC like? Do you feel like you get your money's worth on that?

Uh oh! You had some trouble posting that one.

I do think DVC is worth it for us. We liked to go up for quick overnight visits anyway, and this way we get a nice place to stay that is already paid for. We have 400 points, and we use them all up. For example, we just stayed at Hilton Head Sun-Thur in a 3 bedroom for only 146 points. I don't think we could have afforded to pay for a room that size each year. We have friends go with us who couldn't afford to pay to go with us if we didn't provide the room for free. So that alone makes it worth it. Our dues are about $1600 a year. I figure we'd pay much more than that to stay on site at WDW the amount we do, and we get deluxe rooms.

 

[LegoMom3]

Uh oh! You had some trouble posting that one.

I do think DVC is worth it for us. We liked to go up for quick overnight visits anyway, and this way we get a nice place to stay that is already paid for. We have 400 points, and we use them all up. For example, we just stayed at Hilton Head Sun-Thur in a 3 bedroom for only 146 points. I don't think we could have afforded to pay for a room that size each year. We have friends go with us who couldn't afford to pay to go with us if we didn't provide the room for free. So that alone makes it worth it. Our dues are about $1600 a year. I figure we'd pay much more than that to stay on site at WDW the amount we do, and we get deluxe rooms.

No, but apparently the DIS sure did!! I only hit "submit" once! It was super slow to go through, though.

So, if we were to pay $1600 in dues for DVC, plus another $1000 for APs, that really comes out to what we'd pay for a week-long vacation, minus having to pay airfare. We'd get little trips spread out over the year, instead of one big one all at once. Do you find there is a minimum # of trips you need to take to break even or come out ahead?

 

[Mean Queen]

No, but apparently the DIS sure did!! I only hit "submit" once! It was super slow to go through, though.

So, if we were to pay $1600 in dues for DVC, plus another $1000 for APs, that really comes out to what we'd pay for a week-long vacation, minus having to pay airfare. We'd get little trips spread out over the year, instead of one big one all at once. Do you find there is a minimum # of trips you need to take to break even or come out ahead?

The dues is an annual maintenance fee we will pay for the entire time we own (just under 50 years left.) That is of course in addition to the price per point we paid (just under $40,000.) So we will not break even any time soon. But in the future, we will. Plus, we're taking vacations we never would take otherwise. If we had to pay cash, we'd never rent a 3-bedroom and pay the whole cost to take our friends with us. But since we've essentially already paid for the rooms, we can do a short stay with friends a few times a year then a whole bunch of little stays in studios & 1-bedrooms. I tried to look up the per night cost for the 3-bedroom we just stayed in at HH but couldn't find it. But I'm pretty sure the cash cost of that stay alone would be more than my dues this year. I really think DVC is a great deal for anyone who likes to go to Disney alot... especially if you need bigger rooms for a larger family.

 

[Mischa]

... I tried to look up the per night cost for the 3-bedroom we just stayed in at HH but couldn't find it. But I'm pretty sure the cash cost of that stay alone would be more than my dues this year. I really think DVC is a great deal for anyone who likes to go to Disney alot... especially if you need bigger rooms for a larger family.

Just wanted to give my 2 cents on DVC - we love it, the best investment we have ever made! DH & I bought in May 2006 (his first trip to Disney ever and he was hooked and when we heard the shpiel about DVC we were like "oh yeah this is for us!" and we bought into it. And since then we've been able to go 3 times already since becoming DVC members. This would never have happened if we hadn't become members. We only bought 240 points which allows us at least 2 trips per year.

I tried to find the cost for the 3-bedroom at HH but couldn't find it either. I do know that for a 2-bedroom at SSR it's about $600 per night. So it definitely pays off to get a larger place and have friends stay with you (when they wouldn't be able to afford it).

 

[Metro West]

Yeah, yeah...go ahead and rub it in...! Will it help if I add that we're probably looking at close to $1,000 for airfare for 5?!!

I know if we were there and bought the discount APs, we'd be looking at around $1,000 for all of us. Of course that doesn't include overnight stays, which I'm not sure how much of that we'd be doing, once we were in driving distance.

That's what I was saying...you'll find yourself spending a lot less $$$ to get to the parks once you're close and that's not a bad thing.

BTW....what part of Florida are you planning on moving to?

 

[DeterminedOne]

All this talk about DVC makes me wonder what we're missing out on.
I've tried to understand DVC on my own but I just don't get it. From what I've gathered, we'd start off by purchasing a minimum amount of points. When I added up the minimum it came to around $15,000. Does that sound right? Can you go as often as you like as long as you have enough points? I don't quite understand it.

 

[wdwdancerwannabe]

Boy howdy, it looks like I'm the only one around!

It's loooonely in here...!

I guess everyone else is out actually having a life on this Saturday evening!

Anywho, I just figured out that IF Disney comes out with Free Dining for the general public again this year (here's hoping - they've already done Bounce Back and UK offers!) we can do 6 nights w/ 6-day passes (non-hoppers) for just over $2,000! For a family of 5 at Disney, that ROCKS!!!!

Well, since no one else is around, I think I'll go read some more of my PassPorter!

This sounds great! Is this staying in a value/pop resort??

 

[wdwdancerwannabe]

All this talk about DVC makes me wonder what we're missing out on.
I've tried to understand DVC on my own but I just don't get it. From what I've gathered, we'd start off by purchasing a minimum amount of points. When I added up the minimum it came to around $15,000. Does that sound right? Can you go as often as you like as long as you have enough points? I don't quite understand it.

I agree --- I wonder if it's more beneficial for those who live close enough to drive there. I also wonder about dining and tickets. DOes the DVC only include hotel? If this is the case, just doesn't seem worth it to me - but I haven't done ANY research on it.

 

[LegoMom3]

That's what I was saying...you'll find yourself spending a lot less $$$ to get to the parks once you're close and that's not a bad thing.

BTW....what part of Florida are you planning on moving to?

We are looking at the Ocala area. Less expensive than the Tampa/St. Pete area (where my dad is) but not too far away; nice recreational areas nearby; hopefully within reach of decent work for DH; and the fact that it's a major horse area is a bonus for me!

This sounds great! Is this staying in a value/pop resort??

Nope, that's at Port Orleans Riverside! As a family of 5, it's our only option without going Deluxe (too $$$!). Fortunately when we stayed there in '06 we absolutely loved it! It was perfect for us.