alan_renfroe
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 12, 2008
- Messages
- 2,127
Greetings! Welcome to our experimental pre-trip report for our next trip to Walt Disney World in Spring, 2009! We had our first-ever WDW trip in May, 2008 and absolutely LOVED it. (You can read our first trip report by clicking on the link in my signature.)
Oh, I am forgetting to introduce the cast! Please forgive me. We are the Renfroes (or Team Renfroe, as we refer to ourselves.) If you've ever seen the National Lampoon's Vacation movies, we have a lot in common with the Griswolds!
That's me...the tall, bald one. (I'm Alan, but you can call me Clark)
DW - (We'll call her Ellen)
DS11 - (We'll call him Rusty)
DD8 - (We'll call her Audrey)
As we were planning our May, 2008 trip, we found out about the DISboards. The information on this web site was so incredibly helpful to us in planning our first trip that we were hooked! We set up our account in March '08 and put together a trip report following our trip in May. Writing the trip report was SO MUCH FUN that we are now going to attempt this pre-trip report even though our plans have not yet been made. Readers of our trip report encouraged me to start a new pre-trip report. When I told them that we didn't know what our plans would be just yet, they responded by saying, "that's the point! Readers of your pre-trip report get to learn about your plans as they are revealed!" Cool.
SO, here is what we're thinking: We saved diligently for our last trip and were able to go for 6 nights with Deluxe Dining, Water Parks & More option, and stayed at Coronado Springs Resort. Our next trip's budget will likely not be as plentiful as our last one, so we may have some decisions to make.
Some initial thoughts:
Who: Team Renfroe (Myself, DW, DD who will be 9 soon, and DS who will be 12 on our next trip.)
What: Our glorious return to the World
Where: hmmm....don't know. It will definitely be on site...that I DO know. We LOVED Coronado Springs and would love to go back. However, we are considering Port Orleans as another option, just to switch things up. From a budgetary standpoint, the POP Century or one of the All-Stars may also be options.
When: Probably May 16 - 22, 2009, but still unsure. DW would like to go earlier in May, but my job may not permit that. Spring Break might also be an option. We LOVED going in May because the crowds were not bad at all. When I read the trip reports of those who go during peak seasons, and I read about standby waits of 120 minutes or more, I think May looks great.
Why: For FUN!! DUH!!
But seriously, our primary motivation is the fact that this is a special time in our lives. There will only be one chance to go to WDW with a 12-year-old son and a 9-year-old daughter! We'd better take it!! Previous to our Disney World trip in May, 2008, we took annual family vacations, but they were primarily to the beach. (I am a beach person and would love to live somewhere on a coast someday.) The beach will always be there...but this time in our lives will not. SO, it is unanimous among each Griswold...er....Renfroe family member that we return in '09!
How: By saving money now, planning ahead, and keeping up with the latest info from our DIS friends!
So, we've got a long road ahead of us until that next trip...but doing this Pre-Trip Report will help us pass the time! We will share our planning process with you all, as well as major events in our lives over the next few months, including a July '08 trip to Panama City Beach & Destin, Florida, football season
, the holidays, spring cleaning, etc. SO....I hope you'll enjoy hanging with the Renfroes over the next few months! Welcome to our experimental Pre-Trip Report! 
Alan
Oh, I am forgetting to introduce the cast! Please forgive me. We are the Renfroes (or Team Renfroe, as we refer to ourselves.) If you've ever seen the National Lampoon's Vacation movies, we have a lot in common with the Griswolds!
That's me...the tall, bald one. (I'm Alan, but you can call me Clark)
DW - (We'll call her Ellen)
DS11 - (We'll call him Rusty)
DD8 - (We'll call her Audrey)
As we were planning our May, 2008 trip, we found out about the DISboards. The information on this web site was so incredibly helpful to us in planning our first trip that we were hooked! We set up our account in March '08 and put together a trip report following our trip in May. Writing the trip report was SO MUCH FUN that we are now going to attempt this pre-trip report even though our plans have not yet been made. Readers of our trip report encouraged me to start a new pre-trip report. When I told them that we didn't know what our plans would be just yet, they responded by saying, "that's the point! Readers of your pre-trip report get to learn about your plans as they are revealed!" Cool.
SO, here is what we're thinking: We saved diligently for our last trip and were able to go for 6 nights with Deluxe Dining, Water Parks & More option, and stayed at Coronado Springs Resort. Our next trip's budget will likely not be as plentiful as our last one, so we may have some decisions to make.
Some initial thoughts:
Who: Team Renfroe (Myself, DW, DD who will be 9 soon, and DS who will be 12 on our next trip.)
What: Our glorious return to the World
Where: hmmm....don't know. It will definitely be on site...that I DO know. We LOVED Coronado Springs and would love to go back. However, we are considering Port Orleans as another option, just to switch things up. From a budgetary standpoint, the POP Century or one of the All-Stars may also be options.
When: Probably May 16 - 22, 2009, but still unsure. DW would like to go earlier in May, but my job may not permit that. Spring Break might also be an option. We LOVED going in May because the crowds were not bad at all. When I read the trip reports of those who go during peak seasons, and I read about standby waits of 120 minutes or more, I think May looks great.
Why: For FUN!! DUH!!
But seriously, our primary motivation is the fact that this is a special time in our lives. There will only be one chance to go to WDW with a 12-year-old son and a 9-year-old daughter! We'd better take it!! Previous to our Disney World trip in May, 2008, we took annual family vacations, but they were primarily to the beach. (I am a beach person and would love to live somewhere on a coast someday.) The beach will always be there...but this time in our lives will not. SO, it is unanimous among each Griswold...er....Renfroe family member that we return in '09!How: By saving money now, planning ahead, and keeping up with the latest info from our DIS friends!
So, we've got a long road ahead of us until that next trip...but doing this Pre-Trip Report will help us pass the time! We will share our planning process with you all, as well as major events in our lives over the next few months, including a July '08 trip to Panama City Beach & Destin, Florida, football season
, the holidays, spring cleaning, etc. SO....I hope you'll enjoy hanging with the Renfroes over the next few months! Welcome to our experimental Pre-Trip Report! Alan
I'm so glad you've started a PTR! May '09 may sound like far away but it'll be here before you know it. And in the meantime, so much planning to do! Which is more than half the fun! 
. I'm humming (holiday ro-o - ad) from National Lampoon's Vacation! I'm so excited about this report. The wheres, whens and hows of Disney, Renfroe style! 
. Free dining starts the end of August through middle or near end of September. I'm surprised there was no bounceback offer in your room that you could have booked for next year. (Call the front desk of CSR and ask if there was.) Though they usually say you have to book before you leave and pay the $200 deposit, if it was an oversite on your part and since it has not been that long, they may honor it). It's worth a try right! 
