TGIV- Thank God It's Vacationtime!

[jfoofj]

I've never done a trip report before, but I have read many of them and enjoyed them. I am going to give it a go- no promises as to how it will turn out- I don't even know how to post pictures here yet! I was thinking that this would be a nice way to share our experiences with people looking for info, and it would also serve as a nice way to remember our trip after we are home. So, here goes...

A little back ground-

We are a family of four, consisting of myself (healthcare professional/work full time nights), my husband Mike (facilities manager of a Big Company), my son M (age 13 in 7th grade), and my stepson K (age 12 in 6th grade). We are a pretty easy going family... I am a PLANNER, though, and my husband is more of a go with the flow kind of guy. In the past our Disney trips have been very planned. Ok, over-planned, and it has actually caused us some vacation stress (OMG we have to be in Epcot at 5:37pm exactly in order to make our Le Cellier ressie I booked 6 months in advance!!!). So, this trip I have not made one reservation, I have not pre planned which park we will be in on which day, nothing. It is going to be a totally go with the flow kind of trip. We leave on Wednesday, January 15th (kids have a half day, flight is at 3pm, land at 6pm) and return home on Tuesday, January 21st. There is no school on Monday due to Martin Luther King day, so the kids will only miss three days of school. Not too bad.... I hate for them to miss school, but frankly traveling on the school breaks is cost-prohibitive and the crowds are insane. This trip was originally going to happen in June 2013 once school was let out, but my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer in April (she is now doing great and cancer-free) and I wanted to be close by during her surgery and treatments.


We are really looking forward to this trip. It has been YEARS since we have had any kind of a family vacation. We have been to Disney a handful of times, we always stayed onsite- Port Orleans Riverside, Wilderness Lodge (my all time favorite), and I've stayed with my mom and the boys (hubs got Disney'd out) at the Polynesian and Beach Club. We only stayed at the Deluxe resorts when I either had a 40% off code or when I got an amazing deal with my Disney Visa card, and my mom and I split the cost of the room, so it worked out well. I am above all things a comparison shopper and lover of a bargain.... I don't mind spending the extra money if I have it if I know what I'm getting is a good value. Money has been tight for a few years- we moved and bought a new house so we could live in the same town as my stepson's mom so we could have 50/50 custody- so we haven't been able to take a big vacation since 2010. We are all REALLY looking forward to this trip.

Trip details:

We are flying Southwest airlines to Orlando international airport and have arranged for transportation from the airport to the hotel with Tony Hinds (I found out about him on here- great deal and he will stop at a grocery store or Wal Mart if we need him to). We are staying at the Hard Rock Hotel for 6 nights- I was originally going to book the Royal Pacific BUT once my boys heard Hard Rock Hotel was an option they were so excited. It's "SO COOL" according to them and we have eaten at the Hard Rock Café in Boston, so Hard Rock Hotel won. The price wasn't all that much more, so I gave in. I also worked a couple extra shifts to upgrade us to Club Level. At first I thought that the cost was crazy, but then after researching it I kind of could justify it. I have two growing boys who are always hungry. Being able to grab breakfast in the club lounge before the parks, snacks and drinks whenever they want, and appetizers (and yes, a couple adult beverages for hubs and I), then later some deserts... well it just sounded really nice. This way I will plan on lunch in the parks and then dinner either in the hotel or on Citywalk but with the evening appetizers in the club lounge we won't be crazy starving by the time we get to sit down at dinner.

So... that is it so far... I have done minimal research as to what the parks are like, what is located where, which restaurants I want to try and all that good stuff. We have had a lot going on in our lives recently that I have kind of put vacation planning on the back burner- VERY unlike me- so this trip will be a different kind of trip... I won't know all the tricks and ins and outs of the parks like I do for Disney... but I'm kind of looking forward to seeing what that is like!



,
Jen

 

[Metro West]

You are off to a good start...keep updating when you get a chance.

To post pictures you will need to use a photosharing site like Photobucket...its really easy to do...but you can do that when you've returned.

 

[schumigirl]

Yep......good start.....looking forward to hearing more about your trip.

And pleased to hear your mum is doing well

 

[jfoofj]

Thanks! Thank you especially in regards to my mom. It was a rough few months, but thankfully the cancer was found early and she is expected to be completely fine from here on out.

As for pictures, I typically use Snapfish... but I can upload my vacation picks to photobucket. Is there an iphone app or an easy way to upload iphone pics? I do have a nice Canon Rebel camera which I will be bringing and using to take some pics, but my iphone camera is my mainstay... lugging the big, expensive camera will probably only happy once or twice during the trip, after I have done the parks once myself and we are going back to redo rides and stuff.

Right now I am in full on vacation wardrobe panic. As in, it is almost vacation time and I have no idea what to pack!! I wear scrubs to work and the rest of my life I pretty much function in pajamas and yoga pants. I have one, maybe two pairs of jeans that fit me (oh yeah.... I was supposed to lose 25lbs before vacations... darn you holiday season!!). SO I have been looking at the weather forecast... it is looking like it will be in the high 60's/low 70's during the days and 50's (maybe even 40's) at night. That will be welcome warmth to us- we live in the Northeast and lately anything about freezing feels like a heat wave. My kids want to wear shorts all vacation long and are determined that they WILL be swimming. Thats fine with me, I will bring a couple of sweatshirts for the nights for them. I am probably going to go with capris and short sleeved shirts with a hoodie sweathshirt or a sweater. We are pretty casual people. I prefer a pub/casual restaurant with a booth over fine dining and I'm not planning on any dressy nights while we are down there. I'm assuming most of the restaurants are casual...

Also- Blue Man Group... it is pretty expensive but my kids really want to go. We have the Blue Man Group in Boston, and there are often times really good deals for tickets. I haven't found a really good deal on tickets in Orlando. I might ask the kids if this is a MUST DO while we are away or if they can wait until the warmer weather comes back home and we can make a day of it in Boston when I find discounted seats. I just have a hard time justifying $280 in tickets for a couple of hours of a show when I've just paid almost $1000.00 on park tickets.

OH- Park tickets... I forgot to mention in my original post that we got annual passes. Because we have 5 full days do spend in the parks annual passes seemed to make the most sense. My mother in law lives in the Keys and we are due to visit her over Thanksgiving this year. I was seriously considering flying into Orlando, spending a couple days at Universal or Disney, then renting a car and driving down to her house. Now that we have the annual passes I have decided that we will fly into Orlando the weekend before Thanksgiving (kids will miss Monday and Tuesday that week, but it is Thanksgiving week and I know a ton of people travel that week so I don't feel so bad about it). We will head down to MIL's either Mon night or Tues am... it is a pretty long drive, I need to research that more to see when we should plan to travel. Airfare will be expensive, I'm sure, but we will only have to pay for the 2 or three nights at Universal that we stay, then we will be at MIL's. I'm sure we will be able to find a deal on a car rental, and the park tickets will already be paid for. This way we will get our money's worth out of our annual passes and get to see the Harry Potter expansion in November. I just have to really keep an eye out for airfare deals... It would be great to fly out of Key West when we are leaving, but realistically it will probably be cheaper to fly out of Ft. Lauderdale or some other southern FL airport.

Phew..... I seem to type as much as I talk.

 

[wiigirl]

Following along!

 

[jfoofj]

So today I am looking at menus of all the restaurants trying to get an idea of where we will want to eat and what to expect to spend on food. We have always used the Dining Plan during our Disney vacations, and while the DDP had changed a lot since we first started using it (and not for the better, IMHO) I found it to be a huge convenience to have our meals pre-paid for the most part. I know that there is a dining plan at Universal but I booked a room only reservation and got APs for us (power passes for hubs and the boys and a preferred pass for me- so we will get the discounts and perks and hopefully a sweet AP rate for our November return) so to my knowledge the dining plan is not available to us.

Sigh. I could look at pictures of food all day long. Seriously. How do you choose where to eat?!?! So far I am planning on breakfasts in the club lounge at the HRH. Maybe one breakfast at a restaurant- I do love me some eggs and hash browns. I know we will be trying Three Broomsticks at least once for a meal. Mythos looks good. Margaritaville is on my list for sure. DS13 wants to go to Bubba Gumps but mostly because he loves Forrest Gump, he isn't even a huge shrimp fan. The menu looks good and had a lot of non-shrimp meals (I'm not a big seafood eater either) so that is an option. The NBA restaurant looks good too.

Question regarding kids meals- DS12 is a picky eater and not a huge meal eater- he is more of a grazer. I don't think there are fridges in the rooms to bring any leftovers back either. Can anyone order a kids meal or is it strict? Sometimes I order kids meals myself at counter service places because the amount of food is too much for me. I was just curious how kids meals were handled. I know in Disney it is a little stricter because of the Dining Plan but I'm hoping we can order kids meals for the smaller portions if we want in Universal.

Ok. I need to go eat something now. I'm starving.

 

[mrsabbott]

Looking forward to hearing about your trip!!

I don't know about whether the resorts have mini-fridges.. but perhaps you could rent one if they don't?? Seems like most places we've stayed have always had a small fridge.

As for your picky kiddo.. I've got a very picky eater and plan to bring a few snacks with us. If there is something you know more then one person will eat (can't go wrong with pizza or mac n' cheese) perhaps you could share with him? As for the kids meals, I'm pretty sure you can just go up there and order them with no questions asked.

 

[jfoofj]

Ok. So I'm having a... less than nice.... moment right now. I'm trying to NOT sound like a spoiled petulant brat right now. I really am. We don't see my in laws often- DH's dad and his wife. We aren't especially close to them. We didn't see them at Christmas because my FIL had surgery. They told is they wanted to see us before our trip to give us our Christmas gifts. Soooo- they gave us $400 in Disney gift cards. I could cry. I KNOW when we talked at thanksgiving I told them we were going to Universal- I remember the whole conversation because we talked about the Hard Rock Hotel and everything. Ughhhh. What a disappointment. We have NO plans anytime soon to go to Disney. We bought APs to Universal so our next trip down will be back to Universal. We aren't renting a car either, so we won't be going to downtown Disney. I wish we could return these gift cards and just get the cash.

 

[mrsabbott]

Yeah, my MIL did the same thing.. I told her more then once we weren't going to Disney, yet she kept assuming that is where we were going. For Christmas, we were all given Disney gift cards. Thankfully, we ARE going to Downtown Disney and planned to eat at T-rex which apparently accepts Disney gift cards there!

I know you aren't going to Disney or Downtown Disney this time.. but perhaps the next time. Google or call and find out which restaurants accept the gift cards and perhaps you can put them to good use next time you are in Orlando!

 

[jfoofj]

Thank you for that attitude adjustment, I needed it. A lot of this stems from the fact that I feel like we are... this is awful... but that we are an after thought to them. I am SUPER close to my family, and I get it that not all family's are the same, but we don't live that far from them and they don't make the biggest effort to see us, to see the kids sports events etc. I had a whole conversation with MIL (this is my DH's fathers new wife... his mom lives in FL) around Thanksgiving (we saw them the weekend after Thanksgiving- we never see them on the actual holidays... this is another issue I have... BUT, not my family, so I go with it) about how we were so excited to be trying out Universal now that the boys were older, and about how they are tall enough to ride all the rides and we are super excited to be staying onsite... and they get us Disney gift cards. Yes, we have gone to Disney several times in the past. Yes, to some people going anywhere in Orlando is "going to Disney". Ok, I get it. It is a SUPER generous gift and we were and are very thankful for it.

SO, now I think we may head over to Downtown Disney one night of our trip... off to research how much a taxi costs and to see which stores/restaurants in Downtown Disney take Disney gift cards. Oh... this is probably against the rules, but is it possible to hop a bus from Downtown Disney to Epcot or MK and ride the monorail? It would be fun to do the loop through Epcot and the resorts. No biggie, I certainly don't want to break any Disney law, but if we are there, I might need to get a little Spaceship Earth and Cinderella Castle fix at least from the mononrail!

Thanks again, MrsAbbot- you helped me adjust my perspective!!

 

[mrsabbott]

I've heard of lots of people riding the monorail and resort hopping and looking around. I don't think there is anything wrong with that!

You know, you could make a reservation at a resort restaurant and they will accept your Disney gift cards! Any of the Disney owned stores and some of the restaurants at DTD will accept the cards as well.

We were planning on T-Rex anyways and they accept the gift cards.. but apparently Rainforest does not. Go figure. They are both Landry's restaurants but supposedly T-Rex will take Disney gift cards.

It doesn't feel right to be in Orlando and not take in a little bit of "mouse magic", especially since my kids are younger. We were gifted the Universal tickets and we will enjoy them and appreciate, although I think Disney is slightly more age appropriate for our kiddos!

My In-laws are wonderful people, but I often feel like they don't put in much effort to be with their grandkids. I think my MIL would if her health would allow her to drive and get around more, and if step-FIL weren't so persnickety about things. But, we try to offer them the opportunity and it is there loss if they don't accept it. And we appreciate the things that they DO do for us.. you know?

Life is too short to sweat the small stuff!

Looking forward to hearing how things go on your vacation! And if you come across an actual LIST of stores/restaurants pass it on! I've googled and searched and have found bits of info here and there but no actual LIST!

 

[momofboyz3]

Thank you for that attitude adjustment, I needed it. A lot of this stems from the fact that I feel like we are... this is awful... but that we are an after thought to them. I am SUPER close to my family, and I get it that not all family's are the same, but we don't live that far from them and they don't make the biggest effort to see us, to see the kids sports events etc. I had a whole conversation with MIL (this is my DH's fathers new wife... his mom lives in FL) around Thanksgiving (we saw them the weekend after Thanksgiving- we never see them on the actual holidays... this is another issue I have... BUT, not my family, so I go with it) about how we were so excited to be trying out Universal now that the boys were older, and about how they are tall enough to ride all the rides and we are super excited to be staying onsite... and they get us Disney gift cards. Yes, we have gone to Disney several times in the past. Yes, to some people going anywhere in Orlando is "going to Disney". Ok, I get it. It is a SUPER generous gift and we were and are very thankful for it. SO, now I think we may head over to Downtown Disney one night of our trip... off to research how much a taxi costs and to see which stores/restaurants in Downtown Disney take Disney gift cards. Oh... this is probably against the rules, but is it possible to hop a bus from Downtown Disney to Epcot or MK and ride the monorail? It would be fun to do the loop through Epcot and the resorts. No biggie, I certainly don't want to break any Disney law, but if we are there, I might need to get a little Spaceship Earth and Cinderella Castle fix at least from the mononrail! Thanks again, MrsAbbot- you helped me adjust my perspective!!

Hiii!!!!! This is so OT and probably against the dis rules but I do know that many people sell all sorts of gift cards on ebay. They get almost if not exactly the amount of the gift card.
Just so you are aware of that option.
Otherwise, I think your idea of going to WDW for dinner would be a wonderful way to treat yourselves.

 

[jfoofj]

I'M PACKING!!!

Flight is at 3:05pm tomorrow!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

 

[macraven]

I'M PACKING!!!

Flight is at 3:05pm tomorrow!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

i know you will have a great time at the darkside !!
i got back sunday night from there and the weather was so nice.
take some warm clothes with you as i see cool weather will happen for a few days you are there.

i have used tony hinds for the past 3 trips.
he is a lovely man and does a good job.

 

[tinkerbellmagic]

Hope you are having fun. Can't wait to hear all about your trip.

 

[zebsterama]

Getting on board to hear about your trip!

Question about HRH for everyone --if you want to grab say milk/cereal and coffee for breakfast - maybe a muffin (fast quick bite and go) -- is there such an option?

Cheers,
Zebsterama

 

[TrueLove's1stKiss]

We are hashing out all the last minute details of our upcoming April trip! Like you we haven't researched nearly as much as we did prior to Disney, so I'm really looking forward to your trip report!!!

 

[melissas77]

Following along and can't wait to hear about your trip!

 

[LuvEeyore]

Joining in to hear more!

 

[Heluvsme]

I can't wait to read all about it!