Thanks

[ILuvMulan]

Thanks to everybody who responded to my question (a few months ago)about ideas for a "no-parks trip". I recieved numerous suggestions and we just returned from our trip and had a wonderful time!!! We did many things that we have never done before and would not have had time for if we were in the parks. You guys are great!

(TRIP REPORT ADDED BELOW AS REQUESTED)

 

[oakmanner]

Do tell... How about a Trip Report?

 

[ccigliano]

I agree. A trip report would be great!!!

 

[edk35]

Yes do tell. How long were you there and where did you stay? What did you do??

 

[SamSam]

I would love to hear about your trip!

 

[Flyerfan]

Me, too! I would love to try this one time but DH wants no part of the "no parks" thing. I need something to convince him.

 

[magicaldisney]

Please update. We are going to be there July 13th for a non park visit. I have some ideas of what we will be doing, but I would love to hear what you did.

 

[ILuvMulan]

Well, I've never done a trip report before, but I'll give it a shot. I'll have to start it a little later when I have more time... to be continued

 

[MrsNick]

Well, I've never done a trip report before, but I'll give it a shot. I'll have to start it a little later when I have more time... to be continued

Looking forward to hearing about your trip

Next time we go we'll have a baby with us, so we'll be looking to slow down and smell the roses (we'll hit the parks, but not more than every other day, and probably only for a few hours at a stretch).

I can't wait to hear what you did, and what you liked the most!

 

[ILuvMulan]

Let me start by saying that we have never been to FL in the summer and it was HOT!!!!! (close to 100 degrees almost every day we were there). So, many of the things that were on our No-Parks list of things to do were promptly replaced with the pool and activities at SSR's community hall. We also spent a lot of time pin trading. When we go to the parks DH hates it when we take time to look at pins, so this trip we could take all the time the kids wanted.

Also, I think that I will mark the things that we did that were suggestions from the disboard with a . These are things we probably would not have done otherwise. Thanks again!!

Well, we were lucky enough to be able to go to FL a day early so we stayed off property on Friday night. Saturday morning was spent in the pool. We had lunch at the Olive Garden located off of Exit 68. It was very good. We then headed to the Premium Outlets to visit the Character Premier . We found lots of great discounted items. Especially sweatshirts (can't imagine why...) and trading pins. My DS bought a Mickey t-shirt that we later saw at Downtown Disney still selling for full price.

We checked in early at SSR and headed to Dowtown Disney to get some lunch (McD's). As soon as we sat down we received a text message that our room was ready. We finished lunch and headed back to SSR.

At little sidebar here... I have to say that we were very pleased with our room and the location. We bought DVC sight unseen so we were not really sure what to expect... WOW the villas are awesome. Also, I had informed MS that our oldest son is a bilateral amputee. I told them that we did not need a roll in shower or "accessible" room. But that anything that they could do to help save him some steps would be greatly appreciated. Our room was perfect. We were on the 1st floor, close to the main building and very close to a pool. Very nice!

We unloaded the minivan and DH and kids went straight to the pool, while I unpacked. We then went back to town to the Winn Dixie to buy groceries. We unloaded those and headed to the arcade. When we returned BIL and family had arrived so we visited and I think they all hit the pool again before bed.

More later...

 

[eporter66]

Thanks for the post - looking forward to more. We have always gone to WDW off-season (Fall / Spring), but our daughter will only have a few more years before taking her out of school will become difficult.

Let us know as much as you can about what you did to avoid the heat etc.. and how you liked going in summer. We have been to WDW many times, so to go for vacation and not do the parks (or only go 1-2 times) is something we have begun to think about more.

Looking forward to reading more.

Thanks

 

[ILuvMulan]

We (all 9 of us) got up early headed to the Grand Floridian for our breakfast with Mary Poppins. This was a character breakfast we had not done before and only knew that Mary would be there. What a great surprise to meet Mary, Pooh, Tigger, Alice, and the Mad Hatter for the first time. Breakfast was just O.K. But the Characters were wonderful. Our 5 year old nephews were thrilled about Pooh and Tigger being there. My personal favorites were Mary Poppins and the Mad Hatter.

Following breakfast we boarded the monorail at the Grand Floridian and rode to the Magic Kingdom with BIL and family (they did visit the parks). We got off at the stop with them wished them a magical day and then boarded the next train. We got off at the Poly for some pin trading and shopping. Then rode the train back to the Grand Floridian for more pin trading. In hindsight we should have stopped at the Contemporary as long as we were there.

We returned to SSR for a swim and then a tour of the DVC models. We bought sight unseen and were excited to see in person what we had purchased. The guide we had did not seem thrilled about having to show us around, knowing she would not make a sale, but we enjoyed it and were very pleased that we bought Kadani. We love it!! We also saw the BLT model... nice but not our style.

We had lunch in the villa and spent some time in Community Hall playing pingpong and foosball, and also coloring pictures of our favorite Disney Characters.

We had 6:40 reservations for Whispering Canyon so we headed there early and requested a list of Hidden Mickey clues from the front desk. We spent about 2 hours searching for Mickey's, pin trading, shopping, and exploring. We arrived a few minutes early for our reservation and were seated promptly.
We had never eaten there and knew that there were certain things to ask although we weren't sure what would happen. Let's just say... it was a lot of fun. The service was great and entertaining and the food (especially the ribs) was wonderful.

We had a couple of other things on our list for after dinner, but could not stand the heat any longer and headed back for yet another swim and a good nights sleep.

To be continued...

 

[ILuvMulan]

Day 3 we woke up and had breakfast at the villa. We then headed to the Community Hall for their pin trading session. We also, once again, spent time just hanging out, playing games, and meeting other guests. We swam some more and had lunch in the villa.

After lunch we walked over to Downtown Disney where browsed a while before we attended LaNouba I have wanted to see a Cirque De Soliel show for about 15 years and let me just say... I was not disappointed. The show is amazing. I wasn't sure how the DSs (10,11) would like it but neither they nor their sister (10) hardly moved the entire peformance. The show was 2 hours long and when it was over we could not believe that we had been there that long. In my opinion it is a must see for a no-park trip.

We thought that after the show and a couple of hours of shopping and pin trading that it would be late enough to get into either the T-Rex or Rainforest Cafe for a bite to eat (after all it was a Tuesday). Word of warning... get a reservation, somewhere, anywhere... we ended up eating at McD's

 

[ILuvMulan]

Mostly the same morning schedule as yesterday. Swim, Community Hall, more pin trading, and lunch in the villa. One nice thing was that at the community hall they had game time and they had several of the games at the arcade, like air hockey and basketball fixed so that the kids could play free for an hour. Later we also made some photo holders ($3 each) which were a great keepsake for the trip.

After lunch we went to the Boardwalk It was a little early in the day I guess, because not much was going on. We were hoping to see all of the entertainers but everything was closed up. So again we pin traded and shopped. We also checked out the DVC models there. Then we attended the Welcome Home Wednesday at the Atlantic Dance Hall. I had heard mixed reviews about this but decided to check it out anyway. We had a good time!! My DD answered a question correctly and received an exclusive DVC pin, that thrilled her (much to the brothers dismay). Plus there were free refreshments, it was nice and cool in there, and we learned a couple of things. However, my favorite part was that they gave us each a free reusable shopping bag with DVC on it. I am always happy about anything free.

We left there and went to AKL (Jambo House).The animal viewing was great. The Zebras, kudu, and giraffes where very close. We spent time in the gift shop, pin traded and looked for hidden mickeys. We also spent time with the Guide from africa that told us about his country and the animals. It was very nice. We then went down to Boma for our dinner. I have to say that I loved it, but the kids... not so much. My son does have a peanut allergy and because the foods were so different the waitress had the chef come to our table. He walked my son all the way down the buffet and told him what he could and could not eat. Very impressive.

After dinner we rushed over to Fort Wilderness for the Chip and Dale sing-a-long We roasted marshmallows and made smores We enjoyed that but got off on the wrong stop on the way back to our car and ended up missing the electric water parade Next time

 

[ILuvMulan]

We got up early and I drove my 11 yr old son to the Palm and Magnolia golf course. He had golf lesson (since neither my husband or I play) and he seems to have learned a lot during the 45 minute session. He had a good time and the instructor was a very nice young man, who seemed very good with "kids". While we were there the rest of the family... you guessed it... swam.

We visited Port Orleans. We had planned to go on a carriage ride, but they are only offered in the evenings there. My DD got a hair wrap while the brothers played in the arcade. We also... surprise... shopped and pin traded.

We checked out the Beach Club (more of the same) then we met up with BIL and family for dinner at the Cape May Cafe. By far the best meal (that everyone enjoyed) of the week. The clam chowder was great, but then being from the mountains of NC we don't have a lot to compare it to

 

[ILuvMulan]

We checked out early, the in-laws headed back to DC and we went to Sea World. I had not been there since I was a child and none of my family had been. We enjoyed it, the shows were great, but again it was very hot so I think that kind of dampened the spirits. Probably not something we would do again, but glad we did it once.

The wrap up. All in all this was a wonderful and relaxing trip. We took our time, slept late most days, spent time with family, and just enjoyed being together without feeling the pressure to see everything and to run from theme park to theme park. My daughter even said... "Mom this is really nice, we should plan to do this every 2-3 years" and I think we will.

I did learn a couple of things.
1) We'll never go in the summer again if we can help it, we just aren't crazy about the weather.

2). We'll never go again without the Dining Plan unless we are eating every meal in the villa or QS. For a few dollars more than what we spent on TS meals we could have had the dining plan and I would not have had to make meals or buy groceries.

So there it is... not very exciting overall but I hope you all find some ideas for your trips. Relax and have a great time.

 

[nickspace]

Very Nice! Thanks!

I am jut curious why you did not like Sea World?

 

[ILuvMulan]

Very Nice! Thanks!

I am jut curious why you did not like Sea World?

It's not that I didn't like it. I really think that if it had not been so hot, we probably would have enjoyed it more. We were in FL 2 weeks ago when it was almost 100 degrees everyday. The sign on the CVS we passed one day read 115. Up until now we have only been in April... I guess we were spoiled.

Also, at this point my children are at the age that they would rather ride a rollercoaster than sit through a show and they were only big enough to ride Journey to Atlantis... which we did 4 times

 

[nickspace]

It's not that I didn't like it. I really think that if it had not been so hot, we probably would have enjoyed it more. We were in FL 2 weeks ago when it was almost 100 degrees everyday. The sign on the CVS we passed one day read 115. Up until now we have only been in April... I guess we were spoiled.

Also, at this point my children are at the age that they would rather ride a rollercoaster than sit through a show and they were only big enough to ride Journey to Atlantis... which we did 4 times

We came down to WDW for an early spring break this year and it was so much more enjoyable. I don't like the extreme heat either.

 

[travelbug]

I really enjoyed your trip report! Sounds like a wonderful, relaxing trip in spite of the heat. Thanks for taking the time to tell us all about it.