bornwiththeears
Disney Addict
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2003
- Messages
- 452
We have just returned from our six day holiday trip. No matter how many times we have vacationed in the world, it is always a learning experience.
Below is a copy of my pre-trip report I posted last month on the Pre-trip Report Board. If you read it previously, skip through it please.
Pre-trip Report:
To give you a little background on how this trip was planned for therapy ..you will note that my address is on the Gulf Coast. Hurricane Katrina wiped out most of our city (and our neighboring cities also.) We had to swim out of our house (note to anyone evacuating in water never wear flip flops-) and then begin the long process of cleaning and rebuilding. There was very little magic in our lives during this time. While we worked at night we would talk about how we would reward ourselves when we were finished ..of course this meant none other than a visit to the mouse.
At this time we had very few restaurants in our area ..fine dining was the Waffle House ..can you imagine how great it was to plan our ADRs where our biggest decision would not be if we wanted our hash browns smothered or cheesed.
Now I have always taken planning to the next level (how great it was to find out that there are a lot of people just like me!) so the minute (OK-maybe the next day) a bookstore reopened we replaced all of our WDW books and the serious planning began. DD wanted the Wilderness Lodge her very favorite. I wanted POR because it was one of the few resorts we have not stayed at. DS wanted the Boardwalk and my husband, who will go along with anything connected to WDW, remained neutral. But because of the teacher discount and the location, we decided on the Dolphin. We also decided that we would fly. (I really mean they I do not like to fly. And to add to my anxiety, we have a morning flight too early for alcohol unless I want to look like a lush.) We live about 10 hours from Orlando and have always driven in the past but it is four against one, so we fly. Now my only disappointment was that we were not able to book the dining plan. I keep forgetting that the Swan and Dolphin are not really Disney hotels. But with all of the weight we have gained from MREs and rewarding ourselves with food, it is probably a blessing in disguise.
Our daughter was married last year so the family of four grew to five. Our new son-in-law, more country than turnip greens, has never been on a family vacation grounds for child abuse. We did explain to him that he would love WDW it is a family rule.
So as we finished each project in the house we would sit around and mull through the books, working on itineraries and ride strategies like it was our first trip, instead of our 20th . As soon as internet was restored to the house, I was back on the disboards. Going back on line that first day was almost (not quite) the same feeling you get when you pass through the entrance to the World. I was on my way home.
The planning and anticipation was a great way to get through a trying time. So now our house is finished (and beautiful I might add) and we are going to spend Thanksgiving with the mouse .still cheaper than therapy. How lucky can a family be.
But..
Even the best laid plans can go awry ..so much for having all of my ducks in a row so to speak. The ADRs were the easy part .. as I told you .we just arent that hard to please. It does not take much to taste better than beanie weenies and canned Vienna sausages. As I read the trip reports (and some of them rank up there with the best I have ever read) the bookings began: Chefs of France (I made this one within minutes of reading Mels account); LeCellier; Mama Melroses; OHanas; Whispering Canyon; Prime Time Diner and Hollywood & Vine. Most of the places we had eaten at before and some were new.
So now we sit, fat and happy, just counting down the days ..the hotel is booked, the flight plans are booked and we are very pleased with our ADRs. At this point, I was feeling rather smug I do not think God likes smugness. Delta decided they would no longer offer a direct route from my house to the mouse. However, they forgot to tell the people in charge of sales and reservations. Our flight had been cancelled but it seemed that no one knew except us .and the newspaper ..and the airport ..but not Delta employees!! We were finally "rebooked" on a one stop flight...and then rebooked five more times. Oh well, here goes.....
The cast:
DH Curtis .wonderful husband, as addicted to WDW as I am
DD - Lindsey the very best person to go through a hurricane with she keeps her wits while you are worrying about how you are going to keep your cell phone dry.
DDs husband, Josh very country, who should have been named Bubba, Beau, Earl, or Junior ...really great guy who hasnt a clue as to what to expect.
DS Curt just finished his second year of doctoral studies at MS State unmarried, but I am working on it.
And me Annette , Career Center Director for our local high school used to chaperone the senior trip to (you wont believe it) Disneyworld .when we had senior trips.
The night before
My usual pre-trip enthusiasm had been tempered with the ever changing airline reservations. A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing .the more I read about last minute changes, overbooking and bumping, the more worried I became .and to think we thought flying was going to simplify the trip.
We decided that since we were flying we would not bring the usual snacks, breakfast items, etc. But I somehow found myself in Sams, buying a mountain of things .so much for packing light.
We did a final check on the weather forecast (it was supposed to be mild with just chilly nights), printed out the boarding passes, copied the ticket numbers (we bought our tickets from MapleLeaf so they were not in the Disney data base under our name ) and went to bed. Much like the latest Disney commercial we were all too excited to sleep.
Day One The trip begins. Other than the fact that I hate to fly (I believe I have mentioned that before) the flight was a good one. We had no hidden surprises, no last minute changes and more importantly, no bumping. Since our first night was booked at the All Stars Family Suite, we were able to use Magical Express for our transportation to the resort. ME was magical we arrived at our hotel within 50 minutes of arriving at the airport. We were very impressed with the family suite I almost wished we had booked our entire stay there. The suite is large with a bedroom, living room, small kitchen area and two full baths. Five adults had plenty of room .however my son did say the chair that made into a bed was not the most comfortable thing he had ever slept on. Both the living room and bedroom had large t.v.s. The location of the suites is great close to the food court.
We spent the afternoon in EPCOT which to our delight, was not crowded. We had not made any dinner reservations for the first night so we ate at the Cantina in Mexico .one of our favorite counter service restaurants. A few hours around the countries and back to the hotel. As promised, all of our luggage had been safely delivered while we were at the park. I am feeling the magic....
Below is a copy of my pre-trip report I posted last month on the Pre-trip Report Board. If you read it previously, skip through it please.
Pre-trip Report:
To give you a little background on how this trip was planned for therapy ..you will note that my address is on the Gulf Coast. Hurricane Katrina wiped out most of our city (and our neighboring cities also.) We had to swim out of our house (note to anyone evacuating in water never wear flip flops-) and then begin the long process of cleaning and rebuilding. There was very little magic in our lives during this time. While we worked at night we would talk about how we would reward ourselves when we were finished ..of course this meant none other than a visit to the mouse.
At this time we had very few restaurants in our area ..fine dining was the Waffle House ..can you imagine how great it was to plan our ADRs where our biggest decision would not be if we wanted our hash browns smothered or cheesed.
Now I have always taken planning to the next level (how great it was to find out that there are a lot of people just like me!) so the minute (OK-maybe the next day) a bookstore reopened we replaced all of our WDW books and the serious planning began. DD wanted the Wilderness Lodge her very favorite. I wanted POR because it was one of the few resorts we have not stayed at. DS wanted the Boardwalk and my husband, who will go along with anything connected to WDW, remained neutral. But because of the teacher discount and the location, we decided on the Dolphin. We also decided that we would fly. (I really mean they I do not like to fly. And to add to my anxiety, we have a morning flight too early for alcohol unless I want to look like a lush.) We live about 10 hours from Orlando and have always driven in the past but it is four against one, so we fly. Now my only disappointment was that we were not able to book the dining plan. I keep forgetting that the Swan and Dolphin are not really Disney hotels. But with all of the weight we have gained from MREs and rewarding ourselves with food, it is probably a blessing in disguise.
Our daughter was married last year so the family of four grew to five. Our new son-in-law, more country than turnip greens, has never been on a family vacation grounds for child abuse. We did explain to him that he would love WDW it is a family rule.
So as we finished each project in the house we would sit around and mull through the books, working on itineraries and ride strategies like it was our first trip, instead of our 20th . As soon as internet was restored to the house, I was back on the disboards. Going back on line that first day was almost (not quite) the same feeling you get when you pass through the entrance to the World. I was on my way home.
The planning and anticipation was a great way to get through a trying time. So now our house is finished (and beautiful I might add) and we are going to spend Thanksgiving with the mouse .still cheaper than therapy. How lucky can a family be.
But..
Even the best laid plans can go awry ..so much for having all of my ducks in a row so to speak. The ADRs were the easy part .. as I told you .we just arent that hard to please. It does not take much to taste better than beanie weenies and canned Vienna sausages. As I read the trip reports (and some of them rank up there with the best I have ever read) the bookings began: Chefs of France (I made this one within minutes of reading Mels account); LeCellier; Mama Melroses; OHanas; Whispering Canyon; Prime Time Diner and Hollywood & Vine. Most of the places we had eaten at before and some were new.
So now we sit, fat and happy, just counting down the days ..the hotel is booked, the flight plans are booked and we are very pleased with our ADRs. At this point, I was feeling rather smug I do not think God likes smugness. Delta decided they would no longer offer a direct route from my house to the mouse. However, they forgot to tell the people in charge of sales and reservations. Our flight had been cancelled but it seemed that no one knew except us .and the newspaper ..and the airport ..but not Delta employees!! We were finally "rebooked" on a one stop flight...and then rebooked five more times. Oh well, here goes.....
The cast:
DH Curtis .wonderful husband, as addicted to WDW as I am
DD - Lindsey the very best person to go through a hurricane with she keeps her wits while you are worrying about how you are going to keep your cell phone dry.
DDs husband, Josh very country, who should have been named Bubba, Beau, Earl, or Junior ...really great guy who hasnt a clue as to what to expect.
DS Curt just finished his second year of doctoral studies at MS State unmarried, but I am working on it.
And me Annette , Career Center Director for our local high school used to chaperone the senior trip to (you wont believe it) Disneyworld .when we had senior trips.
The night before
My usual pre-trip enthusiasm had been tempered with the ever changing airline reservations. A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing .the more I read about last minute changes, overbooking and bumping, the more worried I became .and to think we thought flying was going to simplify the trip.
We decided that since we were flying we would not bring the usual snacks, breakfast items, etc. But I somehow found myself in Sams, buying a mountain of things .so much for packing light.
We did a final check on the weather forecast (it was supposed to be mild with just chilly nights), printed out the boarding passes, copied the ticket numbers (we bought our tickets from MapleLeaf so they were not in the Disney data base under our name ) and went to bed. Much like the latest Disney commercial we were all too excited to sleep.
Day One The trip begins. Other than the fact that I hate to fly (I believe I have mentioned that before) the flight was a good one. We had no hidden surprises, no last minute changes and more importantly, no bumping. Since our first night was booked at the All Stars Family Suite, we were able to use Magical Express for our transportation to the resort. ME was magical we arrived at our hotel within 50 minutes of arriving at the airport. We were very impressed with the family suite I almost wished we had booked our entire stay there. The suite is large with a bedroom, living room, small kitchen area and two full baths. Five adults had plenty of room .however my son did say the chair that made into a bed was not the most comfortable thing he had ever slept on. Both the living room and bedroom had large t.v.s. The location of the suites is great close to the food court.
We spent the afternoon in EPCOT which to our delight, was not crowded. We had not made any dinner reservations for the first night so we ate at the Cantina in Mexico .one of our favorite counter service restaurants. A few hours around the countries and back to the hotel. As promised, all of our luggage had been safely delivered while we were at the park. I am feeling the magic....
