The BFF June 2008 Pre-Trip Report!

DancinDaisyDuck

Nothing left for me to do but dance
Joined
Feb 7, 2007
Messages
691
It's me again! I know, I know.... what am I doing writing a pre-trip for June when I haven't even finished my October 07 trip report??? Well, I am just so excited to plan this get away with my BFF I couldn't wait! Plus, with all the snow and winter weather we've been having in Geneseo I need to be thinking about palm trees, sunshine, and magic!

So, who are we?
KimandNikki.jpg

That's us! My friend Kim is on the right and I am on the left. We were at a Halloween Party on the campus where we work, and Thriller was playing as we were taking pictures, so that's us doing our best Michael Jackson. It's the best representation of our friendship!

Kim and I met in August when we both started as Residence Hall Directors at a state college in western NY, just a little south of Rochester. Basically our job is to run the residence hall and make sure the students are behaving. I have a building full of first year students, and she has upperclassmen. After a few days of working together on staff I mentioned my coming trip in October to Disney World. I said it pretty softly because I never know how people are going to react when I say that I am going to WDW. It's either "that's really exciting have a great time!" or "oh, why?" Well, imagine my delight when Kim said "I LOVE Disney World, I am so jealous you're going!" And it was then that we knew we were kindred spirits. Bosom friends. BFF's (which means Best Friend Forever, in case you don't speak 11 year old girl)!

When I returned in October from my trip she wanted to hear all about it and we had a lot of fun getting to know each other and bonding over our mutual love for not only WDW, but everything Disney! She was telling me about her first trip to WDW, which was a year ago with her family, and mentioned how much she wanted to go again. So we started thinking about going together during Spring Break, and unfortunately those plans fell through. Even though the students will be gone we still need to work, and we didn't have enough vacation time to take. But, the good news is that we work on 10 month contracts and have all of June and July off! After a lot of consideration we decided just to take the plunge and plan our week long BFF trip!

This will be my longest stay at WDW, as my last two trips were 1 day and 4 days, respectively. Her first (and so far only) trip was 10 days, so we decided to go for a full week. My sister is graduating college June 1, so we can't leave at the very beginning of June, but we know the deeper it moves into summer the hotter and more crowded it gets! We decided to do June 4 - 11 at POP Century with park hoppers and no dining plan. Our rationale for staying at POP again (we've stayed a total of 3 times between the two of us) was that a) it's our favorite Value and b) we can use the money we're "saving" by staying at a Value for a few sit-down meals and spending money. I love that Fuzzy Disney Math, don't you?

We both don't like the new and "improved" (that's up to opinion) dining plan for a few reasons, but mostly because we don't want to do so much food. Even with no appetizer, it's still too much for us. We're bringing our own munchies and small breakfast foods (poptarts, granola bars, chips, etc) and re-fillable waterbottles for in the parks, plus we both are content with counter service meals. We compromised on doing a few sit down meals, including Cinderella's Royal Table for breakfast, Coral Reef for lunch, Sci Fi Drive In, and Kona Cafe. We're meeting on Thursday to finalize our plans because on Friday at 7 a.m. sharp I will be calling CRO to make the ADR's. Cross your fingers that I can get us into CRT!

We haven't booked anything yet because with the Holiday season in full swing we want to be able to pay off credit cards before booking. We're also waiting for some flight schedules to be released, but the plan is to get an early morning flight out of Rochester on the 4th and a late evening flight out of Orlando on the 11th.

Well, that's it for now. Hopefully I'll come back on Friday with some great news about ADR's! Thanks for reading!
 
Well, I was up bright and early this morning, hoping to make all my ADR dreams come true. Last night Kim and I planned out a rough itinerary for our trip complete with time at Pleasure Island and a keys to the Kingdom Tour! But more on that later. My morning started like this:

6:30am- alarm goes off. Snooze button is wacked.
6:40am- alarm goes off again. Snooze button is wacked. Again.
6:45am- I peel myself out of bed and make coffee.
6:58am- the Dining number is on deck in my cell phone.
6:59am- Press SEND
7:02am- after a barrage of recorded prompts I am through to a Disney rep!
7:04am- the first reservation is made. June 4 2008 Mama Melrose's 6pm dinner.
7:05am- "Anything else I can help you with?" asked the friendly Disney girl. "Yes, I need to make a few more. The next day is Thursday June 5." I say. My heart is pounding. I NEED to get into CRT! "I'm sorry, that's not 180 days out." she replies.
7:06am- "Um, but I thought I could make all my reservations at 180 days." I say, with a hint of anxiousness.

I was under the impression that anyone could make ADRs 180 days plus ten. Apparently only guests who have booked a resort stay can do that. Since we haven't booked yet, I could only make an reservation for June 4. Doh! :headache: So, another early morning tomorrow for me. It's not that bad in the grand scheme of things. I just hope there are breakfast times open at Cindy's house, otherwise we'll have to go with plan B and I'll be getting up early on Sunday too.

But anyhow, here's our UPDATED tentitive itinerary!

Wednesday June 4
Leave Geneseo at 5 a.m. to get to ROC. Take off at 6:54 a.m. and land at 11:40 a.m. and catch the Magical Express to POP. Then head to the Magic Kingdom and get a few rides on Pirates since this is the last day the ride will be open before it shuts down for refurb on the 5th. Go to MGM around 3 or 4, dinner at Mama Melrose's at 6, stay for Fantasmic at 8:30. Then back to POP and to bed early since I'm sure we'll be tired!

Thursday June 5
To the Magic Kingdom for Early Extra Magic Hours at 8am. Play around for a while and have breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table at 10:15 am. Leave the MK around noon and go back to POP to rest/swim. Later that afternoon go to Animal Kingdom for a few hours, or to EPCOT for evening EMH. Don't know yet. Dinner somewhere at a CS.

Friday June 6
Animal Kingdom at opening! Stay until lunchtime, hoping to get counter service at Yak & Yeti or Flame Tree BBQ. Leave after lunch to rest at POP. Spend the rest of the late afternoon and night at Magic Kingdom for Evening Extra Magic Hours.

Saturday June 7
EPCOT for opening at 9am (or, if we have already been to EPCOT on Thursday we might sleep in and get there around 11 am instead). We plan on spending the whole day here. Lunch at Coral Reef at 1:30. Dinner at a World Showcase counter service. I'd like to catch 2U, the U2 cover band while eating dinner. Leave after Illuminations.

Sunday June 8
MGM at opening! Kim and I love this park, plus it's a Star Wars Weekend so there should be lots to do all day. We might leave in the afternoon to take a break but will come back for dinner at Sci-Fi Drive In at 6pm. If we didn't see Fantasmic on Wednesday we'll stay for that. We might go to Pleasure Island this night as well.

Monday June 9
Sleep in! Maybe go to Downtown Disney for lunch. Animal Kingdom has Evening Extra Magic Hours so we'll do that.

Tuesday June 10
8:30 am Keys to the Kingdom Tour! We're so excited about this! We left the afternoon open after the tour, but I hope to go back to the resort, pack up and then go to EPCOT for dinner and IllumiNations.

Wednesday June 11
Departure Day. We have a 7:00 pm departure time so we have the entire day! Check out of Pop early and leave our bags. We'll go to the Polynesian for breakfast at Kona Cafe at 9:30 am. The rest of the day is left open until we have to go back to POP for our Magical Express bus. I hope we go to Magic Kingdom.


Thanks for reading!
 
nicolette,

it all sounds wonderful

i really hope you get your ressies for crt, too
 
:cool1: :cool1: :cool1:

We are IN for CRT! I'm so happy we got this ADR. We are now booked for breakfast at Cindy's at 10:15am on June 5th! I think this is banana-worthy, don't you?

:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:

Kim is calling today to make a lunch for Coral Reef. I can taste that chocolate wave now....:cloud9:
 

Hi! :Wave:I figure I will hop in on this TR too! Looks like you guys are going to have a fantastic time on your BFF trip! Ohhhh and how exciting you guys got in at CRT :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:
 
Hello:

Noticed you work at SUNY Geneseo. My DW and I are SUNY Brockport grads (89 and 90 respectively). Visiting WDW for the 10+ time. Staying at GF with DD(9) and DS(6). Can't wait to go!!!
 
I see you plan to go to AM EMH at AK on Jun 6. I also had this plan, but something just did not look right about the AK EMH dates disney had posted. So I emailed Disney and sure enough they had several dates posted incorrectly for June. I got an email from Disney stating they now have updated.
June 2008
Morning Extra Magic Hours
Magic Kingdom ® Park— June 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 24, 26
Epcot®— June 1, 8, 15, 22, 29
Disney's Hollywood Studios™ — June 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park — June 4, 7, 11, 14, 18, 21, 25, 28
Evening Extra Magic Hours
Magic Kingdom® Park — June 1, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27, 29
Epcot® — June 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 24, 26
Disney's Hollywood Studios™ — June 4, 11, 18, 25
Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park — June 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
 
I see you plan to go to AM EMH at AK on Jun 6. I also had this plan, but something just did not look right about the AK EMH dates disney had posted. So I emailed Disney and sure enough they had several dates posted incorrectly for June. I got an email from Disney stating they now have updated.
June 2008
Morning Extra Magic Hours
Magic Kingdom ® Park— June 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 24, 26
Epcot®— June 1, 8, 15, 22, 29
Disney's Hollywood Studios™ — June 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park — June 4, 7, 11, 14, 18, 21, 25, 28
Evening Extra Magic Hours
Magic Kingdom® Park — June 1, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27, 29
Epcot® — June 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 24, 26
Disney's Hollywood Studios™ — June 4, 11, 18, 25
Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park — June 2, 9, 16, 23, 30

Hey, thanks for that tip! It looks like we'll have to shuffle some things around.
 
Hey all, it's been a while since I've made an update, but there's not been a lot to report. The weather is finally getting nicer here in NY, the school year is winding down, and I can't WAIT to go to WDW!

A few updates:
1) all our dining reservations have been made! We're eating at Mama Melrose, CRT, Coral Reef, Sci Fi Drive-In, and Kona Cafe. Not to mention various counter service locations throughout.
2) Our itinerary hasn't changed that much, except for the fact that Animal Kingdom does not have morning EMH on the 6th. We're still going to be there at opening that day, but we'll get to sleep in a few extra minutes!
3) The biggest update of all- I just booked our Keys to the Kingdom Tour!!!! We are super excited to get to go behind the scenes in the Magic Kingdom!
4) Our flights have been booked for a few months now, and we got a very good rate from AirTran. We land in Orlando at 11:15 a.m. on arrival, and leave Orlando at 7:30 p.m. on departure day.
5) We've already had a magical blessing with the fact that we'll arrive on the last day Pirates of the Carribean will be open before closing for refurb! It looks like the MK will be our first stop after all, take a few rides on Pirates, and then we'll spend the rest of the day at MGM (I probably won't call it Studios any time soon, it's too much a habit).
6) We'll be in MGM for the first Star Wars Weekend! I'm excited to see the extras around the park for the event, but not so excited about anticipated crowds. But, the World will be fairly crowded through our trip anyway.
7) Kim and I will be doing some serious shopping in the upcoming weeks. Mostly because I've lost about 20 pounds and a few inches since last trip, and barely anything I own fits me anymore. Plus it's always nice to get new bags and supplies before a vacation.

That's pretty much it! Thanks for reading along!:banana:
 
Hey thanks Cheryl! I've got to go catch up on your pre-trip really soon.

Another Update! The Magical Express package came in the mail over the weekend! Woop woop!

I have forgotten to mention that we haven't aquired a very important element to our trip. Something essential. Something that our entire best friends trip requires in order for it to be super great.


Tickets.


That's right, we don't have park tickets yet! oops. Well, we don't have a Magic Your Way package because a friend booked our room on a Cast Member discount, and we're not going to ask her to get us into the parks every day since she's done a lot for us to make this vacation actually happen. We can't decide when to get our tickets, but it doesn't matter that much since we can buy them now or at the gate if we wanted to. The thing is, I'd like to put them on my credit card so I can get 4 points to turn into Disney Dollars. That's like, 2 Dole Whips! But, I also have a car insurance payment due. So, we don't know yet. If anyone has a suggestion, please let me know. Thanks!!!!
 
Waiting for more.
 
Well, there's been another shift in the plans, this time courtesy of AirTran. I had been warned that although AirTran has cheap rates and pretty good service they do change around their flight schedules. A lot.

A am a little annoyed because we leave 20 minutes earlier and arrive 20 minutes later than originally planned, and we depart Orlando half an hour earlier. The departure doesn't really matter because we'd be at the airport at the same time, but I am not very happy about the added time our first day. Granted it's only a total of 40 minutes, but we chose that flight because it arrived before noon so we could get to the Magic Kingdom before the Pirate and Princess Party, and then hop to MGM for the rest of the afternoon. It's still going to happen, but we'll be just a little more rushed. The one thing I didn't necessarily want to do on this trip was rush, since we have 8 days. I'm probably annoyed over nothing, and I know it could be worse. I just really hope there are no more changes.

The flight numbers have changed too, and I wonder if I need to call Magical Express. It figures that as soon as I get my voucher in the mail something changes!
 
DancinDaisyDuck, Have you signed up for www.Mousesavers.com newletter? With that you often get links to get discounted tix. Check it out. Also just look at that website and you can get some good info.

Maybe we'll cross pathes at the airport as we arrive the day you leave.
I'll be the one with the huge perma grin :) on my face along with most others, who are just arriving.

Your trip looks great, have a great time.

YO
 
DancinDaisyDuck, Have you signed up for www.Mousesavers.com newletter? With that you often get links to get discounted tix. Check it out. Also just look at that website and you can get some good info.

Maybe we'll cross pathes at the airport as we arrive the day you leave.
I'll be the one with the huge perma grin :) on my face along with most others, who are just arriving.

Your trip looks great, have a great time.

YO

Thanks for the tip. I checked their website and they have 8 day park hoppers for $8 less than regular price. But, they also have a special that when you buy a 2, 4 or 5 day PH pass they upgrade to a 6-day for free. So, if I buy a 3-day PH through them and get the free upgrade, can I then upgrade again to the 8 day PH Pass and pay the small difference once I arrive. It would be like paying for the 3 day and getting the 8 day. Is that ethical or even possible?
 
Daisy,
Watch for the newsletter as they have specials in there that are only good from that email so look for that. Not sure about the other upgrades you where talking about.

YO
 


Disney Vacation Planning. Free. Done for You.
Our Authorized Disney Vacation Planners are here to provide personalized, expert advice, answer every question, and uncover the best discounts. Let Dreams Unlimited Travel take care of all the details, so you can sit back, relax, and enjoy a stress-free vacation.
Start Your Disney Vacation
Disney EarMarked Producer






DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest DIS Tiktok DIS Twitter

Add as a preferred source on Google

Back
Top Bottom