The boy has GOT to meet the mouse!! PTR for October 2016..

[mrsabbott]

Okay, I am starting a PTR in good faith that we WILL meet our goal of heading to Disney during fall break in 2016. This gives me a little over a year to scrimp, save, plan, and prepare for a trip to Disney.

The last time we went to Disney was February 2009. We went for a whirlwind trip right after Hubs returned from a 15 month deployment. It was insane but we had an amazing time! Only our oldest DD remembers this trip though and our son wasn't born yet.

We went to Universal a couple of years ago and loved it! We had planned a return trip to Universal but things didn't pan out for us. We then planned to return in 2017 for a Universal trip but here is the thing.. our son LOVES Mickey Mouse. Loves him. LOVES HIM. And our girls are growing up so fast and I know that it won't be long before the magic of Disney Princesses becomes "babyish".. as so many things are starting to become. Princess Sofia is quickly losing steam and being replaced by KC Undercover and Jessie..

And so, I decided that I need to brave the scary world of the new Fastpass+ system and the seemingly overwhelming need to overplan every aspect of our vacation months in advance or else... The Abbotts are heading to Disney (hopefully) in October 2016!

Introductions:

There is me, Mom, who is an obsessive vacation planner. I plan vacations as a stress reliever. We don't take most of these vacations though. Maybe one day. I am currently in school for a degree in Early Childhood Education and work part time (which will hopefully transfer to a full time position in a couple of months) as an Instructional Assistant in a local Elementary School. I love my job!!

Then, there is Hubs. His is medically retired from the Army and works long hours as a mechanic. He is a huge advocate for going to Universal, but is willing to go along with just about anything I plan as long as I don't make him wear matching shirts with Mickey Mouse on them. If anyone needs a vacation, it is this guy!

Oldest DD, Punky, is officially entering the dreaded "tween" stage.. where she is a little girl one minute and an "eye rolling, too cool for you, fully grown know it all" the next! She is a packrat and collects everything. I have a feeling she will be way into collecting pins this trip.

Middle DD, Pod, is very dramatic and totally marches to the beat of her own drum. She likes to read and cause mischief for her siblings. She is currently into Calvin and Hobbes right now and has recently taking to informing me of where I stand in the "polls". My ratings tend to be determined by how much TV time I allow.. (Seriously, every picture of this girl, she has a silly face! LOL!)

Youngest DD, Boo Bear, is super girly and still loves princesses. She was just a baby when we last went to Disney and I think she will be totally into the Disney Magic still. While she has perfected her puppy dog eyes, innocent look.. she has been known to throw a few eye rolls my way when she thinks I'm not looking!

And then there is the baby in the family, Buds. He is the only boy and is slightly rotten! He loves Mickey Mouse like you wouldn't believe. I have only seen Mickey Mouse's Road Rally 12,967 times.. He has about 7 stuffed Mickey Mouses of various sizes sitting on his bed. He also loves Planes (Dusty Crophopper) and Miles from Tomorrowland.

So, as of right now, we have $0 in our vacation fund.. hoping that will change in the next few months. I am also hoping that they renew the Military Salute tickets for next year. I have to say, it is such a wonderful thing that Disney does by offering those tickets! Such a blessing!!

We are leaning towards staying offsite, but if a good deal on a value family suite opens up, that is also a possibility..

 

[mrsabbott]

Holy cow! Those pictures are HUGE! Sorry about that, I can't figure out how to shrink them!

 

[mrsabbott]

First things first... THE BUDGET!!

I am, admittedly, unable to pay full price for anything if I can help it. I am always looking for a way to make our dollars stretch or to find a good sale. I only shop clearance and even then I look for additional coupons. What can I say, I'm a cheapskate.. I've been out of work for 4 months and am currently only working part time for the next couple of months but once I go to full time, I will be able to put some $$ aside for vacation.

Our goal is to go during Fall Break from school next year.. this usually falls the first or second week of October. This also happens to be Hubs' and Punky's birthday month. While I am not adverse to taking the kids out of school for a week, I'd prefer not to. And while I have 13 personal days a year, I'd rather not take off work either. Hubs gets a week paid vacation and October is a hit or miss time as far as busyness goes. It is easier for him to get off in the fall/winter than it is the spring/summer. And, most importantly, there don't seem to be blackout dates for fall break on the Military Salute tickets.

That is another important point.. hopefully, Disney will renew their generous offer of the discounted Military Salute tickets. We used them the last time we were at Disney ($99 for 3 days at the park, I think it was back then) and with our family size it is for sure the best deal!

TICKET BUDGET: Six tickets at $177 each (I will round up to $200 in case the price increases) for a total of $1200.

The next thing to consider is lodging. We have never stayed onsite. Ever. Family Suites are our only feasible option and the Value resorts usually run about $2000 for the week. It is my understanding that you can get a 30% military discount, making that about $1400 a week. The idea of immersing ourselves in the Disney bubble sounds pretty fantastic. More than likely, we won't return to Disney unless we move to Orlando one day (dreaming...) so perhaps we should really splurge on the full experience.

However, the cheapskate in me is saying, "NO! You can get a 3br 2ba condo with a full kitchen and washer/dryer for $800 a week! Think of what you could do with that extra $600!!"

I'll be honest with you, we stayed offsite last time we were in Florida and driving to and from the parks don't bother us a bit. We loved the extra space and while we only utilized the full kitchen once during our stay, the washer/dryer was a lifesaver! So, unless something major changes my mind, we will most likely be staying off site. VRBO is my favorite site to browse different condo options but we loved Bahama Bay and it is very affordable and conveniently located.

LODGING BUDGET: $1000

We will drive there, so I will have to have our SUV, Bessie, looked at. Get the oil changed and that sort of thing. And, of course, gas. Too bad that Bessie is such a gas hog. I will include parking expenses in this budget also.

TRANSPORTATION BUDGET: $600

This next one is pretty important. The food budget. I will be honest with you, I prefer to eat out for lunch and dinner if possible. Breakfast will be eaten before we leave. Cereal, oatmeal, fruit, bagels w/cream cheese, etc.. Lunch is generally eaten in the parks. Dinner will most likely be eaten offsite at a restaurant near the condo. We will take our camelbacks and a few snacks into the parks with us.

I want to do at least one sit down character meal. It is a toss up as to which one though. I have heard good things about BOG, but we are leaning towards Chef Mickey's as well. The kids want to return to T-rex Café at Downtown Disney (Disney Springs??) but Hubs and I are pretty "meh" about the food there. Atmosphere is pretty awesome though. The rest of the meals we are find with doing counter service.

I am working on getting some coupons/gift cards or groupons for some of the off site places. Still researching options.

FOOD BUDGET: $1500

As for souvenirs, we aren't big on getting a bunch of things. We will likely get each of the kids a $50 gift card to spend on whatever they want. I will bring my camera and take lots of pictures. We always buy a magnet for our fridge when we go somewhere. We also collect pressed pennies, so I am sure we will get a few of those. The kids already have some books to keep them in.

SOUVENIR BUDGET: $400

I also like to have a little extra in the budget for emergencies and unplanned expenses. You just never know..

EMERGENCY BUDGET: $300

TOTAL BUDGET FOR A DISNEY VACATION FOR SIX: $5000

For those of you who are pros at this.. what are your thoughts? Does this sound doable to you guys?

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

I think it sounds doable. Especially staying offsite and eating mostly off site. I will say... I was excited to try chef Mickey on our fall 2016 trip .... But have read some pretty terrible reviews. So we shall be going with a tried and true favorite - Crystal Palace. Then trying Hollywood and Vine and 1900 based off friends reviews and great disboards reviews!

 

[oopsiDAISY]

Hello! We just booked our next Disney trip this past weekend. We are going to be at WDW from October 5-10. We are then going to spend one day and one night at Universal before heading home. I have not started my PTR yet, as I am trying to finish up a TR from our Disney cruise...last year. I look forward to following your planning adventures!

 

[freckles04]

Following! We are going Oct 1-8. We go in October for fall break, too.

BOG dinner is not really a character meal. You get to meet Beast for a photo op after you eat, but that's it. We did Chef Mickey's and the food was so-so, but had great character interaction. A great choice for your Mickey Mouse loving kid! I would recommend autograph books for the kids!

Our favorite character meal is Tusker House at Animal Kingdom. We LOVE the food there, too.

As for onsite vs. off, don't forget with the new FP+ system you get to pick Fastpasses 60 days out vs. 30 days out. Not sure if that's worth it to you or not!