The Imaginary Vacation.....is no longer imaginary! (7/20-Daily plans w/ADRs)

[Vacation Lover]

WARNING: If you are reading this PTR with the anticipation of living vicariously through me and my fun, exciting Disney trip... STOP NOW! You may be sorely disappointed. I'm not even sure we're going yet!

So, maybe I'm putting the cart before the horse. There's nothing weird about beginning a pre trip report before the vacation's actually been booked, right? I mean, if I start the trip report, we'll HAVE to go, won't we? Because I have the inkling of a plan for a Free Dining trip in my head; I've mentioned it to my husband and he isn't against the idea. (Which, in our household, is generally a yes.) And now I'm starting a PTR...the plans are in motion.

All except the actual reservation, which I'm just not quite ready to commit to.

See, here's the thing: I love to plan fun things. (It's even one of my "25 Random Things" on my Facebook page) Whether it's a get together with friends or an all-out vacation, if I get an inkling of an idea in my head, I can't concentrate on anything else until I think it completely through, from the planning to the decision making.

In the past 3 months I've planned 3 mini-vacations. First, we invited 3 of my husbands college buddies and their families to visit us for a weekend. We had and adults night out on Friday, cooked out on Saturday, and took the kids to the USC Gamecocks basketball game. We had 8 adults and 10 kids staying at our house that weekend!

Then, my best friend and I, both huge Bruce Springsteen fans, decided we HAD to continue our tradition of seeing him in concert this year. So in a couple of weeks we will meet for a girls weekend of shopping, mani/pedi/massages and, of course, BRUUUUUCE!

I'm fortunate that my parents live at the beach, so we've got a free place to stay and just a 3 hour drive any time we want a get-away. I've also got a new nephew on the other side of the country, so guess where my parents will be spending a lot of time this summer? NOT at their beach house. And I, the gracious and responsible daughter, gallantly volunteered to keep an eye on their house while they're gone. So the plan is to head to the beach this summer and invite some friends to join us. Voila...instant vacation.

Sounds like I have the perfect social calendar, huh? And what does this all have to do with the Disney trip that may or may not happen? Well, that's just it: we've got so many other things going on... do we really need to add another vacation? Not to mention, remember that new nephew across the country? He lives in ski country, so an extended visit next winter might be just what we need. Oh, also our friends are planning a Disney trip for March 2010; maybe we should just wait and go with them.

But, c'mon, it's FREE DINING. And why wait a year to go, when you can go in 6 months? So here's what it boils down to: my husband has 2 weeks of vacation. We'll spend 1 week at the beach this summer. Should we spend the other week at Disney in the fall and go skiing over spring break in 2010 (and I MUCH prefer spring skiing over the cold of dead winter.) Or should we ski with the family over Christmas and do Disney with our friends in March of 2010? Or should we skip Disney altogether and do a different kind of trip like a cruise (which I actually would prefer, but it's just too darn expensive for a family of 5) or a relaxing, all inclusive resort? Or should we just appreciate that we'll be at the beach for a week, enjoy a few more "mini-vacations" like those outlined above, and save our money during these crazy economic times?

Ah, decisions, decisions. Isn't this part of the fun of planning?

 

[Vacation Lover]

A quick introduction to me and my family:


Me, Lyndsey, I'm the mom and, as you've probably figured out from the 1st post, the planner. Right now I'm a stay at home mom and "professional volunteer" with school PTO, etc. I'm thinking about a new business venture I just heard about as a wine consultant. I'd go to people's homes and host a wine tasting for them, teaching them how to pair food with wines. How fun would that be?! The only downside: I'm not actually a wine drinker. I'm more of a beer drinker myself.



DH, Bill, he's pretty much along for the ride. He's very easy-going and generally will agree with whatever I plan. He's a huge USC Gamecocks fan so we'll have to plan a fall trip around the home football games. We met in college and will celebrate our 17th anniversary this August.



DS11, Will, is the ham in our family and is constantly trying to make people laugh. He's in 5th grade and regularly in trouble for something or another. He has his dad's engineer mind and marches to the beat of his own drum.

Did I mention he's a ham?


DD9, Sarah Anne, is officially a "tween." She got her ears pierced a few weeks ago and was sure to let me know that she's the last one in her class to get them done. She loves to write and it wouldn't surprise me if she were to begin her own trip report when (if) we finally decide to take the plunge on this Disney trip.

This was taken before her first "date." With Dad to the father-daughter dance at school.


DD4, Kate, is the baby of the family and it's obvious that her siblings are much older than her. She wavers on that fine line between preschooler and big kid, talking about how cool Hannah Montana is one minute and playing babydolls the next.

That's Baxter. He won't be going.

All 3 kids

 

[Vacation Lover]

Oops double post. I'd think of something else to write to fill the space but it's Spring Break here and my house appears to be falling down around me. Chaos ensues.

 

[Vacation Lover]

A quick update...

We're at my parents house at the beach. Talked to them about family vacation plans so we can all get together with my brother and his family (the new nephew.) We're all leaning toward doing something together in early 2010, which is a good sign for the potential fall Disney trip. Bill's vacation time would roll over in January so it looks like we will be able to work in a Disney trip this year. Still haven't made those reservations yet...not completely ready to commit...but we're getting closer.

 

[shordiebecka]

I'm the first one to get on board! Yay!

There is absoloutely NOTHING wrong with having a PTR before you have booked the trip. Nothing at all! Always better to throw some ideas out to the DIS before booking so you can make it amazing! I vote, out of all your vaca choices, to go to Disney. But that doesn't help you I'm sure.

Have you thought about doing a disney cruise? perhaps do a 3 day land, 4 day sea tour? then you can get the best of BOTH worlds...a little Disney magic in the world, then a cruise that you said you wanted to try! It will be pricey, but it's kind of like getting Disney AND a cruise in. Can't wait to hear more!

 

[Vacation Lover]

I'm the first one to get on board! Yay!

There is absoloutely NOTHING wrong with having a PTR before you have booked the trip. Nothing at all! Always better to throw some ideas out to the DIS before booking so you can make it amazing! I vote, out of all your vaca choices, to go to Disney. But that doesn't help you I'm sure.

Have you thought about doing a disney cruise? perhaps do a 3 day land, 4 day sea tour? then you can get the best of BOTH worlds...a little Disney magic in the world, then a cruise that you said you wanted to try! It will be pricey, but it's kind of like getting Disney AND a cruise in. Can't wait to hear more!

Thanks for reading! I would love to do a Disney cruise--we went on one back in 2002 and loved it. But now we're a family of 5, which means 2 rooms and a MUCH higher price tag. I was *thisclose* to booking us on great deal I found on a Norweigan 4 day cruise, but I waited too long (ahem, are we sensing a pattern here?) and the rooms that would accommodate a family of 5 sold out. Just as well, though--the planning of that "imaginary vacation" has led to this imaginary Disney vacation.

 

[Vacation Lover]

So the imaginary dates for my imaginary vacation are October 2-7. I'm imagining we'd leave after work on Thursday, 10/1, drive to Jacksonville and get a cheap hotel there. Then we'd get up and drive the rest of the way, getting to Disney no later than lunchtime on Friday 10/2. Trying now to decide on a resort.

Last time we stayed at CBR; we liked it, but felt it was a little too spread out. We ended up driving to the pool and food court most of the time. Before that we had a suite at the Sheraton Safari just outside of the Disney gates. Loved having a large living area for relaxation and downtime.

Here are the options I'm considering for this trip:
(I'm pricing the rooms for 5 nights and 1 day park tickets, because we have non expiration passes from a previous visit.)

Option #1
1 room at POR - $1,335
The least expensive option, but awfully cramped. I'd rather splurge a little for more room.

Option #2
All Star Family Suite - $1,680
Like the idea of a suite, but I think we'd rather do a moderate. The kids definitely want a cool pool with a slide and I'd like the "extras" that you can get with a moderate.

Option #3
Cabin at Ft. Wilderness - $2,155
This is definitely high on the list, but I think I'd rather stay here when we're not doing free dining. Then we could use the kitchen and enjoy all of the amenities of the campground area without rushing off to be at a dinner reservation.

Option #4
2 connecting rooms POR or POFQ - $2,295
This is probably my favorite option for this trip. It will be nice to have some privacy for me and Bill on our vacation, and some room to spread out. I like the idea of being able to take the boat to Downtown Disney and --I think--to Epcot too. (Is that right? How long does it take?)

Option #5
5 person room at Polynesian - $2,715
The most expensive option, and only one room for the 5 of us. On our last visit we toured the resort loved it, so I'm putting it on the list of "potentials." Remembering how cramped our stay at CBR was, I don't know if the beauty of the resort would justify 5 nights in such close quarters--especially considering the cost.

Would love to hear some input from the many, many people who appear to be following this (imaginary) pre trip report. (Helloooooo out there!)

 

[lucky978]

I've enjoyed reading your Pre-Trip report.

Personally, I'm voting for option #4. We love both POFQ and POR. At POR you could request a trundle bed as well - that way you and your husband could have one room, and the kids could be in the second room (and each have their own beds). If your kids are anything like mine - sleeping that close to each other is a recipe for disaster!!!

To answer your question about the boat at POR and POFQ - it does go to Downtown Disney, but not Epcot. I wish it did!!! In order to get to Epcot you will need to take a bus from the resort. Both resorts have great bus service, so this shouldn't be a problem.

I'm just like you with planning things. Good luck - and I hope you are able to squeeze a Disney trip into your busy schedule!!!

 

[Vacation Lover]

I've enjoyed reading your Pre-Trip report.

Personally, I'm voting for option #4. We love both POFQ and POR. At POR you could request a trundle bed as well - that way you and your husband could have one room, and the kids could be in the second room (and each have their own beds). If your kids are anything like mine - sleeping that close to each other is a recipe for disaster!!!

To answer your question about the boat at POR and POFQ - it does go to Downtown Disney, but not Epcot. I wish it did!!! In order to get to Epcot you will need to take a bus from the resort. Both resorts have great bus service, so this shouldn't be a problem.

I'm just like you with planning things. Good luck - and I hope you are able to squeeze a Disney trip into your busy schedule!!!

Thanks for the info. I'm definitely leaning toward POR for the very reasons you listed above. Things are looking good for the potential trip. Hoping all the stars align...

Will be back with an update soon!

 

[Vacation Lover]

Here's what we have on the calendar so far for this year.

Coming up in April...Springsteen concert with my BFF! Woo Hoo!

May...Taking Will and 2 friends to Carowinds for a birthday celebration. He chose to do this instead of having a party this year and, even though it's a little pricier than a party, I'm ecstatic. Much less work for me and, better yet, much more fun! We're going to leave Kate at home with her friend (sorry, Kate!) because she hates rides and it will be much easier to do the big kids version of Carowinds without her. I figured out that if we go on Memorial Day Monday, it will cost the same to buy season passes for the family and tickets for Wills friends as it would to buy all of us a one-time ticket! Carowinds is about an hour and a half from our house so we will be able to take some day trips there this summer. (And we'll include Kate on those trips!)

June...My parents 50th Anniversary party! My brother and his family will be coming to visit for a week and we'll all meet at my parents house at the beach. My mom loves to host parties and she's already planned to invite the extended family. We'll take the kids to the beach in the afternoon, then meet back at my parents house for a casual dinner party.

July...Since my brother is coming here in June, my parents might not go out west to see him this summer after all, but either way, we will be spending some time at the beach. Probably a long weekend around 4th of July and hopefully it will still work out to invite some friends to visit at the end of the month. As I mentioned, my mom loves to entertain, so she will enjoy having company for a few days.

August...Back to school. Nothing special planned

September...Football season begins. We have season tickets to the USC Gamecock games so this is where we'll spend most of our weekends. Football in the South is an event! Tailgating is an art form and we spend most of the day socializing before the game. At the tailgate we cook things like Frogmore Stew (not a stew at all, but a mix of sausage, shrimp, corn on the cob and potatoes--delicious!), homemade BBQ, Bacon & Egg sandwiches cooked on a portable grill (for the early games) and Steaks. We never have the usual tailgate staple of fried chicken because, as one of our tailgating buddies says, "It's not cool to eat the mascot!"

October...DISNEY TRIP! But nobody here wants to hear about the boring details of this, so I'll just move on.

November...Usually we head to Florida to my MILs for Thanksgiving, but there's a good chance she'll meet us in Disney instead this year. Not sure what we'll do for Thanksgiving.

December...Really trying to tell the compulsive planner in me that it's okay to not know the specifics of what we're going to do at Thanksgiving and at Christmastime when it's only April. Really. It's OKAY! Right?

Now that I'm seeing the annual plan on paper, I'm really thinking Disney will work for us this year.

I might even pick up the phone and make a reservation when we get back home next week...

 

[Vacation Lover]

I figure that while I'm daydreaming about a potential Disney trip, I'll do a mini trip report about our trip to the beach last week.

Spring break-- we spent the first few days at home, relaxing, playing soccer, working in the garden, sleepovers for the kids, etc. Beautiful weather over the weekend; we even made a bonfire on Saturday night and made smores in the backyard. Then (just in time for our neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt) it turned co-oo-ld. Our neighbors had planned a night time egg hunt and despite the cold (I wore a hat and gloves, which is unheard of in SC in April!) we had a great time. Armed with flashlights, the kids searched for eggs. Sarah Anne found the special gold egg, which contained a 2 dollar bill, AND the special silver egg, which contained a silver dollar. I was proud of her generosity, when she gave the silver egg to a friend instead of keeping both.

The kids and I went down to the beach to visit my parents on Wednesday and Bill joined us on Friday afternoon. He works 10 hour days on Monday-Thursday and gets off early on Fridays (In theory, anyway; usually he ends up working until late afternoon on Fridays too.) Anyway, he can sometimes take Fridays off since he gets his 40 hours in early in the week, but this week he had a bunch of projects due. He was here in time for the fun stuff, though, and brought Will's birthday present with him since Friday was his 11th birthday.

Luckily the weather had warmed up a bit, so the kids and I could spend a little time on the beach. It was beautiful sitting on the beach in 70 degree weather, reading my magazine and watching the kids play in the sand. The water was frigid-cold but that didn't stop Will from testing out his Boogie Board. He was the only person who could be seen to the naked eye swimming in the water. Look to the left: not one person in the water; look to the right: nobody in past their toes. Look straight ahead: Will is riding the waves with lips as blue as the water.

As I mentioned, Friday was Will's 11th birthday. That morning he sauntered into my room, chest puffed out, ready for a big "Happy Birthday!" from Mom. After which he proclaimed he is officially too old to snuggle with his mother. Sigh.

Will chose Bonefish Grill for his birthday dinner. Yum! I'm glad he likes the same kind of restaurants I do. As we were heading out the door to dinner Sarah Anne looked at me and said, "Mom, do you think I should go put on a light coat of lipstick before we go?" Ummm, no. Oh boy, I am not ready for this. When did my children start growing up so quickly? At least Kate is still at a snuggly-only-wears-makeup-when-playing-dress-up age!

At the restaurant, I got up to take Kate to the bathroom. We followed a man who, I assumed, was walking to the mens room. Nope. He walked straight into the womens room. I stopped dead in my tracks, waiting for him to realize what he'd done and come back out. No sign of him. Speechless, I finally managed to squeak, "Ummm, Sir..." I think it took a second for it to register with him that I was speaking to him; the door to the ladies room was completely closed and I'm standing there trying to figure out what to do--after all, I have a 4 year old who HAD to go. Luckily it finally registered with him that I had called him; it had not, however, registered with him that he was in the ladies room. He comes out and looks at me like I'm crazy for calling him back out of the bathroom. I'm still a bit speechless and simply point to the sign on the door. At this point I'm doubting myself, thinking, "am I seeing this sign wrong?" He finally realizes that he's in the wrong room and mumbles, "Oh, sorry." and goes on his way. I was cracking up all the way back to the table, then I couldn't even tell Bill why I was laughing because it turned out the man was sitting right behind me.

After we got back from dinner I found Will settling in to watch some TV. I snuggled down next to him and asked, "Are you to old to sit with your mom's arm around you?" To my relief, he answered no, and snuggled against me. I gave him a big hug. "I love you, Will," I told him. "I love you too, Mom," he replied. Happy sigh. Because you're never too old for I love you.

 

[tink1957]

Hi there fellow Boss lover, I first saw him in concert at the Fox Theater in Atlanta in 1978 (I think) & since then have seen him 3 more times, it just amazes me how much energy he still has even now.

Don't feel bad about planning an imaginary trip, I do it all the time. I've even booked my Free Dining trip in Sept & still don't know if I can get the time off as I just started a new job last month. I have till August 5th to break the news to my new boss. Wish me luck.

I also think Option 4 sounds the best & the boat to DTD is wonderful, you go by the new Treehouse Villas on the way & the ride is so relaxing.

 

[Vacation Lover]

Hi there fellow Boss lover, I first saw him in concert at the Fox Theater in Atlanta in 1978 (I think) & since then have seen him 3 more times, it just amazes me how much energy he still has even now.

Don't feel bad about planning an imaginary trip, I do it all the time. I've even booked my Free Dining trip in Sept & still don't know if I can get the time off as I just started a new job last month. I have till August 5th to break the news to my new boss. Wish me luck.

I also think Option 4 sounds the best & the boat to DTD is wonderful, you go by the new Treehouse Villas on the way & the ride is so relaxing.

Thanks for reading and for the input. Good luck with the new job and with getting time off! Keeping my fingers crossed for you.

12 days 'till The Boss, then I'll have another mini TR to report. Can't wait!

 

[Vacation Lover]

It's free dining and we're ready to eat! I doubt we can make it to all that are on my list, so I'll be paring the list down when (if) I finally make this reservation.

We usually invite my MIL and her friend to join us for a portion of the trip. They'll babysit for us one night so Bill and I can go out. We will pay for most of their meals so that will also be a consideration of where we will eat. They will most likely stay offsite but I'm considering offering them the option to stay in the kids room (if we do POR); that way we can take care of their park tickets, hotel room and their meals by including them on the dining plan. They are extremely conscious of their spending right now due to their retirement plans going south with the economy, so this might be the only way they can do Disney with us this year.

Anyway, here are the restaurants I'm considering so far...

1. Date night restaurant...
Can't decide whether to splurge and go to a 2TS restaurant here or to stick with a 1TS so we can do more sit-downs throughout the week. We've been to Narcoossies and Flying Fish. I kind of want to try something new.
*Kona
*Big River Grill
*Cap'n Jack
*California Grill (2TS)
Suggestions??

2. Character Meals
*Chef Mickey's--Sarah Anne specifically said she wants to go here again so this is definitely on the "to do" list.
*Princess breakfast @ Akershus--we had lunch here last time and I thought we could try breakfast this time. Kate is still very into the princesses and since she's terrified of characters in costume, this might be the one character interaction she'll enjoy. (She'll spend most of the time at Chef Mickey's with her eyes closed!)
*Cinderella's Royal Table-is it worth the 2TS or should we stick with Akershus?

3. By popular Demand
*Whispering Canyon--Will is dying to go here again so he can order ketchup! It's high on Sarah Anne's list too.
*Sci Fi--surprisingly, we all enjoyed our time at Sci Fi on our last visit. It was the perfect relief from a hot, tiring day in the park.

4. Restaurants in the parks
*Le Cellier
*Coral Reef
*Hollywood Brown Derby with the Fantasmic package, or Mama Melrose if we can't splurge on the 2TS.

 

[Vacation Lover]

Ooooh, I was so close to booking the deal! I actually picked up the phone and spoke to a CM! But it didn't quite work out like I wanted it to, so I didn't book. Here's what happened.

I decided to go with 2 connecting rooms at POR and include my MIL (Sally) and her friend (Linda) on the reservation in the kids room. Unfortunately, the CM said that if there are more than 2 adults on the reservation, they cannot guarantee connecting rooms. He said that if it's only my family, they will guarantee connecting rooms because of the kids, but if we add more adults, they'll assume an adult will be available to be with the kids so no guarantee.

Here's the thing: Sally & Linda will not be spending the entire time with us while they're there--they'll go off on their own quite a bit, will visit friends in Orlando, etc. So it's entirely possible that Bill and I will be back at our room, the kids will be going to sleep in their room and Sally & Linda will be out for a late dinner. I'm not comfortable with that scenario if we don't have connecting rooms.

I know it seems a little selfish for us to shove them in with the kids, but this is the least expensive way to have them share the experience with us. Bill and I really want our own space this year and I think our schedules will be different enough that it won't seem so crowded. I am positive that they will be unable to do it financially if we don't pay for most of the expenses.

So it's back to the drawing board, and more thinking and planning. Do we:

1. Stick with POR and hope for the best, that they will be able to find us connecting rooms, even though there's no guarantee. Additional cost would be around $150, and would include 1 day park tix, hotel and dining.

2. Take Sally & Linda off of the reservation but let them stay in the room, even though this means no free dining for them. Additional cost would be (I'm guessing) $150 for park tix & $150+ for meals, total $300

3. Switch to Ft. Wilderness cabins even though I was really getting excited about POR. Additional cost would be around $150, and would include 1 day park tix, accommodations and dining.

4. Splurge and pay for a room for S&L at a value resort for 3 nights. (We're staying for 5 nights, but they would most likely only stay for 3; that's what they've done in the past.) This would add $500+ to our cost.

5. Pay for an inexpensive hotel offsite and pay for the meals they eat with us out of pocket. Need to put pencil to paper to see how much this would cost us, but I'm guessing: 3 nights @$50/night plus meals $150+, park tix $150...total $450. Okay, this one doesn't make sense at all; if we're spending this much, we might as well go the extra $50, put them at Pop and get free dining.

I think I'm going to call back and try explain my situation again, in hopes that we can get the connecting rooms. (I'm not sure the first CM understood the situation, I think he thought that the 5 of us would be in one room and the 2 of them in the other.)

Soooo...I'm back to the drawing board. As of today, this trip is still imaginary.

 

[Vacation Lover]

I did it! I called and talked to a very helpful CM today. Still couldn't get guaranteed connecting rooms for 4 adults & 3 children, so I just reserved the rooms for my family of 5.

I'm assuming that my MIL and her friend will be joining us when we go; I actually haven't even talked to them about it yet. So, I'm going to wait to figure out what to do for a room for them. It sounds like I can add them on to our existing reservation at a later date (for a small fee) if we need to do that. Right now I'm just not going to worry about it; we'll figure out those details later.

So we are booked into 2 connecting standard rooms into POR, me and Bill in our own room and the kids in a room that could accommodate 5. We're checking in on Friday, October 2, checking out on Wednesday, October 7. Have not made the deposit yet, so I don't consider it "official" until then. Deposit is due next week. Getting excited...

 

[tink1957]

Congrats on booking POR, we stayed at POFQ twice & loved it especially the boat to DTD. Hopefully they will still give your connecting rooms when you add the two adults.

 

[Vacation Lover]

Congrats on booking POR, we stayed at POFQ twice & loved it especially the boat to DTD. Hopefully they will still give your connecting rooms when you add the two adults.

Thanks, Tink. I'm excited about that boat to DTD. We'll have a car, but it just seems more fun to get there by boat.

Hoping it will work out when/if we add the two adults to the room. If they remove the guarantee for connecting rooms, we'll have to move to plan B. (Which, at this point, is still unplanned.)

 

[Vacation Lover]

6 months out...that means it's time to start thinking about that which I dread: Shoe shopping. I hate shoes! I could quite possibly be the only woman on the planet who despises shoes. Cute shoes are NEVER comfortable on me and comfortable shoes are ALWAYS just plain ugly. With the possible exception of bathing suits, shoes are the single item of clothing that I cannot stand to shop for. I spend my days either in bare feet (on the rare occasion that my floors are clean) or in slippers (the other 364 days of the year.)

Here's the thing about shoes. By the time you've got them broken in, they're all nasty and it's time to buy a new pair. (Not unlike jeans, which are my third least favorite item to shop for.) I made the mistake of wearing my comfy Keds while doing yardwork. Before the yardwork, they might have lasted another 6 months and been just the right level of comfy-ness for long days in the parks. Now even I, hater of the shoe, am too embarrassed to wear them. So it's off to the store to find new Keds.

I know you're all thinking, "Keds? Who the heck even wears Keds anymore?" (Seriously, I'm not TOO much of a dork.) But I have tried every shoe out there. I like my New Balances when I'm working out, but not for all day. Love my sandles but they're not great for a lot of walking. Hate flip flops; I always feel like they're going to fly off, so my foot stays tense when I'm wearing them. HATE Crocs. They're ugly, plus I can't stand the feel of those little bumps on the bottom poking the soles of my feet. Keds work. Now I'm just going to have to spend a grumpy few months breaking the new ones in. But I'll be packing the ratty old ones...just in case.

 

[Vacation Lover]

Thought I'd add a couple of pics from the last trip to get in the mood.