The One Where They Go To WDW - January ‘19 PTR - SINGLE DIGIT DANCE! (1/17 Update)

[disney-inspired]

Hello out there! Hello! Hello?



I'm really excited that I have a reason to be back on the PTR board! I needed somewhere to be anxious/excited/nervous wreck during these very early stages of the planning process. I'm chomping at the bit to talk Disney and I can sometime be "too much" for my travel companions.

Revamping this intro post a bit with more info and more GIFs!​

Welcome to my pre-trip report for the largest family vacation I have ever planned. This trip has been over a year in the making and is totally gonna rock!

So come along and join me!
​

 

[disney-inspired]

TAGS!

Introductions
Rooms are booked!
Preliminary dining plans
Real Life Updates
Real Life update #2 & Trip News
Military Promo Released & Freaking Out
Fastpass+
Fastpass Day
Rough Itinerary & Cute Outfits
Now is the time to PANIC - General trip anxiety

 

[disney-inspired]

When your biggest problem is deciding on a #hashtag
An introductions post​

Alrighty, let's proceed with the important facts!​

Who:
This party is the largest I have ever traveled with to WDW, largest on any vacation really.

​

Cristabel - Thaaaaat me! (Any All That fans?) I'm turning 30 this year and I'm a serious Disney nerd. I've been obsessed with certain childhood and never quite grew out of it. I've been to WDW three times in my life - high school graduation with family, college graduation solo trip and in 2015 with Diana, Tyrae and Lola)



Anais (18) - *Surprise* little sister. She's definitely a Flash Slothmore kinda person so getting her excited about things is hard and getting her anywhere in a hurry is even harder. She loves to draw and is a fan of all things Japanese so I know we'll spending a good amount of time in Epcot and lots of $$$ in Mitsukoshi



Diana - My big sister, my OG partner in crime. We are now both equally fanatical Disney fans. Sometimes when we're together and we start talking about WDW stuff we just start squealing with excitement. I think she gained a newfound appreciation for Disney after Lola was born. There's nothing like seeing Disney through a child's eyes.

TJ- My BIL, the man; Military. Our trip in 2015 was his first time at WDW and what can I say? Well we're going back right?


Rocking her Moana flower crown

Lola (4yo) - My oldest niece. I never knew I could love a child so much who wasn't mine. I met her when she was 4 months old since they were out of state. It was love at first sight! I would visit twice a year for the time they were out of CA and we all went to WDW in 2015. She was attached at my hip the whole time. Now that they're back, we hang out all the time. She loves to cuddle, give big hugs and kisses and is love to play pretend that she's a puppy. She's currently into 2D animated movies (101 dalmations, jungle book, Mulan, Hercules and Aladdin).



Vivian (1yo) - My youngest niece. She is quite the character and while not as much of a cuddlebug like Lola, still has her huggsy moments. She is such a smart kid and is so much more talkative than Lola was at her age. She understands a lot and is able to express what she wants. I think she's is going to lose her mind when she sees characters in the parks as evidenced by her reaction when we watched the Disneyland sing along video on YouTube.

Now, joining my usual traveling party is my cousin & his family, or the O in JOT. This will be their first time to WDW and they are a huge Pixar family and love Toy Story, the Incredibles, Up, etc.

The Orozco Clan!​

Sergio - oldest cousin; physics professor at local community college and overall fun guy.
Daniela - Sergio's wife, mom to two kiddos and is always up for hanging out. She is giving me free reign on planning & booking this trip.
Calvin (5yo) - Your typical goofy boy, loves his cars, Pirates and Buzz Lightyear
Millie (~2yo) - labeled by her mom as 'fiercely independent' and brave little girl.

So if you've done the math, that's 6 adults and 4 children (all aged 5 and under)

What:
7 nights, 8 days at Walt Disney World

When:
*This is still dependent on a few variables but we have our preferred dates*
January 27th - February 3rd

Where:
Split-stay between Art of Animation (Lion King Suites) and Animal Kingdom Lodge!


This is the largest number of people I've planned a vacation for and so it will definitely be a learning experience finding a balance of independent travel and togetherness that won't have us all at each other's throats 3 days into the trip

 

[brewhome]

I'm in, coming from the January 2019 thread! Can't wait to read along!

 

[disney-inspired]

Work is a little slow right now so I thought I'd do some writing on this PTR (I'm pretty sure I just jinxed myself...).

Something to know about me is that I'm working hard to be debt-free.
And apparently, i'm a poet and I didn't even know it...
​

In addition to stupid debt (credit cards), I'm working on paying off a person loan (which I took out to consolidate my credit card debt and pay less interest but I never canceled the cards so racked up more debt ) and my car loan before I laser focus on my student loan debt.





I decided to cash flow this trip and still kill my consumer debt. I'm in my 4th month of debt repayment and while it sucks to sacrifice now, I know it's better in the long run for me. I created a debt repayment tracker spreadsheet and I will have saved up all my WDW money by October! This includes the cost of the hotel, food, airfare and money for souvenirs.

And I will be completely consumer debt free by November 30th
I'm so stinking excited to reach this milestone. It will definitely lift a great weight off my shoulders.​

I'm saving additional money for pre-trip expenses such as:
- New clothes
- Manicure/pedicure
- Haircut
- Travel gifts for my niece and nephew

In addition to my job, I'm also trying to be more active on Swagbucks. I was diligently completing offers and surveys to earn about $200 for my Disneyland trip this past February. Anything I earn will go towards lowering the cost for the whole group.

What do you guys do to earn extra money for Disney?



​

 

[disney-inspired]

I'm in, coming from the January 2019 thread! Can't wait to read along!

Yay! Thanks for following

 

[disney-inspired]

What do you do when you're 279 days out from your trip, 2019 packages haven't been released yet and you're waiting on information that could complete change your trip?

Window shop online!
​

As I'm working on being debt free and cash flowing this trip, I've let my immediate family know that I will not be able to buy gifts for Christmas this year, or at least I don't foresee me having the funds. Now of course my year-end bonus could affect that but I don't want to count my eggs before they're hatched.

The only exceptions I have to this are my youngest nieces and nephews.

For Lola and Calvin, I will be putting together special backpacks full of goodies for the flight from CA to FL to keep them entertained. Vivian and Millie will be getting clothes - sorry kiddies!

First - Backpacks

Inside:
- kid headphones to watch shows or play games (stock photos from amazon)

Water bottles to take into the parks

I'll throw in some activity books, snacks, and travel goodies.

I plan on giving it to them close to the trip and want to create a countdown chain for them to have in their houses.

I have no clue what the weather will be like in January so I'll probably wait on buying myself new clothes until we get within a month of our trip. Also, I hope to be a little smaller by then too (exercising & doing weight watchers - down almost 8lbs!).

 

[disney-inspired]

IT'S OFFICIAL - I HAVE DISNEY FEVER
​

This means I'm back to thinking about WDW 24/7 and am getting active on the boards again. I'm so antsy to book our package.

 

[reyasmommy]

We're working really hard at becoming debt free as well, I don't see it happening till 2020 though. However, we have paid off over $18,000 in debt in the last 6 months which feels really great! We're following the Dave Ramsey plan as much as we can and are using the snowball method.

I love that our vacations have been paid in full and with cash. That makes the trip that much better!

I sure wish they would open up 2019 prices NOW!!

 

[musicalgirl2010]

Hi! Joining in! We’re going to be there at almost the same time! I also have Disney Fever!

 

[disney-inspired]

We're working really hard at becoming debt free as well, I don't see it happening till 2020 though. However, we have paid off over $18,000 in debt in the last 6 months which feels really great! We're following the Dave Ramsey plan as much as we can and are using the snowball method.

I love that our vacations have been paid in full and with cash. That makes the trip that much better!

I sure wish they would open up 2019 prices NOW!!

Yay a fellow DR friend! I have paid of $9263 in debt since January 2018! I will be consumer debt free by December.

Also it looks like 2019 prices are opening up June 19th! Yay!

Hi! Joining in! We’re going to be there at almost the same time! I also have Disney Fever!

Yay! More January friends! Can’t wait until June 19th!

 

[disney-inspired]

Good evening! (or Good Morning for all you East Coasters)​

BIG NEWS!!!
Our rooms have officially been booked!
JANUARY 27TH - 28TH @ ART OF ANIMATION

JANUARY 28TH - FEBRUARY 3RD @ ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE
​

After much back and forth, I decided to go ahead and book our rooms now to secure the specific room types we needed for our group. Even then, I didn't get the exact room for my cousin & his family because at 7 months out, all standard view studio villas were booked at Animal Kingdom Jambo House. I decided to get the next level which is Savannah view as the villas in Jambo House seem to be going faster than those at Kidani Village.

My cousin & his wife have to see if they can afford the extra expense of that room level and the fact that we added on a night to our trip. We may have to move over to Kidani Village if they can't swing it. I'm hoping they don't require too much time to figure it out because I don't want to risk losing the standard studio villa at Kidani Village between now and whenever they let me know their decision.

If all else fails, I can try requesting a regular room at Animal Kingdom Lodge for them. I don't think we'd have an issue applying the military discount when it's renewed since AKL & AKV Jambo House are technically the same resort.
I'm going to press for an answer tomorrow as 2019 packages are being released on 6/19/18 and I know tons of people are waiting to book packages.

44 days until we can make dining reservations!
​

UPDATE:
Daniela opted for the less expensive room. She figures they won't be in the room that often to really take advantage of the Savannah View and the extra $$$ won't be well spent.
I called the reservation line yesterday and switched them over a standard room in the main lodge. This works out because we'll all be in the main lodge and closer to Mara for the kids (all the kids are either early risers or serious breakfast-eaters), better pool and bus stop

 

[disney-inspired]

Hello readers, it's been a long time between updates but now that 2019 rates were released, we are officially in the planning season!

I thought I'd post an update of my trackers:












http://www.**************/

 

[cinderaimee]

Following along! Those are almost the exact dates I was planning for our trip but we ended up pushing it up earlier in January. Can’t wait to see your dining and FP choices. That’s a big group to plan for!

 

[reyasmommy]

Woot-Woot! I'm glad you were finally able to make your hotel reservations! Sounds perfect!

 

[disney-inspired]

I'm definitely someone who plans for the worst, hopes for the best but secretly believes the worst will happen.

So, with that being said, I'm looking at Mousesavers historical discounts list in case the military room discount is not renewed.
We will most likely have to move to a moderate resort and get two rooms as 4 adults, 1 4yo and a 1 yo is too much in one room! Sadly the moderates options are really lacking. CBR and CSR are both under serious renovation (no thank you!) so that leaves POR/POFQ. My sister and I have already stated at POR twice so we wanted to try something different but in the end, if we have to, we'd be fine going back to POR and getting a preferred room. It's a great resort and we love the feel of it.

Now this is all IF the military discount isn't renewed or there is no discount available for the rooms we need at AKL.

The Armed Forces Salute discount changed in 2018 and was offered on a sliding scale. Knowing that, if we don't get full 40% off as we hope, there may be a chance to move to another Deluxe if the full 40% discount is available for the rooms we need and it would still end up costing more as AKL is the cheapest out of all the Deluxe resorts.
As my sister & her DH are splitting the cost of the 1-bedroom villa with Anais and me, we have more wiggle room when it comes to the discount percentages. My cousins on the other hand have a tighter budget and the difference in cost for their room at AKL between a 40% and 35% discount is about $122.00 more, and $244 more between a 40% and 30% discount.

I'm just crunching numbers so I know what to do in September if things go south. I have no power over what Disney decides so just praying that everything works out for the best.

 

[Hallieb21]

Tagging along

 

[disney-inspired]

Happy 4th of July & MICKEY MAIL!!​

Independence Day is practically upon us here in California, so Happy 4th of July! I can't believe how fast the past 6 months have flown by.

Not much news on the planning front with ADRs coming up in 28 days and FP+ in 148, but we got our first Mickey Mail today!


We have two separate reservations for our party. The first one is for our 1-night stay at Art of Animation and the second is for the rest of our stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Our mailers only list the 2nd reservation and I can only assume it's because it's for multiple nights.
Disney isn't all that excited about guests who only stay one night, I guess

In my next post, I will start discussing the next planning portion of this trip - Dining!​

 

[cinderaimee]

So fun! We got our Mickey mail too! I let my son open it and he was so excited and said "are we leaving today???!?" Sorry buddy, not quite yet

Can't wait to see your dining picks!

 

[disney-inspired]

It's time for Disney Dining!


We are 22 days out from our ADR date!​

Diana and I did some Disney planning over the weekend and have finalized some of our dining choices but not all of them. Counter service don't require reservations so we're not too concerned about choosing those right now but we are still looking into CS reviews online and watching a bunch of Disney food vlogs.

We've read several "top table service restaurant" lists and watched tons of reviews and I'm still like

Here's our wish list so far:



As you can see there is still a ton of deciding to do.

​

This doesn't even begin to cover the Orozco's dining and I'll need to get their preferences within a week or so. I'll have to get up SO early two days in a row since we have two separate room reservations for our split stay.