Think of All The Joy I'll Find! - 10 Days Out!

[katiee37]

Sorry for being MIA! It's been a crazy few weeks.

Anyway, Disney news flash!
Our dates changed! Again! But of course.

Something came up, and I need to be in Jakarta around 10-12 February next year. I asked Daisy if she's OK with going sooner. She is, so we settled for 27 Jan to 6 Feb. Aaaand my countdown number just instantly got smaller! Hurrah!

The good thing about it is - if easywdw's crowd calendar is as good as what everybody says - we're in for a treat, because the end of January is when the crowd's supposed to be really low. Like, level 1 low. I have ridiculously high hopes for this, so if Josh's wrong, I would be on mission to hunt a guy with a beard and striped polos in the parks. Or just troll his blog like crazy.

A not-so-great news - Indonesian's Rupiah is weakening. It's insane. Last month, 1 USD equals around 9,500 IDR. YESTERDAY, 1 USD equals around 11,000 IDR Good God. Daisy and I have no more fingernails. We chew them all off while watching the terrifying fluctuation.

Being a precious and supportive husband that he is, my hubby clicks his tongue every morning while reading the papers, and throw comments like, "Wow, your trip is really in jeopardy." Thank you, sweetie.

I'm no economist, but I predict (hope) things will get better soon. Definitely before January. I doubt the trip really is in jeopardy. Crossing every fingers and toes!

You can join the January group now! Good luck with the Rupiah situation!!

 

[Lei]

I've said this before, and I'll say it again - this trip is costing us a FOR-TUNE.

So I thought I was pretty solid with my early decision to not do dining plan. I'd just stick with cheap QS meals / snacks and anything "free" (ha!) as much as possible.

But some times ago, I figured (hoped) that I have 90% chance of getting Stay Play and Dine promo for my stay. Why not use the saved money for a few TS meals? (ha!)

During that delusional moment, I gathered up information and dreamed of eating in one or three of these places:

Crystal Palace - breakfast

When I first found out about the "having ADR earlier than park opening" trick, I was so mesmerized, and determined that a CP breakfast is a must-do! Also, buffets, yum.

Tusker House - breakfast

"Literally" every dining thread I've encountered claims that Tusker House is the best breakfast place in WDW. I just gotta prove that myself! Not overly excited for the menu, but the ambience seems pretty cool.

1900 Park Fare - breakfast / dinner

I used to think that eating at other resorts is a waste of time. But I'm going to have 2 off/non-park days, and aside from crying over my poor feet and aching back, I think I want to fill those days by eating at other resorts.

Have read so many raving reviews about Poly and AKL's restaurants, but the lure of the stepsisters is too strong. So 1900 Park Fare it is

I'd go for dinner for the sake of the The Tremaines, but I heard breakfasts at 1900 are way better than the loud, messy dinners.

If I have the option, I'd still be unsure.

Be Our Guest - lunch / dinner

Ahhh, the elusive BOG.

At first, I thought I'd avoid this place like the plague. Too elusive, overpriced, with menus I can honestly recreate at home. I tend to avoid anything overhyped, anyway.

However, I'm a wannabe photographer, and after ogling hundreds of BOG photos, I seriously want to photograph every inch of that place myself, in a very artsy fartsy way (aka tilting it. Sorry Josh, I love you too much).

And the only way to do it is to eat there!

***​

So that's my Top 4! Not sure why I don't have any Epcot restaurants. I'm thinking of Biergarten? Maybe?

BUT THEEEEN, as I've mentioned before, Rupiah is weakening. And so the expensive trip just got more expensive, which I didnt think it was even possible before.

So every penny saved by SPD will NOT go to TS, or anywhere else for that matter. Sorry, Disney!

Quite a depressing post, I know.

 

[ABCastillo]

I've said this before, and I'll say it again - this trip is costing us a FOR-TUNE.

So I thought I was pretty solid with my early decision to not do dining plan. I'd just stick with cheap QS meals / snacks and anything "free" (ha!) as much as possible.

But some times ago, I figured (hoped) that I have 90% chance of getting Stay Play and Dine promo for my stay. Why not use the saved money for a few TS meals? (ha!)

During that delusional moment, I gathered up information and dreamed of eating in one or three of these places:

Crystal Palace - breakfast

When I first found out about the "having ADR earlier than park opening" trick, I was so mesmerized, and determined that a CP breakfast is a must-do! Also, buffets, yum.

Tusker House - breakfast

"Literally" every dining thread I've encountered claims that Tusker House is the best breakfast place in WDW. I just gotta prove that myself! Not overly excited for the menu, but the ambience seems pretty cool.

1900 Park Fare - breakfast / dinner

I used to think that eating at other resorts is a waste of time. But I'm going to have 2 off/non-park days, and aside from crying over my poor feet and aching back, I think I want to fill those days by eating at other resorts.

Have read so many raving reviews about Poly and AKL's restaurants, but the lure of the stepsisters is too strong. So 1900 Park Fare it is

I'd go for dinner for the sake of the The Tremaines, but I heard breakfasts at 1900 are way better than the loud, messy dinners.

If I have the option, I'd still be unsure.

Be Our Guest - lunch / dinner

Ahhh, the elusive BOG.

At first, I thought I'd avoid this place like the plague. Too elusive, overpriced, with menus I can honestly recreate at home. I tend to avoid anything overhyped, anyway.

However, I'm a wannabe photographer, and after ogling hundreds of BOG photos, I seriously want to photograph every inch of that place myself, in a very artsy fartsy way (aka tilting it. Sorry Josh, I love you too much).

And the only way to do it is to eat there!

***​

So that's my Top 4! Not sure why I don't have any Epcot restaurants. I'm thinking of Biergarten? Maybe?

BUT THEEEEN, as I've mentioned before, Rupiah is weakening. And so the expensive trip just got more expensive, which I didnt think it was even possible before.

So every penny saved by SPD will NOT go to TS, or anywhere else for that matter. Sorry, Disney!

Quite a depressing post, I know.

All the places on your Top 4 look great. We ate at Tuskar House and 1900 Park Fare (dinner) last January. Both were great! But maybe you can still score lunch or dinner at BOG - and split a meal since it isn't a buffet. Or maybe even go for dessert? And then you can take lots of awesome photographs and maybe meet Beast!

 

[Surfinpiratee]

Sounds like so much fun!!!! I didn't know so much went into just VISITING the US...but i guess it makes sense...hah

I can't wait to hear more about your trip!! It'll be here before you know it!

 

[Lei]

Hellooo, DISboards!

Good to back. I've been away from the boards for too long, boo. Hey, life happened, which wasn't a bad thing, since too many awesome things happened for the last 3 months.

For instance, I...

• Have been getting jobs like crazy.
  
• Have been taking dance lessons, which is super awesome.
  
• Have been exercising regularly (zumba, pilates, bikram yoga) and absolutely loving it. I see no changes in my body (YET!), but the post-workout feeling is so addicting.
  
• Entered a writing contest a won first prize My face was actually on the local news and papers!
  
• Am going to publish my book of essay collection next month, along with 11 other writers.
  
• Went to my very first Halloween Horror Nights! At Universal Studios Singapore, to be exact. It's their 3rd HHN, and my first one, and words cannot express how amazing the experience was. I was so impressed and had so much fun. Definitely gonna do this annually.
  
  
  
  I do not know which one is scarier, the lady vampire, or my husband's overexcited face right there.​
  
  
• Besides HHN, I also did another Halloween event in Singapore, called Sentosa Spooktacular. It’s very similar to HHN, but with different theming (obviously) and on a much smaller scale. Still so much fun, tho. Also planning to do this annually. Halloween is practically non-existant in Indonesia, but Singapore apparently knows how to celebrate it properly. Loves!
  
• Have been starting a food truck business with a couple of friends. It's only been a month, but it's doing great. So yeah, that also kept me busy

What about the trip?

Believe it or not, last month, it was in jeopardy.

First of all, USD rates wasn't doing better, making the overall cost ballooned like crazy. Second, Daisy was having a hectic time last month - work was super crazy in a bad way, her mom got sick and hospitalized twice, her sister was getting married, and Daisy caught some nasty bugs herself. Financially, she's also not doing very well. She was on the verge of cancelling, before I majorly convinced her that everything WILL turn out OK. If anything, she's going to NEED this vacation MORE than ever.

Eventually, she's still onboard and we're definitely going. Phew. It was really, really close.

Anyways, quick update!

• We got the SPD deal! Yay. Because of this, we decided to get the QS Dining Plan.
  
• Still staying at Pop
  
• Still doing 6 park days + 1 day at IoA, maybe.
  
• We finally settled on our flights! We didn't get an earth-shattering price, but I thought it was the most decent of all our (little) options. Jakarta – Orlando isn't exactly a common route, yknow. The worst part of our trip is we'll be landing at MCO at... 11pm. Gasp, gasp, gasp. Will there still be Magical Express?! At what time will we reach Pop?!
  
• As per now, we've decided on our ADRs. Mind you, just DECIDED. Haven’t exactly made them, LOL. We agreed that we're going to do table-service dining on our non-park days only, so it's Downtown Disney or the resorts. So far, it's Raglan Road dinner (Daisy's choice) and 1900 Park Fare dinner (my choice). Let's see how long this last before we change our minds again.
  
  
  ​
  
  
• Just take a look at the above image. Isn't it so beautiful? 60 days, people, 60 days! It means we're FINALLY able to make our fastpass+ selection. I've been waiting for this since August. Yes, I already know my fastpass+ selection since August (and have adjusted them after finding out about the wretched "tiered" system). Yes, down to the days and hours. No, I'm not crazy (well, by DIS standards).
  
• We've also made our MagicBands customization. Yay! I did NOT know I could do that, being an international guest and all. I thought we're going to be stuck with gray bands, but nooo. I - in fact - could customize them. I just couldn't have them home-delivered (obviously).
  
• So in two months, I'll be wearing a pwetty red band, while Daisy's going to sport a green one. Life is sweet.

I guess that's all for now from us!


​

 

[Lei]

Because it's already the 28th in Indonesia -
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!! ​

 

[Lei]

Yesterday, I literally spent half of my day arranging and reserving our fastpasses+. Not Disney's fault, tho. I think the system's quite simple, actually. It's just every time I couldn't get the hours I wanted, I re-arranged the touring plan from the top

But all in all, so far, I have no complaints for FP+. Maybe because I already consider myself lucky for just being able to go. No FP+ or MagicBands shall bother moi! Or maybe because it fits my anal-nature perfectly. Spontaneity? What is that?

And now, ladies and gents, may I present to you – our itineraries and touring plans. Oooh! Aaah!

1st Day - ANIMAL KINGDOM
Rope drop

• Kilimanjaro Safaris
• Expedition Everest
• Primeval Whirl
• Dinosaur: 10-11am (FP+)
• Early lunch
• ITTBAB
• Meet Russel & Dug
• Baloo & King Louie
• Meet Flights of Wonder / Kali River Rapids (Daisy wants to do Kali, while I was like, "Really? You wanna go on a wet ride in January?")
• Maharajah Jungle Trek
• Expedition Everest: 3-4pm (FP+)
• Parade + snack break: 3.45pm
• Finding Nemo The Musical: 5pm (FP+)

2nd Day - MAGIC KINGDOM
Rope drop

• Journey of the Little Mermaid
• Enchanted Tales with Belle: 9-10am (FP+)
• Ariel's Grotto
• Snack break
• Jungle Cruise
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad: 11-12pm (FP+)
• Mickey's Philharmagic
• it's a small world
• Haunted Mansion
• Lunch at BOG (btw, you can book FP+ for BOG but only if you already got MagicBand. And because we won't have our bands until we arrive, this sucks)
• Peter Pan: 3-4pm (FP+)
• Meet Gaston
• Visit Pete’s Silly Sideshow
• Meet Tiana & Naveen
• Wishes

3rd Day - HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
Sleep-in

• Toy Story: 11-12am (FP+)
• Meet Monsters Inc.
• Star Tours
• Great Movie Ride: 12-1pm (FP+)
• Lunch
• Meet Toy Story Characters
• The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow
• The Magic of Disney Animation
• Tower of Terror: 3-4pm (FP+)
• Rock n Roller Coaster
• Dinner
• Fantasmic!

4th Day - NON PARK DAY
a.k.a. laundry day
but also, dinner ADR at Raglan Road. Yayer!

5th Day - EPCOT
Rope drop

• Test Track
• Re-ride Test Track
• Sum of all Thrills
• Mission SPACE
• Lunch
• Journey into Imagination
• Soarin’: 12-1pm (FP+)
• Seas with Nemo
• Turtle Talk: 1-2pm (FP+)
• Midday break at our resort
• Spaceship Earth: 7-8pm (FP+)
• Maelstrom
• Dinner
• Illuminations

6th Day - HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
Rope drop

• Toy Story
• Meet Toy Story characters
• Rock n Roller Coaster
• Tower of Terror
• Voyage of the Little Mermaid: 10am
• Star Tours / MuppetVision
• Toy Story: 11-12am (FP+)
• Lunch
• Beauty and the Beast: 1pm show
• Tower of Terror: 1-2pm (FP+)
• Meet Animation Building characters
• Great Movie Ride: 2-3 (FP+)

7th Day - NON PARK DAY
... and breakfast-at-Kona day!

8th Day - ISLAND OF ADVENTURE

9th Day - MAGIC KINGDOM
Rope drop

• Space Mountain
• Meet Merida
• Winnie the Pooh
• Journey of the Little Mermaid: 10-11am (FP+)
• Meet The Tremaines
• Meet Mickey at Town Square: 11-12pm (FP+)
• Midday break at our resort
• Buzz Lightyear
• Space Mountain: 4-5pm (FP+)
• Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor
• Dinner
• Wishes

Our touring plans and itineraries are heavily, heavily based on Josh's recommendation. What can I say, the guy got my heart. And my trust. He really could singlehandedly bring magic / ruin this vacay for us. No pressure, Josh!

I'm pretty satisfied with our plans, except that we won't get to see MSEP. That one is a real bummer. But we don't have Parkhoppers, and I prefer to have our MK days just like this. It's just unfortunate they are not MSEP days.

Eh, I guess I'll just watch it on youtube and (try to) get over it.

55 days! And let the slowest two months in my life begin...

 

[ABCastillo]

Yesterday, I literally spent half of my day arranging and reserving our fastpasses+. Not Disney's fault, tho. I think the system's quite simple, actually. It's just every time I couldn't get the hours I wanted, I re-arranged the touring plan from the top

But all in all, so far, I have no complaints for FP+. Maybe because I already consider myself lucky for just being able to go. No FP+ or MagicBands shall bother moi! Or maybe because it fits my anal-nature perfectly. Spontaneity? What is that?

And now, ladies and gents, may I present to you – our itineraries and touring plans. Oooh! Aaah!

1st Day - ANIMAL KINGDOM
Rope drop

• Kilimanjaro Safaris
• Expedition Everest
• Primeval Whirl
• Dinosaur: 10-11am (FP+)
• Early lunch
• ITTBAB
• Meet Russel & Dug
• Baloo & King Louie
• Meet Flights of Wonder / Kali River Rapids (Daisy wants to do Kali, while I was like, "Really? You wanna go on a wet ride in January?")
• Maharajah Jungle Trek
• Expedition Everest: 3-4pm (FP+)
• Parade + snack break: 3.45pm
• Finding Nemo The Musical: 5pm (FP+)

2nd Day - MAGIC KINGDOM
Rope drop

• Journey of the Little Mermaid
• Enchanted Tales with Belle: 9-10am (FP+)
• Ariel's Grotto
• Snack break
• Jungle Cruise
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad: 11-12pm (FP+)
• Mickey's Philharmagic
• it's a small world
• Haunted Mansion
• Lunch at BOG (btw, you can book FP+ for BOG but only if you already got MagicBand. And because we won't have our bands until we arrive, this sucks)
• Peter Pan: 3-4pm (FP+)
• Meet Gaston
• Visit Pete’s Silly Sideshow
• Meet Tiana & Naveen
• Wishes

3rd Day - HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
Sleep-in

• Toy Story: 11-12am (FP+)
• Meet Monsters Inc.
• Star Tours
• Great Movie Ride: 12-1pm (FP+)
• Lunch
• Meet Toy Story Characters
• The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow
• The Magic of Disney Animation
• Tower of Terror: 3-4pm (FP+)
• Rock n Roller Coaster
• Dinner
• Fantasmic!

4th Day - NON PARK DAY
a.k.a. laundry day
but also, dinner ADR at Raglan Road. Yayer!

5th Day - EPCOT
Rope drop

• Test Track
• Re-ride Test Track
• Sum of all Thrills
• Mission SPACE
• Lunch
• Journey into Imagination
• Soarin’: 12-1pm (FP+)
• Seas with Nemo
• Turtle Talk: 1-2pm (FP+)
• Midday break at our resort
• Spaceship Earth: 7-8pm (FP+)
• Maelstrom
• Dinner
• Illuminations

6th Day - HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
Rope drop

• Toy Story
• Meet Toy Story characters
• Rock n Roller Coaster
• Tower of Terror
• Voyage of the Little Mermaid: 10am
• Star Tours / MuppetVision
• Toy Story: 11-12am (FP+)
• Lunch
• Beauty and the Beast: 1pm show
• Tower of Terror: 1-2pm (FP+)
• Meet Animation Building characters
• Great Movie Ride: 2-3 (FP+)

7th Day - NON PARK DAY
... and breakfast-at-Kona day!

8th Day - ISLAND OF ADVENTURE

9th Day - MAGIC KINGDOM
Rope drop

• Space Mountain
• Meet Merida
• Winnie the Pooh
• Journey of the Little Mermaid: 10-11am (FP+)
• Meet The Tremaines
• Meet Mickey at Town Square: 11-12pm (FP+)
• Midday break at our resort
• Buzz Lightyear
• Space Mountain: 4-5pm (FP+)
• Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor
• Dinner
• Wishes

Our touring plans and itineraries are heavily, heavily based on Josh's recommendation. What can I say, the guy got my heart. And my trust. He really could singlehandedly bring magic / ruin this vacay for us. No pressure, Josh!

I'm pretty satisfied with our plans, except that we won't get to see MSEP. That one is a real bummer. But we don't have Parkhoppers, and I prefer to have our MK days just like this. It's just unfortunate they are not MSEP days.

Eh, I guess I'll just watch it on youtube and (try to) get over it.

55 days! And let the slowest two months in my life begin...

Your touring plans look great! Getting so exciting!!

 

[Lei]

Your touring plans look great! Getting so exciting!!

It is so exciting, isn't it? Thanks!

 

[Lei]

10 FREAKING DAYS BEFORE WE FLY TO WALT DISNEY WORLD. NO BIGGIE.

With this PTR’s long, long hiatus, one might think the trip’s cancelled. But nononono. We’re still going! Ha!

So what’s news?

USD rate to Indonesian Rupiah is basically still choking us to death.

We’ll be flying with Etihad Airlines and American Airlines. Between Jakarta and Orlando, we will have layovers in Abu Dhabi and Chicago. Before deciding on them, the flight-choosing saga was a nightmare. We couldn’t settle between choosing the cheapest flight or the most convenient route. I mean, I love Disney, but my love isn’t big enough to travel for 45 hours to reach Orlando. But on the other hand, cost matters as well. USD is at it’s worst in the last 5 years.

In the end, Etihad and AA was our best choice. So glad when we cleared that out.

I must’ve modified our Fastpass+ choices for 6473929 times before I eventually screamed, “ENOUGH!” and left them alone. The touring plan I posted before? Forget em

WE SCORED FASTPASS+ FOR BE OUR GUEST LUNCH! AGAIN, NO BIGGIE.

I’ve finished 90% of my packing. Yay! It was nerve wrecking. Because of the dollar rate, I try to bring every essential item, not wanting to spend any moolah in US for something I forgot. Also, as much as I want to travel light, I still ended up with a big pile of clothes, considering Florida’s unpredictable winter.

I can’t imagine you brave moms who have to pack for your whole family!

Speaking of winter… hello, polar vortex. I nearly had a seizure last week following the weather news, because we will be transiting in Chicago! I freaked out, fearing that we’d be stuck there, and there’s no way I could handle that. I don’t even have proper winter attire. Heck, where I live probably doesn’t sell them.

Thank Goodness the worse is over (isn’t it?), things are warming up, and we’ll hopefully be on schedule. I also hope everyone was safe and warm during the big freeze!

10 DAYS!!!

 

[Figarro]

Hi Laila,

Another Disney Park fan from Indonesia
I just got back from Japan for my honeymoon. The sole reason why I proposed Japan was because of Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea
We spent 3 days in Tokyo Disney resort and it was super fun, and now we *I, more likely* are planning for our WDW trip fall 2015 I'll be looking for tips from your posts