Two Grandmas and the grandkids... Marathon weekend 2016 PTR (update 1/3)

[rteetz]

Nicely done! I agree with most everything. Nicely thought out and a good use of FP+ for epcot considering Soarin' is down.

However, I'll argue with one. The BTMRR one on your last day is too early. I wouldn't waste a FP that early in the day. I know you are probably thinking you are eager to use up your FP+ allotment in order to snag a 4th one - but if you are using that morning FP to skip a 10 minute wait you are wasting it anyways. Anything before 11 AM the lines are too short to waste a FP+. Especially BTMRR - which loads a ton of people. Either move it to later in the day or just ride it standby and get another one for 1 PM. (Even your POTC one is a bit iffy as that's a fast loader too, but if you use it later in the time slot it will save you 20-30 minutes.)

Just my opinion of course.

Good point I think I will go and change BTMRR.

edit: Just changed BTMRR to 1:30-2:30

 

[rteetz]

I think you are an amazing planner! The only thing I really worry about is getting to that first fast pass after the half marathon! But you have till 12:10. I know for me it is shower, soak feet in ice tub, change...EAT and then think about doing something. But you are MUCH younger so I expect you will have no issues at all!

I also think you might be cutting it close with BTMRR and your morning ADR.

Yeah I thought about that but I know I will be wanting to get to the parks to show off my medal.

Yes I am going to go change that right now.

edit: Just changed BTMRR to 1:30-2:30

 

[SarahDisney]

Your choices look great!

I'm with you on Splash Mountain - we also have a FP+ for it (it'll be our first time riding it), so I really hope the weather is okay! I wish it wasn't going down for refurbishment in the middle of the trip so that I could just ride whenever the weather was better, but ... I guess this just happens sometimes.

In terms of Saturday - if the park is open when you finish the race, I'd recommend walking back through the park to get to your hotel (if you're feeling up to a little more walking) - from what I hear, it's faster than waiting for the bus. Plus, maybe you can catch a character picture or two while you're walking!

We've used the 4th FP+ at MK several times - there's usually a pretty good selection. Some things you'll be able to get right away and some you may have to wait an hour or two, but I think that if you're willing to wait in a short line to use the kiosk, you can definitely benefit from it!

 

[rteetz]

Your choices look great!

I'm with you on Splash Mountain - we also have a FP+ for it (it'll be our first time riding it), so I really hope the weather is okay! I wish it wasn't going down for refurbishment in the middle of the trip so that I could just ride whenever the weather was better, but ... I guess this just happens sometimes.

In terms of Saturday - if the park is open when you finish the race, I'd recommend walking back through the park to get to your hotel (if you're feeling up to a little more walking) - from what I hear, it's faster than waiting for the bus. Plus, maybe you can catch a character picture or two while you're walking!

We've used the 4th FP+ at MK several times - there's usually a pretty good selection. Some things you'll be able to get right away and some you may have to wait an hour or two, but I think that if you're willing to wait in a short line to use the kiosk, you can definitely benefit from it!

Yes I didn't get to ride it last year because it was down but the weather didn't really prompt a water ride anyways lol.

I was thinking about walking through the park as well. We will see how I feel afterwards.

I tried to use the 4th FP last year in Epcot but there was nothing worth using it for so I didn't end up using it. I'm hoping it works out this time.

I think I'm going to steal your idea of going through my plans day by day one week or so at a time.

 

[skier_pete]

Agree with @SarahDisney, there's a good chance you'll have a good selection for that 4th FP+ at MK. That's the one park it's actually useful. The other parks don't have enough top-flight attractions to leave many FP+ available later in the day.

Actually - I've considered at Epcot using the technique of booking the Tier 2 FP+'s early just to "waste" them - whether using them or not - and then use the Tier 1 right at 11 AM. This would allow you an opportunity at another Tier 1 as early as possible. I've heard this is a technique some people use, but I have never tried it myself. On our trips with FP+ we've never had big enough crowds that we've needed more than 3 FP+ (sometimes 4 at MK).

 

[rteetz]

1/5/15- Arrival Day Plans!

We leave Milwaukee in route to Orlando via Southwest at 3:50 PM. We did this so we wouldn't miss a full day of school since we are missing 4 other full days. We will have to leave school a bit early though in order to make it to the airport.

Once we arrive in Orlando at the estimated 7:40 PM arrival times we will head over to DME and head over to the Yacht Club. I'm assuming our small bag of peanuts or pretzels isn't going to fill us up so we will Likely want to get something to eat. I am thinking we will either eat at the marketplace at the BC or head over and find something on the Boardwalk. I also hope to explore the resort a bit before going to bed. We don't have to get up super early or anything so I would expect it to be a later night at least for me.

Arrival Day has never been this simple for me so it will be interesting to see how it goes with little plans in place. Last year I booked an ADR for Portobello on arrival night and due to a plane delay we were late luckily they were able to accommodate us no problem but I didn't want to run into that problem again here.

If I am still hungry after whatever we get to eat maybe I will stop at the walk up window at Beaches and Cream for a sundae. I will probably also get around the resort to take a ton of pictures with my DSLR as well. I only took 2000 pictures last trip, I think I will easily beat that this time. Crescent lake really does offer a great amount of photo opportunities.

Well its an easy arrival day, what do you guys think?

 

[SarahDisney]

Arrival day sounds nice and easy! I totally get not wanting to do an ADR ... we had plane delays on our last trip and when you have to be somewhere at a certain time it gets extra stressful.
I've never been to the Boardwalk/YC/BC area, but from everything I've seen ... I think you'll find plenty of amazing things to take pictures of. 2000 pictures in one trip is pretty impressive (I think our record is just over 1,000), but now I'm kinda curious to find out how many pictures you end up taking on this trip. I hope that information ends up in the TR!

 

[skier_pete]

I agree with this also. We have had ADRs on arrival day, but I always want them to be at least 5 hours after our scheduled arrival time if we are going to do this. In your case, with the late arrival, I think you are doing the right thing. The ability to go over to the Marketplace or Boardwalk gives you a ton of options! We ended up eating at Big River Grille on our arrival day. They don't take ADRs, so it's a good TS option for walk-up. Even on a FRiday with a party of eight we only waited about 20 minutes for a table.

 

[rteetz]

Arrival day sounds nice and easy! I totally get not wanting to do an ADR ... we had plane delays on our last trip and when you have to be somewhere at a certain time it gets extra stressful.
I've never been to the Boardwalk/YC/BC area, but from everything I've seen ... I think you'll find plenty of amazing things to take pictures of. 2000 pictures in one trip is pretty impressive (I think our record is just over 1,000), but now I'm kinda curious to find out how many pictures you end up taking on this trip. I hope that information ends up in the TR!

The Epcot resort area is great. We stayed at the dolphin in 2012 and loved the location.

I will definitely put all of my pictures in my TR.

 

[rteetz]

I agree with this also. We have had ADRs on arrival day, but I always want them to be at least 5 hours after our scheduled arrival time if we are going to do this. In your case, with the late arrival, I think you are doing the right thing. The ability to go over to the Marketplace or Boardwalk gives you a ton of options! We ended up eating at Big River Grille on our arrival day. They don't take ADRs, so it's a good TS option for walk-up. Even on a FRiday with a party of eight we only waited about 20 minutes for a table.

I will keep the Big River Grille in mind. We have never been there so that would be not a bad option.

 

[rteetz]

1/6/15 Day 2 First Park day and Expo day!

Hello everyone, I hope you all had a great weekend. I had my longest training run so far today at 8.41 miles. Took me 1 hour 22 minutes 32 seconds. Average pace 9:49 min/mi. I felt pretty good after even though I did slow down in the last mile or two. Anyways onto some plans for day 2!

We aren't planning on getting up incredibly early but I do want to hit the expo when it opens at 10 am. So I want to be on one of the first buses there. I don't have anything specific in mind that I want to get but it is my first half marathon so I definitely want some things to remember it by. I also am a sucker for the runDisney shoes. I bought the goofy pair last year and have been running in them I do like them a lot. Hopefully they come out with some new ones for marathon weekend. I also collect vinylmations so I plan on getting the 2016 runDisney one.



After shopping and picking up our bibs and our shirts the plan is to head back drop off our stuff at our room and head to Hollywood Studios! I am expecting it to be sometime after 12, I am planning on about two hours at the expo. We will likely be hungry when we get to DHS and we have time to get something to eat as our first FP+ isn't until 2:45PM. No plans on as to where we will eat probably at a quick service somewhere.



At 2:45PM-3:45PM we have a FP+ for Star Tours. I also plan to check out some of the other Star Wars stuff at DHS as The Season of the Force will likely be in full swing. I also plan to take advantage of the new Star Wars Disney Visa meet and greet.

Our next FP+ is for TSMM at 4:20PM-5:20PM. This is one of my favorite attractions here. Not to brag but I am usually the winner in my family.



After TSMM we head towards the other side of the park. We might stop at Launch Bay at this point on our way there. Or depending on time we may ride the GMR as I haven't ridden since the changes.


Our final FP+ is for ToT. I am the only one in my group that has been on it. My youngest sister said she would do it with me but my middle sister is worried and might not go on. I know my grandma and her sister probably won't go on. After that I plan on a ride on RnRc if the wait is not too bad.



After we are done with those two things its time to park hop over to Epcot for Dinner! Via Napoli a favorite of mine at 7:30PM. Once done eating there we will head back out international gateway and its bed time for me and my sister as we have a 5K to run in the morning.

What do you guys think?

Only 50 days 2 hours and 6 minutes!

 

[skier_pete]

The secret to Rock and Roller coaster, especially if you are riding it solo, is the single rider line. It is actually much shorter than the FastPass line. If one of your sister's wants to ride and she won't ride alone, then you may be forced to standby, but if it is just you, definitely try and single rider line. I always use it. You basically are taken right into the Pre-show with very little wait, and then once that's done and you are in the back alley, there is maybe a 2-5 minute wait before they seat you. One time I was there there was a big back up on the single rider, but they loaded a whole car from single rider to get the line down.

Otherwise, looks like a good day of hitting the stuff that really counts at DHS. You should squeeze the GMR in there somewhere, and that's probably more your grandma and aunts speed!

 

[rteetz]

The secret to Rock and Roller coaster, especially if you are riding it solo, is the single rider line. It is actually much shorter than the FastPass line. If one of your sister's wants to ride and she won't ride alone, then you may be forced to standby, but if it is just you, definitely try and single rider line. I always use it. You basically are taken right into the Pre-show with very little wait, and then once that's done and you are in the back alley, there is maybe a 2-5 minute wait before they seat you. One time I was there there was a big back up on the single rider, but they loaded a whole car from single rider to get the line down.

Otherwise, looks like a good day of hitting the stuff that really counts at DHS. You should squeeze the GMR in there somewhere, and that's probably more your grandma and aunts speed!

Good idea. My two sisters do ride RnRc but neither have done ToT so that's the one that I might be solo on.

 

[SarahDisney]

Plans sound good!
I really hope they come out with cool new shoes for marathon weekend. I was a little disappointed that they didn't come out with new shoes for Wine & Dine or Avengers, but I hope that means they're working on something awesome for January!

I think I saw somewhere that they started letting people into the expo for Wine & Dine at 9:30 - I wouldn't be surprised if they do this again, so if you want to be at the expo when it opens, you may want to get there before 9:30. I don't remember when the buses start running, but you may want to make sure to be on the first bus.

Sounds like you've got a good day planned, and Via Napoli should be the perfect end to the day.

 

[rteetz]

Plans sound good!
I really hope they come out with cool new shoes for marathon weekend. I was a little disappointed that they didn't come out with new shoes for Wine & Dine or Avengers, but I hope that means they're working on something awesome for January!

I think I saw somewhere that they started letting people into the expo for Wine & Dine at 9:30 - I wouldn't be surprised if they do this again, so if you want to be at the expo when it opens, you may want to get there before 9:30. I don't remember when the buses start running, but you may want to make sure to be on the first bus.

Sounds like you've got a good day planned, and Via Napoli should be the perfect end to the day.

Yes I hope they do have some new shoes for marathon weekend. They did come out with new ones earlier in the year so I can see why they didn't have new ones for the last two weekends.

Yes I will make sure to get there as early as possible.

 

[rteetz]

Day 3 1/7/15 Hey Hey we got a 5K

Its race day! Early wake up call number 1 for me. I hope to be on one of the first buses out of the Yacht Club for the 5K. This race won't be quite as early as the half so that will be good. This race will be me and my sister Jordan. Race will start around 6 am and is in Epcot for the majority of the race. I plan on stopping for most if not all of the characters along the course.

I loved running through Epcot during the 10K last year so I would expect to love this as well.




After we receive our wonderful Pluto medallions we will head back to the Yacht Club to change and get ready for our day at The Magic Kingdom.

We have no immediate plans for the morning at MK. I hope to get there ASAP to get some things done before we have to leave for the kids races at ESPN WWoS.

So in the morning I am thinking we head counter clockwise and start in Tomorrowland then head towards Fantasyland.

Don't know how much we will get done before we have to leave around 11 AM. We will just head to one of the MK resorts to catch a runDisney bus to ESPN WWoS for the Mickey Mile at 12:30. My youngest sister will be running in that and once she earns her Steamboat Willie medallion we will head back to the MK.

I am guessing we will be back to MK around 1:30PM.

Once back we will head towards Splash Mountain for our 2:05PM-3:05PM FP+. I hope its warm enough to enjoy this one as later in the week it will be closed for refurb.


After that we will head for Fantasyland and go to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train for our next FP+ at 3:05-4:05PM.



Our final FP+ for the day is Peter Pans Flight at 4:05PM-5:05PM.

Once done there we have a 5:35PM reservation for Be Our Guest!


Try the Grey Stuff its delicious!

After dinner we will probably wander around a bit to see what has low wait times before getting a spot for Wishes or MSEP

We don't have to watch Wishes this night because we do have another night to do it but who knows right now.



What do you guys think about Day 3?

 

[SarahDisney]

Running through Epcot for the 5K is pretty cool. I'm guessing they also do this for the 10K, but one of the things I thought was really cool about it was that they had the CMs from all of the countries out waving and cheering, which was really nice.

We usually start MK in Tomorrowland - we've found that around 10-11 the lines there aren't so bad (I don't know about earlier because we don't always make it to the park before 10, but i'm guessing that with most people running for Mine Train or Anna & Elsa at rope drop, Tomorrowland isn't too busy). So I think you should be able to get a few things done before you have to leave for the kids races.

Plans for the day sound great - you've got great FP+ selections and Be Our Guest is always awesome.
In terms of Wishes/MSEP ... just remember that you'll be up really early, so you may not want to stay up that late. That's probably a decision you can make that day, but it's definitely a good thing that you know you'll have another chance to see Wishes.

 

[momabaarjo]

Take lots of selfies with the CMs if you have a chance while doing the 5K! These are some of my favorite pictures! We had so much fun doing this...but of course we were doing a strolling 5K and not really taking it serious and running!

Great job on your mileage and pace! You are totally going to rock this!

You are a young one...so staying up late might not effect you too much the next morning. But I can tell you that you want to be on the first buses leaving the resorts for the races...although you are staying at BC it is still imperative that you get out of the hotel and to the race site EARLY. It would not be fun sitting on the bus stressing whether or not you will get to the race start!

 

[rteetz]

Running through Epcot for the 5K is pretty cool. I'm guessing they also do this for the 10K, but one of the things I thought was really cool about it was that they had the CMs from all of the countries out waving and cheering, which was really nice.

We usually start MK in Tomorrowland - we've found that around 10-11 the lines there aren't so bad (I don't know about earlier because we don't always make it to the park before 10, but i'm guessing that with most people running for Mine Train or Anna & Elsa at rope drop, Tomorrowland isn't too busy). So I think you should be able to get a few things done before you have to leave for the kids races.

Plans for the day sound great - you've got great FP+ selections and Be Our Guest is always awesome.
In terms of Wishes/MSEP ... just remember that you'll be up really early, so you may not want to stay up that late. That's probably a decision you can make that day, but it's definitely a good thing that you know you'll have another chance to see Wishes.

Yeah there were CMs during the 10K as well. Its just so much fun running through a disney park.

Most head for Fantasyland or go clockwise so thats why I am thinking tomorrowland will e a good place to start before we have to leave.

I was able to stay up and watch illuminations no problem last year after the 10K but It will likely be based on how my sister and I feel which is why I left that option open ended.

Take lots of selfies with the CMs if you have a chance while doing the 5K! These are some of my favorite pictures! We had so much fun doing this...but of course we were doing a strolling 5K and not really taking it serious and running!

Great job on your mileage and pace! You are totally going to rock this!

You are a young one...so staying up late might not effect you too much the next morning. But I can tell you that you want to be on the first buses leaving the resorts for the races...although you are staying at BC it is still imperative that you get out of the hotel and to the race site EARLY. It would not be fun sitting on the bus stressing whether or not you will get to the race start!

I will add CM photos to the list of photos I will take! I plan on not really running the entire 5K either. I really just want to have fun.

Thanks! this week running hasn't been as good as it should be because I was up north for hunting this past weekend and I will be back up there Wednesday. Running in northern wisconsin during hunting season isnt the great idea. I plan to run today but that will probably be the only run this week. I will get back at it next week. We also had our first snowfall which makes things more difficult.

I agree on the buses. I was on the first bus out of POR last year for the 10K so I plan on being on one of the first this time around as well.

 

[skier_pete]

5K is a race I can get behind. I've even "run" in a 5K! (I use the words "run" in quotes because it was more of a fast-paced walk/jog. I've never been able to run worth a damn my whole life, and now I'm old and creaky - well middle-age and creaky.) If it wasn't so expensive to sign up for just the 5K, that might be worth checking out!

Sounds like a rather busy day moving from the race to MK to another race. Don't wear out your poor Grandma! Otherwise it sounds like a great plan. Hopefully you will have no problems getting your buses back to make your Splash Mountain FP! (Use the train when you get back to MK to get to Splash. It'll likely be faster than walking through the park - first stop! - and easier on tired feet!)