Wait, weren't you just at Disney World? An August '14 Pre-Trip Report *updated 8/24*

[TheMaxRebo]

I think if you have the advantage of the 60 day window you should be fine. Most of this rush seems to be within a closer proximity.

I would probably grab the first two as soon as the window opens, and just take any other two FP+ picks/times that come up. Then go right back in to grab your next two.

Is it required to have one for the baby?

My understanding is that if they don't need a ticket they don't need a FP+ so neither Peter nor the baby will need one

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Super cute!!!!!

Thank you! I think it came out pretty good ... sometimes is a struggle to think of new, crafty ideas - figure might as well use some skill I actually have with image manipulation

Aw, happy mother's day to Judi! That was a really cute idea!

Thank you! I will pass that along! Glad that Judi liked the picture - would have been a pain if that effort went for naught

Happy Mother's Day to Judi! What a great gift idea, love it!!

Thank you - will pass you wishes along as well. Thinking that this is something I could start doing every year as well to track how they change over time.

Aww I bet Judi loved the picture! Such a cute idea!! hope she had a wonderful mothers day, looking forward to hearing your change in plans

She did like it! Althouhg I had every intention of bringing it to her in bed along with breakfast, but she woke up before we got to that. Guess the "help" I had in the kitchen didn't really speed things up

Change of plans will be coming soon! (gotta space things out and built the excitement somehow)

 

[TheMaxRebo]

This PTR is awesome!!! I'm a bit late, but better late than never

Your plans sound terrific. POR Riverside should be awesome. I'm not sure if anyone mentioned this, and you probably already know it, but make sure you set aside some time to ride boat to Downtown Disney. We've stayed at POR three times before, and my kids love the boat ride

I love the traced hand collages. What a great idea

Thanks Matt - thanks for joining!

Currently have your PTR open in another browser window - that is quite the crew you have coming!

Thanks for the tip about POR and the boat ride - though the update to come might make that a bit moot (*man, I am teasing this out*)

Thanks! I love the photo collages you have up on your PTR - that's a great idea!

 

[MarbleBob]

though the update to come might make that a bit moot (*man, I am teasing this out*)

Oh! I love a good plot twist Inquiring minds want to know

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Pre Trip Report: Part 13 - an actual trip update!​

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Ok, so I actually have an official trip update to make!

We are no longer staying at Port Orleans Riverside!

In talking it over with Judi she really wants to be on the monorail (just thinking ease of getting back-and-forth to parks and not having to pack up stroller, etc. ... also the fact that rooms for 5 were available rather then both kids having the share a bed).

Given that, and the construction that is/will be going on at the Poly and the fact that we aren't super big fans of the Grand Floridian style, that left us we our new home of:

After getting a quote for a theme park view room, after the discount it wasn't as bad as I was expected/fearing (I mean, it wasn't cheap, but ....) we decided to just go for it as this is the one trip we will probably spend more time in the room than others.

So, while I am sure Olivia will be sad to not be in a Royal Room (I mean, if she knew that was the original plan), I am sure a view similar to this one will make up for it:

(from DISboard Contemporary thread)

oh, and I am sure this view will make Peter all sorts of happy:

(from familytimegetaways.com)



So this is definitely our first time staying there (actually, other than going to eat at the California Grill and passing through on the monorail it will be the first time even inside the place) we are open to any advice anyone else. Particularly about any requests to make (what floor, etc.).

We are super excited though a little nervous - I think I am just nervous it won't live up to the high bar I have for this "Deluxe" resort. The only other time we stayed at a Deluxe was the Boardwalk and to be honest I wasn't blown away by it. It wasn't bad or anything, just, I guess, didn't clear the high bar.

TTFN

 

[MarbleBob]

Love it!! The little guys doing the happy dance made me laugh out loud. I would be dancing too if I was planning to stay at the Contemporary. Hahaha!

If I wasn't interested in this trip report before (which I was ), then you've got my attention now!!! We've never stayed at the Contemporary before. I've been to the California Grill and Chef Mickey's a couple times, but never actually stayed there. I'm so looking forward to getting your take on what it's like to actually call it home for a few nights.

It's hard to imagine that it won't live up to the high bar. Assuming you get a view like the one in the photo that you shared, I love the idea of waking up to an amazing view of the Magic Kingdom every morning, and watching the fireworks from your room at night. (We stayed at the Disneyland hotel last fall and could see the fireworks from our room. It was awesome.) The monorail with a stroller is so much more convenient that dealing with a bus, so that'll be nice for MK and Epcot. Heck, you can even walk to MK!!!

Congrats on being able to make it happen

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Love it!! The little guys doing the happy dance made me laugh out loud. I would be dancing too if I was planning to stay at the Contemporary. Hahaha!

If I wasn't interested in this trip report before (which I was ), then you've got my attention now!!! We've never stayed at the Contemporary before. I've been to the California Grill and Chef Mickey's a couple times, but never actually stayed there. I'm so looking forward to getting your take on what it's like to actually call it home for a few nights.

It's hard to imagine that it won't live up to the high bar. Assuming you get a view like the one in the photo that you shared, I love the idea of waking up to an amazing view of the Magic Kingdom every morning, and watching the fireworks from your room at night. (We stayed at the Disneyland hotel last fall and could see the fireworks from our room. It was awesome.) The monorail with a stroller is so much more convenient that dealing with a bus, so that'll be nice for MK and Epcot. Heck, you can even walk to MK!!!

Congrats on being able to make it happen

Thanks Matt! ... just a note the "dancing guys" are actually Dancing Barb's that I made using the head of the CM Barb that frequents Main St. ... probably hard to notice the detail given the size if you didn't already know though

I think the view of the fireworks is one of the main reasons we went for it. Just knowing that we need to be flexible and maybe a night we planned to be in the park to watch Wishes and we need to change plans and not go - at least we can see them from the room

Thanks! Deifnitely won't be an "every trip" thing but we figured we can do it now with the discounts, etc. so let's do it while we can

 

[Imagineer5]

Pre Trip Report: Part 13 - an actual trip update! Ok, so I actually have an official trip update to make! We are no longer staying at Port Orleans Riverside! In talking it over with Judi she really wants to be on the monorail (just thinking ease of getting back-and-forth to parks and not having to pack up stroller, etc. ... also the fact that rooms for 5 were available rather then both kids having the share a bed). Given that, and the construction that is/will be going on at the Poly and the fact that we aren't super big fans of the Grand Floridian style, that left us we our new home of: After getting a quote for a theme park view room, after the discount it wasn't as bad as I was expected/fearing (I mean, it wasn't cheap, but ....) we decided to just go for it as this is the one trip we will probably spend more time in the room than others. So, while I am sure Olivia will be sad to not be in a Royal Room (I mean, if she knew that was the original plan), I am sure a view similar to this one will make up for it: (from DISboard Contemporary thread) oh, and I am sure this view will make Peter all sorts of happy: (from familytimegetaways.com) So this is definitely our first time staying there (actually, other than going to eat at the California Grill and passing through on the monorail it will be the first time even inside the place) we are open to any advice anyone else. Particularly about any requests to make (what floor, etc.). We are super excited though a little nervous - I think I am just nervous it won't live up to the high bar I have for this "Deluxe" resort. The only other time we stayed at a Deluxe was the Boardwalk and to be honest I wasn't blown away by it. It wasn't bad or anything, just, I guess, didn't clear the high bar. TTFN

Yay!! You'll be able to walk right over to the TotWL!! Cool! So excited for you. I think you might get hooked on deluxe, at least the beach club did that to us! Haha. Maybe if some pool time lines up we can plan that. After how fun Disneyland was and how much time we spent at the pool I want to plan to visit at least almost every day!

Btw I added chef mickeys for breakfast. I bet getting a table for 7 might be impossible but just wanted to throw it out there hahaa. I made that for Wednesday the 27th.

Anyway excited to hear the news! Def with 3 kids and the stroller being on the monorail is the way to go!

 

[Disney Khaleesi]

The Contemporary! That sounds awesome! As much as I love POR, The Contemporary is a dream of mine to stay at. Your kids are going to love it, I'm sure. Can't beat that monorail, can you?

 

[MidnightParade]

I don't know if I have actually commented before, but I have been following along!

Yay Contemporary!! That's going to be fantastic! I'm so envious of the view and being on the monorail You're trip just going to be that much more exciting now!

 

[lovedonaldduck]

The one time we stayed at BLT, we absolutely loved being able to walk to MK, even better than the monorail. Very exciting twist to your trip!

 

[teekathepony]

Oh what an exciting update!! I've never stayed there, so I have no advice but I'm still really happy for you guys, being on the monorail looks so incredibly awesome and convenient.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[Leshaface]

Yay that's awesome! What a fun upgrade. You guys will totally love it, especially for the location, after a long day/night at the MK.

Can't give you any tips on room location, since we stayed at BLT, but the Contemporary thread has LOTS of tips and I think they have a chart of the rooms so you know what to ask for when making requests (high floor, odd or even numbered room, etc)

 

[missangelalexis]

Staying at the Contemporary, WOW! That is awesome for you guys! I don't have any tips, but I hope it does live up to your expectation! I imagine the ease of just getting on the monorail to get to MK, as well as theme park view, will not disappoint though

 

[KatMark]

I'm behind everywhere (I leave in two weeks for my trip and work has been kicking my butt...I can't even update my own PTR).

I LOVE the Mother's Day "hands" from the kids...those are terrific!

Congrats on the move to the Contemporary. We've not stayed since 1989, but my kids loved watching the monorail.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Yay!! You'll be able to walk right over to the TotWL!! Cool! So excited for you. I think you might get hooked on deluxe, at least the beach club did that to us! Haha. Maybe if some pool time lines up we can plan that. After how fun Disneyland was and how much time we spent at the pool I want to plan to visit at least almost every day!

Pool time lining up would be great! I am sure Peter and Aria would have fun together.

Btw I added chef mickeys for breakfast. I bet getting a table for 7 might be impossible but just wanted to throw it out there hahaa. I made that for Wednesday the 27th.

Anyway excited to hear the news! Def with 3 kids and the stroller being on the monorail is the way to go!

Thanks for the offer and we would be interested in looking into that - but the morning of Wed the 27th we have an ADR for breakfast at CRT already.

Thanks, we are excited too! and think we will come away thinking it was all worth it when we can just get on/off the monorail more often than not

The Contemporary! That sounds awesome! As much as I love POR, The Contemporary is a dream of mine to stay at. Your kids are going to love it, I'm sure. Can't beat that monorail, can you?

It's always been one place I've wanted to stay as I love the history of it and how it got built and just the significant place it holds in making Disney World a success, so I am very excited to make it a reality (though I wish they still had 1971 prices )

I don't know if I have actually commented before, but I have been following along!

Yay Contemporary!! That's going to be fantastic! I'm so envious of the view and being on the monorail You're trip just going to be that much more exciting now!

Welcome - thanks for commenting and joing the madness, er, fun! I am very much looking forward to the view and just thinking that if there are days we have to cut short or miss out on things at the park, being able to watch Wishes from the balcony will make it seem not as bad!

The one time we stayed at BLT, we absolutely loved being able to walk to MK, even better than the monorail. Very exciting twist to your trip!

Yes, I aim to be exciting with my twists! I will have to be careful from here on in if I tease any others that they have to live up to this one Glad to hear you enjoyed your stay at BLT

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Oh what an exciting update!! I've never stayed there, so I have no advice but I'm still really happy for you guys, being on the monorail looks so incredibly awesome and convenient.

Thank you! I am really betting on the convenient factor so I hope that turns out to be the case

Yay that's awesome! What a fun upgrade. You guys will totally love it, especially for the location, after a long day/night at the MK.

Can't give you any tips on room location, since we stayed at BLT, but the Contemporary thread has LOTS of tips and I think they have a chart of the rooms so you know what to ask for when making requests (high floor, odd or even numbered room, etc)

Yeah, that is what we are thinking - after a long day, but also to make the mid-day breaks that much easier as well

Thanks for the thought of going over to the Contemporary thread for tips! I did read up there a bit before pulling the trigger but haven't been able to get through the whole thing yet so hadn't seen the request tips yet, but will definitely check it out.

Staying at the Contemporary, WOW! That is awesome for you guys! I don't have any tips, but I hope it does live up to your expectation! I imagine the ease of just getting on the monorail to get to MK, as well as theme park view, will not disappoint though

I am hopeful that it will live up to the expectations since the things I am counting on are the view and the monorail .. so as long a the monorail doesn't break (*just knocked on wood*) I think we should be ok. I think having the extra pull down bed so the kids don't have to share will help a lot too.

I'm behind everywhere (I leave in two weeks for my trip and work has been kicking my butt...I can't even update my own PTR).

I LOVE the Mother's Day "hands" from the kids...those are terrific!

Congrats on the move to the Contemporary. We've not stayed since 1989, but my kids loved watching the monorail.

Seriously - isn't a pain when work gets in the way of important things!

Thanks - I am happy with how hands came out and thinking of other similar crafts to make - possible connected to pictures from our Disney trip (wow, did I just accidentally throw another tease out there?)

Thank you! I think Peter will really get a kick out of the "train" coming through the building

 

[khaleesi]

just a note the "dancing guys" are actually Dancing Barb's that I made using the head of the CM Barb that frequents Main St. ...

Awesome!!

I think it would be really cool to be able to look out your window and see the castle!! So yay!!

 

[Dugette]

Congrats on upgrading to the Contemporary. Have not stayed there, but I'm sure it will be great. Not only the monorail, but the option to walk to/from the MK is so nice (especially if the monorail is down, like it was once on our trip). For room tips, the Unofficial Guide usually has recommendations on specific rooms to ask for, but I don't remember what it says for the Contemporary. I bet you'll have an amazing view, though!

 

[klacey1]

Hi! I just read your TR from last year after searching for F&W reviews, and was hooked, so I decided to join in here! Your family is adorable-- and congrats on the next baby!
We actually live two towns over from you (Brewster), so it's fun to read about all the familiar sites (White Plains, etc.). I'm also dyingg to get down to the city to see Aladdin. Fingers crossed for my birthday!
Yay to the Contemporary upgrade! We upgraded to the WL from POR last year and can't go back. The WL owns us now!