Our itinerary:
Initially, the dates for this trip were planned with one sole intent: to allow us to squeeze in one final trip with our Premier AP’s from Universal. Having activated them back on May 1st, 2015 we knew our last opportunity before they expired would be the final week of April this year, so we booked our timeshare and gave it very little thought thereafter. Once Jake and Sunshine decided to join us, though, we had to decide how that would affect our Universal-focused itinerary....plus, we also now had our SeaWorld and Aquatica annual passes which were purchased on the 2015 Blue Friday sale, offered yearly by the SeaWorld parks on the Black Friday weekend. Steve, Jake and I had used our SW/AQ annual passes on our December trip, and Sunshine had received hers as part of her Christmas gift from us upon our return home.
Sunshine has been to Orlando twice before: the first time, back in the 5th or 6th grade to visit the Disney parks with her family, and a second trip three years ago to visit Discovery Cove for her 16th birthday. A girl after our own hearts, she was hopeful that we would choose to incorporate a DC day into the family plans....and it initially sounded like a perfect idea. As passmembers, we could secure a day for $99 per person for the day resort admission, or $169 each for a dolphin swim day. With SeaWorld and Aquatica included with the annual passes we already had paid for, the cost to add a DC day (day resorts for Steve and I, dolphin swims for Jake and Sunshine) would have totalled $458.97 with tax. Add an additional 40% in exchange (which is being generous.....as our dollar continued to slide, it most certainly looked like that was estimating on the low side), we were realistically looking at $643 for the day. Ouch
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Despite knowing that Sunshine’s heart longed for another opportunity to swim with the dolphins, I was having a really hard time with that cost for a one day activity. I had no problem with the price itself, just that it was all invested in one single day of our vacation. My mind started rolling around our other options
, and then Universal gave me a little nudge with the release of their “buy two days, get one day free” ticket offer for spring. With pen and paper in hand, I did the math.
Undercover Tourist was offering those tickets (which must be used in full before May 31st, 2016...perfect timing for our trip dates) for $195.66 each, tax inclusive. These were the park-to-park admission that would allow us to ride the Hogwarts Express between the two parks, something that we feel is vital to fully experience the two parks as they were meant to be enjoyed. For $391.32 including taxes and shipping ($539.36 Canadian, after exchange) we could add
three days worth of fun to our itinerary rather than one single day at DC. Steve and I still had the active AP’s, so we would have no tickets to purchase for our admission, parking would still be free, and everything we ate or purchased would be eligible for our AP discount.
Sunshine has never been to Universal before, so both Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure would be completely new experiences for her. Jake has not been there since January 2012, so he had yet to see Diagon Alley, the new Simpsons area, or even Despicable Me.
Steve and I debated the pros and cons of our options endlessly. We didn’t want to disappoint Sunshine, yet the value certainly seemed to be in the Universal tickets versus a sole day at DC. It was Jake that actually came up with an idea
for a good middle ground, which allowed us to finally cement a decision: he suggested that we go with the Universal tickets (maximizing the value for our money), and he would arrange for Sunshine and himself to take part in the Dolphins Up Close Tour at SeaWorld as part of his birthday gift to her.
It was a brilliant suggestion, one which everyone was happy with
. The basic itinerary, then, began to take a little bit of shape.
Our first full week in Orlando will, as you might have suspected, be spent in our villa at our beloved Sheraton Vistana Resort. From Sunday to Sunday, that’s where we will be staying. Because flights home were so much cheaper on the Tuesday versus the Sunday, we opted to add two additional nights in Orlando onto the end of our Vistana week since to do so was essentially free (we spent the same for extra the two nights hotel as we would have in additional airfare for a Sunday flight home.....so the decision to stay two more days was a no brainer). Since we had SeaWorld & Aquatica AP’s, we chose a SeaWorld official hotel to secure not only a great proximity to those parks but also the free included benefits for onsite guests....specifically, free Quick Queue.
I cross referenced crowd calendars from Orlando Informer, the Dibb, and Undercover Tourist when trying to determine which parks we would visit on each date. In the midst of the planning process, a non-park special event (for which we are deliriously excited) was also was added into the plans.....the details of which you will hear more about later in this PTR, as it deserves its own individual entry. After what feels like a zillion revisions, I think we have finally come up with the following tentative itinerary:
Saturday, April 23rd: depart for Buffalo, in sufficient time to enjoy Sunshine’s birthday dinner at her favourite US restaurant, C hili’s. We are hoping that her parents and siblings will also be able to make the drive to meet us in Buffalo for that meal, so we can all celebrate her special day together. They live about an hour and 45 minutes away from Buffalo, so while it’s a long drive, it’s still very doable for them. Spend the night at the park and fly hotel, enjoying the pool and hot tub....and maybe some shopping at the Walden Galleria.
Sunday, April 24th: early morning flight to Orlando, arriving by 11 am (if not before). Check into the Vistana, then just enjoy the resort amenities for the balance of the day. When we are out getting dinner, we’ll probably hit up Publix for some groceries and adult beverages, and the kids will likely also want to hit up the Nike Clearance Store. There will be no specific plans for this first day, so we’ll just take it as it comes.
Monday, April 25th: a full day at Aquatica. We will rent a cabana and spend the day riding, sliding, and enjoying the park to the fullest. Sunshine has never been, and is a big ride lover, so as long as the weather cooperates, this should be a day when we open and close the park.
Tuesday, April 26th: a full day at Universal, starting in the Studios then moving over to IOA via the train.
Wednesday, April 27th: a day “off”. We will allow everyone to sleep in and get rested up. The day will be spent enjoying the resort amenities and FUN Team activities. I do have a character brunch tentatively scheduled for late morning at the Grand Floridian......Sunshine has never done a character meal before, so we
really want to give her that experience! Its killing me to know that this single meal will cost us about $200 CDN after tax, tip, and exchange.....but some things are worth paying for. Ohana has always been our go-to character breakfast, but after it fell short of expectations over Christmas (we were so disappointed with our interaction with Mickey) we thought we’d give another location a try. I am sure we will also end up at the outlet malls at some point on this day. Steve and I may drop the kids off and let them shop while we spend a little time alone together.
Thursday, April 28th: a full day at Universal, starting at Islands of Adventure then taking the Hogwarts Express to the Studios at some point.
Friday, April 29th: a full day at SeaWorld. Jake and Sunshine will do the Dolphin Encounter. We will purchase Quick Queue when we arrive, and I have already purchased all day dining passes.
Saturday, April 30th: our special non-park event.....which for now will remain unnamed.
Sunday, May 1st: we have to check out of the Vistana and check into our SeaWorld hotel (the Residence Inn SeaWorld). Afterward, the balance of the day will be spent at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure.
Monday, May 2nd: a full day at SeaWorld. We have purchased all day dining passes for this second visit day, and we will have free Quick Queue as an onsite guest.
Tuesday, May 3rd: our flight leaves just after 11 am, so we’re checking out and heading to the airport after breakfast at the hotel. Upon landing in Buffalo, we hope to enjoy lunch at the Silo in Lewiston if it has opened for the season (a unique little establishment near Niagara Falls USA that overlooks the Niagara river......great food, gorgeous views!
http://www.lewistonsilo.com/ ). We should be home by sometime in the evening.
It ended up to be a little busier than we had originally expected this trip to be, but it is important to make the most of this vacation for Sunshine’s sake in particular. We may end up reversing the plans for Monday (Aquatica) and Sunday (Universal).....just depending on the weather and any other factors which may make Aquatica a better choice later in the trip.
I am sure we will all sleep well on the plane on the way home!
. Those are just two.
) I definitely think it was worth the price because you can enjoy a really hearty delicious meal and have some great interactions! Plus, this is one of only a few places you can meet Mary Poppins and she is my absolute FAVOOOORITE!
. Jake wants to check out the menu (all I could remember was the strawberry soup) so I'll have to look that up later tonight 
. I did look a the Park Fare menu to compare it against Cape May before I hit the "reserve" button, but now I can't recall which one had the omelet station....and of course that was the first question Jake asked!!
. What's your beverage of choice?
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), and Steve's more of a whiskey guy. Jake, however, loves a good beer (before anyone has a heart attack, the legal drinking age in Canada is 19 and he just turned 20 
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). If you happen to spot us while we're in the park, definitely take a moment and say hi! Here's to some wonderful, sunshiny, warm and rain-free weather for both of us! 
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. Remind me to pack some elastic-waist pants 
. The jackpot obviously went to someone else this week. Fingers crossed for next Saturday night 
