Well, Ain't That Fancy Schmancy! (Not So Much.) A Sept. '13 PTR. Shock-UPDATED 7/2!

[merbobear]

Joining in, I follow your current TR as well My family's annual trip is coming up very soon, so reading about your plans will hopefully help ease the inevitable post disney depression that I will sink into

 

[heatherlizz602]

Count me IN!!!

My, Sawyer looks like he is getting so big already compared to last TR.

Adorable!!!

Can't wait for more

 

[Alysa]

I'm in! Looking forward to hearing more. Love a family of five with a brilliant little girl with some challenges. She looks super cute in that outfit. Heck, they are all super cute! Loooking forward to reading about the comntemporary. Jealous! you'll be able to walk right over!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Loved your TR

...following along...

Thanks! I love writing TRs!

I'm totally in!! I watched your youtube video and got all teary! and that video was SO amazing! The editing was awesome!!

My sister and my daughters and I are going to DisneyWorld Sept29-Oct 1st then we hitch a ride on the Disney Dream

We enjoyed making that so much. It was fun looking back over every single clip from the trip to determine which ones we'd use, thought it was very hard to cut some!
It's my dream to be on the...well...Dream!

Yes, there is a good view. You might want to get there early though to get a spot. Sometimes, it fills up. But, there's benches there and everything. I do believe the music is piped in. At least it was when we watched it there!

I will admit, it's not a straight on view of the MK like at the Poly, but it is still neat.

I don't mind if it's not straight on. It sounds great to me!

Joining in, I follow your current TR as well My family's annual trip is coming up very soon, so reading about your plans will hopefully help ease the inevitable post disney depression that I will sink into

Hey, I know you!! I hate the Disney Depression, but it ALWAYS happens to me. Always.

Count me IN!!!

My, Sawyer looks like he is getting so big already compared to last TR.

Adorable!!!

Can't wait for more

He looks bigger every day to me. When did he turn into a kid!?!

I'm in! Looking forward to hearing more. Love a family of five with a brilliant little girl with some challenges. She looks super cute in that outfit. Heck, they are all super cute! Loooking forward to reading about the comntemporary. Jealous! you'll be able to walk right over!

Thank you . We do have a lot of fun in this family, that's for sure. Can't wait to be able to walk over to MK!

 

[tinkgurl]

I'll take a picture of the view for you in 3 weeks!

 

[arianrose]

Loved your last TR (well, it's not done, so I'm still loving it...), so I'm joining on to read your planning here.

 

[jodi413]

THANK YOU!! Cute in pictures, WILD in person!!
Are you doing MNSSHP in October?

Haha sounds like my kids! LOL We probably will not do MNSSHP again this year. We did it in 2010 and it was a fun addition to their first Disney trip, but I'm thinking it's a one-time thing. I can't justify the cost for all four of us. Especially since my little one is terrified of everything dark. He clung to me and my husband the entire night! What do you guys think of it?

 

[feistygalkmc]

I absolutely LOVE your trip reports! I have spent the last weekend and this week catching up reading through both of them. The video that you made is hands down the best I have seen so far. I will shamelessly admit I have watched it several times and get teary eyed almost each time. I can't wait to read more!

We are taking our little princess next August, she will be 2 and I hope to make some great memories for years to come.

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

I'll take a picture of the view for you in 3 weeks!

THANKS!

Loved your last TR (well, it's not done, so I'm still loving it...), so I'm joining on to read your planning here.

Awesome! Thanks for all your reading!

Haha sounds like my kids! LOL We probably will not do MNSSHP again this year. We did it in 2010 and it was a fun addition to their first Disney trip, but I'm thinking it's a one-time thing. I can't justify the cost for all four of us. Especially since my little one is terrified of everything dark. He clung to me and my husband the entire night! What do you guys think of it?

Eh, I'm not so sure. We skipped it last year after I got so sick at it the year before that. I feel like I haven't fully experienced it since I was mostly at the First Aid center, so I don't have an opinion. I don't think we'll decide about it 'til we're there. I know I'm definitely not putting effort into all the coordinating costumes like I did the year I got sick! We'll have plenty packed for the kids anyway.

I absolutely LOVE your trip reports! I have spent the last weekend and this week catching up reading through both of them. The video that you made is hands down the best I have seen so far. I will shamelessly admit I have watched it several times and get teary eyed almost each time. I can't wait to read more!

We are taking our little princess next August, she will be 2 and I hope to make some great memories for years to come.

WHOA! I'm just smiling ear to ear reading this! What huge compliments! (And now I'm going to go watch our video and try to appreciate it even more.)
I know you will make magical memories with your little princess. It's impossible not to be sprinkled with pixie dust in this place!

 

[disneylvr4vr]

Here! I finally found the link! Can't wait to hear about all of your plans!

 

[beachphotog]

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!!! I know you! I mean, I follow you on instagram, (I'm smk31) and I read a TR of yours ( the first one, I think). I am so happy to put a Disfriend to an IG friend!!! And guess what?!? I'll be in Disney when you are!!! Yes, that's right! My mom and I are going from 9/11 to 9/16!!! Although, I want to try and a few days at the end... But 5 days is better than no days...

Ok, I'm going to go back and read the rest of your PTR, thus far! And who knows, maybe we'll be able to meet!!!

 

[inkedupmomma]

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!!! I know you! I mean, I follow you on instagram, (I'm smk31) and I read a TR of yours ( the first one, I think). I am so happy to put a Disfriend to an IG friend!!! And guess what?!? I'll be in Disney when you are!!! Yes, that's right! My mom and I are going from 9/11 to 9/16!!! Although, I want to try and a few days at the end... But 5 days is better than no days...

Ok, I'm going to go back and read the rest of your PTR, thus far! And who knows, maybe we'll be able to meet!!!

Oh! You added me on ig but I had no clue who you were! Wish ig had a way to send messages

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[beachphotog]

Oh! You added me on ig but I had no clue who you were! Wish ig had a way to send messages

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

Yeah, I figured it was cause you didn't know who I was... It is a shame that IG doesn't have messaging! I just requested again! I'm gonna go get caught up on your TR!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Here! I finally found the link! Can't wait to hear about all of your plans!

YAY! Glad you found me. I am super sneaky!

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!!! I know you! I mean, I follow you on instagram, (I'm smk31) and I read a TR of yours ( the first one, I think). I am so happy to put a Disfriend to an IG friend!!! And guess what?!? I'll be in Disney when you are!!! Yes, that's right! My mom and I are going from 9/11 to 9/16!!! Although, I want to try and a few days at the end... But 5 days is better than no days...

Ok, I'm going to go back and read the rest of your PTR, thus far! And who knows, maybe we'll be able to meet!!!

HECK YES!! I love your Instagram! DISMEET!?!?! Count me in!

Oh! You added me on ig but I had no clue who you were! Wish ig had a way to send messages

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

Are you on my IG, Jenn? Cause I love your family.

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

WHOA, guys! I am overwhelmed by the amount of people following this little PTR!

So, thanks...from these guys, too...

​

If you've followed any of my PTRs before, you know that changes happen.

A lot.

And this one is turning out to be no different. ::insert sigh here::

Today I'm going to tell you the saga of our resort reservations, and it ain't pretty. In fact, I'm still feeling a bit punched in the gut over the whole thing.

But let's do like any good storytellers do and start from the beginning.

We start planning our trips while still on the previous trip, just so you know. And this time, we decided while eating at Chef Mickey's that we wanted to stay at the Contemporary Resort. At that time, we were doing a split stay for CBR/Poly (link for TR in my signature...yep, that's a plug there, and the TR is still ongoing...join!), and we love split stays, as I've said.

Contemporary was going to work for a couple of reasons.

1. Split stay? Yep! We could only afford a few nights there for sure.

2. It fit our family of five. In case you didn't know, there are VERY few places on Disney property that accommodate a family of more than four, and this is our first year that Sawyer is counted as an actual human being. You're nothing 'til you're three, apparently.

3. There's a freaking monorail going through it. And you can walk to Magic Kingdom! Convenience and cool, all in one.

Now that we knew where a few of our nights would be spent, we had to decide on the place we'd stay for a majority of the time.

I began looking at Port Orleans Riverside, as the Alligator Bayou rooms have recently been refurbished and have a small pull-down bed, making them fit five people. Now, this resort has advantages for sure. I talked it up to my kids and got them on board with a laid back place.

YouTube happened soon after that, and they were in love with Art of Animation. In my opinion, AoA should qualify as a Deluxe for that price! Alas, no, but they wanted to change to AoA.

I shakily made the call and booked our resorts--AoA in a Nemo Suite for six nights, followed by Contemporary for three nights...

IN A MAGIC KINGDOM VIEW ROOM!!

Then I began to wait for the discount codes to come out.

That happened yesterday for Disney Visa cardholders (me.).

I eagerly called to apply free dining to my AoA package and a room only discount to Contemporary, as all my tickets would be on my first package (It's cheaper that way, as "the more days you play, the less you pay!" You can learn a lot from Stacey.)....

Bad news.

Nemo Suites were blocked out for the free dining promotion. NO NEMO!?! Are you going to tell this to the sea creature obsessed five-year old!?!
The only thing available for the discounts at AoA were Lion King and Cars.

I grumbled. I said dirty words under my breath. And then I just changed our room to a Lion King Suite (my kids HATE Cars) and hoped for the best when I broke that news to my kids.

I had to pay to upgrade the dining plan from Quick Service to Plus Dining, which costs a little less than fifty dollars a day for our family.

Then we moved on to our Contemporary Resort ressie.

And guess what?

MORE BAD NEWS.

Magic Kingdom Views only got a 5% discount. Other views got 30%.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!? Things were not going my way.

I grumbled as I switched to a Bay Lake View. Seriously!?!

When I picked up the girls from school, I broke the news to them that we were switching to Lion King. Surprisingly, they didn't seem to care at all! An animal's an animal, right? I didn't bother to tell them about the view for Contemporary, as they didn't know about the MK view to begin with. It was going to be their surprise. WOMPWOMP!

Last night came, and we ended up at the children's hospital with Sawyer. (He's fine. Just a scary infection, but he's getting better and we were out by a little after midnight.)

Immediately I just knew. One more huge bill added to the pile, and our Disney Dreams were going down the proverbial toilet.

I had trouble sleeping last night, adding up figures in my head and trying to work out what to do. Today I jumped on the computer and ran a whole bunch of numbers, trying to work out a way to somewhat appease my kids while saving our wallets.

Here's what I came up with, our FINAL--oh, gosh, I hope--resort reservations.

September 13-19, Port Orleans Riverside, Preferred Room, 8 day base tickets, free dining.

September 19-22, Art of Animation, Lion King Suite, 15% Room Only Discount.

Brynn was with me all day today because of her therapy schedule, and I told her about this. She cared not one bit.

We picked up Julia, who was in a great mood because of all her Accelerated Reader achievements today, and I burst her bubble.

Cue major pout. And rant about why Disney costs so much and how it's not fair that we aren't getting to stay where we want when we want. Kid, I feel the same way. I feel a little sickish.

We looked up the resort on YouTube and found all the good points about it.

Boat to Downtown Disney? That's cool!

Surrey Bikes? They want to do that for sure!

Access to TWO water slides (Riverside and French Quarter)? PERFECT.

Yee Haw Bob? Well...YEE HAW!

I added in that the landscape was gorgeous and that it looked calm and quiet, but I have to say that they weren't the least bit interested in those points.

We are slowly warming to the idea, though it's gonna take some time to get as excited as we were about our old set-up.

We do get to stay at AoA, even if it is only for three nights. We are going to be at Disney for a total of nine nights, and that's something lots of families never get to do.

And also it saved us almost $1100. I can get excited about that, I think.

So, that's that. Has anyone stayed at POR before? How was it?

Will anyone be at either of these resorts while we're there?

MAKE ME HAPPY!

(Sorry for the lack of pictures in this update. I've never been to these places, so no pictures! I assure you that there will be so many pictures in the future that you'll be sick of looking at us and all our shopping and packing adventures.)

I'd love to hear your thoughts and encouragement. I'm sure the girls would, too (and Sawyer just doesn't care).

 

[danimaroo]

I'm glad Sawyer is okay! Poor little guy.

So in terms of the whole resort thing... It's a bummer to be disappointed like that about everything. I mean, you kind of have your heart set on one thing, and then to have it all change up on you really stinks. BUT at least the kids seemed to take it pretty well, which is definitely a great thing!

And, honestly, POR is a place we've thought about staying if we didn't do DVC. We almost decided to stay there for this trip if we couldn't do the DVC thing! I have heard nothing but awesome things about POR, and the market is supposed to be awesome food-wise, plus it's just decorated all beautiful!

I think the AoA Lion King thing sounds awesome! Lion King is such a good movie and the photos I've seen of that part of the resort are fantastic.

The boat rides to DTD are fabulous! When we stayed at OKW for our honeymoon I LOVED that boat ride over there. Plus, it's way faster getting there than it is by bus, that's for sure!

I think one way of cheering yourself up is that you guys will be in Disney again! And you aren't the only ones excited about being in Disney... because WE sure as heck are excited you'll be there at the same time as us!!

Hang in there, lady. It's going to take time to adjust to the change but either way, you're going to DISNEY WORLD!! And we're totally going to hang out! And it's going to be an awesome time, because we are clearly awesome people.

 

[starbound25]

aw I'm sorry all that fell through!

You're right though, a nine day stay in Disney is something many will never ever have. So I hope that perspective helps a bit,
after all isn't it more about the parks... good vibes!

 

[GrimGrinningStitch]

Ugh, that's no fun. And I'm glad Sawyer is doing well!

I've never stayed at POR, but growing up we spent a lot of time there visiting. I'm a pretty big fan of it. It has great theming, I used to LOVE the pool, and it's a nice, mellow area. It's not too long of drive/ride to any of the parks (besides AK), also, there are Beignets at the POFQ food court. That alone is wonderful!

As Dani mentioned, we thought very seriously about staying there. I'm going to be honest with you here, I actually much prefer the theme to the Contemporary. Don't get me wrong, I love how close the Contemporary is to the MK, but I actually think I would choose to stay at POR.

No matter what, it'll be a beyond wonderful trip.

 

[sjs314]

So sorry the discounts did not work in your favor but you picked 2 great new choices and will have an awesome trip. I am sure AOA will be a big Hit.

I have Booked CR TPV and ad the same thing happen with the 5% discount and ended up switching resorts both times to BWI.

 

[Blessedwithboys]

I am so glad Sawyer is ok. How scary!
I can tell you that AOA is amazing. The suites are adorable and so very, very, fun. The showers are amazing Walk in shower in the master feels very Woo Woo compared to other value accommodations!

Your kids sound like such troopers and their photo is adorable!

I have never been to POR but it is in the running for us to.

I feel you on the resort saga. I wanted a suite at AOA. We decided about a month ago that no discount could make it affordable for our family of 2 adults 1 child and an 'i don't count' infant. So we switched to Pop, then to AOA LM because we just <3 AOA and could not bear the thought of not being there. Then the discounts were released and my heart sank no LM room discounts...... so now we are not sure if we should just bite the bullet and pay our ressie with no discount. Move to Pop for free dining or go for POR preffered to get in AB, only reason we are considering it is because my oldest loves Alligators!!


Now that I have nearly highjacked your PTR......