We're Celebrating our Marriage with a trip to Disney World! Itinerary final touches

[kaoden39]

Yeah, Michelle, Jessica and I (along with some others) got carried away with chatting on the chat threads a while back. I miss those days.



Hi Michele!

Hi, my name is Michele and I am a Disboard Chatoholic.........

 

[DisneyStitch626]

Me too! We need meetings to chat about our chattiness!

 

[smile4stamps]

Yeah, Michelle, Jessica and I (along with some others) got carried away with chatting on the chat threads a while back. I miss those days.



Hi Michele!

I was there for awhile but then life and moving got in the way!!

Hi, my name is Michele and I am a Disboard Chatoholic.........

Michele! I'm a Disboardaholic.. I guess I just don't post as much as I thought I did lol. (Plus I wasn't on the DIS for about a year in there cause it was to hard going through Disney Withdrawals!)

 

[kaoden39]

Me too! We need meetings to chat about our chattiness!

Yes, I agree!!

I was there for awhile but then life and moving got in the way!!



Michele! I'm a Disboardaholic.. I guess I just don't post as much as I thought I did lol. (Plus I wasn't on the DIS for about a year in there cause it was to hard going through Disney Withdrawals!)

In 2007 I wasn't on for around six months because I was so sick. Amazingly I give credit to the Disboards to helping me to get more motion in my paralyzed right arm. Using the mouse with my right arm was an exercise that my occupational therapist had me do.

 

[Trentmom]

Yay!!!


Single Digits !!!

 

[DisneyStitch626]

We are finally back from our weekend in Calgary. It went fast and incredibly slow all at the same time. It seemed like I didn't get to spend enough time with my Dad or my best friend, but we had a great visit anyways. Seth is a little off kilter tonight, cause he had trouble napping the entire weekend. I think he just prefers his own bed, even if at the moment, he doesn't want anything to do with it!

So the other day, my best friends husband (who is away working in Russia right now) messaged me on Skype asking me all kinds of questions about Disneyland. He is planning to surprise his wife with a trip in July since her parents will have the kids for a week so they can do a trip on their own. He has been when he was little and she has never been. I recommended they take her first trip on their own before taking kids so they can experience it all as they are only 3 and 5.

She has no idea. She knows they are going somewhere, but doesn't know where. He isn't going to tell her until she figures it out. Whether it be at the airport when she finds out they are flying to Los Angeles, or when they pull up to the hotel across from the park. I am so jealous and so excited for her! It will be an amazing trip for them, and I hope that she falls in love with the place.

He has told me no amount of information will be too much, so I have been loading him up with everything that I know!

Chrissy (my best friend) has also been adamant about waiting until her kids are 7 and 9 to take them, as she thinks they won't remember, while her husband wants to take them in the next year or so. Both of their kids have pretty good memories, and the 5 year old is talking about Disneyland lots already, so I really think they would have a blast and remember at least most of it. So I have Chrissy excited now and she is thinking they will be going in November with the kids (and they might), while she has no idea she is going in July. So lucky! I wish I could go to see her reaction to the place. I love being there when a close friend or family member is experiencing something that I love.

 

[DisneyStitch626]

So I was going to do this one day at a time as a countdown to the trip, but not sure I want to wait until the end to make sure I have everything laid out, and I think that typing it out like this will help me make sure I have all my times right and I have noted everything we want to try to accomplish on this trip. Here we go!

Day 1: Travel Day

Flight leaves at 9:50am and Dillon would like to have a bit of time to play the pinball machines at the arcade in the airport rolleyes. So that means with the travel time to Calgary, we are going to have to leave here by no later than 6:00am.

The first stop is in Winnipeg at 12:42 (EST time) and the next flight is scheduled to leave just over an hour later at 1:50. These stops are going to make me nervous, because I am not sure how much time we are supposed to have to get to each gate to get on the next plane. Will we have time to eat lunch or dinner between flights? I have never done anything but direct before.

Next stop is Minneapolis at 3:14pm and don't leave again until 5:35. That's a little over 2 hours which is better, but still don't know what the process is for switching planes.

Finally, at 9:45pm, we arrive at our destination in Orlando where we hop on the Magical Express to the hotel. I have noted not to put ME's tags on our bags, as we want to have them so we can go to bed when we get settled in our room.

We will hopefully arrive at the Pop Century around 10:30 and be in our room by 11:00. I'd like to be asleep no later than 11:30, but we will see how that goes since we are now in Disney World and are about to experience Magic Kingdom the next day!

 

[DisneyStitch626]

Day 2: Magic Kingdom - Park hours: 9:00am-10:00pm

We are aiming to be there for rope drop, so I'd like to be there no later than 8:30.

I plan to get up and shower at 6:30 and let Dillon "sleep in" until 7. I'd like to be down at the cafeteria by 7:30 for a quick breakfast and out at the bus stop by 8:00. I already feel like I am going to be rushing Dillon around on the first day, and I feel bad, but I really don't want to miss rope drop. After rope drop we can slow down a little (maybe).

Our first ride plans to be Space Mountain. It's a tradition at Disneyland, and we are going to keep it here! We hope to grab Fast Passes and then do stand-by, depending on the wait times.

After this I'd like to do the Stitch ride. Yes, I've heard the bad reviews, but I am gonna do it anyway!

We have a lunch reservation at 12:20 for Liberty Tree Tavern, so I hope to get a few more rides in or take a wander down Mainstreet before hand.

The only other plans I have for the day is to see The Mainstreet Electrical Parade and Wishes. Will be finding a spot for those around 7:30pm.

But other things I'd like to see and do while in MK are:

-Splash Mountain
-Haunted Mansion
-People Mover
-Pirates of the Caribbean
-Buzz Lightyear
-Meet Stitch in Tomorrowland (hopefully)
-Try Corn Dog Nuggets (are these a CS meal or a snack?)

I feel like I am missing some more, but not sure. Any other must-dos?

We hope to catch MK on 2 other evenings to take advantage of EMH as I feel this one day is not nearly enough time.

 

[kaoden39]

I hope you had a fun weekend. How exciting for your friend!!

 

[Trentmom]

Day 2: Magic Kingdom - Park hours: 9:00am-10:00pm

We are aiming to be there for rope drop, so I'd like to be there no later than 8:30.

I plan to get up and shower at 6:30 and let Dillon "sleep in" until 7. I'd like to be down at the cafeteria by 7:30 for a quick breakfast and out at the bus stop by 8:00. I already feel like I am going to be rushing Dillon around on the first day, and I feel bad, but I really don't want to miss rope drop. After rope drop we can slow down a little (maybe).

Our first ride plans to be Space Mountain. It's a tradition at Disneyland, and we are going to keep it here! We hope to grab Fast Passes and then do stand-by, depending on the wait times.

After this I'd like to do the Stitch ride. Yes, I've heard the bad reviews, but I am gonna do it anyway!

We have a lunch reservation at 12:20 for Liberty Tree Tavern, so I hope to get a few more rides in or take a wander down Mainstreet before hand.

The only other plans I have for the day is to see The Mainstreet Electrical Parade and Wishes. Will be finding a spot for those around 7:30pm.

But other things I'd like to see and do while in MK are:

-Splash Mountain
-Haunted Mansion
-People Mover
-Pirates of the Caribbean
-Buzz Lightyear
-Meet Stitch in Tomorrowland (hopefully)
-Try Corn Dog Nuggets (are these a CS meal or a snack?)

I feel like I am missing some more, but not sure. Any other must-dos?

We hope to catch MK on 2 other evenings to take advantage of EMH as I feel this one day is not nearly enough time.

Sounds good so far

I would recommend Carousel of Progress, Jungle Cruise, Mickey's Philharmagic Show and Monsters Inc Show.

 

[Trentmom]

oops...Forgot to add that is so exciting for your friend

 

[DisneyStitch626]

Day 3: Epcot Day. Park Hours 9:00am-9:00pm

This day I made a reservation at 10:00am for Ohana's Breakfast. Any chance I have to see Stitch, I am gonna take it. I am kinda thinking I should have done this one a little earlier so we can have more park time, but I didn't want to have to make Dillon get up at the crack of dawn every morning.

After breakfast, we will be heading to Epcot for the day. We have reservations for dinner at Coral Reef at 7:35 (was hoping for a wee bit earlier, but maybe if we show up earlier we can eat a little sooner) and then I would like to see Illuminations afterwards.

Other than that, these are my goals for the day:

-See as many topiaries as we can while avoiding the butterfly tent ((shudder))
-Mission Space
-Spaceship Earth
-Soarin'
-Try to see some of World Showcase
-Living With The Land
-Try a Grey Goose slush in France
-Try to catch Stitch at the entrance (yes twice in one day, don't judge! )

I am disappointed that they have announced that Test Track will be closed on the 16th. Two days before we get there.

Not sure if there is anything else important we should be adding to our list. Once again, my mind is blank!

 

[DisneyStitch626]

Sounds good so far

I would recommend Carousel of Progress, Jungle Cruise, Mickey's Philharmagic Show and Monsters Inc Show.

Mickey's Philharmagic! That was another big one I wanted to try. I will make note of those others too!

oops...Forgot to add that is so exciting for your friend

I am so excited for her!

 

[Trentmom]

For Epcot, we always enjoy Mexico. They have a cute ride in there called Gran Fiesta. It features Donald duck and three caballeros

That stinks Test Track will be closed

You could check out Figment ride, Ellen's energy adventure(be prepared though...45 mins long) and Finding Nemo Ride

 

[DisneyStitch626]

Day 4: Hollywood Studios. Park Hours: 9:00am-10:00pm

The only meal I have made reservations for this day is dinner at Sci-Fi Diner for 5:45pm.

I think we will take this day to sleep in just a little bit. We will have the park until 10, so I am hoping we will have enough time to see most things if we don't get there until about 10 or 11.

Things we want to do/see:

-Tower Of Terror
-Rockin' Roller Coaster
-Toy Story Mania
-Star Tours (if lines aren't too bad)
-Lights Motors, Action
-The Great Movie Ride
-Studio Backlot Tour
-Disney Animation

Maybe with all those things, we should aim to be there closer to 10am?

 

[DisneyStitch626]

For Epcot, we always enjoy Mexico. They have a cute ride in there called Gran Fiesta. It features Donald duck and three caballeros

That stinks Test Track will be closed

You could check out Figment ride, Ellen's energy adventure(be prepared though...45 mins long) and Finding Nemo Ride

Thanks, I will add those to my list! I really want to do the Ellen one, as I love her, but it will depend on time with that long of a time frame.

 

[Marshay]

So I was going to do this one day at a time as a countdown to the trip, but not sure I want to wait until the end to make sure I have everything laid out, and I think that typing it out like this will help me make sure I have all my times right and I have noted everything we want to try to accomplish on this trip. Here we go!

Day 1: Travel Day

Flight leaves at 9:50am and Dillon would like to have a bit of time to play the pinball machines at the arcade in the airport rolleyes. So that means with the travel time to Calgary, we are going to have to leave here by no later than 6:00am.

The first stop is in Winnipeg at 12:42 (EST time) and the next flight is scheduled to leave just over an hour later at 1:50. These stops are going to make me nervous, because I am not sure how much time we are supposed to have to get to each gate to get on the next plane. Will we have time to eat lunch or dinner between flights? I have never done anything but direct before.

Next stop is Minneapolis at 3:14pm and don't leave again until 5:35. That's a little over 2 hours which is better, but still don't know what the process is for switching planes.

Finally, at 9:45pm, we arrive at our destination in Orlando where we hop on the Magical Express to the hotel. I have noted not to put ME's tags on our bags, as we want to have them so we can go to bed when we get settled in our room.

We will hopefully arrive at the Pop Century around 10:30 and be in our room by 11:00. I'd like to be asleep no later than 11:30, but we will see how that goes since we are now in Disney World and are about to experience Magic Kingdom the next day!

wow! all I can say is that you are so brave to be doing all those connecting flights (I know it's not your first choice either!)

Definitely take some snacks along to eat...you won't have time between your first and 2nd flight if you only have an hour between. IF you terminals are in different buildings or opposite ends, you may find yourself doing an "OJ" through the airport.

I can't wait to hear what you think of Pop since I just booked that for my first time for my Mommy and Me trip in July.

 

[Marshay]

Day 2: Magic Kingdom - Park hours: 9:00am-10:00pm

We are aiming to be there for rope drop, so I'd like to be there no later than 8:30.

I plan to get up and shower at 6:30 and let Dillon "sleep in" until 7. I'd like to be down at the cafeteria by 7:30 for a quick breakfast and out at the bus stop by 8:00. I already feel like I am going to be rushing Dillon around on the first day, and I feel bad, but I really don't want to miss rope drop. After rope drop we can slow down a little (maybe).

Our first ride plans to be Space Mountain. It's a tradition at Disneyland, and we are going to keep it here! We hope to grab Fast Passes and then do stand-by, depending on the wait times.

After this I'd like to do the Stitch ride. Yes, I've heard the bad reviews, but I am gonna do it anyway!

We have a lunch reservation at 12:20 for Liberty Tree Tavern, so I hope to get a few more rides in or take a wander down Mainstreet before hand.

The only other plans I have for the day is to see The Mainstreet Electrical Parade and Wishes. Will be finding a spot for those around 7:30pm.

But other things I'd like to see and do while in MK are:

-Splash Mountain
-Haunted Mansion
-People Mover
-Pirates of the Caribbean
-Buzz Lightyear
-Meet Stitch in Tomorrowland (hopefully)
-Try Corn Dog Nuggets (are these a CS meal or a snack?)

I feel like I am missing some more, but not sure. Any other must-dos?

We hope to catch MK on 2 other evenings to take advantage of EMH as I feel this one day is not nearly enough time.

Some advice?

If you truly want to make rope drop and esp if you want to be in the front of the pack, leaving at 8am "may" not get you there. Personally, I would bump up your times by at least 15 minutes, so you are going to the bus stop at 7:45am...remember you could wait 20 minutes for a bus, if you just missed it, so only going at 8am for the bus, means 8:20am for it to arrive, 5 minutes to load, travel time, unload, walk to entrance, etc.

I also understand though that you will have a tiring day before, so personally, if you are a few minutes late for RD, it won't matter. Now if you are an hour late, that will make a difference in your touring time.

Yes, MK is at least a two day park.

Another suggestion -- definitely ride (well, see the show) Stitch as that is your fav character, but don't do it prior to 11:30am. I'd wait until the afternoon or even the evening. There is hardly ever a big line as no family with little kids will go on it and most adults don't like it. They take a crowd of people in at one time, so the line may look long but they all go in together.

My DD6 wants to do Stitch for her first time in July. I've already warned her it is pitch black and they strap you in like in a roller coaster ...but I also think it is fun, too, esp when "all terror breaks loose!"

I know you're doing a few days at MK but here is a general plan:

Early Morning Rides/Characters (or get FP)
Space Mtn
Splash Mtn
Peter Pan
Jungle Cruise
new Dumbo
new Goofini Coaster
Speedway (very slow loading)
Astro Orbiter (very slow loading)
Rapunzel
Tiana
Merida (I'm not sure if she is out when you are there but if so that line will be wild since she is the newest princess)

Next Set of Rides/Characters
Buzz Lightyear
Haunted Mansion
Pirates of the Caribbean
Ariel
Jasmine
Stitch/Buzz Lightyear characters


Stuff you can practically do anytime
PeopleMover
Carousel of Progress
Mickey's Philharmagic
IASW
Town Square Theater (Mickey and Princesses)
Swiss Family Treehouse
Tiki Birds
Aladdin's Magic Carpets
Railroad
Tom Sawyer Island
Country Bear Jamboree
Hall of Presidents
Riverboat
Carrousel
Tea Cups
Monsters Inc

Rides you should never do
WtP
(Ok, it's cute...and the interactive area is fun, too...just use sanitizer if you touch anything in there)

Sounds good so far

I would recommend Carousel of Progress, Jungle Cruise, Mickey's Philharmagic Show and Monsters Inc Show.

Yep!

 

[Marshay]

Day 3: Epcot Day. Park Hours 9:00am-9:00pm

This day I made a reservation at 10:00am for Ohana's Breakfast. Any chance I have to see Stitch, I am gonna take it. I am kinda thinking I should have done this one a little earlier so we can have more park time, but I didn't want to have to make Dillon get up at the crack of dawn every morning.

After breakfast, we will be heading to Epcot for the day. We have reservations for dinner at Coral Reef at 7:35 (was hoping for a wee bit earlier, but maybe if we show up earlier we can eat a little sooner) and then I would like to see Illuminations afterwards.

Other than that, these are my goals for the day:

-See as many topiaries as we can while avoiding the butterfly tent ((shudder))
-Mission Space
-Spaceship Earth
-Soarin'
-Try to see some of World Showcase
-Living With The Land
-Try a Grey Goose slush in France
-Try to catch Stitch at the entrance (yes twice in one day, don't judge! )

I am disappointed that they have announced that Test Track will be closed on the 16th. Two days before we get there.

Not sure if there is anything else important we should be adding to our list. Once again, my mind is blank!

Some more advice? Just tell me to shut up if you don't need/want it

Save Spaceship Earth for when you are ready to leave the park or right before/after dinner or late afternoon. Maybe while you are heading over to Coral Reef, if you have time. A lot of people go to SE as soon as they enter the park and it gets unusually crowded in the mornings until about noon-1pm. But in the afternoon and evening, it is a walk-on.

Energy is great when you need to sit in A/C and take a break or if you have several days at Epcot. It's cute but long. I would skip it and do the Flower and Garden stuff instead.

The Nemo ride and Turtle Talk with Crush are cute...esp since you are going for dinner in that building anyway (fyi, the restaurant is in back of the building and you can only get to it from outside). Try to see them before your dinner.

Soarin' is fun but honestly, you have it in DL so I wouldn't make it a priority. If you want to do, then grab a FP asap. The land boat ride in the same building is pretty cool too, esp if you are waiting for your FP to kick in. It goes through some vegetable gardens of disney and shows how fish/plants are being grown in different environments.

I'd skip Circle of Life movie just an environmental short film.

The Figment ride is cute and never has a line. Captain EO is a 3-D movie starring Michael Jackson before he made it big. For me, it's nostalgic since I saw it as a little girl. If the line is short and you want to sit for a bit, go see it.

Also, the fountains over in this area are cute to see -- jumping water fountains and everyone likes to get a picture of the water jumping over top of their head! Kids can't resist standing on the ledge and having the water splash them!

Mission Space is great -- I like the spinning version but also the non-spinning version is much better than I expected. There are also free games to play in the exit area that are neat (I read you like to play pinball at the airport so these may appeal to you, too. You can also send your friends a free video postcard from here (and also in Imagination bldg).

As for countries ... they are just great to see.

Definitely do the two boat rides -- Mexico and Norway. Get a picture in front of the big troll in Norway gift shop and wearing a sombrero hat in Mexico.

Get a pastry and OGM in France; caramels in Germany; check out the souvenirs in Japan and China. The movie/audiomatronics in USA is very good ... a bit long but worth seeing if you are interested in American History.

For Epcot, we always enjoy Mexico. They have a cute ride in there called Gran Fiesta. It features Donald duck and three caballeros

That stinks Test Track will be closed

You could check out Figment ride, Ellen's energy adventure(be prepared though...45 mins long) and Finding Nemo Ride

Agree with Kelly!

 

[Marshay]

Day 4: Hollywood Studios. Park Hours: 9:00am-10:00pm

The only meal I have made reservations for this day is dinner at Sci-Fi Diner for 5:45pm.

I think we will take this day to sleep in just a little bit. We will have the park until 10, so I am hoping we will have enough time to see most things if we don't get there until about 10 or 11.

Things we want to do/see:

-Tower Of Terror
-Rockin' Roller Coaster
-Toy Story Mania
-Star Tours (if lines aren't too bad)
-Lights Motors, Action
-The Great Movie Ride
-Studio Backlot Tour
-Disney Animation

Maybe with all those things, we should aim to be there closer to 10am?

If you want to get a FP for TSMM (or risk wait in line for over an hour), you need to go there first thing. FPs for this ride run out about 11am - 12 noon. So YES, if TSMM is important to you, then get there earlier (although you have this at DL, too, right?)

You'll also want FP for ToT and RnR, or go to one of them as soon as you enter the park and get FP for the other.

Star Tours usually doesn't have that long of a line or you can get a FP.

Definitely do the Animation Class where you get to draw a character. Shows are 30 minutes on the hour and half hour. You can do more than one but have to get back in line each time.

If characters are important to you, then go to the Animation Building at 5pm, where they have Characterpalooza -- all different kinds of characters come out, some rare ... you never know who will show up. We saw Jafar, Max, Mr. Penguin, and the Evil Queen for our first time there.

I know some people think characters are just for kids but it's fun for adults, too. It makes your photo album look cool, too to have pics with the characters!