What do I want for my birthday? How about a kid-free Disney trip? April/May 2016 PTR

[kadrachb]

Yay! So exciting about the Boardwalk! I was looking to change our stay to there, but decided on Poly instead (we had a pin code before the discounts came out - man, was that a headache to apply to our reservation because my boyfriend and I don't share an address and it was in his name! )

Here's my dilemma today. We have a 7:30pm ADR for California Grill, which would be perfect if Wishes is at 9. Looking at the park hours, Wishes is at 10. The only other time available right now is 9:10. Should we keep what we have or switch to the 9:10. Would we have a shot of being seated before Wishes with a 9:10 ADR or should we just eat at 7:30 and then hang out at the Contemporary until 10. Heck, with that, we could walk back over to MK and watch Wishes from there.

In May 2014, we had a dinner reservation around 7:30, and we finished eating about 30ish minutes before the fireworks (About a 2 hr meal). Last May we had an 8:45 reservation (and were seated pretty much right away) and we saw the fireworks right before our dessert was served (our server brought it out once we came back inside, this ended up being about 1.5 hrs). Our server had us go outside around 9:45ish. I think it depends on how quickly/slowly you think you'll eat, and how fast your server is. Plus, if you do finish early, you can always go back up to the viewing deck as long as you show your receipt. Also, if you even want to start eating that late.

Personally, I think I'd stick with 7:30.

 

[Chelley00]

Yay! So exciting about the Boardwalk! I was looking to change our stay to there, but decided on Poly instead (we had a pin code before the discounts came out - man, was that a headache to apply to our reservation because my boyfriend and I don't share an address and it was in his name! )

I stayed at the Poly in 2010? We loved the room and the view, walking around at night with the tiki torches etc and all the options around us, but I hated how crowded it always seemed. People there for dinners, Luau, the beach, just visiting. It never seemed relaxing

Personally, I think I'd stick with 7:30.

Thanks! We are keeping the 7:30 ADR. I figure if we get done too early we can walk back over to MK and just watch Wishes from Main Street if we don't feel like killing time at the Contemporary.

 

[Chelley00]

I seriously let my PreTrip slide! With 3 kids birthdays, Christmas and year end at work, I've been swamped and not really thinking about vacation yet. Until last night when I was up all night with a sick kiddo and then I had lots of time to plan!

I've rearranged some of our ADRs (sorry to my TA, but the crowd calendars were a little different than I expected!


May 1

Epcot
We are going around the world!

On our last trip in 2014 (we went last year but only went to MNSSHP) We only had one day in each park because we went to Universal. I ended up with a pinched nerve in my back. The day we went to DHS I literally did nothing but sit on a bench and cry (and vomit later) On our Epcot day I was just going to send DH and the kids and stay behind but the insisted on renting a wheelchair and pushing me around. The kids actually fought over who got to drive and we had to implement 45 minute intervals of push time!

Most of my day was spent with views like this (that's my family walking to ride something, leaving me and my wheelchair behind in the shade)

So I'm ready for a redo




I love World Showcase. I could spend days just wandering the shops, taking pictures, trying snacks. However, when you travel with adrenaline junkie children, WS is a place to run around the circle fast, grab some food and head back to the rides. Sigh

So today, we are meandering.

Slowly

Okay, well first we will knock out our 3 fastpasses, but then we are meandering!


I'm thinking our first stop will have us building a car

If the Frozen ride is open, we will need to ride it just so we can rub it in to the kids that we got to experience it before them
If not maybe I'll just book something back in World Showcase.

And we definitely have to stop and thank the Phoenicians

Our lunch plans for today are to graze our way around the Flower and Garden booths. I'm calling a strict 3pm cut off on food so we won't be too full for our dinner ADR, another new to us restaurant.

I'm excited to browse around the Yacht Club since it was second on our list behind BWI.

I'm really hoping we have the energy afterwards to stroll around the Boardwalk and maybe even hit Jellyrolls, which we've never been to either.

 

[Sarahh1027]

Joining in!

May 1

Epcot
We are going around the world!

Epcot is one of my favorite parks, and I've decided to continue making it my first day park as long as plans allow. There's nothing like starting the trip scrolling around the world! I love to take my time also. I could spend all day at Epcot and not have enough time! I'll be at Epcot May 2nd
I think I read that the new Frozen ride opens May 1st? Not sure if you and hubby would even be interested but I'm so excited for this if it opens on time!

 

[JoeyEmmaMomma]

Just saw the title of your post and had to come in!
DH and I did a kid free long weekend last October and we stayed at the Boardwalk. It's an awesome resort. We used the quiet pool and hot tub while we were there (although we have stayed there with our kids and done the clown pool, lol). It's so elegant, yet relaxed. Being able to walk to both Epcot and HS is such a perk. And the boardwalk is magical both first thing in the morning and late at night.
Enjoy your planning!

 

[Chelley00]

I think I read that the new Frozen ride opens May 1st? Not sure if you and hubby would even be interested but I'm so excited for this if it opens on time!

I hope it's open. We have another Epcot day planned later in our trip so maybe we'll have a better chance of riding it. Like I said, if nothing so we can rub it in when we get home that we got to ride it.

Just saw the title of your post and had to come in!
DH and I did a kid free long weekend last October and we stayed at the Boardwalk. It's an awesome resort. We used the quiet pool and hot tub while we were there (although we have stayed there with our kids and done the clown pool, lol). It's so elegant, yet relaxed. Being able to walk to both Epcot and HS is such a perk. And the boardwalk is magical both first thing in the morning and late at night.
Enjoy your planning!

I'm so glad to hear another person's experience staying there for an adults only trip. We really went back and forth quite a few times about where to stay. I was leaning toward Yacht Club but we are pretty laid back and I thought BWI might "fit" us a little better.

 

[Chelley00]

May 2
Do we or don't we?

This day I have DHS scheduled. The next day AK. Right now we only have 5 day tickets but 6 days for parks. This day or the next day might be a rest day. I'm not going to add an extra day on the ticket until we get up and decide if we want to move

So, if we decide to park it today, we'll either take a walk or catch the boat to DHS. Part of me wants to take the boat just because we can.

Last trip our DHS day was the day I pinched the nerve in my back and thought I could make it through the day. Haha. Every trip I take 300 pictures a day. This DHS day I took......TWO

My tied for favorite ride. That I didn't get to ride. That I watched my family get on and didn't get to go with them....

and this completely random picture from ABC Commissary where my family ate lunch and I was too afraid to put anything into my stomach.

So, I have to dig really far back to other trips to find pictures of our plans for today

The last couple of trips my thrill ride family has forced me to get Fastpass + for RNR which means we have skipped TSM. Not today, it's Mom's trip!

Of course a little ToT

Not really sure what I'm going to do for FP+ #3. I don't want to waste a FP for Muppets since you can almost always walk in. Maybe Lights, Motors, Action or Indy? I'm not a fan of Star Tours but I guess it's an option.

Hopefully we can squeeze out a FP+ or ride standby so I can visit my favorite movie scene

Lunch is a hard plan. I have multiple food allergies and the places in DHS are pretty stinky. Which is okay, because I plan on stuffing myself silly at dinner at Ohana. But of course, I start with one of these.

And afterwards our first trip to Trader Sams. I'm super excited to see it.


Now, DH and I have talked a lot about doing all new restaurants this trip. This means Ohana would have to go. And not sure what we would replace it with. Kona? Grand Floridian Cafe? Maybe the Luau??

 

[Sarahh1027]

This day I have DHS scheduled. The next day AK. Right now we only have 5 day tickets but 6 days for parks. This day or the next day might be a rest day. I'm not going to add an extra day on the ticket until we get up and decide if we want to move

I'm a huge fan of rest days! I wasn't until my last trip and my family insisted we have one. We hung by the pool, went mini golfing, got to sleep in. It was just what we needed to make our vacation even better than it already was. I'm planning DTD and Ohana for one of our rest days and I'm oddly super excited even though it's just a rest day! I love how you and your husband are waiting till when you wake up to chose if you're gonna go to a park or not! Spontaneous days sound like so much fun!

Last trip our DHS day was the day I pinched the nerve in my back and thought I could make it through the day. Haha. Every trip I take 300 pictures a day. This DHS day I took......TWO

Ouch!!! I pinched a nerve on the bottom of my foot back when I played field hockey in high school. I couldn't even lightly touch the top of my skin over it...it hurt that bad. I remember it healing fairly quick...but boy was I ever miserable till it did.

My tied for favorite ride. That I didn't get to ride. That I watched my family get on and didn't get to go with them....

This must have been so horrible!!! Love ToT too!!

The last couple of trips my thrill ride family has forced me to get Fastpass + for RNR which means we have skipped TSM. Not today, it's Mom's trip!

You go girl!! I hate that we have to pick between the two. To be honest, I've never rode TSM. I've never even seen it....and didn't know it existed till before my last trip but couldn't find it anyways....but I'm determined to ride it this upcoming trip. I love love love RNR so I'm lost when it comes to which one to book FP+ for. I'm thinking RNR and TSM for rope drop?? I have NO idea ahhhh!

Not really sure what I'm going to do for FP+ #3. I don't want to waste a FP for Muppets since you can almost always walk in. Maybe Lights, Motors, Action or Indy? I'm not a fan of Star Tours but I guess it's an option.

Star Tours!! I love Indy and the Muppets were cute but there isn't really a bad seat in the house. I heard Lights, Motors, Action will be closing early April?? I think Disney just announced that. I never got to see it

Hopefully we can squeeze out a FP+ or ride standby so I can visit my favorite movie scene

Yes yes yes! This is my favorite too! Huge Wizard of Oz fan!

Lunch is a hard plan. I have multiple food allergies and the places in DHS are pretty stinky. Which is okay, because I plan on stuffing myself silly at dinner at Ohana. But of course, I start with one of these.

I'm gonna try that for the first time when I visit Ohana for the first time this May! Can't wait! Pineapples are my favorite fruits so regardless of what's inside it I'm all for it. I've heard many people here on the Dis talk about how delicious this drink is!

Now, DH and I have talked a lot about doing all new restaurants this trip. This means Ohana would have to go. And not sure what we would replace it with. Kona? Grand Floridian Cafe? Maybe the Luau??

I had Kona for breakfast booked but canceled it to 1. save money and 2. so we could sleep in on our rest day. Although I'm sort of regretting it...and thinking about rebooking. I really wanna try tonga toast! But I'd love to try Kona for dinner, so that's my vote! Although if you love Ohana, maybe you guys could make an exception for just that dinner?

 

[kbarrett]

Hi just started following along, between the winter blues and who knows when we'll be able to get back to Disney your PTR is a welcome diversion from reality for me!

 

[Chelley00]

I love how you and your husband are waiting till when you wake up to chose if you're gonna go to a park or not! Spontaneous days sound like so much fun!

Honestly, it's killing me! I'm a huge overplanner and have some major OCD tendencies and don't deal well with unplanned stuff!

Hi just started following along, between the winter blues and who knows when we'll be able to get back to Disney your PTR is a welcome diversion from reality for me!

It's a good diversion for me too!

Our youngest DS has been really sick lately. He has severe reflux and his meds aren't working. We've been up for hours the past week every night. We are changing his meds one more time and waiting for a referral to a GI doc. I've had A LOT of time to read disboards threads lately!

 

[Chelley00]

May 3.
Lions and Tigers and Bears?

Today is also a day that could be a rest day. Or even a half day. Who knows?

But, if we get up and feel the need to walk a few miles, today we are headed to Animal Kingdom.

We went to AK on our last day of our last Disney trip. I was slowly recovering from my pinched nerve so I could at least walk. The kids were not really feeling getting up and hitting rope drop, so when I woke up early that day, I pushed all of our fast passes back to afternoon and let the kids sleep in. Which meant we didn't do much so I'm looking forward to just doing the off the beaten path stuff.


Our must dos for today!

A little tangle with a Yeti

And for the theater geek in me, Lion King!

That leaves 1 fastpass left. I could skip the safari and not be unhappy honestly. Dinosaur gives me a headache. So possibly Nemo?

But lunch isn't hard to plan. Probably one of my favorite counter services ever
Flame Tree!!

(I found a picture of a salad from there? Do you really want to see that?)

This night is another new restaurant for us. I squeal a little every time I had to find a picture of all of these "adult" restaurants

Of course, along with this reservation is the hope we will get to see EWP and Wishes. I got to watch EWP from the Poly when we stayed with my mom but I don't think DH has ever seen it! Might even got for a night cap at Mizners before we head back to the Boardwalk

Oh, and for the day before this when I was looking to replace Ohana, I found a Victoria and Albert reservation!! I booked it, but I really don't know that I'm going to be able to talk myself into going..........

 

[Sarahh1027]

Animal Kingdom is my favorite!! Such a relaxing day compared to the other parks in my opinion. I love your plans for this day. Mellow but still wonderful!

 

[Chelley00]

Spent the evening in the ER with DS11. After a minor procedure he's home and miserable and clingy and only wants mom.

Vacation cannot come soon enough.

I guess that's why it's good timing that in 32 minutes I can officially start our double digit dance.

 

[Sarahh1027]

Sorry to hear about your son Yay for double digits! I'll be there in two days, today was 101 days.

 

[kadrachb]

And for the theater geek in me, Lion King!

I love that show, it's one of the things I remember most when my parents took me when I was 5.

That leaves 1 fastpass left. I could skip the safari and not be unhappy honestly. Dinosaur gives me a headache. So possibly Nemo?

Also remember that Rivers of Light might be open when you go! So, you may want to fastpass something that you can replace with that?

But then I remember I just read that you're not going to be there at night... so scratch that.

Spent the evening in the ER with DS11. After a minor procedure he's home and miserable and clingy and only wants mom.

Vacation cannot come soon enough.

I guess that's why it's good timing that in 32 minutes I can officially start our double digit dance.

Sorry to hear about your son, the ER is never fun, but I hope he is okay! And yay double digits!

 

[Chelley00]

Animal Kingdom is my favorite!! Such a relaxing day compared to the other parks in my opinion. I love your plans for this day. Mellow but still wonderful!

That's what I hope most about this trip. Relaxing and mellow. When we go with kids it's an all out rush to go from one thing to the next from rope drop to close.

Sorry to hear about your son Yay for double digits! I'll be there in two days, today was 101 days.

I really needed that double digit dance!

Also remember that Rivers of Light might be open when you go! So, you may want to fastpass something that you can replace with that?

If Rivers of Light opens we may have to rethink our plans, but I didn't want to make the concessions for it and then it not happen.

 

[Chelley00]

It's been really a mess at our house. Our DS11 is so sick. He has struggled with reflux on and off for years and they just can't get his meds straight. He's been in the ER twice with bowel issues because of all the medicine he's been on. It's frustrating him and I both. He's so tired and emotional and I can't fix it.

And well, if this keeps up, our trip may be in jeopardy, or at least some of the "deluxe" parts of it. I'm really scared to see the medical bills start trickling in....



But, I'm staying positive. We are going to keep planning, keep dreaming, keep counting down and keep listening to Disney music all day at work. If we cut into the vacation fund too much we will start by moving to a moderate or value resort and then next move would be to drop the dining plan. First plan is to get the boy well and go from there. Because I'm desperately going to need this trip by then!!!

 

[Chelley00]

May 4
Back to Epcot we go

This day we are going to play like kids in Epcot. I'm not sure about our fastpasses this day. I'm just kind of watching what Epcot is looking like with Soarin closed and waiting for the Flower and Garden Festival schedules. I'm planning on the morning in Future World and then heading back to hit what we might have missed on our first Epcot Day

We're going to find Nemo

and talk with Turtles

and Figment I love Figment

and then we will see what else we can do.

Lunch plans will most likely be Sunshine Seasons. It has great allergy options. Maybe it won't be too busy with Soarin closed either. And while we are there we will have to ride Living with the Land (which I can't find a picture of since it was closed the last time we were there)


Dinner plans will be a new to us restaurant: Rose and Crown. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to be able to eat because of my allergies, but my DH will be super happy going back to his roots for dinner. I'm hoping we have decent enough view of Illuminations from either our table or the restaurant but if we finish really early I'm pretty sure we can sneak out and grab a spot somewhere.

DH has never seen Illuminations for some reason! I watched it twice on DD's birthday trip and once when we went with my mom, but for some reason, on our other trips, we've skipped it. Usually because we spend such long days at Epcot we are all too tired to stay and watch it. Our usual view is from our balcony at Bonnet Creek.

And sometimes we get lucky enough to watch Illuminations and Wishes at the same time!

So, that's it for our last day at Epcot. The next day is our last full day in Florida (although we've talked about adding a Universal portion........)

 

[ashw100]

I am so sorry about DS, I hope he feels better soon. I am loving the laid back nature of your trip. Even kid free, I cannot seem to let myself go with the flow . Your Epcot plan is pretty much identical to mine, I am so excited to explore the World showcase for once. I am sorry you were hurt your last trip, you definitely deserve a re-do.

 

[Chelley00]

I am so sorry about DS, I hope he feels better soon. I am loving the laid back nature of your trip. Even kid free, I cannot seem to let myself go with the flow . Your Epcot plan is pretty much identical to mine, I am so excited to explore the World showcase for once. I am sorry you were hurt your last trip, you definitely deserve a re-do.

Okay, let me just say I'm planning on relaxing and going with the flow. I'm probably not going to be able to and we will find ourselves rushing from here to there........


Our DS has had two decent days so I'm hoping we have the symptoms fixed. Now we just have to wait until the end of February to see the specialist and hope we keep everything on the upswing until then.

Yesterday in the mail we got the dreaded "your resort is going to be under renovation during your stay" letter. I'm heartbroken. It said stuff about Flying Fish being closed (knew that) and painting of balconies but that there could be noise. I don't want noise. I want peace and quiet and relaxation. I don't want painters or trucks or construction guys or walls. The whole reason we picked BWI was because Yacht Club was going to be under renovation. Sigh.