What exactly DID you do at Disney? May 2011 TR (TR link pg 44)

[pinkxray]

Diane, the BC villa is absolutely beautiful. That is the next DVC we want to try (after AKL and Old Key West in two weeks)...thanks for the great pictures.

I hate when the CM's get snippy when you know you are right and they don't want to admit they are wrong. I hope it STAYED straightened out for dinner.

The CM was so rude. She had an attitude as soon as I told her the problem. She did turn very nice once she realized I actually did have 5 dxdp credits left but she seemed so annoyed at first to have to deal with a problem. Um, isn't that your job?

Even if our next trip won't be for 3 years we already plan on staying at AKV in a one bedroom so make sure you take a billion pictures. OKW is on my one day list so take a billion pictures there too. You are going to have such a great time.

I agree with a PP that if TL is in your plans already you really only need the resort to sleep at, and the pool/ slide/ hot tub would only be a bonus, that you'll likely not even use. I'd play it cheap here and go with POP.

I think we are sticking with Pop. If we make it to TL we probably won't even have a chance to use the pool.

I really hope I don't see any dirty diapers in the walkway though.

Wow! I really like that room! And the bedspread pattern is way too adorable!!

How annoying about the credits! I hate when your vacation gets disrupted with tedious tasks!! Hopefully those credits will be there for dinner!!

The room was awesome. We had a pretty good day at DHS so if it wasn't for the whole dxdp issues it would have been a fantastic day. I tried to let it go but it seemed to keep being an issue at Writers stop and then at Marketplace. I figured once it worked at WS it was fixed. Why would it work one place and not the other. It seemed to have something to do with the way our card was worded where it says DXDP or room only. It had a split stay and no one had ever seen that apparently. They had to run it a certain way and some people didn't know how I guess?

This was the Sunday right? We too were at SWW that day, another missed meet!

The room looks so nice! I would love to stay in a one-bedroom, too bad they are so pricey and I am so wary of renting points.

It was Sunday. I can't believe you were there too!

The prices are crazy if you pay through Disney. The only way to do it affordably is to rent points. Even if they are 40% off they are still out of my budget. I loved renting points and I am hoping we can do it again in the future. It really spoiled me. I am hating paying Disney prices again. For our trip in 2014 I have to contact the renter in 2012 to make sure he has available points, but it will be worth it.

Haha, I can't picture you being mean to a CM in Disney World! I'm so nervous about our dining credits getting messed up since I'm picking up our tickets a day earlier than our package starts, but I guess it should be ok if I keep the tickets separate from the room key.

Wow the BCV one bedroom is so nice! I know Brandon and I have no reason to stay in a one bedroom, but it would be nice to have a hot tub right in the room! And a kitchen!

You shouldn't have any issues. I didn't have any issues last time. I read over on the dvc board that some people have been having problems since they have been letting dvc people use a different plan each stay.

You should stay at OKW and get a one bedroom some time. The points are the lowest and I have heard the rooms are huge. The only problem is that is it hard to go back to regular rooms.

I don't like the kitchen part though. I find myself doing dishes more often but I guess the extra space makes up for it.

John was so surprised that I actually stood up to the CM. I am glad I didn't send him over b/c he wouldn't have had a clue. The lady was such a nightmare and I was so annoyed, I couldn't help knocking her off her high horse. Once she told me that credits expire when you check out instead of midnight she was all done. Don't you know I am a Diser? Please!

Sounds like y'all had a nice breakfast & a good day @ DHS.

But, man, what a mess with the dining credits! I think I would've come unglued with that CM! I sure hope they really did get it straightened out before y'all went to dinner.

Love the view of Spaceship Earth from the balcony!

The view was great. It was a nice surprise since I heard there was only really woods view.

I have to say after our day I had sworn off the dining plan forever but we'll see how I feel in a few years.

 

[bouncycat]

Caitlyn would love the treehouses too, if she liked the big tub!! That room did look really nice, loved the view!! Sorry to hear that CM was snotty, and it's funny you mentioned the stunt show, that's the show we were at!!! We may have walked right by each other and not know it!!!!! Looking foward to hearing about the last night, and the MK crowds!

 

[ksl5f123]

Your Cape May food looks really good. Goofy's outfit is hysterical. I love the lifevest.

Those dining credits sound like a nightmare. I probably would have lost my temper dealing with all of that.

Nice pictures from Beauty and the Beast - I am glad the show didn't ruin your day.

We haven't done the Backlot Tour in years. Sounds like we aren't missing too much.

The Darth Vader cupcake looks good. I think it takes at least 4 people to eat one of those.

You had a wonderful view of Epcot. The bedspread really is cute!

 

[tinacaplan]

Looks like you had fun at Cape May...too bad about the credit situation, though. I don't know how you get all that straight.

Mark said the new Star Tours was pretty spectacular. I didn't get a chance to check it out, though. Oh well.

The cupcakes at Starring Rolls are too much, in my opinion. Too sweet, too much frosting. They're good, but I can't eat very much of one, they kind of make my teeth hurt.

Can't wait to hear about your last night. Could be amazing.

 

[lbuzz52]

Cape May looks pretty cute, as do your bedspreads. The beach and Disney theme is right up my alley.

I'm glad that DH liked the room. Hopefully it will help with the next trip.

Oh, i think i'd love to hit a super late EMH at MK. cant wait to hear about it.

 

[pinkxray]

Caitlyn would love the treehouses too, if she liked the big tub!! That room did look really nice, loved the view!! Sorry to hear that CM was snotty, and it's funny you mentioned the stunt show, that's the show we were at!!! We may have walked right by each other and not know it!!!!! Looking foward to hearing about the last night, and the MK crowds!

The room was beautiful. I bet Caitlin would love the treehouses. I don't know if I would book them with just 3 people though. Maybe one day I convince my other family members to take a trip with us.

LMA looked so much better than the tour. I don't know what we were thinking

Your Cape May food looks really good. Goofy's outfit is hysterical. I love the lifevest.

Those dining credits sound like a nightmare. I probably would have lost my temper dealing with all of that.

Nice pictures from Beauty and the Beast - I am glad the show didn't ruin your day.

We haven't done the Backlot Tour in years. Sounds like we aren't missing too much.

The Darth Vader cupcake looks good. I think it takes at least 4 people to eat one of those.

You had a wonderful view of Epcot. The bedspread really is cute!

I love seeing Minnie and Mickey dressed in different outfits and couldn't wait to see them in their beachwear. I have been looking at the cruise thread way too much and for the Alaskan cruise they have on winter coats. I would love to see that but it is going to take lots of convincing to get DH to go on an Alaskan cruise, especially DCL.

Starring Rolls cupcakes need to be shared but no one ever wants to share one. I have the strangest family.

Our room was perfect for our last night. I am so glad we made the switch afterall.

Looks like you had fun at Cape May...too bad about the credit situation, though. I don't know how you get all that straight.

Mark said the new Star Tours was pretty spectacular. I didn't get a chance to check it out, though. Oh well.

The cupcakes at Starring Rolls are too much, in my opinion. Too sweet, too much frosting. They're good, but I can't eat very much of one, they kind of make my teeth hurt.

Can't wait to hear about your last night. Could be amazing.

I agree about the cupcakes. I prefer the regular sized ones that you get at the food courts. I had one from Pop that was really good

The Disney dining plan was already starting to seem unneccesary for our trips in the future and this really sealed it for me. We most likely won't do it again unless we get free dining.

Cape May looks pretty cute, as do your bedspreads. The beach and Disney theme is right up my alley.

I'm glad that DH liked the room. Hopefully it will help with the next trip.

Oh, i think i'd love to hit a super late EMH at MK. cant wait to hear about it.

I told DH how much it would cost to stay at Kidani in a one bedroom for a week and he said no way. He would rather stay at Pop and save money.

The BCV are awesome, but it didn't work for us since we never go to Epcot. The location seemed wasted on us and we barely used SAB.

 

[pinkxray]

Before I get to the last update of our trip, let me just say that 5 weeks from now we will have just had lunch aboard the Disney Dream.


DH and I received our passports in the mail yesterday and hopefully Caitlin’s will arrive soon. I also dragged the suitcases out of the basement to give them a few days to air out before I pack a month ahead of time.


I have purchased my fish extender of etsy and have about 90% of my FE gifts purchased, made or on their way from their online shopping destinations.


I also gave DH the dates that he has to take off of work today. “Why do I have to miss 3 days? I thought I was only missing 2? If I take off 3 days people will ask me where I am going and it’s embarrassing to admit I have to go on another Disney trip” Sigh. I need to record are conversations next time. I can remember the exact location he was sitting in when he agreed to another night to attend MNSSH, although I admit I did sneak it in there pretty good.


Anyway…… our last night at Disney. It’s funny that anyone reading would actually think we made it to MK EMH. Have you been paying attention? Of course we didn’t! IT was a very hard choice for me since Caitlin was willing to go but in the end I was just tired, it had been a long trip and the previous night had been great. Why not just have another night hanging out at the BC and SAB?


Around 4:30 I decided since I didn’t really have lunch I would head down to the marketplace for a snack. We cancelled our Tony’s adr and I really wanted to have a TS dinner. We decided to head over to Captain’s Grill to try to get a walk in around 7. I checked for adrs and there was plenty of availabity so I didn’t think it would be a problem.

I got a chicken, onion and bacon flatbread with BBQ sauce and Caitlin talked me into getting her a kids cheese flatbread.

Mine was okay. I wasn’t a fan of the bbq sauce I guess. I ate about half.

Before heading to the room I headed over to the desk to make sure my dining credits would work for tonight. Yes, absolutely 100% they would work.
After our snack we headed to SAB for a few hours. I didn’t even bother taking my camera with me. I wanted to just enjoy our time. It was about 2 minutes to 5 and they had stopped giving wristbands out. I asked the lifeguard and he said they only hand them out in the afternoon.


Around 7 we started walking over to CG to see about dinner. On the way over we decided to take a chance at Beaches and Cream and there was one table left. We walked right in.

Caitlin had a kid’s cheeseburger

DH had the cheeseburger (shocker-I know)

I got the steak sandwich.

I thought it was okay. The fries were all way too cooked for me. But really, I was just here for the ice cream anyway.

No Way Jose- Yum! I would have liked it better with just vanilla ice cream but it was great anyway.

DH got some orange soda thing. He thought it was gross.

Caitlin got a kids sundae

No the moment of truth. The bill. I tell the waitress we will use our last 2 credits for DH and I and cash for Caitlin. She comes back. You don’t have any credits left. Of course we don’t. I paid cash and left. At this point I was used to it.


We headed back and I stopped off at the desk again. The man refunded my money and also left the 2 credits on the card trying to be nice. It was a nice gesture but it was around 8pm. I had 2 dxdp credits and 2 snack credits left but I didn’t even want to attempt to use them .


We headed upstairs and I soaked in the tub for awhile. Caitlin and I put our Basin purchases to use.

At 9pm Caitlin and I watched the fireworks from the balcony again. The view was even better since we were 2 floors higher.

I took on last photo of Epcot from our balcony and headed off to bed.

We were all up pretty early and had plenty of time for breakfast on our last day. I didn’t make any adrs but was hoping to try Kouzinna or CG for breakfast. DH wanted eggs. I gave him the options including walking over to Swan or Dolphin. He decided we should head to Marketplace first to see what they had. Nothing great. Captain’s Grill, yes! We start walking out when I remind DH that since we are no longer on the dxdp he is in charge of paying. How much? He turns right back around and we get breakfast at Marketplace. I should have just paid but after already paying so much for DXDP I thought it was only fair.


DH and I both got the egg on a croissant thing they have. DH liked it. I didn’t but I don’t love eggs or croissants. I don’t know why I even got it.
Caitlin got a box of powered Entenmanns doughnuts. I ended up having some and the yummy lemon poppy treats from our dinner at CG.


While eating we got about 3 knocks on our door from housekeeping. We told each person we would be leaving at 9:30am. They really wanted to get in and clean that room.

Once we got to the airport we saw that our flight was delayed about one hour. Other than that it was a smooth flight home.

When we left DH was thrilled and kept saying “Yes, I don’t have to come back for 3 years!!!”
Hmmmm, here we are 5 weeks out from our Disney cruise.




Thanks for reading and sticking with me. I said in the beginning of this report I wasn’t really sure what to make of this trip. Looking back it wasn’t the best DISNEY trip. It had some great moments but not much Disney. We seemed to have lots of fun everywhere besides the parks which needs to change. I have some ideas on how to fix that for our next trip so that everyone can be happy. I will also have to learn to relax and have more pool/ resort time. DH has said I can take a solo trip but I’m not really into that right now. I can’t even imagine telling Caitlin I am going without her. A mother/daughter trip might happen one day. We’ll see if Caitlin grows up to like Disney. My guess is she will end up like DH and never want to go.
SEE YOU REAL SOON!

 

[KatMark]

Why am I not surprised that your DH ordered a burger?

I really want to get to Beaches & Cream one of these trips.

I'm sorry the trip wasn't exactly how you wanted it, but I do think you had some really good memories nonetheless. Can't wait to hear all about the cruise.

 

[jenbear123]

Totally agree with you on No way Jose with only vanilla ice cream. Having chocolate in there really overpowers the whole thing. It really sucks your dining credits never got sorted out. Sending pixie dust that your trip coming up will be way more magical

 

[dtr_angel]

I'm sad your TR is over!!! I've been writing up our last day in Disney and it's making me sad... even though it was like 4 months ago LOL. I think you need a pre-trip report for your cruise - I can't wait to read all about it!!! I've really enjoyed following along with you (sorry I've been really MIA since school started) and can't wait to read more!!! I hope Caitlin loves Disney like you do, or at least your next child!!!

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

I am sad to see this end, it was fun reading along and saying, "Hey, I was there at that time!" Maybe one of these days our trips will overlap again and if so we will have to plan a meet as clearly despite being at all the same places at all the same times we never ran into each other (well there were those two near misses).

Looking forward to reading about your cruise!

 

[Vwdiva93]

I'm sad your TR is over! I'm glad you all got to eat at Beaches and Cream though. But what a pain about the dining credits, I can't believe all the trouble you went through with that.
Looks like you all had an amazing view for the fireworks!

I really hope Caitlin follows you instead and becomes a Disney lover as well. I can't wait to hear about your cruise and I hope you all have a great time!!

 

[ksl5f123]

Wow! I can't believe you are done. I enjoyed reading about your trip - both the highs and the lows.

I guessed that you wouldn't make MK EMH, but I am still sorry that you missed some extra ride time.

Your sundae at Beaches & Cream looks huge! It also looks super yummy. I am not sure what we would eat if we went there for a meal, but I could certainly go for dessert.

for your passports arriving!! Tell your DH that he doesn't have to say you are going to Disney - he can just say you are going on a cruise to the Bahamas. I can't wait to hear all about it!

 

[basketkat]

I always hate when people's trip reports are over!!!

Your ice cream looked really tasty!!! The dining credit thing would have driven me crazy, but I'm glad you got your money refunded.

I love your fireworks pictures! What a lovely memory!

I bet you're super excited for your cruise! I hope you do a trip report!!!!

 

[bouncycat]

Sorry you didn't get back to EMH, and about the dining credits. We have never had any issues with those...knock on wood!! LOL

It is sad when TR ends, but hey, you got the cruise to look forward to!! And then MNSSHP!! I think I got talked into going to the Oct 6th or 7th party. UG! Let me get past this weekend with my mother before I think about that!!

 

[amandaw]

Your dinner looked good....we may have to try it out one day. I would've been ready to blow a gasket over the dining credits!

What a great view of the fireworks from your balcony. That would be really cool!

I'm sorry your trip didn't turn out exactly like what you probably envisioned while planning it. But, the important thing is that you did have some alone/quality time with you daughter & husband. Hold on to all of the good parts & let go of the rest.

I hope y'alls upcoming trip is perfect! Will you do a TR? If so, please let me know. I'd love to hear what y'all thought of the Dream & also I'd like to hear about MNSSHP.

I hope you have a fabulous trip!!!

 

[pinkxray]

Why am I not surprised that your DH ordered a burger?

I really want to get to Beaches & Cream one of these trips.

I'm sorry the trip wasn't exactly how you wanted it, but I do think you had some really good memories nonetheless. Can't wait to hear all about the cruise.

I am wondering if DH will actually order a burger from the kids menu on the Dream. He most likely won't think of it unless I tell him he can, but I want him to enjoy himself so I will most likely tell him. He'll probably order a burger, fried and mac/cheese.

The trip was very different than I expected. From now on I will have a much more laid back plan but also set some expectations so that I still get in what I want to see.

Totally agree with you on No way Jose with only vanilla ice cream. Having chocolate in there really overpowers the whole thing. It really sucks your dining credits never got sorted out. Sending pixie dust that your trip coming up will be way more magical

I didn't even realize there was choc. ice cream until it arrived. I didn't really read the description since I had seen the picture so many times. Haven't they been to Friendly's or Ghiradelli? Vanilla only!

I'm sad your TR is over!!! I've been writing up our last day in Disney and it's making me sad... even though it was like 4 months ago LOL. I think you need a pre-trip report for your cruise - I can't wait to read all about it!!! I've really enjoyed following along with you (sorry I've been really MIA since school started) and can't wait to read more!!! I hope Caitlin loves Disney like you do, or at least your next child!!!

I will most likely start my cruise tr a little before we leave. I'll post the link here.

I hope Caitlin loves Disney but it's not looking good. She seems to be turning into a beach lover and will probably vote for a tropical island over Disney. However she does just seem to love vacation and will pick Disney over no vacation.

When is your next trip? Aren't you doing a big family trip once you graduate?

I am sad to see this end, it was fun reading along and saying, "Hey, I was there at that time!" Maybe one of these days our trips will overlap again and if so we will have to plan a meet as clearly despite being at all the same places at all the same times we never ran into each other (well there were those two near misses).

Looking forward to reading about your cruise!

I can't believe that we were in the same parks on so many days! If our trips ever overlap we will have to actually set and date/time to meet. Apparently you can't really just run into someone at Disney, which I thought would happen.

I'm sad your TR is over! I'm glad you all got to eat at Beaches and Cream though. But what a pain about the dining credits, I can't believe all the trouble you went through with that.
Looks like you all had an amazing view for the fireworks!

I really hope Caitlin follows you instead and becomes a Disney lover as well. I can't wait to hear about your cruise and I hope you all have a great time!!

I am kind of happy that I don't have to worry about the DDP anymore. It gives me a reason not to do it and I think we will be better off.

I can't wait to go on our cruise. I think it will go well as long as DH has a good attitude. I am going to limit the amount of Disney he sees such as not making him go to the shows and no character meals at Disney so hopefully he'll have a good time.

Wow! I can't believe you are done. I enjoyed reading about your trip - both the highs and the lows.

I guessed that you wouldn't make MK EMH, but I am still sorry that you missed some extra ride time.

Your sundae at Beaches & Cream looks huge! It also looks super yummy. I am not sure what we would eat if we went there for a meal, but I could certainly go for dessert.

for your passports arriving!! Tell your DH that he doesn't have to say you are going to Disney - he can just say you are going on a cruise to the Bahamas. I can't wait to hear all about it!

I am hoping this trip makes up for any lows we had. I am walking in not having huge expectations or plans so hopefully it will be great.

The sundaes are huge but sooooooo good!

My plan for MNSSHP is to make it until midnight and I am determined to make it. We'll see how that goes.

I always hate when people's trip reports are over!!!

Your ice cream looked really tasty!!! The dining credit thing would have driven me crazy, but I'm glad you got your money refunded.

I love your fireworks pictures! What a lovely memory!

I bet you're super excited for your cruise! I hope you do a trip report!!!!

I am so excited but a bit nervous about the cruise. I hope everything goes well.

My ice cream was great. I am not sure if I liked that one or the Ghiradelli one better. Tough call.

The fireworks were great and it was lovely to chill out on the balcony with Caitlin.

Sorry you didn't get back to EMH, and about the dining credits. We have never had any issues with those...knock on wood!! LOL

It is sad when TR ends, but hey, you got the cruise to look forward to!! And then MNSSHP!! I think I got talked into going to the Oct 6th or 7th party. UG! Let me get past this weekend with my mother before I think about that!!

I am so glad we are going on the cruise soon. This time we will actually take a 3 year break once we get back. Our next trip will most likely be Nov 2014, which is kind of a relief. I am tired of putting aside money from each paycheck to give to Disney. When are you going in 2014?

Your dinner looked good....we may have to try it out one day. I would've been ready to blow a gasket over the dining credits!

What a great view of the fireworks from your balcony. That would be really cool!

I'm sorry your trip didn't turn out exactly like what you probably envisioned while planning it. But, the important thing is that you did have some alone/quality time with you daughter & husband. Hold on to all of the good parts & let go of the rest.

I hope y'alls upcoming trip is perfect! Will you do a TR? If so, please let me know. I'd love to hear what y'all thought of the Dream & also I'd like to hear about MNSSHP.

I hope you have a fabulous trip!!!

Although the trip wasn't exactly as I envisioned I have learned a lot about DH's habits and will be able to plan better next time... or not plan

I will let you know if I do a tr. You have to read it since you are completely responsible for getting us to book this trip. Did you get you comission check yet?

I am so excited about MNSSHP! Not thrilled still about staying at Pop but I a hoping it will be better than I expected. We were just too spoiled at AKL last trip but I just don't want to give Disney anymore of my money. We'll I guess they will still get it since I'll probably spend the difference on drinks of the day and MNSSHP merchandise.

 

[amandaw]

Although the trip wasn't exactly as I envisioned I have learned a lot about DH's habits and will be able to plan better next time... or not plan

I will let you know if I do a tr. You have to read it since you are completely responsible for getting us to book this trip. Did you get you comission check yet?

I am so excited about MNSSHP! Not thrilled still about staying at Pop but I a hoping it will be better than I expected. We were just too spoiled at AKL last trip but I just don't want to give Disney anymore of my money. We'll I guess they will still get it since I'll probably spend the difference on drinks of the day and MNSSHP merchandise.

No check in the mail yet! Disney really needs to get that to me because I could REALLY use it towards our Oct. 2012 trip!

I really hope all of y'all enjoy the cruise. I will feel terrible if any of y'all don't like it. I do think your DH will like it since y'all can relax as much as y'all want.

That's the bad thing about staying at the deluxes....they spoil you! I ended up canceling our December trip last night. And I think it was so easy for me to do because I wasn't excited about staying at POP & hardly having any time to do anything. Oh well, instead I booked us for an entire week at the of April in Panama City Beach. And I'll spend about $300 LESS than I would've spent for a 3 day vacation in Disney! It'll be our "relaxing" vacation before we hit Disney in October!

 

[Sunset Cliffs]

I'm bummed for you that this trip wasn't everything that you wanted it to be, but I'm excited about your upcoming trip! I understand your frustrations with certain days not going as planned. HOpefully the next time you go back, it will be more what you want.

As for Beaches & Cream, my FAVORITE is the No Way Jose. I like your idea about all vanilla ice cream. I'm not a big chocolate person, so that would be better in my opinion.

I can't believe how many problems you had with your dining credits! And that CM totally lied to you about them expiring! I would be so mad if I were you. It sounds like you handled it well though.

 

[TinksThree]

Sad to see the TR is over! I enjoyed reading along! And I hope your cruise is great and the Halloween party is awesome!

Your view of Illuminations was better than mine...and I was in Epcot around the lake!!

Beaches and Cream looks yummy...well, the ice cream anyway! I am not big into burgers!!