Where in the world did this ticker come from? UPDATE NEW TRIP REPORT STARTED!!!!!

[andrews1ma]

Ugh, what a pain to have to put up with large tour groups that take all the good rooms and all the bagels. I hope they all went to a park other than DHS today.

- and apparently the lobby bathrooms too! Stay tuned for an update

Long time lurker subbing into your pretrippy. Currently trying to convince my hubby it is time for us to return. So like you were I am currently trying to live vicarously through everyone elses trip and pre trip reports.

Thank you for coming out of lurkdom and welcome!!!! It stinks when you don't have a trip booked, believe me I know! My DH keeps asking me when we have to cancel by- I told him we needed to cancel by yesterday - he is not getting out of this one!

 

[disneylovin24]

Sorry, but they got upgraded because it was crowded

 

[scooby9932]

That's awesome news! POR is great! We stay there just about every trip & really love it.

Just out of curiosity - I'm super surprised the CM would change a reservation without talking to the person whose name the reservation was in, though? Did I read that correctly? Not that I have a problem with you being able to help your mom, I really don't. But it just kind of struck me as a security issue. I wouldn't want anyone but me to be able to make changes to my reservation...a bit of paranoia on my part, I guess?

Anyhoo - it sounds like you got your DM & DS a great upgrade! Congrats!

 

[andrews1ma]

Sorry, but they got upgraded because it was crowded

My mom said crowded is an understatement! It was also due to the noise level- like I said she is used to the noises at Values. The walls are thin, etc... but she said it was beyond acceptable. There were people going in and out of rooms all night. She did not sleep at all. The CM was really understanding as there was a sort of mix up with their original resort. And honestly I think she may have been kind of fibbed too- when a cm at All Star Sports told her she could not stay in the requested buildings 7 or 10 as they were being rehabbed. I don't believe this to be true. Like I have said we have never complained in all the years going to Disney.

I just spoke to them and they are so super happy at POR- of course! But they would have been just as happy at their original choice of All Star Sports if things didn't get mixed up from the beginning.

That's awesome news! POR is great! We stay there just about every trip & really love it.

Just out of curiosity - I'm super surprised the CM would change a reservation without talking to the person whose name the reservation was in, though? Did I read that correctly? Not that I have a problem with you being able to help your mom, I really don't. But it just kind of struck me as a security issue. I wouldn't want anyone but me to be able to make changes to my reservation...a bit of paranoia on my part, I guess?

Anyhoo - it sounds like you got your DM & DS a great upgrade! Congrats!

Actually my mom had to go to the front desk to speak with the CM before they would officially do anything to change the reservation. I hear ya on the security issue and was a little bit concerned- but since I had all of her information that I could verify- and she did not give me any information about them. All is sorted out and they are so super happy. I will update later.

I am sure I will get a little flack- nobody likes a complainer, but I heard the unhappiness in my mom's voice and at least wanted to try and do something. Lord only knows how much money that woman has spent in the last three years at Disney- and like I said- has never complained once. And I will say that even the Cm helping me completely understood where I was coming from- she saw it first hand when she got to work this morning and couldnt get into the ladies room!

 

[MeMom]

I can give you a little idea where they are.

 

[andrews1ma]

So I knew that posting all the details might get me some flack. I just want to say that in all the years, staying in all levels of Disney resorts, we have never, ever complained. The only reason I called Disney was to see if there was any way that they could switch my mom and Andrew back to All Star Sports in a closer building to the buses. The sweetest CM ever took my call and was sooo helpful. She was the one who actually suggested trying to upgrade them to a moderate as she said all of the values were booked solid with tour groups. This was her suggestion and we even offered to pay the difference. She said that her manager cleared it so that my mom did not have to pay anything. I thought that was the best pixie dust ever! We will most definitely be writing a nice letter on her behalf and make sure that the powers that be at Disney know that this CM went above and beyond to help us out.

The outcome of all of this is that my mom and Andrew are now checked in at Port Orleans Resort and are super HAPPY!!!! She said she is looking forward to a good nights sleep so they can start the day early and head over to Andrew's favorite park, Magic Kingdom.

For all of the POR fans - she is in building 15 and said it is a great location. We have never been to that resort, not even to tour it so I am so excited to see the pictures that Andrew takes.

 

[scooby9932]

Actually my mom had to go to the front desk to speak with the CM before they would officially do anything to change the reservation. I hear ya on the security issue and was a little bit concerned- but since I had all of her information that I could verify- and she did not give me any information about them. All is sorted out and they are so super happy. I will update later.

Well, that's good news! I'm sorry if it seemed like I was picking on you - I wasn't. I just was curious about them making the changes over the phone - but since your DM had to confirm with the front desk CM, it makes perfect sense now.

I am sure I will get a little flack- nobody likes a complainer, but I heard the unhappiness in my mom's voice and at least wanted to try and do something. Lord only knows how much money that woman has spent in the last three years at Disney- and like I said- has never complained once. And I will say that even the Cm helping me completely understood where I was coming from- she saw it first hand when she got to work this morning and couldnt get into the ladies room!

I hope you didn't think I was giving you flack! I promise I wasn't. I'm glad you were able to help your mom! Not being able to sleep due to noise would be a serious Disney downer for me, too. Crowds are one thing, but not getting any sleep because of noise until 3 a.m. is a whole other thing!

I'm so happy they like POR. I hope their trip continues with lots of magic & pixie dust!

 

[disneylovin24]

My mom said crowded is an understatement! It was also due to the noise level- like I said she is used to the noises at Values. The walls are thin, etc... but she said it was beyond acceptable. There were people going in and out of rooms all night. She did not sleep at all. The CM was really understanding as there was a sort of mix up with their original resort. And honestly I think she may have been kind of fibbed too- when a cm at All Star Sports told her she could not stay in the requested buildings 7 or 10 as they were being rehabbed. I don't believe this to be true. Like I have said we have never complained in all the years going to Disney.

I just spoke to them and they are so super happy at POR- of course! But they would have been just as happy at their original choice of All Star Sports if things didn't get mixed up from the beginning.



!

That's great that they got an upgrade, but what about all of the other vacationers being bothered by the crowds and noise that didn't feel like complaining would help. When I go to disney I expect crowds and at value resorts, you get what you pay for. In my opinion, it wasn't something to complain about, but that's just me

 

[andrews1ma]

I can give you a little idea where they are.

Ok this place is dreamy! Now I want to hop a plane and meet them there. They do have a room with a trundle bed . Thank you for posting those pictures.. I love them! Now I can picture them walking around that beautiful resort, relaxed and happy to be in Disney. Oh and I think the weather has cleared up too.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Port Orleans is a fabulous resort, and I am so glad the CM was able to change your mom and Andrew over to there. Really, when you pay Disney prices, you want to be able to sleep at night. This is just another reason that I love Disney -- they have the best customer service.

 

[andrews1ma]

I hope you didn't think I was giving you flack! I promise I wasn't. I'm glad you were able to help your mom! Not being able to sleep due to noise would be a serious Disney downer for me, too. Crowds are one thing, but not getting any sleep because of noise until 3 a.m. is a whole other thing!

I'm so happy they like POR. I hope their trip continues with lots of magic & pixie dust!

No not at all... thank you for the kind wishes!

The problem right now is that all the values are booked solid so there is no where to move should there be a problem. They are completely thrilled and my mom will be sending a very nice letter to the CM's manager to let her know that she thought what they did for her was completely above and beyond what she expected.

 

[andrews1ma]

Happily moving this little TR within a PTR right along....

I spoke with them several times during the day which was fun. I could hear Disney sounds in the back ground

They arrived at DHS at about 10:20 am and followed my explicit instructions to hit up TSM first! I was really worried that they weren't going to get on this ride due to their tardiness. Neither of them have been on this yet so they had no idea what to expect. They ended up just doing stand-by which was 40 minutes and forgoing the fastpass which had a return time of 6:30pm. They loved the theming in the waiting area, and since it was raining said that being in a covered queue worked out great. They had a blast on the ride! Andrew said his Gran was spazzing out and didn't know how to work the shooter on TSM. She is a sharp shooter over at Buzz but couldn't figure this one out. Their scores were pathetically low- he couldn't remember the exact score and thought I was a little cukoo for asking him. I told him that the Dis folks would want to know!

After TSM they did Muppets 3D, American Idol, and a few others. They also ate at SCI-FI. Andrew had the pizza and he said it was ok. My mom got the Reuben and she said it was pretty good. They both had milkshakes which were yumm!

He is not a big thrill ride kid so they didn't to TOT or RNR. Out of all the things that they did today, they both loved American Idol the best. They are both fans of the show and thought this was a blast. They left at about 4:00pm to go get the resort thing sorted out but said that they were happy with what they were able to do at DHS,

Tonight they are dining at the resort as they are on the quick service plan. Tomorrow they are heading to MK- which is Andrew's fave, mine too! They said the crowds weren't too bad either.

 

[nowellsl]

We were there a little over a week ago and encountered the tour groups in the parks! The were well behaved when we saw them, but there were so many of them it was crazy! We were at POP and didn't see the large groups there. I've never seen it so crowded in January and have to say I was somewhat disappointed. Not at all like the last few years we've been during the same time frame. I think it's great that they got moved! Noise is one thing, but carrying on half the night and having no consideration for the people trying to sleep would really burn me up

 

[andrews1ma]

Port Orleans is a fabulous resort, and I am so glad the CM was able to change your mom and Andrew over to there. Really, when you pay Disney prices, you want to be able to sleep at night. This is just another reason that I love Disney -- they have the best customer service.

I agree!

They are now walking around the resort taking it all in, and hopefully taking pics too! I have to keep reminding them, take pictures, take pictures. I am so not my mothers child- she doesn't even own a camera! They had to take Andrew's camera with them .

 

[andrews1ma]

We were there a little over a week ago and encountered the tour groups in the parks! The were well behaved when we saw them, but there were so many of them it was crazy! We were at POP and didn't see the large groups there. I've never seen it so crowded in January and have to say I was somewhat disappointed. Not at all like the last few years we've been during the same time frame. I think it's great that they got moved! Noise is one thing, but carrying on half the night and having no consideration for the people trying to sleep would really burn me up

My mom is a value resort girl- she is so low maintenance. This is I think their 4th or 5th trip at a value and she said she has never experienced anything like it. She did ask about possibly moving to Pop but they were also booked solid. My mom did say that DHS was not overly crowded, but by the looks of things a the MK bus stop- I am sure that it was crowded over there!! They are headed to MK tomorrow so I am curious to what the crowds will be like?

I am glad all worked out for them and I know they are loving exploring the new resort!

 

[amartinwagner]

We stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside once it was really nice. Can't wait to see the pictures when they get back.

 

[andrews1ma]

Andrew called bright and early this morning!

He said " hey mom, do you know what today is? " I said it's your MK day- woohoo! Then he said" Besides that". Uh oh? I had no clue? ....well apparently exactly 3 years ago today we brought home our newest little member of the family, Oliver!

I swear that kid remembers the most random things! Not school related things but more like: Who threw the touchdown pass to win super bowl yadda yadda, who hit a home run in 1993 to win the Word Series, etc....!

I never doubt him when it comes to this stuff. So I thought it would be fun to share a few pics of Oliver's first few days with his new family:


Here is is all snuggled up as it was a cold February day when we brought him home:

His First bath:

Drying off:

Storming the castle:

This is how he used to sleep with Andrew- right on top of his neck!:

and.....

Hopefully right now Andrew and Gran are seeing this:

And then heading over to save monstropolis:

and if I know my boy, he will be off to outer space to help the little aliens capture the big Evil emperor:

He may also convince his Gran to race him in one of these:

And then I do hope they visit this little corner of the kingdom before it temporarily disappears and hopefully re-appears again in it's new location:

and they must stop for a little snack after this as they will be exhausted. I hope they choose this:

mmmmm- if only we had smell-o-vision!

They will probably end up eating lunch at Pinocchio Haus, he loves eating the pizza there and watching the riders on IASW.


I posted these pics (they were from our trip in 07) because when I spoke to Andrew- he informed me that they will not be bringing a camera to the park today - they do not carry a bag and didn't want to have to worry about the camera. That is just so foreign to me! They did take lots of pics of the resort though, I know I am looking forward to seeing those!

Ok, thats all for now- going to get some chores done .

I hope everyone has a happy Wednesday, and does anyone know if the groundhog saw his shadow?????

 

[Charleston Princess]

Happy Homecoming Anniversary to Oliver -- he was such a cutie as a puppy!!!

Oh, lucky Andrew to be spending the day at the Magic Kingdom! I hope he has a blast!!!

 

[stace208]

What adorable puppy pictures!

Thanks for the MK pictures! Certainly brightened up an otherwise dreary morning!

 

[MainStMandy]

Hehe what a cute update!!!

Oh and 6 more weeks of winter