"You want to ride Dinosaur again?" - New 10/21 - The End!

[DisMomAmy]

Oh boy...that really is a dilemma! I am a BIG fan of the Olympics...summer or winter so I would miss being a part of that. But it IS Disney...ugh!

I never had very good luck with Dings on Southwest, but found that the fare seemed to be the best right around 4 months out. Have you looked at a site called farecast.com? It will let you know whether the flight is likely to go up or down in price. It's not available for all markets and I'm not sure they include Southwest, but it would give you an idea of the trends. I've found it to be fairly accurate.

I agree that flying Southwest is the most convenient with a family...that luggage fee is really a big deal when you have kids and all their stuff to transport!

I love the weather at Disney in April so that is always a big plus for that time of year for me. AND...the Flower and Garden Festival is always beautiful.

I'm afraid I'm not tons of help! But.....I'm so excited for you that you are planning a trip! I have NO idea when we'll be able to get back. Jeff and I are thinking of a cruise to the Bahamas this spring to celebrate our 40th birthdays, but the boys are talking about a Disney trip. I don't think WDW is going to happen in 2010, but maybe we can shoot for 2011!

I'll be interested to find out what you decide!

Thanks Missy! Glad to hear you & Jeff have some plans to celebrate your 40th birthdays!

For me, the deciding factor would be the weather. April in Florida is hotter than I enjoy so I would much prefer February. But, that's just my preference.

Another trip - how exciting!

The weather IN Florida is one reason we would want to go during that time - especially for Tim. The weather up north and how it could impact travel is one reason we haven't traveled during February break.

OH HOW fun! How EXCITING! I would say to try a different holiday season. Why not? It seems that you have good reasons for both, and I am sure April weather would be nice, but I hear you about the time so close to summer... Would there be good discounts in Feb vs. April? Or the other way around? IF these are school holiday weeks, then I would say Feb vs. April... I got the impression that spring break weeks are crazy....

Good airfare prices regardless .... Didn't I read from another TR or PTR that if the fare goes down they will give you the credit difference? SW air AND Jet Blue?

Maybe I am wrong about that... anyone else know?

LOVED your other updates, though!!!! Great dining recap, and I think you have some good plans... I would say to try WCC again - it was one of our favorites this summer...

Yes - You can get a credit on Southwest if the rate goes down... one reason I should have remembered to book the two flights separately... oops! I'll have to go back and see if I can fix that.

Without knowing the exact dates that you are looking at....I'd say Feb vacation. But don't count on Southwest prices out of Manchester that week to drop. Is it worth it to even look at Logan? Southwest will be flying out of there by then if they haven't already. My only other suggestion would be to fly mid-week...maybe Thursday to Thursday. Oh and isn't the buy 4 get 3 deal good until March at the Disney resorts??

I was hoping you would show up to help me Heidi! I will do everything in my power to avoid Logan. Parking is more expensive and chances are slim we could have someone drive us/pick us up. DMIL did that for us last time but she had to drive our minivan and I can't imagine asking her to do that at Logan.

And yes - Buy 4/Get 3 would apply to February vacation, but not April... but I already gave away that we would be staying off-site this time...

 

[DisMomAmy]

I'm holding the same position as last year, ironically also about the weather-I've had too many February vacations cut shoirt due to snow in NE, that I prefer April.

That definitely concerns me... The February flights aren't direct so we would have to stop in Phili both directions - which doubles the chances of running into weather issues!

Well it's a coin toss for me.

On the one hand, I'd pick April b/c it would be warmer. Feb had some nice days and some chilly ones! It was also insanely crowded for us but it would really depend on your exact days, we were there before and after President's day.

On the other hand, I get the April being too close to summer factor, if I did April I'd move summer plans towards the end of summer if possible. And depending on the dates you would get flower and garden? right?

However, for me the deciding factor would be promo's on the rooms, if buy 4 get 3 is good for all your dates than it is just a matter of time preference. If not, go with the promo!

I don't think the flight costs seem different enough to have those be a factor.

Not much help.

The flight costs are similar but the Feb flights aren't direct. Traveling is tough enough for us flying direct... but the kids might be ready?

Our vacation weeks are the last weeks of the month - later than most other schools.

Oh boy, that's a tough one Amy. . . I found this time around that the SW rates did nothing but go up after they were released. I waited and waited for them to go down and they never did. Nor did I ever see a Ding between PITT and MCO, which is odd. So I would say to book early. They will credit you if the rate does drop (well, you have to do it, they are not going to tell you), but that credit is only good for 1 year from the original date of purchase.

As for February or April. . . . I don't know!! I would do the research and go when it is expected to be least busy.

Good luck!

I just put the "credit" thing to good use... I rebooked our flights so they would be under two separate one-way confirmation numbers in case we had to change just one leg. We had a problem trying to re-book in 2007 because we added a day but the return flight had gone up in price - I think we had to eat the difference.

Ooohhh the suspense!!

Sorry I've been MIA most of your TR, but I thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.

I'd go with Feb. I love going during that time of year.

I, too, will be there the 5-18 and will be missing some of the Olympics, but since the Games are in Vancouver, it will be completely possible that some major events will be on West Coast Time...so PERHAPS, hockey, skiing, ice skating will be on at 7-8pm West Coast time 10-11pm EST which means that you can have a full day at the parks and come home and watch some things...I'm banking on that for my trip.....

Good luck with the decision....

Hi Jordan - You are back just in time for me to finish up and book a new trip!!

I hear what you are saying about the Olympics!

I hear you on the pro's cons! For us right now, with the older kids, having access to EMH outweighs the sleeping space issue but it will be interesting to see how it goes. I really hope we get connecting rooms so the younger ones can go down earlier. I hate sitting on the bed in the dark, waiting for them to crash!

That said, now that they are older, they can be up later and that helps a LOT.

I am going to miss having a kitchen but we will see if my tree house sacrifice (to make my MIL happy) was worth it!

We did a house one year and all that space was fabulous!

EMHs aren't a factor for us either way - maybe when the kids are older, but we avoid the parks that are having EMH like the plague even when we stayed onsite! They are just so much more crowded.

 

[eandesmom]

The flight costs are similar but the Feb flights aren't direct. Traveling is tough enough for us flying direct... but the kids might be ready?

Our vacation weeks are the last weeks of the month - later than most other schools.

EMHs aren't a factor for us either way - maybe when the kids are older, but we avoid the parks that are having EMH like the plague even when we stayed onsite! They are just so much more crowded.

Direct is best, all depends on how long the overall flight time is. Your kids might be ok, it's the getting checked in the first leg that's the worst for us. So much stuff!

President's day is the 15th so I know for us, our break would go through the weekend of the 20th. If you are after the 20th you should be ok but we did not see it lighten up at all during our entire trip. I am also sure that buy 4 get 3 had a lot to do wiht it, it was sold out while we were there. Which...btw...if you ever do consider on site again the Fort Wilderness Cabins could be a really good size for your gang and give you the space you need.

We found that once evening EMH started, the crowds really really went down so it really saved our trip!

I love watching the Olympics! That would be tough.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Direct is best, all depends on how long the overall flight time is. Your kids might be ok, it's the getting checked in the first leg that's the worst for us. So much stuff!

President's day is the 15th so I know for us, our break would go through the weekend of the 20th. If you are after the 20th you should be ok but we did not see it lighten up at all during our entire trip. I am also sure that buy 4 get 3 had a lot to do wiht it, it was sold out while we were there. Which...btw...if you ever do consider on site again the Fort Wilderness Cabins could be a really good size for your gang and give you the space you need.

We found that once evening EMH started, the crowds really really went down so it really saved our trip!

I love watching the Olympics! That would be tough.

I have thought about FW Cabins - that may be in our future.

 

[mommytothreeboys]

Can't wait to hear about the new trip!!

 

[DisMomAmy]

So yesterday morning, after being haunted by the ghost of Southwest all night long, I got up and posted here on the DIS. Then I checked the Southwest prices and they had arleady gone up!! Every flight went up by exactly $5. I guess that's the penalty for procrastination.

I emailed Tim to tell him what had happened and he told me to just go ahead and book something so I could sleep again. (Until the week before our trip at least... )

The answer to the burning question... APRIL is the winner!

Here is what I booked:

Southwest Manchester - Tampa
Thursday, April 22nd 7:55am - 11:20am

Returning on Southwest Tampa - Manchester
Sunday, May 2nd 10:40am - 1:40pm

The return flights were cheaper out of Tampa plus that gives us the flexibility to switch things around if needed and visit family on either end of our trip.

And I've already booked a minivan for 10 days for $550! I think that's a great price since I was only finding prices over $1000 in my initial research. I used carrentalsavers.com. Of course I'll be watching those prices closely and probably re-book several times before April.

The reason we ended up with April was really about the flights. Direct filghts are important for us and the weather can be unpredictable for travel in February.

I did go back and cancel & rebook our flights as two separate itineraries in case a great rate opens up in Orlando for the return flight or in case there are other changes we want to make - we won't have to cancel both flights and risk the prices going up (which they probably will).

Right now the plan is to visit Jeff & Karen & the kids for the first weekend then check-in in Orlando on Sunday. We'll be visiting Tim's grandmother, who just turned 90, sometime during the week.

There you have it! I'll finish up this TR shortly then I'm going to take a little break for a while. I'll probably start a PTR closer to our ADR time in January... or sooner if I feel like it. We'll see...

Next... I need ADR HELP!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Can't wait to hear about the new trip!!

I posted it!! I'm so excited!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Congrats Amy!!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Congrats on booking your trip, Amy! Isn't it a wonderful feeling to know there is a Disney trip in your near future?

 

[cjackearl]

I've been missing for awhile, but I was happy to read your recaps and about your next trip!! That's so exciting!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Congrats Amy!!

Congrats on booking your trip, Amy! Isn't it a wonderful feeling to know there is a Disney trip in your near future?

I've been missing for awhile, but I was happy to read your recaps and about your next trip!! That's so exciting!

Thanks everyone - I'm off to go make myself a new ticker!!

 

[Glite]

Amy,
I am excited for you and your family that you booked a new trip. We got back from our trip Tuesday at around 6pm. We checked out of All Star Movies, went through the Mcdonald's drive thru on World Drive and started the journey home(10 hours). We stopped in Tallahassee to eat and two other times. I uploaded pictures to Kodak Gallery. DW and I would love to share them with everyone. Those who want to see them, just PM me with their email address. I figure this will be easier for now and it is a lot of pictures.

 

[Glite]

Hello again Amy and everyone. This should work; see below and click on the link to our WDW trip photos. Enjoy!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=189965190407:119829553

 

[DisMomAmy]

Amy,
I am excited for you and your family that you booked a new trip. We got back from our trip Tuesday at around 6pm. We checked out of All Star Movies, went through the Mcdonald's drive thru on World Drive and started the journey home(10 hours). We stopped in Tallahassee to eat and two other times. I uploaded pictures to Kodak Gallery. DW and I would love to share them with everyone. Those who want to see them, just PM me with their email address. I figure this will be easier for now and it is a lot of pictures.

Hello again Amy and everyone. This should work; see below and click on the link to our WDW trip photos. Enjoy!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=189965190407:119829553

Welcome back!! Thanks for sharing your photos - your boys are adorable!! Did you guys end up doing the photopass thing?? Let me know when you start your trip report.

 

[Glite]

Thank you!

Yes, thanks for the advice, we did end up doing photo pass; we got one picture with Mickey & Minnie at Mickey's House in Toon Town, one at night on Main St. with the Castle in the background. The Magic Kingdom was yellow in color when they took the picture instead of purple or blue or both like we wanted, but we know it will come out good. We missed the photo at the entrance of Epcot because DS(1) was sleeping. I was hoping to get more, but it was a short trip. We did two days at MK and one day at Epcot. I'll let you know when I do a trip report; it is a good one. The first night(Thursday) DS(1) did not want to go to sleep. I was up from 3:00-4:30am driving allover Disney Property to get him to sleep. It got better and we had a great trip.

 

[jordanyosh]

Congrats on booking it all! I KNOW it's a relief.....that airfare roulette is stressful.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Thank you!

Yes, thanks for the advice, we did end up doing photo pass; we got one picture with Mickey & Minnie at Mickey's House in Toon Town, one at night on Main St. with the Castle in the background. The Magic Kingdom was yellow in color when they took the picture instead of purple or blue or both like we wanted, but we know it will come out good. We missed the photo at the entrance of Epcot because DS(1) was sleeping. I was hoping to get more, but it was a short trip. We did two days at MK and one day at Epcot. I'll let you know when I do a trip report; it is a good one. The first night(Thursday) DS(1) did not want to go to sleep. I was up from 3:00-4:30am driving allover Disney Property to get him to sleep. It got better and we had a great trip.

Can't wait to read all about it! Sounds like quite an adventure.

Congrats on booking it all! I KNOW it's a relief.....that airfare roulette is stressful.

You aren't kidding! I'd rather pay a little more money just to get it done than to watch the airfare go up and down and lose sleep over it.

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

As I was showing him the spreadsheet and asking for his opinion, I prefaced my comments with "I'm not booking anything because we haven't even decided if we want to go..." and he said, "Who are you kidding, you know it, I know it and the rest of the world knows it, just go ahead and book it!"

...love it... I imagine this scenario plays out with more than just a few of us...


So glad the wallet situation worked itself out...

WE (dh) lost our camera the last day of our trip and I was in a total panic mode...so we reported it...and within an our they called us it was found... It gives you faith that stuff really does turn up...

 

[DisMomAmy]

As I was showing him the spreadsheet and asking for his opinion, I prefaced my comments with "I'm not booking anything because we haven't even decided if we want to go..." and he said, "Who are you kidding, you know it, I know it and the rest of the world knows it, just go ahead and book it!"

...love it... I imagine this scenario plays out with more than just a few of us...


So glad the wallet situation worked itself out...

WE (dh) lost our camera the last day of our trip and I was in a total panic mode...so we reported it...and within an our they called us it was found... It gives you faith that stuff really does turn up...

I'm glad you got your camera back!! I've heard so many great stories of lost & found successes at WDW - I'm glad you were one of them.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Dear Dis-Friends - I need help again!!

I've read a few things about ADRs switching back to 180 days on October 27th but I can't find anything official or even somewhat official. Has anyone else heard about this?? I've also heard that park hours will go back to 180 days as well... let's hope so because if that's true I need to make ADRs starting on the 27th!! And since we're staying off-property I'll need to get up early every day to make each ADR. Help!!

(I may have to get started on my PTR sooner than expected...)

I'll be back later to post some final thoughts on this TR. I have a nice quiet day home by myself today. Which is a good thing since it's SNOWING here this morning!! Only a few flakes, but it's only October!!!

Up next: Trip Recap Part 4 - Highs & Lows