Closing Thoughts
Ok, I've finally gotten around to composing some closing thoughts I've had from our trip. Before I get to them, I'd like to thank everyone for reading along. Whether you've been posting or just lurking, thanks for taking the time and interest to read what I've had to say. If you are just lurking, don't be afraid to say hi.
We really did have an awesome trip and for the most part, everyone had a lot of fun. There were setbacks and disappointments, but that comes with the territory. As with any trip to Disney World, the positives definitely outweighed the negatives and I know we all made memories that will last forever. With that, here are a few random thoughts that I want to comment on.
ADR's: I love them and I hate them. It is fun to be planning the trip 6+ months out, but I hate having to lock in ADR's so far out, especially for a group as large as ours. We had a few changes that we wanted to make and it just became nearly impossible to do anything. Sure, I could have kept checking and trying to get it done even a day or 2 before, but by that time I was already on vacation and ADR stalking wasn't something I wanted to have to deal with. I just really hope this new Fast Pass system doesn't suck the fun out of planning the way locking in ADR's can sometimes.
Traveling with Extended Family: It isn't always a disaster. Truthfully, we take a trip with my wife's family about every 2 years to Gatlinburg and since 2008, we've been going to WDW with my family every 4 years. I hope these patterns continue, because we really do have a great time on all of these trips. And everyone tends to get along really well and enjoy a lot of the same things, so I'm sure that helps exponentially.
The New Fantasyland: I'll be honest. When this project was first announced, I wasn't excited.
I wanted to see the next big expensive project to be a new thrill ride or something epic to add to the experience at DHS or AK. A new Fantasyland dark ride and a restaurant didn't exactly excite me. Especially when it was coming at the expense of Toon Town.
Having been there to experience the new Fantasyland first hand, it restores my faith and hope for the future of Disney imagineering. They did an excellent job and now that I've seen the (partially) finished product, I love it. I really hope that Iger will come around to the idea of putting more capital towards new attractions in the park, because even though every year that passes is one year farther removed from Walt Disney, the imagineers still seem to have that ability to channel his creativity and make an experience that just captivates everyone.
And as they say the quickest way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Be Our Guest might have played a significant role in my change in attitude.
Pushing a Double Stroller: Kind of a play on the first PTR I wrote titled "I'll Never go to Disney World Pushing a Stroller." I always remember going to Disney World and seeing those poor suckers trying to get through the crowds with a stroller and dealing with whiny kids. I always thought there's no way they could be having fun and their kids are too young to enjoy it anyway. Since that experience, I've been an advocate of taking younger kids. Anytime a friend mentions going to WDW in a few years, I always point out the fact that they can save a lot of money by going before the child is 3. I love the fact that this time DS was a month away from being 3 so he really took it all in and had a blast... and didn't cost us a dime! Now having that second one around... well that made it a little more complicated. I'm glad that we had some extra hands to help us out. Dad not being able to or wanting to ride most rides was a huge help to let the rest of us get a lot done, but I really do feel bad that he spent so much time sitting over in the shade somewhere. I know he loved the time with the grandkids, but I really feel like he was missing out to a degree.
Pop Warner: Obviously this was one of the biggest negatives on this trip. As many have said, they aren't bad in the parks. If you plan a trip during Pop Warner week, don't be discouraged at all. However, if you're booked at a resort and a month or 2 before your trip, it is announced as a host resort for Pop Warner... RUN!!!!
Don't ask questions, just book a different resort. You'll thank me later.
Food Allergies: As I discussed earlier, this was a huge disappointment for us. Disney has a reputation for being so good with food allergies, but it is clear that there is something lacking with the way they handle it at quick service places. It was bad enough that Sis missed a couple of days in the parks and
MVMCP, but it could have been much worse. I appreciate the reply from DIsney and the fact that they give Sis and BiL a ticket to use later, but then again, they got two 1 day tickets to make up for 2 park days she missed, an MVMCP they both missed, and several meals that didn't get used on the days she was sick. That said, we weren't asking for anything back from Disney, but hopefully they'll at least take action to make sure that kind of thing doesn't happen in the future. That was our biggest concern.
All of the Diser's: I want to thank all of you who have shared ideas with me over the past couple of years, either by replying to my PTR/TR's or by sharing new ideas with me in yours. I've learned a lot of neat tricks and ideas on these boards and it is the little tips and tricks that really help to make the trip a little bit better. I've seen and done some new things that I'd never thought of because of all of you. Thank you!
And as for our next trip...
Well after a little further consideration we won't be going to Disney World in 2013. We looked at a week in June when DW's sister will be there, but it just didn't work out really well. We liked some of the discounts available during that week and I have to admit, I was really, really excited about the idea of going during Star Wars weekends. In the end though, June isn't a great time to go since spring planting could potentially run that late for us. And right now it isn't exactly shaping up to be an early or even on time spring. We had considered going back in December again this year too, but in the end we decided to just wait until 2014.
When we sat down and priced everything out and started talking about it we made this decision for a few reasons.
1. DS was 36" at the time of this trip. Right now he is 37" and we will have to pay for his tickets. We really want him to be able to do more things if we're going to have to buy a ticket for him. If we do Nov/Dec 2014, he'll be almost
5. Hopefully he'll be tall enough to ride a few more rides and old enough to get more out of the experience. Also, DD will be 2 1/2, so she'll still be "free" and hopefully will be into it the way DS was this time.
2. We can do our beach trip for just a little bit cheaper than Disney. With the year we had on the farm last year, saving some money, even if a marginal amount is a good thing. We're also going to buy a few Disney gift cards over the course of the next year and a half or so to go towards our next trip.
3. The week that was being considered for our beach trip coincides with a weekend that the Reds will be playing in Atlanta. So if DW gets her beach, I get to make a slight detour on the way to see my Reds play in another ball park.
So with that all said, we're planning a July trip to Panama City Beach. We'll be driving with a detour through Atlanta for a baseball game and enjoy a few days on the beach at the hotel that DW and I went to for our honeymoon in 2008.
Again, thanks to everyone for reading along, and I do plan to stay around these boards, even though it doesn't look like we're going back for quite a while. I hope to stay in touch with everyone through your TR's/PTR's. For those of you who send a PM when you start one, I appreciate it, if you don't send one, don't be afraid to. I'm sometimes a little slow to leave my list of subscribed threads and see what new ones have been started.