Operation Transformation: From Disney hater to Disney lover

[Tink0812]

Hello all and thank you for joining me on what is promising to be a wild ride! This is my second trip report on the Dis and I am excited to get it started. So here it goes....

Who: Amber (me) and Warren (my husband)
What: A Disney trip dedicated to turning my Disney hating husband into a Disney lover
When: October 13th-19th 2013
Where: Coronado Springs


Introductions:



DH and I were married on August 11th, 2012 after being together for almost six years. He is 23 and will be 24 at the end of this month and I am 22 and will be 23 by the time we go on the trip. This will be my fourteenth trip to the World and will only be his third or fourth (he can't remember). He is convinced that he hates Disney. Now, before everyone gets all offended, the last time he went he was like 12 years old. His family is not one for planning thus they always went during the busy time of year and stayed off site. Plus Disney has changed A LOT since then. I have finally talked him into going and giving it a try again so I am putting a lot of thought, love, and care into planning this trip to turn him into a Disney fanatic.

My Favs:
- Resort: Wilderness Lodge
- Park: Magic Kingdom (although Epcot is growing on me)
- Character: Tinkerbell
- Restaurant: Whispering Canyon Cafe
- Ride: Soarin'

His Favs:
- Resort: He has never stayed in one
- Park: Epcot from what he remembers in his childhood
- Character: Peter Pan
- Restaurant: He does not remember eating at any Disney restaurants
- Ride: He doesn't have one

DH has a very sad list! It will be interesting to see how this changes after the trip!


Why October you ask? Well, my husband is in training for the Army reserve and will not return until late August. We originally discussed going in April/May of 2014 but I just couldn't wait that long Also, I wanted to give the food and wine festival a try since I have never been during that time.

Mode of transportation: My family has always drove the 16-18 hours to the World and I have come to enjoy the ride. It adds to the thrill of vacation! My dad made a good point though, right now there are only two of us and it would cost just as much if not less to fly as compared to the gas money, extra food money, and extra hotels that we would have to pay for to drive down there. And he was right! It only cost about $600 round trip to fly from STL to MCO (I guess I should let you know that we live in Central Illinois). We will then board the Magical Express to Coronado Springs!

Why Coronado Springs? My bucket list includes staying at each and every Disney resort prior to me parting this world (which won't be for many many years I hope). Thus far I have stayed at Port Orleans, Caribbean Beach, All Star Movies, Music, and Sports, Pop Century, Wilderness Lodge, and Animal Kingdom Lodge. I really wanted to stay at AoA; however, I think that would be better saved for when we have children some day. I wanted my husband to get the experience of staying in a Disney resort without being overwhelmed by all things Disney. Thus after advice from the disers on here, Coronado Springs it is!

We currently have six day park hopper tickets (I wouldn't have it any other way) with the deluxe dining plan. We could have gotten away with five day tickets but there was practically no cost difference and just means that we have to spend another day at Disney I have never used a dining plan before but decided to because it would be hard for us to decide how much money to allot for food (my husband can eat....a lot). My parents recently went on an extended weekend trip to the World which included the deluxe dining plan. After getting the run down from them, it sounds like it would be a perfect fit and I'm willing to try something new.

Plans thus far:

Sunday October 13th: Fly out of St. Louis airport at 6:10am and arrive in Orlando around noon. Check in to Coronado Springs and spend the afternoon at DTD and the Boardwalk with dinner/drinks at Raglan Road that night.

I have yet to plan the week as I am waiting until I can make dinner reservations and see the EMH which is sometime in May.

Saturday October 19th: Character breakfast of some sort. Check out of Coronado Springs and fly out of MCO at 2:22pm arriving back in STL around 06:30pm.

[Tigger's ally]

I'm bumping this because I approve of this message.

Hope you have a great time Tink!

Don't worry about your DH. I have been on many trips with you and I am sure he will see the light about the greatest place on earth and be thrilled to be there with you. My over under is at 60% that you might just end up back there next May anyways. If your mother and I wouldn't have two college sons sucking the money out of us, we would be there in the fall too!