YesterDark
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 4, 2017
The Pre-Ramble
It's been a tiring stretch over the last few years. I've got a soon to be 6 year old daughter, a soon to be 4 year old son and a recently turned 1 year old daughter. We're going in August, from the 8th to the 14th, and this story started more than four years ago.
Growing up, my family went Disney a few times in the late 80s and early 90s. Just two or three times before I was a teenager. After that, Disney didn't really have a hold on me more than anything else. The Disney Renaissance of the 1990s was great, but it was great for nearly everyone. However, Disney became a distant memory as I graduated high school, collage, started a career and got married. Then in 2015 my crazy sister who bought into DVC at the ripe old age of 21 and a decade later invited the whole family down in 2015.
I contribute to to the site and one of the articles I wrote was based on my own experiences and transferring nostalgia and creating new memories. This is where our real story starts. In 2015 I went down with my wife and two kids, a 2 year old daughter and a 8 month old son to Old Key West for a week. I went down not knowing anything, no planning, and walked into Animal Kingdom the first day looking for a map and figuring out what was in the park. The next day we were in the Magic Kingdom and all of the sudden my childhood hit me in the face like a brick and brought a giant smile to my face.
Soon the smile turned into something different as my Disney princess obsessed daughter saw her fantasies come to life in front of here and that where my love of Disney was born. Two years later I planned a trip, quite expertly I might add you, in August of 2017 with my then pregnant wife.
Quick service announcement for all you Disney Dads or Soon-to-be-Dads, proceed with extreme caution when doing a Disney vacation in August with a pregnant wife. Extreme. Caution.
Fast forward another year and a half and here we are. Ready to go back and the wife and I with a 6, 4 and 1.5 year old in toe go back home. This time, it'll be with my mom who hasn't been since the 2015 trip where she caught a bit of the Disney bug, and I've since infected her with it even more.
I don't think I have to explain to anyone reading this about Disney, the Bubble and the sense of coming Home. For us, it's being there, with the family, no worries in sight and just having a magical time.
The Pre-Booking Phase
I've got an article waiting for publication that explains what we all go through. It talks about the cycle of the Disney Vacation. After you come home from Disney you're still trying to adjust back to reality. You then transition to reality for a while then all of the sudden you know you're about to book a trip and you get excited but not too excited. Then, unceremoniously you book the trip and you're off to races planning your trip.
I know I was going to be going again this year and I figured I would be booking some time this spring when some of the promotions are typically released. But what does Disney do? Randomly drop summer time promotions right after the new year. I typically don't book 6 months to a year out for a number of reasons, but here we are.
It's pretty nuts. I've gone from one mindset to the next. I'm now in planning mode with a trip just on the horizon. But if you're a crazy planner like me, your trip is almost planned out already. So much for that pre-booking phase where you feel like animal in a cage ready to be set free.
The Cast, the Trip, the Plan (for now)
The Cast: Grammy, Mom, Dad, Daughter 6, Son 4 and Daughter 1.5
The Trip: August 8th-14th
The Package: Free Dining (DDP) and 6 Day Hoppers
The Resort: Port Orleans Riverside
The 180 Day Mark: Feb 9th
The 60 Day Mark: June 9th
Why the Dining Plan vs. Room Discount?
With our kids, we love the character dining. It gives us a few hours out of the heat and off our feet. Our kids love it and it's a great experience. Doing all these character meals, makes the dining plan a wash for us in terms of savings. We're the type that really value the peace of mind that comes with pre-paid food and not have to worry about that cost on vacation. I've written about it if you want to read more of my opinions. I can discuss in this thread if you like!
The room discount really didn't give us the savings we were looking for. No deluxe resorts this time.
Why Port Orleans Riverside?
It was the only resort available that at the price point we were looking at. We were originally going to book at Caribbean Beach Resort, but a week later it was booked up. Our choices are limited, so we have to stick with the 5th Sleeper room. We only sleep in the room, so we'll take the cramped space for now.
Why the Summer?
We have booked in the fall before, but we couldn't pass up the deal this year and take advantage of what could probably be the last Free Dining promotion with the 50th and SWGE on the horizon. My wife is also a teacher and our daughter will be starting 1st grade later this year. I'm not taking her out of school just yet, plus my wife couldn't go anyway!
Something to note: First time park hopper user here!
We'll be having hoppers for the first time this trip. I'm typically adamant against using them because it could be quite difficult to get all the gear and kids on to a bus and make the switch, not to mention the time wasted on a bus. But I think we're going to make a try of it this year, because we've got them.
The Outline
So here we are. The planning practically does itself. The real planning comes when we can confirm ADRs and restaurant times, but here's our outline of what we'd like to do. My trips always begin and end with the Magic Kingdom. We want to do all four parks, but we definitely do not want to do more than two park days in a row. We're rope droppers, so we need some rest time.
You'll see what ADRs I'm going to target and which days we're going to some parks. A few things that are in the air are what park to hit up the first day we arrive and whether or not we'll park hop from AK to HS.
Normally I would have purchased four tickets, but we've got 6 since the price isn't much different. So I'm now excited to do something different. Hit up a park every day, but only go in the evening on two days and not feel pressured to make something of it. I know if I can get Ohana, that we'll be in the MK to leisurely stroll up and down Main Street, hit up a few attractions maybe and do some shopping.
Why Hollywood Studios? Well my son loves Cars, so I want to see the new show (we did a full HS day a few years ago). I would also like to take him on Star Tours since he was too small last time. I'd like to get the family to Toy Story Land too. If we can get that done in a few hours the first day, great! If not, I'm considering doing an AK/HS day. We'll see what can become accomplished and I'll know more once we do fastpasses. I'm itching to get on FoP, so we'll see what the day brings us then.
That's all I got for now, can't wait to get more details, but the next 6 months are going to be fun. I love planning and I love the anticipation almost as much as the trip itself. Sharpen your spreadsheets folks, because if you end up following this thread, you'll see me tweaking the plan all the way up to August 14th.
Just as an aside: I did not plan on these dates because of the Disunplugged Party! It was a coincidence. My small kids could not stay up that late and I would not leave my family behind to attend. I'm looking forward to seeing when the other events are and perhaps showing up to one of those if I'm nearby.
It's been a tiring stretch over the last few years. I've got a soon to be 6 year old daughter, a soon to be 4 year old son and a recently turned 1 year old daughter. We're going in August, from the 8th to the 14th, and this story started more than four years ago.
Growing up, my family went Disney a few times in the late 80s and early 90s. Just two or three times before I was a teenager. After that, Disney didn't really have a hold on me more than anything else. The Disney Renaissance of the 1990s was great, but it was great for nearly everyone. However, Disney became a distant memory as I graduated high school, collage, started a career and got married. Then in 2015 my crazy sister who bought into DVC at the ripe old age of 21 and a decade later invited the whole family down in 2015.
I contribute to to the site and one of the articles I wrote was based on my own experiences and transferring nostalgia and creating new memories. This is where our real story starts. In 2015 I went down with my wife and two kids, a 2 year old daughter and a 8 month old son to Old Key West for a week. I went down not knowing anything, no planning, and walked into Animal Kingdom the first day looking for a map and figuring out what was in the park. The next day we were in the Magic Kingdom and all of the sudden my childhood hit me in the face like a brick and brought a giant smile to my face.
Soon the smile turned into something different as my Disney princess obsessed daughter saw her fantasies come to life in front of here and that where my love of Disney was born. Two years later I planned a trip, quite expertly I might add you, in August of 2017 with my then pregnant wife.
Quick service announcement for all you Disney Dads or Soon-to-be-Dads, proceed with extreme caution when doing a Disney vacation in August with a pregnant wife. Extreme. Caution.
Fast forward another year and a half and here we are. Ready to go back and the wife and I with a 6, 4 and 1.5 year old in toe go back home. This time, it'll be with my mom who hasn't been since the 2015 trip where she caught a bit of the Disney bug, and I've since infected her with it even more.
I don't think I have to explain to anyone reading this about Disney, the Bubble and the sense of coming Home. For us, it's being there, with the family, no worries in sight and just having a magical time.
The Pre-Booking Phase
I've got an article waiting for publication that explains what we all go through. It talks about the cycle of the Disney Vacation. After you come home from Disney you're still trying to adjust back to reality. You then transition to reality for a while then all of the sudden you know you're about to book a trip and you get excited but not too excited. Then, unceremoniously you book the trip and you're off to races planning your trip.
I know I was going to be going again this year and I figured I would be booking some time this spring when some of the promotions are typically released. But what does Disney do? Randomly drop summer time promotions right after the new year. I typically don't book 6 months to a year out for a number of reasons, but here we are.
It's pretty nuts. I've gone from one mindset to the next. I'm now in planning mode with a trip just on the horizon. But if you're a crazy planner like me, your trip is almost planned out already. So much for that pre-booking phase where you feel like animal in a cage ready to be set free.
The Cast, the Trip, the Plan (for now)
The Cast: Grammy, Mom, Dad, Daughter 6, Son 4 and Daughter 1.5
The Trip: August 8th-14th
The Package: Free Dining (DDP) and 6 Day Hoppers
The Resort: Port Orleans Riverside
The 180 Day Mark: Feb 9th
The 60 Day Mark: June 9th
Why the Dining Plan vs. Room Discount?
With our kids, we love the character dining. It gives us a few hours out of the heat and off our feet. Our kids love it and it's a great experience. Doing all these character meals, makes the dining plan a wash for us in terms of savings. We're the type that really value the peace of mind that comes with pre-paid food and not have to worry about that cost on vacation. I've written about it if you want to read more of my opinions. I can discuss in this thread if you like!
The room discount really didn't give us the savings we were looking for. No deluxe resorts this time.
Why Port Orleans Riverside?
It was the only resort available that at the price point we were looking at. We were originally going to book at Caribbean Beach Resort, but a week later it was booked up. Our choices are limited, so we have to stick with the 5th Sleeper room. We only sleep in the room, so we'll take the cramped space for now.
Why the Summer?
We have booked in the fall before, but we couldn't pass up the deal this year and take advantage of what could probably be the last Free Dining promotion with the 50th and SWGE on the horizon. My wife is also a teacher and our daughter will be starting 1st grade later this year. I'm not taking her out of school just yet, plus my wife couldn't go anyway!
Something to note: First time park hopper user here!
We'll be having hoppers for the first time this trip. I'm typically adamant against using them because it could be quite difficult to get all the gear and kids on to a bus and make the switch, not to mention the time wasted on a bus. But I think we're going to make a try of it this year, because we've got them.
The Outline
So here we are. The planning practically does itself. The real planning comes when we can confirm ADRs and restaurant times, but here's our outline of what we'd like to do. My trips always begin and end with the Magic Kingdom. We want to do all four parks, but we definitely do not want to do more than two park days in a row. We're rope droppers, so we need some rest time.
You'll see what ADRs I'm going to target and which days we're going to some parks. A few things that are in the air are what park to hit up the first day we arrive and whether or not we'll park hop from AK to HS.
Normally I would have purchased four tickets, but we've got 6 since the price isn't much different. So I'm now excited to do something different. Hit up a park every day, but only go in the evening on two days and not feel pressured to make something of it. I know if I can get Ohana, that we'll be in the MK to leisurely stroll up and down Main Street, hit up a few attractions maybe and do some shopping.
Why Hollywood Studios? Well my son loves Cars, so I want to see the new show (we did a full HS day a few years ago). I would also like to take him on Star Tours since he was too small last time. I'd like to get the family to Toy Story Land too. If we can get that done in a few hours the first day, great! If not, I'm considering doing an AK/HS day. We'll see what can become accomplished and I'll know more once we do fastpasses. I'm itching to get on FoP, so we'll see what the day brings us then.
That's all I got for now, can't wait to get more details, but the next 6 months are going to be fun. I love planning and I love the anticipation almost as much as the trip itself. Sharpen your spreadsheets folks, because if you end up following this thread, you'll see me tweaking the plan all the way up to August 14th.
Just as an aside: I did not plan on these dates because of the Disunplugged Party! It was a coincidence. My small kids could not stay up that late and I would not leave my family behind to attend. I'm looking forward to seeing when the other events are and perhaps showing up to one of those if I'm nearby.
