***Official June 2018***

[pillowbook]

Hey fellow Junebugs! The months seem to be flying by (though not quite fast enough) Of course with waiting to book fastpases I'm second-guessing everything (hotel, transportation, food)

I know there are quite a few people going for extended trips. Do you all usually plan one table service meal a day? Or just a few you really want? I've got 4 table services planned out of nine days and I'm wondering if I should be looking for more before reservations become impossible...

 

[Monykalyn]

Of course with waiting to book fastpases I'm second-guessing everything (hotel, transportation, food)

It's a sickness! Don't do it! Seriously I know what you mean. I have a trip in 8 days and was *this close* to changing resorts. There is actually a thread about resort changers LOL!
We are going to be in Florida for 2 weeks-5 days on site, 2 days at a beach and a week in our timeshare (Marriott Cypress Harbour). Since we are at a cabin for the onsite I doubt we are doing many TS. I only have 2 right now-for La Hacienda at 7:30 (hoping for Illuminations seating) and one for LTT on a night MK usually has EMH. I pick up simple dinner/lunch/breakfast foods for the condo. The stores have the "dinner packs" where all the items for say-fajitas-is all in one package. Way cheaper than eating out and doesn't require great effort.

The QS are fine for other meals we may be in the park for us. Especially with mobile ordering it is easy.

And ADR for lots of places will pop up day before or day of so if we really want a TS we can usually find something we would like. Or head to Epcot to snack at WS counter service places. Or DS.

 

[alan68]

FINAL UPDATE!!!!! (unless something changes)

Plane tickets bought.
Parking reserved in Dallas.
Car rented.
Condo rented - Windsor Hills.
Arriving after 11pm on 5/31, then straight to bed.
6/1 - HS day. Probably half day with so much gone and so much not ready yet. May spend evening at Disney Springs.
6/2 - MK day #1. BBB reserved for DD at 8:05.
6/3 - EPCOT day. Want to see all of WS this time. And I'm not leaving without trying Yorkshire County fish & chips.
6/4 - AK day. 5:15 pm ADR for Rainforest Cafe. My kids can't get enough of that place
6/5 - 7:30 ADR at 'Ohana. Finally going to meet Mickey (can't believe we didn't do that last time!) Then monorail over to MK for day #2.
6/6 - Legoland day. Hope it doesn't rain!
6/7 - Universal day #1. First time going over to the "dark side." All our USO/IOA days are PTP. Riding Hogwarts Express from Diagon Alley to Hogsmeade. Marvel hero meal at Cafe 4 for dinner.
6/8 - Universal day #2. Riding HE from Hogsmeade back to DA. Then basically do whatever we missed.
6/9 - Check out of condo, then do Universal day #2 1/2. We may stay til about 4, get some food, then head to good ol' MCO to catch our flight back to Dallas.

WE'LL BE HANGIN' AROUND THE "WORLD" IN 80 DAYS!!!!!!!
See what I did there? I'm here all week, folks.

 

[Roxyfire]

Hey fellow Junebugs! The months seem to be flying by (though not quite fast enough) Of course with waiting to book fastpases I'm second-guessing everything (hotel, transportation, food)

I know there are quite a few people going for extended trips. Do you all usually plan one table service meal a day? Or just a few you really want? I've got 4 table services planned out of nine days and I'm wondering if I should be looking for more before reservations become impossible...

At least one TS per day, lol. There's not that many QS places I like so at that point, might as well just go TS. Since we'll be there 3x within 12 months I'm going to get a TIW card to help with the cost. Especially since I like to have a drink with my meals and that covers alcohol too. It's nice to have a toaster and microwave in the Poly Studio but we probably won't use it all that much this time.

 

[JennLTX]

At least one TS per day, lol. There's not that many QS places I like so at that point, might as well just go TS. Since we'll be there 3x within 12 months I'm going to get a TIW card to help with the cost. Especially since I like to have a drink with my meals and that covers alcohol too. It's nice to have a toaster and microwave in the Poly Studio but we probably won't use it all that much this time.

Both times we've been I never used the toaster, but the microwave was my new best friend.

I've got TS for 8 out of the 12 days we'll be there:

6/3 - Crystal Palace breakfast
6/4 - Tusker House "brunch" (reservation is 10:20, so we'll be there when they change the food out for lunch)
6/5 - Hoop dee Doo
6/6 - Boma (SO EXCITED!!!)
6/8 - Garden Grill breakfast (yes, we ARE fans of breakfast )
6/9 - Restaurant Marrakesh (walked by it at Christmas last year, and based on the yummy smells, DS decided he wanted to try it. He's a mac & cheese kid, so when he told me that, I'd made the reservation before he finished the sentence)
6/10 - Biergarten
6/11 - Via Napoli (another DS request; THANK YOU CHIP & DALE SCAVENGER HUNT!!!)

Speaking of reservations!!!! DS decided he wanted to do the Pirate Adventure Albatross Treasure Cruise out of YC one more time before he ages out (rope drop at HS is on the 9th for his last Jedi Training session, too). I went online to be sure they have it on Mondays (only day we could do it), and was HORRIFIED to see they've gotten rid of the cruise out of the Grand Floridian!!! That makes two fantastic locations they've eliminated (POR's cruise bit the dust last year), but they're KEEPING the cruise at Caribbean Beach???? WTH, Disney????? CBR is totally out of the way unless you're staying there, and at the moment you can't even eat at their restaurants unless you're a guest! Throw in the fact that the entire place is a raw construction zone, and this makes NO sense whatsoever. Yes, they've got pirate themed rooms but, again, UNLESS YOU'RE STAYING THERE it's pointless. GAH!!!

 

[BrookieM2001]

Sigh. I’m getting discouraged. I have all the ADRs I need except either CRT or BOG on one of our MK days, the 13th. It’s killing me, I have to keep obsessively checking and then every time I’m not checking I keep thinking I’m missing it. I wish I could just find one or the other for a decent time!

I have CRT for that day but it’s right during the fireworks and that would be heartbreaking for my mother, but not eating in a castle would be heartbreaking for my girls, 8&4. I’m the planner and everybody kind of expects me to pull a rabbit out of my hat even though they decided to plan this trip after the 180 day mark and I’m starting to worry I won’t be able to make it happen!

 

[JennLTX]

Sigh. I’m getting discouraged. I have all the ADRs I need except either CRT or BOG on one of our MK days, the 13th. It’s killing me, I have to keep obsessively checking and then every time I’m not checking I keep thinking I’m missing it. I wish I could just find one or the other for a decent time!

I have CRT for that day but it’s right during the fireworks and that would be heartbreaking for my mother, but not eating in a castle would be heartbreaking for my girls, 8&4. I’m the planner and everybody kind of expects me to pull a rabbit out of my hat even though they decided to plan this trip after the 180 day mark and I’m starting to worry I won’t be able to make it happen!

Have you tried Touring Plans' Reservation Finder? They'll send you an alert when a reservation opens up.

 

[BrookieM2001]

Have you tried Touring Plans' Reservation Finder? They'll send you an alert when a reservation opens up.

Oh yes, i have reservation finder searching too, and it cant find one either which bums me out. Ive never had an issue with TP not finding me the reservation i need, so when it cant find one either, im getting discouraged that its just impossible.....

 

[Roxyfire]

Both times we've been I never used the toaster, but the microwave was my new best friend.

I've got TS for 8 out of the 12 days we'll be there:

6/3 - Crystal Palace breakfast
6/4 - Tusker House "brunch" (reservation is 10:20, so we'll be there when they change the food out for lunch)
6/5 - Hoop dee Doo
6/6 - Boma (SO EXCITED!!!)
6/8 - Garden Grill breakfast (yes, we ARE fans of breakfast )
6/9 - Restaurant Marrakesh (walked by it at Christmas last year, and based on the yummy smells, DS decided he wanted to try it. He's a mac & cheese kid, so when he told me that, I'd made the reservation before he finished the sentence)
6/10 - Biergarten
6/11 - Via Napoli (another DS request; THANK YOU CHIP & DALE SCAVENGER HUNT!!!)

Speaking of reservations!!!! DS decided he wanted to do the Pirate Adventure Albatross Treasure Cruise out of YC one more time before he ages out (rope drop at HS is on the 9th for his last Jedi Training session, too). I went online to be sure they have it on Mondays (only day we could do it), and was HORRIFIED to see they've gotten rid of the cruise out of the Grand Floridian!!! That makes two fantastic locations they've eliminated (POR's cruise bit the dust last year), but they're KEEPING the cruise at Caribbean Beach???? WTH, Disney????? CBR is totally out of the way unless you're staying there, and at the moment you can't even eat at their restaurants unless you're a guest! Throw in the fact that the entire place is a raw construction zone, and this makes NO sense whatsoever. Yes, they've got pirate themed rooms but, again, UNLESS YOU'RE STAYING THERE it's pointless. GAH!!!

That's awful about the pirate cruise! I wanted my son to do it last year but apparently he's not a fan of pirate and pirate related pop culture for some reason. Very strange, he likes the ride of course but beyond that he's not interested. I feel like I did something wrong in his formative years, lol. But anyway, we're definitely doing the Crystal Palace, Garden Grill, and Tusker House breakfast trifecta it's very crucial to my happiness.

 

[Monykalyn]

Oh yes, i have reservation finder searching too, and it cant find one either which bums me out. Ive never had an issue with TP not finding me the reservation i need, so when it cant find one either, im getting discouraged that its just impossible.....

Keep the faith! Too soon for panic-remember FP haven't been made yet and you know once those start getting into place the ADRs will open up.
I planned our trip next week in less than 14 days and the only ADR I haven't had an alert for yet is BoG dinner (got a lunch one), which I am on the fence about doing anyway.

 

[pillowbook]

At least one TS per day, lol. There's not that many QS places I like so at that point, might as well just go TS. Since we'll be there 3x within 12 months I'm going to get a TIW card to help with the cost. Especially since I like to have a drink with my meals and that covers alcohol too. It's nice to have a toaster and microwave in the Poly Studio but we probably won't use it all that much this time.

Thats the main thing, I was wondering if it made sense to make a TS for every day, but we actually prefer QS over TS. Last time we went was for a short trip and we had one TS scheduled that we ended up canceling because we were on a role with rides.

But since this is a longer trip, I wanted to put an emphasis on TS experiences. When I brought it up to her she was like “Oh well, its just Disney restaurants its nothing special.” So I’ve been trying to pick some of the “special” restaurants that will wow her, without over-filling our schedule.

Right now we have:

Arrival Day - Nothing
1st Day - Nothing
2nd Day - BOG 7:30
3rd Day - Garden Grill PPO 8:30
4th Day - Nothing
5th Day - Nothing
6th Day - Homecomin’ 1:30
7th Day - 50s PT 6:20
8th Day - Nothing
9th Day - Tutto Italia 4:30
Departure Day - Nothing

We have Hoppers, so technically it isn’t an issue. But I get really antsy about going to like 3 or 4 different places in one day and wasting time traveling. I’m thinking I could just make a list of options for QS and fill that in so that it doesn’t make me feel like we’ve just decided not to eat on a day.

 

[ELSA711]

June 9th-23rd Split Trip for Universal & WDW (HRH and CBR)

 

[JennLTX]

Thats the main thing, I was wondering if it made sense to make a TS for every day, but we actually prefer QS over TS. Last time we went was for a short trip and we had one TS scheduled that we ended up canceling because we were on a role with rides.

But since this is a longer trip, I wanted to put an emphasis on TS experiences. When I brought it up to her she was like “Oh well, its just Disney restaurants its nothing special.” So I’ve been trying to pick some of the “special” restaurants that will wow her, without over-filling our schedule.

Right now we have:

Arrival Day - Nothing
1st Day - Nothing
2nd Day - BOG 7:30
3rd Day - Garden Grill PPO 8:30
4th Day - Nothing
5th Day - Nothing
6th Day - Homecomin’ 1:30
7th Day - 50s PT 6:20
8th Day - Nothing
9th Day - Tutto Italia 4:30
Departure Day - Nothing

We have Hoppers, so technically it isn’t an issue. But I get really antsy about going to like 3 or 4 different places in one day and wasting time traveling. I’m thinking I could just make a list of options for QS and fill that in so that it doesn’t make me feel like we’ve just decided not to eat on a day.

It is impossible to NOT be wowed by the Skillet Cinnamon Roll at Garden Grill. We LOVE breakfast there!!!

 

[RocketCityMama]

We are definitely not an every day table service family really, I mean I'd love to but it's just not feasible budget wise.

We currently have:

CRT Breakfast
Whispering Canyon Dinner- may let go
O'Hana Breakfast
Bon Voyage Breakfast
BOG Lunch- but this is counter service included since you need adr.
Liberty Tree Tavern Dinner- will probably let go

We do have an extended vacation this time around, the first week at POR- besides our breakfast reservations, we'll probably just have some easy things in the room, pastries, doughnuts, oatmeal, fruit, juice, coffee. We will eat CS for the rest of the meals minus adr's for that week. The second week we are at Orange Lake, it's a nice condo with a full kitchen, the day we check in, we will make a run to grocery store and buy breakfast items and lunch items. Last year we did a few evening meals there too, but we'll probably eat out once a day that second week, that is where saving money comes in. For a family of 5, it's quite pricey to eat out 3 meals a day as you all can imagine, especially at Disney! lol I ran dining plan numbers for the week vs what we'll probably actually eat and it's better for us not to use the plan, which was around $1800, for a week! I hope to not even spend that all together for both weeks! lol The days we have big breakfast meals, we will likely have a snack type lunch (like pork french fries) and eat cs for dinner.

77 Days to go!!

 

[Roxyfire]

Thats the main thing, I was wondering if it made sense to make a TS for every day, but we actually prefer QS over TS. Last time we went was for a short trip and we had one TS scheduled that we ended up canceling because we were on a role with rides.

But since this is a longer trip, I wanted to put an emphasis on TS experiences. When I brought it up to her she was like “Oh well, its just Disney restaurants its nothing special.” So I’ve been trying to pick some of the “special” restaurants that will wow her, without over-filling our schedule.

Right now we have:

Arrival Day - Nothing
1st Day - Nothing
2nd Day - BOG 7:30
3rd Day - Garden Grill PPO 8:30
4th Day - Nothing
5th Day - Nothing
6th Day - Homecomin’ 1:30
7th Day - 50s PT 6:20
8th Day - Nothing
9th Day - Tutto Italia 4:30
Departure Day - Nothing

We have Hoppers, so technically it isn’t an issue. But I get really antsy about going to like 3 or 4 different places in one day and wasting time traveling. I’m thinking I could just make a list of options for QS and fill that in so that it doesn’t make me feel like we’ve just decided not to eat on a day.

If that's what you prefer, great! While we will hop to another park, it's already planned out which one/what time due to dining reservations. So it's no hustle going back and forth anywhere special. I definitely overbook on reservations based on videos and reviews and of course end up cancelling later. But what's great is there's something for everyone!

 

[Avery&Todd]

It is impossible to NOT be wowed by the Skillet Cinnamon Roll at Garden Grill. We LOVE breakfast there!!!

OMG...that skillet cinnamon roll is TO DIE FOR....

holy cow....I could drool now..

and I have 88 days until we're back!!

 

[Roxyfire]

Everyone should go watch the Dis Unplugged guys review Garden Grill breakfast. Even Pete was impressed and he said came into it with a few bad experiences under his belt. I think that cinnamon roll might've changed things a bit.

 

[pillowbook]

Everyone should go watch the Dis Unplugged guys review Garden Grill breakfast. Even Pete was impressed and he said came into it with a few bad experiences under his belt. I think that cinnamon roll might've changed things a bit.

It's a really good review! That's one of the reasons I was so confident in choosing it!

 

[BrookieM2001]

Keep the faith! Too soon for panic-remember FP haven't been made yet and you know once those start getting into place the ADRs will open up.
I planned our trip next week in less than 14 days and the only ADR I haven't had an alert for yet is BoG dinner (got a lunch one), which I am on the fence about doing anyway.

BOG dinner is one of those we are hoping for too. I am really counting on things totally shaking around when we hit the 60 day mark next month and things opening up. I have just never still been looking for ADRs this close to the trip so i think im just getting anxious. It just feels so hard to lock down FPs when we dont have concrete plans for dinner. Plus, we are hoping that they will be running DVC previews for Toy Story Land wile we are there too which might change things all around again. GAH!!

 

[magrudersmakes3]

I tried to book us 1 sit down meal everyday just to relax a bit and also to try new things. Sunday is 2 big meals, but DD wants to do CG for her birthday dinner and I will make that happen for her. The exciting thing for us is that CP is the only one we have done before, the rest are new for us.

Day 1 BOG Dinner
Day 2 Saana Lunch
Day 3 Crystal Palace breakfast
California Grill Dinner
Day 4 Teppan Edo Lunch
Day 5 Tusker House ROL Dinner Package
Day 6 Sci-Fi Lunch
SW Dessert Party
Day 7 BOG Lunch
Day 8 Rose & Crown Lunch
Day 9 BOG Breakfast