Our "Feels Like We Haven't Been In Forever" Trip

[Heatherhy01]

Hi All! Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Heather and you are reading my very first (in a long line of more to come I am sure) post in our pre-trip report! Our last trip was in 2009!!!!! And honestly, so much seems to have changed since then! Also, our last trip was girls only, which we had so much fun! But, this time, we are bringing the husbands (or as of right now we are?). So, first things first, let me introduce you to our cast of characters:

Myself: Heather, Mom & Medical Biller, LOVES Hollywood Studios, The Muppets and Character Breakfasts
Richard: Husband & Beer Man (no, really...he is a beer delivery driver), LOVES just being on vacation & thrill rides
Alexandra: 19, college student, LOVES the princesses and Tower Of Terror
Savannah: 15 High School Student, LOVES Pirates & Small World
Terry: Grandma extraordinaire, LOVES small World & O'Hana Breakfast
Gary: Grandpa, Just LOVES spending time with the fam

We live in a very small town in PA about an hour outside of Philadelphia. It takes about 2 hours to fly non-stop to Orlando which (crossing our fingers) is hopefully the plan. Terry & Gary are my in laws and Terry is a HUGE Disney lover too, so it just seems appropriate that we take this adventure together

Our dates: May 12-18 2019 (I know, I know! This is so far away but if I start the planning now...it will be the most precise trip ever right?) We usually plan our trips at least a year in advance. Disney is not cheap by any means so the earlier you get started, the more time you have to pay off.

That is all I have squared away as of right now. I am working on the best option for where to stay and whom to book through? I am looking at renting DVC points for a 2 bedroom, or booking through AAA, or just booking myself through Disney at a Value. Any opinions would be much appreciated and I will update as soon as I know more!

See ya real soon!

 

[Shanti]

Hi All! Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Heather and you are reading my very first (in a long line of more to come I am sure) post in our pre-trip report! Our last trip was in 2009!!!!! And honestly, so much seems to have changed since then! Also, our last trip was girls only, which we had so much fun! But, this time, we are bringing the husbands (or as of right now we are?). So, first things first, let me introduce you to our cast of characters:

Myself: Heather, Mom & Medical Biller, LOVES Hollywood Studios, The Muppets and Character Breakfasts
Richard: Husband & Beer Man (no, really...he is a beer delivery driver), LOVES just being on vacation & thrill rides
Alexandra: 19, college student, LOVES the princesses and Tower Of Terror
Savannah: 15 High School Student, LOVES Pirates & Small World
Terry: Grandma extraordinaire, LOVES small World & O'Hana Breakfast
Gary: Grandpa, Just LOVES spending time with the fam

We live in a very small town in PA about an hour outside of Philadelphia. It takes about 2 hours to fly non-stop to Orlando which (crossing our fingers) is hopefully the plan. Terry & Gary are my in laws and Terry is a HUGE Disney lover too, so it just seems appropriate that we take this adventure togetherView attachment 308668

Our dates: May 12-18 2019 (I know, I know! This is so far away but if I start the planning now...it will be the most precise trip ever right?) We usually plan our trips at least a year in advance. Disney is not cheap by any means so the earlier you get started, the more time you have to pay off.

That is all I have squared away as of right now. I am working on the best option for where to stay and whom to book through? I am looking at renting DVC points for a 2 bedroom, or booking through AAA, or just booking myself through Disney at a Value. Any opinions would be much appreciated and I will update as soon as I know more!

See ya real soon!

Since you know your exact dates so far in advance, my vote is to rent from DVC. Have a fun trip!

 

[Heatherhy01]

Since you know your exact dates so far in advance, my vote is to rent from DVC. Have a fun trip!

Thanks so much for your advice. We are kind of leaning towards renting points but are trying to look at all aspects to get the most bang for our buck

 

[Heatherhy01]

Hiya!!

After much research and calling back and forth with Disney, we had made the very difficult decision to stay off site this time! We have never stayed off property before as a family and have ALWAYS purchased the dining package, so this trip will be something completely different for us. We just could not justify the almost $10,0000 price tag for the 6 of us. We LOVE Disney but that is just too steep for us.

We agreed to do 2 meals inside the parks/restaurants. One being a dinner and one being a breakfast. The rest, we will cook at the house for ourselves and get snacks in the middle of the day at the parks. (We are not big lunch eaters but love breakfast and dinner)

I am now researching homes in the Kissimmee/Lake Buena Vista area for rent on our dates. I have a short list of MUST HAVES for the house: (I figure with the price being so low, we could splurge a little)

1. MUST HAVE 2 en suites. (it does not have to be 2 kings but I would love to have 2 rooms with bathrooms attached.

2. MUST HAVE 3 bathrooms! (With 2 teenage girls and 2 senior parents, we definitely need more than 2 bathrooms for when we are all getting ready for the parks.)

3. MUST HAVE a private pool! (We love the idea of being able to swim whenever we want, even if at midnight. Also, my sister and her family live in Jacksonville and I would love for them to be able to come, even if for a day, and spend some time with us tooling around the pool and just hanging out)

There are a few pros to staying off site that I had never even considered until this time and they make me even more excited for our trip:

1. LAUNDRY FACILITIES! We can pack light and just throw in a couple loads of laundry at night. We do this on our beach vacations and ALWAYS come home with clean clothing.

2. LESS BAGGAGE! See #1 regarding laundry facilities...we can pack less and have a whole suitcase just for our purchases to take home!

3. PRIVATE POOL! We are very excited to have a pool all to ourselves

4. NEEDING A CAR RENTAL! We never had a need to rent before so never really checked out what the rest of the area had to offer? So now, we will be able to go to Gatorland or even Universal if we want?

I am currently checking into all options for house rentals but will most likely either go with a VRBO or a Wyndham Bonnet Creek condo. I am guessing we will lean towards the VRBO since we can get all of our MUST HAVES but will check out Wyndham just in case. If the price is right...we may forego a few things

See ya real soon!

 

[Heatherhy01]

Ugh! So, now we are rethinking our plans....AGAIN! I checked in with AAA and may be able to swing a package through them We will not have any details until the end of June but it looks like we may be staying on site after all??

Stay tuned and See Ya Real Soon!

 

[Renee1061]

We have a group of six going in October. It is our first time in a long time, too (last trip was 2011). Experienced a little sticker shock when I realized how much prices had gone up. Plus, we would either need a suite or two rooms. So we ended up booking a 4-bedroom house with a pool through Magical Vacation Homes for only $139 a night! I'll miss the magic and convenience of being on-site, but we are also doing two days at Universal, so this was the most practical arrangement. Hoping the next six months fly by!!

 

[Heatherhy01]

We have a group of six going in October. It is our first time in a long time, too (last trip was 2011). Experienced a little sticker shock when I realized how much prices had gone up. Plus, we would either need a suite or two rooms. So we ended up booking a 4-bedroom house with a pool through Magical Vacation Homes for only $139 a night! I'll miss the magic and convenience of being on-site, but we are also doing two days at Universal, so this was the most practical arrangement. Hoping the next six months fly by!!

I hear ya! I feel like we need to make a decision and really stick with it. We love the convenience of staying on site and would love to do it at least one more time.(The kids are getting older at 19 & 14). I would have gone in September when there seems to be a more ‘value’ season but cannot swing it with my daughter’s college schedule. I am AMAZED at how much the prices have gone up!