~Snowbird Chat 2~

[danceintherain]

Sooo...it occurred to me that while I doubt we could do a super fancy trip to Disney within the next year with Logan's work/school schedule being what it is...we could do a less fancy trip.
One of my friends asked about Shades of Green on Facebook, and I told her that we've never stayed there because we can always get a comparable rate at a Disney hotel, so the only way we'd stay there was over one of the more expensive holiday times.
DUH!

So now I'm thinking that we might be able to do December 28thish to January 5th (his course schedule probably has him going back on the 6th). We'd still get a couple slower January crowd days (hopefully) AND we'd get to spend our anniversary at Disney. Probably stay at SoG the whole time, but might consider a split stay if a good enough deal pops up for those last 2 or 3 nights.
Logan wants a rental car for every trip now anyways, so ME isn't a big deal (although I may have to pack lighter). The only possible hiccup could be fast passes, because I haven't seen anything about SoG being included in the advance booking. We're rope droppers though, so it's more of an inconvenience than a necessity.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Sooo...it occurred to me that while I doubt we could do a super fancy trip to Disney within the next year with Logan's work/school schedule being what it is...we could do a less fancy trip.
One of my friends asked about Shades of Green on Facebook, and I told her that we've never stayed there because we can always get a comparable rate at a Disney hotel, so the only way we'd stay there was over one of the more expensive holiday times.
DUH!

So now I'm thinking that we might be able to do December 28thish to January 5th (his course schedule probably has him going back on the 6th). We'd still get a couple slower January crowd days (hopefully) AND we'd get to spend our anniversary at Disney. Probably stay at SoG the whole time, but might consider a split stay if a good enough deal pops up for those last 2 or 3 nights.
Logan wants a rental car for every trip now anyways, so ME isn't a big deal (although I may have to pack lighter). The only possible hiccup could be fast passes, because I haven't seen anything about SoG being included in the advance booking. We're rope droppers though, so it's more of an inconvenience than a necessity.

Be sure you let me know if you do that!! We'll be there from 12/28 to 1/2! We don't have our hotel totally booked, Just 12/31 and 1/1 so far. But we will likely be at AKV or OKW. We'll have to try to meet up! I'd love to see you and your family! We'll be rope droppers too!

 

[danceintherain]

Be sure you let me know if you do that!! We'll be there from 12/28 to 1/2! We don't have our hotel totally booked, Just 12/31 and 1/1 so far. But we will likely be at AKV or OKW. We'll have to try to meet up! I'd love to see you and your family! We'll be rope droppers too!

I definitely will!

Logan was weird about it when I mentioned it. When I told him we probably wouldn't be able to go back for a year, he was bummed, but when I gave him a viable option, he didn't want to think about it.

I'm sure I'll be able to convince him to at least book the room, and put a deposit down, during the next week or so, since we can cancel up to 30 days in advance.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Hi everyone - I finally started my TR for our recent Disneyland trip! Please come over and join me!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=51127118#post51127118

It will be slow going, so you don't have to worry about missing much!

 

[BellaSoleil]

Hi everyone - I finally started my TR for our recent Disneyland trip! Please come over and join me!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=51127118#post51127118

It will be slow going, so you don't have to worry about missing much!

Headed that way!

 

[Monny2AE]

Congrats on the vacation plans Meghan and Sheree!

We're still tossing around the idea for Disney in January. I have worked it out to officially close my daycare for 6 weeks this summer and spend the time with my kids! I love Disney but I would rather have those 6 weeks with my kids than a week at Disney.

Sheree- heading over to your TR. Thanks for promising to take it slow! I can handle that!

 

[danceintherain]

Logan finally gave me a reason for not wanting to go to Disney over New Years.
He thinks he's going to need a break after 6 months of captain's career course and grad school, and he doesn't think Disney will be very relaxing.

He is considering the idea of a cruise, but I'm having a hard time stomaching the cost of a cruise during that time frame. The only reason I was even considering Disney is because we could stay at Shades of Green and cut the cost in half.

So we're still thinking...I really do think we're going to need some kind of vacation during that break, but everything is so expensive.

 

[Dancegrl624]

Logan finally gave me a reason for not wanting to go to Disney over New Years.
He thinks he's going to need a break after 6 months of captain's career course and grad school, and he doesn't think Disney will be very relaxing.

He is considering the idea of a cruise, but I'm having a hard time stomaching the cost of a cruise during that time frame. The only reason I was even considering Disney is because we could stay at Shades of Green and cut the cost in half.

So we're still thinking...I really do think we're going to need some kind of vacation during that break, but everything is so expensive.

There are sometimes Military rates for DCL. They don't come out very often and there most likely won't be any discounts during New Years.

 

[Dancegrl624]

Sooo...it occurred to me that while I doubt we could do a super fancy trip to Disney within the next year with Logan's work/school schedule being what it is...we could do a less fancy trip.
One of my friends asked about Shades of Green on Facebook, and I told her that we've never stayed there because we can always get a comparable rate at a Disney hotel, so the only way we'd stay there was over one of the more expensive holiday times.
DUH!

So now I'm thinking that we might be able to do December 28thish to January 5th (his course schedule probably has him going back on the 6th). We'd still get a couple slower January crowd days (hopefully) AND we'd get to spend our anniversary at Disney. Probably stay at SoG the whole time, but might consider a split stay if a good enough deal pops up for those last 2 or 3 nights.
Logan wants a rental car for every trip now anyways, so ME isn't a big deal (although I may have to pack lighter). The only possible hiccup could be fast passes, because I haven't seen anything about SoG being included in the advance booking. We're rope droppers though, so it's more of an inconvenience than a necessity.

Off-site guests can now book FP+ 30 days in advance...that includes SOG right now.

 

[danceintherain]

There are sometimes Military rates for DCL. They don't come out very often and there most likely won't be any discounts during New Years.

Yeah, that's what I figured. I did a little pricing and a non-Disney cruise would likely be close to twice as much as staying at Shades of Green, getting tickets, and food at Disney. That's without any excursions we may want to do on shore (Logan will insist on snorkeling) or the rental car at Disney.
I left airfare out, because it will likely be similar regardless.

Off-site guests can now book FP+ 30 days in advance...that includes SOG right now.

I did see that, and it would probably work fine for us. That way, we'd probably at least get 1 headliner a day.
We skip a lot of rides anyways, because Logan has started being prone to motion sickness, and the kids can't ride them. Hopefully, G will be 40 inches by our next trip, but we'll see.
The main thing I want him to do next time is the Jedi Training Academy.
I probably need to put in on the back burner at least until Logan starts his training. I may make some "just in case" ADRs when the 180 day mark pops up though.

 

[Dancegrl624]

Sad news....Tony had me cancel our cruise for next year. He would rather go to the parks for a week instead of spending so much money on a 3-night cruise. I do agree with him....our money goes farther at WDW but I know that my family would LOVE DCL! I know we'll take a cruise together someday, just wish it was soon!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

I think I would rather do a week there than a 3 night also…I think they would have loved the cruise, but I would like more days overall!

Mike and I just got back last night from our 20th Anniversary trip to Disney. It was wonderful!!! We stayed CL at the WL and it was so peaceful and relaxing. We did HS, MK & EPCOT. And the flower and garden festival is too beautiful!! I had only seen it once before years back…I forgot how much I loved it. This may be my favorite time to go...

 

[Dancegrl624]

I think I would rather do a week there than a 3 night also…I think they would have loved the cruise, but I would like more days overall!

Mike and I just got back last night from our 20th Anniversary trip to Disney. It was wonderful!!! We stayed CL at the WL and it was so peaceful and relaxing. We did HS, MK & EPCOT. And the flower and garden festival is too beautiful!! I had only seen it once before years back…I forgot how much I loved it. This may be my favorite time to go...

That sounds wonderful! Tony always says he could never go to WDW without the kids. I have now been to WDW twice by myself and did the cruise with adults....the first day without my family was hard but then it gets easier. I know we would have fun, but he just won't go for it.

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

We always said we couldn't go without them either, but when you hit 20 years he will feel differently! LOL!! Especially since we take them every year. This was our first vaca without them so it was well deserved and much appreciated!! Its totally different doing Disney without kids…you get to slow it down so much and enjoy looking at things you normally don't have time for.

 

[danceintherain]

Sad news....Tony had me cancel our cruise for next year. He would rather go to the parks for a week instead of spending so much money on a 3-night cruise. I do agree with him....our money goes farther at WDW but I know that my family would LOVE DCL! I know we'll take a cruise together someday, just wish it was soon!

That's kind of how I feel about Disney cruises, especially since you can usually do a non-Disney cruise for less.
I'm not hugely fond of cruises in general, mostly because the cabins are soo small. Not fun, if you get sea-sick.
Even though I think I'll keep pricing them out periodically, I think if I was to go on another cruise, it would have to be to Alaska or around the Mediterranean. The Caribbean doesn't have a whole lot of variation among the islands, so it makes more sense to me to just stay at an all-inclusive resort in one location.

I think I would rather do a week there than a 3 night also…I think they would have loved the cruise, but I would like more days overall!

Mike and I just got back last night from our 20th Anniversary trip to Disney. It was wonderful!!! We stayed CL at the WL and it was so peaceful and relaxing. We did HS, MK & EPCOT. And the flower and garden festival is too beautiful!! I had only seen it once before years back…I forgot how much I loved it. This may be my favorite time to go...

That sounds lovely!

That sounds wonderful! Tony always says he could never go to WDW without the kids. I have now been to WDW twice by myself and did the cruise with adults....the first day without my family was hard but then it gets easier. I know we would have fun, but he just won't go for it.

I'm starting to wonder if I agreed to leave the kids with my Mom, if Logan would go for the New Years'/Anniversary trip. In this case, I'm not sure if I could do it, because 80% of the reason I want to go then is to take Lydia for her first time. Also, Shades of Green still only has queen beds in all their rooms, which is what turned me off to it for our honeymoon. (maybe once the 20th anniversary rolls around, we'll be cool with it )
I went on a girls trip with my Mom last year, and it was so relaxing to leave G behind for the week. The hard part about bringing Logan on a similar trip is finding someone to watch the kids. All 4 grandparents work, and while my Mom has school breaks off, they fill up fast.
My uncle already mentioned her watching his kids, so he and his wife could go on a 10th anniversary trip this year.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Sad news....Tony had me cancel our cruise for next year. He would rather go to the parks for a week instead of spending so much money on a 3-night cruise. I do agree with him....our money goes farther at WDW but I know that my family would LOVE DCL! I know we'll take a cruise together someday, just wish it was soon!

aww, that is too bad. But totally understandable. I refuse to just do a 3 night cruise without some park time, but we have DVC, so it is a little cheaper for us. Now you get to plan a week at the parks!

I think I would rather do a week there than a 3 night also…I think they would have loved the cruise, but I would like more days overall!

Mike and I just got back last night from our 20th Anniversary trip to Disney. It was wonderful!!! We stayed CL at the WL and it was so peaceful and relaxing. We did HS, MK & EPCOT. And the flower and garden festival is too beautiful!! I had only seen it once before years back…I forgot how much I loved it. This may be my favorite time to go...

Welcome back Shawna! SO glad you had a great trip! I'd love to do it without the girls - probably not for a number of years, but Dave would be into just relaxing and roaming, hanging out at the resort etc.
But for now, he is opposed to going anywhere without them, because he wants them to experience all the cool things we do.

Our big news is that we are going to WDW after Christmas!! We plan to go from 12/28 to 1/2 and then the three night cruise on the Dream! The kids do NOT know a thing yet! We haven't got all our rooms booked (we have to wait for the 7 month mark to book DVC since we don't have a lot of points at one resort). One of Paige's friends from dance - her family is surprising their kids with a cruise - and they are going on the same one as us! We're not telling them about it ahead of time. They are surprising their kids at Christmas. I'm excited and nervous - we've never gone at such a busy time! So I'm watching all the FP+ news and changes. I also think we're going to buy APs. We could get the Premium AP for about the same price as the AP with DVC deals but that offer is only good for purchasing through April. Don't have a lot of extra $ now, so we may just opt for the regular AP (It is just water parks extra). Then we will likely go back in June 2015 for a few days (and visit DH's sisters who live in FL and go to the beach) and hopefully October 2015 for Food and Wine!! I hope we can pull it off!!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Sheree…you can do it!!! Surprise trips are the best!!!

 

[danceintherain]

aww, that is too bad. But totally understandable. I refuse to just do a 3 night cruise without some park time, but we have DVC, so it is a little cheaper for us. Now you get to plan a week at the parks!



Welcome back Shawna! SO glad you had a great trip! I'd love to do it without the girls - probably not for a number of years, but Dave would be into just relaxing and roaming, hanging out at the resort etc.
But for now, he is opposed to going anywhere without them, because he wants them to experience all the cool things we do.

Our big news is that we are going to WDW after Christmas!! We plan to go from 12/28 to 1/2 and then the three night cruise on the Dream! The kids do NOT know a thing yet! We haven't got all our rooms booked (we have to wait for the 7 month mark to book DVC since we don't have a lot of points at one resort). One of Paige's friends from dance - her family is surprising their kids with a cruise - and they are going on the same one as us! We're not telling them about it ahead of time. They are surprising their kids at Christmas. I'm excited and nervous - we've never gone at such a busy time! So I'm watching all the FP+ news and changes. I also think we're going to buy APs. We could get the Premium AP for about the same price as the AP with DVC deals but that offer is only good for purchasing through April. Don't have a lot of extra $ now, so we may just opt for the regular AP (It is just water parks extra). Then we will likely go back in June 2015 for a few days (and visit DH's sisters who live in FL and go to the beach) and hopefully October 2015 for Food and Wine!! I hope we can pull it off!!

FUN!

Logan told me that he's coming around to the idea of going to Disney. I suggested that we consider taking my Mom with us, so we could do a day/night away from the kids. He's mulling it over.
We'd either sponsor her for her own room at Shades of Green (more likely if she wants some of my siblings to come) or have her in our room, and Logan and I would get a room somewhere else for a night or two at the end of the trip.
Taking my sister with us last year went really well, but taking a 19 year old college student who is completely thrilled to be getting a "free" trip to Disney is different than taking a grandmother and saying "hey, we want you to come, but you'll need to pay for most everything yourself, and follow our lead."
Whenever I mention possibly wanting to go back, she says, "you could pay for me to come with you." I don't think she'd be opposed to paying for herself, and it's possible that we may be able to pay for part of it for her, but we need to figure out our expectations before breaching the topic with her. Also, with my Mom, there's always the potential that 80 other people will get invited along. Even if they're staying somewhere else, I'm not sure that I want to deal with tons of extra family members around, and I don't want to invite her along just to have her end up watching other people's kids the whole time.

 

[Dancegrl624]

That's kind of how I feel about Disney cruises, especially since you can usually do a non-Disney cruise for less.
I'm not hugely fond of cruises in general, mostly because the cabins are soo small. Not fun, if you get sea-sick.
Even though I think I'll keep pricing them out periodically, I think if I was to go on another cruise, it would have to be to Alaska or around the Mediterranean. The Caribbean doesn't have a whole lot of variation among the islands, so it makes more sense to me to just stay at an all-inclusive resort in one location.

On the AEP I just went on they put us in Verandah rooms and I thought they were quite large. The queen beds was so comfy and there was plenty of room to move around. I love the split baths too....wonderful when 2 people are trying to get around!

aww, that is too bad. But totally understandable. I refuse to just do a 3 night cruise without some park time, but we have DVC, so it is a little cheaper for us. Now you get to plan a week at the parks!

I could get a TA rate which wouldn't be too bad, so someday we will do a DCL/WDW vacation. I have a client doing that right now!

Our big news is that we are going to WDW after Christmas!! We plan to go from 12/28 to 1/2 and then the three night cruise on the Dream! The kids do NOT know a thing yet! We haven't got all our rooms booked (we have to wait for the 7 month mark to book DVC since we don't have a lot of points at one resort). One of Paige's friends from dance - her family is surprising their kids with a cruise - and they are going on the same one as us! We're not telling them about it ahead of time. They are surprising their kids at Christmas. I'm excited and nervous - we've never gone at such a busy time! So I'm watching all the FP+ news and changes. I also think we're going to buy APs. We could get the Premium AP for about the same price as the AP with DVC deals but that offer is only good for purchasing through April. Don't have a lot of extra $ now, so we may just opt for the regular AP (It is just water parks extra). Then we will likely go back in June 2015 for a few days (and visit DH's sisters who live in FL and go to the beach) and hopefully October 2015 for Food and Wine!! I hope we can pull it off!!

Awesome! You all know how I feel about surprise trips....so much fun! It's a lot of work keeping it a secret, but so worth it in the end.

 

[MAGGIED]

Long time away for me. I think I caught up with everyone's cruises, trips to DL, bad views at WL, and of course Becca's beautiful little girl. Congrats to all. Ou December trip was wonderful. No crowds ... Really enjoyed peaceful time by the pool and enjoyed trying beers around the world in Epcot with Tim and Daniel.

Since I was last here my daughter Maggie became engaged. While she has always dreamed of a Disney wedding her fiancée family was against it. So we found a very magical location here with a beautiful ballroom with massive chandeliers and large windows overlooking a beautiful golf course. She is very happy... She wants a Beauty and the Beast theme... She says the ballroom is very Belle like.... Many plans have been made...shocking how far out you have to book things. She is doing her table decorations with two themes... Large candelabras with yellow roses (Lumiere) and the other. Tables old books with tea pots and little clocks (mrs Potts and Cogsworth). Her bridesmaid dresses are from the alfred angelo Disney maidens collection and are yellow. She hasn't picked her gown yet.

Our other excitement was that my husband and I went to Spain for 10 days. Wow... What a beautiful country... We went to a bull fight (never again), went to Seville, Nerja, Malaga and then to Gibralter... It was a wonderful time. We stayed in a castle, drank too much wine and ate amazing food.

Next month my mom, my son Daniel, Maggie and her fiancée and I are going to Disney for a week. Maggie and Mike are having their engagement pictures done with a Disney wedding photographer... My gift to her because of not having her wedding there. We are staying at CSR (thanks Meghan).

I think that's all for us.... Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.

Wendy