Any guess on new itineraries?

[*WDW*Groupie*]

I do trust them on something like this, too. They have to know they are a big target (nothing quite says America like Disney), so I'm sure everything has been well researched and any references to "Disney" will be pretty muted. I'm also confident they will change the itinerary or cancel again if the situation deteriorates over there. But I think I'll be buying a big maple leaf sweatshirt for this one though

I can send you one! Also recommended: sewing a maple leaf on your travel purse and backpack

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

I talked to dd about this trip last night and she says she is very happy with the Arctic trip.

I'm waiting to hear from ds if he'd rather do Egypt over the Rhone cruise we have booked for October, 2020 (I, for one, would). Hopefully he'll be in. Otherwise, sadly, it's a pass for us next year.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

I can send you one! Also recommended: sewing a maple leaf on your travel purse and backpack

Perfect! I'll be well covered "Oh Canada ..."

 

[sayhello]

You will likely have to pay a redeposit fee to have your points/miles reinstated with the airline. But these are usually relatively modest in comparison to the total points/miles used or a cash fare . For example, United's redeposit fee is $75 per traveler (at least for domestic; it might be a bit higher (maybe $125 or $150) for international). So, assuming I book the December trip, I will likely book air using miles earlier than the PIF date (as soon as I find a good award fare) and will just eat the redeposit fee if I end up changing my mind or if ABD cancels.

If ABD cancels the trip, I'm pretty sure the policy is that they will cover the re-deposit fees.

Sayhello

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

Ds says he likes the ABD Egypt itinerary and would like to do it! So I will very likely switch from the Rhone cruise to Egypt for October, 2020.

Thought on safety? I am still (more than a bit) nervous about traveling there. The A&K rep on our Antarctica cruise told us they have been going back for the past year or so and haven't had any issues (not sure I believe she would've told me if they *had* had problems though).

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

@CaliforniaGirl09 I have this sweatshirt (as do my dd and ds) that I wear on the plane when we go overseas:
https://www.peace-collective.com/collections/womens-landing/products/home-is-canada-hoodie-black

And a few of these t-shirts:
https://www.peace-collective.com/co...oducts/home-is-toronto-varsity-black-tee-mens

Canada / Toronto pride. What can I say ! Looking forward to the day when I move back up north permanently (which will be hopefully in 2020 when dd goes to university).

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

@CaliforniaGirl09 I have this sweatshirt (as do my dd and ds) that I wear on the plane when we go overseas:
https://www.peace-collective.com/collections/womens-landing/products/home-is-canada-hoodie-black

And a few of these t-shirts:
https://www.peace-collective.com/co...oducts/home-is-toronto-varsity-black-tee-mens

Canada / Toronto pride. What can I say ! Looking forward to the day when I move back up north permanently (which will be hopefully in 2020 when dd goes to university).

LOVE those!!! I've only been to Toronto once, but it's a beautiful city. You must be counting down the days!

 

[ABDGurl]

I'd love to be able to compare to the old ABD Itinerary, too. This trip looks very similar to the Nat Geo private expedition although I haven't had time to do a line by line comparison: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/.../africa/private/egypt-tour-vacation-packages/ The price point of the Nat Geo trip is $5-6k, depending on how many people you have. We've been dying to go to Egypt, but I'm still hesitant about safety. ABD re-entering the market makes me feel a little better about it. We weren't planning a big trip in 2020, but this is tempting. We'll see what the rest of the family says.

Edited to add: I just noticed there is a difference in that ABD goes to Sharm El-Shiekh so I'll have to investigate that.

I have an old ABD catalog with the original ABD Egypt itinerary. The new trip overnights in all the same cities as the original trip. What's changed are the hotels and some of the daily activities, although much is still the same with the exception of the camel ride that was in the original itinerary, but is not in the new itinerary. (unless I missed that somehow in the new trip info).

Edit: I just noticed it overnights in all the same cities EXCEPT the last one which was Heliopolis. Instead, this year, the last night goes back to the hotel in Cairo.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

I have an old ABD catalog with the original ABD Egypt itinerary. The new trip overnights in all the same cities as the original trip. What's changed are the hotels and some of the daily activities, although much is still the same with the exception of the camel ride that was in the original itinerary, but is not in the new itinerary. (unless I missed that somehow in the new trip info).

Edit: I just noticed it overnights in all the same cities EXCEPT the last one which was Heliopolis. Instead, this year, the last night goes back to the hotel in Cairo.

Awesome! Thanks so much for posting the comparison. I’m bummed about the camel ride but I suspect it’s beacuse they’ve found out it’s bad for the camels or something?

 

[NashSmartGuy]

Awesome! Thanks so much for posting the comparison. I’m bummed about the camel ride but I suspect it’s beacuse they’ve found out it’s bad for the camels or something?

I was disappointed to see that the camel ride was not included, unlike Australia where it is included. However, I did some checking. The reason they don't want to include it in in Egypt is that the camels there are often mistreated. They do not want to do anything that would support that sort of animal cruelty. In Australia, the camels are well cared for, so there is not the same concern. There would likely be an opportunity to get a photo with (or on) a camel at the pyramids, if you still wanted to do it, by tipping one of the local vendors outside of the Adventure itinerary.

 

[Donalyn]

I was kind of hoping for Morocco. Maybe next year...

 

[AquaDame]

I've heard in the past that new adventures come out and the next year they are tweaked... the Scotland one sounds like it was gutted from the way some feel about it. We were going to stay home in 2020, but I am tempted to try to get on one of the later Egypt trips for early 2021 in this release rather than waiting for later in 2021 due to that fear... do you all feel that is grounded? Or am I being ridiculous and any possible gutting would happen much later than after the first year? Heck I am even worried about the early 2021 ones being changed... I really like this sound of it as-is! When did the Iceland trip begin it's modification...?

 

[sayhello]

I've heard in the past that new adventures come out and the next year they are tweaked... the Scotland one sounds like it was gutted from the way some feel about it. We were going to stay home in 2020, but I am tempted to try to get on one of the later Egypt trips for early 2021 in this release rather than waiting for later in 2021 due to that fear... do you all feel that is grounded? Or am I being ridiculous and any possible gutting would happen much later than after the first year? Heck I am even worried about the early 2021 ones being changed... I really like this sound of it as-is! When did the Iceland trip begin it's modification...?

The Scotland trip was changed after the second year (thank goodness, because I took it the second year!) It was a gradual thing, they took away this activity, then that day, then totally re-did it.

Some trips stay the same for years. Some get changed after the first year, as they learn the actualities of running these trips with "real people". It's a legitimate concern. Sometimes, the changes are actually better. Sometimes not. If you really want to take the trip as is, I wouldn't put it off too long.

Sayhello

 

[AquaDame]

The Scotland trip was changed after the second year (thank goodness, because I took it the second year!) It was a gradual thing, they took away this activity, then that day, then totally re-did it.

Some trips stay the same for years. Some get changed after the first year, as they learn the actualities of running these trips with "real people". It's a legitimate concern. Sometimes, the changes are actually better. Sometimes not. If you really want to take the trip as is, I wouldn't put it off too long.

Sayhello

It's another of those 'once in a lifetime' trips for us for sure.... but we already have one of those coming up this August and it is a huge one. I really should wait on the next...

 

[BluesTraveler]

I've heard in the past that new adventures come out and the next year they are tweaked... the Scotland one sounds like it was gutted from the way some feel about it. We were going to stay home in 2020, but I am tempted to try to get on one of the later Egypt trips for early 2021 in this release rather than waiting for later in 2021 due to that fear... do you all feel that is grounded? Or am I being ridiculous and any possible gutting would happen much later than after the first year? Heck I am even worried about the early 2021 ones being changed... I really like this sound of it as-is! When did the Iceland trip begin it's modification...?

I just looked at the Iceland itinerary and for 2019 it looks basically the same as 2018, with a few meals rearranged (for the better, I think). Although we LOVED Iceland, if I had it to over again I wouldn't do it the first year. Giving some time for pent up demand to die down and tweaks to be made might have been good for that particular trip. We are heading to tried-and-true (I hope) Greece this summer, although concerned about group size (39 last I checked).

 

[DCPhotoGal]

That's the date we are looking at, too! ROFL at Marion--love that!

We're hoping to get in on that trip, too! My oldest will be 17(!) by then, and the younger daughter will be 15.

 

[pinksand]

I just saw that ABD is going to Egypt from the Disney Parks tweet. I had thought I had taken all the ABD's that interested me, but I am VERY excited for this! Need to discuss with DH tonight but definitely want one of the Adult Exclusive departures.

 

[Calfan]

We're hoping to get in on that trip, too! My oldest will be 17(!) by then, and the younger daughter will be 15.

I’m now planning to book for my DD as well as me. She will be 18.

 

[sayhello]

It's another of those 'once in a lifetime' trips for us for sure.... but we already have one of those coming up this August and it is a huge one. I really should wait on the next...

I felt that way about Japan. It just seemed perfect and exactly what I wanted to do, and I want to experience it as ABD dreamed it, before the real world takes over. I might have been able to wait until 2020, but I just didn't want to take the chance. Japan is truly a 'once in a lifetime' trip for me!

Sayhello

 

[calypso726]

I've heard in the past that new adventures come out and the next year they are tweaked... the Scotland one sounds like it was gutted from the way some feel about it. We were going to stay home in 2020, but I am tempted to try to get on one of the later Egypt trips for early 2021 in this release rather than waiting for later in 2021 due to that fear... do you all feel that is grounded? Or am I being ridiculous and any possible gutting would happen much later than after the first year? Heck I am even worried about the early 2021 ones being changed... I really like this sound of it as-is! When did the Iceland trip begin it's modification...?

Scotland is a completely different trip now than it was when we took it. Personally, I thought our inaugural year Scotland trip was perfect the way it was and I am ever grateful to have done the trip the first year as it made me fall in love with Scotland. Isle of Skye and Isle of Lewis were simply magical experiences. Since that trip I've gone back to visit Skye and this year will be going back to Lewis. I don't think the current itinerary would give me "all the feels" like the original one did. After 10 ABD trips, Scotland is still my favorite. I'm not saying the current itinerary is a bad itinerary, just different.

China is different now than before but I think the current trip is better now than the old itinerary and I am glad I did not experience it until just last year. The Japan itinerary seems perfect and we were fairly certain we'd do it the first year it was released. So, that's what we are doing.

We have no ABD trips for 2020 planned since we need to build up the vacation bank again. I do want to see if it is possible to squeeze in Backstage Magic late in 2020. We will see how things shake out with vacation time.

I think if the current itinerary seems perfect and "speaks to you" then don't wait.