Are things slow here? Why?
- Thread starter profdsny
- Start date
I also thought posts were slow. I have already booked Costa Rica April18th,2009 - adults only tour. I got a great deal on airfare because the ABD agent made an error. My airfare should have cost $840.00/person. I was quoted $594.00/person with Continental airlines. Because Disney made the mistake ,Disney is paying the extra airfare! How great is that!!!
Message boards typically get slow around the holidays. I know that I pop in every day to see what's going on but I haven't had much time to write. Add to that the fact that nothing really new is going on with AbD, people aren't traveling right now since most trips are April through October, and no one is returning with news and trip reports, and I'm guessing it'll stay quiet until early in the year.
Doesn't mean I have to like it though.
I don't think it has anything to do with next year's tours though. There was a big rush to book from August through October to take advantage of the savings, but it typically drops off between November and January. At the beginning of the year, people have discussed vacation with the family and some have had to submit their weeks off for the year. From a business point of view, that's when I tend to get overwhelmingly busy with bookings of all kinds.
I haven't seen AbD drop off more than anything else with the economy. I have a group in June for Bella Italia that's slowly filling up and a few more people have booked other AbD tours this month as well. I wouldn't worry too much. Plus, if you buy your airfare through AbD and your tour is cancelled, you'll be fully refunded.
Not to hijack this thread, but people ask me all the time if the airfare will go down. Being in the business doesn't give us any insight these days -- I'm wondering if anyone has found that their overseas flight has gone down in price? For clients, I've only found deviations of $50 - $100, some up and some down, and mine is still in the $1600/pp range. I got five of our six tickets with FF miles, so it'd have to go *way* down for me to be concerned about not getting a good deal.
Dotti
Doesn't mean I have to like it though.
I don't think it has anything to do with next year's tours though. There was a big rush to book from August through October to take advantage of the savings, but it typically drops off between November and January. At the beginning of the year, people have discussed vacation with the family and some have had to submit their weeks off for the year. From a business point of view, that's when I tend to get overwhelmingly busy with bookings of all kinds.
I haven't seen AbD drop off more than anything else with the economy. I have a group in June for Bella Italia that's slowly filling up and a few more people have booked other AbD tours this month as well. I wouldn't worry too much. Plus, if you buy your airfare through AbD and your tour is cancelled, you'll be fully refunded.
Not to hijack this thread, but people ask me all the time if the airfare will go down. Being in the business doesn't give us any insight these days -- I'm wondering if anyone has found that their overseas flight has gone down in price? For clients, I've only found deviations of $50 - $100, some up and some down, and mine is still in the $1600/pp range. I got five of our six tickets with FF miles, so it'd have to go *way* down for me to be concerned about not getting a good deal.
Dotti
Message boards typically get slow around the holidays. I know that I pop in every day to see what's going on but I haven't had much time to write. Add to that the fact that nothing really new is going on with AbD, people aren't traveling right now since most trips are April through October, and no one is returning with news and trip reports, and I'm guessing it'll stay quiet until early in the year.
Doesn't mean I have to like it though.
I don't think it has anything to do with next year's tours though. There was a big rush to book from August through October to take advantage of the savings, but it typically drops off between November and January. At the beginning of the year, people have discussed vacation with the family and some have had to submit their weeks off for the year. From a business point of view, that's when I tend to get overwhelmingly busy with bookings of all kinds.
I haven't seen AbD drop off more than anything else with the economy. I have a group in June for Bella Italia that's slowly filling up and a few more people have booked other AbD tours this month as well. I wouldn't worry too much. Plus, if you buy your airfare through AbD and your tour is cancelled, you'll be fully refunded.
Not to hijack this thread, but people ask me all the time if the airfare will go down. Being in the business doesn't give us any insight these days -- I'm wondering if anyone has found that their overseas flight has gone down in price? For clients, I've only found deviations of $50 - $100, some up and some down, and mine is still in the $1600/pp range. I got five of our six tickets with FF miles, so it'd have to go *way* down for me to be concerned about not getting a good deal.
Dotti
Thanks for all the posts from everyone. Seems a few are still around. The airfare I'm watching, which is Chicago-Lon-Rome/Venice-London-Chicago has been anywhere from 1510 to 1680. It's been hovering around 1585 for a week or so. Don't know whether to bite or not. We are still planning on early July trip, so I hope the Euro, and the Pound stay low.
knewton64
- May the luck of the Irish always be with you -
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2008
Poppins2000
Life is out there waiting so go and get it!
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2006
Kris,
We did this trip back in May - here is my report if you are interested...
Our group: Becky – 47, Joe – 45, BFF Debbie – 45, Mike -44 and DS Alex -9
All four of us are Navy Vets. Deb, Mike and I were all stationed together in the mid 80’s in La Maddalena, Sardinia. We have vacationed together every year since 1986!!!! I met my husband in 1999 (let’s say reconnected for we went to high school together!), we married in 2000 and have done something Disney every year since. This is the first (of many I am sure) ABD trip for all of us…
To begin with…let me at least say we truly had a magical time - Ireland is absolutely breathtaking (and very, VERY green!) her people, with no doubt, the most friendly I have ever met. Our Disney guides Courtney and Francesc were delightful and made the trip soo much fun - we could not have asked for anyone better!
Pre-Nights
We arrived in Dublin on the morning of the 16th. We chose to come a few days early to adjust to the time change and have a little of fun on our own. Because we pre-booked for two extra nights at the Westin with Disney, ABD met us there at the airport upon our arrival in Dublin. TIP: Disney offers a great rate for pre-nights (half off from what I found on the Westin website!) and the rate included a full breakfast for everyone in your room. ANYWAY, our driver loaded our luggage into his van and we didn't lug any of it around again until we left for home 10 days later!
We spent Friday, Saturday and most of Sunday (didn't meet our group until 5:30 Sunday night) walking all over Dublin. Let me tell you we had the BEST weather on this 10 day trip. It only rained one day, (day two in Killarney) and we were graced with sunshine and the occasional clouds for our trip. Temps were in the low to mid 60's during the day, mid to high 50's at night. Anyway, we spent our pre-days visiting parks, all of the shops up and down Grafton street (look for the fishmonger Molly Malone statue!), strolling the Temple Bar area, visiting the Christ Church cathedral (if you want to see the inside of this church, now is the time to do so - for it's not covered in your tour) and other churches as well. We also stopped by the Dublin Tourism center - a great place to pick up FREE pamphlets (has a nice gift shop too) for the places you'll visit or would like to visit on your trip.
A few tips on Dublin:
It's expensive. We ate at a few different pub's (O’Neil’s - across from the Dublin Tourist Center and Gallagher’s in the Temple Bar area) - the food was great but over $30 for two (We each had Irish Stew and a Diet Coke, the next time it was Fish and Chips and a couple of diet sodas...) On a positive note, all restaurants, bars and pubs are smoke free.
If you wish to partake in a libation, a pint of Guinness in Dublin was five euros, roughly $8.50. Cocktails at the Westin bar were 15 euros, that's right 15 euros, which means it was over $20 for a drink - yikes!
If you are a music fan, you must visit a pub! My husband is an avid guitar player, and we spent a lot of time at Oliver St. John Gogarty's Pub in the Temple Bar area. Music started around 2pm - we were there everyday, singing along the crowd. Children are allowed in most pubs until 9pm.
Dublin is a very walk able city. The Westin is centrally located, you are about a block from Graton Street, and Trinity College is right next door and the Temple Bar area is right across the street. At all the crosswalks, there are signs that say "Look left" before crossing the road, helpful since they drive on the opposite side of the street. The crosswalks buttons are a hoot, you press the button for the signal to change to allow you to cross the street. Once the button is pushed, it starts ticking, like a kitchen timer and then DING! You're done, it's time to cross the street, haha!
Sunday
After a longggg walk around Dublin (it was a lovely day, sunny and almost 70 degrees!) we arrived back to the hotel to freshen up for our Welcome Dinner. We got back to our room only to find an ABD goody bag waiting for us (a lovely surprise). After a quick peruse of our goodies, we headed down to the lobby to meet our group. We had a full tour group, 40 people of which there were six children ranging in ages from 7 - 14.
After chatting with a few folks, Courtney, along with shadow guides Sarah and Adam, distributed nametags and then guided us upstairs, to a private room, for dinner. Francesc meets us at the door distributing lanyards as my DH states, "It wouldn't be Disney without a lanyard!". Let me just say this...if you are a pin collector/trader, you will be in seventh heaven - no more on this subject!!!
After introductions and a few "getting to know your fellow traveler" games, we had a marvelous buffet dinner, fresh shrimp and oysters, some tasty salads, a selection of awesome local cheeses and fresh fruit, a lamb and beef entree, veggies, breads and just like any other Disney Resort Hotel, a kid friendly buffet for the junior adventurers (hamburgers, Mac and cheese, pizza, etc.). It was an early night, since a lot of folks had arrived just that morning and were travel weary. Our little well-rested group decided to head over to Oliver St. John Gogarty's pub in the Temple Bar area for one last round of Guinness and music before our adventure officially began the next morning.
Monday
0745 - Time for breakfast! The breakfast buffet at the Westin is very good. They have hot items that consist of scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, waffles and white and black pudding (a type of sausage/scrapple like meat my husband tried until he found out what it contained. Let's just say the black pudding contains animal blood, the white does not, haha). There's a cold cereal bar, porridge (you MUST try, the porridge at the Killarney Plaza and Dromoland was OUTSTANDING), a smoothie bar, fresh cheeses, fresh fruit, breads and even salmon. Also you choices of juice, coffee, tea and hot chocolate.
After breakfast, we boarded our bus (Jackie was our bus driver for the week and he did an outstanding job!) and headed over for a tour of Dublinia (to learn about the history of Ireland and Dublin) and of the outside grounds of Christchurch Cathedral (if you want to see the inside of the church, come back in the afternoon on your own...you will have some free time that afternoon) and Dublin Castle. Traveling with us for the day was a local expert, Georgette who very happily shared her knowledge of Dublin. The tours were very interesting, the architecture was just beautiful - we took lots of pictures. Around noon, it was time to head over to...the Guinness storehouse for lunch and a tour! The Guinness storehouse is huge, seven stories if I recall. At the top you, there is a bar and you can get a 360 view of the city of Dublin. Our lunch was held in a private room on the 5th floor which also had great views of the city. After lunch, it was tour time! The tour was about an hour long with time afterwards to shop in their massive gift store or to take the lift to the top floor for a panoramic view of the city.
I must give kudos to Disney and the guides for making the tours fun for the kids. In Dublinia, adults would look at artifacts, while the kids went off to a "secret" part of the museum. At the storehouse, when it was time for the adults to sample the Guinness, the junior adventurers got to explore hidden passageways. Our 9 year old companion loved going off and doing things with the other kids that we couldn't do!
After the storehouse it was back to the hotel for a quick break and then an optional walking tour of Trinity College and the Book of Kells. The college is right next door to the hotel, less than a block away. I would say most of our group did go on the tour - how many chances does one get to see the Book of Kells!? We also saw the library known as the long room - think Harry Potter, the library where the books float in the air across from shelf to shelf. I kept waiting for books to magically float in the air…
After Trinity College, we had the rest of the afternoon and evening to ourselves. On the advice of Courtney, we opted for dinner at a pub called Gallagher’s in the temple bar area. The food was delicious (we had Fish and Chips) and live music was playing. We then took a long walk, ended up back on Grafton Street at Butler's Chocolates for a sweet ending for our busy day! Tomorrow, it's off to Killarney!
Tuesday
On our way to Killarney today...had to have our bags packed and ready to go by 0715. We left our bags in the room (as instructed...they were magically placed on our bus and showed up in our hotel room in Killarney) and headed down for breakfast . By 0830 we were on the bus and on our way to Killarney, stopping off in a few hours in Cashel. As we rolled out of Dublin and into the countryside - there was so much to see! A lot of green, green, GREEN grass hillsides (they don't call it the Emerald Isle for nothing baby!) farms and sheep. And more sheep and then...SHEEP. Fields of green dotted with white fluffy...well, sheep! We did see some cows and horses but the best part, with it being late spring, we saw lots of lambs, calfs and colts/foals. Babies and their mamas were everywhere. I took so many pictures of sheep, it was ridiculous (or just sheepishly obsessive). ANYWAY, about an hour and a half into our ride, we made a pit stop for tea and scones (yummy!) before we were back on the road to Cashel. The Rock of Cashel is magnificent. As we approached the town, you could see the castle ruins off in the distance and could easily realize why that site and locale was chosen to build this castle.
We were met by another local expert who gave us a tour of the castle ruins and grounds before we headed into town for lunch on our own and a little exploration. It was back on the bus by 1:30 for the final leg of our journey to Killarney (about another 2-2 1/2 hours). TIP: The roads in Ireland are very narrow, curvy with turn after turn and they drive on the opposite side of the road. While we never spent more that 2.5 hours at a time on the road with out stopping for a break, a couple of people in our group suffered from motion sickness. If you are one of those people, please make sure you pack something to take for the drive. We arrived in Killarney around 4pm and were greeted in the hotel lobby by the Town Squire and the Mayor. We had the afternoon to ourselves before meeting for dinner at 6:30pm. Tonight, two special dinners were planned, one for the kids and another for the adults. The six children in our group were escorted to a room from their own private dinner, an Irish storyteller and movie. Adults were whisked off to the hotels fine dining restaurant, "Mentons". Dinner was delicious and our friend’s boy Alex said he had an "awesome" time with his new friends.
Wednesday
Our first (and thank goodness our ONLY) rainy day. It was just an annoying drizzle at this point but our guides were prepared and dispersed ABD ponchos right after breakfast for our 30 minute jaunty cart ride (think of the courting cart in the movie "The Quiet Man") to Muckross House (think of the house on Dynasty) located in Killarney park (a stone's throw from the hotel). Upon arrival at Muckross house, we took a quick tour of the gardens before the skies opened with more that a drizzle. We made it inside, just in time!! Junior adventurers were whisked off on their own tour while the adults went on theirs. There were a lot of beautiful pieces of furniture and some wonderful views of the mountains from the sitting rooms.
Due to the continuing downpour, we did not get to bike ride around the park and up to the falls as originally planned. We did take the bus to the falls and most of us trudged to the falls (a short walk and well worth the beauty) after all, we weren't going to let a little rain get in our way. Actually, all of the foliage acted as a sort of umbrella, we really didn't get to wet. After our hike it was off to the Muckross garden room for lunch and a chance to visit their craft store. Pottery and weaving are done on site and you can purchase their crafts and other items as well.
We were back to the hotel by 2pm and had the rest of the afternoon and evening to ourselves. The rain was still coming down in a steady pace so our little group opted for a little down time. The boys napped, the girls went shopping!!! Dinner that night was at Flesk, a great little seafood place (actually their menu had many other selection as well) about two doors down from the hotel.
Thursday
A beautiful day! All the rain has passed in the night and we are headed for an eco-cruise on Kenmare Bay, about 20 miles outside of Killarney. Today was an optional late morning - those who chose to could meet our guides at 9am for a 45 minute nature walk in Killarney Park. We opted to sleep in and have a later breakfast! We met up with our group at 10am and headed for the town of Kenmare. Another beautiful drive, lots more sheep and beautiful scenery.
By the time we boarded our boat it was pretty warm but once we got going and the wind picked up most of us donned a light jacket. Had the opportunity to see several seals on our boat trip, a castle and lots of rolling green hills. After the cruise, we headed for the town of Kenmare for lunch and some shopping before driving back to the hotel, via the backside of Killarney National Park. This drive is incredible, have your cameras ready for Moll's Gap and you should get the opportunity to stop at Ladies View for even more pictures.
When we arrived back at the hotel, we still had about three hours to kill before our next outing. Since it was such a beautiful day, we opted for a walk to Ross Castle in Killarney Park (a four mile round trip hike). We really felt like we were in the country, miles from anywhere. Everything was in bloom, the grass green, saw a few cows along the way, it was a great hike - just what we needed. By the time we got back to the hotel, we were ready for a snack and just in time for wine and cheese tasting and Irish dance lessons! The cheeses were phenomenal and our sad, but fun, attempts at Irish dance are memories captured on video that we can recall at anytime with a click of a button (we gals managed to get both DHs on the dance floor to exhibit their "Feet of Flames" showmanship!!! I can't remember the last time I cheered or laughed so hard...)
Dinner was on our own again this evening. Thanks to Francesc's recommendation, we enjoyed a fabulous dinner at Bricin' - famous for their Boxties (or potato pancakes). The Chicken Tarragon was delicious and so was our dessert - Sticky Toffee Pudding.
Just a little FYI...if you need to do a load or two of laundry, do it on your own, don't send it out to be done! We chose to have a small load of laundry sent out for cleaning during our stay at Killarney Plaza; essentially 3 pairs of jeans, 1 polo shirt and 4 pairs of socks. The cost was 40 euros as in $65!!!!
Friday
Our most anticipated day - we are off to Dromoland Castle, yipeeeeee! We do have a few stops along the way...a drive out to the Dingle Peninsula and to Inch Beach. I'm still not sure why they call it Inch Beach when in fact it is about three miles long! It's a pretty beach and some of our group braved the cold water and got their tootsies wet. We went for a nice walk, collected sea shells and smooth rocks. I would have love to have been there at low tide. Apparently, the water can recede up to a mile out.
After an hour or so, it was back on the bus for the longest part of our journey (2.5 hour drive). We were entertained by the beautiful scenery and a Disney classic "Darby O'Gill and the Little People", how appropriate, haha! Around 1pm, we stopped in the picturesque town of Adare for lunch. This town has the white wash buildings, thatch roofs and a lovely visitor/Irish heritage center.
After lunch, the anticipation was building. Finally, we were on our way to the Castle!
Arriving at Dromoland Castle
Luckily for us, the sun was shining upon our arrival at Dromoland Castle. We rolled through the gates and on to the property surrounded by greenery, massive trees, the golf course and then, the castle! As we approached the building entrance, you could see several members of the castle staff waiting to greet our bus. Each one of us received a personal greeting as we exited the bus - right off the bat they made us feel welcome and special. After a group photo op, we were ushered into a special lobby, offered a cold drink and were told a little bit about the castle history. After a brief tour of the castle and location of amenities (pool, spa, etc.), we were given our room keys. While the boys headed off to the rooms, BFF and I made a beeline for the spa, hoping we could get a treatment that afternoon before heading over to Bunratty Castle for dinner that evening. What luck - we each got an appointment for a massage/mud treatment! With an hour to spare, we went to check out our rooms. All I could say was WOW! Our room was HUGE, a king bed, (with two robes and slippers lying on the bed - you get to keep the slippers!) two night tables, two wing back chairs, a couch & coffee table (all placed in front of a bay window), a desk and chair, a massive armoire with double closets and TV. The bathroom was a separate tub and shower (with water pressure that knocked me up against the wall!), toilet and double sink vanity area. It was definitely luxurious!
BFF and I then decided to head down to the hydro pool for a steamy soak before our spa treatments while the boys went over to the indoor pool. The spa was wonderful and very relaxing - if you get the chance give yourself a treat!
By 6:15pm. it was back on the bus for dinner and Irish night at Bunratty castle, about a 10 minute drive from Dromoland. Think Medieval Times but with an Irish flavor. Our group enjoyed a traditional Irish dinner with live entertainment, singing, dancing and live music. It was a lot of fun.
Saturday
Our last full day in Ireland! After an exquisite breakfast in the castle (meals served on Wedgwood china, and Waterford crystal ) it was on the bus to the Cliffs of Moher. We were blessed with another beautiful day and scenic drive. Upon arrival to the Cliffs, it was quite windy so we bundled up; hats, gloves and scarf. It wasn't a biting cold wind (thank goodness!) but I was glad to have bundled up all the same. We were given a little over an hour to explore the Cliffs. They have a nice gift shop as well so shoppers make sure you save some time in the end for a visit.
After the Cliffs, it was back on the bus for a drive through the Burren, stopping in Clare for lunch at a seaside pub, Monks. The seafood sandwiches were very tasty along with the desserts. We all went for a short walk along the pier that was across the street from Monks, before boarding the bus for our trip over to Rathbaun Farm. Rathbaun farm is a working farm and very picturesque. White wash building, thatch roofs, a homey peat fire in the front room - it was everything you have ever seen in an old movie or pictures about Ireland. Our first chore of the afternoon - making scones while donned in lunch room lady attire - some great photo ops, haha. Once the scones were made (and while they were cooking), it was time to see the farm and it's sheep. We saw various types of sheep, their babies, watched a border collie do his job herding the sheep and witnessed a shearing. The junior adventures got to bottle feed some of the lambs as well. By this time the scones are ready! Time to wash up and sit down to sample our wares with a good cup of tea before heading back to the castle.
While we had our magical farewell dinner later that evening, I will end my trip report here. There are so few surprises in life anymore, let this be one to savor and discover on your own! I want to personally thank all of our guides Courtney, Francesc, Adam and Sarah for making our trip a most memorable one. Our whole group was wonderful and I miss the many new friends I have made. If you decide to do this Adventure - you WILL have an awesome time.....
Just Some FYIs:
All hotel rooms had an in room safe, Molton Brown toiletries, blowdryer, ironing board and iron
Voltage is 220 although in Dromoland castle we also had a 110 outlet over by the desk
My Opinions (for what its worth!)
Best Bed - The Westin (that is if you like them soft!)
Best Hotel Room View - Killarney Plaza (our room overlooked Killarney National Park)
Best Restaurant in Dublin - Fire (expensive but awesome...found it by watching Tasty Travels w/Rachael Ray on the Travel Channel)
Best Restaurant in Killarney - Bricin
Best Breakfast - Dromoland Castle
Best Service - Dromoland Castle
Best Drive - To the Cliffs of Moher and Rathbaun Farm
Best Drink - A"true" Irish Coffee (try one, you'll see what I mean)
Favorite part of the trip - Killarney Park and the Cliffs of Moher
I check in often, but with so long to go before June, there's no point in thinking about packing or what's gong on out West.
I also think a lot of folks took a break from the boards around the election b/c things on the community board got a little out of hand. Slowly venturing back now.
One other factor: dis time is taken up with holiday talk at the moment.
Just mho. But I'll be glad when touring season starts up in the spring - I love reading everyone's plans and reports. So exciting!
I also think a lot of folks took a break from the boards around the election b/c things on the community board got a little out of hand. Slowly venturing back now.
One other factor: dis time is taken up with holiday talk at the moment.
Just mho. But I'll be glad when touring season starts up in the spring - I love reading everyone's plans and reports. So exciting!
glassslipper2004
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2004
It would definitely be nice to see more posts. But I wonder if people are holding off on the planning/anticipation because of the economy. We have booked our trip, but a little part of me is still worried about it - I'm not going to book airfare until it gets a lot closer.
Watching the ABD boards for awhile, I notice the activity slows down during the off season. There is a flurry when they are getting ready to and have just announced new trips, and a constant stream of posting when people are about to travel or just returning from travel. Right now most tours are over for the season....so people just don't have as much to talk about!
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