texaslady22
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2009
Background: We went to Legoland, California for a week at the start of summer. It was awesome! We bought season passes and stayed at the Sheraton Carlsbad right next to Legoland. We literally went to Legoland every day for 7 days straight. The kids all loved it, and they all said they loved Legoland more than Disneyworld, to which we've been several times. Our oldest has autism, so the fact that we could take our time in Legoland and build things and play on playgrounds when he got overwhelmed really appealed to him. I actually really felt bad. We normally do these go-go-go vacations, but the kids want a more relaxed pace.
Back to THIS trip, through. Two weeks ago, I started thinking about going on another trip before school starts. We have the Legoland Merlin Adventure pass, so we get into all the parks free (plus the Orlando Eye, SeaLife, etc). We both have companion pass on Southwest Airlines. We have enough points for us all to fly. I batted my eyelashes and asked my husband if we could go on another trip. "Only if we don't spend more than $1500." We debated whether or not that included food. It doesn't. Deal.
The players:
Grumpy Man (hubby)
Me
Boy - 9 (has autism)
Boy - 6
Girl - 4
$55 Flights - As I said, we had points for all flights. We just had to pay $11/person for the 9/11 security fee
$135 Rental Car - We're renting a Chevy Impala for a week. We put it on our American Express so we have extra damage protection.
$43 Swan and Dolphin Resort Fee - We have points for a night at the S&D. Actually, we were going to stay 2 nights, but then here's what happened....
As I was looking for hotels, I found a vacation rental home that listed our dates and said "Last minute special - 6 nights for $400." Well, we only needed it for 5 nights because we were going to stay 2 nights at Swan and Dolphin. So, we removed one of our nights at Swan and Dolphin. We'll stay there one night and then move to the vacation rental.
$448 - Vacation rental for 6 nights - 3 bedroom, pool, kitchen. Yay!
So, here's our plan:
Day 1
We arrive at MCO around noon. We'll probably eat McDonalds in the airport, as we have one child with food issues. We're going to check in at the Dolphin and spend the rest of the day swimming and enjoying the resort. Maybe we'll rent paddle-boats. Who knows! We have adults-only reservtions at Shula's Steakhouse that night, so we're sending the kids to Camp Dolphin for 2 hours at $12/hour. However, we'll get 2 kids free from eating at Shula's, so that's a great deal! Plus, they'll get dinner there.
Day 2
We have reservations at T-Rex cafe at noon. Before that, we're hoping to get in an early morning swim at the resort. We plan to enjoy Downtown Disney for a few hours. After T-Rex, we want to build lightsabers and I'm really hoping to do the potato head. At 4:30, we're going to head to the Polynesian, where the children will spend the evening at Lilo's Playhouse ($165). My daughter went to Lilo's Playhouse on our last trip and LOVED it. When we drop the kids off, we're going to go get checked in to our vacation house & buy groceries. We'll also find somewhere to eat. Right now, we have reservations at Sanaa, but I'm not sure I'll keep them. Ideas? We plan to pick the kids up before the fireworks so that we can eat a Dole Whip and watch them.
Day 3
We are driving to Legoland! Our kids are morning people, so we plan to eat in the vacation home and head to Legoland for rope drop. We spent several days from rope drop to closing at Legoland on our last trip, so our plan is to do the same here. If our autistic son wanted to spend 2 hours in the Lego building area, we literally would. I enjoyed getting the time with Grumpy Man to talk and people-watch.
Day 4
We plan to have this be a rest day. We'd like to go to the Orlando Eye and the SeaLife aquarium. We'll also do Madamme Tussauds if we can convince the children. All of that is free with our Merlin Adventure pass! I've also been eyeing the Crayola Experience. (Any advice there?). I can get tickets for $17 each ($68) with my work, and my one son gets in free because it's the week of his birthday. We'll swim at the vacation home and maybe find a fun restaurant....or order in.
Day 5
We'll be going back to Legoland! I'm not entirely sure what the day will hold. We might choose to do the Legoland waterpark, but the kids weren't crazy about the one in California. We'll repeat our favorites and stay as long as the children choose.
Day 6
Beach day! We plan to drive to Cocoa Beach and spend the day there. It also just so happens that a rocket is scheduled to launch that day, but we're not mentioning it to the children in case it doesn't work out. We plan to build sandcastles, wade in the water, and have a nice picnic. (Any tips for Cocoa Beach?)
Day 7
Sadly, this is the day we leave. We have to pack up our vacation home and be out by 11. However, our flight doesn't leave until 5pm, so we'll have time to do something. If we don't do the Crayola Experience earlier in the week, this would be a good time to do that. Suggestions?
So, we get to go on a trip! We did it within the budget!! Any suggestions or ideas? I'm so excited Grumpy Man agreed to it.
Back to THIS trip, through. Two weeks ago, I started thinking about going on another trip before school starts. We have the Legoland Merlin Adventure pass, so we get into all the parks free (plus the Orlando Eye, SeaLife, etc). We both have companion pass on Southwest Airlines. We have enough points for us all to fly. I batted my eyelashes and asked my husband if we could go on another trip. "Only if we don't spend more than $1500." We debated whether or not that included food. It doesn't. Deal.
The players:
Grumpy Man (hubby)
Me
Boy - 9 (has autism)
Boy - 6
Girl - 4
$55 Flights - As I said, we had points for all flights. We just had to pay $11/person for the 9/11 security fee
$135 Rental Car - We're renting a Chevy Impala for a week. We put it on our American Express so we have extra damage protection.
$43 Swan and Dolphin Resort Fee - We have points for a night at the S&D. Actually, we were going to stay 2 nights, but then here's what happened....
As I was looking for hotels, I found a vacation rental home that listed our dates and said "Last minute special - 6 nights for $400." Well, we only needed it for 5 nights because we were going to stay 2 nights at Swan and Dolphin. So, we removed one of our nights at Swan and Dolphin. We'll stay there one night and then move to the vacation rental.
$448 - Vacation rental for 6 nights - 3 bedroom, pool, kitchen. Yay!
So, here's our plan:
Day 1
We arrive at MCO around noon. We'll probably eat McDonalds in the airport, as we have one child with food issues. We're going to check in at the Dolphin and spend the rest of the day swimming and enjoying the resort. Maybe we'll rent paddle-boats. Who knows! We have adults-only reservtions at Shula's Steakhouse that night, so we're sending the kids to Camp Dolphin for 2 hours at $12/hour. However, we'll get 2 kids free from eating at Shula's, so that's a great deal! Plus, they'll get dinner there.
Day 2
We have reservations at T-Rex cafe at noon. Before that, we're hoping to get in an early morning swim at the resort. We plan to enjoy Downtown Disney for a few hours. After T-Rex, we want to build lightsabers and I'm really hoping to do the potato head. At 4:30, we're going to head to the Polynesian, where the children will spend the evening at Lilo's Playhouse ($165). My daughter went to Lilo's Playhouse on our last trip and LOVED it. When we drop the kids off, we're going to go get checked in to our vacation house & buy groceries. We'll also find somewhere to eat. Right now, we have reservations at Sanaa, but I'm not sure I'll keep them. Ideas? We plan to pick the kids up before the fireworks so that we can eat a Dole Whip and watch them.
Day 3
We are driving to Legoland! Our kids are morning people, so we plan to eat in the vacation home and head to Legoland for rope drop. We spent several days from rope drop to closing at Legoland on our last trip, so our plan is to do the same here. If our autistic son wanted to spend 2 hours in the Lego building area, we literally would. I enjoyed getting the time with Grumpy Man to talk and people-watch.
Day 4
We plan to have this be a rest day. We'd like to go to the Orlando Eye and the SeaLife aquarium. We'll also do Madamme Tussauds if we can convince the children. All of that is free with our Merlin Adventure pass! I've also been eyeing the Crayola Experience. (Any advice there?). I can get tickets for $17 each ($68) with my work, and my one son gets in free because it's the week of his birthday. We'll swim at the vacation home and maybe find a fun restaurant....or order in.
Day 5
We'll be going back to Legoland! I'm not entirely sure what the day will hold. We might choose to do the Legoland waterpark, but the kids weren't crazy about the one in California. We'll repeat our favorites and stay as long as the children choose.
Day 6
Beach day! We plan to drive to Cocoa Beach and spend the day there. It also just so happens that a rocket is scheduled to launch that day, but we're not mentioning it to the children in case it doesn't work out. We plan to build sandcastles, wade in the water, and have a nice picnic. (Any tips for Cocoa Beach?)
Day 7
Sadly, this is the day we leave. We have to pack up our vacation home and be out by 11. However, our flight doesn't leave until 5pm, so we'll have time to do something. If we don't do the Crayola Experience earlier in the week, this would be a good time to do that. Suggestions?
So, we get to go on a trip! We did it within the budget!! Any suggestions or ideas? I'm so excited Grumpy Man agreed to it.
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