Let's 'Bounceback' to WDW! September 2-9, 2017 POR Pre-Trip Report

[VACamm]

Following! Just caught up after your post-trip report. Glad you eliminated H&V from your meals It is one of the only places I would have to say I would not want to return to. Characters were cute during the spring time dine, but the food, no thank you.

I have dined at all your choices except Skipper Canteen, but I hear good things. I have been to ‘Ohana three times and have always had a great meal! I booked it for my upcoming trip as well. I have never felt rushed, and have always had great service. I always luck out and have had views of the castle too. My only “complaint” would be one time my family and I were served steak that was a little undercooked to our liking, but our server had no problem bringing us steak that was less red. I would also highly recommend the Lapu Lapu if you like rum!

View attachment 218989

It is deceptive. Looks and tastes like it isn’t that strong, but do not be fooled! The Tambu Lounge also serves this drink if you get there early or have a little wait.

I will note that I usually make my ‘Ohana ADRs earlier (<6:00pm) in the night than later since it is known to have backups. I figure this may be why I have never had any service or time issues. My last ADR was for 3:30pm before a MVMCP and it worked out perfectly!

I am SO glad that we eliminated H&V too... I ended up reading some pretty bad reviews on trip reports! The only bad thing is that if we feel that we will HAVE to eat there one day to continue on this food journey through WDW. Maybe they will have a new chef / menu by then!!!

I keep hearing good things about Ohana. This one has me very excited to try! And, I DO LOVE RUM, so I look forward to trying that Pineapple Lapu Lapu drink! The thought of drinking straight out of a pineapple sounds fabulous haha!!

Thank you so much for the tip about making the Ohana ADR earlier. I definitely will use your suggestion!! THIS is why I love the Disboards... people are so happy to share their trips and tricks to help make your vacation a bit easier!

 

[VACamm]

Happy Tuesday Night!

Originally from New England and having converted my husband, we were very happy with the Superbowl win on Sunday!



Ok, enough of that...

Tonight we are going to work on our upcoming Disney trip a bit. We need to figure out which days to eat at which restaurant. Because we have chosen some restaurants that are at resorts, we will have to be creative with our planning. We will most definitely be using our park hoppers a lot!

So stay tuned for another update hopefully later tonight!

 

[SweetSerenity]

I just caught up! I have all the same ADRS on our list as you except for CRT and Hoop Dee Doo.

Love the cute shirts!

 

[VACamm]

I just caught up! I have all the same ADRS on our list as you except for CRT and Hoop Dee Doo.

Love the cute shirts!

Great minds think alike! We were looking at the menus again for Skipper Canteen.... and I'm super excited about that one for sure!

 

[VACamm]

Howdy!!

As I mentioned in my previous post, last night Kevin and I worked on our September schedule a little bit more. Since our ADR date is in only 26 days, we really wanted to talk about what days that we wanted to try to schedule each dinner reservation so that it makes sense.

After all... we all know that EATING at Walt Disney World is one of the best parts of going every year!!

So we sat with my laptop, and looked at menus again (which is always so much fun!!!) and started placing our chosen restaurants into our spreadsheet according to what day we plan to be at each park.

So, I am happy to present our latest and greatest version and hopefully our FINAL (hopefully) schedule with the inserted restaurants:

Saturday 9/2:
Travel day
Check In at POR
Lunch at POR foodcourt
**ADR: Cinderella's Royal Table (Magic Kingdom)
Magic Kingdom for Wishes

Sunday 9/3:
Rope drop Animal Kingdom
Lunch at AK Quick Service
Afternoon pool /nap break
**ADR: Sanaa (Animal Kingdom Lodge)
Animal Kingdom in evening
NOTE: Hopefully Pandora will be open!!

Monday 9/4:
Rope drop Hollywood Studios
Lunch at HS Quick Service
Afternoon pool /nap break
**ADR: Ohana (Polynesian)
Hollywood Studios in evening for Star Wars Fireworks

Tuesday 9/5:
Rope Drop Magic Kingdom
Afternoon pool and nap break
**ADR: Teppan Edo (EPCOT)
EPCOT in evening for Illuminations

Wednesday 9/6:
No Park Day: Sleep in, Pool day,
**ADR: Hoop De Doo Revue (Fort Wilderness)
Disney Springs in evening.

Thursday 9/7:
Rope drop EPCOT
Lunch at EPCOT Quick Service
Afternoon pool /nap break
**ADR: Food & Wine Festival (EPCOT)
EPCOT in evening.

Friday 9/8:
Rope drop EPCOT
Lunch at EPCOT Food & Wine Fest
Afternoon pool /nap break
**ADR: Skipper Canteen (Magic Kingdom)
Magic Kingdom in evening for Wishes.

Saturday 9/9:
Travel Day Home

The things that are still in planning mode are:
1. choosing shirts for our trip
2. scheduling FP+ times
3. book airfare

I have tons of time left, right?

 

[Raeven]

They announced Pandora's opening date yesterday and it's May 27th so it will be open in September!

I hope we get to see you! We'll be there the 8th and 9th but I don't have any set plan for reservations or park days yet.

 

[VACamm]

They announced Pandora's opening date yesterday and it's May 27th so it will be open in September!

I hope we get to see you! We'll be there the 8th and 9th but I don't have any set plan for reservations or park days yet.

YAAAY~!!! I'm so excited!!! Thank you for the info girl!!

And, if we do have the opportunity to see each other, that will be AMAZING!

 

[Sarahh1027]

Its so weird because some reviews I read - they LOVE Ohana's dinner.... and other reviews I read - they really didnt like it at ALL. UGH. I wish it was easier to choose! I've never been to House of Blues at all, but if you've been there 3 times in a row it must be good!! Do you normally order the same meal each time, or do you try different things on the menu?

I always order the rosemary chicken with mashed potatoes and veggies..ahhh it is so good! We don't plan on going there this trip though...we want to try a lot of new places!!

Originally from New England and having converted my husband, we were very happy with the Superbowl win on Sunday!

WOOHOOO!!! GO PATS!!! Loooove your Brady jersey!

Your plans sound amazing so far!!

 

[CatNipRules]

I'll admit I was and I wasn't rooting for the Patriots. LOL!! Every team I EVER root for loses. Every single time. LOL!! So, I was kinda rooting for Atlanta. Too say that I was shocked that they were winning was a major shock to me. LOL!!

Then my luck started kicking in. LOL!! I'm glad that they won.

I love the shirts. I'm going to try and come up with something for our trip. Just not sure how to do it. I usually buy them at the Disney store. Any advice on how to start???

 

[OrangeJuice]

Joining in! We also love having Disney Themed shirts while in WDW, its part of the fun of planning Last time we ended up making our own with iron on stuff but it didn't really last after we got back home.

 

[GraceLuvsWDW]

Joining in. We are bouncing back Sept 6-13, 2017 to Pop. We stayed POR last year 9/7-14. I have a 13 year old daughter who will be 14 in June. My daughter has some severe health issues that impact our touring, so I try not to plan too much, but we love Disney and I love planning our trips. I am also working on our spreadsheet and picking restaurants. We currently are planning Ohana dinner, Tusker House (my favorite), Chef Mickey's brunch (my daughter's favorite). I'd really like to try Homecoming this trip.

 

[VACamm]

I always order the rosemary chicken with mashed potatoes and veggies..ahhh it is so good! We don't plan on going there this trip though...we want to try a lot of new places!!

Thats how I am too, I want to try EVERY Disney Restaurant. I mean, I know it will take years but I'm up for the challenge!

WOOHOOO!!! GO PATS!!! Loooove your Brady jersey!

Your plans sound amazing so far!!

Thank you so much! And yes, I absolutely think that Tom Brady is pretty awesome!

I'll admit I was and I wasn't rooting for the Patriots. LOL!! Every team I EVER root for loses. Every single time. LOL!! So, I was kinda rooting for Atlanta. Too say that I was shocked that they were winning was a major shock to me. LOL!!

Then my luck started kicking in. LOL!! I'm glad that they won.

I love the shirts. I'm going to try and come up with something for our trip. Just not sure how to do it. I usually buy them at the Disney store. Any advice on how to start???

Well I'm so glad that you weren't rooting for the Patriots then hahaaaa!! The game literally had me on the edge of my seat until the last second. Ugh. I don't think I can handle that again!!!

About the shirts, the way that I start is I go to Etsy and I search for Disney World Shirts. OR I get even more specific and I will search for "Animal Kingdom Tshirts". Each one that I like, I "FAVORITE" in my Etsy account. I end up with like 20 shirts that I have to narrow down to 7. Its so hard, but I choose which ones that I want to order, and then I go from there. Have you ever used Etsy before? If not, be careful because its addictive and I want to buy EVERYTHING! Also, I do love Etsy because I know that I'm supporting small home businesses instead of a huge chain store.

Joining in! We also love having Disney Themed shirts while in WDW, its part of the fun of planning Last time we ended up making our own with iron on stuff but it didn't really last after we got back home.

Hi!!! and Thank you for reading !

I have often wondered about the iron on shirts. Just out of curiosity, how many washings did they last for? Some of the iron on's are such a good price on Etsy that I've been tempted to buy some!

Joining in. We are bouncing back Sept 6-13, 2017 to Pop. We stayed POR last year 9/7-14. I have a 13 year old daughter who will be 14 in June. My daughter has some severe health issues that impact our touring, so I try not to plan too much, but we love Disney and I love planning our trips. I am also working on our spreadsheet and picking restaurants. We currently are planning Ohana dinner, Tusker House (my favorite), Chef Mickey's brunch (my daughter's favorite). I'd really like to try Homecoming this trip.

Hi and thank you for reading along! It sounds like we are at the same stage of planning with the spreadsheet and restaurants. With the ADR day creeping up, don't you feel the pressure mounting??!!

Ohana, Tusker House, and Chef Mickey's all are awesome Character Meals! Your family is going to have some amazing photos with all of the characters! I'm with you, I really would like to also try Homecoming this trip. I have read nothing but amazing things about Homecoming, but I just don't have room for it this vacation Are you using the meal plan for this trip?

 

[VACamm]

Happy Sunday Ya'll!!

Today in Virginia, on February 12th, it was 79 degrees and sunny while it was SNOWING 12 INCHES in New England!! It was so gorgeous outside, that we actually working in the yard in shorts and tshirts while raking and burning some leaves. I'm trying not to get too used to this wacky warm February weather, because I have a feeling that we are still going to get cold weather and snow again before too long! Mother Nature is probably watching us, and is plotting her next ice storm

This evening I was looking at airfare for our September WDW trip, and OMGosh it was HIGH! I wonder if if will go HIGHER or maybe it will go lower over the next few weeks?!?! I always get so confused and never know when the best time to buy airfare is! Should I buy it NOW? Or wait to see if the price goes down??

I guess I will keep looking over the next few days, actually I think it will be more like stalking the airlines!

Also, I was looking at all of the NEW things that I need to plan for our September trip:
1. Rivers of Light at AK - I am so so so excited!
2. Should I try to get a Rivers of Light Meal Package? If so, I will have to add Tiffins to our ADR list!
3. Happily Ever After night time show at Magic Kingdom - this sounds fabulous! I'm going to really miss Wishes though...
4. Pandora... how in the world do I even plan for this??? I don't even know what it looks like, where to go, can I evenbook FP's for the new rides because they will be the MOST popular attractions in all of WDW like Frozen Ever After was last year!!

So many new things happening at WDW, that I am just so excited!!

 

[Raeven]

I book through Southwest and September isn't available yet. Usually around the time it becomes available on there prices seem to lower and become more "normal".

 

[VACamm]

I book through Southwest and September isn't available yet. Usually around the time it becomes available on there prices seem to lower and become more "normal".

Ohhh thanks girl! I will try to be patient!

 

[CatNipRules]

Ohhh thanks girl! I will try to be patient!

I have zero patience most of the time. LOL!!

I'm hoping that the fast passes will be available when we get to the date we can book it. Keeping my fingers crossed for both of us.

 

[PolyRob]

Ohhh thanks girl! I will try to be patient!

I love SW! I am personally waiting for October rates. Being able to change my flights without penalty and the free bags are always great!

The airfare game is always rough. It makes a huge impact on the overall price of the trip. I hate how much it can change! I got a SW flight for $55 one night and the next day it was up to $162! I would say if you know what your average price to and from MCO is in September, and its around there, go for it. If it is extremely high like you mention, it will probably drop. There is still a decent amount of time.

 

[SweetSerenity]

Ohhh thanks girl! I will try to be patient!

I was going to say the same as Raeven. I confirmed with a flight attendant for southwest on Friday that 2 checked bags and 2 carry ons are still free.

 

[Raeven]

Ohhh thanks girl! I will try to be patient!

I know it's so hard!

 

[VACamm]

I have zero patience most of the time. LOL!!

I'm hoping that the fast passes will be available when we get to the date we can book it. Keeping my fingers crossed for both of us.

Me too! Maybe between both of us we will have enough fingers crossed to make it work in our favor!

I love SW! I am personally waiting for October rates. Being able to change my flights without penalty and the free bags are always great!

The airfare game is always rough. It makes a huge impact on the overall price of the trip. I hate how much it can change! I got a SW flight for $55 one night and the next day it was up to $162! I would say if you know what your average price to and from MCO is in September, and its around there, go for it. If it is extremely high like you mention, it will probably drop. There is still a decent amount of time.

Unfortunately, Southwest doesn't fly from the airport that I normally use. The way that the airlines change pricing is so crazy!!!

I was going to say the same as Raeven. I confirmed with a flight attendant for southwest on Friday that 2 checked bags and 2 carry ons are still free.

That is such a GREAT deal though!! Free bags is an awesome perk!!!

I know it's so hard!

Hopefully it will go quickly hahahaa