The ABCs of a New 'Ohana Adventure-G is for: Greetings From Teppan, Good-Byes, and Good News!!! - COMPLETED 1/7

I can throw it out there that everyone who will be there, Doc, Jenny, Billie, Kari, and you, (did I miss anyone, or now know about anyone?) meet up at the IG (seems to be the EPIC-est place to meet up- unless it's pouring, LOL!) around 3:30 or 4:00 depending on when you are done with your pairing. We have dinner at Teppan at 7:20 and I'm not sure what my kids will be wanting to do from 4:00 til then.
Unfortunately Kari won't be there and Jenny will be gone when I get there :( but Billie will be with us! And Doc said he'd be there so that sounds like a plan Stan :thumbsup2
Do you have an arrival day tradition or what is the thing you look forward to doing first and why? In other words, what gives you that feeling of, “I’m finally in Disney!”
We do not have any arrival day traditions since our arrivals are always different times. But for me, I feel I'm "finally" in Disney when we get on ME-something Steve now likes to take away from me since he prefers to take a Lyft from MCO to save time 😭
 
Two bonus nights at the Polynesian?!! That's wonderful; I'm excited for you and your kiddos. Sounds like a lovely way to end a trip.
I'll be curious to hear how CBR's size factors into your overall opinion of the resort. I've been toying around with staying there with my mom for years, but I can't get over how spread out the grounds are. Hopefully it won't be too brutal after a long park day.
 
I can throw it out there that everyone who will be there, Doc, Jenny, Billie, Kari, and you, (did I miss anyone, or now know about anyone?) meet up at the IG (seems to be the EPIC-est place to meet up- unless it's pouring, LOL!) around 3:30 or 4:00 depending on when you are done with your pairing. We have dinner at Teppan at 7:20 and I'm not sure what my kids will be wanting to do from 4:00 til then.
I think I might be able to swing a 4pm meet. :)
Depends on if the plane is on time, if DME doesn't take too long and if my ADR doesn't run long.
But... sure! Count me in. :)
 
Unfortunately Kari won't be there and Jenny will be gone when I get there :( but Billie will be with us! And Doc said he'd be there so that sounds like a plan Stan :thumbsup2

I meant Karilynn. ;) Sorry for the confusion! So, what are your dates, then. I guess I need to get straight who is overlapping with us when.

We do not have any arrival day traditions since our arrivals are always different times. But for me, I feel I'm "finally" in Disney when we get on ME-something Steve now likes to take away from me since he prefers to take a Lyft from MCO to save time 😭

That's another vote for getting on ME. I am also one who really loves it. And tbh, I have never felt like it takes all that much extra time. :confused3 I've almost always been on a bus within 10 minutes and to me the extra 10 minutes of stopping at another resort, IF you have to, is worth the cartoons, music, nice bus driver and saving $30 for a couple of drinks.
 


Two bonus nights at the Polynesian?!! That's wonderful; I'm excited for you and your kiddos. Sounds like a lovely way to end a trip.
I'll be curious to hear how CBR's size factors into your overall opinion of the resort. I've been toying around with staying there with my mom for years, but I can't get over how spread out the grounds are. Hopefully it won't be too brutal after a long park day.
I am VERY excited for those 2 days! IN my next updates I'll be laying out the plans and you'll see why! :)

ME TOO!!! I just have no idea. My TA agreed with my room location choice so I think I'll be close to both the first bus stop and the Main Bldg. If it looks brutal, we'll opt for Uber.
 
I think I might be able to swing a 4pm meet. :)
Depends on if the plane is on time, if DME doesn't take too long and if my ADR doesn't run long.
But... sure! Count me in. :)
YAY!! I'm planning to send out a group PM later today... I'll make sure you're on it!
 
OH wow!!! That is GREAT advice!! Thank you for the little tidbit
We didn't know it either- it was our 2nd trip, and I didn't know about all the great fan-based infomation out there (like these Forums). Nice room, good view of the lake and the castle, but no place to sit and enjoy it.
Holy crap! That sure sounds like a story!!! How on earth...?!
The gecko ? We'd gotten lunch at the food court, and brought it back to the courtyard by our room. DH jostled the table, and a gecko, who was probably sunning himself, fell off the table umbrella and landed in the plate. He froze, we stared, then spent the next 5 minutes laughing and he ran away.
The buses knew we were desperately waiting for an Epcot one, so the transportation gods sent everything but.
 


We do have a tradition and it is different from most peoples. We always take the afternoon we arrive AND the next day and spend it by the pool. We do not rush to a park. I do have to confess that I would love to run to a park but my dh really appreciates the down time and if I can make him happy with how I plan then he is more willing to go back to the World more. :-) We do take longer vacations then most people so that helps too (our shortest trip was 14 nights).
 
Ooh! I hope CBR is a hit for you! It definitely is large. It didn't bother us too much when we were there, but we lucked into a good location in a preferred room for a good discount, so that probably helped my experience a lot. The construction didn't have much of an impact for us when we were there, but I'm realizing that that was a full two years ago now! (Actually exactly 2 years! Today is our wedding anniversary!) And the Poly...now that exciting!!!!

Do you have an arrival day tradition or what is the thing you look forward to doing first and why? In other words, what gives you that feeling of, “I’m finally in Disney!”

Walking in to EPCOT is my preferred way to ring in a Disney vacation, actually. It's not where we always start, but if I could plan the perfect first day with my perfect "I'm finally in Disney" vibes, that would be how I'd do it. I think it's because when I was young, EPCOT didn't have much for me, so we would typically start there because it was a park we didn't always spend a full day in, and we could take things slowly if we were tired and just meander around without having to knock a bunch of rides off the list. And also, it would have been my least favourite park as a kid, so it was almost like we were getting it out of the way and saving the best stuff for later to keep the anticipation alive. But now that I'm older, I LOVE EPCOT, so going there feels really exciting, coupled with the nostalgia of starting vacations there as a kid.
 
We didn't know it either- it was our 2nd trip, and I didn't know about all the great fan-based infomation out there (like these Forums). Nice room, good view of the lake and the castle, but no place to sit and enjoy it.

I did a little research and it turns out I'm pretty sure SOME rooms have them. So miy TA is going to specifically request a room WITH one so we can enjoy our In-Room Poly Feast one night. :)

The gecko ? We'd gotten lunch at the food court, and brought it back to the courtyard by our room. DH jostled the table, and a gecko, who was probably sunning himself, fell off the table umbrella and landed in the plate. He froze, we stared, then spent the next 5 minutes laughing and he ran away.

That's hilarious! Poor things was probably scared to death and went home and told his wife that he was almost eaten.

The buses knew we were desperately waiting for an Epcot one, so the transportation gods sent everything but.
OY! So weird how that happens sometimes. :(
 
We do have a tradition and it is different from most peoples. We always take the afternoon we arrive AND the next day and spend it by the pool. We do not rush to a park. I do have to confess that I would love to run to a park but my dh really appreciates the down time and if I can make him happy with how I plan then he is more willing to go back to the World more. :-) We do take longer vacations then most people so that helps too (our shortest trip was 14 nights).
WEll that sure sounds like a nice way to ease into vacation! AND to please the other. :) A win-win in my book.
 
Ooh! I hope CBR is a hit for you! It definitely is large. It didn't bother us too much when we were there, but we lucked into a good location in a preferred room for a good discount, so that probably helped my experience a lot. The construction didn't have much of an impact for us when we were there, but I'm realizing that that was a full two years ago now! (Actually exactly 2 years! Today is our wedding anniversary!) And the Poly...now that exciting!!!!

I think the main complaint now is that the Skyliner towers are an eyesore and take away from the tranquil, beachy vibe the resort once had. I'll reserve judgement as well as how I feel about the size and transportation until I see if for myself.
Walking in to EPCOT is my preferred way to ring in a Disney vacation, actually. It's not where we always start, but if I could plan the perfect first day with my perfect "I'm finally in Disney" vibes, that would be how I'd do it. I

That's exactly what I did on my last trip. Dumped my stuff and Doc drove he and I over to EPCOT. A perfect way to settle on in!

I think it's because when I was young, EPCOT didn't have much for me, so we would typically start there because it was a park we didn't always spend a full day in, and we could take things slowly if we were tired and just meander around without having to knock a bunch of rides off the list. And also, it would have been my least favourite park as a kid, so it was almost like we were getting it out of the way and saving the best stuff for later to keep the anticipation alive. But now that I'm older, I LOVE EPCOT, so going there feels really exciting, coupled with the nostalgia of starting vacations there as a kid.
It's interesting to me how our childhood (or first) experiences with the various parks now play into HOW we enjoy them (or don't, as the case may be) now. I'm kinda that way with AK, but it was a very slow process.
 
I know I'm super delinquent on many of your threads. I apologize, but I went on a little field trip with some photog buddies to the city yesterday and took the day off the DIS. Gearing up for an incredibly busy week at work but I will get to your threads as I can. :)
 
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I know I'm super delinquent on many of your threads. I apologize, but I went a little field trip with some photog buddies to the city yesterday and took the day off the DIS. Gearing up for an incredibly busy week at work but I will get to your threads as I can. :)
I'm thinking a day of fun/photography/friends is much more rewarding than sitting in front of the computer.
Image result for you have chosen wisely
 
I am finally catching a PTR is the early stages. I am the one from Eugene, so close to you.
I have three kids. Son who is 30 and twin DD's who are 24. I have been a widow for 6 years.
When our kids were growing up Disneyland was our park. My husband would not fly so it was much easier to drive to Anaheim. We went every summer so our kids grew up with the park. When he passed away in 2013 we decided to go to WDW for the first time. We went in Sept of 2014. It was nothing like we could have imagined. We were upgraded to the Contemporay park view room. The following years both of my girls got into the DCP program so I had to go bring them home in May of 2015. Besides it is hard to pass up a 60% discount at POFQ. We loved the hotel. One of my DD's did another DCP program and then worked as a regular CM so I have been lucky enough to go back two more times with a child as a CM and use of her discount. The Christmas discount is awesome. She is no longer a CM so sadly no discount and is living back in Eugene. She is currently there visiting and is miserable with the heat.
Do you ever go to DL since it is so much closer?
 
I am finally catching a PTR is the early stages. I am the one from Eugene, so close to you.
I have three kids. Son who is 30 and twin DD's who are 24. I have been a widow for 6 years.

OH my!! :welcome: :welcome: :welcome: I'm so so happy you decided to say hi and sign on!! It's always so wonderful to find new friends so close by. It'll be fun to get to know you!

When our kids were growing up Disneyland was our park. My husband would not fly so it was much easier to drive to Anaheim. We went every summer so our kids grew up with the park. When he passed away in 2013 we decided to go to WDW for the first time. We went in Sept of 2014. It was nothing like we could have imagined. We were upgraded to the Contemporay park view room. The following years both of my girls got into the DCP program so I had to go bring them home in May of 2015. Besides it is hard to pass up a 60% discount at POFQ. We loved the hotel. One of my DD's did another DCP program and then worked as a regular CM so I have been lucky enough to go back two more times with a child as a CM and use of her discount. The Christmas discount is awesome. She is no longer a CM so sadly no discount and is living back in Eugene. She is currently there visiting and is miserable with the heat.
Do you ever go to DL since it is so much closer?

How lucky that you got to go so often with such a sweet connection! Sounds like you've had some seriously awesome stays!

I do go to DLR fairly often. Maybe once every year or two, and believe it or not, I'll be there the weekend before I head to WDW!!! I know! CRAZY!! I grew up nearby in Hemet down there and went innumberable times growing up and spend a year or so as a CM in the Blue Bayou Restaurant as a hostess during college. Loved it!
 

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