I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[wendow]

This trip really has been an “aha moment”. I’ve mentioned before that I’m a big fan of EasyWDW. So I read all of his stuff and always figured that I knew enough to do it on the fly. We would go in with a plan for the first hour and the 3 FPs and I’d do the rest in my head. We obviously were still doing better than 99% of people that way...

But one thing I found myself constantly doing was thinking “what next”. This meant instead of enjoying Muppet3D or Small World, etc - I spent the ride/show/attraction figuring out what to do next. I wasn’t “in the moment”. So I figured: what if I could take all of my knowledge and just write a plan ahead of time so there’s no thinking needed while I’m there. My wife thought it sounded crazy - figuring out 3 months in advance what I wanted to do down to the minute...but it’s been AMAZING! The first 2 days of this trip were so good! We had a great time despite 55 degrees and constant rain today. (I did amend the plan last night to adjust for things I knew wouldn’t work with the forecast).

The other awesome thing about this is we’re doing significantly less walking! That probably makes my 5yr old super happy (we don’t do stroller anymore). I used to trek back and forth across the park to save 10-15 minutes in line...but the 5-10 min of walking it required each time was hardly worth it. Sorry...I’m now rambling but at any rate, I’m now a huge advocate of the written touring plan

We've never NOT used a written touring plan. I shudder to think how our park days would look without one. Glad y'all are having a great time despite the cooler and rainy weather!

 

[mmmears]

This trip really has been an “aha moment”. I’ve mentioned before that I’m a big fan of EasyWDW. So I read all of his stuff and always figured that I knew enough to do it on the fly. We would go in with a plan for the first hour and the 3 FPs and I’d do the rest in my head. We obviously were still doing better than 99% of people that way...

But one thing I found myself constantly doing was thinking “what next”. This meant instead of enjoying Muppet3D or Small World, etc - I spent the ride/show/attraction figuring out what to do next. I wasn’t “in the moment”. So I figured: what if I could take all of my knowledge and just write a plan ahead of time so there’s no thinking needed while I’m there. My wife thought it sounded crazy - figuring out 3 months in advance what I wanted to do down to the minute...but it’s been AMAZING! The first 2 days of this trip were so good! We had a great time despite 55 degrees and constant rain today. (I did amend the plan last night to adjust for things I knew wouldn’t work with the forecast).

The other awesome thing about this is we’re doing significantly less walking! That probably makes my 5yr old super happy (we don’t do stroller anymore). I used to trek back and forth across the park to save 10-15 minutes in line...but the 5-10 min of walking it required each time was hardly worth it. Sorry...I’m now rambling but at any rate, I’m now a huge advocate of the written touring plan

I've come up with my own plans sometimes, and sometimes used touring plans to create a list (but since I personalize it I'm really doing the work anyway). Glad that your plans are working well for you. I'm the same way in terms of wanting to be "in the moment" and I can't do that if the day is not planned ahead. I have friends who can wing it and have a great time, but it just doesn't work for me (of course we will change it when needed, like when it pours or we are tired, etc.)

 

[Artygal90]

This trip really has been an “aha moment”. I’ve mentioned before that I’m a big fan of EasyWDW. So I read all of his stuff and always figured that I knew enough to do it on the fly. We would go in with a plan for the first hour and the 3 FPs and I’d do the rest in my head. We obviously were still doing better than 99% of people that way...

But one thing I found myself constantly doing was thinking “what next”. This meant instead of enjoying Muppet3D or Small World, etc - I spent the ride/show/attraction figuring out what to do next. I wasn’t “in the moment”. So I figured: what if I could take all of my knowledge and just write a plan ahead of time so there’s no thinking needed while I’m there. My wife thought it sounded crazy - figuring out 3 months in advance what I wanted to do down to the minute...but it’s been AMAZING! The first 2 days of this trip were so good! We had a great time despite 55 degrees and constant rain today. (I did amend the plan last night to adjust for things I knew wouldn’t work with the forecast).

The other awesome thing about this is we’re doing significantly less walking! That probably makes my 5yr old super happy (we don’t do stroller anymore). I used to trek back and forth across the park to save 10-15 minutes in line...but the 5-10 min of walking it required each time was hardly worth it. Sorry...I’m now rambling but at any rate, I’m now a huge advocate of the written touring plan

Glad you are having a great time! I always write out trip itineraries now after a stressful trip to Paris where I was up late every night fretting over which museum to visit the next day. For my family's trip last March I wrote miniature guidebook (with the help of EasyWDW!) with our customized itinerary - 16 pages long, with section titles: "Walt Disney World: Three Days of Magic", "Universal Studios: Two Days of Adventure", "Cheat Sheets", "Dining Reservations", and "Movies to Watch to Get Excited" (with multiple movie options selections for each park AND land within the parks).......I've also already got three pages for LA/Disneyland and four for our Uni trip in Sept.

Ahem. You could say I have a problem.

 

[3 DD love princesses]

Guess what I finally watched?? The Greatest Showman! I loved it. I have loved the soundtrack for so long, it was cool to finally put it to the movie. DS had early dismissal and he watched with me. DD came home in towards end and said “you are watching without me?” So I will be watching again this weekend with her. Texted my other DD that I finally watched it and her first question was - did you stay awake? Lol. I may be known for sleeping through all movies in this house.

Glad you enjoyed it. We still watch it often.
As you can see I’m still playing catch up. On the way to the airport so hopefully I’ll get at least half way through the 2500 posts I’m behind.

 

[Tikitoi]

It's been 15 years since I've been to Boston but I'm pretty sure the ride from the airport downtown wasn't that long. I would think it'd be plenty of time to at least go eat and wander around but what time do you get in and fly out?

It will be a Sat and we will be there at 630 am until about 230 or so...

It's been about 5 years since I've flown there, so hopefully someone with more recent experience will chime in. The airport was really, really close to the city (compared to all the other US cities we've flown into anyway), so yes I think you could get into the city and do some sightseeing. We had a day there to look around (the rest of the trip was looking at colleges) and we visited Boston Common, walked the Freedom Trail (loved that but I like history) checked out historical markets, etc. It started to pour so we ended up on a Duck Tour to keep dry. The T is great for getting around the city, plus I hear it goes all the way to the airport so you might be able to easily get where you want to go.

Thanks for that. My daughter was talking about seeing Acorn Street in the Beacon Hill area. Will look into the T

Logan is very close to the city and there are plenty of things to do. The Blue Line goes right to the airport, but you will have to hop on a bus to get to it...less than a 5 minute trip. Uber is also fairly cheap as you are close to a lot of things. Faneuil Hall is a great place to eat and look around with plenty of shops.. Duck boat tours are very popular, there are walking trails, museums...just endless stuff.

We have used this site before for ideas - https://www.bostonusa.com/things-to-do/

Was thinking about using uber just figure it's much easier. Will definitely look into Faneuil Hall. Thanks for the link.

 

[Alexle2007]

No, our MD weather is not looking very good Tues into Wed. Hopefully our flight will get out on time Wed afternoon so we can escape to warmer weather.

 

[3 DD love princesses]

Currently obsessing over my WDW ADRs. We’ve never seen Fantasmic, so I thought I’d book a dining package so I did Minnie’s Seasonal Dine at H&V. Now second guessing booking the dessert party instead to save time and $$. Kinda getting sticker shock as DS turns 10 right before our trip, so will now be paying for adult meals x3.
Any opinions on H&V vs Dessert party for Fantasmic?

This might have already been said but still catching up. We won’t eat at H&V anymore especially after the server lost my gift card and the manager wouldn’t do anything about it. We still had to pay for the meal and never did get my gc. Was not happy to lose out on the $500+ gc. Lots of time spent and bad memories. Kids still talk about it. Food just isn’t that great and the characters just rushed by didn’t interact. They were posed for a picture then tried to move on and didn’t answer any of the kids questions. they commented about the outfit and they didn’t do anything to acknowledge it. On the other hand fantasmic is great. You can get a fp for it in the afternoon if you wanted to. We have been able to get all 5 of us around 3-4 pm.

 

[amalone1013]

Gotta get caught up from the weekend. 10 pages to go. Arrival Plus is still pending- didnt really expect anything over the weekend, but I'm impatient. Somehow I messed up and didnt realize that I was putting $$ on an old regular design gift card... somehow i was odd $525 in gift cards... oops! At least it's in my favor?

As I approach my the end of my first year of churning, I'm trying to go back and clean some old things up and plan for the future. I have a Capital One Quicksilver One card that was opened 12/15. It has a $39 AF that I have been (stupidly) paying for years even though I haven't been using the card. Should I/ can I product change to a no AF card instead of cancelling?

I'm hoping I can get DHs old Cap One card switched. It's something with a $19 AF.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

This might have already been said but still catching up. We won’t eat at H&V anymore especially after the server lost my gift card and the manager wouldn’t do anything about it. We still had to pay for the meal and never did get my gc. Was not happy to lose out on the $500+ gc. Lots of time spent and bad memories. Kids still talk about it. Food just isn’t that great and the characters just rushed by didn’t interact. They were posed for a picture then tried to move on and didn’t answer any of the kids questions. they commented about the outfit and they didn’t do anything to acknowledge it. On the other hand fantasmic is great. You can get a fp for it in the afternoon if you wanted to. We have been able to get all 5 of us around 3-4 pm.

Oh wow that’s terrible losing a $500 gift card....
I’ve started taking pictures with my phone of our passes, gift cards etc to have them handy on case I misplaced something...never considered a server would....but I charge everything to my magic band, they pay at the front desk ever other day or so

 

[kidsfirsttrip]

I'm guessing I haven't spent enough on her cards. Compared to the several thousand $/month we put on her two cards during MSR, the uptick since dropping off has been only a few hundred $/month. I wish I could throw some VGCs/MCGCs on her Amex cards to boost her spend, but stores around here card me (make sure ID and CC match) when I try to buy VGCs/MCGCs, and it'd be hard to give up 4x MR at supermarkets on the Gold and 5x UR at office supply stores on the CIC to use my wife's Hilton Biz or SPG Biz anyway.

Do you have a Walgreens? They never ask or bat and eyelash for a $500 vgc. What about BJs? You can use self checkout and the $500 ones have been no fee lately.

 

[amalone1013]

I've been called "Packing Hitler" before. Most recently I've relented and agreed to sharing 1 large checked bag between DH and me. For trips where speed and convenience really matter, I prefer the single carry on.

Cold destinations are definitely more challenging but it's doable. Wear the bulkiest clothes on the plane - including hiking boots if you need those.

I usually wear my tennis shoes and pack flip flops and a pair of ballet flats. (For WDW I take Crocs instead of the flats because I have to watch it or I get blisters).

I've seen some crazy packing lists for DCL - I mean, just tons of stuff. I cannot imagine most folks need so much.

There are so websites dedicated to lean travel - here is one: https://www.onebag.com

https://www.onebag.com/travel-clothes.html

Excited to check out that site. I am all for packing in a carry on now. 2 weeks in London/Paris by myself with no one to help me with bags made me a convert. I took two carry on size bags that time but I think I could do a carry on and backpack this time around. I took a carry on suitcase and a Vera duffle. Then I checked the suitcase coming back because of souvenirs, which I had planned for - and I also got to get this great tote at DLP - you know the black backpacks with the colorful Mickeys (the little whole mickeys not just the faces) that I assume was a spend $XX get this bag for $XX deal... they had that at DLP then, but it's a giant zippered tote which I love more than a backpack. So that's now my go to packable bag for extra room on the way home

Take layers, so you can add or remove as needed. (for ex. instead of a winter coat we all took one of those super packable down puffers and also a packable rain shell - used both some days). Take one pair of dinner shoes (I take ballet flats) and make sure your clothes match those shoes (if you care). Pack all toiletries in the smallest size you can find.

I'm all about the layers! It's also good for mixing up looks, if you care about looking like you wore the same thing every day I took a bunch of long sleeves and then a bunch of sweaters/jacket layers that all went together and mixed them up. Black ballet flats are my go to 'dressy' shoes for traveling.

Thanks to this irrational fear of sharks, I have amassed a collection of shark themed items. This due to the fact that I have a tendency to attract people with a twisted sense of humor for friends. I treasure these items but keep most of them stored away in a box where I can't see them. They mean a lot to me, yet I can't really bear to look at them

I have a friend who is terrified of birds, so whenever I run into an especially friendly/nervy bird somewhere I send her a photo.

I pack one large checked piece for the three of us for most vacations. Each of us has one carryon. Mine is a messenger bag, DHs is a backpack. We have a change of clothes in carryon but the rest is snacks, electronics, camera, etc. Our carryons aren’t big enough for a weeks clothes. I will admit to multiple pairs of shoes but I do wear them all. If my knees or feet are bothering me I change which shoes I wear the next day or later in the day. Clothes tend to be mix and match, pants are all gray or black. Toiletries are in refillable little bottles, so they are small.

What type of carryons do you have?

I got a Travelpro Maxlite Rollaboard (22") after lots of research for something that would last but wasn't outrageously expensive. Got two of them for our wedding/honeymoon and have loves them so far. Got them from ebags using AMEX offers, Ebates, etc, so overall they weren't bad at all... $70ish net price? I see they're $79.99 right now so that's even better. They've been on quite a few trips now (though mostly as a carry on, only checked a handful of times). They are also expandable. Also, I'd agree with the thought that your carry ons are really personal items. We each have a backpack (I leave a spot to easily slide in my travel purse) and then will take the Travelpro bags if needed. Can't remember what brand the backpacks are, I was on the lookout for some decent quality ones during a non-back-to-school time and didn't want to pay $30 to $50... I ended up finding some at Goodwill - some that shipped off from Target for not selling, with the tags still on, so I got them for $6 each.

 

[WVMomof3]

Well that took all night but I read the 40+ pages I was behind because I got the call at like 8pm we've got a snow day tomorrow! WOOOO! Last week we had Monday off (MLK) School Tuesday. Weds was supposed to start exams (for the end of 1st semester), but we were off for an ice day. We had 1/2 day Thurs (exams), 1/2 day Friday (exams). Tomorrow was supposed to be a 1/2 day to finish exams. But now that will be bumped to Tuesday. Then they are predicting -30 to -40 on Weds and Thursday so likely no school then (the threshold is -20 to cancel). So Friday we MIGHT start 2nd semester finally, LOL. These last few weeks are going to make that first FULL week I work again a PITA. I haven't worked one yet this year!

I got my Amex card in the mail this weekend, so I think I'm going to call and see if I can get the credit limit bumped up so I can transfer more of my balance. And I guess I'll take the day tomorrow to get the rest of the $25k I need transferred over to Huntington to get that $750 bonus. And then start planning the next bank bonus to try for!

Wow, where are you that your threshold is -20? I don't think we have a real number, they seem to make it up as they go along. But it seems like anything negative will cancel. Drives me bonkers because I know there are students in colder states that go to school in colder weather. We finally have started if it is too cold the teachers still report to work and the students use their school issued chromebooks to work at home. We have only had a couple of those because it is much likelier to have cancelled due to snow and then the teachers stay home too.

 

[WVMomof3]

I got a weird Chase Fraud alert text in the middle of the night. It was for Dollar Shave Club, which we have used for years, so not sure why it would set off an alert? DH answered yes when he saw it, several hours later, and it said it was already denied.

 

[amalone1013]

Had three other realizations over the weekend:

1. If I see better prices on Frontier for some flight, I can use DHs Arrival Plus credit towards them - could help get it used up to close in a couple months and hopefully churn.

2. I got my 25k anniversary night for my old version Marriott right at the end of August. I originally used it for a room at the Renaissance where my work Christmas party was going to be, to get the last night I needed for Platinum. Well, then I ended up paying OOP for a Fairfield back home in November, so I cancelled the Renaissance. I realized this weekend that my free night cert either never came back, or did and then disappeared - not sure if that had to do with upgrading to the Plus Marriott card (I feel like that shouldn't have cost me my unused free night, especially since I upgraded pretty much at the last possible moment to not pay my AF after it was charged, so I'd had the cert for ~2 months, but I'm wondering if upgrading just screwed it up and took it away in the system). Plan to send Marriott a message today.

3. My Kohl's order went to FL.

 

[usakiwi]

I’m “gold elite” so I used the Gold Elite Support Rewards number 800-321-7396. How close are you to your date? I had booked a stay for end of March and called last October or November to see if they could extend my cert, which expired 3/7/19, until end of March. Nope, couldn’t do it. Suggested I call again in a few months, closer to expiration date. I called about my upcoming Swan reservation last week to fix something else and asked then if they could extend my cert. Nope, but they suggested the Rewards team could do it. So today I called Rewards and she looked at my account, said it looks ok. I had already booked Springhill Suites stay for March 28-30, so she canceled the original cert, added a new one good for a year from today, then applied to my reservation. I could see it quickly in my account and a few minutes later the points were also back in my account. I was on hold 10mimutes before talking to a live person, then it took 5-10 minutes for her to complete everything.

Ok, thank you, I am Platinum so I will try the number you listed (I don’t remember the number I used!)

I am still a ways out but thought I would try now anyway. I just was afraid with the changes coming in Feb that they might change the ability to extend. (I know that seems illogical, but “changes” always make me nervous in this game!) Stay is not til Nov, currently expires Sept.

Thanks for the info though, it’s all good to know! And I will try that number.

 

[kmc8826]

So I am not the only one in HUGE shock that @SouthFayetteFan has not always done a written tour plan?!?

 

[Haley R]

Had three other realizations over the weekend:

1. If I see better prices on Frontier for some flight, I can use DHs Arrival Plus credit towards them - could help get it used up to close in a couple months and hopefully churn.

2. I got my 25k anniversary night for my old version Marriott right at the end of August. I originally used it for a room at the Renaissance where my work Christmas party was going to be, to get the last night I needed for Platinum. Well, then I ended up paying OOP for a Fairfield back home in November, so I cancelled the Renaissance. I realized this weekend that my free night cert either never came back, or did and then disappeared - not sure if that had to do with upgrading to the Plus Marriott card (I feel like that shouldn't have cost me my unused free night, especially since I upgraded pretty much at the last possible moment to not pay my AF after it was charged, so I'd had the cert for ~2 months, but I'm wondering if upgrading just screwed it up and took it away in the system). Plan to send Marriott a message today.

3. My Kohl's order went to FL.

Lol why would your order go to Florida

 

[kidsfirsttrip]

It will be a Sat and we will be there at 630 am until about 230 or so...



Thanks for that. My daughter was talking about seeing Acorn Street in the Beacon Hill area. Will look into the T



Was thinking about using uber just figure it's much easier. Will definitely look into Faneuil Hall. Thanks for the .

Just keep in mind traffic can get really crazy in Boston. It will probably take some time getting out of airport at 6:30am. Getting back should be fine. I’d def do an uber either to Faneuil hall or to museum of science. The duck tours are great - you get to see a lot of the city and the history. They leave out of the science museum, near the aquarium (Faneuil hall area) and the prudential center. They are pretty $$ and can book out so prebooking or looking into Groupon is helpful

 

[kidsfirsttrip]

@SouthFayetteFan - how did you get SDD so early in the day early on in your trip? I could only get it day 2 at 5pm.

 

[kmc8826]

Question for those who do the Disney races: I am doing the Star Wars 10k. It starts at MK parking lot and ends at Epcot lot. For less stress is it worth paying a little more to stay at an MK or Epcot resort? Only 2 nights and decided to pay for it with Arrival Plus credit so not as worried about the higher cost. I mostly just want to make it as easy as possible for DH (spectator).