"Let's Sing a Gay Little Spring Song!" PTR! **Update Check my TR!***

[FantasiaMagic]

INTRODUCTION!

Hello all you lovely Disers! This is my first PTR! It's a quickie though, since I am leaving in a little over a month....but a short PTR is better than non right?

Before I get into all the fun details of the trip, let me introduce myself!

My name is Alison. I am 18 years old and I am a true Disney fanatic. I don't have a favorite Disney movie (too many I love) but some of my favorite characters are: Mickey, Minnie, Snow White, Ariel and Peter Pan!


(me at the Wedding Pavilion! You can't really see it, but the castle is far far away in the distance )

My last trip to Disney was this past summer. I went for 1.5 weeks in August and spent the time with my grandparents. They live right near Disney and love it just as much as I do! My first trip was when I was 5. I have been there a total of 8 times. This trip will be my ninth.



Disney is such a special place to me. I always feel at home when I am there



This trip is a bit different. I will be traveling with 5 great friends - Caroline, KellyAnn, Danielle, Natalie, and Alessa - making us a fun party of 6! (I will tell a bit more about them later!) We are all seniors in High School and graduating this year. We all wanted to go someplace for Spring Break. After much discussion....we all decided on going to Disney! What better way to celebrate high school graduation?! And guess who became the trip planner by default....yes me!
But I didn't mind! I love planning Disney trips! I find it so exciting, and I would probably have an anxiety attack watching one of my friends plan the trip!
Another different thing about this trip - it will be the first Disney trip I will take as a new "adult" (yeah right) and without other adults, such as parents. It is also the first trip I have ever planned on my own.

We will be going for a full week from 3/27-4/3! Friday to Friday, missing a day of school!


After the initial deciding of plans to go to the World, I realized what we were doing, going to Disney World at one of the most busy times of the year, during Spring Break! I may have made a face like this




But after thinking it over, I had confidence in myself that I could plan a great trip, even with the crazy crowds. Because, what could go wrong, right?


So come on along, join along in the fun with me, I will be happy to have you for the ride!

Much love and Pixie Dust!

-Alison

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Chapter Links:

Introduction
Basic Trip Details
ADRs, Fp+ Experience, Garden Grocer:
Updates! BOG ADR drama, DME, MagicBands + more!
Goodies for the Goody Bags!

 

[Tracy161]

I'm here! Wow, what a fun trip this sounds like it will be! And it's only a month away!!!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

duplicate.

 

[FantasiaMagic]

I'm here! Wow, what a fun trip this sounds like it will be! And it's only a month away!!!

Hi Tracy! Thanks for joining me! Yes, I decided to do a last minute PTR! I thought it would be something to keep me busy before the trip!

 

[Newsies]

Subbing. Your photos are so cute!! I want that D&B bag

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Subbing. Your photos are so cute!! I want that D&B bag

Glad you have you here! Thank you - I love Disney Dooney Bags! During my trip the F&G festival at Epcot will be happening, and their bag this year is so cute - I am tempted to get one!!!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Trip Details:

Since I'm up and bored, I'll just update this PTR right now! Because, there's nothing better to do at 1am then update on the DIS, right?


SO! When doing some preplanning research and such, I had to decide where me and my 5 friends were going to stay for this trip. I finally gave the idea of this beauty.


Yes! Disney's Art of Animation Resort! The resort made perfect sense for our group. The family suites fit up to 6 people and have 2 bathrooms and a kitchenette! Perfect!

I was really excited to stay here, I had visited in the summer and loved the whole theme of the resort. Disney animation is what made Disney World come to life so the idea of a whole resort celebrating it's accomplishments is just awesome!

SO right away I booked a Finding Nemo Suite at AoA. I picked this room theme because it is right near the main pool, food court, and bus stops. Also my crowd loves Finding Nemo. I have a feeling quotes like this will be coming to everyone's mind while staying in a room dedicated to the movie:



LOVE her!!!( And side note: I am SOOOO excited for Finding Dory! )

But anyways... I had originally booked 7 nights for the resort back in September. For 6 people it was approx $3516. It came out to be about $586/person for the week. A bit pricey, but I knew because of the time we were going we would have to pay a pretty high rate.

After many months hoping for a discount - the Spring offer finally came out! I called right away, and after many tries I was able to get 15% for our room! I saved about $90/person! My friends and I were very happy!

For the trip I also only booked a RO. Since I was putting the first night resort payment on my mom's credit card, I didn't want the pice of the package to go on her card. So my friends and I all had to buy our tickets separately and I had to link everyones tickets to MDE. Big Mistake. Since most of my friends are 17, they are technically not allowed to purchase from the disney website because of their age. So their tickets ended up being in their parent's name. I had to call Disney a couple of times to get all this straightened out. It was a big deal but it's not something I want to experience again... Next time I'll just book a package and put it on my card!

So my friends and I all bought 4 day base park tickets. We planned on doing all 4 parks, and spending the entire day at each. Due to the time of year we were going, I planned on doing something I am usually not a fan of - Commando style. It seems necessary, because of the crowds. We will be getting to the park very early each day, probably RD for most. I want to get the most out of our days there. The rest of our days will be spent in DTD and relaxing by the many pools at AoA - which I know we will need!

Up Next - ADRs and FP+ Experience!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

ADRs & FP+ Experience +more!:

Like I had mentioned above, this was my first time planning a trip to Disney on my own. It was also my first time using my MDE account and using FP+. I had used a magic band before for my trip this past summer, and I enjoyed the experience, so I was excited to use them again! So after booking my AoA Finding Nemo Family Suite room and the receiving the discount, I asked my friends to each pick a color for their magic bands. They at first had no idea what magic bands were, but I soon explained and they were excited by the idea that one band could control your room key, park passes, and fast passes, and even more! We all picked our colors, and we were all set. They should be shipping in about 3 days! I am very excited!!!

ADRs

Now I booked the trip 180+ in advance, but did not take advantage of the time I received. I got almost everything I wanted ADR wise.

MK reservation - TBA
Kona - breakfast @10:05 am
50's Prime Time Cafe - lunch @ 1:35 pm
Tutta Italia - dinner @ 7:00pm
Beaches & Cream - dinner/dessert @ 9:00 pm

Not too many ADRs this trip, only for the reason that I am trying to save some money for my friends and I, since we are also paying OOP for all the meals. The room at AoA is already so much, so we'll probably do CS for the rest of our meals. For MK, I had originally wanted BOG for dinner. I ate there over the summer and fell in love! I have been looking everyday to see if anything pops up, but it's harder with the size of our party. Then - when I heard BOG was opening up for lunch on 2/25 I knew I would make an attempt at trying to get the reservation.

One ADR on the list I knew I had to make was B&C. It is a family tradition that we go there every trip. I love everything about it, the food, the atmosphere, and of course their newest addition to the dessert menu isn't too shabby either....


The MICKY SINK!!! Its a smaller version of the famous Kitchen Sink, and it is delicious! As I remember it had vanilla chocolate, and strawberry ice cream, topped with whipped cream, oreos, brownies, walnuts, and hot fudge! What a heavenly treat! AND, the best part was, you get to keep the sink! I use it right now to hold some pins and other trinkets, until I can figure out where to put them all lol.
This is a must do for my group when we come to B&C!

FP+ Experience:

I found FP+ to be a very positive experience. I got on my computer at midnight, 60 days out from the date, and started booking. I was able to get everything I wanted, including a morning 7DMT, so I was happy with that. I also found it very easy to make changes to chosen FP times to meet your needs. For any rides I was not able to reserve, meaning at EPCOT (TT) and HS (RnRc) due to the tiering system, I plan on getting to both parks at RD and riding any rides we can!


Garden Grocer:

This trip I had also decided in buying some groceries for the room. I used gardengrocer.com due to such great reviews I have always heard on the DIS. Garden Grocer has a minimum of $40 that you need to purchase, with a $12 delivery fee. I thought it seemed like a bit much at first but then realized it would be worth it since we could get what we needed delivered right to the resort! The order, with tax ended up being around $66, so $11/person. I also received a 10% discount on my entire order since I ordered 60 days out. I was very happy with that.

What we ordered:

3 cases of water
a 1/2 gallon of milk
big box of honey nut cheerios
cinnamon toast crunch cereal
cocoa puffs
4 bananas
1 package of strawberries

I plan on bringing snacks and other paper goods if needed, but I was happy with our order and what we bought!

I know 3 cases of water sounds like a lot for 1 week, but my most of my friends really only drink water and do not plan on buying the mugs, so it made sense just to be safe!

I am so excited for this trip! Only 34 days to go! I can't believe it!

 

[littleorangebird]

Subbing! Can't wait to hear all about your trip

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Subbing! Can't wait to hear all about your trip

Glad to have you here! Thanks for joining me!!! I love your avatar picture by the way!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

I'm here for an update!

So as many of you know, today was the day ADR booking opened for lunch at BOG. I woke up around 5:45 and got online around 5:50. Everything was up already! Someone posted that they got a reservation at 1am!!!!! 5 hours before everyone originally thought. Overall, I did end up getting a reservation there so I was very happy about that. I feel really bad for others who had a lot of issues with the website this entire morning. Hopefully everything gets straightened out soon. So many people got on at the right time and there was way too much traffic to get through and complete the reservation process.

I am very excited to take all of my friends to BOG though, as I feel its a perfect place to eat in MK if you have not been there in a few years or ever! It is something I am highly looking forward to.

I also received my DME info in the mail yesterday! I was a bit worried about getting the info since I never received an email with a confirmation and it never showed up on My MDE account. I soon found out this is very normal if these things don;t happen so no need to stress!

My MagicBands also should be shipping any day now, which is also exciting!

Someone on the DIS was nice enough to post the link to the Outdoor Kitchen menu for this years F&G.
I'll post it right here in case anyone wasn't to take a peak!

F&G 2015 Outdoor Kitchen Menu


***Side note - I read today on a list of Rehabs that POTC will be closed for the entire summer! ***


But other then that, my whole group is very excited and ready for Disney! We can't wait to get out this cold...

SO Long, Farewell for now!!!

Much love and pixie dust!

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Hey Alison! Your PTR is so much fun, and your trip sounds amazing. 6 great friends at Disney World - what could be better?! I can't wait to hear about your trip!

First off, I'm sure you get this a lot, but I have some serious hair envy right now..!!! It's beautiful

I know what you mean about not wanting to make too many ADRs.. Jamie and I paid OOP in September (we had a room discount rather than free dining) - and we spent A LOT more money on food than we thought we would! But luckily these days you can get some good quality counter service meals, so I'm sure you guys will do just fine

Yay for lunch at BOG! I had the turkey sandwich last time, and I enjoyed it so much I managed to find a second lunch FP for later in the trip, and had it again I know they were planning on changing the BOG lunch system from FP to ADR, did you book it as an ADR through the WDW website? Last year I had to book a lunch FP through 'BeOurGuestLunch.disney.go.com' or something, it was all kinda confusing.

Ahh that's kinda lame about POTC.. There's always something down for refurb these days. But I guess it's just an excuse to go back again!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Hey Alison! Your PTR is so much fun, and your trip sounds amazing. 6 great friends at Disney World - what could be better?! I can't wait to hear about your trip!

First off, I'm sure you get this a lot, but I have some serious hair envy right now..!!! It's beautiful

I know what you mean about not wanting to make too many ADRs.. Jamie and I paid OOP in September (we had a room discount rather than free dining) - and we spent A LOT more money on food than we thought we would! But luckily these days you can get some good quality counter service meals, so I'm sure you guys will do just fine

Yay for lunch at BOG! I had the turkey sandwich last time, and I enjoyed it so much I managed to find a second lunch FP for later in the trip, and had it again I know they were planning on changing the BOG lunch system from FP to ADR, did you book it as an ADR through the WDW website? Last year I had to book a lunch FP through 'BeOurGuestLunch.disney.go.com' or something, it was all kinda confusing.

Ahh that's kinda lame about POTC.. There's always something down for refurb these days. But I guess it's just an excuse to go back again!

Hey Katie! Welcome - thanks for joining me, and you are too sweet

Yes! I was very happy to get a BOG ADR! I did book it though Disney - and had to get online at around 5:50am. Disney had said they were going to open booking at 6am, but I had heard from others that they opened it at 1am. By 6am everyone was online trying to get a reservation and the whole site crashed!!!I was very happy i got my ADR though, but feel horrible for people that took the time to wake up early and were not able to get it. If you want to eat lunch at BOG again during your future trip, I would highly recommend trying o get it 180 days! Better safe then sorry!!!

And yes!!! Your TR makes me want to try that turkey sandwich so badly - it looks really good! I'm positive that's the one I'm getting

I can't wait to hear about the rest of trip as well - I'm having so much fun reading!

Thanks again for stopping by!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Goodies for the Goody Bags:

Hello! Another Update at last!

I am down to about 25 days until the trip! I can't believe it! My friends are very excited as well!!

Today, I handed each of my 5 friends their own little itinerary/info packets. They were all very happy to receive them and said they were happy to be able to look back of the info if needed! I suggest to anyone who is the head of a trip or planning a trip with a pretty large group to make them a little itinerary packet, just so they will know what to expect.

I also am in the process of buying items to put into my friends good bags! I plan on giving them their little surprises when we get past security at the airport (JFK). So far the items on my list include

-frozen pack of tissues (see below)
-mini hand sanitizer
-chocolate
-gum

Anyone have any other suggestions? I would love to get each of them a small Disney stuffed animal (any character) or a pen with something Disney on it. I guess I'll have to keep looking. If it helps, local stores where I may be able to find these types of things are CVS, Walgreens, Harmon and Target (NYer here lol)


Sorry for the bad quality! This is the front of the package.

This is the back of the package!

If anyone has a Harmon Discount Beauty store near them, just know this 3 pack of frozen tissues was only $1.29


But like I was saying, if anyone has any ideas for my goody bags I would love to hear them! I also need to figure out what I am going to put them in

Much Love and Pixie Dust!

-Alison

 

[Tracy161]

You are SO close to your trip!!! Sorry for my lack of response, my alerts are all wonky and I now know to just use the followed threads instead.

Your plans look amazing!!! So happy that you got a lunch ADR for BoG... I was among the many pulling my hair out at 6am trying to get one myself... but it all worked out fine in the long run!

Your goodie bags are such an awesome idea! And good work with the itinerary packets!

Thanks for the link to the outdoor kitchens... I'll have to take a peak later when I get home from work. I only have one day at F&G (I arrive on the last day ) so I need to make the most of my half day there!

So excited for you! This is the point in the countdown when logically it feels so close but mentally it still feels so far away! I hope the remaining time goes fast for you!!!

 

[disneyjes]

Hi there! Love the idea of giving goody bags to your friends! I found Cars and Mickey tissues at Dollar Tree. I actually got some cute things at Five Below if you have one of those nearby. I got pin lanyards for $5 each and a Mickey pen that has an LED light at the top and shows a Mickey when you press the button for $4. Good luck!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

You are SO close to your trip!!! Sorry for my lack of response, my alerts are all wonky and I now know to just use the followed threads instead.

Your plans look amazing!!! So happy that you got a lunch ADR for BoG... I was among the many pulling my hair out at 6am trying to get one myself... but it all worked out fine in the long run!

Your goodie bags are such an awesome idea! And good work with the itinerary packets!

Thanks for the link to the outdoor kitchens... I'll have to take a peak later when I get home from work. I only have one day at F&G (I arrive on the last day ) so I need to make the most of my half day there!

So excited for you! This is the point in the countdown when logically it feels so close but mentally it still feels so far away! I hope the remaining time goes fast for you!!!

Hey Tracy! That's no problem, thank you for being here with me! Yes I was very happy about BOG as well, I am hoping my friends enjoy and appreciate it as much as I do. I am so happy you were able to get an ADR as well!

I am very excited for the F&G, as it is my first time visiting WDW while it is happening! At least you get to experience it one day! The topiaries look so beautiful and all the food sounds so good!!!

Hi there! Love the idea of giving goody bags to your friends! I found Cars and Mickey tissues at Dollar Tree. I actually got some cute things at Five Below if you have one of those nearby. I got pin lanyards for $5 each and a Mickey pen that has an LED light at the top and shows a Mickey when you press the button for $4. Good luck!

Hi! Thanks for shopping by! I do have a Five Below near by, I will have to check that out! That sounds perfect - thanks for the tip!

 

[afwdwfan]

Hi! Thought I'd stop by and check out your PTR. This trip is coming up fast! I hope you have a great time!

After the initial deciding of plans to go to the World, I realized what we were doing, going to Disney World at one of the most busy times of the year, during Spring Break! I may have made a face like this

It'll be fine! You're a Disney veteran, and it looks like you've got a great plan in place. Rope Drop is your friend.

Not too many ADRs this trip, only for the reason that I am trying to save some money for my friends and I, since we are also paying OOP for all the meals. The room at AoA is already so much, so we'll probably do CS for the rest of our meals.

Makes sense. Especially since you're staying at a resort with such a great food court and counting on getting some pool time in.

I am very excited to take all of my friends to BOG though, as I feel its a perfect place to eat in MK if you have not been there in a few years or ever! It is something I am highly looking forward to.

That is a fantastic place to eat! I'm glad you managed to grab a lunch ADR and I'm sure your friends will enjoy it.

-mini hand sanitizer

One word of caution on this. You might have issues getting through security if you have these in a gift bag... I don't know if they'd classify as one of the "under 3 oz. liquids" you'd need to have in a quart bag to get through security or not, but maybe something to think about if you haven't checked on it already.

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Welcome! Thanks for joining me! I started this PTR way late in the game but plan on doing a full TR once I am back from my trip!

One word of caution on this. You might have issues getting through security if you have these in a gift bag... I don't know if they'd classify as one of the "under 3 oz. liquids" you'd need to have in a quart bag to get through security or not, but maybe something to think about if you haven't checked on it already.

Thank you for this tip! I will definitely keep this in mind and reconsider!