Pre-Trip All-aboard! Yacht Club in July '17.

Since 2007 our family tradition has been to go to WDW every two years. The tradition almost died in 2015 but 3 out of 5 of us saved it with a day trip. This year, with the help of a convention, we are going to the Yacht Club in July!

The Specifics (so far). I am a member of AHEPA which is like a Greek Knights of Columbus. A terrific organization that raises money for scholarships and good deeds in our community.
The AHEPA national convention this year is at WDW and they managed to secure a terrific group rate. So good in fact that I was able to convince my "not so much loving Disney" wife to agree to a trip! We've stayed at the Beach Club twice but never the Yacht Club. I'm beyond excited. We will be checking in Tues July 24th and leaving Sun the 30th.

The Players. The saddest thing about this trip will be the absence of my oldest daughter Alexandra. She graduated from College last year and is now enrolled in an accelerated nursing program. Her schedule just won't allow here to get away. I'm sure she'll be there for the 2019 trip!

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Who is going -

Myself (Chris). Disney lover trying desperately to cling to a family with 3 children that is now in reality 2 adults and a teenager. Photography enthusiast hungry for more Disney photos. Head planner and decision maker (which often leads to getting myself in trouble).

My lovely wife (Val). Those that read my other reports will not be surprised to know that Val will be the least excited to be on our trip. I think her exact words were "I'm not going to Disney again, and especially not in the *$%##@ middle of Summer!" Considerable compromises and sacrifices were made to get her to say yes. Here is a picture of the two of us from last summer. I'm not nearly as tan now as then but hopefully will be by our trip.

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Sterg - My 20 year old son will be with us this time. He missed our 2015 trip to Clearwater that included the one day at WDW. He's a sophomore at Penn State studying in the field of IT and on the swim team. He will be the source of much entertainment and laughs; if I don't kill him first. Here he is in the pool. Notice the shaved eyebrow; evidence of a bet that didn't go his way.

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Toni - When my last teenager isn't wrapping me around her little finger, she is busy with schoolwork and more dance classes than Mikhail Baryshnikov. Toni loves Disney as much as I do and we are usually the only members of the early morning Park contingency. Here she is holding our dog Prince.

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to be continued...
 
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wdisney9000

Truindenashendubapreser
Premium Member
Permission to come aboard, Sir.....

You guys will LOVE YC!. Im excited for you, and somewhat jealous. Mostly excited though. Following along....
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
A @fractal trip report!! :):D:joyfull:

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Lol! That's exactly how I feel!

Hooray! I am so exited that you are headed back to Disney! I love your trip reports. I will be following along.

Thanks @LisaBelle !

Thats great news!!! Very cool to see how your family has grown. Best of luck to all of you! Hope you like the Yacht Club as much as we do. Enjoy the trip.

Thanks coach! Any plans on your part?

Permission to come aboard, Sir.....

You guys will LOVE YC!. Im excited for you, and somewhat jealous. Mostly excited though. Following along....

Permission granted @wdisney9000 ! I'll report as much as possible on my beer choices. :D
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Last year my in-laws moved to the Tampa-St. Pete area. Here they are at my home celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary...

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So...we came up with a plan to combine a visit to see them with a Disney trip. We are flying down to Tampa on the 21st to spend a few days with them and enjoy several beaches in the vicinity. Early, early Tuesday morning they will drive us to WDW for our check-in. They may or may not spend a day or two there.

My sister and her 2 daughters will check in to the Yacht club on Monday the 23rd. They are WDW veterans of their own, in fact they've been there more than I have.

Here I am with my youngest niece. She is funny, spirited and a cutie-pie. She can also be somewhat devilish at times.

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and here is my older niece, a dancer like Toni, with my Mom (Yia-yia) and my sister...

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So it's going to a bit of a family affair. The delicate part, which I'm already experiencing, is balancing everybody's wants and needs without starting a nuclear family war. Once I navigate that landmine I'll be able to relax a little more.

My greatest reason for going to WDW is that it provides a massive "arena" for my Family and I to spend time together, have fun together and make memories together. The extensive planning before the trip and the nature of the Disney Bubble/experience allows me to worry less about things I would otherwise worry about on a typical vacation (transportation, meals, what-to-do, etc.). Hopefully, even with a larger cast of characters that can continue. My sister and I have already agreed that we will not be "tied to the hip" the entire trip and are now starting to plan meals and carve out some time together in the parks. It's interesting how much differently her family approaches their WDW vacation.

There is much work to be done.
 
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coachwnh

Well-Known Member
Thanks coach! Any plans on your part?

No Disney plans in the near future. We were planning a cross country drive this summer, but kids sports schdules made that pretty much impossible. We decided to fly to Phoenix in July to visit my brother-in-law and take in the sites. Planning on a drive to Albuquerque while we are there since we've never been to NM. Going to be a hot 2 weeks in the desert! Our real goal is to take the kids to Europe. My wife and I visited London and Paris in November for our anniversary and it was amazing. So for now, Disney is on the back burner.

Looking forward to hearing more about your trip.
 

gdisneyfans

Well-Known Member
So excited you get to go back! We have also stayed at the Beach Club and have always wondered if we would enjoy the Yacht Club so will look forward to seeing your review on it. Good luck with all of the planning!!
 

MerMom1981

Well-Known Member
First of all, very excited to have another fractal TR to look forward to!!!

Secund, I was right in your shoes last summer. Planning for a big group with varied interests and different vacation styles is a BIG challenge! Overall, the fun and family memories outshine the moments of frustration, but still, Godspeed my friend.
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
So excited you get to go back! We have also stayed at the Beach Club and have always wondered if we would enjoy the Yacht Club so will look forward to seeing your review on it. Good luck with all of the planning!!
Thanks @gdisneyfans ! Looking forward to experiencing the Yacht Club side.

I'm excited for your trip report and your pictures! Your pictures are always fantastic!
Thanks @ajrwdwgirl !

I second this!
thanks!

First of all, very excited to have another fractal TR to look forward to!!!

Secund, I was right in your shoes last summer. Planning for a big group with varied interests and different vacation styles is a BIG challenge! Overall, the fun and family memories outshine the moments of frustration, but still, Godspeed my friend.
Thanks and I'll take any tips you can offer.

So excited for another one of your trip reports!!
Thanks @LeighM !
 

DisneyBergh

Member
I was starting to worry there wasn't going to be a bi-annual report! Looking forward to following along! My sister-in-law is coming with us on our trip this fall, and that's enough extended family for me. Good luck with all your planning!
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I was starting to worry there wasn't going to be a bi-annual report! Looking forward to following along! My sister-in-law is coming with us on our trip this fall, and that's enough extended family for me. Good luck with all your planning!
Thanks @DisneyBergh ! Tradition lives on. I'm excited for you and your trip (& report). :D

I have stayed at BC and YC and much prefer yacht. Hope you have a great time!
thank you @dumbo67 !
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Well, the fighting has already begun.

Dozens of dinner suggestions flying back and forth between the different tribes and so far all we've booked is Ohana at the Poly for Tuesday.

Wednesday I'm planning a full day at Animal Kingdom to take in every ounce of Avatarland that I can - so we are trying to pick a spot there. I'm pushing for waiting until the new Blue alien canteen opens up reservations. We shall see.

I may not survive this.
 

MerMom1981

Well-Known Member
Well, the fighting has already begun.

Dozens of dinner suggestions flying back and forth between the different tribes and so far all we've booked is Ohana at the Poly for Tuesday.

Wednesday I'm planning a full day at Animal Kingdom to take in every ounce of Avatarland that I can - so we are trying to pick a spot there. I'm pushing for waiting until the new Blue alien canteen opens up reservations. We shall see.

I may not survive this.

Oh no! Planning is supposed to be part of the fun!

How tech savvy is your group?
We created a Google survey for attractions and restaurants in each park and used the results to make decisions like this for the group.
We also used a shared document to create our itinerary in a spreadsheet. This way, we were able to see one another's plans for each day and decide how much we wanted to do together. Each "tribe" had the freedom to do their own thing if they wanted to, but having that freedom led us to choose each other most of the time.

Best of luck, man.
Serenity NOW!
 

wdisney9000

Truindenashendubapreser
Premium Member
Oh no! Planning is supposed to be part of the fun!

How tech savvy is your group?
We created a Google survey for attractions and restaurants in each park and used the results to make decisions like this for the group.
We also used a shared document to create our itinerary in a spreadsheet. This way, we were able to see one another's plans for each day and decide how much we wanted to do together. Each "tribe" had the freedom to do their own thing if they wanted to, but having that freedom led us to choose each other most of the time.

Best of luck, man.
Serenity NOW!
You and my brother would get along splendidly. He is a spreadsheet planner with Disney trips. I am the polar opposite. I would hard core troll a google survey for a Disney trip if you emailed one to me, hahaha.
 

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