Pre-Trip An incroyable Surprise!

Hello!

Let me just preface this PTR by stating that I have NEVER done one before, but you've all done such amazing ones so I wanted to give it a try. Let me also add that the trip I will be talking about in this PTR wasn't even in existence (at least to my knowledge) until roughly 8:00 pm last night.

So...without further ado, here we go!


As mentioned above, I never had any intention of writing the PTR because there this trip didn't exist.

Ryan (my hubby) and I have been throwing around the idea of possibly going to Europe this summer as a way to celebrate my birthday - a milestone birthday quickly approaching I might add. As we always do when a "trip idea" pops up, we slowly started saving small chunks of money here and there into our trip fund. However, like MOST "trip ideas" nothing actually occurs and we end up spending the trip fund the following year or so.

So we kept throwing a "euro trip" idea around, but as expected it always got put on the back burner. We'd talk about it here and there and look up prices, realize it's not quite feasible yet and place it again to the back of our minds. OR SO I THOUGHT.

For anyone who followed along until the end of my Honeymoon Trip Report, I had mentioned that we DO have our next Disney Trip booked for December 2017. I also mentioned that I was having a difficult time with some personal items and found myself in a slight state of depression - nothing alarming, just needed to work things out.

So I came home yesterday, fell into our normal routing of making and eating dinner and Ryan DROPS.THE.BOMB.

Conversation went something like this...

"So, your birthday is approaching and we haven't done anything in regards to the Euro trip we've been talking about"

"Yah. It would be nice"

"Hmm, you know how one of the items on your bucket list is to visit every Disney park?"

"Yes"

"Well, I'm determined to help with that. So I found some great prices on flights today and took it upon myself to book the Euro Trip. We had enough in our trip account to cover it all and I just want to you have something special to remember from this summer"

"Wait....what?"

"Yup, I've included Disneyland Paris in our trip plans. You'll be that much closer to checking that item off your bucket list. I sent an email to your manager to see if you could get the time off and she said absolutely. So we're going. No excuses. It's booked"

Cue the tears....from excitement, from nerves, from the thought he took the time to do all of this AND BECAUSE I'M GOING TO DISNEYLAND PARIS! Heck yah! But really....HOW amazing is my hubby.


So here we are. We are heading on a Euro Trip including DLP in September 2017 AND THEN heading back to WDW in December 2017 for Christmas. I couldn't be more excited!
 

mlegerto

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Now before I get any further into the PTR.....is this even allowed to be here? I know it says WDW Trip Reports, so I'm not sure if I should be moving this thread to another section? Any thoughts?

Secondly, if I am allowed to keep this here, does anyone even want to hear about this trip?

Let me know!!
 

Emadsen

Member
Yay!!!!! I'm so excited for you! We're going in September this year to! (It's the only reason we're going back to Paris actually) When in September are you going to be there?
 

Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Now before I get any further into the PTR.....is this even allowed to be here? I know it says WDW Trip Reports, so I'm not sure if I should be moving this thread to another section? Any thoughts?

Secondly, if I am allowed to keep this here, does anyone even want to hear about this trip?

Let me know!!
Lots of people (including me!) have posted trip reports from other parks than WDW. I am looking forward to hearing all about your Paris trip.
 

blreinsel

Well-Known Member
Awwww that is SO sweet and thoughtful! I'm so excited for you! Keep it here and write away.. We'll all be reading! :)
 

mlegerto

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Yes I want to hear about this trip!

Perfect because I want to write about it! Thanks for the support and encouragement to write about it.

Keep it here!! I went to DLP a couple of years ago with my guy, and did a lot of my planning with @ajrwdwgirl since we were going around the same time. You are going to LOVE it! I look forward to hearing more about your plans. :)

Amazing! Right now I have no idea what really to expect - it seems so weird to admit that I DON'T know how to plan for this DISNEY related trip LOL. Do you have any tips on how to plan for the trip/what to expect? Anythings we MUST do or must EAT (let's be honest, foods always on my mind haha).

What an awesome surprise!!!! I will definitely follow along! :happy:

Thanks for following along! So surprised and even from Ryans side, such a spur of the moment decision! I still can't quite believe he took all the steps to make it happen - contacting my manager to make sure, actually booking the flights, etc. Really out of character - usually it's me taking care of all the plans and arrangements, it's nice to be on the other side for once (at least for the initial planning stages).

Yay!!!!! I'm so excited for you! We're going in September this year to! (It's the only reason we're going back to Paris actually) When in September are you going to be there?

Oh really? Wouldn't it be amazing if we were there at the same time!! Umm so we don't quite know exactly when because all we have booked are flights so far. We are flying from Iceland to Paris on September 13th and from there we will spend a few days in Paris and surrounding area and then move over to DLP and then at some point train it over to Amsterdam and fly home from Amsterdam on September 22. That's pretty much the extent of planning we have thus far LOL - VERY early stages. I expect that we will spend 2 nights in DLP area, but not exactly locked down on dates yet. What about you?

Are you doing other things in the Paris area on your visit or strictly DLP? If you are, please let me know what so I can also look into them LOL


How exciting!! I'm following along!

Perfect! Thanks for joining in!

Lots of people (including me!) have posted trip reports from other parks than WDW. I am looking forward to hearing all about your Paris trip.

Perfect! Thanks for the encouragement, I didn't want anyone to be upset or bothered with my PTR being here, but this is the forum that I've made friends in and thought would be most helpful in suggestions. What other parks have you been to?

Awwww that is SO sweet and thoughtful! I'm so excited for you! Keep it here and write away.. We'll all be reading! :)

Yeeeah! Thanks for following along! It was honestly such a surprise and so welcomed after the way I was feeling - it's like all of a sudden a dull cloud has been lifted (who would have thought that a trip to Disney (any Disney park) would do that ;))

Next question is.....what am I going to eat out there LOL
 

Jess G

Well-Known Member
omgggg what an amazing husband you have! congrats! I am still slowly working through your TR but now I'll speed up so I can jump in this one full force lol. excited for you!
 

*Flynnderella*

Well-Known Member
Now before I get any further into the PTR.....is this even allowed to be here? I know it says WDW Trip Reports, so I'm not sure if I should be moving this thread to another section? Any thoughts?

Secondly, if I am allowed to keep this here, does anyone even want to hear about this trip?

Let me know!!

Definitely want to hear about it :)!! When I was about 14, my dance troupe went & performed there with a few days to explore the parks but there was a lot of development going on at that point so we didn't rate it, but more recently my sis & I went for my birthday in December 2015 & loved it. We were nervous it wasn't going to live up to WDW standards but we were really really surprised!! It really does have the magical feeling and although the weather wasn't quite as lovely as Florida we had a fantastic 4 days!! You'll have a fab time :happy::happy:
 

mlegerto

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
First of all...thank you for all of your kind words and encouragement to write this PTR. Also a special thank you to those who have reached out to me to make sure that I am doing okay - based on my previous comments that I wasn't myself. There was nothing to be alarmed about, I was just in a "funk" if you know what I mean. I really appreciate all of the kind words and check ins, it really added to helping me become myself again- this is why Disney people are the best people!

Alright. Here we go, some details for you all.

So we don't have a lot planned - this trip all literally just came to be on Monday night :), but we do have our "rough" timeline and flights booked.

Now before I give a summary of our plans, if ANYONE has been to ANY of the places we are visiting and has recommendations on HOW to see them, where to stay or things you think we should skip/replace with something else PLEASE let me know. With the exception of Paris, I've never been to any of these places (and even Paris I was there with a team and on a very strict schedule so I missed a lot that I want to see now). Treat me like someone who has NO idea what they are doing (because let's be real....I don't).

On Saturday September 9th we will fly direct Toronto to Reykjavik, Iceland (we are flying with Iceland Air). We will not arrive until 11:45 pm, so unfortunately we lose this day because of the time change. We will spend the next 3 full days here in Iceland before moving on. The currency in Iceland is the Krona and 1 Krona is .01 Canadian Dollars.

While in Iceland we hoping to do/see the following;

- Golden Circle
upload_2017-4-5_8-51-8.png

*not sure if we will book a tour or do a self guided tour - there is A LOT to see so torn. On a tour you will see the most "important" things and get the background and such, but then you are traveling with a "large" group and are on a strict schedule. Thoughts?*

- Blue Lagoon Hot Springs
upload_2017-4-5_8-57-0.png

*not sure if you have to book some sort of package or if there is just general admission*

- PRAYING to see the Northern Lights
*unfortunately this is not something we can "plan" for as it is all up to mother nature, but that would just be EPIC

We have NO idea where to stay - we want to work within a budget so nothing too luxurious, but I also not looking to stay in a dorm style hostel. Any suggestions from anyone whose been?

We've also played with the idea of renting a car (this would more so be if we decided to do more of a self guided touring style), but I've been told by someone that insurance on a rental car is quite expensive - apparently they have add ons that you should really get like gravel insurance (because apparently most of their roads are not paved so it causes damage to cars o_O). Any experiences out there?

Lastly, any other things you think we should plan to do in the 3 days we are out there? I think it would be cool to maybe go see some glaciers or something, but the tours I've looked up (very quickly) were ridiculously expense, like 350 EUROS each?


THOUGHTS?
 

mlegerto

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
omgggg what an amazing husband you have! congrats! I am still slowly working through your TR but now I'll speed up so I can jump in this one full force lol. excited for you!

Yes, I am quite lucky I must admit! Yes, come jump on board when you've made it through my last TR! Can't wait for your thoughts!

Definitely want to hear about it :)!! When I was about 14, my dance troupe went & performed there with a few days to explore the parks but there was a lot of development going on at that point so we didn't rate it, but more recently my sis & I went for my birthday in December 2015 & loved it. We were nervous it wasn't going to live up to WDW standards but we were really really surprised!! It really does have the magical feeling and although the weather wasn't quite as lovely as Florida we had a fantastic 4 days!! You'll have a fab time :happy::happy:

Thanks for following me over! From your more recent trip, what would you say are your must do's? Any rides/shows/experiences that you thought were AMAZING or better than WDW? Anywhere you would suggest that we HAVE to eat?
 

*Flynnderella*

Well-Known Member
Thanks for following me over! From your more recent trip, what would you say are your must do's? Any rides/shows/experiences that you thought were AMAZING or better than WDW? Anywhere you would suggest that we HAVE to eat?

(Have I done that quote right?! I think I'll tag you just incase :rolleyes: @mlegerto

I have to say PotC is better in DLP as it seems newer and has more up to date effects on it but my ALL time favourite from DLP is Ratatouille!! It is epic!! We also ate at Chez Remi but if you're going to do that, make sure you get an early evening reservation because we thought we'll get a park closing one and be able to do loads of pictures with no one in it.. but that doesn't happen in France. We were escorted by a CM to the side exit. :cautious:

The parks are a lot smaller than the WDW ones obviously but they're still jam packed with things to do and see!

I would also recommend eating at the Disneyland hotel in "Inventions". It was a buffet but not your average buffet food and the characters came round about 4 times and actually spend quite a lot of time with you! We also got a Castle view table :inlove: (I'll try and find the photo)

It's much easier to hop between the two parks and the shopping area as they're all within walking distance of each other so not as much planning needs doing before hand which is nice!

We didn't really stop for any shows except the parade and the Christmas Fireworks which were amazing!!!! (dare I say better than Wishes :eek::jawdrop:) I think just because it's a lot newer, the technology has advanced dramatically since WDW opened! I'm hoping the new "Happily Ever After" is going to be something similar to DLP.

Anyway....sorry for waffling on!!!!!:rolleyes:

If I think of anything else I will post it. :)
 

21stamps

Well-Known Member
First of all...thank you for all of your kind words and encouragement to write this PTR. Also a special thank you to those who have reached out to me to make sure that I am doing okay - based on my previous comments that I wasn't myself. There was nothing to be alarmed about, I was just in a "funk" if you know what I mean. I really appreciate all of the kind words and check ins, it really added to helping me become myself again- this is why Disney people are the best people!

Alright. Here we go, some details for you all.

So we don't have a lot planned - this trip all literally just came to be on Monday night :), but we do have our "rough" timeline and flights booked.

Now before I give a summary of our plans, if ANYONE has been to ANY of the places we are visiting and has recommendations on HOW to see them, where to stay or things you think we should skip/replace with something else PLEASE let me know. With the exception of Paris, I've never been to any of these places (and even Paris I was there with a team and on a very strict schedule so I missed a lot that I want to see now). Treat me like someone who has NO idea what they are doing (because let's be real....I don't).

On Saturday September 9th we will fly direct Toronto to Reykjavik, Iceland (we are flying with Iceland Air). We will not arrive until 11:45 pm, so unfortunately we lose this day because of the time change. We will spend the next 3 full days here in Iceland before moving on. The currency in Iceland is the Krona and 1 Krona is .01 Canadian Dollars.

While in Iceland we hoping to do/see the following;

- Golden Circle
View attachment 198219

*not sure if we will book a tour or do a self guided tour - there is A LOT to see so torn. On a tour you will see the most "important" things and get the background and such, but then you are traveling with a "large" group and are on a strict schedule. Thoughts?*

- Blue Lagoon Hot Springs
View attachment 198220
*not sure if you have to book some sort of package or if there is just general admission*

- PRAYING to see the Northern Lights
*unfortunately this is not something we can "plan" for as it is all up to mother nature, but that would just be EPIC

We have NO idea where to stay - we want to work within a budget so nothing too luxurious, but I also not looking to stay in a dorm style hostel. Any suggestions from anyone whose been?

We've also played with the idea of renting a car (this would more so be if we decided to do more of a self guided touring style), but I've been told by someone that insurance on a rental car is quite expensive - apparently they have add ons that you should really get like gravel insurance (because apparently most of their roads are not paved so it causes damage to cars o_O). Any experiences out there?

Lastly, any other things you think we should plan to do in the 3 days we are out there? I think it would be cool to maybe go see some glaciers or something, but the tours I've looked up (very quickly) were ridiculously expense, like 350 EUROS each?


THOUGHTS?

I LOVE Iceland!!!! I haven't been since 1997 lol.
It's on my son's top 3 list.

I'm so jealous!! Can't wait to live vicariously thru you!
 

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