Pre-Trip Two More Disney Days - July 2016 Pre-Trip

Hi Everyone!

I'm so excited to be back with another pre-trip report! I just wrapped up a report for my last trip from this past August which you can read about here if you'd like: http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/august-2015-trip-report-completed.909458/.

WHO: Myself (Ashton - 25) and my DH (Jonathan - 26)

Here we are during our August 2015 trip:

IMG_3625.JPG


Our August trip was my DH's first time to the World and while he has not acquired the level of Disney obsession that I have, he had a good time and was actually the one that suggested this trip as you'll see below :).

WHAT: Two WDW days in between a weeklong trip to Daytona, FL

WHEN:
Daytona: 7/15/16-7/22/16
WDW: 7/18/16-7/19/16

WHERE: 1 Night @ Pop Century

WHY: When we came back from our August trip, I was in deep Disney depression not knowing when we would be coming back. We had several other trips/commitments already planned for 2016 so it didn't look like it was in the cards. Then one day, my DH and I were talking about a trip to Daytona that we were going to take in July with his extended family and my DH says, "You know, Daytona is not that far from Orlando. We could probably do a day trip to Magic Kingdom if you want".

So of course, the wheels in my head start turning and I'm trying to think of how we can make this happen for real. A couple months go by and we're looking at pictures from our previous trip and my DH starts talking about how he would really like to go to EPCOT too thus our day trip had turned into two days. I was not complaining one bit!

With everyone's schedules being so different, my DH's family would be coming to Daytona at staggered times so we decided to plan our Disney days in the middle of our vacation week so we could see everyone. We're sharing a three bedroom condo with J's immediate family so we won't have to worry about checking out/checking back at our room in Daytona which is helpful as well.

So let's get on to the details shall we?

THE PLAN:
-Friday, July 15th: Work half a day and then make the 6 hour drive down to Daytona.
-Saturday, July 16th: Daytona
-Sunday, July 17th: Daytona

-Monday, July 18th: WDW - Magic Kingdom
*6am: Drive to Orlando. Head straight to the Magic Kingdom to try and make 9am
opening.
~Per google maps, it takes an hour and a half to get from Daytona to Orlando so I'm trying to factor in an extra hour and a half to account for morning traffic and the time it
will take to get from the MK parking lot - TTC - through bag check, etc. HOPEFULLY this will be enough time. This is probably going to be the most stressful part for me so fingers crossed for a smooth trip!
*12:35pm: Lunch ADR at Be Our Guest
*We may leave the park late afternoon to take our bags to Pop Century if we feel like we need a break from the heat & crowds but we are going to try and stay all day if possible.
*Dinner will be QS at Casey's or Columbia Harbor House
*Stay at MK to see Wishes and park close
-Tuesday, July 19th: WDW - EPCOT
*Check out of Pop first thing and head over to EPCOT for 9am opening
*Morning: Future World
*1:10pm: Lunch ADR at Via Napoli (I'm pretty sure this is the whole reason my DH wants to come to EPCOT since he loved it so much on the last trip)
*Afternoon: World Showcase
~We don't have a set plan on when we're going to leave EPCOT, we'll just feel it out on that day.

-Wednesday, July 20th-Friday, July 22nd: Daytona

This is definitely going to be a quick, whirlwind trip just to give us a little Disney in our days to hold us over until our Land & Sea Five Year Anniversary trip in May 2017.

We're 64 days out as of today and I'll be able to make our Fast Passes on Thursday so stay tuned! :D
 
Last edited:

WDWDarling

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
We hit the 60 day mark!!! :D

Fast Passes have been made:
-Monday, July 18th: Magic Kingdom
*10:00am-11:00am: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
*11:10am-12:10pm: Splash Mountain
*1:45pm-2:45pm: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

-Tuesday, July 19th: EPCOT
*9:40am-10:40am: Spaceship Earth
*10:55am-11:55am: Soarin'(!!!) - MDE says it opens June 17 so fingers crossed that happens!
*12:25pm-1:25pm: The Seas with Nemo & Friends - I don't know if a FP+ is necessary for this but we haven't ever done it so we thought why not!

I wanted save online checkin for 45 days out so I could have another milestone to look forward to between now and the 30 day mark. Is that weird? I don't know, these are the type of things I have to do to keep myself going until the trip!

Also, I keep checking the mail like a crazy person because we booked our trip almost two months ago and everything is paid in full but no Mickey mail has arrived yet :(. I know Magic Bands and such won't ship until the 30 day mark but doesn't Disney still send out the trip info with the Incredibles on it beforehand too? It's not that big of a deal but again, these are the kind of things that help get me through until the trip ;).

I have family going to Disney in June so I'll be living vicariously through them until it's our turn in July :).
 

WDWDarling

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
So, FP+ selections for EPCOT have already changed because...

image.jpeg


Love it or hate it, I have to at least give the ride shot since it will now be open while we're there. My DH could care less :rolleyes:. So now our EPCOT day looks like this:

-Rope Drop: Soarin' (probably do Living with the Land right after)
-FP+ 9:40am-10:40am: Spaceship Earth
-FP+ 11:00am-12:00pm: The Seas with Nemo & Friends
-FP+ 12:05pm-1:05pm: Frozen Ever After

It does make me a little nervous to change out our Soarin' FP+ but I know that standby line will be probably be the lesser of the two evils so we shall see :).
 

WDWDarling

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
DH has thrown me a dining wildcard and wants to try Restaurant Marrakesh for dinner on our EPCOT day. I don't see a lot of talk about it so any recommendations/opinions from anyone who's eaten there?
 

Tom

Beta Return
We hit the 60 day mark!!! :D

Fast Passes have been made:
-Monday, July 18th: Magic Kingdom
*10:00am-11:00am: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
*11:10am-12:10pm: Splash Mountain
*1:45pm-2:45pm: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

-Tuesday, July 19th: EPCOT
*9:40am-10:40am: Spaceship Earth
*10:55am-11:55am: Soarin'(!!!) - MDE says it opens June 17 so fingers crossed that happens!
*12:25pm-1:25pm: The Seas with Nemo & Friends - I don't know if a FP+ is necessary for this but we haven't ever done it so we thought why not!

I wanted save online checkin for 45 days out so I could have another milestone to look forward to between now and the 30 day mark. Is that weird? I don't know, these are the type of things I have to do to keep myself going until the trip!

Also, I keep checking the mail like a crazy person because we booked our trip almost two months ago and everything is paid in full but no Mickey mail has arrived yet :(. I know Magic Bands and such won't ship until the 30 day mark but doesn't Disney still send out the trip info with the Incredibles on it beforehand too? It's not that big of a deal but again, these are the kind of things that help get me through until the trip ;).

I have family going to Disney in June so I'll be living vicariously through them until it's our turn in July :).

I think they still send everything after the actual Final Payment date, including the packet and DME luggage tags.
 

dclfan

Well-Known Member
DH has thrown me a dining wildcard and wants to try Restaurant Marrakesh for dinner on our EPCOT day. I don't see a lot of talk about it so any recommendations/opinions from anyone who's eaten there?

We enjoyed the atmosphere and being able to watch the belly dancers but over all found the food to be bland. However the new restaurant in Morocoo called spice road table is one of our MUST DO's now. Food is amazing and very flavorful, and views of world showcase lagoon are perfect. Try going at night for illuminations. I'm not sure if you guys are drinkers but their wine list was extensive and very enjoyable. My boyfriend has a fruity drink which he loved as well but the name escapes me right now. He said it was very refreshing when we were there in August and we were melting lol.
 

WDWDarling

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I think they still send everything after the actual Final Payment date, including the packet and DME luggage tags.

Thank you for the reply :). Our trip is paid but I think the final payment date is June 17th so I will be on the lookout after that. You've saved me many days of disappointment at the mailbox ;).
 

WDWDarling

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
We enjoyed the atmosphere and being able to watch the belly dancers but over all found the food to be bland. However the new restaurant in Morocoo called spice road table is one of our MUST DO's now. Food is amazing and very flavorful, and views of world showcase lagoon are perfect. Try going at night for illuminations. I'm not sure if you guys are drinkers but their wine list was extensive and very enjoyable. My boyfriend has a fruity drink which he loved as well but the name escapes me right now. He said it was very refreshing when we were there in August and we were melting lol.

You have me really leaning towards Spice Road Table. I wasn't thinking about the views of the lagoon and Illuminations - that's such a great idea! We're not huge drinkers but I saw they have a specialty sangria and I have yet to meet a sangria I don't like.

Excited to read about your trip by the way - happy planning! :)
 

ScarletBegonias

Well-Known Member
It definitely sounds amazing! They have an 8:10 ADR open the day we're planning on going. If we check-in early to request a table by the water do you think that would work for a 9:00pm Illuminations viewing?
Oh yeah! Our ADR was at 7 something and we really stretched it out and had no issues with it! I think it'd be a perfect time!
 

WDWDarling

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Alright guys, new development - we received an offer code in the mail so our one night will now be spent at Port Orleans Riverside instead of Pop for only a $15 difference!

I've wanted to stay at POR for a long time and even though our stay is super short, I'm excited to explore the grounds a little bit.

We also did go ahead and book the 8:10 ADR at Spice Road Table so I'm hoping for a water view to watch Illuminations. I've never seen it (terrible I know) and I think it would be a really great way to end our trip.

44 more days to go! :D
 

LisaBelle

Well-Known Member
Alright guys, new development - we received an offer code in the mail so our one night will now be spent at Port Orleans Riverside instead of Pop for only a $15 difference!

I've wanted to stay at POR for a long time and even though our stay is super short, I'm excited to explore the grounds a little bit.

We also did go ahead and book the 8:10 ADR at Spice Road Table so I'm hoping for a water view to watch Illuminations. I've never seen it (terrible I know) and I think it would be a really great way to end our trip.

44 more days to go! :D

What an exciting development! POR looks beautiful. I think you will really enjoy Illuminations!
 

dclfan

Well-Known Member
Alright guys, new development - we received an offer code in the mail so our one night will now be spent at Port Orleans Riverside instead of Pop for only a $15 difference!

I've wanted to stay at POR for a long time and even though our stay is super short, I'm excited to explore the grounds a little bit.

We also did go ahead and book the 8:10 ADR at Spice Road Table so I'm hoping for a water view to watch Illuminations. I've never seen it (terrible I know) and I think it would be a really great way to end our trip.

44 more days to go! :D

Yay yay yay to all.

Riverside is such a great hotel, your going to love it. Their food court, and the giant water wheel always screamed DISNEY to me for some reason.

8:10 is the perfect time to watch illuminations. I can't wait to hear all about it.
 

epcotisbest

Well-Known Member
Alright guys, new development - we received an offer code in the mail so our one night will now be spent at Port Orleans Riverside instead of Pop for only a $15 difference!

I've wanted to stay at POR for a long time and even though our stay is super short, I'm excited to explore the grounds a little bit.

We also did go ahead and book the 8:10 ADR at Spice Road Table so I'm hoping for a water view to watch Illuminations. I've never seen it (terrible I know) and I think it would be a really great way to end our trip.

44 more days to go! :D
Wow! You will love POR...beautiful place. If it was me, I would be planning less park time in the hot, Florida summer, and more resort time now. But I am an old fogey who can barely tolerate the summer heat when I could be in a pool instead.
 

WDWDarling

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
What an exciting development! POR looks beautiful. I think you will really enjoy Illuminations!

Yes, we are super excited! We're looking into POR for a trip next year so I'm excited to get a nice preview. I think so too and it will be nice to check it off the list. Thank you for reading :).
 

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