Pre-Trip 2 newbies, 12 nights, 2br villa OKW. We got this!

Hello~
I've been following along for a while now, enjoying all of your wonderful trip reports and I figured it was time to get involved.

Carol and I have been together for 15 years and married for 10. I have had the Disney bug WAY before that...so when we met I hoped that she would embrace a love of Disney like I had. YAY....we have a winner.
We go to Disneyland approx once a month but our 1st WDW trip was in January of 2012. We purchased DVC and booked a 12 night stay at a 1 br AK Kidani. Loved the room and quietness of the resort but...it was a little off the beaten path for.....well....anything. Had a great time no matter what. We did spend too much time comparing Land to World but realized that there is no comparison, they are just different. We knocked that off quickly and just took it all in.
Our last trip to WDW was January 2016 (see a trend? We aren't heat lovers ) This time we booked a 1br in Bay Lake Tower. That was the best resort. It has EVERYTHING you would need. Convenience, food, transportation....loved it. Here are a few pics of our trip
FE0F80EB-E9A2-4E1D-854A-45620139C70A by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
956DF14F-22D6-487A-98EE-8FFE409DA2DF by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
FEF9EFF1-EDFA-456B-8027-0A70A8CBA3BD by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
Loved having the monorail this convenient.

91B2D26B-2F5D-43CE-B8C5-69EEBD603371 by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr

384756A0-3BE5-44E6-8B2C-447652D3769D by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
Will definitely do this b-fast again

DCFF838F-FCC4-4372-9D3C-BFC11BDE947F by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
Carol isn't a meet n greet kind of gal....so I kind of tricked her into this one...then all of a sudden she got into it...happy me.
E8115EAE-16EB-45FC-B2FF-F6DCB6A58D9F by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
7AF1D5D7-1A4E-4F2A-A128-2FAE522896DF by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
She actually got out of her seat for this one....I'm so proud.

So back to the planning...As always we are sad to leave our little fur babies for so long
D4E42C2F-8468-4E12-AE27-6C74F3C24BDD by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
Untitled by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
4FD45BA6-FD3E-4044-A42D-92CAE5DA295A by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
Especially since this little guy is the youngin of the group and likes to torment the 2 senior ladies. We have a friend staying while were gone to keep order.


OK... let me introduce our 2018 WDW group
Untitled by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr

0D92EDAF-9091-4C07-A41F-E4799659104D by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
There is my wife Carol and me (Stacey) -Intermediate WDW go-ers

Untitled by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
There is Sara & Lola - Advanced WDW go-ers

51511327-8B71-4744-B2D2-48D454FF9D26 by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
There is Linda and April - 1st timer's (don't mind me in the pic, it's the lovely ladies on the left)


I love to plan...our trip, a friend's trip....a stranger's trip... it doesn't matter....let me plan!
This trip has been in the works for a little over a year now and today we are at the 90 day mark! Time certainly gets away from us. Now I'm hoping it doesn't end up feeling like the next three months are going to be more like three years.
Linda approached us one day and stated that she'd like to join us on a WDW some time. She decided enough work, it's time for a real vacation.
So my happy little planning mind went to work. Not long after that Linda's daughter, April, wanted to come too if it wasn't too much trouble. NO...NO trouble at all. 2 br villa at OKW seems to be the perfect option here. It quickly turned into a 2 week trip which I'm always thrilled with.
Then we find out Lola and Sara are going to be there as well at the same time (diff resort) OK...let's have some fun!!

I booked 11 nights in a 2br villa at OKW but that is where my points ran out. Linda and April said they'd pick up a night on either end to make the trip complete. I worked with a wonderful DVC agent but there were no "pay" rooms available at OKW. So...1st night, we are in a studio at Bay Lake Tower...cannot complain about that AND it makes our first day so much easier...this is working out great.

The 4 of us decided on the dining plan for this trip...I am interested in the 1 drink (alcohol) allowed per service. I normally wouldn't spend too much on that but if it comes with the plan...I might try this and that.

So what have we planned so far?

Day 1:
Arrival 5:50 PM
To resort around 7pm
Drop off bags and go to activate our AP's
Little dinner at Contempo Cafe
Explore

Day 2:
Drop luggage off with bell secs to be moved to OKW
Meet Lola/Sara for MK opening show 9:00
Play around in Tomorrowland
Head out for 12:00 brunch at California Grill Cannot wait for this one.
Then it's a shopping day. Groceries, outlets.
Check into OKW and explore

Day 3:
Entire group up early and heading to Universal

Day 4:
Epcot (SO happy we will be there for the Festival of the arts this year)
QS - B-fast
Le Cellier - lunch
Relax
QS - dinner
Roam

Day 5:
MK!!
BOG - early b-fast
QS - lunch
Relax
O'hana - dinner

Day 6:
AK
Tusker House - early b-fast
Either Flame Tree or Satu'li Canteen for lunch
Fend for yourself dinner

Day 7:
HS/Disney Springs
Room - B-fast
1/2 day park with a quick stop at Baseline before we leave the park
Off to Disney Springs
Raglan Road - Lunch (Saw a whiskey drink that has my name on it )
Then the entire group will get together for a "put together" Monorail Loop dinner and drinks

Day 8:
Free Day
Olivia's - Dinner

Day 9:
MK/Tour
Room - B-fast
Early Marceline Tour (LOVE THIS TOUR)
Pesos Bill's - lunch
Relax
Trail's end - Dinner

Day 10:
EP/Tour
Les Halles Boulangerie & Pastisserie - B-fast
Carol and Linda will be going on the Behind the Seeds tour
Via Napoli - Lunch
Open for dinner

Day 11:
AK
Wave - B-fast
food tastings throughout the showcase
Whispering Canyon - Dinner (I think the girls will get a kick out of it)

Day 12:
Open

Day 13:
Open/Disney Springs
Flight doesn't leave until 7pm

So far that is the fun we've begun with. I'm sure I'll be spending quite a bit of time at the Art festival any chance I get. We are looking forward to making our own Monorail loop dining excursion.

Then there is the fact that Carol and I cannot help ourselves....we have purchased additional Magic Bands for the trip.

Untitled by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr
Untitled by Stacey LeDuc, on Flickr

Well...up next...Fast Passes.
Yep, I'm chair dancing right now.

 

[Go.Nijntje]

Your trip sounds great! I was just wondering why you are going to OKW in the morning of day 2 and not straight to MK?
Second thing I wanted to ask was how many people will be going on the monorail crawl? I know Trader Sam's is small and can have a long wait, not sure about the lounge at CG, I didn't notice it last time I was there and I have never read a tr where someone just went up to have a drink and some food. Not trying to rain on your parade but also don't want you to waste an evening on a plan that doesn't work.

 

[Stacey LeDuc]

Your trip sounds great! I was just wondering why you are going to OKW in the morning of day 2 and not straight to MK?
Second thing I wanted to ask was how many people will be going on the monorail crawl? I know Trader Sam's is small and can have a long wait, not sure about the lounge at CG, I didn't notice it last time I was there and I have never read a tr where someone just went up to have a drink and some food. Not trying to rain on your parade but also don't want you to waste an evening on a plan that doesn't work.

Thank You!
We bought the dining plan. With staying in 2 diff resorts it’s considered 2 trips. So we got it for the trip starting the next day. In order to get the credits for brunch we have to physically check into OKW. I called DVC on Saturday to ask and that’s what he told me. So unfortunately some running around in the morning on our first day.
I read somewhere that you can order appetizers and drinks at the lounge without a reservation. I’m not solid about that though...if not I think the Wave has a Lounge. There will be 6 of us so yea I was thinking about the Trader Sams thing too but if it’s crowded we will divert. There is always the sushi area by Kona.
I don’t consider it raining on my parade at all. Just helpful...Thank You. Fingers crossed we get some magic along the way and hit the sweet spot with every place that night.