Pre-Trip Another Spring Trip! late April 2017

Well, well well.

Just got back from Disney a 10 days ago, and here I am again! Also I finally got my husband to join the board too, so @DarthDaddy maybe also be piping in on this PTR!

So once upon a time, there was a girl who was obsessed with the beach (specifically Myrtle Beach) and that was the only place in the world I ever dreamed of vacationing. I would never even entertain the idea of going anywhere else. Until....

We had a daughter. However, in 2015 at the suggestion of my mother, I begrudgingly conceded and agreed to go to Disney. She planned a pretty amazing Disney trip. We stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge, did plenty of Character Breakfasts, the whole 9. I think she thought we'd never go back, so she planned a top of line trip.

Instead, it had the opposite effect.

Six months later (our April 2016 trip) we were back and had an even more amazing time than the first trip, if that's possible.

Disney Depression has been killing us, and we've been thinking long and hard what to do about next year's trip. We had bounced the beach back and forth for awhile, but something deep down inside of me what not real happy with the thought of going to the beach. (what is wrong with me?? I used to love the beach!) I think we've decided. Disney again next year! Our daughter will be 3 in June and then no longer free, so our thought process is we might as well milk that one last time if we are going to be Disney fans and going a lot.

So far, we know almost nothing except we've got to start saving, ASAP. My parents are going in March, and like the past two trips, we tag along with them. We make our own plans, but are normally in the same parks on the same days, so we can usually get together during the day. They are staying at Coronado Springs and we'd like to do the same, but we just have to see how much more it will cost us than a Value since we have about 10 months to plan and save for the trip. We are waiting for the 2017 prices to come out and then I guess we will make an official decision at that point!

****UPDATE: WE ARE NOW GOING IN SEPTMEBER 2017! We couldn't do early 2017 and thought we were cancelling for awhile, but we've decided we can do September and it gives us plenty of time to save! So please don't be confused by the first page or two of us saying we can't go!!!****

In case you missed our last trip report, or PTR.. here is our cast:

I am Britt & this is my husband AJ (aka @DarthDaddy)

And here is our little girl Harper who is currently almost 2. She will almost 3 on our next trip!

So that's about all I've got right now! Stick around for the next 18 months!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

Okay! We've lined out our trip! My mom and step dad will be splitting their time between my family and my step sis's family (who is not going to Disney at all)

Okay, so we will leave on Friday April 28th. There was talk of trying to do it all in one day, like we do when we go home, but I'm not sure I'm sold on that idea. However, it would save me a day off of work. I just don't like the pressure of HAVING to make it the house because we don't' have another day to mess with (we'd have to be at the park the very next day), and unless we leave at midnight, we aren't going to get to the house until like 10:30 pm if we drive all the way through, and No. So, no matter what, our family will probably be leaving on Friday.

Saturday 4/29- Arrive at our house sometime in the evening. There is talk of making a quick grocery store run although it'll be the LAST thing we want to do. This is the issue with staying off park! LOL

Sunday 4/30 - Our very first day in the parks will be our "adult" day! YAY! @DarthDaddy and I have decided that we are going to explore EPCOT this trip! We honestly really haven't done anything but briskly walk past each country and we want to use this day to be able to take as much time as we want to explore. I'm actually really excited about it. My parents will be at the house with Harper swimming, playing and napping. They are going low key and taking the first full day as a rest day.

Monday 5/1 My family will be doing Magic Kingdom. The rest of the gang will be at universal.

Tuesday 5/2- My family, and my mom, step dad, and nephew will be going to Animal Kingdom. We are thinking about doing an ADR at BOMA in the morning and then heading to AK from there.

Wednesday 5/3 - My family is going to DHS. Everyone else is at their 2nd day in Uni.

Thursday 5/4 - REST DAY! We will stay back at the house and lounge & swim. A nice break for the day will be welcomed. I'm hoping we can try Disney Springs in the evening. Holy cow. As I'm writing this, I just realized that we will in Disney for MAY THE 4TH!!! we might have to move things around so that we are in DHS on this day. My husband will be so excited!!!

Friday 5/5- My family and Mom, Step Dad and Nephew are going to MK for the last day!

 

[Figgy1]

Okay! We've lined out our trip! My mom and step dad will be splitting their time between my family and my step sis's family (who is not going to Disney at all)

Okay, so we will leave on Friday April 28th. There was talk of trying to do it all in one day, like we do when we go home, but I'm not sure I'm sold on that idea. However, it would save me a day off of work. I just don't like the pressure of HAVING to make it the house because we don't' have another day to mess with (we'd have to be at the park the very next day), and unless we leave at midnight, we aren't going to get to the house until like 10:30 pm if we drive all the way through, and No. So, no matter what, our family will probably be leaving on Friday.

Saturday 4/29- Arrive at our house sometime in the evening. There is talk of making a quick grocery store run although it'll be the LAST thing we want to do. This is the issue with staying off park! LOL

Sunday 4/30 - Our very first day in the parks will be our "adult" day! YAY! @DarthDaddy and I have decided that we are going to explore EPCOT this trip! We honestly really haven't done anything but briskly walk past each country and we want to use this day to be able to take as much time as we want to explore. I'm actually really excited about it. My parents will be at the house with Harper swimming, playing and napping. They are going low key and taking the first full day as a rest day.

Monday 5/1 My family will be doing Magic Kingdom. The rest of the gang will be at universal.

Tuesday 5/2- My family, and my mom, step dad, and nephew will be going to Animal Kingdom. We are thinking about doing an ADR at BOMA in the morning and then heading to AK from there.

Wednesday 5/3 - My family is going to DHS. Everyone else is at their 2nd day in Uni.

Thursday 5/4 - REST DAY! We will stay back at the house and lounge & swim. A nice break for the day will be welcomed. I'm hoping we can try Disney Springs in the evening. Holy cow. As I'm writing this, I just realized that we will in Disney for MAY THE 4TH!!! we might have to move things around so that we are in DHS on this day. My husband will be so excited!!!

Friday 5/5- My family and Mom, Step Dad and Nephew are going to MK for the last day!

I know where we'd be on the 4th. We've planned vacations around SWW RIP

 

[LAKid53]

I will be there the week before you for the Dark Side Half Marathon weekend. Love April at WDW and not just because it's the month I was born. The weather is lovely (sometimes you luck out and get a cool [upper 60s] day). If it's after Easter and Spring break, lower crowd levels (if there's such a thing at WDW anymore). Best times to visit WDW for me are Spring and late Fall/before the holidays start. Mainly because that's when the weather is nice.

Have fun!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

I know where we'd be on the 4th. We've planned vacations around SWW RIP

Right! We switched our rest day to Wednesday and will be in DHS on May the 4th!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

I will be there the week before you for the Dark Side Half Marathon weekend. Love April at WDW and not just because it's the month I was born. The weather is lovely (sometimes you luck out and get a cool [upper 60s] day). If it's after Easter and Spring break, lower crowd levels (if there's such a thing at WDW anymore). Best times to visit WDW for me are Spring and late Fall/before the holidays start. Mainly because that's when the weather is nice.

Have fun!

Thanks! We went in April this year and it was great. The weather was chilly in the morning and in the evening. In fact, we only swam once because it was just so chilly with the breeze going. I never thought I'd say that in Florida! I hope that because this trip is later than our one this year, and goes into May, that i'll be warmer because we have an awesome pool in our rental home!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

Okay, first thoughts.. ADR's.

Since we are off park, we can only do it a day at a time.

Our very first day in the parks will be Epcot. I really want to go to Garden Grill, but I feel slightly bad about going and seeing the characters without Harper! On the other hand, it'd be nice to have a Character meal that we don't have to rush and worry about harper being entertained! We'd try for 12pm somewhere and then head over to World Showcase. I'd almost consider doing two ADR's on our day. We did this past April and it worked out well.

So where in World Showcase is a great place to eat? We've already done Spice Road Table.. Thinking maybe Rose and Crown? Maybe catch Illuminations? I know virtually nothing about Epcot dining.

 

[Figgy1]

Okay, first thoughts.. ADR's.

Since we are off park, we can only do it a day at a time.

Our very first day in the parks will be Epcot. I really want to go to Garden Grill, but I feel slightly bad about going and seeing the characters without Harper! On the other hand, it'd be nice to have a Character meal that we don't have to rush and worry about harper being entertained! We'd try for 12pm somewhere and then head over to World Showcase. I'd almost consider doing two ADR's on our day. We did this past April and it worked out well.

So where in World Showcase is a great place to eat? We've already done Spice Road Table.. Thinking maybe Rose and Crown? Maybe catch Illuminations? I know virtually nothing about Epcot dining.

We're doing R&C for Illuminations in a few weeks I'll let you know how that goes when we get back. We mostly snack around World Showcase

 

[ScarletBegonias]

We're doing R&C for Illuminations in a few weeks I'll let you know how that goes when we get back. We mostly snack around World Showcase

Wonderful! I'd love to hear how it goes! My mom and step dad do it every trip!

 

[LisaBelle]

I think it will be great for you and your hubby to have your adult day at Epcot. It is really fun to take your time and wander through World Showcase and take in all the little details and of course, the food!
Garden Grill looks amazing, but I see your point with the characters. Luckily Harper is young so she won't even know that she is missing out on meeting the characters. I've heard great things about Rose & Crown, but haven't been there. If you like Italian, my family enjoys Tutto Italia. I know it gets mixed reviews but our experiences have always been great. My husband and I loved Chefs de France. We had our anniversary dinner there a few years ago. My sister and I tried Biergarten on our sister trip and we loved that as well. We always enjoy snacking around World Showcase, too. 2 table service meals would be great and you might still have some room for snacks along the way if you plan it so that you can space things out. You really can't go wrong any way you decide to go.

 

[ScarletBegonias]

I think it will be great for you and your hubby to have your adult day at Epcot. It is really fun to take your time and wander through World Showcase and take in all the little details and of course, the food!
Garden Grill looks amazing, but I see your point with the characters. Luckily Harper is young so she won't even know that she is missing out on meeting the characters. I've heard great things about Rose & Crown, but haven't been there. If you like Italian, my family enjoys Tutto Italia. I know it gets mixed reviews but our experiences have always been great. My husband and I loved Chefs de France. We had our anniversary dinner there a few years ago. My sister and I tried Biergarten on our sister trip and we loved that as well. We always enjoy snacking around World Showcase, too. 2 table service meals would be great and you might still have some room for snacks along the way if you plan it so that you can space things out. You really can't go wrong any way you decide to go.

Thank you for the options! I'll look into them, but I think Rose and Crown is right up our alley! I'm hoping we can still snack around the countries too! I'm going to go ahead and plan on doing Garden Grill because we still should have fun, and I'm learning it's okay to do things without our child sometimes! We've never done an ADULT character meal, so that should be fun, and pressure free!

 

[Ciara]

Okay, first thoughts.. ADR's.

Since we are off park, we can only do it a day at a time.

Our very first day in the parks will be Epcot. I really want to go to Garden Grill, but I feel slightly bad about going and seeing the characters without Harper! On the other hand, it'd be nice to have a Character meal that we don't have to rush and worry about harper being entertained! We'd try for 12pm somewhere and then head over to World Showcase. I'd almost consider doing two ADR's on our day. We did this past April and it worked out well.

So where in World Showcase is a great place to eat? We've already done Spice Road Table.. Thinking maybe Rose and Crown? Maybe catch Illuminations? I know virtually nothing about Epcot dining.

Billy absolutely loved R & C for illuminations. He said its a must-do for him every trip! I am open to other restaurants (i was thinking la hacienda) but R & C definitely has the best restaurant view of illuminations, so i think we will be going back there

 

[ScarletBegonias]

Billy absolutely loved R & C for illuminations. He said its a must-do for him every trip! I am open to other restaurants (i was thinking la hacienda) but R & C definitely has the best restaurant view of illuminations, so i think we will be going back there

This is great to hear! I'm thinking we will definitely do this!

 

[G8rchamps]

I don't even know the name of it but you HAVE to got to the back of France to the bakery/quick serve. Bread, deserts, cheese, and get the ham and cheese croissant. Actually good prices for what you get. Go for lunch or just a snack, but check it out - it is our favorite spot to eat in all the parks!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

I don't even know the name of it but you HAVE to got to the back of France to the bakery/quick serve. Bread, deserts, cheese, and get the ham and cheese croissant. Actually good prices for what you get. Go for lunch or just a snack, but check it out - it is our favorite spot to eat in all the parks!

If they are gluten free, I'm in! Otherwise, they sound delicious!!!

 

[Figgy1]

If they are gluten free, I'm in! Otherwise, they sound delicious!!!

Port Orleans has gf beignets. I think FQ but not positive

 

[ScarletBegonias]

Port Orleans has gf beignets. I think FQ but not positive

One day I will have one of these!!! One day!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

We found out that my nephew is flying to Orlando with his parents (versus driving with us) so we don't have to wait for him to get out of school! That means we are going to leave SUPER early on Friday morning and drive 12 hours to St. Augustine and stay there for the night. We'll get to hang out at the beach for a bit and then when we get up we only have 2.5 hours to our rental house! I'm a little worried about driving 12 hours in one day, but I think we can do it, esp if we leave really early and it's daylight MOST of the drive.

 

[FlaggNL]

One day I will have one of these!!! One day!

The beignets are in POFQ! Eveybody is so full about them. But to be honest I had them October 2015 and well not so good in my opinion... maybe because I am European

 

[ScarletBegonias]

The beignets are in POFQ! Eveybody is so full about them. But to be honest I had them October 2015 and well not so good in my opinion... maybe because I am European

I think they sound good, and I know they make gluten free ones, but I'm not sure I want them bad enough to travel to a resort to get them! I hope one day in the next couple years we will get to stay there and then I will grab one!

 

[FlaggNL]

I think they sound good, and I know they make gluten free ones, but I'm not sure I want them bad enough to travel to a resort to get them! I hope one day in the next couple years we will get to stay there and then I will grab one!

You should do that!! POFQ is such a great resort! I cannot compare it with others but it is tiny small and easy with the buses. Not much waiting time when leaving a park back to the resort!