Disneyworld Trip Report: “Our Migration Vacation: 7 Days of Child-Free Fun in the Florida Sun…PLUS the Princess Half Marathon!”
Ok, so you get the title...DH and I are headed back to WDW! We're running the Princess Half Marathon at the end of our vacation, and we're not bringing our kids this time! Oh, and "migration" because we live in the Pacific Northwest...we're heading south for a break from the rain and cold!
Cast:
Myself: Melanee: pushing 30, adventurous Mom extraordinaire, Stay-at-home-Mom, student, runner, singer, UofO Duck fan
DH: Ben: 33, adventurous Dad extraordinaire, Coast Guard helicopter pilot, college football fanatic, WSU Cougars fan, avid hiker/mountain climber
Here's a few pics from our May 2009 trip:
Here's the whole family at the Hoop de Doo Revue:
This is a MOM&DAD-ONLY TRIP!!! This is the first ever for us! Of course we have not mentioned to our kids that we are going. They probably will be mad when they learn we went without them. But we couldn’t take them out of school, and frankly, we needed a husband-and-wife only trip. It might be our first real vacation just us in our whole marriage, so ummmm, IT’S ABOUT TIME!!! So let’s get the party started!
PRE-TRIP:
Backstory:
Hello everyone and welcome to my first trip report in a while! I did the math and it had been 502 days in between our trips to Walt Disney World! That is so long!! It had been exactly 420 days since we’d been to Disneyland. So 60 weeks since we’d last stepped foot in a Disney Park of any kind!! It was weird to know we hadn’t visited one at all in 2010. But life has changed and we live all the way across the country now (literally 2 blocks from the Pacific Ocean). We got totally spoiled from 2008-2009 living on the Panhandle of Florida, visiting 5 times in that period.
Trip Journal:
Surprise!
Back in August of last year, I started to price out what it would cost for DH and me to head to Florida to celebrate our 10-year wedding anniversary. That fell through and then I came to peace with not going. Then my awesome, incredible, amazing husband surprised me on our anniversary day with red roses, and a really cute card with his present written inside…One trip to run a Disney Half Marathon!! Wow!
Originally I figured we’d just head down to Disneyland, then after researching when the races were, I knew I didn’t want to wait a whole year to redeem my cool gift (which is how long it would be until the Disneyland one). So I asked DH what he thought about us going to Disneyworld for the Princess Half Marathon in February. He said, “Fo sho!”
So I got to work with planning, as any good DG (Disney Geek-adopted from BigTex71) does. First, had to decide when the vacation would happen…before, after or sandwiching the Princess Half Marathon. Well I’ve run a half marathon before, and I don’t walk very well for a few days afterward. So…I figured it made much more sense to trek around the parks for several days and run the PHM on our very last day. I also figured not everyone coming to run the race would vacation before the race so hopefully the crowds would be minimal. So our tentative dates were February 20th-February 27th! Yay! One thing down. Only bummer is that this would be like week 8 of Winter Term for me for school. I just figured I’d have to work ahead the weeks prior. It’s worth it for a trip to Disneyworld!
A Day Off Property @ Disney is Better than a Day at Home!
Next I looked up places to stay and even called a Disney representative because they can search what dining deals there are and if/how you can swing military room discounts, etc. Unfortunately, Disney really couldn’t offer us much. But I was able to nail down a great reservation at an Armed Forces Vacation Club 2-bedroom timeshare for only $369 for the whole week, the same days we needed! And no, no timeshare presentation required… It’s really close by, and got great reviews from other military families we know. When I factored everything in, Disney’s deals didn’t even come close to matching the savings even if we had to rent a car. I don’t get picky when it comes to where we stay, as long as it means I’m going to Disneyworld, I’m pretty flexible. We do a lot of resort hopping while we’re at Disneyworld anyway. Maybe one day we’ll buy into DVC, and then we’ll start staying at resorts.
Next, I started to analyze park hours and extra magic hours. See, when I know we are staying off-property, I plan around EMH, specifically avoiding parks that have EMH. We also don't park-hop, we just enjoy one park per day. I came up with my outline and laid down ADRs right away. It is SO EASY to get the ADRs you want when it is only 2 people versus our usual 5. Speaking of which, we worked out childcare right around now as well. Luckily, we have a great family who are excited for us and happy to help.
Brand New Dining experiences I have plans/ADRs for:
~ Beaches N Cream (no ADR needed)
~Pizzafari or Restaurantosaurus (no ADR needed)
~Jiko
~Le Cellier
~Raglan Road
~50’s Prime Time Café
~Boston Lobster Feast (@ DH’s request)
~Artist Point
Not new: Crystal Palace (breakfast-DH’s favorite).
I’m really looking forward to all of the dining experiences. I wish we had more time/stomach room for more J
Run Like a Girl!
For the next few weeks, I watched the PHM registration status like a hawk. I knew we’d have to pay for this trip gradually but I didn’t want to end up waiting so long that we couldn’t get in…because it was the reason for the trip in the first place! We missed the first registration price, but I’m glad I waited because over the course of those weeks, DH decided he’d like to run it with me!! *swoon* He’s the best! I love him so much! So when the PHM hit about 65% full, I registered us as a team, and picked Ariel as our princess. I also started searching for cool outfit pieces to wear to make the race even more fun!
A month later, it was time to buy our plane tickets. I was glad we waited on this too because DH learned that he’s got 3 weeks of training in Mobile, AL, which starts…February 28th! The timing couldn’t be better! DH started researching and was able to fix the plane tickets so that his will be paid for since it is work-related. Woohoo!! We just won’t get to fly home together obviously. So we’ll rent a car and drive down to Disneyworld from Mobile, something we are quite familiar with (if y’all don’t remember, we lived there for 5 years prior to moving to Rainy-ville, OR last year).
So in finishing up the details, DH ordered our military tickets through the local morale office, of which he just so happens to be in charge of and it is because of him DisneyWORLD tickets are now available for order. Until recently, we could only buy the military tickets to Disneyland. Did I mention how much I love him?? Somewhere around the same time, I ordered a cute sparkly green skirt and purple running top for the PHM.
25 days out:
We receive our info packet from our resort! YAY!!! Our vacation is starting to feel that much more real. We also file our taxes which is always a nice little bonus.
Another noteworthy subject: running endurance. About 2 weeks ago, DH and I had finally gotten up to running 6 miles. Then DH pulled his calf muscle. PT says he’s out for a few weeks! Yikes! And right in the middle of our training plan. Oh well, this race’s purpose is fun! I’ve gotten back up to 7 miles so far…When I ran the Eugene Half Marathon last year competitively, I’d only gotten up to running 10 miles, and it went really well still. So I know we’ll survive even if the best we do is 7 miles. We’ll do a walk/run combo and take time for character stops and such.
24 days out:
Our WDW tickets arrive!! YAY!!
We officially have all our ducks in a row! Now to just save up $$ for meals and FUN! Today it was actually sunny where we live, and I realized I don’t have any sunglasses or flip-flops. Time to go for a little vacation shopping trip. Another detail I worked out was that I booked a wonderful couple’s massage session! I researched all the different offerings on property, then went to the Niki Bryan Spas website (the company that does all of the Spa offerings in and around WDW). As it turns out, the same 50-minute couple’s relaxation massage costs $80 less just by going off property to the main spa!! I can’t wait to surprise DH with a couple’s message session! He’s going to love it. I plugged it into our itinerary for late afternoon on the second day we hit Typhoon Lagoon. *Note: It turns out I suck at surprises. I was so excited I went ahead and told DH ahead of time. His reply was a great big, mischievous smile and “NICE.”
20 Days Out:
Tomorrow we’ll actually be in our vacation month. What an amazing feeling. To tell you the truth, when we moved to Oregon, I figured we wouldn’t realistically be visiting The Happiest Place on Earth while we were here. Plane tickets for 5 are so expensive and I figured now that we live on the West Coast, we would choose destinations such as Hawaii, San Francisco or other warm places to visit while we were here. Disneyland, maybe. But here we are, as our vacation gets closer and closer, and it’s really going to happen! Brings a tear to my eye.
The closer we get to vacation, the more well aware I am that I need to start working harder on the curriculum for this term. I need to be a week ahead before we head out or I’ll be worried about school while we’re there. That is NO BUENO. No worrying while at WDW!! So starting today, I’m hitting the books hard.
See you in the next installment!:wave:
Ok, so you get the title...DH and I are headed back to WDW! We're running the Princess Half Marathon at the end of our vacation, and we're not bringing our kids this time! Oh, and "migration" because we live in the Pacific Northwest...we're heading south for a break from the rain and cold!
Cast:
Myself: Melanee: pushing 30, adventurous Mom extraordinaire, Stay-at-home-Mom, student, runner, singer, UofO Duck fan
DH: Ben: 33, adventurous Dad extraordinaire, Coast Guard helicopter pilot, college football fanatic, WSU Cougars fan, avid hiker/mountain climber
Here's a few pics from our May 2009 trip:
Here's the whole family at the Hoop de Doo Revue:
This is a MOM&DAD-ONLY TRIP!!! This is the first ever for us! Of course we have not mentioned to our kids that we are going. They probably will be mad when they learn we went without them. But we couldn’t take them out of school, and frankly, we needed a husband-and-wife only trip. It might be our first real vacation just us in our whole marriage, so ummmm, IT’S ABOUT TIME!!! So let’s get the party started!
PRE-TRIP:
Backstory:
Hello everyone and welcome to my first trip report in a while! I did the math and it had been 502 days in between our trips to Walt Disney World! That is so long!! It had been exactly 420 days since we’d been to Disneyland. So 60 weeks since we’d last stepped foot in a Disney Park of any kind!! It was weird to know we hadn’t visited one at all in 2010. But life has changed and we live all the way across the country now (literally 2 blocks from the Pacific Ocean). We got totally spoiled from 2008-2009 living on the Panhandle of Florida, visiting 5 times in that period.
Trip Journal:
Surprise!
Back in August of last year, I started to price out what it would cost for DH and me to head to Florida to celebrate our 10-year wedding anniversary. That fell through and then I came to peace with not going. Then my awesome, incredible, amazing husband surprised me on our anniversary day with red roses, and a really cute card with his present written inside…One trip to run a Disney Half Marathon!! Wow!
Originally I figured we’d just head down to Disneyland, then after researching when the races were, I knew I didn’t want to wait a whole year to redeem my cool gift (which is how long it would be until the Disneyland one). So I asked DH what he thought about us going to Disneyworld for the Princess Half Marathon in February. He said, “Fo sho!”
So I got to work with planning, as any good DG (Disney Geek-adopted from BigTex71) does. First, had to decide when the vacation would happen…before, after or sandwiching the Princess Half Marathon. Well I’ve run a half marathon before, and I don’t walk very well for a few days afterward. So…I figured it made much more sense to trek around the parks for several days and run the PHM on our very last day. I also figured not everyone coming to run the race would vacation before the race so hopefully the crowds would be minimal. So our tentative dates were February 20th-February 27th! Yay! One thing down. Only bummer is that this would be like week 8 of Winter Term for me for school. I just figured I’d have to work ahead the weeks prior. It’s worth it for a trip to Disneyworld!
A Day Off Property @ Disney is Better than a Day at Home!
Next I looked up places to stay and even called a Disney representative because they can search what dining deals there are and if/how you can swing military room discounts, etc. Unfortunately, Disney really couldn’t offer us much. But I was able to nail down a great reservation at an Armed Forces Vacation Club 2-bedroom timeshare for only $369 for the whole week, the same days we needed! And no, no timeshare presentation required… It’s really close by, and got great reviews from other military families we know. When I factored everything in, Disney’s deals didn’t even come close to matching the savings even if we had to rent a car. I don’t get picky when it comes to where we stay, as long as it means I’m going to Disneyworld, I’m pretty flexible. We do a lot of resort hopping while we’re at Disneyworld anyway. Maybe one day we’ll buy into DVC, and then we’ll start staying at resorts.
Next, I started to analyze park hours and extra magic hours. See, when I know we are staying off-property, I plan around EMH, specifically avoiding parks that have EMH. We also don't park-hop, we just enjoy one park per day. I came up with my outline and laid down ADRs right away. It is SO EASY to get the ADRs you want when it is only 2 people versus our usual 5. Speaking of which, we worked out childcare right around now as well. Luckily, we have a great family who are excited for us and happy to help.
Brand New Dining experiences I have plans/ADRs for:
~ Beaches N Cream (no ADR needed)
~Pizzafari or Restaurantosaurus (no ADR needed)
~Jiko
~Le Cellier
~Raglan Road
~50’s Prime Time Café
~Boston Lobster Feast (@ DH’s request)
~Artist Point
Not new: Crystal Palace (breakfast-DH’s favorite).
I’m really looking forward to all of the dining experiences. I wish we had more time/stomach room for more J
Run Like a Girl!
For the next few weeks, I watched the PHM registration status like a hawk. I knew we’d have to pay for this trip gradually but I didn’t want to end up waiting so long that we couldn’t get in…because it was the reason for the trip in the first place! We missed the first registration price, but I’m glad I waited because over the course of those weeks, DH decided he’d like to run it with me!! *swoon* He’s the best! I love him so much! So when the PHM hit about 65% full, I registered us as a team, and picked Ariel as our princess. I also started searching for cool outfit pieces to wear to make the race even more fun!
A month later, it was time to buy our plane tickets. I was glad we waited on this too because DH learned that he’s got 3 weeks of training in Mobile, AL, which starts…February 28th! The timing couldn’t be better! DH started researching and was able to fix the plane tickets so that his will be paid for since it is work-related. Woohoo!! We just won’t get to fly home together obviously. So we’ll rent a car and drive down to Disneyworld from Mobile, something we are quite familiar with (if y’all don’t remember, we lived there for 5 years prior to moving to Rainy-ville, OR last year).
So in finishing up the details, DH ordered our military tickets through the local morale office, of which he just so happens to be in charge of and it is because of him DisneyWORLD tickets are now available for order. Until recently, we could only buy the military tickets to Disneyland. Did I mention how much I love him?? Somewhere around the same time, I ordered a cute sparkly green skirt and purple running top for the PHM.
25 days out:
We receive our info packet from our resort! YAY!!! Our vacation is starting to feel that much more real. We also file our taxes which is always a nice little bonus.
Another noteworthy subject: running endurance. About 2 weeks ago, DH and I had finally gotten up to running 6 miles. Then DH pulled his calf muscle. PT says he’s out for a few weeks! Yikes! And right in the middle of our training plan. Oh well, this race’s purpose is fun! I’ve gotten back up to 7 miles so far…When I ran the Eugene Half Marathon last year competitively, I’d only gotten up to running 10 miles, and it went really well still. So I know we’ll survive even if the best we do is 7 miles. We’ll do a walk/run combo and take time for character stops and such.
24 days out:
Our WDW tickets arrive!! YAY!!
We officially have all our ducks in a row! Now to just save up $$ for meals and FUN! Today it was actually sunny where we live, and I realized I don’t have any sunglasses or flip-flops. Time to go for a little vacation shopping trip. Another detail I worked out was that I booked a wonderful couple’s massage session! I researched all the different offerings on property, then went to the Niki Bryan Spas website (the company that does all of the Spa offerings in and around WDW). As it turns out, the same 50-minute couple’s relaxation massage costs $80 less just by going off property to the main spa!! I can’t wait to surprise DH with a couple’s message session! He’s going to love it. I plugged it into our itinerary for late afternoon on the second day we hit Typhoon Lagoon. *Note: It turns out I suck at surprises. I was so excited I went ahead and told DH ahead of time. His reply was a great big, mischievous smile and “NICE.”
20 Days Out:
Tomorrow we’ll actually be in our vacation month. What an amazing feeling. To tell you the truth, when we moved to Oregon, I figured we wouldn’t realistically be visiting The Happiest Place on Earth while we were here. Plane tickets for 5 are so expensive and I figured now that we live on the West Coast, we would choose destinations such as Hawaii, San Francisco or other warm places to visit while we were here. Disneyland, maybe. But here we are, as our vacation gets closer and closer, and it’s really going to happen! Brings a tear to my eye.
The closer we get to vacation, the more well aware I am that I need to start working harder on the curriculum for this term. I need to be a week ahead before we head out or I’ll be worried about school while we’re there. That is NO BUENO. No worrying while at WDW!! So starting today, I’m hitting the books hard.
See you in the next installment!:wave:
I LOVE the parks at sunset. 
