The Wilkos Go Potter Mad! Pre-Trip

jimmytwoshoes84 · 15 May 16, 08:02 PM

So where to begin...

I'll start by introducing ourselves,

First of all i'm Jimmy, 31 from Derby, England. A salesman by day and a husband by night.

Second is my beautiful, crazy wife Emily, 27 who has been with me for 8 years now.

This all started back in December 2013 when we realised that after getting married, we needed to save up for our honeymoon. Em wanted to go to New Zealand as we both are big Lord Of The Rings fans which on paper would have been awesome however after looking into costs and things to do we realised that New Zealand would have to be something we do later on. I came up with the idea of going to the US, but wasn't sure where. New York...Las Vegas... Chicago... but none stood out as much as Orlando. We had seen that Hogsmeade had been built in Universal Studios and as two big Harry Potter fans we started taking notice. Several youtube videos later and we were definately becoming convinced, but then the bombshell dropped from Universal... They were closing Jaws and opening a huge area dedicated to Harry Potter, THEY WERE BUILDING DIAGON ALLEY!

We looked at rough costs and although steep, we were pros at saving when we needed to so we began. I searched the web, using tripadvisor forums and reviews before deciding that the best hotel for us was the Rosen Inn at Pointe Orlando. It had really good reviews, was in the perfect spot for travelling up and down I-Drive and also wasnt far from Universal or the airport.

It was at this point that Em started mentioning Disney World. She loved Disney films where as at this point I had grown out of them. The idea of Disney World didnt appeal as to me it seemed too childish and too boring. How wrong I would be as Em began showing me youtube videos of stuff to do, things like Epcot, World Showcase, Animal Kingdom and I slowly began to come around. After a few weeks of gentle pushing I agreed to do a few days at Disney.

Scrolling through videos on youtube we stumbled across the trackers, who's vlogs became a daily watch for us as they provided us with great information on where to go, places to eat and what to do. We began to form an itinerary and an idea of where we would go and what rides we were looking forward to the most. The biggest excitement was Diagon Alley as we followed the videos on youtube and saw this amazing idea take shape. We began saving and after a few lucky tax windfalls we finally had enough to put a deposit down!

We booked the holiday through Co-Op Travel who were a dream, they found us a great deal and got us a decent discount. We had decided to book for two weeks as the original ten days just didnt seem enough and Em had now swung me round to Disney World and I was really excited to relive some of my childhood through these parks. We were flying from London, Gatwick as this seemed the easiest to travel to(although that would prove wrong on the day) and also decided to stay overnight there as getting the train to London and flying on the same day would be too much.

Park tickets were next as we looked at several different options before settling on attractions tickets direct who had good reviews and some good bargains. We opted for the orlando flexticket so we would have unlimited access to Disney or Universal for 2 weeks. This meant that if we changed plans for any reason this wouldnt effect costs. They also chucked in a free pass to the newly constructed Orlando Eye and other Merlins attractions such as madame tussauds and the sealife centre.

Weeks became, months before we finally in August 2015 we paid off the holiday and the true countdown began!

That's all for now but please stay tuned as I move on next to day 1 of our amazing holiday!

vanlou · 15 May 16, 08:56 PM

You will not be disappointed by Diagon Alley - it's amazing. Happy planning

Ps. welcome to the Dibb

thebig40 · 24 May 16, 09:13 PM

I am a massive Harry Potter fan too and cant wait to visit. There may be tears!

Look forward to reading more.

15 May 16, 08:02 PM	#1
	15 May 16, 08:02 PM jimmytwoshoes84 New Poster (3)
jimmytwoshoes84 New Poster (3) Join Date: May 15	The Wilkos Go Potter Mad! Pre-Trip So where to begin... I'll start by introducing ourselves, First of all i'm Jimmy, 31 from Derby, England. A salesman by day and a husband by night. Second is my beautiful, crazy wife Emily, 27 who has been with me for 8 years now. This all started back in December 2013 when we realised that after getting married, we needed to save up for our honeymoon. Em wanted to go to New Zealand as we both are big Lord Of The Rings fans which on paper would have been awesome however after looking into costs and things to do we realised that New Zealand would have to be something we do later on. I came up with the idea of going to the US, but wasn't sure where. New York...Las Vegas... Chicago... but none stood out as much as Orlando. We had seen that Hogsmeade had been built in Universal Studios and as two big Harry Potter fans we started taking notice. Several youtube videos later and we were definately becoming convinced, but then the bombshell dropped from Universal... They were closing Jaws and opening a huge area dedicated to Harry Potter, THEY WERE BUILDING DIAGON ALLEY! We looked at rough costs and although steep, we were pros at saving when we needed to so we began. I searched the web, using tripadvisor forums and reviews before deciding that the best hotel for us was the Rosen Inn at Pointe Orlando. It had really good reviews, was in the perfect spot for travelling up and down I-Drive and also wasnt far from Universal or the airport. It was at this point that Em started mentioning Disney World. She loved Disney films where as at this point I had grown out of them. The idea of Disney World didnt appeal as to me it seemed too childish and too boring. How wrong I would be as Em began showing me youtube videos of stuff to do, things like Epcot, World Showcase, Animal Kingdom and I slowly began to come around. After a few weeks of gentle pushing I agreed to do a few days at Disney. Scrolling through videos on youtube we stumbled across the trackers, who's vlogs became a daily watch for us as they provided us with great information on where to go, places to eat and what to do. We began to form an itinerary and an idea of where we would go and what rides we were looking forward to the most. The biggest excitement was Diagon Alley as we followed the videos on youtube and saw this amazing idea take shape. We began saving and after a few lucky tax windfalls we finally had enough to put a deposit down! We booked the holiday through Co-Op Travel who were a dream, they found us a great deal and got us a decent discount. We had decided to book for two weeks as the original ten days just didnt seem enough and Em had now swung me round to Disney World and I was really excited to relive some of my childhood through these parks. We were flying from London, Gatwick as this seemed the easiest to travel to(although that would prove wrong on the day) and also decided to stay overnight there as getting the train to London and flying on the same day would be too much. Park tickets were next as we looked at several different options before settling on attractions tickets direct who had good reviews and some good bargains. We opted for the orlando flexticket so we would have unlimited access to Disney or Universal for 2 weeks. This meant that if we changed plans for any reason this wouldnt effect costs. They also chucked in a free pass to the newly constructed Orlando Eye and other Merlins attractions such as madame tussauds and the sealife centre. Weeks became, months before we finally in August 2015 we paid off the holiday and the true countdown began! That's all for now but please stay tuned as I move on next to day 1 of our amazing holiday!

15 May 16, 08:56 PM	#2
	15 May 16, 08:56 PM vanlou Imagineer
vanlou Imagineer Join Date: Jul 10 theDIBB Guidebook Guidebook Photos: 40	You will not be disappointed by Diagon Alley - it's amazing. Happy planning Ps. welcome to the Dibb __________________ DLP Aug 2004 SQL, Dec 2007 HNY, Dec 2008 DLH WDW Aug 2011 POFQ/RPR, Aug 2014 - HRH/POFQ August 2014 trip report - Er, where's the rain?