Scottishnellies Redundancy Trip - June 2018 Pre Trip Report

[scottishnellie]

Hello again!

I normally never get around to doing a pre-trip report, or else I do it about 2 days before we go, but I decided I would make an effort this time.

This is our 4th family trip to Florida in 4 years so this time we are dropping Disney (eek!), doing Universal which we dropped last year, and throwing in St Petes and AMI. Wee bit different. For those who don’t know us we are the McNicols:

We are:
Me - Helen, 45 this year. Last year I promised DH I would give up the botox so this year I’ve had to get a fringe to hide the trenches in my forehead. Not sure I am going to be able to keep this promise….
Kevin – hubby- he’s a year older than me so 46. He is delighted to be going back to Florida and is unusually being a bit more free and easy with cash than he usually is. You will see why when I explain the name of the trip report!
Hannah – aka Pouty McPouty. 14 going on 21. She has a phone glued to her hand at all times and a permanent hunch from staring down at it. Her world consists of snapchat, makeup, clothes, eyebrows on fleek, sleeping way too much and making us late for everything. I foresee a lot of cajoling and trying to get her out and about on this holiday.
Kieran – 10. The most compassionate human being I know. His latest parents night made us ridiculously proud, not only about how smart he is, but the teachers couldn’t speak highly enough about how well mannered, polite, and well liked he is.

Why is this called Redundancy Trip?
I’ve had a stressful time at work recently as 4 weeks ago we were taken into a ‘heads up’ meeting where it was announced that I may be at risk of redundancy. I work for a major bank and have done for 28 years. They were proposing a Senior Management restructure that means after 14 years of working 4 days a week, I would now have to choose between redundancy or applying for a even higher grade job full time. More money, but more hours and more stress. I pretty much knew straight away I wanted redundancy but I have had to play my cards close to my chest, as at this point is was still a proposal and not final. I was worried that too many of us announcing we would go might spook them into dropping the whole proposal, and one of the directors outrightly said as much to me. Fast forward 4 weeks, it has finally been confirmed it will be going ahead and I have been able to say I am in fact going to go.

Quite a lot of folk in work were really shocked as I am known for being very passionate about my job. But it was really a no brainer for me for two main reasons:
1 – Financial. Kevins aunt passed away at the end of last year and left us an inheritance. We were already reviewing things thinking I should maybe drop some hours and make some changes so this coming on the back of it is a gift. Between the inheritance and the pretty decent redundancy package we will be mortgage free, with 2 new cars in the drive, a bit of savings in the bank and Kevins salary covers all our monthly outgoings. Yes we might have to cut back on the holidays a bit, but we will be comfortable. I will take 6 months to a year off to see what life is without working, then decide what I want to do work wise. So many opportunities to explore. How lucky am I?
2. – Family & wellbeing. I have Crohns which is worse when I am stressed. Every time I have had a flare it has been when I am stressed at work. Also, Hannah is in high school now with all the exam and boyfriend issues that brings. I work right up to 9pm on my working days so am currently only home one night a week, and she needs me at home more – not less. Going full time was simply the opposite direction of what I need. And this new job is not 9-5 by any means. I’d be selling my soul to the devil.

So it is happening! I start my 6 months notice on 2nd May so will work until the end of October (send me some pixie dust that they grant my garden leave request please!).

And of course my trip report title was born.

Sat 16th Jun – Travel to Manchester
Train in Glasgow at 13:09, arrive Manchester Airport 16:42, drop the bags, train back to the Premier Inn at Heald Green where we have booked the same dinner bed n breakfast package as we had last year. Check in, dinner, bed.

Sun 17th Jun – Fly from Manchester to Orlando
Up at 8am, breakfast, train to Airport, Check In around 09:30.
Flight leaves 11:55, arr Orlando 16:15, collect car, drive to Rosen Inn Pointe, check in for one night, dinner 7pmish at Millers Ale House. Pop into Walgreens to buy Breakfast and bits n bobs for the next few days, Bed

Mon 18th Jun – Check In To Universal , Royal Pacific Resort
Early Start. Drive to RPR, park, check in, up to breakfast in club room (6.30-10) Head to parks
Do as much of parks as possible, back to the pool for a rest (afternoon snacks 12-3?)
Get ready and change for dinner – eat in club room (4.30-6.30?)
Back into the park for more rides in the evening – back to hotel (desserts 8-9?) and Bed

Tues 19th Jun – 2nd Day at Universal
Early start. Head to Volcano Bay for Early Hours Opening (check what time this is).
Spend as long as we want here, back to hotel, change then parks again
Breakfast 6.30-10, snacks 12-3, dinner 4.30-6.30, desserts 8-9

Wed 20th Jun – Leaving Universal, move to St Petes Beach
Flexible start. Up when suits, breakfast 6.30-10, do whatever rides we want in parks / back to volcano bay.
Leave around 1.30-2. Stop at Walmart to get beach toys and any other essentials. Takes 1.5hrs and want to check in @ 4pm
Check In to Grand Plaza Beachfront Resort Hotel.
Explore 11th floor Rooftop Bar & 12th floor revolving restaurant. Eat later at Bongos on the Beach – Ask for a table on the beach and probably need to wait 30-40mins for this but can drink/play on the beach while waiting.

Thurs 21st Jun – 2nd Day at St Petes Beach
Get up whenever suits us, spend the whole day on the beach, decide where to have dinner – open to suggestions folks!


Fri 22nd Jun – Leave St Petes and head to Anna Maria Island
Get up, check out and drive 40mins to Anna Maria Island. Stop at Ginny & Jane Es bakery for brunch, then head to check in at Anna Maria Beach Cottages (Cottage 110A) for the night.

Cottage 110A is a two bedroom two bath beautifully decorated second floor cottage apartment sleeping 4. This storybook unit is perfect for a small family, two couples, or a girlfriend's getaway. The roomy deck facing west to the gulf has a patio table and chairs and two rockers to relax with an afternoon beverage and watch the world go by.
Original hardwood floors and beach cottage cypress accent this renovated cottage with a sofa and chair with ottoman, TV with DVD in the living area. A large, fully equipped kitchen and adjacent dining area complete the space.
The master bedroom suite has a queen bed and large en suite walk-in shower. The private guest room has two twins and is next to a large two person bathroom with double sinks and large soaking tub with shower. A convenient outdoor shower is ready for your return from the beach or pool.
Walk 400 steps from your cottage and you are on the beach...no streets to cross.
We supply beach chairs, beach umbrellas, and bicycles complementary to our guests. We do not provide beach towels and we recommend that you pack your own. The white towels we provide are to be used inside the cottage only.
We have the Anna Maria Island free trolley that runs from 6AM to 10:30PM seven days a week. We also have complimentary bicycles that you may borrow.
All of the kitchens have toasters, blenders, coffee pots, pots, pans, dishes, silverware, baking dishes and glassware. All of our cottages have either a deck or a patio with patio furniture.

Spend some time on the beach in the afternoon until time to get ready for dinner 7pm ish. Eat at either Rod N Reel on the Pier:
The Rod and Reel Pier is a one of Anna Maria Islands hidden treasure dining experiences. Tucked away on the far North end of Anna Maria, it is a "Little Bit of Old Florida" serving traditional fare, local favourites and famous fish specials since 1947. The Rod & Reel Pier is a two story, newly renovated restaurant, directly out on the Gulf of Mexico. Casual Dining for the whole family to enjoy up stairs either seated inside or out on its quaint covered outside deck gives a one a true Old Florida experience. The downstairs is a casual unique bar, serving beer and wine. A island favourite to many locals and travellers for years. The Rod & Reel serves Breakfast, lunch and dinner and your sure to be able to catch sunrise or a beautiful famous Florida sunset while eating from a great selection of its menus. To top the wonderful quaint dining experience, bring a fishing pole, for a small fee, and fish right off its dock and walkways. Spectacular view of the Gulf of Mexico, Anna Marias beautiful beaches and the Sunshine Skyway Bridge are all waiting for you to enjoy in a relaxed atmosphere that is unforgettable. Cheaper, more relaxed but further away so 30m walk or get the wee trolley bus by 10:30 (or borrow the bikes from the cottage). Chicken n chips $14, fish n chips $15 Bud $3, wine $5

or The Sandbar: The Sandbar Restaurant, Beachfront Dining with Sunset Views on Anna Maria. The Freshest Seafood on the Island
located on the north end of Anna Maria Island, has for decades been a favourite of locals and tourists alike for its fresh Florida seafood. Enjoy a tropical cocktail and a beautiful sunset from our inside dining room and bar that was newly renovated in December 2012 or on our covered deck right on the white sand beaches by the Gulf of Mexico. More expensive but within a 10min walk from the cottage. Shrimp Platter n fries $22, steak burger n chips $14, Jambalaya £20, Bud $4.50, Wine $7

Sat 23rd Jun – Explore AMI before heading to the Villa
Up and a light breakfast (in the room?). Check out 10am. Could spend a couple of hours on the beach then head south, or just head to the south of the Island to explore. Leave the Island around 2pm and go to over the causeway Cortez road from AMI to The Starfish market & Restaurant for late lunch/early dinner. This place was great. It is Seafood Market and Dockside Restaurant in the Florida fishing village of Cortez overlooking Sarasota Bay. Old Florida and very cheap and cheerful Cash only, no cards, like going back in time, food comes in a box which is handy if you want to take any home for later. Then drive the 1hr 45mins to the villa to arrive teatime ish. Collect the Walmart order on route. Chilled night in the villa but getting all the washings done.

Sun 24th Jun – No plans

Mon 25th Jun – Star Wars virtual reality experience at Disney Springs. . Booked this for 6pm so do this and then have dinner somewhere.

Tues 26th Jun – Kings Landing and Kayaking down the Rock Springs Run
Up 6am to drive to Kings Landing and get in around 8am. Take picnic and blanket etc. Hire the 2 Canoes and do the full river run stopping along the way at the camp sites and playing / relaxing. This trip is 8.5 miles long with several spots to stop and have a snack or just swim and fish. It will take about four-five hours. Need to be at Wekiva for pickup at 4pm where they will drive us back up to our car.

Wed 27th Jun – No plans

Thurs 28th Jun – Check into HRH for the night – parks n play
Up early and check in as early as possible to HRH for FOLP and head to the parks / Volcano Bay
Eat somewhere nice in Citywalk that night for our ‘anniversary’ 27yrs since we met

Friday 29th Jun
Up early and make the best of the last day of FOLP all day until ready to head back to the villa

Sat 30th Jun – No plans

Sun 1st July – No plans (last day can use Universal Tickets)

Mon 2nd Jul – Seaworld
Up early and spend the full day at Seaworld

Tues 3rd July – Resort Hopping and fireworks from the Poly Beach (Mum goes solo?)
Lazy Morning and decent sized lunch somewhere. 2pmish Uber to MK $14-$19, and resort hop around looking at the hotels around the lake. Slow day looking at everything. Sit and watch the world go by. Have a cocktail here and there. See all the 3 hotels and browse the lobbys, shops, bars and cafes in them. The Polynesian, Grand Floridian, The Contemporary. Get the boat from MK to Wilderness Lodge. Options for dinner / seeing the fireworks. Really need to try to get this day planned out. Too loose at present. Also not sure whether I will do this on my own or whether the rest of the family will want to come. But it’s my day at my pace. So they will be well warned if they choose to come there better not be one whimper about being bored or there being too much walking.

Wed 4th July – Independence Day
Lake Minneola with a picnic? OR something else? Lots of you read our 4th July night at Lake Minneola and oh how we loved it. Not sure whether to do this again or this time head to celebration. Another day I need to plan more.

Thurs 5th July – Busch Gardens
Up early and spend the full day at Busch Gardens for some coaster action

Fri 6th July– No plans

Sat 7th July– No plans

Sun 8th Jul – homeward bound
Up, final packing, sort villa, check out of villa at 12, drive 35mins to MCO, Drop Car off 13:15, Check in 13:30 -14:30, Flight leaves 16:35 to Glasgow, arriving around 5:50am. Into taxi and home in 5 minutes. We were originally flying back to Manchester, but changed to fly back to glasgow now so no horrible journey home. Thomson wouldn’t let us do this last year. But this year we are back to Thomas cook and this is the second time I’ve changed my inbound flight to glasgow with them. When I booked Manchester return was £1000 cheaper than Glasgow for the 4 of us. I then watched the inbound flight prices until glasgow was the same as my existing Manchester flight. Phoned them to change and it only cost £50 pp admin fee.

SUMMARY
We currently have 6 days with no plans for villa days, using the Highgrove pool, shopping etc.
Other possible options to explore
1. Zip Lining at Gatorland again (watching groupon for this)
2. Cracker Barrel breakfast then explore Celebration. Might do this on 4th July now
3. Hire Bikes ($7per hr) and do the West Orange Trail, which passes through Winter Park (wee old town)
4. iFly Indoor skydiving ($70 each but can get groupon for $37 each usually – need to watch for that)
5. Pirates Cove Adventure Golf ($15 each but watching for groupon)


So that's it so far.

Always open to any comment or suggestions so please feel free

[Gryff]

The perfect way to start the wind down believe me you will fill,your non working days to the full

[thefergies]

I posted a response on a previous thread when you first raised this prospect of redundancy. I had a similar choice several years ago after 23 yrs with same company. If you enjoy your job and take pride in it, it's nowhere near as easy a decision as people think. I moved to another company 9 months later and was there 13 yrs until leaving last yr to effectively wind down and chill out. My 2 pensions are now consolidated into 1 personal pension I can access next month (you are much younger than I am! )and my wife still has 2 as back up. Mortgage paid off. A month after I left last job my senior director died in their sleep. Same age as me. If lucky enough to do what you are doing and thought through sensibly, absolutely the right thing to do.

[scottishnellie]

Originally Posted by thefergies

I posted a response on a previous thread when you first raised this prospect of redundancy. I had a similar choice several years ago after 23 yrs with same company. If you enjoy your job and take pride in it, it's nowhere near as easy a decision as people think. I moved to another company 9 months later and was there 13 yrs until leaving last yr to effectively wind down and chill out. My 2 pensions are now consolidated into 1 personal pension I can access next month (you are much younger than I am! )and my wife still has 2 as back up. Mortgage paid off. A month after I left last job my senior director died in their sleep. Same age as me. If lucky enough to do what you are doing and thought through sensibly, absolutely the right thing to do.

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Thanks so much for this. I do feel it’s the right decision so I am very happy. Your story is really encouraging - thanks 🙏🏻

[eleele]

Funnily enough this is the trip we are contemplating next - I just have to work on DH thinking it was his idea. He's been to St Pete's before and suggested it as an alternative to a Canaries beach holiday and I cannot go to Orlando without a Parks fix - definitely Universal this time and Disney as well if I can work it in to the plans.

As to the redundancy I don't think you will regret it, take the opportunity as you never know what lemons life will throw at you (I had one thrown at me last year and it brings everything back into focus that life is for living now) If you hate been at home you can always find something else with less stress and possibly a new focus.

Can't wait to read your report!

[floridasarah]

Sounds like a fantastic trip Helen. And a good decision on your redundancy. Its a bit scary, same happened to me in 2013 although we had no choice, but it has turned out to be the best thing, I am now in another job I like (although a bit stressful at the moment) and the redundancy money helped us go back to our 2nd home a few more times.

I am looking forward to you report

[Cherrypie]

Looks fab - celebration is deffo worth a visit. Will you be doing any Disney springs or Disney boardwalk? It might add another a sprinkle of Disney in the mix xx

[panspeep]

Sounds like a lovely relaxing holiday, I look forward to following along as always. We have stayed in AMI and at the Plaza at St Pete Beach, you will have a great time, I’m sure. If you fancy seeing a bit more of the area around AMI, I would recommend a Segway tour, it takes you over the bridge and around some of the residential areas and the houses are amazing, our boy was 9 when we did it and loved it. We used segs by the sea in Bradenton. I’d also recommend going out on a boat trip to do dolphin spotting and again get a view of some more amazing properties, you can do that from Bradenton Pier, it really is a lovely area.

[Smilesonfaces]

I do look forward to your trip reports !
I too was made redundant after 28 years (with HMRC) It took a bit of getting used to working somewhere new but it’s nice being able to walk to work now ! Sometimes you don’t realise you needed the change until after.

Will look forward to hearing about the trip !

[JanetteP]

Great pre-trip report. I think you've definitely made the right decision with the redundancy. I retired at 50 after 20 years in the same job, and I've never looked back. I have UC, and I decided too that I didn't need the stress. I do have a hobby of couponing and bargain hunting, and that keeps me very busy indeed, together with planning our Florida trips. I love your idea of resort hopping, something I need to do too. I agree with Cherrypie - a trip to Disney Springs is a must - perhaps use a Landry's card or two for a meal at TRex or Rainforest Café - or just for a walk around in the evening. Have a great trip Helen.