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Old 5 May 20, 10:49 AM  
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Originally Posted by Goldia View Post
Oh Kelly. I'm sorry to find out that Chris is furloughed. I hope it's just a short term thing. I'm glad you're looking on the bright side though, you're right he can sort out the kids and you can focus on your uni work. I'm sure it will happen

I don't know about you but somehow in our house I'm working from home, perhaps not quite as many hours as I would be in a normal week, but close to it. I'm still doing all the cleaning and cooking and sorting out the kids. Dave is doing about half the hours he normally would and has found time to do a bit of gardening how does that happen? I'm barely keeping up to date with posts on here now that's a serious problem!

That Mickey phone call tomorrow set me off oh dear. I'm so sad for you. I can't even say I know how you must be feeling as at the moment you know I'm still hoping and praying. Maybe I will get to go on our trip and maybe I won't, and if that happens, then I'll know how you're feeling . I'm so, so, so, sorry for you. It's hard to put into words.

You're on my keeping everything crossed list though. I'm absolutely keeping all fingers and toes crossed for that blow out Christmas adventure. I know you talked about September or October, but given Virgin won't talk to you I'm going to hold out for the trip that you'd be going on anyway that you can extend. You're right to put that £50 deposit down. I'd talked to Colette (secretly so don't tell anyone ) about if our trip doesn't happen then maybe we'd do a Christmas trip and she suggested a £50 deposit on a room wouldn't be a bad idea. The trouble is it feels like an admission to me that I don't think the trip this summer will go ahead and so I can't quite bring myself to actually put in place a back up plan.

I don't know?

Its so hard isn't it?

What I do know is I really hope your Christmas trip is the best one yet for you guys.

Xx
Well we're into day 4 of him being off and he's driving me mad already! I painted Thomas's room yesterday, it's needs another coat. He's still laid in bed right now it's my day off work and I've been up since 8.30am on the phone to BA and trying to get through to Virgin he's now complaining his arm hurts off yesterday and doesn't see why I can't do it on my 'day off'. I still have to finish my dissertation and start my 3500 word report as well as trying to rearrange everything for holidays etc ... it's looking like a nice day to dig that patio up ... if you get what I mean

Yep that's pretty much the same here Abby. He's using 'painting' as an excuse not to do anything else. I worked all day yesterday, made tea and put Noah to bed. He didn't even start painting till 2/3pm! I've told him it's unfair and he needs to help out more, yes I only work 18.5 hours a week or 2 1/2 days but I do still have my Uni work to do and housework etc. The tutor for my 3500 word assignment leaves in the summer so I need to get on ASAP to be able to get the help from her.

I answered the Mickey call it came on my mobile at 10.55 so I thought it wasn't that call and could be Virgin trying to rearrange, luckily the kids didn't hear it but I did have a little cry

Oh bless you Abby, if you haven't already I really would! It's not admitting you aren't going in Summer it's just a back up plan ... and who knows maybe you'll find amazing flights and be able to go over Christmas too plus we'd get to see you there!

Hope you're all keeping well. Hoping to catch up on reports today ... I've been somewhat lacking the last few weeks xx

Originally Posted by Fuellady View Post
Kelly, I'm so sorry to hear that Chris is now furloughed, but at least it should take some pressure off of you with him having a bit of time on his hands. It sounds like you're making good headway with your dissertation now, which will be a relief to you.

It's a shame there's not much progress on the holiday front, but hopefully you will get some news on Tuesday. At least you have other plans in the pipeline which I hope work out for you. Extending your winter trip sounds like a great idea.
Thanks Lynda, you'd think so wouldn't you ... it's making me more stressed because he is moaning about doing things when they announced it he complained to me that he'd be bored doing nothing for 3 weeks, now he's doing thing's he's moaning about that too ... lockdown is definitely getting to us now! I need a break from the all

I do have news re holiday but I'm going to make a separate post but it has been a nightmare. How has it been for you rearranging things? Have you managed ok? Hope you're keeping well. Xx

Originally Posted by Buggles94 View Post
Hi Kelly
Really hope the Mickey call went well this morning! So sorry to hear Chris has been furloughed. I was furloughed for April and it has been extended through May... Not great but does mean I can focus on DS and DD and hopefully we will all be back to school/work soon... Sorry you are struggling to get hold of VH. I must admit to having found them to be great in the past but I guess this is testing a lot of companies... I'm booked with Kenwood Travel to travel in July. I asked them to change some details but they have given me a 2 week extension on the balance and won't do any changes yet! I guess I will see how good they are when balance is due and more government decisions re travel are made...
You will absolutely love Disney at Christmas. I love the decorations Dress for all seasons - can be very hot one day then freezing the next! Take gloves, coats, shorts, t-shirts, sun hats and woolly hats Great idea to extend the trip... the crowds disappear once marathon weekend is over so a fab time to be there!
Take care and really good luck with coursework etc - sounds like you are doing brilliantly.
Oh that's good then if it works for you! How are you all getting on with the school work? The boys school have just got an app called SeeSaw where they can upload their work too and speak to their teachers which they're loving.

We understand it's a trying time. When all this started and they said t hold off we did, but when everyone was posting changing dates for months in advance I knew we were going to be limited for availability so decided to TRY and get in touch. We've had an absolute nightmare with them and I think they've treat customers unfairly. If they state they are only dealing with those travelling in 72 hours they should stick to it. I was repeatedly told this, yet people were posting on groups online that they had rearranged their trips from August onwards. Anyway, we're sorted now and honestly don't think we will use Virgin Holiday's again after this, unless it's a super cheap deal like we had last May

We're going to have to sort through all our holiday clothes now! We'll definitely be keeping an eye on the weather in the run up to the holiday.

Thank you, I hope you're all keeping well xx
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Old 5 May 20, 11:25 AM  
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Update!

So we finally have an update!

I'm not going to rant anymore about Virgin ... there's no point really, what's done is done.

After speaking to a lady on a FB group who works for Virgin but is furloughed, she managed to get a member of the customer service team to get in touch with me via email. We asked to rearrange to 27th September for 2 weeks and she said they were struggling with availability of a room for 5 of us ... yet on their own Virgin Holiday's website it showed Art of Animation as being bookable yeah go figure. So we've cancelled and are awaiting a refund now. We don't expect to get it before August really, but our balances don't need paying till November anyway so that's fine.

Anyway today is our 72 hours prior to departure, instead of phoning Virgin I decided to phone BA and see about extending our dates in December as this was looking like the most likely option. After less than half an hour on the phone I had spoken to a lovely lady who changed our booking for us. The planning side of me is yearning to plan so I've done a little comparison below

Original Holiday

Departure: 28th December - 12.20pm - Gatwick to Tampa

Car hire: Avis - Large (Ford Escape or similar)

Return: 9th January 7.25pm - Tampa to Gatwick

Duration 10 days


Revised Holiday

Departure: 24th December - 12.20pm - Gatwick to Tampa

Car hire: Avis - Large (Ford Escape or similar)

Return: 16th January 7.25pm - Tampa to Gatwick

Duration 23 days

Total Price Difference:

£325


How amazing is that?!

So we get to spend Christmas AND New Year in Orlando with a whopping 23 days out there. We are hoping to change our villa dates to 24th December - 2nd January and I have provisionally booked a preferred room at Port Orleans Riverside to ensure there's availability. When Disney release free dining we will see if we can amend or make a new booking and will only lose the £50 deposit. So that will be 14 nights at Disney too.

We will be arranging a 1 night stay at Clearwater again and probably Universal. We will also be upgrading Chris's and the kids Universal passes from seasonal to Preferred like mine as there's no blackout dates for Universal doing it this way meaning we'd visit Universal in the week over Christmas that we have at the Villa Chris and I need to sit down go through things properly, so will probably do that tonight.

We've worked out and even after adding Disney on, the price increase of the fly drive and upgrading the Universal passes we will still be over £3250 better off! (This includes cancelling HRH, car hire and airport hotel and parking for May)





Now I need to make a complete new trip report I think ... or do I just continue using this one?

ETA: Do we tell the kids or do we still keep it a secret? Chris wants to tell them and his parents, but I think I'd rather wait till the weekend before to tell them, once they've broken up from school maybe? X

Edited at 12:42 PM.
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Old 5 May 20, 11:42 AM  
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That is amazing! Christmas and new year! Great to think you will be able to add free dinning with it being January I wouldn’t have necessarily thought of that.

Are you cancelling the idea of September all together then?

Good job Kelly. 😃

Kat
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Old 5 May 20, 12:01 PM  
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Sorry you've had such a job of it with Virgin - after all this it does make me think twice about booking with them again. BA seems to have dealt with it a lot better.

I'm so glad you managed to get your trip extended - what an incredible holiday it is going to be! Hopefully we even get to cross paths!

Hope its not too much longer before Virgin eventually sort out your cancellation and refund for your May trip so you can put them behind you and focus on planning your new trip xx
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Old 5 May 20, 12:34 PM  
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Wow wow wow Kelly - fantastic news! I'm very jealous re the amount of time you will be there as whilst we are also lucky enough to also be going for Christmas this year we only have 8 days there! July is meant to be our big trip of the year but with the likelihood of July changing by the second the Christmas trip gives me something to plan for The price you got is amazing and lots more spends for the January sales Abby - I agree with Kelly - you should definitely book too! Glad BA was easier to deal with - I really don't know what the best way to book holidays will be in the future... Anyway, can't wait to follow your Christmas plans and get lots of ideas... We can definitely recommend the ICE at Gaylord Palms with the children and maybe you can cheer on runners at the Run Disney weekend

Home schooling a bit strange for me as DD in Year 11 so should be taking GCSEs this week! She has been ill since Christmas so lockdown is not easy for her... Luckily she is still able to access the help she needs... DS at specialist school so having to make sure he doesn't get too stressed. He is desperate to get back to school and thankfully he is still having online therapy to help... He has medical conditions so whilst I want him to go back to school when it opens I will be very nervous... Definitely need a holiday

Take care and enjoy the planning - it definitely does help at these very difficult times...
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Old 5 May 20, 12:56 PM  
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Wow, your Christmas trip sounds absolutely amazing! I may be a little jealous... 2022 feels so far away when I am supposed to be there right now!
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Old 5 May 20, 12:57 PM  
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Originally Posted by Kat11 View Post
That is amazing! Christmas and new year! Great to think you will be able to add free dinning with it being January I wouldn’t have necessarily thought of that.

Are you cancelling the idea of September all together then?

Good job Kelly. 😃

Kat
Thanks Kat, I'm just so glads it's finally sorted, my anxiety has been through the roof for the last 6 weeks, I've barely slept chewing on over things

I made sure to check that before I booked haha. I think I will have to make a new booking but even so would only lose £50 as opposed to losing the resort we wanted if we didn't book it.

Yes sadly so, September is a definite no now as we needed Virgin to reschedule. Disney wouldn't honor the dining plan if we cancelled with Virgin and as Virgin apparently have no availability there was no point.

Hope you are all keeping well x

Originally Posted by minnie52 View Post
Sorry you've had such a job of it with Virgin - after all this it does make me think twice about booking with them again. BA seems to have dealt with it a lot better.

I'm so glad you managed to get your trip extended - what an incredible holiday it is going to be! Hopefully we even get to cross paths!

Hope its not too much longer before Virgin eventually sort out your cancellation and refund for your May trip so you can put them behind you and focus on planning your new trip xx
Thanks Candice, it really does, they just haven't dealt with customers well at all in my opinion. BA were great! They have also allowed customers to change their bookings online which would take immense pressure off the phone staff ... something maybe Virgin should look into! But we couldn't do ours online it asked us to phone. The lady was great and very understanding. I was really surprised with the price change to be honest, I expected to be paying between £1000 and £1500 extra for the changes. So in total for 23 nights car hire and flights for all of us less than £2000! Flights alone with Virgin were more than this!

I don't expect the refund before August tbh but as long as we have it back to pay our balances in November I don't mind too much.

Thank you so much X

Originally Posted by Buggles94 View Post
Wow wow wow Kelly - fantastic news! I'm very jealous re the amount of time you will be there as whilst we are also lucky enough to also be going for Christmas this year we only have 8 days there! July is meant to be our big trip of the year but with the likelihood of July changing by the second the Christmas trip gives me something to plan for The price you got is amazing and lots more spends for the January sales Abby - I agree with Kelly - you should definitely book too! Glad BA was easier to deal with - I really don't know what the best way to book holidays will be in the future... Anyway, can't wait to follow your Christmas plans and get lots of ideas... We can definitely recommend the ICE at Gaylord Palms with the children and maybe you can cheer on runners at the Run Disney weekend

Home schooling a bit strange for me as DD in Year 11 so should be taking GCSEs this week! She has been ill since Christmas so lockdown is not easy for her... Luckily she is still able to access the help she needs... DS at specialist school so having to make sure he doesn't get too stressed. He is desperate to get back to school and thankfully he is still having online therapy to help... He has medical conditions so whilst I want him to go back to school when it opens I will be very nervous... Definitely need a holiday

Take care and enjoy the planning - it definitely does help at these very difficult times...
Thank you so much lovely, and thanks for listening to me whinge and moan ... all of you in fact haha. Christmas will be amazing, seems like there will be quite a few of us there over Christmas, we should definitely arrange a meet up if so.

I think booking holidays will definitely change after all of this! I'm sure we'll find plenty to do for the trip and lots of downtime hopefully too.

Oh bless her, must be so strange for her and for DS too, I know Noah is really struggling now, this last week has been awful Only send him back when you feel comfortable, as much as the Government may say it's time to go back only you know if it's worth it for DS. I think we will all need holidays after this without a doubt.

Thank you and hopefully it will. My head is blagged with it all now so I'm going to put a Disney movie on and do my diamond painting to destress before I start looking into the planning side of things.

Again a massive thank you to you all for listening to my tantrums, whinging and moaning

Oh a little question I've added to the update post if you guys could help?

Do we tell the kids or keep it a secret like we planned? We did plan to reveal Christmas Day but obviously we'll be in Orlando for that so would have to reveal a few days before. Chris wants to tell his parents too but I just don't know. What would you lovely people suggest? X
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Old 5 May 20, 05:22 PM  
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I'm in agreement with the others. Wow Kelly. I can't believe you've been able to change your booking to 23 nights and in the end likely come out cheaper than the original trip. I just hadn't thought it would be possible for a Christmas trip t be cheaper. You've been clever with the idea of the Disney part of the trip happening in January so there is the possibility of adding on the dining plan.

I reckon you should tell the kids as it's something to look forward to. But I was never one for the big reveals. Other people have always done it much better than I have. I'm dreadful at keeping secrets though as I'm so excited and want to share it with everyone.

Maybe I should look again at flight prices I'd love a Christmas trip but I'm not going to have the money for a little while as I've only just finished saving up for the summer as the balance is due in a couple of weeks.
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Old 5 May 20, 05:45 PM  
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Originally Posted by Goldia View Post
Maybe I should look again at flight prices I'd love a Christmas trip but I'm not going to have the money for a little while as I've only just finished saving up for the summer as the balance is due in a couple of weeks.
Abby - it may be worth looking at BA as they offer deposit only if you book car too AND very flexible change policies at the moment so if you go this summer you could move Christmas to next Summer Just a thought...!
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Old 5 May 20, 06:58 PM  
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This has really shown which companies are best to book with and go the extra mile to help customers out!

That makes sense - it would take a lot of pressure off. You would understand that not being in place at the beginning of all this but now 6 weeks in you would have thought Virgin would have some online system in place that the majority could use to reduce pressure on the staff and keep customers happy.

That's amazing, such a fantastic price! Did you decide on whether to tell the kids or not? Such a hard decision as I guess after the disappointment of having this trip cancelled it would really lift their spirits and give them something to look forward too but then a surprise would be amazing too xx
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