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Old 30 Oct 17, 12:53 PM  
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Goldia
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It's all about the mouse

Who?

Here we all are back in 2016 when we returned to WDW for our second trip.



There are four of us. Me, totally WDW obsessed and love the planning (almost) as much as the trip itself.



DH, long suffering, doesn't see the need to return again as we've been before, but seems to enjoy it when we're there.



DS, prefers proper rides to the simulators and is on a mission to try all the burgers, chicken tenders and pizzas on offer in Orlando. He will have a strop if he cannot have a chocolate dessert, he basically went from the terrible two's to a teenager without anything in between.



DD, the WDW obsession looms large and is my ally in convincing DH it is a good idea to return.



I've loved seeing the kids grow from this, back in July 2014



to this



What?

This will be our third Disney only trip to Orlando. My idea for this trip was first conceived of following our 2016 summer adventure. We'd had our once in a lifetime trip in 2014 and in the post Disney blues in 2016 DD remarked 'we always go to Disneyworld in even number years'...hmm...yes we do, now that sounds like a plan and I do like a plan . I decided I liked this idea.

Therefore, prior to the free dining being offered at Easter 2017 I researched all the resorts thoroughly. I wanted to have the DDP again as we liked the TS meals and this time we wanted to stay at a deluxe resort. I know that DH would love to one day stay at the Grand Floridian, but that is not in our budget. I would like to try out the Yacht and Beach club too as we like the idea of walking to Epcot and HS and the Boardwalk is such a pretty area. But, realistically these are out of our price range too. So, I narrowed it down to SSR and OKW. I scoured the accommodation threads on here and it seems that OKW would be a good fit for us.

When the dining offer was announced in April 2017 I snapped it up ! We have 14 days pre-booked at OKW with DDP. This would be our longest countdown yet and it began at 480 days out! Phew that is a long time to wait. Fortunately we had some fun already planned...

We did return to Orlando in July/August 2017 as part of our fab summer holiday this year. We had 4 nights in NYC which was totally awesome and then 10 nights in Orlando. We did NOT set foot on WDW property though . We stayed on I Drive and visited Seaworld, Discovery Cove, Aquatica, Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Volcano Bay and Citywalk. The only WDW property we did enter was the Disneystore in Times Square and I said that didn't count when DH remarked 'I thought this was a Disney free holiday!'

This coming trip is a return to WDW and is a Disney only holiday, which are definitely the best in my opinion .

Flights?

OK, so I haven't booked any flights, yet . I'm waiting for the right price . I've been tracking prices for such a long time and I am holding out. It's very hard though and I keep getting tempted. Obviously the OKW dates are set and we have 14 nights booked from 31/07/18 to 14/08/18, but as long as we leave after 25/07/18 and are back by 22/08/18 we can be flexible and hopefully so will Disney if I have to move the dates...I do have some criteria for the flights other than dates though and that is

I want to fly out of a London airport
I want to fly into MCO as I LOVE the magical express
I don't want car hire as we don't want to drive and we are happy enough using the WDW transportation as it means we can have a cocktail or two
I don't mind if it is direct or indirect, we've done both and either is fine
I want to get the flights for under £2,000 (total!)

Hmm, maybe I should be a bit more flexible The thing is I know there will still be flights available right up to the last minute, I just might not like the price, so I'm trying to be laid back about it. I will keep tracking, keep my fingers crossed and plan all the other things that I want to do. Probably, I will end up losing my nerve and I will book flights if I see them dip under £2,200.

Linking MDE

The confirmation email saying we had a proper booking for OKW arrived at the end of September and I was able to link in MDE. Oh this was an exciting day. Straight away I chose my magic band colour. I have a yellow (currently, might change to red though!), DH has grey (boring), DS has blue (again) and DD has green (I thought she would go for orange as it's her favourite colour).

It's so exciting seeing the booking in MDE and now I am in full on planning mode. I am thinking about ADRs - we really want to try more signature restaurants. I've also been really taken with the idea of the 4 park challenge and really want to give this a try too.

For our NYC and Orlando 2017 holiday I did a food report and I plan on doing a DDP food report for next summer too. I would love to have a go at doing a full trip report as well as a food report.

Hopefully, I will be able to report back soon that flights are booked, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a black Friday sale, or maybe a Boxing Day sale or even a new year sale.
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New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
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Old 30 Oct 17, 09:56 PM  
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Pussycat Doll
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Sounds great! Full on planning mode!
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Old 30 Oct 17, 10:09 PM  
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Kidd McFluff
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Good luck with the flights! See you at OKW 😁 So excited!
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Old 30 Oct 17, 10:15 PM  
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Dimple
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So excited to see you are doing a full trip report- really enjoyed your food report this year kept meaning to come back and comment at the end but a 4 month old who constantly taps on my phone screen is hampering my replies! Also never heard of mules before your report and now I'm seeing them everywhere so thanks for the education! !
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Old 31 Oct 17, 12:52 PM  
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collybird
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Ooo this is exciting, I didn't expect to see this!

Disney only trips are the best trips, I hope you like Old Key West. We stayed in 2016, I wasn't a fan, but when we went back to eat this year I felt really nostalgic, so maybe I did like it after all!

I'm actually having a fit over your laidback attitude to flights, I hope some with the right price pop up soon.

And, I'm sorry, I have fallen off the face of the earth, we completed on our house last week and things have been nuts, when I'm back to Dibbing properly, I'll fill you in on our Friday chats.
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Old 31 Oct 17, 01:38 PM  
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Jaspercat10
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see you there x
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Old 31 Oct 17, 04:29 PM  
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Goldia
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Originally Posted by Pussycat Doll View Post
Sounds great! Full on planning mode!
Yes I can't tell you how excited I am already and we still have 9 months to wait.

Originally Posted by Kidd McFluff View Post
Good luck with the flights! See you at OKW 😁 So excited!
There are a few of us at OKW next summer, I bet we end up being neighbours!

Originally Posted by Dimple View Post
So excited to see you are doing a full trip report- really enjoyed your food report this year kept meaning to come back and comment at the end but a 4 month old who constantly taps on my phone screen is hampering my replies! Also never heard of mules before your report and now I'm seeing them everywhere so thanks for the education! !
Oh you are welcome, I'm glad you enjoyed reading it as I loved writing it. I hadn't had a mule before that trip, but since arriving home I've bought the little copper tankards and I now make them at home! Whatever changes are made to the itinerary between now and the holiday I can at least guarantee one thing...there will be cocktails!
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Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
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Old 31 Oct 17, 04:46 PM  
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Goldia
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Originally Posted by collybird View Post
Ooo this is exciting, I didn't expect to see this!

Disney only trips are the best trips, I hope you like Old Key West. We stayed in 2016, I wasn't a fan, but when we went back to eat this year I felt really nostalgic, so maybe I did like it after all!

I'm actually having a fit over your laidback attitude to flights, I hope some with the right price pop up soon.

And, I'm sorry, I have fallen off the face of the earth, we completed on our house last week and things have been nuts, when I'm back to Dibbing properly, I'll fill you in on our Friday chats.
Hey there! Lovely to hear from you. Firstly congratulatory hugs to you on completing on the house. As it was last week does that mean you are moving this week? I'm not sure how it works up there, but down here it's about 1 or 2 weeks between completing and moving in...fingers crossed it's all going smoothly for you. The last time we moved was over 6 years ago and I said never again as it is so very stressful. I hope the only things bothering you are boxes that need unpacking and that all the other stuff is easy.

Hmm, not sure anyone else would think of me as being laid back! That's absolutely hilarious. My DH would have a fit if he read that. I'm very good at pretending to be laid back about the flights but I'm checking ALL the websites every day. I think if I worked out how much time I have spent on tracking prices and then applied an hourly rate to my 'work' then I could probably afford upper class It's kind of a hobby now, definitely not an addiction.

I'm a bit wavering about okw...but I'm sure it will be fine. I seem to keep seeing the Princess rooms at POR and thinking about them, but that's silly money when priced up with DDP and comes out a lot more expensive than okw which is a deluxe. Our first wdw holiday was cbr in a pirate room, which actually was a complete surprise to all of us when we opened the door to the room. Anyway, DS was 9 then and he loved it and DD is 10 now so I know she would love the Princess room, oh well something to keep mulling over. I kind of hope that I find a really good flight price that can justify the splurge to upgrade (downgrade) to POR. Or if I find a good flight across 16 days and then tag onto the end of the holiday a couple of nights at POR. I don't know. Probably okw is great but I'm not feeling the love at the moment.

Oops this is a bit of a long reply . I've missed you!

Take care x
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Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
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Old 31 Oct 17, 04:50 PM  
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Goldia
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Originally Posted by Jaspercat10 View Post
see you there x
Hurrah, we're going to all have to wear our red carnations so that we can spot eachother! Probably we will all end up with very similar itineraries as we will all use the busy day guide and so be at the same parks at the same time. I bet you actually have some flights booked already though!
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Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
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Old 1 Nov 17, 04:17 PM  
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Cazzius
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Hurrah for having a another trip booked. I am going to live vicariously through you as my BF is giving a very firm NO on the Disney front *sulk*

I am very impressed at you being i Orlando and not stepping foot on Disney property, but with so much else to do I am sure fun was had by all.

You seem very calm about the flights to me too. Think i'd be worried about having accommodation booked and no way to get there.

Funnily enough, I had been looking at OKW myself (until BF put the kibosh on it) and thought it looked nice. Walking distance to Disney Springs is a big bonus, and in a head to head the Disney Tourist Blog chose it over Sarasota Springs.

Happy planning, and hope you find your flights soon.
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