We're Disney Bound

In order to have all the plans out by the time I have to have this laptop packed up and ready to go I have to double up on a day. No problem there, right? I may pull out my laptop if I get bored waiting to board my plane at Ted Stevens International (and I pray that it always stays Ted Stevens' International... I'm sure Begich has his eye on changing it and with Uncle Ted's conviction...) Sorry lost my head there for a minute.

Anywho, the 19th is also Martin Luther King Jr. Day and as such the parks will probably be packed all weekend, but I've decided that monday would be a good day to see stuff outside the parks. So it's our downtown disney mini golf do whatever else we want day. DHS has Extra Magic Evening Hours so we might pop over there for a bit, who knows. This is also the day we go from Disney's Coronado Springs Resort over to the value of The Pop Century Resort. It's only for the last three nights of our trip so I am not going to complain.

Day Eight: Take A Break Day!
08:00a - Check Out have luggage sent to Pop, say good bye to CSR *sniff*
08:30a - Catch bus for The Magic Kingdom
09:00a - Take Ferry to The Wilderness Lodge
10:00a - Breakfast @ The Whispering Canyon Cafe
11:15a - Head to Downtown Disney
11:45a - SHOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
02:30p - Catch Bus to the Beach Club
03:30p - Lunch @ Beaches N Cream
04:30p - Head over to Pop Century to Check In
05:30p - Hit Up Mini Golf @ either Fantasia Gardens or Winter/Summerland
07:30p - Debate going to other mini golf course, going to a park, or back to Pop.
09:00p - Lights out.

This is a very rough idea of what we'll do. Who knows what we'll end up really doing...

Now, onto the Resort Info...

Home Sweet Home: Pop Century
Resort: Disney's Pop Century
Phone #: 1-407-939-4000
Check In: January 19, 2009 around 4:30p
Departing: January 22, 2009 around 5:00a
Room Type: Standard
Location: We have requested the 1950s Buildings

Good Morning, we're at day 8 on our countdown. We've decided that the hours go by too slowly and if they don't speed up soon we're going to go insane. And not our regular kind of insane. So you've been warned. Hopefully when we get out and about and do things this coming week it won't go as slow. We'll see.

Jan. 14 marks our first day at EPCOT. To me this park is incredibly spread out and feels to be the largest of the parks even though Disney's Animal Kingdom has the most square footage. Disney must agree with me some what because the park is broken up into two sections "Future World" which surrounds Spaceship Earth (aka The Giant Golf Ball) and "World Showcase" which hosts 10 countries around the man made lagoon. World Showcase opens an hour to two hours after Future World. I enjoy the World Showcase far more than Future World. For one, it's more spread out so it doesn't feel as crowded, and two World Showcase is so much fun to photograph.

There are many character meets in both sections and so we'll get in some quality character stalking. Erin wants to meet Mushu so we'll be hanging around China quite a bit, I'm sure.

Alright, here's the plan for Wednesday.

Day Three: EPCOT Day 1
08:00a - Wake up & Shower
09:00a - Breakfast @ the Pepper Market
10:00a - Catch Bus for EPCOT
11:00a - World Showcase Opens, tour right to left.
01:05p - Lunch @ Le Cellier
02:00p - continue touring World Showcase
Since there aren't as many rides/attractions we'll just take it easy.
07:45p - Dinner @ Cantina De San Angel stake out spot by lake for pyro
09:00p - Illuminations!
09:20p - Take long way around the lake let crowds thin out at buses.
10:00p - Bed, make sure to plan out DHS showtimes.

Alright, I gotta get off this bad boy and continue packing... I have a check list now so I can be better prepared... and I still have to figure out how to organize my carryon. *sigh*

Good morning and happy single digits to the Dork Twins! We are now at nine days and the hours are SLOWLY ticking by. Which is a very cruel form of torture that Father Time has put upon us. But, if this is how all of January will be I won't complain because that means our trip won't just blow by.

Anyway, our second day has been pretty set from day one. We'll be at the Animal Kingdom, we're going to eat with Donald, we're gonna just have fun. This park is always warmer, to me, than the other three so I'm planning on shorts and a tank, at least after the sun pops up... Actually I'm planning that for the whole trip, but yeah...

Day Two: Disney's Animal Kingdom
07:00a - Wake Up, get ready.
08:00a - Catch bus NO LATER than this, if possible catch an earlier bus.
08:30a - Donald's Safari Breakfast @ the Tusker House
09:00a - Park Opens / Hit Killamanjarro Safari first thing.
09:30a - Fast Pass Expedition Everest, tour Asia
11:00a - Tour Dinoland / Fastpass Dinosaur
01:00p - Lunch @ Flame Tree BBQ
01:30p - Tour Discovery Island
02:45p - Head over to Africa and find a spot for the Parade
03:00p - Mickey's Jungle Jammin Parade
03:30p - Finish touring Africa
04:15p - Head for Camp Minnie-Mickey, catch Festival of the Lion King
05:00p - Park Closes to non-resort guests / Extra Magic Evening Hours
07:30p - Head back to resort. Pool Time!
10:00p - Lights Out!

So Erin and I chatted for two hours on the phone last night. Surprisingly our topics of conversation did not result in hours of Disney talk OR slinging insults at each other. Sometimes we can be a bit mature.

However towards the end Erin did mention that she wanted to meet Chef Mickey if it was possible. Considering she's a chef and I've always gotten her a Chef Mickey something when I go down to Disney she just assumed there was a shop that had the big cheese for photos. No such luck - there's just the resteraunt Chef Mickey's.

I've never wanted to eat at the Contemporary (well except for Cali Grill but until I become a billionare...) but since I get to eat with Donald Duck at the Animal Kingdom it's only fair she gets to eat with Chef Mickey.

Problem was that we are down to a month and six days and Chef Mickey's is incredibly popular. I was worried we wouldn't be able to get the day that we had open. It just happens to be our first day and we are planning a day at the Magic Kingdom. Thankfully, the Cont. is not only close to the kingdom (I believe it's in walking distance) it's also on the monorail system so transportation is not as tricky as it would be to some of the other resorts.

Sooooooooooo I called down today with our first choice of breakfast on Jan. 12 with a back up plan of Dinner on the 15th.

Surprisingly they had two openings for bfast on the 12... 7:30a and 11:10a - neither one of them is a prime choice, but I took the 11:10. I don't want to get up at the buttcrack of dawn two mornings in a row, especially since it'll be our first day and we'll have no doubt been doing the "we're too excited to sleep" reenactment that night.

So we'll sleep in a bit, and then head over to the Magic Kingdom for a bit, then walk over to the Contemporary and eat with the gang, then take the monorail back to the Kingdom and ride us some rides.

Erin's paying for that breakfast lol she owes me! ;)




x-posted on my LJ.

With the addition of another night at WDW, I made a ressie at Boma! for our dinner that first night

January 11, 2009 - Arrival Evening
Dinner - Boma!

January 12, 2009 - Magic Kingdom 1
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
Lunch - Columbia Harbour House
Dinner - Casey's Corner

January 13, 2009 - Animal Kingdom 1
9:10 AM - Donald's Safari Breakfast @ Tusker House
Lunch - Flame Tree BBQ
Dinner - Pop Century Food Court

January 14, 2009 - EPCOT 1
Breakfast - Pop Century
1:05 PM - Le Cellier
Dinner - Cantina De San Angel

January 15, 2009 - Disney Hollywood Studios
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
1:00 PM - The Hollywood Brown Derby
Dinner - We'll grab a snack on our way to Fantasmic!

January 16, 2009 - Animal Kingdom 2
Breakfast - Kusafiri Coffee Shop
Lunch - Yak & Yeti Counter Service
Dinner - Pizza Planet

January 17, 2009 - Magic Kingdom 2
Breakfast - Main Street Bakery
Lunch - Cosmic Ray's
4:50 PM - The Plaza

January 18, 2009 - EPCOT 2
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
Lunch - Beaches & Cream
8:00 PM - Trail's End

January 19, 2009 - Martin Luther King Day = Take a Break!
10:00 AM - Whispering Canyon Cafe
Lunch - Somewhere at Downtown Disney
Dinner - Pop Century Food Court?

January 20, 2009 - EPCOT 3
Breakfast - Sunshine Seasons
1:00 PM - Biergarten
Dinner - Yakitori House

January 21, 2009 - Magic Kingdom 3 & Toni's 24th Bday
Breakfast - Sleepy Hollow
11:30 AM - Crystal Palace Character Buffet
Dinner - Pecos Bill

So I called down about 45 minutes ago and reserved our Disney Magical Express as well as *trumpet fanfare* our ADRs, and what's even better I got EVERYTHING I WANTED and the times we wanted (except for the Plaza, we're eating way earlier than I expected)! That's right! EVERYTHING! Go me!

So, here is the food schedule as it stands. The Plaza has me miffed, but I'm hoping that it means that the Pirate and Princess Party will be that night, which would be super cool!

January 12, 2009 - Arrival Day & Magic Kingdom 1
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
Lunch - Columbia Harbour House
Dinner - Play it by Ear, probably Pop Food Court

January 13, 2009 - Animal Kingdom 1
9:10 AM - Donald's Safari Breakfast @ Tusker House
Lunch - Flame Tree BBQ
Dinner - Pop Century Food Court

January 14, 2009 - EPCOT 1
Breakfast - Pop Century
1:05 PM - Le Cellier
Dinner - Cantina De San Angel

January 15, 2009 - Disney Hollywood Studios
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
1:00 PM - The Hollywood Brown Derby
Dinner - We'll grab a snack on our way to Fantasmic!

January 16, 2009 - Animal Kingdom 2
Breakfast - Kusafiri Coffee Shop
Lunch - Yak & Yeti Counter Service
Dinner - Pizza Planet

January 17, 2009 - Magic Kingdom 2
Breakfast - Main Street Bakery
Lunch - Cosmic Ray's
4:50 PM - The Plaza

January 18, 2009 - EPCOT 2
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
Lunch - Beaches & Cream
8:00 PM - Trail's End

January 19, 2009 - Martin Luther King Day = Take a Break!
10:00 AM - Whispering Canyon Cafe
Lunch - Somewhere at Downtown Disney
Dinner - Pop Century Food Court?

January 20, 2009 - EPCOT 3
Breakfast - Sunshine Seasons
1:00 PM - Biergarten
Dinner - Yakitori House

January 21, 2009 - Magic Kingdom 3 & Toni's 24th Bday
Breakfast - Sleepy Hollow
11:30 AM - Crystal Palace Character Buffet
Dinner - Pecos Bill

I am so happy! Yay! Now I just have to wait for the calendar to come out to see if this is what we really want... and then of course the tickets for the Pirate Princess Party if they fall while we're there... and the tickets for the parks next month! yay! So excited!
Oh, and yes, I was briefly on hold... yes Disney Music did play (Cruella De Vil) and yes I did sing!

Our Dining Ressies will be made tomorrow morning. I'm hoping we get everything we want.

It's gonna be hard considering the calendar hasn't come out yet for January, but oh well... we'll make changes if we have to later.

Got this email from StitchKingdom.com -

Greetings tonichelle,

This is just a friendly reminder from us that you're almost 180 days out from your vacation. That means it's time to start calling for your Advanced Dining Reservations (ADRs) beginning July 16. While it's usually not absolutely necessary to make all of your dining reservations this far out, it doesn't hurt to have an idea of where you'd like to dine at Walt Disney World. By making your reservations sooner than later, you'll be guaranteeing your meals and times of choices and if you need to change your plans, there's no penalty for calling and canceling and/or rescheduling.

And since you're staying on site at a Disney resort, you have the added bonus of being able to book for up to the first 10 days of your vacation on the same date.

You can make your dining reservations (as well as for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique) by calling 407-WDW-DINE (407-939-3463). Be aware that dinner shows and Cinderella's Royal Table require payment in full at the time of booking (unless on the Disney Dining Plan in which case a credit card is needed to only secure the reservation. A select few other dining locations such as the Princess Storybook meals at Akershus, California Grill and Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique will also require a credit card to secure the reservation but will not charge as long as you show up for the reservation or cancel in the allowed timeframe.

Bon Appetit!

Guess who's going to be getting up at teh butt crack of dawn on Wednesday?

Just when I start freaking out about ADRs I see this on passporterboards.com

The reservation system used at Walt Disney World Resort for booking dining, recreation and tours will be undergoing an "extreme makeover". This new reservation system will provide Guests opportunities to book multiple reservations during one booking session and Guests will also be able to make dining reservations online at disneyworld.com as early as December 2008. So as you can see, this enhancement will be very exciting and beneficial for Guests.

During this system upgrade, some changes will be made to the current booking horizons. The normal 180 day booking window will be reduced starting July 31, 2008. Reservations for dining, recreation and tours will only be accepted through January 25, 2009 for a short amount of time. The good news is on October 24, 2008, the anticipated upgrade completion date, reservations will again be accepted for the normal 180 day window or April 21, 2009.

It is important to note that reservations for Victoria & Albert's, Cinderella's Royal Table, and Chef Mickey's will not be impacted by these changes. These three venues will continue to observe normal booking windows.


YAY!

So I think I have the Meal Plans laid out, barring we can't make a reservation or two, well I will have to figure that out in a bit and decide what our second choices will be if we can't get what I have set so far.

I will be booking our Room Only reservations in June, either when I get my first paycheck (which I don't think I will get one in May considering opening day for Wildride is May 24th, but who knows! LOL) or I'll still have some $$ in savings that I can throw towards the down payment (which is one night's stay at Pop Century which as it stands is 82 + tax...)

Once I get that set then I just have to wait for the 180 day mark of our first day at Disney so that I can make the ADRs (Advance Dining Reservations) for our trip (if you dont stay on property you have to call back every day, one of the perks of staying at Disney - you get 180 + 10 so you can book your whole stay at once!)

So now that I've bored you with that, on to the daily Food Schedule. (the menus are linked to the resteraunt name)

January 12, 2009 - Arrival Day & Magic Kingdom 1
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
Lunch - Columbia Harbour House
Dinner - Play it by Ear, probably Pop Food Court

January 13, 2009 - Animal Kingdom 1
Breakfast - Donald's Safari Breakfast @ Tusker House
Lunch - Flame Tree BBQ
Dinner - Pop Century Food Court

January 14, 2009 - EPCOT 1
Breakfast - Pop Century
Lunch - Le Cellier if n/a eat around The World
Dinner - Cantina De San Angel

January 15, 2009 - Disney Hollywood Studios
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
Lunch - The Hollywood Brown Derby
Dinner - We'll grab a snack on our way to Fantasmic!

January 16, 2009 - Animal Kingdom 2
Breakfast - Kusafiri Coffee Shop
Lunch - Yak & Yeti Counter Service
Dinner - Pizza Planet

January 17, 2009 - Magic Kingdom 2
Breakfast - Main Street Bakery
Lunch - Cosmic Ray's
Dinner - The Plaza

January 18, 2009 - EPCOT 2
Breakfast - Pop Century Food Court
Lunch - Beaches & Cream
Dinner - Trail's End

January 19, 2009 - Martin Luther King Day = Take a Break!
Breakfast - Whispering Canyon Cafe
Lunch - Somewhere at Downtown Disney
Dinner - Pop Century Food Court?

January 20, 2009 - EPCOT 3
Breakfast - Sunshine Seasons
Lunch - Biergarten
Dinner - Yakitori House

January 21, 2009 - Magic Kingdom 3 & Toni's 24th Bday
Breakfast - Sleepy Hollow
Lunch - Crystal Palace Character Buffet
Dinner - Pecos Bill


Yes, thank you, I am crazy