We Took the Kids! Trip Summary

[BriarRose0708]

We have been back for a little over three weeks already and I finally have a chance to gather my thoughts about our trip. I posted a lot here in the month leading up with tons of questions about travel with kids and everyone's advice was so helpful and we had an awesome time! Instead of a play-by-play series of reports I usually write, I just don't have the time and details are starting to become fuzzy after a couple weeks! Here's the cast of characters and the magical hilights of our awesome October trip with kiddos!

Me! Nikki, 31, last trip was January 2014 for Marathon Weekend
Boyfriend! 35, last trip was to the MK 30 years ago
Kid 1 girl, age 8 will be turning 9 during the trip, this will be her first time at WDW. Loves Lilo & Stitch, fairies and princesses
Kid 2 boy, age 7, this will be his first time at WDW. Loves LEGOs, Marvel action heroes, Star Wars and Cars

Travel
We flew into Sanford via Allegiant Air. The price was right for a direct flight even after having to buy the extras like checked bags and seat assignments. We took sandwiches from the local bakery with us to eat lunch on the plane. Liked the Sanford Airport, it's not as crazy as MCO is.

Arranged transportation to WDW with Quicksilver and was very pleased with their service. Had booked a sedan but got upgraded to an Escalade. Our driver was very nice and we stopped at Publix for groceries and snacks. On our return day we had the same driver take us back to Sanford very early in the morning for our flight. Lines at the airport were minimal and we had smooth travels the whole time. Have to admit I wouldn't go through Sanford again or use Allegiant if it could be absolutely avoided. We saved money even after factoring in the $275 round trip car service, but I missed using Magical Express and the convenience of MCO being closer.

Accommodations
We stayed at Caribbean Beach and we absolutely loved it! I have done Value and Deluxe but this was my first Moderate and I am completely SOLD! The size of the resort did not bother us in the least. Another magical upgrade - due to conference attendees in all the standard rooms we were in Trinidad South in a Pirate Room. Thanks, Gartner! We had a water view on the second floor of building 36 facing the quiet pool and just steps away from the bus stop. I walked to Old Port Royale a couple times and it took maybe 8 minutes, 10 if we had the kids with us. I liked the quiet of that section compared to the crazy atmosphere of POP Century.

We ate at OPR food court a couple times and really enjoyed the meals and food. The resort was packed but I never found the food court to be busy, the only line I waited in was to wait for my food to come up and even that went quickly. We ate at some peak mealtimes, too.

The kids LOVED the Pirate Room! Have to admit, so did the adults! The details and whimsy are great and the kids got a kick out of the skull and crossbones curtain that divides the bathroom area from the rest of the room. I wasn't sure how we would do the four of us in one room together but we had plenty of space for our stuff and weren't cramped at all.

Mousekeeping was excellent. I left a tip every day and we always had clean towels and extra bath products. Kid 2 still has "accidents" when he's in an unfamiliar place or so dead tired he doesn't wake up when he has to go. He wet the bed twice :blush: so in the mornings I left a note apologizing and asking for the sheets to be changed and left extra money for her. I felt bad but I'm sure he's not the first kid to wet the bed at Disney!

Food
I made a dining report the other week, but to sum up all the food we ate was excellent except for one bad choice we made to get hotdogs at Friar's Nook. Other than that everything was Om Nom Nommy!

To be continued...

[BriarRose0708]

Parks
We only visited Magic Kingdom for 2 park days this trip. This was the kid's first trip ever and we didn't want to run them ragged commando style all over Disney for 4 days. I have built up that kind of stamina over 8 years of visiting WDW so there was no way we could do everything packed into 4 days. But, I have to admit the kids were absolute TROOPERS! We went 14 hours straight one day from 8:30 a.m. at park opening to Wishes at 10 p.m.!

Crowds were heavier than what I am used to in October. This was the week before Columbus Day weekend on Monday and Tuesday the 6th & 7th. I knew it wouldn't be dead but was surprised at how crowded it felt. We had FP+ and were prepared to stand in lines so it didn't phase us too badly. The only line we waited more than 40 minutes in was Anna and Elsa meet and greet at rope drop.

Characters
We had one character meal at 'Ohana for breakfast and had great interactions there! All the characters we met were attentive, talkative (if they could talk!) and spent a good chunk of time with each kid, never felt rushed through even with Anna and Elsa. We got some wonderful pictures of them with their favorites and are in the process of downloading all the Photo Pass pics from Memory Maker. MM was totally worth it, we got over 200 pictures in only the 2 days!

Fast Pass Plus
This was my first time using FP+ and I was pretty optimistic about using it. It was a bummer to not get a FP for A&E even at 60 days but we still got to meet them and waiting in line did not ruin our trip whatsoever. Anyway, the FP system worked like a charm for us! We had passes for Buzz Lightyear, Pooh, Tinkerbell Meet & Greet, Peter Pan, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and Jungle Cruise. We practically walked on every ride we had a FP for except Jungle Cruise, we waited maybe 10 minutes to get on a boat. We didn't go for the additional FP after using our initial three but we walked by the kiosk near the Frontier/Adventureland bathrooms and there was always a long line. They need to fix it so you can do the additional FP on the app!

We linked a credit card to my and Boyfriend's magic bands and loved the convenience. On our pool day we didn't have to worry about bringing cash or our wallets to Old Port Royale and we could just pay with the Band.

Bibbidy Boppity Boutique
If there was anything that really "went wrong" on our trip it was here, and it's nothing that was the fault of BBB! This was supposed to be a birthday gift for Kid 1, and since she is all about princesses, fairies, and dresses we thought this was a no-brainer and she would lose her ever loving mind over it, right? NOPE! Kid 1 is pretty independent and..... let's see how can I put this nicely.... PICKY AS SIN! When she was shown the 4 choices for hairstyles she did not like any of them at all. None. And the FGM in training are not allowed to do any hair styles other than those four. Not even a side ponytail that Kid 1 requested. So we skipped the hair. Then she was shown the makeup choices.... didn't like any of those either. And no, she didn't want her nails done either. By this time we were wondering if we'd picked up the wrong kid somewhere by mistake:confused: The FGM in Training pretty much gave us the option of canceling the appointment (without penalty, which was very nice!) and we left with no princess makeover. #FAIL! To her credit, Kid 1's rationale for not wanting to keep her appointment was "I like the way I look and I am pretty enough without a makeover" Well, we can't fault her for that and next time we will ask her before booking anything like that again!

Buses
We used buses (ok, and monorail) 100% of the trip and never had an issue. At the stop in Trinidad South we didn't wait more than 10 minutes for a bus headed for where we needed to go. Even leaving the MK after Wishes we got on the first bus that came to the stop. I saw more of the articulated buses this trip and rode one from MK back to the resort.

Over all, this was one of the most successful trips I've had, and it just might have been my favorite. Going with younger kids was nerve wracking and they certainly had their moments and tempers flared but they don't stop being themselves just because we were in Disney. They both had an awesome time and seeing them experience the Magic meant a lot to me! Even Boyfriend admitted (and I have him on video) he was enjoying it a lot more than he thought he would! One of my goals for the trip was to come home with a Disney-addicted family, and seeing as how we are staring to think about a Disneyland Trip fr Kid 2's 9th birthday in 2 years, I'd say it was mission accomplished!

[AgentC]

I'm so glad you had a great trip. :)

[SBETigg]

Sounds like a mostly fantastic time! My daughter would have had the same reaction to BBB. She just never wanted to be fussed around with. But it's something you wouldn't have known without trying, maybe. Best intentions. Also, I love that you didn't stress about the bed wetting. I'm sure it was nothing new for housekeeping.

You were able to get a lot done even with crowds. Going with kids is certainly a new experience when you're used to the more adult side of WDW. So glad you all had fun!

[princessgirls]

Awesome Nikki!!!

Glad it was a magical trip in all ways!

Julie:mickey:

[KylesMom]

Nikki, it really says a lot that you think this trip might be your favorite. Kids add a whole different dynamic to the magic, and I am sure glad you got to experience that! There may have been the fail at BBB, but it really sounds like everything else fell into the perfect place. I was very anxious to hear your experiences, and I am happy you came back and shared them with us!!!! :mickey:

[Janmac]

Not sure BBB was a fail. Very cool that Kid 1 feels that secure about herself. Worth the effort, perhaps, to discover that. Many kids might have caved, because some choice was expected.

Note below: we have had excellent experiences at Harmony Barbershop, which has in the past put a pony tail in - altho maybe not on the side? And the ever itchy pixie dust. But I still like to get the dust.

Poor Mousekeeping! Besides the bedwetting, which occurs with one of our young ones enough we pack mats for the bed, we had another that seemed unable to visit WDW without throwing up at least once in the middle of the night. Not sick, just excitable tummy, apparently. It does make a person feel so bad for the CM doing the room that day, tho. More work!

So glad the experience went so well. Kids do make for a vastly difference experience!

Jan

[LandFan]

Ok -so BBB was a minor fail - it was really a win because she's a pretty cool kid AND you didn't have to shell out lots of $$. It also makes for a great story to tell in the future :D

[BrerGnat]

Kinda funny about the BBB thing. That was totally me as a child. I hated all that girly stuff.

Sounds like you had a successful trip with the kids. I'm so glad it all worked out and, wow on the 14 hour day! Troopers is an understatement!

[vizsla]

Thanks for the report.

[MrPeetrie]

Great report. Thanks for posting.

Kids are unpredictable sometimes. We surprised our DD4 with a BBB and received a very underwhelming response. Instead of excitement, she went into shut-down mode. I guess it was too much. We've learned not to surprise her. She needs time to adjust sometimes.

Overall, it sounds like a very successful vacation, with the added bonus of learning your daughter is very secure with herself.

Funny thing about Trinadad South: you can view it as you're on your own private , beautiful oasis, or you're banished from the rest of the resort. It's all perspective.

[faline]

Good trip, Nikki!! I know you wanted to make this trip special for the kids and it sounds like you succeeded!!

Sometimes you just can't predict what a kid will really ike or disike - letting the child take the lead is so much better than insisting the child enjoy something they don't want!!