Tuesday 10 October 2017

171 Days Out!




It's been awhile since I updated the blog! I assure you, I have not lost my love for all things Disney, but sometimes life just gets busy and some of my side projects slip out of focus. Since our first trip to Walt Disney World in 2014, we have traveled to Disneyland 3 times. For our family, the smaller scale of Disneyland and the affordability and convenience of staying offsite just worked better. This February we spent a week in Palm Springs, California and made a day trip to Disneyland. It wasn't the full scale Disney vacation we were used to, but it gave us a Disney fix to hold us off until our next adventure. I am so excited to share that we will be heading back east to Walt Disney World in March 2018. The countdown is officially on, and it's only 171 days until we're back at the place Where Dreams Come True!

                                         Image result for countdown to disney meme

As I mentioned, our last 3 Disney visits have been to Disneyland in California. With a young daughter who is more interested in characters than thrill rides, Disneyland had everything we needed on a smaller scale. We saved thousands of dollars by staying offsite in hotels across the street and could walk to and from our hotel throughout the day. Disneyland is so much easier to maneuver, and definitely much simpler to plan. Without MagicBands and FastPass+, all I needed to do was organize a flexible itinerary for our days and book dining reservations to accommodate those plans. Now that we're headed back to Walt Disney World, I'm finding that I'm a bit out of my element. I have spent hours researching hotels, restaurants, and tips and we're still 6 months out. I am a firm believer that you have to plan, research, and organize ahead of time in order to enjoy a trip to Disney. If you have been to Disney and didn't love it, come talk to me and I'll help you organize your next vacation. Disney is not a place where you can just "wing it". You also have to expect that you will likely come home more tired than you were when you left. BUT, if you do it right, you will also leave with so many magical memories and experiences that make it all worth it. Nothing compares to the joy I get watching my daughter burst with excitement when she sees Pluto, or seeing her eyes light up while she watches a Main Street Parade. Personally, we would forego an adult all-inclusive vacation any day to share that experience with her. It might just be the best feeling in the world. 💗
(Don't get me wrong -- I would looooooove an all-inclusive vacation. Maybe when Sophie's a bit older....)


Why Disney World this time? Well, unfortunately we haven't won the lottery or had a huge increase in our annual salaries. However, I did experience a bit of a lucky streak last winter. First, I won a contest through Sasktel and won a substantial mobile credit and a Samsung Galaxy. Not long after, I bought a raffle ticket to support the Weyburn & District Hospital Foundation. I was laying in bed one night (probably watching Narcos) when I received a message from my friend who sold me the tickets. Apparently, I won the grand prize --- a $4000 travel voucher from Weyburn CAA! My absolute favourite thing to do is travel, so this was the ultimate prize for me. My husband, Shane and I began discussing where we wanted to go and narrowed it down to a few options:

 - Disney's Au'lani in Hawaii
 - All inclusive somewhere HOT (Jamaica, Mexico, Cuba)
 - Walt Disney World

We soon realized that even with a $4000 credit, we could never afford Au'lani. We left the final choice up to our six year old daughter, Sophie, and that's how we ended up booking Walt Disney World! What can I say, she's one lucky girl. From there, all we needed to do was pay a visit to our favourite travel agent, Donna, and decide on a resort. Ahh.... so begins the research.

The last time we traveled to Disney World, we stayed at a value resort, The Art of Animation. The theming of this resort is incredible, inside and out. We stayed in a family suite and the dual bathrooms and separate sleeping areas fit our needs perfectly. We loved the main pool and were very impressed with the Landscape of Flavors Food Court. We LOVED it. This time, with the added bonus of our travel voucher, we wanted to step it up a notch and try a Moderate Resort. After a lot of research on quality, dining, theming, and refurbishment schedules, we settled on Port Orleans - Riverside. I have to tell you, the more I read about this place, the more excited I am. The resort is themed around the antebellum south of the Mississippi River and it is the perfect combination of elegance and rustic charm. I can't wait to take the riverboat to Disney Springs and explore the gardens and grounds of this incredible property! I have a feeling we may become repeat visitors to this resort... I mean, c'mon! Check this place out!


Seriously, this place is stunning. 

I have so much more to share about how the planning process is going, but let's save that for another time. At 180 days out, we were eligible to book our dining reservations so stay tuned to read about what restaurants and dining experiences we settled on...

Until next time,

xo Lisa

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