Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina
Life is short. Live it well.
- Joined
- Sep 12, 2008
Hey everyone 
,
With under 90 days to go until our next adventure, I thought it might be a good time to start another pre-trip report. Virtually all the aspects of this upcoming vacation are planned and ready (though always, always subject to last minute modifications
), so these reports are a fun way for me to pass the time with others who share our love of Central Florida. Most of my friends think I’m a little nutty for my travel addiction (which isn’t exactly far off the mark 
), and as much as they try, they generally don’t “get” my enthusiasm for Orlando the same way the good folks on the Dis do. So to all who choose to read along, thanks for not thinking me totally weird. Partly, yes…..but not completely! 
We have been extremely blessed to have not one, not two, but THREE trips “down south” on the calendar for 2015……something that has only happened once before, in 2012.
This was us, on our very first trip ever to Universal Orlando, in January 2012 in honour of Jake’s 16th birthday:
We returned in August 2012, to sweat our buns off in the sweltering summer temperatures. While we were there, we snagged an awesome Groupon deal for a family photo session at Studio One to One (at the time, they were located in the Florida Mall) and got some lovely pics:
And we ended the year by celebrating Christmas in the sun
, with a SeaWorld parks trip:
This year, our spring vacation spanned April 30th to May 9th and was in celebration of our 22nd wedding anniversary (if you missed it, feel free to read about it here: http://www.disboards.com/threads/love-is-%E2%80%9Cuniversal%E2%80%9D-our-awesome-anniversary-adventures-in-orlando-may-2015-tr.3409180/ ). It was our first time travelling to Orlando in the spring. It was also our first trip alone as a couple since our honeymoon, and much as we missed that awesome young man of ours……we had a spectacular time together. A no-kids trip (even when your kids are all grown up) is a whole different experience from family getaways.
October will be our second pilgrimage to Orlando of the year, and a couples trip once again. It will also be the first time we have visited Florida during the month of October, so while we are mildly concerned about the weather (always a worry when testing out a new time of year!), we are excited to see all the Halloween decorations and experience Orlando in the fall. We depart on Friday, October 9th for Buffalo, New York and fly out on Saturday, October 10th (returning home on Saturday, October 17th). It will be somewhat of a repeat of our May getaway, as we will primarily focus on the Universal parks once again.
Our boy, Jake, has opted to stay home again this round: his Sweetie celebrates her birthday during our vacation, and they have plans with her family to mark the occasion. He will be in his final year of college by then, and our vacation week is also his reading week. As always, the offer was extended to him to come along, but alas…..he’s reached the stage where his first priority is his beloved while Mom & Dad are a close second. All part of the natural transition to adulthood, and I am totally okay with that.
Our final trip of 2015 will a big family holiday in lieu of a traditional Christmas. We leave home on December 18th and spend the night in Buffalo, we will be in Orlando from December 19th to December 26th inclusive, then spend one night in Niagara Falls before returning home on December 27th. Jake is coming along, Sweetie will also be joining us, and my brother and his girlfriend will be in Tampa the same week (so we’ll spend some time together over the holidays with them, too). Since that trip comes so soon after our October getaway, there might be a few tidbits of that planning tossed into this report as it unfolds. One of the perils of planning more than one trip at a time.
Hopefully this won’t make me sound TOO off my rocker, but it might be worth adding that our first 2016 vacation is also now in the planning stages. Thanks to Jetblue’s schedule release last week, we’re booked from April 24th to May 3rd to squeeze in one last trip before our Universal AP’s expire on May 1st. That had been the long-term plan anyway (in an effort to s-t-r-e-t-c-h the vacation budget), so when fares were such a great price (again, from Buffalo) it made no sense not to at least firm up our dates. So really, it was the sensible thing to do
. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
For now, though, we’ll focus primarily on all the little details of our October vacation….from transportation to accommodations to dining and attractions. Despite this being trip #8, we’re still finding the new and noteworthy in Orlando to put a unique spin on our travel plans. It’s a family rule that we must do at least one new thing on each vacation, and this one will be no different.
Oh yeah, this trip will also feature our first foray into the world of Halloween Horror Nights. For Steve, this is a Vacation Bucket List item that he’s been itching for years to scratch off the list. For me, it strikes fear in my heart as I’m not generally one to seek out a good scare. Some might call me a wimp. Some might call me a scaredy cat. Others might call me a “Halloweenie. They’d all be correct
. What have I gotten myself into??? 
So, I hope a few of you will join me as we whittle away the remaining months, weeks, days, hours and seconds. As of today, the countdown stands at 87 days to departure.
,With under 90 days to go until our next adventure, I thought it might be a good time to start another pre-trip report. Virtually all the aspects of this upcoming vacation are planned and ready (though always, always subject to last minute modifications
), so these reports are a fun way for me to pass the time with others who share our love of Central Florida. Most of my friends think I’m a little nutty for my travel addiction (which isn’t exactly far off the mark ), and as much as they try, they generally don’t “get” my enthusiasm for Orlando the same way the good folks on the Dis do. So to all who choose to read along, thanks for not thinking me totally weird. Partly, yes…..but not completely! We have been extremely blessed to have not one, not two, but THREE trips “down south” on the calendar for 2015……something that has only happened once before, in 2012.
This was us, on our very first trip ever to Universal Orlando, in January 2012 in honour of Jake’s 16th birthday:
We returned in August 2012, to sweat our buns off in the sweltering summer temperatures. While we were there, we snagged an awesome Groupon deal for a family photo session at Studio One to One (at the time, they were located in the Florida Mall) and got some lovely pics:
And we ended the year by celebrating Christmas in the sun
, with a SeaWorld parks trip:
This year, our spring vacation spanned April 30th to May 9th and was in celebration of our 22nd wedding anniversary (if you missed it, feel free to read about it here: http://www.disboards.com/threads/love-is-%E2%80%9Cuniversal%E2%80%9D-our-awesome-anniversary-adventures-in-orlando-may-2015-tr.3409180/ ). It was our first time travelling to Orlando in the spring. It was also our first trip alone as a couple since our honeymoon, and much as we missed that awesome young man of ours……we had a spectacular time together. A no-kids trip (even when your kids are all grown up) is a whole different experience from family getaways.
October will be our second pilgrimage to Orlando of the year, and a couples trip once again. It will also be the first time we have visited Florida during the month of October, so while we are mildly concerned about the weather (always a worry when testing out a new time of year!), we are excited to see all the Halloween decorations and experience Orlando in the fall. We depart on Friday, October 9th for Buffalo, New York and fly out on Saturday, October 10th (returning home on Saturday, October 17th). It will be somewhat of a repeat of our May getaway, as we will primarily focus on the Universal parks once again.
Our boy, Jake, has opted to stay home again this round: his Sweetie celebrates her birthday during our vacation, and they have plans with her family to mark the occasion. He will be in his final year of college by then, and our vacation week is also his reading week. As always, the offer was extended to him to come along, but alas…..he’s reached the stage where his first priority is his beloved while Mom & Dad are a close second. All part of the natural transition to adulthood, and I am totally okay with that.
Our final trip of 2015 will a big family holiday in lieu of a traditional Christmas. We leave home on December 18th and spend the night in Buffalo, we will be in Orlando from December 19th to December 26th inclusive, then spend one night in Niagara Falls before returning home on December 27th. Jake is coming along, Sweetie will also be joining us, and my brother and his girlfriend will be in Tampa the same week (so we’ll spend some time together over the holidays with them, too). Since that trip comes so soon after our October getaway, there might be a few tidbits of that planning tossed into this report as it unfolds. One of the perils of planning more than one trip at a time.
Hopefully this won’t make me sound TOO off my rocker, but it might be worth adding that our first 2016 vacation is also now in the planning stages. Thanks to Jetblue’s schedule release last week, we’re booked from April 24th to May 3rd to squeeze in one last trip before our Universal AP’s expire on May 1st. That had been the long-term plan anyway (in an effort to s-t-r-e-t-c-h the vacation budget), so when fares were such a great price (again, from Buffalo) it made no sense not to at least firm up our dates. So really, it was the sensible thing to do
. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. For now, though, we’ll focus primarily on all the little details of our October vacation….from transportation to accommodations to dining and attractions. Despite this being trip #8, we’re still finding the new and noteworthy in Orlando to put a unique spin on our travel plans. It’s a family rule that we must do at least one new thing on each vacation, and this one will be no different.
Oh yeah, this trip will also feature our first foray into the world of Halloween Horror Nights. For Steve, this is a Vacation Bucket List item that he’s been itching for years to scratch off the list. For me, it strikes fear in my heart as I’m not generally one to seek out a good scare. Some might call me a wimp. Some might call me a scaredy cat. Others might call me a “Halloweenie. They’d all be correct
. What have I gotten myself into??? So, I hope a few of you will join me as we whittle away the remaining months, weeks, days, hours and seconds. As of today, the countdown stands at 87 days to departure.
(though I did think it was a bit short by movie standards....under 90 minutes after the previews were over). Steve had Friday off so I booked the afternoon off as well, and we had "Date Day" 
. Saw the Minions in the afternoon, went for Chinese food, did a little shopping, then topped it off with ice cream. A perfect day in my world! 
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. We've got glorious sunshine today but BRRRR!!! It was 12 C when I got up this morning (that's 53 F for my American friends). I hung my laundry on the line before I left for work and almost froze my fingers 
. I used my seat heater in the car on the way to work!!!
(especially since you are in the planning stages yourself......sad that we will just miss each other by a short time, must schedule that better for next fall)
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. Our family loves, loves, LOVES Niagara Falls, and we’re super excited to be going through in October as we’ve never been there when the autumn colours are out. We have visited in the spring (we honeymooned there in early May 1993), we have visited a boatload of times in the summer (it’s a great place for a family vacation when school is out) and we’ve even been at Christmas when the mist formed beautiful icy formations along the Niagara River. I bet it will look spectacular all dressed in Mother Nature’s fall colour palette. We don’t plan on taking in any major attractions while we’re there (we've done them all before, for the most part) but the plans call for us leaving early enough to stop after crossing the border at the Rainbow Bridge and taking a walk out onto the Observation Deck at the Niagara State Park on the New York side of the Falls.
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