Snow to 80 in 8 days–A spoonful of Holiday Cheer (2/5 update Ch 36 - Final Thoughts)

[pixidustmom]

Just finished reading the TR. I sure enjoyed it and the pictures. Thanks for sharing it.
Oh how I wish I could be there again.

 

[glennbo123]

Wow, I'm glad you made it home okay. It must have been wild to see somebody hit a construction barrel!

 

[KatMark]

Well, that was an adventurous ride home.

I remember when we used to drive from Chicago to Florida how I hate the Georgia portion of the ride...they are crazy drivers down there and there is always some kind of construction.

Glad you all arrived home safely.

 

[marvali]

This was the first time we had used the DDP. For this particular trip I decided to give it a try for a few different reasons. One of the biggest was cost. During heavy travel holidays Disney is big on increasing prices in their restaurants. For example, the restaurants that have buffets (Character buffets, etc.) go up about $4 per person per meal. For a family of five, that is an additional $20 per meal. The price of the DDP also goes up an additional $2/day/person. However, if you purchase the DDP through your DVC membership, you pay the “normal” daily rate for the DDP, instead of the inflated price.

The other benefit was that other than the one sit down meal per day, which I had made ADRs for, the boys could do their own thing and still be able to get food when they needed during the day, either counter service or a snack. Since Alison and I planned to tour more slowly this trip, and enjoy the Christmas decorations and atmosphere, we knew this would allow the boys to do their own thing and hit up all the rides at their own pace.

For this trip I guess it worked out okay, but it probably isn’t something we will do in the future. Did we get our money’s worth? Absolutely! But we definitely changed our eating habits to ensure that happened. It gave us a chance to try some new things to eat since we typically opted for the more expensive menu items since it was already paid for. It was odd ordering ”from right to left” on the menu to get the more expensive items, instead of trying to make sure we didn’t overspend our meal budget.

By the end of the trip, in spite of having so many credits left over, we still felt like we had eaten so much food, and definitely wouldn’t have eaten so many desserts. Typically we would maybe have an appetizer and then our meal. If any of us is in the mood for dessert, it is more often ordered and split between two people. Being able to better spread out what we eat seems to work so much better for us, and the Tables In Wonderland card seems to better give us that flexibility. I think that is the path we will stick with in the future unless a unique circumstance like this trip happens again.

Our favorite meals had to definitely be Tutto Italia and Yak & Yeti. We really enjoyed everything about both of those experiences, especially the meal and the service. Le Cellier was very good, but like I said in that update we would have been happier with additional sides to go with our steaks. I think another trip to Le Cellier using the TIW card so we can mix and match items better will be more enjoyable. The Crème Brule was definitely a highlight though! Whispering Canyon Café wasn’t a highlight, but I think that is because of my poor judgment having something similar for lunch at Cosmic Ray’s, so we may give it another try sometime in the future.

Deciding to get two separate Studios (instead of a 1-BR Villa) at Kidani worked out really well and saved us some DVC points for a future trip. Then again, since it may be the final trip for all five of us for a while, it did take away from some of the time we would have spent together during our down time. Overall, it was a really good trip where we got to do a lot of new things that added so much to the trip and our Christmas holiday.

 

[mommy2mrb]

Congratulations on finishing your TR

we've done both the CS dining and TS/CS plans and like them both...lots of food, could do without the desserts too!

 

[Poolrat]

You kid Kathy and then you do it too!!


I did the DDP this last trip ( this year ) for the same reason. The boy likes to eat and he goes for the steak when available so DDP worked out.

Even with the crowds, nothing is like Christmas at Disney. the energy, the decorations and the general excitement in the air.

 

[glennbo123]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the dining plan. I wonder about doing it, but I'm just not sure that we have enough restaurants planned that it'd pay for itself. I'm planning on getting the TiW card this trip...I'm so glad they've extended it to DVC members who aren't annual pass holders....that came just in the nick of time!

 

[KatMark]

Marv finished his TR!

We've done the dining plan several times and the last trip we did without it. We will go "without" it the next trip...just doesn't end up being worth it. And, if I get annual passes in September as I'm hoping to, I'll get the TIW card...I think that will be better for us.

 

[Flossbolna]

Great final thoughts! I think your experience with the dining plan is very similar to mine. I find that while it is nice to have the fredom to order what you want without looking at the price, it also ´limits your choiced. What if I don't want a CS lunch but just get two snacks. Or as you said about appetizers and deserts. But I think it is worth to try it at least once.

I am glad that you had an enjoyable trip overall!

 

[Flossbolna]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the dining plan. I wonder about doing it, but I'm just not sure that we have enough restaurants planned that it'd pay for itself. I'm planning on getting the TiW card this trip...I'm so glad they've extended it to DVC members who aren't annual pass holders....that came just in the nick of time!

I can seen how for your family of five and the grandparents the TiW Card might make sense. But for DVCers it costs $100 and so you need to spend $500 at TS restaurants before it starts paying for itself. For your group size that might work, for someone like me, it really isn't that much of an option...

Have you considered venturing to off site restaurants? From all I hear there are quite a few very good ones not far away from Disney at all. I must confess that I am getting rather tired of the prices Disney restaurants charge!

 

[blessedmom4]

Marv, I have loved reading your TR, getting to know your family (both here on the DIS and IRL), reading what works, what doesn't, and your knowledge as a frequent flyer. I always have wondered if free dining would be worth it to us as well. For my guys, yes I think they would love it...for us girls, not so much. I hope someday to make it to Disney to see the Christmas decorations...i have a dream time I want to go, the first full week of December the weekend after Thanksgiving...sounds PERFECT to me! Looking forward to seeing your sweet family again and also following along on your next Disney adventure from the start!

 

[englishrose47]

Great Final thoughts!!For me the ddp is a must !!I am such a penny pincher and I know I would be checking for the cheapest thing even if I didn't want itI find it hard to believe you have read my ptr as there was an obvious Rosie Boo Boo and neither you or Glenn commented !!

 

[marvali]

Glad you guys made it home safely! Sounds like there was quite a bit of adventure on the roads. Where's the DOT when you need them?

I know, right! You would think you could at least depend on those guys in the South!!!

wow sounds like an interesteing traffic patterns on the way home...glad you made it safely.

at least you didnt have any birds hanging from your ride when you got out to rest.

No, although I think I saw a few during the ride..........

Aw, thanks Marvie. And I know you mean that because you didn't attach any sarcastic smilies to that comment.

Of course Molly......

Holy cow, your trip home sounds crazy! Thank goodness you weren't involved in that mess. The drive home seems so monotous on I-95, doesn't it? Ugh, it takes forever. One time, we were behind a semi in the middle lane and he decided that he wanted to exit when he was right on top of the exit. Well, he jack knifed acrosss the lane and I hit the brakes and moved into the left lane away from him. Luckily there was little traffic so we had room to move out of his way but seriously, what an idiot.

Oh, I won't normally go anywhere NEAR I-95! I-85 and I-75 are bad enough! Remind me sometime and I'll tell you about my 24 hour trip to Daytona for the summer race involving a couple of truckers on I-95!

Looking forward to your final thoughts. Maybe you could get to them before the summer? Maybe?

Har-de-har-har!!!

Just finished reading the TR. I sure enjoyed it and the pictures. Thanks for sharing it.
Oh how I wish I could be there again.

pixidustmom! Thanks for joining in and I'm glad you enjoyed the read!

Wow, I'm glad you made it home okay. It must have been wild to see somebody hit a construction barrel!

I asked Jonathan about it when you posted this since it happened right in front of him. He said he almost missed it, but yes it was wild. From my perspective I saw it all happen since I kept watching and wondering when the driver was going to adjust to the lane shift! It was pretty cool (well, since nothing really serious came of it) watching that barrel "explode" and go bouncing down the Interstate! (thankfully remaining in the construction area)

Well, that was an adventurous ride home.

I remember when we used to drive from Chicago to Florida how I hate the Georgia portion of the ride...they are crazy drivers down there and there is always some kind of construction.

Glad you all arrived home safely.

Yeah, it seems like by the time they finish working, it is time to start all over again where they did construction years before!

 

[marvali]

Congratulations on finishing your TR

we've done both the CS dining and TS/CS plans and like them both...lots of food, could do without the desserts too!

Thanks! The other thing I failed to mention is the plan to stay in two studios and save some DVC points also helped make the decision to go with the DDP. Normally with longer stays we are in a 1 or 2BR Villa, with the full kitchen. I normally go shopping to stock the kitchen and we eat quite a few meals in the room.

Part of that is because of the overall $$ for Disney food, but even more so we can only stand so many restaurant meals and Disney sandwiches, and it is often just too much food. Sandwiches, fresh fruit and cereal/oatmeal at breakfast are a welcome change.

You kid Kathy and then you do it too!!

You caught that, huh?

I did the DDP this last trip ( this year ) for the same reason. The boy likes to eat and he goes for the steak when available so DDP worked out.

Without the DVC Kitchen it made sense and worked out for us too! And of course the teenage boys loved being able to order anything on the menu without getting that "look" from............their Mom!

Even with the crowds, nothing is like Christmas at Disney. the energy, the decorations and the general excitement in the air.

If you expect the crowds, and set your mind not to let it bother you, it is definitely a wonderful time to be at Disney!

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the dining plan. I wonder about doing it, but I'm just not sure that we have enough restaurants planned that it'd pay for itself. I'm planning on getting the TiW card this trip...I'm so glad they've extended it to DVC members who aren't annual pass holders....that came just in the nick of time!

I think you are pretty much in the same boat as me, with a larger family and that DVC kitchen. We usually only make a few ADRs for each of our trips too, so the TiW works out great! Thanks for educating me on the addition of TiW for DVC members, although I normally only get the card when we have multiple trips planned to get full benefit from it, and then typically we go with APs and can get it cheaper than $100.

Marv finished his TR!

We've done the dining plan several times and the last trip we did without it. We will go "without" it the next trip...just doesn't end up being worth it. And, if I get annual passes in September as I'm hoping to, I'll get the TIW card...I think that will be better for us.

I just feel like I would have to spend way too much park touring time sitting in restaurants to make it worthwhile under normal circumstances.

Great final thoughts! I think your experience with the dining plan is very similar to mine. I find that while it is nice to have the fredom to order what you want without looking at the price, it also ´limits your choiced. What if I don't want a CS lunch but just get two snacks. Or as you said about appetizers and deserts. But I think it is worth to try it at least once.

I am glad that you had an enjoyable trip overall!

Thanks!

Have you considered venturing to off site restaurants? From all I hear there are quite a few very good ones not far away from Disney at all. I must confess that I am getting rather tired of the prices Disney restaurants charge!

Disney is definitely proud of pretty much everything they sell. It is still nice to take in a few restaurants for the atmosphere and theming for sure, just not so many!

Marv, I have loved reading your TR, getting to know your family (both here on the DIS and IRL), reading what works, what doesn't, and your knowledge as a frequent flyer. I always have wondered if free dining would be worth it to us as well. For my guys, yes I think they would love it...for us girls, not so much. I hope someday to make it to Disney to see the Christmas decorations...i have a dream time I want to go, the first full week of December the weekend after Thanksgiving...sounds PERFECT to me! Looking forward to seeing your sweet family again and also following along on your next Disney adventure from the start!

Thanks Judy! You know I feel the same!!!

Great Final thoughts!!For me the ddp is a must !!I am such a penny pincher and I know I would be checking for the cheapest thing even if I didn't want itI find it hard to believe you have read my ptr as there was an obvious Rosie Boo Boo and neither you or Glenn commented !!

The DDP works well for some people, so glad it is an option for those it helps for sure!

Finally made it over to your PTR! You'll be so happy when you check out my post..........

 

[that's nice]

Thanks for sharing your family with us Marv. I'm glad you finished your report!

We've used the DDP once and while my DW thinks it is a good idea, I know that the TIW is better for us. It gives a lot more flexibility in ordering and you don't get food you don't want.

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Marv, sorry I've missed your last updates for some reason, and then I've tried to post a couple of times and the DIS just isn't cooperating. Anyway, it was a fun journey and so fun to "know" your family better! Thank you for sharing!

 

[marvali]

Thanks for sharing your family with us Marv. I'm glad you finished your report!

We've used the DDP once and while my DW thinks it is a good idea, I know that the TIW is better for us. It gives a lot more flexibility in ordering and you don't get food you don't want.

I agree! It works best for us too. But like everything at Disney, they try to offer an option for all tastes!

Marv, sorry I've missed your last updates for some reason, and then I've tried to post a couple of times and the DIS just isn't cooperating. Anyway, it was a fun journey and so fun to "know" your family better! Thank you for sharing!

Thanks Tammie! I think the DIS has had some issues for all of us lately! Hopefully it will all be resolved soon!

And BTW everyone, there just might be another TR starting up really soon, so keep your eyes open for it.................

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

good wrap up marv.

i liked your thoughts on the DDP, not sure i would pay for it especially since now the tip is not included in the price...and it seems like yes you are getting more sit down meals, but then you are also dropping at least 20 bucks for tip on some sit down meals even with 2 or 3 people....

so that is something to think about as well.

looking forward to the next report

 

[marvali]

For those of you who would like to follow along on the two additional AP trips taken during 2011, you can find my newest Trip Report here:

Rides, Slides, Eats & Meets...It's an ANNUAL Pass after all!


Would love to have you all join me there, and hope you enjoy!!!

 

[marvali]

good wrap up marv.

i liked your thoughts on the DDP, not sure i would pay for it especially since now the tip is not included in the price...and it seems like yes you are getting more sit down meals, but then you are also dropping at least 20 bucks for tip on some sit down meals even with 2 or 3 people....

so that is something to think about as well.

looking forward to the next report

Thanks Dan! The wait is over and the new TR is up and running! Hope you will come on over and join in on the (potentially year long) adventure!!!