Our Crazy Holiday Trip (late November 2016) - update 8/16

[ClaraOswald]

Adorable!! I seriously wish we had a Disney outlet (or even a Disney store) here!

 

[cptmemo]

We relied on ART the last time we went. We stayed at the Worldmark timeshare (where we'll stay in December too), and it's just over a mile from the park, on the east side of the Gardenwalk mall thing. Anyways, I think it was great. Only had 2-3 stops? And was only crowded one morning, and then if we stayed until fireworks then left. Other than that, 1/2 the time we were the only ones on it.

The trip we went on prior to that, we also stayed at the worldmark, but my aunt insisted on driving us and dropping us at the bus stop right outside the shuttle entrance. I think she made more than a few drivers/taxis/buses mad. After she dropped us, she drove back to the worldmark, then walked back to Disney. So I vote your husband could do that! LOL Depending on how wild the kids are acting, he might have the better end of the stick with a little bit of peace and quiet!

But really, I think the ART is perfect, you can buy passes ahead of time, and the worst part is waiting in the baking sun for the shuttle to show up, if you happened to decide to go back for a nap (happened to us twice last time...). Because at that point you just want to be BACK to the hotel, not standing in the sun.

 

[Jaina]

We relied on ART the last time we went.

But really, I think the ART is perfect, you can buy passes ahead of time, and the worst part is waiting in the baking sun for the shuttle to show up, if you happened to decide to go back for a nap (happened to us twice last time...). Because at that point you just want to be BACK to the hotel, not standing in the sun.

Thanks for the feedback on the ART! We probably won't go back for naps, but it's something to keep in mind. (Our 2 year old already only naps part of the time already) We will probably get ART passes at least the first day to keep our options open. It will definitely take some thought in the meantime.

 

[Karyanne]

We stayed near the portofino last time, at spring hill suites and we did not use art at all because folding up the stroller and all that felt like more of a hassle than just walking. You will be there at the same time we will! We are so excited!

 

[Jaina]

We stayed near the portofino last time, at spring hill suites and we did not use art at all because folding up the stroller and all that felt like more of a hassle than just walking. You will be there at the same time we will! We are so excited!

Yes, if we were staying at the Portofino, we would probably just walk! We changed our minds and got a good deal on the Stanford Inn & Suites, a little further down the road. We adults could still walk it probably, but our older (not in stroller) kids would struggle with that plus walking around the parks all day. I'm excited you'll be there at the same time! Are you going to do a trip report?

 

[Karyanne]

I've actually never done a trip report. Maybe I will

 

[MinnieLovesMickey]

I was a lurker on your TR a few years ago so I thought I would follow along on this one!

I love the tee shirts that you've made. Might have to try that the next time we make our way to Disney.

We took our DS on his first trip to Disney (WDW) when he was 4 months and he was very mellow and enjoyed all of the Christmas lights and characters and slept a lot more than he did at home.

 

[Jaina]

I was a lurker on your TR a few years ago so I thought I would follow along on this one!

I love the tee shirts that you've made. Might have to try that the next time we make our way to Disney.

We took our DS on his first trip to Disney (WDW) when he was 4 months and he was very mellow and enjoyed all of the Christmas lights and characters and slept a lot more than he did at home.

It's great to hear stories like that about positive trips with tiny ones! Thanks for following along! I almost have another set of shirts that I've gathered to post (to replace the blue Mickey ones), as soon as the last one comes in! It is so fun to make them, but it's getting harder to do projects like that now with all the kids home from school all the time, when we're mostly trying to keep it a secret!

 

[exodus129]

I am following this in case you have some insight or ideas we can steal for our trip. My wife, 4 year old and I are going to DL November 15-18 as the second part of a San Diego Charger/Zoo trip starting on the 11th. Game and zoo then driving up and doing 3 days in DL. We are from NY so we are trying to fit a few things in at once. Originally we were going to go the first week but realized we might miss the Christmas decorations so plans were altered. First time heading out to DL, we have been to WDW twice. We are looking at staying at the Howard Johnson Hotel which has free parking and we can just walk over easily (hopefully) So here's looking forward to a fun trip! (Bonus info is this is my first post hooray for me!)

 

[Jaina]

I am following this in case you have some insight or ideas we can steal for our trip. My wife, 4 year old and I are going to DL November 15-18 as the second part of a San Diego Charger/Zoo trip starting on the 11th. Game and zoo then driving up and doing 3 days in DL. We are from NY so we are trying to fit a few things in at once. Originally we were going to go the first week but realized we might miss the Christmas decorations so plans were altered. First time heading out to DL, we have been to WDW twice. We are looking at staying at the Howard Johnson Hotel which has free parking and we can just walk over easily (hopefully) So here's looking forward to a fun trip! (Bonus info is this is my first post hooray for me!)

How exciting! I hear the HoJo is a great, fun place to stay, and hopefully the Avengers half marathon crowds will have thinned back out some after that. Those days were one of our early options. I hope you have a fabulous time! This board is a wealth of information, and I have answered lots of my own questions just by searching the archives. If you ready through my trip report from 2013 (in my signature) we went with a 6, 5, and almost-3-year-old, so it might also be helpful.

 

[Jaina]

I've had a bit of a scare this week about this trip, since our "family" car, our old Chevy Venture, went kapoot. We knew the transmission was getting slippy, but we were hoping to use it another 6 months or so before having to find a new one. Nope. Something went wrong with the head gasket last weekend and it started overheating immediately any time we tried to drive anywhere. (that isn't hard to do in Phoenix in 110º weather) Our mechanic told us that between its miles (165 K ish), the transmission beginning to fail, and this new problem, it probably wasn't worth the money to fix it. But we've already set aside money to cover most of the trip, and hopefully nothing else major will happen to require its use. Fingers crossed and prayers sent!

 

[lwanthony]

I love how cute and creative all your shirts are! We will be there the same week as you! We arrive on the Sunday after Thanksgiving and stay until Friday! My wife and I will keep out eyes open for your group of super cute mousekteers!

-Lane

 

[cptmemo]

Love the set of shirts! And I like that they're themed and not totally matching. I think I'll have an easier time talking my 15 yr old in going along with what I get for him, if I stick to something like that.

that sucks about your car I hope you get find a good replacement! We just got a Chevy Traverse (fits 7, but some models fit 8) and I love it. Not as much storage space in the back, but it feels smaller than a mini van or full sized SUV.

 

[Jaina]

I love how cute and creative all your shirts are! We will be there the same week as you! We arrive on the Sunday after Thanksgiving and stay until Friday! My wife and I will keep out eyes open for your group of super cute mousekteers!

-Lane

Thanks! So fun! You'll have to remind me to watch for you guys too! I hope the weather and the crowds are in our favor!

Love the set of shirts! And I like that they're themed and not totally matching. I think I'll have an easier time talking my 15 yr old in going along with what I get for him, if I stick to something like that.

that sucks about your car I hope you get find a good replacement! We just got a Chevy Traverse (fits 7, but some models fit 8) and I love it. Not as much storage space in the back, but it feels smaller than a mini van or full sized SUV.

My family never wore anything matching to Disney growing up. We were excited if we had a Mickey shirt that currently fit. But I get joy from planning them out, and my kids are still young enough that they're like, "cool, new shirts!"
We are still car hunting, but hope to find one this week. Actually, my husband was voting for a 12-passenger van (even though I don't -think- we're having any more...) so I am totally fine with a mini van. Actually our last car technically would fit us all, but we were already running into space issues when we traveled, and my husband hates putting stuff on top. And I need space for our double jogger (plus luggage for 7) when we drive to Disneyland!

 

[lwanthony]

Thanks! So fun! You'll have to remind me to watch for you guys too! I hope the weather and the crowds are in our favor!

You can recognize me by my Mickey tattoo on my left calf. It's my avatar picture here! See you in December! lol

 

[Mamato4boys]

We are staying at the Stanford Inn and Suites from November 13-19! We have 4 boys (13,10,2,6 months currently), and it is hard to find affordable lodging for 6+ people!

We are doing ART for the first time, too. We bought 5 day passes for it through getawaytoday, though, so we are committed. I laughed when I saw your comment about your husband dropping you off because I said the same thing to mine!

Coincidentally, I am also having car issues with our only vehicle big enough for our family to fit in, and I'm a little worried that it won't make the 14 hour trip to Anaheim.

I am so jealous of the Monster's Inc hoodies!! We are hours away from a Disney Outlet.

I've never done a trip report before, but yours is so fun that I might have to start one myself.

 

[Jaina]

We are staying at the Stanford Inn and Suites from November 13-19! We have 4 boys (13,10,2,6 months currently), and it is hard to find affordable lodging for 6+ people!

We are doing ART for the first time, too. We bought 5 day passes for it through getawaytoday, though, so we are committed. I laughed when I saw your comment about your husband dropping you off because I said the same thing to mine!

Coincidentally, I am also having car issues with our only vehicle big enough for our family to fit in, and I'm a little worried that it won't make the 14 hour trip to Anaheim.

I am so jealous of the Monster's Inc hoodies!! We are hours away from a Disney Outlet.

I've never done a trip report before, but yours is so fun that I might have to start one myself.

You totally should! I am going to have to remember to pick your brain about how your trip hoes even if you haven't gotten around to updating yet, since your trip is so similar to ours and just a week or so before! Let me know if you start one, so I can follow! I really hope your cat keeps working better than ours did... We still haven't replaced it, and it's driving me crazy!

 

[tzeitel]

I love the shirts you made! I am hoping to do some shirts as well, but it will probably be tie dye since I got DD a kit for her upcoming birthday - I see a mess in my future but she will love it Have you checked out TeeFury or Woot? By now DD, DH and I have a collection of tees and those sites have super cool designs - I got this one for our trip in Oct and so many ppl asked me where I got it http://www.teefury.com/foolish-mortals They have lower prices for shirts right when they release them (and even cheaper for their shirt of the day) then prices go up.
And right now Woot has some Star Wars shirts. I am thinking of getting this one - http://shirt.woot.com/offers/the-places-youll-roll?ref=cnt_ctlg_dgn_23

Hope your car troubles get fixed without any impact to your trip budget. Just when you think you are in the clear something always comes up!

 

[Jaina]

I love the shirts you made! I am hoping to do some shirts as well, but it will probably be tie dye since I got DD a kit for her upcoming birthday - I see a mess in my future but she will love it Have you checked out TeeFury or Woot? By now DD, DH and I have a collection of tees and those sites have super cool designs - I got this one for our trip in Oct and so many ppl asked me where I got it http://www.teefury.com/foolish-mortals They have lower prices for shirts right when they release them (and even cheaper for their shirt of the day) then prices go up.
And right now Woot has some Star Wars shirts. I am thinking of getting this one - http://shirt.woot.com/offers/the-places-youll-roll?ref=cnt_ctlg_dgn_23

Hope your car troubles get fixed without any impact to your trip budget. Just when you think you are in the clear something always comes up!

Those are really cute! I try not to spend quite that much on shirts though since it's all x7... I think the most I've spent so far on one was about $10, and I try to keep it closer to $5-6! All the Star Wars ones so far I got for $6-9, and I'm hoping Target or the Disney outlet by my house has another sale around the 4th of July so I can get some more! I have done tie dye before (in high school for a big group date) and it was a blast! I'd love to see how yours turn out!

 

[tzeitel]

Yeah, the shirts can get pretty expensive. I catch them when they are first released so they are $11 at TeeFury or $7-8 at Woot. Much cheaper to buy for just 3 of us