Looks Like the POLY is Our Laughin' Place! - An Aug 2017 PTR - COMPELTE, TR LINK POSTED

Newsies

Headlines don't sell papes.
Joined
Oct 25, 2013
:stitch: ALOOOOOOOOOOHA! :stitch:

And welcome, welcome, welcome to-

C8bmHV1WsAAikzV.jpg


MY FOURTH PTR HERE ON THE DISBOARDS!

As I maaaay have hinted at (or flat out told everyone) in my last TR, the clan is going back to the Polynesian this August, and we got a lot to prepare for!

Come ye all and bear witness to an action-packed four months full of:

-PLANNING!
-REPLANNING!
-CELEBRATIONS!
-ICED COFFEE!
-A SUPER SWEET SIXTEEN!
-REPLANNING A THIRD TIME!
-MAYHEM!
-MAKEUP!
-MISCHEIF!
-FP+/ADR DRAMA!
-REPLANNING A FOURTH TIME!
-DISNEY MOVIES!
-MAYBE REPLANNING A 5TH TIME?
-LOTS OF PIZZA!

...AND MORE!


My name is Kaitlyn and I'll be your PTR director.

C8bmHV5WAAA6uru.jpg


College sophomore, studying Childhood Education in NYC, and hailing from the great Garden state of NJ. Proud sister of the grΣΔΤest sorority on earth, writer, theatre lover, and Disney fan. Even prouder alumn of the Fall 2016 Walt Disney World College Program (try to guess my location!) Huuuuge ice coffee drinker and makeup collector. Tends to wander over to Universal Studios for a butterbeer and a donut from the Kwik-E-Mart and a chat with Scooby Doo. Pin-and-pressed-penny collector extraordinaire and connoisseur of Dole Whips. Big fan of spending my days in the France pavilion or chatting with Tinker Bell.

Favorite movie: Cinderella
Favorite character: Tinker Bell
Favorite resort: The Polynesian
Favorite park: Magic Kingdom
Favorite restaurant: 1900 Park Fare
Favorite ride: ... Let's just say I'm partial to two in particular :rotfl:


And no, of course I'm not going on this crazy journey back to my favorite place on earth alone! Well, not this time, at least. Let's meet my wonderful, beautiful family again!

Here's my mom, Susie.

C8bmHV0W0AIGaet.jpg


She's the woman who makes all of this possible and my rock. She has supported me endlessly throughout my college and DCP endeavors. She's also the biggest Disney fan I know! Everything I learned, I learned from her. You can find her at Magic Kingdom for breakfast, the resort pool for lunch, and back at Magic Kingdom for dinner, 'cause that's how she rolls :cool2:. She's a big fan of a good Mickey Rice Krispie treat and a trip on Soarin'! She always takes away something different from each trip- let's see what she enjoys about our fourth Disney Vacation!

Favorite movie: Dumbo
Favorite character: Winnie the Pooh
Favorite resort: The Grand Floridian
Favorite park: Magic Kingdom
Favorite restaurant: Crystal Palace
Favorite ride: Soarin'

Up next we have my dad, Tom, and my sister Grace!

C8bmHV2W0AAqFCA.jpg


Even the man who can recite Jungle Book quotes in his sleep never imagined we'd be going to Disney World as much as we do today! My dad is a volunteer fireman and I love him endlessly. He's the humor and charm of our family unit, and he's always running into friends no matter where we are. We could be inside the Magic Kingdom and he'd still run into one of his fireman buddies from 1,000 miles up north! He's the logistics when it comes to vacationing, and tells us when exactly we should leave and when exactly we'll arrive. When something goes wrong, he's the man who solves the problem. With every trip to Disney World, he gets closer and closer to buying into DVC... maybe this'll be the trip that makes us cave? :scratchin

Favorite movie: Jungle Book
Favorite character: Grumpy
Favorite resort: The Grand Floridian
Favorite park: Epcot
Favorite restaurant: 'Ohana
Favorite ride: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

And then we have my sister and best friend for life, Grace. She's the ultimate Lost Boy: You'll never see her without some Peter Pan merchandise! She's a sophomore in high school and a devoted member of the Yearbook committee... even though I'm trying to get her to break into theatre like I did! When we're in Disney, she's a very "go-with-the-flow" kind of gal. She'll do whatever mom and dad are doing unless I convince her to break out of her shell and go to Hollywood Studios with me for a few hours! But that's starting to change as she's getting older. We're going to be celebrating her SWEET SIXTEEN this year (well, her birthday is in July but we're celebrating in August!), and who knows what her birthday trip has in store for her? Maybe she'll finally go to Epcot by herself... or maybe she'll just text me memes from the hotel room as she gets ready for dinner. :rotfl:

Favorite movie: Peter Pan
Favorite character: Peter Pan
Favorite resort: The Grand Floridian
Favorite park: Magic Kingdom
Favorite restaurant: Be Our Guest
Favorite ride: Peter Pan's Flight

WHEW! That was a mouthful, but we're STILL not done yet! Every good PTR needs...

THE FIVE W'S OF A PTR!

WHO: The fam, again!
WHAT: Our FIFTH Walt Disney World Resort vacation!
WHEN: July 30-Aug 5, 2017
WHERE: Disney's Polynesian Village Resort
WHY: To celebrate a Sweet 16!

And awaaaaaay we go!


moana-ocean.gif
 
Last edited:
 
Last edited:
Other Reads

Looking for more PTR/TR adventures? I've got a few finished and ongoing ones for you!
January 2018 - Ongoing
My first Disneyland PTR: Make a Wish and Hold on Tight - My First Disneyland PTR!

July 2014
My first PTR: So whatever happens, let's begin.
My first TR: "You're definitely feeling and not concealing!"

August 2015
My second PTR: I'll Call Steve: A Wilderprincess PTR!
My second TR: Naveen Ain't Playin: My Glitteriest, Princessiest TR Ever!

January 2017
My third PTR: Is it WEIRD to Make a PTR for a 3-Day Long Trip?

My third TR: Polynesian Tiki God Says... Magical Bora-Bora Bungalow Upgrade?!?
 
Last edited:


The Story of This Trip
117 Days Out
Welcome to the first formal update of the PTR!

giphy.gif

It came to us while we were in Disney World back in January. It was a short trip, the family was coming down to pick me up from my College Program and said, "eh, what harm could a day in Epcot and a day in Magic Kingdom do?"

Mom, Grace, and I were sitting in the hot tub at the Polynesian, discussing what we were going to do for dinner that night. Mom went into the trip saying that we were definitely going to visit the Toothsome Chocolate Factory- it was the one thing she really wanted to do! But when we were sitting in the hot tub she said, "I don't feel good right now. Let's do something else for dinner tonight... we can go to Toothsome when we come back this summer."

Woah, woah, woah... this summer?

wG3jg.gif

I mean, we've always been ambiguously looking ahead to our next trip while still within the confines of the Magic Kingdom. Walking by a new restaurant? "That's cool... we should eat there on our next trip." Waiting for 40 minutes for a ride? "Next trip, we'll get FP+ for this ride." A nice bracelet we didn't have time to buy? "Next trip, we'll buy it." Until that moment, we've never said "when we come back at this specific time frame."

"Do you really think we're going to be back this summer?" I asked her.

"Yeah. Grace, isn't this where you want to celebrate your Sweet 16?" Mom asked Grace.

"Yes!" Grace said. And that was the end of that discussion.

Mom waited for the Summer Discount to drop, and as soon as I saw that the they had been released last week, I forwarded her the link immediately. As soon as she saw it, she texted our travel agent (NO MORE AAA FOR THIS FAMILY! Mom booked through an ADVP for our January trip and liked the results. The quote she got for this vacation was cheaper with the ADVP than it was with AAA!).

Come this past Sunday afternoon I was sitting in the kitchen, eating my lunch, when my mom walked in.

"Hey," I casually said. "Just let me know when the agent gets back to you with the reservation number."

"Oh," She said, even MORE casually, "We already have the reservation number."

giphy.gif

I scrambled to open up my laptop and link the reservation number to our MDE Acc so we could start making dining reservations. Heck, I didn't even have a plan for dining reservations, I just went for it! I mean, I knew there were certain things my family wanted to try this time around. My dad had to eat at 'Ohana for dinner and everyone was pretty much on board with us seeing the Spirit of Aloha show this year. So I made some ADRs, and a preliminary touring plan, but nothing on FP+ yet.

I'm also still trying to figure out a restaurant for us to eat at when we go to Epcot. I wanted to go to Chefs de France, because that was my favorite sit down restaurant from my program, but neither of my parents enjoyed it that much when they went. Now we're looking at other sit-down restaurants in World Showcase. I'm thinking of:

  • Teppan Edo
  • Nine Dragons
  • Tokyo Dining
  • San Angel Inn Restaurante
  • Rose & Crown
All the planning is making me hungry, so I think I'm gonna run to the caf and grab something for dinner real quick.

giphy.gif

Until I get it all sorted out, see you next time.
-Kaitlyn
 
Our First Set of Plans/ADRs
116 days out

The time has come to unveil our very first tentative set of dining plans!

It's a very, very primitive of our layout. Some ADRs here and there, an explanation of what I want to get done here and there. Nothing serious. There's not even a clue as to what our FP+ plans will be like for the day yet. It's just a skeleton of sorts.

0b54b48fd1f38122eed043151bff0821.gif

I'm gonna try to keep the ADRs as set in stone as possible this trip, but at anyone who read my Aug 2015 PTR may recall, it's not always easy to keep ADRs the way they are with this family... :rolleyes:

Anyhoo. I tried to pick restaurants that we hadn't been to yet, but have been really meaning to try. For example- we really have only scratched the surface with Epcot, and don't even get my started on Animal Kingdom. At the same time, we really, really love the Poly and 'Ohanas! With a more limited time frame than we're used to for "formal vacations" (side-eying our January excursion), it was a little harder fitting in new things with must-dos from trips past.

And, get this...

There's only.

ONE.

Character meal.

8b808c0edf08549832b49ed8377f915b.gif

I know, right?!?! Blasphemy!!! Our past trips have had 3 CDEs each at a minimum. I don't know, there just wasn't a place in the schedule for a lot this year. We typically do about 6 days in Disney, but the schedule is complicated this year... I'll let the plans speak for themselves.

Without further ado, here it is!

Our WDW Vacation
July 29-Aug 6, 2017
Saturday July 29:

On the Road!
We will begin our trip like "usual" (which is a subjective term for us)-- leaving around 1 in the morning and driving throughout the day, stopping only to eat and utilize the restroom before we reach Georgia and stop for the evening.

Sunday July 30:

ARRIVE AT DISNEY'S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT! :cool1:
As early as possible. The earliest we've ever arrived has been noon, the latest we've ever arrived has been 3. But mom is not messin' around this year, she wants us to get up as early as possible to be AT Disney World as early as possible. Which is understandable. The last leg of the trip is the worst and wouldn't you rather be tired and nap at the Poly than wake up refreshed in a roadside motel? I'll take the former at any rate. It's what coffee was invented for. Check-in is scheduled to begin at 3, and I'll probably head over to Disney Springs before our room is ready for a few hours. Just to... you know... "window shop". :rolleyes1. But then I'll head over to the pool for a few hours to cool off and relax before our late, great, dinner ADR.

'Ohana Dinner- 8:15 PM
Oh man... you guys have no idea how excited I am for this meal. Dad requested it, and everyone agreed. It's one of my favorites, too! The food at the Poly on a whole is my favorite on property, and there's nothing better than dinner at 'Ohana. The bread. The skewers. The noodles. The wings. THE WINGS! It's all amazing, and we'll top off the evening with stuffed bellies watching Wishes from the beach.

Vo6a3.gif

Monday July 31:

Crystal Palace Breakfast- 9:45 AM
That's right! Our one CDE this year is Crystal Palace. We try to do it every trip. It's one of our favorite breakfasts in all of Disney World, and such a sweet way to start our trip.

I'll probably have breakfast here, enjoy some FP+ in the morning and probably go back to the resort for a swim mid-late afternoon. I'll most likely have a lowkey dinner at Captain Cooks before I go back to Magic Kingdom to polish off the night.

Tuesday Aug 1:

Okay, so... we don't really know what's going to happen on Tuesday, except that we're going to try to go to Toothsome Chocolate Factory for dinner. So one of two things are going to happen:

1. I'll Uber/get a ride from dad to Universal in the morning, us the AP I bought for my program to have a fun day before it expires, then enjoy some EMH when we get back home after dinner,

OR

2. We'll chill at one of the parks/the pool, we'll forget about Toothsome, and I'll be scrambling to make a last minute ADR for dinner.

Wednesday, Aug 2:

La Hacienda de San Angel Dinner- 6:30 PM
I'm so, so excited for this ADR! It was a toss-up between Nine Dragons and this, and we go to Chinese restaurants fairly enough as a family, so we decided to try La Hacienda. After trying the Taco de Camaron at the F&WF this year, I knew that I'd need to eat here one day. Now there's a F&WF booth I stopped at multiple times.

Ct3UPfyW8AE2inK.jpg

Other than that, it's going to be a pretty chill Epcot day. I'm going to really push for Frozen Ever After FP+, since I loved getting to ride that on my program and my family didn't get to in January.

Thursday Aug 3
Today's our Hollywood Studios day! I'm going to try to drag everyone awake in time for breakfast and a FP+ or two, but I doubt anything too crazy is going to happen before dinner. Speaking of dinner...

Disney's Spirit of Aloha Show- 5:15 PM :stitch:

excited-lottie.gif

I'M SO EXCITED!!! Out of all the plans this trip, I'm most excited about this one. My family wanted to do something a little "extra" different this year, so I suggested this or Hoop de Doo. We've already done Hoop de Doo, and I know they're just gonna love Spirit of Aloha! It's something I really wanted to do during my program but I've never done, and I just know everyone's going to adore it and walk away from it with some great new memories :cutie:.

Friday Aug 4
Today's our last day, and our Animal Kingdom day, which I'm actually really excited about. Ya'll know I'm going to snag a FP+ for something with Pandora, but ya'll also know that I'm gonna be rope dropping Animal Kingdom to see what Pandora holds for us! It is going to be AMAZING.

Yak & Yeti Restaurant Dinner- 5:15 PM
Okay, okay, okay. I know I make this every year and every year it changes. I am SERIOUS and DETERMINED to keep it this year. It will happen! I've been dying to eat here since 2014. Mark my words- I will have tried the pineapple skewers by the end of this trip!!

After dinner, I'll most likely say goodbye to Magic Kingdom until the park closes.

Sat Aug 5
Check out day :sad:. I'm not making any breakfast ADRs since dad will probably just want us to leave as early as possible anyway! Again, we'll hit the road as early as we can and try to stop at North Carolina for the evening.

Sun Aug 6
We're home and the vacation is complete!
 


Ok, I'm here although I probably won't have a FABULOUS cameo like I did on your last TR so it's not going to be nearly as ICONIC but you know, I'm here and that's what matters. Shantay I shall stay. *tongue pop*
 
Ok, I'm here although I probably won't have a FABULOUS cameo like I did on your last TR so it's not going to be nearly as ICONIC but you know, I'm here and that's what matters. Shantay I shall stay. *tongue pop*

remember when everyone was trying to play the guitar and sing folk songs in your apt and you started blasting gaga
 
A (Brief!) History of My Time With Walt Disney World
113 Days Out

So yesterday was kind of a HUGE day in Kaitlyn history. That's because a year ago yesterday, I was accepted into the Disney College Program!

CfyWnpyWcAECivp.jpg

I can honestly say it was one of the happiest and most unexpected moments of my entire life. Since there's not really a whole lot I can update you guys about the trip right now, I figured, why post about my past experience with Walt Disney World and what lead me to this TR?

Time for a quick little history lesson.

635713747554808910-666252892_S0DtQ74.gif



My first trip to Disney World
May 2002


CLGexT_XAAAYPDr.jpg

CLGeewXWoAAQYTW.jpg

I had just turned 5 when I went to the Magic Kingdom for the first time. Mom, dad, Grace (who had been born less than a year ago), my grandparents and I were staying at Perry's resort in Daytona Beach. Mom and dad woke me up super early one morning to tell me that we were going on a drive while Grace stayed behind with grandma and grandpa. We got in the car and I fell back asleep and 3 hours later, we were at the TTC.

"Do you know where we are?" Mom asked.

"DISNEY WORLD!" I shouted.

"Actually, honey, it's just a parking lot." Dad chimed in. :rotfl:

We had a great day. I met Winnie the Pooh at Crystal Palace, saw the original Enchanted Tales with Belle, got to dance in the parade, and bought a super sweet Tinker bell stationary set as my souvenir at the end of the day. I also distinctly remember going on Peter Pan's Flight and it's a small world.

And of course, I met Mickey Mouse for the very first time!

CLGd6UsWEAAcq4C.jpg



Our First REAL Disney World Vacation
July 2010



17759754_1441460859260390_791413366351601735_n.jpg

(I snagged that image off of FB, so if we're REALLY, REALLY lucky, it'll disappear soon. FB images have a way of somehow changing their URLs and disappearing on us)

I spent basically 8 years begging my parents to return to Walt Disney World. I remember being OBSESSED with the Walt Disney World Unwrapped episode when I was younger. Finally, my parents agreed to return to WDW the summer going into 8th grade. I remember high-fiving Grace when we booked the vacation in the AAA Office. We stayed at the Contemporary for a week and went all out. I remember going to Magic Kingdom late at night with mom while Grace was already asleep and dad was watching TV. We had a blast at the Hoop de Doo and ended our trip with an amazing breakfast at CRT.

I remember this trip being the trip where I got really involved in WDW planning, specifically reading up on online WDW resources. I was on AllEars I think every single day for months in preparation for this trip. I knew waaaaaaaay more than a 13 year old should know about the Walt Disney World dining reservation system.


Our Second WDW Family Vacation
July 2014


CKrg5lLUEAACjXo.jpg

This was the trip where I really became the Disney fan I am today!

Somehow, I got the idea in my head to return to WDW after 4 years and my parents both wanted to go. First, we had a room booked at the Contemporary, then we downgraded to Art of Animation, and THEN we upgraded to the Grand Floridian! We celebrated Grace's birthday, enjoyed the Pirates & Pals Fireworks Cruise, and got to see my cousin Sherry in the middle of her FA 2016 DCP! She was a custodial cast member.

Like I said, this was kind of the trip that made me the Disney fan I am today. I read up on a lot of AllEars for the 2010 trip, but I got really intensely into Disney news sources for this trip... and, of course, THIS WAS THE TRIP THAT INSPIRED ME TO JOIN DISBOARDS! :disrocks:

I joined DIS in Oct 2013, around the time my family and I were in talks for this trip. I stumbled upon DIS randomly one day, and immediately fell in love with the concept of an All-WDW, all the time message board. Once I saw the TR/PTR threads, I knew that I would have to join to document my vacation! Between DIS and DisneyDining, I don't think I actually opened up any school related websites on my iPad during my Junior year.

Our Third WDW Vacation
August 2015


CL7gM3iWIAAhrUm.jpg


So the 3rd WDW trip was different.

I spent months and months planning on my second PTR, which was AMAZING and probably the best thing I've ever written on the DIS. My family was really excited for this trip, which was my high school graduation trip. Then we lost my grandma a week before we were scheduled to leave. We were in shock. We weren't expecting her to leave us when she did, but we're so grateful that we were able to say goodbye to her. The trip itself was planned out and executed perfectly, but at the same time, we were still grieving our loss. Even the most perfect vacation in the world couldn't have stopped us from crying that trip.

We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge and I went to the parks mostly alone in the morning, meeting up with my family in the afternoon.

We did a lot of fun things this trip, but one thing I remember vividly was standing in the Festival of Fantasy FP+ section on our first Magic Kingdom day. I remember watching an Ice Cream Cart vendor walk by and thinking to myself, "... one day, I gotta work here."


My Disney College Program!
Fall 2016


C1gzvdDXUAM9G9i.jpg

My DCP journey started in January 2016. I started my application process on January 14, had my phone interview on January 29th, and was accepted on April 7. THAT was a day, let me tell you. I was running around NYC, going to the Met to do some research for a history class, getting ready for advisement and going home that night for the weekend. I checked my email on a whim and BAM! There it was!

I checked in on August 8. At casting, I was told I would be a Fantasyland West Attractions H/H, and had the craziest time of my life! Some highlights of my 5 months in Disney World...

  • Bought a Universal Studios season pass and had some GREAT times there in Diagon Alley and Jurassic Park.
  • Got to see the Food and Wine Festival, spent MANY, MANY days in Epcot!
  • Went to two amazing MNSSHPs
  • Went to one beautiful MVMCP
  • Visited the Orlando Mall once or twice
  • Did a bunch of fun, cast-member only things like shopping at Cast Connection and going to Mickeys of Glenndale event
  • Ate so much good food
  • Caught Epcot Character Training and Characterpalooza a few times
Our fourth WDW Vacation
January 2017


C1Xwp2dXUAAhZj1.jpg

Our latest, shortest WDW excursion!

Not only did we decide that the Poly was the hotel for us, but we decided to come back again this August!

And now you know EVERYTHING you need to know! :tink:

 
Thoroughly GAGGED by pre-2010 Disney, Mickey still in his snow globe and Toontown still existing *nostalgia crying*

Lol @ us 13 year old Disney enthusiasts who knew too much about the Disney booking system after one trip. It makes sense we eventually became Cast Members.

You neglected to add in the Asian Market to your highlights. #whitegirlSHOOQUETH Also, Hurricane Matthew and Hurricane Hannah (*wink, wink*) Lol, I'm being way too shady for these boards, but you know... memorable times.

Characterpalooza tho. And lace front inept Poca hehe

I'm your favorite TR fanatic, aren't I? Teehehehehehe
 
Thoroughly GAGGED by pre-2010 Disney, Mickey still in his snow globe and Toontown still existing *nostalgia crying*

Lol @ us 13 year old Disney enthusiasts who knew too much about the Disney booking system after one trip. It makes sense we eventually became Cast Members.

You neglected to add in the Asian Market to your highlights. #whitegirlSHOOQUETH Also, Hurricane Matthew and Hurricane Hannah (*wink, wink*) Lol, I'm being way too shady for these boards, but you know... memorable times.

Characterpalooza tho. And lace front inept Poca hehe

I'm your favorite TR fanatic, aren't I? Teehehehehehe

THIS POST HAS ME SHOOKT HURRICANE HANNAH IM #TRIGGERED

Honestly? Best two days of the program. Calling FLand office to hear "yeah you're not gonna come in tonight or tomorrow" and grabbing Haribo and Kinder from CVS while you came over and we had a makeup party on the day of the actual hurricane. #shookt
 
THIS POST HAS ME SHOOKT HURRICANE HANNAH IM #TRIGGERED

Honestly? Best two days of the program. Calling FLand office to hear "yeah you're not gonna come in tonight or tomorrow" and grabbing Haribo and Kinder from CVS while you came over and we had a makeup party on the day of the actual hurricane. #shookt

Those were such a nice two days of much needed break... except for the fact I was short two days of work and got the smallest paycheck in recorded DCP history ugh But that make-up party was so LIT (until Daddy Kemuel called me to remind me curfew was starting soon and I had to go home :()
 
Those were such a nice two days of much needed break... except for the fact I was short two days of work and got the smallest paycheck in recorded DCP history ugh But that make-up party was so LIT (until Daddy Kemuel called me to remind me curfew was starting soon and I had to go home :()

KEMUEL NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! RIP
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Top