It took me a while to find the time to type this up, but here is the report of my latest trip...I hope you like it!
Travel dates: November 12 20, 2016
Travel method: Southwest & Auto
Resort: Anaheim Del Sol Inn & Camelot Inn (Off-site)
Accommodations: Standard
Ages Represented in Group: Adult to child
Disney Resort Experience Represented in Group: Veteran to Veteran-in-Training!
Comments: Family time!
Cast of characters:
- Pam, 55: trip planner/writer/self-proclaimed Disney Queen!
- James, 56: Pam's hubby who likes Disneyland but is not as fanatic as Pam!
- Rod, 38: Our nephew and Dad to Molly & Chase
- Sarah, 38: Rod's wife & mom to Molly & Chase
- Molly, 17: Sarah & Rod's daughter
- Chase, 8: Sarah & Rod's son
The Planning
We've visited the Disneyland Resort with our nephew, his wife, and two kids multiple times ever since our great-niece Molly was a toddler (she is now 17!); however, they had been priced out from visiting the past few years. Thanks to their Fairy Godmother, they were given 5-day park hoppers for Christmas last year!
Sarah & I started planning & we came up with November 14-18 in the parks, partly based on the projected crowd ratings from TouringPlans.com. We also decided to visit Universal Studios Hollywood since they had the new Harry Potter land open.
In addition, I was interested in seeing Donny & Marie Osmond at the Flamingo in Las Vegas; James suggested I swing a side trip for that on my way home from Anaheim rather than a round-trip from Sacramento some other time, so that was built into the trip itinerary as well.
Lodging: I booked a room at our usual spot (the Anaheim Del Sol Inn on Harbor Blvd., which is a 5-minute walk from the parks) in late March; the total for the 7 nights = $1,066. The Bakers are staying up the street at The Camelot with a great nightly rate of $99! I also booked one night at The Flamingo in Las Vegas for me ($123 deposit).
Transportation: In early August I booked airfare on Southwest Airlines from Sacramento to Orange County for both of us using points (equivalent cost = $76 each) and James' return flight using points (equivalent cost = $76); I also booked flights for me from Orange County to Las Vegas to Sacramento using points (equivalent cost = $234). The total TSA fees & Early-Bird option for all flights came to $103 (without points the total cash cost would have been $537).
I also made reservations with SuperShuttle for travel to/from our motel in Anaheim & to/from the Flamingo in Las Vegas as well ($54 total after the AAA group discount was applied).
Lastly, I booked transportation on Gray Line for James & I to get to USH ($54 through Get Away Today) & meet up with the Bakers there (they are driving down from Merced).
Tickets: James & I have Deluxe AP vouchers for DL, which I bought back in February when I thought a price increase was imminent (although only tickets went up then; $599 x 2 = $1198). The Bakers have 5-day park hopper tickets, and plan to upgrade to Deluxe APs during their visit.
I also bought one-day tickets for James & I for USH before their ticket prices went up in March ($174); the Bakers planned to purchase annual passes from Costco before the trip, but ended up just buying one-day tickets online as well.
Priority Seating: I made a reservation at Blue Bayou for Wednesday (11/16) @ 11:30am, in hopes of getting a waterside table; we also most likely will eat at the Rainforest Cafe and The Pizza Press on Harbor Blvd. at some point during the trip, plus maybe Tortilla Jo's and Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen as well, but I didn't make any reservations for them. Everything else will probably be counter-service and off-site to keep costs and calories down.
Disney Visa Rewards Card: I transferred $84 out of our rewards balance on our Disney Visa Rewards Card (DVRC) to cover our Disney park meals and any park incidentals.
The Itinerary
The pre-planning was done very quickly, and here was the result:
- November 12: Travel down in the afternoon; check-in to the Del Sol Inn; Disneyland/DCA
- November 13: Universal Studios Hollywood
- November 14: Disneyland/DCA
- November 15: Disneyland/DCA
- November 16: Disneyland/DCA; lunch at Blue Bayou @ 11:30am
- November 17: Disneyland/DCA
- November 18: Disneyland/DCA
- November 19: Check-out of the Del Sol Inn; James flies home in the afternoon & I fly to Las Vegas to see Donny & Marie Osmond at the Flamingo
- November 20: Check-out of the Flamingo; fly home in the late morning
Friday, November 11, 2016 (pre-departure date)
Actual: I worked a partial day and then we both had eye appointments and ran errands afterwards; on the way home, we picked up a couple of sandwiches from Subway for tomorrow (a veggie foot-long sandwich for James & a turkey/cheese foot-long for me = $13.90). We spent the evening doing laundry, packing, and getting the house ready for vacation, and then I went to bed around midnight & James followed around 2am.
Saturday, November 12, 2016 (86o)
Plan: Travel down in the afternoon; check-in to the Del Sol Inn; Disneyland/DCA
Actual: I slept well, fed our kitty Sidney around 7am, and then got up for good around 8:30am. I started getting ready and then woke James up a little after 9am; we were out the door about 90mins later.
I drove us to the airport with no accidents or traffic to delay us, and we parked in the Economy lot (D42). The bus showed up right away and we were soon at Terminal B. We checked our big suitcase in (45#) and were through the Pre-TSA line just before noon.
We filled our reusable H2O bottle and each ate about half of our sandwiches & some chips I'd also brought from home, before heading down to our gate. We boarded our flight (A24 & 25) and sat apart in separate exit rows. We pushed back a few minutes late, but were airborne by 1pm. James had his usual ginger ale & I drank Diet Dr. Pepper with the pretzels they gave us.
We arrived on-time just after 2pm, picked up our big suitcase, and walked up to the shuttles. We checked in with SuperShuttle and they put us in a cargo-style van a few minutes later. We had an extra-long commute (45mins), because they had to drop off someone in a residential neighborhood (Orange) first; to make things worse, the A/C was not too great and it was 83o outside!
We checked in to the Del Sol Inn, and were put in a newly remodeled room over the breakfast room (#203) ~ it was very nice! They were remodeling the back side of the property, and the desk clerk said they should be completely done before Christmas.
We unpacked a little bit, put the valuables in the safe, and headed to McDonald's around 4:15pm. We bought BOGO (buy one get one) Big Macs and shared a large Diet Dr. Pepper ($8.61), and refilled the cup before we left. We stopped at The Cove Market for a gallon of water ($4.88) and James took it and the soda back to the room while I headed across the street.
I went through bag check and waited for James by the ticket booths; when we met back up we got in line to activate the Deluxe Annual Passes I'd bought back in February from the Disney Store. CM Hugo had to call in a lead for assistance when both passes were showing expiration dates of 2-17-17 (which were a year after purchase rather than activation); this alarmed us as we didn't want to spend $600 for a 3-month AP!
While still at the ticket window, I bought two Disney gift cards with a holiday design ($15 each) and then headed over to Disneyland Park; we had our photos taken for our passes and then James went to get FastPasses for Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters around 5:15pm (5:55pm) while I went to City Hall. CM Kendra gave me info for visiting attractions with stairs (I have a bad knee and try to limit walking up stairs as much as I can) and then I met back up with James.
We went to Peter Pan's Flight to get a return time (6:10pm at 5:35pm) and then went over to Star Wars Launch Bay to do the Chase Disney Visa meet & greet with Darth Vader ~ lots of fun as always!
We rode Buzz with our earlier FPs with a so-so score for each of us (J=388K and P=158K; no pictures) and then went to Jingle Cruise and rode Yuletide Lotus with Skipper Liz, who was great!
We next went to Rancho del Zocalo around 7pm and waited 10mins for a carne asada & enchiladas platter, with brown rice & veggies substituted for Mexican rice & refried beans ($14.08, after the 10% AP discount). After sharing the food, we went back to Peter, but there was a long return line; after waiting several minutes without moving, we left and headed over to The Camera Center.
I waited about 10mins (yes, it was Saturday night on a holiday race weekend!) to ask about the PhotoPass week pass, only to find that you buy it online within 45 days of the photo date (before the photos expire); then I walked through the snowfall on Main Street to meet up with James at The Emporium. We looked around a bit and decided to escape the crowds by going back to the room around 7:30pm.
We got settled, snacked on popcorn & Goobers, and James watched the Fox News Channel while I updated my trip notes & later showered. I was ready for bed around 10:30pm and James followed around midnight.
Steps: 12,237
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