How long?

Photo Credit: Jehane

:D 250 days to go! WHOOP WHOOP! :D

That is all for today :)

REVIEW: Saving Mr Banks

Last week, I managed to pop to the cinema to see Saving Mr Banks... I'm very lucky to live near a lovely (and cheap) cinema (adult ticket, small popcorn and bottle of water for £5.50? Thank you very much!) and a unusual Monday off work in which to enjoy a quiet afternoon enjoying a wonderful story.

I'll start with prefacing this with some of the discussions about the film I've been involved with over at the DIS Boards. Some of them have expressed surprise that Disney have made this film, as "nobody knows Mary Poppins anymore"... as a Brit, I was happy to defend a national icon, as Mary Poppins is still well known here (guest spot in the London 2012 opening ceremony anyone?). The question being "are there enough people interested in the story behind the film to make it worth while?" and I guess the answer depends on what makes a film worthwhile. For me, this story was worth telling, and has been done very well.

Photo Credit: mydisneyadventures

I must admit I haven't seen Emma Thompson in something I didn't enjoy her performance in, and this was no exception. She was wonderful as Mrs P.L. Travers, author of Mary Poppins, as she dealt with her past, her future and her loathing for Walt Disney's vision for the film of her beloved Mary Poppins. Interwoven with the story of Mrs Travers and Walt Disney's time together in California is recollections from Travers' childhood in Australia, particularly focussing on her father and their relationship. The child actor playing the young Travers was excellent too.

I've heard a fair bit of criticism of Tom Hanks as Walt Disney (interestingly, mostly from Americans who haven't seen it yet as it hasn't opened over there yet!) I'm too young to have seen Walt Disney on TV as a child. He died long before I was born, and I don't think I saw any footage of him until I was an adult. This film was the first time he felt like a real person to me. I don't care if his accent was wrong (I couldn't tell, which apparently makes me "from a different planet" but when they can tell the difference between Yorkshire and Devonshire accents without ever having met someone from both places, I'll start to worry about that). Walt felt real to me for the first time- more than a name or an idea, and more than the sugar-coated, rose-tinted image so many people have tried to present to me.

I was surprised by how moving the film was (I spent a chunk of the last 30 minutes in tears) and also how much I loved the score (it's a long time since I've come back from the cinema and checked out a largely instrumental score on Spotify, but I've listened to this one a few times now.

Overall, I'd rate it

Photo Credit: Yuliana

Thank you, Disney, for making this one!

The Saga of Linking our Reservations

Well, I'm back. This has been a much longer absence than I expected, but I went from being very busy to very ill without much space in between, and so I've not been spending very much time at the computer.

An important update on our WDW planning came last week, when at long last our reservations linked with our My Disney Experience account. This has been a bit of a palaver, and so far the most annoying and unpleasant thing about our booking. I would have thought as we booked directly with the Walt Disney Travel Company via their website, that this kind of thing was automated, but it wasn't and even with quite a bit of effort, I wasn't able to solve the problem myself (or find a Cast Member who could help).

I first tried to link out account after booking at over 11 months out from our travel date. It didn't work. I checked around on the website, and found this in their FAQS:

I’m staying at Old Key West or Saratoga Springs – why can’t I link my reservation? If you’re still more than 10 months away from your holiday arrival date and are staying at Disney’s Old Key West Resort or Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa your reservation may not have yet downloaded to My Disney Experience to be linked. Rest assured your reservation is guaranteed, but until you’re within 10 months of arrival it unfortunately can’t be linked in My Disney Experience.

(You'll find it under the My Magic+ tab on the drop down menu...)

So, the website clearly says it's not possible to link until the booking details are downloaded to the system at 10 months out, right? Wrong! Not one of the Cast Members I spoke to knew anything about this, and they each told me something different.

Photo Credit: Mike Baker

The first CM I spoke too knew nothing about the 10 months out stated on the website. She pointed out the 6 digit code that was issued to me as my reservation number as a UK guest was not the number I could use to link my account. I needed a 8 character alpha-numeric code to link the reservation, but she couldn't help provide it. She suggested I leave it a couple of weeks and call again. She also wished me a "magical day"... which as a Brit, I found hard not to take as sarcasm!

The second CM I spoke to was LOVELY... but similarly couldn't help. She did add to our reservation that it would be our first visit, and that we were celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary whilst there. She told us we wouldn't be able to link before 190 days out, but to try after we'd come under 200 as we might be lucky. She told us this was because we were staying at a DVC resort, but said we'd be able to link before the time for ADRs opened up at 180 days out.

The technical support CM was USELESS. I was on the phone over an hour. He couldn't find my reservation, because he's a) not listened when I told him the number and b) not checked the name on the booking (he looked for my name- it was booked in my husband's name). When we finally got that sorted out, he couldn't link it either. He told me it probably wouldn't be possible until March (bear in mind, ADRs open up for us mid-February) and it was because we were staying at a DVC resort AND had a dining plan.

That last phone call was around 20th of October... after which, I kinda lost the will to fight the system. It was stupid. Lovely UK guests from the DIS Boards told me it was possible to link, but I was having no joy, and had no time to fight them. Then I was busy. Then I got sick... and then earlier this week I thought I'd try again. I'm not sure why, but I did.

I was 259 days out. I put in my 6 digit UK reservation number into the manual linking bit on MDE... and the link went through! I'm not sure what changed, but it finally worked, and I was doing a happy dance at last. Turns out the first CM I spoke to was most correct, although I didn't need the 8 digit code (that I do now have access to on my MDE account).

Photo Credit: Bianca de Blok

This felt like a huge jump forward in our journey to WDW, and I wanted to share it to give hope to anyone else having the joy of fighting with MDE to make theirs work too!

Stocking up on things...

I've been busy over the last few months trying to find things to take with me to WDW... specifically, I've been looking for things I want to do in the park, but which are a bit overpriced. My mum has kindly bought me a selection of Disney trading pins as a Christmas present as a starting point for trading in the park. I've also just acquired a lovely Disney princess notebook, which I'm planning to use as an autograph book during our visit. Sadly, it's lined, but as it is a genuine Disney product, A5 sized and cost me only £2 (including postage), I'm not going to worry too much about that one. It's a case of finding the right intersection between value and what I'm looking for.

Aside from my pins and my notebook, what other things would you recommend to take with us that would cost us dear in the park?

I'm still here!

I just thought I'd update to to say I'm still here, and will be writing more posts over the coming week... I've just had my first weekend off after 12 days straight working (some of the away from home) and so I'm trying to catch up on so many things... blogging has to be down the list sadly! Catch you soon!

Focusing on the Goal

Booking our WDW trip more than 11 months in advance means we have a LONG time to wait... in fact, I think the last time we booked anything further in advance, it was our wedding, and that time dragged by at a snail's pace.

Like a wedding, there is a lot of research and planning involved in our WDW trip. Unlike a wedding... I don't have to worry about anyone other than me and my lovely husband. This trip is about us (no children, no family, no friends... just us!)

Photo Credit: Omer Unlu

I have several ways of counting down to our trip.
*My lovely ticker, at the top of the blog, which gives me a nice "Months/Weeks/Days" figure to work with (9 months, 1 week and 6 days today).
*A countdown widget on my phone, which gives me a number of days (286 as I type).
*A countdown calendar on my office wall- I cross this off each day for the previous day, which means on Mondays, at least I can cross off three dates (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). Some days, the best thing I can say is "well, I'm a day closer to Disney World!" and I keep focusing on the goal!

Interestingly, using this method, somehow the time seems to be whizzing by at the moment. It's already 2 months since we booked (where did that time go?). We've completed one half term at school (5 more to go). It's only a few weeks until Christmas, then it'll be a few weeks until our trip to Iceland, then a few weeks until Easter, then a few weeks until half term, then a few weeks until Disney World... It reminds me of that old chestnut: How do you eat an elephant? A bite at a time!

In the mean time, as I try and get everything sorted for the half term ahead (Advent is a CRAZY time) and continue to read, and research and chat with my fellow Disney fans... we're getting closer- one day at a time!

Planning Resources: Books

I thought it'd be good to give a bit of a run down of the planning resources I'm currently making use of as we prepare for our big trip.

These are the two books I've purchased so far (I've also had a few free e-books, but more on them another day). As you may see from the bookmarks, I'm still reading these. I'm probably about half way through each of them at the moment, and I'll review them properly when I'm done, but so far I'll say this:

The Unofficial Guide: Walt Disney World 2014 is a godsend. I suspect if the info you need isn't in this book, you don't actually need it! I read quite a few reviews of this book myself before I purchased it, but I was overwhelmed at how BIG this book is (and the size more than justifies the price!) and how comprehensive it is. I particularly like the writing style, which is has a good balance between praise and realism. If it had been too "WOW", I don't think I'd have trusted it one bit. I love that they often show both sides of a particular point of view, with quotes from readers everywhere. Very impressed.

The Hidden Magic of Walt Disney World... not so much. I love the premise of this book, but so far have found it a bit of a slog. It might be marginally better if I was stood in the parks with the book in my hand, but I have no intention of touring like that. I want to travel light. If I remember some tidbits from the book, great, but a lot of them aren't as interesting as perhaps the author thinks, are freely available on the internet or simply aren't true anymore (it was published in 2009, and even without having ever set foot in a park, I know some of the stuff in here is completely out of date)... I'm not sure I'd recommend this one. I don't like the writing style at all, and find it very same-y. I'd skip this one, if I had the chance to.

I want to get my hands on a couple more books as the time gets closer, but these were my starting point. If you have any recommendations, do let me know! :)

My WDW Bucket List

So, this is it: my MUST DO WHILST AT WDW List

Photo Credit: Joe Penniston

*Get my very own personalised Mickey ears
*Meet Belle, and get a photo with her
*Meet Mickey, and have a hug!
*Grab at least one virtual geocache on the parks
*Get a nice photo of me and DH in front of Cinderella Castle
*Meet Jen from Cake Wrecks/Epbot (I've provisionally had a yes for this! Whoop whoop!)
*Do some pin trading (particularly, acquire pins of Belle, Stitch, Cinderella, Mike Wazowski, Mater, Mickey, Minnie and any character from Emperor's New Groove)
*Have one of those Mickey ice cream treats
*Get some characters autographs
*Swim in the resort pool
*See the Fireworks at Magic Kingdom and Epcot
*Have dinner at Be Our Guest
*Do a character meal (currently leaning towards the one in Norway at Epcot)

I'm sure this list will grow (and it doesn't include my "Must Do Rides" either)... but it's a good start! Hopefully, an achievable start too!

The Details

Who?

Me, and my lovely husband.
That's right. No kids. Just us. I'm so pleased our first visit is happening before we have any children to worry about. I have dreamt of this trip since I was a little girl, and we are going to enjoy it our way!

Where?

Staying at Saratoga Springs Resort, one of WDW's Deluxe Villa resorts.
We're not usually people who splurge on things, including holidays, but when it came to booking, there were a few things we wanted, one of which was the regular Disney Dining Plan. We initially looked at Port Orleans French Quarter, and checked the price for upgrading our free Quick Service Dining Plan to the regular DP. It would have cost us around £250 to make that upgrade. However, for £200 more we could upgrade to Saratoga Springs, which automatically upgraded our Dining Plan... win win!

Photo Credit: Jason Pratt

When?

18th August - 25th August 2014
You may notice the countdown above. I am counting down. We are celebrating our 4th wedding anniversary the week before, and so will save the actual celebrations for whilst we are away. Hooray!

How?

Flying economy (sigh!) with BA, direct from Gatwick to MCO.
Thank you BA, for the £200 voucher after problems with our holiday in New York this summer. That took a nice dint out of the flight costs.

Photo Credit: Michal Sosinski

Why?

I guess this is a "why now?" really. We had long promised ourselves we would use our inheritance money when my Granny died. This might seem a bit morbid, but for us this is a memorial trip. She was always a lot of fun, and we're doing something fun in memory of her.

I guess that's the basics... I'm sure they'll be more details to come soon!

An Introduction

Well hello there! Welcome to our journey to our first ever visit to Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida!

This blog will follow the highs and lows of planning our trip, and share with you the tips we find, the plans we make and the fun we have along the way!

So sit back, relax and enjoy!