Disney World with "The Houghtaling Family"
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Client's Code Name - "The Houghtaling Family" When was your Disney vacation? January 2012 |
How far in advance did you start planning for your trip? What was the
planning process like - stressful, simple, overwhelming? In what way
did your DVP assist you with the planning stage?
We started planning our Disney vacation 3 months in advance. The process was simple with our vacation planner Laura B. Initially I attempted to book our trip on my own and found the process to be very overwhelming. I luckily came across Pixie and Pirate Destinations where I was put in contact with Laura. She was a blessing! She answered all of our questions in a very timely manner always. She booked all of our reservations for the hotel and down to the dinner reservations while in Disney. I cannot not stress enough to use a trip planner, it was wonderful.
How did you tell your family about the trip? Was it a surprise?
This was my husband's and both daughters' first trip to Disney. I have been there twice in the past with my most recent trip 20 years ago. We surprised our girls with this trip for a Christmas gift. We waited until all of our family arrived in the late afternoon, so that all could enjoy in the surprise. Our girls thought their Christmas was over for the year. I purchased 2 52inch mylar balloons, 1 or Mickey and 1 of Minnie. Also purchased a 6ft. Disney banner with Mickey and Minnie on it and had, "WE'RE GOING TO DISNEY....MERRY CHRISTMAS" printed on it! I had Mickey and Minnie holding the banner. Also purchased Disney autograph books, shirts, stuffed animals, and Minnie headbands that were placed with the balloons and banner. I had the whole family gathered in our living room and everything set up, we then called the girls into the room to see their final Christmas surprise and gift. Their faces were priceless! This has been a dream of our girls for the past several years. What a magical experience it was. And, what a blessing to be able to make your childrens' dream come true!
Which Disney Resort/Ship did you stay at? What did you think of the resort/ship?
We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge...and LOVED it. Our girls love animals and waking up to giraffes, zebras, antelope, deer etc. each day was so much fun! Our girls would have been completely happy to spend a vacation at the resort alone. It was wonderful and we would surely stay there again.
What are your family's favorite Disney characters? Did you have interactions with them while on vacation?
All of them!! Yes, we had lots of character interaction at all of the parks - Hollywood Studios, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom.
What restaurants did you dine at?
Had breakfast with princess' at Norway in Epcot "Akershaus". Had dinner at the Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom with Pooh and his friends. We ate at Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary Resort. Also ate at the Coral Reef in Epcot.
What was your family's favorite ride or attraction? And why?
It is so hard to pick just one thing as a favorite....but I would have to say Soarin' was our favorite ride. It was absolutely amazing!
What was the greatest advantage of booking your vacation with your personal DVP?
The greatest advantage with booking our vacation with Laura B was her knowledge of Disney, the meal plan, various hotels etc. I didn't have to stress over the details, Laura had it all covered for us. I went from being very overwhelmed while trying to plan it on my own to having my trip booked and planned out to every detail within a few days with Laura. Her knowlege was everything, she was so easy to contact throughout the process.
Share one moment during your vacation that will always be a favorite memory.
Oh it is so hard to pick just one moment, there were so many. Watching our daughters' faces during the firework show at the Magic Kingdom was priceless. It was the most fabulous firework show we had ever seen. The lights and music to go with the show just made it even more magical.
What was one thing that really surprised you during your vacation? Maybe a ride that your family loved that you thought you wouldn't, or something special a Cast Member said or did.
I was surprised to see how helpful ALL of the Disney park employees were. If they didn't know the answer to a question we had, they were more than happy to get the answer for us. The customer service was great in all of the parks.
Did you go through Disney withdrawals when you returned home? What was the best remedy?
Yes, absolutely! We were already dreaming of our next visit on the car ride home. The best remedy was viewing the 850 photos that we took while we were there.
Have you started planning your next Disney vacation? What will you do differently next time?
As soon as finances will allow, we will return. Would not do anything differently next time, we were completely happy!
We started planning our Disney vacation 3 months in advance. The process was simple with our vacation planner Laura B. Initially I attempted to book our trip on my own and found the process to be very overwhelming. I luckily came across Pixie and Pirate Destinations where I was put in contact with Laura. She was a blessing! She answered all of our questions in a very timely manner always. She booked all of our reservations for the hotel and down to the dinner reservations while in Disney. I cannot not stress enough to use a trip planner, it was wonderful.
How did you tell your family about the trip? Was it a surprise?
This was my husband's and both daughters' first trip to Disney. I have been there twice in the past with my most recent trip 20 years ago. We surprised our girls with this trip for a Christmas gift. We waited until all of our family arrived in the late afternoon, so that all could enjoy in the surprise. Our girls thought their Christmas was over for the year. I purchased 2 52inch mylar balloons, 1 or Mickey and 1 of Minnie. Also purchased a 6ft. Disney banner with Mickey and Minnie on it and had, "WE'RE GOING TO DISNEY....MERRY CHRISTMAS" printed on it! I had Mickey and Minnie holding the banner. Also purchased Disney autograph books, shirts, stuffed animals, and Minnie headbands that were placed with the balloons and banner. I had the whole family gathered in our living room and everything set up, we then called the girls into the room to see their final Christmas surprise and gift. Their faces were priceless! This has been a dream of our girls for the past several years. What a magical experience it was. And, what a blessing to be able to make your childrens' dream come true!
Which Disney Resort/Ship did you stay at? What did you think of the resort/ship?
We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge...and LOVED it. Our girls love animals and waking up to giraffes, zebras, antelope, deer etc. each day was so much fun! Our girls would have been completely happy to spend a vacation at the resort alone. It was wonderful and we would surely stay there again.
What are your family's favorite Disney characters? Did you have interactions with them while on vacation?
All of them!! Yes, we had lots of character interaction at all of the parks - Hollywood Studios, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom.
What restaurants did you dine at?
Had breakfast with princess' at Norway in Epcot "Akershaus". Had dinner at the Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom with Pooh and his friends. We ate at Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary Resort. Also ate at the Coral Reef in Epcot.
What was your family's favorite ride or attraction? And why?
It is so hard to pick just one thing as a favorite....but I would have to say Soarin' was our favorite ride. It was absolutely amazing!
What was the greatest advantage of booking your vacation with your personal DVP?
The greatest advantage with booking our vacation with Laura B was her knowledge of Disney, the meal plan, various hotels etc. I didn't have to stress over the details, Laura had it all covered for us. I went from being very overwhelmed while trying to plan it on my own to having my trip booked and planned out to every detail within a few days with Laura. Her knowlege was everything, she was so easy to contact throughout the process.
Share one moment during your vacation that will always be a favorite memory.
Oh it is so hard to pick just one moment, there were so many. Watching our daughters' faces during the firework show at the Magic Kingdom was priceless. It was the most fabulous firework show we had ever seen. The lights and music to go with the show just made it even more magical.
What was one thing that really surprised you during your vacation? Maybe a ride that your family loved that you thought you wouldn't, or something special a Cast Member said or did.
I was surprised to see how helpful ALL of the Disney park employees were. If they didn't know the answer to a question we had, they were more than happy to get the answer for us. The customer service was great in all of the parks.
Did you go through Disney withdrawals when you returned home? What was the best remedy?
Yes, absolutely! We were already dreaming of our next visit on the car ride home. The best remedy was viewing the 850 photos that we took while we were there.
Have you started planning your next Disney vacation? What will you do differently next time?
As soon as finances will allow, we will return. Would not do anything differently next time, we were completely happy!
