campingdawgs

Love the bubble pics! BTW, the Airstream and white truck in the background- that's us!

I enjoyed your report! Your girls are beautiful. I wish we had met your family since we were there at the same time and have kids close in age (although I only have three!). We enjoy the Biergarten- even my picky son can find something he likes. My husband and I really like the beer. My favorite was the Franzikaner Weiss. I don't know if they still have it, but it was great. I like that INC got the large size beer. My kind of girl! Biergarten is definitely expensive for a large family so we didn't go this last trip. Maybe next time.

Wanted to add that I totally understand the shoe thing. I can't count the number of times my son left his shoes at his friend's house- discovered the next morning while getting ready for school. And getting to baseball games without cleats, or shoes of any kind... Now DD9 tries to pack shoes to match every outfit when we go camping.

I love your tree! I looked for a 9 footer this year with no luck. The number of lights seems just right to me :) A Fort only trip is relaxing! I would think especially so after the hectic Christmas stuff. We also had to play the reservation game to get our NYE time. We started with a partial site reservation (which wouldn't work for us either as we have a 31 foot Airstream) and were finally able to get a premium right at the cancellation date. We had fun with the animatronic Santa on the 1600 loop. My DD17 had forgotten that it was part of the site decorations there and while looping my DH

'Ohana is our favorite restaurant at WDW! (Did I get the apostrophe right?) It's the one ADR we all request. Although we used to be able to walk up at 4:30 and be seated when they opened, no ADR needed. When we were there for New Year's, I hadn't been able to get one. I checked for cancellations every morning and got one for Jan. 2 at 7pm! Woo hoo! The pot stickers and the bread pudding are my favorites. I would go there just for those. But I have to be quick to stop the server from pouring the caramel sauce over it. I want to do it myself so the ice cream doesn't melt so fast. :) My kids mak

I'm enjoying your report. You have a great looking family! Anna is adorable! Were y'all still there after New Years Day? I think I may have seen one of your daughters ( the older one with darker hair, is it Emma?). I know I stared at her thinking I knew her from somewhere. It didn't strike me until later who she could be.

We love AK! And that is where we went on New Years Eve, too. Sorry for contributing to the crowds! When we got there EE was down and we couldn't get fast passes right away since the return time was the same time as our Tusker House reservation. This was the first trip we've had where return times were enforced. I don't like it. I also didn't care for the new safari ending. I do like the bridge bit, though. It brought back traumatizing memories for my son (14) which I enjoyed. I'm mean that way. In that I like torturing teenagers. That's why I spent my day at the high school today sitting in th

I really wanted to try BOG, but our favorite is Columbia Harbour House and they wouldn't go for something new. Maybe over Spring Break. We never made it to the Osborne Lights, either. Next year. And as many times as we have been to WDW, we have never done the animation class. For a long time I never knew it existed. We will have to give it a try. My girls would love it!

I'm in! I usually just read along, but I was told I have to post, too. :) It was nice to meet you, Lou! And nice to see you again, Andrew! Thanks for the spike! ~Kim

We arrived at the Fort on NYE and with all the set-up of our "new" camper, we didn't get to any of the activities. They look like fun for the kids. We got to the beach around 10:30pm, arranged our blanket and backpack on the quiet end, and admired the stars until fireworks time. DD#2 entertained us (and those around us) by dancing to the music of the dance party. We didn't find the beach to be too crowded, and we walked (no golf cart), so we didn't have to deal with the traffic. I love seeing how your girls still like to spend time with you. My kids like to hang out with us too, but many of t

We are in 1003 in our new to us Airstream until Thurs. Happy New Year!

Florence was my favorite as well. My DD's favorite was Venice. She loved the canals and getting around by boat. I'm really glad I went with her not only because I loved Italy, but also because she got lost in St.Peter's Cathedral in Vatican City. The largest church in the world, packed full of people! She got involved in taking pictures and didn't notice the group had moved on. That was a scary 20 minutes for both of us.

Those are great pictures! So peaceful. I love the heron standing tall. It's a shame so much of the natural area will be gone with the new pavilion. The nature trails and wildlife are some of the best things about the Fort.

Lots of catching up to do! I come back and what do I find? TCD is here! I love reading trip reports and yours are great! I always learn something (and not always about the Fort!) Thanks for the info and link on the new dining pavilion. I was going to have to ask what was going on. We are searching for a new camper and hopefully will be at the Fort around the New Year.

Yes, we are back! It was awesome! The weather was great, the kids were well-behaved, and the food was amazing. We went to Venice, Florence, Assisi, Capri, Pompeii, Vatican City, and Rome. It was a student tour, so the hotels were very low budget, and my daughter and I would have liked to have more time to just wander (as opposed to running from one planned thing to another). But all in all we loved it and we want to take the rest of the family there one day.

Yay! No debt required! With our tax refund, I have enough to go now! I am so excited and so is DD15. She really wanted me to go because she wants to spend time with me (weird I know for a teenager). Thanks for all your encouragement!

Thanks for the tip! We have ebags weekender bags. They are great! I liked mine so much, we got them for the kids, too. She is a light packer anyway (Girl Scout training!), so she should be able to use that bag for this trip.

Is there an age or height limit? MyDD7 loves the pony rides, but will be 8 next time we are at the Fort. She is a peanut and probably won't weigh 80 lbs until she is a teenager! So, I should probably ask : what is the age/weight requirement for the trail ride?

She is thrilled! At the meeting I learned that there will be five chaperones and 10 parents along for the ride. There are currently 26 students signed up, so the ratio is pretty good. They gave us the itinerary back in Nov, just without the exact dates. They will visit Venice, Florence, Assissi, Pompeii, Sorrento and Rome. I wouldn't need to go as a chaperone, parents are welcome on the tour as well. The trip is expensive :raspberry:, so I don't know if I can go, realistically. But I am definitely trying to find a way! Even after the meeting I am still a little nervous about DD15 being

:dance: Welcome! :)

We've rented twice from campatthefort and really enjoyed it. It definitely adds up, though, if you plan to go more than once. You have to look at how often you would use a camper, storage fees, maintenance, additional gas to tow, etc. to decide if it is better to rent a camper or buy one. It would have been cheaper to stay in a hotel, but only a few can fit a family of five and we really wanted to be at the Fort anyway.

We had a highwall popup, but the awning poles attached to the side of the camper. We always left it out, maybe we were lucky nothing happened. DH hated putting the awning up and down.

Welcome! I have neighbors from the Manchester area. I love their accents! (They seem to enjoy our southern accents as well!)

We have tried Yacht Club and we will be trying Beach Club in April. The location is amazing! It is wonderful to be able to walk to Epcot. The Boardwalk looks nice, but my kids are all about the pool. Stormalong Bay is the best pool we have ever been to. And, the clown pool kind of creeps us out. But we'd stay there (can 5 stay in a room there?), if the price was right.

My DD15 has the opportunity to go to Italy with her school. They are going to several different cities. Tonight is the first meeting to learn about the itinerary and trip rules, etc. I am nervous about her going so far away, but I know I would have been absolutely thrilled to go on a trip like that at 15 (or now!). Anybody taken an Italy trip or sent their child on a trip far from home?