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Surprise, Santa, and a Shiny new AP Holder… A GDF Trip Report


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It’s time to say goodbye.

 

Goodbye Fort Christmas tree. I hope I will be seeing you again sooner rather than later.

 

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Goodbye Settlement

 

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We caught the bus to the Outpost.

 

Jason and the RV were waiting on us. Sad day.

 

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I’ve heard they aren’t allowing RVs to park at the Fort during cruises, etc. anymore. Well what are these people doing?

 

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I did wonder if we could sneak over there and camp for a couple nights.

 

We hit the road to travel North.

 

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And that’s all. We stopped at Jason’s sisters for some Christmas festivities and made it home the next day.

 

 

Final thoughts…

 

We had a lot of firsts this trip. I’ve said it a million times, but one of the things I love about Disney is that there’s always something new to try, explore, or EAT.

·         First surprise trip for Z- That was really fun. I’m glad we decided to keep it a surprise, even if Jason almost blew it several times.

·         First Christmas on vacation and at WDW! And you know what? It was nice. Big family holidays are great, but it was nice spending time just the 3 of us. Those are memories I’ll cherish.

·         First visit to the Fort with our new golf cart! Having our own cart was better for some reason. I’m not really sure why.

·         First time looping with Christmas decorations. It’s going to feel a bit naked there in April.

·         First time staying in the 100 loop- We really loved the location and thought our site was plenty big. I’d book a preferred every time if I knew I’d be in that area.

·         First time seeing the Christmas parade.

·         First time visiting the Lodge and eating at the Territory Lounge- The Lodge is beautiful, and we will definitely be hitting Territory Lounge in April.

·         First time on the Tomorrowland Speedway and Expedition Everest for Z

·         First time on the Mine Train and Splash for Jason- he liked both.

·         First time riding Dinosaur for all of us

·         First visit to the Boardwalk area- We need to get back and explore that area more, especially the new restaurant.

·         First time seeing Nemo. I still like FOTLK better, but Nemo is a good show.

·         First time seeing the Candlelight Processional and Osborne Lights. We loved both!

·         First time meet lots of the Fiends we met on the trip. Fiends are the greatest kind of folks!!!!

·         First time I’ve had a TIW card, and I got it FREE.

·         First time all being AP holders! I don’t think I need to elaborate on why that’s exciting.

 

Wow, that’s a long list, and I probably forgot some. It was an AMAZING trip! (Troll shout-out) I can see it becoming a tradition, maybe every other year or something like that. Yes, Christmas at WDW is super busy, but it’s also a special kind of magical. I wouldn’t recommend it for a first trip, but Disney veterans can handle the crowds.

 

Now I’m left waiting for April. We’ll be heading back to the Fort for Easter and bringing my dad along. My friend Elena will also be joining us for a few days. Her family is renting a PUP because the Fort bug is contagious.

 

The End

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Well, it’s time for another GDF trip report. This trip started small and ended up much bigger. Originally, I thought Z and I might drive down for a few days before Christmas to see some Disney lights

We’ve made it to December 26th, our last day. The plan for this day was to hit Animal Kingdom for a bit and then hang at the Fort and go to the Fiend Grand Gathering at DIT’s site.   We weren’t doing

Okay so I'm about half way done with this report.  It's keeping me sane on these hard days of adjustment.  We got home from China about a week and a half ago!  Yay!   Here's the boys at the airport!  

 

·         First Christmas on vacation and at WDW! And you know what? It was nice. Big family holidays are great, but it was nice spending time just the 3 of us. Those are memories I’ll cherish.

 

 

We did our first Christmas vacation in 2012 and absolutely loved it. My in-laws joined us (we rarely vacation without them) so it wasn't just the 4 of us, but it was still a small group which was really nice. We decided every-other-year works well for us.

 

Great trip report!

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Great trip report, thanks for doing it. You hit the nail on the head about Christmas at Disney, it should NEVER be any ones first trip as it could very well be their last. Plus having AP's helps as if you do not get to do much you don't feel like you wasted a days ticket.

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Great report!  Yes... leaving is always a sad day :(    Lucky for you, you'll be back "home" before you know it!

 

Leaving stinks! One of these days, I want to be like Devores and live there for a bit. I wonder if it would ever get old. 

 

We did our first Christmas vacation in 2012 and absolutely loved it. My in-laws joined us (we rarely vacation without them) so it wasn't just the 4 of us, but it was still a small group which was really nice. We decided every-other-year works well for us.

 

Great trip report!

 

It was a great time to be there. And thank you! 

 

Great trip report, thanks for doing it. You hit the nail on the head about Christmas at Disney, it should NEVER be any ones first trip as it could very well be their last. Plus having AP's helps as if you do not get to do much you don't feel like you wasted a days ticket.

 

Exactly! And I knew the week between Christmas and New Years was the worst, but I didn't expect to actually feel the difference. 

 

Yes, this was a great trip report.  You sure had a lot of firsts!  Wish we could be there in April!

 

We had a ton of firsts. I hope to add more in April. :)

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OK, someone please explain something to me... Guess what came in the mail for Jason?

 

66699B94-7CC6-4A89-B23B-CAF9ED512650.jpg

 

Yes, Disney sent Mr. I Don't Like Disney an AP car magnet. What did they send Z and me in July? Nothing! But they send one to Jason? What the Fort? 

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OK, someone please explain something to me... Guess what came in the mail for Jason?

 

66699B94-7CC6-4A89-B23B-CAF9ED512650.jpg

 

Yes, Disney sent Mr. I Don't Like Disney an AP car magnet. What did they send Z and me in July? Nothing! But they send one to Jason? What the Fort?

That's funny. You have to love life.

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OK, someone please explain something to me... Guess what came in the mail for Jason?

66699B94-7CC6-4A89-B23B-CAF9ED512650.jpg

Yes, Disney sent Mr. I Don't Like Disney an AP car magnet. What did they send Z and me in July? Nothing! But they send one to Jason? What the Fort?

It's obvious who Mickey likes better! Lol.

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OK, someone please explain something to me... Guess what came in the mail for Jason?

 

66699B94-7CC6-4A89-B23B-CAF9ED512650.jpg

 

Yes, Disney sent Mr. I Don't Like Disney an AP car magnet. What did they send Z and me in July? Nothing! But they send one to Jason? What the Fort? 

 

LOL!

 

Someday, I would love to find out who is in charge of deciding what to send out to Passholders.

 

Each of the TCD girls received a magnet in a mailing specifically addressed to them.  They came at random times.  Even though I'm the one paying for the passes, I have never received one.

 

We just renewed our passes.  My oldest daughter got a second magnet in the mail.  Nothing for anyone else, especially not me.

 

What the Fort?

 

TCD

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LOL!

Someday, I would love to find out who is in charge of deciding what to send out to Passholders.

Each of the TCD girls received a magnet in a mailing specifically addressed to them. They came at random times. Even though I'm the one paying for the passes, I have never received one.

We just renewed our passes. My oldest daughter got a second magnet in the mail. Nothing for anyone else, especially not me.

What the Fort?

TCD

When we bought our passes last Christmas. We received two magnets. One assigned to DW and other for my DD. I didn't get one either. And like you, I'm the one paying for them. Lol.

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He's Mr. Disney now and letting you know right.

 

Apparently. LOL!

 

It's obvious who Mickey likes better! Lol.

 

Yeah. Right. Maybe they're trying to win him over. 

 

Oh gosh... that's too funny :)   Is it okay, that ours is still on our car, even though our passes have now expired? :)   I just think it's so cute!

 

I'll allow it. For now. 

 

LOL!

 

Someday, I would love to find out who is in charge of deciding what to send out to Passholders.

 

Each of the TCD girls received a magnet in a mailing specifically addressed to them.  They came at random times.  Even though I'm the one paying for the passes, I have never received one.

 

We just renewed our passes.  My oldest daughter got a second magnet in the mail.  Nothing for anyone else, especially not me.

 

What the Fort?

 

TCD

When we bought our passes last Christmas. We received two magnets. One assigned to DW and other for my DD. I didn't get one either. And like you, I'm the one paying for them. Lol.

 

I paid for all our passes, so from this should we assume that the person who pays for the pass does not receive one? Weird. 

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I paid for all our passes, so from this should we assume that the person who pays for the pass does not receive one? Weird. 

 

That's why I said earlier that I'd like to meet the person who makes the Passholder relations decisions.  You'd think they would want to make sure the person paying for the passes doesn't get overlooked.

 

I forgot to mention that when we got our Gold Castaway Cay Club magnet from DCL, it came addressed to my oldest daughter.  She definitely didn't pay for any of the cruises it took for us to make gold status.

 

TCD

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I threatened/told Kelly that I had some pix from after the Christmas GG. Since Kelly and my DD were Incahoots, and ganged up on me and made me go to the MK. Kelly some how corrupted my DD and turned her against me. And before you know it I was kicking and screaming a the way to the MK.

After GG we took the boa mat to the Mk. As we were getting off of the boat the fireworks began.

image_zpstaliwdem.jpg

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We headed to the SDMT to try and see if could use my DAS. Well there was an almost two hour wait and I knew there was no way we were going to be able to stay that late. So we headed to SM. Kelly had scored some rider switch passes and that's how she talked my DD into going. We stopped for a pix on our way there.

image_zps9uvl829c.jpg

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