March 23, 2018 Spring Break Cruise, Part 2: Travel
Admirals Club
Staying On Property – Part 4 Return Travel
We had checked out of our room at the All-Star Movies resort in the morning before we headed off to the parks. We didn’t quite know what to do with our bags though. We could have checked them through to the airlines, but didn’t want to do that because the last time we did it with the cruise line, we got charged for our bags despite having the Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard (it gives us one free bag per person). We decided instead to leave our bags with Bell Services and pick them up when boarding the Magical Express to the airport.
After leaving our bags, we headed to the parks. Our flight was supposed to leave at 9:00 pm, so we had a resort return time of 5:30 pm for the 6:00 pm Magical Express to the airport. However, we were done with the parks around 3:30 pm and decided to return to the resort. Once we arrived, we retrieved our bags and asked Bell Services about the chance to get on an earlier Magical Express bus to the airport. They said we could ask the bus driver and see if there was space.
Once the bus arrived, we asked the bus driver about taking the earlier bus. He had to load everyone that was scheduled for the bus first, but could see if there was space once all the passengers with reservations had gotten on. There ended up being enough extra seats for us, so we hoped on and headed to the airport. Once we arrived at the airport, we checked in for our American Airlines flight and dropped off our bags. Our first stop was for dinner in the food court. The food court in the Orlando Airport has a variety of choices. We each grabbed something we liked and settled in to eat.
About the time we were done, TripIt started to notify us of a delay on our flight home. It looked like it was going to be delayed about 30 minutes. We decided to go through security to enjoy the Admirals Club that recently opened since we have free access with the AAdvantage Executive Mastercard. We got to the club but noticed that it was closing at 8:30 pm. We asked while checking in if they were still going to close at that time, since they tend to stay open later when American Airlines flights are delayed. They said they would stay open until about 9:00 pm. We grabbed some drinks and used the wifi for a while until it was time to board.
The flight home was uneventful. We arrived at Reagan National Airport, gathered our luggage, and headed home. The trip was a nice way to spend our school break.
While the trip was fun, I don’t think we will be staying at a Value resort for a while. I really didn’t enjoy the double beds. I also didn’t really enjoy waiting for the buses. The only park I like taking the bus to is the Magic Kingdom since it lets you avoid the entire Monorail or Ferry Boat transportation. Staying on property without a car also restricts the places we can eat since we are limited to the ones on Disney property unless we are willing to take a cab or an Uber. Most likely we will only do it if we have a rental car or get a free dining plan.
Dream Cruise – Part 2 – Travel
The travel day for our Disney Dream cruise finally arrived! We had decided to leave really early so that we could join our friends at the airport. We could easily kill time in the Admirals Club lounge at Reagan National Airport. We were going to get the girls from school around noon, then leave for the airport at 12:30, which should get us there at 1:00 pm. The flight didn’t leave until 3:00 pm, so we should have plenty of time to get lunch as well.
I thought we were getting a jump on the trip when we picked the kids up at 11:30 am. But, that quickly went sideways. Our youngest daughter had a slight medical issue that was going to require a trip to the doctor for some medication. Nancy took her and headed off to the urgent care, hoping that we would be able to make it on time. My wife was in and out of the urgent care in about an hour and a half, but that put us at about 1:15 pm. We still had to get her prescription filled and get to the airport. We loaded everybody in the car and headed to the drugstore. Nancy ran into the drug store and quickly explained our issue. It still took them a little bit to put the prescription together, but they definitely went above and beyond to speed us on our way. We left the drug store around 1:45 pm and drove like crazy to get to Reagan National. We parked in the daily parking and went inside. We found a relatively empty check-in line and checked our bags. Thankfully, we have TSA Precheck, which got us through security in less than 5 minutes. We arrived at the gate just as boarding started. Thankfully, our friends had grabbed us lunch so we got a chance to eat before boarding. They were life savers!
The American Airlines flight to Orlando was uneventful and we were soon on the little monorail from the gate to the main terminal. We headed down to baggage claim to pick our bags up, then headed towards the Hyatt Regency that is located in the airport. It is the same hotel we stayed at during our Star Wars Cruise. The Hyatt Regency is located right next to the Security Checkpoint for Gates 70-129. The lobby/check in for the hotel is actually located on the fourth floor, so we went there with our luggage.
We had originally booked this room using one of the two free nights from our Chase Hyatt card signup bonus for our canceled October cruise. Once Disney notified us that the cruise was canceled, we canceled the room booking and then re-booked the free night for this cruise.
We arrived on the fourth floor and were greeted by the hotel staff, who quickly checked us in. The room itself was the exact same room we had three weeks before! We dropped off our luggage and headed back into the airport for dinner. We were all pretty tired from running around, so we decided to have a quick dinner at the food court. After dinner, we went back to the room for an early bedtime.
We woke up early the next morning because it was time to go and get on the cruise! The Hyatt Regency offers a program where you can spend the night before a cruise at the hotel and they will send your bags in the morning to the ship. You just have to tell them you want to participate in the program and they will give you a letter than explains everything. You then put the Disney Cruise Line luggage tags on your bags and leave them in the room. The hotel will gather your bags and deliver them to the Disney Cruise Line luggage transfer people. We decided against doing this and just handled our bags ourselves.
We met up with our friends in the airport in front of the Hyatt. We went to grab a quick breakfast and coffee at the nearby Starbucks. Here is a great tip that Nancy learned from an airport worker during our last trip. If you are looking at the Hyatt Regency, there is a Starbucks on the left. However, don’t go to that Starbucks if it has a long line. Instead, go down the steps to the left of the store. There is a smaller Starbucks down the stairs that is rarely busy. We never had a wait going to that Starbucks and the upstairs one had a line that was at least 20 minutes long. After a quick breakfast, we headed towards the B side of the airport (if you are looking at the Hyatt Regency, it is towards the right). We headed down the stairs and towards Disney Cruise Ground Transportation.
On the left hand side, you will see the Disney Cruise Line Luggage service. We went outside and the luggage handlers scanned the luggage tags, took our luggage, and loaded it into the truck. We then headed back inside and got into the line for the Disney Cruise Ground Transportation.
Once we got to the front of the line, they checked our cruise documentation, verified our passports, and sent us forward . We were then assigned onto the next available bus. Of course, we had to stop and take pictures of the bus!
We waited a bit until the bus was fully loaded, and then we were off to Port Canaveral. The trip took about 45 minutes and most of that time was filled with various videos that played. Some were advertisements for Disney Cruise Line and some were just cartoons to keep the kids entertained. The bus is equipped with a bathroom, just in case!
After about 45 minutes, we could finally see the Disney Dream! Unfortunately, I somehow failed to take any pictures in the terminal this time. I think it was because we spent most of the time talking with our friends, who had never taken a Disney cruise before. We got off the bus and headed inside. We had to stop for the security screening line, of course. We then headed to the check in line for the cruise. While waiting in the line, we got a health survey form that asked if anyone in our group had a fever or diarrhea within the past 72 hours. We filled the form out and turned it in when we approached the counter. A cast member looked at our cruise documentation, scanned our passports, and then issued us our Key To The World Cards and our Gold lanyards for being Gold Castaway Club Members.
We decided not to even bother checking for a stateroom upgrade on this cruise. Our friends had selected a stateroom that was in the same area as ours, so we decided to stay put. We grabbed a Navigator and settled in until our boarding group was called. Because we had an early port arrival time of 10:30 AM, we were in the third boarding group. Unfortunately, our friends were in boarding group 25. They insisted we go on board and just meet them on board. Soon our number was called and we headed onto the ship!
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Star Wars Cruise – Part 2, Travel
January 13, 2017 finally arrived and it was time to head off for our Star Wars Cruise! Our plan was to pick the kids up from school, let them get changed, then head off to the airport. Once we had the house squared away, a friend drove us from our house to Reagan National Airport. We arrived at the airport really early (as we always do), around 5 PM. We dropped our bags off with American Airlines and headed through security. Our experience with TSA Security is usually fantastic thanks to having TSA PreCheck! Everyone has TSA PreCheck in our family except our youngest daughter (who now has Global Entry).
Since we had arrived at the airport so early, we decided to head to the Admirals Club Lounge, which we have access to thanks to our Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard. The card has a steep fee, but we always stop in the Admirals Club Lounges when we travel. We also take advantage of the free checked bags we received when fly on American Airlines. The Global Entry fee of $100 for our youngest daughter was also paid for with a credit from the Card.
The Admirals Club lounge at Reagan National was extremely crowded on this evening, but we managed to find some seats and settle in for a while. The kids each did the homework they were assigned for the 3 days of school they would miss the next week. We all got some light snacks and drinks and waited around. We had a celebrity sighting when I noticed Richard Kerr of Travel Hacking 101 in the lounge.
As the time got closer for our flight, we headed out of the lounge and down towards our gate. We grabbed dinner and sat to wait until boarding was called. The flight went off without a hitch: it boarded on time, the flight was fine with no issues, and we landed in Orlando in about 2 hours.
Once we landed in Orlando, we had to take the mini monorail from the gates to get to the main terminal, where we could collect our luggage. We then headed back upstairs to the Hyatt Regency. The Hyatt Regency is located right next to the Security Checkpoint for Gates 70-129. The lobby/check in for the hotel is actually located on the fourth floor, so we went there with our luggage.
We had booked this room using one of the two free nights from our Chase Hyatt card signup bonus, so there was no charge for the room. We were greeted warmly by the hotel staff and checked in quickly. Because the elevators were a bit busy, the gentleman who checked us in was kind enough to take us up to our room on the sixth floor in the service elevator so we wouldn’t have to wait. The room was comfortable and had plenty of space, especially considering were were only going to be in it for about 10 hours. At this point, it was about 11 PM at night and we wanted to be up and headed to the Disney Cruise Line Ground Transportation no later than 9 AM.
We woke up the next morning early! It was time to go and get on the cruise! The Hyatt Regency offers a program where you can spend the night before a cruise at the hotel and they will send your bags in the morning to the ship. You received a letter from them and tell them you want to participate in the program. You then put the Disney Cruise Line luggage tags on your bags and leave them in the room. The hotel will gather your bags and deliver them to the Disney Cruise Line luggage transfer people. We decided against doing this and just handled our bags ourselves.
We walked out of the hotel and had a seat on a nearby bench. I went to grab us a quick breakfast and coffee at the nearby Starbucks. Here is a great tip that Nancy learned from an airport worker. If you are looking at the Hyatt Regency, there is a Starbucks on the left. However, don’t go to that Starbucks if it has a long line. Instead, go down the steps to the left of the store. There is a smaller Starbucks down the stairs that is rarely busy. We never had a wait going to that Starbucks and the upstairs one had a line that was at least 20 minutes long. After a quick breakfast, we headed towards the B side of the airport (if you are looking at the Hyatt Regency, it is towards the right). We headed down the stairs and towards Magical Express.
On the left hand side, you will see the Disney Cruise Line Luggage service. We went outside and the luggage handlers scanned the luggage tags, took our luggage, and loaded it into the truck. We then headed back inside and got into the line for the Disney Cruise Line transportation.
Once we got to the front of the line, they checked our cruise documentation, verified our passports, and sent us forward . We were then assigned onto the next available bus. We waited a bit until the bus was fully loaded, and then we were off to Port Canaveral. The trip took about 45 minutes and most of that time was filled with various videos that played. Some were advertisements for Disney Cruise Line and some were just cartoons to keep the kids entertained. There was a bathroom on the bus in case anyone needed it for all the Starbucks coffee that they’d consumed.
After about 45 minutes, we got our first view of the Disney Fantasy. The excitement levels started to build. The bus pulled into the port terminal and we were allowed to get off once the driver had retrieved people’s hand carried luggage from under the bus. We were then directed into the terminal building so we could then pass through the security line. This consist of passing your bags through an x-ray machine and walking through a metal detector.
We then headed to the check in line for the cruise. While waiting in the line, we got a health survey form that asked if anyone in our group had fever or diarrhea within the past 72 hours. We filled the form out and turned it in when we approached the counter. A cast member looked at our cruise documentation, scanned our passports, and then issued us our Key To The World Cards and our gold lanyards for being Gold Castaway Club Members.
We decided not to even bother checking for a stateroom upgrade on this cruise. We thought there might be a chance at moving to a concierge room, but with another cruise coming up, we were already spending a good amount of money. We grabbed a Navigator and settled in until our boarding group was called. Because we had an early port arrival time of 10:30 AM, we were in the second boarding group.
After a short wait (around 11:40 AM), they started calling the boarding numbers. We scanned our Key to the World card and were soon headed towards the ship!
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