July 19, 20241 yr 5 hours ago, HazletonEagle said: We are going in march, and in just a few days Disney+ is gone and they are already on to a new system called Lightning Lane Multi-Pass. Sounds like they've made some improvements, like you can book some Lightning Lanes in advance of your trip, but I'm sure there were trade-offs and I'm not sure what else they changed.
July 19, 20241 yr 1 minute ago, The_Omega said: Sounds like they've made some improvements, like you can book some Lightning Lanes in advance of your trip, but I'm sure there were trade-offs and I'm not sure what else they changed. You can now book 7 days in advance for your entire trip. So even though other park days may be more than 7 days out, as long as you are 7 days away from going you can book them for each park day all at once. Which is nice. If thats not explained clearly, basically- it works the same as booking your dining. You can do it all on the same day, 90 days before you arrive. Now you can book 3 at once. No more booking 1, and then having to wait 90 minutes or until you use the first one to book another. However, that 90 minute cool down period is gone altogether. You have to use one of your multipasses in order to book another. Theyve also put rides in to tiers. You can book 3 multipasses but only 1 of them can be a tier 1 ride. (This is only at the beginning. After your first multipass is used, you can book a ride from any tier. The app will be smarter now and wont suggest a ride time that is going to conflict if you have a meal reservation. Unfortunately there are a few rides that are not included now, like the Avatar ride for example, youd actually have to purchase a separate lightning lane pass for that. Its not going to be included in the miltipass program. That is something we haven't done, and wont be doing. We will pay for the multipass program, but we arent also going to be paying extra for individual rides on top of that.
July 19, 20241 yr 16 minutes ago, Agent23 said: Today is a travel day from hell. I hope to never re-live this day. Were you one of the people admonished by the Spirit airlines lady?
July 20, 20241 yr Author 5 hours ago, HazletonEagle said: You can now book 7 days in advance for your entire trip. So even though other park days may be more than 7 days out, as long as you are 7 days away from going you can book them for each park day all at once. Which is nice. If thats not explained clearly, basically- it works the same as booking your dining. You can do it all on the same day, 90 days before you arrive. Now you can book 3 at once. No more booking 1, and then having to wait 90 minutes or until you use the first one to book another. However, that 90 minute cool down period is gone altogether. You have to use one of your multipasses in order to book another. Theyve also put rides in to tiers. You can book 3 multipasses but only 1 of them can be a tier 1 ride. (This is only at the beginning. After your first multipass is used, you can book a ride from any tier. The app will be smarter now and wont suggest a ride time that is going to conflict if you have a meal reservation. Unfortunately there are a few rides that are not included now, like the Avatar ride for example, youd actually have to purchase a separate lightning lane pass for that. It’s not going to be included in the miltipass program. That is something we haven't done, and wont be doing. We will pay for the multipass program, but we arent also going to be paying extra for individual rides on top of that. I *get* the Disney appeal and hype. And some vacations are meant to be more experiential than vacation/relaxation. But damn…sometimes I feel like it took less thought and energy to coordinate invading Normandy than getting on my 5 favorite Disney rides. When I went to Disney in May, we traveled with a buddy of mine who was in military intelligence for several years. After an exhausting park day at 95 degrees, we sent a picture of ourselves to a mutual friend who wasn’t familiar with his military service. He responded "you pansies look like you just got back from Fallujah.” My buddy responded that he did 2 tours in Fallujah and Disney was hotter, more exhausting, and more stressful.
July 20, 20241 yr 20 minutes ago, eagle45 said: I *get* the Disney appeal and hype. And some vacations are meant to be more experiential than vacation/relaxation. But damn…sometimes I feel like it took less thought and energy to coordinate invading Normandy than getting on my 5 favorite Disney rides. Its wild. My wife and I never expected to like it. Like why would anyone enjoy a trip so planned, meal times each day, even specific times for specific rides. It sounds so stupid, and cumbersome to go through. But when we were there about 2 years ago, It was on night 3 back in our hotel room after our 2nd park day, I realized and said out loud, "I think we are having a ton of fun! I could actually see us coming back here one day." Even still, we didn't imagine we would be back so soon. But my mom said many times this was a bucket list thing to do- to go to Disney with the kids. So I said I wanted to do this with my parents before they get too old to walk around the parks. The lightning pass system sounds like a lot, but its fairly easy once you're doing it. You get in the groove and it almost adds a whole new thrill to the experience. The thrill of the hunt. You want to be right on the app the minute you can book another ride to see what's available, and try to snag it before anyone else does. It really does help you get on more of the popular rides. And aside from the lightning pass system, the whole trip in general, all the crazy planning so far ahead, different aspects of the trip getting booked at different times, it all seems a lot less daunting once you've done it once before. Now after this, Im sure we will be done with disney for quite a while. But we may check out Universal in about 5 years or so when our kids are a little older.
July 20, 20241 yr What do you guys think is the minimum time one can spend in Hawaii and still do it justice- feel like you've seen a good bit of its highlights and have adequate beach time?
July 20, 20241 yr 8 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said: What do you guys think is the minimum time one can spend in Hawaii and still do it justice- feel like you've seen a good bit of its highlights and have adequate beach time? I've done the Cayman Islands and Puerto Rico in 48 hours: flying in on a Monday mid-day and flying out Wednesday afternoon (basically when the same flight in turned around and headed out). Think of each island like a Caribbean island, and you can do most things on one island in 48 hours if you cram it in. So I think 72 hours is a realistic minimum to get basically everything in that you want to do.
July 20, 20241 yr If anyone has suggestions for Seattle and Victoria, BC, I'm still interested in seeing them.
July 20, 20241 yr 8 minutes ago, xzmattzx said: I've done the Cayman Islands and Puerto Rico in 48 hours: flying in on a Monday mid-day and flying out Wednesday afternoon (basically when the same flight in turned around and headed out). Think of each island like a Caribbean island, and you can do most things on one island in 48 hours if you cram it in. So I think 72 hours is a realistic minimum to get basically everything in that you want to do. My wife is going to spend 4 nights in Aruba for her 40th bday. Mine is about 2 years away so Im just brainstorming some ideas to eventually look in to. It seems like people spend some time in Hawii, island hopping and trying to hit all of the activities and sights each island offers. A couple nights here, a couple nights there... Comparatively, that trip can become exponentially more expensive than her Aruba trip. But Im wondering if it can be worthwhile to just spend 4-5 nights on one of the islands. Or 2 nights at one and 3 at another.. Would that feel fulfilling, or if we would regret not doing/seeing more while we are there and spending more time... One factor is time zones heading there from the east coast. Maybe by the time we are acclimating, its about time to come back home already. Guess its something to think about though.
July 20, 20241 yr 3 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said: My wife is going to spend 4 nights in Aruba for her 40th bday. Mine is about 2 years away so Im just brainstorming some ideas to eventually look in to. It seems like people spend some time in Hawii, island hopping and trying to hit all of the activities and sights each island offers. A couple nights here, a couple nights there... Comparatively, that trip can become exponentially more expensive than her Aruba trip. But Im wondering if it can be worthwhile to just spend 4-5 nights on one of the islands. Or 2 nights at one and 3 at another.. Would that feel fulfilling, or if we would regret not doing/seeing more while we are there and spending more time... One factor is time zones heading there from the east coast. Maybe by the time we are acclimating, its about time to come back home already. Guess its something to think about though. What's your list of things that you really want to do? I would build an itinerary to figure out a minimum. If you don't even know what you want to see, then you don't know what the minimum is. I personally can pack in just about everything essential in a confined area like a Caribbean island in 3 full days. Any restaurants and bars that you want to visit can be done in the evening when the sun has gone down (or at the least as an hour's rest for lunch or between activities. Then seeing natural places or historic sites during the day, particularly the morning, utilizes that time. You can get 3-4 hours of beach time in the afternoon for one or two days. With some good planning and mapping things out and staying in a centralized location, particularly within walking distance of a couple of your plans, you can get a lot in in a little time.
July 20, 20241 yr Just now, xzmattzx said: What's your list of things that you really want to do? I would build an itinerary to figure out a minimum. If you don't even know what you want to see, then you don't know what the minimum is. I personally can pack in just about everything essential in a confined area like a Caribbean island in 3 full days. Any restaurants and bars that you want to visit can be done in the evening when the sun has gone down (or at the least as an hour's rest for lunch or between activities. Then seeing natural places or historic sites during the day, particularly the morning, utilizes that time. You can get 3-4 hours of beach time in the afternoon for one or two days. With some good planning and mapping things out and staying in a centralized location, particularly within walking distance of a couple of your plans, you can get a lot in in a little time. Good tips. I really dont know. I dont know anyone thats ever gone. Well, my parents for their honeymoon a gazillion years ago...I dont think theyd be much help at this point. Itll take a lot of research, but I have the time.
July 20, 20241 yr 23 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said: Good tips. I really dont know. I dont know anyone thats ever gone. Well, my parents for their honeymoon a gazillion years ago...I dont think theyd be much help at this point. Itll take a lot of research, but I have the time. Personally, I would decide if you want to do one island or much of the state. It's not really that much different than visiting one place and deciding if you want to expand on where you go and what you see; you're deciding if it's a city/local trip, or a regional trip. Are you going to Phoenix and want to see the Grand Canyon and Petrified Forest? Are you going to San Francisco and also want to see Berkeley and Napa Valley and Yosemite? Are you going to Miami and also want to see the Florida Keys and the Everglades? Are you going to Los Angles and also want to get in Disneyland and San Diego and Palm Springs? If it's a local trip to just one island, your minimum is just 3 days (in my opinion), and if it's 3 islands or more, becoming a more regional trip, you're looking at 7-8 days minimum. If it were me, I would look at your aggregate airfare to see if it's worth going to more than one island. What is airfare from Philadelphia or Newark (assuming Hazleton) to Honolulu (the cheapest destination, I bet) right now? Then, how much is airfare from Honolulu to Maui, or Kona, or Hilo, or Kauai? If airfare between islands is almost as much as your airfare to Hawaii from home, then it seems one island is enough, plus going back again for a second trip is almost the same as one long trip. On the other hand, if inter-island travel is pretty cheap, then getting in a second island in the same trip would be worthwhile. You can even approach the trip the other way around: imagine you want to go twice and see everything, but check to see if you can squeeze it all in in one trip. If you can, do it. If you can't or it would not be cost-effective, limit yourself for this first trip, and plan on going again a few years later (or just take what you can get with the one trip). Just like renting a car or taking the train to some place a few hours away, multiple destinations are both time and money, so the inter-island travel will tell you pretty quickly how many islands to stick with for one trip. As an example, I'm going to Seattle for a Phillies game or two in a couple weeks. I'll be there 5 days, so for me that's enough to make it a regional trip. I don't have everything planned, but I can get a lot in in the region in that time. I'll have three days in Seattle, then a day trip to Victoria, BC, because the ferry is cheap enough to me where going while I'm there is more cost-effective than flying out that way in a second trip, and then I'm taking a day to see Mount Rainier N.P. and see Olympia and the state capitol for a day. I won't see everything in Victoria or Mount Rainier N.P., but I think I can see enough in a day for each place to make it a reasonable visit. In the case with Victoria, I really just want to say that I've been there, so all I really want to see and do it see the provincial capital building, Downtown, Chinatown, and go for a quick swim at the nearest beach to all of these. I can get all of this done in an afternoon and make it a good day trip, partly because all of it is within a confined area. If there was something so important further out in Victoria or way out on Vancouver Island that was worth more than a day, I would instead consider Victoria as a second trip.
July 20, 20241 yr 4 hours ago, HazletonEagle said: Were you one of the people admonished by the Spirit airlines lady? No, I’m a Delta guy. but I currently wait hoping they board our plane within the next 10 minutes. It’s going on midnight eastern and I arrived to the airport at 7am central. Was supposed to land at destination 255p eastern. pretty sure rental will be closed and I’ll be stuck since family will probably all be asleep and I don’t even know if they have Ubers in semi-rural upstate Ny
July 20, 20241 yr 6 hours ago, Agent23 said: No, I’m a Delta guy. but I currently wait hoping they board our plane within the next 10 minutes. It’s going on midnight eastern and I arrived to the airport at 7am central. Was supposed to land at destination 255p eastern. pretty sure rental will be closed and I’ll be stuck since family will probably all be asleep and I don’t even know if they have Ubers in semi-rural upstate Ny Have you considered threatening an airline worker so you can spend the night in a jail cell with a bed?
July 20, 20241 yr 3 hours ago, HazletonEagle said: Have you considered threatening an airline worker so you can spend the night in a jail cell with a bed? Nah I know how to stand for long hours
July 20, 20241 yr 15 hours ago, Agent23 said: Today is a travel day from hell. I hope to never re-live this day. How long was your delay in the end?
July 20, 20241 yr I don't think I posted anything from the Feb trip. Unfortunately the weather was complete balls in California when we landed and for most of the time we were there SB stuff in Vegas was pretty cool
July 20, 20241 yr There was some awful weather getting into NYC so delayed flights and snow when we landed. A day trip to Philly and went to check out a Sixers game We ended up on the big screen at the game Back to NYC for a few more days
July 20, 20241 yr More crap weather delayed multiple flights from NYC to Nashville and we got there a lot later than anticipated. We had like a day and a half so tried to make the most of it From Nashville to some warmer weather in Miami for a few days
July 20, 20241 yr Mum left and I spent a few days in Chicago From there I went back to California and did Disney and Universal I also spent a day f'ing around in LA and checked out a Hip Hop Exhibit and another comedy show
July 20, 20241 yr Mum enjoyed it so the trip was worth it, I had been to a bunch of the places before but she had never been. It was good in a way because I was familiar with certain spots and had an idea of how long it would take us to do certain things. Only negatives were the weather causing havoc with our flights and I had nausea from the day I boarded our flight in Australia and it gradually got worse through to the trip. It became a bit of a slog towards the end and I was contemplating cancelling the last week where I was on my own and just heading home. I spent about a month when I get home trying a bunch of different meds the doc had told me to take and it eventually cleared. What a pain in the D that was.
July 20, 20241 yr 19 hours ago, HazletonEagle said: You can now book 7 days in advance for your entire trip. So even though other park days may be more than 7 days out, as long as you are 7 days away from going you can book them for each park day all at once. Which is nice. If thats not explained clearly, basically- it works the same as booking your dining. You can do it all on the same day, 90 days before you arrive. Now you can book 3 at once. No more booking 1, and then having to wait 90 minutes or until you use the first one to book another. However, that 90 minute cool down period is gone altogether. You have to use one of your multipasses in order to book another. Theyve also put rides in to tiers. You can book 3 multipasses but only 1 of them can be a tier 1 ride. (This is only at the beginning. After your first multipass is used, you can book a ride from any tier. The app will be smarter now and wont suggest a ride time that is going to conflict if you have a meal reservation. Unfortunately there are a few rides that are not included now, like the Avatar ride for example, youd actually have to purchase a separate lightning lane pass for that. Its not going to be included in the miltipass program. That is something we haven't done, and wont be doing. We will pay for the multipass program, but we arent also going to be paying extra for individual rides on top of that. The lines for the Individual Lightning Lane rides tend to drop off later in the day. We walked right on to Rise of the Resistance at about 8:10pm, and the standby line for the Avatar ride was down to about 25 minutes with around an hour until the park closed.
July 20, 20241 yr 6 minutes ago, The_Omega said: The lines for the Individual Lightning Lane rides tend to drop off later in the day. We walked right on to Rise of the Resistance at about 8:10pm, and the standby line for the Avatar ride was down to about 25 minutes with around an hour until the park closed. The Avatar ride is one of the best I have ever been on. I was lucky that I managed to get through pretty quickly, once we had gone through there must have been some hiccup and they asked the group I was in if we wanted to go again. They gave us physical fast pass cards and we could bypass the 90 minute wait time by about an hour
July 20, 20241 yr 45 minutes ago, Mat said: The Avatar ride is one of the best I have ever been on. I was lucky that I managed to get through pretty quickly, once we had gone through there must have been some hiccup and they asked the group I was in if we wanted to go again. They gave us physical fast pass cards and we could bypass the 90 minute wait time by about an hour Nice. They were adamant at the Florida parks, absolutely no re-rides!
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