Why About When

I'm going to pretend that the blog is still being visited on an occasional basis, and also that someone has submitted a question about the vacation. ;) I've been talking with Brenda about the proposed vacation date lately, and I thought I would talk about why that date is ideal.

First, why leave on a Sunday and return on a Thursday eleven days later? Room rates are double their usual rates on Friday and Saturday nights, so while it kind of sucks that we don't take advantage of Saturday, it also provides a typically non-work, non-school day to pack and prepare. Sunday will be primarily a travel day, as it will likely be around 3:00-4:00 p.m. when we arrive at our resort. There will be time to unpack, have dinner, relax and explore. Monday through Saturday will provide 6 full days to visit the parks, which is ideal. Sunday is a transition day; we'll leave the resort around 10:00-11:00 a.m. and be aboard the cruise ship around 12:00 noon. We'll leave the ship on Thursday morning to catch our plane, and perhaps be home by dinner.

Second, why December 2-13? I've mentioned previously that crowds at Disney will be low with the U.S. Thanksgiving having ended 1½ weeks earlier. In addition, prices are very low, crowds are low (but the parks will be far from empty), weather is historically beautiful, and the threat of hurricanes (primarily a cruise issue) is virtually nil. As a bonus, Christmas decorations will be on display everywhere, and there are several really cool Christmas events, including a candlelight processional with a choir and the reading of the Christmas story, and a massive spectacle of over 5,000,000 Christmas lights in an area of one of the parks. Considerable research has found this time of the year to be optimal for all of the above-mentioned reasons.

Third, none of this is final. Nothing is certain at this point, and there is still much time to consider and discuss all aspects of the vacation. Roughly one year before the trip, I will plan a get-together for everyone in order to give a presentation covering all aspects of the trip, and to discuss and hopefully finalize the most important plans.

Feel free to discuss this issue in the comments.