Boo to the Halloween on the Highs Seas Crew-completed 04/04/2017 About This Page:

[jenseib]

Hi all!
I am Jen! Welcome to my latest trip report.

For those who don’t know me, welcome! I like to write trip reports and relive my vacations. Sadly it is getting harder and harder for me to do and I am not sure I will be able to continue to do so in the future.
I tend to write slowly, so bear with me if I don’t update every day. Work and life get in the way and take priority for me.

I am a mom of 3 and a grandmother of 1.
My husband is Skip, and he did not go on this trip with us this time. My older 2 children are in their 20’s and do not normally travel with us anymore. My youngest, Claire usually goes with me when possible and she was on this magnificent trip.
Claire is now 12, but 11 on this trip.

When?
This trip took place Oct. 19-30, 2016.

Where?
This trip started at Disney World with a few pre-cruise days. We did not do the parks though, with the exception of the Mickey’s Not so Scary Halloween Party. We then boarded the Disney Fantasy for a week long cruise, ending with a night’s stay at Universal Orlando.

Who?
We had a big group this cruise.
Claire and I, My mom and sister Amanda, My Sister Gail and her family, (Rob, Alexis and Abby), My Aunt Mary and Uncle Geoff, My Aunt Laura and Uncle Jan, My cousin Katie and her family, (Thad, Jude, Luke, & Violet) and Katie’s Mom Vicki.
For those who have read my previous reports…you may realize someone else missing…my Dad. That’s always a story unto itself.

001 by Jenseib, on Flickr

This cruise has been 4 years in the making….Let me fill you in the long story before we get to the fun.
We cruised with a lot of these members back in 2012 on the Disney Dream for 4 nights and had a fantastic time. Everyone wanted to do a repeat, only this time longer. We talked about it here and there and something always stopped us from being able to get us all together again. Finally about a year or so ago we decided that 2016 would be the year!

We had to work around different schedules and school functions and finally decided on the Oct. 22 sail of the Fantasy.
Even though it was decided, we still had some iffy members. Katie, Vicki and I booked in early spring to be sure the prices would not rise anymore. It wasn’t till May before everyone else finally fully committed and put deposits down.

We told my dad the dates and his immediate reply was NO! Now if you have read some of my other reports, my dad ALWAYS says no immediately without ever thinking it through. For some reason he thinks if he says he is not going then my mom will stay home. It has NEVER happened and I don’t know why he does this. We have had a couple of trips where dad has said he is not going right up to the very last minute and then decides he wants to come. Which means we have to rearrange rooms, reservations, etc. It’s a HUGE pain and he has no clue what it involves because he does no planning at all and just joins thinking everything is fine.
We told my dad from day 1 that a cruise is different than a hotel room and you just can’t decide to come along at the last minute. With cruising they can only add you to a room if they are not at capacity and if the lifeboat station in that room’s area has room as well. Just because a room can hold 4 does not mean you can always have 4 in that room.
He was adamant he could not come as he would be busy with work in Oct (he has a lawn care business) and there was no way he could get away.
Skip also said he could not come because of his farm duties at the time.

Ok, so we are all set right?
Mom said she would room with Claire and I since Dad wasn’t coming along. And since she was going to be added to our room, she said she would pay the extra to get a bigger room. So I made that change.
Gail’s family was all set. Aunt Mary and Geoff got a connecting room to Gail. Katie had 2 of her kids in her room with a connecting room to Vicki, with her son Luke rooming with his Grandma.

Perfect!

My sister Amanda knew we were going, but she didn’t have enough vacation time to take off, so she said right away she would not come. Also, on the last cruise, she and my Aunt Laura basically made fun of us all doing a Disney cruise. I think after we got home, Amanda had kind of wished she had gone back then. Amanda also has found out over the past few years she has a lot of food allergies and was worried they could not accommodate her even though I told her they could.

Fast forward to mid-June.
I get a call from Aunt Laura that says she would like to come on the cruise and she would like to take Amanda as her guest. I talk back and forth between the 2 of them and we finally find a room that works for them and we book them.

Ok ,that worked out fine and it would be nice to have Amanda joining us so she could have fun with the nieces.

Planning goes on for all of us and we make our excursions and all that fun stuff.

Flights! Holy cow. I have never seen them so high. I finally book Claire, Mom and I to arrive on Oct. 20. I keep watching the return flights but they are just so high. I now think that we may need to spend a night after the cruise because Sunday flights are much cheaper than Sat. flights for us. I would rather pay for a hotel room and stay longer than put that money into air. I’ll keep watching.

Now we are at mid-August. Aunt Laura sends me a text while I am grocery shopping. She says to call her as her husband Jan now wants to come and we will need to switch rooms around. Holy cow! I text her back that I will call her when I get home and do so.
Now we need to move Amanda and Aunt Laura says we can put my Mom in the room with her so that there is 2 in that room, and also give Claire and I a little more space. Because we were past the paid in full mark it took quite some time moving everyone to where they needed to be and getting names switched, etc. Then the excursions all couldn’t be carried over so I had to go back in and fix as much as I could and make notes where we had to check for openings once on the ship. Let’s just say that was one LONG day!

OK… NO more changes allowed!

Flights! I have now found out that Claire does not have school on the 19 and only a half day on the 20th. Let’s go a day early! I rebook the flight and get a $40 credit for each of us to use for our return.
I keep watching and watching for our return flight to go down and it doesn’t. Finally one day I catch the Sunday flight at the lowest I have seen it. I jumped right on it and I am so glad. It went up higher and higher after that.
Our vacation is now Oct. 19- Oct. 30. The rest of the family is coming down on the 21 and returning on the 29th.
We are all staying at Coronado Springs resort for the pre-cruise portion and then Claire, Mom and I will stay in a Cabana Bay Suite at Universal our last night before flying home. We have now also decided to add the Blue Man Group show that evening as well.

Now we are into late Sept. Abby’s birthday party was the last weekend of the month. We are having a nice time celebrating her 7th birthday and we are all talking about the cruise as well since we are just a few weeks away now. Dad now says he wants to come. We have told him over and over that after the paid in full date there was no adding him. We had to make a deadline and we had to follow through with it.
We tell him we don’t know if it can be done. He would not be flying down with us as that would make him away from work too long, so we look at the flights the rest of the family has. It was close to $700 now for him to fly. He will not fly on his own, so any other options that might possibly be cheaper could not even be looked at.
I called to see how much it would be to add him to Mom and Amanda’s room and it was over 1200. On top of that we would have to add him to excursions and pre-night stays.
It was going to easily be over $2000 to add him. On top of that, Amanda did not want him to stay in the room with her. I don’t blame her either. He snores for one, which makes it hard to sleep. And he takes over the room. He is king of the remote,…..you get the picture. I’ve been there a few times now and he has been added to my room when I was rooming with mom and I had said from day 1 of this planning that never again would that happen.

We looked at getting Amanda yet another room and the cost was just going to be too much.
Mom asked him if he had any money saved to put towards adding him and he said no and she told him it just wasn’t going to work. She was not about to dish out $2000 plus just a few weeks before we left. She said had he wanted to go in the first place then she could have budgeted for him to join us, but at this point in time she didn’t have him in the budget now and she knows him. He brings $100 on vacation and thinks that will cover every expense needed. LOL!

That’s it! No changes will be made now. Everyone must make peace with the choices they have made!

Let the final countdown begin!

Oh wait…What is this email from school? We are sorry to say that we WILL be having school on Oct. 19th due to a scheduling error. We will take off Oct. 26th instead.
Yeah…that email came to me on Oct.15. You have got to be kidding me? We planned leaving the 19th because Claire didn’t have school that day! Well in the end she was still missing the same amount of days, but it was pretty annoying that they couldn’t get that figured out till just a few days before the actual date.

Well now it’s time to leave…..Did we get all the kinks out before arriving? Let’s hope so! Join me in this fabulous vacation as I relive the ups and downs with my Boo to You Halloween Crew!

[elisa1006]

I always enjoy the antics of your family. What a group! And what an ordeal! Glad you got it all worked out. Looking forward to more.

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[jandsdennis]

Looks like there were lots of hoops to jump thru. Glad that it got all situated.

[chezp]

Great start - wow, that is a huge group!

[Big Baloo]

You are a Rockstar, getting that all of that organized! I hope you family realizes how hard you work on these trips.

[jenseib]

Originally Posted by elisa1006

I always enjoy the antics of your family. What a group! And what an ordeal! Glad you got it all worked out. Looking forward to more.

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Thanks for joining in! We really did have such a good time. I wish we could afford to do this several times a year.

Originally Posted by jandsdennis

Looks like there were lots of hoops to jump thru. Glad that it got all situated.

Yes there was! It took some long hours on some days. Thanks for joining

Originally Posted by chezp

Great start - wow, that is a huge group!

It was, but it was really fun once we got everything situated and on the ship! Thanks for joining in.

Originally Posted by Big Baloo

You are a Rockstar, getting that all of that organized! I hope you family realizes how hard you work on these trips.

Hahaha. It was time consuming, thats for sure. I do think they know I worked a lot of hours on this one. Glad you could make it here!

[xwewhisper]

That's so impressive that you got that all worked out!!


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[manticorjenn]

Sounds like a lot of work that paid off for a wonderful adventure. Can't wait to hear all about it.

[MayraLR]

Wow, you had to do a lot a rearranging. By now, I've come to expect your Dad wanting to go last minute.

[SuperDave]

Great start and that is such a big group you have! Hope having a group this size works out on the trip as more involved and can make planning a bit difficult at times.

[benchley]

Gosh, I thought my family holidays were comicated. You've beaten me hands down on that one��

[jenseib]

Originally Posted by xwewhisper

That's so impressive that you got that all worked out!!


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I knew I would eventually get it all settled but it is time consuming.

Originally Posted by manticorjenn

Sounds like a lot of work that paid off for a wonderful adventure. Can't wait to hear all about it.

It was, but it did pay off and we had a very nice time.

Originally Posted by MayraLR

Wow, you had to do a lot a rearranging. By now, I've come to expect your Dad wanting to go last minute.

Yep! I really hope he now realizes it can't always happen.

Originally Posted by SuperDave

Great start and that is such a big group you have! Hope having a group this size works out on the trip as more involved and can make planning a bit difficult at times.

I was constantly making notes and adjusting them so I wouldn't forget who wanted what and when. LOL. I am glad too as when I made a planner for all of us it was so much easier.

Originally Posted by benchley

Gosh, I thought my family holidays were comicated. You've beaten me hands down on that one��

LOL! We have a lot of strong willed people in my family and all of us are take charge kind of people. Especially my sister Amanda. She would question things like this was my first rodeo! Luckily I'm not shy and let her know I know much more about this than she does.

[jenseib]

Oct. 19, 2016, Wednesday


The day has arrived! Finally all this planning was going to pay off!
I typically like to fly on Southwest and I typically will drive to Columbus and fly out of there as they offer direct flights and the prices are usually better. Detroit is our other option (and where most of the rest of the family flew out of) but they don’t usually have direct on Southwest. I either fly on points or am trying to accumulate more points, so SW is who I usually look at first.

Mom decided we would take her car down as it has more space than mine. We were also going to do something different this trip. We were going to park at the airport. Since Amanda, Laura and Jan (who all live in Columbus) were all coming too, they were finishing up with work and errands this week before they flew down on Friday, so it was hard to arrange them to take us to the airport. They have several lots at the airport and I think the one we decided to park in was only going to be $5 a day, which I didn’t think was bad at all.

Mom arrived bright and early and we loaded up her car. I am pretty good about squeezing things in and after playing with it a bit we got it all in the trunk and back seat and still a little bit of room for Claire to sit too. LOL.

arrival1 by Jenseib, on Flickr

depart1 by Jenseib, on Flickr

Mom had me do the driving so we headed off. Not too long after we got on the expressway we saw this beauty.

arrival2 by Jenseib, on Flickr

I had Claire take a picture, which it is hard to tell, but that is a camouflage car. (I almost didn’t see it. Hahahaha). Yeah, I am not sure why anyone would want one of those, but there it was.

We always tease Claire when we see an ugly car that that is what we will be getting her when she turns 16. She doesn’t think it’s so funny!

We always stop at a McDonalds that is about at the halfway point and use the bathroom and usually get a diet coke or something. I think we got breakfast food today though as we were hungry!

I had my phone set to direct me to the airport as usually I am driving to my sisters or Aunts house. I have never actually driven to the airport myself before. Luckily it wasn’t too hard.

We pulled up and emptied our suitcases out and checked in at the curb. I sent my carryon with Claire and I took off in the car to find the green lot. I followed the signs and then they just kind of disappeared. I ended up going to a parking lot of some business and turned around to see if I could find it again and I did. I could see how I missed it. The sign was right by the overpass and from the direction I had been coming from the overpass blocked it pretty much.

I took my ticket and found a spot, but then I forgot to take a picture of the spot, which made it a little bit harder to find when I came back 1 ½ weeks later. LOL.
A shuttle had been pulling right up as I got out of the car so I think that is why I was in such a hurry and didn’t take a picture of the area.

I got a text from Claire asking where I was. I let her know I was on the shuttle and would be there soon. Honestly I didn’t even think I was gone very long yet.

Now if you read my Feb. trip reports, you heard me rave about my new Samantha Brown luggage. I LOVE this stuff. In Feb I had purchased and teal ombre colored carryon and a tweed maroon 28 Inch spinner suitcase. Since then I had purchased a yellow carry on which we checked as a 3rd bag for Claire and I and also the 28 inch spinner in the teal ombre.

I got on the shuttle and noticed the same teal set sitting on the shelf and I asked who had the Samantha Brown luggage. A lady piped up it was hers and I told her how I had the same set and we talked luggage and Samantha Brown the whole ride to the airport. She loves it as much as I do.

Once back at the airport, both Mom and Claire said I have been gone forever. I wasn’t, but I suppose if you had to wait on someone the clock seems to tick slower.

We made our way towards security then. This summer I had applied and was approved for Global Entry. This ROCKS! I got to use it for the first time in July/Aug when I flew to Jamaica. Going through the fast security lines are so much nicer and coming through customs was a breeze too. For those who don’t know, Global Entry also includes TSA pre-check and kids 12 and under can come through that line with you. Since I had that, I told my mom that she may want to look into at least getting TSA pre-check and that that office was actually located right by her office, so she did that.

Now Columbus doesn’t typically have very long lines for security, but coming back…..well you all know how awful Orlando can be.
There was a little bit of a line today, though nothing compared to some other places. We got through quickly and of course part of the perk is to not have to take off shoes and all that good stuff.

We found our way to the gate, again Columbus isn’t very big, so they really don’t have very many gates, and we settled down right next to a spot where we could plug in electronics. Claire and I headed to Starbucks and got Strawberry Frappuccino’s and a couple of pastries to snack on. Mom went off and got a treat then after we got back.
As it got closer to boarding time we all used the bathroom and then it was time to line up.

We were in the A’s, which is always a good thing and we boarded the plane and found a nice row and I was in charge of lifting the carry ons into the overhead bin.
This is where things were a little strange. I start putting our stuff in and the lady in the row in front of us says something about needing room for her other bag. She has her stuff all sideways across the whole bin. I say, oh, well the bags are not in right, let me fix it and then there is plenty of room for all of us. I just thought at the time she didn’t know how to load them. She kind of got panicky but I was whipping my bags up there and I think she realized I wasn’t stopping. There was still plenty of room for 1 and possibly even 2 bags up there.
We get seated and then someone goes to the inside seat in her row. She tells him the seat next to her is taken, but the inside is ok. He goes to put his bag up and she complains about it and he goes across the aisle to put his bag up, which I now realize her daughter was sitting in that row saving 2 seats there as well. She mentions that they are saving overhead space there too. I mention if she loads the bag right then there is room and she just keeps saying no. Well the guy put his bag in there anyways.
I then start saying loudly to my mom…”You know….you can’t really save seats on Southwest and for sure you can’t save overhead space.” LOL. I think this lady was clueless though.

So the plane loads and she is saving those precious 3 other seats and as people come by and ask to sit she says no. She also makes a big deal that she has a cast on her leg. I do feel bad for her for that, but I don’t think anyone else cared.
She goes to the over heads and starts to try and move luggage but a flight attendant stops her.

Finally her friend and another younger girl boards….They were the 2nd to last people to board. So she had been holding these seats the WHOLE time almost everyone on this flight were boarding. She points them to the row her daughter is saving and they proceed to try and cram their bags in and banging away. A flight attendant takes one bag towards the back. Hahaha.

So she has saved this 3rd extra seat, the one next to her for NO ONE. She just wanted an empty seat next to her. The flight is not 100% full….I think the flight attendant said something like 2 or 3 seats would be open. There are people towards the back that are still looking for seats so the flight attendant hollers that there is a seat up here. This lady is going NO ! NO! And the flight attendant ignores her and the person comes to sit there. Of course then this lady makes a big deal that she has to get up with her broken leg. My mom and I just gave each other smiles. What a pain in the butt!

arrival3 by Jenseib, on Flickr

We are now finally loaded and ready to take off……And the guy in front of me puts his seat in recline as we are on the runway. Seriously!!!!! How does he not know you can’t do that? And he never puts it upright till we are about to land in Orlando.
I have a pet peeve of reclined seats to begin with. I know they don’t go back far, but they are so annoying. I was working on my laptop and that makes it just that much harder to do anything when the seat is reclined. And since he was such a jerk as to put it back during take-off I was not careful with the bumping and jerking I did on the seat as I made it work for my laptop to be seen by me.

Other than the idiots in the row in front of me, the flight was fine.

arrival4 by Jenseib, on Flickr

As we were coming into Orlando I was trying to see if I could see the cruise port. I was pretty sure I saw Kennedy Space Center at one point but I could never actually see the port.

arrival5 by Jenseib, on Flickr

arrival6 by Jenseib, on Flickr

arrival7 by Jenseib, on Flickr

arrival8 by Jenseib, on Flickr

And we have made it!!!! Yay!!!!!!

We make it off the plane, use the bathroom and take the fake monorail over and make our way towards Magical Express. We first make a stop outside to check out the weather, which was fabulous and then off to get checked in for our bus.

arrival9 by Jenseib, on Flickr

arrival10 by Jenseib, on Flickr

arrival11 by Jenseib, on Flickr

arrival12 by Jenseib, on Flickr

We ended up waiting something like 20 minutes before we were called to board. I was getting impatient but trying to stay calm. I always just want to hurry up and get there!

arrival13 by Jenseib, on Flickr

dme1 by Jenseib, on Flickr

dme2 by Jenseib, on Flickr

dme3 by Jenseib, on Flickr

dme4 by Jenseib, on Flickr

Finally our line is called and we board the bus and get some seats.

dme5 by Jenseib, on Flickr

And off we go!!!

arrival14 by Jenseib, on Flickr

The monorail is being redone and I took some pictures of it on our way.

dme6 by Jenseib, on Flickr

dme7 by Jenseib, on Flickr

Kind of neat to see a guy just walking down it.

dme8 by Jenseib, on Flickr

[SuperDave]

Nice start to your trip and glad the flight went ok with the exception of that one lady with the cast!

[chezp]

Oh my goodness, that woman was really something - how rude! And if I'm working on a laptop, I hear you about reclining seats. Usually that doesn't bother me, but with a laptop, it is a pain!