88 Miles of Magic-updated 02/04/2014 About This Page:

[PrincessSharon]

88 Miles of Magic
October 30 – November 10, 2012

Here I am again, writing a TR with a title that needs an explanation! When you’ve written as many TRs as I have over the years, you need to start getting creative with the titles! (Just out of curiosity, I just checked – I’ve written 46 () TRs since joining PassPorter. And every one is complete! Ouch! I just injured myself whilst patting myself on the back. )

Anyway! The explanation for this crazy title is fairly simple. The Magic part is obvious. It’s a Disney trip, and those are full of magic, and I spent a whole lotta time with some of my favorite people on Earth, also magical. We also were able to test out the new Magic Bands. And! I sailed on a Disney cruise. The Magic, in fact.

The 88 miles? Well, that’s how much I walked during this 12-day trip! The company I work for participates in a wellness program and I wear a pedometer every day. You earn points each day, and the more steps per day you take, the more points you earn. At the end of each quarter, my company gives out prizes. The higher level you reach, the bigger the prize you get. There are 10-20 winners at each level. The quarter ended October 31, and it was my goal to make it to level 4. I really wanted to win a prize this quarter. Last quarter, the first quarter we participated, I didn’t win, but 11 of the people in my department won at some level. How many people are in my department? If you said 12, you’re wrong! Actually, there are 13 of us.

So while at Disney, our whole group would keep tabs on my step count each day. And guess what?! I won! I actually won the level 3 prize, because I didn’t upload my steps in time to advance to level 4 before the quarter ended, but I did walk enough steps to make level 4 (5 is the highest level). But I’ll take the $125 Apple gift card (level 4 prize is a $175 Amazon.com gift card – y’all know I wanted that one! – maybe I can win that one this quarter ).

With that out of the way, we can talk about the trip now. I decided in January that I wanted to take another Disney cruise this year. I knew I wanted to visit Key West as a port, so I checked the Disney Cruise Line website and found a cruise in November that would visit Key West. I called my travel agent Megan (mcc0313) and booked it. It happened to be leaving from Miami rather than Port Canaveral, but I figured I still needed to visit WDW, so I could just make the drive from WDW to Miami.

I had to decide whether to visit WDW pre or post cruise. I knew Cheryl (chezp) and Mark were planning a trip for the fall, so I sent her a PM to find out what her dates were. When she let me know, it was decided that I’d visit WDW pre-cruise so we could spend time together. She also let me know that Bob & Larry (and several of their friends) were planning to be at WDW for the same time period! Sweet.

It was also within the 11-month window for DVC, so I quickly booked a studio at BWV, hoping to be able to change to the BC at the 7-month mark. I enjoy the BWV a lot, but I hadn’t stayed at the BC in a while, and I knew Cheryl and Mark would be there for part of the time. I also booked a flight to Orlando. I booked only one way, because I wasn’t sure from where (or even when) I would be returning home.

I immediately sent out an email to my besties, Jill (Jillybean), Eileen (Caldercup) and Karen (zacksmom_1993) inviting them on all my vacations for the year. I kinda do that every time, but it usually doesn’t work out. But it’s always good to plant the seed. Later, I was chatting with Lesley (wdwfan) and she invited me to join the group of our friends going in June. I knew I wouldn’t be able to get away at that time of year, but I invited her to join the group going in October/November.

Then in early March, Karen had to come to the east coast for work, so she, Eileen and I had a little get together at Eileen’s house. The topic of discussion turned to my trip. Karen thought she could make it work. Eileen mentioned that she was planning to visit her Dad in Florida at that time and could join us. We immediately texted Jill who like 7 seconds later texted back, “I’m in.” She’s the easy one. Actually, I’m the easy one. Don’t tell my mother.

So sitting at Eileen’s kitchen table, we pulled up the DVC website and I was able to change my studio booking to a 2 bedroom. We all were into the idea of a stay at the Beach Club, so I immediately set a reminder on my phone to try to change our reservation on the exact date I could.

A little time went by and Karen mentioned that she thought JoanW would like to join us. Joan is almost as easy as that ahem Jill, so she was in too! Lesley made it official, too (first being joined by her DH, then later changed to her DD Beth). The party got even bigger when I learned more friends (Crystal, Sherri and Cindy) would be around too. Add to that Heather (ilovedisney247), who’s a local, and it just keeps getting better. Then I found out that Angie (who used to post on PP but not so much anymore) is also a local and I’d get to see her too! Yay! I was bummed to find out that Megan would be visiting WDW just before I arrived – I tried to convince her to extend her trip, but she is expected to work in order to collect a paycheck, so it couldn’t happen. I also got a PM from PassPorter nanajoy and we exchanged numbers, hoping to be able to meet up. We also had an unexpected (for me anyway) meet with Danielle (disneydani) and her DD Izzy.

About a month later, the 7-month window opened up. I was ready to book as soon as bookings opened and I got… waitlisted. I have the worst luck with waitlists, too. I’d never had one come through. But this time, once the dust settled from all the 7-month shuffling, I got an email that we were booked in a 2 bedroom at the Beach Club. So we were only waitlisted for 2 days.

Once Karen was officially on board, I left the WDW planning all up to her and concentrated on my cruise plans. It would be my first time sailing on the Magic, my first visit to Key West, and even my first visit to Miami. I had lots of researching to do! Then it was announced that the Magic was being re-imagined just before my cruise, and that made me even more excited about it!

I booked a room for the night before the cruise at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel and also booked a walking tour in Miami Beach for that night. I really didn’t have a lot of time to see much, but I really like walking tours when possible, so this seemed like a good choice.

When it came time to book excursions, I knew I wanted to try parasailing on Castaway Cay. On my first Disney cruise, I was booked for it but it was cancelled due to high winds. I booked it this time and crossed my fingers for good weather. I liked the idea of the trolley tour in Key West, but I wanted to be able to hop on and off, which you can’t do if you book it as an excursion through Disney, so I just booked it online. I also wanted to have Palo brunch, so I went ahead and booked that too. I know I could’ve asked Meg to do it for me, but I wanted to do it myself – it’s fun, even if I had to stay up until midnight to do it.

It was time to decide on my return flight home. I wanted to fly home from Fort Lauderdale because I could fly Southwest right into an airport convenient to home, but the flight times just weren’t working out. They were either too early in the day or too late in the evening (and what would I do with all my luggage all day?). So I had to fly from Miami. There was a flight on Delta that seemed to be the perfect time, so I booked that. I also booked a rental car from the Swan/Dolphin to be returned at Miami airport and round trip shuttle from MIA to the port of Miami.

So fast forward a few months and, after many messages and texts, we ended up with a great plan. I wasn’t super involved, so I won’t share many details, but if you read Chez’s PTR, you can learn some of what went on.

Karen and I would be arriving on October 30 within 15 minutes of one another and then would take DME to stay 2 nights at the Poly. Eileen would be at The Villages visiting her DF and DSM and then join us at the Poly on October 31. Jill and Joan would be arriving on November 1 and we’d move to our room at the BCV. The others would be arriving (or already there) at various times on varying days, mostly staying at the Beach Club. I’m not even going to bother to write up the itinerary for it because this is long enough and the trip has already taken place!

I’m posting this part in both the WDW and DCL forums, but from now on, you’ll have to follow along in the WDW forum only (at least until I get to the cruise portion, where you’ll follow along in the DCL forum only). Got it? Okay, let’s go!

[PrincessSharon]

The story continues here.

[lauriep]

I've already responded in the WDW forum, but forgot to comment on the 88 MILES!!

[MayraLR]

Signing in!

[pamcarey]

Great start! I can't wait to read about the reimagined Magic! And I hope that you got to go parasailing on Castaway Cay. My parasailing excursion was cancelled due to high winds as well. That must happen a lot!

[chezp]

Great start!

I'll have to go and have a look how many trip reports I've done now - 46 is impressive!

[OhToodles!]

I knew you were in WDW, but didn't know you took a cruise after! That is a whole lot of miles - and magic! Looking forward to readng about all of your adventures. Now to check out the rest of the story.

[xwewhisper]

Signing on to the cruise portion as well


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[cubfancolleen]

Oh boy! I knew about the WDW party that seemed to include a big chunk of PP'rs, but didn't realize you were also cruising. Hoping you got to parasail - DD & I are scheduled to do that in January, and like you, my first attempt a few years ago was cancelled for wind.

[KMB733]

Great Start!!

[PrincessSharon]

I’d read about a walking tour of the Art Deco buildings in Miami Beach on Trip Advisor that sounded right up my alley. Along with seeing the Art Deco buildings (some from the inside), you also got a history lesson and a little pop culture thrown in there too. I booked the twilight tour, because I loved the idea of being able to see the buildings in daytime and at night.

The tour started at the Hotel Astor. I went inside and met the guide, Robert, who was a former limo driver and had a few stories about former clients. There were only two others on the tour, a couple from Austria. After a quick bathroom break to freshen up, we were ready to go.

Now I don’t remember every detail of what I learned, and you’re not here to read that anyway, so I’ll just post my photos and talk a bit about what’s in them. Throughout the tour, Robert gave a brief history of Miami and Miami Beach, talked about how to identify Art Deco and pointed out the Art Deco elements of buildings.

Most of the Art Deco buildings in Miami Beach are protected and all renovations are strictly regulated. There was work being done on the Astor – in fact, they took the door right off, while we were there!



Don’t worry, they replaced it. We continued…


The Wolfsonian Museum


This building (and the buildings to either side of it) are part of one hotel – it’s one of the oldest buildings in Miami Beach




City Hall

We went inside the Wolfsonian Museum. There were some cool looking art exhibits, but Robert pointed out a few of the permanent fixtures, which were in the Art Deco style.









When we got to the Essex House, some guy sitting out on the porch made a super lame comment. Robert said it was the Essex House and pointed to the floor where EH was displayed. Then el lame-o yells out “Sex House! It’s Sex House.” I just ignored the moron, but the other woman on the tour said “Sex doesn’t start with an E.” I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of even acknowledging him. What is he, 6? It’s not funny even if you are 6. Loser!


The guy in the white shirt is the one who made that lame, inappropriate comment

We went inside, and none of the other guests were jerks, so it’s not like the hotel caters to jerk clientele or anything.





Robert talked about the days of prohibition, where gambling and drinking went on in secret at many hotels. He said there’s still evidence of these secret rooms today and pointed out an example on the floor that made me laugh…


This way to oh-so-secret illicit activities that police are too dumb to discover

We continued…


It’s not the best photo, but this pool was featured in a few movies and TV shows


I’m told this is one of the hottest bars in Miami Beach



We next went inside the Clevelander.



We were presented with a lovely surprise – free cocktails! The bartender asked if we wanted pina coladas (umm, heck ya! ) and then disappeared for a minute. Then he was back with a drink for each of us (except Robert).


And a full-sized cocktail, to boot!

We went up to the rooftop restaurant/lounge, which wasn’t open, but it offered some fantastic views. It was super windy, though, so forgive my windblown appearance.





While Robert took pictures of the other couple, I took photos of the view!












A cruise ship sailing out to sea


Bon voyage!

We headed downstairs to continue the tour. It started getting dark, so the lights started coming on. At that moment, I was really glad I’d gone for the twilight tour (nevermind that it was the one that worked best with my schedule anyway).



Many of the buildings were designed to look like ships. Robert pointed out the features.




The circle cutouts are reminiscent of portholes

We stopped in front of the Versace mansion. This is the 3rd-most visited residence in the United States. Anyone wanna guess what #1 and #2 are? I’ll tell you the answer at the very end of this update.



Robert had some tales to tell about the mansion, because he’d been Donatella Versace’s personal limo driver and had spent quite some time behind the gates. Nothing salacious, mind you, but interesting to hear about how things were run.








This was a bar with a drag show – I wanted to go!



Continued…

[PrincessSharon]

We went inside the Tides Hotel.






The turtle shells help with the acoustics

The Tides has a fancy bar, which we checked out (it wasn’t open, though, so no more free cocktails ).









Robert also urged us to check out the bathrooms. I didn’t have to go (naturally), but I did peek inside.


I can’t help thinking how this would appear to you if you’d had one too many in the bar outside!




Another “ship”

The tour ended and I gave Robert a nice tip – he was a great tour guide. I was a little surprised that it ended in a different spot than it began, but Robert pointed me in the right direction (only a few blocks from where we’d started). The tour had run a bit longer than 2 hours, but it was ok, I still had some time left on the meter when I retrieved my car.

I made the short drive to the Loews Miami Beach Hotel and quickly checked in. I was happy to learn that I’d received a semi-upgrade. I was updated to a partial beach view. I’ll take it!

Of course, it was too dark to enjoy any kind of view out the window at that moment. But I did like the look of the room. I was supposed to be on the opening team of this hotel, many years ago, but thanks to hurricanes and other issues, the opening was delayed and I never made it down there – they ended up using only about half the people originally scheduled because they had so much extra time. So I was glad to finally get a chance to get down there and see it!













After settling in a little, I set out again to do some exploring.







I went down to the beach, even though it was dark. Building right on the beach is prohibited in Miami Beach, so there’s a gate you have to enter to get to the beach area. It’s actually a long path behind all the hotels, each with its own entrance.


The Loews Miami Beach Hotel


Gate back to hotel





I wasn’t hungry enough for a full meal, but I did feel like I needed to eat something, so I took a little walk. I am used to walking around NYC, so it didn’t make me nervous at all, but I can’t really speak for anyone else. Anyway, I ended up just getting some potato chips instead of the Cuban food I’d planned to have.

I returned to the hotel.



It was getting late, so I just hopped in bed and watched a little tv. And by “a little TV,” I mean about 1 minute and 47 seconds before I fell asleep. Today’s step count – 15,349. Pretty dang good, considering I had a 3+ hour drive in the middle of the day!

Up Next: Magic!

Okay, so according to Robert anyway, the 3 most visited residences in the U.S.: #1 The White House (which I knew right away) #2 Graceland (it took some hints for us to guess this one, but in hindsight, it’s kind of obvious). I also heard that the Hemingway House in Key West was the 3rd most visited residence, so who knows! Anyway, I pretty much believe #1 and #2 are true.

[xwewhisper]

Great start to the second leg of your trip! Looks like some gorgeous hotels were featured on the tour, right up my alley

[melduckie]

Great start! I'm trying to remember what movies/tv shows I've seen that pool from!!

[lauriep]

That tour looks like one I'd really enjoy. I've never been to Miami, but always love the way it looks in movies ("Birdcage" popped into my mind when you mentioned the drag show!). I really like the simple decor of your hotel room. Looks very comfortable, efficient, and that green is very soothing.