[LBSCOOTER]

Sorry this took so long to post. We had a great trip! The people at Disney were the best. We had a private guide for one day named Steve and he took us anywhere we wanted to go. The trip was wonderful. They gave us wonderful gift baskets for all of us for the "Star Wars Weekend". We stayed at the Yacht Club which was gorgeous. We could not have asked for anything better! Steve took us on any ride we wanted to go on at any park, and we did, all four parks in one day! He picked us up in a van and we drove backstage right to the ride. We used him to as an ultimate fast pass. We got to go on any ride in front of the line! He also took us out to lunch. We all had a great time! Our Star Wars gift baskets included Jedi robes and light sabers. Disney also gave us a free Photo Pass and sent us a DVD of all our pictures. I put some of the pictures as well as some we took into an album. The weather was great. It only rained the first day we were there. We can't wait to go back someday. We will have to save our money! We were truly blessed to have won such a fantastic trip!

[CaraMia]

Did you win a contest to get a VIP guide for the day? We have seen one or two other families that had guides and we always wondered how that happened.

[jo-jo]

Would you give more details? Any pictures ? What about dining? How long was the trip? I've often thought if I was rich, I'd take a cab back and forth to the parks. But you got one even better. I'm guessing going in the backway saved about a mile of walking coming from the parking lots to the rides.

[WishUponAStar]

Wow, awesome! I want a Steve!! Was this part of a contest or something?

[jo-jo]

Originally Posted by CaraMia

Did you win a contest to get a VIP guide for the day? We have seen one or two other families that had guides and we always wondered how that happened.

Once I asked about those guides. They are like an extra pair of hands. I forgot how much they cost (I'm thinking like 100 bucks an hour, maybe more), but they will go to get the fast passes (you still have to wait), push strollers, pick you up at the hotel, take the kids to the park while you swim... It sounds what LBSCOOTER had was a "super ungraded guide" since they didn't have to wait at any rides.

The CM member told me a number of grandparents use them for taking the grandkids to the park.


By the way, if any one wants to pay me to push a stroller and hold onto fast passes, I only charge 50 bucks an hour.

[Toriadavis]

Originally Posted by jo-jo

Once I asked about those guides. They are like an extra pair of hands. I forgot how much they cost (I'm thinking like 100 bucks an hour, maybe more), but they will go to get the fast passes (you still have to wait), push strollers, pick you up at the hotel, take the kids to the park while you swim... It sounds what LBSCOOTER had was a "super ungraded guide" since they didn't have to wait at any rides.

The CM member told me a number of grandparents use them for taking the grandkids to the park.


By the way, if any one wants to pay me to push a stroller and hold onto fast passes, I only charge 50 bucks an hour.

I like the way you think You could probably charge $75.00 per hour if you get one of those water bottle sprayers and offer to fan them off ever so often too!!!

[LBSCOOTER]

The trip we went on was won during the "Year of a Million Dreams". Last year we were on our first WDW vacation when my daughter won an "Ultimate Fan Trip". The trip included airfare, hotel, $75 per day per person, photo pass, "Star Wars" gift basket, and a Disney VIP experience. The VIP experience was a guided tour of all four Disney parks, a meet and greet with "Star Wars" celebrities and pretty much anything we wanted to do. Our guide Steve was awesome! We asked him what he would do if he was in our shoes. He suggested we use him as the ultimate fast pass. He was able to take us right to the front of the line at any ride at any park. Since he picked us up in a van we were able to drive behind the scenes and park right behind the rides we wanted to go on. We were treated like rock stars! I have to admit I felt a little guilty at first, but after waiting myself in super long ride lines I got used to it real quick. If you ever get the opportunity to experience the VIP treatment at WDW I highly recommend it. It was my greatest Disney experience ever. I never knew you could do something like that. There are two options, one cost $100 per hour. I don't know exactly what it entitles you to, but I do know it does not get you to the front of the lines. The experience package we were treated to cost $300 per hour with a six hour minimum! We had our guide for twelve hours. That would have cost us $3600. I believe you can have up to ten people on a tour, so if you did it for six hours that would be $180 per person. If you hustled you could go to all four parks and get the rides out of the way on the first day of your trip. You could use the rest of the trip to go at a slower pace and not be so rushed to get everything done. Sounds pretty good to me.
As far as the rest of the trip went, we had an incredible time. Disney put us up at the Yacht Club. Last year we stayed at the Boardwalk Villas and really liked the place. We had a smaller room this year at the YC, but we thought the hotel was just as nice. The pool was fantastic, and the location was perfect. Being that close to EPCOT was ideal. We didn't make any reservations for meals, we played that by ear and ate at anyplace that had room. I can say we never had a bad meal. The only place I wanted to eat at was the Kona Cafe. I had heard the Tonga Toast was a meal not to miss. I was not disappointed. But then again give me a corn dog and I'm happy. I enjoy an adult beverage from time to time, so I tried a drink at every country in EPCOT. I have to say the "Grand Marnier Slushy" at France was awesome.
We live in California and have been Disney passholders for many years. My daughter and I go almost every Sunday, and stay at the hotels several times a year. We are Disney fans through and through. We have enjoyed both our trips to WDW and hope to return next year. We envy all of you who live on the East coast who are close enough to make more frequent visits to the Orlando area. Florida is a beautiful state and the people who live there are wonderful. Thanks for making us feel welcome and we will see you soon.

[hanwill]

what a fun trip- glad that you got to enjoy it. I have never known anyone that has won anything close to that... Congratulations!

[allirella]

Congratulations! That was an AWESOME prize.

$300/hr for a guide!?!?!?! What?!?!?

Glad yours was comp!

[princesslindsey]

Wow...that sounds awesome! Congratulations!

[Dopey]

What a great story. Thanks for sharing

[lisalovesmickey]

That was amazing! Thank you so much for sharing!

Lisa

[cowanfamily]

Wow, sounds like the trip was fantastic, congratulations!

How long were you there?

[DisneyTeacher]

Sounds like an amazing way to do Disney. Congratulations on winning such a wonderful dream.

[jo-jo]

Originally Posted by LBSCOOTER

The experience package we were treated to cost $300 per hour with a six hour minimum! We had our guide for twelve hours. That would have cost us $3600. I believe you can have up to ten people on a tour, so if you did it for six hours that would be $180 per person. If you hustled you could go to all four parks and get the rides out of the way on the first day of your trip.

That's not a bad idea. It would kill me to spend that much at once, but if you had a couple of families to spread out the cost. Especially during busier times, that would be great.