Surprising DH in Jan 2010 About This Page:

[Tigger71]

Looking for some advice on whether I should try to surprise DH for christmas.
DH is notoriously analytical and works very hard in our own business. 2009 saw us move away from family and friends to purchase another business across the country and he has struggled being away from everyone. DH has also dealt with the sale of our other businesses back in our home state so he has travelled several times back to visit and this makes his homesickness a little better. The final sale occurs on Nov 16 and then there is no need for further business trips...except to visit his folks.
Here's where I need help - should I secretly plan a trip to Hong Kong DL for us and the kids for end of January (our restaurant business volume slows around then after christmas craziness) or plan a boys weekend with his friends back in Sydney and let him organise the when/how after surprising him on christmas day OR wait until our anniversary in Sept and plan a family Disney cruise that he's been wanting to try for ages (bear in mind that to cruise it will cost approx $10000 in airfares just to get to/from the USA)?
Whilst money isn't too restrictive, neither one of us spends recklessly and would rather "do it right" than blow it all by not thinking it through - consider weather, Disney deals, crowds and price - I'm so lost!
See I told you I needed help!

[dworldluver]

Personally I wouldn't cruise in Sept. off US because of hurricane season. But maybe a Mediterranean cruise would be good.
Have fun though going through the possibilities and pros and cons. Enjoy your time - I'm sure your husband will love whatever choice you make.

[chezp]

I did a long post yesterday in response to this, then lost it when the boards fell over. I'll try again now...

I can help you with Hong Kong Disneyland. We went there in February 2008 and had a great day there - we spent a week in Hong Kong and that wasn't long enough to see and do everything. It's a wonderful place to visit, no problems with language, as it was a British colony for so long - in fact, in some places, it was just like being back at home, except for the Chinese writing you saw everywhere.

It was a lovely time of year to visit. I don't know when Chinese New Year falls in 2010, but we went about two weeks afterwards and it was a perfect time of year to visit. We went to Hong Kong Disneyland on a Monday and the park was absolutely dead.

Here's a link to the trip report I did about our Hong Kong trip - hopefully that will give you some more information to help you make a decision.

[Colexis Mom]

I'd vote for Hong Kong DL!

[Tigger71]

Mmm yeah - I'm leaning towards Hong Kong too.
We have been there several times before there was a DL park (We love Ocean Park & Stanley Markets). However we are trying to experience ALL of Disney's parks (How exciting about China!). We still are yet to experience cruising, HK DL and Tokyo parks (planning for 2011) plus we realised after reading Cheryl's reports that when we visited Paris there was only DL now there's a second Studio park. Oh what joy for all we have to come!
Also HK is cheaper to get to than the USA so we can go for a shorter trip without feeling we have 'wasted' the airfare $$$. And a shorter plane flight makes for a happy mummy with a 4yr old. The smaller park size means less stressing about fitting it all in - touring commando style like in WDW.
So what else does everyone do when in Hong Kong? (Thanks for such an in depth TR Cheryl).

[DouglasE]

Something tells me that your husband very well just might plan a visit back in Sidney on his own. With the choices you present I would lean towards a choice that your husband is less likely to do for himself. Count me as another vote for Hong Kong Disney. If you are willing to go to Hong Kong, what about Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea? Just thought I would add more confusion to the mix.

[chezp]

Originally Posted by Tigger71

Mmm yeah - I'm leaning towards Hong Kong too.
We have been there several times before there was a DL park (We love Ocean Park & Stanley Markets). However we are trying to experience ALL of Disney's parks (How exciting about China!). We still are yet to experience cruising, HK DL and Tokyo parks (planning for 2011) plus we realised after reading Cheryl's reports that when we visited Paris there was only DL now there's a second Studio park. Oh what joy for all we have to come!
Also HK is cheaper to get to than the USA so we can go for a shorter trip without feeling we have 'wasted' the airfare $$$. And a shorter plane flight makes for a happy mummy with a 4yr old. The smaller park size means less stressing about fitting it all in - touring commando style like in WDW.
So what else does everyone do when in Hong Kong? (Thanks for such an in depth TR Cheryl).

Glad to hear you've got plans in the works for Tokyo Disney - absolutely amazing place. There's already a PassPorter trip in the early stages of planning for March/April 2013, after I suggested it, then people liked the idea!

What have you already done in Hong Kong? My stand-outs were the Peak, both day-time and night-time, as you get such different views, the Symphony of Lights, Aberdeen, Lantau Island and the Giant Buddha (beautiful, beautiful, beautiful) and the day trip we took to Macau. I also loved taking the Star Ferry - those views from there were quite something and we loved the shopping there, especially Mark's suit, amazing value! The horse racing was a lot of fun, except my horse didn't win...

I'm looking at going back (maybe Janauary 2014 (I like to plan ahead! )) and was thinking of some more day trips, perhaps into mainland China to Guangzhou and the New Territories.... there's certainly enough to do there that you won't get bored. :

[Disneybine]

Hhmm, ok, aside from the question where to go, there's the question of you should surprise your hubby. I don't mean to sound like the part pooper here and it you know your husband best. But do think about whether or not he will enjoy being surprised by this. While I like the surprise idea for short, comparably inexpensive trips, I'm not so sure I'd go this route for a large, expensive vacation like that. Just some food for thought.

Hope you have fun planning whichever vacation you decide on!

[Tigger71]

When we visited HK the first time together my DH and I retraced alot of the things he had done as a teenager so he had vague memories of what he liked best. His fav place was Ocean Park and we have visited there several times. I loved Stanley street markets and always come home with a fantastic load of 'bargains' and trinkets. We have visited the peak twice in the daytime and only once at night - nice but not really jaw dropping for me....Now the Star Ferry was a hit for us both and so was riding on the Aberdeen harbour on a junket and spending a morning cleaning, cooking, washing like a local (we went as part of a tour group on the second visit), we also enjoyed looking around the Jumbo floating restaurant although I myself do not eat traditional asian style foods. I love 'Spaghetti house' chain restaurant - I think they were also in Singapore too. I didn't like being taken to a jewellry shop every time we went on any tour. Even if you went with the same tour company the day before they still take you back again and several times we just walked through the shop and straight out to the back and waited for our driver. I think this was the worst part of visiting HK. I understand commission sales and sales opportunities etc but felt it was very rude. We went to the Happy Valley racecourse. It was an awesome sight but not one I'd repeat unless it was part of a tour. We found the language to be a real barrier here. As part of the deal to get me to go to the races he agreed to take a tour through China so I could go to Guangzhou to see the terricotta warriers on display (in the museum not the dig site). We spent a day at the zoo and butterfly house and did plenty of shopping and stopping by my favourite eatery - Hard Rock Cafe - Kowloon and Hong Kong. DH and I travelled to HK in 1997 after the handover had taken place and there were lots of city exhibits explaining the change but I think we gained the most useful info from taxi drivers! We didn't venture to Macau but did go to Lantau Island. I remember doing a tea ceremony at a hotel but cannot remember where - I must get out the photos (no digital back then). We stayed in an apartment the first trip and were so jetlagged after coming from London that we thought the building was swaying - and it was! Because of the monsoon seasons all buildings are built to 'give' in high winds - we thought we were crazy! I also remember "Lucky" the aluminium can recycle station. You put your empty can into the vending style machine and pull the handle and the reels spin and if they align you win things like McDonald's coupons and movie tickets. It was a hoot!
Thanks Douglas and Cheryl for thinking of Tokyo DL. We had promised the kids we would eventually visit ALL the Disney parks and when a PP tour of Japan was mooted - we were in! However we can't plan a vacation that far away...we want to go now! Yes I know the kids have to go to school! And you know what? They are learning Japanese. That sealed it for my DH. He told the kids when they could purchase tickets, order lunch and request directions in the local language he would take them there. So sadly we can't go just yet...
Yes Sabine, I did worry about if my DH didn't like my plans but I know he will love any one if not all of them. I am most concerned about the cruise because we haven't been cruising on any cruiseline and I know how much time I could spend planning and risk my surprise being busted. However because we cannot cruise in January we would have time to make adjustments if DH wanted to by going later in the year. With HK DL it looks manageable and I think we could just wing it without too much overplanning. (DL x 2 days, Ocean Park, city tour, ferry, zoo, shopping/markets, free day). Since going to HK is more about ticking a must do off my Disney list rather than "I've been wanting to go there FOREVER" I know DH will just go with the flow and enjoy some family time. I hope!

[chezp]

Wow, you have already seen a lot of Hong Kong - but I think it says something for the place that both you and I have seen a lot of it and both want to return.

How neat that your kids are learning Japanese - I wish we had those sorts of options over here. Although adults can learn other languages, our schools only teach French, German and (if you're lucky), Spanish and that's it. I'd love to learnt more languages as a kid - it's much easier than trying to learn them when you're all grown up!

[Tigger71]

Learning Japanese is a better option than the ONLY language offered at my high school - French! And all these years later I can barely count, say my name, hello and where I live- just! My kids have been studying Indonesian and German for several years and now that we have moved to Perth, Japanese. It's a hit for sure. Although it helps that they want to visit DisneySea very much...

[chezp]

Originally Posted by Tigger71

Learning Japanese is a better option than the ONLY language offered at my high school - French! And all these years later I can barely count, say my name, hello and where I live- just! My kids have been studying Indonesian and German for several years and now that we have moved to Perth, Japanese. It's a hit for sure. Although it helps that they want to visit DisneySea very much...

I can imagine that being a good reason to learn!