Summer Sanibel Sojourn: Sand, Shells, Sun & Sparklers - Update 7/5 About This Page:

[iamgrumpy]

So it took me oh.... 2 hours to come up with the title for this Pre-Trip Report/Trip Report as I couldn't come up with another "s" word and nothing to fit the time frame that was going to work! Maybe I'm losing my TR writing skills I certainly hope not! But having moved to Orlando, I don't get to write as many as I used to do so bear with me if my writing skills aren't as sharp, and witty as they used to be or was that my imagination that I was entertaining? either way here goes!

I know there are quite a few people who are new to Passporter and may not know much about me, and might be interested in hearing a little bit of the back story of "Iamgrumpy" and well heck I love talking about myself so don't have to ask me twice! ok so I just like to talk are you shocked by that?

So Let's Play "Lets get to know the Vacationers"

First up yours Truely... ME aren't you excited?

Hi I'm Amy aka "Iamgrumpy" I will be 27 at the time of the trip my birthday is in May and well I guess this trip will make turning 27 easier to digest! I love to travel which was instilled in me by my parents, who would take me camping, road trips all over New England where I grew up, and we would go to WDW annually sometimes more then once in a year as well. Well, on one trip about 2 years ago we were introduced to the Ft. Myers Area, and Sanibel Island but more on that in a bit!

Since I'm not shy and figure I am what I am and I'm sure ya'll love seeing my face plastered in every one of my trip reports Here is a recent photo of myself...

Wait that isn't me...how did that get in there that's just my favorite Disney character Grumpy...hold on...


Ahhh Much Better! Now you can see why we moved to Orlando we are Disney Fanatics ok I'm more of the Disney Fanatic but Mom isn't complaining any!

Ok so moving onto the other traveler... My Mother now most people would say "1 trip in 5 years with my mother is enough" but my mom and I are more like best friends and love to travel so we both enjoy it and no one complains! Ok get real who doesn't complain about something but travel isn't our complaint now snoring, or how people drive in Florida are a separate story Those we can complain about!

But Mom is awesome, She goes by her legal name which is Angela, but people have called her all the nicknames but I call her MOM. and she does have a Passporter Screen name its "Qvcnut55" because her obsession isn't with a Mouse its with a Home Shopping Network called QVC which she could probably set up a camera and sell things from our apartment as she has pretty much most of the things they sell anyways Since she makes the money she can spend it so I just make sure to remind her of when bills are due and it works out fine

From here on in I'll be saying Mom and I , or Me and Mom, since its just wierd to call her Angela and well Mom is only 3 keys to type and not 6 so it saves on space so I can fill it with my mindless rambling and smilies

So Mom isn't as camera friendly, she doesn't like how she looks in photos which is rediculous because well I think she looks fine and since she never leaves home without the full make up and clothing check what does she have to worry about? But I have a few photos of her and I'll share my personal favorite!



Oh dear, that photo the one she thought I had deleted ooops Made another trip report ..OOPS I did it again MA!

So now that you know who, you probably would like more of the details, details, details! First we have to go back before we can go forward!

The BackStory:

In 2008, January my mom entered a contest on the radio claiming she never wins anything, forgot she entered the contest but in March 2008 her name was pulled and we won a free trip to Ft. Myers to see a few Spring Training Games for the Boston Red Sox. During that trip we got a free day to explore the area and went to Sanibel Island, FL. After that trip we vowed to go back as it was so beautiful and lots of fun.

Here is a link to that trip report: Our FREE trip to Fort Myers and Spring Training - UPDATED 3/26 - COMPLETE

Well, in 2008 we had a big year:
March- Trip to Ft Myers
May - Trip to Orlando to find an apartment
June-September- Packing up a house to move
September- Moved to Orlando
October-Trip back to CT for family obligations

So far in 2009 : Mom has traveled back to CT twice in 2 months, I have flown to Indianapolis to visit a good friend in Frankton IN which well never would have been a place I would have guessed i'd visit but was one of the best trips ever!! and I have been unemployed, and started 2 jobs in 2 months and quit 2 jobs in 2 months. Yep so far a banner year for me and mom! We need a vacation!

So when we looked at each other with that "what do you want to do for a vacation" we both had the same idea... Florida Road trip!

But to where we threw out ideas such as Vero Beach, Cocoa Beach, Daytona Beach, Fort Myers Beach (Sanibel Island) , a Resort Trip to WDW, a cruise?

Well we visit Cocoa Beach every other Month or so and we felt we wanted something futher then 1 hour away. So that negated Cocoa, Daytona, WDW, and well that left Vero, Ft. Myers/Sanibel, and a Cruise. After looking at costs, Vero and a Cruise were out. Then we both looked at each other and realized we couldn't come up with a reason not to go back to Sanibel and Ft. Myers and so that was how we chose to go back.

So now we know Who will be going, Where we will be going, and Why. Whats left....Oh When!

So we decided we wanted to get away for a week and we thought why not spend 4th of July at the Beach so we worked around with dates that would maximize our time with mom's vacation time, and went with when we could get the cheapest car rental/hotel for our buck!

So we decided on going Sunday-Sunday and chose June 28th to July 5th as our dates, this way we get in before the holiday and end our trip with a BIG BANG otherwise known as the fireworks in Sanibel which I have read are quite nice!


So Folks...Until next time for more details such as the how we get there, the where we will stay, and other fine details!

[belle0517]

Great start! Love reading your TR's!!

[Lemap760]

Sounds like a great summer trip.
Did you quit your Disney job?

[eff051102]

Love the TR so far! Did I miss something though....are you not working at
WDW anymore?

[iamgrumpy]

Glad ya'll love my Trip reports makes writing them more fun and worthy

In terms of employment right now I'm not working with no prospects yet to where I will be working. I made the decision that WDW was a great place to work but not for me. No hard feelings on either party's side and I am just enjoying the thought of a vacation for a bit

[Colexis Mom]

Great start Amy!!

[Minnie Lor]

I'm onboard to read another wonderful TR from you, Amy! Looking forward to more.

[christiejay]

Sorry to hear you are no longer working for the Main Mouse, hopefully you will find another job soon. Looking forward to reading about your trip and all the many changes I'm sure you will have. We will be in Gatlinburg those same dates.

[lauriep]

Looking forward to this, Amy. Your Trip Reports are like an on-going party!

[chezp]

Great start Amy!

[Wendyismyname]

Great start Amy!! For some reason, I kept thinking that this trip was replacing your B-day trip and would be in May!
Sounds rather nice though, time at the beach with soft white sand between the toes and doing the Sanibel Stoop!

[iamgrumpy]

So originally for my Birthday we were going to do a week at the GF but we knew that was a pipe dream not to happen and well this became the trip to ease the disappointment of not getting to stay there. Once we made the decision to go to Sanibel I had to start researching where to stay, would we fly, would we drive etc. If anyone knows or has read any of my previous trip reports I have a disease called "changemytripitis" so making decisions aren't always easy for me and since I'm very frugal I'm always looking for a "deal".

Well I looked at dozens of hotels on Sanibel Island, then on Fort Myers Beach and even as far as Naples. I narrowed it down to price range and what we were willing to pay as well as reviews. We had stayed in Ft. Myers Beach when we won the trip to the area last year at a nice Suite hotel/timeshare property and while we could get a room there the Price was just too much for what we wanted to pay.

Then we moved to a complex that was on Sanibel Island directly, reviews were mostly good a few negative ones but the complaints seemed to be the kind that it wasn't the hotel's fault but lack of planning on the traveler's part that was the issue. We made a deposit and felt ok about it.

It was the Sundial Resort on Sanibel Island, and we had gotten a rate of $150 a night which for being right on the beach seemed to be a good deal and well we left it like that.

Well, once we at this point had a resort booked and keep in mind this was all going on about 2 months ago, so if we end up staying there is still to be seen LOL. We now had to figure out whether we wanted to drive down, or fly to Ft. Myers and rent a car. It would end up going based on cost of both options that would determine our choice.

So I jumped onto Southwest's website, found out what airfare would cost, then researched car rentals. Then I priced out driving using my car including all the Maintance costs involved and gas. I also priced out renting a car and leaving my car to rest for a week.

Airfare was running around $45 each way, for each of us so for under $200 we could fly to Ft. Myers. A car rental was about $300 for a convertible, or $200 for full size car. So between $400 and $500 for Flying and renting a car not including Gas for the week.

To Drive my car would include having to have everything checked/replaced/repaired before we could leave, while the car isn't old it isn't new either and already needs brakes, i'm sure an oil change, we have to have the power steering looked at, and frankly I prefer not to put the miles on my car, we only have 1 car and if it carps out then we will be in a tight spot. So we tend to use it for very short trips rather then long. But with it costing so much to fly and rent a car we may have to just do all the repairs at once and drive. We have the $$ to fix the car but we like to do one thing at a time, so that if something else comes up we have a few extra $ to play with.

Then I went and looked at renting a car here in Orlando, driving it down to and then back from Sanibel and turning it back in when we got home. I found an amazing deal at Alamo, picking it up at Sheraton Studios near Universal rather then the airport, and it would be a convertible for $285 which with gas would still be cheaper then renting a car and flying, and cheaper then fixing my car and gas.

So we decided since it was vacation we went with the Convertible rental and booked it right away. Luckily we did as having been checking back everywhere I have checked wants at least $500-$700 for a Convertible now. Whoo HOO I lucked out on that one!!!

So now we have the hotel: Sundial Beach Resort
We have how to get there: Convertible Rental
We have the When: June 28th to July 5
We have the Why: 4th of July, and Summer Vacation

But we still have to nail down what we want to do while we are there, what there is to see, where to eat, do we find a better deal on anything?

So much to do and now only about a month and a few days to go and to be honest until yesterday I haven't even done any planning for this trip!!! Such a Laid back planning experience for this OCD Trip planner.

stay tuned my friends as this will be a whirlwind last few weeks!

[Wendyismyname]

Nice. Love the idea of renting the convertible and driving!! Be sure to tell your mom to not pack a suitcase of shoes though! The convertible barely has trunk space!

[belle0517]

Great update! Congrats on the convertible!

[chezp]

What a great idea with the convertible.