Hakuna Matata, A Baked Potato! -Oct '17 TR *Completed, New PTR Link*

Good call on the Uber. Especially since it was only 15 dollars!

Man, park opening at Animal Kingdom is crazy now. Honestly, I feel like the FOP rush makes the old Toy Story Mania dash look tame. People used to get heated over getting to that attraction, but I don't think it ever had the same intensity that Pandora has! I'm holding out hope that once Star Wars opens, things will settle a little for FOP.

Well, it was a bummer you couldn't snag a FP for the coaster, but at least you three were able to get one for Navi River Journey. Great that you accomplished both rides on your AK morning.

Oh, and I love your window decorations for your All Star Music room!
 
The time on the bus tv schedule said a bus would be arriving at 7:03- perfect! But then the time kept changing...and changing...and I started panicking. I wanted to be at the park at 7:30! The final straw was seeing the time change to 7:27. I made the decision to call for an uber. I placed the request at 7:15 and we were at the park by 7:30. Best $15 I spent the whole trip honestly!

Oh my gosh!! Good call on getting the Uber. I am really not sure what those bus schedules are supposed to be for, because we had the exact same experience when we stayed onsite in July. They don't really make it any easier to know when a bus is coming because the time just keeps changing!

I'm glad for you that your Pandora morning worked out! It's a bit intimidating for the first time with no FP and the stories of the crazy long waits. I know it will be that way for us whenever we get back to WDW since we only get 30 days for FPs. I hope it works out as well for us as it did for you!

I'll admit, I'm not too excited about Pandora in general, but it does look like a very beautifully themed area.
 
We were at the bus stop by 6:45 and it was still pretty dark out!

That is some dedication! We are morning people, but I don't know if we could get up and out that early!

The final straw was seeing the time change to 7:27. I made the decision to call for an uber. I placed the request at 7:15 and we were at the park by 7:30. Best $15 I spent the whole trip honestly!
Good plan. It would be so frustrating to get up that early and waste it waiting for a bus!

There were SO many people!

Yikes!

And of course pictures had to be taken in front of the moss wall :)

That moss wall was one of the few places to sit in that place! And the sun is directly on it. But it looks like it was nice an empty for you guys!


39011039771_9cb342df5a_z.jpg
This looks like your mom has a giant blue bow on her head. Too funny!

Then it was time to use our FP for Navi River Journey! I know it gets a lot of hate, but I liked it! It's short, there's no real story, but visually it's very beautiful.

I am in the same boat. It's a nice ride, just not a wait in a long line kind of ride. I think eventually it will be a close to walk on ride and will be nice.
 
I'm all caught up now!
Love your first day at at MK. Such cute pictures. And I like how you decorated your room window! So cute, feels like when you decorate your door on a cruise!
I'm pretty amazed at how quickly you were able to ride FoP! It pays to go early I guess. Just this past weekend FoP had a 255 minute wait. That is almost 4 hours, but @ArielSRL told me were people saying they waited almost 6 hours total. I can't imagine my whole day being taken up by one ride. The nice part about standby are all the cool stuff you see on the line, which I have not seen since our AP Preview back in May. It pays to hit it at rope drop!!
Love the pics with the moss wall. I still have to get the purple wall and moss wall and all the "wall" pictures. I always forget, and Steve doesn't care for all that kind of stuff and whenever he takes a picture of me it's like always...bad. Seriously. LOL. :crazy2:

Thank you! We had a blast at MK! And it was nice decorating our windows and making it feel like our little home for the week :)

I can't imagine waiting THAT long for any ride! They have a lot of the queue closed during rope drop, so unfortunately we missed seeing the big avatar. But still worth it to get on with a short wait!

I was definitely on a wall mission this trip! :rotfl2:

Wow, those crowds seem crazy for FOP. I'm beginning to wonder if I was nuts to put that on the schedule for January. I'm definitely not trying it with Mom in February since we have a FP. I'm also nervous about the buses that morning, you aren't the first report I've read where someone has chosen to get an Uber. That just might be the way to go.

Beautiful pictures, I can't wait to see it in person in a few weeks!

Taking the uber was well worth it! Thank goodness you have a FP for when you go with mom!

Thanks! Can't wait to hear what you think!

A happy holiday to you and yours!

These pictures are so nice! You and your family are so photogenic :)

I agree! Not the most exciting ride at WDW, but I liked it and thought the visuals are amazing!

Aww thanks! My mom has trained us well in taking pictures :rotfl:

Exactly! Certainly not worth the current wait times but once the hype dies down I look forward to riding it more!

Happy Holidays to you and yours! I agree with you on the Na’vi river ride. I really enjoy it for what it is, a visually stunning river ride! Great pictures in Pandora.

Exactly, I definitely don't dislike it the way some others do. Thank you!

:scared:

Great call to use Uber!


"Let me show you the finger!"

:thumbsup2

Your pictures around Pandora are gorgeous. I like the ones you took in the gift shop.

I did not get a night blossom or pose in front of the moss wall. Fail and Fail!

:sad2:

I'm so glad I made the decision to uber!

LOL!!! :rotfl2:I am fairly certain that thought crossed my dad's mind after the incident!

Thanks so much :)

Next trip you must two both of those things! The night blossom is so sweet but delicious and refreshing!




Is that a bird up in a nest or is it flowers that just look like one?






I love your mom's blue hair bow. It matches her shirt perfectly!


More great Pandora pix, especially from River Journey.

I agree with you- not much of a story but it really is a serene and visually stunning ride.


::yes::

It is a magic shot! I believe of a banshee?

Haha I never even noticed the "bow" in my mom's hair! I will need to point this out to her, too funny!

Thanks! It was hard to STOP taking pictures while in Pandora, so much to see!

Great decision! Probably saved a ton of stress.

Ugh, I'm not bad with crowds but this sounds kind of awful... but I'd probably do it for FOP cause it's great.

So pretty! Love the pink tree peaking through.

No alcohol at 9 in the morning? :rotfl::scratchin

I was already so stressed, the uber was definitely the way to go!

It was worth it for FoP, but it was pretty chaotic and you definitely have to be prepared for what you're in for if you're going to do it.

LOL I clearly did it wrong by not going with the margarita!

Following along. @chunkymonkey tagged me in a post so now I’m here! Great first day, though very early, and great AK start. Looking forward to more!

Thanks for joining in!! :)
 


Good call on the Uber. Especially since it was only 15 dollars!

Man, park opening at Animal Kingdom is crazy now. Honestly, I feel like the FOP rush makes the old Toy Story Mania dash look tame. People used to get heated over getting to that attraction, but I don't think it ever had the same intensity that Pandora has! I'm holding out hope that once Star Wars opens, things will settle a little for FOP.

Well, it was a bummer you couldn't snag a FP for the coaster, but at least you three were able to get one for Navi River Journey. Great that you accomplished both rides on your AK morning.

Oh, and I love your window decorations for your All Star Music room!

Definitely money well spent!

It is SO crazy! And I agree with you, this is way worse than TSMM or even SDMT! I am sure with time it will die down..just in time for the insanity of Toy Story Land and then Star Wars land!

I was really pleased with how our morning at Pandora worked out!

Thanks so much! :)

Oh my gosh!! Good call on getting the Uber. I am really not sure what those bus schedules are supposed to be for, because we had the exact same experience when we stayed onsite in July. They don't really make it any easier to know when a bus is coming because the time just keeps changing!

I'm glad for you that your Pandora morning worked out! It's a bit intimidating for the first time with no FP and the stories of the crazy long waits. I know it will be that way for us whenever we get back to WDW since we only get 30 days for FPs. I hope it works out as well for us as it did for you!

I'll admit, I'm not too excited about Pandora in general, but it does look like a very beautifully themed area.

The bus situation that morning was so frustrating! Luckily our resort was so close to AK so the uber ride was super quick!

I was very intimidated and nervous about this morning, so it was such a relief that it all worked out!

I'm glad I decided to watch Pandora before visiting so I could at least understand what I was seeing. It is very beautiful and DH will have a blast photographing it all ;)

That is some dedication! We are morning people, but I don't know if we could get up and out that early!

Good plan. It would be so frustrating to get up that early and waste it waiting for a bus!

Yikes!

That moss wall was one of the few places to sit in that place! And the sun is directly on it. But it looks like it was nice an empty for you guys!


This looks like your mom has a giant blue bow on her head. Too funny!

I am in the same boat. It's a nice ride, just not a wait in a long line kind of ride. I think eventually it will be a close to walk on ride and will be nice.

Haha, it's nice going with my parents because they are crazy like me and don't mind getting up super early!

I was very nervous that my well laid out plan was going to be ruined. Uber to the rescue!

The moss wall area was so empty! I guess because it was still early and most people were in line for the rides!

LOL you are the second person to say that about the bow, how did I never notice that! :rotfl:

I totally agree about one day the boat ride becoming a walk on!
 
Day 2, October 22, 2017 - Photoshoots and Safaris!

We headed towards the Tree of Life and stopped for some photos.











After that, we made our way towards Africa to use our FP for Kiliminjaro Safaris! I captured this totally romantic picture of a couple I do not know apparently! :rotfl:











There was a little backup in getting onto a truck. It also had started to rain but luckily we were undercover! Soon enough we were boarding our vehicle!



I didn't take a ton of pics but will share a few.













Up next...a Safari Lunch!
 


Your PP in front of the castle took some unique shots. That one where you guys are holding the frame and the shot is angled is interesting.

Haha, it does look like you were trying to take a romantic shot of that couple. It can be funny, going back after a trip and looking at the things you manage to catch in the background of photos.

The safari is a must when in AK! Glad you could grab FPs for it along with the one for Pandora.
 
Your romantic shot is too funny! I always am waiting to see someone I know in these photo or something, in the backround. You know it is bound to happen at some point, right?
 
Love the pictures, so nice of you to capture the happy couple, lol!
I never get tired of the Safari, such a wonderful attraction.
 
Very cute Photopass pictures, as always!! I feel like of anyone's TRs I read, you definitely get the most out of your Memory Maker purchase!!

The Safari is so fun. I love that you can have a totally different experience every time you go depending on what animals are active.
 
Those PP pics are too cute! Great safari pics, too! :D

Thank you! :)

Your PP in front of the castle took some unique shots. That one where you guys are holding the frame and the shot is angled is interesting.

Haha, it does look like you were trying to take a romantic shot of that couple. It can be funny, going back after a trip and looking at the things you manage to catch in the background of photos.

The safari is a must when in AK! Glad you could grab FPs for it along with the one for Pandora.

Those actually ended up being our only daytime PP pics in front of the tree if you can believe it! So I am glad they came out good.

I always wonder how many people's photos I end up in haha

Agreed! :-D

Your romantic shot is too funny! I always am waiting to see someone I know in these photo or something, in the backround. You know it is bound to happen at some point, right?

You're so right!!

Love the pictures, so nice of you to capture the happy couple, lol!
I never get tired of the Safari, such a wonderful attraction.

Thanks! LOL it was the least I could do ;)

I agree, a must do when at AK!

Very cute Photopass pictures, as always!! I feel like of anyone's TRs I read, you definitely get the most out of your Memory Maker purchase!!

The Safari is so fun. I love that you can have a totally different experience every time you go depending on what animals are active.

Thank you! I think Photopass pictures are what my TRs have become known for :rotfl2:! I definitely always want to get the most out of it- if I see a photographer I must stop!

Exactly! I can't imagine going to AK and NOT doing the safari!
 
Day 2, October 22, 2017 - Tusker House!

After that, it was time to check in for our lunch at Tusker House! We had to wait a few minutes before being seated.



We were able to get our first plates of food before any characters came. I didn't take any food pics :( But we all really enjoyed everything!

The first character to our table was the big cheese himself!





Followed quickly by this sassy duck!





A few minutes later the number one duck came around!







And finally Goofy!









We were full but of course had to have some dessert. I had to take a pic of this one dessert because I absolutely loved it and probably had like 3 of them (and could have eaten so many more if my stomach allowed)!



We settled the bill and got our Rivers of Light FPs (we did the dining package) before heading out. This ended up being a really great meal for us. The food was good, the pace of the characters was good, our server was great, and the character interaction was great! I had eaten here the year prior but this was the first time for my parents and I was a little nervous on what they would think. But they ended up loving it, so it was a good choice!

Up next...The beauty of AK!
 
I just found your TR and read all about Day 1. It was great that you got to Disney so early and had a wonderful first day. I loved all the castle pictures of you and your parents. You can just see the happiness of the moment beaming from your faces. And I loved the big smiles from the 7Dwarfs Mine train ride!

I am clueless about the purple wall. Your TR is the first that I noticed any mention or pictures of it. Either that or I just did not pick up on it before in other TRs. It does make a nice photo backdrop. Is it near the castle?
 
We settled the bill and got our Rivers of Light FPs (we did the dining package) before heading out. This ended up being a really great meal for us. The food was good, the pace of the characters was good, our server was great, and the character interaction was great!
I agree-I think this meal was my favorite. The characters were all fun and loved the food. I was hesitant about booking it but did it for Rivers of Light and didn't regret it at all!
 
TH is a fave of mine as well. Love all your pictures with the characters. We have yet to try lunch or dinner there. Our breakfasts have all been good.
 
I captured this totally romantic picture of a couple I do not know apparently! :rotfl:


:rotfl: Ahaha what a great shot...of strangers!

Your safari pictures are great! And I'm glad to hear you all had a great meal at Tusker House. Your character photos there are awesome, especially the ones of Goofy being such a nut!
 
Fun character photos. Looks like Goofy was a hit and gave you guys a lot of good poses. I remember reading about Tusker House in your last report, and it sounds like it's been a safe choice both times for you. Good food and decent character interactions...It's good to have a reliable restaurant in the a park!
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Top