Fabulous first Disney "Vacation" *Update 8/14*

[Senk]

What fun to be chosen to walk with the Storm Troopers!!


Not sure how it compares-we did a package when we did Star wars weekends in 2015. Totally agree was worth it for the viewing/not having to stake out spot. The desserts were awesome, and the adult beverages helped as well. Expensive though. Probably won't do a dessert party again unless we can make Jingle bell/Jingle Bam work in November ( I LOVE Prep&Landing).

I didn't know about this holiday show! Looks fun, Prep & Landing are definitely enjoyable. This show gives glasses to desert party guests, that is cool.
The prices are pretty high for the parties. I wanted to do another but couldn't bring myself too. this one seems the best value for sure.

 

[Senk]

We walked past it every day at WL and no one said a word about going in but now AJ is whining that we did not go! I'll put it on the list for 2018!

Kids are so funny, don't think about something until its no longer an option. It will be a great place to hang out for your trip with a lot of resort time!

So fun! And guess what, we got chosen, too!!

Yes, I saw that in the Star Wars thread! Can't wait to hear about it

 

[Senk]

So I'm a little behind so this is for the past two updates.

I love Mickey pretzels. I'm sorry the cheese wasn't good. I'm a lover of plastic cheese and even though the kind that comes with the pretzels isn't as good as others, I still love it.

You're daughter's shirt is awesome! Did Chewy make any reference to it when you were meeting him? He loved my husband's beard and kept playing with it. Lol!

The pics with the light sabers are great! I love it when the photopass people take extra time with you to get some fun, creative shots.

I'm so jealous that you got to meet Olaf. I wanted to do it on the last trip but we were only by it when we did the Frozen show and as you said it fills up fast.

Glad you were able to hide from the rain in the arcade. It looks like POR has a pretty good sized one. The one at OKW was so small it was like it was put in a broom closet!

It's so impressive that you were able to get a 5th FP for TSMM! Back in the day, you couldn't ever get them. I don't know if you got really lucky on your timing or if the 3rd track being open now makes that big of a difference. Either way it was a good one to get!

Lastly, YAY on being chosen as the family of the day! It's those little extra pixie dust moments that brighten an already great vacation!

Can't wait to read more! You're doing a great job!

Yes! Chewy Liked KJ's shirt, I wish I took candids of the kids meeting the characters. He was one of the funner ones we met.
Hilarious thta he played with your husband's beard, mine would have been so uncomfortable lol!

I think we got lucky with the TSMM FP. I tried it a few times and finally got it. It was over a 60 minute wait. Getting the 6th for Start Tours surprised me too but the wait for that wasn't as crazy.

 

[Senk]

Day 4 Epcot


So let me just preface this by explaining that I had high hoped for this day. Fire Dad and Aj were coming this day and we were going to do future world in the morning then drink around the world and explore the world showcase till dinner then watch Illuminations. I read up and had grand plans.


After our lateish night at HS we were all exhausted (exhaustion became a constant state of being for us) but I planned a rope drop for Epcot and this time we were not going to miss it!. After missing Jedi Training at HS the day before no one fought me and got up and out the door without trouble

We made it to Epcot to be fairly close to the tapstiles. Since I wouldn't let anyone eat breakfast at the resort we had donuts and coffee from the Jofferys stand while we waited. Then we got in and waited some more. We talked to people around us and it sounds like most people were going to Frozen, we had FP for that so we were going to Test Track and I was planning to head to Soarin after that. Once the rope dropped we head to Test Track and get behind another rope. I was confused but whatever.


It was like 9:07 before they finally allowed the herd (that is what it felt like) to walk to Test Track. Then the bottle neck and the line. It was honestly the stupidest thing ever and we waited all that time because everything I read said RD to have a shorter line but really even if we waited 60 mins in a regular standby line it would have been less time than waiting for rope drop and then Test Track. The line once we got it was at least 30 mins. At 9:09. Sal was not happy. Whatever, the kids and I were excited to ride Test Track. We went through the queue and designed our super cool cars and were ready to ride.

.. NOT! An announcement is made that the ride was down temporarily. Wait it out. 10 mins later after sitting on the floor they decide it isn't coming back up anytime soon and escorted us out of the building. We got paper anytime FPs out of it but still, we wanted to ride it. I figured we would come back later.



When we got out we went to the restroom and met up with AJ abd Firedad. They had 9 am FPs and got stuck TT. At this point its like 10 am, we have been at EP since like 8:20 and accomplished nothing. Sal wasn't pleased and I wasn't either but faked irritation. I couldn't convince Sal to save the paper FP for TT later so we decided to use it on Soarin since it was good for anything but Frozen. We also had a living with the Land FP at 10:30. In my mind I had planned that we would RD TT, standby Soarin and then while there do Living with the Land. FP options are slim since Mission Space was down so why not. While walking to the land it started to rain. I think-No biggie, I packed ponchos


Living with the Land was cool. Sal and Firedad tricked the kids into thinking there was going to be some big drop which of course never came. We did get a wave form Mickey Mouse at whatever restaurant that goes though. Garden Grill maybe? Sal and I have been taking our suburabn gardening pretty seriously the past few years so we enjoyed seeing the garden part.



After that was over we turned in our FP for Soarin. Long wait there so I was happy we used it.

We all liked this ride. I had read to ask for a certain seat but forgot so we ended up in C which is all the way to the right. The view is definitely wonky but the experience is good. Its no Pandora FOP but still very enjoyable adm the kids loved it.


At point we we were starving and decided to have lunch. Sunshine Seasons was rigth there so of course that is where we went. Food was good but what a cluster. Maybe because of the rain but the place was packed. I took 2 laps looking for a table while the dads bought food. KJ had grilled cheese, AJ had Mac and cheese- apparently 8 years olds like cheese a lot because they both repeated those meals frequently. Jr and I shared a ½ chicken plate. An I have no idea what DH and Fire dad had. They are big dudes and eat a lot and fast. I didn't even pay attention.


It was now pouring. We put on ponchos and headed to the Character Spot since my group had a FP. Sal had no interest, fair enough so he gave his magib band to Aj and I took the kids

Rain and curly hair = bad hair. No I'm in no pictures

We ran though the rain and met back up with the dads. Kids bough disney fidget spinners. We thought about meeting Joy, Sadness and Baymax but the line was 45+ mins. Probably because everyone was hiding out from the rain. We had a FP for Frozen while AJ and Firedad had one for Figment or something. We went our separate ways.


My crew squished our way to our FEA FP. It was a pretty long walk in the pouring rain so we were soaked and cold but enjoyed FEA. I assume due to the rain the line wasn't very long, maybe 30 mins. The animatronics were very good and the ride was fun. We got a little splash but not much.

The pic is terrible. We are in the back. I'll spare you.


It had been 3 hours or so since the rain started and everyone was over it. Every time you take off your poncho and put it back on it gets wet inside. It was only like 72 degrees outside and the AC is cold inside. Ponchos are not full length on adults so our legs were wet. I was trying to keep them going but it wasn't happening. I got the fam to go into the Mexico pavilion, where we rode the Three Caballeros. And were basically the only people there. I don't think there was anyone else in our boat. Donald wasn't meeting yet but a line started so I assume he was coming soon and we skipped that.


We pretty much ran out of the park at this point. Characters that meet outside are not out. Photographers are not out and I didn't know my way around the park to find indoor activities. The kids wanted to stop and pretend they were holding Spaceship Earth ball. I didn't even try to help them.

We went back to the resort, got 2nd lunch and went back to the room and watched Avatar which was constantly on the Disney TVs.

At about 5 the rain stopped so we got up an headed back to EP for our Dinner reservation. I booked us all for Teppan Eddo. Once to Epcot we had to power walk to the Japan pavilion to make it on time. But not before taking better pictures

We wanted to stop at the
other countries but there wasn't time. The other two were already there waiting for us. We had fun at dinner. We have plenty of restaurants like that at home but Sal isn't a fan and never wants to go. The kids have never had a dinner with entertainment and really enjoyed it. We had drinks. I think the dads had Sake and I had some cocktail

I picked up a FP for Illuminations and Firedad and AJ were going to head out before it started. They had stayed at EP in the rain while we took a break and were flying back to COlumbus eartly the next morning. AS we headed to the other side we stopped at a few drink stands. We noticed that Anna and Elas had a20 min wait so I took the kids to meet them. They dads stayed back and did whatever they do.

We ended up skipping our Illuminations FP because Firedad and AJ stayed and we watched it together from Norway. We weren't close enough to gave a good view but it was fine anyway.

BTW TT never came back from what I saw.
We were at Disney World so it was all good but this was deff my least favorite day. We went back to POR by getting off the bus at French Quarter, getting cocktails and beignets wand walking to our room. AK day 2 up next

 

[mercydisney]

You all need to be in a Disney Commercial! I am enjoying your trip report.

 

[DeterminedOne]

The kids wanted to stop and pretend they were holding Spaceship Earth ball. I didn't even try to help them.

Lol! Stick a fork in her, she was done.

 

[ashleymrush]

we had donuts and coffee from the Jofferys stand while we waited

Those donuts are SOOO GOOOOD!! And HUGE!

An announcement is made that the ride was down temporarily. Wait it out. 10 mins later after sitting on the floor they decide it isn't coming back up anytime soon and escorted us out of the building.

Oh no! That stinks so much. For what it's worth, Soarin' is a better ride than TT in my opinion. And with a longer line it seems that it was a good idea to use the FP there.

Sunshine Seasons was rigth there so of course that is where we went.

Yum!! One of my favs!

My crew squished our way to our FEA FP. It was a pretty long walk in the pouring rain so we were soaked and cold but enjoyed FEA. I assume due to the rain the line wasn't very long, maybe 30 mins. The animatronics were very good and the ride was fun. We got a little splash but not much.

Glad you enjoyed FEA. It is a cute ride. I miss Maelstrom that used to be in it but I understand the need for them to revamp rides. The splash at the end is weird because you never got splashed on the old ride and it's the same ride so I can't figure out why you get splashed now. lol!

We were at Disney World so it was all good but this was deff my least favorite day.

I'm sorry the day was a bit of a downer. Rainy days at Disney can be bad sometimes. An afternoon storm is a treat sometimes but the day long rain will suck the energy right out of you.

 

[Senk]

You all need to be in a Disney Commercial! I am enjoying your trip report.

Well thanks! I actually looked into that about a year ago. DH and I aren't old enough, I think the age was like 35-45. Would have been an awesome way to score a trip though!

Lol! Stick a fork in her, she was done.

So done! I should have been more helpful lol but theu were never going to get it

I'm sorry the day was a bit of a downer. Rainy days at Disney can be bad sometimes. An afternoon storm is a treat sometimes but the day long rain will suck the energy right out of you.

I just so badly wanted a macaron and margarita and all the bevs in the World showcase. Oh well. I saved money!

 

[Senk]

I'm terrible at this trip reporting. Honestly I've been staying off the Disboards because DH has made it pretty clear this was a one and done for us and looking at all the stuff bums me out. Like wedding planning, you put so much into planning that when the it's over you feel a void.
Anyway one of my favorite parts of planning was reading trip reports especially older, finished ones that I could binge read so I'll try to wrap this up for any potential future reader.

 

[DeterminedOne]

I'm terrible at this trip reporting. Honestly I've been staying off the Disboards because DH has made it pretty clear this was a one and done for us and looking at all the stuff bums me out. Like wedding planning, you put so much into planning that when the it's over you feel a void.
Anyway one of my favorite parts of planning was reading trip reports especially older, finished ones that I could binge read so I'll try to wrap this up for any potential future reader.

Here's hoping you can talk him out of that idea.

 

[Senk]

AK day two

When planning our trip Pandora was announced to open the week before we arrived. Speculation was that is would be packed so I decided to schedule two AK days. Then FPs were announced that you could only do one for your first three so Ii stuck with that decision.
We slept in quite a bit this day since we had already done AK. Clearly everyone was exhausted. I don't think we left our room before 10a this day.

After the rain we had the day before at Epcot I was really hoping for better weather. We got on the bus with a bunch of people going to the water parks. I guess you have to take the AK bus from POR and then switch over at AK. Anyway, it was sunny when we loaded at POR but right befire we got to the park it started pouring. I felt bad all the water park people were trying to decide where to go or not. We had ponchos and put them on and headed in. We were going straight to Pandora for our Navi River FP.

But it was closed. Both PAndora rides were down. I think there was a fire alarm in the building or something. We got any anytime FP on the phone. We walked around a bit and I don't remember what we did but it was raining so hard we gave up whatever it was and hid in a gift shop. Along with everyone else. There really isn't much to do there when it rains. No character to meet ( bummed was hoping we'd met Pocahontas this day), photos to take and very few rides. We could have tried to see a show. Looking back I wish I had used that time for Lion king then because somehow with 2 AK days we never saw it. I heard its better than Nemo.
Eventually the rides were back up and we went to NRJ. It was no FOP thats for sure but still really pretty. Not worth the 200 minute waits it was pulling. After the ride the kids wanted Pandora face paint. Keep in mind it is still raining very heavily but DH said yes. On AK day one we pushed it off because we were going to the pool so we had to let them this day.
SO much rain

I can't remember what we did next. Maybe nothing? The kids were only interested in saving their facepaint. The kids were only interested in saving their facepaint. I do feel like we planned to stay in the park all day but I know we left at some point because we ended up booking a FP for everest adn we almost missed it. We took an uber this day for hte first time. it worked out well because we the AK bus takes forever. The diver is a cast member at Epcot and around our age so maybe he felt comfortable talking to us but was kind of grumpy about Disney in general. I thought is was weird. He shared a lot more with us than most Uber drivers.

Once we got to AK we power walked to Everest. It was about 4:30pm and pretty much dome raining. DD was not excited, she said never again after we rode it the first day. Sal and I are terrible parents so made her do it again! She wasn't' freaking out or anything, don't worry. Just a little anxious.

DH is protect KJ mode, Jr tried and failed to dab in the photo

After that we had our only Character meal scheduled for Tusker House. ROL was announced while I was planning so I booked the TH dining package. I was stuck in a corner and wan't able to get up and get great pics. Here are a few

The food was alright. We are not good at character interactions and that is totally our fault. This ended up being our most expensive meal of the entire trip I think and it was just okay.

After dinner we had a FP for Kilimanjaro Safari. It was great after dinner. The weather was nice at this point and it was good to just sit and chill and enjoy.

We walked through the Gorilla trail and saw them just before they went in for the evening. DD wanted to ride Dinosaur so I booked a FP but it went down just as we got there. I thought we could wait it out but it never came back on. Sooo with our Anytime FP we did Everest again.

The face of apprehension

Another failed dab and another scream filled ride. Good times

It was getting late so we decided to find a snack and go find a spot for ROL. Mickey Pretzel and Churro in hands we sat down. The dining package seating was great. The standby lines were long and looked crowded but we got to sit wherever we wanted in the section, enjoy or snack and had a good view.

I'm sure I missed some stuff, I didn't take notes and am forgetting things already. Hard to believe its almost been 2 months since this trip

Next day, back to Magic Kingdom!

 

[Senk]

Here's hoping you can talk him out of that idea.

I hope so! DD says she wants to go to Disney world for her Sweet 16. She also wants to go to Paris but we are normal people and that isn't realistic
She is only 8 and may change her mind but I bet she will still want to go. If DH doesn't want to participate we'll make it a girls trip in 2025 (2025 seems so far away!!)

 

[DeterminedOne]

The face paint looks amazing on them! Thanks to your son, I now want to dab during the ride pic.

 

[ashleymrush]

I'm terrible at this trip reporting. Honestly I've been staying off the Disboards because DH has made it pretty clear this was a one and done for us and looking at all the stuff bums me out. Like wedding planning, you put so much into planning that when the it's over you feel a void.
Anyway one of my favorite parts of planning was reading trip reports especially older, finished ones that I could binge read so I'll try to wrap this up for any potential future reader.

I'm so upset that your DH is thinking this was a one and done. I really hope he comes around and y'all can make another trip!

Looking back I wish I had used that time for Lion king then because somehow with 2 AK days we never saw it. I heard its better than Nemo.

I've never seen the Nemo show but the Lion King show is amazing! It's too bad you missed out on it.

ROL was announced while I was planning so I booked the TH dining package.

I continually sit in awe of how well you planned this trip for a first timer and without a travel agent! You knew all the right things to jump on!

It was great after dinner. The weather was nice at this point and it was good to just sit and chill and enjoy.

So glad that the weather improved and that the end of the evening was good!

 

[cinderaimee]

I'm sad for you that your H doesn't want to go back! Hopefully he'll come around.

It was hard for me to get back on the boards and work on my TR when we came back. (Which is why I'm still working on my report from last November) So much goes into planning the trip and there's definitely a weird void when you get back.

Your AK day looks like you made the best of the rain and down rides. Love the face paint!

 

[ArielSRL]

Day 4 Epcot

It definitely sounds like a messed up day. I'm wondering what day it was because I'm trying to correlate it to our trip. Maybe our AK day bc it rained a lot that day for us. We never rode TT either and this seems to be a recurring theme on my trips as of late.

Glad you guys recovered a bit though and finished with a nice dinner and the A&E meet.

ETA: I think I may have figured out this was Thursday and an Epcot day for us, as well. And yes, it rained terribly.we had done a half day at Epcot on Monday so this was mostly a World Showcase day for us. But boy, were we waterlogged.

 

[ArielSRL]

I'm terrible at this trip reporting. Honestly I've been staying off the Disboards because DH has made it pretty clear this was a one and done for us and looking at all the stuff bums me out. Like wedding planning, you put so much into planning that when the it's over you feel a void.
Anyway one of my favorite parts of planning was reading trip reports especially older, finished ones that I could binge read so I'll try to wrap this up for any potential future reader.

I'm sorry to read this and hope you can change his mind...but if not, just leave him home...lol!

 

[ArielSRL]

You guys got really good seats for ROL...maybe we should do the package in the future. We did the FP but the seating was just so uncomfortable, I couldn't enjoy the show. We like Tusker but for breakfast. Also that's a lot of EE rides. I like it but I'm the only rider so it can be a bit of a bummer to ride alone. Hopefully Will will be my ride buddy but he's only 38.5 inches now so it might be awhile.

 

[erinch]

Thank you so much for writing your trip! You write beautifully and your pics are fabulous. There are lots of people on here with stories of a spouse saying never again, and then remembering it was lots of fun and family bonding.

 

[Senk]

Magic Kingdom 2


So Disney is super exhausting right? I think anyone that has ever been there can agree. We saw the 1st ROL show at AK the night before and were probably in bed by 11p the night before. When I was planning I noticed a lot of people liked to end a trip at MK so that was the plan. This was going to be our last park day. MK has an 8am EMH we were going to hit...

Didn't happen.

We made shirts and ears back home int he weeks for the trip but hadn't worn them all week. DS had a snap back hat I made some black mickey ears for, he wouldn't wear it, DH told me when I wasn't making them he wouldn't wear it so I didn't even make him one lol. KJ and I made wire/floral ears. Apparently hers got messed up in the luggage and the castle fell off along with a few flowers so she wanted to wear mine.. We ended up trading back and forth all day. In the below pic I have hers on and she has mine on.


We got off the bus and walked in around 9:10a. The sun was out and it was beautiful.



Doin it for the Gram- Magic Kingdom Mornings

I wanted to head back and ride peter pan. My family wanted food. Sal and Jr are not eat a granola bar kid of people. They eat so much food constantly. They watched the muppets history thing and I waited on line for waffle sandwiches at Sleepy Hollow.



After we ate we didn't have a plan, I had forgot my touring plans entirely. That happened pretty much every day

We walked by Rapunzel and Tiana's meeting area and the line was only 20 mins. We should've stopped but the guys were against it. KJ isn't huge on princesses but I know she would have enjoyed meeting them. Bus since her bro didn't want to she didn't either. We ended up going tot he Teacups since the line was short. We had so much fun on this! I have the best video on my phone. Sal made it go really fast and the kids were giggling and silly and so happy. It was one of my favorite parts of the whole trip!



Poor quality video capture

After this I drug them to Winnie the Pooh. The posted wait time was 25 mins. No bad. DH got the red card thing

Turns out the time was more like 40 mins. The ride was cute and the queue was interactive so that was nice but not worth 40 mins in line. There is really nothing that I would want to wait that ling in line for.



No more lines because after that we had FPs for Haunted Mansion. So after the stretching room they kind of let you free for all and people get really crazy with the riushing and pushing. We are fast walkers but people were actually running and kind of shoving. KJ and I got separated from Sal and Jr. There were only 2 people per Doom Buggy so it was whatever but still.

We liked the ride. KJ screamed the whole time, as she does.

Afterward we took a picture, no one noticed the PP guy there so there was no line.

I knew what the magic shot was going to be but everyone else clearly was confused about why they were putting their thumbs out. I love that the pictures show up a little while after you take them so we can all laugh about them while in the next line.



This day is sort of fuzzy so I'm not sure what all we did. I really should have taken more pictures or kept a journal.



We had a paper FP for a few things and used it on little Mermaid ride. When we got in the clam shells one of the CMs asked KJ how old she was. After that he asked me, I'm not sure why, doesn't he know its rude to ask a lady her age?! Anyway I told him and he asked me again like he wasn't sure he heard me correctly, then said “oh wow”. I've decided It was a compliment.



When we were leaving I tried to get everyone to meet Ariel but they declined. I really wanted to meet a Princess and no one was down all day!

I think after this we watched Mickey's Philarmagic. Not a fan but he AC was nice. Searched for a dole Whip ( I found out afterwards you can look for a specific food on the disney app) Once we found out a place that had them we noticed the line was like 50 people deep and not moving. Uh, no, I don't even really like pineapple all like that. I just wanted to try this classic Disney snack. I ended up with a Citrus Swirl instead. Not sure why I have this picture. Probably sent the menu to DH to see if he wanted something

While I was in line for that Jr found a fountain and was soaking wet. We had some reason for going to Tomorrow land but I can't remember what it was. We ended up riding the people mover and relaxing a bit.

We were ready for a break at this point so we headed out but not before being super basic and taking some purple wall pictures

I'll try to get my final update in this weekend. Don't hold me to it though!