Few Notes from our trip 12/27-1/3

droycro

Mouseketeer
Joined
Sep 27, 2004
MK - Rope drop is always the way to go! We were able to accomplish quite a bit in those early hours. We planned FP+'s for late morning or afternoon. 4th FP+'s were non-existent because of the heavy crowds. When we saw the sign for "Small World Line Starts Here" over by the Pinocchio Village Haus - we knew it was crowded!! One bonus, the Magicband scanner at the Cheshire Cat cafe was not working when my husband and daughter went to purchase two cat tails, so the cast member said they could have them for free!

Epcot - Had our first Epcot day on Dec 31st. We were able to accomplish all of Future World we wanted to do and much of World Showcase. Crowds really started to build in the afternoon for the NYE festivities.

On our second Epcot day we did the Behind the Seeds tour and LOVED it. Our tour was on Jan 3rd at 10:30am. The morning was VERY rainy/windy, but we managed to get to The Land in time for the tour (with only some wet feet). Because of the rain being noisy in the greenhouses, they split our tour group in half, so we were in a group of only 12. It was wonderful! Highly recommend.

Animal Kingdom - We thought we made it for rope drop, but crowds were let in before we arrived. We, thankfully, had a FP+ for FOP, so we did standby for Navi River Journey. Waited about 45 minutes. Worth it because it was our first time in that area, and we really were soaking it all in, but next time I don't think we'd wait that long. Rest of park was very crowded by the afternoon. Africa was a sea of people. FOP was amazing. So glad we had gotten online at exactly 6am (Central Time) at 60 days out. The day we were there (Dec 29) the FOP line averaged 240+ minutes!

Hollywood Studios - We thought the decorations were nice here. Spent some good time exploring the Star Wars Launch Bay and enjoyed (as always) the Walt Disney Presents area. Toy Story Mania is such fun - we managed to ride it 3 times (rope drop, afternoon FP+, and stand-by at night).

Disney Springs - Spent three evenings there and one morning/early afternoon. The last time we were there (June 2015) lots of walls were up. We all liked the new layout, although it took us a bit to get our bearings in the newer areas. Saw "Coco" at the AMC at 9:15am on Jan 1st. Theater was pretty empty. LOVED the movie - bring Kleenex :-)

Dining - Did mobile ordering at Satu'li Canteen. Worked well - highly recommend mobile ordering! Satu'li Canteen was tasty - hamburger pods do taste like McDonald's cheeseburgers.
Polite Pig - good
Grand Floridian Cafe - very tasty and a nice break from MK
Yak and Yeti (TS restaurant) - one of our favorite meals!
Kimonos (at the Swan) - good. We live in the Chicago suburbs and have a Japanese Mall with grocery and food court near us. It's tough to beat that sushi! We did enjoy the walk from HS to the Swan for this meal.
Ample Hills (Boardwalk) - very good
Sunshine Seasons - decent
Morocco - Tangierine Cafe - very good
Homecomin' - good, but I think our expectations might have been too high.
D-Luxe Burger - very good

We stayed at POR and our room was so quiet. That was definitely appreciated after all the crowds (I think one of our longest lines was at Starbucks in MK!). We did not do online check in. When we checked in at the desk we were offered a $70 gift card for declining Mousekeeping. We took that offer. The gift card was emailed with a barcode for redeeming. Any housekeeping needs we had (garbage emptied, more towels, etc) were handled with a quick call to Mousekeeping.

Great trip!!
 
MK - Rope drop is always the way to go! We were able to accomplish quite a bit in those early hours. We planned FP+'s for late morning or afternoon. 4th FP+'s were non-existent because of the heavy crowds. When we saw the sign for "Small World Line Starts Here" over by the Pinocchio Village Haus - we knew it was crowded!! One bonus, the Magicband scanner at the Cheshire Cat cafe was not working when my husband and daughter went to purchase two cat tails, so the cast member said they could have them for free!

Great trip!!
We were there similar dates, 28th to 4th.
Just to mention, in case you are not aware, 4th FP are plentiful but you do need to know how to check. Though you don't mention your party size.
We were looking for 2 and found many FP at MK. On the 30th we did at least 8 rides with FP and then on the 2nd probably 10. We could have kept going on the 2nd but we got cold and left before close time. But you have to use the refresh over and over again method. I'd book something, anything, for right then, then check over and over for rides. I was able to find just about every ride, even the Mountains, and 7 Dwarfs on the 2nd.
 

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