Let’s Go Get that Dino! TR 9/1-9/10, a mom and daughter trip! PTR short version, 1/27/24*

[disneyAndi14]

“Let’s go get that Dino”



Hello Everyone,

Welcome to my latest trip report! This trip took place from 9/1/23-9/10/23.

The trip participants are myself and my daughter Andi!

Most of you, who have followed my trips, know Andi and I have been traveling to Disney and Universal since she was 10!

She is now almost 24 years old and um I am older, haha

I am a RN by day, and a travel enthusiast by night! This includes following trip reports, watching Disney/Universal videos, and traveling as much as I can!

Andi is a Spanish interpreter for a law firm and works from home!

She lives about 3 hours from home with her partner Kate. They have two rabbits named Douglas and Oliver! Here is Kate, Douglas and Oliver.
Kate

Douglas

Oliver

Douglas is very neat and Oliver is messy, they are the odd couple!

Kate has been to Disney with us once in January of 2022. She gets motion sickness easily and is not a fan of horror so she stayed home with the bunnies The rest of our family, Joe (dad) and Jack (son) do not like the really hot weather in Florida and like Disney and Universal in small doses. Like once every 10 years!

Andi and I travel very well together! We have so much fun together. She keeps me young! She told me several times this trip, I’m really glad I have a mom who can keep up with me, lol I guess she thinks I am 90, insert roll eyes!

This trip was amazing, and we had so much fun! The weather was hot with very little rain and overall just how we like it



Here are a few trip facts

1. I love Dinosaur (so does Andi)
2. We rode some new rides and I was brave
3. We stayed at 3 different resorts
4. We enjoyed some really delicious food
5. Food and Wine
6. 2 scavenger hunts
7. A ton of candy
8. A Halloween party at Disney
9. Two nights of Horror at Universal
10. Skyliner, boat, bus, and Lyft for transportation

Our trip starts on 9/1/23. Andi came home the night before. She worked and got home around 8:30pm. We spent time catching up and of course, talking about our trip.

Our flight was scheduled at 10:30am on Friday 9/1/23. We flew Delta. We started in Duluth and had a layover in Minneapolis. We had a breakfast sandwich at Starbucks in Minneapolis before boarding the plane. We had seats in comfort class.

Our flight took off on time! I ordered up a cranberry vodka and watched the live action Little Mermaid It was really good.

Andi was next to me watching Horror movies That girl loves her horror movies

Our flight was uneventful and we landed a little bit ahead of schedule. This was really important because we got to the gate and down to the baggage carousel before the skies opened up. I have heard stories of people having to wait over an hour on the runway or for their luggage when it is storming out.

Thank goodness our luggage was coming out without much of a wait. Our suitcases were wet from the storm ️

We headed out the doors to the ride share area and ordered a Lyft. I did the free month trial of Lyft Pink and got discounted rides the whole trip. It was really nice

Here we are!

Stay tuned for our first evening, a harrowing ride, a new to us resort, trying to find our room, trying to make it to our dining reservation, and a favorite place was closed!

See you real soon! I hope everyone joins in and comments!

Thanks for coming along, “Our tours are designed to take you to the early Cretaceous period”

 

[mi*vida*loca]

Can’t wait to read about your trip! I enjoy reading your mother daughter reports as I go on mother daughter trips with my teenage daughter.

 

[schumigirl]

Lovely pictures Caroline, your daughter and her partner make a lovely couple I`m sure, and those two rabbits will keep them busy I`m sure!!

I am so looking forward to this one again......I do love that Andi enjoys horror movies, she should do well at HHN!!!! And yes, you do both travel well, your reports show that bond really well.

 

[Counting Stars]

This trip report is off to a great start! Absolutely following

 

[suse66]

So looking forward to hearing all about your trip!

 

[JenK]

Hey yo, it’s the “tipsy mother-daughter” from It’s a Small World lol. Okay so you know we aren’t really mother daughter lol. But I love that you and Andi have so much fun together. My wife and I have been taking our Moms on trips the last few years instead of birthday, Christmas gifts, etc and they love it. They say the experiences are so much better than gifts. They get gifts from our siblings which is good. So far we have all been to a Cher concert, stayed at Animal Kingdom at Disney and went to all the parks with great meals, and went to Newport RI. We are lucky that our Mom’s get along. It’s actually pretty cool. I hope you have many more fun adventures with Andi!

 

[SEAGULL59]

Following along!

 

[Steppesister]

Hi Caroline,

I'm subbing in but can't guarantee if I can post a lot. I'll really try hard to read and keep up, but class starts back up in 6 weeks. Lovely first chapter of introduction!!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

I am following along!!! I finally got in before you had too many pages already started. Can't wait to hear about your trip!

 

[buzzrelly]

Hi Caroline! I always love following along your mother/daughter trips! Looks like you had a great time!

 

[PAsFab5]

Following along!!!!

 

[Ambersgram]

So glad I get to hear about your trip from the beginning.

 

[pkondz]

She is now almost 24 years old and um I am older, haha

She's 14 years older while you've not aged at all.

Andi is a Spanish interpreter for a law firm and works from home!

Did not know this!

They have two rabbits named Douglas and Oliver!

Cute bunnies.

Douglas is very neat and Oliver is messy, they are the odd couple!

Joe (dad) and Jack (son) do not like the really hot weather in Florida and like Disney and Universal in small doses. Like once every 10 years!

What??

For a second there I thought you said they only like to do Disney once every 10 years.

She told me several times this trip, I’m really glad I have a mom who can keep up with me, lol I guess she thinks I am 90, insert roll eyes!

I love Dinosaur (so does Andi)

We rode some new rides and I was brave

Good for you.

We started in Duluth and had a layover in Minneapolis.

Is that your only option? I totally get wanting to avoid Chicago, given a choice... but do you even have that choice?

watched the live action Little Mermaid It was really good.

I've yet to see it. Should make a point of doing so.

Our flight was uneventful and we landed a little bit ahead of schedule. This was really important because we got to the gate and down to the baggage carousel before the skies opened up. I have heard stories of people having to wait over an hour on the runway or for their luggage when it is storming out.

That's never happened to me... or even occurred to me that it could! But as soon as I read it, I thought "Of course!"

Thanks for coming along, “Our tours are designed to take you to the early Cretaceous period”

Looking forward to reading all about it!

 

[vamassey1]

Great start! I'm looking forward to more Andi & Caroline fun.

 

[disneyAndi14]

Can’t wait to read about your trip! I enjoy reading your mother daughter reports as I go on mother daughter trips with my teenage daughter.

I’m so happy to see you here! Yay to mother and daughter trips! I hope you make some awesome memories with your daughter! Andi and I have so many precious memories!

Lovely pictures Caroline, your daughter and her partner make a lovely couple I`m sure, and those two rabbits will keep them busy I`m sure!!

Thank you Carole! Andi and Kate love their little bunnies!

am so looking forward to this one again......I do love that Andi enjoys horror movies, she should do well at HHN!!!! And yes, you do both travel well, your reports show that bond really well.

HHN was so good this year, blew last year out of the water!! We had so much fun being scared lol

This trip report is off to a great start! Absolutely following

I’m so happy to have you here following along!

So looking forward to hearing all about your trip!

I’m so happy to see you here Susan!!

Following along!

I’m so happy to have you following along!

I'm subbing in but can't guarantee if I can post a lot. I'll really try hard to read and keep up, but class starts back up in 6 weeks. Lovely first chapter of introduction!!

Hi Liesa! Read when you can! I know how busy you are!

I am following along!!! I finally got in before you had too many pages already started. Can't wait to hear about your trip!

Hi Ariella, nice to see you here!

Hi Caroline! I always love following along your mother/daughter trips! Looks like you had a great time!

Hi Kelly, I’m so happy you are joining in!

Following along!!!!

I’m so happy to have you joining in!

So glad I get to hear about your trip from the beginning.

Yay, happy to have you here right at the beginning!

Great start! I'm looking forward to more Andi & Caroline fun.

Hi Vanessa, happy yo have you joining in!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Hey yo, it’s the “tipsy mother-daughter” from It’s a Small World lol. Okay so you know we aren’t really mother daughter lol. But I love that you and Andi have so much fun together. My wife and I have been taking our Moms on trips the last few years instead of birthday, Christmas gifts, etc and they love it. They say the experiences are so much better than gifts. They get gifts from our siblings which is good. So far we have all been to a Cher concert, stayed at Animal Kingdom at Disney and went to all the parks with great meals, and went to Newport RI. We are lucky that our Mom’s get along. It’s actually pretty cool. I hope you have many more fun adventures with Andi!

Thank you for joining in and commenting! I sure hope Andi and I have many more trips together! We travel very well together and laugh so much on our trips!
I think taking your mom/family member on trips for their Birthdays is wonderful! How can I sign up for your family, lol I would love to get a trip for my Birthday!

 

[disneyAndi14]

She's 14 years older while you've not aged at all.

I knew there was a reason I liked you, haha I’m really happy to have you here joining in!

Did not know this!

Yes she loves her job and she really likes the remote aspect! She also translates English to Spanish for books/cards for extra cash!

Cute bunnies.

They are really funny and have such different personalities!

What??

For a second there I thought you said they only like to do Disney once every 10 years.

I know it is hard to believe right? You thought you heard it wrong!

Is that your only option? I totally get wanting to avoid Chicago, given a choice... but do you even have that choice?

We do have United Airlines in Duluth which flies to Chicago. I have more benefits with Delta so we use Delta the most and I really like the Minneapolis airport, way better than Chicago!

I've yet to see it. Should make a point of doing so.

It was good, a little sappy but I enjoyed it

Looking forward to reading all about it!

Yay!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Part 2 of our travel day!

“Seatbelts wear them, things can get a bit choppy out there”

We made our way to the ride share area, which is right outside of the Delta luggage carousel area. It was a very busy area and the heat outside the door felt wonderful to us! Our driver showed up in about 5 minutes and off we went.

Well, it was about 6pm on a Friday evening and it was raining really hard! The rain was making it very difficult to see. Our driver was going very slow due to the rain and the traffic. It was a little stressful! It took us almost an hour to get to AS Music.

I was really happy to pull up to the resort. Our room ready text had come awhile back. It was a ground floor room in the Broadway section. We had no clue where this was. Andi found it on the map they text you with the room ready notification. It felt really far from the lobby especially schlepping in rain with all our luggage.

We found our room and literally dropped off the suitcases and headed to the bus stop. The rain was mostly just a drizzle by the time we made it to DS.

Our ADR at Frontera Cocina was at 7:45pm and it was after 7pm.

A bus was at the stop, full to the brim, however, the bus driver said squeeze in and let these two on! We just made it behind the yellow line, barely! It wasn’t ideal but we made it to DS in about 15 minutes!

It was 7:45pm when we checked in for our reservation, perfect timing! I usually never make an ADR on travel day just because it is a gamble but this worked!

We sat down and relaxed. We both ordered a margarita. I got a traditional lime one and Andi had a spicy one! It was delicious!

Right after we ordered the drinks, I got up and quickly walked over to Gideon’s Bakehouse. I was hoping to get us on the virtual queue list. I got over there and no line, what? I knew something was wrong because Gideon’s always has a line!

The CM there said the bakery was closed because of an air conditioner problem. Noooo! She said hopefully the bakery will be open in 1-2 days. I was disappointed but knew we would try another day.

I returned to Andi and broke the bad news to her! My margarita had arrived and was a a wonderful consolation prize.

Andi and I have some favorites here and we stuck with those.

We ordered the traditional house made guacamole, queso, red beans, and the chicken flautas. Andi makes her own little tacos with the queso, guacamole, and red beans. The chicken flautas are delicious. I love these and have never had any near as good anywhere else. I filled up on the flautas and guacamole! I tried a little of the queso and it is really yummy.


It was not busy in the restaurant and we really enjoyed our first dinner at Disney.

We were so excited to be here. Full and content, we went over to Sprinkles to get more food, haha We got the mini cupcake sampler, 3 tiny cupcakes, 1 chocolate, 1 vanilla sprinkles, and 1 red velvet. We also go 2 regular cupcakes. Strawberry and Red Velvet. I love the strawberry one. We saved these for morning! Andi also got the Dole Whip Frose at Wine Bar George’s outside window. This old lady was content with my one margarita. I did take a sip and it is delicious!

We went to the Vera Bradley store and Andi bought Kate a new wallet and wristlet purse. If you have an AP you get 15% off of non Disney prints. Weird I know but worked for Andi since Kate didn’t want a Disney print.

It was time to head back to the resort and settle in for the night! We took a Lyft back, there is a ride share area now by the Christmas Shop. This was convenient and we waited only about 5 minutes.

Once we got back and not in such a hurry, I really liked the Broadway section. It was really quiet back there and decorated very nice! We looked around the area some before calling it a night. The AS Music is refurbished now like the PoP Century, however, these rooms are smaller than Pop.



Travel day in the books! The heavy rain from earlier this evening was the last time we saw rain for a full week! Score!!

“Meteor shower in range, just a little one”

Just in case some of you are wondering! I am dedicating this TR to Dinosaur! The best ride ever!!

We heard some sad news while on our trip! Dinoland is getting re themed I was hoping the ride would stay but it sounds like, in about 5 years it might be gone! Sarcasm here lol Knowing how long it takes Disney to change anything, I believe I will ride Dinosaur again!

Stay tuned for our first full day at Disney!

“I hope you enjoyed those quaint exhibits in the old wing”

 

[MinnieFan4ever]

great travel day! can’t wait to hear more!

 

[pkondz]

I knew there was a reason I liked you, haha I’m really happy to have you here joining in!

Yes she loves her job and she really likes the remote aspect! She also translates English to Spanish for books/cards for extra cash!

I'm impressed.

We do have United Airlines in Duluth which flies to Chicago. I have more benefits with Delta so we use Delta the most and I really like the Minneapolis airport, way better than Chicago!

I'll take MSP over ORD any day. Nice, smaller airport vs sprinting for miles trying to make your connection stress.

Well, it was about 6pm on a Friday evening and it was raining really hard!

That surprised me. You mentioned heat. Up here, heat and rain do not go together as you know!

It was a ground floor room in the Broadway section. We had no clue where this was.

Ground floor is good. At least I like them. Broadway's a bit far for me, but...

It felt really far from the lobby especially schlepping in rain with all our luggage.

...try Country Fair! Did that the first time I stayed at ASMu and vowed never again!

A bus was at the stop, full to the brim, however, the bus driver said squeeze in and let these two on!

The more the merrier!

Right after we ordered the drinks, I got up and quickly walked over to Gideon’s Bakehouse. I was hoping to get us on the virtual queue list. I got over there and no line, what? I knew something was wrong because Gideon’s always has a line!

The CM there said the bakery was closed because of an air conditioner problem.

Oh, no!

Excuse my ignorance... is that the chicken flautas?

Full and content, we went over to Sprinkles to get more food, haha

Of course!
Besides, calories don't count when you're on vacation.

This old lady was content with my one margarita.

Some old lady took your drink?

If you have an AP you get 15% off of non Disney prints.

That is weird. Huh.

The heavy rain from earlier this evening was the last time we saw rain for a full week! Score!!

Nice!

Just in case some of you are wondering! I am dedicating this TR to Dinosaur! The best ride ever!!

Hadn't noticed.

We heard some sad news while on our trip! Dinoland is getting re themed

You know what? When I heard the news, I had two thoughts.
1. Good. That area just never worked. At least not for me and I know not for a lot of other people.
2. What about Caroline's Dinosaur, though???