Our Happily Ever After Begins at WDW... An August 2016 Disneymoon report! The Re-write!

[disneylove16]

The line was moving pretty quick, so a lot of these photos are blurry. Sorry!











Now, I was just as against removing Maelstrom as the next person. I'm part Norwegian, and I have fond memories of riding it with my Pop from Denmark when I was a child. I was upset when I found out they'd be turning it into a Frozen ride, but I know change is inevitable. I went into this ride trying to look at it as a new experience, and not a comparison or replacement. That said, I absolutely adored it. It has the classic Disney dark ride feel to it, and was so immersive. I loved the colors, and the led lights, and the effects. I'll keep my fond memories of Maelstrom, but will look forward to riding FEA on trips to come.
*I have a ride through video I also need to go back and upload*

 

[disneylove16]

We were there the same time as you all, we came on 8/21 and stayed until 8/29 so this is so nice to see your report. I wondered about the emm event, it looks like you enjoyed the breakfast and 7dmt, bummer about pp. We liked the que as well at pp. Your room looks nice at CSR, we stayed our first night at pop then the rest at GF, loved it. CR dinner looks lovely, we have been once several years ago and just did appetizers there and liked it.

Oh wow! Almost the same exact dates! EMM was nice, I would recommend it if you like a sit-down breakfast. I love the PP queue, it's worth the wait in line to see the effects! GF is beautiful, I hope you had a great time! Are you doing a TR? It would be interesting to see a TR from someone there the same time

 

[disneylove16]

Since we were there, we explored Norway a bit.






DH has wanted a sandwich from here since last trip, so decided to get one for breakfast.



And I got the rice cream



Mine was really good, it tasted like a rice pudding with berries. DH didn't like the sandwich, mainly because of the spread they put on it. He's not a fan of sweet sauces or spreads, and he said this one tasted sweet.



He still ate it though

 

[disneylove16]

Since our 2nd Epcot day was designated for exploring World Showcase, we made our way back out to explore the rest of Epcot.










We had some time to kill before our FP+ so we check out the Disney & Pixar short film festival. I thought it was great. I wouldn't do it more than once, but I would definitely suggest doing it.

 

[disneylove16]

Then onto Figment.






I had Figment on my shirt, and was trying not very gracefully to get a selfie showing it

 

[disneylove16]

Living with the Land-




It was time for lunch, and I couldn't wait. Sunshine Seasons has always been one of my favorite QS restaurants.
DH got another sandwich (are you noticing a trend here?) and I got the fish tacos.





Neither of us liked our meals, at all. I didn't eat mine, but DH ate most of his. The strawberry shortcake was also not as good as I remembered.

 

[disneylove16]

Then we headed to The Seas. I found Crush and Nemo.

 

[disneylove16]

Time for a snack!


We then headed back to The Land for our Soarin FP+







I liked it a lot, but I definitely recommend asking to sit in the center. If you sit off to the side like we did the first time, it's extremely distorted. Everything is curved, and it's distracting. We rode in the center the 2nd time after requesting it, and DH and I agreed, it was way more enjoyable.

We made a stop at Starbucks.



Not only are they pretty, but when it's hot as heck outside, the "pink drink" from Starbucks is also extremely refreshing. For anyone who doesn't know, it's the strawberry acai refresher (which has a bit of caffeine in it) with coconut milk substituted for water.


While I'm on the topic of heat, and feeling refreshed, without a doubt, the 2 best purchases we made for this trip were:
https://www.amazon.com/Probar-Organ...&qid=1472951206&sr=8-2&keywords=pro+bar+chews
and
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00X8AQ8P0/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The chews were great when we were feeling fatigued. I kept my fan on the whole trip, and just changed the batteries each day. DH didn't think it would help any, so didn't want his. I ended up giving his to a family who's little boy was feeling ill from the heat. DH spent the rest of the trip trying to steal mine b/c it felt great. Especially when running into the AC, it would amplify it, and cool me off instantly.

 

[disneylove16]

We checked out some shops to cool off












And rode some more rides

 

[CaliTex]

Best of wishes and congratulations on your wedding--I'm so glad things worked out and you were able to take this trip! What a lot of stuff to have going on before hand, though!

We honeymooned at WDW, too--many years ago. Many. Years. Ago. Now we celebrate our anniversary there at least every other year, and now those trips include our grown children and grandchildren!

I empathize with the fur baby--we have a lab and now that our children are grown he is our baby, and so we stress about leaving him. It's the only part of our upcoming trip that makes me sad.

It;s funny to read how you feel sentimental about WDW--for me it is DL. I grew up going to DL so for me that park is THE park. IMO, POTC is better at DL, HM is better, New Orleans Square beats Liberty Square, blah blah blah.

But now that we are in Texas, WDW is where we go. Our grandchildren are growing up going to WDW with us, so they will probably think it is better than DL when we take them there in several years. Ha!

I am enjoying your trip report and all the photos are great! Wow, CSR looks very nice! Our family are all WL fanatics, but we are staying at BWV for a change of pace this year--see how we like something different.

Ugh to AK. I would NOT have liked that at all--we have left that park before because of the heat--in December! I like the park, though. Just not so much the humidity and heat...

Anyway, looking forward to following along on your TR!

 

[disneylove16]

Best of wishes and congratulations on your wedding--I'm so glad things worked out and you were able to take this trip! What a lot of stuff to have going on before hand, though!

We honeymooned at WDW, too--many years ago. Many. Years. Ago. Now we celebrate our anniversary there at least every other year, and now those trips include our grown children and grandchildren!

I empathize with the fur baby--we have a lab and now that our children are grown he is our baby, and so we stress about leaving him. It's the only part of our upcoming trip that makes me sad.

It;s funny to read how you feel sentimental about WDW--for me it is DL. I grew up going to DL so for me that park is THE park. IMO, POTC is better at DL, HM is better, New Orleans Square beats Liberty Square, blah blah blah.

But now that we are in Texas, WDW is where we go. Our grandchildren are growing up going to WDW with us, so they will probably think it is better than DL when we take them there in several years. Ha!

I am enjoying your trip report and all the photos are great! Wow, CSR looks very nice! Our family are all WL fanatics, but we are staying at BWV for a change of pace this year--see how we like something different.

Ugh to AK. I would NOT have liked that at all--we have left that park before because of the heat--in December! I like the park, though. Just not so much the humidity and heat...

Anyway, looking forward to following along on your TR!

Thank you so much! I really did not think we were going to get to make this trip. It just made me appreciate it all the more.

I love that you get to share Disney with your children and grandchildren now! Happy memories created with each generation. I love it! I do have to agree with you about POTC I do think a lot of the theming is better at DL.

How do you like WL? That's the one resort we didn't check out, and I adore the theming there! I would love to stay there one day. BW is beautiful, I hope you enjoy it

AK was a challenge for me. I don't do great in crowds (ironic that I chose WDW for our honeymoon, I know) but AK was beyond packed. It was the first day on our trip that I started getting anxiety attacks. I think between the extreme heat, and not being able to move freely, it left me feeling pretty rotten. We did go back another night though, and it was much better, and left a better feeling about the park for us.

Thank you for following along! I know a lot of people read TR's without commenting. It's nice to get some feedback, and know someone is listening

 

[disneylove16]

We headed to Club Cool... this is a Before and After shot of DH trying "Beverly"



We took the friendship boat over to the other side of World Showcase since we had a 5:15 ADR at Biergarten. We were early, so we checked out Japan

 

[CaliTex]

You are welcome, disneylove16! Thank you for posting this TR--it helps pass the time until our December trip which is passing slower than a parade.

Hey, I wanted to also thank you for the tips/reviews! They have really been helpful! The chewie things and the pink drink from Starbucks: A nice pick me up is always good to have. I've already checked out the chewies and added them to my amazon wish list. The fans are on sale, but though we won't need them in December (Please, God!) I added them because they would really be helpful at my DGS pee wee football games. He had his first game yesterday and even though it was only 9 am it was already Animal Kingdom in August hot. Texas! Sheesh!

I understand about the crowds. Don't like them at all, but love WDW.

Disney really is a multi-generational thing--I went with my parents and grandparents, too, so we are now on our 5th generation...

Dang! We should have bought stock shares!

We LOVE WL. We find it to be very peaceful and romantic. Lots of little places to sit by the fire or on little terraces. We love the boat ride to MK especially. Very relaxing--and since you dislike crowds I think you would like the vibe of the resort and the boat ride. (no Pushing and shoving, KWIM?)

Even though we are staying at BWV we HAD to book one night at WL--we just couldn't not go! I highly recommend it for you and DH--it's really not any more expensive the CSR, I don't think. It's especially nice at Christmastime. We love the choral groups that sing carols in the lobby and the tree is fabulous!

I'm sure that you know (b/c you are a Disser, after all! ) that it's all under construction. We can't decide if we are excited or sad---life marches on, though, so we have mostly decided to be excited by all the changes. We may try to buy into DVC there, which would be so great!

Also, thank you for your review of Sunshine Seasons and Biergarten. I'm sad that Sunshine Seasons has fallen off--I have read several negative reviews. I hope they get back on track. I was also thinking of Biergarten but now I'm thinking naw--there are just too many great places to eat in EPCOT. Definitely doing Coral Reef this time and we love San Angel Inn so that's a traditional must do for us.

 

[Happy_Haunt999]

Absolutely love your TR so far! I am so glad you were able to go on this trip and everything worked out. Also, congrats!

 

[disneylove16]

We did the pick-a-pearl ceremony at Japan. It was nice, however I don't recommend this if you are shy or don't like everyone within ear shot looking at you








DH got a beer. And I got a cannoli, even though we were headed to dinner




We were early to our ADR so we looked around the shops.



I loved this Christmas ornament so much, I ended up buying it.

 

[disneylove16]

You are welcome, disneylove16! Thank you for posting this TR--it helps pass the time until our December trip which is passing slower than a parade.

Hey, I wanted to also thank you for the tips/reviews! They have really been helpful! The chewie things and the pink drink from Starbucks: A nice pick me up is always good to have. I've already checked out the chewies and added them to my amazon wish list. The fans are on sale, but though we won't need them in December (Please, God!) I added them because they would really be helpful at my DGS pee wee football games. He had his first game yesterday and even though it was only 9 am it was already Animal Kingdom in August hot. Texas! Sheesh!

I understand about the crowds. Don't like them at all, but love WDW.

Disney really is a multi-generational thing--I went with my parents and grandparents, too, so we are now on our 5th generation...

Dang! We should have bought stock shares!

We LOVE WL. We find it to be very peaceful and romantic. Lots of little places to sit by the fire or on little terraces. We love the boat ride to MK especially. Very relaxing--and since you dislike crowds I think you would like the vibe of the resort and the boat ride. (no Pushing and shoving, KWIM?)

Even though we are staying at BWV we HAD to book one night at WL--we just couldn't not go! I highly recommend it for you and DH--it's really not any more expensive the CSR, I don't think. It's especially nice at Christmastime. We love the choral groups that sing carols in the lobby and the tree is fabulous!

I'm sure that you know (b/c you are a Disser, after all! ) that it's all under construction. We can't decide if we are excited or sad---life marches on, though, so we have mostly decided to be excited by all the changes. We may try to buy into DVC there, which would be so great!

Also, thank you for your review of Sunshine Seasons and Biergarten. I'm sad that Sunshine Seasons has fallen off--I have read several negative reviews. I hope they get back on track. I was also thinking of Biergarten but now I'm thinking naw--there are just too many great places to eat in EPCOT. Definitely doing Coral Reef this time and we love San Angel Inn so that's a traditional must do for us.

I hope the chews help for you! I didn't expect anything from them, they were more for DH, but I was surprised at how much better they made me feel! And the fans too, hopefully they help in that Texas heat! I get how hard it is waiting for your trip, it will be here before you know it though! I loved reading TR's too, to pass the time and get excited for our trip.

WL sounds fantastic! It's definitely on our bucket list to stay at, even if we do a split stay. I didn't know they had carols in the resort at Christmastime, that sounds lovely! I'm sure the renovations will be great, don't let it get you down.

I was surprised at how disappointing Sunshine Seasons was. It was always a must-do for me. I hope the quality of the food improves. I still love the atmosphere at Biergarten, but again, the quality of the food just wasn't good. You're right, there are too many great choices in Epcot! DH fell in love with the San Angel Inn atmosphere this trip (we didn't eat there though), so I will definitely be booking it for next trip! Thanks again!

Absolutely love your TR so far! I am so glad you were able to go on this trip and everything worked out. Also, congrats!

Thank you so much! I appreciate it!

 

[disneylove16]

 

[disneylove16]

Soon, it was time for dinner. We were seated next to a nice family, who were quiet and kept to themselves, which was fine by us. I never know what to expect when eating here. Last time we were seated next to a very talkative, fun family that we interacted with the whole time. It created a totally different atmosphere. This time, we had a more quiet, private meal which was nice too.
This used to be DH's favorite restaurant, his must-do. I liked the atmosphere, but wasn't crazy about the food since I'm not a meat eater. But I do remember loving the potato-leek soup, and pretzel bread. This time, they didn't have either.


I did try the tomato soup though, and that was decent, and I did like the salmon and chicken. DH, on the other hand, didn't like anything. I don't know what changed since the last time, but he said Biergarten has been booted from the restaurant must-do rotation. After I asked the server about the pretzel bread, she was so sweet, and brought our table out a basket of it. But, it tasted like microwaved stale bread. Where it's too soft and wet, then gets hard really quick. Major disappointment. Oh well. I tried my best to take photos of the food, the lighting makes it difficult.
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[disneylove16]

DH did like the beer flight



Somehow, after eating all that, it looks like I still got a snack when we left

Kaki Gori from Japan


And DH got another beer.

 

[disneylove16]

We wandered/waddled out of World Showcase, and headed back to CSR.