Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

DISNEY1975

DIS Veteran
Joined
May 5, 2008
Welcome to my 03/24 - 04/03 trip report :) I hope this is informative to a family like me, somewhat on a budget looking to take a wonderful vacation! We spent 4 nights off site, 6 nights onsite and conquered many theme parks and restaurants along the way.

A little background...

This trip was for myself, my husband and the youngest of my 3 children, DD13. We were given a 6 month, 1 week notice that my nieces would be performing 2 days at Disney World, April 1 - 2. I had just one week to scramble and make my hotel reservation in order to book my dining at the 180 mark, a feat that usually takes me about 4 - 6 months of planning, reading menus and reviews! Somehow I got it done, with many changes in dining during the waiting period for our actual trip.

My boys are no longer interested in going to Disney. The youngest of the 2 is 10 years older than my DD. I think they lost interest in going when my daughter came along and I started including princess meals and attractions when they were teenagers :) Oh well...they are now 23 and 26 and are free to take their own vacations!

I did quick research as to which week might possibly be less crowded, the week before 04/1-04/02 weekend, or the week after. I even started a thread on DIS to try to calculate the number of states on break each week throughout the year. The week prior won out by a state or 2. According to the chart I made, I think there were about 8 states on school break beginning 03/27, compared to 9 or 10 the week after.

So my starting point was picking dates, then choosing a hotel. Typically we go to Disney end of September thru October. Most recently, it has been end of September for our past couple of trips. My jaw dropped when I saw the price difference of what I paid in Sept. 2015 vs. March 2017. Literally a 50% increase. OK, so maybe we wont stay our typical 10 - 11 nights! I looked at just a one week vacation. Not ideal for me, as I dont like to pound the pavement 2 days in a row, but I would try to squeeze in everything in 8 days. That price, to me, was still not what I considered a very good value. I then thought maybe we could stay at a moderate resort and go for the 10 nights. That price was better, but I wasnt thrilled with the idea of not staying at the Poly!

Equally less than thrilled was my husband! He vowed, after our last trip, we would not be going back to WDW anytime soon. Of course I was not going to miss the performances of my nieces, so I convinced him to go on the condition that we would try a lot of new things and not go to all my favorites for the 10+ time! I mentioned Poly for $10K and got a big "No Way". And that started a little loud conversation about not doing the same things over and over. I told him there were lots of other things to do, and he said its the same parks over and over and over again. Then a lightbulb went on! Ive never been to Discovery Cove or Universal Studios, so maybe we could stay offsite a few nights, then go to the Poly for a week :goodvibes . He liked the first half of the idea, but said "No Poly". I asked him where he wanted to stay and my daughter quickly entered the conversation and asked if she could pick. My husband said he would listen to her suggestion.

She went onto the computer and I almost cried tears of joy when I saw her reading reviews and looking at all the pictures! After a couple of days, she announced she wanted to stay at the Beach Club! Great! Something new !!! Ive been wanting to stay there, but something has always happened that another resort won over. Usually price, or not being a resort for free dining etc...

I priced the Beach Club for 7 nights only to find Lagoon View and Club level were the only categories available. Ughhh...how do I convince Mr. Tightfist to pay for that? I then looked at Yacht Club and they did have availability in a garden view for a somewhat reasonable price ($700 less than standard view at the Poly). It wasnt necessarily new to us, but my daughter had never been and it has been about 15 years since our last stay, so that is what we chose. Im so glad we did because when Disney finally announced their spring promo a couple of months later, Yacht Club was offering 30% off, while Beach Club and Poly only had a 10% discount!

Needing to be at Disney for the performance 04/01 - 04/02, we decided on a 6 night stay 03/28 - 04/03, and to extend our stay to make it a little more relaxing, we stayed offsite 03/24 - 03/28.

That is how our planning happened and I will soon share all the fantastic details in posts to follow.

Anyone sticking around to hear about Universal Studios, you will be disappointed! We didnt make it there. I will be telling our tales of Discovery Cove, Sea World, Aquatica, all 6 Disney Parks, 16 TS Disney restaurants and 8 offsite restaurants, Disney Springs etc..etc..etc....

See ya real soon pixiedust:


Day 1 - Arrival & Disney Springs - click here ---> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03

Day 2 - Discovery Cove - click here ---> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03

Day 3 - SeaWorld - click here ---> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03

Day 4 - Aquatica - click here ---> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

Day 5 - Yacht Club & Epcot - click here ----> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

Day 6 - Blizzard Beach and MK - Click here ---> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

Day 7 - Animal Kingdom - Click here ----> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

Day 8 - Typhoon Lagoon and Epcot - Click here ------> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

Day 9 - Hollywood Studios - Click here ------> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

Day 10 - Magic Kingdom - Click here ----> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017

Day 11 - Cape May Cafe and Departure Day - Click here ----> Our Off Site, On Site, Out of Sight Vacation 03/24 - 04/03 2017
 
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Day 1 -

I was a little nervous after reading reviews the days prior to my vacation re: the crowd levels at the parks during Spring Break. I had even read one family checked out early from the resort because battling the crowds was unbearable. There was no easing my nervousness when I arrived at MCO on Friday 03/24 at 10:00am to see hundreds of high school students all wearing the same lime green shirt boarding 5 ME buses. I asked one student if they were all all one flight. She said, no, they sold out 2 flights! YIKES!

We easily went to the rental car pickup, Hertz, to get our car and were exiting the airport around 10:30 (we also got our checked luggage, which took about 10 minutes).

One note about the rental car......
I had been looking for approx 6 months, every other day for a mid sized SUV rental. It was in the $500 - $700 range up until approx 6 weeks prior to our vacation. At that time, it dropped to $300, then around the month out mark, it dropped a tiny bit more to $283 for our 11 day stay. It was the same situation for our previous vacation to Disney 09/2015 and our more recent vacation to W Palm Beach 10/2016. I stringly advise to wait as long as you can before booking your car rental. I know people, like myself, just want everything to be in order as early as possible, but you must have will power to wait!!! It will pay off in the end!

Our off site stay was at Best Western Lake Buena Vista resort on Hotel Plaza Blvd. I had stayed there in the past for a night, when arriving to FL late and not wanting to pay Disney prices for 1/2 a day stay. We usually checked out the next morning and went straight to Disney. This time, it would be a 4 night stay since we were going to be visiting 3 off site theme parks.

The hotel is a 10 minute walk to Disney Springs and a 5 minute walk to many chain restaurants and souvenir shops. It offers a nice pool, which is very quiet during the day, shuttles to all the Disney theme parks plus 2 major shopping venues and Disney Springs, if you dont want to walk the 10 minutes. It also has a full service restaurant and a grab and go station, and an arcade. The room and bathroom sizes are larger than any on Disney property, including the deluxes. Its a very nice, clean place to stay and staff is top notch. It does not have any theme going on and definitely no Disney Vibe, but I know Ill be staying there in the future when visiting places outside of the "bubble". There are many many families who stay there for a week or more and utilize the frequent shuttles for their entire Disney stay. I met families from Europe and a family from Indiana who were there for 2 weeks! I suppose if you are staying in FL that long, it could be a tremendous savings. I also love the small size of the resort. Everything is conveniently located to your room, as is the parking lot, something I didnt appreciate enough until checking into the Yacht Club and having to walk quiet a distance from the parking lot to the lobby, which is typical for most, if not all, Disney resorts. I paid $105/night, plus a $13 resort fee (free wifi) and $8/night for parking. Due to this being high season, it was slightly more than what I usually pay for the one night, in the $80's range.

On our way from the airport to the resort, we stopped at a Winn Dixie (grocery store located 2 - 3 minutes by car from the resort). We got a case of water and a couple snacks for the room. This is like a full residential grocery store, not touristy at all like the Goodings closer to the resort which charges higher prices and only sells limited things people may want on a vacation.

We arrived at the resort around 11:30am. Our room was not ready and we were told to come back around 1. I was given a car pass to park in the lot, which we did and took a walk to Disney Springs. My daughter wanted to go on the amphicar boats, so we decided that would be a good time to do so. The cost was $125 for up to 3 people. We had 3! It was a 20 minute ride around the lake. We were given a few little stories about some of the restaurants and Saratoga Springs resort. I was not impressed. I honestly could have saved the $125 and taken the free ferry from one side of the lake to the other and had the same experience. It would have been more comfortable too. You are crammed into a small backseat of the car. You cant even see the car because you are sitting in it! the people watching us most likely had a better experience! After the little tour, you are lead into the shop where you are given the option to buy photos. I did buy one as a souvenir of our family. It was $15 plus tax.

We then went into a few shops. I purchased a cell phone cover for my Samsung Galaxy phone. It is hard to fund a Disney themed one that is not for an IPhone, but at this store, they custom make the covers for many different phones. I was excited until after I customized and paid for my cover to then be told there are similar shops in the theme parks with exclusive designs in each shop. I suppose I should have waited and looked at all the options before purchasing the one I did. I never looked at any of the others at the theme parks because I didnt want to be disappointed with my choice, with was the castle with Mickey balloons. The cost was $37 including getting my name printed on it and tax. Without the name, I believe its $5 less. We had to wait 30 minutes for the cover to be made. We poked around a couple more shops, bought my daughter some Mickey head earrings, went back to get the cover and left Disney Springs around 2:45 to check into the hotel.

Our room was ready, we brought our belongings to the room and headed out to eat. We were starving! We left our house at 4am, had a quick breakfast at the airport around 5:45am and had not eaten since. We get back to the car and start heading down Hotel Plaza Blvd and I hear a weird sound from the car. We were stopped at a light and when it turned green, the car barely moved out of 1st gear. It sounded like a transmission issue. I continued pressing on the gas and it seemed to kick into gear. I turned onto Rte 535 and at the next light, it happened again. Clearly tired and hungry, I panic and tell everyone we are going back to the hotel and calling Hertz. I got into the left lane and made a UTurn and the car was working perfectly. We made a quick 2 second decision to go to the nearest restaurant to eat, then return to the hotel and call Hertz.

The very first restaurant we see is Unos. I dont care! Im hungry, Im tired and Im upset about the car!! They were packed with a 20 minute wait. We walked across the parking lot to a Perkins Family Restaurant. The place was empty. Apparently it is a chain restaurant in many states, but I had never heard of it.

I just wanted something quick and simple, so I ordered a grilled ham and cheese. On the menu, they offered 1/2 a sandwich. I asked if it came as a full sanwich and the waiter told me he could do that. My daughter got Mac N Cheese, but husband a Burger.

The food arrived and I should have been warned about the size of the 1/2! the sandwich was HUGE. Texas Toast with TONS of ham inside. My husbands first comment was that he wqas surprised it was actually really good! I also liked my sandwich, which I only ate 1/2 of! and my daughter liked her Mac N Cheese. Clearly not an upscale dining venue, but it was not bad at all. I dont know why it was empty! My daughter got some kind of peanut butter pie to go. We waited by the counter for the to go container and chatted with the hostess for a minute. She was the one who told us it was a chain and the bakery is now Marie Callender (sp??) products. She was very nice and informative about the area, the waiter was super nice. It surprisingly was a good inexpensive meal....but maybe we were just that hungry :) !!! But I dont think so.

So I go back to my P.O.C car towards the hotel and guess what! Its working perfectly. My husband claims I must have had it in the wrong gear, possibly neutral, previously. Really??? Is that your best explanation? I have only been driving for 30+ years, but maybe its possible I dont know the difference between an "N" and a "D". Im sure I gave him some sarcastic comment back.

We decided to take the car for a little drive and seemed to not have any more issues. Back to the hotel, a quick swim in the pool and we were all sleeping by 8pm!

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Next up: Day 2 - Discovery Cove
 
Yea I'm the first one to post :goodvibes
Now I have to read ::yes::
Great start I love reading the details of how your trip came together. I was surprised when we were there expecting wall to wall people everywhere. Thankfully that wasn't the case.
The Best Western sounds really nice and what a great price. I like that you can walk to DS.
We ate at the Boathouse before and were considering taking a ride in the Amphicar boats until I saw the price. You did get some pretty pictures of DS from the water.
Your DD is adorable I meant to tell you when I was looking at your Discovery Cove pictures. Love her earrings very cute.
I have to laugh about Perkins we have one in Delaware and I didn't realize it was a chain either:rotfl:
I would have been freaking out about the car :scared1:
Can't wait to read more.
 
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I'm in.
Why don't most men get "it". Hopefully he had a good time once he got there.
The car issue sounded stressful. Did it straighten out or continue to act crazy? We have a Ford F250 that acts the same way. Some days it doesn't want to get out of first gear and other days it acts normal. The Ford dealership says there is NOTHING wrong. Really!!!
 


I'm interested to know if you used the shuttles? How early and late did they run?
 
I'm in.
Why don't most men get "it". Hopefully he had a good time once he got there.
The car issue sounded stressful. Did it straighten out or continue to act crazy? We have a Ford F250 that acts the same way. Some days it doesn't want to get out of first gear and other days it acts normal. The Ford dealership says there is NOTHING wrong. Really!!!

Super stressful! I downplayed my real reaction at the light :) I was not a happy camper and Im sure whatever I was ranting about at the time could be heard in all the cars around me!!!! The car was fine for the remainder of the trip. I have no idea what the issue was, but I am positive the car was not in neutral!! Its was a Jeep Compass, which I now refer to as a piece of poop. I did not like it. Last November I got rid of my 14 year old Chevy Venture minivan for a new Ford Explorer. Maybe if I was still driving the minivan and got into the Compass I would have thought it was the best car in the world, but I did not like it at all. It was such a simple car, Im surprised it had power windows and not the rollup crank things. And no pep at all.

I'm interested to know if you used the shuttles? How early and late did they run?

I did not use the shuttles, but I can say I left the hotel between 7 and 8 each morning and they were already running. I assume they go a little beyond the parks closing (regular hours. Extra magical hours are only for resort guests anyway). As for Disney Springs, they only run from 6pm untll 2am. During the day you would have to walk, but it was really quick. I also know they bring you to the Premium Outlets and another shopping plaza. Those shuttles run 3 times daily in each direction. Many many guests used the shuttles, which ran quite frequently, almost one after another. I did not only because we did not visit any Disney park during our stay off site.

Another thing I forgot to mention about the hotel location is that it is located on the "quiet" side of the street. The hotels on the opposite side of Hotel Plaza Blvd are directly on top of Rte 535, a very busy road where traffic can be heard all day and night. B was directly across from our hotel. I also noticed BW Lake Buena Vista was the only hotel on the road that not only had balconies in all the rooms, but the only one with a table and chairs on the balconies. All others had some balcony rooms, but no table/chairs.
 
Day 2 - Discovery Cove

The night of our arrival, I wanted to check out exactly how far we were from Discovery Cove. Im so glad I did. I read previously that Discovery Cove opened at 9am and that was my plan for arriving there. What I now learned when looking for their address was that they actually open at 7:15am for registration and breakfast, though the water attractions do not open until 9.

Turned out we were a 12 minute drive. Quick turn onto Rte 535, hop on 4E, then 3 exits up you arrive at all the "Sea World" parks.

I did a bunch of searches to find the best deal, try to get a discount etc.. There were not really any out there. Undercover Tourist had about $10 off pp so I booked with them. The price was $199pp + tax for the park and an extra $89pp for the dolphin swim. Neither I nor my husband were really interested in the dolphin swim, so I only signed up my daughter. You must be 12 or older to do it without a parent. She is 13. I believe the prices slightly differ depending on peak/value seasons. When I looked in January, they were offering for $169, though when I punched in my dates it came up $199. The dolphin swim must be reserved and they only allow XXX amount of people per day, so you must book for the exact day you are going. The price of the Discovery Cove tickets also included a 14 consecutive day pass to Sea World and Aquatica (water park). That helped me justify paying $700 for the 3 of us. Really it was 3 days of theme parks for 3 people...kind of like $78 pp per park...or less if you visited Sea World and Aquatica more than once. You could use them up to 14 days as many times as you wanted.

We left our hotel around 7:15 and arrived at DC at 7:30. Parking is free. This is an all inclusive park. All food, activities, towels, lockers, beverages, including alcoholic etc.. is included. There are a couple of gift shops and of course the pictures they take of you with the dolphins that would cost, but if you dont buy any souvenirs and have someone else taking pictures of you, there is no need to even bring a penny.

We entered the registration hub and got through the line in about 15 minutes. They have around 8 - 10 desks open that you approach to register for the dolphin swim and get a lanyard/photo ID to use. This is also your pass to the other parks..so dont lose it!

We exited the building an were greeted by an employee who gave us a brief overview of the park and told us where to head for breakfast. All meals were in the same "restaurant" located not too far from the entrance. Both breakfast and lunch were expansive buffets. Breakfast consisted of eggs (scrambled plain or southern with onion/pepper/cheese), french toast sticks, bacon, sausages, ham, potatoes, pastries, breads, yogurt, fruits, hot/cold cereal, juices and coffee. You could eat as much or as little as you wanted until 10:30am. There is plenty of available seating outside the building where they buffet is located. Most tables have umbrellas or a canopy. There is no indoor seating.

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All tables are for one family. You do not sit picnic style sharing tables :)

My daughters dolphin swim time was 9:45. We were told to arrive there 15 minutes early. Once finished breakfast, we started heading down a random path. All paths seem to be fully staffed with employees answering questions and directing you to any area you chose. We asked where the meet up location was for the dolphin swim and was directed to path to the right of the entrance. The path to the left of the entrance was for the enormous lazy river, bird sanctuary, and otter exhibit.

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Midway down the path were restrooms, lockers, towel pickup/return and the spot I had been dreading...where to pick up the mandatory, must be worn at all times by everyone, lifejacket or wetsuit. You can choose either. Prior to arrivinv at DC, I had imagined the bulky orange uncomfortable lifejackets like you are given on a cruise/boat. There was also no way you were getting this 48 YO mother of 3 into a wetsuit! I was Sooooooooo excited when I saw the lifejackets! They were paper thin and like a vest. Very comfortable and even hid a roll or two my bathing suit may have shown :) Yahoo!! Ill have to go on amazon and see if I can buy one to wear all the time on every vacation!!! My husband and I got the vests, my daughter opted for the wetsuit.

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Clearly, I was not about to take selfies in my bathing suit, so here is a picture of the vest I found on the internet. Just a quick zip if the front when you are ready to go into the water! You really forgot it was even on! It is super lightweight.

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We put most of our belongings into the locker. I kept a small beach bag with our watersocks (pool shoes) and our cameras/phones. There are many dispensers around the park with animal safe sunscreen. Its is super thick and not something I would ideally like to use, but I respected the rules (I saw others who didnt, but nobody who worked there seemed to care. Maybe its just a suggestion rather than a rule ??). My only advise is use a small amount. It takes forever to rub in. You can wear the locker key around your neck, though I just threw ours into the bag. We then headed off the the meet up area for the dolphins. I had to sign some paperwork for my daughter. Not sure exactly what it said, but Im sure there was a line in there that said if the dolphin runs off with my daughter, DC is not responsible. And also permission for her to be photographed.

She went down to the beach area with her "group" There are about 8 people in each group and seem to have 3 groups with 3 dolphins going on at the same time. The "swim" is 30 minutes, though your actual time swimming/touching/kissing the dolphin is more like 3 - 5 minutes. I had to stay on the beach, at the waters edge. My husband ran around taking pictures from every angle. I stood in one spot and made a new friend....the lifeguard! I sarcastically asked him if he ever had to save someone from the jaws of the dolphins and 30 minutes later, I knew his whole life story! Nice boy. He is a college student. I learned he doesnt actually do anything because it is the trainers who handle any situation with the dolphins. Born and raised in FL, I heard about his encounters with gators, his love for fishing, and a few tidbits about his very cool parents! He also told me about the dolphins and how they had more than ever at DC because of some construction at SeaWorld, they were also hosting most of their dolphins. Hmmmm.... are you telling me I will not be seeing dolphins the next day at SeaWorld ?? I didnt ask..figured Id find out soon!

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After everyone took their turn doing their thing with the dolphin, we stayed on the same side of the park to snorkel. There are plenty of lounge chairs for everyone. Its not like other waterparks where you have to throw a towel or a shoe on each chair to reserve it.

The snorkeling area is large. You are given a laminated inventory of all the fish you might encounter under the water. There were so many different kinds!

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After snorkeling for a couple of hours, we headed back to the restaurant for lunch. Again, its a buffet, hot entrees of chicken pork or fish with rice, potatoes, sandwiches, burgers,salads, desserts etc.... I also havent mentioned in addition to this restaurant, there are many snack counters located around the property. You can literally go up to the counter and grab a variety of chips / goldfish, soft pretzels, cookies, ice cream, bottled beer, frozen margaritas, sodas, lemonade and bottled water whenever you want all day long.



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After lunch, we went to other side of the park, where the lazy river is located! This is the best lazy river in the world. My ONLY complaint is you go through it with a noodle, not an innertube. I kind of understand as Im sure I would have fallen asleep for hours if I was floating on an innertube. With the noodle, you have to kick a little and stay awake! There are no freezing cold waterfalls to go under! You float through a bird sanctuary in one section and see all types of tropical birds. The water is gorgeous turquois, its like you are in some lagoon in Bora Bora !!

I definitely recommend pool shoes or water socks. The bottom does have many rocks.


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We spent the rest of the day in the river. It takes a good 1/2 hour to go all the way around. We probably did it about 3 times. The park closes at 5:00pm. We grabbed our stuff from the locker, a last ice cream :) and returned our lifejackets/wetsuit and towels and sadly back to the piece of poop to leave that beautiful wonderful place! Oh, before we did, we bought 4 photos, a little smaller than 8 x 10, professionally taken by a DC photographer. The 4 photo package was $99. Their was a smaller package and many more larger packages with larger sized photos, posters, a CD/video of the whole thing, but my husband got a great video, I didnt feel the need to buy theirs. The person next to me at checkout spend $249 on her package! Not sure what she got. I hope everything! I also bought my daughter a Tshirt and we got a large family sized beach blanket for $10 for buying the $30 T shirt. My husband bought a case early in the day to put over his cell phone to take underwater photos. The case was $27. Im sure they have them on amazon for less than $10! By the time we got our photos and souvenirs, it was about 5:30, got back to the hotel close to 6. My daughter headed to the shower first. While waiting for my husband, then I to get showered and changed, she fell asleep! Nobody was really hungry anyway. I ended up throwing in a load of laundry of the 2 bathing suits we each used on arrival night and DC day, and our 2 days of clothes. Cost of laundry at the hotel was $3/wash and $3/dry. My husband watched TV and we were all sleeping by 8:30 - 9pm. I can not wait to go back to Discovery Cove!

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Next Up: Day 3 - Sea World
 
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Such a great report thank you for all the details and beautiful pictures. DD and I have been hoping to go. No wonder you want to go back looks like such an amazing place.
 
Day 3 - Sea World

This morning we didnt feel as rushed leaving the room as the hours posted on the Sea World website stated they didnt open until 10am. We slept a little later and headed out around 9:30am, arriving at SW at 9:45, only to find out the website was wrong and they opened at 9 that day. Oh well...

We got the tickets for free with the Discovery Cove package. I think admission is about $78 normally. We did pay $20 for parking, and that would be the same for anyone with a package or just there for the day.

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Upon arriving, you are greeted by Shamu and the park photographers are right there waiting to take your $$, I mean, picture !! My husband took this shot. We did not purchase any photos the entire day. We went to the guest services line to purchase the all day dining package. It was $34.99pp (children are less, but my 13 yo is considered an adult in Florida!) I could have paid $5 less per person if I pre purchased at home, but I honestly thought we wouldnt spend much time at this park and after reading reviews and seeing photos, it seemed like most meals cost around $12. I figured we would only have lunch and a snack here, but since we didnt have breakfast at the hotel and my husband was hungry as soon as we got there, we opted for the package. We were given a green wristband to show we purchased the package.

I then got a map of the park. Now, it could very well be me and my total reliance on my GPS to get me places, but since Ive been working in logistics for 20 years and configuring routes around the world, Im pretty sure I can actually read a map. With a bit of confidence, I would make a recommendation that the park map makers make a footnote on the map stating "These locations are more or less where you might find them" The map was awful. AWFUL. We spent 10.5 hours in the park, and I will bet 2 of those hours were spent walking in circles trying to find things. On top of that, it became clear that in the middle of the night, they let go of all their staff and hired new team members. Anyone I asked a question to could not give me an answer. The scariest one was at the end of the day I asked a SECURITY GUARD how to get to Shamu Stadium...the largest stadium in the park....and he shrugged his shoulders, smiled and said "Im not really sure". What ??? You are security! I just hope there is no emergency ever at Shamu Stadium. The funniest one is I asked some guy sweeping where something was located and he looked up, looked around, then pointed his finger and said "Somewhere over there". I repeated "Somewhere?" hahaha!!! He said it was his second day there.

We circled around many times trying to locate the one and only place to get breakfast, Seafire Grill. We eventually found it and entered. There was a cafeteria line assembly that you grab a tray and choose your items. The below image is another restaurant in the park, but the same kind of set up...

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The counter is unmanned. For breakfast there were croissants, muffins, cereal, and fruit cups. My husband took a fruit cup and muffin, my daughter got cereal and fruitcup and I just had a croissant. We all got juice.

We get to the cashier and she tells us that with the dining plan we can only have one item and a soda or lemonade. We ended up paying for the juices and 2 fruitcups. Came to about $25. We were also aware, that you could only use the dining plan once an hour, so there was no getting back in line to get a second item.

After breakfast, we headed off to the Sealion and Walrus show. It was cute, what I expected. Balancing a ball on the nose, waving with the flippers etc...

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After the show, an hour had passed since breakfast, so we all got a drink!

We wandered around a bit, then went to the Dolphin show

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My husband and daughter dont like extreme rides, so we didnt go on any of the rollercoasters. There seemed to be about 3 throughout the park. We did go on a ride that took you way up into the sky to get a 360 panoramic view of the parks. It was narrated giving you information about Sea World.

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Next up was a very cute pet show. I know you can train a dog, but these trainers managed to get cats, mice, ducks and a skunk to do a performance! Very impressive! The show was entertaining! I didnt take any pictures inside, it was very dark and honestly, I was busy watching all the animals! It was a great show.

Then lunch. You can choose from a variety of venues, they all seemed to be the same. Burgers, sandwiches, chicken, fries, pizza and dessert. After not knowing about the breakfast, we asked what we were allowed to have on the plan. Mass confusion broke out behind the counter. "Can they get fries?" "No, wait, yes" "Is that considered a side?" "Maybe" Asking another person, they didnt know, asked someone else 3 minutes later, we were allowed a sandwich with fries or a salad. Both came with dessert and soda or lemonade.

My daughter wanted to take a ride in the pedal swans... It was $6 pp. They rode about 30 minutes. It wasnt busy and nobody ever called them to come back

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Next up, the penguin ride/exhibit. It was fun. You ride through an informative, ummm....movie ?? about Penguins, then are let off into the FREEZING exhibit. I know you have to keep it cold for the Penguins, but Brrrrrrr....

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My daughter played a couple of carnival games. $5 each. She won a stuffed "hamburger" on a basketball game! Little did they know she is a 3x regional champion for basketball :)

We went to the shark exhibit, stopped for drinks and my husband grabbed a slice of pizza, then off to Shamu Stadium for the whale show.

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It was really great. I will say if you sit in the "Soak Zone" you WILL get soaked. I sat above, but my daughter wanted to get wet, so my she and my husband sat on about the 4th row. They got soaked.

I was ready to leave at that point, but Mr. Tightfists wanted to make sure we got our moneys worth out of the dining plan and since the park was open until 8, we wondered and waited for about 1/2 an hour, then got dinner there too, around 7:30. I think in the end we each ate about $50 worth of food. If we didnt stay for dinner, we would have broke even.

Back to the hotel, and in bed by 9:30pm.

All in all, I enjoyed the day. Not too much walking as you are sitting at the shows quite a bit or slowly walking through an exhibit. There is a lot to see. Im sure we missed a few attractions and we spent the entire day there!

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Next up: Day 4, Aquatica
 
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I am loving your reports we have never been to Sea World I'm sad to say. DD will be home from college the end of this month. I can't wait to show her your trip report she is going to love it. You were cracking me up about the staff very sad but funny. It's great they have so many shows how were the crowds compared to Disney? DD would definitely want to ride all the coasters. More great pictures and the one with DH and DD is very cute.
 
I am loving your reports we have never been to Sea World I'm sad to say. DD will be home from college the end of this month. I can't wait to show her your trip report she is going to love it. You were cracking me up about the staff very sad but funny. It's great they have so many shows how were the crowds compared to Disney? DD would definitely want to ride all the coasters. More great pictures and the one with DH and DD is very cute.

Crowds were extremely low compared to Disney. No waits for anything, rides either no wait or 5 minutes tops, none for dining. They let you into the stadiums approx 30 minutes prior to the shows starting. It is bleacher seating and at no time did we get the "Move all the way to the end" speech! The stadiums did mostly fill, but plenty of personal space!!
 
Day 4 - Aquatica

To be honest, I had never heard of this place until I saw it was part of the Discovery Cove package deal. I figured, why not! When considering the length of my Disney stay, I could have stayed an extra night at the Yacht Club for $900 (room, tix, dining), or spent 4 nights offsite doing the DC, SeaWorld, Aquatica for $1200 + a few meals. Kind of a no brainer.

Park Hours were from 10am (really this time!!) to 6pm. I knew we had to leave the park early because I was going to visit a friend in Winter Garden, which was about 20 minutes away and it was only a quick visit during her break at work. She got out of work at 5 and had to go right home ( she lives 1 hr, 45 minutes from her workplace..poor thing), so my plan was to be there around 3:30 and I didnt want us looking like grubs since I havent seen her in years, so we needed to go back to the hotel and change before going there. My plan was to leave Aquatica at 1:30.

We had breakfast at the hotel. Its a buffet with many options. Loved the omelet station! A tad pricey for the "off site" area, $15.99 pp. Im sure we could have gone to a number of local places for breakfast for slightly less, but this was convenient enough it wasnt worth leaving the property to save $10.

We arrived at Aquatica at 9:50ish. Parking was $15. We walked straight in with our landyards and grabbed a map. This place is not huge. I suppose if I went to the center of the park and did a 360 spin, I could have seen everything and wouldnt have needed a map!

We walked in and immediately saw dolphins! Here is a photo of the dolphin tank, unfortunately no dolphin was swimming by. I thought my husband was also taking pictures, but I cant find any on his camera either :(

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We went over to the "Wave pool", which is the largest area in the park with lounge chairs.

There are a few (3 ?) water slides at this park, a wave pool and 2 "rivers". One is lazy with a tube, but only takes about 5 minutes to go around the whole thing. The other you have to swim through, which is longer and larger.

Here is the one you swim through..you must wear a lifejacket.

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But clearly some people dont read the rules!

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Top of a slide....

You slide through the dolphin pool, shown at the right of the picture.. Very cool!

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And the wave pool

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Park map... This map makes the park look WAY bigger than it is. The center is basically the wave pool and all other areas are a 30 second walk...

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Out of all the water parks I have been to, this is by far the smallest. It was clean and the water was refreshing and it surely beat any hotel pool, but I would not pay whatever price they may charge, plus $15 for parking to come here. It was really a great spot to chill out for the day, to get off your feet, take some dips in the pool. There were more shops and dining venues than attractions. It was not crowded at all and a great way to spend our last day "off-site" as I knew my feet were in for a rude awaking the next day.

We ended up leaving at 2 :) Drove to Winter Garden to see my friend, then returned to the resort (hotel) around 5.

We walked to Disney Springs so we could take the "Characters of Flight" ride. Unfortunately moments before we arrived, it became too windy and they shut it down. We waited almost an hour, but it never came back up. They were not reopening any time soon.

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I asked everyone where they wanted to eat, and quickly got an response from my daughter. "Remember you said we could go to IHOP?" Ummm...no! I dont remember that. When did I say that? "Oh, about a month ago." Maybe I said it, but probably meant for breakfast! Maybe. I told her I really was tired of sandwiches and burgers and wanted something better. "But you said we could. This is our last night and we wont be able to go once we get to Disney". Please no! But, do you really want to go? "YES" !

Ughhhh... Goodbye all you yummy restaurants in Disney Springs! Hello IHOP :(

If someone said they would give me a free all expenses paid 1 month vacation to Disney World and all I had to do was tell them what I got to eat at IHOP, I would not be able to. I really dont remember! I guess I was too busy eavesdropping on the family behind me who had just spent some days at the Disney parks. Seemed so odd. It was a father, definitely his 2 daughters and a woman, who, based on his questions to her, he barely knew. But she interacted with the girls like they were her own, or at least had a firm relationship with them. Really strange. None of my business!

When I left, they were also getting up too, so I asked them how crowded I should expect the Disney parks to be. The guy said the crowds were terrible, the woman said they really werent too bad. ?? I guess Ill soon find out!

Back to the hotel, last swim in the pool, did a load of laundry (my last for the trip, but I wasnt tired so why not clean the bathing suits and clothes!) and in bed by 10pm!

Next up...Day 5 - Yacht Club & Epcot
 
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Apparently the vest mandate is new at Aquatic. I know I almost droned on the Australian lazy river thing. Hated that park but loved Discovery Cove. Never made it to Sea World bet it is the same as the one in San Diego. I'm like your husband and would eat something every hour.
 
I wonder when they changed the life jacket rule at Aquatica. We were there in Feb( and a lot of times previous) and you only had to if you were under 54" I think it was. Adults were not required to wear them. Many do though since the current is so fast. I never do because they hurt my neck.

At Sea World they usually have signs on the walls in the restaurants letting you know which food you can have on the plan. It's usually color coded so 1 item with a blue dot and 1 item with a red dot ect. And we found out when we were there in Feb that you don't actually have to wait the hour if you're just getting a drink. Drinks are unlimited. That was very helpful.

IF you ever make it to Universal I"d suggest skipping their dining plan altogether. It's the worst to figure out.
 
I wonder when they changed the life jacket rule at Aquatica.

At Sea World they usually have signs on the walls in the restaurants letting you know which food you can have on the plan. It's usually color coded so 1 item with a blue dot and 1 item with a red dot ect. And we found out when we were there in Feb that you don't actually have to wait the hour if you're just getting a drink. Drinks are unlimited. That was very helpful.

IF you ever make it to Universal I"d suggest skipping their dining plan altogether. It's the worst to figure out.

Thanks for the US tip! I dont think Id get it again at SeaWorld either. We didnt see a sign at breakfast, but honestly, probably never looked. When we walked in, the counter/tray and food were right there, so we just started. Probably since we spent the day before at Discovery Cove, we just assumed it was like a buffet. We didnt know until we reached the cashier that it was not.

As for our lunch, we did see a sign. The NON meal plan meal was burger and fries, on the meal plan board it just said burger. All we wanted to know is if it came with fries! Nobody seemed to know initially, but literally several minutes later, with 4 to 5 employees involved, we were told it did. My husband got the burger & fries, I got a HUGE chefs salad! Tons of meat and cheese :) It was good!

At Aquatica, the life jacket rule was only for that one river you have to swim through. They were not required anywhere else in the park.
 
Day 5 - Yacht Club and Epcot :)

I was up at the crack of dawn so excited about going to Disney World. I did enjoy our stay outside of the Disney "bubble" and was happy we experienced new things. My husband and daughter enjoyed our off site stay too. I got myself ready for the day, then packed up our room and woke up the troops. We had our first ADR at 11:10am, so we left at about 10:30 from BW-LBVR. I did go to the front desk, but I guess there was no need. They Email our statement and we drop the parking pass off in the box when we leave the gate.

We arrived at the Yacht Club around 10:40ish. I circled the parking lot and not one spot was available. Here we go. There are 2 things I am not a fan of, ok 3 things I am not a fan of, at the Poly. 1) Between the popular Ohana breakfast, the 2 x nightly popular Luaus and the Ultra popular Ohana dinner, plus Trader Sams and Kona Cafe, the common areas at the Poly are ALWAYS filled with guests, and it seems very loud all the time. 2) Due to #1, the parking lot is ALWAYS full and I need to circle the lot several times waiting for someone to come out so I can get their spot. Its like a mall on Black Friday. 3) (this one is just plain nit picking) If/when the monorail is actually working, it has become well known that you can reach the TTC/MK Parking area from the resort monorail. AKA....even though you are staying at a monorail resort, if you leave the MK at closing or after the nightly parade, you will be waiting a long long time to get back to the resort. When the monorail does reach the TTC (Poly being the next stop) practically everyone gets off. I would assume the major upcharge at the monorail resorts are for the convenience of the monorail...but....it really isnt convenient at all. During my last 2 stays, more times than not, it wasnt running, or the line was too long leaving MK, that we took the ferry. So, you can imagine the smile on my face when I could not find a parking spot on our very first minute of arriving at the Yacht Club. I drove up to the front and told the valet I was checking in and could not find parking. He basically said "I know. Its very busy here this week (Yikes). You can valet your car with me, or another option is to try parking at the Beach Club". Say what now? Are you telling me I can pay $25 plus tip to park my car at the resort I am spending $470/night, including free parking, or drive a mile away, hope to find parking and walk back? Is that what I am hearing? IS IT??? IS THAT WHAT YOU ARE TELLING ME????? But I really say, in a nice voice "Ill just wait a bit and hope someone comes out. If not, I guess Ill be seeing you in a few minutes :) "

Luckily, someone did come out and I snagged their spot.

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Our room wasnt ready, which I was not expecting, therefor we left all our luggage in the car. I basically just wanted to make sure we were checked in and our Magic Bands were set to go for our lunch reservation at Beaches and Cream. Front desk was a breeze. She said we would receive a text when our room was ready. We had about 5 minutes to get across the pool area for lunch. When we arrived the doors were still locked! We sat for a minute at the tables outside the entrance, which had nice views of the pool.

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A minute later the doors opened and we were inside. All alone (other than CMs).

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We were on the deluxe dining plan, which includes an app, entree, dessert and drink. Since we hadnt had breakfast, we ordered everything. If I had known what I would have been eating the previous 4 days, I would not have picked this place for my first lunch. Its just burgers and sandwiches! Im about to turn into a sandwich! I got soup and grilled cheese, my husband got chili and probably a burger, DD got Mac N Cheese (surprise, surprise). Then, the moment we had all been waiting for! DESSERT! Now since we were eating, the restaurant filled up and a couple of people ordered the "Kitchen Sink" For those who dont know, this is a famous ice cream sundae to be shared by millions, or at minimum 3 - 4 people. It has 8 scoops of ice cream, many toppings, cakes, candy, brownies cherries and "A whole can of whipped cream". It really does. I watched them assemble it, grab a new can of whipped cream each time and squirt out everything in it, then toss it away! When someone does order this sundae, the lights go out, strobe lights go on and the waiter announces that someone is about to eat the kitchen sink. Then all the CMs join in and say together "With a whole can of whipped cream"...or something very close to that!

Since we just ate a big meal, we decided to attempt that later, but for now, we would stick to individual sundaes. Well, when our sundaes came, I realized even that was way too much. But MMMmmmmmmmm YUMMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYYYY.

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My daughter and I each got a sundae, my husband got bread pudding. We barely made a dent in any of it. They were HUGE. After eating some of the peanutbutter and fudge topping, trying to make my way to the ice cream, I got too full to eat any more. Such a waste. We vowed to go another night, not eat a meal first, and attempt again. What I did have of it was delicious!


After leaving Beaches and Cream, we walked over to the Marketplace at Beach Club to get our refillable mugs. These were given to us since we were on the dining plan. You can fill them as often as you like through the duration of your stay. In years past, you couldnt only fill them at the resort you were staying at. Im pretty sure that has changed and you can fill them at other locations, but honestly I dont remember if it is at other resorts, theme parks or both. If you dont have a dining plan, the cost is $17.99 plus tax for the duration of your stay. During our stay, the location to get the mugs was under renovations, so the Beach Club was our only option. When Fitting and Fairings re-opens in the YC, you will be able to get the mugs there.

While we were inside the Marketplace, we got the text that our room was ready. My guess is it was around 12:45pm.

We were in room 2147. Oh my goodness, the location could not be better. Literally just steps away from the elevator, which was never needed, because there is a small staircase next to the elevators to bring you to the lobby, front and back doors.

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One of the balconies on the second floor was ours! We overlooked the courtyard, with slight pool and lagoon views. I assume a little later in the spring when the leaves were back on the trees, the pool and lagoon view would no longer be seen.

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Standing on the balcony.....
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The room was not one of the recently renovated rooms, which I was happy for that. I happen to like carpet under my feet. I heard the new rooms have hardwood flooring and all the furniture/headboards etc..are dark wood. I love the "old" rooms.

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We brought our luggage from the car, unpacked then headed for Epcot.

We had a few fastpasses for this evening, the new Frozen ride, Crush Talk and the Land.

We used the ferry from the resort to get to Epcot. Our first stop was a shop at the entrance way. I just wanted to "peek" We noticed at the counter there was some Easter Egg hunt for the kids. Cost was $6 to play. Kids had to go to all the countries in Epcot's World Showcase and find a very large hidden egg either inside the shops, or somewhere outside the pavillions. Some of them were not easy to find! They had to match the face on the egg to the country by placing a sticker with the face onto a map. Once completed, you go to the Traders shop to exchange the map for a prize. Sounded harmless! We bought one.

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And off we went! Or so I thought! As soon as we left the shop, my daughter pointed out a new Dooney and Bourke pocketbook in the store's window. I had to go back in!!

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Lucky for me, they were out of the satchels and only had totes left. But I was told to check other shops at the front of the park, like Mouse Gear.

So now we leave.....

It was Flower and Garden Festival Season. So pretty in the park!

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We went on our fastpass rides. I think the Frozen standby wait time was about 40 minutes, but the other 2 were walk on/in. Where was everyone? Certainly not the low crowds I was expecting. It was quite pleasant all over the park. The must all be at the other parks ??

After the rides, it was time for dinner. We had a 6:45 reservation at Teppan Edo. We had never been there, which is basically why we went!

This is a Hibachi restaurant and you are seated with other families at one "Station". We were sat with a couple and their adult son, and 3 teenagers whose parents were not there. I can be as friendly or as unfriendly as you want me to be. Normally I dont speak until spoken to. Nobody at our table ever spoke to each other! Thats fine with me!

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We were the only people at the table on the deluxe plan, which was a little awkward that we were the only ones eating an appetizer. We all got the tempura vegetables. For our entree, my daughter got chicken, my husband steak and shrimp and I got filet mignon. They all came with rice and vegetables.

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We did not get dessert. We were still full from lunch to even eat the dinner, but managed to force it down! It wasnt hard to do...the food was great. I typically think of Japanese as being a little salty, but this was not the case. My filet mignon was delicious and flavorful.

We left around 8:30 (we were not seated until 7) browsed in the Pavillion shop for a bit, then went across the walking path to the lagoon to watch IllumiNations.

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It was a great view of the countries and fireworks, but we could barely see the globe/lazer show because it was behind a little island we were on the wrong side of. If you have never seen the show, I would suggest viewing from another spot, either by England towards the front of the park, or by Germany towards the front of the park. Anything Germany through France would probably be obstructed.

Epcot had extra magic hours that night until 11pm. We continued hunting for eggs and made a quick stop in France for my daughters favorite Macaroons! $12 will buy you 6 tiny treats.

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We then took the ferry back to the Yacht Club. I used the phone to set up our wakeup call for the next morning....6am! And went to sleep!

Next Up: Blizzard Beach
 
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If someone said they would give me a free all expenses paid 1 month vacation to Disney World and all I had to do was tell them what I got to eat at IHOP, I would not be able to. I really dont remember! I guess I was too busy eavesdropping on the family behind me who had just spent some days at the Disney parks. Seemed so odd. It was a father, definitely his 2 daughters and a woman, who, based on his questions to her, he barely knew. But she interacted with the girls like they were her own, or at least had a firm relationship with them. Really strange. None of my business!

When I left, they were also getting up too, so I asked them how crowded I should expect the Disney parks to be. The guy said the crowds were terrible, the woman said they really werent too bad. ?? I guess Ill soon find out!

This would be me totally distracted :rotfl:
Sorry you didn't get to dine in DS that night.
More great picture can't wait to read your YC report ::yes::
 
I'm glad you were able to find a parking spot and you showed great restraint. Your inner dialogue would have been coming out of my mouth while my DD looked down in embarrassment. You're right about the monorail it ate up so much of our time.
Loving all the YC pics keep em coming.
I'm drooling over the computer looking at the those desserts!
 
That was a great room location and you could see the Eiffel Tower from your balcony. Your pictures are making me miss Epcot so much with the beautiful flowers and blue sky's.
We've never been to Teppan Edo how was your food?
 
That was a great room location and you could see the Eiffel Tower from your balcony. Your pictures are making me miss Epcot so much with the beautiful flowers and blue sky's.
We've never been to Teppan Edo how was your food?
Really good. My filet mignon was really flavorful, but not salty, which I love. The tempura with dipping sauces were delicious too. My daughter liked her chicken, and that is huge for her. She rarely eats meat and it has to be really good for her to eat it! She ate a lot. My husband said his was really good too. We will be going back there someday! The only other restaurant I havent tried is Spice Rd. Their menu does not really appeal to me, but maybe someday we will give it a try.

I never even noticed the eiffel tower! Other than taking that picture and a couple time when I brought our bathing suits out on the chairs to dry, I didnt really spend any time on the balcony! That was also looking all the way to the right. If I was just looking straight, I saw the large courtyard and people coming and going to the pool and ferry.
 
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