“Life is Grand, it Yacht to be, we are at Disney! 1/29 New TR link, a question, and this TR is complete!

[Jenny Sanders]

You sure got that right Jenny!! I hope it isn’t to bad for you right now. I saw some pictures of Epcot on the weekend and it looked really crowded!

It hasn’t been too bad. Epcot is a mess though with all the construction.

 

[afwdwfan]

Now, I am not going to sugar coat this update even though we were heading to the most magical place on earth, AKA MK!!

This morning was not without some really frustrating moments. Thank goodness we also had some wonderful highlights mixed in!

It happens... Stinks that it does, but you have to take the highs and the lows.

The laughable HM photos continue!

That one isn't half bad.

Ariella texted me and gave me directions to their secret sitting area. This is a really nice area and for all the times I have walked by here, I didn’t even know it was there. We got to say hi to @StarWarsMomofGirls! her family and @kastoney and her family. We discussed the heat and crowds. We all walked over to Splash and rode together with our FP+. This was so fun! Improved my morning! Thanks for meeting up with us, ladies and I am sorry if Andi was a little cranky!

Sounds like a great meet up and it looks like you all got to have some fun together. Andi doesn't look that cranky in the picture, but I guess it is hard to look very cranky on Splash.

I thought I would go into Starbucks for a refresher, not a good idea!

Going into Starbucks is never a good idea.

I headed out of MK, I was done with the heat and crowds this morning! I vowed to not go back into that Starbucks again this trip! It was complete chaos.

Good call. Step away from the dark side.

I got a bus back to YC. I entered our room and it was hot! The temp was 76 degrees. I called down and a really nice maintenance lady came up. She informed me our balcony door was not completely shut and this causes the air to turn off.

Yikes... that seems pretty crazy that something small like that would make the air shut off. I'm glad it was a simple and quick fix though.

 

[disneyAndi14]

I will never unsee that chocolate hat .

Good thing my mom does not really go on the internet let alone any sort of forum, or she would probably be calling me Ms. Sass too!

I am always too scared to brave the Starbucks lines at WDW. I waited with my friend at DLR in July since she needed caffeine, and we probably waited at least 20 minutes and it wasn't even busy. I worked at Caribou in college and I don't get how it could get that backed up when they have so many people working!

I feel the same way, the Hat will forever be a female part to me now
Haha! Good thing Andi hasn’t been on here much lately, she would be throwing me some shade for sure!!
Ugh! The Starbucks was a bad experience for me!! It’s always so backed up there! Andi really likes Dunkin and goes there often!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Nooo, and on the first full day!

Of course!! At least that was the most frustrating morning and I got it over right away

What a beautiful picture!

Sometimes I forget how wonderful the castle looks from all sides!

You're thinking Ms. Sass belongs there with all the ghosts and ghouls!

I could have left her there that morning!

That Starbucks can be such a madhouse

Yes indeed!

What? Her behavior is just awful! Sorry you experienced that and that you didn't even get your drink in the end.

It was bad! I can’t believe I never got my drink!

Can't wait to hear about a better evening!

It was fun and laid back!

I'm so glad, too! I had such a wonderful time

 

[disneyAndi14]

It hasn’t been too bad. Epcot is a mess though with all the construction.

It looks like you are having fun! Love the pictures/video

It happens... Stinks that it does, but you have to take the highs and the lows.

Yes, Disney is awesome but there are lows at times as well!

That one isn't half bad.

Haha! Thank you, we have a few more coming up and I finally get it right!

Sounds like a great meet up and it looks like you all got to have some fun together. Andi doesn't look that cranky in the picture, but I guess it is hard to look very cranky on Splash.

It really was, she was better by that time but very shy meeting my Dis friends!

Going into Starbucks is never a good idea.

Why didn’t you tell me that last month

Good call. Step away from the dark side.

It was so bad, I can’t even explain how chaotic and awful it was and I am not prone to drama!

Yikes... that seems pretty crazy that something small like that would make the air shut off. I'm glad it was a simple and quick fix though.

I was sure the balcony door was shut, oh well it did cool down fast!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Hello Everyone!

I have found a new way to pass time when I am a passenger in the car I hate regular selfies, I look blah!! These Snapchat pictures with the filters are awesome!


Okay back to the August heat, I was resting in the room and it was cooling down nicely! I will give you all my pro tip again regarding Mousekeeping and security checks. I call down to housekeeping on the first morning and request our room cleaning to occur mid morning each day! This has worked like a charm, our room has been cleaned 99% of the time before we get back mid afternoon. This also eliminates the surprise knocks in the afternoon when you are resting.

I did ask about lotion when I called and was told to go buy my own in the gift shop! That did rub me the wrong way! Lotion is given out at The Holiday Express and I don’t believe it costs $400-500 dollars a night. I did write an email to the manager at the YC and the GF! I hope they read my email because I didn’t get any type of acknowledgement!

Andi was back and craving a grilled cheese sandwich. We headed down to Hurricane Hannah’s Grill only to find out the grilled cheese meal on the kids menu was gone I asked and the CM said they could make it for us! Andi was happy! I got the waffle fries and these were really good! Her grilled cheese was okay. We walked around the resort some and made our way back to the room for more r&r.

I was able to pick up a Soarin FP+ for early evening. We got ready for Epcot and made our way over to IG. Can I just say entering the park here is so nice! There is virtually no wait and never feels crowded!


We made our way to Soarin and had a fun ride. The guy next to me was just way to cool for the ride. He never cracked a smile and just sat there like a statue! We exited the ride, and Andi was apparently walking away from a fire, man, that girl can walk fast. I am not sure why she was in such a hurry. She was less sassy thank goodness! We looked in Mousegears for a little while. We did see some cute shirts and made a mental note about these for later! It was time to head out to Italy and meet our Minnesota friends.


We saw a photographer in Italy and had a few pictures taken. He had a few signs for props. It was fun and the evening was very nice!






Our friends showed up and we checked in at Via Napoli. We did not have to wait long, maybe 10 minutes. We had a nice table in the main dining area. We had a decent waiter. C and I had the white sangria. I really enjoyed this, it had fresh apple and pineapple in it. Andi and I shared a cheese pizza with mushrooms on it. This was great and we ate it all. We have really been lucky with our pizza and service here. I have read some reviews which are not as good!




Our plan was to watch Illuminations from Italy after dinner, we made it out a little late. We did watch most of it! It was nice and we had a good view! We all walked back to the YC and said our goodbyes. They were leaving the next day so it was nice to spend the evening with them.

Andi and I had an early morning date with some toys! We got ready for bed and watched a few shows before drifting off!

Stay tuned for an early morning TSL review, coming up soon!

 

[AliceNDinah]

Love your Snapchat selfie---that is adorable. Also adorable is that huge pizza, nummmmm!! I am loving your report and can't wait for more

 

[afwdwfan]

Okay back to the August heat, I was resting in the room and it was cooling down nicely! I will give you all my pro tip again regarding Mousekeeping and security checks. I call down to housekeeping on the first morning and request our room cleaning to occur mid morning each day! This has worked like a charm, our room has been cleaned 99% of the time before we get back mid afternoon. This also eliminates the surprise knocks in the afternoon when you are resting.

Good advice!

I did ask about lotion when I called and was told to go buy my own in the gift shop! That did rub me the wrong way! Lotion is given out at The Holiday Express and I don’t believe it costs $400-500 dollars a night.

Yeah, just another of the many ways we see Disney transition from "above and beyond" service to being all about the almighty dollar. Really it isn't too much to ask something that is complimentary at just about every other hotel.

We made our way to Soarin and had a fun ride. The guy next to me was just way to cool for the ride. He never cracked a smile and just sat there like a statue!

This could totally be me. It's not a ride I get super excited about and would be beaming. And if I'm not actively trying to smile, I usually look ticked off.

Andi and I shared a cheese pizza with mushrooms on it. This was great and we ate it all. We have really been lucky with our pizza and service here. I have read some reviews which are not as good!

Love some Via Napoli! I'm glad you had a good meal there!

 

[missangelalexis]

Such a cute selfie

That was pretty rude of them to tell you to buy your own lotion! Especially at such a fancy resort!

I like the pics in Italy! Sounds like a nice dinner with your friends!

 

[Cloe Colton]

What a great night!

 

[pucknasty]

I've heard about the lotion controversy. Thats crazy they told you to buy your own!

That dinner at Via Napoli looks delish tho.

 

[precious pixie]

Sounds like a great night! Glad the pizza and service did not disappoint. Is t it great being able to walk back to your hotel instead of fighting the crowds

 

[Newsies]

I did ask about lotion when I called and was told to go buy my own in the gift shop! That did rub me the wrong way! Lotion is given out at The Holiday Express and I don’t believe it costs $400-500 dollars a night. I did write an email to the manager at the YC and the GF! I hope they read my email because I didn’t get any type of acknowledgement!

That stinks! That's a pretty rude response from the CM on the phone, and it's even worse that nobody wrote you back when you voiced your concerns!

We exited the ride, and Andi was apparently walking away from a fire, man, that girl can walk fast.

My family says the same thing about me!!! Andi and I would be such an efficient park touring team!!!

Our friends showed up and we checked in at Via Napoli. We did not have to wait long, maybe 10 minutes. We had a nice table in the main dining area. We had a decent waiter. C and I had the white sangria. I really enjoyed this, it had fresh apple and pineapple in it. Andi and I shared a cheese pizza with mushrooms on it. This was great and we ate it all. We have really been lucky with our pizza and service here. I have read some reviews which are not as good!

Love, love, love VN! Looks like another great meal!

Andi and I had an early morning date with some toys! We got ready for bed and watched a few shows before drifting off!

Ooooh, I'm so excited to hear about EMM!!

 

[thumper*]

Yay an upgrade

The balcony overlooked Crescent Lake and the Boardwalk. It was beautiful! It made me so happy.

Love this pic of y'all

I went up to the counter to ask for water and the CM yells out in a very loud voice, “you can’t stand this close to the counter” at me. I had literally seen many people go up and ask for water! I counted to 10 and politely asked for a glass of water. She made me wait at least 10 minutes, glared at me and finally gave me an ice water! What the h***! I guess everyone was irritable today! I just had it by then. I took my water and left. Starbucks got my $5.00 today and I was just so glad to get out of there, I didn’t care.

RUDE RUDE RUDE

We got ready for Epcot and made our way over to IG. Can I just say entering the park here is so nice! There is virtually no wait and never feels crowded!

I have a feeling that will all change once the Skyliner starts up.

Andi and I shared a cheese pizza with mushrooms on it.

Yum

 

[lvcourtneyy]

That's a good tip about housekeeping!

Wow that response about the lotion seems dramatic! For such an expensive hotel, they could throw in some lotion.

I agree about entering Epcot through IG. I hope the skyliner opening doesn't change that too much.

 

[Tracy161]

We got ready for Epcot and made our way over to IG. Can I just say entering the park here is so nice! There is virtually no wait and never feels crowded!

This would be the absolute best part to me about staying at an Epcot resort. I walk between Epcot and HS a lot and I just love going through IG

We have really been lucky with our pizza and service here. I have read some reviews which are not as good!

I'm glad to hear that! I went last month and - while I had a great server - I wasn't overly impressed with my pizza. Happy to try it again in the future though!

Sounds like a great evening with your friends

 

[Terra Nova guy]

did ask about lotion when I called and was told to go buy my own in the gift shop! That did rub me the wrong way! Lotion is given out at The Holiday Express and I don’t believe it costs $400-500 dollars a night. I did write an email to the manager at the YC and the GF! I hope they read my email because I didn’t get any type of acknowledgement!

Oh wow. I know they have transitioned to the large bottles bolted to the wall in some of the resorts, but seriously it's a bit much to be refused a small bottle of lotion. Especially considering you were in a deluxe resort.

We have really been lucky with our pizza and service here. I have read some reviews which are not as good!

My family has also found Via Napoli good to. But always just get pizza, never mix pizza and pasta. It seems like that's the issue in some of the bad reviews.

I will give you all my pro tip again regarding Mousekeeping and security checks. I call down to housekeeping on the first morning and request our room cleaning to occur mid morning each day!

I really need to remember this tip. A couple times last year (at ASMu) we came back for an afternoon break and found the room not cleaned, or they were in the process of cleaning.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Glad Andi was in a better mood. And I think the trick is ordering only pizza at Via Napoli.

 

[amazingact21]

That's a great tip about the mousekeeping times. I tend to skip the cleaning for fear they will show up during the kids' nap time.

I always find it slightly amusing when other guests are very monotone on a ride. How do they do it? I have a hard enough time trying to compose a certain expression for the Photopass pictures on rides. No way could I not crack at least once!

Glad to hear Via Napoli was a successful dinner. I've read some not so great reviews of the restaurant lately and that's been a bummer. It's my favorite Disney eatery.

 

[disneyAndi14]

Love your Snapchat selfie---that is adorable. Also adorable is that huge pizza, nummmmm!! I am loving your report and can't wait for more

Thank you! This is the way to go with selfies, when you are a “little” older
The pizza was so yummy! We had a nice visit with our local friends and the restaurant wasn’t to overly crowded, which is nice!