“Rise” to the Challenge, FREAK!! Done and new trip report started 5/2/21

[disneyAndi14]

Glad you got a boarding group and got to ride TSMM!

What an awesome breakfast! The characters are so cute in their outfits and I'm glad you didn't feel rushed!

It was a little anxiety producing at first, much better once we got a group! We love TSMM!
The breakfast was a good one with the cutest characters ever!

 

[disneyAndi14]

I’m a little late, but following along!




The characters are cute! & I love the little dish the pastries came in with the little paint drip

Hi Raeven! Welcome!
This really was such an enjoyable breakfast, we had thought about maybe canceling and I am so glad we didn’t!
The Pastry pot is very cute, I forgot to mention there was an apple turnover in there and it was very good!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Early... but not stupid early.

Right! At least we didn’t have to arrive at 4:00am

Why? To make sure nothing was running in the background? Or...?

Yes, I guess so, we heard people saying to do this and we did

used to say "Freak me out" when I was just a kid. So I was possibly ahead of the curve (by several decades).

We use to say freaky once in awhile. Wasn’t Freak out a song

Nice! Yay!

We were happy and with what I read, we would be called back around 11-12 and that was about right!

Oh really! That's the opposite of what I would've thought.

I guess it slows it down and you get a higher boarding group or none at all!

Two statements I don't expect to hear.

Andi likes SDD but she loves TSMM

see it now! That's cool!

That little Porg is really camouflaged!

Nice! Sounds wonderful!

We really liked traveling by the Skyliner

I'd like to check it out soon

Definitely visit the resort via Skyliner the next time you are at Disney!!

 

[pkondz]

Right! At least we didn’t have to arrive at 4:00am

Yes, I guess so, we heard people saying to do this and we did

Fair enough. Better safe than sorry. Especially with them selling out in just a couple minutes.

We use to say freaky once in awhile. Wasn’t Freak out a song

Andi likes SDD but she loves TSMM

Apparently!

That little Porg is really camouflaged!

Blends right in.

Definitely visit the resort via Skyliner the next time you are at Disney!!

Okay!

 

[afwdwfan]

We used the bus app and wouldn’t you know it, it wasn’t right, roll eyes! The bus was early and we literally just missed it.

That's the frustrating thing about the app... it's nice in theory, but you can't really depend on it when the times constantly change. And I get that... traffic happens, etc. But when it shows up a minute or 2 early all of a sudden...

The dad says, we are going back to the room to rest in half an hour. The poor little girl was quite deflated and couldn’t understand why she had to come in the park so early for nothing!

Poor kid. But I get it. That's the downside of how this system works.

We went into TSL and could have rode SDD right away except we chose Andi’s favorite TSM! We walked on and were rootin and shootin in no time at all. We love this ride! We thought we would ride again, however, once we got out and walked around the wait was already 40 minutes, wow!

Yikes! That escalated quickly! Apparently there weren't too many people going back to the room after getting boarding groups.

I was able to modify our breakfast reservation at Topolino’s to 8:45 from 9:30, yay! We decided to head over there now. We took the Skyliner for the first time and it was wonderful, we loved it, we had our own cab. There was a nice breeze coming in and smooth ride except for take off and landing had some mild bumpiness.

That worked out really well! Nice that you could get your boarding group, get a ride in and then go right to breakfast nice and early!

Andi’s was good for plant based food mimicking the real deal.

 

[Disneyhanna]

A couple teenage boys kept repeating let’s do this freak, over and over. Andi and I found all the conversations entertaining. Andi tells me, my roommates and I call people, who are irritating to us, freak!

That is so funny, I think I am already out of the loop with the slang everyone is using now.

7:00am came and Andi was able to get boarding group 45 for us, we were happy with this! Andi did figure out, don’t refresh!! It slows things down and the next two times we did this she got us excellent boarding groups!

Nice job! Thanks for the tip, I've seen people say that closing and reopening the app is better but no one has mentioned the refreshing part being slow, makes total sense now.

We went into TSL and could have rode SDD right away except we chose Andi’s favorite TSM! We walked on and were rootin and shootin in no time at all. We love this ride! We thought we would ride again, however, once we got out and walked around the wait was already 40 minutes, wow!

Eek, RotR seems to have really increased crowds in HS! Gone are the good old days of riding lots of rides back to back!

We decided to check out GE and get some pictures. It was only about 7:30am and it was busy. We had a few pictures done by the Falcon. You can hardly see the Porg on my arm, he blends right in. The shirt I have on today is one of the Uniqlo purchases.

Cute picture, love the pocket Ts. Uniqlo is the best! I have even started ordering online from them to get my fix. They have size guides that are specific to each item, which is so great for online ordering!

We went to try the single rider for Smugglers Run except it wasn’t open and the stand by was over 100 minutes already, what??

Oh darn, that's too bad! I wish Disney would do more single rider lines, I suppose they'd have to staff more CMs to manage them though.

You really feel like you have escaped to the south of France. It reminded me of Nice and Monaco, areas I have visited. I loved this resort. I was excited to have the DVC tour later on this day.

Your pictures make me want to visit Riviera so badly! It looks absolutely gorgeous, especially the photo with the pool.

 

[Disneyhanna]

Our waitress was very friendly, she reviewed the menu and gave us a few minutes to check it out. I ordered coffee and water. Andi had the famous POG juice. The waitress brought the drinks and we placed our orders. I picked the Wood-fired Butchers Steak, this was steak with polenta, tomatoes, onions, and wild mushrooms. It really wasn’t a typical breakfast entree. The description sounded good to me.

I tried POG juice for the first time in December and I am hooked! . Usually I am a water gal but I will make the exception for POG! Steak looks great, I love mushrooms so both of your entrees sound delicious to me!

The pastries for the table came out for us. There were three dipping sauces, honey butter, house made jam and a Nutella spread. We skipped the nut based spread. The pastries included croissants, chocolate chip muffin and a firm baguette like bread. The croissants were the best and the bread was fine with the jam.

The way they bring the pastries to the table is so cute, I wonder if you can take the extras home, especially if you go solo .

We enjoyed sampling these. Minnie came by first and she was so cute and nice! Spent a fair amount of time with us. She loved Andi’s saying on her shirt. It is a pocket tee and says Mickey knows a smile will always help when things get rough. Andi explained how this saying helped her everyday and Minnie loved this!

Wearing Disney shirts is the best way to make character interactions fun as an adult!

We did notice the restaurant was not very busy and I do think the characters liked this!
Donald came by last and again he was so cute and nice. He is a sculptor. This breakfast was very enjoyable. The staff were very friendly with a nice upbeat atmosphere.

That's so nice to hear, this breakfast is definitely going to be on my list! All of your pictures are so cute, the lighting looks really nice there. It seems like so many of the character meals are chaos so hopefully it stays not too busy for a while!

 

[chunkymonkey]

Hi Caroline, I just got caught up and wanted to say I'm so sorry for your loss.
Hope you are all finding comfort in each other. I'm glad you are continuing with the TR. Disney really is the best therapy. Everyone kept saying that to me and it's so true! Your dad sounds like mine - loved to travel and took his family with us whenever he had the oppurtunity to. Hope all is well and give my best to Andi and your family.

That Topolino breakfast was soo good! We really enjoyed it. It definitely felt "deluxe" and I'm so happy we got to try it on our last trip!

 

[amazingact21]

Glad you were able to grab a boarding group! That poor girl in the parks. Her parents take her into a Disney park, only to leave!

Breakfast sounded like a nice, relaxed experience. It's always refreshing when a restaurant is busy and crowded. You get to enjoy the experience and have a few extra moments with the characters.

 

[bantha09]

Just got caught up, so sorry for your loss but so glad to here about your great trip so far

 

[disneyAndi14]

That's the frustrating thing about the app... it's nice in theory, but you can't really depend on it when the times constantly change. And I get that... traffic happens, etc. But when it shows up a minute or 2 early all of a sudden...

We were there a few minutes before the time on the app and the bus was still already gone!

Poor kid. But I get it. That's the downside of how this system works.

I hope the little girl liked the ride!

Yikes! That escalated quickly! Apparently there weren't too many people going back to the room after getting boarding groups.

It was crazy and I have heard it is even worse now!

That worked out really well! Nice that you could get your boarding group, get a ride in and then go right to breakfast nice and early!

It did work out good and breakfast was such a nice experience

That is so funny, I think I am already out of the loop with the slang everyone is using now

I am way out of the loop, Andi always has some new word or saying!

Nice job! Thanks for the tip, I've seen people say that closing and reopening the app is better but no one has mentioned the refreshing part being slow, makes total sense now.

This did work well and don’t refresh!

Eek, RotR seems to have really increased crowds in HS! Gone are the good old days of riding lots of rides back to back!

It really has ToT and RnRC had crazy waits after our 1 ride on TSMM

Cute picture, love the pocket Ts. Uniqlo is the best! I have even started ordering online from them to get my fix. They have size guides that are specific to each item, which is so great for online ordering!

I have ordered online a few times. We love the pocket T’s

Oh darn, that's too bad! I wish Disney would do more single rider lines, I suppose they'd have to staff more CMs to manage them though.

I think it must have opened a little later!

Your pictures make me want to visit Riviera so badly! It looks absolutely gorgeous, especially the photo with the pool.

It is so worth a visit to check it out

tried POG juice for the first time in December and I am hooked! . Usually I am a water gal but I will make the exception for POG! Steak looks great, I love mushrooms so both of your entrees sound delicious to me!

We love POG juice! The food was very good

The way they bring the pastries to the table is so cute, I wonder if you can take the extras home, especially if you go solo

Yes you could take the pastries with you bring a baggie

Wearing Disney shirts is the best way to make character interactions fun as an adult!

It really is!

That's so nice to hear, this breakfast is definitely going to be on my list! All of your pictures are so cute, the lighting looks really nice there. It seems like so many of the character meals are chaos so hopefully it stays not too busy for a while!

I would try the breakfast, it really was 2 thumbs up for us

 

[disneyAndi14]

Hi Caroline, I just got caught up and wanted to say I'm so sorry for your loss.
Hope you are all finding comfort in each other. I'm glad you are continuing with the TR. Disney really is the best therapy. Everyone kept saying that to me and it's so true! Your dad sounds like mine - loved to travel and took his family with us whenever he had the oppurtunity to. Hope all is well and give my best to Andi and your family.

That Topolino breakfast was soo good! We really enjoyed it. It definitely felt "deluxe" and I'm so happy we got to try it on our last trip!

Thank you so much! I know both you and Steve have been going through this! Disney and writing about the trips does really help!
My mom has decided to come and stay with us for awhile. This will be good for her. We loved traveling with my dad, he loved learning everything he could on all his trips!
Topolino’s was such a fun breakfast and the timing worked perfect for our FP’s and Boarding Group!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Glad you were able to grab a boarding group! That poor girl in the parks. Her parents take her into a Disney park, only to leave!

Breakfast sounded like a nice, relaxed experience. It's always refreshing when a restaurant is busy and crowded. You get to enjoy the experience and have a few extra moments with the characters.

It was stressful so we were excited to get a boarding group.
The little girl was not happy
The breakfast was perfect for an early morning wake up! I highly recommend!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Just got caught up, so sorry for your loss but so glad to here about your great trip so far

Thank you so much for the condolences! I am glad you are joining in, glad to have You reading along!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Part 3, 4, and 5

It was time to head back to DHS. We again took the Skyliner and had a nice quick ride. We had a FP for Star Tours and it was time for this. There are new scenes from the last movie and I really enjoyed this.

The last few times we rode our seats were in the 4th row and if you are short it is more uncomfortable. My feet don’t touch the floor and it is more bumpy. I will ask for one of the first 2 rows next time.

We walked around some and soon it was time for our second round of TSMM. We had a nice spin with all the toys! I had made our first FP for Little Mermaid and that was at 9am and had dropped off. Toy Story was our last FP. I made another FP for Dinosaur at AK for this evening. We would be going there later on.

We decided to get some ice water at Woody’s Lunchbox and while we were chillin our boarding group notification popped up on my phone. We finished our water and used the restroom before we headed into SWGE. For reference it was around 11:30am. We were so excited for this ride. Coming up, a few pictures and some info about the ride so if you don’t want to know, skip this part! The CM’s check your magic band and send you into the line. We moved steadily through the line. We waited a few minutes closer to the pre show room, otherwise, we kept moving.

There is a pre show with some of the SW characters. They tell us about the mission we are embarking on. Yay! Next we head into our ship, very cool. Of course things go wrong on our mission and we end up on a star destroyer oh no!!

We are immersed into SW, so cool. I won’t say to much except it is amazing!!

Did you know this is the first ride ever in all Disney parks that uses three different ride experiences! Yes it is! It is track less, with a motion simulator portion and a drop tower! Currently there is not any other ride that does this. There is so much to see and be a part of. The animatronics are unbelievable, very very cool! I would love to work in there!

On this high note, we decided to head out of the park and take a little rest. We had a pick up at 3:30 for our DVC tour. We were picked up and brought to The Riviera. We met up with one of the salesmen. He was very nice and talked very fast. He showed us all the different room options and I didn’t take any pictures. Sorry! I’m not sure why, I think because he was talking so much and a mile a minute. His mantra was you come to Disney so much why haven’t you bought in yet, he said this over and over. The rooms are very nice and the buy in special at that time was actually quite reasonable, the special was for 100 points. The points you need to use at Riviera are higher than some of the other resorts. I told him I would think about it. I knew I wasn’t going to buy at this time. I have a plan to buy my own condo in Florida as an investment. I have been saving to do this. If I wasn’t going to do that I would have bought into DVC by now! The tour was nice and we received the 4 FP’s and the $150.00 gift card at the end. It was not a high pressure situation and it was very informative. I would suggest doing a tour especially if they continue with the current incentives. Our tour was about 1 hour.

We were given a ride to AK afterwards. AK still had the Christmas tree up. This was nice to see.

We entered the park and walked around some and decided to eat dinner at Yak and Yeti. I showed my Landry card and we had a table upstairs within 5-10 minutes.

I decided to try the Yak Attack for my drink. This was very good and refreshing.

I let Andi have a few sips, I mean she is 20! She really liked it too. I had bought $150.00 worth of Landry Gift cards on Black Friday and got an extra $30.00. The $30.00 expires in May and the larger amount is good forever. I ordered the Kobe burger and Andi went with the tofu version of Tikka Masala.

We had a rowdy group of kids next to us. They kept running around the chairs and bumping into everything. This was a little distracting! The adults never said a word and basically ignored them.

Our waiter was a little frazzled with all this going on. I didn’t blame him! I just kept sucking back my drink, haha! We got our food and it was enjoyable. I was only able to eat 1/2 of my burger. It was tasty and Andi enjoyed her vegetarian dish. We were to full for dessert tonight

It was time for our Dinosaur FP after dinner. We headed to Dinoland and enjoyed our favorite bumpy ride!

Andi was meeting her friend P at DS this evening so we ventured out of AK after Dinosaur. We admired the Tree of Life as it was dark now and the lights were on. Very cool.

I relaxed in the room and watched TV while Andi shopped around DS with her friend.

Yak and Yeti total $62.00, I had a $25.00 reward on my Landry card for buying the gift cards, what a good deal. I used that and put the rest on the gift card. Today was $0.00 for food, can’t beat that!

Stay tuned for Day 4! People Mover finally!

 

[pkondz]

We had a FP for Star Tours and it was time for this. There are new scenes from the last movie and I really enjoyed this.

I just heard about that! That's awesome!

The last few times we rode our seats were in the 4th row and if you are short it is more uncomfortable.

Huh! I've never heard about this. Either all my friends are tall... or it's just never come up. Huh.

I had made our first FP for Little Mermaid and that was at 9am and had dropped off.

The FP system at DHS was ridiculous. Basically forced to make throwaways so you can maybe get a decent one...

while we were chillin our boarding group notification popped up on my phone.

Yay!

Did you know this is the first ride ever in all Disney parks that uses three different ride experiences!

I did know that! Thanks for the mini review!

I would love to work in there!

Hmm... depending in what capacity. "No sir. I don't know when it'll be fixed. Yes sir, I know you spent a lot of money to be here. No sir. I don't know how upset your family is. Yes sir. I'm sure you got up ridiculously early to be here..."

We had a pick up at 3:30 for our DVC tour.

Oh, right!

He was very nice and talked very fast.

In a bad way? Like... trouble understanding? Too fast that you couldn't really absorb info? Pressuring?

His mantra was you come to Disney so much why haven’t you bought in yet, he said this over and over.

I've heard that. I suppose for some it's true.

I have a plan to buy my own condo in Florida as an investment. I have been saving to do this.

Oh! Very nice.

decided to eat dinner at Yak and Yeti. I showed my Landry card and we had a table upstairs within 5-10 minutes.

Nice! Second time in the last couple days I've heard this.

I ordered the Kobe burger

How was it?

We had a rowdy group of kids next to us. They kept running around the chairs and bumping into everything.

This actually really bugs me...

The adults never said a word and basically ignored them.

… maybe ticks me off would be better. Control your kids. A restaurant is not a play area. There are people carrying trays of very hot food.
My personal thought is.. parents who let their kids run around restaurants are either stupid, clueless, incompetent or all three.

Our waiter was a little frazzled with all this going on. I didn’t blame him!

I bet!

Love the pose, Caroline.

 

[buzzrelly]

I'm just catching up and I am so sorry to hear about your dad, Caroline Between that and the stomach bug, sounds like you had a rough month.

We had pictures taken before going into Las Halles.

Cute!

The CM’s were so friendly and nice this morning, wewe! We sat in the sun and enjoyed our choices.

Andi’s cookie was so light and yummy. My roll was more heavy and dense, both tasted very good.

Les Halles is one of my favorite places in all of WDW

As we walked along, a CM from a DVC kiosk stopped us and said we looked like we could use a sticker. We got to talking to him and before I knew it, I was setting up a tour to check out the new Riviera DVC. It was a good deal because Andi is over 18, we both would get $75.00 gift cards and 4 FP’s. The 4 FP’s a person was because we were staying at OKW, the flagship DVC resort. Normally it is 3 FP’s. I thought why not, an extra $150.00 dollars was awesome! We scheduled the tour for 3:30pm the next day.

Nice!

We just took it all in and savored the treats and the wonderful HEA show. This party took away the stress of finding a spot to watch HEA and increased the enjoyment by 100% for me. Tink flew right over us, it was amazing, she was so close!!

I think we will do the terrace seating next time, especially if I go with my mom. After walking all day, it was tough for her to stand and watch.


Awesome that you got on ROTR. Watching poor Ariana on facebook get there so early and not get a boarding pass is making me tense. They really need to just go ahead and add FP+ already. At least then you'd know in advance that you weren't getting on.

 

[missangelalexis]

So glad you guys got to ride RotR and loved it so much!!!

I'm glad the tour was quick and not too high pressure. Worth the 1 hour for those incentives!

Sounds like a great night at AK! I love your poses on Dinosaur!

 

[Jenny Sanders]

We had a rowdy group of kids next to us. They kept running around the chairs and bumping into everything. This was a little distracting! The adults never said a word and basically ignored them.

Obviously, they haven't watched our Disney Etiquette vlog. LOL!

I just kept sucking back my drink, haha!

That's what I would do with the occasional disgusted look back...LOL!

 

[afwdwfan]

Did you know this is the first ride ever in all Disney parks that uses three different ride experiences! Yes it is! It is track less, with a motion simulator portion and a drop tower! Currently there is not any other ride that does this. There is so much to see and be a part of. The animatronics are unbelievable, very very cool! I would love to work in there!

This just sounds so incredible. I can't wait to finally experience it.

The tour was nice and we received the 4 FP’s and the $150.00 gift card at the end. It was not a high pressure situation and it was very informative. I would suggest doing a tour especially if they continue with the current incentives. Our tour was about 1 hour.

Not bad at all. Worth the time, I guess.

It was time for our Dinosaur FP after dinner. We headed to Dinoland and enjoyed our favorite bumpy ride!

You look quite relaxed.

Yak and Yeti total $62.00, I had a $25.00 reward on my Landry card for buying the gift cards, what a good deal. I used that and put the rest on the gift card. Today was $0.00 for food, can’t beat that!

Eating for free at Disney World. That doesn't happen often!