A Very Lucky (First) Solo Trip! A Feb/Mar 2020 TR * Completed 1/10: Brown Derby Lounge and Goodbye WDW

[Disneyhanna]

Introduction

Table of Contents

Hello friends! I'm Hanna and welcome to my trip report covering my first solo trip!

I squeezed in this week-long WDW trip from 2/25-3/3, right before things started getting crazy here in the US. I was lucky enough to not have to make any decisions about how safe it would be to take this trip, the virus was hardly on anyone’s radar yet. Oh how things have changed!

I also fit in an Orlando Informer Meetup event at Universal during this trip, this was about the same price as a park-to-park ticket but included free food! Very similar to an After Hours event since they rent the entire park for the evening. There will be an extensive review for anyone interested!

Learning from my first two TRs, I took a lot of notes on this trip. It helped fill my time waiting in lines and I am so excited to relive this awesome trip through the hundreds (and hundreds and hundreds) of photos I took. If you are thinking about going on your first solo trip, I hope this TR will convince you to take the plunge!

​

A few random things about me:

• I usually travel with my mom, so I was looking forward to a solo trip since we like different foods and she can’t ride any big rides​
• I booked this trip on a whim like six months in advance since Delta had flights for 10,000 miles (a steal of a deal!), and since I have an AP this trip was “free” apart from the food and hotel ​
• I’m not much of a planner and love park hopping so this trip was all over the place, oops ​
• Mickey and Pooh are my favorite characters to meet​
• Happily Ever After is my favorite show, no contest, but shows took a bit of a backseat on this trip in favor of rides...by the end of this trip I was wondering if it was safe for a person to ride so many rides in a one week period ​
• Mickey and Pooh are my favorite characters to meet​

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A few highlights from this trip:

• My second stay at Coronado Springs Resort, my new favorite hotel at WDW​
• A sneak preview at the Flower and Garden topiaries​
• Dinner at Takumi-Tei​
• A giraffic jam on the safari​
• Orlando Informer Universal Meetup with a night-time Hagrid’s ride​
• Rise of the Resistance x2​
• Lots of ridiculous ride photos since I am never ready for the camera ​

I upgraded my phone a few months before this trip, so hopefully the pictures will be a little better than my previous TR. I’m trying out a different photo host to be able to post bigger (and more) photos so please let me know if photos stop appearing at any point!

As Peter would say, come on, everybody. Here we go!



Day Zero: Travel Day and CSR Room Tour​

 

[Disneyhanna]

Table of Contents

Day Zero:
Travel Day and CSR Room Tour

Day One:
Part One: An Epcot Morning with F&G Topiaries
Part Two: Epcot World Showcase and Quick HS Skyliner Trip
Part Three: Takumi-Tei Dinner and MK Evening EMH

Day Two:
Part One: An AK Morning
Part Two: Safari ft. Giraffic Jam!
Part Three: Disney Springs Evening

Day Three:
Part One: MK Morning
Part Two: Orlando Informer Universal Meetup (1 of 2)
Part Three: Orlando Informer Universal Meetup (2 of 2)

Day Four:
Part One: Another AK Morning and Checking Out the Riviera
Part Two: Epcot Forever from the Japan Pavilion

Day Five:
Part One: My First Ride on Rise of the Resistance
Part Two: Three Hours in Magic Kingdom
Part Three: Pool Break, Pooh Bear, and the Epcot Experience
Part Four: Hollywood Studios Evening EMH

Day Six:
Part One: A Second RotR and Yak and Yeti Lunch
Part Two: Safari, Maharajah Jungle Trek, and HEA

Day Seven:
Part One: A Classic Ride-Filled MK Morning
Part Two: Brown Derby Lounge and Goodbye WDW
Trip Summary / Wrap Up Coming Soon!​

 

[cajunfan]

Can't wait to read all about it and see all the photos...I love me some photos!

And who are your favorite characters to meet?

 

[DLo]

Following along. I read your last TR so looking forward to reading another . I have gone solo a few times and enjoy the freedom and flexibility.
I am hoping to go to an Orlando Informer event in December so looking forward the most to reading your thoughts about that, I have done AH at MK and DHS and loved them

 

[Disneyhanna]

Can't wait to read all about it and see all the photos...I love me some photos!

And who are your favorite characters to meet?

Thanks for joining! I took so many photos, I need to do some math to figure out how many I can fit per post And definitely not Pooh, no way

 

[Disneyhanna]

Following along. I read your last TR so looking forward to reading another . I have gone solo a few times and enjoy the freedom and flexibility.
I am hoping to go to an Orlando Informer event in December so looking forward the most to reading your thoughts about that, I have done AH at MK and DHS and loved them

Welcome back, thanks for joining in again! I can't wait until I can go on a solo trip again! I definitely recommend the event, we never get express passes at Universal so it was so amazing to walk onto every ride (but Hagrid's of course). I sort of wish I had done the two-night ticket since I was so stressed to squeeze things into one night!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Count me in. I’m excited to read all about it!
I would love to do the Orlando Informer Meet up at USO, maybe someday! Sounds really fun!

 

[Disneyhanna]

Count me in. I’m excited to read all about it!
I would love to do the Orlando Informer Meet up at USO, maybe someday! Sounds really fun!

Thanks for joining in again Caroline! I took sooo many pictures from that night so I'm excited to share. It was a really awesome event, well worth the money!

 

[DLo]

I haven’t purchased my tickets yet just have a resort booked. I plan on two nights if it doesn’t get canceled. A little nervous after today’s HHN announcement.

 

[Disneyhanna]

I haven’t purchased my tickets yet just have a resort booked. I plan on two nights if it doesn’t get canceled. A little nervous after today’s HHN announcement.

Definitely smart, I know they just moved the original May (?) ticket holders to December instead of doing refunds, so waiting is a good move. I don't think they've ever sold out until maybe a few days before, if at all. Definitely a bummer about HHN! I suppose that makes sense with all of the enclosed spaces. Hopefully the meetup will still happen since it's so much less crowded than a regular park day!

 

[Disneyhanna]

Day Zero: Travel Day and CSR Room Tour

My preferred travel style is to fly in and get settled before hitting the parks the next day! With my super cheap flight, I ended up taking a later flight than usual, around 6PM. I planned on working from home but we had a nice team work lunch that day, so I went in just for lunch and then went home right after!

I hopped onto the light rail to the airport, so convenient for $2.50 and maybe a 20 minute ride. Luckily I beat the rush hour crowds and had enough room for my giant suitcase and carry on!

I ended up waiting about 25 minutes for security, which is longer than I usually have to wait at our airport. I have always wondered the difference between Delta’s “Clear” and TSA pre-check, well turns out Clear lets you skip right to the front of the line. Handy, except for right now I suppose!

I spent $20 on a sandwich that didn’t have any mayo, a yogurt cup, and some popcorn. Not as fun when work isn’t paying, that’s when I treat myself to the $10 fruit cup.

It took about 35 minutes to board the plane, isn’t it amazing how long it takes to just get people seated! I hear they have been boarding people back to front right now, I hope that sticks. Seems way more efficient!

I sat down to find my screen didn’t work! Bummer! It worked to play the safety video of course, but stayed blue otherwise.

Luckily I had the app to watch the in-flight movies from my phone. I rewatched Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody, but just the singing parts. This flight was so boring! I don’t know how people can stand the coast to coast flights, even three hours drives me nuts! The guy in front of me took off his shoes and socks...no words.

We landed around 10:30PM Florida time, and I saw while waiting to deplane that I got my room-ready text at 8:30. I was staying at Coronado Springs for the second time! This time I was in Cabanas 8B, which was awesome since I had requested top floor Cabanas from the online check-in.

It’s a super close to a bus stop and main pool and only a five minute walk from the tower. You can walk from the tower to the food court in El Centro. Great location if you are a first timer to CSR!

The guy next to me on the plane kept sniffling. The virus wasn’t really a real threat (in our minds) yet since it was only late February, but you bet I gave him some side-eye.

I was off pretty quickly, around 10:45. The tram had some nice Galaxy’s Edge ads!

I noticed there were quite a few people with masks, especially what appeared to be the international folks. A warning sign of what was to come...

I made it onto the Magical Express around 11:10. It was going to be a late night! It was pretty empty so I got the second row, but that also meant I was in for a bit of a wait. It ended up being totally packed, so the driver had the solo people sit together.

I’ll keep it short, but the lady who sat next to me was complaining the entire ride. Something about booking Gran Destino Tower through a TA, and then their room assignment was not in the tower. Yikes!

After about half an hour, we were finally off to WDW Resort! Our driver was energetic, and was doing Disney trivia for most of the ride. He pointed out the new Star Wars hotel that’s under construction.

To my luck, Coronado was the first stop! Usually I am last off the DME! It was only a little after midnight, so less than a half hour ride. Usually it takes an hour if you’re last off!

Gran Destino Tower is grand, that’s for sure!

I went to the front desk to see if any tower rooms were available. There were so many people complaining, poor CMs! One lady said her room was supposed to be “half” paid for, but the CM said there was no card on file. What a nightmare!

Anyways, the CM helping me was very nice. She said they only had one night available here and there for the tower, oh well. We were talking about how fast it books up, and I mentioned it being such a good deal (compared to deluxes). She seemed shocked that I thought so! That's what Disney prices have done to me, I think GDT is a good deal!

No one at Barcelona Lounge despite the late hour!

I had a nice walk to my room, the Cabanas area has some nice sandy areas that I never saw when staying in the Ranchos area for my prior trip.

I just love CSR at night, it’s very different from the serene and lush style of the Port Orleans resorts, but I love how open it is. I felt very safe as a solo guest!

There was a snack machine in my building, just look at those Disney prices. Twice as much as at a normal hotel! A lot cheaper than what I paid at the airport for my popcorn though

Now for a bit of a room tour! All of the non-tower standard rooms look like this. I believe the entire resort was renovated in the last few years.

There are two queen beds with a huge counter to store all of your stuff! I am only one person but somehow take up all of that counter space! Huge smart TVs that support streaming from your phone as well. The ceiling fan is awesome, thought it looks a bit chopped up by my panorama photo!

I even had a towel Mickey to welcome me home! These are the best beds, EVER! They have the same beds at AKL in the renovated rooms, I’m not sure where else.

I love how much bathroom space there is at CSR, and all the doors are soft close. They always replenish the toiletries, including the lotion.

There were tons of hangers and a blanket in the closet! Those rolling doors are not soundproof, btw!

The bathrooms are so nice and clean, with a tub and door. No more gross curtains.

The rainfall shower heads are amazing! We have an eco-friendly shower head at home, I swear the thing releases so little water that I get cold while in the shower

I spent about an hour organizing and unpacking. I like hanging my clothes up, but I never use the drawers.

For my first day, I planned my fastpasses for Epcot! I had FPs for Spaceship Earth, LwtL, and Frozen. I put them a little later in the morning since I knew my flight was pretty late. I had a reservation for Takumi-Tei planned for 6:30, and was looking forward to this most! My mom does not eat sushi, so I knew it would be best to do this one alone.

I set my alarm for 8:20, which was pretty early given I probably didn’t get to bed until close to 2AM. The things I do for Disney!

Continued in Day One - Part One: An Epcot Morning with F&G Topiaries​

 

[Sajchinook2015]

Joining in, wish I had the courage to do a solo trip.

 

[AprilDreamsOfDisney]

Joining! I enjoyed reading your first part and can't wait to read more! Like the poster before me, I would LOVE to take a solo trip someday!

 

[Disneyhanna]

Joining in, wish I had the courage to do a solo trip.

Thanks for joining! I’ve always been pretty independent (only child!) and travel occasionally for work so it didn’t phase me! But friends and coworkers were definitely curious when I mentioned I was going alone. If there’s a place to try solo travel, WDW is the best place to get your feet wet!

Joining! I enjoyed reading your first part and can't wait to read more! Like the poster before me, I would LOVE to take a solo trip someday!

Welcome welcome! It was such a blast and now I can’t wait to do it again! It’s nice to do whatever YOU want to, whenever you want to!

 

[tundra1]

What a fun report! I can't wait to hear all about your adventures! Thanks for sharing!

 

[disneyAndi14]

We stayed in the Cabana section March 2019, loved it. I think we were in B as well. Andi made use of the hammocks in the sandy area a couple times.
The flight, minus the sniffles sounded like it was uneventful. I have had the dreaded blue screen on my Delta flights before. It’s always my seat never Andi’s. I always have Legally Blonde on the IPad so I just watch that. Love that movie
Excited to hear your thoughts on the new Japanese restaurant.

 

[goodeats]

Following! I have a solo trip planned for November, and I go back and forth about how I feel about it. Your trip report is making me excited!

 

[Disneyhanna]

What a fun report! I can't wait to hear all about your adventures! Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for joining! I'm typing up my first day and it's going to be a long one! Oh do I wish I was back!

We stayed in the Cabana section March 2019, loved it. I think we were in B as well. Andi made use of the hammocks in the sandy area a couple times.
The flight, minus the sniffles sounded like it was uneventful. I have had the dreaded blue screen on my Delta flights before. It’s always my seat never Andi’s. I always have Legally Blonde on the IPad so I just watch that. Love ❤ that movie
Excited to hear your thoughts on the new Japanese restaurant.

Cabanas was such a great location! This was my first blue screen, thankfully the flight isn't too long, it'd be such a bummer if it was an international flight. I need to watch that movie again, it's been so long for me! I had sushi a few days ago and all I could think was it was better at Takumi-Tei!

Following! I have a solo trip planned for November, and I go back and forth about how I feel about it. Your trip report is making me excited!

Welcome, thanks for joining! I hope it works out for you, I loved it so much and it's such a different experience than going with friends/family! Hopefully my TR convinces you!

 

[suse66]

Joining in for all the fun! I love solo trips too and can't wait to hear all about yours.

 

[erinch]

Following ! Just read your DLR report. The pics are all there!