VWL/Eastern Fantasy Cruise/AKV CL all wrapped into a fabulous b-day trip - Complete

[Leshaface]

Would you want to/be able to meet Alison and me at DL when I'm out there in September?

Yes i'm still hoping to! Depending on which day, I may only go down for the day and come back. Are you planning on spending the day in DTD during your trip?

 

[Leshaface]

BTW, are you going to do a PTR for DLR?!


....or do you already have one and i'm just so out of the loop?

 

[Pinkocto]

BTW, are you going to do a PTR for DLR?!


....or do you already have one and i'm just so out of the loop?

I haven't started one because I'm still waiting for the schedule to come out. I'm used to WDW having their schedule months ahead of time, I'm starting to get a little antsy. They had posted the hours last week but now they took them away

Does DTD need a full day? I was planning to explore it after the parks, most nights they close at 8:00. I'll only have a 5 day pass so will have a full extra day to explore. I'll also have a car so could go out and about.

 

[jenseib]

Many many years ago I sailed on Norwegian and we had a really long travel day and I decided to take a nap before dinner. Several hours later we woke up and had completely missed dinner and pretty much the whole first night!
I think that was back in the days when they did midnight buffets regularly so we hit that for dinner instead.

 

[rentayenta]

Sorry I'm so behind. DTD at Disneyland could take a full day but doesn't need a full day if that makes sense. If you saw a movie then maybe but it's not that big. I'm not a huge shopper though. I think you'll be fine in the venting a strolling through.

 

[Pinkocto]

Many many years ago I sailed on Norwegian and we had a really long travel day and I decided to take a nap before dinner. Several hours later we woke up and had completely missed dinner and pretty much the whole first night!
I think that was back in the days when they did midnight buffets regularly so we hit that for dinner instead.

I have had nightmares of doing this exact thing!

 

[Pinkocto]

Sorry I'm so behind. DTD at Disneyland could take a full day but doesn't need a full day if that makes sense. If you saw a movie then maybe but it's not that big. I'm not a huge shopper though. I think you'll be fine in the venting a strolling through.

No worries! It seems like ages since I updated. I must finish this before going to DL which is in three 1/2 weeks. Two more updates probably.

I love shopping so I'll probably go in every shop just to see what they have.

 

[rentayenta]

No worries! It seems like ages since I updated. I must finish this before going to DL which is in three 1/2 weeks. Two more updates probably.

I love shopping so I'll probably go in every shop just to see what they have.

Your trip is that close? Can't wait for you to see the GCV!

I haven't updated in a while. I've only got one park day and then our travel day. My trip was last October.

 

[Pinkocto]

Your trip is that close? Can't wait for you to see the GCV!

I'm so excited! I feel like I'm going off to explore unknown territory. Well I guess I am, everything is going to be new

I haven't updated in a while. I've only got one park day and then our travel day. My trip was last October.

It is so melancholy when a marvelous trip you had been planning for ages comes to an end, and then the end of a TR brings it all back. I almost have to force myself to write about the last days with these TRs. I hope that makes sense.

 

[Leshaface]

I haven't started one because I'm still waiting for the schedule to come out. I'm used to WDW having their schedule months ahead of time, I'm starting to get a little antsy. They had posted the hours last week but now they took them away

Does DTD need a full day? I was planning to explore it after the parks, most nights they close at 8:00. I'll only have a 5 day pass so will have a full extra day to explore. I'll also have a car so could go out and about.

Have they updated recently? Usually they have park hours like a month and half out. Strange.

Well, I was actually thinking about possibly meeting up at DTD if you were going to be down there. Trust me, you don't want to drive around unless you absolutely have to. I thought you were taking a shuttle from LAX?

 

[dolphingirl47]

It is so melancholy when a marvelous trip you had been planning for ages comes to an end, and then the end of a TR brings it all back. I almost have to force myself to write about the last days with these TRs. I hope that makes sense.

I know that feeling. I have now started on the post-cruise stay for my trip and I am just not making any progress even though they were really enjoyable days.

Corinna

 

[Pinkocto]

Have they updated recently? Usually they have park hours like a month and half out. Strange.

It's so bizarre, they'll post it and then take it down. They've done it several times. Last night September was posted and today it's gone again.

Well, I was actually thinking about possibly meeting up at DTD if you were going to be down there. Trust me, you don't want to drive around unless you absolutely have to. I thought you were taking a shuttle from LAX?

I looked into the shuttle and I was all set to do that, but Alison mentioned she and Fran will be doing a concert Sunday night and I'd really like to go. So I looked into a car which turns out was only $150. And I want to stop by the grocery store to get some food and soda. Really can't live without my diet Mountain Dew. The shuttle was going to be $32 round trip but with tip at least $42, so for $108 more I have the flexibility of a car. I know traffic is pretty bad out there but we have terrible traffic ourselves so I'm not too worried about that. I'll definitely be going to DTD, probably every day, I want to explore everything!

 

[Pinkocto]

I know that feeling. I have now started on the post-cruise stay for my trip and I am just not making any progress even though they were really enjoyable days.

Corinna

Exactly I get so excited to share about the awesome trip I had, and near to the end my feet start dragging.

 

[Pinkocto]

Day 11; 2nd to last day:

I managed to drag myself out of bed at 9:56. Yes, I looked at the clock and was horrified to see how late it was. You remember I kept falling asleep the night before and was unable to get to EMHs, apparently I really needed the rest. When I saw the late hour I raced out to the CL to grab some breakfast. I saw the cleaning cart at the room next door so went back in and grabbed my journal and the movies to return. I didnt want to interrupt the cleaning and acquisition of new toiletries. I had quite a stash growing to take home!

I sat on the couch and enjoyed a light breakfast of fruit and pastries. Im glad I woke up in time, Ive found CL saves a bundle on breakfasts alone. Then I took the movies back down to the store. Ive said it once and Ill say it again, I really wish they would have movies on demand in the rooms at WDW. I really like having something on in the background as I get ready. I need to just bring some of my own in the future. Back up to the room which had been cleaned while I was gone, with new toiletries in place. Score!

There was a letter from DME asking to call and verify my flight information. This was a foreshadowing of things to come. I had booked an AirTran flight through SW. I called them and sorted things out, and when I was ready I decided to head to MK. It was now day 3 at Disney World and I had yet to go on a single ride. The lines had been horrendous, hopefully today would be better. I stopped by the Arusha Overlook on the way down to the buses. No pictures because I didnt take the big camera with me, but it really made me miss having a savannah view this trip.

I was at MK by 11:30 and headed straight to Pecos Bills for lunch. As soon as I was in Adventureland I wanted to turn around and leave, there were throngs of people. The lines werent long at Pecos Bills and I quickly found a table. I enjoyed a very tasty veggie taco salad with lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms, cheese, and ranch dressing, delicious!



I texted mom a picture of my salad, it was definitely not the same without her. After my tasty lunch I headed to Fantasyland, I needed to ride some rides! Just inside FL I saw a brand new Tangled restroom area. I had no idea they were even building this. Its gorgeous, but Im more than a little disappointed they didnt make more out of it. Not to mention the tower has no business being anywhere close to the city center. Yes, Im picky with my details.









Well the lines were just too much for me. Even IASM was 25 minutes. I decided to try my luck with Mickeys Philharmagic and was lucky enough that it was only a 10 minute wait. I enjoyed the show as much as usual. They were making progress on the Dwarves mining ride, I cant wait for that to be ready.





Then I started to head to Big Top Treats in search of some dessert. On the way I saw somebody with a delicious looking sundae. I looked around trying to find where they got it and spotted Storybook Treats. That turned out to be the place I needed and ordered myself a swirled vanilla and chocolate cookie hot fudge sundae.



Oh my goodness, this was so delicious! Perfectly soft cookies, gooey hot fudge that had cooled from the icecream. It hit the spot! Im looking forward to another one in December. I wasnt able to finish it, but made a good dent.

I loved this mural around the construction.



I decided I was done with MK, perhaps HS would have less people. I headed to the train station but there were so many people I thought Id have to wait for two if not three trains before getting on. So I walked behind the race cars. I should mention that Dumbo was a 55 minute wait, and look how long the line for the Barnstormer was!



I decided to stop by Space Mountain but it was an 85 minute wait. No, no no. Not going to happen. I had gotten really spoiled by the practically nonexistent lines the previous September . I stopped at a table for a breather and caught up in the journal. At this point I decided to head back to the resort and then go to HS EMHs that night. Maybe the lines would be less during EMHs. I could dream right?

The trip back to the resort took quite a while. I had just missed a bus and had to wait what seemed like ages for another one. The wait itself wasnt bad, it was the complaining children that were waiting in line next to me that werent pleasant. A bus finally came and when we got to Kidani a family got off the bus, looked around confused and realized they werent staying at Kidani. But they didnt know what the resort they were staying at was called&. How can you pay so much to stay somewhere and not know what its called? The complaining children continued to complain the entire trip. Finally at Jambo and away from all those annoying people, thank goodness. I stopped in Zawadi to pick up some new movies. Pickings were pretty slim and I ended up with Peter Pan, which I love, and Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure which I had heard good things about but still wasn't sure.

Up to the room shortly before 5:00 where I changed into my bathing suit, grabbed my book, and headed down to the pool. I checked out the hot tubs but they were full so I just found a lounger and read for about 90 minutes. This was the life. Why didnt I do this earlier? I read until it was too cold for comfort and headed back in.











As I was out there reading I was witness to the funniest moment. Im sure most of you parents have gone through this before but it was so funny to watch. There was a little boy having the time of his life in the pool, swimming and jumping in and playing with friends. Well he had gotten out and was talking with his mom, he couldnt have been more than 5 or 6, and she told him to start getting ready because they had to leave to go to dinner. Well he started inching towards the edge of the pool. 'dont you dare go back in!' mischevious look given, 'dont you dare!' inching closer to the edge, 'Im warning you, dont you dare!' SPLASH! So the mom tells the dad to go get the child and of course he was just far enough from the edge that he couldnt be grabbed, and the dad obviously didnt want to go in and get wet. Finally the boy realized he was pushing it too far and got out. The entire time he had the biggest smile on his face. Not a sneaky smile but one that showed how much fun he was having. The mom tried to be stern, really really tried, but couldnt help but start laughing. Im laughing just remembering the story, it was so funny to witness. I was glad she was able to see the humor in it all and not be mad at her son.

 

[MEK]

Oh yeah - that's a moment every parent has had. I can just see that kid grinning form ear to ear. I have to tell you though - I think the outcome would had been different if there were two kids there.

You must have been really tired and needed all that sleep.

Yum to your Peco Bill's lunch. I love mushrooms!

Somehow the parks are just NOT fun when it is that crowded. I'm glad you bagged it and decided to spend the afternoon at the resort. When its like that the only good time of the day is between 9 and 10 am. Oh, and late at night.

Love the pics!

 

[Pinkocto]

Oh yeah - that's a moment every parent has had. I can just see that kid grinning form ear to ear. I have to tell you though - I think the outcome would had been different if there were two kids there.

It was so funny! I loved that the mom finally broke down and laughed. Well, the older brother was watching from the sidelines, he was being good

You must have been really tired and needed all that sleep.

I was just disappointed I was missing so much Disney time. Turns out that shortly after I got home I came down with a horrible cold, I'm thinking this being tired business at Disney was the first stages.

Yum to your Peco Bill's lunch. I love mushrooms!

It was so good! Pecos Bills is definitely my go to place at MK. Love that toppings bar.

Somehow the parks are just NOT fun when it is that crowded. I'm glad you bagged it and decided to spend the afternoon at the resort. When its like that the only good time of the day is between 9 and 10 am. Oh, and late at night.

You're exactly right, it takes the fun right out if it for me. It's a whole different experience when there are low crowds. I'm so glad my DB and SiL experienced a low crowd trip.

Love the pics!

Thanks my picture taking slowed down to a snail pace the last few days. I feel bad I don't have more for updates.

 

[dolphingirl47]

What a shame that the parks were so busy again. This very much reminds me of our November trip. I love the look of that Taco Salad. I may have to check this out in December. I love the look of the Tangled bathrooms.

Corinna

 

[Pinkocto]

What a shame that the parks were so busy again. This very much reminds me of our November trip. I love the look of that Taco Salad. I may have to check this out in December. I love the look of the Tangled bathrooms.

Corinna

It was really frustrating. I can't remember being there with it so busy since my 1998 trip which was in June. The previous March I was there around the same dates and it wasn't half as crowded.

That taco salad is fantastic. They give you the shell at the ordering window just with beef in it, I get mine without, and then you fill it at the toppings bar with whatever you want. The toppings are so fresh, you can see them chopping fresh veggies behind a glass.

 

[Pinkocto]

Day 11 continued:

Back up to the CL and they had the appetizers out. These are mostly the same offerings as previous nights. Sorry the pictures aren’t the best.

















What I took back to the room



I started the Tinkerbell movie while eating my appetizers, they were delicious as usual and the movie ended up being really cute. Finished that around 8:10 and headed out for some desserts.

These were the specials of the evening





And then the regular offerings





What I had. The coconut mousse with lemon curd was so delicious! I remembered them from a previous visit so had to have two.



I forced myself to get moving and headed to HS at 8:45. I got there around 9:10 and didn’t have to show my KTTW card yet, EMHs didn’t start until 10:00. I checked in at the times board first and saw that the waits were horrible. That’s all I wrote, horrible. So I decided to head over to the Muppets Show since that wouldn’t be open during EMHs and I had been wanting to see it anyway. A show had just started so I wandered around the waiting room and saw some cute props I’d somehow missed on previous trips. This room has so much detail.

I absolutely love this one







There were maybe twenty of us in the waiting area and the CM was happy and laid back. We did not have to go all the way to the end of the row. Loved the show as usual. My only wish is that they’d upgrade the 3D part, sometimes I have to move my glasses to see it correctly. I stopped in the store for a little bit but nothing caught my eye so headed to TSM.

I went the back way around the Streets of America and there was absolutely no one around. It was very peaceful, almost like I had HS all to myself. Then I rounded the corner and found them all waiting for TSM. It was 10:02 and it was a 45 minute wait. I figured I’d go to ToT and RnRC first and then come back. I didn’t get far, I got caught up in a Mulch, Sweat, and Shears show. If you guys haven’t seen one of their shows definitely take the time, they play old rock n roll. They sing great, have some humor thrown in, and have so much energy. I got a few pictures, not good ones, only had the phone that night.





The one in the red is the funny one, he gets the audience involved and is just great.



After the fantastic show I headed back to TSM to check on it again. It was up to 60 minutes. Sorry TSM, I won’t be riding you this trip. I headed towards ToT and RnRC again but had the great idea to stop at the times board again. A CM was just updating the times and ToT was 30 minutes and RnRC was 50 minutes. In retrospect 30 minutes isn’t that bad, I should have waited for ToT but I just wasn’t in the mood. I was closer to the exit so I headed that way. Browsed in some shops on the way out but still didn’t buy anything. I had to wait a little bit for a bus and it was standing room only. Got to Jambo around 11:20 and headed up to the room where I put on Peter Pan and caught up in the journal. It was a fun night even though I didn’t do much.

 

[dolphingirl47]

It was really frustrating. I can't remember being there with it so busy since my 1998 trip which was in June. The previous March I was there around the same dates and it wasn't half as crowded.

That taco salad is fantastic. They give you the shell at the ordering window just with beef in it, I get mine without, and then you fill it at the toppings bar with whatever you want. The toppings are so fresh, you can see them chopping fresh veggies behind a glass.

I am glad that you managed to see the Muppets 3D show. 45 minutes for Toy Story Mania would be the kind of waiting time at which I seriously would have considered it. 60 minutes would have been too long though.

That they just give you the Taco shell and the meat fills me with joy. I am quite particular with what I will and won't eat and the combinations of food and this sounds a winner. I just checked the map for MVMCP from last year and Pecos Bill was open. So I will have dinner there during the party and this leaves me the option to try my luck with Be Our Guest for lunch on my full Magic Kingdom day.

Corinna