The Bunny Has Nothing On Us: Re-Imaging Family Time On The Magic *Update 6/9*

[PrincessForLife]

Hi everyone!

I'm Jackie and I was on the Magic with my DH (Kevin), BIL (Jimmy), MIL (Linda), and FIL (Bob) from April 14-18, 2014. We just got back on Easter Sunday from Florida and I have thought about nothing but going back to Florida. lol. I'm really excited to start this TR. It's all I've been thinking about the past couple of days!


From Left to Right: Me, DH, MIL, FIL, BIL

To start out, here's the link to the PTR for this trip:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3193440

I have to admit that I didn't do half of the things that set goals for on the trip...oops. But hey, we were on vacation, who can blame us?? We just wanted to relax. I'll do the best that I can!!

So what was included in our action-packed vacation? For starters, we stayed at Old Key West for one night before the cruise. Then we took a 4-night Bahamian cruise on the Magic that went to Nassau and Castaway Cay. After the cruise, we rounded out our vacation with 2 more nights at Old Key West that included a day at Magic Kingdom and a day at Epcot.

Here we go!!

 

[jedijill]

I'm in!

Jill in CO

 

[PrincessForLife]

Waking up for our vacation was easy for me but extremely difficult for my In-Laws. We were up about 3:00am on the day before the cruise in order to catch our 6:10am flight out of Chicago Midway. Let's just say that I was the only one who was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed! lol The flight was about 2 hours 10 minutes so it wasn't too bad. We got in about 9:20ish Florida time and we took DME to Old Key West for one night.


On the way to Old Key West!!



Almost there!


When we got there, Old Key West were having some major issues with assigning rooms. Our room wasn't ready when we arrived at 10:30 which was okay, but when we returned from Typhoon Lagoon at 4:15, it STILL wasn't ready!! I've had a couple stays where rooms were not ready until 3:00 or so, but after the 4:00 check-in time was bad. It took us until almost 5:00pm to get a room. Let's just say that it wasn't a very good first impression for a first time guest of Old Key West...

While we waited for the room, we went to Typhoon Lagoon. It's been sooo long since I've been there so it was almost like going for the first time! I don't have any pictures from there because I didn't want to get my camera wet and not get any pictures the whole vacation. We did go on the Crush-N-Gusher and it was amazing! It's like the longer and more thrilling version of the Aquaduck on the Fantasy!! I also sucked it up and went on the Humunga Kowabunga. For a refresher, that's the one that drops 5 stories. I've never been on one of those types of water slides but I made it through it!! It was really fun until you hit the bottom section where your butt hits the slide really hard. I was sore. To celebrate though, I got a pin that proves that I tried it!! lol



Lunch we pretty causal. We got burgers, sandwiches, etc. We also got the sand pale sundae which my husband and I split. It was amazing!! We were able to justify the sundea so late in the day because our reservation for Victoria & Albert's wasn't until 8:45.

Like I said, our room wasn't ready till 5:00pm so we got some good time in at Typhoon Lagoon. When we finally got to the room it was a mad sprint to get ready to go to the Grand Floridian for dinner at Victoria & Albert's!!

 

[JKSWonder]

I'm in!

 

[scrpbookr]

Just Subscribed! I'm looking forward to following along. I'll have to try the pics again in a bit. They aren't showing up right now.

 

[PrincessForLife]

Just Subscribed! I'm looking forward to following along. I'll have to try the pics again in a bit. They aren't showing up right now.

Oopps! Sorry about that! I was rearranging the photos in photobucket and I guess it didn't like that I put them into categories! They should be there now! Thanks for following along gals!!

 

[PrincessForLife]

Getting to the Grand Floridian from Old Key West was quite a trek! I have to say that I am not a fan of the buses in Old Key West. It seemed like every time we tried to grab one to Magic Kingdom, it had always passed us. We waited a full 20 minutes for a Magic Kingdom bus! Oh well, we purposefully left the room almost 2 hours early to give us plenty of time to get to Victoria & Albert's. (It also wasn't helping that my BIL was being a little bit of a snot because he wasn't feeling good and he wanted to cancel on us at the last minute! We still got him to go since it was his birthday celebration... )





I was really hoping to get to the Grand Floridian early to see the Easter eggs and we made it with about 20 minutes to spare!! The giant Easter eggs are displayed in the Grand Floridian lobby and have become somewhat of a tradition for the hotel. These giant eggs are made by the hotel pastry chiefs and are completely edible being made out of various types of chocolate and fondant. They look good enough to eat! Here are some of my favorite:

Rapunzel's Hair


Cute Puppies and the back of the Frozen egg


The back of the Cinderella egg


It's on a plate of spaghetti!!


So pretty!


Front of Frozen!


Front of Cinderella


Disney Bound complete with MagicBands!




Up Next: Victoria & Albert's rundown with menu!

 

[jedijill]

Oh, those eggs are amazing! The pastry team really are artists.

Yay for V&A! I love dining there...the food and service are amazing!

Jill in CO

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Hi Joining in. I think I've read another trip report of yours... Honeymoon maybe? Anyway I'm following along again.

 

[PrincessForLife]

Oh, those eggs are amazing! The pastry team really are artists.

Yay for V&A! I love dining there...the food and service are amazing!

Jill in CO

They are so perfect they look like plastic! They are truly a sight to see at least once! And we love V&A too! We don't have one bad thing to say about them!

Hi Joining in. I think I've read another trip report of yours... Honeymoon maybe? Anyway I'm following along again.

Welcome! It was the honeymoon report. Hope you like this one!!

 

[magrudersmakes3]

Loved your last report!

 

[PrincessForLife]

Loved your last report!

Thank you! I hope you enjoy this one too!!

 

[disneytraceyl]

Can't wait to read more.

 

[PrincessForLife]

Can't wait to read more.

Thanks for joining in! The next installment is coming soon!!

 

[PrincessForLife]

I LOVE Victoria & Albert's. The first time my DH and I went there last year we weren't sure if we were going to like the whole experience, but now we are hooked! V&A is one of those places that everyone should try once in their lifetime. (My In-Laws disagree but to each their own... ) Many people complain that it's way too expensive but with a Prix Fixe price of $135.00 for the food plus an additional (optional) $65.00 for the wine pairings for dinner, it's a bargain. Coming from Chicago with some of the best restaurants in the country, meal prices at the famous places can top off around $500 a person for just the food. At V&A, you have never been so pampered while dining!!


The one photo I managed to take at our table....

Victoria & Ablert's is tucked away on the second floor of the Grand Floridian next to Citrico's and is hidden by big wooden doors. When we entered the foyer, we were greeted by Israel Perez the Maitre D'Hotel. I swear they have our pictures in the computer system because he greeted us by name right away and he wished my BIL a happy birthday. Now that is attention to detail! lol We were seated a couple minutes later and whisked into a whirlwind of amazing food and wine. I didn't take pictures of the food because I really wanted to enjoy the meal. I hope you guys understand. Here are a couple pictures of the menu we enjoyed!!


It's a very large menu!!




The Amuse-Bunche is like a palette cleanser that awakens the senses to begin your epic food journey. It was piece of raw salmon with some field greens. Amazing! I then had the Octopus "A La Plancha" with Black Garlic Aioli that was feature on the Chef Mauro Disney special on the Food Network. Next was the Maine Diver Scallop with Cauliflower and Glace e Viande. I almost licked the plate clean because it was so good! The next course I got was the Palmetto Farms Quail with Asian Pears, Serrano Ham Jus followed by the Roasted Duck with Fennel and Leeks, "A L'Orange." Both delicious! I also let my DH splurge on the True Japanese Kobe Beef. V&A is the only restaurant in the US to offer true Kobe Beef, not the 'Kobe-style beef.' I tried a piece and it was the best piece of meat I have ever eaten! If you have a steak lover in your family, this is a really great treat for them! We then followed up the main courses with the cheese course which was to die for! I heart cheese. That's all. lol Finally for dessert I had the Caramelized Banana Gateau. It was a delicate tower of bananas caramelized with sweat cream with pulled sugar. A beautiful work of art and truly to die for!! After dinner, you are give a selection of teas and coffees to enjoy. Make sure you get one or the other because they percolate both at the table! It's really cool to watch!!


The beautiful, hand painted Easter egg in the restaurant!

At the end of the meal, each woman receives a long stem rose, all receive souvenir menus, and you are treated to a fruit cake for the next morning. It's no ordinary fruit cake though! Truly extraordinary! As before, V&A is a wonderful experience that everyone should try. You get pampered to no end. They even escort you to the bathroom and back to your table!! Just make sure ladies that you don't wear too high of heels. You get so much wine that you are bound to get tipsy, and the walk from the monorail to the bus stop at Magic Kingdom is not fun at all. I twisted my ankle a couple of times. Ouch. We still had a blast and I cannot wait until we go back again!!


Very full, slightly tipsy, and floating on cloud nine.

Up Next: The Magic is in Sight!!

 

[jedijill]

Sounds like a fantastic meal! I love V&A and agree that it is well worth the price! If you ever cruise on the Dream or the Fantasy try Remy. It's as good if not better.

Jill in CO

 

[PrincessForLife]

Sounds like a fantastic meal! I love V&A and agree that it is well worth the price! If you ever cruise on the Dream or the Fantasy try Remy. It's as good if not better.

Jill in CO

We did Remy on the Fantasy last year and it was just okay. I think we were still living off the high of V&A the week before but my DH didn't like the food as much. I'd be excited to try it again though because the menu rotates! Now it's time to start plotting on how to get DH into there again! lol

 

[jedijill]

We did Remy on the Fantasy last year and it was just okay. I think we were still living off the high of V&A the week before but my DH didn't like the food as much. I'd be excited to try it again though because the menu rotates! Now it's time to start plotting on how to get DH into there again! lol

I heard they have a new dessert tasting with champagne pairing at Remy. That's enough to make me book another cruise.

Jill in CO

 

[PrincessForLife]

I heard they have a new dessert tasting with champagne pairing at Remy. That's enough to make me book another cruise.

Jill in CO

Awww man! You shouldn't have told me that....

 

[PrincessForLife]

After a very exciting night at Victoria & Albert's we continued our rather adventurous journey back to the room at Old Key West. We had next to no line at the bus at Magic Kingdom and we easily got back during the busy night hours. We were the first stop at Old Key West that we saw as a blessing in disguise! Lol. I don't think we actually got back to the room until midnight and we had to be up at a decently early time for our port transfer pickup time. (And 5 grown adults with one bathroom is never a good idea!)


My DH and I decided to take the very back. Still comfortable though!!


DH is really excited to get to the ship!!

We did not do the Disney Company Port transfers this time because we found that it would cost us about $50 more and we would have to cram on the coach bus with a boat load of people. Also on our honeymoon we weren't fond of getting to the port at 1:00pm. We had no choice because Disney sets the times and does multiple resort pick-ups in a short amount of time. We chose to go through a limo/transfer company called AM/PM Tours. I Googled limo services Orlando, FL and it came up with multiple companies. I heard from some that Happy Limo was a great company but I knew many people would be using them. I emailed the service center for AM/PM Tours and got a quick and courteous response from Ken, who I presume is the owner because he is the only one that I have ever spoken with there. He gave me a full estimate for a round trip transfer from OKW to the port and back and it only came to $330 which included tolls, fair, and tips. We even got to choose our own pick up locations and times! I highly recommend this company for anyone traveling with larger parties.


Our first picture of the ship!

We got picked up at 9:30 in the morning right in front of our building and were whisked away in a 10-passenger van to the port. It was nice to be able to spread out in the van, except we didn't have the DCL video which we always look forward to. Oh well.... We got to the port at about 10:45 and quickly got in line to check in. My In-Laws then surprised us by saying that they were going to look into upgrades for the rooms. (This did cause a little hiccup in the FE Exchange for me but we got through it! More on that in the next couple of posts!) We were originally in an inside stateroom but we were able to upgrade to obstructed balcony rooms! Now, when we thought of obstructed views we thought that our balconies would be behind the life boats. Silly us, Disney would never do that! We ended up having the balconies with whitewall called the "Navigator's Porthole." It was such a cool balcony!






Family Picture!!

The room was a normal, renovated room but the balcony was a sailor's dream! We had a large, open air porthole with walls on either side. The really cool parts included a navigator's map of Florida and the Bahamian area complete with Castaway Cay pinpoint, wood bench seating, and compasses, clocks, and barometers all in working order! We actually knew which direction we were traveling! This balcony was really fun and very private! We will definitely get this stateroom again......AND it's much cheaper than the regular balconies!! The only negative is that those rooms are at the back of the ship and the last night we had very bad waves. Let's just say that I almost fell out of bed more than once! lol




















Packing the ship with all the goodies!


Up Next: Getting our Grub On and On-The-Whim Spa Time!!