To Hogwarts We Go...Again! This time with the Muggle. Nov. 2015 PTR

Great job on the trip report so far!! I'm reading a few of them to pass the days until our March adventure!
It helps build the excitement---I love HP stuff!

We hung out in Hogsmead for a while and rode the Forbidden Journey again. As we were leaving the area we started talking about what we wanted for dinner. I asked if he cared if we park hopped again to eat at The Leaky Cauldron and he didn't ind so we stepped across to the train station. This seemed to be the place where he had thew most trouble with the fingerprint scanner. It did finally work after several tries and we were soon headed back to DA.

If I remember correctly it was fairly early for supper and there was no wait at all. Sam liked that they had food model examples to help him decide what to order.

We were seated near the actual cauldron and our food was brought out very quickly.

I love the atmosphere in here and all of the workers were very friendly and perfectly in character.

Sam ordered the cottage pie that comes with a salad. He really liked this and said that it was served super hot.

I got the fish and chips and it was hot and fresh too. Some people have said that they thought that the fish was greasy but my portion was not at all. I got an Otter Fizzy Orange drink and I think Sam got a beer. The drink tasted great on a hot day. The cinnamon sugar rim really made it stand out.
The Leaky Cauldron gets a perfect 10 from me. The restaurant itself is exactly as it should be, dark, cool and a pleasant break from a busy park. The food was fast hot and fresh. I will certainly eat here again.
I thought that the portions were just right. Not as big as some places but the food choices served are very filling.

I wanted to spend the evening in DA to see it in the dark and it was beautiful.


These lights were turned on by people casting spells and the picture does not do justice how brilliant and sparkly they were. So pretty at night.

I thought that DA in the evening was wonderful as well. Everything is so pretty. Here are a few pics of our night time visit to DA.

Here is the dragon at twilight. Sam wanted to do a bit of birthday shopping for me so he went shopping and I hopped into the single rider line at Gringott's. Sam is absolutely horrified by the thought of doing single rider but it doesn't bother me a bit. I hate lines.
There were only about 4 people ahead of me in the single rider line so I was on and off in a flash so I did it again.
I met back up with Sam and we took some more pics and just wondered soaking up the atmosphere.


We hung around until closing time and then headed back to the hotel.

The whole park looked nice in the dark.
On the way out we picked up one of the giant pink donuts to eat for breakfast the next morning. We didn't get it from the actual Springfield area which I think was a mistake. We got it from the bakery near the front of the park.

Once back at the hotel I snapped a picture of one of the things we bought to bring home the kids to show my sister.
We bought G a Buckbeak as she requested and we got B a Trevor the toad. He is so cute and goes nicely with the chocolate frog lovie that B chose last time we were there. He named it Cocoa and even 2 years later he still smells like chocolate.

samheatherwhite said:

I thought that DA in the evening was wonderful as well. Everything is so pretty. Here are a few pics of our night time visit to DA.
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The whole park looked nice in the dark.
On the way out we picked up one of the giant pink donuts to eat for breakfast the next morning. We didn't get it from the actual Springfield area which I think was a mistake. We got it from the bakery near the front of the park.

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Great pictures! Mine turned out crappy at night - need to bring in my real camera next time instead of just the phone.

I take it the big pink was dry? It sounds like they're hit or miss. Ours was just okay, but it was like chilled when served to us.

Cute toad! The chocolate frog stuffy sounds adorable. Glad I didn't see those, I don't need any plush souvenirs but am often sorely tempted.

Loving the report!!

pepperandchips said:

Great pictures! Mine turned out crappy at night - need to bring in my real camera next time instead of just the phone.

I take it the big pink was dry? It sounds like they're hit or miss. Ours was just okay, but it was like chilled when served to us.

Cute toad! The chocolate frog stuffy sounds adorable. Glad I didn't see those, I don't need any plush souvenirs but am often sorely tempted.

Loving the report!!

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My iphone took pretty good night pictures, much better than my old samsung did. The donut was pretty stale and dry. we are going to try a fresh one next trip. I was super disappointed in that one. We love Cocoa the frog. He is super cute and smells fantastic, lol. Thanks for the following along!

We started off our next morning with a giant donut. Unfortunately this thing was as stale as could be. Sam loves all donuts and usually eats 4 at a time and we ate less than half of this and threw it away.
We are going to try a fresh one from the actual Lard Lad stand when we go back this summer. This was a huge disappointment.
We hit EE at IOA again this morning. On my last trip we did not do Dragon Challenge and I love this ride so much. I remember riding this thing over and over again when we went to Universal when I was in high school but since I was the only one interested last time we skipped it. I wanted to take a picture of Ron's car for G so I asked the workers near the entrance if it was okay to bring in my camera for pics only and then put it away in the lockers before the ride. They were very accommodating making sure I knew how to get back to the lockers easily. I am really glad to have taken the time to do this because some of the best photos of the castle can be taken from the que for Dragon Challenge.

Taking time for pics also gave Sam time to finish his coffee from the Starbucks in CBBR's lobby.

I love the details here especially since G and I have been reading HP4. She wanted me to measure her yesterday to see if she is tall enough to ride DC when we go this summer. I could not believe that my 2nd grader is already 54 inches tall! She is going to pass me right by soon.

The coaster was not busy at all this morning so we weren't in anyone's way. A very nice guy asked if we wanted a pic with the castle that had both of us in it. I really appreciated his thoughtfulness.


After our photo session we ran down to the lockers and put away our stuff. I left my glasses in the locker too and I was sure glad to have sam there to lead me through the dark castle. The decorations in there are cool but it seemed like we walked forever to get to the ride. It was walk on so we rode both sides. I loved it again, every bit as good as I remembered. Sam was a bit nervous but survived fine!

We grabbed our stuff from the lockers and then we rode FJ before we headed out to enjoy the rest of the park.

Sam showed some interest in the Jurassic Park playground so we went in there for a little while. It really is a neat area and it is nicely shaded.

I loved the little details.
The amber mine was cool.


In my last visit with the kids we didn't spend very much time in here. I know that it will change this year since both my kids have become dino obsessed recently.
Sam wanted to ride Mummy again so we hopped on the HE and went across to US for a little while.
I did not take many pics of this part of our day but if memory serves we rode Mummy, Transformers, MIB, and maybe ET. We hung around in DA for a bit and then Sam decided that it was time for lunch.

He liked all of the cool cars in front of Mel's Drive In and we ended up eating in there.
It was pretty early for lunch, they had just opened so there was no wait. The icky donut from earlier did not tide Sam over for long. We hopped in line. I got a cheeseburger with fries and a refill in my Butterbeer mug. Sam got a double cheeseburger with fries and a vanilla milkshake.

The food was hot a fresh and seasoned well without being too salty. We both thought that it was fine. This was by no means great food but it was hot and did the job. It was very out of character for Sam to go with the shake. He doesn't really eat much ice cream and I was surprised that he ordered this. It was super thick, he couldn't eat/drink much of it until we were done eating and went outside so it could melt. It was a strange texture and wasn't your typical milkshake but it was still pretty good.

There were also some Christmas decorations up in there that were fun and matched the decor well but I can't seem to find a pic.
We had big plans for after lunch. I wanted to check out the outlet stores nearby so we strolled out of the park sipping on the milkshake.
We chose to get a cab at the station that is near where the CBBR busses drop you off. It worked perfectly and we were soon shopping away. It cost right at 10$ and was a very quick trip.
We spent a few hours browsing around. We were mainly interested in the Nike and Under Armour stores and in the Disney outlet. I was super disappointed that the Disney store was being refurbished so it was closed.
Oh well, next time. We hit the Nike and UA stores pretty hard, LOL. G has decided that she wants mainly athletic type clothes. She would have been in heaven here. There were some pretty good deals. I managed to buy several Christmas gifts for the kids and for other family members. We brought G a black and silver nike hoodie that she wears all of the time and we found B a green UA that he likes as well. I bought myself a pair of new nike tennis shoes for 20$ that I am really enjoying. We had a nice shopping experience and then caught another cab back to CBBR.
We dropped off our purchases in our room and then headed back to the park. My feet were beginning to ache by this point but we don't get to vacation very much so we powered on. I always joke with my family that if you aren't tired when you get home from vacay then you missed out on stuff!

We dropped off our purchases back in the room and then we caught the bus back to Universal.

We chose to go to UO. We checked out the minion ride but the line was too long for our taste, so we rode Shrek instead. I think that this is cute but is it just me or does the preshow and the actual show have nothing to do with each other? It seemed super random to me.

I had been wanting to ride RRR for a long time. I thought that if I warmed Sam up on coasters that eventually he would want to ride it with me. Nope! I kept telling him that Dragon challenge which he had ridden twice was scarier but he did not believe me. Since the wait was reasonable I handed him my stuff and hopped into the single rider line. The regular wait said 20 minutes but I was on in probably 7.
I was surprised by the way it loaded, with a moving sidewalk. I got paired up with a boy who was probably 12ish. He was hilarious. He looked at me and asked if I was someones Mom. I told him I was and could tell that he thought it was crazy that anyone's Momma would ride RRR. After we got off I heard him tell the group of other kids he was with that he rode with a Mom and that he was more scared than I was. That interaction made me laugh.
I really liked this coaster. It was definitely different than anything I had ridden. I look forward to doing it again.
Sam had no regrets not riding especially after he saw what a wreck my hair was. LOL!
I am pretty sure that we hit up the Mummy next and then we headed to DA. There was one thing on my must do list that we needed to accomplish that afternoon.

Florean Fortesques! We had eaten breakfast here once on the last trip and I knew that we had to visit here again. There were probably 10 people ahead of us in line but it was very fast and efficient. I got the apple crumble and the caramel blondie. These were delicious and paired perfectly together. I would 100% order this again. I was surprised when Sam ordered too. Originally he was going to pass. Crazy man is just not an ice cream guy.

It turned out that the chocolate chili was too interesting for him to resist. I told him what I knew and he was intrigued. He got vanilla to go with it. He really liked it. I tasted it and I thought that it was okay. A bit weird for me but I don't do things that are too spicy. This tasted like plain chocolate and then you felt some heat as you swallowed it that seemed to build. I would not like a whole dish of this but Sam enjoyed it. It was spicy but not unbearable for me and I am a weenie.

As we walked out of FF Celestina Warbeck was starting her show so we headed over toward the stage to eat and watch. We just plopped on the grown as our feet were pretty tired.
There were not very many people watching today and I just know that if Sam wasn't eating he would have been chosen to go onstage. There was on older gentleman that realized what was about to happen and he literally ran out of the area. It was super funny. That left Celestina with one choice and it was just awkward. The man was super uncomfortable. I wish Sam would have been chosen but he was super glad he wasn't!

macraven said:

how were the apple crumble and the caramel blondie?

i usually stick with the butterbeer ice cream.
not as daring as your dh is.

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I really liked them both and I think that they complemented each other really well. On our previous trip we tried several flavors and I also really liked the Butterbeer. I thought that the sticky toffee pudding was just ok.
Sam surprised me as he is just not an ice cream guy. (Crazy right!) If he does order any it is always a vanilla milkshake.

Thanks been enjoying reading along

I hate chocolate ice cream, but did try it with the chilli as I would eat chilli with everything......but I didn't like it at all, wasn't spicy enough for me......but I do like things really hot.......

The caramel blondie and apple crumble were very good though.......

Glad you enjoyed RRR too.........love that ride a lot........Nice update........

We shopped around DA for a while and then decided to head out riding what we wanted as we went.

To be perfectly honest I cannot remember exactly what we rode. I know that we strolled through some shops as well. As we were walking along we got caught near the parade so we watched that.


After the parade was over we headed out of the parks for the evening. On the way we stopped at a bakery and bought two cookies to snack on later. They were huge and looked soft and tasty.
Being from Texas we love mexican food, especially Sam, so we decided to try Antojitos. I love the fun building, very unique.
We were seated immediately but it was pretty crowded in the restaurant.
Our server was an older man and to be honest he was quite strange and made our dinner uncomfortable. He was just awkward. He came by the table quickly and was profoundly disappointed when we ordered water. It was steaming hot and we were tired and it wasn't as cool in there as I would have liked either which may not have helped our experience.
All of the tables in our area had chips and hot sauce but we did not and our waiter had apparently disappeared. After a pretty long time a food runner brought our drinks and I asked for chips.

About this time a mariachi band started up and they were very loud. I'm not complaining but just wanted to warn everyone else that a quiet intimate dinner this was not!
After another long wait our waiter returned and took our order.......and then proceeded to stand at our table and try to chat. It was weird. I just wanted him to turn in our order and go away but he just hovered. Finally the food runner came back by with chips so we started eating those and kind of ignoring our waiter.

The chips and hot sauce were fine but definitely not great.

Our order came out and the waiter hung around to talk again. I don't want to sound like a brat but it was just strange. Poor guy had no social skills.
After everything we had decided to just order the empanadas since we were still half full from the giant ice creams from earlier.

These were okay as well. There are 3 kinds, beef, chicken, and mushroom. The meat empanadas were warm and tasted fresh but the mushroom was cold and tasted stale. Sam loves mushrooms and he didn't finish his so I knew it wasn't just me.
Our waiter disappeared again so we had to find someone else to check us out. We paid quickly and left. As we were leaving I saw the odd waiter hiding behind a pillar watching us. It was weird because we had obviously been looking for him and he chose to stand out of sight and watch us.
I do not think that I will be in a hurry to eat here again. The waiter killed the experience and the food was nothing special. Too many other good options to try.

Picture of the band, they were a fun touch.
We headed back to the hotel after dinner. Sam wanted to check out the pool to report back to the kids so we headed downstairs after changing clothes. We went to the side with the lazy river but did not try it out. We decided that we would get enough of that when we go back with the kids. We tried the pool but it was too cold for me to swim in. (I hate cold water though and people joke that my showers would boil lobster so I am not the best judge!) I did however thoroughly enjoy a nice soak in the hot tub. It was heaven on my aching feet!
After our swim we went back up to the room and changed. I got out our cookies for a snack and we watched some tv before bed. I don't think that I am an overly picky food reviewer but those cookies were awful.
They were bland and super dry. I was expecting soft and moist but these were just terrible. One bite to taste both flavors each and we tossed the rest in the trash.

This is the sugar cookie and it weirdly tasted like raw cookie dough but was dry and grainy in texture.

This is the snickerdoodle and it had no taste at all, not even cinnamon. It was bland and was the texture of a graham cracker.

I made a note to avoid those cookies

macraven said:

I made a note to avoid those cookies

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Definitely, It is hard to find a cookie I don't like and I will never try any of those yucky things again! I always hesitate to recommend against any type of food since everyone has different taste preferences but I cannot imagine anyone liking those things!

following along

Just caught up........how odd with the waiter!!!

That really is a weird scenario if ever I heard one........I would have been spooked too......we've never wanted to eat here really.......and probably never will......especially now.....lol.......shame about the cookies too!

You guys are not having any luck with baked goods! That stinks about your cookies and big pink donut. Your Antojitos experience made me laugh... Our waiter was actually a great server but he specifically did not bring us chips until after our appetizer arrived and told us he wanted us to "save room" for dinner, which was weird because 1.) I'm an adult and I can fill up on chips if I darn well please and 2.) we'd already told him we were splitting one appetizer and one entree. We weren't going to order any more or less food no matter how many chips we ate! But it was actually a wonderful meal. We ate there late enough that the mariachi band was done for the night, or my opinion might be different. I don't like having to shout over music to hear my dinner companions.

I so agree with you about RRR being way less scary than Dragon Challenge! Looking at that vertical lift hill is very daunting though, even for someone who loves coasters. I laughed at your riding compadre telling his buddies that "the mom" was less scared than he was.

Loving your trip report. I can't wait to go back and you are really making me want to stay at Cabana Bay sometime!

schumigirl said:

Just caught up........how odd with the waiter!!!

That really is a weird scenario if ever I heard one........I would have been spooked too......we've never wanted to eat here really.......and probably never will......especially now.....lol.......shame about the cookies too!

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I hope I don't sound like a grump with unreasonable food expectations. I do try to be super honest though. The waiter was super odd, never experienced one like that before!

pepperandchips said:

You guys are not having any luck with baked goods! That stinks about your cookies and big pink donut. Your Antojitos experience made me laugh... Our waiter was actually a great server but he specifically did not bring us chips until after our appetizer arrived and told us he wanted us to "save room" for dinner, which was weird because 1.) I'm an adult and I can fill up on chips if I darn well please and 2.) we'd already told him we were splitting one appetizer and one entree. We weren't going to order any more or less food no matter how many chips we ate! But it was actually a wonderful meal. We ate there late enough that the mariachi band was done for the night, or my opinion might be different. I don't like having to shout over music to hear my dinner companions.

I so agree with you about RRR being way less scary than Dragon Challenge! Looking at that vertical lift hill is very daunting though, even for someone who loves coasters. I laughed at your riding compadre telling his buddies that "the mom" was less scared than he was.

Loving your trip report. I can't wait to go back and you are really making me want to stay at Cabana Bay sometime!

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We are definitely going to try the big pink again, we will just make sure to go by the actual stand and get a fresh one.
We have too many great mexican food restaurants here for me to try Antojitos again. It is Sam's favorite so I was trying to make sure and get in some things that I thought that he'd really enjoy. I dropped the ball on that one! Maybe many of the waiters there are different?
We really liked CB, it was so bright and fun which suits me perfect for vacation. I have stayed at RP once before and it was wonderful as well. We are taking the kids to CB this summer because I know that they will love it. They are both little fish.