singingpixie
<font color=deeppink>Baby Donor<br><font color=blu
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2004
I've finally bit the bullet and booked my first solo trip!
I'm 34, live in North Carolina, and have been to WDW a handful of times- a couple weeklong vacations since childhood, and a couple shorter trips. I have family in California, so I grew up going to Disneyland more often than WDW, and I've been there more recently than I've made the trip to Florida. I'm not someone who is going to make super regular trips, but I definitely appreciate a Disney trip from time to time. I actually like that as a solo this time, I can pre-plan as much as I want without worrying about irritating any travel companions. I appreciate flexibility and am not opposed to being spontaneous, but for me it helps me be in the moment if I have a fairly detailed plan ahead of time. Because of that, I went ahead and subscribed to Touring Plans and have played around with custom plans to get what I've outlined below.
I'm actually a bigger baseball fan than I am a Disney fan, which is the impetus for this trip. The Braves have held their Spring Training at the WWOS since the 90s, but after this year are moving to a new facility on the Gulf Coast. The setup at Disney is great for fans, with easy access to the practice fields behind the stadium prior to games. I doubt the new park will be set up like this, so I wanted to get down there one last time. I'm also glad to be doing this solo, because while I have friends who like baseball, no one else is going to want to get there at 8am before a 1pm game, just to wander around and watch players take batting practice!
On my 2 park days, my plan is to hit the ground running with as many rides as possible at rope drop, before slowing down and focusing on shows and other experiences in the afternoons. I'm a musician, so I'm excited to take time to enjoy the entertainment in AK and Epcot, where I plan to spend the majority of my time. I'm also hoping to do something- whether it's a meal, snack, drink, entertainment offering, etc- in each country in Epcot. Not the end of the world if it doesn't happen, but it's a fun goal!
The Plan:
Dates: Arrive late at night on Tues 2/26, leave morning of Sat 3/2
Hotel: I got a good Hotwire deal on a hotel about 3 miles off property. It's got a kitchenette, which will make quick breakfasts and even a packed lunch for the baseball day easy- saving time and money!
Tues 2/26: Work most of the day, hopefully knocking off early enough to be clear of rush hour traffic. Get to Orlando in time to hopefully be in bed by midnight.
Wed 2/27: MK/AK day. Leave hotel by 7:30 or so and hopefully be one of the first into MK. Just the musts here- Pirates, BTMRR, Splash, Haunted Mansion, and Space. Hop to AK, where I'm hoping to grab lunch at Satu'li Canteen. I'll try to hit: Na'vi (FP), Maharajah, Everest (SR), Nemo, Dinosaur (FP), Gorilla Falls, FOTLK, KS (FP), the musicians in Africa, dinner at Nomad Lounge, the drummers in Pandora, and FoP before close. I'll be refreshing the MDE app throughout the day and will obviously jump on a FoP FP if I stumble upon one, but otherwise I'm fine with waiting at the end of the night, once I'm not missing out on anything else!
Thurs 2/28: Baseball day. Get there around 8am when practices start on the back fields. Wander around checking out the action and see if I can chat with any players or get any autographs. Eat my packed lunch whenever I'm hungry, and head in for the 1:05pm game. After the game (4ish), drive to the Poly and park my car for a monorail crawl- appetizer and a cocktail at Mizners, sushi and fireworks (8pm) at the California Grill Lounge, and evening fun at Trader Sam's Grog Grotto.
Fri 3/1: DHS/Epcot day. Leave hotel by 7:30 to hopefully be front of the rope drop crowd for Slinky Dog Dash. Hit that followed by TSM (FP), ToT (FP), RnRC (SR), and Star Tours (FP). Hop to Epcot in time to catch the first Voices of Liberty show at 12:20, followed by poutine for lunch at the kiosk just outside Canada. Watch the 1:15 Rose & Crown Pub musician's show over a beer, followed by a pastry in France. Look for 4th and 5th FPs to Soarin and Spaceship Earth for the mid afternoon, along with checking in on the Seas exhibits, and riding Test Track (SR). Back to World Showcase for the late afternoon and evening, checking out La Cava del Tequila, school bread from Norway, the acrobats in China while drinking a beer from Germany, dinner at Tangerine Cafe, gelato from Italy, and watching Illuminations from the balcony in Japan. Part of me wants to hit up Jellyrolls on my walk back to DHS (I figure I'll leave my car there instead of re-parking) but I'm guessing I'll be full, sick of drinks, and exhausted
Sat 3/2: I keep feeling tempted to plan a breakfast before hitting the road, but I expect I'll probably be ready to get the drive behind me and get back to real life- at least, enough so that spending time and money on breakfast may not be worth it. I think I'll plan to just get up and go, but I can always change my mind last minute and look for a reservation if the mood strikes!
It feels like that's pretty packed, but I also think I built in some things that are lower key so that it won't feel too terribly exhausting. It's a short trip, and park hours are fairly limited at this time of year, so open-close isn't as long as it would be the week after Christmas!
And now, all I can do is wait (and book FPs next month). 2 months to go!
I'm 34, live in North Carolina, and have been to WDW a handful of times- a couple weeklong vacations since childhood, and a couple shorter trips. I have family in California, so I grew up going to Disneyland more often than WDW, and I've been there more recently than I've made the trip to Florida. I'm not someone who is going to make super regular trips, but I definitely appreciate a Disney trip from time to time. I actually like that as a solo this time, I can pre-plan as much as I want without worrying about irritating any travel companions. I appreciate flexibility and am not opposed to being spontaneous, but for me it helps me be in the moment if I have a fairly detailed plan ahead of time. Because of that, I went ahead and subscribed to Touring Plans and have played around with custom plans to get what I've outlined below.
I'm actually a bigger baseball fan than I am a Disney fan, which is the impetus for this trip. The Braves have held their Spring Training at the WWOS since the 90s, but after this year are moving to a new facility on the Gulf Coast. The setup at Disney is great for fans, with easy access to the practice fields behind the stadium prior to games. I doubt the new park will be set up like this, so I wanted to get down there one last time. I'm also glad to be doing this solo, because while I have friends who like baseball, no one else is going to want to get there at 8am before a 1pm game, just to wander around and watch players take batting practice!
On my 2 park days, my plan is to hit the ground running with as many rides as possible at rope drop, before slowing down and focusing on shows and other experiences in the afternoons. I'm a musician, so I'm excited to take time to enjoy the entertainment in AK and Epcot, where I plan to spend the majority of my time. I'm also hoping to do something- whether it's a meal, snack, drink, entertainment offering, etc- in each country in Epcot. Not the end of the world if it doesn't happen, but it's a fun goal!
The Plan:
Dates: Arrive late at night on Tues 2/26, leave morning of Sat 3/2
Hotel: I got a good Hotwire deal on a hotel about 3 miles off property. It's got a kitchenette, which will make quick breakfasts and even a packed lunch for the baseball day easy- saving time and money!
Tues 2/26: Work most of the day, hopefully knocking off early enough to be clear of rush hour traffic. Get to Orlando in time to hopefully be in bed by midnight.
Wed 2/27: MK/AK day. Leave hotel by 7:30 or so and hopefully be one of the first into MK. Just the musts here- Pirates, BTMRR, Splash, Haunted Mansion, and Space. Hop to AK, where I'm hoping to grab lunch at Satu'li Canteen. I'll try to hit: Na'vi (FP), Maharajah, Everest (SR), Nemo, Dinosaur (FP), Gorilla Falls, FOTLK, KS (FP), the musicians in Africa, dinner at Nomad Lounge, the drummers in Pandora, and FoP before close. I'll be refreshing the MDE app throughout the day and will obviously jump on a FoP FP if I stumble upon one, but otherwise I'm fine with waiting at the end of the night, once I'm not missing out on anything else!
Thurs 2/28: Baseball day. Get there around 8am when practices start on the back fields. Wander around checking out the action and see if I can chat with any players or get any autographs. Eat my packed lunch whenever I'm hungry, and head in for the 1:05pm game. After the game (4ish), drive to the Poly and park my car for a monorail crawl- appetizer and a cocktail at Mizners, sushi and fireworks (8pm) at the California Grill Lounge, and evening fun at Trader Sam's Grog Grotto.
Fri 3/1: DHS/Epcot day. Leave hotel by 7:30 to hopefully be front of the rope drop crowd for Slinky Dog Dash. Hit that followed by TSM (FP), ToT (FP), RnRC (SR), and Star Tours (FP). Hop to Epcot in time to catch the first Voices of Liberty show at 12:20, followed by poutine for lunch at the kiosk just outside Canada. Watch the 1:15 Rose & Crown Pub musician's show over a beer, followed by a pastry in France. Look for 4th and 5th FPs to Soarin and Spaceship Earth for the mid afternoon, along with checking in on the Seas exhibits, and riding Test Track (SR). Back to World Showcase for the late afternoon and evening, checking out La Cava del Tequila, school bread from Norway, the acrobats in China while drinking a beer from Germany, dinner at Tangerine Cafe, gelato from Italy, and watching Illuminations from the balcony in Japan. Part of me wants to hit up Jellyrolls on my walk back to DHS (I figure I'll leave my car there instead of re-parking) but I'm guessing I'll be full, sick of drinks, and exhausted
Sat 3/2: I keep feeling tempted to plan a breakfast before hitting the road, but I expect I'll probably be ready to get the drive behind me and get back to real life- at least, enough so that spending time and money on breakfast may not be worth it. I think I'll plan to just get up and go, but I can always change my mind last minute and look for a reservation if the mood strikes!
It feels like that's pretty packed, but I also think I built in some things that are lower key so that it won't feel too terribly exhausting. It's a short trip, and park hours are fairly limited at this time of year, so open-close isn't as long as it would be the week after Christmas!
And now, all I can do is wait (and book FPs next month). 2 months to go!
Last edited:
