I am loving this report, thanks for sharing your great experiences. I am going to the Poly in Feb and staying for 4 nights in a bungalow, We are DVC members and it was available and luckily we had enough points for four nights. After that we are going to the dark side for 3 or 4 nights. Keep your report going, I am enjoying all of the details, hope to do some of the same myself. (Will call V & A tomorrow, they have closed for tonight, boohoo)
THE FORCE… THE FOOD… THE FLOWERS… A MAY 2015 DINING (mostly) REPORT - COMPLETE
- Thread starter disnygirl55
- Start date
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
Thank so much for reading along! I am so excited for your February trip - and I would love to stay in a bungalow some day. They look amazing! I hope you have such a wonderful time! Maybe next week I'll have time to add to the trip report. I've forgotten more than I think I've remembered at this point. Thank goodness for photos that jog my memory!
I took your very good advice and called Victoria&Alberts this morning. Spoke with a lovely woman and she found a cancellation on the Monday night of our trip for 5:30 in Victoria's room, we will have the 10 course tasting menu, with fireplace in room, elegant, I might not tell my husband about this, good surprise.
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
That is so exciting - we've eaten in the Queen Victoria room, right in front of that fireplace. It was CERTAINLY wonderful, and the same exact menu as the Chef's Table. Very quiet and special - you will feel very pampered. Enjoy every minute!
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
Lunch at Hollywood Brown Derby: Dine with an Imagineer - Monday, May 18
After the fantastic dinner at Victoria and Albert’s on Sunday evening, I had my doubts about whether we’d be hungry for lunch the next day. But I woke up excited for another new experience for the family, and we couldn’t wait to make our way to Hollywood Studios for lunch with an Imagineer.
Since we were up bright and early, we decided to take the monorail over to the Magic Kingdom for an hour or so. Gotta love the monorail resorts! The guys play Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom, so they wanted to get their card pack for the day and make a couple of stops. I took a quick ride down Splash Mountain all by myself and then hopped on the Walt Disney World Railroad, which I enjoy when I want to relax, and I hadn’t had a chance yet on this trip to ride!
We met up at the Main Street train station, and caught a bit of the morning Main Street show. It was so darned cute, and the dancing and costumes were terrific. Wish I’d gotten some better photos!
We hopped a bus over to Hollywood Studios, in time for our first Fastpass at Tower of Terror, stopping for a Photopass opportunity.
Then we walked the short distance to Rock n Roller Coaster for another Fastpass, and then Mom and Son stood in line for a second ride, since we had a little bit of time before our lunch experience.
Our “Dine With An Imagineer” lunch began at high noon at the Hollywood Brown Derby.
We waited only a short while until the entire group was assembled outside the restaurant. There were 14 of us in total. It was definitely sold out, as there was not an empty seat at the table! There was a lady in the party who I’m assuming was part of the Disney Mom’s Panel, as she was carrying a tote bag with the Mom’s Panel logo on it, but I didn’t ask her about it. I should have. I could have made an interesting friend, for sure! But I’m shy about approaching strangers, so it is what it is!
We were taken into a side room of the restaurant, where there was a large rectangular table to seat all of us. We were introduced to our assigned Imagineer, Jeff Abraham, and given menus.
It was pretty much a fixed meal, but with a choice for entrees of either Filet of Beef, Noodle Bowl with Chicken, or Pan-seared Grouper. The starter was a Sweet Corn Bisque soup that was sooooooo good. That was followed by a small portion of their famous cobb salad, which we always enjoy at the Brown Derby, the entrée (all three of us chose the “Charred-glazed Filet of Beef with a Red Wine Reduction, topped with a Cabernet and Roasted Shallot Butter over White Truffle Oil – Wild Forest Mushroom Mashed Potatoes, and Sauteed Haricot Verts”). Dessert was a trio of small bites: Mini Grapefruit Cake, Double Vanilla Bean Crème Brulee, and Chocolate Sphere with Hazelnut Praline Chocolate and Orange-White Chocolate Mousse. It was all delicious. Sorry for the epic fail of no food photos. I must have still been in a food coma from Victoria & Alberts the evening before!
Jeff Abraham was very interesting. He talked about the Disney Springs project that he had been working on, and was very forthcoming in answering anyone’s questions, particularly about the reasons for changing up the Downtown Disney area, how he got hired on at Disney, and his schooling. He actually works on the artistic side of things, rather than anything mechanical or ride-related, as you would often picture when you think of an Imagineering job. He suggested that kids consider the Disney college program and then an internship if they really want to work for Disney someday. I think DS found it interesting to listen to him, as he has an interest in engineering. Here’s a photo of them taken after lunch:
We were also presented with a lovely plate at the end of the meal to commemorate the experience, and Jeff was kind enough to autograph them for us. It made a nice souvenir.
We also received a second “menu” containing Jeff’s official biography and a photo taken with the entire group seated at the table. What a nice remembrance of everything!
After the fantastic dinner at Victoria and Albert’s on Sunday evening, I had my doubts about whether we’d be hungry for lunch the next day. But I woke up excited for another new experience for the family, and we couldn’t wait to make our way to Hollywood Studios for lunch with an Imagineer.
Since we were up bright and early, we decided to take the monorail over to the Magic Kingdom for an hour or so. Gotta love the monorail resorts! The guys play Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom, so they wanted to get their card pack for the day and make a couple of stops. I took a quick ride down Splash Mountain all by myself and then hopped on the Walt Disney World Railroad, which I enjoy when I want to relax, and I hadn’t had a chance yet on this trip to ride!
We met up at the Main Street train station, and caught a bit of the morning Main Street show. It was so darned cute, and the dancing and costumes were terrific. Wish I’d gotten some better photos!
We hopped a bus over to Hollywood Studios, in time for our first Fastpass at Tower of Terror, stopping for a Photopass opportunity.
Then we walked the short distance to Rock n Roller Coaster for another Fastpass, and then Mom and Son stood in line for a second ride, since we had a little bit of time before our lunch experience.
Our “Dine With An Imagineer” lunch began at high noon at the Hollywood Brown Derby.
We waited only a short while until the entire group was assembled outside the restaurant. There were 14 of us in total. It was definitely sold out, as there was not an empty seat at the table! There was a lady in the party who I’m assuming was part of the Disney Mom’s Panel, as she was carrying a tote bag with the Mom’s Panel logo on it, but I didn’t ask her about it. I should have. I could have made an interesting friend, for sure! But I’m shy about approaching strangers, so it is what it is!
We were taken into a side room of the restaurant, where there was a large rectangular table to seat all of us. We were introduced to our assigned Imagineer, Jeff Abraham, and given menus.
It was pretty much a fixed meal, but with a choice for entrees of either Filet of Beef, Noodle Bowl with Chicken, or Pan-seared Grouper. The starter was a Sweet Corn Bisque soup that was sooooooo good. That was followed by a small portion of their famous cobb salad, which we always enjoy at the Brown Derby, the entrée (all three of us chose the “Charred-glazed Filet of Beef with a Red Wine Reduction, topped with a Cabernet and Roasted Shallot Butter over White Truffle Oil – Wild Forest Mushroom Mashed Potatoes, and Sauteed Haricot Verts”). Dessert was a trio of small bites: Mini Grapefruit Cake, Double Vanilla Bean Crème Brulee, and Chocolate Sphere with Hazelnut Praline Chocolate and Orange-White Chocolate Mousse. It was all delicious. Sorry for the epic fail of no food photos. I must have still been in a food coma from Victoria & Alberts the evening before!
Jeff Abraham was very interesting. He talked about the Disney Springs project that he had been working on, and was very forthcoming in answering anyone’s questions, particularly about the reasons for changing up the Downtown Disney area, how he got hired on at Disney, and his schooling. He actually works on the artistic side of things, rather than anything mechanical or ride-related, as you would often picture when you think of an Imagineering job. He suggested that kids consider the Disney college program and then an internship if they really want to work for Disney someday. I think DS found it interesting to listen to him, as he has an interest in engineering. Here’s a photo of them taken after lunch:
We were also presented with a lovely plate at the end of the meal to commemorate the experience, and Jeff was kind enough to autograph them for us. It made a nice souvenir.
We also received a second “menu” containing Jeff’s official biography and a photo taken with the entire group seated at the table. What a nice remembrance of everything!
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
Planned: Dinner at the Boathouse at Disney Springs – Actual: A short tour of Disney Springs by water, and dinner bites at the Polynesian Club Lounge - Monday, May 18
I am so sorry to report that we could honestly not fit anything else in our stomachs today! We were soooo excited to eat at the new Boathouse restaurant. But after a couple days of huge dining events, we just petered out, and the idea of eating another big meal was not appetizing whatsoever. (But never fear, we were able to eat dinner there in the spring of 2016, and it was delicious, so everything is good!) We all agreed, however, that it would still be fun to go investigate Disney Springs, and see what was what, especially after listening to Jeff Abraham talk about the project. So we took a bus to Disney Springs during the late afternoon, and got a PHOTO of the Boathouse instead, along with the Characters in Flight balloon, and the construction progress on Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar.
Dinner wound up being nibbles back at the Club Level Lounge at the Polynesian instead. They had a very nice spread out for the evening, including veggies and fruit:
Purple Haze Goat Cheese (along with a standard variety of cubed cheese):
Soft Pita Breads with Hummus:
5-Spice Chicken Wings, Mushroom Risotto Bites, and Mini Turkey Corn Dogs:
And of course, some refreshing drinks to wash it all down.
It was an okay pseudo-meal. I had better expectations for the 5-spice chicken wings, but they weren’t as flavorful as I wished. This, however, is a great benefit of staying club level. It could be a great way to cut down your dining expense, and the convenience to the room is wonderful, and especially with young ones, I can see the value of having this lounge food so nearby.
For us, it was an early to bed night, so we just relaxed in the room until bedtime. Only one more full day left - sad! (but what an amazing vacation it has been!)
I am so sorry to report that we could honestly not fit anything else in our stomachs today! We were soooo excited to eat at the new Boathouse restaurant. But after a couple days of huge dining events, we just petered out, and the idea of eating another big meal was not appetizing whatsoever. (But never fear, we were able to eat dinner there in the spring of 2016, and it was delicious, so everything is good!) We all agreed, however, that it would still be fun to go investigate Disney Springs, and see what was what, especially after listening to Jeff Abraham talk about the project. So we took a bus to Disney Springs during the late afternoon, and got a PHOTO of the Boathouse instead, along with the Characters in Flight balloon, and the construction progress on Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar.
Dinner wound up being nibbles back at the Club Level Lounge at the Polynesian instead. They had a very nice spread out for the evening, including veggies and fruit:
Purple Haze Goat Cheese (along with a standard variety of cubed cheese):
Soft Pita Breads with Hummus:
5-Spice Chicken Wings, Mushroom Risotto Bites, and Mini Turkey Corn Dogs:
And of course, some refreshing drinks to wash it all down.
It was an okay pseudo-meal. I had better expectations for the 5-spice chicken wings, but they weren’t as flavorful as I wished. This, however, is a great benefit of staying club level. It could be a great way to cut down your dining expense, and the convenience to the room is wonderful, and especially with young ones, I can see the value of having this lounge food so nearby.
For us, it was an early to bed night, so we just relaxed in the room until bedtime. Only one more full day left - sad! (but what an amazing vacation it has been!)
soniam
Wooden leg named Smith...
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2012
I would like to do the Dining with an Imagineer, but I think, depending upon the Imagineer, DS could get bored. I hear someone say their Imagineer designed rock work
I know it's got to be done and can have a big impact, but I don't see an 11 year old boy being too interested in it. Sounds like you had an interesting guy though. Plus, it's Hollywood Brown Derby, which is always good. I can understand the too much food feeling. That's why I usually don't do more than 1 TS per day.
I know it's got to be done and can have a big impact, but I don't see an 11 year old boy being too interested in it. Sounds like you had an interesting guy though. Plus, it's Hollywood Brown Derby, which is always good. I can understand the too much food feeling. That's why I usually don't do more than 1 TS per day.
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
Breakfast at Be Our Guest (pre-park opening) - Tuesday, May 19
It’s always nice to end your trip to WDW with something you’ve never seen before. So we scheduled a brand-new experience for this morning, specifically on a day the park was not open early to guests. In this case, Magic Kingdom’s operating hours were from 9:00 AM to 11:00 PM, and we were able to score a breakfast at Be Our Guest for 8:00 AM, giving us access into a fairly empty theme park and the closest entry point to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (7DMT) following the breakfast service.
Stopped to take a quick photo in front of said empty-looking castle.
Unlike some of the waits to get into dinner, this was a very short wait, and we barely had time to snap a photo of DS in the morning sun outside the restaurant.
We did NOT choose to pre-order our meals, even though that was an option with the reservation. We had heard that it was super easy to place the orders at the kiosks inside, and the food delivery was about as quick. As I never know what I’m going to be hungry for until the last moment (and have been known to change my mind mid-order anyway), I thought it was safer to have no regrets. But in this case, I was not surprised by anyone’s choices. Check in was easy, we entered our order and paid quickly, and this time, we were led into the ballroom to be seated at a table next to the right-hand wall. I just love the chandelier in the ballroom. Looks exactly like the movie.
Right away, we were given our order of assorted breakfast pastries. Mini-muffins, and different types of sweet pastries, which are just really not my thing, but the rest of the family likes pastries.
However, I don’t think they did much but nibble, so it was kind of a waste, because within five minutes, our food had arrived, and it was plentiful and all very good. I think DH would have ordered the same thing I did if he had to do it over, but we tasted each other’s food all the way around, so he was able to enjoy a bit of it. His was good, but just not as flavorful as mine.
DH chose the Croissant Doughnut. This was no surprise to me. He likes sweet stuff for breakfast. Yuck! It is a fried doughnut, topped with banana caramel sauce, pastry crème, and chocolate ganache. It was a very rich breakfast, but he enjoyed it greatly. It helped that he had milk to wash it down.
DH chose the Eggs Florentine, which was puff pastry filled with scrambled eggs, cheese, and spinach. It came with a small side of ham and a cut-up plum tomato.
And I got the most delicious item, of course: The Open-Face Bacon and Egg Sandwich, which was poached eggs, Applewood bacon, and Brie on top of a Toasted Baguette. It was served with a side of fruit. It was very, very good, and I highly recommend it.
From the time we sat down, it took only about 30 – 40 minutes, and we were done. We knew that there was an area just outside the restaurant behind a rope, and the guests at the rope would make it to 7DMT much sooner than anyone walking up Main Street from the entrance to the park, so it was nice to know that we would have a ride with no wait time. Here is DS in the “corral” area waiting for rope drop.
All the guests were well-behaved, and we spent a little time listening to conversations that were struck up with the cast member manning the rope area. Once it was 9:00, we were off like a shot, around the corner to the right, almost directly into the queue for 7DMT. Fun to experience the park in a new and different way!
After the mine train, we had a Fastpass at Space Mountain, and then we split up for awhile before lunch. I did another “first” – took a spin on the Liberty Belle riverboat.
I’ve always wanted to take time out to ride the river boat, but it’s one of those things in probably 10 different trips that I just NEVER find time to do, because there’s always something more exciting. Along with Tom Sawyer’s Island, which still remains on my “someday I must do trip”, and I just never get around to it. Oh, well, maybe next time. But I am so glad I was able to experience the riverboat this time, and I didn’t mind going by myself. It’s an entirely different vantage point from the upper deck of the riverboat! I saw different views of Tom Sawyer’s island, the Haunted Mansion, Liberty Square, the Indian Village, and Big Thunder Mountain. Very interesting!
It’s always nice to end your trip to WDW with something you’ve never seen before. So we scheduled a brand-new experience for this morning, specifically on a day the park was not open early to guests. In this case, Magic Kingdom’s operating hours were from 9:00 AM to 11:00 PM, and we were able to score a breakfast at Be Our Guest for 8:00 AM, giving us access into a fairly empty theme park and the closest entry point to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (7DMT) following the breakfast service.
Stopped to take a quick photo in front of said empty-looking castle.
Unlike some of the waits to get into dinner, this was a very short wait, and we barely had time to snap a photo of DS in the morning sun outside the restaurant.
We did NOT choose to pre-order our meals, even though that was an option with the reservation. We had heard that it was super easy to place the orders at the kiosks inside, and the food delivery was about as quick. As I never know what I’m going to be hungry for until the last moment (and have been known to change my mind mid-order anyway), I thought it was safer to have no regrets. But in this case, I was not surprised by anyone’s choices. Check in was easy, we entered our order and paid quickly, and this time, we were led into the ballroom to be seated at a table next to the right-hand wall. I just love the chandelier in the ballroom. Looks exactly like the movie.
Right away, we were given our order of assorted breakfast pastries. Mini-muffins, and different types of sweet pastries, which are just really not my thing, but the rest of the family likes pastries.
However, I don’t think they did much but nibble, so it was kind of a waste, because within five minutes, our food had arrived, and it was plentiful and all very good. I think DH would have ordered the same thing I did if he had to do it over, but we tasted each other’s food all the way around, so he was able to enjoy a bit of it. His was good, but just not as flavorful as mine.
DH chose the Croissant Doughnut. This was no surprise to me. He likes sweet stuff for breakfast. Yuck! It is a fried doughnut, topped with banana caramel sauce, pastry crème, and chocolate ganache. It was a very rich breakfast, but he enjoyed it greatly. It helped that he had milk to wash it down.
DH chose the Eggs Florentine, which was puff pastry filled with scrambled eggs, cheese, and spinach. It came with a small side of ham and a cut-up plum tomato.
And I got the most delicious item, of course: The Open-Face Bacon and Egg Sandwich, which was poached eggs, Applewood bacon, and Brie on top of a Toasted Baguette. It was served with a side of fruit. It was very, very good, and I highly recommend it.
From the time we sat down, it took only about 30 – 40 minutes, and we were done. We knew that there was an area just outside the restaurant behind a rope, and the guests at the rope would make it to 7DMT much sooner than anyone walking up Main Street from the entrance to the park, so it was nice to know that we would have a ride with no wait time. Here is DS in the “corral” area waiting for rope drop.
All the guests were well-behaved, and we spent a little time listening to conversations that were struck up with the cast member manning the rope area. Once it was 9:00, we were off like a shot, around the corner to the right, almost directly into the queue for 7DMT. Fun to experience the park in a new and different way!
After the mine train, we had a Fastpass at Space Mountain, and then we split up for awhile before lunch. I did another “first” – took a spin on the Liberty Belle riverboat.
I’ve always wanted to take time out to ride the river boat, but it’s one of those things in probably 10 different trips that I just NEVER find time to do, because there’s always something more exciting. Along with Tom Sawyer’s Island, which still remains on my “someday I must do trip”, and I just never get around to it. Oh, well, maybe next time. But I am so glad I was able to experience the riverboat this time, and I didn’t mind going by myself. It’s an entirely different vantage point from the upper deck of the riverboat! I saw different views of Tom Sawyer’s island, the Haunted Mansion, Liberty Square, the Indian Village, and Big Thunder Mountain. Very interesting!
Grumpy's Wife
Dollar Tree gal here
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2005
i just found your trip report and read the whole thing through. Too bad you're on the last day of it. I'm loving it!
I love all of the reviews of the restaurants. I'm very impressed with your son at Victoria & Albert's. I guess I'm not a very adventurous eater. He seemed to like all the food. My husband always jokes with me that I like to go to the specialty restaurants for our anniversary or special occasions but I don't usually like the food. I guess I just like getting all dressed up and enjoy the ambiance.
I love all of the reviews of the restaurants. I'm very impressed with your son at Victoria & Albert's. I guess I'm not a very adventurous eater. He seemed to like all the food. My husband always jokes with me that I like to go to the specialty restaurants for our anniversary or special occasions but I don't usually like the food. I guess I just like getting all dressed up and enjoy the ambiance.
soniam
Wooden leg named Smith...
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2012
I don't think we have ever missed the riverboat or Tom Sawyer Island. They are some of our favorite things to do. We usually wait and do them in the afternoon when wait times are exorbitant at the other rides. Your breakfast looks good. We enjoyed ours there too. That croissant doughnut was over the top looking though. I like pancakes, waffles, and french toast, but that looks more like dessert. I wanted the open faced sandwich, which looks great, but I don't like runny eggs
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern - Tuesday, May 19 – And the End
Our lunch reservation was at Liberty Tree Tavern at 1:30. This is one of DH’s favorite places to eat, and he has enjoyed the Pilgrim’s Feast in the past (Turkey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes). But we were about at the end of wanting to eat any large meals, so I had the Colony Salad with Apples, Pecans, Cranberries, etc. and added salmon on the top for some protein:
DS had the Angus Chuck Cheeseburger with Bacon and Cheddar (because he never met a burger he didn’t like:
And DH had another one of his favorite things: New England Clam Chowder, which was a plentiful portion.
For dessert, we had read great things about the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake, so we gave it a whirl and split one among the three of us. Yes, it was delicious!
From there, we hit Haunted Mansion one last time (farewell, I will miss you so!)
Did I mention we named our dog Gracey, after Master Gracey (natch!)
And we took a Photopass photo in our Haunted Mansion t-shirts:
After that, we used our last FastPass of the trip at Splash Mountain, and said goodbye to the Magic Kingdom.
We headed back to the Polynesian to spend a quiet evening lounging around the resort, and nibbled at the club lounge in lieu of dinner.
A couple of photos to bring back some of the peaceful feeling of the resort, including the new bungalows and the beach looking toward the Grand Floridian in the distance:
The following morning, we packed up, and then had breakfast at Kona Café. DS and I enjoyed their Tonga Toast (French Toast with Banana in the middle- yum!) and DH tried the Macadamia-Pineapple pancakes, which he reports were also very good. DH and I shared a pot of the Kona press coffee. I remember that the service was great, even though we were sad that the trip had come to an end. I must have been on “end of vacation” mode already, because I sadly did not record photos of our final breakfast. We lingered over breakfast, until check-out time, and our Happy Limo driver picked us up at 11:15 for our journey back west.
Our lunch reservation was at Liberty Tree Tavern at 1:30. This is one of DH’s favorite places to eat, and he has enjoyed the Pilgrim’s Feast in the past (Turkey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes). But we were about at the end of wanting to eat any large meals, so I had the Colony Salad with Apples, Pecans, Cranberries, etc. and added salmon on the top for some protein:
DS had the Angus Chuck Cheeseburger with Bacon and Cheddar (because he never met a burger he didn’t like:
And DH had another one of his favorite things: New England Clam Chowder, which was a plentiful portion.
For dessert, we had read great things about the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake, so we gave it a whirl and split one among the three of us. Yes, it was delicious!
From there, we hit Haunted Mansion one last time (farewell, I will miss you so!)
Did I mention we named our dog Gracey, after Master Gracey (natch!)
And we took a Photopass photo in our Haunted Mansion t-shirts:
After that, we used our last FastPass of the trip at Splash Mountain, and said goodbye to the Magic Kingdom.
We headed back to the Polynesian to spend a quiet evening lounging around the resort, and nibbled at the club lounge in lieu of dinner.
A couple of photos to bring back some of the peaceful feeling of the resort, including the new bungalows and the beach looking toward the Grand Floridian in the distance:
The following morning, we packed up, and then had breakfast at Kona Café. DS and I enjoyed their Tonga Toast (French Toast with Banana in the middle- yum!) and DH tried the Macadamia-Pineapple pancakes, which he reports were also very good. DH and I shared a pot of the Kona press coffee. I remember that the service was great, even though we were sad that the trip had come to an end. I must have been on “end of vacation” mode already, because I sadly did not record photos of our final breakfast. We lingered over breakfast, until check-out time, and our Happy Limo driver picked us up at 11:15 for our journey back west.
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
Final Thoughts
On the Polynesian Village and staying club level – The Polynesian is a beautiful, beautiful resort after the remodel. It is now our favorite place to stay. We have a short two-night trip planned in 2018 (not long enough, I know… ugh!) and will most likely stay there again. I’m not sure if it will be club level again… it probably wasn’t worth the money unless you plan to eat a lot of your meals there, but DH disagrees and really enjoyed having the lounge available, so we’ll check out the difference in pricing and decide if it fits our budget when we’re a little closer. I enjoyed being close enough to walk to the TTC and get on the monorail to Epcot. It was closer than I thought it would be, and only being two stops from the Magic Kingdom on the main monorail line – well, you just can’t go wrong with that. Trader Sam’s is fun, and I wouldn’t hesitate to go there again. Just sitting out on the Tiki Terrace waiting for the pager to go off was such a nice atmosphere. Hopefully when it’s not so new, it won’t be such an ordeal to get in there and find seating for a couple.
On PhotoPass and Memory Maker – I really, really thought about whether we should do this, and I’m glad now that we did. It really wasn’t as intrusive to our vacation as I thought it would be, and now we have a lot more photo memories than we would have otherwise. It was more of a pain to download the photos within a month than anything, because as I’m sure you realize… life doesn’t stop when you’re on vacation, and the work continues to build up regardless of whether you’re home or not. You really need a chunk of uninterrupted time to go through the photos, play around with adding borders, etc. BUT… the process of having the photos taken (quick in every regard – those photographers are professionals!), and getting access to everything afterward was easy.
On FastPass Plus – I love it! I can see it would be overwhelming to someone who is not a WDW veteran or who doesn’t like to make plans in advance. But it suited our style of vacationing perfectly, and also helped build the anticipation for our trip. It was also very easy to use the app on our phones to switch things up when we needed to. We didn’t spend an inordinate amount of time waiting in lines for the most popular attractions, so I feel the entire experience went very smoothly. I would like it if Disneyland eventually would switch over. The old Fastpass system seems pretty antiquated after this!
On Star Wars Weekends – Just fantastic! The whole Star Wars vibe to the park was so much fun. The Cantina experience was my favorite. I wish we would have just planned to hang out there a little longer, actually, but the heat of the day was wearing on us, and we had to get our Trader Sam’s on before the line got too long!!! I am sorry that SWW have been discontinued, but I hope to see some sort of iteration of the same wonderful offerings when Star Wars Land opens in 2019. You can count on us being there!
And now onto the next adventure – If you enjoyed this trip report, I hope you’ll read about our next vacation as we venture to Hawaii for the very first time, and spend four fantastic nights at Aulani – coming Spring 2017!
On the Polynesian Village and staying club level – The Polynesian is a beautiful, beautiful resort after the remodel. It is now our favorite place to stay. We have a short two-night trip planned in 2018 (not long enough, I know… ugh!) and will most likely stay there again. I’m not sure if it will be club level again… it probably wasn’t worth the money unless you plan to eat a lot of your meals there, but DH disagrees and really enjoyed having the lounge available, so we’ll check out the difference in pricing and decide if it fits our budget when we’re a little closer. I enjoyed being close enough to walk to the TTC and get on the monorail to Epcot. It was closer than I thought it would be, and only being two stops from the Magic Kingdom on the main monorail line – well, you just can’t go wrong with that. Trader Sam’s is fun, and I wouldn’t hesitate to go there again. Just sitting out on the Tiki Terrace waiting for the pager to go off was such a nice atmosphere. Hopefully when it’s not so new, it won’t be such an ordeal to get in there and find seating for a couple.
On PhotoPass and Memory Maker – I really, really thought about whether we should do this, and I’m glad now that we did. It really wasn’t as intrusive to our vacation as I thought it would be, and now we have a lot more photo memories than we would have otherwise. It was more of a pain to download the photos within a month than anything, because as I’m sure you realize… life doesn’t stop when you’re on vacation, and the work continues to build up regardless of whether you’re home or not. You really need a chunk of uninterrupted time to go through the photos, play around with adding borders, etc. BUT… the process of having the photos taken (quick in every regard – those photographers are professionals!), and getting access to everything afterward was easy.
On FastPass Plus – I love it! I can see it would be overwhelming to someone who is not a WDW veteran or who doesn’t like to make plans in advance. But it suited our style of vacationing perfectly, and also helped build the anticipation for our trip. It was also very easy to use the app on our phones to switch things up when we needed to. We didn’t spend an inordinate amount of time waiting in lines for the most popular attractions, so I feel the entire experience went very smoothly. I would like it if Disneyland eventually would switch over. The old Fastpass system seems pretty antiquated after this!
On Star Wars Weekends – Just fantastic! The whole Star Wars vibe to the park was so much fun. The Cantina experience was my favorite. I wish we would have just planned to hang out there a little longer, actually, but the heat of the day was wearing on us, and we had to get our Trader Sam’s on before the line got too long!!! I am sorry that SWW have been discontinued, but I hope to see some sort of iteration of the same wonderful offerings when Star Wars Land opens in 2019. You can count on us being there!
And now onto the next adventure – If you enjoyed this trip report, I hope you’ll read about our next vacation as we venture to Hawaii for the very first time, and spend four fantastic nights at Aulani – coming Spring 2017!
Grumpy's Wife
Dollar Tree gal here
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2005
I really enjoyed reading your trip report. Thanks so much for sharing.
disnygirl55
Forever Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
It was my pleasure - thanks for reading! (I know it took me nearly two years to get this done, so I appreciate everyone's patience!) - But I really wanted to start my Aulani pre-trip report, and I made myself finish before moving on. The best compliment was my husband reading it through (hello if you're lurking, DH!) and saying how he loved remembering all the cool things we did on this trip. So I guess it has served its purpose, and hopefully also helped someone with some great vacation ideas along the way!
chunkymonkey
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 27, 2009
Oh I'm so happy you finished this report! It's just wonderful and you had so many fun experiences! Dining with an Imagineer is on my bucket list one day. Probably whenever I think it'll be worth going to HBD again. Your lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern looks great! I have not been since the refurbishment. I have heard it has gone downhill but I really enjoyed dinner there when we were there in 2015.
And you ordered my and my sister's favorite thing at BoG Breakfast...the baguette with poached eggs and bacon! But apparently they have changed the baguette to a...croissant. It was on the latest menu when we went to pre-order for our Feb trip coming up next week. I am not too sure about the whole croissant thing as I hate it when they are soggy especially on a sandwhich. But, I am willing to give it a try.
Thanks for sharing your trip of amazing dining experiences! I look forward to your TR of Aulani!
but I really enjoyed dinner there when we were there in 2015.And you ordered my and my sister's favorite thing at BoG Breakfast...the baguette with poached eggs and bacon! But apparently they have changed the baguette to a...croissant. It was on the latest menu when we went to pre-order for our Feb trip coming up next week. I am not too sure about the whole croissant thing as I hate it when they are soggy especially on a sandwhich. But, I am willing to give it a try.
Thanks for sharing your trip of amazing dining experiences! I look forward to your TR of Aulani!
soniam
Wooden leg named Smith...
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2012
Great trip report. I should finish ours from March 2016. But 3 WDW trips, Grand Canyon, SIL wedding, and work, work, work really got in the way. I am going to read your Aulani report. We are thinking about going in summer 2018 for our first time. Your son is about the same age as ours, so it will be interesting to see how he likes it. I wanted to go before he got too old.
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