"You're not making good choices, Phoebe!" A July 2015 Trip Report *completed 1/2/16*

[coloredimage]

Finally found where I left off! So let's see (comments as I read so this will be all over the place!)

- I think the castle walkthru was more impressive when you were stuck inside for so long right after it first opened so you noticed every little thing. But I don't have the rest of WW to compare it to yet so I'm not sure

- Oh no! I would have been having a gigantic panic attack after losing my stuff. I kind of dislike the attitude of the TMs at US, honestly. Only one would help my mother when she misplaced her cane, and the last time we went we bought our tickets at the front booth then went to use it at the gate and they didn't work. Instead of helping us, the TM accused us of getting fraudulent tickets. It was one of two times I ever asked to speak to a manager about anything in my life.

- my best friend is terrified of the River Adventure but I love it so much lol

- Your poor phone!!!

- oooh you should come up here next year if you like Dr. Seuss - they're opening a new interactive Seuss Museum and I can't wait!!!

- Um....I'm sorry....those girls must be idiots. A) you're not fat and B) rude. They sound like they'd be friends with the girls behind me on Pirates the other day...

- I LOVE THE MUMMY RIDE!!! I used to have a friend who worked at US and when I last went to Universal proper (omg almost 10 years ago now!!) she suggested we bee-line there first and we got to ride it like 3 times in a row with no wait.

- Woo! All caught up!

 

[Disney Khaleesi]

Good luck to the boys starting school tomorrow! I'm so glad I never had to start in August. My first day of middle school I accidentally walked into the men's restroom AND attempted to open a locker that wasn't mine several times, so it probably can't get much worse than that! X will do great! Again, can't get much worse than what I did.

That pin you got is absolutely adorable. I'm not that into pin trading, but I would definitely buy that pin.

And as an aside, I have that same Godzilla shirt.

 

[pookersmom]

Enjoying your trip report.

I hear you about being nervous about your oldest starting middle school -- I was super nervous when my son started middle school too but he thrived in a way that was totally unexpected -- school had never been his favorite thing but middle school brought good grades and a positive attitude and better friendships than he'd ever experienced in elementary school. He started high school last week and is already loving that too -- though I realize it's early days. So middle school being awesome is also a thing that can happen (I'm from the 80s and a girl so I totally don't get this at all, but the boy assures me it's true).

I had the exact same ride experience as you when I rode Forbidden Journey -- another ten seconds on that thing and there would have been an Incident.

 

[missangelalexis]

So many awesome AK pictures!

Sounds like a fun time at Tusker House!

OMG the baby gorilla, that picture is adorable!

Love the selfie on EE. Sounds like you guys were having such a great day

 

[xlsm]

Finally found where I left off! So let's see (comments as I read so this will be all over the place!)

- I think the castle walkthru was more impressive when you were stuck inside for so long right after it first opened so you noticed every little thing. But I don't have the rest of WW to compare it to yet so I'm not sure

- Oh no! I would have been having a gigantic panic attack after losing my stuff. I kind of dislike the attitude of the TMs at US, honestly. Only one would help my mother when she misplaced her cane, and the last time we went we bought our tickets at the front booth then went to use it at the gate and they didn't work. Instead of helping us, the TM accused us of getting fraudulent tickets. It was one of two times I ever asked to speak to a manager about anything in my life.

- my best friend is terrified of the River Adventure but I love it so much lol

- Your poor phone!!!

- oooh you should come up here next year if you like Dr. Seuss - they're opening a new interactive Seuss Museum and I can't wait!!!

- Um....I'm sorry....those girls must be idiots. A) you're not fat and B) rude. They sound like they'd be friends with the girls behind me on Pirates the other day...

- I LOVE THE MUMMY RIDE!!! I used to have a friend who worked at US and when I last went to Universal proper (omg almost 10 years ago now!!) she suggested we bee-line there first and we got to ride it like 3 times in a row with no wait.

- Woo! All caught up!

I can't believe the TMs treated you guys that way!! Their attitudes are very different from Disney CMs that's for sure!

My phone was a tragedy that I am still not over. My new phone is not the same, even though it pretty much IS the same.

Maybe we can get all the mean girls together and feed them to the raptors, LOL!!

Good luck to the boys starting school tomorrow! I'm so glad I never had to start in August. My first day of middle school I accidentally walked into the men's restroom AND attempted to open a locker that wasn't mine several times, so it probably can't get much worse than that! X will do great! Again, can't get much worse than what I did.

That pin you got is absolutely adorable. I'm not that into pin trading, but I would definitely buy that pin.

And as an aside, I have that same Godzilla shirt.

OH MY GOSH. Now that is a first day of school to remember, bless your heart, LOL!!
He survived the day. They have a special program for the first few days of school called WEB (where everybody belongs), where they learn the ropes. They do team building stuff, practice their lockers and stuff. It's nice to get them used to things step by step.

Enjoying your trip report.

I hear you about being nervous about your oldest starting middle school -- I was super nervous when my son started middle school too but he thrived in a way that was totally unexpected -- school had never been his favorite thing but middle school brought good grades and a positive attitude and better friendships than he'd ever experienced in elementary school. He started high school last week and is already loving that too -- though I realize it's early days. So middle school being awesome is also a thing that can happen (I'm from the 80s and a girl so I totally don't get this at all, but the boy assures me it's true).

I had the exact same ride experience as you when I rode Forbidden Journey -- another ten seconds on that thing and there would have been an Incident.

Thank you!

I think I was more nervous for MYSELF than for him, LOL. He's outgoing and confident, which I love, but it's so hard to let them go!! I'm glad you understand!
I think it's easier for boys...I went through a lot of awkward hair stages, lol, and they don't have to deal with that as much.

Also glad to know I'm not alone in the nausea on FJ. It started out so great and then....notsomuch.

So many awesome AK pictures!

Sounds like a fun time at Tusker House!

OMG the baby gorilla, that picture is adorable!

Love the selfie on EE. Sounds like you guys were having such a great day

We had a great time, and I this was one of our favorite park days.

The EE selfie...L is much more receptive to having his picture taken than X, so we have fun sometimes

 

[xlsm]

Hey guys and gals! Back again with good news!
I survived the first day of school!!

I mean, um, the KIDS survived the first day of school!!

L's day was easy, because he's very comfortable at his school. X's day went well too, they have a special first couple of days for 6th graders to get them acclimated.

Now X is at scouts, L is upstairs enjoying his time with the ipad without having to fight his brother for it and I am watching Frozen.

Excuse me while I break into song..."Reindeer are better than people..."

*ahem* sorry.

And now for the main attraction

Chapter Six Part Four

Where to next?




Discovery Island!

We went HERE first...



for It's Tough to be a Bug. Last year it was closed for refurb and the boys didn't get to see it, so I was really excited to take them this time. On my first visit in 2001 it was one of my favorite things!

I got about a million pictures of the roots of the Tree of Life, but I guess I didn't pull any out for this report?? Weird.
The wait was posted at 10 minutes, but when you're crammed in that dark room under the tree and it's hot, it feel like 127 hours.
Anyway, after the show, we avoided the exiting crowd by slipping down a side path to earn another Wilderness Explorers Badge



The plan was to go meet Russell and Dug, but they were on a snack break, and Mickey and Minnie only had a 10 minute wait!



then we backtracked to find the original Wilderness Explorers. The boys had so much fun with them and it was our best meet and greet of the trip!! Get ready for Russell and Dug spam:









Our next goal was to make the 1:00 Festival of the Lion King show, but we stopped for some photopass pictures first.

We found some furry friends


and then did our best lion roar



Yeah...I'm not sure we're winning any awards for that roar, but everyone actually participated in this one!!





Not to get too weird and mushy, but I love my family. They all make me insane some days, and I'm sure I annoy the crap out of them on a daily basis, but I am so grateful for our life together.

(You can gag now. It's ok. I would, if I were you.)

The boys earned another badge, the flamingo one I think, and then we went on back to Africa for the Festival of the Lion King.

I have a confession.

It was my first time seeing the show. The last show I watched at the Animal Kingdom was Tarzan Rocks. No lie.

But this year I was adamant that we see it, so that's what we did! We got there about 12:50 I think, and a lot of people were using FPs, but the standby line wasn't bad, and moved quickly. The show was full, but we got there in plenty of time and had good seats.

We were in the giraffe section. The boys admired their autographs while we waited for things to get started



Here's a few not-so-awesome pictures of the show...



Everyone loves those mischievous Tumble Monkeys!

the boys were engrossed:







I'm so glad we took the time to see this show! It's something all of us would enjoy doing again and again I think. My memory is fuzzy here, but I think we stopped for a couple of WE badges, and we missed out on my next desired activity - Flights of Wonder. I was kind of sad, but we got samosas to make up for it:



Samosas with a view. Not too shabby!

We had a FP for Kali coming up, so we headed over to that area. I got my FAVORITE DISNEY TREAT...*drumroll*...



Frozen. Chai.

Yum.

The sky was getting kind of dark, and we decided to skip Kali, and head toward shopping and the entrance. We were almost there when we saw the pretzel cart, and the boys wanted pretzels since they only had one samosa each. DH and I decided to share a jalapeno cheese pretzel (so goooooood). We got in line, and it was starting to rain. We ran across the way and under the cover of a building overhang, and the boys put on their ponchos. We spent the next 20 minutes or so crammed under there with a bunch of other people, but it was fine with me, because for the first time in forever (sorry) I wasn't getting drenched by the rain storm of the day!!



It's not a trip to Animal Kingdom without "X in a Poncho" pictures:




The rain eventually let up enough for us to quickly walk over to the big mercantile for some shopping. I had two specific items to buy: my Alex and Ani Animal Kingdom bracelet, which I got in gold tone (I like the way it looks with my silver castle and Snow White), and a little carved African animal. Last year we got an orange hippo and this year a green rhino. They live on our fireplace mantle here at home.

We stopped for one last Wilderness Explorer badge (actually, it was two here)



and walked out to the buses. We had just missed one by a couple minutes, so we had a bit of a wait for the next one. We met a woman traveling with her son on his first ever visit. Her husband had recently passed away, and she wanted to share her husband's love of Disney with her son, which I thought was sweet. She was trying to get her son into pin trading, because it's something her husband had enjoyed. She said he was shy, but my very NOT shy boys brought him out of his shell after a bit, and they chatted for the whole wait, then the whole bus ride, and then on the elevator at the resort. They were very nice. I think the boys saw them again at the pool one day, but I never ran into them again.

I wish them well. I can't imagine how hard that must be.

What a successful park day!! We had an amazing time. The boys were a little sad they didn't complete enough badges to get to Fish status (they were three away - they suggested "Three from Fish" for a TR title.)
No time for too much sadness though, because we had a big meal to get to later!

Next up...dinner with family and a night to myself

 

[missangelalexis]

I love the PP pic with the frame, never seen that one at AK before!

Aww I don't mind the mush at all..I think it's really sweet!

What a sad story about the family you met at the bus stop. I'm glad your boys could bring the son some cheer!

 

[Sailormoon2]

Gorgeous photos of your family...super emotional post though. It's amazing how Disney can be both so happy and yet really kind of sad (in a good way, I guess).

 

[xlsm]

Good morning!

Another smooth drop off for the kids this morning. Hoping I'll have the timing down to a science by the end of next week! My goal for today is to send 3,000 emails and maybe catch up on Chasing Life, which apparently had something big happen last night because it was trending on Facebook this morning, so I need to stay away from spoilers.

On the vacation front, I think we've officially decided to stay at the Boardwalk for Christmas 2016. Of course, I still have hesitation, because it's hard committing to a resort that ISN'T the Wilderness Lodge. The Yacht Club and the Poly are both whispering into my ear, saying, "Choose me instead! Choose me instead!" and now I suddenly have a weird desire to stay at the Grand Floridian?? I finally understand all those "help me choose a resort" threads.

We will probably stick with the decision to stay at Boardwalk. Probably. Maybe. Yeah.

But once again, enough about me, let's start on...

Chapter Seven...in which I'm all alone with 50,000 of my closest friends


We went to the pool after we got back from our Animal Kingdom visit. I left the pool earlier than everyone else to shower and get ready for our dinner that evening. I was making another attempt for flat ironed hair. That takes time!

Our dinner was at a family favorite, 'Ohana!

We got to the elevator, and L and DH realized they forgot their birthday buttons. We've had good luck with 'Ohana recognizing their birthdays, so they didn't want to miss out on anything. The spoiled little brats.

While they went back to the room, X and I did what we do best:



We had a two part journey to get to our destination. First we hopped a resort ferry to the Contemporary.

The boat was pretty full, so we crammed in together. We stopped first at Ft. Wilderness, and everyone got off except us. Then, we had the whole ferry to ourselves!





Our trip across the lake was wonderful as always. I think ferry boat transportation is the way to go. Too bad I don't ACTUALLY live on Bay Lake. I think I'd be really good at living on Disney property. I realllly think I could handle it..

We got to our transfer point at the Contemporary



and boarded the monorail. A train pulled up right away



We got to the Polynesian, and I was excited to see the completed lobby. Actually, I was excited to see ALL of the completed work that had been done since our visit last August.





I think I have better lobby pictures for the next chapter, but I assure you, it looks REALLY good. I mean, I miss the fountain, but it looks so open now, and that Tiki guy down there is the cutest.

We went to check in even though we were pretty early. Our reservation was for 6:30, but we got there around 5:50. It took forever for them to seat us, and we ended up waiting almost an hour. The restaurant wasn't very crowded, so maybe they were understaffed for the night.

While we waited, I had to see how the pool looked. My picture from last year shows a pit of red clay and construction, so it was nice to see the improvement.



As I mentioned, 'Ohana is a family favorite. We were all really excited to be here. We had a table with a nice view of the castle, but the windows were so dirty, all of my pictures look gross.
Our service here was not awesome. Our food wasn't as good as normal either. I'm about to say something I never thought I'd ever say...

I think we're going to skip it next time.

That was a hard sentence to write.

The redeeming moment arrived, however...



...when they brought out dessert. That bread pudding is better than pretty much ANYTHING.
The boys really love those little brownie things they give them for their birthdays. X was so excited that he crammed the whole thing in his mouth. He was chewing, and then his eyes went wide and panicked. At first I thought he was choking, but he grabbed a napkin and spit everything out (gross - sorry!)

He lost a tooth.

A molar, actually. He went to the bathroom to take care of things, and we met him on our way out. He was not happy about his dessert situation.

The Magic Kingdom was having EMH that night, and would be open until 2am. I had goals of staying for the duration, but everyone else wanted to go back to the resort. We took the monorail to the MK, and I said See Ya Real Soon to my family, as I walked to the tapstiles and they walked to the resort launch.

I've never been to a park on my own, and I was really excited to do this for the first time.

the first glimpse of the castle while ALONE:



Yeah, it's not a great photo, but I felt it was worth documenting my first solo with the castle!

I made my way down Main Street and turned toward Tomorrowland. I was on my way to the FP kiosk.



the line at the kiosk was SO LONG and people didn't really know what they were doing. I was trying to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, but I was incredibly frustrated.

So, in the effort of information sharing, let me offer up some advice: If you go to a kiosk to make a new selection, just pick anything. It doesn't have to be the perfect ride or time. As soon as you make your selection at the kiosk, it shows up on your MDE phone app, and you can go in and modify it from there. Sometimes you even have more options that way. One night, DH made us FPs at the kiosk for Small World (i think) because it was the best option, but I went in and changed it to Buzz Lightyear, which he didn't even have as an option on the kiosk. We ended up changing it to Winnie the Pooh after eating. So...keep that in mind. It saves time at the kiosk and keeps the line moving.

I gave up on the kiosk line because the light around Cinderella Castle was glorious. Get ready for some castle porn:





I walked through Fantasyland, making notes on wait times as I went. I said hello to Alice



Enchanted Tales with Belle had a wait posted at 10 minutes. I knew this was an experience that would be perfect on my own, as I can't imagine my family caring one iota about it, so I got in line. The wait was MUCH longer than 10 minutes, probably closer to 30. While I was in line, there was a group of people behind me complaining about FPs. A guy that was also behind me started telling them how it works - ALL WRONG. He didn't have the first clue what he was talking about. He kept telling them that you could ALWAYS have three active ones, and as soon as you used one, you could make another.

I couldn't handle it.

I turned around and said, "I'm sorry to eavesdrop, but you are giving them incorrect information, and I can't stay quiet." I proceeded to tell them how the system works, and they were grateful.

Another woman in front of me said, "I'm glad you said something, that guy was stressing me out."

So. Good deed for the day I guess.

We eventually got into the cottage. I don't have any pictures because of the low light - everything came out pretty grainy. Here's what I did get:



We had the cutest little Beast. I can't even count the number of "Awww"s she drew from the crowd. Adorable.

It was dark when I got out, and I passed through the Tangled area on my way to Frontierland



I had checked the MDE app and the wait time for Big Thunder wasn't too bad, because the parade was going on. BUT, for the second year in a row, I got trapped by the electrical parade.

I really hate that stupid parade.

I have no good memories of this thing, except it causing problems, so it's permanently on my bad list. People lose their dang minds over this thing. The most rude Disney guest moments that I've had ALL revolve around people at this parade.

By the time I got to Frontierland, the crowd from the parade had descended, and I watched the wait time change from 25 minutes to 45. I was NOT going to wait in that hot line for that long, so I just staked out a spot along the bridge with the intention of watching Wishes from there. Celebrate the Magic began, and it was gorgeous as always. You don't get a *great* view, but you can see parts of it, including the most important part, the part with the Tangled lanterns.

My view over the next few minutes:





I began walking off the bridge and toward The Haunted Mansion. Fireworks near Liberty Square are pretty cool.







The wait for The Haunted Mansion was non-existent. I was picked to carry the red time card. I wanted to get some pictures of the line, but the crowds came flooding in, so I kept moving. It was a walk on at that moment, so we went right into the stretching room and to the Doom Buggies.

HM wasn't very fun alone. It was kind of anti-climactic and for the first time ever, I didn't enjoy my trip through Gracey Manor.

I was missing my family at this point, and kind of decided a solo trip might not be for me. It was probably just the heat and the INSANE crowds (the worst crowds of the trip by far!), but I wasn't having a very good time.

I stopped at Gaston's Tavern for a LeFou's Brew



It was delicious and helped me cool down. I sat and people watched as I drank it, and then started making my way out of the park.

The wait times at Princess Fairytale Hall were low, and my biggest regret of this solo night was that I didn't get in line to meet Anna/Elsa and Cindy/Rapunzel. The A/E wait was less than an hour. I CANNOT believe I didn't take advantage of that, but I was so hot and sweaty. I don't like meeting face characters when I'm sweaty and gross. The last thing I want is to have a princess's arm around my slimy self.

As I was leaving, I noticed how NO ONE was out for the next MSEP. I could have had a spot right by the rope for a perfect view...and I just kept going. I took the resort ferry back to the Lodge, enjoying the cool breeze on the water in the darkness.

I got back to the resort a little after 11pm



and admired the waterfall before going upstairs to our room.

Everyone was asleep, and I was unreasonably annoyed by this. I took a quick shower and got into bed, ready for the night to be over, and the new day to begin

Coming up...DH's birthday!!

 

[xlsm]

I love the PP pic with the frame, never seen that one at AK before!

Aww I don't mind the mush at all..I think it's really sweet!

What a sad story about the family you met at the bus stop. I'm glad your boys could bring the son some cheer!

We've had a frame pic done at Epcot, but never at AK before, so we were glad to see something new, too!

I think about that family a lot, and I hope they had a magical vacation, and were able to set aside their problems for a little while and enjoy their time together. I hope they're doing ok. I'm glad my kids don't back down from a challenge, LOL, they had a lot of fun talking Disney with the other boy.

Gorgeous photos of your family...super emotional post though. It's amazing how Disney can be both so happy and yet really kind of sad (in a good way, I guess).

Thank you!!

Disney just has a way of bringing out emotions, that's for sure. I'm so glad that mom has the memories of past Disney trips to share with her son, and that they were able to take this trip and enjoy something together, while still holding onto the memory of her husband and his dad.

bittersweet.

 

[Sailormoon2]

So unfortunate that the park was just too crowded to enjoy on your solo excursion. Admittedly, going alone sounds good in theory, but I really feel Disney is best shared.

 

[missangelalexis]

I'm sorry you didn't have as much fun as you hoped during your solo time! I always wonder if I would enjoy alone time at the parks..in a way it sounds fun to just be on your own schedule but I could imagine it gets lonely! I'm glad you got to see Wishes though! And those castle pics are gorgeous!

 

[annie170]

I'm glad to her your school year is off to a good start. Tomorrow is our first day for students, so I'm enjoying the peace of my classroom while it lasts!

You can get as sappy as you want. You have a lovely family.

Lion King is so awesome! Definitely one of my favorite things in Ak.

Not a chai fan, but I'd be all over the jalapeno cheese pretzel. My husband loves those things!

Dug and Russell are such a good meet. I judge people by how they react to the first 20 minutes of Up. If that doesn't move you, I'm not sure we can be friends.

For many years I had zero luck getting an adr at Ohana. I was thrilled when I finally got one in 2013. Needless to say, I share your recent opinion and wasn't too impressed. I don't know if it was an off night or my expectations were too high, but the service and food really lacked for the price. I'm not sure we'll ever go back. We do love Kona Cafe at the Poly, though.

A little alone time can be a good thing. I did the same thing a couple years ago when I felt I needed some time away from our fairly large group. I know it's not as fun as sharing with someone, but it was nice to do whatever I wanted to do.

 

[xlsm]

We're officially booked for December 2016!!

Woohoo!!

I sent DH a normal little text about normal everyday things, and he said, "you should check your email."

He had booked the trip!

So unless we change our minds before then, Boardwalk water view it is! I'm so excited.

I'm a pro at the Wilderness Lodge and summer trips, but Boardwalk and Christmas is a whole new ballgame.





I'm so glad he loves me this many dollars worth.

LOL!!

 

[xlsm]

So unfortunate that the park was just too crowded to enjoy on your solo excursion. Admittedly, going alone sounds good in theory, but I really feel Disney is best shared.

That's kind of how I ended up feeling. I STILL think it sounds like a good idea...I think the experience would have been different if it was daytime?? I'm not sure why that matters, lol.
If I go out on my own again, I'd rather it be early in the day and then meet back up with my family, rather than being alone at night and coming home to everyone asleep and quiet.

I'm sorry you didn't have as much fun as you hoped during your solo time! I always wonder if I would enjoy alone time at the parks..in a way it sounds fun to just be on your own schedule but I could imagine it gets lonely! I'm glad you got to see Wishes though! And those castle pics are gorgeous!

I think if I'd gone in the daytime and it was less crowded, my mini-solo experience would have been totally different. I'm glad I got the chance to see Enchanted Tales, and Wishes from Frontierland and Liberty Square was really cool!

I'm glad to her your school year is off to a good start. Tomorrow is our first day for students, so I'm enjoying the peace of my classroom while it lasts!

You can get as sappy as you want. You have a lovely family.

Lion King is so awesome! Definitely one of my favorite things in Ak.

Not a chai fan, but I'd be all over the jalapeno cheese pretzel. My husband loves those things!

Dug and Russell are such a good meet. I judge people by how they react to the first 20 minutes of Up. If that doesn't move you, I'm not sure we can be friends.

For many years I had zero luck getting an adr at Ohana. I was thrilled when I finally got one in 2013. Needless to say, I share your recent opinion and wasn't too impressed. I don't know if it was an off night or my expectations were too high, but the service and food really lacked for the price. I'm not sure we'll ever go back. We do love Kona Cafe at the Poly, though.

A little alone time can be a good thing. I did the same thing a couple years ago when I felt I needed some time away from our fairly large group. I know it's not as fun as sharing with someone, but it was nice to do whatever I wanted to do.

I hope you have a great first day back tomorrow! I understand wanting to enjoy your quiet room for the last little bit. You work so hard to get it right and then...kids come. LOL!!

I like that you measure people based on UP...it's the perfect ruler, I agree! Your heart is a stone if you aren't affected by that! That movie makes me cry pretty much all the way through...we were watching it the other night, and I found myself just sort of continuously weeping throughout, lol!!

This was the first poor experience we've had at 'Ohana, and it hurts my heart to take a break from it for awhile, but it opens up so many new opportunities! We did Kona breakfast last month (it's actually the first thing I talk about in the next chapter!) and enjoyed it, but I've never had any other meals there.

It was nice to do whatever I wanted! I liked Enchanted Tales, especially, because even though my family would go if I made them, they probably wouldn't enjoy it!

 

[LizardQueen8]

That's kind of how I ended up feeling. I STILL think it sounds like a good idea...I think the experience would have been different if it was daytime?? I'm not sure why that matters, lol.
If I go out on my own again, I'd rather it be early in the day and then meet back up with my family, rather than being alone at night and coming home to everyone asleep and quiet.

For what it's worth, I enjoyed the daytime solo part of my Disneyland trip last year a little more than the nighttime portion. It wasn't a huge difference, but the difference was there. Then again, I don't have a husband or kids and travel and do things alone all the time, so maybe you just need practice at touring alone? I did do Fantasy Faire (Snow, Cindy and Ariel when I was there) and Anna/Elsa during my alone time, and that was FANTASTIC. And if I wasn't sweaty, I did have horrible, horrible hair after getting soaked on Grizzly River Run earlier in the day, and it was STILL fantastic! If you do try alone time again, that is exactly the kind of thing you should focus on - things your family might not really want to do, or things you've never done. I mean, my friends would have stood in line with me for the princesses I asked nicely and it was really important to me, but it was more relaxing and more fun doing it on my own. It's mostly about being in the right headspace, too, and again, that comes with practice. Really, I'm FULL of solo trip advice if you ever want more of it .

 

[coloredimage]

I think the only time I'd really enjoy the park alone was just to people watch/take pictures. I don't think I could do rides or anything like that though.

I do agree with a PP though - when we were in Disneyland last week I found that doing stuff (not just solo but in general) is better at night/early morning when either locals haven't shown up yet or people are watching the parade/fireworks/Fantasmic.


Yaaaaaay! Hopefully you love the Boardwalk! It's great to walk to Epcot/HS and it'll probably be way more comfortable to in December

 

[ariane37]

Okay first, and for staying at the Boardwalk!!!! we absolutely love it there; Nov. will be our 4th stay. There is nothing like walking to Epcot/HS but especially Epcot. One of my favorite things to do is walk slowly back to the BW after Illuminations. First, we take our time walking around WS since we don't have to rush for a bus like most of the other people. Then it's a slow walk back to our room; with all the lights around the water it's just so calm, pretty and peaceful.....I love it I also love walking over to WS just to have breakfast at Les Halles. I'm so excited you're staying there!!

I'm sorry too that you didn't enjoy your alone time in the MK. I went by myself last year for about 2 hours but it was 8-10 a.m. For the most part I loved it. I leisurely walked down Main St. and took in details I usually can't b/c the rest of the family walks too fast. I went right to HM and was on the first ride of the day - I actually liked riding alone! I also rode PP, LM and Astro Orbiter by myself. But then it started getting crowded and I did start missing DH and my DS's, so I got my Starbucks and headed back to our resort. I wouldn't hesitate to spend time in a park alone again but it is more fun when you're with someone

 

[Mickeyrookie16]

I love your pictures of Animal Kingdom -- We're doing our first trip in April 2016 and because we're only going to be there for four park days and right now the plan is we're skipping AK in favor of HS (Star Wars for my son, especially after the D23 announcements), Epcot and two days at MK. After your pictures I'm really wishing we could squeeze in a fifth park day.

 

[xlsm]

I think the only time I'd really enjoy the park alone was just to people watch/take pictures. I don't think I could do rides or anything like that though.

I do agree with a PP though - when we were in Disneyland last week I found that doing stuff (not just solo but in general) is better at night/early morning when either locals haven't shown up yet or people are watching the parade/fireworks/Fantasmic.


Yaaaaaay! Hopefully you love the Boardwalk! It's great to walk to Epcot/HS and it'll probably be way more comfortable to in December

We are so excited about cooler temps and being within walking distance to Epcot and HS.

As for solo touring, I really think time of day and crowds affected how it went for me. I think I'd rather ride alone on coasters than dark rides. HM was just so weird by myself!

Okay first, and for staying at the Boardwalk!!!! we absolutely love it there; Nov. will be our 4th stay. There is nothing like walking to Epcot/HS but especially Epcot. One of my favorite things to do is walk slowly back to the BW after Illuminations. First, we take our time walking around WS since we don't have to rush for a bus like most of the other people. Then it's a slow walk back to our room; with all the lights around the water it's just so calm, pretty and peaceful.....I love it I also love walking over to WS just to have breakfast at Les Halles. I'm so excited you're staying there!!

I'm sorry too that you didn't enjoy your alone time in the MK. I went by myself last year for about 2 hours but it was 8-10 a.m. For the most part I loved it. I leisurely walked down Main St. and took in details I usually can't b/c the rest of the family walks too fast. I went right to HM and was on the first ride of the day - I actually liked riding alone! I also rode PP, LM and Astro Orbiter by myself. But then it started getting crowded and I did start missing DH and my DS's, so I got my Starbucks and headed back to our resort. I wouldn't hesitate to spend time in a park alone again but it is more fun when you're with someone

OH! I didn't realize you were a Boardwalk pro!! I would have probably been bombarding you with questions. It's comforting to know you love it and have had multiple stays there. If both you and @coloredimage say it's good, then I know it really is

See, I think I would really enjoy being alone in the parks in the early morning like that. There was just something off about being by myself that night. I really blame the crowds and heat...it just made it worse.

I love your pictures of Animal Kingdom -- We're doing our first trip in April 2016 and because we're only going to be there for four park days and right now the plan is we're skipping AK in favor of HS (Star Wars for my son, especially after the D23 announcements), Epcot and two days at MK. After your pictures I'm really wishing we could squeeze in a fifth park day.

Thank you!

If you have park hoppers, you might have time to sneak in a little bit of Animal Kingdom. I say that because, aside from Star Tours and the Jedi Training Academy, there aren't any other Star Wars experiences at DHS yet. Things at Disney change daily though, so they could add more things in light of the D23 announcements. He will LOVE Tatooine Traders, the store by Star Tours. It's one of our favorites.

Your first trip?!?! That's so exciting! I hope you have an amazing visit...and I'll bet you'll be back - especially in a few years when the Star Wars expansion opens