As an attempt to make this trip report more convenient for you to read, I will post each portion of this report under the subject headings where you might be most likely to look for related info. I'll post links at the beginning each report as I complete them. If you have any questions at all, please please please ask. I paid attention to a huge amount of detail which can most likely be remembered if only you remind me.
Sat. 10/27 - Downtown Disney & Disney Quest
Sun. 10/28 - Animal Kingdom & Epcot
Mon. 10/29 - Disney MGM Studios
Tues. 10/30 - Sea World
Tues. 10/30 - Medieval Times
Wed. 10/31 - Busch Gardens Tampa & Howl-O-Scream
Thur. 11/1 - Open Day - All Star Resorts
Fri. 11/2 - Hard Rock Hotel, Islands of Adventure
Sat. 11/3 - Halloween Horror Nights (The last night)
HHN, IoA and HHN (Finally!!)
Sun. 11/4 - Round-trip Norfolk to Orlando on SouthWest
Characters & Plot: DH and myself returning to Orlando for our first wedding anniversary (which we like to consider the long-awaited second half of our honeymoon).
Modes of discount: Leftover one-day park hopper passes, Entertainment Coupon Book, AAA, Busch Gardens Platinum Passes, codes from Disney Post Card, MouseSavers.com, and a few wonderful members of this bulletin board <wink>!
---------------------------
Day 1
Sat. 10/27 - Downtown Disney & Disney Quest
Arrived at Orlando International Sat. 10/27 at 9:20am via SouthWest airlines. I would definitely recommend this airline to anyone that wants their flight to be both inexpensive and FUN! For more on the flight to and from Orlando and security , see Sun. 11/4 - Flying home to Norfolk on SouthWest (to be posted soon).
After taking the shuttle to the Alamo rental car site (Just over $200 for 9 day rental of an Alero, not too bad!) we found our way to the All-Star Movies resort. I made triple sure that I really was getting the $49 a night rate and that everything was on the up-and-up. Absolutely no problems! As expected, the room was not yet ready, so we got our room key cards and headed out to Downtown Disney and Disney Quest.
Except for a sea of shops and no entrance or parking fee, I had NO idea what to expect from DD and was pleasantly surprised. I loved the layout and "procession" of the area and the blend of Disney and non-Disney. We were only disappointed in the magic store, where you have to pay the salesman/magician (alot) to do a trick, which is supposedly worth it, because you can take the magic kit home with you... I will save my personal ethics tangient for another time.
DH bought our tickets to Disney Quest (buy one, get one free with Entertainment Book Coupon) and we headed in. Wow! Once you get in, all the games are free. We could easily forsee teenagers plunking down $30 to spend all day in a place like this. Virtual reality games cost $7 or more to play where we come from. Here, you just get in line, and ride, play, interact, what-have-you. The lay-out amoung the floors is a bit confusing... One of those "I can see it from here, but how the heck do you get to it?" kinda layouts... This place would probably be most popular amoung teenagers, but children seemed to be having a great time too... I was tickled to death to see the step stools for small kids to stand on to play the games... And I was really interested to see the "animation class" downstairs. I stood there for a few minutes and noticed a few kids that seemed to have a genuine natural talent, hoping quietly to myself that their parents' would pick up on it and help them nurture it ...
I think our favorite was the "Pirates..." interactive game. I think this is more fun when there are less people on the "boat" and if you know each other.... I couldn't help but do my impression of StarTrek's Scottie, "I can't hold 'er Captain, I don't 'ave the powerrrrr!!!" For dinner, we'd intended to go to House of Blues (another Entertainment coupon doncha know), but the line was too long, and we decided to just go back inside Disney Quest and have some of that pasta we saw someone walking around with.... Which was good but seriously needed garlic. More games! I think a certain ride operator was inebriated...Hmm... While the place was open until midnight, I don't think we lasted that long and left in time to get some good video footage of the night lights. While we didn't bother, for anyone interested in Pleasure Island, the Entertainment Book has coupons for 20% off for up to 6 people.
-------------------------------------------
Day 2
Sun. 10/28 - Animal Kingdom & Epcot
First thing in the morning, I called the front desk to ask them what park had early entry that day. To my surprise, she reported that they'd suspended EE indefinitely. Woah! Good thing I had only considered EE an added perk. She mentioned that they had character meet and greet in the AS resort lobbies on 3 mornings of the week instead (coincidentally, I never saw them, but I wasn't searching diligently either).
Since we had one day left on our park-hopper passes from last year, we used our one day to visit AK (which we'd skipped last year) and Epcot (because it's probably our favorite). I'd had grandiose plans of trying to do ALL the parks in one day, but my logical side finally kicked in and I submitted. I'd heard lots of disappointed comments on the board about AK, but DH and I really enjoyed it... But then again, we really love animals AND rides AND good theming.... What can I say... It was also on this day, that we discovered the likelihood of animals to do something totally rude or disgusting only while I'm filming. I loved the Tree of Life, and thought the Bugs Life show was brilliantly themed and well-done... I'd imagined myself shrinking down to the size of a bug as I make my way inside the tree. The irony here is that my father-in-law owns a pest control company in Florida. HA! The rhino-rally was alot of fun and definitely worth the 20 minute wait. We managed to see just about everything that we really wanted to see here in about 3 or 4 hours... We could have easily stayed longer... We did not stay for the parade and left early to get to Epcot in time for lunch.
First things first! DH had been hoping to go the restaurant in Living Seas this trip, so that's exactly what we did... And lunch prices were less expensive. There was no wait at 1:45pm, and we were seated down front right in front of that huge glass aquarium tank! Yes that's right, we had stayed at the ASMo, did not bother to make reservations, and STILL did not have to wait... Not sure whether showing the card gave us truly "Priority Seating" or not. I had the mahi-mahi and he had the steak. Not a huge meal, but tasty just the same. Tip for honeymooners and those in search of proposal spots: This spot is very romantic, and sitting there brought back all kinds of feelings and memories of being a "new bride"...Okay, so it was only a year ago... Speaking of which... We then went back to the Stone Gardens and found the metal etchings of the pictures we had taken on our honeymoon, on my birthday to be exact.
Then I believe we tooled around the World Showcase, made a point of getting Lufsa's (sp?) and Viking coffee in Norway... Really good stuff! And the best deal on a pastry anywhere at WDW, in my opinion. Saw the parade, which is always lots of fun. We'd found a really good spot for seeing and taping the Illuminations show right off the water near Moracco, but I was really cold, and like a fool I tried to move too late before the show started.... I have several minutes of me uttering profanity and shaky footage while trying to run to find a spot without trees blocking the view. Interesting thing I noted... While the show was still very good, it seems that Disney has really cut down on the amount of fireworks... Which is actually a good plan in the grand scheme of attempting to save money and cut losses.
------------------------------
Day 3
Mon. 10/29 - Disney MGM Studios
One day just wasn't enough for us... We'd been bitten by the mouse <wink>. I forked over the $101 for two one-day one-park passes... The hard part was deciding between MK and MGM. While we would've loved to have seen the castle, Pirates of the Caribbean, Splash Mountain, Space Mountain and the parades... The draw to MGM was just too much... They have the Muppets, and we are die-hard Henson fans... Hubby was finally able to get that Animal t-shirt he's been wanting for so long... And I had to see that magic hat (which I was surprised to find had a gift shop inside)! And the curiosity over "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" had to be satisfied... I was especially fascinated by the items in the 100-year museum of Walt Disney and I even puddled up during the short film. Using the "Fast Pass" really was not worth bothering with. We got a ticket for WWtobaM, and when we came back, no one was at the gate taking them, so we had to get in line anyway. Later in the day, I tried to get a fast pass for Tower of Terror, but they had run out!! Woah!! However, we came back an hour later and rode it with perhaps a 10 minute wait (our longest wait all day). It was our first time riding ToT and it was actually a lot of fun! I guess my biggest disappointment was that one of the shows was not open that day, and that I didn't know it until I got there . And as a result, I didn't have time to see the other show way on the other side of the park. Fantasmic was wonderful as always and if they made any cuts, I definitely didn't notice. We got really good seats by going in an hour early and the arena was surprisingly packed! The only pre-show entertainment was the (huge!) audience spontaneously doing the wave... not surprising though, since it was pretty chilly and breezy out there that night... Hand-stands on the metal fence wouldv'e been a bit too risky. I videotaped the show, and had a hard time keeping the focus on the images on the water screen... Live and learn. After the show, DH bought several souvenir shot glasses for his collection and I got some more last minute videotaping in.
Sat. 10/27 - Downtown Disney & Disney Quest
Sun. 10/28 - Animal Kingdom & Epcot
Mon. 10/29 - Disney MGM Studios
Tues. 10/30 - Sea World
Tues. 10/30 - Medieval Times
Wed. 10/31 - Busch Gardens Tampa & Howl-O-Scream
Thur. 11/1 - Open Day - All Star Resorts
Fri. 11/2 - Hard Rock Hotel, Islands of Adventure
Sat. 11/3 - Halloween Horror Nights (The last night)
HHN, IoA and HHN (Finally!!)
Sun. 11/4 - Round-trip Norfolk to Orlando on SouthWest
Characters & Plot: DH and myself returning to Orlando for our first wedding anniversary (which we like to consider the long-awaited second half of our honeymoon).
Modes of discount: Leftover one-day park hopper passes, Entertainment Coupon Book, AAA, Busch Gardens Platinum Passes, codes from Disney Post Card, MouseSavers.com, and a few wonderful members of this bulletin board <wink>!
---------------------------
Day 1
Sat. 10/27 - Downtown Disney & Disney Quest
Arrived at Orlando International Sat. 10/27 at 9:20am via SouthWest airlines. I would definitely recommend this airline to anyone that wants their flight to be both inexpensive and FUN! For more on the flight to and from Orlando and security , see Sun. 11/4 - Flying home to Norfolk on SouthWest (to be posted soon).
After taking the shuttle to the Alamo rental car site (Just over $200 for 9 day rental of an Alero, not too bad!) we found our way to the All-Star Movies resort. I made triple sure that I really was getting the $49 a night rate and that everything was on the up-and-up. Absolutely no problems! As expected, the room was not yet ready, so we got our room key cards and headed out to Downtown Disney and Disney Quest.
Except for a sea of shops and no entrance or parking fee, I had NO idea what to expect from DD and was pleasantly surprised. I loved the layout and "procession" of the area and the blend of Disney and non-Disney. We were only disappointed in the magic store, where you have to pay the salesman/magician (alot) to do a trick, which is supposedly worth it, because you can take the magic kit home with you... I will save my personal ethics tangient for another time.
DH bought our tickets to Disney Quest (buy one, get one free with Entertainment Book Coupon) and we headed in. Wow! Once you get in, all the games are free. We could easily forsee teenagers plunking down $30 to spend all day in a place like this. Virtual reality games cost $7 or more to play where we come from. Here, you just get in line, and ride, play, interact, what-have-you. The lay-out amoung the floors is a bit confusing... One of those "I can see it from here, but how the heck do you get to it?" kinda layouts... This place would probably be most popular amoung teenagers, but children seemed to be having a great time too... I was tickled to death to see the step stools for small kids to stand on to play the games... And I was really interested to see the "animation class" downstairs. I stood there for a few minutes and noticed a few kids that seemed to have a genuine natural talent, hoping quietly to myself that their parents' would pick up on it and help them nurture it ...
I think our favorite was the "Pirates..." interactive game. I think this is more fun when there are less people on the "boat" and if you know each other.... I couldn't help but do my impression of StarTrek's Scottie, "I can't hold 'er Captain, I don't 'ave the powerrrrr!!!" For dinner, we'd intended to go to House of Blues (another Entertainment coupon doncha know), but the line was too long, and we decided to just go back inside Disney Quest and have some of that pasta we saw someone walking around with.... Which was good but seriously needed garlic. More games! I think a certain ride operator was inebriated...Hmm... While the place was open until midnight, I don't think we lasted that long and left in time to get some good video footage of the night lights. While we didn't bother, for anyone interested in Pleasure Island, the Entertainment Book has coupons for 20% off for up to 6 people.
-------------------------------------------
Day 2
Sun. 10/28 - Animal Kingdom & Epcot
First thing in the morning, I called the front desk to ask them what park had early entry that day. To my surprise, she reported that they'd suspended EE indefinitely. Woah! Good thing I had only considered EE an added perk. She mentioned that they had character meet and greet in the AS resort lobbies on 3 mornings of the week instead (coincidentally, I never saw them, but I wasn't searching diligently either).
Since we had one day left on our park-hopper passes from last year, we used our one day to visit AK (which we'd skipped last year) and Epcot (because it's probably our favorite). I'd had grandiose plans of trying to do ALL the parks in one day, but my logical side finally kicked in and I submitted. I'd heard lots of disappointed comments on the board about AK, but DH and I really enjoyed it... But then again, we really love animals AND rides AND good theming.... What can I say... It was also on this day, that we discovered the likelihood of animals to do something totally rude or disgusting only while I'm filming. I loved the Tree of Life, and thought the Bugs Life show was brilliantly themed and well-done... I'd imagined myself shrinking down to the size of a bug as I make my way inside the tree. The irony here is that my father-in-law owns a pest control company in Florida. HA! The rhino-rally was alot of fun and definitely worth the 20 minute wait. We managed to see just about everything that we really wanted to see here in about 3 or 4 hours... We could have easily stayed longer... We did not stay for the parade and left early to get to Epcot in time for lunch.
First things first! DH had been hoping to go the restaurant in Living Seas this trip, so that's exactly what we did... And lunch prices were less expensive. There was no wait at 1:45pm, and we were seated down front right in front of that huge glass aquarium tank! Yes that's right, we had stayed at the ASMo, did not bother to make reservations, and STILL did not have to wait... Not sure whether showing the card gave us truly "Priority Seating" or not. I had the mahi-mahi and he had the steak. Not a huge meal, but tasty just the same. Tip for honeymooners and those in search of proposal spots: This spot is very romantic, and sitting there brought back all kinds of feelings and memories of being a "new bride"...Okay, so it was only a year ago... Speaking of which... We then went back to the Stone Gardens and found the metal etchings of the pictures we had taken on our honeymoon, on my birthday to be exact.
Then I believe we tooled around the World Showcase, made a point of getting Lufsa's (sp?) and Viking coffee in Norway... Really good stuff! And the best deal on a pastry anywhere at WDW, in my opinion. Saw the parade, which is always lots of fun. We'd found a really good spot for seeing and taping the Illuminations show right off the water near Moracco, but I was really cold, and like a fool I tried to move too late before the show started.... I have several minutes of me uttering profanity and shaky footage while trying to run to find a spot without trees blocking the view. Interesting thing I noted... While the show was still very good, it seems that Disney has really cut down on the amount of fireworks... Which is actually a good plan in the grand scheme of attempting to save money and cut losses.------------------------------
Day 3
Mon. 10/29 - Disney MGM Studios
One day just wasn't enough for us... We'd been bitten by the mouse <wink>. I forked over the $101 for two one-day one-park passes... The hard part was deciding between MK and MGM. While we would've loved to have seen the castle, Pirates of the Caribbean, Splash Mountain, Space Mountain and the parades... The draw to MGM was just too much... They have the Muppets, and we are die-hard Henson fans... Hubby was finally able to get that Animal t-shirt he's been wanting for so long... And I had to see that magic hat (which I was surprised to find had a gift shop inside)! And the curiosity over "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" had to be satisfied... I was especially fascinated by the items in the 100-year museum of Walt Disney and I even puddled up during the short film. Using the "Fast Pass" really was not worth bothering with. We got a ticket for WWtobaM, and when we came back, no one was at the gate taking them, so we had to get in line anyway. Later in the day, I tried to get a fast pass for Tower of Terror, but they had run out!! Woah!! However, we came back an hour later and rode it with perhaps a 10 minute wait (our longest wait all day). It was our first time riding ToT and it was actually a lot of fun! I guess my biggest disappointment was that one of the shows was not open that day, and that I didn't know it until I got there . And as a result, I didn't have time to see the other show way on the other side of the park. Fantasmic was wonderful as always and if they made any cuts, I definitely didn't notice. We got really good seats by going in an hour early and the arena was surprisingly packed! The only pre-show entertainment was the (huge!) audience spontaneously doing the wave... not surprising though, since it was pretty chilly and breezy out there that night... Hand-stands on the metal fence wouldv'e been a bit too risky. I videotaped the show, and had a hard time keeping the focus on the images on the water screen... Live and learn. After the show, DH bought several souvenir shot glasses for his collection and I got some more last minute videotaping in.
