18 days in the Making - A Veteran Disser's First Ever Trip Report

[team bradfield]

Great trip report @mickeyfan0805, we are about 65 days out yet, can't wait.

 

[Stork]

Thoroughly enjoying your TR! You must have done well as a kid on the back to school "what I did on my summer vacation" essay assignment. Looking forward to your continued escapades.

....PS - but you should still go check out the StA area.....

Ditto this recommendation. Living in the panhandle I can assure you that St Augustine has way more social, cultural, and health care opportunities (important to retirees) very close by or a short drive away. Port St Joe, however, is very rural and things to do (other than the beach) are a significant drive away. Both locations are very susceptible to hurricanes (in season), so if that's in your equation, I'd ignore it as a factor. You can't ignore it, but it's a detractor to both equally.

 

[serenitygr]

Curious how t- Rex was… that’s the only indoor dining reservation I haven’t canceled ye. Is there any spacing between tables or is it pretty crowded?

 

[mickeyfan0805]

Curious how t- Rex was… that’s the only indoor dining reservation I haven’t canceled ye. Is there any spacing between tables or is it pretty crowded?

It was pretty normal in regard to seating. I certainly did not feel as though we were particularly spaced out. Biggest thing I noticed is that they, like many, are struggling for staff.

 

[Disneyloverliz]

So enjoy reading your reports!

 

[Part-Time Paradise]

Thanks for the ride. Enjoyed it.

Interesting the things that changed from our trip in Jun/Jul to your trip a few weeks later.

 

[mickeyfan0805]

One day...in four parts! Day 7 was a great day and a big night, so there is a lot to share. Mostly pictures, but a lot of them, so bear with me...


Disney Day 7, Part 1

The spur-of-the-moment hop to Animal Kingdom yesterday allowed us to not worry about returning today. So, our park reservation was quickly changed from Animal Kingdom to Epcot, which didn’t open until 11am – allowing for a late morning to set us up for a late night.

Most of our time at Epcot was spent doing the things we’d done before. As we enjoyed a lunchtime pretzel outside the Land Pavilion, however, we happened to get a glimpse of Joy frolicking with her pinwheel in the garden…






With some afternoon hours free, we FINALLY had some time to be about Fort Wilderness – an activity that had taken a back seat to our park endeavors to date. DW and I took DS to the Meadow pool for a while, and then we came back, dried off, and all five of us ventured off to visit the Settlement Trading post, wander about Pioneer Hall, and see the new Tri-Circle-D Ranch.




What a beautiful facility!








We had a very nice CM who spent some time telling us about the horses, how they are managed, etc. and we learned a lot in a short time. Then, on our way back towards the golf cart, I grabbed DD 16 for a picture. She didn’t quite know what was going on, but you do…




Then it was back to the campsite to make a quick dinner before we headed out for the evening. The empty site next to us (which was the case our entire stay) was one of MANY vacancies at the Fort that week. I’m not sure the campground was even 50% occupied. That said, this open site made ours feel even larger…




As I made dinner, I noticed a special guest who seemed to want to join in, but he left before I finished cooking…




After dinner, it was off for a very special evening we’d looked forward to all week – the After Hours Boo Bash.

 

[mickeyfan0805]

Disney Day 7, Part 2

The next few posts will likely be far more pictures than words – as there is much to share. But I will start at the beginning of the evening. The biggest disappointment of the night was transportation. WDW transportation decided that 6pm on a party night (when party guests can enter at 7) was the perfect time to be sharing a boat between Wilderness Lodge and the Fort. Each boat ran from MK to WL and then on to FW. This meant that each boat arrived with the same situation – an already full boat would pull up to the dock and drop off the 5-10 people who were actually returning to the Fort, and then 1-2 families would be allowed to board…all while the line stretched from the ropes all the way back to the base of the pier and beyond. The same thing happened multiple times – with a 20 minute gap in the scorching heat between each boat. We had headed in a bit early (our park hoppers would have gotten us in before 7) which meant that we were lucky enough to get on the second of these boats, but as we pulled away, I could only imagine how long some of those were going to be forced to wait. It was a notable failure on the part of Disney Transportation.

Anyway, with that one frustration behind us, it was on to a special evening. DW, DD15 and DS12 did the Teacups…




We jumped on Small World, Peter Pan, and a few other Fantasyland rides as we awaited the start of the party. And then, as the sun was beginning to set, we began to shift gears towards the Boo Bash…






In general, I will say that we had a blast. There is no question that the event is expensive, and the lack of parade and fireworks is a notable downgrade from the tradition MNSSHP. That said, the lesser crowds were a HUGE upgrade to the event, and the waits alone were something to behold. This is what saw on MDE all night long…










Most rides were essentially a walk-on all night!

 

[mickeyfan0805]

Disney Day 7, Part 3

Having conquered Fantasyland and Haunted Mansion before the party began, our party time kicked off in Tomorrowland. We grabbed our first of many treats (ice cream, popcorn and drinks were free all night), and headed to Space Mountain Again, the LED’s don’t work will with pictures, but this is the 5 minute standby sign that stood outside Space Mountain…




And this is what the ‘queue’ actually looked like…




After a couple of rides, we headed over to Buzz. Our skills are refining on Buzz, and Dad had a good night…



But we’ll come back to that on a later date!


From Buzz, we followed the Trick or Treating trail into the Laugh Floor, thinking that we were just wandering in and out. We were surprised to find that they were actively running the laugh floor and chatting with guests. We sat for a few minutes, and the next thing you know, DS12 is part of the action…





He has tried, for years, to get a joke into the show - always unsuccessfully. So, this was a great bonus of the night that we will not soon forget!

From there, it was on to more rides, treats and fun.

Some projections lit up around the park…







Cavalcades passed by…






…and by the end of the night, we had such a great time that DW and I purchased tickets for the Christmas After Hours party that is scheduled during our 20th anniversary trip in December.

 

[mickeyfan0805]

Disney Day 7, Part 4

Unfortunately, the night was coming to a close. We began to make our way out…








And found some friends wishing us a good evening…








I LOVE the lights at night…






We ultimately boarded a boat at about 1:35 AM and got to the dock at 2. We headed back to the camper and crashed, because while everyone else was getting to sleep in, Dad had barely 4 hours before he had to be up for one last shot at those RotR boarding groups!

 

[Disneyloverliz]

I'm so enjoying reading along! What days were you actually there? We were there at the Fort Aug 21-27, in loop 200, which in my opinion, was a great loop (having nothing to compare it to, as it was our first trip!). I agree the campgrounds were not full at all.

 

[cruising spud]

What a great trip report. Your family seems to have had a marvelous time. Thanks for letting us join in on the fun.

 

[mickeyfan0805]

I'm so enjoying reading along! What days were you actually there? We were there at the Fort Aug 21-27, in loop 200, which in my opinion, was a great loop (having nothing to compare it to, as it was our first trip!). I agree the campgrounds were not full at all.

We left just before your arrival. The trip ran August 4-21, with our Fort dates being August 11-19.

 

[friendofeeyore]

Have really enjoyed your TR!! Thank you for sharing!

 

[mickeyfan0805]

What a great trip report. Your family seems to have had a marvelous time. Thanks for letting us join in on the fun.

Have really enjoyed your TR!! Thank you for sharing!

Thanks - it's been fun. I am sorry I didn't start doing these earlier in our Disney life. Would have been a nice journal to have on hand. Oh well.

Few more days to go...

 

[Sjm9911]

135 am! Wow. I dont thibk i could do that and funtion the next day!

 

[mickeyfan0805]

135 am! Wow. I dont thibk i could do that and funtion the next day!

Yep, and it was going to be an early morning...


Disney Day 8, Part 1

It was a groggy morning for Dad. As we went to bed (well after 2am), DW and I were wondering if I really needed to get up to try for a third run on RotR. Perhaps the kids had reached their fill and we all could just sleep in. So, to get a sense of where they were, we asked the kids if they would want to wake up early if that’s what it would take to ride RotR again. Without the slightest bit of hesitation, they all said they would do whatever it took – even if it meant being up just 5-6 hours later. So, there was no getting out of it – I slept for just over 4 hours and was up at 6:55am for try number 3. Sure enough…




I was three for three for the week. The lesser crowds certainly helped, but I was happy. For those wondering, I did not make things too complicated. I was on my cell network (I only ever connect to Disney wi-fi if I am indoors and not getting a signal – otherwise I avoid it like the plague), and at about 2 seconds before the hour I would start swiping down on the screen to reload. As soon as I got the button it was join…join… and all was well!

Luckily, we were group 37, which meant I could let the family sleep in a bit longer. We headed over around 10, rode Tower of Terror, and then DW and DD15 wanted to get on RRC again. It was beastly hot, so DD16, DS12 and I decided to take up shelter in the Cars show.




We’d done it once before. Cute, and well done, but a bit young for the ages of our kids. They would have loved it a decade ago had it been around at the time. For today, it was far more about the AC than the show, but it was a great way to pass the time while waiting for DW and DD15.

DW and DD15 got off RRC shortly after our show, and it was time to head to RotR. We got in line, waited for about 10 minutes, and the dreaded announcement emanated from the PA system. The ride was stalled, and no timeline was available for relaunch. We waited a bit longer, but another 10-15 minutes showed no changes, and our ADR for Sci-Fi was quickly approaching. So, I made my way out of the queue and approached a CM who didn’t miss a beat. We called out the rest of the family, she scanned all of our bands, and we now had an open return for RotR anytime it was operating the rest of the day.

After lunch (sorry, no photos), RotR was back up, so we made our way back over. We walked to a specific tent where they scanned us in and sent us into a separate line that we had not used before (I presume this will be the LL line in the future). Interestingly, it was clear that they were slow-walking the boarding groups at this point (some suggested that only one ‘side’ of the ride was working – which would fit what we say. Nonetheless, since they were trying to limit the throughput, we ended up being 5 of the 7 people making our way through the entirety of the pre-show. It was really cool to see all of that without many people around, and it allowed for a few more picture opportunities with no one else around…















As we walked out through Galaxy’s Edge, I noticed another of something I hadn’t picked up on in previous visits. At a few places throughout the area, you can see where the ‘locals’ have found creative uses for defunct droids. In the Smuggler’s Run line, you can find an R2 unit that is now a container for spare parts (I was sure I took a picture, but can’t find it for the life of me). And here, across from the bathrooms in the marketplace, is one that’s been turned into a fire-pit for a blacksmith…




I am continuously amazed at the creativity that’s involved in Galaxy’s Edge. Give me a destination, and I can map each step from A to Z. The creativity that can imagine such details off a blank piece of paper, however – that evades me. Remarkable!

With that, it was time to head home for dinner, a break, and a bit of prep for departure before a night back out. As we left, we found another friend waving hello…

 

[mickeyfan0805]

Disney Day 8, Part 2

Ok – a bit of a story. It was September of 2008. After a family trip to FL that included a few days at Disney in 2007 (and a fall trip for just DW and me later that fall), the ball was rolling on our Disney Vacation Club purchase. Our resale contract came through just in time for this fall trip in 2008. As a point of reference, DD’s were 2 and 3 at the time…



I'd like to say it's amazing how much they've grown - but I think Dad has aged even more! Yikes!!


Anyway, we ended that trip by staking a place to get a good view of Wishes. Just on the east side of the courtyard, we had a great angle on the fireworks and Tink sailing by. As the fireworks lit up the sky, DD3 (now 16) turned to me unprompted and said, ‘My wish is that we would be able to keep coming back here again and again.’ Just 10 weeks into our closed DVC contract, my heart melted with joy!

So, what better way to spend our final night, some 13 years later, than catching Happily Ever After one more time before it is replaced by a new show. We grabbed a spot about 2/3 down Main Street and stood in the center of Main street as the fireworks roared. After that moment from so many years ago, there is little that uplifts me more than fireworks above Cinderella’s Castle.

Some shots are better than others, but the angle was great!
















And so it was, our last night. It was off to bed so that we could get an early start and grab a few more rides before leaving the next day.

 

[Disneyloverliz]

Pictures of the fireworks are awesome!

 

[mickeyfan0805]

The Dreaded Departure Day

Knowing we wanted to stay in Magic Kingdom through lunch, we needed to get up and out of the site early. So, we rose early, steadied the trailer for travel, hooked up to the truck, and hauled everything over to the overflow lot for the first hours of the day. We jumped on the Fort’s internal bus to get back to the Settlement Depot, and then on to the MK bus for the park. We were in the park by 10am with the goal of doing SM and Buzz before the Laugh Floor opened at noon. Crowds were light, and we were able to do each a few times.

As I mentioned early in the report, I’d been slowly climbing up on my Buzz scores, and finally, just hours before we were to leave, I finally did it…




I had accomplished this before, but only on occasions that the ride had stalled. This was my first legit top-out. Ironically, as we had been sharing learned details throughout the week, DD15 followed suit on the very next time around…




With a great series of successes on Buzz to finish the morning, we stopped by one last show on the Laugh Floor, then headed out towards our closing lunch at Tony’s Town Square – a last minute reservation we grabbed on the way into the park that morning.




Over the years, we’ve often taken pics of the kids’ frowning faces on our way out of the park for the final time. This time, we decided to do it by selfie…




As you can see, DW didn’t seem to get the memo the first time, so we tried again, but now she and both DD’s were holding back laughter about Mom's smile from attempt one…




Nonetheless, the sadness was real as we made our way out, and we were barely loaded onto the bus when DD15 was falling asleep on Mom’s shoulder…




The double-bus trip back to the Fort Outpost took us back to our truck. We stopped in the Outpost to use the restroom, and one more hidden Mickey…




…and the time had come to hit the road.