5/15 Magic Kingdom for Three
Originally when we planned our trip, DS-28 only had 3 vacation days and had booked a return flight for 5/14. However, his job is fully remote and it occurred to me a few weeks before the trip that he could do his remote job from the hotel. I proposed the idea to him and he loved it. So, he changed his flight to go back on Sunday with his brother. I was so happy he agreed as this still gave us the opportunity to spend Thursday and Friday nights with him as well as the weekend. It turned his 5 day vacation into a 9 day one (minus the work hours of Thursday and Friday).
After making sure DS-28 had everything he needed for his work day, DS-26, DH and I walked over to the Boardwalk to take the bus to Magic Kingdom. With early entry starting at 8:30, we made it through the tapstiles by 8:14 and DS and I were in line for Space Mountain by 8:20. The line started moving at 8:25 and we were on the ride by 8:38. I typically skip Space Mt and DS-26 rides with his brother as, in the past, I have found the rockets hard to get in and out of and the ride to be very jerky. However, since DS-28 wasn’t with us, I rode with DS-26. I was once again pleasantly surprised at how much easier I could get in and out of the rocket than in the past. I also found the ride much more enjoyable. Another win!
By the time we finished exploring space, it was almost regular park opening time so we headed to the Haunted Mansion. The line opened at 8:55 and the ride was a walk on. I had actually also purchased LLMP for the three of us and my first LL was for Haunted Mansion so we used that next and rode twice in a row.
It was now time for that treat that we had nicely tested for DS-26, the Gaston Cinnamon Roll. Since one was too little to share for the 3 of us, we had to share two!
This is our favorite cinnamon roll on Disney property. The dough is soft and full of cinnamon sugar and the icing gives it added sweetness. Gaston’s cinnamon roll gets an A every time so far.
After our treat it was time for DS and I to ride Tron so we made our way to Tomorrowland. Such a fun ride but so short!
From there we used a LL to ride Buzz for one last time before the lengthy refurb. I’m looking forward to the updates for this ride.
After fighting Zurg we thought we had time to squeeze in a ride on the People Mover before our LL for Tiana and our lunch ADR. That was almost a mistake. We rode the people mover and then speedwalked all the way to Tiana. We rode Tiana, which was DS-26’s first time. He enjoyed it. As soon as we got off we had 10 minutes to get to Tony’s for our lunch ADR so we speedwalked back to Main Street. This is the layer of stress that the
Lightning Lane system adds to the day that I dislike. It really takes out the spontaneity and requires a lot of paying attention to schedules. It really is not good for my anxiety level. Thankfully we made it just in time to check in. We requested a seat on the porch and were told that no servers were assigned there but if one was willing to take our table they would seat us there.
Thankfully Vicky, coincidentally the server DH and I had in December, agreed to take the table. She’s awesome!
We started by sharing two appetizers. First, the Fried Mozzarella: with Spicy Creamy Tomato Sauce
These were huge and very good.
We also shared Tony’s Garlic Bread for the Table: Toasted Ciabatta with Roasted Garlic-Butter and Parmesan Fonduta
We like to ration the delicious cheese sauce and pour a little on each layer. This is the first pouring. This bread is so delicious! It is crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, garlicky and cheesy. This alone is a reason to eat a Tony’s!
As we received our appetizers, a different server came by our table and pointed to the garlic bread and said “That’s where it’s at. That’s better than the mozzarella sticks.” He said he’d come back later for our opinion. He did and he was right!!!
DH and I considered trying something new on the menu but ultimately went for our favorite and shared the Chicken Parmigiana but subbed in fettuccine alfredo for spaghetti: Lightly-breaded Chicken Breast baked in Tony's Marinara Sauce and Mozzarella served with Spaghetti
DS-26 followed our lead and got his own Chicken Parm with Fettuccine Alfredo. This was his first time dining at Tony’s as an adult and he was impressed. In fact he said this alfredo was even better than Toothsome’s.
We really enjoy eating at Tony’s especially when we’re lucky enough to dine on the porch. Our server Vicky was excellent once again. Tony’s earned an A- and we gave her a cast member compliment.
We headed next to Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor. DS-26 also hadn’t experienced this as an adult either. I was trying to get him to sit in an aisle seat so he might be featured but he caught on to me and wouldn’t sit there. Haha.
After the show, which was enjoyable as always, we headed over to the Carousel of Progress. If you recall, back on April 27th when DH and I were in CoP, we ended up seeing the 40’s scene twice and wondered how that happened. Well, this time we had a first-hand look at exactly how that can happen.
We were waiting in line outside as the theater emptied and the building was about to rotate when a woman who just exited started to run back through the open exit door. A CM told the woman “m’am you can’t go back in there. The building is about to move.” The woman continued going in the exit explaining, “I left my hat in there.” The CM told her to stop and that they would look for her hat as she motioned to another CM to do an emergency stop of the building. Once the theater was stopped, the CM and woman went in to look for the hat, which they were unable to find. As they were coming back out of the building the man ahead of us in line pointed over to the woman’s husband, who was seated in a
scooter with a hat placed on the back of his seat and said to us “do you think that might be the missing hat?” Then he said the same thing to the cast member and lo and behold it was the missing hat. The woman went back over to the scooter and yelled at her husband. The man ahead of us was wearing a honeymoon pin and my DH said to him, “See that’s how it goes, it’s always the husband’s fault. You might as well get used to it.” Haha! After no one got hurt we all had a good chuckle about it but thankfully the Cast Members were well trained or that woman could’ve gotten seriously hurt over a $5 bucket hat.
After all that excitement we finally entered the theater and had an uneventful viewing of the Carousel of Progress. From there we took the train from Fantasyland to Frontierland and then used a LL for pirates. We went to the Country Bear Jamboree and DS agreed with us that the new show was surprisingly well done. Making sure to do the complete route of the train, we hopped back on the train in Frontierland and headed to Fantasyland. We didn’t have a LL for It’s a Small World yet but there was only a ten minute wait. We all enjoy IASW. At this point it was time for a snack so we ordered the Apple Cider Doughnuts (Sugar-dusted and served with Caramel Sauce) from The Friar’s Nook.
These are served warm and they smell and taste delicious. We gave them a B+. A simple yet tasty snack. It was hot so we also each ordered a Strawberry Lemonade Slush.
This was very refreshing but a little too tart for my tastes. We gave it a B-.
I had purchased LLSP for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train for DS and I so we rode that next. I love the scenes on this coaster and wish DH could ride it just to see those parts but we think the swaying mine carts will bother his motion sickness.
We waited in the standby line for Under the Sea for eight minutes, our shortest wait this trip, I think. Then we walked over to Liberty Square as DS wanted a “goodbye ride” on the Liberty Belle Riverboat. I took some photos from the Liberty Belle for nostalgia’s sake.
We’re very sad to see Rivers of America gone but excited to see what the new area will look like.
We had a LL for Winnie the Pooh but it was down so we rested for a bit with ice water at Pinocchio Village Haus and then used a LL for Peter Pan followed by a LL for another ride on It’s a Small World. We tried to ride Pooh with our LL but it was still down. DS-28 had contacted us saying he was done with work for the day. We instructed him to take a bus from the Swan resort to the TTC and we headed on the monorail to meet him there.
Overall we had a great day using LLMP for 6 attractions, LLSP for 2 attractions, and standby for 11 attractions. With the exception of Winnie the Pooh, we did everything we wanted to do and even had a great table service lunch and snacks.
Up next…introducing our sons to one of our favorite dinner spots.
Thanks so much for sharing your adventure!
