a little bitter sweet report ....

[islandmum]

I too am very sorry about the accident. But the one thing about the World is that in almost all cases no matter what happens outside that place makes you forget it all.When we pass under thye welcome sign everything that was a problem on the outside stays there. And I hope everyone heals fast, physically and mentally.

exactly!! there was no way anything was going to spoil this trip - we planned and waited for it for so long ..... 33 years in my case!!

 

[Avivasmom]

AK is our least favorite park..it is also the hottest park. We love Lion King, the Safari...the trails and It's to be a bug....

Glad you are having fun. We love WCC taking DH for the first time on this trip.

 

[DisneyJo]

We all love Buzz too, especially when I beat DH

We like AK but mainly as the girls and DH love the rapids and I love LK show and the new Nemo show, they're too wussy to go on bugs life though

 

[islandmum]

well here is a piccy of us all.

Typhoon Lagoon was day 8, and this is where we found all the Brits!! we were suprised as we'd not seen many and this is where they seem to congregate for sure. We got to the park by 10.30 but it was PACKED - hardly a chair to be found, and all the beds were already taken.

Because of where we live both kids are excellent swimmers so the kiddies little pool wasnt for us - they wanted the wave! so we grabbed some chairs and found ourselves a sport in the sun right by the edge of the pool. I definately wasnt up for being thrown around on rides so hubs took the boys down slides and flumes and all that stuff, I sat and got some sun. He went off to get some lunch from the cafe somewhere, it wasnt particularly great but did the job. We spent the whole afternoon then in the waves and the boys on the double slide at the edge of the wave pool.

It was a great day and they loved it. Bought some nice shorts for hubs in the store too.

We left at about 4.30 and headed to Raglan Road for some food and shopping in DTD.

I have to say Raglan Road food was the best we had, the kids loved the shepherds pie, I and hubs had fish and chips and it was SUPERB. Only thing was the mad cold air con they pumped in there.

we spent a lovely evening walking around, doing all the stores, taking pics with the lego characters and in the Harley Store. We enjoyed DTD alot.

heres some more:




Day 9 brings on Epcot and our last full day before heading off on the afternoon of Day10 to the Bahamas for the last week of our trip ...

 

[Avivasmom]

Your boys are just to cute...so how comfy were the crocs..I got a pair for me and Aviva.

 

[jcc0621]

Hi Islandmom. I was directed over here by Disney Jo. So sorry about our accident, but I am glad you were still able to enjoy your trip!

 

[islandmum]

Your boys are just to cute...so how comfy were the crocs..I got a pair for me and Aviva.

oh they are the best! no having to faff around with sandals, dont worry about them getting dirty or wet, and they slipped them on and hardly even feel like they're on their feet .... one of the best inventions EVER!

 

[islandmum]

Hi Islandmom. I was directed over here by Disney Jo. So sorry about our accident, but I am glad you were still able to enjoy your trip!

thanks we had a great trip, in actual fact I think it worked out even better than planned because we had to take it slowly and more relaxed than I'd worked out and it meant the kids never once had a tiredness meltdown.

it was awesome!

 

[islandmum]

so day 9 is Epcot day and we decide to throw out the planbook and just take it easy.

After a long breakfast and a quick swim we mosey on over at about 10am. Getting on the bus the boys run to the back and a girl from behind us pushes past and pushes past our youngest sending him flying headfirst into the floor.
It hurt, he's hurting so hubs comforts him weeping on his lap. Halfway there on the bus he starts vomiting all over hubby, violently. The driver gets us to Epcot and we decide he's okay, check him over and she calls HQ to tell them shes coming straight back to the hotel with him rather than coninuing on her route - what a nice thing to do. So me and the oldest go into Epcot whilst hubs and little one go back to WL to change clothes.

We go in and head straight for Nemo. The queue is okay and takes about 10 minutes and he loves the ride, he's a big fan of Nemo and loved it totally. We agreed to meet hubs at the big golf ball at 11 and there he was, with little - un just fine so we head back to Nemo to do Crush talk. Well - this was GREAT! we all loved it Duuuuude. The boys were just in awe and couldnt stop jabbering when they came out, it was great. Did some pics with the shark and then decided to take a walk through the world showcase.

Stopped off at the Yokshire Fish shop for some lunch and was great to have some fries with vinegar ... mmmmmmmmmm! Had a giggle at the "English" representation of it all and then saw Chip and Dale near the bridge with nobody around. Our oldest screamed and charged towards them hugging them. They sat on the floor and played with him and his toys, it was great.


We took our time walking through the showcase and stopped at all the areas and got pic with Snow White who our oldest fancies! I didnt think I would like the showcase and never wanted to go but it turned into one of the best afternoons we had.

I decided I had to do one ride and Test track it would be. hubs and our youngest headed off to do other things and my boy and I queued for it. I was pulled over and they put a second stiff sling on me and made sure where I sat in the car when we sat down. We got front row. I wanted my boy to see that cars were fine and although there was an element of frozen fear on his face throughout he made it to the end and we have a very funny pic to show for it!LOL!

it was another lovely day and a great way to end the parks for us. We headed back and decided to eat at our favourite WCC for our last meal and really make a night of it. The kids did 3 races, there was birthday serenading for 2 people, we did milkshakes, skillets, deserts and hung around enjoying ourselves. A great night to finish. A last evening spent on the beach watching the MK fireworks and the water parade and we hit the sack.

day 10 ...

 

[islandmum]

our last day here and we decided we just wanted to hang out rather than hit any more parks so we did universal quickly in the morning for Spiderman breakfast (this was for our oldest who almost fainted when he met Spidey!). We were back at the WL by 10am.


We did the express checkout so didnt need to do anything else and they let us keep the room till 1pm which was nice. The boys hit the slide and pool and then we did the beach where we met a lovely family from Ohio and before we knew it it was 12.30 and time to get ready.

we had a limo booked for 1.15 for our flight to Nassau at 3.50.

Leaving was hard, we loved it, but all good things come to an end. Oh - and we did do spectro one night but I cant remember which, sorry! It was great though.




what were our thoughts?

we LOVED the WL because:
it felt isolated and tucked away
it felt cozy warm and friendly
the staff were great
the store was nice
we loved the WCC
pool area was good for what we wanted
we liked seeing the fireworks and parade at nights

observations:
I was suprised how small the parks actually are
I learnt you dont need to do EVERYTHING - do what keeps them happy and not too tired out
choose carefully where you eat
choose your resort carefully - theres definately a couple we went to that I did not like
the place (WDW as a whole) was IMMACULATE! no litter, no butts, wonderful landscaping, amazing staff .... it was great.
bus transportation was easy
we went at a great time of year, I wouldnt want it any busier
it was coolish for us as we're used to more heat but very nice weather if not a little rainy
shop till you drop and get it sent to the resort for pickup, wonderful
the DDP worked very well and was more than enough food for us


we had a totally brilliant time, really loved it. We'll be back in 4 years or so, as we like to travel as much as possible and we definately wouldnt confine ourselves to one place every year as thats not our thing - but I totally understand why people do go every year .... its MAGICAL

 

[DisneyJo]

Great report, can't believe how quick you wrote it though, puts me to shame The photos are lovely, the one of your DS playing with Chip is fabulous!

Hope your arm gets better quickly and you're soon back to your golf

 

[Avivasmom]

Glad you guys had a great trip...the boys just look so happy...love the pics of Spiderman and with Chip on the ground...what a great thing.

Hope you are healing and feeling better.

 

[islandmum]

Great report, can't believe how quick you wrote it though, puts me to shame The photos are lovely, the one of your DS playing with Chip is fabulous!

Hope your arm gets better quickly and you're soon back to your golf

yes shame on you girl!! although yours is far more detailed, and alot of things happened whilst I was heavily medicated so I'm sure I've missed loads LOL!

just had an assessment today - the fracture to my shoulder is in my rotorcuff (sp) which means no golfing for quite a while .... oh well I'll just have to bum out on the beach instead!

 

[Avivasmom]

oh well I'll just have to bum out on the beach instead!

Well that ain't to bad then. Sorry about the shoulder. Do you live on the beach? I know you are on a small island so cannot be to far.

 

[noahdove]

Wow, sorry about your accident, also, I didn't know that there was a place to print out pictures from your memory card.....is that available in all parks??? Aside from the accident, so far you sound as tho you were all enjoying yourselves

 

[islandmum]

Wow, sorry about your accident, also, I didn't know that there was a place to print out pictures from your memory card.....is that available in all parks??? Aside from the accident, so far you sound as tho you were all enjoying yourselves

yep we did have a great time thanks.

At MK and MGM both the Kodak shops right by the gates have self service machines next to the counter where you put any type of memory card in and it'll print them out immediately for you. We loved doing this as we bought a WDW album and then could fill it in each day almost.

 

[noahdove]

I really like that idea. I have an album started from my trip 2 years ago, so I will just take that with me It will be great for the kids I am taking to see,and to decide if they want to do it again i do hope you are healing and that you will be back to normal very soon. I love your pictures and your boys are adorable thanks for sharing...

 

[islandmum]

Well that ain't to bad then. Sorry about the shoulder. Do you live on the beach? I know you are on a small island so cannot be to far.

we live on a hill peninsula so we're surrounded by beaches all round .... we're about 100 ft up but I can hit golf balls into the sea on 2 sides so we're pretty close. Dont want to be right on the beach - sand gets EVERYWHERE!

 

[Macysmom32]

Hi, Islandmum... love your trip report - it's always interesting to hear what someone thinks after their first time there - what it was actuallly like compared to what they thought it would be after all the research/planning. I am soooooo happy that you liked the Wilderness Lodge because, after days of agonizing over the resort choice, I have chosen the WL for a "girls only" trip in Feb. with my Mom and 3year old daughter. I am so excited to stay there!!!!
So sorry to hear about the nightmare in Miami...geez louise, what a way to spend your holiday. What a beautiful family in crocs you have - don't you just love them!!
What island are you from just off of St. Lucia - Martinique, maybe? We love St Lucia, and travel quite a bit, as it seems you do too. Just like you, we love WDW, but can't quite repeat too much, because there are just too many places to go to and see in this awesome world, you know? Anyway, a little info on your island would be helpful if you don't mind. We are looking for a little Caribbean getaway for October of 08, and we don't really like the crowded/touristy islands or all-inclusive hotels, etc. You know what I mean. We like to explore and try new places. Let me know if you can what your little piece of paradise is like. Thanks!!!!

So glad you had FUN!!! - How handsome your boys are!!

 

[islandmum]

Hi, Islandmum... love your trip report - it's always interesting to hear what someone thinks after their first time there - what it was actuallly like compared to what they thought it would be after all the research/planning. I am soooooo happy that you liked the Wilderness Lodge because, after days of agonizing over the resort choice, I have chosen the WL for a "girls only" trip in Feb. with my Mom and 3year old daughter. I am so excited to stay there!!!!
So sorry to hear about the nightmare in Miami...geez louise, what a way to spend your holiday. What a beautiful family in crocs you have - don't you just love them!!
What island are you from just off of St. Lucia - Martinique, maybe? We love St Lucia, and travel quite a bit, as it seems you do too. Just like you, we love WDW, but can't quite repeat too much, because there are just too many places to go to and see in this awesome world, you know? Anyway, a little info on your island would be helpful if you don't mind. We are looking for a little Caribbean getaway for October of 08, and we don't really like the crowded/touristy islands or all-inclusive hotels, etc. You know what I mean. We like to explore and try new places. Let me know if you can what your little piece of paradise is like. Thanks!!!!

So glad you had FUN!!! - How handsome your boys are!!

yep we loved the WL - and would go back there for our next trip, it covered all bases for us.

We live in the Grenadine islands and would recommend either Anguilla or Bequia for a beautiful island retreat if that what you want. Both are stunning in different ways and Bequia especially has no big hotels, I think the biggest is about 30 rooms, and is a yachty place, no beach resorts at all, you just stay somewhere and take your towels onto the beach which is lovely. If I had to choose anywhere in the Caribbean they would be the places I'd go to.

both are small so be prepared for a vacation that just involves lazing about .... its hard work