A Tiki Trip Report Pics Included

[TheRobbs]

sounds like a great trip so far - but what is this Tiki Party? for Poly conceirge? or through your travel agent? sounds kinda interesting.
thanks for sharing

I'd love to tell you about it, but I better not. Its kind of a sore subject for The Dis. Its really too bad, because it was a wonderful event.

Sean

 

[ADP]

Aaron,

Great report so far. I am really enjoying this. Just think, one week today we were playing golf. It was really great meeting you and your family. I can only hope we meet up again in the future..

Sean

It was great meeting you as well Sean. Golfing was a blast. Hopefully, we can do it again sometime.

 

[ADP]

Day 6 Monday, July 30th - Golf at the Magnolia, Lunch with an Imagineer, and Downtown Disney

The alarm went off at 5:45AM as planned. I was pretty excited to get the day started even though it was our last full day at the World. I got dressed and ready for golf and headed down to the Concierge lounge for a cup of coffee.

Our meeting place was the valet station at the front of the Polynesian. When I got there Sean was already present. Steve was not too far behind. The light was just starting to break and we were a little worried about Chris. Apparently, Chris may have experienced a little too much of the Magic Kingdom. The park was open until 3:00AM and Chris may have stayed until 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning.

Chris made it! Whew, just in time! We jumped into a taxi (free transportation to the Disney golf courses from your resort) and were on our way to the Magnolia course. We entered the clubhouse and got checked-in. We proceeded out to the driving range where I noticed the moon and sun were both up. Pretty interesting! I'm a supersticious person so I thought maybe something funny might happen today.

The first thing that struck me as we headed to the first tee as how lucky I was to be playing a round of golf at Disney. To top it off I was out there with an Sean, Steve, and Chris. I knew the day would be terrific. Of course, the next thing that struck me was I forgot my camera. Nooo! I wanted to get some pictures of the course and the gang hitting some golf shots . Oh well, Kim and Anna would get some shots later as they were headed back to Animal Kingdom. I tried to persuade them the night before that they should head to the Studios, but I couldn't get Kim to agree. Oh well, it was her choice.

So we are on the first hole tee box and I think I'm ready to hit. My first shot was down the middle, perfect. My second shot goes a little too far and trickles into the sand trap in the back of the green. Well...This is where it gets funny. My ball was underneath the lip of the sand trap. It took me about 6 shots to finally get my ball out of the sand trap and on the green. I was about to ask Steve for a pale and shovel as I thought making a sand castle would have been a good idea at the time. We played through our round with a few breakfast drinks in between. Before you ask, I choose not to publish my score. I really had a great time golfing. The Magnolia course is spectacular and in incredible shape. Any of you considering golf on your next Disney trip should definately do it.

After our round we headed back to the Polynesian. We had a 2:00PM ADR at Kona Cafe and Sean and Steve were going to dine with us as part of the Lunch with an Imagineer.

While we were golfing Kim and Anna had fun with the camera at Animal Kingdom.

Kim and Anna came back from the Animal Kingdom around 1:00PM. We got changed and ready for our ADR at Kona. We met Steve and Sean at the entrance to Kona and were seated promptly. We really enjoyed our conversation with Sean and Steve. We learned a lot more about them and Disney Imagineering. We even got some insider information about certain attractions under refurbishment. Don't ask, because I'm not telling. By the way, the food was very good as usual. Kona is a great Disney restaurant and I've never had a bad meal there. I had the Island Chicken Sandwich, Kim had the same. Anna had the Kids Mac N' Cheese with fries and a Kona Cone for dessert.

I really enjoyed everything about this meal. We really enjoyed getting to know more about Steve and Sean, and dining with my family. I mean...What could be better than this. Unfortunately, lunch had to come to an end, but it is somthing we will always remember.

We said our goodbyes and figured we would see each other around the resort before we left on Tuesday.

We headed back to the room, picked up a few thing and headed to Downtown Disney. As we were leaving the Poly I saw Terry (SeaSpray) at the valet counter. Her and John were getting ready to leave and head home. I expressed how nice it was too meet them and we shared hugs and handshakes before departing. It was such a joy meeting them!

We picked up a few souveniers for family and friends back home and a few things for Anna at The World of Disney and Team Disney. I really like Team Disney. I prefer the merchandise in this store over The World of Disney. While we were there I wanted to head over to Saratoga Springs Preview Center to check out the new Animal Kingdom Villas Studio and 1 bedroom models. We already owned points at AKV and wanted to see the accomodations up close.

We went to the boat dock and took the boat transportation to SSR. We walked to the preview center and spoke with Tim before entering the models. DVC members can view the models between 5 - 7PM daily. We walked through the models and I have to tell you they are very spacious. I had heard they were spacious but pictures really don't them justice. There is a lot of detail in the tile and woodwork as well.

The DVC guide we spoke with in the models said AKV will have the second largest room accomodations of all the DVC resorts. Old Key West's are the largest.

After our tour of the AKV model villas we headed back to the boat dock for our trip back to DTD. We stopped in the Art of Disney just to brows and decided it was time to leave. We jumped into our car and headed back to the Polynesian.

We arrived back at the Polynesian at 7:00PM. Just enough time to grab a bite or two of the California Roll that was out as part of the Concierge offerings. Kim and Anna headed to the pool for a swim. I went out to join them but did not swim. I sat at a lounge chair and just enjoyed the atmosphere. I saw that Anna was playing with Steve in the pool. Steve & Sean's families were at the pool as well. At 9:00PM we headed for the Polynesian boat dock to watch the Electrical Water Parade. We watched the show and headed back to the Polynesian beach to get our spot for Wishes. Anna had other ideas as she and a few friends she made decided it would be more fun to build a sand castle. The sand castle turned into a giant pile instead. The kids enjoyed making a pile more than a castle. I guess the castle on the other side of the Seven Seas Lagoon was enough for them.

After Wishes we hung around the beach a little more and went to the lounge for a drink and to relax. We reflected on our day and week at Disney and enjoyed just relaxing and sitting together while watching the castle change colors. Another end to another magical day. Tomorrow was our check-out day, but our flight wasn't departing until 5:05PM. I knew we had enough time to squeeze in a little more Disney magic before we departed.

Up Next - A quick Magic Kingdom Trip, our departure, & a reflection of the week.

 

[SeaSpray]

Thanks for another great chapter in your trip report! You have an excellent writing style and it's fun to read your report. I'm so glad that you and your family had such a wonderful trip, and it was my pleasure to be able to meet all of you.

kathymc: The tiki party was a private event that many of us Polynesian fans attended, and was held at Disney Eventually I'll have a page on my web site all about it.

Sean: I'm impressed, you really behaved yourself in answering that question!

 

[ADP]

Day 7 Tuesday, July 31st - Magic Kingdom, check out, & final thoughts

The alarm went off at 8:00AM on our last day. We strolled down to the lounge for some breakfast. I couldn't believe we were checking out today. The week went by so fast as most do at Walt Disney World. It seemed just yesterday that we checked into the Beach Club Villas.

After breakfast Anna and I decided to head to the Magic Kingdom While Kim was packing up and getting everything squared away with Bell Services. She had them hold our luggage until we were ready to leave.

Anna and I decided we would try Laugh Floor one more time, so we headed to Tomorrowland for one more Laugh Floor experience. While sitting in our seats waiting for the show to start up on the big screen pops a picture of me with text below that says "Buying churros for everyone". Of course the audience applauds and I get about 5 pats on the back from the people sitting behind me who say "When are you buying?" Yeah right, I think to myself, this is my last day at Walt Disney World. I don't have enough money to buy for everyone.

Once Kim met up with us at the Magic Kingdom we headed over to Big Thunder for one last ride. The MK was pretty busy so we decided to get fast passes. While we waited for our fast pass time to arrive I noticed the Splash Mountains stand by line was 30 minutes. Not bad! Anna and I decided to hop on while Kim waited for us. We rode Splash which never disappoints, and then headed over to Big Thunder with our fast passes in hand. Our last ride was a thrilling one!

We headed over to Adventureland and as we were walking past Pirates of the Carribean I noticed a few people standing around. I assumed they were waiting for Captain Jack's Pirate Tutorial. I asked what time it started and the CM nearby said in 1 minute. Perfect timing! I had never seen this show before. The show is very entertaining and funny. The Cast Member who plays Jack Sparrow is dead on. He looks just like the real Jack Sparrow in the movie. For those of you who have not seen this show I highley recommend it.

Well, it was getting close to "that time." Time to leave! Aloha Isle was just down the way though! I suggested to Kim and Anna we should stop for one last Dole Whip float. We enjoyed our floats and headed for the exit.

We took the boat launch back to the Polynesian dock. As we walked off the boat dock and passed the pool I saw Steve and Sean. I was glad we had one more opportunity to thank them and wish them well during the rest of their trip.

We made one more stop into the Hawaii building and headed for the Great Ceremonial House to pick up our luggage, car, and head to the airport. We dropped our car off at the Alamo car depot and headed for the luggage check-in. The Airtran check-in desk was a mad house. We decided to step outside to do a curbside check-in. The line was much shorter; however we discovered Airtan's check-in system was down. All I could think was how lucky we were to already have our boarding passes in hand. Fran at the Concierge desk had printed them for us before Anna and I headed to the Magic Kingdom. An Airtran employee came over to us and manually checked our bags in for our trip back to Indianapolis. Thank god for early, online check-in or we might still be at the Airtan terminal in Orlando.

We got to our gate and discovered that our plane was delayed about 45 minutes due to storms in the area. Our flight made it out at 6:00PM. While we were flying back to Indy I asked Kim; "how in the world are we going to top this trip." She agreed, but we decided we'd keep an open mind during our next trip. Who knows...The Magic is everywhere. We arrived back to Indianapolis at 8:00PM.

Looking back we had a fabulous time. I think what makes a trip to Walt Disney World so magical are those unexpected moments you never thought would happen. We had plenty of those moments on this trip. Who knew we'd get a VIP spot for Illuminations, who knew the Tiki Event would be so much fun, who knew the Laugh Floor would be so funny, Who knew I'd be playing 18 holes of golf, and most of all who knew we would meet such great people who share our Disney passion.

Next Trip To WDW - Oct 19th - 28th 2007 - Animal Kingdom Villas & Carribean Beach Resort. Food & Wine Festival, Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party.

 

[scottny]

great finish. It was fun reading your report. Hope you write one for your next trip when you go. Thanks again for sharing.

 

[pooksma]

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. I enjoyed reading about all of your special moments. I'll be watching for the October trippie!

 

[ADP]

great finish. It was fun reading your report. Hope you write one for your next trip when you go. Thanks again for sharing.

Thanks for reading along!

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. I enjoyed reading about all of your special moments. I'll be watching for the October trippie!

Enjoyed sharing it with you.

 

[hayanyujah847]

I loved reading your TR! How cute are your wife & daughter in their Hawaiian themed gear for Ohana!?

Now, tell me, how exactly do I get my boyfriend to love Disney as much as you do?!? lol! jk Men who love Disney as much as you do are such a rarity.

 

[randy4au]

Great report Aaron! My 6yo son rode everything, but the Tower of Terror freaked him out--mainly the Twilight Zone theming than the actual ride (perhaps I shouldn't have taken him there after dark for his first ride, although he seemed to be impressed by the fog we walked through in the queue area).

HUBBA, HUBBA!!! (I'm a married spud...I'm a married spud) That CM is BEAUTIFUL! It's a good thing we didn't eat at Ohana, or I might have wound up in the dog house that night (and there was an oversized dog house in the courtyard outside of our room in the 50's area of Pop Century...situated between the oversized Lady and Tramp...LOL).

 

[ADP]

I loved reading your TR! How cute are your wife & daughter in their Hawaiian themed gear for Ohana!?

Now, tell me, how exactly do I get my boyfriend to love Disney as much as you do?!? lol! jk Men who love Disney as much as you do are such a rarity.

Thanks! I think it would be hard trying to acquire a love for Disney. You either get it or you don't. But, hey...Anything is possible.

Great report Aaron! My 6yo son rode everything, but the Tower of Terror freaked him out--mainly the Twilight Zone theming than the actual ride (perhaps I shouldn't have taken him there after dark for his first ride, although he seemed to be impressed by the fog we walked through in the queue area).
HUBBA, HUBBA!!! (I'm a married spud...I'm a married spud) That CM is BEAUTIFUL! It's a good thing we didn't eat at Ohana, or I might have wound up in the dog house that night (and there was an oversized dog house in the courtyard outside of our room in the 50's area of Pop Century...situated between the oversized Lady and Tramp...LOL).

Thanks randy. I was happy that Anna made it through Tower of Terror. Like your son, my Daughter loved the drop sequence; except for all of the screaming in the back of the elevator. I did enjoy riding with her. I hope she wants to go on during our next visit. Tower of Terror is one of the best themed rides at Disney World.

 

[disneyfan67]

Aaron,



Great trip report it was a pleasure meeting you and several others on that trip. I really mean that. I enjoyed my time at the Poly so much, that looking back I wish I hadn't of done the parks as much as I did. At the end of my 7 night stay, I had nothing left and my tank was empty.

It's taken me a week to recover from all what I did and the sunburn I got at Typhoon Lagoon is now starting to fade, but my memories of that stay never will. I met some really good people on that trip (you included) and that along with staying in a GVC room for 7 nights, made it the best trip to WDW I ever had. My wife and I are going to make the Poly much more part of the vacation and take it easier when touring the parks. What a beautiful resort the Poly is and there's nothing quite like the sights, sounds, and unique smell the resort has when you walk into the GCH for the first time.

I hope to meet all of you again at the Poly and we can take up where we left off. Good times were had by all and I consider myself a lucky man for going to the Poly at that time and being at the fest. I was just amazed how great everyone was and it felt like I knew some of you for a long time. I'm anxiously awaiting the next fest.

Thanks for posting your report.

 

[ADP]

Thanks Eddie,

It was nice meeting you and your family. I wish we had more time to visit. A week at Disney World can be a hectic week. Some of the fastest weeks of my life have been at Disney World.

I'm glad you are recovering from your trip...Trust me, I know what you mean.

I hope we can meet up again at the Poly in the future. That would be great!

 

[Pryncesa]

Great trip report! Thanks for sharing!!