Pig Pen
To all who have come to this happy place...welcome
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2001
I started a very lengthy trip report a few months ago and never finished due to job upheaval and family matters....so I am attempting a condensed version today since I am "snowed in" and really missing Disney right now!
We drove to WDW in September, dropping my daughter off in Georgia along the way. Initally our plans were to stay at the Dolphin, but we kept changing our vacation dates and I couldn't get the gov't employee rate for the added nights, so we ended up at ASMU the first night, CSR for 2 nights, then the Dolphin for 6 nights.
We arrived in Orlando on Sept 19 at noon. We made a grocery stop at Publix, grabbed some lunch at a fast food place, and checked in at ASMU at 2:00. Check in was quick, our room was in Rock Inn (about as far away from the main lobby as you can possibly be) and we had a parking lot view. Since we were only there one night, we didn't really care.
In order to immediately immerse ourselves in the magic, we took the bus to Epcot, grabbed a snack in Mexico. It was in the 90's and very steamy. We were caught in a torrential downpour and waited it out in Germany (with a couple beers). The park was DEAD!!! No lines, no crowds. We debated staying for Illuminations, but the weather didn't look promising, so we headed back to ASMU, did laundry (after 2 days on the road...), watched Survivor, ate a lite supper out of our cooler, and sat by the pool after the storm passed.
ASMU was typically chaotic. It didn't feel mobbed though. If we had kids we would probably stay there to save money (we had an AP rate of $59), but we are empty nesters.....so......
Day 2 we checked out of ASMU and headed over to Coronado. The lobby and grounds are simply spectacular. I was worried about staying here since it was a "conference" resort. My AP rate was $106 per night for a standard view. Check in was quick again (in fact we were the only people in line).
We were upgraded to Casitas 5313 which is a corner room with a view of the lake, dig site and, way off in the distance, the Swan/Dolphin. It was a long hike again, but the upgraded view was certainly worth it. Our room was ready at 9:00 am and we were on the bus to Animal Kingdom by 10:00.
Again, the park was relatively quiet (compared to past visits). The longest wait was 10 minutes for Safari - and this was mid-day! Primeval Whirl made both of us nauseous and we had to sit on a bench waiting for our stomachs to settle!
We love Dinosaur and Tough to be a Bug. My fave is Lion King, DH always sits in the top row and takes a nap during it.
We have bypassed Kali River Rapids ever since our first AK visit several years ago when we were completely and miserably drenched. I don't mind getting wet, but we were practically drowned!
Flights of Wonder - this was our first time seeing this show and we really enjoyed it. It was relaxing and shaded.
We stopped for ice cream and DH ended up losing the chocolate off his "mouse ears" on the pavement and it was a comedy show watching him trying to clean it up off the front of his shirt.
The weather appeared threatening again, so we returned to our room about 2:30 for snacks. The rain held off so we tried swimming at the Dig Site. The pool is amazing. AND empty! I loved the theming and the atmosphere.
We drove over to AKL for dinner at Boma. We had made a 6:30 pm PS while at AK earlier in the day. We rec'd our pager and took a tour of the grounds while waiting. The resort is impressive, but I found it kind of dark.
Boma is fantastic. We loved everything about it and will definitely return! DH loved the flank steak and zebra domes. My fave was the bread pudding.
We ret'd our car to CSR and hopped a bus to DTD to cap off the evening. This was our first time there and DH loved it.
Up to this point DH has been impressed and amazed by my newly acquired wealth of knowledge about all things Disney. This was our first trip since I found these boards and learned everything I had been missing all these years! This will not be the last time during the trip that DH's jaw dropped.
We drove to WDW in September, dropping my daughter off in Georgia along the way. Initally our plans were to stay at the Dolphin, but we kept changing our vacation dates and I couldn't get the gov't employee rate for the added nights, so we ended up at ASMU the first night, CSR for 2 nights, then the Dolphin for 6 nights.
We arrived in Orlando on Sept 19 at noon. We made a grocery stop at Publix, grabbed some lunch at a fast food place, and checked in at ASMU at 2:00. Check in was quick, our room was in Rock Inn (about as far away from the main lobby as you can possibly be) and we had a parking lot view. Since we were only there one night, we didn't really care.
In order to immediately immerse ourselves in the magic, we took the bus to Epcot, grabbed a snack in Mexico. It was in the 90's and very steamy. We were caught in a torrential downpour and waited it out in Germany (with a couple beers). The park was DEAD!!! No lines, no crowds. We debated staying for Illuminations, but the weather didn't look promising, so we headed back to ASMU, did laundry (after 2 days on the road...), watched Survivor, ate a lite supper out of our cooler, and sat by the pool after the storm passed.
ASMU was typically chaotic. It didn't feel mobbed though. If we had kids we would probably stay there to save money (we had an AP rate of $59), but we are empty nesters.....so......
Day 2 we checked out of ASMU and headed over to Coronado. The lobby and grounds are simply spectacular. I was worried about staying here since it was a "conference" resort. My AP rate was $106 per night for a standard view. Check in was quick again (in fact we were the only people in line).
We were upgraded to Casitas 5313 which is a corner room with a view of the lake, dig site and, way off in the distance, the Swan/Dolphin. It was a long hike again, but the upgraded view was certainly worth it. Our room was ready at 9:00 am and we were on the bus to Animal Kingdom by 10:00.
Again, the park was relatively quiet (compared to past visits). The longest wait was 10 minutes for Safari - and this was mid-day! Primeval Whirl made both of us nauseous and we had to sit on a bench waiting for our stomachs to settle!
We love Dinosaur and Tough to be a Bug. My fave is Lion King, DH always sits in the top row and takes a nap during it.
We have bypassed Kali River Rapids ever since our first AK visit several years ago when we were completely and miserably drenched. I don't mind getting wet, but we were practically drowned!
Flights of Wonder - this was our first time seeing this show and we really enjoyed it. It was relaxing and shaded.
We stopped for ice cream and DH ended up losing the chocolate off his "mouse ears" on the pavement and it was a comedy show watching him trying to clean it up off the front of his shirt.
The weather appeared threatening again, so we returned to our room about 2:30 for snacks. The rain held off so we tried swimming at the Dig Site. The pool is amazing. AND empty! I loved the theming and the atmosphere.
We drove over to AKL for dinner at Boma. We had made a 6:30 pm PS while at AK earlier in the day. We rec'd our pager and took a tour of the grounds while waiting. The resort is impressive, but I found it kind of dark.
Boma is fantastic. We loved everything about it and will definitely return! DH loved the flank steak and zebra domes. My fave was the bread pudding.
We ret'd our car to CSR and hopped a bus to DTD to cap off the evening. This was our first time there and DH loved it.
Up to this point DH has been impressed and amazed by my newly acquired wealth of knowledge about all things Disney. This was our first trip since I found these boards and learned everything I had been missing all these years! This will not be the last time during the trip that DH's jaw dropped.
I'm looking forward to the rest! Enjoy the snow--I bet it is beautiful up there! 
