Chapter 24: Day Six, Return to the Magic Kingdom
Day six finds us returning to Magic Kingdom. No early ADR today, so we'll arrive for rope drop. Priority today will be thrill rides. Not that we won't have done them on our first visit, but today will be our mountain day -- Splash, Space, Big Thunder. Multiple rides if that's what they want.
In the past, on this day I take Ches and we hit the characters. However, I'm pretty sure my wee one is no longer wee and she's going to be all about thrill rides this trip. Maybe I can talk Tater into being my character buddy. While I like each of those rides, I have no desire to do them more than once per day, and in the case of Space & Big Thunder, I'd be OK doing them only once per trip.
So I'll walk around to the Mountains and take photos while my family rides. After they've got their fill, it's going to be Pirates and Haunted Mansion time. I think those two rides are truly full of the magic of Disney. Now these I could ride all day.
Also on today's touring plan: Jungle Cruise (Dan loves but I would skip it), Magic Carpets (nostalgia... it was Chesney's favorite ride our last two trips), and Hall of Presidents. I'm pretty sure that no one except me has been in the Hall of Presidents. I went almost forty years ago. I'm thinking it's been updated since then. Brady will love the HoP. If I had to come up with an attraction Brady would love, it would be HoP. I expect the rest of us might even enjoy it a bit.
I'd like to stay over in that area of the park so we can have an early lunch at Pecos Bill's. If Tortuga Tavern is open, I might slip over there for my lunch. And a couple of kids might join me. Dan will want Pecos Bill's. We can meet in the middle to eat.
We will plan to leave the park early, just after lunch. Back to the car, then back to the resort. Pool. Relax. I'd like to encourage naps.
After an afternoon of rest and relaxation, back in the car. Back to MK. This is the only day I'm definitely planning an afternoon break.
Around 8 pm, we'll get in line for the Tomorrowland Terrace Dessert Party. I am *so* excited for this.
Let me tell you about our previous experiences with fireworks...
In 2004, we were at Magic Kingdom for an e-ride night. Remember those? They were awesome. Anyway, after the fireworks, most of the people in the park would be clearing out, leaving only use e-ride people. So lots of people were watching fireworks, and Dan realized that this would be a great time to get on some of the headline rides. So while the fireworks were going off, we were riding Splash Mountain. Three times in a row. No lines.
It really was pretty cool to go down that mountain and see fireworks in the distance. However, I didn't get to see fireworks that trip.
In 2007, we decided to do Illuminations at Epcot as our big nighttime show. So no Wishes for me.
In 2009, we saved a place at
Disneyland to watch the premiere of Summer Nightastic and the new fireworks show. We sat in our seats for a good 90 minutes... and then someone from Disney told us we'd have to move. Our spot was reserved for VIPs. I found this ridiculous. Disney could have someone there much earlier to tell people that the spot was reserved. Or put up signs. We had a really good spot, by the way. So I had heard that back by It's A Small World was a great spot to watch fireworks, so we hiked over there (Main Street was packed already). Yeah, VIPs only.
I explained to one of the cast members all that had happened to us. He suggested that if he was going to watch them, he'd head for Fantasyland. It was empty there. The fireworks literally surrounded us. We were right there to watch Dumbo and Tink fly. It was really an awesome spot.
Love my photos of the fireworks at Disneyland. Right. There.
But I didn't get to see the show as it was intended, with the castle in the foreground and the fireworks surrounding it (because I was just behind the castle). I did get to see Slash from Guns N Roses. That was pretty awesome. And my kids got to see Selena Gomez, which has made me the coolest mom ever. Still.
This trip, I want to see Wishes. Start to finish. Magical. Tears in the eyes. Therefore, I made reservations for the dessert party as soon as they became available. I could care less that my family is not huge for desserts. Me? Getting my desserts and watching my fireworks. The rest of the family is just there to keep me company.
After the fireworks, I'm thinking we might sneak over to Tomorrowland to let the crowds thin out. We'll have to see what we can do without huge waits. Disney just released park hours and they're open until at least 11 that night, so it's definitely possible.
So we'll stay late, stumble home. Full day, but I'm thinking it's going to be magical.