Beauty and Majesty, Shining Magically * Nov '15 TR! UPDATE 2/18

[MidnightParade]

Hi! Following along! Fantastic trip so far!

 

[Gracefulskinny]

We have stayed at Pop before and the longest we have ever waited was 15-20 minutes for a bus. No big deal. Typically the buses at Pop are great - so I don't want anyone to think that our waiting 15-20 minutes was typical because in general we have had very good "bus luck" at Pop!

THis is good to know. And you happen to not be the first person I have heard this from about pop. Its enough to convince DH and I to give Disney Transport a second chance in March. Our experiences at POR with Transportation were down right horrible!

 

[ariane37]

Hey there Ashley, sorry I've been absent while we've been down here in WDW Just wanted to say hi and I'll catch up when we get home!!

 

[Vernie822]

Hi! Following along! Fantastic trip so far!

Thank you for reading!

THis is good to know. And you happen to not be the first person I have heard this from about pop. Its enough to convince DH and I to give Disney Transport a second chance in March. Our experiences at POR with Transportation were down right horrible!

Yes! I had heard that about Pop quite a few times so when we stayed there in June for 4 days, we had a really great experience. This time as well. Bus stops aren't covered but that doesn't bother me too much. For how many people use those buses at that one stop, it's never *too* crazy in my experience. We haven't stayed at POR but we did stay at Coronado Springs and aside from being right near the bus stop, I really didn't like all of the stops internally.

Hey there Ashley, sorry I've been absent while we've been down here in WDW Just wanted to say hi and I'll catch up when we get home!!

Hey Ariane! Hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving and a wonderful time in WDW!

 

[Vernie822]

Hey all! Hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving. We spent time in Ohio with Justin's parents and then had dinner with my family in Pittsburgh.

Now back to our TR..

On Sunday morning I was up around 6:30 to get ready. Our 2 nights at Pop were up and it was on to bigger and better things - Animal Kingdom Lodge! We had brought a six pack of bagels in our suitcases for easy toasting in the morning. So we did that this morning at the Pop food court.

For anyone thinking of doing the same, there are not toasters in the rooms at Pop (there are small refrigerators though) so we just took our bagels in a Ziploc over to the food court. Justin filled up his mug, I filled up my water, and we toasted our bagels. We took them back to the room to eat since we had to get our things together to check out. Justin had brought a jar of peanut butter from home and I just grabbed an individual cream cheese from Everything Pop the night before when Justin bought his mug (the CM was nice and didn't charge us for it) so this worked out easily for us.

Check out was a breeze. We had everything packed up, plus our carryon backpack. We headed out to the resort airline check-in area since they also do the baggage transfers there. The CMs had no problem tagging our bags to send them to AKL.

We also ran back inside to check out at the "check in/out desk" just in case. I had read somewhere that if you are doing a split stay it doesn't hurt to check out, just so they know you are out of your first room and you can get the text that your second room is ready. I don't know how accurate that is, but I figured it didn't hurt. Megan, the CM at the check out desk, said it didn't matter. She was really sweet and helpful. She asked if we were checking out then checking back in - it was the first day of Free Dining so I imagine a lot of people were doing that.

The whole check out/baggage process was a breeze and only took about 15 minutes. By 8:15, we were in line for a bus to Animal Kingdom! And a bus appeared pretty quickly.

While we were in line, we were behind a really nice family with a mom, dad, 5 or 6 year old girl, and baby sister. The mom turned around and asked us if we would be here for the week and we said yes. She offered us 3 rider switch passes since this would be their last day.

This was SO sweet and kind of them! I think their last name was Bass (from the tag on their stroller). So thank you, Bass family, for sprinkling some pixie dust! It was unnecessary but very much appreciated - we now had 3 bonus FP's to use that week.

We arrived around 8:40 and they were letting everyone scan to enter the park, but they held everyone at the Tree of Life for just a few minutes (around 8:45). This was the crowd behind us:

If I recall, they did a sort of small little opening ceremony with an announcement and some birds flying out. Maybe a firework or two - I wish I remembered. I didn't know they did one so it caught me off guard!

We had FP's for Everest, the Safari, and I think Dinosaur, but we decided to stick with our plan from last time and get to Everest first.

Ah, I love this view! Entering Asia with EE off in the distance.

Justin and I both have really come to enjoy this ride, FP or not. But it's always great when you can get in the park and get on it right away.

We got to it super quickly and had virtually no wait, we were on the second or third train of the day. There were some younger girls on the very first train and they were sooooo excited.

After that, we headed towards the Safari. The pathway from Asia to Africa was virtually empty, so we stopped at Photopass person to grab some pictures.

There was a family getting their photo taken - a few generations - I think it was grandma, grandpa, their two adult sons and their families. 3 or 4 little kids. The PP guy spent a lot of time with them, did individual shots, etc. I'm sure they got a ton of nice pictures!

(My hair today had already had enough!!! Lol)

We did the Safari after that. Again, no wait, so we switched some FP's around. We honestly don't ride a ton at Animal Kingdom, I won't do anything in Dinoland because it makes me wanna hurl, so last trip we discovered that if we rope drop AK, we can get our favorites done and just use FP's elsewhere that day.

After that we went and visited the gorillas. Justin really likes animals so he always likes to walk the trails and see different animals.

This little guy was adorable!


We did It's Tough to be a Bug next. Justin had never seen it because it was down for refurb last fall and we forgot about it this summer. So I was excited for him to see it for the first time. The only part I hate is the beginning where you're all crammed into one room before they let you into the theater. Holy claustrophobic! I warned him that little kids often hate this show and he definitely agreed.. we had a few criers in the room! I love this show though, especially at the end. It's cute and it's worth checking out.

Next, we did something we have never done before - Flights of Wonder. We always casually pass by and I NEVER bring it up because I HATE BIRDS. Hate, hate, hate. I am terrified of them and I don't really know why. My brother had two pet parakeets for a while growing up. Until my sister fed one of them candy corn and then we only had one.. But they were harmless, aside from the day we first got them when my mother was convinced they "needed exercise" and we wound up chasing them around the house. Yeah, they never needed exercise after that.

Anyways, I was terrified from a young age when I was doing homework in the basement one Sunday morning and a bird just swooped in and flew around the room. From then on, scared. So Flights of Wonder was never really my thing. But Justin asked if we'd ever seen it, I said no, and he said let's give it a try. We were able to stop by the restrooms, grab a drink, and make it in for the 10:45 show.

I agreed to go, as long as I could sit in the way back.

The show was actually quite entertaining. The birds were trained extremely well and the CM's who put on the show were funny and engaging. It was definitely a good use of our time.

There was one audience member trick where they asked if anyone had a dollar. A guy a few rows back said he had one. So they had him get it out and stand up, and the bird was (I think) supposed to fly in, get the dollar, and leave.. or fly in and sit on his arm, I'm not sure. The bird flew in.. parked it right on his arm.. and started.. "loving" him. Of course the kids had no idea but all of the adults were laughing hysterically. SO FUNNY. The trainer just called him back and made a joke about it.

Then there was another bird who just had to.. Let it Go, I guess.. right in the middle of the air.. thankfully I don't think it landed on anyone but the stage but that definitely added some entertainment to the show.

We hung around Dinoland for a little as Justin and I didn't really explore it much on previous visits. The carnival theme is cute, but growing up with Kennywood (a great amusement park in Pgh) nearby, I kind of was used to the carnival games and cheesy prizes. We ended up deciding there to cancel our FP's and move them to Hollywood Studios which is where we'd be that evening.

I snuck a few pictures inside the Rivers of Light curtains.. Right before I was carted off in handcuffs.. (Kidding)

I can't WAIT until this is done! Yes, AK is a 1/2 day park for some. We could spend longer there but we just haven't yet. We are kinda good with spending a morning there, rope dropping, getting everything we want done, having lunch, and heading back for a nap. Not to mention it's hotter than the surface of the sun.

After a while, we were HOT and HUNGRY! Our ADR for Yak and Yeti was at 12:30 but we asked if we could check in a little early and they had no problem with that.

I had a $50 gift card from work after cashing in some "appreciation points" for a gift card.

Justin and I were really hungry so we decided to share an appetizer here. We had the ahi tuna nachos last time, which are amazing, but this time I let him choose and he chose the pork pot stickers.

We both had Diet Coke to drink. With paper straws, of course!

For an entree, he chose the sweet and sour chicken. He had this last time and really enjoyed it. It comes with brown or jasmine rice, but he chose to change that to fried rice for a $2 upcharge.

I had the tempura shrimp with vegetables and coconut-curry rice, although I switched to fried rice as well. In hindsight, I should have stuck with the original rice since I think the flavors would've meshed better.

Justin ate most of my rice because pulling off the shrimp and de-tailing them took me forever, so he was finished and still hungry by the time I was finished with my shrimp. In return I ate his pineapple and vegetables that came with his. The portions are a perfectly acceptable size here, but for someone with a big appetite, they may seem a bit small. I was hungry a few hours later, mostly because of the heat and a small breakfast.

The shrimp were really delicious, they were tempura fried nicely and were crisp, not soggy. The vegetables that came with it were also really good. Justin likes his sweet and sour chicken, I had a piece and it was definitely yummy.

We really wanted to try the cream cheese won tons, but the service here was spotty and our server kept disappearing. He was really nice but just not very on top of things. Our meal took about 90 minutes so at that point I was kind of over dessert and just wanted to get back to AKL to check out our new room!

A quick pic on the way out...

We waited a bit for a bus here but once we were on it, we were at our new "home" pretty quickly!

Up next, we say "Jambo" to Animal Kingdom Lodge, Kidani Villas.
​

 

[DVC Nicole]

Congratulations on your proposal
Amazing pictures !

~Nicole
#dvcrentals

 

[Vernie822]

Congratulations on your proposal
Amazing pictures !

~Nicole
#dvcrentals

Thanks, Nicole!!

 

[disneyguy4life]

Lovin it so far! I love AKL. It is an amazing resort. I can't wait to hear more about your experience there.

 

[Vernie822]

After our day at Animal Kindgom, it was about 2 PM by the time we got to AKL. We checked with the front desk to see if our room was ready because we hadn’t received a text. Our room was ready but our bags would not arrive for a while. So a tip to people doing split stays: if you are relying on Disney to transport your bags from one resort to another, you may be without them for quite a while. It was not a problem for us (we just wanted to relax for a bit), but for parents with small children who may want to swim or nap, you may want bags other than the few things you have in the park.

The lobby here is gorgeous.

If you entered through the main doors at Kidani, through the lobby, our room was to the right, #7237. It was maybe a 4 minute walk to the lobby, and we were on the same floor. It was nice not to worry about going up or down on the elevator to get to the lobby. This came in handy as when we got off the bus we could just go through the lobby, fill up Justin’s mug, and head to our room.

We first explored our studio villa. I was SO excited to finally stay Deluxe at Disney!

When we walked in, to the left was the bathroom, and to the right, a little kitchenette.


The kitchenette had a small refrigerator. The cabinet down below had a trash can. The sink was great to have and there was a little thing of dish soap and a sponge. We also had our own coffee maker which I think I used a couple times. There’s also a microwave and the upper cabinets had some glasses, paper plates, napkins, and plastic utensils. We also had a toaster. Perfect for us but I can understand why a family would take full advantage of a 1 BR with a full kitchen.

The bathroom had a huge vanity with one sink (not sure why there isn’t two) and lots of storage space underneath. To the right upon walking into the bathroom was the tub/shower combo.

To the left of walking into the bathroom was the “toilet room” which just had a toilet and a trash can. There was a hair tie on the floor (a pink sparkly one.. so not mine haha) when we walked in, but otherwise the room was extremely clean.

Also to the right upon walking in, right before the main living area, was the closet. An ironing board, safe, and I think some extra pillows/blankets were in there.

The main living area was so pretty. We had a nice big queen bed, to the left of the doorway, with the couch to the right. The couch pulls out to a sleeper sofa that can sleep two more people.

Now, one thing I really like about the Poly that I didn’t like as much about AKL: the Poly had a nightstand on either side. AKL only had one on one side of the bed. So for the side I slept on, I had to get out of bed, wiggle along the wall space (it wasn’t that big) and fiddle around for the light switch, in the dark. Whereas at the Poly I could just roll over and turn the light on if I needed to. Minor thing but just something to point out.

Here's the couch. This pulls out into a sleeper sofa.

There was also a nice little ottoman/table. And a table with two chairs as well as a TV cabinet, and an extra cabinet for hanging clothes.

We did not have a Savannah view, the studio we rented was just Standard view. Of course an upgrade would’ve been amazing but that’s not what we paid for so we were perfectly happy with our parking lot balcony.

We were kind of go-go-go these few days so we didn’t spend much time on the balcony.

I loved the carpet!

We also decided to explore the grounds to see what the pool was like. Justin’s a “nap during the day” kinda guy where I’d rather sit by the pool with a cocktail, soaking up the sun, maybe getting 10-15 minutes of shut eye. So I wanted to check that out. Justin also wanted to see the fitness center.


We went outside through the lobby and continued to the right of the lobby (bus stop is to the left) to get to the fitness center and pool area.

The gym had plenty of cardio and weight machines, as well as some free weights. Definitely a very nice gym! Justin intended on maybe using it, but with all of the walking that's done at Disney, I didn't really expect us to make it there (we didn't.)

The pool area was really neat. A little quieter, it seems, than the Jambo house pool. There was also a really nice jacuzzi area and a waterslide. We intended to get there but unfortunately we never did.

Zero entry area:

The pool bar seemed pretty cool! I noticed Mickey pretzels on their menu.

Overall, AKL had a TON of stuff to do. The lobby had a big bulletin board with all of the day’s activities listed. In hindsight, I wish I would’ve planned more time here. We did have one evening the next night of ‘downtime’ but it was rainy and we honestly couldn’t do too much aside from our dinner ADR. Next time we are at AKL I want to make sure we spend more time there - we never made it to the pool, or the jacuzzi area.

Typically we are commando/go go go type of vacationers with very little downtime, and the downtime we do take is usually a half hour to an hour catnap to get out of the sun and relax. In the future, if we stay deluxe, I think we'll plan at least one day where we have nothing to do to explore the resort. When we stayed at the Poly, we definitely spent more time at the resort. AKL has so much to do that if you're ever planning a "resort heavy" trip, it's the perfect place to stay!

After that, we hopped on a bus to Hollywood Studios to catch the Osborne Lights and have dinner at 50's Prime Time.. ​

 

[Vernie822]

We took our own private Disney tour bus to the Studios and arrived around 4:30. Really it wasn't private but I guess no one else at AKL wanted to go to DHS that evening. Either that or we stunk since we didn't have our luggage and hadn't freshened up.. I'm gonna go with the first one.

We first encountered some Magic Band troubles, and it was not the first time. Fortunately our MB's did not give us any real issues - we had only ordered one for each of us, since we didn't feel the need to get 3 (one for each hotel stay) considering I already had 3 MBs at home and Justin had 2. Justin had an AP from a previous trip and I had just upgraded my 7 day ticket to an AP. From his first day, his finger scan was not working and a CM manager even came out to assist (which meant taking a picture of Justin with his iPad, lol). Each time, eventually he'd turn green, but every morning it gave us issues. Had no problems charging to the room, though!

Loved these cute Christmas decorations in the store window!

It's still different seeing the Chinese theater without the hat in front.

There were EMH until 10 PM that night, so we were mainly here to see the lights and have dinner at 50's Prime Time. Since we still had 3 hours to kill, and I was hungry, we decided to grab snack before staking out a spot for the lights.

I had something sweet in mind, and the perfect place to find that something sweet was Writer's Stop.

It's super small inside, and was quite busy, but the CM's move quickly. They have lots of hot coffee/espresso offerings, and some cold ones, too.

And lots of yummy sweet treats.

These little brownies always look delicious.

Look at these HUGE peanut butter cookies!

But I decided on an old cult favorite of mine, the carrot cake cookie sandwich.

I seriously adore this thing. I grabbed it to go, because Justin wanted to grab his "snack" from somewhere he'd been dying to try.

Pizza Planet! I had not been here for years (we definitely begged our parents to eat here as kids). It does not get rave reviews, but it's perfectly acceptable for a quick service meal in my opinion.

Justin had intended to order just the pepperoni pizza with an ice water, but instead the CM rang up a bottled water and a pepperoni pizza meal (comes with Caesar salad). When we let him know that wasn't what we wanted (we hadn't even paid yet) he said he had already put it through. Which sounds like a load of crap but we're not really ones to argue so we paid our $13 and moved on.

We found a seat and sat down to enjoy our "snack" of pizza, salad, and carrot cake.

Justin didn't love the pizza. He said it was obviously frozen (I hated to break it to him but I hope he didn't expect Buzz and Woody to be back there hand tossing the pizzas haha) but he ate it anyways and said it was fine. The Caesar was good, standard but wasn't soggy or drowning in dressing.

I just had a sliver of my carrot cake cookie and saved the rest for breakfast over the next few days. These are HUGE and easily shared.

We left Pizza Planet and headed towards Streets of America. Here is the area for the Merry and Bright dessert party.

We were considering the party, but honestly, I didn't think it would be worth it for us. We wanted to walk around and experience the lights. We only had 1 evening planned here. And I don't think I could justify the price tag for us, maybe someday but on this long of a trip I would rather spend the money on a meal. Just my two cents, but I would love to try a dessert party sometime!

A nearly empty area before the lights came on:

We then found a spot on the street about 40 minutes before the lights started. They turn on at 6 pm. We sat down and were right against the ropes. We didn't intend on trying to stake out a front row seat, but the way it worked out, we were right in front of where the special guest of the night turned the lights on.

We had planned on trying to ride something but I didn't want to force our way through the crowds to see the lights and we didn't really think it was worth it to leave the Streets of America area. I'm glad we stayed because the area filled up VERY quickly and before we knew it, it was wall to wall people.

Osborne Lights Selfie (we always joke about Sheldon Cooper's smile on Big Bang Theory.. So Justin always jokingly smiles like him and I crack up every time).

And out came Santa Goofy to turn on the lights with a sweet little girl dressed like Minnie, and her sister (or maybe her aunt?)

And they were ON!!

We did get another nice picture in front of the toy soldiers, I'll have to find that one!

I am SO GLAD we were able to see these for our first and final time on this trip. Being there was truly magical. I might have even cried. It really put me in the Christmas spirit and it was amazing to watch. I hope you all have had the chance to see them at some point, because they are so awesome!

After we walked through the lights, we decided to try and make it to the Fantasmic! starting at 6:30 (or maybe it was 7? I can't recall).. so that's up next! ​

 

[disneyguy4life]

Lucky! You know I have never been to see the Osborne lights. Sadly I never will now. You are very lucky. I look forward to you next update. You and Justin make a very cute couple by the way. I love the Sheldon smile pretty funny! Being a goofball makes life more interesting. You can't take it seriously all the time. Especially on a WDW vacation.

 

[Vernie822]

We headed to Fantasmic! after checking out the Osborne Lights. I hadn’t really planned on Fantasmic! but after we had seen what we wanted to from the lights (I could’ve wandered through there all night) we decided to go check out the show. When we were younger we always saw Fantasmic, but we also always spent at least 1 day at HS, and now, we are usually finished there by afternoon. So we decided to head down to see the 7 PM show. Due to EMH that night there was also an 8:30 show.

I know a lot of people suggest getting a FP+ for this whether it be through the regular FP system, or a dining package. I have to agree, having a FP for this would’ve been great, especially for those with young kids. We went on a whim this night so no FP+! Oddly enough, we didn't even use any FP that day.


We probably got there 15 minutes before the show started. The theater was pretty packed but we didn’t have much of an issue finding a seat. There were definitely plenty of people there but for us, two adults, we could see just fine. I can absolutely see how some may like the reassurance of a guaranteed FP+ seat that is in the middle of the crowd. We were over to the right. We didn’t mind since we kind of just filed in with the rest of ‘em to the next available seat.

The Fantasmic show was as cute as I remember it. I’m glad we saw it, but we agreed it’s not something we have to do every time we’re there. I love the parade at the end w/ all of the characters.

We made it out quickly (we were towards the back) but I imagine it took a while to get out of there from the front of the theater. So a word of caution – I wouldn’t book anything right after Fantasmic since it does take a while to exit. We made it back towards 50’s Prime Time and checked in at 7:35 for our 7:50 ADR. So if you’re keeping track, Fantasmic is approximately 25 minutes long and 10 minutes later we were checking in to 50’s. Not bad!


We waited until 8:10 for our name to be called, it was craziness in there that night. Which I expected, because the lights had just opened up a few days prior and there were EMH. Justin had never eaten here before, but it was my second time. He really likes comfort foods so I thought he would get a kick out of this place. He at first didn’t totally understand the sassy Aunt or Cousin we had but he eventually warmed up to the idea.


I ordered the Sampler, which includes fried chicken, pot roast, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and green beans ($21.99):

Justin decided on the meatloaf (although our server tried to steer him from it, that boy loves his meatloaf) which included meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and green beans. He deemed it better than mine (this was $15.99):

These were both delicious and got a two thumbs up from both Justin and I. My portion was HUGE (there was a chicken leg under the chicken breast) and realistically we probably could've just split the sampler. Justin ended up eating my meatloaf and my chicken leg since I wasn't going to finish. But both were yummy and we'll definitely be back again sometime.

We were in and out of 50’s Prime Time in a little under an hour. Our total was only around $38 pre-tip. We headed back to our resort and grabbed our bags from the luggage desk since we had not yet got them. I want to say they said they could deliver them to our room!? Not sure. Perhaps we made this split stay a little more time-consuming than we had to, but it all worked out with no issues so we were happy about that.

Before I leave off with this evening, I’ll mention that we had an ADR for Boma the next morning. Earlier that day, we switched it to 7:35 so that we could be up and at ‘em early and back to Hollywood Studios for Rope Drop!​

 

[disneyguy4life]

I love Fantasmic!! It is a great show!!! Yeah I would agree... if you don't care about prime setting then it doesn't matter if you have a fastpass or not. Just go with the flow. I can't wait to get back there and see it again.

 

[SnowWhiteOz]

AKL looks amazing - I'm still a little disappointed I wasn't able to get a room there using DVC but I'm sure Wilderness Lodge will be just as good . I'm doing split stay too next time - so I'm a little concerned with all the logistics of it - so I might have to pick you brain for tips on doing it wisely.

And the Osborne lights look incredible. I'm a massive Christmas fan and am timing next year's trip so that I can see MK done up for Christmas but it would have been nice to see something like the Osborne lights too.

50's Prime Time was one of my favourites last trip - the fried chicken is delicious and that PB&J shake is pretty tasty too!

 

[kastoney]

Looks like you all had a great day at AK. I had no idea they did a rope drop thing either, but I'm rarely there at rope drop time either ; ) Great pixie dust to get those rider switch passes too!

Love your room at AKL. I'd never seen the inside of one of the studios before. They do look spacious, but I imagine trying to shimmy out of bed was not a lot of fun. If you go again, definitely take some time to savor it. We did a few of the activities a couple of trips ago and had a great time doing it.

Glad you all got to see the Osbourne lights before they are gone. Sadly we'll never get to see them so I have to live through others photos ; )

 

[ariane37]

I didn't realize this was your first time seeing the lights This was our 3rd time but DS10 has no memory of the 1st time as he was only 2. I am SO glad we were able to see them one more time and very glad you guys did!! I was reading a thread on here last night and a few people were saying the lights are outdated, boring, etc. and I couldn't disagree more. I think they're beautiful and, along with the Holiday Storytellers in Epcot, really get you in the holiday mood

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Following along! We just got back from a stay at AKL to enjoy all the Christmas festivities. Our next trip will probably be during Food and Wine so I have enjoyed reading about your experience so far.

Sounds like you were smart to get to the lights before they were lit up. I wish we would have done that as it was a madhouse when we went. I still got to enjoy the lights though and I am sad that this is their last year.

 

[Vernie822]

Omg, YOU GUYS.. I am AWFUL at updating this thing, haha!! I have got to get better at it. I definitely have been updating the dining report over this - oops.

I love Fantasmic!! It is a great show!!! Yeah I would agree... if you don't care about prime setting then it doesn't matter if you have a fastpass or not. Just go with the flow. I can't wait to get back there and see it again.

I just love Fantasmic too! Might not be an every trip thing but every other for sure.

AKL looks amazing - I'm still a little disappointed I wasn't able to get a room there using DVC but I'm sure Wilderness Lodge will be just as good . I'm doing split stay too next time - so I'm a little concerned with all the logistics of it - so I might have to pick you brain for tips on doing it wisely.

And the Osborne lights look incredible. I'm a massive Christmas fan and am timing next year's trip so that I can see MK done up for Christmas but it would have been nice to see something like the Osborne lights too.

50's Prime Time was one of my favourites last trip - the fried chicken is delicious and that PB&J shake is pretty tasty too!

Yes, the split stay was great! We wanted to do a split w/ AKL and Wilderness Lodge but ended up at the Poly instead. I'm sure WL will be fantastic! Let me know if you have any questions. Honestly it was seamless with the exception of not having our bags during the day (which we figured would happen).

I have got to try that PBJ shake sometime. Yummmmm.

Looks like you all had a great day at AK. I had no idea they did a rope drop thing either, but I'm rarely there at rope drop time either ; ) Great pixie dust to get those rider switch passes too!

Love your room at AKL. I'd never seen the inside of one of the studios before. They do look spacious, but I imagine trying to shimmy out of bed was not a lot of fun. If you go again, definitely take some time to savor it. We did a few of the activities a couple of trips ago and had a great time doing it.

Glad you all got to see the Osbourne lights before they are gone. Sadly we'll never get to see them so I have to live through others photos ; )

We always *try* for rope drop but generally we walk in 15 minutes after the park has opened, lol, so that was a pleasant surprise. I think next time we stay at AKL we'll limit our park time, there is just so much to do there that I wish we would've spent more time there.

I didn't realize this was your first time seeing the lights This was our 3rd time but DS10 has no memory of the 1st time as he was only 2. I am SO glad we were able to see them one more time and very glad you guys did!! I was reading a thread on here last night and a few people were saying the lights are outdated, boring, etc. and I couldn't disagree more. I think they're beautiful and, along with the Holiday Storytellers in Epcot, really get you in the holiday mood

I am so glad you got to see them one last time, too! So amazing. I didn't think they were outdated at all. I am anxious to hear if, in future years, they end up elsewhere (or something similar).

Following along! We just got back from a stay at AKL to enjoy all the Christmas festivities. Our next trip will probably be during Food and Wine so I have enjoyed reading about your experience so far.

Sounds like you were smart to get to the lights before they were lit up. I wish we would have done that as it was a madhouse when we went. I still got to enjoy the lights though and I am sad that this is their last year.

Thanks for reading! We loved Food and Wine, there are so many yummy little things to try. So sad that this is the last year for the lights, but I am so glad we got to see them! We had no idea that lining up that early would be crucial but I am glad we did it.

 

[afwdwfan]

Hey there... apparently I missed you starting your TR about 2 months ago. In my defense, I know I was out of town when you started it. Anyway, I managed to start reading along and I'll have to finish catching up later.

He also loves Toy Story Midway Mania and Buzz Lightyear, mainly because with no effort he beats me EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. (Spoiler alert, I beat him big time this trip )

It's good to see how much stress a relationship can handle before there's a wedding.

There were two of us so we only received 2 waffles and 2 biscuits, but I think we had at least 12 pieces of bacon!

As long as there's plenty of bacon. That's what matters!

Of course, I stopped to take a few Christmas decoration pictures because I was IN AWE!

Pretty awesome, isn't it?

I made a habit this week out of taking a screen shot of MDE, then saving it as my phone background. This helps because then I can put my phone on airplane mode, conserve battery, and glance at this instead of opening up my app!

That's a great idea! I noticed my phone battery was draining ridiculously fast between going in and out of cell coverage and constantly searching for wifi... I think my phone dropped to like 20% before lunch one day in MK.

On our way back through Fantasyland, we met the Hairy Dogfather! Er, the Fairy Godmother. Ok, I did. Justin was not as enthused at the less than 5 minute wait. She told me she loved my shirt!

I like the new name! And I like your shirt too. Can't go wrong with Wishes.

We decided to try all three food items offered at the Canada booth. The Le Cellier wild mushroom filet with truffle butter ($7.50), Canadian cheddar cheese soup ($4.25)

This is all you need and you've got a perfect lunch.

Confusing, I know. We waited in line to order and pay for our beer for 20 minutes.

The line to pick up the beer? WE WAITED FOR 40 MINUTES. Everyone was pretty irate that the folks in the other line were basically cutting all of us and the workers didn't seem to care. Oh well.

Holy crap. An hour for a flight of beer? Forget this, I'm going next door to Cava de Tequila!

Justin HATES when I try to take our picture so in the first two, he was not having it.

Then I took the one on the bottom left, and I about died laughing. I asked him why he would make that face. And he said "I was trying to smile!"

I feel his pain.

So we decided to walk! Neither of us really ever mind walking, especially in Disney with all of the scenery.

It is a beautiful walk. I might have made it 1 or 4 times one night...

It took us maybe 15-20 minutes from the boat dock at HS to the front door of Flying Fish. And we beat the boat by a long shot!

I like the boat ride. But it is so slow.

I was SOOOO excited to see the MK all lit up at night for Christmas!

Even better than the day time decorations, isn't it?

The All-American Sundae!

Always my choice too.

Seriously that is one awesome sundae. I also LOVE peanut butter and chocolate together

Until she got a second wind about halfway home and started dancing and chatting my ear off hahaha. She was adorable and I enjoyed talking to her - but I did feel terrible that her mom and dad (among other parents on the bus) had to stand with their little ones while a bunch of teenagers sat.

That's frustrating. I always just plan to stand, regardless. I was getting on a full bus at MK one night and it frustrated me seeing so many younger people just plopping down. And there were a few parents with strollers too who just sat down with strollers in the middle of the aisle so that people couldn't get through. I was standing in the back half of the bus and there wasn't anyone standing within 10 feet of me because they couldn't get past the strollers. I've been on a bus with a stroller myself, but I at least try to hold it up or get it out of the way so that people can at least get through. Its things like this and the people butting in front at the parade that bother me. I was kind of an a hole to some people at a parade one night myself. But I'd been holding my spot for 30 minutes so I really don't care what they thought of me!

 

[Vernie822]

Sorry all, I have been neglecting this! On a positive note, I finished my dining report? I'm going to do my best to get this one moving!

Since we were staying at AKL, I wanted to take full advantage of the awesome restaurants on site. Unfortunately we did not get to Jiko this trip, but we did get to both Boma and Sanaa (on the same day, actually.)
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On Monday, We were up before the crack of dawn as per usual and ready to go. Originally, our Boma ADR had been for 8:10 but my early bird of a fiance asked me to push it up because he knew we’d be ready earlier and he did NOT want to miss rope drop at Hollywood Studios -- who are you and what have you done with Justin!? I have created a monster! So the night before I had bumped it up to 7:35 AM, thinking we would be there in plenty of time. Mm hmm.​

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We left our room around 7:10 with 25 minutes to spare). Knowing that Boma was at Jambo and we were staying at Kidani, we figured we would walk. That’s usually our thing in Disney – if we can walk there, we’ll do it. Never know what you will see or find along the way. So we decided to do just that, except when we got to the end of our floor at Kidani, we couldn’t find our way out of the building. Seriously!? So we walked back to the lobby.. I told Justin I had read online that you can take the bus from Kidani to Jambo, since it stopped there before exiting AKL for the parks. Yep.​

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So, we get on a bus to Animal Kingdom. Justin looked at me like “I sure hope you’re right or we’re going to Animal Kingdom” – surprise! We were going to Animal Kingdom! Oops – so we got off the bus and asked if the driver was going back to AKL and he said “Nope, All Star Sports.” Ok. So we high tailed it all the way over to where the AKL bus stop was and basically RAN towards a bus… got there and it was empty. So we stood there and a driver came up and told us to hop on. He was much friendlier than the last driver and explained to us that people complained about multiple internal stops, so until 11 AM, they ran separate buses. I guess it makes sense – I mean I wouldn’t want 6 or 7 internal stops but I don’t think 1 is too bad.​

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So much for simply walking over to Jambo that morning.​

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We got back to AKL where we then had to get in and find Boma (another challenge in itself). I like to think I am a pretty prepared (and always on time) person, but not this time! Haha. We finally got to Boma around 7:50. ​

We were 15 minutes late but they had no problem seating us, seeing as half of WDW was still asleep and the restaurant was 1/3 full. They laughed at me when I asked if they could still seat us! No cancellation charge here and we were just fine.

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The buffet is $22.99 for adults and $12.99 for children. Ohana was $29.99 per adult – so $7 more for the character interaction. But Boma has more food choices, so.. to each their own.​

Boma is a beautiful restaurant. I really enjoyed Tusker House last March, and I had read many people’s reviews saying Boma was just as good if not better. Justin and I both ordered a glass of POG juice (our new absolute favorite) and headed to the buffet.

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First of all, the people at this restaurant were SO NICE. We had multiple people behind the buffet walk up to us and ask us how we were, where we were staying, etc. Very friendly!​

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We started at the end of the buffet where they have all of the carved meats (to the right if you are facing the buffet). I meant to take some pictures of the buffet, but I totally forgot. I was still flustered from our bus experience.​

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I started with some oak grilled asparagus and tomatoes, ham and Boma mustard (delicious), breakfast potatoes, bacon, French toast bread pudding with pecan praline sauce (ONE OF THE BEST DISNEY BREAKFAST ITEMS EVER), a Simba waffle, and a French toast stick.​

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My absolute favorite thing on this plate was the bread pudding, hands down. The ham with Boma mustard was also really really good. The potatoes were seasoned nicely and were a good break from the typical breakfast potatoes found at Disney. The Simba waffle was delicious of course, and the French toast stick was average but good. I really liked the oak grilled asparagus and tomato. The bacon was fine, normal Disney bacon.​

Justin’s first plate consisted of: Ham with Boma mustard, sausage links, breakfast potatoes, scrambled eggs with ham and cheese, French toast sticks with chocolate syrup, and bacon. He really liked everything on his plate. Except for the eggs where the chocolate sauce got into. He thought it was syrup but he didn’t mind the chocolate. He loves the sausage at Disney and really liked the eggs and ham the most. He also thought the breakfast potatoes had a nice seasoning.

My second plate was all about the carbs. I kind of just nibbled at each item except for the bread pudding, I think I ate all of that.​

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Other offerings on that side of the buffet included: bagels, toast, donuts (nothing special), fruit, yogurt, granola, oatmeal with all of the accompaniments, little muffins, little danishes, croissants, cereal, cottage cheese, etc. The first side of the buffet (where we got our first plates) had oak grilled veggies and meats, sausage, bacon, biscuits and gravy, countless waffles, french toast, etc. They definitely have something for everyone, no matter what kind of breakfast you usually like.

We definitely felt as if this was a great option for breakfast. I don’t know if I’d make the trip here if I wasn’t staying at AKL. Maybe if I had a car, but it just seems like a far way to go for breakfast. If we did it on a “day off” then maybe. I definitely want to return here, because everything we ate was delicious! Reminded me a bit of Tusker House, but much more calm, and no characters. So if you ‘re a TH fan and you’re in the area, definitely give Boma a try.

After that, we headed towards the bus stops at Jambo to go to Hollywood Studios. A Cast Member was drawing on the ground with a "paint brush" (broom) and some water.

I believe he was drawing Goofy. Mid conversation, Justin and I walked past it and Justin stepped RIGHT ON TOP OF GOOFY. Children screamed, dads booed, and Justin had no idea he stepped right on Goofy.

Hollywood Studios was rather uneventful that morning. For whatever reason I don't have a ton of notes. I know we did Great Movie Ride first, since TSMM already had a 90 minute wait. We did Toy Story with a FP+, then headed towards Tower of Terror for another FP+.

At some point we took a rest at a picnic table behind the market area on Sunset Blvd and watched these two duke it out.

I rode TOT for the first time in years (7 or 8), screamed my head off (embarrassing), and decided that I was good for another 7-8 years. We skipped Rock'n Rollercoaster since we can only handle so many intense rides in one day.

(There we are, bottom right. The little guys behind me screamed pretty loud too!)

We stopped for a drink at a popcorn cart and spotted this cute little guy.

We were in line behind a mom who seemed to be there with her husband, mother, and 3 kids. I think it was their first or second day of vacation because she had no clue how the dining plan worked. She ended up buying 2 bottles of water and 2 bananas with snack credits. I wanted to say "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" but to each their own and I can't help it I'm an uber planner.

We did a few more things and decided around noon/12:30 to head over to Food and Wine. We took the boat over that day since it was pretty hot.

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