Boo To You - Sept 2015 Solo TR! - updated 19/05

[godders]

Day 2 Part 6 - The Parade Continues....

The Little Mermaid







Peter Pan











Brave









Sleeping Beauty











Snow White and the Seven Dwarves










​

 

[godders]

Day 2 Part 7 - It's Still Going......


Alice in Wonderland














Pinocchio








Donald and Daisy

















Pluto





Chip, Dale & Goofy








Mickey and Minnie








​

 

[DisneyJo]

Loving your photos

 

[godders]

Day 2 Part 8 - Passing the Time

Gee whiz! That was a long parade! I actually took about 500 photos so count yourselves lucky!

Overall I really enjoyed FoF but I will say it is no Boo To You.....

Anyway, the parade was over just in time for my 7DMT FP so I battled against the crowds up Main Street to head back to Fantasyland. I realised as I waited in line that I'd never actually been through the full queue so I'd never seen the interactive parts. While I do enjoy the ride, I'm not sure I'd ever be willing to wait a long time for it so I don't see myself riding standby just for the cool queue elements.
The ride was fun as usual but unfortunately we got stuff on the very last incline (during the "Hi-Ho" bit) and for someone with large legs, that is not a particularly comfortable ride to be stuck on. Luckily it was only for 5 minutes or so!



After 7DMT I realised just how much my feet were killing me despite the respite from sitting down watching the parade so I did what many a DISer has recommended and hit every "long" attraction I could. First up I hit the WDW Railway....and the line was massive...literally when I first got there it was all the way up the steps into Storybrook Circus. I just wanted to sit down

It took 3 trains but eventually I was on so naturally I took a few photos of the journey











I loved seeing all the little scenes that you would never normally get to see!

I stayed on the train all the way back round to Fantasyland before I hit the PeopleMover





After that it was Carousel of Progress, Stitch's Great Escape (I was desperate!) and finally Hall of Presidents. By the time I'd finished I was definitely much more with it or at least as with it as I ever am haha!

The whole time I'd been recharging, I'd been trying to connect to the Disney Parks wifi to check the time of my final FP with little success! It was really weird because during my 2014 trip, connecting hadn't been a problem.

As I was exited Hall of Presidents I managed to connect just long enough to see that I was in the last minute of my Anna & Elsa M&G FP! So I quick marched over to Fantasyland, scanned my Magic Band and was almost instantaneously taken into the room to meet them.

First of all I got to meet Queen Elsa who was soo much nicer than the last Elsa I met so clear she's chilled out over the last year



Next, it was time for Princess Anna who asked if I had brought my snowman with me but alas I had not given how high the temperatures are in Florida in September....



On my way out through the gift shop I remembered that I'd decided to try to get a pin for each of the princesses this trip so I grabbed an A&E one.



Now if you've read my first TR you will have discovered that I may have gone a little overboard on the pin buying.....and this trip really wasn't much different.....seriously people....pin buying is a slippery slope especially the mystery boxes.....if you don't want to part with too much money, are slightly OCD and/or a bit of a hoarder.....DO NOT BUY PINS.....not even one....because it won't be your last

By now I only had about 2 hours until my dinner ADR so I decided to go on IASW now that the line was at a decent length. The SB time out front said 15 minutes but it was literally a 2 minute wait really. Unfortunately I was sat in front of a little girl who was VERY enthusiastic and loud the entire ride so given how tired I was it was a miracle she actually made it round the whole of IASW without being tossed overboard......​

 

[godders]

Day 2 Part 9 - Grey Stuff? Oh yes, it's delicious!

Night was slowly descending on the Magic Kingdom so I nabbed a couple of shots by the Rapunzel bathroom as the lanterns came on







I decided then since I still had a while until I would finally get some dinner that I would attempt the Peter Pan standby queue. It had recently reopened with all the interactive elements and so far non of the rides had actually been as long as their posted SB time so I wasn't too worried about the 60 minutes the sign said it was.....



It started off well enough...













....only then I actually "got into" the Darling house and it was a non-mover from there.....







It seriously took the entire hour.....OMG! The highlight was the man behind me using his baby's head to hit the bells in the Darling bedroom (he wasn't actually hitting the baby's head for those who don't know which bit I'm referring to) and the low point came not long after when the older child of the same man came past myself and the girl in front of me and the gentleman told his son not to do it in case we decided to "snatch him"......I mean seriously.....I'm stuck in the middle of a ride line at Disney World with literally nowhere to go. How am I going to "snatch" your child?!? Really you should be telling your child not to go in front of someone because it's RUDE!

(Ok, rant over, sorry about that!)

All in all, while the PP line was quite good and some of the technology was cool it was so NOT worth the 60 minute wait and I definitely would not be doing it again!

By the time I finally got out of the ride it had gone completely dark and had cooled down nicely. I still had half an hour or so until I could check in for dinner so I headed back over to The Little Mermaid for one last ride and it was back to being it's usual walk-on. After that, with still a few minutes to spare I went to grab a last cigarette from the path between FL & TL and I got to hear the beginning of Celebrate the Magic which just automatically makes me smile. As I was smoking however I got the shakes really badly in my hands and I knew I was desperate for some food because it was now gone 9pm and all I'd had since breakfast was a coffee.

Luckily Be Our Guest was just a short walk away!

I checked in at the outside kiosk just as Wishes was starting and all of the CMs around were singing along which was great fun. I was asked to wait on the bridge until I was called in so I did get to see a little bit of the fireworks before another CM came out to show me to my seat.

I ended up being seated in the ballroom just by the entrance to the West Wing. It was weird for it to be so empty and quiet but also pretty cool. My server's name was Joey and he was an absolute star! He explained the wines and food and gave his recommendations for pairings which I thought was an added bonus. I decided to go with the Signature Shrimp and Scallops and a lovely glass of well earned Sancerre

The place setting



The Wine



The Dinner


(sorry the pictures are bad)

It was really good! I would definitely recommend it but personally I would prefer a little more sauce with it (but only a little) and it went really well with the wine. I finished my main course and decided I couldn't eat at BOG without having some of the Grey Stuff so that's what I ordered Unfortunately I had literally just placed my order and asked for the bill when a CM came over to say that the Beast would be finishing in 10 minutes.

My dessert came and I scoffed down as much as I could (I was pretty full by this point) and that is why there arn't any pictures of it...ooops! The Grey Stuff was ok, but it definitely wasn't as good as the stuff that came with my Master's Cupcake!

I then dashed off to meet the man himself



I'm sorry, but he's kind of creepy! I just hate that I can't see where he's looking and I know he can't see very well because at one point one of his paws got a little too low if you know what I mean.

Overall I really enjoyed BOG dinner and would definitely recommend it to everyone. It's a great time to take pictures as well (not that I did) because of how few people are actually in there. The only negative part was the regular stink-eye I was getting from the woman at the table next to me but that's no biggie.

So I had my picture taken and was picturing a relatively quiet Main Street to walk down because the park was officially shut but instead I was stuck by the castle because of the Main Street Electrical Parade. Nooooooo! Eugh! Now I was going to be stuck with the masses!

I eventually managed to get onto Main Street itself but it was packed so I decided to dive into The Emporium to pass some time. I browsed for a little bit and then remembered that I was desperate to find a CD with the Boo To You music on because it had literally been stuck in my head for a year with no way of getting it out. It took me a little while but eventually I found one. Huzzah! I also picked up a couple more princess pins on my way to the cash register (I told you....slippery slope )

By the time I got out of the shop, Main Street had died down a lot so it was time to slowly make my way to the buses to travel to my home for the next week - All-Star Movies!
​

 

[missangelalexis]

Enjoying your TR so far! I love all your photography! It sounds like you had a really nice day at MK!

 

[godders]

Enjoying your TR so far! I love all your photography! It sounds like you had a really nice day at MK!

Thank you so much! I'm enjoying writing it (although I would enjoy reliving it so much more haha!). I had a lovely but absolutely knackering day at MK. Can't wait for my next one!

 

[godders]

Day 2 Part 10 - It's Nearly Over I promise!

After such a long day the walk to the bus stop seemed extra long! And naturally All-Star Movies was one of the furthest bus stops away anyway so it seemed extra far! I got to the bus stop and the line was rather large so I didn't get on until the 3rd bus that came and I was one of the few on it by then so I managed to get a seat which was a nice turn up for the books.

Eventually though we were finally pulling into All-Stars and I headed straight to check-in which was surprisingly busy for gone midnight. I had to wait about 10 minutes to be seen and then the CM serving was on a serious go-slow! OMG! Finally the gentleman went to go and get my new Magic Band which was pink. I really was going to be able to co-ordinate with all my outfits

I asked about my luggage and he said that it was already in my room and I thought YES! Disney magic strikes again...only it hadn't.... I got to my room in the Love Bug section and my luggage was no where to be seen so I called over to luggage services. Well the CM on the phone was less than enthusiastic and was borderline rude but I thought I'd give it a pass as it was late. She said my luggage would be 15 minutes but it actually took 45 and I really was dying for my bed by then!

While I waited I uploaded my photos onto my laptop and some how I'd managed to take over 800 (well I was at the park for 15 hours). Finally my luggage arrived and I was able to unpack all my stuff and jump into the shower to wash off all the rain from earlier in the day. By 1.30am though I was able to crawl into my bed and head to the land of nod.

My 6am alarm was not going to be pleasant!​

 

[DVCAshleyJ]

I really want to go, and see the Halloween set up. Looks amazing!! ​

 

[godders]

Day 3 Part 1 - Sunrise at the Kingdom!

As I had dreaded I woke up sooner than I would've liked but luckily it was only half an hour before my alarm was due to go off so I was slowly adjusting to Florida time. I dozed for that last half hour and then dragged myself out of my comfy bed. Boy did I look tired! Today was definitely going to be a make up day!

But I needed to get going because I was off to try a BOG breakfast for the first time so I was out of my hotel room when it was still dark



and by the time I got to Magic Kingdom there were some lovely pink tones in the sky making everything so pretty





I'd come to the park so early because my ADR was at 8.30am so it meant I could in theory get in at 7.45. Excellent! I checked in with the CM on the left of the railway and stood in line as the sun came up next to the Contemporary.





We were let through the turnstiles at about 7.30am but were held under the railway bridge until nearly 8. Luckily there was a CM at the front entertaining people and he even gave a little girl an exclusive CM pin for guessing the punchline to one of his jokes.

As we were there I took photos of some of the posters on the wall that I'd never really paid attention to











Finally we were let through and there were more than a few couples who ran across Town Square to get an empty Main Street photo.
I could've done that but it would've meant trampling some small children and it was too early in the day for that

So instead I got my not very busy Main Street picture



Honestly the picture doesn't do it justice for how pretty everything looked.

I headed straight up to the Hub and took pictures of all the little statues I'd missed the day before.












(I literally just noticed the rather unfortunate puddle under Pinocchio)





It was really nice to see more of the classic Disney characters represented!

As I was in the Hub, I got in the very short queue for a PP photo and got my first ever Magic Shot. The photographer was really fun and said I should've gotten him to take a picture with my big DSLR because he really wanted to play with it







Hope you all had sunglasses on because I am so pale I'm reflecting the sun!



​

 

[godders]

I really want to go, and see the Halloween set up. Looks amazing!! ​

It is pretty good but there's not as much as Christmas. The Halloween Party is a must at some point though! Disney really outdo themselves in my opinion!

 

[godders]

Day 3 Part 2 - A BOG Breakfast

I headed on over through Fantasyland taking a couple of photos until I got to the Beast's Castle where I checked in.







I was immediately sent through to the little room with kiosks to pay for my pre-ordered meal. I got into the main dining room and again it was such a contrast from lunchtimes because there wasn't the wall of noise that usually accompanies your meal.

I decided to head into the Castle Gallery as I'd never eaten in there before and it was completely empty. I walked around the entire room to try to find a table for 2 but there wasn't one so I had to plonk myself down at a table for 4. I felt a bit guilty but I was the only one in there at that point. Of course I had to get a photo of the spinning Belle and Beast in the center of the room first



While I waited for my food I took a couple of photos of the wall art





Soon though a CM with a large trolley arrived to bring me my breakfast! Literally I had been sat down for 3 or 4 minutes. Now that is efficient!

I chose the Eggs Florentine



and she also brought me a plate of pastries



The dish was ok but it was certainly no where near the quality of lunch or dinner (and I just checked and it is no longer served). I didn't have room for the pastries but thanks to the DIS I had brought a ziplock bag to put them in to save them for later!


As I ate the room slowly filled up and was completely full by the time I had finished. I was in fact planning to spend most of my day over at Hollywood Studios so I needed to get a move on!

Wow! Fantasyland was PACKED! Like wall-to-wall packed! A&E was up to a 70 minute wait and it was only 9.30am SOOOOO glad I wasn't in that queue!

As I hit the Hub I decided a Starbucks was in order and it was so busy and noisy but I knew that there was a delicious treat at the end of that line haha



Then I tried to head for the exit......I managed to get under the railway bridge ok but when it came to getting through the turnstiles I had no idea. It was sooooo busy! Seriously, there wasn't even a gap between the two sets of bag check areas! I just about managed to squeeze my way down to the water where I was met by several other people who were attempting to get through the crowd. I knew there was nothing else for it and just took the plunge into the melee and everyone else followed me. It was crazy! But actually it wasn't too difficult to negotiate because everyone else was all heading the same direction and were basically at a stand still.....Just had to navigate around the strollers
We managed to make it back to the bus stop just as another full boat from the TTC was pulling up. I did manage to snap a quick pick but it really doesn't do it justice



and that wasn't even the back of the line. I am soooooo glad I am a rope drop person! Finally I was free of the crowd and joined the line of 6 people to head over to Hollywood Studios where hopefully the crowd would be better......

​

 

[missangelalexis]

Love all your early morning pictures- so gorgeous!

Wow those crowds are no joke! I'm definitely a rope drop person myself!

 

[ariane37]

I'm glad you enjoyed BOG dinner as it's one of our favorites And I agree, the Grey Stuff at dinner can't hold a candle to the Master's Cupcake at lunch. I wish they'd serve that cupcake at dinner!
Also nice you got to try BOG breakfast even though you weren't a huge fan. DH and I did a PPO BOG breakfast on our adults only trip in January simply so I could say I've eaten all 3 meals there. I also got the eggs Florentine but I enjoyed it. It was cool being in the park so early (8am ADR) and we did get to ride 7DMT 3x before the RD crowd arrived, but for the price and the amount of food we won't be doing that again.
I am interested in taking a quick look at the breakfast menu now that you say the eggs Florentine are no longer being served, just to see what else has changed. I like to keep up on things like that

 

[disneydaydreamer33]

I've really enjoyed your TR so far! I did my first "mini solo trip" in February and LOVED it! It's so fun to go at your own pace and just enjoy the details at Disney! Really great pics too!

 

[godders]

Love all your early morning pictures- so gorgeous!

Wow those crowds are no joke! I'm definitely a rope drop person myself!

They were awful. I always hit rope drop (or mid-afternoon for a party) so I have no idea if those crowds are normal for that time of the morning or not. I will definitely always be a rope drop person!

 

[godders]

I'm glad you enjoyed BOG dinner as it's one of our favorites And I agree, the Grey Stuff at dinner can't hold a candle to the Master's Cupcake at lunch. I wish they'd serve that cupcake at dinner!
Also nice you got to try BOG breakfast even though you weren't a huge fan. DH and I did a PPO BOG breakfast on our adults only trip in January simply so I could say I've eaten all 3 meals there. I also got the eggs Florentine but I enjoyed it. It was cool being in the park so early (8am ADR) and we did get to ride 7DMT 3x before the RD crowd arrived, but for the price and the amount of food we won't be doing that again.
I am interested in taking a quick look at the breakfast menu now that you say the eggs Florentine are no longer being served, just to see what else has changed. I like to keep up on things like that

Yes I'm currently in the process of trying to find a dinner res for BOG this coming trip but it is proving difficult. It's just so nice to be in there when it's quiet! Yeh the breakfast option had only just become permanent when I went last year so I had to try it (it was actually really easy to get PPO ADR for it then). I would definitely do it again simply to get in the park early but I'd be interested to try some of their other dishes to see if it was just a one off.

 

[godders]

I've really enjoyed your TR so far! I did my first "mini solo trip" in February and LOVED it! It's so fun to go at your own pace and just enjoy the details at Disney! Really great pics too!

Yay! Welcome to the solo trippers family! I'm so glad you enjoyed your trip! Yeh it is completely different now going with someone else. I went with my Mum to DL in Feb and while she suffered through me taking loads of photos I kind of missed being able to do what I wanted when I wanted i.e. all the rollercoasters. Thanks so much. Glad people are enjoying it!

 

[godders]

Day 3 Part 3 - Oh Dear Lord The Crowds!

The ride over to HS was pretty quick and we hadn't had to wait too long for the bus and that was pretty much the last short wait of the day! As we pulled up to the bus stand I snapped a picture of Tower of Terror which is pretty much the only ride on property that I flatly refuse to go on due to feelings of imminent death that come with it



It was only when I got off the bus that I realised I may not have made the best choice after all.....



The bag check queue was massive! Nearly all the way back to the water What on earth was going on?!? For a Monday in early September the crowds we ridiculous! Looking back I should've abandoned the plan there and then and jumped on the boat to Epcot but instead I got in the back of the line.

I did notice the cool Anna & Elsa on my way past though



This was the view from the midst of bag-check



On the plus side it did give me some time to get photos of things I may otherwise not



30 minutes of crawling forwards in the blazing sun and I was finally through the turnstiles and heading towards Mans Chinese Theatre



Sooo many people!



I went to check out GMR because I was in need of some extended time in the air-con but the line was up to 45 minutes and it was only just past 11am.

I wasn't really sure where to head instead when I spotted this sign:



Now my DB is a massive Star Wars nerd and he had asked me to check out any new Star Wars merch in case there was something he wanted me to buy for him so being the amazing sister that I am I headed off to get some photos.

Tucked away behind Mike & Sully's M&G, Watto's Grotto was practically empty and full of lovely A/C

Most of the stuff in the shop was your standard Star Wars stuff but I thought my DB would possibly be interested in the animatronic Yoda to go with his BB8



My favourite stuff was definitely the artwork however





If only I had the money.....

As I don't I grabbed a couple of Star Wars pins instead and had a chat to the CM behind the counter who was very enthusiastic about the new M&G that was going to be opening soon to replace all the animation stuff by Voyage of The Little Mermaid.

After that it was time for my Star Tours fp. I headed off through the Streets of America which was rammed full of people and when I got to ST the Jedi Training was on which is always fun to watch. That was when I noticed that the SB line for Star Tours was outside. Seriously I've never ever seen that before. Luckily FP was pretty much a walk on and I got to skip the few people in front of me when they asked for a single-rider.

ST was excellent as always and I got 2 new scenes - Wookie planet and Naboo which was cool

After ST I decided that the crowds were too much for now so I decided to head back to ASMvs for the afternoon and then come back to HS later on. I went via the main gift shop and picked up a couple of pressies for the family and of course some more pins (If you thought I was joking about the pin problem.....). I was still having issues with my cash card & debit card so I decided to get a Disney Gift Card instead so I could load a chunk of money on at a time from my CC to save on the foreign money charges.

The day was only getting hotter and there were quite a few people leaving with me. Naturally of course, the bus stop I wanted was the one furthest away...Luckily by the time I got there I only had to wait for a couple of minutes before the bus showed up I'm not sure if entertained is the right word but the whole way home there was a little girl (maybe 6/7) who spent the entire bus ride taking selfies. She even duck-faced Anyway, we finally got back to the resort and I nipped into the shop to grab a big bottle of water to keep in the room and some more cigarettes. I dragged myself back to my room and noticed I had a message on the phone asking me to come and collect something from the front desk. So I dragged my weary butt back to reception....only literally as soon as my door shut I realised I'd taken my Magic Band off Anyway, I got to reception and picked up my letter which was a free round of golf on the Mouse (thanks Mickey) and the CM sorted me out with a single-entry room card.

Eventually I was able to settle in back at my room and play with my photos for a bit. I debated about heading back to HS but I just couldn't bring myself to do it so I cancelled the FPs I'd had for TSMM and the Little Mermaid (I know I don't actually need one for that) and settled in with the DISboards. That's when I found out that some parts of the US had a long weekend because of a Jewish holiday and that's why it was so busy. Gah!

I managed to keep myself busy for a while but by 8pm I could keep myself awake no longer so off to sleepy town I went!​

 

[godders]

Day 4 Part 1 - Epcot Extra Magic Hour

So the previous day, while I'd been munching on my BOG breakfast I'd stumbled across a 8.30am PPO reservation at Akershus at Epcot the next morning. I already had one for lunch time at Akershus but as I had MNSSHP the next night I decided a breakfast ADR would suit me better so I nabbed it and cancelled the lunch one hoping it would be a nice surprise for someone else.

I was really excited to get some empty Epcot shots until I realised it was Epcot EMH so the park would be opening at 8am anyway. On the plus side as I'd fallen asleep so early the night before, waking up at 5.30am meant that I'd actually got about 9 hours sleep and I actually woke up feeling refreshed. Not sure how long that would last!

I got ready and managed to get to the bus stop just before 7am.



The sun was coming up so the sky had the lovely pink tinges to it and as you can see there were very few other people around.

The bus came within a few minutes and the 7 or 8 of us on the bus were at the park by 7.15am. Our bus was the very first to arrive and they hadn't even opened bag drop when we got there but did so as we walked up.



I got into the section for PPO ADRs and a lady with an IPad came round and checked everyone off. While we waited at the turnstiles I got a shot of the only thing I could....Spaceship Earth (or at least the bottom of it)



At 7.40am they began to let everyone in through the turnstiles and held people just in front of SE. People with ADRs could go around the outside and head into the park but as my ADR wasn't until 8.35am I wanted to at least get a ride on Test Track first although looking back I definitely would've gone the other way. While we waited for the literal rope drop I took a picture of the mural at the entrance to SE because I'd never noticed it before



Just before 8, the rope was removed and the running (or power walk) of the bulls began. Oh my god! Flip flops were not a good shoe choice! And sooo much pressure to get to that ride! Euch! Next time I'm either wearing trainers or not bothering (I say that now but it probably won't happen ). Anyway, I made it to TT and was probably in the first 20 people or so to make it into the queue. Unfortunately I had to go through the whole car design process which I wasn't really bothered about but they had shut the exit doors so we all had to wait until they opened to carry on. While I was waiting I did design a rather snazzy little red number and soon we were let through to the loading dock.

In the end my car didn't do so badly. It came 3rd, last and then won the speed test and this was the ride photo



Sorry for ruining the picture with my hair for everyone else in the car....

It was only 8.10am when I got out of TT and Soarin is an attraction I only do when I absolutely have to so I decided to potter on over to Norway and take photos before my ADR











It was definitely weird to see the World Showcase so empty! As I got to Norway I noticed there was a PP just outside taking pictures looking out over the World Showcase Lagoon towards Future World so I made a mental note to grab a picture on my way out.

I checked in for my ADR with the alloted 15 minute before the reservation time and 40 minutes later I was still standing in the little holding pen they have outside Akershus On the plus side it gave me time to get some photos











After watching many families who had arrived after me go in they eventually called Queen Vicky so I'd been promoted since my breakfast at CRT haha and I was whisked into the line to get a picture with my favouritist princess of all....Belle!​