"Can I Get A Hangover Steak, Please?" An Adults-Only, Irma-Rific TR! - NEW PTR Link 4/11

[thumper*]

Great start to the trip. I can only imagine the frustration of everyone going seperate ways. Yikes.

 

[the2ndstar2theright]

Hi Disfriends! Where I last left off, our DME bus was pulling up to our home for the next 6 nights, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge!

It was one of those classic moments where when one person is found, another one is missing again! Haley was in the gift shop, Ryan was out by the animals, Dad and Tom were in the bathroom, the list goes on. I was really trying not to be a crazy, rigid Disney-freak, but CAN EVERYONE JUST STAY IN ONE PLACE SO WE CAN FINALLY GET TO A PARK. This was me once everyone finally returned:

I relate to this so much! We once traveled to WDW with a group of 13...well, I'm sure you can imagine the chaos that ensued!

Before we knew it, we were being dropped off and it was go-time! Let the Disney magic commence!

Yayy!!

 

[Tink0812]

Joining in! We took a big family trip this past May and the most fun! Sometimes planning with a large group can be difficult but it definitely creates more opportunities for great memories! Can't wait to read along

 

[Mollydolly334]

Cool! Yeah most times I feel I'm just "talking" to myself on it, but I don't seem to mind too much.

Glad you finally made it to the park after herding your cats! I imagine that will be me a LOT on our next trip as well, and I will do my best to try to be patient. Since we do have a large van to drive, I may just have to say "van leaves in XX minutes, if you aren't on it you catch a bus" and then hope for the best.

We LOVE AKL and will have to look for Larry the magic trick guy in the future. Honestly I think we spent very little time at the AKL lobby on our last trip, but we were only at AKL for one night.

Can't wait to hear more about the first day!

Haha, I felt that way too at first!! If anything, a PTR/TR is like an online photo album that you can look back at whenever you want When I finish this TR, I want to have it printed out so that I don't lose any pictures and put it with my photo albums!!

It felt like it took forever to get everyone together, but it reality it was probably 15 minutes Isn't AKL awesome?? It is completely different than any resort we've stayed at in WDW; its a vacation in itself!

Larry sounds awesome!

Sounds like a good start to the trip exploring your hotel a little and eating lunch!

Haha I can imagine how antsy you were! But yay you made it to Epcot!

Larry was so cute!! I was sooo antsy, I think it was a combination of first-day jitters and nervousness about Irma!

We went there for Boma brunch and I also fell in love! I may need to stay there the next time I visit WDW!



Yeah, I got lots of eye rolling from my sister, but she eventually just gave up. She would also occasionally just say, oh give me your camera and I'll take the damn photo! Oh and I finally started my TR (link in my signature)!



Nope, I got 20 disposable ponchos and that was for 2 people! Spoiler alert-we didn't use any!



Haha, that is definitely my family when we have to go somewhere! We are maybe doing Disneyland on Thanksgiving (my mom is tired of doing a big meal and I was able to get us Blue Bayou reservations) so I'm expecting a lot of herding!

AHH Boma brunch is the BEST!! Seriously, it's my favorite breakfast on property so far! AKL is awesome; it has the amazing Deluxe amenities but doesn't break the bank quite as much as the GF/Poly.

Yay heading over to your TR now!!

We used maybe 5 of our ponchos, at least you can save them right?!

Disneyland on Thanksgiving sounds awesome!! We haven't made it over to DLR yet... but I've been scheming

I'm glad I'm not the only one that loves checking in at the front desk


Disney chicken nuggets are the best!


Epcot is totally the perfect first park! Especially after you've been sitting on a plane all day.

Right?! I did online check-in when I stayed at ASMu for the March girl's trip, which made sense because we were only there for three nights and needed precious park time. But, checking in at the front desk just makes me happy and feel welcome!!

We started doing Epcot as our first park in 2013 and it has stuck ever since! Nothing else feels right!

What a great update! AKL is so beautiful!

Thank you AKL is stunning, we were shocked that this was going to be our home for the week!

Great start to the trip. I can only imagine the frustration of everyone going seperate ways. Yikes.

Thank you!! Looking back, I may have been overly anal I think it was the combination of first-day jitters and the suspense of what Irma was going to do weather-wise!

I relate to this so much! We once traveled to WDW with a group of 13...well, I'm sure you can imagine the chaos that ensued!



Yayy!!

OMG 13 PEOPLE?? I would have had a heart attack. God bless you

Joining in! We took a big family trip this past May and the most fun! Sometimes planning with a large group can be difficult but it definitely creates more opportunities for great memories! Can't wait to read along

and thanks so much That is so true- when Mom and I go just us two, it's less chaotic but sometimes chaos = fun. Prime example- I had to think for days about a possible TR title for Mom and I's last trip in 2016. But, for this TR, I had about 5 possible titles that I had to chose from because there were so many funny quotes from the trip

 

[Mollydolly334]

Hi there! Just read your other report and loved it! This trips looks like so much fun as well. Can't wait to read along!

So sorry girl, I must have missed this quote sandwiched between my updates!! Although belated, thank you so much for reading along and I hope you enjoy!!

Great report so far! And what what what is a Dole Whip Orange Soda Float?!?!?!?!

Thank you so much! And LET ME TELL YOU!

Per Disney Food Blog:

"The Citrus Swirl Orange Float is the Citrus Swirl floating in a glass of bubbly orange soda. Now THIS is Florida in a glass for sure!"

You can get it at Sunshine Tree Terrace at Magic Kingdom and it is AMAZING! Tastes just like a Dreamsicle and it's so refreshing. Stay tuned; I have one on Day 2 so I will review it more there!

 

[Sparkly]

Following, really enjoyed this so far!

Our vacation was the week after Irma, and I totally get what you mean by having to leave the thread about it because it was stressing me out too. It got so mean.

I want to stay at AKL again, it looks such an amazing resort.

It felt like I was herding peeps along and we were only a party of 3, I can't imagine being in a larger party of people. My dad was the one who always did a disappearing act just as we were moving along!!

 

[Mollydolly334]

Following, really enjoyed this so far!

Our vacation was the week after Irma, and I totally get what you mean by having to leave the thread about it because it was stressing me out too. It got so mean.

I want to stay at AKL again, it looks such an amazing resort.

It felt like I was herding peeps along and we were only a party of 3, I can't imagine being in a larger party of people. My dad was the one who always did a disappearing act just as we were moving along!!

and thanks so much for following!! Yes, that Irma thread was a hot mess and I'm really glad I didn't comment and get roped even more into it! Sometimes people just need to chill out!

AKL is amazing!! It's so unique and like nothing else in Disney!

Haha, our dads have that in common It was tough at times, but it made for some seriously funny memories!

 

[Mollydolly334]

Day 1: Part 3- “Fly Me To The Moon, And Let Me Play Among The Stars!”



I left you guys on a cliffhanger, didn’t I?! Don’t worry, the Disney park action starts… NOW!


Whilst I’m writing this update, I’m listening to this:

How perfect, right?! This music loop is one of my favorites on Youtube. I’m pretty sure all of the 374 views are from me


Anywho, we all arrived at Epcot at about 1:45 PM! As we were walking towards the entrance, I was so happy I was skipping!





When we approached the entrance, a cast member at the entrance said, “Hi Molly!” I was momentarily confused, then I remembered my name was on my shirt #duh.


We all got through bag-check in a jiffy, and soon, we were staring at this!!





Tom said, “Hey, there’s the golf ball!” Ahhhh, the Food and Wine decorations!


Of course, we found the nearest PhotoPass CM and got a few pictures. We decided to fork over the price for Memory Maker this trip, and boy was it worth it! We got some awesome shots!


Some nice ones of the whole fam-bam:








Then, the CM said, “Ok everyone, now point at Dad’s head!”





Awwww, Pascal! Dad was a good sport about it We scanned our bands and bid goodbye to our Photopass CM. Oh, and I’ll clear this up now: Tom is NOT a giant He is 6 feet tall! My entire family is short; I am only 5’4” and I look like an Amazonian next to my super-petite Mom!


Another thing I’d like to do throughout this TR is include some throwback photos! This trip was extra-special since it was the first Disney trip with the whole family since 2013. So, anytime we have a picture near a special spot, I will include a picture or two from the past in that exact same spot Sort of like a then vs. now type thing. I’ll start it with Spaceship Earth!





2000





2002


Moving on, these were our plans for the day!



FP +


Test Track- 2:50- 3:50 PM

Living With The Land- 4:05- 5:05 PM

Journey Into Imagination With Figment- 5:15- 6:15 PM


ADRs


None! Today, we were eating QS if needed and enjoying all of the wonderful Food and Wine noms



Finally, we were off to our first ride of the trip! If you’ve read my TRs before, I bet you’ll NEVER guess which ride it was…





Did you even have to ask?! Spaceship Earth! This is a tradition that we’ve kept since 2013, and I don’t see us ending it anytime soon. Spaceship Earth is a perfect first ride and really gets you in the dark-ride spirit.


Tom thoroughly enjoyed this; he is a history buff like me and was amazed by all of the cool animatronics. I let him choose our future, since I’ve done this survey probably 100 times by now! We busted a gut laughing at our pictures during the ending montage


We played around in the Project Tomorrow area for a bit. My Mom had gotten a text with her and Dad’s room number while on the ride, but there was still no news for the rest of us. I checked some wait times on My Disney Experience, and noticed a super low wait time for Soarin’!! GO GO GO!


We hoofed it over to the Land and were met with this beautiful sight:





Don’t see this wait time too often


So, remember how I told you guys earlier about how Tom is deathly afraid of heights? Yes, this applies to rides too I can’t blame him too much, since the fear is completely born out of lack of exposure. As a kid, he never went to an amusement park like Six Flags and didn’t fly on a plane until he was 16. It’s hard for me to understand, since I was a thrill-ride junkie at age 8!


My mom is a master teaser and manipulator (and pretty much the only one of the family that Tom listens to 100% ), so the two of them made an agreement before the trip. The agreement stated that Tom had to try every ride at Disney World once. If he didn’t like the ride the first time, he didn’t have to ride it any more. In addition, Mom allowed Tom one ride that he could completely pass on. It sounds cruel, but this system actually worked out super well, and you’ll see why later in the TR


So, Tom decided to brave the terrifying Soarin’ The rest of us had a ball! I kept sneaking peeks at him during the ride, and he mostly had his eyes closed. At the end, he said that it was cool but “so scary!”


Once we got off of Soarin and took a bathroom break, we decided to take a breather and do a milder ride. Living with the Land fit the bill! We had a fast pass for it later in the day, but it didn’t even matter because we walked straight on! Living with the Land is so calming. Plus, the Disney Water smell is sooooo real on this ride


As we disembarked our boat, I heard my phone vibrate. AHHHHH, finally!





Kudu Trail?!?


I was very pleased with this location, because I had heard that almost all of Kudu Trail has at least a partial Savannah View! We had only paid for a Standard View, so we would have been ecstatic for anything but a parking lot view! My parents were in room #2378, so our rooms were adjoining, which was also super cool because we didn’t even request it at check-in!


The great news had everyone in high spirits, and the next logical thing to do was use our first fast pass of the trip! Test Track, here we come! Or...not?


Coming Soon- Day 1: Part 4- “Goin’ Wherever It Leads, Runnin’ Down A Dream!”

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[Neverland_Girl]

When we approached the entrance, a cast member at the entrance said, “Hi Molly!” I was momentarily confused, then I remembered my name was on my shirt #duh.

This happened to me our last trip but the CM kind of said it in a creepy way.

My mom is a master teaser and manipulator (and pretty much the only one of the family that Tom listens to 100% ), so the two of them made an agreement before the trip. The agreement stated that Tom had to try every ride at Disney World once. If he didn’t like the ride the first time, he didn’t have to ride it any more. In addition, Mom allowed Tom one ride that he could completely pass on. It sounds cruel, but this system actually worked out super well, and you’ll see why later in the TR

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess ToT was the ride he passed on

 

[westcoastfldisneygirl]

OHHH great update! 15 minute stand by wait for Soaring?!?! That is AMAZING!!

 

[jane2073]

This music!!!!! We have been going to Epcot since 1983 and I didn't realize how much I missed the original music from The Land until now. So many memories!!!
Thank you for the link!!!!

Loving the trip report!!

 

[disneyAndi14]

What a great start to your family trip, the magical CM literally lol! Low wait times at Epcot, I love the photos! I think that is so cute how your mom made a deal with Tom! How funny that a tall strapping young man is such a ride Chicken

 

[heaven2dc]

What a fun trip report! Love the matching shirts and perfect way to start your trip (especially with Tom's first visit)! It's awesome they were able to book your rooms next to each other.

I love the idea of your Mom's deal with Tom - my 2nd to youngest son does not like rides with drops (and also hates to fly) so I can relate to how Soarin' was for him. Can't wait to read all about the rest of your visit!

 

[the2ndstar2theright]

OMG 13 PEOPLE?? I would have had a heart attack. God bless you

That was definitely a "so fun but never again" kind of trip!

Whilst I’m writing this update, I’m listening to this:





How perfect, right?! This music loop is one of my favorites on Youtube. I’m pretty sure all of the 374 views are from me

The WDW music loops on Youtube are the best!! I listen to them all wayyyy too often.

When we approached the entrance, a cast member at the entrance said, “Hi Molly!” I was momentarily confused, then I remembered my name was on my shirt #duh.

I did this when I had a birthday button!!

We hoofed it over to the Land and were met with this beautiful sight:

 

[Raeven]

Anywho, we all arrived at Epcot at about 1:45 PM! As we were walking towards the entrance, I was so happy I was skipping!

Haha this gif is so perfect.

When we approached the entrance, a cast member at the entrance said, “Hi Molly!” I was momentarily confused, then I remembered my name was on my shirt #duh.

They just know you there

In addition, Mom allowed Tom one ride that he could completely pass on. It sounds cruel, but this system actually worked out super well, and you’ll see why later in the TR

Better to save those for HS I think I have 2 I would need to completely pass on.

Kudu Trail?!?

Yes! We stayed on Kudu Trail in December and loved it.

I was very pleased with this location, because I had heard that almost all of Kudu Trail has at least a partial Savannah View! We had only paid for a Standard View, so we would have been ecstatic for anything but a parking lot view!

We also only paid for a standard view, and we're so excited to see we got a savannah view.

 

[missangelalexis]

Yay Epcot! The PP pics are so cute, glad to hear you splurged on Memory Maker!

Hahaha I love the agreement your mom made with Tom!

Sounds like your Epcot day was off to a great start! And yay for adjoining rooms!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

EPCOT is my favorite park. I like to start there too.

So would Tom do Soaring again?

 

[thumper*]

Great start to your Epcot day. I love the throw back pictures.

 

[Mollydolly334]

This happened to me our last trip but the CM kind of said it in a creepy way.


I'm going to go out on a limb and guess ToT was the ride he passed on

Haha, at least this guy wasn't super creepy!! And hmmm good guess.... you'll have to find out later, muahaha!

OHHH great update! 15 minute stand by wait for Soaring?!?! That is AMAZING!!

Thank you!! Right?! I felt like I needed to document it it's so rare!

This music!!!!! We have been going to Epcot since 1983 and I didn't realize how much I missed the original music from The Land until now. So many memories!!!
Thank you for the link!!!!

Loving the trip report!!

Thank you so much!! And no problem! I listen to music loops from WDW basically 24/7, so if there's other music you want to find, I can do it for ya

What a great start to your family trip, the magical CM literally lol! Low wait times at Epcot, I love the photos! I think that is so cute how your mom made a deal with Tom! How funny that a tall strapping young man is such a ride Chicken

Hahaha, Tom is the biggest ride chicken ever! But, he was a very good sport this trip I think my mom's deal really put his butt in gear!

What a fun trip report! Love the matching shirts and perfect way to start your trip (especially with Tom's first visit)! It's awesome they were able to book your rooms next to each other.

I love the idea of your Mom's deal with Tom - my 2nd to youngest son does not like rides with drops (and also hates to fly) so I can relate to how Soarin' was for him. Can't wait to read all about the rest of your visit!

Thanks We had never done matching t shirts before, so what better way to do it for the first time than on a family trip?!

Haha, I'm glad someone can relate! My mom's deal actually worked out really well, I was surprised!

Thank you so much for reading along

That was definitely a "so fun but never again" kind of trip!



The WDW music loops on Youtube are the best!! I listen to them all wayyyy too often.



I did this when I had a birthday button!!

Hahaha I bet!!

I love listening to the music loops especially when I'm driving or studying!!

Haha this gif is so perfect.



They just know you there



Better to save those for HS I think I have 2 I would need to completely pass on.



Yes! We stayed on Kudu Trail in December and loved it.



We also only paid for a standard view, and we're so excited to see we got a savannah view.

Haha, I honestly wouldn't be surprised by now if they do know me, I've been so many times in the past year!

YOu'd think that he'd save them for DHS, but we'll see.....

Kudu Trail was awesome! We were so glad we decided not to splurge on the Savannah View room!

Yay Epcot! The PP pics are so cute, glad to hear you splurged on Memory Maker!

Hahaha I love the agreement your mom made with Tom!

Sounds like your Epcot day was off to a great start! And yay for adjoining rooms!

Memory Maker was awesome, I don't think we'll ever go back!!

Haha, Mom is the only one that can tell Tom what to do in the family But, he realized that their agreement was a sweet deal!

EPCOT is my favorite park. I like to start there too.

So would Tom do Soaring again?

Epcot definitely is a close second for me, I just can't put it in front of Magic Kingdom!

His answer was, "Yes...in a few years"

Great start to your Epcot day. I love the throw back pictures.

Thanks We were so happy that the weather was holding off!

 

[Mollydolly334]

Day 1: Part 4- “Goin’ Wherever It Leads, Runnin’ Down A Dream!”



Another cliffhanger?? I’m the worst Luckily, this one isn’t too dramatic; if you know anything about Test Track, you can probably guess what I’m going to say next.


We decided to head over to Test Track, since it was nearing 3:30 PM and our FP window was closing. But, it was starting to sprinkle, so the ride was closed. I’m pretty sure every time I’ve been to Epcot, Test Track has closed down for some reason or another But, no worries, they changed our FP for anytime so we could come back when the weather cleared up!


Since Test Track was a bust, we headed for our next destination; Mission:Space!





Now, I’m going to write this as a little disclaimer… I had caved and looked at the new Mission:Space Green Team video on Youtube before the trip. And...





But, I hadn’t told my mom about it yet, because I was hoping she’d have a different reaction than me. We loved the Mars video so much, but I am not an Orange Team person so riding the intense version was not an option! Haley and Ryan went over to the Orange side, while Tom, Mom, Dad, and I took on the Green team. Tom was waffling between Orange and Green and almost decided to try the intense (he doesn’t get motion sick), but I insisted he try the easier one first


I was the Pilot this time! I think the only position I have never been is the Engineer.


After we returned from our orbit around the Earth ( ), Mom turned to me and gave me THIS look:





She said “WHAT WAS THAT?!” I know Mom, I know We both basically agreed that the new video was like Soarin’ but in space and way less cool. Tom and Dad were underwhelmed as well. Mom and Tom said that next time, they may try Orange instead. I’ll stick with Green, thank you very much!


Haley and Ryan’s line was slightly longer than ours, so we played around in the gift shop as we waited for them. It was still drizzling outside but clearing up, so it was a perfect way to pass the time! There were lots of cool Star Wars stuff in here, and it took Tom a lot of willpower to not buy the set of action figures from Episode I: The Phantom Menace What can I say, we’re suckers for Jar Jar!


My dad ended up buying a kitchen magnet for one of his coworkers! He loves to buy souvenirs for two of his best friends at work (he is a Cardiac Nurse), and ironically, they both wanted a magnet! Isn't it cute?





When we met up with Haley and Ryan, Haley decided that she needed a little break from rides. She had mentioned seeing a building right next to Mission:Space with Food and Wine stuff, so off we went!


We learned that the actual name for this building was the Food and Wine Festival Center! It was deserted, so we basically had the whole place to ourselves! It was so huge and had lots of different areas for merchandise. I thoroughly enjoyed this Figment themed area





We sampled some free chocolate from the Ghiradelli stand and looked around for a while! There were some wine tastings going on as well as a few presentations from chefs. It was a nice break from the humidity and it was super interesting to see what goes on behind the scenes of Food and Wine! We spent about 15 minutes in here before venturing out again.


As we were walking out of the Food and Wine Festival Center, we noticed crowds of people heading into Test Track. It was up and running again, yay!


The standby line was nonexistent, so we decided to go through that instead and use our anytime FPs later (spoiler alert, we didn’t ). We grouped up in our couples to create cars, and we were in our cars in no time!





We laughed for so long at this picture of Ryan’s armpit! Even a CM saw the picture at the end and said, “Hope you put on deodorant today!” He was holding onto his baseball cap so it wouldn't fall off!


Tom loved Test Track and claimed it as his favorite ride of the day. Our car got second, so not too shabby!


After we got off Test Track, we took some funny pictures with the model car! It was my dad’s idea, but he was off looking at the other cars when it was our turn and didn’t make it in time Unfortunately, I just remembered these pictures now and when I looked back to check our email, they had expired. Booooo!

EDIT: I found the pictures saved on my computer!! Here they are:








We decided to split up at this point. Haley and Ryan wanted to head over to Food and Wine, while the rest of us wanted to stay in Future World for a bit longer. So, Haley and Ryan made their way towards World Showcase, and Mom, Dad, Tom and me decided to venture on over to Club Cool!


Only Mom and I have done this, so of course we had to trick Tom and Dad with the Beverly! If you’ve read my past TRs, you’ll know that I’m super weird and enjoy Beverly, so this prank epicly failed for me But, Tom and Dad both made funny faces so Mom and I got a good laugh!


I’ve always liked Inca Kola, but I also discovered the amazingness of the Melon Fanta this trip! I have always sort of ignored it in in the past, but it’s so refreshing and definitely ties Inca Kola for first at Club Cool. Tom loved Inca Kola, Dad liked Bibo the best, and Mom’s perennial favorite is Fanta Pineapple.


After our refreshing soda break, we headed over to the Seas!





We rode The Seas With Nemo and Friends, which is cute but definitely a once per trip thing. We managed to get stuck at the end during “Big Blue World,” and we were singing it all day


All of us took a peek at the fish afterwards, and I spotted this (not-so-hidden) Mickey!





Before heading off to Food and Wine to meet up with Haley and Ryan, we decided to do one last ride. How could we forget about Journey Into Imagination with Figment?!


The line was deserted, so we hopped into standby and walked directly into our vehicle!





Picture courtesy of Tom’s Snapchat! His caption was “You don’t know science if you don’t know who these two people are”


Ok, so I LOVE this ride. I know that people have a sentimental attachment to the old version of Figment, but since I never rode it I don’t know anything but the current version! My Mom likes Figment, and my Dad tolerates it. Tom couldn’t stop laughing at the end scene. He said, “This looks like a bad drug trip!”





I drooled at all of the Figment merchandise in the gift shop afterwards, but of course didn’t commit and buy anything We collectively decided that we had seen enough of Future World, so we headed towards World Showcase. If you’ve been keeping track, you may have realized that we used NONE of our 3 planned fast passes Ahhh, the beauty of September crowds!


All of us were so excited to experience our first Food and Wine Festival!!


Before I bid you all farewell, I thought I’d share one more Epcot clip. I’ve talked about this in a PTR before, but I needed to show it again. For some reason, Epcot gets me all nostalgic!

Story time:


When we took our family trip in 2002, I was 8 years old. It was my second time to Disney, but I sort of consider it my “first” since I remember so much more and it really ignited the Disney fire in me.


On our last day of the trip, we went to Epcot and watched “Honey I Shrunk the Audience.” Now, the show was super funny and silly! But, ironically, it was the pre-show that really stuck out to me. I'm not sure what it was about it, but even at 8 years old, I was so touched by this video. Maybe it's my sensitive nature, but I teared up while watching it in the audience and still tear up when I hear it to this day. At this moment, I was sitting in the theatre and thinking "Disney World is my favorite place on Earth." To me, this video symbolizes exactly what Disney is all about: imagination, inspiration, creativity, uniqueness. Pour out your true colors, y’all.


Coming Soon- Day 1: Part 5- “Sit Right Here And Have Another Beer In Mexico!”

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