FLkid
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2013
Let me start this off by saying I had fully intended on writing day of reports. But my laptop literally never left the bag (I lugged that big thing around for nothing!). But Ive been home a week now and I feel its time to complete this thing. As you will see below I started it before I had even left, so Im sorry for the novel but I found it important to my story! 
Here it goes,
The Beginning.
So here it starts the beginning of my Disney Solo/Shared journey. I had intended on making a trip report after my visit to the world October 1st-5th with my family . But I forgot!
This trip is a bit different as I will be spending most of it solo. I will be joined by my mother and step father for a day and a half of my 4 ½ day trip but the rest will be experienced alone. I guess this would be an important time to mention this is my first trip ANYWHERE by myself.
Even writing this 11 days out Room booked, Plans made, Parks picked.. I am still in disbelief that I am going alone!. I am so excited/nervous about this trip. A year ago I would have never even considered taking a trip like this alone. But so much has changed in my life in the past year for the good that I have really started to change as well. So this is kind of like my big leap of courage, A way to prove to myself I am capable of enjoying myself without being on someone elses schedule.
Dont get me wrong, I wanted friends/family to go with me originally. But they all gave me Maybe and the dreaded well see or the even better why would we go again this year?. Around about that time I started to realize all of the times Ive really wanted to do something and didnt get to because someone didnt want to go with me. How Ive basically spent my whole life at the mercy of someone elses decision and that just MAYBE there were a few people that kind of enjoyed knowing they had that control.
I said right then and there that I was going with or without them. You should have seen their faces when I told them I was going either way, They told me it was too dangerous how would you enjoy it alone?. I started to read solo threads on here and it made me excited about going alone. All of the talk about on your own time, your own schedule, stop and smell the roses if you like has sounded so mesmerizing!
So this is my Trip Report.
Here are the stats
Plan As Of Thurs 11/21
*SUN* Working, Driving, Checking in (Late Night)
*MON* Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom EMH
*TUES* Animal Kingdom (Family Joining), MK Christmas Party
*WED* Epcot, Hollywood Studios (Osbourne Lights)
*THURS* Magic Kingdom, Downtown Disney
*FRI* Early Check-Out, Drive Home
My Official Recap Starts Here:
Well Sunday night turned into me working until 6 and then being at my bosss baby shower until 8:30 which put me on the road at 9PM!
. Being that I was alone I got the concerned family calls of isnt it too late? Why not go in the morning? But there was no way I was going home after dreaming all day of seeing that Walt Disney World sign 
. It was a 3 hour drive, I started it with a Mountain Dew (which I never drink but I wanted to be wide awake). Since it was so late there were hardly any cars on the highway and I put on some Christmas Pandora and stopped paying attention to road signs for about an hour. I started to get really excited when I hit the 54miles away mark, Stopped for some snacks at Champions Gate and then did a slight bit of speeding the rest of the way *eek*. 
I remember pulling onto century drive and having a huge grin, Even more so when I stepped into the lobby and saw the giant Christmas tree and heard my favorite Christmas song (silver bells) playing
. Check in was smooth, I was the only one checking in at midnight though. The parking lot was a little full and I ended up parking further away then I really needed to
I also took the longest way around *oops*. I located my hotel room and was so excited to see the gigantic Tramp statue from lady and the tramp right outside my window!. The first thing I did (after changing into PJs of course) was decorate my window with Christmas window clings I bought at the dollar store. I then made a quick stroll around the pool and about died when I found the all Disney classic cartoon channel! (Thats the only channel that my tv was on my entire stay). I dont think I fell asleep until 2 or 3 in the morning because I was too excited to sleep.
This day I planned to spend all day at Hollywood Studios and then that evening at Magic Kingdom DESPITE the crowd calendars telling me not to. I picked up a powerade at the dining hall and did some browsing at the pop century shop before hopping on the HS bus. The busses were where I assumed I would feel awkward being solo, But really it was quite the opposite! Several times people sparked conversations with me about where I was from, ect. I dont remember a lot about what I did at HS, I know I did Muppets 3D and even braved Tower of Terror on my own. I intended to do RocknRoller coaster but it was down due to technical issues. What I remember the most was seeing One Mans Dream for the first time Literally the best thing I experienced the entire trip. It was so awesome and I was kicking myself for not doing it during my October visit. But I realize now that maybe seeing it for the first time solo allowed me to really take it all in. I enjoyed a mickey pretzel with cheese and sat being the produce stand café and listened to the tower of terror screams for about a half hour.
I then hopped back on the bus to the hotel so my phone could charge. Once back at the hotel I bought two Vinylmation Mystery boxes (of which I am a huge addict) I went back to my room and unboxed them and the 2nd box contained the one that I was DYING to get. It was a transistor radio variant that I had told the lady at the counter was the one that if I didnt get ANY OTHERS on this trip that was the one I would absolutely love to get and there I had it on my first day of buying. I was thrilled!
Around 4 I hopped on the bus to MK that park that the crowd calendar told me very sternly was a bad idea . Remember that? Yeah ..well it was right. The place was PACKED
. It wasnt packed like just cant get on rides
it was packed like almost not enjoyable to even walk around. Every picture had 39483984 people in it. So I only spent a few hours there and headed back to my hotel to try and make up some of the lost sleep from the night before. However I did get to ride Peter Pan for the first time and it was awesome!. The Ride had actually shut down as I was scanning my magic band and they told everyone to come back in an hour, But as I was talking to the CM about good QS places to eat (and parents in the background yelling at CMs like the ride being broken was their fault) the ride fired back up and he let me right on! . I also did Dumbo, Pooh and rode the train for the very first time on this night!. On this night I started a tradition of after park bubble baths. My feet were begging to be soaked as I did more walking solo than I ever would have done with a group!
On this day my mother and step dad joined me, They drove up early and I had them meet me at the hotel so I could show them all the cool stuff there (and explore more myself). Being born in 88 I dont think I appreciate some of the sayings and random things they have there as much as being from other generations do. There were a lot of things my mom would laugh and say I remember that!. After which we headed to Animal Kingdom where we rode Mt Everest, Its tough to be a bug (our favorite) and did the nature walk. We got to see one tiger as he napped the afternoon away. He (she..sorry I pretend all animals are boys because I like boy names better) was absolutely gorgeous!. We ate lunch at Rainforest Café now.. Ive eaten at a few rain forest cafés including the one at DTD and I have always found their food to be really mediocre and overly priced. I know you go for the atmosphere but I feel like Trex gives you atmosphere and amazing food. Again, I was not overly priced and wishing we would have went to tusker house again but we still had a good time.
After lunch we decided to go to Epcot, I was going to MVMCP that night (they were not joining me though) So I thought because they love epcot that it would be the easiest park to leave around 6 and get to MK. Once we arrived at epcot we were quickly stopped when we heard the gospel group start their show, We sat on the pavement want watched the entire thing. I was so thoroughly impressed that this gospel group was at epcot and speaking specifically about Jesus. I was in shock almost that it was allowed at such a place (very very cool). After doing Maelstrom (spelling?) for the first time because of my mothers troll I mean Vikingish background we found it to be kind of a confusing ride. But it was cool either way. We then noticed a giant line going half way around the lake and realized it was for the candlelight procession and it was Neil Patrick Harris doing the reading. It was obvious we wouldnt be getting a seat for that but we had a great time either way. After doing spaceship earth (which was so cool! We didnt get to do it in October).
I parted ways with them and took the monorail to the TTC
and then took the ferry to MK. The Christmas party was a blast and I loved the free hot chocolate. I also experienced the jungle cruise for the first time while at the party and had an AWESOME skipper (I went on it the next day and the guy wasnt as funny mehhh). I didnt really watch the parade except for when Santa came around, But I did watch the fireworks from the back of the castle (my new favorite spot!) 
. All of the newbs lined up facing the castle, I found a perfect spot to watch where the big ones were actually going to be exploding. It was a beautiful show!. I also rode the people mover for the first time (really cool!). I had forgotten about the *snow* on main street so I had a huge grin as I saw it falling on the light posts. It wasnt long before my entire clothes were covered and I got a kick out of the kids catching *snow* on their tongues and having a not so pleasant look on their face as they tasted it lol. I somehow managed to get back to my hotel before midnight so I was able to get some food before they closed. I made the mistake of ordering a kids cheeseburger which is on this terrible wheat goldfish bread lol but I was so hungry I got over it and learned the adult cheeseburger was worth the extra $$. I also purchased a Smirnoff Ice because Im not a fan of regular beer
But I took 2 sips and it ended up going in the trash the night I left. I just wasnt that into drinking on this trip.
On this day my mom had a training she had to attend for her Alzheimers Education Certification. (Shes going to put on classes for caretakers to spread further knowledge about proper care for Alzheimers patients). So me and my step dad headed to Hollywood Studios for the day, We rode RnR at least 3 times, Finally saw the car show thing, and did ToT I want to say 6 times? We had a blast! Even better that we finally got to eat at 50s Prime Time Café and had amazing fried chicken! It was so yummy. Now this day wasnt all perfect and I dont want to give the impression that my entire trip was hunky dory because it wasnt I had my moments!. My step dad can annoy me at times. Sometimes he is overly obnoxious especially if my mom isnt around to tell him to act like an adult
. He has to talk to people wherever he is, Now there is nothing wrong with that but sometimes families are there spending rare bonding time together and I feel like there are instances where you just shut your mouth and let people talk amongst themselves 
. Its all an attention thing for him, But we did have a great time. I just dont want to put all the good stuff and none of the not so great stuff in my trip report
This is real life people! 
My mom had planned on meeting us at HS but her training ended up running a little longer than anticipated so we agreed to meet her at DTD later that evening. We grabbed a bite to eat at paradiso 37 or 27 or something it was the only place that wasnt packed. I think this was the night I purchased $40 worth of magnets because they were just all so cool lol
Once again my mother and step dad met me at the hotel where they both got coffee and we boarded the bus for Magic Kingdom. I made reservations for an early lunch at Tonys Town Square Restaurant (if I may be honest, I only chose this place because I saw they had calamari on the menu lol). Everyone loved their meal (I got the meatball sliders as well.. soo yummy). Now we did several rides on this day but unfortunately we didnt have time to wait on Peter Pan so they could experience it for the first time.. However we did do hall of presidents for the first time and WOW how did we not do this before Forgetting the fact that the presidents looked so lifelike.. the video before hand had me in tears. This was an AMAZING show and I will do it every single trip now. I still didnt ride the ferry boat Or go on the island but I feel like I accomplished a lot on this trip.
I wanted to finally see the Boardwalk so we took a bus over there and of course purchased baked goods at the Boardwalk Bakery. We then spent about $20 playing games in the ESPN Arcade (a blast!)
. I picked out a few gifts for myself for Christmas (from my mom lol) at the Disney shop they have there (a beautiful crystal ear hat necklace, Mickey journal, and a beautiful WDW throw).
They decided to head home around 3 or 4 in the evening, So after parting ways I spent a few hours at DTD to do some last minute Christmas shopping. After which I headed back to the hotel where I decided I didnt want to deal with morning traffic and I would check out that night. I made the trip home safely (arriving at my house a little after midnight). I neatly unpacked all of my treasures from the trip and made it to bed around 2AM.
*My Favorites*
I had such a blast touring solo, I was so nervous about this but it turned out to be incredible. To be honest (and I know how mean this sounds) but once my family arrived I missed being solo. When I was alone I could get through crowds like a breeze because I had no one to wait up on or try not to lose. I ate where I wanted and rode what I wanted and walked around aimlessly in loops around the park as much as I wanted. I had a great time with my family, I truly did. But being solo gave me so much confidence and it truly was a life time experience. For the next 4 days or so after arriving home I let my brain rest in regards to Disney, But then I started checking these boards again and looking at crowd reports It felt like it had been a month since I left Disney but its only been 8 days! The other morning I woke to a fantastic surprise that Pop Century had refunded me the night I didnt stay even though I checked out late at night! I of course used the refund to book another 6 days in February lol
It will technically be a Birthday trip (However I was born on leap year so technically its not lol) but Im going to wear that dang birthday button!
Here it goes,
The Beginning.
So here it starts the beginning of my Disney Solo/Shared journey. I had intended on making a trip report after my visit to the world October 1st-5th with my family . But I forgot!
This trip is a bit different as I will be spending most of it solo. I will be joined by my mother and step father for a day and a half of my 4 ½ day trip but the rest will be experienced alone. I guess this would be an important time to mention this is my first trip ANYWHERE by myself.
Even writing this 11 days out Room booked, Plans made, Parks picked.. I am still in disbelief that I am going alone!. I am so excited/nervous about this trip. A year ago I would have never even considered taking a trip like this alone. But so much has changed in my life in the past year for the good that I have really started to change as well. So this is kind of like my big leap of courage, A way to prove to myself I am capable of enjoying myself without being on someone elses schedule.
Dont get me wrong, I wanted friends/family to go with me originally. But they all gave me Maybe and the dreaded well see or the even better why would we go again this year?. Around about that time I started to realize all of the times Ive really wanted to do something and didnt get to because someone didnt want to go with me. How Ive basically spent my whole life at the mercy of someone elses decision and that just MAYBE there were a few people that kind of enjoyed knowing they had that control.
I said right then and there that I was going with or without them. You should have seen their faces when I told them I was going either way, They told me it was too dangerous how would you enjoy it alone?. I started to read solo threads on here and it made me excited about going alone. All of the talk about on your own time, your own schedule, stop and smell the roses if you like has sounded so mesmerizing!
So this is my Trip Report.
Here are the stats
- Driving
- Pop Century
- Annual Pass
- Sunday PM-Friday AM
- MVMCP Attendee
- Family Joining Tues & Wed
Plan As Of Thurs 11/21
*SUN* Working, Driving, Checking in (Late Night)
*MON* Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom EMH
*TUES* Animal Kingdom (Family Joining), MK Christmas Party
*WED* Epcot, Hollywood Studios (Osbourne Lights)
*THURS* Magic Kingdom, Downtown Disney
*FRI* Early Check-Out, Drive Home
My Official Recap Starts Here:
- Sunday December 1
Well Sunday night turned into me working until 6 and then being at my bosss baby shower until 8:30 which put me on the road at 9PM!
. Being that I was alone I got the concerned family calls of isnt it too late? Why not go in the morning? But there was no way I was going home after dreaming all day of seeing that Walt Disney World sign . It was a 3 hour drive, I started it with a Mountain Dew (which I never drink but I wanted to be wide awake). Since it was so late there were hardly any cars on the highway and I put on some Christmas Pandora and stopped paying attention to road signs for about an hour. I started to get really excited when I hit the 54miles away mark, Stopped for some snacks at Champions Gate and then did a slight bit of speeding the rest of the way *eek*. I remember pulling onto century drive and having a huge grin, Even more so when I stepped into the lobby and saw the giant Christmas tree and heard my favorite Christmas song (silver bells) playing
. Check in was smooth, I was the only one checking in at midnight though. The parking lot was a little full and I ended up parking further away then I really needed to
I also took the longest way around *oops*. I located my hotel room and was so excited to see the gigantic Tramp statue from lady and the tramp right outside my window!. The first thing I did (after changing into PJs of course) was decorate my window with Christmas window clings I bought at the dollar store. I then made a quick stroll around the pool and about died when I found the all Disney classic cartoon channel! (Thats the only channel that my tv was on my entire stay). I dont think I fell asleep until 2 or 3 in the morning because I was too excited to sleep. Monday December 2nd
This day I planned to spend all day at Hollywood Studios and then that evening at Magic Kingdom DESPITE the crowd calendars telling me not to. I picked up a powerade at the dining hall and did some browsing at the pop century shop before hopping on the HS bus. The busses were where I assumed I would feel awkward being solo, But really it was quite the opposite! Several times people sparked conversations with me about where I was from, ect. I dont remember a lot about what I did at HS, I know I did Muppets 3D and even braved Tower of Terror on my own. I intended to do RocknRoller coaster but it was down due to technical issues. What I remember the most was seeing One Mans Dream for the first time Literally the best thing I experienced the entire trip. It was so awesome and I was kicking myself for not doing it during my October visit. But I realize now that maybe seeing it for the first time solo allowed me to really take it all in. I enjoyed a mickey pretzel with cheese and sat being the produce stand café and listened to the tower of terror screams for about a half hour.
I then hopped back on the bus to the hotel so my phone could charge. Once back at the hotel I bought two Vinylmation Mystery boxes (of which I am a huge addict) I went back to my room and unboxed them and the 2nd box contained the one that I was DYING to get. It was a transistor radio variant that I had told the lady at the counter was the one that if I didnt get ANY OTHERS on this trip that was the one I would absolutely love to get and there I had it on my first day of buying. I was thrilled!
Around 4 I hopped on the bus to MK that park that the crowd calendar told me very sternly was a bad idea . Remember that? Yeah ..well it was right. The place was PACKED
. It wasnt packed like just cant get on rides
it was packed like almost not enjoyable to even walk around. Every picture had 39483984 people in it. So I only spent a few hours there and headed back to my hotel to try and make up some of the lost sleep from the night before. However I did get to ride Peter Pan for the first time and it was awesome!. The Ride had actually shut down as I was scanning my magic band and they told everyone to come back in an hour, But as I was talking to the CM about good QS places to eat (and parents in the background yelling at CMs like the ride being broken was their fault) the ride fired back up and he let me right on! . I also did Dumbo, Pooh and rode the train for the very first time on this night!. On this night I started a tradition of after park bubble baths. My feet were begging to be soaked as I did more walking solo than I ever would have done with a group!Tuesday December 3rd
On this day my mother and step dad joined me, They drove up early and I had them meet me at the hotel so I could show them all the cool stuff there (and explore more myself). Being born in 88 I dont think I appreciate some of the sayings and random things they have there as much as being from other generations do. There were a lot of things my mom would laugh and say I remember that!. After which we headed to Animal Kingdom where we rode Mt Everest, Its tough to be a bug (our favorite) and did the nature walk. We got to see one tiger as he napped the afternoon away. He (she..sorry I pretend all animals are boys because I like boy names better) was absolutely gorgeous!. We ate lunch at Rainforest Café now.. Ive eaten at a few rain forest cafés including the one at DTD and I have always found their food to be really mediocre and overly priced. I know you go for the atmosphere but I feel like Trex gives you atmosphere and amazing food. Again, I was not overly priced and wishing we would have went to tusker house again but we still had a good time.
After lunch we decided to go to Epcot, I was going to MVMCP that night (they were not joining me though) So I thought because they love epcot that it would be the easiest park to leave around 6 and get to MK. Once we arrived at epcot we were quickly stopped when we heard the gospel group start their show, We sat on the pavement want watched the entire thing. I was so thoroughly impressed that this gospel group was at epcot and speaking specifically about Jesus. I was in shock almost that it was allowed at such a place (very very cool). After doing Maelstrom (spelling?) for the first time because of my mothers troll I mean Vikingish background we found it to be kind of a confusing ride. But it was cool either way. We then noticed a giant line going half way around the lake and realized it was for the candlelight procession and it was Neil Patrick Harris doing the reading. It was obvious we wouldnt be getting a seat for that but we had a great time either way. After doing spaceship earth (which was so cool! We didnt get to do it in October).
I parted ways with them and took the monorail to the TTC
and then took the ferry to MK. The Christmas party was a blast and I loved the free hot chocolate. I also experienced the jungle cruise for the first time while at the party and had an AWESOME skipper (I went on it the next day and the guy wasnt as funny mehhh). I didnt really watch the parade except for when Santa came around, But I did watch the fireworks from the back of the castle (my new favorite spot!) . All of the newbs lined up facing the castle, I found a perfect spot to watch where the big ones were actually going to be exploding. It was a beautiful show!. I also rode the people mover for the first time (really cool!). I had forgotten about the *snow* on main street so I had a huge grin as I saw it falling on the light posts. It wasnt long before my entire clothes were covered and I got a kick out of the kids catching *snow* on their tongues and having a not so pleasant look on their face as they tasted it lol. I somehow managed to get back to my hotel before midnight so I was able to get some food before they closed. I made the mistake of ordering a kids cheeseburger which is on this terrible wheat goldfish bread lol but I was so hungry I got over it and learned the adult cheeseburger was worth the extra $$. I also purchased a Smirnoff Ice because Im not a fan of regular beer
But I took 2 sips and it ended up going in the trash the night I left. I just wasnt that into drinking on this trip. Wednesday December 4th
On this day my mom had a training she had to attend for her Alzheimers Education Certification. (Shes going to put on classes for caretakers to spread further knowledge about proper care for Alzheimers patients). So me and my step dad headed to Hollywood Studios for the day, We rode RnR at least 3 times, Finally saw the car show thing, and did ToT I want to say 6 times? We had a blast! Even better that we finally got to eat at 50s Prime Time Café and had amazing fried chicken! It was so yummy. Now this day wasnt all perfect and I dont want to give the impression that my entire trip was hunky dory because it wasnt I had my moments!. My step dad can annoy me at times. Sometimes he is overly obnoxious especially if my mom isnt around to tell him to act like an adult
. He has to talk to people wherever he is, Now there is nothing wrong with that but sometimes families are there spending rare bonding time together and I feel like there are instances where you just shut your mouth and let people talk amongst themselves . Its all an attention thing for him, But we did have a great time. I just dont want to put all the good stuff and none of the not so great stuff in my trip report
This is real life people! My mom had planned on meeting us at HS but her training ended up running a little longer than anticipated so we agreed to meet her at DTD later that evening. We grabbed a bite to eat at paradiso 37 or 27 or something it was the only place that wasnt packed. I think this was the night I purchased $40 worth of magnets because they were just all so cool lol
Thursday December 5th
Once again my mother and step dad met me at the hotel where they both got coffee and we boarded the bus for Magic Kingdom. I made reservations for an early lunch at Tonys Town Square Restaurant (if I may be honest, I only chose this place because I saw they had calamari on the menu lol). Everyone loved their meal (I got the meatball sliders as well.. soo yummy). Now we did several rides on this day but unfortunately we didnt have time to wait on Peter Pan so they could experience it for the first time.. However we did do hall of presidents for the first time and WOW how did we not do this before Forgetting the fact that the presidents looked so lifelike.. the video before hand had me in tears. This was an AMAZING show and I will do it every single trip now. I still didnt ride the ferry boat Or go on the island but I feel like I accomplished a lot on this trip.
I wanted to finally see the Boardwalk so we took a bus over there and of course purchased baked goods at the Boardwalk Bakery. We then spent about $20 playing games in the ESPN Arcade (a blast!)
. I picked out a few gifts for myself for Christmas (from my mom lol) at the Disney shop they have there (a beautiful crystal ear hat necklace, Mickey journal, and a beautiful WDW throw).They decided to head home around 3 or 4 in the evening, So after parting ways I spent a few hours at DTD to do some last minute Christmas shopping. After which I headed back to the hotel where I decided I didnt want to deal with morning traffic and I would check out that night. I made the trip home safely (arriving at my house a little after midnight). I neatly unpacked all of my treasures from the trip and made it to bed around 2AM.
*My Favorites*
- Eating a Mickey Pretzel in front of ToT
- Getting the Annual Passholder Vinylmation Little Orange Bird
- Christmas Fireworks
- Riding Dumbo
- 5 Blue Raspberry Goofy Glaciers
- Propping my feet up on People Mover
- Watching a gorgeous tiger nap in the afternoon sun
- NOT being under a spider drop zone in Its Tough To Be A Bug
- Finally walking down streets of America
- Seeing One Mans Dream
- Meeting Goofy in a Santa Suit
Recap:
I had such a blast touring solo, I was so nervous about this but it turned out to be incredible. To be honest (and I know how mean this sounds) but once my family arrived I missed being solo. When I was alone I could get through crowds like a breeze because I had no one to wait up on or try not to lose. I ate where I wanted and rode what I wanted and walked around aimlessly in loops around the park as much as I wanted. I had a great time with my family, I truly did. But being solo gave me so much confidence and it truly was a life time experience. For the next 4 days or so after arriving home I let my brain rest in regards to Disney, But then I started checking these boards again and looking at crowd reports It felt like it had been a month since I left Disney but its only been 8 days! The other morning I woke to a fantastic surprise that Pop Century had refunded me the night I didnt stay even though I checked out late at night! I of course used the refund to book another 6 days in February lol
It will technically be a Birthday trip (However I was born on leap year so technically its not lol) but Im going to wear that dang birthday button!
