ericafny
<font color=purple>OK, I am a real Harry Potter ge
- Joined
- Mar 6, 2005
- Messages
- 1,375
Hi everyone! This is my first trip report, so it may be a little choppy
I will try to make it as entertaining as possible and give as much detail as possible. If anyone has any other questions feel free to PM me! OK, so here it is...
Cast:
Me (26) - Have been to Disney four other times, most recent was 8 years ago.
BF (25) - Has been only two other times, didn't stay onsite for the most recent time.
Day two:
6:30am the alarm goes off. I purposely set it a little early so I could snooze it, especially since my BF didnt even move when it went off. I finally got out of bed at 6:45 (of course I showered first!) and then got my BF up and into the shower. He wasnt TOO thrilled, but after it hit him that this was our first full day in WDW, he seemed to come alive!
We had some cereal in the room, which worked out very nicely, and by 8:15 we were out of the room headed to the bus stop for AK!!! (now you are probably thinking it took two people an awful long time to get ready, the fact is we take our time in the morning well as the trip went on we learned that if we rushed we could get up later keep reading!) We got to the bus stop and what do you know, an AK bus was pulling up---perfect! We got on, it was nearly empty and away we went Now, I knew that this day was an EMH morning for AK, but I decided to chance it and get there for 9am opening anyways, and proceed as planned. We got to the turnstiles of the entrance at 8:45, and waited with the rest of the people till they opened the gates. I am not sure why, but they didnt have any kind of opening ceremony. I thought maybe it was because it was EMH morning, but I thought they did a ceremony every morning anyways, slightly disappointed, I waited until 9 am and then it was a mad dash to the safari.
I had never been in AK before and either has my BF. I wanted so bad to stop and look around, but it was more like, look at all the pretty scenery as we briskly walked with the sea of people to the safari. Im glad we did though, because it was already a 25 minute wait when we got there. We got on line and it actually was more like a 15 minute wait---not bad I thought. The only bad thing about the wait was this screaming kid who did NOT want her stroller taken away from her. Her parents didnt do much to comfort her either, they kind of ignored her crying and kept the line moving oh well I thought she cried pretty much the whole time we were in line and we were lucky enough to be standing behind her.
Once on the safari, I was kind of disappointed in our safari guide. She wasnt very enthusiastic, and seemed even sarcastic at times despite that I thought the ride was great! It was still pretty early so most of the animals were out! We got some great pics, especially of the giraffe and the elephants. The lion was sitting on pride rock, but he was hard to see because of all the tall grass. After the safari we decided to wing it for the rest of the day. We knew there wasnt that much to see, and that we would get to ride everything eventually, so we headed over to the Pangani (sp?) Forest Exploration Trails. This was pretty neat! I know Disney would kill me for saying this, but it seemed like I was in a ZOO (SHHHHHHHHH dont tell them I said that!) but seriously, I enjoyed this walk through, and even learned some things! Next, I thought it would be fun to take the train to Rafikis Planet Watch and the Conservation Station. Plus, it was only a 5 minute wait (in the shade!) for the train. Side Note: I didnt really mention this but it was HOT! 90 degrees at 10:30am, I was starting to feel it BAD I had to take lots of breaks and drink plenty of water OK back to the report so we got on the train and I liked the little tour you get on your way to the station. On the way back, we got real close to an Ostrich too! I will tell you though, there isnt much to do at Rafikis. Parents, however, may want to bring your kids there as Pocahantas and friends were at the Conservation Station when we were there.
After our journey, we got off in Africa and walked straight through to DinoLand. At this point we thought we would try to grab a FP for Dinosaur (it was 11:30-ish) and then have some lunch and then ride. BUT, lucky us---the wait was only 25 minutes!!! I couldnt believe it---at almost noon there was such a short wait---what did I say about the Disney Magic! We did pretty much wait the whole 25 minutes, but it was worth it! I LOVED this ride! It was so much fun, and our picture was hysterical! My face was priceless; too bad we didnt buy it. After Dinosaur I wanted to ride Primevil Whirl. Now, my BF does not like spinning rides at all I cant handle them either, but was willing to sacrifice getting nauseas to ride the Whirl. My BF took one look at this thing and said NO WAY! I couldnt even convince him, it was hopeless away the coaster went, right in front of us, spinning the poor people inside it around a dozen times I was pretty disappointed, so we turned around and headed over to Flame Tree for lunch but wait, what do I see---LUCKY THE DINOSAUR!!! YEAH!!! Now I am no longer upset about the ride, I GOT TO SEE LUCKY! I cant believe that Disney pulled this off! It is the weirdest thing I have ever seen! It was hot, and we were hungry, so we headed over to the Flame Tree.
Lunch was very delicious! We both got the smoked turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with a side of coleslaw. YUM! This was the best lunch I had all week (well besides for Teppanyaki, but I will get to that later ). After lunch, we headed over to Kali to try to grab a FP it was around 1:30 and it was starting to get brutally hot. Unfortunately, we couldnt get a FP, the return time was too late and we were planning on going to the Boardwalk that nite and didnt want to wait around. We decided we would come back and headed towards Its Tough To Be A Bug. The posted wait was 15 minutes so we hoped right on line .I am sure glad we did because it looked as if it was going to pour any minute. After the show, which was pretty cute but not worth a huge wait, it was drizzling outside and the grounds were soaked the skies definitely opened up while we were inside the theatre. At this point we decided we would go back to the hotel for some rest and relaxation by the pool, and have a quick dinner at the Pepper Market (which would mean forgoing our 8:30 ressie at Spoodles---but I wasnt in the mood for a big dinner anyways) and head over to the Boardwalk.
This plan couldnt have been more perfect---back at the hotel by 3 pool till 4:00 back in room, shower and ready to head out by 5:30 a quick dinner at Pepper Market and on the bus to MGM by 6:30. After we got off the bus we headed to the boat launch so we could take it to the Boardwalk hotel. This I thought was SO cool! I decided that we are staying at one of the boat hotels next time (Swan/Dolphin, Yacht/Beach Club, or Boardwalk) just for the fact that its accessible by boat! We arrived at the Boardwalk by 7, and remembered hearing that there were two showings of Fantasmic that nite the latest one being 10:30. I told my BF this and then said that maybe we should hang out there till 8:45-ish and then head back over the MGM for the late showing of Fantasmic. He agreed and so that was our plan. I thought the Boardwalk was really fun! The street performers made the whole experience and they were very entertaining too! I also enjoyed the bakery and got a mickey shaped rice krispy treat! My BF got some kind of cookie that he thought was amazing. So we walked around there for a little while and by 8:30 noticed a boat headed for MGM was pulling up to the dock. We figured we should just probably get on that one, and so we did off to MGM to see Fantasmic!
Once off the boat, we realized that the first showing of Fantasmic had just started (9pm showing) and that they werent letting people on line yet for the second showing the only logical thing to do at this point was to ride TOT YES!!! Wait time posted was 15 minutes (the park was closing at 9 and it was about that time). We hoped on line and I was super excited! This is my favorite ride here, and I couldnt wait for my BF to experience it! We didnt wait too long (the time posted was pretty accurate) and before I knew it I was seated in the old elevator awaiting my freefall (Yet another side note: We rode TOT a total of 3 times this trip, each time we sat in the EXACT same seats, all by chance) the ride was just as awesome as I expected it! I could do without the special effects in the beginning, they arent that spooky (except for the little girl singing its raining its pouring ) but the suspense is the BEST part! The pic from this ride was quite possibly one of the funniest I have ever seen, but they had already closed up for the nite we probably could have gotten it the next day, as we went back to MGM, but it was OK we had the memory!
After TOT, I thought it would be a good idea to get in line for Fantasmic we got through to the first line, and waited in the heat for what seemed like forever I knew that the previous show was over with (it was about 10 pm at this point) and I thought they would be letting us in soon 10:05 10:15 10:20 FINALLY they let us in I thought it was really strange that they let us in the theatre 10 minutes before the show started, but hey I didnt care, we got awesome seats middle section, about 10 rows up, center of the row .just close enough, without getting wet (well we did get a little mist!). Then all of a sudden, the lights shut off and the show began! WHAT AN AMAZING SHOW! It wasnt even a show it was a spectacle! I sat there watching it with my mouth open, I was in complete awe! After the show it took a little time getting out of the park and back to the bus, but once again we had amazing luck with the bus, it wasnt very crowded at all!
Back in the room, I fell asleep to thoughts of Fantasmic it was about 11:55 and I was exhausted good thing we were sleeping in the next day and not getting up until 9:30 to go and sit by the pool
Cast:
Me (26) - Have been to Disney four other times, most recent was 8 years ago.
BF (25) - Has been only two other times, didn't stay onsite for the most recent time.
Day two:
6:30am the alarm goes off. I purposely set it a little early so I could snooze it, especially since my BF didnt even move when it went off. I finally got out of bed at 6:45 (of course I showered first!) and then got my BF up and into the shower. He wasnt TOO thrilled, but after it hit him that this was our first full day in WDW, he seemed to come alive!
We had some cereal in the room, which worked out very nicely, and by 8:15 we were out of the room headed to the bus stop for AK!!! (now you are probably thinking it took two people an awful long time to get ready, the fact is we take our time in the morning well as the trip went on we learned that if we rushed we could get up later keep reading!) We got to the bus stop and what do you know, an AK bus was pulling up---perfect! We got on, it was nearly empty and away we went Now, I knew that this day was an EMH morning for AK, but I decided to chance it and get there for 9am opening anyways, and proceed as planned. We got to the turnstiles of the entrance at 8:45, and waited with the rest of the people till they opened the gates. I am not sure why, but they didnt have any kind of opening ceremony. I thought maybe it was because it was EMH morning, but I thought they did a ceremony every morning anyways, slightly disappointed, I waited until 9 am and then it was a mad dash to the safari.
I had never been in AK before and either has my BF. I wanted so bad to stop and look around, but it was more like, look at all the pretty scenery as we briskly walked with the sea of people to the safari. Im glad we did though, because it was already a 25 minute wait when we got there. We got on line and it actually was more like a 15 minute wait---not bad I thought. The only bad thing about the wait was this screaming kid who did NOT want her stroller taken away from her. Her parents didnt do much to comfort her either, they kind of ignored her crying and kept the line moving oh well I thought she cried pretty much the whole time we were in line and we were lucky enough to be standing behind her.
Once on the safari, I was kind of disappointed in our safari guide. She wasnt very enthusiastic, and seemed even sarcastic at times despite that I thought the ride was great! It was still pretty early so most of the animals were out! We got some great pics, especially of the giraffe and the elephants. The lion was sitting on pride rock, but he was hard to see because of all the tall grass. After the safari we decided to wing it for the rest of the day. We knew there wasnt that much to see, and that we would get to ride everything eventually, so we headed over to the Pangani (sp?) Forest Exploration Trails. This was pretty neat! I know Disney would kill me for saying this, but it seemed like I was in a ZOO (SHHHHHHHHH dont tell them I said that!) but seriously, I enjoyed this walk through, and even learned some things! Next, I thought it would be fun to take the train to Rafikis Planet Watch and the Conservation Station. Plus, it was only a 5 minute wait (in the shade!) for the train. Side Note: I didnt really mention this but it was HOT! 90 degrees at 10:30am, I was starting to feel it BAD I had to take lots of breaks and drink plenty of water OK back to the report so we got on the train and I liked the little tour you get on your way to the station. On the way back, we got real close to an Ostrich too! I will tell you though, there isnt much to do at Rafikis. Parents, however, may want to bring your kids there as Pocahantas and friends were at the Conservation Station when we were there.
After our journey, we got off in Africa and walked straight through to DinoLand. At this point we thought we would try to grab a FP for Dinosaur (it was 11:30-ish) and then have some lunch and then ride. BUT, lucky us---the wait was only 25 minutes!!! I couldnt believe it---at almost noon there was such a short wait---what did I say about the Disney Magic! We did pretty much wait the whole 25 minutes, but it was worth it! I LOVED this ride! It was so much fun, and our picture was hysterical! My face was priceless; too bad we didnt buy it. After Dinosaur I wanted to ride Primevil Whirl. Now, my BF does not like spinning rides at all I cant handle them either, but was willing to sacrifice getting nauseas to ride the Whirl. My BF took one look at this thing and said NO WAY! I couldnt even convince him, it was hopeless away the coaster went, right in front of us, spinning the poor people inside it around a dozen times I was pretty disappointed, so we turned around and headed over to Flame Tree for lunch but wait, what do I see---LUCKY THE DINOSAUR!!! YEAH!!! Now I am no longer upset about the ride, I GOT TO SEE LUCKY! I cant believe that Disney pulled this off! It is the weirdest thing I have ever seen! It was hot, and we were hungry, so we headed over to the Flame Tree.
Lunch was very delicious! We both got the smoked turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with a side of coleslaw. YUM! This was the best lunch I had all week (well besides for Teppanyaki, but I will get to that later ). After lunch, we headed over to Kali to try to grab a FP it was around 1:30 and it was starting to get brutally hot. Unfortunately, we couldnt get a FP, the return time was too late and we were planning on going to the Boardwalk that nite and didnt want to wait around. We decided we would come back and headed towards Its Tough To Be A Bug. The posted wait was 15 minutes so we hoped right on line .I am sure glad we did because it looked as if it was going to pour any minute. After the show, which was pretty cute but not worth a huge wait, it was drizzling outside and the grounds were soaked the skies definitely opened up while we were inside the theatre. At this point we decided we would go back to the hotel for some rest and relaxation by the pool, and have a quick dinner at the Pepper Market (which would mean forgoing our 8:30 ressie at Spoodles---but I wasnt in the mood for a big dinner anyways) and head over to the Boardwalk.
This plan couldnt have been more perfect---back at the hotel by 3 pool till 4:00 back in room, shower and ready to head out by 5:30 a quick dinner at Pepper Market and on the bus to MGM by 6:30. After we got off the bus we headed to the boat launch so we could take it to the Boardwalk hotel. This I thought was SO cool! I decided that we are staying at one of the boat hotels next time (Swan/Dolphin, Yacht/Beach Club, or Boardwalk) just for the fact that its accessible by boat! We arrived at the Boardwalk by 7, and remembered hearing that there were two showings of Fantasmic that nite the latest one being 10:30. I told my BF this and then said that maybe we should hang out there till 8:45-ish and then head back over the MGM for the late showing of Fantasmic. He agreed and so that was our plan. I thought the Boardwalk was really fun! The street performers made the whole experience and they were very entertaining too! I also enjoyed the bakery and got a mickey shaped rice krispy treat! My BF got some kind of cookie that he thought was amazing. So we walked around there for a little while and by 8:30 noticed a boat headed for MGM was pulling up to the dock. We figured we should just probably get on that one, and so we did off to MGM to see Fantasmic!
Once off the boat, we realized that the first showing of Fantasmic had just started (9pm showing) and that they werent letting people on line yet for the second showing the only logical thing to do at this point was to ride TOT YES!!! Wait time posted was 15 minutes (the park was closing at 9 and it was about that time). We hoped on line and I was super excited! This is my favorite ride here, and I couldnt wait for my BF to experience it! We didnt wait too long (the time posted was pretty accurate) and before I knew it I was seated in the old elevator awaiting my freefall (Yet another side note: We rode TOT a total of 3 times this trip, each time we sat in the EXACT same seats, all by chance) the ride was just as awesome as I expected it! I could do without the special effects in the beginning, they arent that spooky (except for the little girl singing its raining its pouring ) but the suspense is the BEST part! The pic from this ride was quite possibly one of the funniest I have ever seen, but they had already closed up for the nite we probably could have gotten it the next day, as we went back to MGM, but it was OK we had the memory!
After TOT, I thought it would be a good idea to get in line for Fantasmic we got through to the first line, and waited in the heat for what seemed like forever I knew that the previous show was over with (it was about 10 pm at this point) and I thought they would be letting us in soon 10:05 10:15 10:20 FINALLY they let us in I thought it was really strange that they let us in the theatre 10 minutes before the show started, but hey I didnt care, we got awesome seats middle section, about 10 rows up, center of the row .just close enough, without getting wet (well we did get a little mist!). Then all of a sudden, the lights shut off and the show began! WHAT AN AMAZING SHOW! It wasnt even a show it was a spectacle! I sat there watching it with my mouth open, I was in complete awe! After the show it took a little time getting out of the park and back to the bus, but once again we had amazing luck with the bus, it wasnt very crowded at all!
Back in the room, I fell asleep to thoughts of Fantasmic it was about 11:55 and I was exhausted good thing we were sleeping in the next day and not getting up until 9:30 to go and sit by the pool
