Escape from Michigan - March 2-8, 2008

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One day DH announced that we would have to cancel our usual two-week April vacation to Ft. Wilderness because of the “big project” at work. I asked if he would mind if my DD and I went for one week during her college spring break. He agreed!! Please note that the winter in Michigan has been very cold, very snowy, and very-very long!!!! We needed some warmth!!!!


Reservations/Preparations:

We decided to fly down and stay at one of the value resorts. Flight arrangements were made with Spirit Airlines for a direct flight from Detroit-Orlando (and back) for $194 each. A room was booked at Pop Century for six (6) nights with the AAA rate @ $122.18/night (Peak Season rates). Later on the ZVX package code came out which offered a free upgrade to PH & FUN. Since I would be using the rest of my park admission for this trip, I was on the look-out to purchase new tickets before the next price increase. Well, this seemed to be a good time to do it. The only downside was that I would also have to get tickets for my DD who will still have two (2) days left on her ticket. My logic told me that prices continue to go up, so just go for it. We originally would have paid $733.07 for the room only. The new package with 6 night’s hotel, 2 10-day PH & FUN with no expiry came to $1,547.44. Basically, the savings on the two tickets was $170 against the lowest price available – I paid $407 for each 10-day ticket. Okay, so my money is tied up in WDW tickets, but just using 2-3 days for each of our future visits, these tickets will last for the next 3-4 years! I also found out at check-in that we have ten (10) “pluses”. Super!

Additionally, because our winter has been so bad and we had an 8:50 am flight, we decided to do a Stay-Park-Fly package in Detroit for the night before (we live a 2 hr drive from airport). That came to $99.44. The room only cost $54.44 over what we would have paid for just parking.

Saturday, 1 March – Drive to Detroit

Our trip was booked so that we could attend mass prior to departure; therefore, wanted to go to 4:00 pm mass on Saturday and head over to Detroit before it got dark. Well, my DD had to work. She left work an hour early and got home in time for the 5:30 p.m. mass. We left directly from there and had an uneventful trip to the hotel with clear roads. The second hour of our drive was in the dark. We pulled into the Ramada Romulus hotel and checked-in. Our room was freezing … there were some wires hanging out from the wall unit, so we called down to report no-heat-in-the-room. She told us to come back down and she’d put us in another room. The second room was nice and toasty!!

 

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Sunday, 2 March – Fly to Orlando … Pop Century … Magic Kingdom

We had a good night’s sleep and were up early to grab some “free” breakfast downstairs; then back in the car to head across the street to the “Airlines Parking” Yellow Lot. We got our ticket, parked in C6 and were driven to the very-very old Smith Terminal at Detroit Metro. $2 tip to the driver.

Note: My DH and I had flow Spirit for the first time two weeks earlier (Las Vegas) so I knew what to expect as far as the terminal we were flying out of and the “discount” airline we were flying. I knew that they charged for ANY checked bags, but they also did not have any complimentary drink/food service on the plane. Any pop, soda, snacks, etc had to be purchased … not with cash, but with a credit card.

We had printed off our boarding passes the night before and had only carry-on luggage so we headed straight for Security. Looking back we could see SCADS of people in the check-in line for Spirit; also, we seemed to beat the rush through Security as well. I headed for the counter-service food area and waited at least 10 minutes to purchase two bottles of water – That will be $4.85 please. The time on my receipt is 7:16 am, so we must have gotten to the airport about 6:45 am. Well in advance of our 8:50 am flight.

We settled in at our gate and people-watched, boarded (Zone 7, row 15, seats C&D-aisle) with no problems and we’re off just a few minutes late.

I recall that our arrival into Orlando was early (11:00 am), tram to terminal, then downstairs to the Disney Magical Express. Tons of people, but we got checked-in quickly and joined the queue for our resort. I think we were probably in line for about 15 minutes before we boarded our bus and headed for WDW property. Pop Century was the first stop (about 12:15 pm). $2 tip to the bus driver. No real line at registration. Off to our room # 2302 in the 50’s section. We were the building at the top end of the Bowling Pin swimming pool. Entry was behind a gi-normous juke box, then up to the third floor. The room was very nice and clean. It worked out very well for our visit.

And did I mention the weather!!! Sunny and in the high 70’s. Oh, yeh!! Isn’t this what we come to Florida for!!! Okay, we also come for the Disney experience, but I’d be lying if I said Disney was the main motivation for heading south during this very long winter of 2007-2008!!! We had a couple of cloudy days with some rain, but for the most part it was a LOVELY, LOVELY week weather-wise.

Once in the room I remembered that we were suppose to pick up our case of water (ordered from Staples – total cost with shipping $15.76). I phoned the front desk to ask if it could be delivered to our room and they said we would have to pick it up ourselves at the front desk. We headed back to Registration and received our package. I have to say that ordering water to be shipped worked out extremely well and would recommend it to anyone that is staying in one of the resorts without a car. Back at the room, we unpacked, got organized with our back-pack and sweatshirts and off to the Magic Kingdom. Our reason for doing the MK on Sunday was because of the evening Extra Magic Hours. Even with arriving in the afternoon, we would still have loads of time to get in all the attractions we wanted to do at MK. As it happened, I believe we left the park about 11:30 – 30 minutes before the EMH close (10 hours!).

The bus stop was at the front of the main building and I recall that we had good bus service/luck except for one AWFUL day (more later). We entered the MK through the very empty entry (it was about 1:15 pm after all) … this is very strange for us as we are usually in the rope-drop crowd!!

We were starving so had decided that we would ride the train back to Frontierland and eat at Pecos Bill’s. It has been some time since we got a burger there and wanted to take advantage of the great toppings bar! We had just missed a train so had to wait a few minutes for the next one. Once off the train we picked up Fast Passes (FP) for Splash Mountain

At Pecos Bill’s we ordered two Cheeseburger/fries ($12.98) and two cups of ice water (FREE). We loaded up with toppings and managed to find a seat in the very crowded dining area.

By this time we were able to get a FP for Big Thunder Mountain and then rode Splash Mountain with our FP. They had the water level quite high and we got soaked near the beginning of the ride from another boat on their descent. Lot’s of fun though. We then each got a Dole Whip ($6.16) before heading to Fantasyland. There was a line at the Haunted Mansion … we don’t do lines here because it is usually a walk-on during EMH. We got to Mickey’s Philharmagic just as they were letting people into the theatre. The outside CM said we were in time, so we stepped over the rope that the other CM had just put up, thinking we had just made it. She made us go back!! What a spoilsport. We decided to do a little shopping and come back in 10 minutes. This we did and were able to walk into the theatre after only a 60 second wait!!! So there crabby CM!!!

Note about attendance during our visit: The parks were busy, but not nearly as busy as the last few years. Most of the rides had a posted wait time of 20-30 minutes (not bad) … Space Mountain may have been 45-60 minutes though. Later in the week we started noticing more school groups (dance teams, senior trip, etc); however, it appeared that at least 1/3 of the crowd was from Canada!! Apparently the following week all of Ontario would be on spring break and some of these people were down this week to beat the rush; if they had kids, they had been pulled out of school because they couldn’t get flights/hotels for the following week!!

Back to the park: We then used our FP’s at BTM, shopped on way through Fantasyland enroute to Tomorrowland, Mickey bar/DD a Strawberry bar ($5), got a FP for Space Mountain, then walked back to Frontierland to Jungle Cruise which posted a 30 min wait (ended up being 20).

Okay, this brings me to a little confrontation with another guest. We got in line behind a couple and were there for about 15 seconds, when some young guy (about 14) tries to go by us. I told him that he could stand “behind” us, not in front. His family, the couple ahead of us, said that he was their son (there was another child too) and that they was coming to join them. Now there are about 6 other people behind us. I told them that THEY were welcome to go back to join their children but that cutting in line was not allowed. The dad said that his son couldn’t swim and wanted to see what the boats looked like (what???) and that was why they did not join the line with the parents. I told him, that they should have waited at the entrance and all joined the line together as was policy at WDW. [It’s not like the place was that crowded anyway!] He then decided to turn the conversation around and accused me of having a bad day – Oh, are you having a bad day? This is WDW and you’re supposed to be having fun. The nerve!!! I repeated what the policy was and that cutting was not allowed … But go ahead this one time if you must!!!

I have to say that I’ve seen this time and time again over the years. It is many times people that “pretend” not to know the rules of the parks and/or have any courtesy for others!!! One gets in line, then two more crowd up, then five more crowd up, etc. I’m sorry, if you are so concerned about your children, then why didn’t you stay with them in the beginning!!!!

Anyway, I glared at them the rest of the time in line and they pretended not to see me. After they loaded into the boat before ours, the people behind me thanked me for speaking up and said that they couldn’t believe the guy tried to turn it around like I was the bad one. I really do get tired of the few individuals who feel that the rules are really for the “common folk” and not for them.

Again, I apologize for any readers who don’t feel the same way, but I do get very tired of this behavior and it just hit me at the moment that I was going to make a stink about it!!!

Okay, another wonderful cruise through the Disney jungle. This would be our only JC of the trip; normally, we will go again after dark, but the ride was not open during EMH. I don’t recall this being the case in the past, but they must have their reasons.

From there, we are back in Fantasyland (humm, we must have done a lot of walking!!) where we got a pretzel to share ($3.50). We rode Space Mountain with our FP. Note: We, using FP, walked right up to the front and then onto the ride. SM as with most of the rides this week, did not have any internal lines that we would normally see. All the lines entered right into the loading dock.

Carousel of Progress was next. I love this attraction and always think about Walt and the World’s Fair for which this ride was first designed. It looked to be in better shape than previous years, except they had the house lights up in one or two of the rooms. It kind of took away from seeing the side rooms. Good none-the-less and a really Disney classic!

We grabbed another FP for Space Mountain then rode the TTA … again, one of my favorite rides. Oh, love to put my feet up!! Then on to Buzz Lightyear … a walk on.

Okay, now we did something we have never done in all my years of going to WDW. There was a 30 min wait for the Astro Orbiter so we got in line. This is a very slow loading ride where you have to take an elevator to the loading platform. Once up there you sit in your car with one or two others in your group and then spin around … Similar to Dumbo, but FASTER! My DD and I were kind of smashed in the rocket and DD was not enjoying the view (too high). Anyway, we were glad when the ride ended quickly. Okay, now that we have been on that ride, we don’t have to go again.

After that we found the place to get the EMH wristbands near SM then took our FP and rode SM again.

It had been a long day and we seemed to be running out of steam so we decided we needed some caffeine (2 coffees and a Coke at the Lunching Pad - $6.58 please). We enjoyed our beverages while watching a half-view of Wishes. Very nice!

On to Snow White (about 9:00 now), It’s a Small World, Carousel, then twice on the Haunted Mansion (DD’s favorite). HM was recently refurbished and we were trying to find all the “new stuff” – very nice job. Pirates of the Caribbean was next … walk-on with our own private boat!! This ride was a 30 min wait earlier in the day. Twice on BTM and one more time on SM.

We left the MK about 11:30 and turned out the lights in our room about 1:00 am. It was a good day but long.

 

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Monday, 3 March – Typhoon Lagoon & Planet Hollywood

Since my DH wasn’t with us and we all have cell phones, we were speaking to each other 2-3 times per day (I know, we are mean to rub it in that we are having fun and he is at work!). He phoned us about 7:30 am see if we were up. Really, I was just thinking of getting up. Today we planned to go to Typhoon Lagoon and we could lounge around in the wonderful-wonderful warmth of the sun!!! We brought a coffee pot with us and so fixed a cup for each and then some instant oatmeal for breakfast. We packed a small bag with towels and bottled water and went to the POP bus stop. We waited, and waited, and waited. By the time a bus arrived, more people had lined up than would fit on a bus. And, of course, many people are reluctant to actually touch one another, so didn’t squeeze in enough to get the last 4 people on the bus. In the time we waited, the other stops had 2-3 buses come by.

We got to TL about the time they were opening (10:00 am) so headed right for the locker rental. We just needed a small locker to keep my purse and park tickets … $10 up front, then you get $5 back when you return the key. We were pleasantly surprised to see that they had opened a walk-way alongside the front restrooms to the newly expanded area by Crushin Gusher. Last year CG was open but they had not yet redone/expanded that area yet. We put our stuff on a couple of lounge chairs in what we thought would stay a bit secluded and then headed for CG. We rode 4 times and absolutely loved it. By far, the best attraction at TL! We then rode the Storm Slides once and declared it lame by comparison to CG. Then we entered Castaway Creek over by the Shark Reef (this was where they had stored all the tubes for the night) and did that once. Lots of lounging and reading in the sun. Then, instead of a proper lunch, we headed for the Palms Ice Cream stand and got a Garbage Pail (vanilla ice cream only, light on the fudge, and everything else please). The price has gone up to $9 from $7 of a couple years ago (total with tax $9.58). Very yummy. Talked with a couple at one of the tables from Canada. Yes, the Canadians were everywhere … very nice people!

I think we left the park (4:00 pm) just as they made the 1 hr to close announcement …. And we waited, and waited, and waited for our bus. Again, all the other resorts had 2-3 buses come before ours showed up.

At the hotel we got cleaned up and then headed out to West Side for dinner at Planet Hollywood. We only went there because our room package included a $15 food voucher. We got Spinach Dip/Chips for an appetizer and then DD got the BBQ Chicken Sandwich and I got the Cobb Salad. Two ice waters please. The food was “okay” … you sit down, order, the food is brought almost immediately. Even with the $15 voucher, it came to $31 with tip. We were out of there within 40 minutes (6:30 pm). Nothing leisurely about it … they want you in and out so more people can leave their money!!! I really don’t like it as well as in the past. We also had a voucher for a merchandize gift. It was a key chain and 15% off a purchase. We just took the keychain.

We walked around and went into a few shops before heading for the Marketplace. We shared a hot fudge Sunday at Ghirardelli ($8.47). DD found the purses she was looking for, along with a watch. I purchased some Mickey earrings ($12.78) which would be my only souvenir of the trip. We really looked at the coffee cups, etc. but you really can only have so many of these things. We have gotten them in the past and then ordered items from DisneyShopping.com – we really didn’t need anymore stuff.

Went to catch the bus and – again, wait-wait-wait. It was really awful this day. Fortunately this was the only day we had problems and it seemed to be just the TL/DTD bus route. Not sure what the problem was, but was glad that we didn’t encounter it again. We were back in our room by 10:00 pm. Night-night.

 

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Tuesday, 4 March – Epcot & Disney’s Hollywood Studios

Again, we started the day with our own coffee and a granola bar. We packed our ponchos and a couple of fold-up umbrellas because rain was predicted for the afternoon. Good bus service to Epcot and were there by 7:40 am for the EMH opening at 8:00 am. We headed right for Soarin and rode it two times before getting a FP. Then we rode Living with the Land. We had a little bit of time before our FP so decided to share a coffee and a bagel from the Sunshine Season Food Court ($4.46). Third time on Soarin, then over to get a FP for Test Track.

The single rider line said 20 minutes, but we got in it anyway and walked right on. After that we went to Ellen’s Energy Adventure. We got a seat during the pre-show and the attraction only had about 20% of the seats taken. We went back to TT with our FP and then rode again from the single line.

We then had a 5 min wait for the orange (spinning) Mission Space. I did okay but was ready for the ride to be over. Thank goodness it is not any longer than it is. I should have told you that I start my park days a Dramamine (motion sickness) pill.

We were excited to do Spaceship Earth because it recently reopened after a rehab. Siemens took over sponsorship and, I must say, did a very nice job. Some more lifelike animatronics, some new and improved scenes. On the way down, when you are just riding backwards and wishing the ride were over, they had some stuff going on with the individual ride vehicle screen. The whole thing was finished before you knew it! Lots of fun and surprises …the ride starts out with you getting your picture taken and then it is used in the later part of the ride. The exit area is once again full with hands-on, interactive exhibits and activities including a chance to send a personalized postcard via e-mail to family and friends who could not make the trip.

We stopped in at Ice Station Cool which had been redone since our last visit. All the fun drinks (yes, Beverly is still there) and --- FREE. The boat was just pulling up so we took it over to Morocco to save our feet for later. By this time it is starting to cloud up … looks like rain.

At 1:15 pm we had lunch at the counter service restaurant in Japan – Yakitori. Two Tonosama Combo meals ($15.96) and two ice waters (FREE). Very good. This was the first time eating here … I guess we didn’t even realize that the building on the top of the hill was a counter service restaurant! So, this was another first for us after many years of visiting WDW.

For dessert, we stopped at the Fife and Drum for a tropical smoothie and vanilla cone ($8.29) and continued to walk around to Italy. After that, we back-tracked to the American Adventure catching the end of the singers. It has been some years since I went to this attraction. It was as good as I remembered. My DD enjoyed her nap.

Afterward we stopped for coffee (two) for $5.00. Walking around we stopped to see what the counter service restaurant in China had and decided to get one ginger ice cream to share ($3.19). We spotted Moshe with no line, so my DD got her picture taken. Next up the ride in the Mexico pavilion. Walking around toward Canada, it started to rain a little. We popped into the shops to see what they had for offer but didn’t buy anything. It seemed to be raining harder, so I put on my poncho. Looking for a bathroom we stopped at the small one enroute, but it had a line so we decided to walk on to the UK restrooms. By that time, it had started raining harder so we got out the umbrellas. We had to be a bit careful because the wind had also picked up.

I had wanted to see the “new” show at Canada, and what better time than when it is raining. We weren’t quite sure where the entrance was (it’s been a few years) but finally found it. The sidewalks were just a river of water. We shook off the umbrellas and poncho and had a seat in the holding area. There were very few of us to see the show, so we had plenty of room around us once we got into the theatre. The show was much better than it used to be (hosted by Martin Short) but I did recognize a few shots from the original show. Very nice.

By this time, it had just about stopped raining. We headed for the International entrance/exit and boarded a boat for the Disney Hollywood Studies (new name since last year; however, I heard many people – even CM’s – still refer to it as “MGM)

We entered the park about 5:45 pm and went twice on the Tower of Terror (love this ride). We planned to see Fantasmic and, I guess, I was surprised to hear someone say the park closed at 7:00 pm. At that point, I thought “everyone will be there so we’d better go in now” … we entered the stadium about 6:30 and there was still plenty of room. I got in first one line at a concession stand and then switched to another line. They were not moving very fast and were very limited in what they had for sale, but I ended up with a frozen strawberry slush and popcorn ($6.26). I called my DD on the phone to find out where she was sitting. She said she could see me and stood up and waved me over. The show was great as always … the two side sections remained empty, so lots of room for late-comers.

We decided to poke around in the shops to let the crowd wind down a little before going to the bus stop. This helped and we didn’t have to wait long for a bus. We were back in the room by 8:25 pm and were able to catch the second half of American Idol on TV.

 

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Wednesday, 5 March – Resort, Miniature Golf, Marketplace

Okay, this was a day without much of a schedule. We did want to get that all important tan so that the people at home could see that we had been in the sun and be jealous, so decided this was a good day to lounge by the pool at the resort. I was kind of awake when there was a knock at the door (about 8:30) by housekeeping. I indicated we were still there and she moved on. We did get up though, got ready and cleared out by 9:30. We opened the drapes so she could see that we had vacated the room. We put our things on a lounge chair and we noted that she saw the drapes were open … she entered the room and took care of that. Super – that way we could come and go without interrupting her schedule.

Anyway, since this was our first time at Pop Century resort, we took the camera and walked around exploring and taking pictures. After that I bought a USA Today ($0.75) paper from just outside the laundry/restrooms. I ended up getting a nice little burn on the front of my legs and chest area. My face had some color, but I think the #15 in my face lotion protected it from getting burned.

About 1:30 we went up to the room and cleaned up for miniature golfing. We took the bus to the Studios, but had just missed the boat, so decided to walk to the Swan/Dolphin. It was a beautiful day and a lovely walk. We went through the area between the two hotels and found the Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf Course. Our room package came with a 2 for 1 offer for MG. Cost was $12.52 for the one round. We played the Fantasia side and had a lot of fun. We got some great pictures too. As most things this week, it was not overly crowded so we were able to move along at our own pace. DD beat me, but not by much. She did get a hole in one though. We got two complimentary Donald Duck golf balls upon turning in our clubs.

From there we went into the Dolphin lobby since my DD had never been there before. I had stayed there on business a couple of times years ago. Then on to the ESPN Club for some nachos. I got a Bud Light, DD an ice tea and a plate of nachos ($20.45 incl tip). For some reason, this really wasn’t quite as much fun as I remembered. In fact, most of the three sit-down restaurants we went to were not quite as special as I remembered. Anyway, we explored the Boardwalk area and then caught the bus to Downtown Disney from the Boardwalk resort.

We went to the Earl of Sandwich which I just love!!! We both got a tomato soup and then planned to split a Cobb salad and Scudetto (Italian) sandwich ($16.62). We ate the soup (Yum, yum, yum – they have the very best) and the salad, but decided we were full and would save the sandwich to take to TL the next day. [We had the sandwich in a plastic bag and put it in the ice bucket with some ice to keep it cold.]

To the bus stop and back at our room by 7:30 pm. We watched the rest of American Idol.

 

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Thursday, 6 March – Typhoon Lagoon & Rainforest Cafe

Usual morning routine and then on our way to Typhoon Lagoon. It was suppose to be a warm date with clouds in the afternoon – rain in the evening. We got to the water park about 9:45 but had to wait until 10:00 to be let in. $5 for a small locker. We headed for “our” spot and then went on the Crushin Gusher 8 times in a row!!! Love that ride!!! We went twice around Castaway Creek and then ate our Earl of Sandwich sandwich from the night before. We started noticing quite a few “school groups” – dance groups, senior trip groups, etc.

By mid-afternoon, it was really starting to cloud up and it looked like DD was taking a nap, so I woke her up and suggested we leave so she could take a nap in the room. We left about 2:00. Nap, read, relax in the room and then off to Downtown Disney. By the time we got there, it was raining so we used the umbrellas. We put our name in at the “Elephant” because we are Rainforest Safari Club members and get priority seating. We requested to be seating in David’s P’s section – he is my DD’s boyfriend’s brother. They couldn’t guarantee anything and told us it would be 40 minutes (vs the 90 min wait for non-club members).

We starting walking toward Pleasure Island – saw the boat and decided to ride it back to RFC. Once there, I asked if we had been called and he said “yes” (only a 30 min wait). We did not get seated in David’s section, but he saw us and recognized my DD even though they’d never met. He came over to our table later and chatted. Later on another server stopped by and said that she had heard the girlfriend was there and wanted to say HI. We got a free appetizer (Crab Dip) for being a Safari club member, ice tea, green python drink, Cobb salad, and jungle chop salad – total with tip was $52. As mentioned before, the food was good but not as great as past visits.

We stopped in the RFC giftshop to get a T-shirt for DD’s boyfriend and used our Safari club card to get 10% off.

NOTE: This membership is a one-time cost of $15. The perks listed above are available at all RFC + other Landry restaurants. Well worth the money!!! You just need to remember to take the card with you each time.

We didn’t wait too long for the bus and then back in the room by 8:45 pm. Watched end of American Idol. [No, we did not plan on being back for AI, it just happened that way!!!]

 

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Friday, 7 March 2008 – Last Day at WDW … Animal Kingdom, Studios, and Epcot

We were at AK for rope drop at 9:00 am and headed for Expedition Everest. We rode with no wait twice in a row, and then my DD went another time by herself. We walked over and got a FP for the Safari (showed a 40 min stand-by wait time) and then went to see It’s Tough to Be a Bug (no wait). Walked on to Dinosaur and then rode Triceratops Spin (first time ever) because there was no one in line!!! We picked up a frozen banana and strawberry bar ($5) for breakfast on our way to using the FP for Safari.

Always love the Safari! We got another FP for that ride and then hustled over for the Festival of the Lion King (11:30 show). Used FP for Safari and then got FP for EE. Lunch at Yak & Yeti counter service – two Shrimp Lo Mein ($23.41) and two ice waters (FREE). Friday during lent and we can’t have meat! Never did get my turkey leg this trip!!! Darn.

By this time we decided we didn’t want to wait for our FP time on EE, so gave them away to a couple and headed out of the park and onto a bus for the Disney Hollywood Studios.

Once again, DD was determined to be selected as an “extra” for the Indiana Jones Stunt Show, so we checked the schedule and decided to go to the 2:30 show. We stopped for frozen bananas ($5) and then headed for the Great Movie Ride. Pretty much a walk-on. Once again, we were in the gangster section. After that we went to the Animation section. We had not done this for a couple of years and wanted to see what changes had been made. It is okay. Unfortunately, we have been visiting the Studios since the year it opened and a lot of changes have been made. Not always for the better, but such is life. I bought a box of popcorn ($3) and we headed for IJ. We were about 30 minutes early and took a seat in the front row to the left. Like Fantasmic, the two outer sections were empty. My DD, however, was selected and the streak continues …. 3 years in a row for me before she takes over – this was time #4 for DD.

There were no FP’s available for Rock-n-Rollercoaster, so we joined the stand-by line with a posted 25 minute wait (not bad for RNR, but longer than most lines for this trip). It was about 25 minutes just because there were so many FP returns. Fun ride.

Tower of Terror was next – 4 times in a row – all walk-ons.

We had done everything we wanted to do and knew that Epcot had evening EMH so we took the boat to Epcot. First order of business was to get something to eat (no meat) … we really didn’t want any greasy fish even though it is quite good, so headed for the Liberty Inn (America), hoping they would have fish sandwiches. No fish, but they did have veggie-burger combos ($13.40) + 2 ice waters (FREE). Let’s just say, I am not a fan of veggie burgers but the fries were good. From there, we stopped to get DD a Mango Tea Slush at the China Tea Cart ($4.57) and me a Fiesta Margarita ($9.06) at the Margarita Kiosk. My margarita was just okay – because of the price, I don’t think I’ll get one again. I should have shared with my DD because she couldn’t drink all of hers. We tossed the remains before checking the wait times on the rides. Soarin had a long wait time and we were tired, so we did a little shopping at the Mickey store but didn’t buy anything. On to Spaceship Earth where the ride got stopped for about 10 minutes on the back-side. Never did hear from the problem was. Sent a post-card to myself … never did get.

Through the rain to the bus and back at Pop Century to get our boarding passes for the next day printed out at the concierge’s desk. I must say that it is very nice that they do this for us at no charge.

In the room by 9:30 pm … we need upfront for the Disney’s Magical Express pick-up by 9:30 in the morning.

 

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Saturday, 8 March – Travel Home

Up and around early. Coffee, showers, pack and to the front loading area by 9:30 am. We are picked up by a Mears bus and are the last stop before heading to the airport. Something I didn’t know … Mears has the contract for the DME. Our driver said that his usual bus broke down so they gave him this one to drive. Because we didn’t have the monitors, he did the narration all the way to the airport. He was very, very funny. I’m sorry that I didn’t make note of his name, but did tip him ($2); unfortunately, did not see any of the other passengers do the same.

Off to the security. Even though the line was long, it seemed to move quickly. The terminal we ended up with was undergoing some renovation and had a loose tarp covering a skylight. Lots of racket from that! Not too much in the way of selection for food and even though it was still morning, we decided to go with the sub sandwich combo + 1 bottle of water (for the plane) - $15.61. After eating that, I purchased a candy bar and coffee ($3.25) for us to share.

Our plane came in, passengers departed and then immediately we started to board. Again, we had aisle seats (across from each other) – 15C&D, Zone 4. It looked like we would have lots of seats open; however, quite a few folks did not allow for extra time and boarded just before the door closed. I think some people ended up missing their flight because there were some pockets of 2-3 seats empty.

One of those families that boarded late sat next to me. They were from Canada and said that they had checked luggage and the line at Spirit was WAY LONG and then Security was WAY LONG. After telling their story, I felt bad for them … they didn’t have time to get food before getting on the plane. Then, it came out that they had left their condo in plenty of time, but decided to stop and shop for awhile!! They were very nice people, but realized they had only themselves to blame for almost missing their flight. Orlando is just one of those places where you do want to allow for a lot of extra time because the airport can be crazy – especially on a Saturday!

Anyway, uneventful flight even though there were some winds in the Orlando area. We got to Detroit and there was snow on the ground, cold temperatures and wind. Well, my DD and I just had on our hooded sweatshirts and so were freezing while we waited for the parking lot shuttle. As it turned out, a lot of us were waiting for the same company’s shuttle. One of the guys kept calling them, so we knew they were aware of waiting passengers. Finally they showed up and said there was a traffic tie-up that prevented them from getting there sooner.

We loaded up, and of course, there were those on the shuttle that didn’t want to touch anyone else and were taking up more than one seat … which, in turn, prevented some from being able to board. I really don’t know why people do this!!! Anyway, to the lot and we said we did not get a slip of paper with our spot on it, but it was C6. We found the car and were the first one’s off the shuttle. $2 to the driver and we were on our way after scraping the windows. Yes, we are definitely not in Florida now.

The roads were clear and we had an uneventful 2-hr drive home with the exception of all the wonderful Michigan potholes!!! Home by 6:15 pm – great to see our puppy dog and DH!

Financial summary:

Transportation related: $540
WDW hotel: $733
Entertainment (using $50/day prorated park tickets): $338
Food: $320
TOTAL cost of trip for 2 adults, 6 WDW nights = $1,931 (or $965 each)

NEXT WDW TRIP:

DH, puppy and myself at Ft. Wilderness for two weeks in March 2009. No need to purchase park tickets for 2009!!!

 

[NMAmy]

Hello there! I'm a fellow Michigander who was down there escaping at the same time. Actually, I met many of us during our week.

I loved the new Spaceship Earth and Ice Station Cool, too. Can't wait to read more. (We were at Epcot on Tuesday, too!)

 

[VAN]

NMAmy - Great weather wasn't it!!! Will you be doing a TR too?

 

[VAN]

Ooop - I just read your signature. I'm reading your TR right now. Great start!