Ferb, I know What We're Going to Do Today! - Updated 9/30

[If U Had Wings]

Hi and welcome to my trip report.

I am recently back from a week of pre-holiday fun down at the world. My chronicles of my quest for adventure can be caught up on in my PTR -

Looking for Adventure in the Great Wide Somewhere

I had really been looking forward to taking it easier on this trip and letting myself "enjoy the details." I wanted to take the time to explore the parks, and not just see them at my usual commando pace. My last trip had been filled with family stress, and I wanted nothing to do with that this time. Rest, Relaxation, and Exploration were going to be my key words.

Did it happen?

You'll have to stay tuned to find out. I will say that ended up being different from what I was expecting. That's not to say it was a bad trip. Iit just didn't end up being the trip that I had really been longing for. I think I may have been hoping for a bit too much.

I promise I'll be as honest as possible, even though I'm pretty sure that I'm going to come across as a bit whiney and selfish occasionally. By the end of the trip I was starting to feel a bit diva-ish in spite of attempts to curb it.

So The Who, the When, the Where and the Why about this trip -

The Who -

Me - I just turned 39 this year, am single and have no children of my own. I do have two amazing nieces that I adore and borrow as often as possible. Sadly they weren't able to come on this trip. I'm from CT, but work in my favorite city in the world, NYC. I'm a complete Disney addict who was the sole planner of this trip, which may have led to a bit of stress and aggravation during this trip.

My BFF - (remaining photoless) Like me single with no children. We've been friends since meeting at a summer job back in our college days. Turned 40 earlier this year, and when I found out her original trip plans for her birthday had been cancelled, invited her along for what was originally going to be a solo trip for me. Completely opposite of me - has no interest in the planning of the trip at all. Gave me completely free reign to make whatever plans I wanted. Basically only needed to book her airfare and meet me in Orlando.


The When -
December 5-12, 2009

The Where -
3 nights at the All Star Sports Resort and 4 nights at the Boardwalk Inn Concierge Level

The Why -
It's Disney! I can't think of a better reason why!

 

[If U Had Wings]

The Who, The Where, The Why and the How
Day 1 - 3AM for the Non-Morning Person
Day 1 - Time to Celebrate with an Upgrade a Parade
Day 1 - Pirates, Tikis, and Voodoo - Oh My!
Day 1 - Are All the Lines this Long?
Day 1 - Why Yes, Yes They Are!
Day 2 - A Start of a Tree Obsession
We Interrupt this Trip Report for...
Day 2 - Tigers and Cool Weather
Day 2 - The Least Number of Pictures Ever Taken on Safari
Day 2 - A New Found Gorilla Fear
Day 2 - Dinner at Boma
Day 2 - Wrapping it Up
Day 3 - A Rainy Begining
Day 3 - Eat Like a Princess
Day 3 - Soarin through Future World
Day 3 - POP Excursion
Day 3 - MGM for the Holidays
Day 3 - Yumminess at the Brown Derby
Day 3 - Wrapping up our AsSp Stay
Day 4 - The Start of a Day for Me
Day 4 - Aimless Wandering
Day 4 - A Bit of Pampering
Day 4 - Holiday Cheer at the Grand Floridian
Day 4 - Checking Out Our New Digs
Day 4 - A Stroll Around the Boardwalk
Day 4 - Wings Starts to Get a Little Cranky
Day 5 - Sailing Our Way Into the Day
Day 5 - Running Away with Buzz
Day 5 - Am I Too Old to Make it to Last Call?
Day 6 - The Start of My No Good Very Bad Day
Day 6 - My No Good Very Bad Day Part 2
Day 6 - My No Good Very Bad Day Part 3
Day 6 - My No Good Very Bad Day Part 4
Day 6 - My No Good Very Bad Day Part 5
Day 6 - My No Good Very Bad Day Part 6
Day 6 - My No Good Very Bad Day Part 7
Day 7 - First Hop - DHS!
Day 7 - Christmas in the Wilderness
Day 7 - Wrapping Up in the Magic Kingdom
Day 7 - Getting Our Money's Worth Out of the Hopper Option
Day 7 - Some Well Needed MagicDay 7 - A Bit More Magic
Day 7 - And the Award for Best Meal of the Week Goes to...
Day 8 - Breakfast with the Big Cheese
Day 8 - Final Resort Hopping Before Returning Home
Final Thoughts and Souveniers
A Surprise Mini-Trip to Disney
Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let ist Snow
Let's Try This One More Time
Leisurely Making Our Way Through DHS
Planless Magic Kingdom
Tiptoeing Through the Tulips at Epcot
Flower and Garden Festival Part 1
Flower and Garden Festival Part 2
Animal Kingdom in 5 Pictures or Less
Finally, Wrapping it All Up

 

[Charleston Princess]

Oh, I am so here, Crissy!!! I love the TR title, by the way!

 

[TarzansKat]

I'm happy to be here and looking forward to reading it!

 

[Lady Lallie]

I'm here!

I love that picture of you with Donald.

Can't wait to hear all about your trip.

 

[reyasmommy]

Looking forward to reading more.

 

[skier_pete]

Ahhh..love your title! Finally caught the Phineas and Ferb Christmas Special today! Yeah for P & F.

And looking forward to hearing about your trip too!

 

[All7OfUs]

Crissy! I"ve been wondering and waiting for this!! So glad you're up and running, and we can follow along on all your pre-holiday adventures in the Great Wide Somewhere!

Where you lead, we will follow...

 

[Flossbolna]

I am here and am looking forward to your TR!!

Have a wonderful Christmas!!

 

[nodnol]

I'm here! Looking forward to your TR!

 

[micandminforever]

Joining in on the fun, and I made the first page.

 

[aprilisis]

Subscribed!

 

[If U Had Wings]

Egads, I'm off to a slow start with this trip report aren't I? After knocking the cold I had right before I left for Disney, I managed to get sick again as soon as I got back. After living with a horrible cough all through the long holiday weekend, I called in sick to work yesterday and dragged myself to the doctors office for the second time this month. (I hadn't been to the doctor in 10 years, and now I've been twice in one month. ) Turns out I have bronchitis. I'm on antibotics again so hopefully I'll be back to normal soon. It will be wonderful to be able to do something without it triggering a coughing fit again!

I had a wonderful Christmas though, bronchitis notwithstanding. I had a ball playing Toy Story Mania with my nieces on their new Wii unit. So much fun! My older niece was whooping my butt though. I'm so lousy at video games. My folks surprised me with an ipod touch this year. I'm having a ball with it. I had to download the Phineas and Ferb and Toy Story Mania apps for it right away!

But enough of this nonsense! On to Day 1!

 

[If U Had Wings]

First off let me just be completely honest about one thing.

I am not a morning person.

At all.

I am completely a 100% night person. Why I've only worked at jobs that require me to set my alarm for times like 5am is a mystery to me, as is the fact that when going to Disney I need to book the earliest possible direct flight to Orlando. On this trip that happened to be 6:20 am. Unfortunately the airport closest to me doesn't fly many commercial flights, so to make it to the airport an hour before my flight I had to leave my town at about 4am. (Leaving plenty of time in case there was some kind of freaky traffic or problems on the road). My alarm went off at 3 am.



That's just about what I looked like at that hour too. I tried to focus on the fact that I was going to Disney, but really at 3am that's really difficult to do. My freaky morning loving father volunteered to give me a ride to the airport (with a reminder that I owe him big for this ) so to make the morning a bit easier I spent the night before at my parents house. This way there was someone to be sure that I didn't hit snooze on the alarm and roll over and fall back asleep. (I know I'm on the way to Disney, but I just know that I would do this if left to my own devices).

The ride to the airport went smoothly. No traffic. I think we had the entire parkway to ourselves. In a little over an hour I was being dropped off at the entrance to White Plains Airport. I love flying out of White Plains. It's a pretty small airport in a fairly ritzy area, which is why there is very little (very expensive) parking. If I had to drive myself to the airport and park I'd drive up to Hartford to fly Southwest because I refuse to pay $24 a day to park. With someone to drop you off, White Plains is much more convient.

The Jet Blue counter was right next to the front door, and even more wonderful there was absolutely no one in line. I had printed by boarding pass online, so they did a quick check on my paperwork, weighed my suitcase and in less than 5 minutes I had made it from the car and through checkin. I had intended on having a bite to eat for breakfast at the coffee shop, but I guess I still was battling the last of my pre-trip respritory infection because I found I had no appetite at all. Since I didn't want to eat, I decided to just go though bag check to wait for my flight. I started chatting with a couple sitting near me, wearing Disney gear. I was telling them about my track record of always getting stuck sitting in front of the one screaming, unhappy child on any flight. They laughed. Turns out their seats were in the same row as mine, and they tried to convince me that my luck was going to change this time. Wishful thinking on their part.

Emmm….no such luck. My luck held true, and the one crying unhappy kid's seat was once again located directly behind me, but compared to some of the ones I've been near, this one wasn't too bad. The flight itself was awfully bumpy. We hit a ton of turbulence the entire flight to Orlando, which wasn't making anyone too happy. I think we had all of about 5 minutes of the 3 hour flight where they turned off the seatbelt light. Mine wasn't being loosened up at all. I tried to focus on my Ally McBeal episodes I had loaded on my ipod and ignore the turbulence as much as possible.

We landed pretty much on time, and the nice thing about being one of the last people to board a plane, is that you’re one of the first ones off. After a small pitstop in the restrooms I was on the wannabe monorail and heading to Magical Express to meet up with my BFF. She had actually been due to land in Florida about 20 minutes before me, but I beat her to the counter by a few minutes. The area was pretty quiet, compared to my last visit to the ME area. A CM checked our paperwork, and directed us to the lane for the All Star resorts. It's so much nicer now that you don't have to wait in line for the counters. We were able to board a bus immediately and only had to wait a few minutes before we were off. Perfect timing! We spent most of the ride chatting, so once again I didn't catch any of the welcome video they play on the buses. It had started raining by this point, and it was really chilly as well.

All Star Sports was the first stop. It was early when we got there, but the lobby was filed with large bunches of people wearing matching clothing checking in with the Pop Warner groups. Disney's website hadnt' let me check-in online before leaving, even though I had tried on multiple days at varying times, so I had to wait in the regular line. It ended up not being a problem at all. The line moved quickly and in no time we were up at the counter checking in. Since it was only about 10:30 am I wasn't expecting our room to be ready, but we really lucked out and our room was ready for us.

We hadn't booked a preferred room, but couldn't have ended up with a better location if we had paid for it. We were in the Touchdown building in the area closest to the main pool area. Here's a map showing our spot with a red X.

I was a bit nervous about having a room in the Touchdown section. With the resort overrun with young football players I was expecting it to be one of the noisest spots at the resort. And it would have been if we had been facing the football field side. Our room was on the opposite side from the field area and just faced grass. It ended up being a pretty quiet spot for the 3 nights we were there.

When we walked up to the room this guy was waiting in the window for us -

We left him there all week. We loved having him welcome us home every night. We had another towel figure waiting for us in the room.

This was my first stay at a value resort. Overall the room was more than adequate. Very snug though. I can't imagine how crowded it must feel with a family of four staying in there. I had the bed nearest the window and whenever the door opened you'd hit the bed. The bathroom was a bit snug too. You had to be sure to walk around the toliet to be able to close the door without knocking the door into yourself. All in all though the room was fine for the two of us.

We toyed with the idea of taking a nap and getting some rest, but the call of Disney was too strong. We changed into shorts (which in hindsight was a bit of a mistake), put on our raincoats and headed out to the parks. I couldn't resist taking a few shots of the resort first.

Me, very happy to be at Disney, finally!

 

[TarzansKat]

Yay, you're there!

I'm with you, girl, I hate early flights too. I have since decided for our family, even if it means taking a flight that wastes a day, that's what we'll do, because otherwise you just have crabby people at the happiest place on earth! Not fun.

I can't wait to see where you go first.

 

[If U Had Wings]

Yay, you're there!

I'm with you, girl, I hate early flights too. I have since decided for our family, even if it means taking a flight that wastes a day, that's what we'll do, because otherwise you just have crabby people at the happiest place on earth! Not fun.

I can't wait to see where you go first.

Your smarter than me. I'm obviously a glutton for punishment and keep booking early morning flights.

Since most of the time it's just me, or alternatively me with my parents (who are morning people - I don't know how I ended up with them), it's not too bad. If I'm ever traveling by plane with the nieces, I'm booking later flights. Of course they are weird morning people too. I'm the oddball night owl in the family.

 

[miprender]

Stumbled across you TR by your title. I love it. We are big Phinn and Ferb fans in this house.

Can't wait to read more.

 

[Flossbolna]

I hope you will feel better soon! Something similar happened to me last year: I was sick just before and after my WDW trip, actually had to stay in bed for quite a few days.

Great start to your TR! I wouldn't want to be on a 6:30 am flight either! Here in Germany many of the flights for package holidays to Spain/Italy/Greece for the beaches are leaving at horrible times. Friends of mine once had to get on a flight at 3:30 am! One of the reasons why I don't go on package holidays!

 

[Native NYer]

I love early flights, especially when traveling with my nephews. They just sleep the whole flight.

I'm thinking of trying the airport in White Plains. It's a lot cheaper than JFK. Hmmm might have to look into it now.

Love your room photos. I didn't realize the values are THAT small that the door hits the bed when opened. Does the sink area of the bathroom have a door?

 

[Flossbolna]

Love your room photos. I didn't realize the values are THAT small that the door hits the bed when opened. Does the sink area of the bathroom have a door?

Thanks for reminding me that I wanted to post something about the rooms as well: I really like the new All Stars design! I think it makes Music and Sport so much more desirable than Pop! I think it looks very modern and sleek! Pp rooms just look way to busy to me and have strange colors.