First family trip 4/27-5/4!

[sandym718]

Hi all!! This is my first time doing a trip report, so bear with me!! Here's our intro:
We're from the Cleveland, OH area.
Me-- Sandy, 29, stay-at-home Mom. I've been to Disney World in 1992 and 1984 with my family, Disneyland in 1993 with my cousin who lives out there. Super excited about this trip both for the kids and for me! I was the trip planner, using the unofficial guide, disBoards and TGM. I did not want to go Commando, but definitely had some plans. Some worked, some didn't. You'll see.

DH-- Dave, 34, works long hard hours as a landscape installer/excavator and also farms the family land with his 2 brothers. Never been to Disney at all, not so excited about it but going along. Looking forward to the Dining Plan!

DS -- Josh, almost 5. Very excited about the trip of course!!

DD -- Jessi, almost 3. Ditto!

We booked a MYW Package with DDP. 6 nights at the Poly, 7 days Park Hoppers w/ Water Park and more option. This is a real splurge vacation for us, we're usually value, maybe moderate-type people. a REAL splurge! We drove down - DH does not fly.

OK, Day 0 -- Friday, April 27th

I call this Day 0, b/c we didn't enter Disney property and my Dining Reviews on that forum (already up! Check them out!) have Day 1 as the 28th, sooo.. whatever, LOL!

Anyways, we left OH at exactly midnight Friday "morning". Carried the kids to the car from their beds and got going. They stayed awake for the first hour, then DD fell asleep and stayed that way. DS was up for quite awhile, but quiet. We stopped for a bathroom break about 3:30 AM I think, and then they both fell asleep. Droved through rain most of the night, especially in W. Va. so it was a little slower going on those mountains! Stopped for McD's breakfast and gas just inside No. Carolina around 7 AM I believe. Kids then started watching DVD's, playing with their toys, coloring, etc. They did pretty well. We drove till lunch about Noon, in So Carolina, I think it was. Lunch was at a Burger King. On the road again...this was the kids roughest patch (can you blame them??!!) from about 12:30-2:30 or 3. They usually nap around 2 or 2:30, but they were getting really wound up. We saw a sign for a BK with playland and got right there. We didn't eat, I just let the kids play on the equipment while DH got gas next door. This worked wonders they both fell right asleep and took a long nap, till 5:30 I think.

As of this point, we were making pretty good time, even with the slower going early on due to the rain. In Jacksonville, however, there was an accident, so we went very slow for probably a half-hour. Luckily, kids were still sleeping. Lots of traffic on I-4, and a little confusion with directions upon our highway exit but we arrived at the Comfort Inn Lake Buena Vista at about 7 PM. 19 hours in the car - YUCK!!! Thank you, Dave, LOL! But we survived and the kids did surprisingly well. The last hour was "Where is it?" "I can't see the castle" etc, etc!!

OK, so, Comfort Inn LBV. Nice area, lots of hotels, restaurants, etc. I could tell we might have a little problem as we entered - tons of teenage groups milling around, screaming, running etc. Tired as we were - last thing we wanted to see. I had to explain Grad Night to DH, I assume that's why they were there. So, I go to check-in. Wait about 20 minutes (!) and then no problem. Go to our room - already disappointed b/c it's ground floor - door opens to sidewalk - on a corner, right next to stairs these said groups are running up and down. Oh well. Enter room - bigger problem!! It's a handicapped-accessible room, 1 double bed, 1 twin bed!! I booked and already paid for 2 doubles. So, DH takes kids to the pool as they are just dying! I order pizza delivery from Pizza Hut and head to the front desk. Basically, we are told Sorry-no luck, they are booked full. I was furious - I showed my confirmation with 2 Doubles written right on it. Manager kept saying my only "request" was non-smoking. Yeah, why would I request 2 doubles when that's the room TYPE I booked?! She said they don't get room type info from online bookings. What??!!! Makes no sense. I explain that 4 people in that room might even be a fire code violation given the bed space for only 3. She said they don't get party numbers either??!! They say there's nothing they can do, refuse compensation. I was too tired to argue - I just got names and figured I'd handle it from home later (which I am via emails with the General Manager). Luckily, our kids are small and could share the twin. We had bed rails, they were fine. BUT, what if we were the same family of 4 with an 8 and 10 year old -then what? And given the manager's explanation, that could conceivably happen! When waiting in line, a pair of women (sisters) told me they also booked 2 doubles and were given 1 double, 1 set of bunk beds. They were very unhappy also!! Obviously, especially with the groups, the hotel overbooked their room types and just said "too bad" to all of us not with the groups, stuck us wherever. Luckily, I had booked through a special, paid only $53 with tax, so this was not an expensive night. But bed space for 3 with a family of 4 - unacceptable! We also had a few toilet issues as it was so high, DS needed help being lifted to stand and pee (sorry if that's TMI, LOL!). He's kinda short for his age.

So, anyways, pizza came while I was at the lobby. I went and got DH and kids. We ate, took the kids to the playground (nice) for a bit. Noise was extreme at this point and I was just wanting sleep! Lucikly, as we headed in to change and go to sleep, I guess they were leaving for WDW as it got fairly quiet and we all fell asleep no problem. I'm sure they came back to the hotel middle of the night, but we never heard them. Not sure if it was b/c we were all so tired we were just passed out or if they were quiet! Either way, I was pleasantly surprised when I woke in the AM not having been awaken once. So, free continental bkfst. in the AM and....

we're off to check in at the POLY and hit the MK!!!!! Stay tuned for Day 1 probably up later today!!!!!!!!

 

[afcgirl]

Great start, I am eagerly anticipating the next installment. We are staying at Poly in June so I can't wait to read all about it. We also drive to WDW (from Illinois), but we split it up into two days. We would not survive 19 hours in a row!

 

[praisehisname]

Looking forward to reading more. I could feel my blood starting to boil just reading about your interaction with the check-in desk at the hotel! Glad it was only 1 night!!!

Denise

 

[sandym718]

Sorry for the delay - life, you know...


Day 1, Saturday April 28th

Awoke fairly early, DH took the kids up for the free continental breakfast while I showered and got ready. Then they came back and showered, we packed up and got the heck out of that place, LOL!

Just down the road - the entrance to the MAGIC!!! I was so excited to just start driving on those Disney roads, following the purple signs!!! We headed to the Poly, arriving about 8:45, a little later than I had hoped, but ah well. OMG, just the entrance to this resort is STUNNING, the flowers and the landscape. I just got so excited seeing it! We self-parked and all went in to check-in. The kids got their first glimpses at the monorail and were practically jumping out of their shorts to get on it!

Walked into the lobby and WOW! Just beautiful! We all loved the waterfalls. No line for check-in, walked right up. Everything went smoothly. They had our request for first floor, Tokelau. Room was not ready (no surprise), so they gave me the number to call later.

I had ordered a gift basket from "Memories by Sarah" for the kids. She asked if we wanted it delivered to the room or to give it to them now. B/c it included autograph books, I asked for it now, since we were headed to MK. Having it waiting on the bed would have been cool, but oh well. So, she gave us all leis and then gave the basket to the kids. Eyes about popped out of their heads!!! I read the note from "Mickey" on it, and they tore into it. There were autograph books and pens for each, Mickey/Minnie ears, a box of cookies for each and a Mickey plush for each. That really started the Magic for them -they enjoyed the waterfalls, but flowers aren't IT for them, and this really said DISNEY!!!

We went back to the car, got our strollers (we took 2 - our regular Graco for DD, and the umbrella for DS "just in case" - we ended up using it all the time. This worked great b/c we could split up) and park bag, cooler and went up to the monorail!! The kids just loved this, it was definitely among the favorites ALL WEEK! Jessi called it the "monorater" for some reason, which got laughs. They loved yelling out "Green line" or "Pink line" each time they saw one go by all week. **Just a note - we never had to fold up the strollers on the monorail all week. Only time it was soo crowded, we waited for the next monorail and ended up sitting up front (that time we did have to fold them)***

So, off to the MK! I talked to the kids about some of the rides (Fantasyland, I had hoped to be there at or soon after opening, we were a little later). I was hoping for Dumbo or Winnie the Pooh first, but they wanted the Tea Cups they had seen on TV, so that's where we headed. At the entrance, we did what would happen every day this week - I ALWAYS went through the bag check line, yuk! But, oh well. As we walked in, I was soo happy we had the autograph books -there was Pluto!! So we had our first meet and greet and they did great! I wasn't sure how the kids would be, I had figured we'd use the books at least at the Character meals, but they did fine.

So, off to the tea cups. Only a 10 minute wait. DH rode with them, those make me SICK!! I took pictures and as I was waiting for them to spin around towards me, I got a tap on the shoulder and someone said "The big button on the top works" - turned around and it was Alice- Alice in Wonderland! With the Mad Hatter! We chatted for a minute, then the ride ended and my family got off, they got on. It was so cute to chat with them.

Next we did Winnie the Pooh, played a few minutes on the Pooh playground, Snow White (kids did fine on this, BTW!), Dumbo and It's a Small World. Wanted to do Peter Pan, but the wait was 40 minutes (DH made his "no longer than 20 minutes" opinion known then) and fast pass was too late, so we figured we'd catch it later. The kids absolutely loved the Pooh ride and Dumbo. Didn't get overly excited about Snow White or It's A Small World, but liked them fine. Noticed while were on Dumbo that ARiel's Grotto was over an hour wait - definitely skipping that today!

It was already almost noon, so we stopped for lunch at Cosmic Ray's. Definitely too late - very crowded. And, we all wanted stuff from different bays. My Dining Reviews (incl. CS and snacks) are here: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1446002

Lunch took a good hour b/c of the above, so when we wrapped up a little after 1, I called the Poly to see if our room was ready. Our kids both nap still and our plan was to be back at our room by 2/2:30 or so each day (except for our Parade Day) for naps. Room was not ready yet though. So, we went on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and then the Astro Orbiter. Oh, and as we walked through Tomorrowland, we saw the talking garbage can - kids got a REAL kick out of that, LOL! After all this it was 2:00, so I called again and the room was ready. So, out to the monorail and back to the Poly.

Walking through the Poly grounds must be like walking through heaven!!! It is so lush, so beautiful! I was nearly in tears. Found our room - 1922 - and it was just perfect! I had wanted the patio so DH and I could be outside while the kids napped and it worked so well. We had no shrubbery around our patio, it opened to a grassy area with a few trees, so we could sit in the sun if we wanted. The kids also had an area to play. Just steps off our pation you could see the lagoon, castle and Space Mtn. Room was great, my Poly review is here: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1448406

Anyways, DH walked and got bag #1, with blankets and such for naptime and the kids went to sleep. He moved the car a little closer then brought the rest of the bags back, we left them on the patio (with us) until the kids woke up. They slept about 3-5:15 I think. Then I got us mostly unpacked and we headed to our ADR at Kona at 6:05.

Worked out well, just staying at the resort for that evening. Less stress about transportation, etc especially not knowing exactly what time the room would be ready. LOVED Kona, see the review. After dinner, we took the kids to the volcano pool. Slide was closed, they basically just jumped in over and over. Headed back to the room for showers and bedtime for all of us - we were ready!

I learned this first day that things were going to take us a little longer then I expected touring-wise, even though I thought I had worked in a lot of breaks, playgrounds etc. I also learned I would need to be more flexible with the order of things, and pare down even further our list, picking out the MUST-dos and if we got to a few others, great. Ended up working out just fine, only a few things missed all week that I had really hoped for.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some first day things, but that's it for now. Day 2 maybe later today or tomorrow!!

Thanks for reading!

 

[sharonW]

Enjoying your TR...can't wait to hear more!!

 

[lonegirl]

Our sons will be almost 3 &5 when we travel in Sept, so I am looking forward to seeing how it goes for yall! Thanks!

 

[sandym718]

Day 2 - Sunday, April 29th

This was our MGM day. Really, our only reason for visiting this park at all was to meet Mater and McQueen. Other than that we probably would've skipped it! We were up and going early, intending to get there at/close to opening, which we did. We drove there. We opted not to use buses on our trip, figuring having to fold up the strollers, carry the bags and manage the kids was a lot and unnecessary considering we had our car. We also wanted to leave on our schedule and not have to wait for a bus. Worked out fine for us all week, used AAA Diamond parking pass for a little closer parking. Arriving early, we never parked too far.

On to MGM. Josh was already itching to go back to the volcano pool and see the slide, so I Knew it was definitely going to be a short park day. We entered probably about 9:10. I picked up a Times Guide when we entered and saw that Mater and McQueen would first be out at 9:50. We went to the Voyage of the the Little Mermaid show, walked right in and it started right after. This was really cute, just the right length, the kids really enjoyed it. DD likes Little Mermaid, but isn't obsessed, so I decided this was enough, we could skip the Grotto in MK if the lines continued to be long (they were, we never did it, she didn't care!)

We then headed over near Sounds Dangerous to wait for Cars. The kids were SUPER excited, especially Josh. His 5th birthday is tomorrow (as I type this I mean, May 14th) and his party is Cars theme, he's watched the movie I don't know how many times. No lines or autographs (no hands!) for these guys. CM just tells you where to stand to be out of the way, they drive in, park and then it's kind of mad rush time. Crowd wasn't too big, though, so I got some good pics. It was really cool to see DS so excited! DD was hoping for Sally (though I told her she wouldn't be there) but was still excited.

We then went to the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids playground and let them run around. this is super-cute, very well done. The kids loved it. We were probably there about 20 minutes or so.

We then walked backed towards the front, saw a bunch of characters out - JoJo, Little Einsteins, one other I think. DD posed/got autographs from Quincy and June from Little Einsteins. DS didn't want to. We skipped the others as they don't watch those shows.

Kids kept asking for the pool, so we decided to just head back to the Poly for lunch at CC's and swim. The only other thing I had planned for MGM was the Beauty and the Beast show. She ADORES Belle, has the dress, etc. But, she doesn't really care about the movie - it's more about being/liking a YELLOW princess - that's her fave color. She was Belle for Halloween last year, after asking to be a yellow princess - at that time, she didn't even know who Belle was!! Anyways, I knew MEETING Belle was more important than the show, and that wouldn't happen there, so off we went.

Lunch at CC's, then to the room to change. Went to the pool and DS discovered the SLIDE!! Now, this is a cautious kid, until about 2 months ago, wouldnt' even go on slides at McD's or a playground that were covered, tunnel-like. But he wanted to try it. DH walked up with him, showed him how the traffic light thing works, etc and off he went (wearing Speedo vest and me waiting at the bottom). Down he comes smiling ear-to-ear!! This was the start of an obsession. That's all he did this and every other day at the pool - the slide over and over and over. DD did it a few times, but just thought it was OK. She had a hard time staying seated, kind of flipped around. She mostly just swam around and jumped in a lot!

Back to the room for showers and naps. DH and I sat outside, enjoying the sun. He got his first Dole Whip, loved it!! I enjoyed the beautiful scenery and weather, reading my book.

We had 5:10 ADR's at Crystal Palace, so on the monorail and to the MK we went. Arrived at CP around 5, had to wait in quite a long line to check in. Enjoyed the meal greatly -see the Dining reviews for details!!

After dinner we headed to Tomorrowland. The kids REALLY wanted to go on the Indy Speedway, the line had been long the day befoer. So, we did that, only about a 20 minute wait. DS and I rode together, when we were loading, a mom and son were getting in the car in front of us. Her husband was showing her what to do - he told the CM she didn't have a drivers license. Ok, how hard can it be?? Obviously hard. She drove SO slow the whole time, she must've barely been pushing the pedal. Josh was upset, wanted to go fast, so I had to keep stopping, let her go far ahead, then let him go fast till we caught up. DH and DD were behind us and he was like, WTH?? A huge line of cars got backed up. When we were exiting, the CM told the lady, you have to push the pedal all the way down and GO, he showed her the line of cars and said to her "there's about 30 cars backed up behind you and other kids want to actually GO" I was sooo happy he said something.

Next we did Buzz Lightyear, which we all really liked. I wasn't very good at it!!

DD kept asking to do the "horses" - Cinderella's Carousel, so we went and did that. I had planned to stay for Spectro this night, but we were all a little beat, so we went back to the Poly. Kids fell asleep, DH and I watched Desparate Housewives, then went to sleep ourselves.

Coming up, Day 3 at Epcot - we got a Dream!!

ETA: How could I forget?? We rode in the front of the monorail this night! When we went up to the station, it was crowded. As everyone loaded, DH said, let's just wait for the next one, hopefully not fold the strollers, etc. Then after it left, HE asked the CM about riding up front!! Someone told him about it, I guess. They said yes, as long as it wasn't occupied. It wasn't, so we did it. Kids were so excited! Got "wings" stickers and co-pilot cards. It was really quite cool, can't believe I left this out!!

 

[sandym718]

Day 3- Monday, April 30th

Up and at 'em this AM, ready to hit Epcot!! DS is again asking to go to the pool!!! But is happy we will be riding a different monorail line this morning, too!

We arrived at Epcot for opening (yay!) and went right to The Seas with Nemo. Walked right on, kids loved it, it's really cute! Spent some time checking out the Living Seas, Turtle Talk not open yet. We then went to the Land and walked right on that. We all really liked this. DH farms his family farm, and the kids are really into it, so this was right up their alley!

Next was Soarin'. I explained to DH about Parent/Baby Swap, whatever it's called, but he didn't really care about going on, so I just went on with DS while he walked around with DD (they got some seeds from one of the Flower/Garden festival stands). Anyways, Josh and I start going into Soarin'-it's a 20 minute wait. About halfway through, all of a sudden a few groups in front of us, we start getting diverted into the Fast Pass line. I was a little confused, but oh well. Then, when we get away from everyone, they pass out DREAM FAST PASSES!!! I was so excited!! They gave them to me for DH and DD too!!

Josh and I ride Soarin' - first row. This is AWESOME!!! Was my most favorite ride by far!! Absoutely loved it! I do get motion sickness, this didn't bother me a bit, FYI! We got off, tracked down DH and DD and showed/explained the Dream Fast Passes. So, DH and DS immediately went on it. Josh just loved this ride, too, so was very excited!! I took DD on Nemo again, was still walk right on. She really liked that.

Next we went to Journey into Imagination (5 min. wait) which the kids liked and they played in the outer area for awhile afterwards. Then, Spaceship Earth (5 min. wait), which we all enjoyed. Kids loved the "stars". From there we went to Test Track. DH and DS rode it first, using the fast passes, while Jessi and I checked out the fountains. Then, I rode it with Josh while DH and Jessi went to order lunch. Josh loved Test Track, we liked it too, it's very different and fun!

Had lunch at Electric Umbrella (see dining reviews). We did a lot this morning b/c of the fast passes and short lines, so I was feeling good. Only other thing I wanted to do that day was Innoventions, but DS wanted Soarin' again, and both wanted the pool, so I figured we'd catch it another day. DS and I did Soarin' with the Dream fast passes again, this time third row. He said with DH he was in the 2nd row. The first row is DEFINITELY the best - you don't see the feet of the people in front of you - seems more real! DH and Jessi did the Land again. As we left Epcot, I found a family of 3 entering and gave them 3 of our Dream Fast Passes with some rides remaining. Kept 1 with hardly anything on it for our scrapbook.

Then we went back to the Poly and swam (went down the slide, really!) till naps. Dinner was at Whispering Canyon - see Dining Review.

I had been tempted by the Wilderness Lodge in planning, but went with the Poly due to the monorail. So glad I did. The Lodge is nice - but we see that kind of decor/landscape often in Ohio or local travels -the Poly is sooo different for us, all tropical! It was like a separate tropical vacation each time we went back there.

After dinner we went back to the Poly and just walked around a bit. We watched the Electrical Pageant from the hill, the kids loved that! Then we went in, took showers again, went back out for Wishes at 10, kids already in their PJ's. We sat just off the beach by the pool, great vieiwing. Then to sleep for all of us!!

Coming up - Day 4 - back to the MK!

 

[aspcamhreditor2]

Enjoying this TR & looking forward to reading more ... although I really should get around to writing another installment on my TR!