Friends from Hell... A Disney's Hilton Head Island Trip Report 7/5 updated

[kimbo0569]

OMG! I'm in on this TR! Just from what you've written so far, it's best in these situations that the better sense of humor you have, it makes it at least a little bit easier to get through, even though it may not seem like it when you're in the moment.

 

[LVSWL]

Ok Laurabearz, come on, let's get moving on this thing. We want the juicy details. You have a captive audience here. As someone who was with you at HHI that week, and got a quick gander at "the friends", I know I am checking my computer hourly for your updates . On behalf of all your DIS friends...HURRY UP ALREADY!!!

 

[Laurabearz]

Ok Laurabearz, come on, let's get moving on this thing. We want the juicy details. You have a captive audience here. As someone who was with you at HHI that week, and got a quick gander at "the friends", I know I am checking my computer hourly for your updates . On behalf of all your DIS friends...HURRY UP ALREADY!!!

I am trying HONEST!!! I am done with the road trip and embassy suites, and I have to dash off to the doctors, but when I come home I will finish up ALL of the 6 flags portion of the trip (I hope, unless the kids have other ideas)

And once 6 flags is up, then it's on to all the amusing stuff I promise!!

 

[KristiP]

I am ready to hear more!!!!!

 

[jillyb]

 

[S. C.]

No update!

 

[Avojeo]

Great TR so far!! Can't wait to hear about HHI!!

 

[dd50]

Updates?

 

[VanniGirl]

Hope everyone's Holiday was great

Now how about an update....

 

[DisneyNutMary]

I absolutely LOVE Hilton Head, so I am so excited about this report!
I hope the friends from hell didn't dampen the magic of the DVC resort for you too much.

 

[dallastxcpa]

Good things come to those who wait.........

Laurabearz,

i hope you have had a great holiday weekend.

I am patiently awaiting your next installment.

 

[Laurabearz]

I am working on it as I type!! Promise! The next installment covers our WHOLE trip to 6 flags Over Georgia and a review of the rides.

Then we shall be done with that and on to Hilton Head!!

Later tonight FOR SURE!!

 

[Laurabearz]

Much to my amazement we are actually on the road by 430 am. I am not at all sure how in the heck that happened and it’s very unlike us. My normal saying is… “We are off like a herd of turtles”

But Vacations, like the first day of school, make it easy to wake kids up at ungodly hours, and dare I say it, they were even chipper and helpful.

We all CLIMB UP into TEX and get settled in for the journey. As part of the arrangement for leaving at the ungodly hour of 4 am, I get to curl up and go back to sleep while my husband takes the first shift driving.

I remember hearing the kids muttering something about wanting breakfast, but we put the kabash on that until we put some miles on the road.

Beep blip bloop I program my beloved GPS (which I bought from last year’s Art Fair money lol) and away we go. 12 hours 30 minutes of actual driving time. Oh yea

I must say it went really well. Sure there was a few incidents here and there, but over all a great trip.

We have two road trip rules

1) One Pee All Pee
2) All garbage must be removed every time we get out of the car.

The First rule is Mine and the Second rule is my Husband’s. I think My rule is more important so I put it as rule # 1. My Husband feels his garbage rule should be listed first, but since he can’t even turn on a computer, my rule is #1!!!!

We arrive at the Embassy Suites Galleria at 745 pm local time. The Managers Special ended at 730!! Phooey no free snacks/booze for us tonight. We unload the beast and settle into our brief home away from home.

I didn’t take any pictures of the hotel because it’s an Embassy Suites. It’s just like ALL the other Embassy Suites in appearance, but unlike most in service.

The breakfast was yucky, the manager’s special offerings were salsa and chips, which often ran out, and was slow to refill. One person cooking breakfast, one bartender, long lines… We have been to a lot of Embassy Suites, and now we know why this particular one was $40 less a night than others in the area.

If we came down this way again, would we stay at this one to save $40 a night? Tough call. Breakfast was barely passable and that’s a biggy for us, the Managers Special is just a bonus, but having breakfast to start the day, quite important… But we muddled through, and like I mentioned earlier, this was the super budget portion of the trip.

Ok, enough about the lame hotel lol

We get up bright and early and make it to 6 Flags Over Georgia in no time at all. It seems all the traffic was going the other direction, so we sailed along nicely. TEX loves the open road. (To jump out of order, on the way home that night, once again traffic was heavy in the other direction, so in that respect our yucky Embassy Suites worked out nicely)

6FOG as it shall now be referred, kinda sneaks up on you. It’s located in rolling mountains so just as you come up over a hill you see the giant coasters in the distance. We all squeal. Well ok, my husband doesn’t squeal, he Oooooh’s. The rest of us squeal like a bunch of girls. And then down the hill we go and we lose sight of it. This happens a few times until we get to the park entrance.

Now as I have stated before TEX is BIG (ok everyone… How BIG is he….) TEX is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BIG that as we approached the parking gate and it quickly became apparent that the gates were built WAY before SUV’s were ever thought of....

We had to fold in BOTH the side mirrors in order to slide into the parking lot. I now have a whole new perspective on boats traveling through the Panama Canal, the biggest difference of course is I couldn’t use tug boats to pull me through.

My wonderful husband said “You can do this Smithy” So I sucked in and held my breath, like that would actually help, and proceeded through the canal, showing no fear.

Much to the kids disappointment I didn’t sheer off any mirrors or door handles but my oldest perks up and says… “Maybe Tomorrow”

I maneuver TEX into a lovely parking space, Finally I can breath!!


Here is a run down of the rides (with the description from the website) and our thoughts in blue

The Georgia Scorcher Put your feet to the fire® on The Georgia Scorcher—one of the Southeast’s tallest and fastest stand-up roller coasters. We didn’t even want to ride this coaster, stand up coasters hurt. There I said it. It was a bad idea.

Superman: Ultimate Flight Face down fear-face first as you fly above Georgia at super speed—just like the man of steel, Superman. It’s superman. It flips you over so your face down. Good ride for the pooh size.

Goliath It’s big, it’s mean, and it wants to take you for a ride. Meet Goliath—the gigantic steel coaster the other rides call "Sir." SIR YES SIR, this by far is the best coaster there. Smooth as butter, thrilling as Grand Canyon. It’s a coaster you can ride when your 80. Two thumbs up!

Here is a bad video of my daughter on Goliath. I hit some darn button and it zoomed in all the way in after the first 20 seconds or so, but the screaming is amusing lol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6aKSUp3hcQ

Batman: The Ride Soar like a bat out of Hades, through, above—and even underneath—Gotham City, suspended from the rails of one of the most innovative coasters of all time. Suspended coasters ROCK!! Well actually I guess they swing and sway. This coaster is no exception.

Acrophobia Take a plunge with a difference—you stand straight up during the entire over 16 story drop. I was all prepared to ride this, until I found out that before they drop you, they tilt you forward. Just sitting here thinking about it and I can feel my heart flutter and the tears well up haha lol BUT I did try and talk my kids into riding it, and if they were willing I would have sucked it up and cried all the way.

Ninja The thrills are awesome, but you won’t see them coming till it’s too late on Ninja—the black belt of all steel coasters. This is an original loopy coaster. Jerky but still fun.

Gotham City Crime Wave Jump in your chair and swing over 4 stories in the air on this breathtaking family-friendly attraction. Giant Swings, nice for the cool air, but ugh they make me dizzy. If you have hips… you might get stuck in the chair haha I had to squeeze out, and I think I did it fairly gracefully, but then again it was obvious the seat came up with me when I stood up HAHAHAHAHAHAHA The joys of being fat ha.

Georgia Cyclone Fasten your seat belts. You’re in for some heavy turbulence aboard Georgia’s one-and-only Cyclone—a wooden coaster for riders with nerves of steel. This is an original coaster with tight seats, not very pooh friendly. VERY Rickety, my oldest got a headache from it, which suck coz that was the first ride of the day. So be warned… it’s an old rickety non pooh friendly woody.

Dahlonega Mine Train Take your family on a fun-filled journey through an abandoned gold mine on this beloved steel coaster—a Six Flags Over Georgia original. Fun coaster. A bit of a tight squeeze but doable

The Great American Scream Machine There’s nothing like a wooden coaster for bone-jangling jitters and the Scream Machine is a living legend—once the tallest coaster in the world. This is an AWESOME WOODY!! Until the last 8 seconds. ‘nuff said

Shake, Rattle & Roll Spin memories old and new on this beloved scrambler ride, straight out of the rocking and rolling 1950s. The AIR CONDITIONING in this ride makes it worth the wait. It’s your basic scrambler in kicking AC Woot!!

Mind Bender Go on a thrill bender – let North America’s original three-loop coaster blow your mind. Low Height requirement, looping coaster. Fun but a bit jerky.

Thunder River Whitewater and white knuckles—take a rafting adventure through roaring rapids. Everyone gets really wet, some people get soaked, no one is dry lol


Wheelie Take a spin on these babies—our gondolas rotate to high speed, then lift you to a vertical position. TThe boy loved this ride. It’s a tight squeeze to get in and out, but comfy once you’re in it.


Dodge City Bumper Cars You never know who you’ll run into, riding around in these classic, theme-park bumper cars. Fun, but you have to ride in a circle.

Monster Mansion An old favorite has gotten a makeover. The classic Monster Plantation that you loved as a kid has undergone a major renovation and is now the brand new Monster Mansion. Prepare for a marvelous, monstrous experience. Cute. The best part is you make your best monster face then at the end of the ride you can buy it. It’s very cute, but we didn’t buy it. Nor did I take a hillbilly version (taking a picture of the picture) although I will admit I thought about it haha The AC in this ride was good too


There was this great Western comedy show that we caught a couple of times. The kids enjoyed the bad jokes, and I will admit I did too. Nice place to have a rest, munch on an ice cream, and get some energy back for those darn HILLS.


Sky Buckets. Now let me preface this with this picture here…

See how much she is enjoying this bucket ride. This was at SeaWorld in San Diego last summer.

Jump to this summer and the sky buckets at 6FOG

NOT MY FAULT. That’s all I have to say.

Here are some pictures of us with some a new friend

Heh, that that’s all the pictures I have from 6FOG believe it or not. I carried my camera around both days but never really took pictures sorry.

One thing I will say about 6FOG, it’s a lovely park. Trees everywhere. And Hills. Everything is freaking UP HILL. Even DOWN HILL IS UPHILL after a while.

Oh and did I mention that a week prior to this I tweeked my ankle at my Art Fair. Not a full sprain, but it was sore. So all this UPHILL/DOWNHILL walking was rough. At the end of the night my right ankle was twice the size of my left. Sigh. Not to mention I am fat and out of shape (but that’s another story)

Did I mention the Heat…

But we Bearz suck it up and walk it off. No one likes to hear a complainer. As I always say, we all know it's freaking HOT, no sense in reminding us all the time lol

I really tested our motto out when I got pretty darn hurt on the raft ride….. I was seated next to a large guy, not my husband, but bigger than my husband, and about half way through the ride (our third time on it, thanks to the flash pass) the raft was spinning in one direction then hit a big rock and BLAM we changed directions instantly but the force rammed the guy into me (all 300 lbs of him) and thusly my HIP BONE onto the lower edge of the seat.

I let out a yelp like you wouldn’t believe and tears started streaming down my face. Thankfully we were dunked under the waterfall so no one could tell I was crying. OMG it was bad. Wow. Just thinking about makes me shudder.

It took me a minute to compose myself to even get off the ride, but I didn’t want to cause a fuss so I walked slowly down the long ramp. (thank goodness it’s downhill to get off the ride lol) It was near the end of the day, so we decided to call it, and head back to the hotel. My hip and ankle would bother me the rest of the vacation. But I sucked it up and rarely complained about it, which could of been my downfall. lol

I have to say this… The kids were great. It was hot, humid and loads of UPHILL walking, but they were troopers and chugged along. It helped that we got the Flash passes, because that kept things moving.

So Two days at 6FOG and then off to Hilton Head.

We actually were up and out by 6 am

5 Hours Until A Little Bit Of Heaven Here On Earth​

 

[S. C.]

 

[KristiP]

Yea, I had been waiting for a update. When I was looking at the videos on you tube. I think I saw one from Disneyland, have you guys been to Disneyland? If so did you like it, and how did it compare to Disneyworld?
We have been thinking of trying that next, and doing the Southern Cal. City pass.

 

[Laurabearz]

Disneyland IMO is MUCH better than the Magic Kingdom. MUCH better.

We also really enjoy California Adventure. When we go, we stay in the GREAT Embassy Suites in San Diego for a few days, to do SeaWorld, Legoland, The Zoo, Etc. Sooooooo much to do in San Diego, it's a vacation in itself.

4 days Disney, 6 days San Diego is a nice ratio

We really LOVED SeaWorld down there. Never been to the one in Orlando (since most of our kids are too short for the big rides there) so I can't compare, but the kids really enjoyed it. It was a nice relaxing park, since it's mostly shows.

I will see if I can find my Dine with Shamu report I did last year, I will link it here

My Brush With Greatness​

Well ok, maybe not greatness....

But still pretty cool in my book

Anyone famous ever tweet back to you?

 

[Sheribo]

Can't wait for the next installment.

 

[castmemberb4]

Great update! It's been years since I've been to 6FOG. When you were commenting on the lack of traffic I was thinking yep you are headed to the burbs, it'll be the same coming back, then you made the comment about your return trip. Glad it wasn't bad for you, our traffic can be brutal.

I'm right there with you on the Ga Cyclone, hurt my neck on it one year. It's not as old as the Mind Bender, Scream Machine or the Mine train but man that thing is rickety ! I think they built it that way ! Now I'm ging to give away my 'oldness' and say I remember when the Dahlonega Mine Train WAS the big roller coaster ! They had it and the Mine Train JR. And the Monster Mansion was an attraction called Okeefanokee, you rode through the swamp.

Thanks for the trip down memory lane can't wait to get to the Hilton Head portion.

BTW - Is bearz a derivative of your last name b/c it would be of mine, I share mine with a paint company.

 

[podsnel]

That video was CRAZY!!!! Your daughter looked a little nervous heading up that hill!

We're thinking about doing the SoCA thing next year, too- you really love that Embassy Suites in San Diego? What do you love about it? I'm usually a fan of them, too- great value for the $$!

 

[Laurabearz]

That video was CRAZY!!!! Your daughter looked a little nervous heading up that hill!

We're thinking about doing the SoCA thing next year, too- you really love that Embassy Suites in San Diego? What do you love about it? I'm usually a fan of them, too- great value for the $$!

Embassy Suites San Diego Bay - Downtown

San Diego, California, USA, 92101


From 259.00


Embassy Suites San Diego - La Jolla Hotel, CA -
San Diego, California, USA, 92122


From 151.20


We stayed at the hotel in La Jolla, $100 bucks cheaper than the Downtown location, but very convenient to everything AND a huge plus for us was... we could park on the street and save $19 a night (parking was $29 a night at the downtown location)

As a family of 5 the two room suites are a must for survival of the parental units haha

Now, for street parking some days we had to walk a few blocks, but the weather is perfect there lol

Here is a pic I took of the kids one evening as we were walking back to the hotel from parking the car...

And I happen to have a bunch of photos of THAT embassy suites

They upgraded us to the Executive Suite which has a MUCH larger living room as you will see. It was HEAVEN.

The outside dining area which was very nice. There is a flat screen out there for sports, fire pit. Good food too! It was a nice place to unwind and have a bit to eat.

Looking up at the hotel from there...