Honey lets take the kids out of school - First December visit 2021, and last Disney trip.

[tehSAC]

Hello!

Original Pre-Trip Report

I had started the full report there, but decided to start a new thread in the right forum. So, where do I start? Gotta get the ball rolling and brush up on my writing skills to keep you hooked and coming back for more right?! :Whispers: I probably won’t. This report I will share our excitement, downfalls, triumphs, and thoughts. It was not a perfect, made for TV vacation. Per the usual with life, there are a ton of ups and downs especially in the most magical place on earth.

Celebrations started Friday the 3rd, which was also Ella’s 7th birthday. We spent the evening at home with grandparents and cousins, enjoying each other’s company and some cake and ice cream of course. I mean I’d be a horrible parent not having some cake and ice cream, right? After company left, we had to get packed up. Ugh, what a chore! My wife prefers to drive, myself I prefer to fly. It’s usually a 19 hour drive for us, so 6 hours of check in, TSA, waiting at the gate, flight, and making it to the resort is A-Okay for this guy. Also thinking hey less we can take with us, instead of packing the van full. Well I was proven wrong on that front. 2 large suitcases, a medium suitcase, and two carry on’s per person meant it was not going to be as easy as I’d prefer. Honestly too much crap for me, but Christina went along with flying so I sucked it up. Lorelai and I flew to Tokyo with a suitcase inside the other and we spent 8 days on the other side of the world. We survived, but alas this was the reality I was facing. So 11:30 we were finally putting our heads onto pillows, alarms set for 5 AM! Indy is our home airport and I’ve been through it plenty of times. I knew what to expect. The others not so much.....

Let the chickens out, said goodbye to the pets, check the reserve water for my saltwater tank, and we were out the door at 5:30 AM. Ella was quiet most of the trip. Usually not the case, and I figured she had fallen asleep. When we arrived to the park and ride you could see she was nervous. We loaded onto the bus and was quickly at the terminal. She asked to go to the bathroom and I knew her nerves were getting to her. So we took it easy and made it to check in. Not a single soul in line, I’m thinking “man this is gonna be smooth, we will be at the gate in no time.” Another bathroom stop before security and I can see Ella is getting even more anxious. She doesn’t say much during the wait during security, except she asked about Taco the security dog. TSA takes about 25 minutes, and we are headed to the gate. Then all hell breaks loose. Ella asks if she can sit on my shoulders and I said sure. I’m getting ready to put her up on my shoulders and she grabs her face and says I need to go to the bathroom. At that moment she starts to, well you know. I’ll spare the details but it’s all over her shirt, and on her bag. Mom rushes her to the closest bathroom to clean her up. Thankfully we have a change of clothes in her carryon, and mom being an ICU nurse, plenty of masks in tow. A few minutes later, she is cleaned up, and full of energy like the little girl I know!

Bus to the Terminal

Before we head to Security

After our little bout of nausea.


We headed to the gate and had a 25 minute wait before boarding at 8 AM. Pretty eventful morning for sure. So we grabbed some drinks and waited for boarding to begin. It was a sunny but chilly morning in Indianapolis. Low 30’s and a few clouds. I knew departing would take a little longer than usual due to the de-icing procedure. We boarded at 8:10 and sitting in front of Ella and Mom was a mother with two young kids. Waiting to taxi and de-ice we would acquire the phrase of the trip. The mother asked her young son no less than 20 times if he had to pee. “Toby, do you have to pee?” We heard that over and over for 20 minutes. For the rest of the trip anytime we walked past a restroom one of us would say that.

Anyway, 45 minutes later we were finally in the air. I told the girls to choose seats on the left side of the plane so we could possibly see the Motor Speedway and Downtown Indy. The suggestion was correct! Ella actually enjoyed the flight and we had no other issues. She did some homework on the flight and also watched a movie. Lorelai also did some homework up until she went to open her sprite. A sprite she didn’t crack open on the ground and it exploded everywhere. Same happened with mom and Ella. Yea there’s one of those family hiccups... It was a smooth flight 75% of the way. Around the time of descent we would hit some light turbulence and then we were on the ground in sunny Florida!

Toby had to pee and so did the rest of our family. So we hit the restrooms and then off to the monorail. Mom wasn’t feeling great at this moment. She had thyroid cancer a few years ago and had to have it removed. Ever since she has horrible migraines and sensitivity to light and sound. Her and Ella took a seat in the terminal while Lorelai and I grabbed our bags. When we got back mom was shopping for a stroller. She felt Ella would do better in a stroller than all of the walking we would be doing. So she was going to have one shipped to the resort from amazon. Cool, cheaper than a rental, and will give my shoulders a break. I mean I know what you are thinking, why put a 7 yr old in a stroller? Why not make her walk? Honestly she is less than 50 lbs and we want to enjoy the trip right. I’ll happily spoil her if it makes our lives easier.

Okay enough with judging my parenting choices, let me give you another reason to judge me. We headed towards level one, terminal B. As others might know it’s the spot to grab magical express. Something I have never experienced, so I was low key excited.... Elevator down, doors open, pause for dramatic effect.... Welcome to a sea of people! A sea of people that stretched all the way to the north end of the terminal and started doubling back on itself. Hmmm, so what’s all this? Excuse me sir, what is this line for? Sir, this is the line for magical express and I’ve been standing here 30 minutes. Oh s**t, seriously? Crap okay kids get in line.....

Call an Uber my wife says, see what that might cost. Hello Uber, what is the cost from MCO? What you don’t come here?! Ugh okay.... Walk out to the taxi line and quoted $60 for a one way trip. Let my wife know and she says, that rental spots says they have cars, go ask what’s going on. Excuse me sir, do you have any SUV’s, if so how much? Quoted $475..... fuuu that. Hold on buddy, I can do it for $350. So I gave my wife a call and ask her what she wants to do. She says book it! So here we are, in Orlando renting a car. Unexpected twist but this might just be a good thing for us. Just maybe....

Cancel that stroller order mom, we be going to target!

 

[tehSAC]

SUV is a bit smaller than we are used too, so it was a tight fit before our target run. Anyway I headed to target near the Animal Kingdom lodge. A target we have used in past trips. Like I said we were already packed, this new stroller had to go between the girls in the back. No worries, grab a late lunch and then head to the resort. Arbys it is.... We order our food and while waiting another man and his wife come in and order. Well they get their food too and I guess I popped up and looked unhappy according to my family. So anytime someone would cut us off in the parks or possibly cut us in line (yes it happened) my family would call them “Robert”. Robert was the name called for the guy that ordered in front of us. Another inside joke....

Tired kid

After our late lunch we headed towards the Riviera Resort. I was notified by the app our room was ready at 3, but no room number was given. Seemed a bit odd, but no big deal right? Headed into the resort and was surprised on how small the lobby was. Heck Port Orleans Riverside seems larger, but so far the resort looked pretty. A CM approached me and asked if I needed some help. I showed him the text and explained that no room number was given. He checked on his iPad and informed me that a mistake must have been made and no room was ready for us. Frustrating, but he assured me it would be ready at 4. Okay I’ll grab the family and we will check out the grounds. We checked out the pool, something Ella was dying to get into, the lobby, shop, and the mosaic near the skyliner station. Four o’clock came quick and we went back to the car to wait for our room number. 4:15, 4:30, 4:45 still no text. “Hmm is this how the week is going to be?” Family is getting a bit anxious, and ready for a rest. Again we have been up almost 12 hours at this point, so I head back into the lobby. Speaking to the same CM he assured me it will be soon. I politely ask him to ask a superior for an update as we have been waiting almost 2 hours now. His superior comes from the back to greet me and apologize for the wait. He had a room number for me, and said we should be pleased with the room given to us. Wasn’t sure if we were being upgraded or something else. I did know it was on the 9th floor and the East end of the resort. My request for a room near the skyliner would not happen, but no worries

View of the resort looking west.

building the stroller in the lot. Where is my room?

We grabbed our cargo and headed up to the 9th floor. Our room was a minute walk from the elevator, room 8954, just slightly below the lobby of Topolino’s. So here I’m at the door, ready to open it, expecting a possible upgrade. Nope, it was a standard room as booked, no tub (much to my wife’s disappointment), no blankets, and no towels. Yep.... not pleased, but I’m in WDW we will work around this. The view however was fantastic, oh and that shower.... Oh how I loved that shower. Little did I know I would look for any chance to use it during our vacation, and how much I used it. LOL

So we settled in, gave housekeeping a ring, and relaxed for a half hour. Blankets were brought, as well as our towels. The girls and I dressed to swim and headed down to the main pool. Again, bit taken back with the size of this pool. Smallest pool I’ve used on property all of the years I’ve gone. AKL, Port Orleans Riverside, Poly, Caribbean all have larger main pools for sure. Oh well, again let’s make the best of it. Pool was warm, and it’s a salt water pool as well. We swam and rode down the slide for an hour before heading back up to the room. Ella had a bit of a headache so we got dressed and went to the shop to see if they had any children’s Tylenol. Unfortunately none was to be found but the CM called over to the Caribbean Resort and they had some they would hold for us. Walk over was just under 10 minutes and we discussed dinner options for the night. The girls didn’t want anything from CBR but Ella did get a Forky shoulder pal. So we picked up a new friend to stroll along with us tonight.

The decision was made to check out the Skyliner and possibly hop over to the Beach Club for dinner. We hopped onto the Skyliner and instantly none of us were a fan. In the dark you couldn’t see anything but cars below. It wasn’t the worst thing in the world, but the height is what made it the worst part for us. By the time we made it to EPCOT we had decided just to mobile order our meal from our resort. Haha a complete waste of time, but at least we knew what we were getting into when we would ride it next time.

Dinner was from Primo Piatto, some chicken fingers, cheeseburger, salad, and a sandwich. We watched some TV while we had dinner, cleaned up for bed, and was asleep by 9 PM. An eventful and full first day. Not what I had originally planned and those original plans would never develop over the length of our trip.

 

[tehSAC]

Day 2, our first park day! I wake up excited to go, and it’s a beautiful day as well. I hop on at 7 and purchase LL for Rise later that evening. I’m excited for that but also buzzing in anticipation to get to a park. However mom is battling one of her severe migraines. Dizzy, seeing spots, nausea. “Man not on AK day, one of her favorite parks!” The girls are bummed, I’m bummed, but she assures me that she is okay. Just go on without her and she will be ready to hop to HS later. An issue that pops up later that I will note when we get to that point. Anyway, I pack the cooler bag, get ready, and head to the park. The day before we drove past to go to target and I noticed the parking lot did not look too full. So I was hopeful for a quiet day crowd wise. I was hopeful all week based on past crowd calendars, but sadly I would find out in an hour I’d be wrong.

The kids and I started late, 9 AM to be exact, but knowing the route I estimated 20 minutes tops from our resort, to parking and beginning the walk. Let’s just say it’s a good thing my job isn’t estimating. We drove past blizzard beach and headed up the on ramp towards AK. At this point I realized a mistake was made. I sat in traffic for 30 minutes to get to the gate. 30 minutes next to some gentleman who loved to make sure all of Orlando could hear his music. It was awful music too. Anyway, unnecessary detour, we finally parked our car around 10 AM. We parked where dinosaur and giraffe meet. Way out there!! This is gonna be a fun walk. Well crap on a cracker, the wait times didn’t look great either. Honestly I’m kinda stressing but still hoping its not that bad.

Upon reaching the gates, it’s apparent that Animal Kingdom was busy. Now I’m still not sure if this is really busy, or higher on the moderate scale. It definitely wasn’t a 3 as TP was indicating. I haven’t been to a busy Disney park since 1998, a year before fast passes. Can I go off on a tangent here? Sure Paul, it’s your Trip Report.... I miss those days before fast passes. I really realized that this trip, because like I said, I haven’t seen real crowds since June of 98. I bought individual LL’s and Genie+, as you will see and have seen so far. However Disney life was easier. I think wait times are worse now because of it. The joy of spontaneous park days are long gone. Again I will touch on this at the end.

Okay where was I?! Oh yea we are headed into the park. Toby has to pee and I head into a restroom. Completely forgetting that I need to wear a mask. I’m reminded as I’m standing at a urinal by another guest. I just nod and he says it again? I won’t repeat what I said to him, but it kinda went in the way of, “can’t stop now and put it on, do you want to do it for me?” He sighed and went his way. I never forgot my mask after that. LOL

The girls decided they wanted to experience Navi River Journey, so that’s where we headed. The wait was 50 minutes. “Will Ella make it” was my first thought. Truth be told, she only complained once, and I was proud of her! Overall it was a 60 minute wait, but we enjoyed this attraction. We rated it a 6 out of 10, and we all agreed the animatronic was the best part.

Nutella and pretzel break in line.

After our journey down the river, the girls found a pin trading spot and traded with the CM. I don’t recall what they traded, and received in return, but they seemed pleased with their decisions. While they were doing some trading, I took a look at the MDE app to see current wait times. Sixty minute wait for Safari….. Eh okay lets go that way kids. As we arrived in Harambe, we could see that wasn’t going to be the case. The end of the line was at Tusker House, yikes. I remember Lorelai looking at me and saying, how about we do something else and come back in a while? You got it kid! So we headed down the Gorilla Falls Expedition Trails. Luckily there was a gorilla against the glass and got to take a peek at him/her. Wasn’t close enough to tell, LOL.

We hit up Rafiki’s and the Maharaja Jungle Trek, before heading towards Everest. I kept the phone I the pocket and just enjoyed time with the girls, so there is a lack of photos during those attractions. I tried to do that often this trip. Ella was showing some anxiety the first few days of this trip, and I wanted her to just enjoy it all. Mainly cause it is my happy place, and I wanted her to have fun. We stopped for some ice cream just outside of the Everest queue, and watched the start of Kite Tails. The wait for Safari did not seem like it was going to diminish, and the line for Everest was across the bridge almost to Nemo. I said to the girls, “its hot, and I just don’t see us accomplishing anything, lets go back and swim for a while.” They both nodded, and we headed towards the park exit. This would be the last time we see AK this trip. Not a lot accomplished, but I think we enjoyed ourselves.

The drive back was uneventful. Mainly listened to some Christmas music and I pointed out some sites to Ella along the way. Lorelai decided that she was going to do some homework, and my wife was waiting on a load of clothes in the dryer. So Ella and I headed to the pool. We hopped into the Hot Tub first, not realizing my mistake minutes later. Wow was that pool cold! Haha Soon mom came down and was asking me about hot spots, and if it might work with Lorelai’s chrome book. Our school system uses them, and require a secure connection. Something not available at the resort. So I sat in the hot tub and spoke with AT&T and got it added to our plan so Lorelai could finish up her school work. Ella and I ended up swimming for about another hour, while mom ordered some pizza and wings for a late lunch. Our dinner reservation was around 7 PM that evening so a little and pizza and wings would hold us over.

I think for now, this is where I will leave the report. For those reading, there is a TON more to come!

 

[tehSAC]

So I left off with us having a late lunch at the resort. Lunch was pretty mediocre to be honest, but it did the job. Hopped in the shower for the second time of the day to get ready after lunch. I don’t believe I have mentioned how much I LOVED the shower in the room. I love a good hot shower, and this shower was the best since my stay in Tokyo! So by this time my shower tally is at 3. Okay, maybe that’s awkward…. Anyway, earlier this morning I had woke up at 6:50 to purchase LL for Rise, as we would be visiting HS this evening. Something I was extremely excited to experience. Ended up picking up a timeslot of 4:25 to 5:25, knowing we had an ADR for 6:50 at Sci Fi.

Before I continue, I need to note this for the next part of the story, and for anyone staying at the Riviera in the future. My oldest chose to sleep on the fold out bed underneath the TV, and our first night, she dropped it behind the bed. Turned out to be quite the ordeal to get it out from behind the frame. A 30 minute ordeal…… So I sternly suggested that she not keep her phone on the bed with her, and hoped that she had followed ol dad’s recommendation. When I came up from the pool for lunch, she had that look on her face. Not only did she lose her phone again, but she lost her sisters scissors for her school work while we were on vacation. To say I was unhappy might be an understatement, but we eventually recovered it. We could not recover the scissors, but we did find a missing sock and a clif bar. LOL! So we had to run to target for new scissors, Dramamine, and some more water for our vacation.

Someone fell asleep on the way to Target.

Shopping done, we headed off to HS! This would be the first time 3 of us had been in the park since 2012, and Ella’s first time. We arrived around 4:30, and found a great parking space towards the front of the lot. An easy walk and we were at security in 10 minutes. Mom was pulled aside to take a look in her bag, and then we were off to the turnstiles. Ella, Lorelai, and I had no issues. Mom however did. It never crossed my mind that she didn’t check in at Animal Kingdom earlier in the day, and we were hopping. Thankfully the CM understood the issue, and let her into the park. Crisis averted! Once inside the park we admired all of the wonderful decorations, and headed toward Echo Lake. I was in awe of the decorations. HS had the best decorations by far! We agreed that before we left we should come back for photos. So we headed in the direction of Galaxy’s Edge, and Rise of the Resistance. As a huge Star Wars fan I was like a kid on Christmas morning walking into this new land. I had seen some photos, but tried not to dive too deep online. I wanted to be surprised by it all! I saw the coke cart with the droid, and the A-Wing, before finding a place to park the stroller and head into the Lighting Lane. We walked right into the room with Rey and I was blown away. This was something else I never did, watch any on ride footage. Again I wanted to be surprised. I will spare details for those that know nothing about it, but let me say I had to pull my jaw off of the floor at the end of the ride. We all did, even mom and Ella who are not huge Star Wars fans.

We headed back towards Echo Lake, and as we passed Star Tours we noticed it was a 10 minute wait. Basically a walk on. So we parked the stroller and headed in. The smell to me is as memorable as Pirates of the Caribbean. As I predicted, we walked right up to the doors. Ella wasn’t sure to think, but she was ready to go! The last time we rode, mom was the rebel spy. This time, Ella was who Vader was after! I still love this ride, but it’s not as intense as it once was, or at least how I remember it. We took a quick look through Tatooine Traders, and then finally made our way to Echo Lake.

We had about 45 minutes to kill, so we did a little shopping, admiring the decorations, and even caught the evening cavalcade. I gotta tell you I couldn’t take my eyes off the décor! I’m not a huge fan of Christmas, for reasons I won’t divulge here, but honestly these were putting me into the mood. The retro 50’s style was also a nice touch.

Next up was dinner. We were all pretty hungry and excited for our first ever visit to Sci-Fi Dine In. I checked in through the app, and a few minutes later we were headed into the restaurant. First impression, it was darker than I expected, but I loved how everything looked. Walking in I already knew what I was going to have, the BBQ burger. Lorelai had a chocolate shake and a kids cheeseburger meal, mom had the same cheeseburger meal, and Ella chose the chicken fingers. Food was fantastic, but we discussed during dinner we would cancel all remaining ADR’s except for one. It wasn’t the expense, it was the time it took away from the parks for us. If we visited every year I think this would fit better into our plans, but only coming once every so many years, it just wasn’t a great use of our time. So that meant canceling Boma the next morning, and Skipper Canteen during our MK day. Honestly I was bummed about Boma, mainly because I wanted to see AKL’s tree. Oh well, paid for the meal, and out we went. We had one more exciting reservation to get too at 8:45.

Ella looked so excited. LOL

Our next reservation was in Galaxy’s Edge, but we had not seen much of the area yet. At night its hard to see all the little details, but wow was I floored. We took a trip through the market place and did a little window shopping. Then I saw her….. The Falcon with my own eyes. That hunk of junk, I could have stared at all night long. Standby was 20 minutes, so we hopped into line, but I was worried about getting stuck in line and missing our reservation. So we hopped out of line, and made our way around to Savi’s. Yep, we were going to build some sabers!

By the time we found were we were supposed to go, we had about 15 minutes before our 8:45 reservation. We all sat down and let the girls decide what type of sabers they were going to build. Both decided on the Nature style, and even discussed what parts they liked the most. Ella though seemed a bit anxious, just like at the airport the day before. She expressed that she was nervous and scared that it would be scary. We talked to her, and said it would be fun, and something not a lot of kids get to do. She seemed excited, and we put her pin on her jacket. Soon we were being led into the workshop, and she wanted me to help her out. During the part were they were talking about each individual kyber crystal colors she said she felt like she was going to get sick. I got the attention of the CM nearby and they took her and mom out of the workshop. I was so bummed that she missed out on that, and felt a ton of pressure to choose the right parts. Overall the experience was awesome, and I’m glad I was able to be a part of it.

After that was finished it was past 9 PM. So we took some photos, and headed towards Toy Story Land. I wanted to see it at night, but we were turned away by a CM. Said that way was closed, and we would need to head back towards Star Tours. The night time show was complete by the time we hit Star Tours, and the crowds were headed out. I knew it was going to be a rush, so we took a break near Gertie for a few minutes, and let the crowd dissipate a bit. Our first full park day was over, and we had a good time, but something felt off. We only accomplished 3 attractions in almost 8 hours of park time. Do we splurge for Genie+ or do we go with standby tomorrow at EPCOT? Hmm, plenty to think about. I’d say we made it to the car around 9:30, and back to the resort around 9:45. Showers for everyone, yep 3rd of the day for me , and then to bed. I set my alarm for 6:50 (UGH ON VACATION!!!) and my head hit the pillow around 10:30.

 

[rdkeim]

Following! Although not perfect it seems like you're having a good time. With the new changes, it has made trip planning much more stressful - ugh. Thanks for sharing your experience!

 

[footballmouse]

 

[tehSAC]

Day 3, EPCOT Day! The previous night I had set the alarm to hopefully snag VQ for Remy’s. The plan was to purchase LL for Frozen so we could experience it, but no other purchases for Genie+ or Remy’s. Both Frozen and Remy’s had a price of $9 per person. The park did not open until 10 AM, and we had EMH’s so I felt like we could accomplish everything we wanted to do, and take our time. There was also the hope of the crowds we saw the day before was not going to be indicative of the days to come. That Sunday would have more locals, and Monday-Wednesday would be a bit lighter. So 7 AM came around and I couldn’t land a VQ for Remy’s! Ugh…….. First indication that today might be busy, and secondly I now need to purchase this to experience it. 1 day in, and getting ready for the second day, and I’m over the nickel and dime approach of Disney. I’ve been watching videos and reading all about Genie, and was prepared, but I’m over it. So I purchase Frozen for 12:25, and Remy’s for 6:05. I need more sleep, so back to bed I went for another hour.

We all roll out of bed around 8:15, I hop into the shower (tally at 5 now) and finish getting ready. While the girls are prepping for the day, I made a few sandwiches, packed up some other snacks, and prepared to eat homemade lunches in the park today. Skyliner to the park, and we were in by 10:15 AM. The plan was to try and do a couple attractions in Future World, before heading to Norway. However Ella stated she was feeling sick, and I could tell it was anxiety again. I remember thinking to myself “man what is up with her?” We stopped near the Christmas tree to give her some Dramamine, and have a little snack. Hoping that might ease her nerves. By the time we made it to Journey into Imagination the wait was 35 minutes, and it was 11:15 AM. Ugh, already this day was not going well. Plus Ella was saying she wasn’t interested in riding anything. Trying to save the day, I said we should head to Mexico and hop onto the Gran Fiesta Tour. It’s a simple boat ride, and maybe she will enjoy that and start to relax.

The crowds were present, and something told me this might be a week of long waits, if we did not do Genie+. I was adamant about only using it once at the MK, but I was seriously considering it for the next day at HS. We strolled up to the pavilion and I carried Ella into the queue. Ride was a walk on, and she seemed to enjoy it. At that point she said “okay lets go ride Frozen” which made me feel like she turned a corner. However we had close to 40 minutes before we could check in. We browsed the Norway Pavilion, and found the kidcot station. The decision was made to make it over to China to find their kidcot station and kill some time. Lorelai and I were hungry so we all found the closest trashcan and we all ate an early lunch.

After lunch, we headed towards the LL entrance, and tapped in around 10 minutes early. We waited less than 5 minutes to hop into our boat. Now I need to clarify, I am not a fan of Frozen, and especially Olaf. I’m burned out on the characters and film. I know that will not be a popular opinion, but it’s mine. There is too much of the sisters and Olaf being shoved down our throats. So to say I was excited about this one would be the understatement of the year. However Ella asked if I would yell out to Olaf on the ride “I love you Olaf!’ She said it would make her happy if I did that. Welp Dad doesn’t disappoint his little girl, and as soon as we saw him I yelled it out. She thought that was the funniest thing and I could tell she had a huge smile behind her mask. Overall the ride was okay. Ella seemed to be the one that enjoyed it the most. Again, maybe we have turned a corner, and we could head back towards Future World. Well I was wrong, as we hit the attractions exit, she asked if we could go back and swim. We ended up making a compromise. Her and Mom would go back early, but we first had to complete all of the kidcot stops from China to France. Seemed to her that was a good deal. That was what we ended up doing.

Lorelai and I were going to stay and do a couple more attractions, as well as pick up the passports in the UK and Canada. About the time we finished picking up the Canada passport, Mom text me to say Pluto was at the resort, which was a hit for Ella because he is her favorite. Lorelai and I were on a mission. Test Track was a 30 minute wait, so we rushed over. This was also an attraction neither of us had ever done, so we were excited to experience it. The line was moving steady until we got to the area where they let you design your car. We sat there for 20 minutes cause the ride went down. The ride went down and so did Lorelai. She just plopped her but directly on the ground. LOL I let her design our car, and I thought it was pretty funny looking. However we would soon find out it was the most efficient car at the time. Overall we both enjoyed the ride. The banked turn at the end was our favorite part of the ride. The plan was to come back and ride it again during the night. Next up was a trip on Spaceship Earth, something Lorelai had never experienced. This was a 10 minute wait, so practically a walk on. After this attraction we made our way back to the skyliner, and back to the resort. It was around 2:30 by the time we made it back to the room.

 

[Faithful Raider]

Thank you for your report. We are going to the parks for the first time next month, with our 6 yr old little girl who struggles with anxiety (along with other diagnoses) and are going in fully aware our days might look a lot like yours did. Hoping my shower is as great as yours was!

 

[tehSAC]

Thank you for your report. We are going to the parks for the first time next month, with our 6 yr old little girl who struggles with anxiety (along with other diagnoses) and are going in fully aware our days might look a lot like yours did. Hoping my shower is as great as yours was!

Ella really hasn't shown a lot of anxieties since she started kindergarten last year. She struggled for the first few months, but since then was great. This trip, at least the first few days, reminded me of those days.

Good luck to you and your family! I'm sure you will have a great trip.

.

 

[tehSAC]

When Lorelai and I made it back to the resort Ella was still swimming, and mom was taking orders to eat at the resort before we headed back to EPCOT. I swam with Ella for another hour, while mom relaxed on the couch and Lorelai did some more homework. Ella and I headed up to the room around 4:30, I took a quick shower (shower count: 6) and then headed down to get the food we had ordered. It was looking like it was going to be a beautiful night, and I was excited to see EPCOT at night. All of the times I have been, I had never stepped foot inside of EPCOT after dark. Eeek….. We all got ready for the night and was on the Skyliner around 5:45 PM.

Quite a simple ride over, and I noticed quite a crowd around Remy’s. Didn’t think anything of it, then I saw the crowd trying to get in through the International Gateway. The line extended well past the skyliner entrance. Ugh, this was supposed to be a “quiet” week. I went ahead and took Ella through the stroller entrance and waited 10 minutes for Lorelai and Mom to make it through. As I was waiting I took a look at the App and noticed that Remy’s was down. Spoke with a cast member and she assured me that if it came back up, I would be able to ride. If not I would be reimbursed since we would not be coming back to EPCOT during our visit. So what do we do next? Ah ha, Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie was just around the corner, lets go have some dessert! Walking up to the entrance the line was extended out of the shop almost to L'Artisan des Glaces. Another sigh, but we have time to kill. I stood in that line for 40 minutes! 40 minutes for dessert…… During that time I saw something that really bothers me about todays society. So many entitled people, even in Disney! A guest walked in through the exit and demanded they serve him. He said to the cast member while pointing at items in the case “I’m not waiting in this line, I want this, this, and this.” She politely told him that he had to wait like everyone else. In a very loud tone said “No, I will not, you will serve me now. I have cash, and you can keep the change!” Another cast member came over to interrupt and served him. I was close enough to the exit to see his total was $24.65. He gave her $25 and said “Keep the rest as a tip” and walked off. Both cast members looked like they were going to cry. Now I have pi$$ed and moaned about crowds, but I know its not a CM’s fault. This is the world Disney is creating, but we will touch on that at the end of the report. Anyway I made it through the line, and we sat down with our French treats. Unfortunately I didn’t take good photos before we dug in.

Remy’s was back up around 7PM, and if I remember correctly, we were in line around 7:20. We had no problems using LL even though it was 15 minutes past the end of our reservation time. Ella loved that we “turned small” for this attraction and was excited to get into our little mouse. I was worried about how my wife would react to this one. She doesn’t do well with the 3d rides, and rides with screens. I told her prior that’s what we were going to experience and she said she would be okay. The ride was neat, but this is not a “go to” for us if we ever return in the future. I definitely would not pay to ride it again. Ella and Lorelai seemed to enjoy it more than us old farts. It effected my eyes, and gave mom a severe headache. Something that would bother her for the rest of the night. I wanted to pop back over to the Japanese pavilion, but decided against it due to her headache. The focus now was to hit up 4 more attractions and head back to the resort. I was hoping we could accomplish these 4 before fireworks at 9:45. We could sneak behind the crowds waiting for the show, hop on the skyliner, and be back by 10 PM. I was pretty confident we could do this. Did we? You will have to come back for the next installment.


.

 

[shh]

She politely told him that he had to wait like everyone else. In a very loud tone said “No, I will not, you will serve me now. I have cash, and you can keep the change!” Another cast member came over to interrupt and served him.

Enjoying your TR! But had to jump in as this is outrageous that someone served him ahead of all the well behaved folks that waited in line, just because he demanded it. The real problem is that the rest of the people who are well mannered just put up with it and won't complain to management or make a scene...that's what these bullies count on. I'm at the point where I will ask for a manager and complain about things like this - it's not right that bad behavior is rewarded and manners/rule abiders get the short end of the stick.

 

[bsmcneil]

Loving your posts - we're a family about to do the SW route from Indy to MCO (I know that -ndy sign so well by now!).

 

[tehSAC]

Enjoying your TR! But had to jump in as this is outrageous that someone served him ahead of all the well behaved folks that waited in line, just because he demanded it. The real problem is that the rest of the people who are well mannered just put up with it and won't complain to management or make a scene...that's what these bullies count on. I'm at the point where I will ask for a manager and complain about things like this - it's not right that bad behavior is rewarded and manners/rule abiders get the short end of the stick.

I was pretty appalled by it, and wanted to speak to someone. However the two cast members were pulled aside and speaking to someone who looked "higher up", so I did not interrupt. I honestly wish I would have spoke up looking back on it all.

Loving your posts - we're a family about to do the SW route from Indy to MCO (I know that -ndy sign so well by now!).

Awesome! I kept eye on what direction the flights were taking off, and had the girls choose seats on the left side of the plane. We could see IMS, the zoo, and downtown before making the right turn south. Hope you have a great trip!

 

[tehSAC]

:This update will not have very many photos:

Where I left off, we were headed towards Future World. To be more specific, we were headed to Journey Into Imagination. This attraction has its fans, and its haters, we all know this. We lean towards being fans of this attraction. When we were here earlier in the day, the wait was 35 minutes. Now at 7:40 ish it was a posted 5 minutes. This is more like it, and we walked right onto the ride. Ella enjoyed the ride, and we all liked Figment in his Christmas sweater.

After we took a look in the gift shop, and Ella purchased another set of ears, we headed towards the Land Pavilion. Soarin was a 25 minute wait, so we headed in that direction. I wanted the family to experience this one, but I was concerned about the screen with my wife. We ended up in the backrow, so below everyone and views of other guests shoes. Oh well, it was fun, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. Mom still had a headache, but she pushed on. Next up was Living with the Land, and it had a 25 minute wait as well. What the heck people, its almost 8:30, why don’t you go find a spot for the fireworks! Haha. I was happy to wait, as I wanted to see the holiday décor in the greenhouses. Again everyone enjoyed, but my wife was really starting to feel it. Her head was thumping hard, so she was ready to head back to the room. However she waited for us to ride Nemo which had a 5 minute wait. Personally I’m not a huge fan of this attraction, but the girls wanted to ride. Overall the ride is fine, but the EAC part really hurts my eyes, so I usually close my eyes during this part.

As we walked out, it was around 9:15, and with my wife’s head thumping I wasn’t going back towards the skyliner. A plan I initially planned on doing, but I felt leaving through the main entrance and catching a bus would be the best option for us. Some of you know what’s going to happen next. We stopped for a couple photos of Spaceship Earth, and then towards the buses.

“Where is the Riviera bus stop” I am thinking to myself. Lorelai says “I don’t see it on the list dad”, and at that point a CM asks if he can assist. He then tells me what I did not want to hear….. “Sir since you are a Skyliner resort, we don’t have a bus here for the Riviera.” I didn’t even think to look at my wife, I could feel the stare. I politely said “any other way for us to get back to the resort without going back through the park?” He suggested that we took the bus from there to HS, and then ride the Skyliner back. I think knowing I’m also in the dog house he says “Honestly this is the route I would prefer to do, because the line for the Skyliner can back up quite a bit. Yes you are taking the bus to another park, but the wait and ride will be quicker that route.” I say thanks and give him a little nod to say “thank you”, and we were on our way. The wait for the bus was around 15 minutes. As we were boarding the fireworks were starting, so the full ride to HS we could see some of the show.

We make it to HS, pop off, and head to the Skyliner station, and right onto a gondola. Switch to the next gondola at the Caribbean resort and we are minutes away from walking to the resort. As we are at the highest point of this part of the journey the skyliner stops immediately. I’m not talking the slow down you have from time to time, I’m talking stomp on the breaks and the gondola starts swinging back and forth type of stop. I damn near fell off the bench. The girls are crying, I hear people in the gondola next to us scream, and we are swinging back and forth above one of the Caribbean resort hotels. I wanted to get the eff off of this thing! Eventually it fired back up, and we were on our way. Then all of the sudden another stomp on the breaks! Gondola starts swinging again, and Ella is in tears. It starts up almost immediately while the car is still swinging. My blood was boiling, and I was ready to get off. As I stepped off, I said to the CM “Excuse my French, but that scared the **** out of me. What happened?!?” She laughed and said “Yep I’ve heard that a few times tonight. We had an issue with the door not closing, and the gondola almost leave the station, so we had to emergency stop.”

I WAS ON SOLID GROUND! I apologized for my language and we went to the room and got ready for bed. Shower tally 7.





.

 

[bsmcneil]

I was pretty appalled by it, and wanted to speak to someone. However the two cast members were pulled aside and speaking to someone who looked "higher up", so I did not interrupt. I honestly wish I would have spoke up looking back on it all.



Awesome! I kept eye on what direction the flights were taking off, and had the girls choose seats on the left side of the plane. We could see IMS, the zoo, and downtown before making the right turn south. Hope you have a great trip!

Thanks for the tip and well wishes - I'll definitely have to try (assuming decent weather - I worry that getting out of here in Jan will be dicey). I've had great moments like that, mostly accidentally, but don't know Indy well enough or think to ask and I'm sure the kids will eat it up.

 

[tehSAC]

Thanks for the tip and well wishes - I'll definitely have to try (assuming decent weather - I worry that getting out of here in Jan will be dicey). I've had great moments like that, mostly accidentally, but don't know Indy well enough or think to ask and I'm sure the kids will eat it up.

Okay if you are flying southwest, the terminal has the large plane above the gates facing north. If planes are taking off left to right looking out these windows you are going to fly towards downtown. Obviously the other way you wont be. Now if they are not taking off either of those ways you are using the east runway, which is not used often. Taking off north to south you might be able to see some of the city, taking off the opposite way, sitting on the right side of the plane you might be able to see indy too.

Okay too much info..... LOL

 

[tehSAC]

Day 4, this one is a doozy. I’m not kidding, by the end of this day into the next morning is the most jam packed day of the trip. Not in the amount of things done, but emotionally jam packed. So buckle in, grab the popcorn and enjoy the next few posts.

I woke up to the sounds of my wife sick in the bathroom. Sorry to be so TMI, but it was part of this trip. The day priors activities had caught up to her, and she was out for the count this morning. I took a quick shower (Shower Tally 8) and hopped onto the MDE app and went ahead and booked LL for Mickey and Minnie. Ugh, I really hate this. They have me by the meat and vegetables, as a family who only visits so often. In the famous words of Red Forman “Bob go to hell!” After I had got dressed, I placed a mobile order for breakfast. The girls and I ended up eating breakfast on the balcony. Actually the girls finished their mickey waffles and bacon before I really dug into mine. So there I sit alone on the balcony enjoying Blueberry Pancakes with Lemon Mascarpone Cream. Mmmmm! The photo earlier from the balcony does not show the view to the left. As you stand on the balcony of 8954, if you look left you have the wall of the resort and a bank of windows. Those windows are where the elevators are. If you have been to Topolino’s you most likely have used these elevators. The lobby of Topolino’s is just up and to the left. So I’m sitting there enjoying my food and I glance up, and there are 5-6 people watching me from above, and a floor below is a couple watching me as well. I wave to everyone, and just go back to eating. I’m uncomfortable…… LOL

Breakfast was tasty, I enjoyed the view for a few minutes, and then went in and waited for the girls to get ready. Even with the excitement of last nights Skyliner ride, we decided to go ahead and give it another shot. We jumped right into a gondola, and had a smooth ride to HS. We made it into the park around 9:45, and decided to head straight towards Toy Story Land. This would be a first for all of us. I remember going to the theater to see Toy Story when I was 14, so I practically grew up with the movies. Stepping into the land I was impressed with all of the details, but the size of the area really disappointed me. It was so small and this morning it was PACKED! We decided to go ahead and give Aliens a try. It had the shortest wait at 40 minutes. “Damn it Paul, why didn’t you spring for Genie+?!?” The wait was close to 30 minutes, and we were on.

We all thought it was fun, but not fun enough to consider another ride later that night. Looking at the wait times, the next lowest nearby was Mania, so that’s where we headed. The wait was 55 minutes, and that’s what we ended up waiting. “Tonight I really hope lines are shorter” I said to myself. Ella ended up riding with me, and Lorelai was in the same car behind us. I had only done this once, so I wasn’t confident in my skills. Lorelai was adamant she was going to beat me. Sorry kid, you’re not gonna be this old man. Lorelai scored 64,700, not bad for someone who last did this when she was 4. Dad, well he scored 175,500. Yep, like I said, not gonna beat this old man.

It’s now close to noon, and the girls want to head to Dok-Ondar's Den of Antiquities to do a little shopping for their lightsabers. Lorelai wanted a yellow and white crystal, and Ella wanted red and green. However I first wanted to stop by the milk stand. As a huge fan of Star Wars, I really wanted to give this a try, so did Ella. The line was short, and soon we had our blue milk. Well lets just say, I tried it. I was NOT a fan and neither was Ella. Soon into the trash it went. Oh well, you never know if you don’t try. We stopped for a Sprite, and then into Dok-Ondar’s. The girls purchased their crystals, and then they mentioned they wanted to try the popcorn they saw Sunday night. We bought both kinds, Ella preferred the green, and Lorelai and I liked the other. We hoped to see some characters walking around, but this entire trip we did not see one. We were all disappointed. Bums me out right now writing that.

Mom sent me a text and said she was up, and watching TV. Ella wanted to go back to the resort, so that’s what we went ahead and did. Oh and you best bet, I took a quick shower to rinse off. (Shower tally 9)

Okay its around 1:30 by then. This day is just getting started……

.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Following along....as much as I love Disney the way they are nickeling and diming guests really irks me. We want to take our younger daughter on her first trip, but it may very well be our last.

 

[tehSAC]

Following along....as much as I love Disney the way they are nickeling and diming guests really irks me. We want to take our younger daughter on her first trip, but it may very well be our last.

Yep, after my report is complete, I will do a run down of all the good and bad and reasons why we will choose not to return. Not that we had an awful time, but there are certain things that Disney is doing that will turn us away possibly forever.

 

[tehSAC]

Left off with me taking my 9th shower of the trip, and we are relaxing in the resort having a late lunch. During lunch the girls wanted to swap their kyber crystals and check out the different sounds and colors. I got pretty good at taking them apart and switching said crystals around. About this time, we started to discuss purchasing Lorelai some new shoes. For some reason she brought the most uncomfortable shoes in history with her on this trip. Take a look back and you might see them. The soles are about two sheets of paper thick, and they just don’t breathe well. How do I know that? Well you will see here in a while. Spending the money to get her more comfortable shoes wasn’t a concern, the concern was her wearing new shoes without them being broke in. At this time we were just discussing, so nothing was set.

We packed up and got ready for an evening at HS. I had reservations for Mickey and Minnies for 4:50, so we wanted to be in the park by 4 PM. The girls wanted to do a little shopping, and my wife wanted a slushie somewhere. We hopped on the skyliner, and was inside the park at 4:05 PM. Ella purchased a misting fan, so we stopped at Oscars for some free water to fill it up. Mom found a cherry slushie there as well, so she got her fix. Though it wasn’t the best she said. The girls did some shopping down Sunset Blvd, and Lorelai was considering riding Tower of Terror. This is an attraction I have done once before, but never again. I do not care for drops, but I suck it up for my kids. However this is not one attraction I will ever do again. Lorelai decided to wait until later, so we headed towards the Chinese Theater.

I new nothing of this attraction, so I was excited to experience this new attraction. I was really hoping for no screens for 2 reasons. One for my wife, and the other because I think it’s a quick and simple way to add an effect. Something I just don’t prefer. So if you have experienced this attraction, you know my hopes would be squashed. The start of this attraction, and the areas without screens is what Disney is to me. So many details, it was awesome. The screens and the dancing section gave mom a headache. Ugh, I just want her to have a great time. ☹

As we exited the attraction and grabbed our stroller, Mom saw the signage for Little Mermaid in the distance and asked Lorelai for a photo. Ursula is Lorelai’s most disliked character, so Mom thought it would be funny to have the photo.

Next up was Slinky Dog. Ella was dying to ride it, and she wanted to ride it with mom. Besides this, the only other attraction we “had” to do was Smugglers Run. Unfortunately Slinky was an 80 minute wait, but the line looked like it was moving quick. We were under the main building area in 35 minutes. We killed some time with the Play app, and I made Ella one of Bo Peep’s sheep. LOL Then there was an influx of LL reservations that started to hold us up. It seemed like standby was put on hold and forgotten. Lorelai was complaining about her feet too, so I said “let me see if I can fit into your shoes. If so I will wear them and you can wear mine.” Thinking since I wear a size 12, her shoes wouldn’t fit me. Well to my surprise, they fit. It was a little snug, but she does have large feet. So for the rest of the evening I wore those wonderful shoes…. Can you sense the sarcasm? It took us another 50 minutes before we would make it onto ol Slinky. It was an enjoyable ride, but I would not wait in that line again for such a short coaster. It was almost 7 PM by the time we were back to the stroller and heading towards Batuu. We had 45 minutes to make it towards our reservation at Oga’s. When we made it to the Falcon, the wait was 30 minutes. I asked the CM at Oga’s about being a few minutes late, if we could still get in. She said no guarantee since its such a difficult place to get into. I wasn’t willing to take the risk, but I was also bummed that I might not be able to ride it. Then I noticed there was a single rider line open. I walked over and asked the CM how long of a wait would it be, because I wanted to experience the attraction but also enjoy Oga’s. She said I should be able to walk right on, so Lorelai and I discussed the possibility of not riding together, and she was cool with that. So on we went, and mom and Ella went shopping a bit more.

Lorelai and I walked right onto the attraction, and we were able to ride together. We were both engineers but I didn’t care. It was a rough ride, because two kids were the pilots. To say I was jealous was an understatement, but we still had a good time. We walked off the attraction and went to find Mom. Well they got lost, and Ella had to help her find their way back. They were at the popcorn shop, so we met up with them there. The girls wanted to go back to Savi’s and check out the spare parts bin. They were considering purchasing some extra parts, but eventually decided against that. After our visit to Savi’s, we headed towards Oga’s, and I checked in through the app.

We walked into Oga’s right around 7:45, and we stood right near DJ Rex. I was in awe. Here I am, in a Star Wars Cantina, next to Rex and with my favorite girls. This was a highlight of the trip for me. We ended up ordering 3 drinks. Hyperdrive (Punch It!), Carbon Freeze, and Blurrgfire to share amongst us. I really enjoyed the Hyperdrive, and everyone else liked the Carbon Freeze. The Blurrgfire was okay, and I finished it, but not a favorite of anyone. Ella was exhausted, and ready to leave after 30 minutes. I finished off our drinks and we headed out. This was one experience we did during this trip, I would do again. I enjoyed it that much!

After this, we decided it was time to head out. The decision had been made to head back to the resort, grab the car and head out for shoes. Mom found a shoe store that did not close until 10PM so that was the plan to head there. So now you are thinking, where is this excitement you spoke about?!? Well you will have to wait for the next addition to this trip report. A wrench is thrown into this day in about 2 hours time…..

.