It all started with a PIN . A first time TR - 3-5 Update

[Moodyzblu]

I love the golf ball story !! That was awesome.

Great pics and TR ! Looking forward to more.

 

[B&WMickey]

That is just the coolest thing ever about that golfball!!

I see your kids loved the dancing water too!

I saw your kids in your TR having a blast as well. It looks like the dancing water fountains can be fun no matter what age you are. I still remember my brother and I playing in them whey I was younger.

Love your pics. Do you mind me asking what camera you have?

Thanks. I took 1,250 pictures this trip and filled up 2 – 4GB memory cards.

The camera is a Panasonic Lumix FH-24. I got it a couple of months ago. 16.1 MP. It has an 8x optical zoom, which was a big selling point for me. It’s got a ton of settings you can tinker with if you are so inclined. I was even able to take some pretty decent night photos without a tripod by adjusting the settings. I'll be posting those pics throughout my TR.

I just noticed the camera is on sale this week at Best Buy for $99.99.

I love the golf ball story !! That was awesome.

Great pics and TR ! Looking forward to more.

Thanks. It’s amazing how you can plan and plan the “perfect” trip, then a kind stranger comes along and makes your day by doing something completely unexpected.

 

[Jake & Crew]

LOVE the golf ball story! Have to add that to my trip to dos for next year.

Also love the pic of your daughter jumping at the fountain......such a Disney energy!!!

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 2 – Part 4 – POR - Pool Time

As I mentioned awhile back the kids had been begging us to go swimming from the time we checked in. Which of course lends credence to the statement; it doesn’t matter where you stay on vacation as long as there is a pool.

POR has 6 pools. Of the 6, 5 are considered “quiet” pools tucked in amongst the 20 guest buildings around the resort. The main pool is over on Ol’ Man Island. See Map

Ol’ Man Island is great. It sits in the middle of the Sassagoula River, which POR is situated on. Ol’ Man Island is accessible by several bridges. On the island is the main pool, the Fishing Hole (where you can rent cane poles and bait), a play ground and a pool bar (Muddy Rivers). The island has a winding pathway that connects the various amenities.

I think the pool bar at POR is one of the best pool bars in all of WDW. We stayed at WL last year and Trout Pass has nothing on the set up on Ol’ Man Island over at POR, same goes for the other ones I’ve either observed first hand or seen pictures of.

The bar itself is fairly large and is tucked in amongst the dense woods on Ol’ Man Island. There are two sides of the bar to sit on. The entire bar is under cover but open to the elements. They have a couple of TV’s above the bar to watch games on. There is an attached elevated deck with a half dozen tables or so that overlook the main pool.

After we got back from Epcot we changed and headed to Ol Man Island to go swimming. You can tell our kids have reached a higher level of independence and ability to handle being in the pool since DW didn’t change into a swimsuit. As a matter of fact she didn’t even pack one for this trip. Since the kids are both decent swimmers she decided she’d rather not get wet.... and cold.

Now I on the other hand still love getting in the water and playing with the kids. At this age our kids still love having one of us in there to play with them too. As long as they enjoy having me in there with them I’ll jump right in. The day will come, too soon, when they’ll want nothing to do with us.

The main pool has a meandering shape to it. It is not a zero entry pool but they do have two large staircase areas that make it easier for kids to climb in and out of. The deepest part of the pool is only 5 feet, so no diving allowed.

The main pool has a waterslide. The slide is accessible via a staircase off to the side of the pool that takes you up to a small chalet like structure. The slide takes you down a flume between rocks and dense vegetation, with a couple of twists and turns and under a foot bridge that people can cross to get from one side of the pool to the other. The height/length of the slide isn’t terribly great nor is it all that fast. I’d guess from the time you get on it till the time you hit the water is less than 5 seconds.

The slide looked like fun, just the fact that it was kind of tucked back in amongst the rocks and vegetation. However, I didn’t go down it. I didn’t see enough other adults giving it a try and I didn’t want to look silly going down amongst all of these little kids with their parents waiting to catch them down at the bottom.

I’m sure it might have been a bit awkward if some mom was waiting at the bottom of the slide for little Johnny to come down and next thing you know she’s being knocked under water as I plow into her.

There is an “island” in the middle of the pool with a cluster of rocks on one end. Spouts of water shoot from the cluster of rocks, which draws kids like crazy to try and get sprayed by the water.

There is also a wooden support tower on one end of the island that supports a supposedly aging trough above it that connects from the waterslide chalet and from there was supposed to connect to a similarly aged water tower structure on the other side of the pool. Fitting with the disrepair feel the trough has collapsed from the wooden support tower to the water tower. The water still flows through the trough and now cascades into the pool where the trough has been severed.

The whole pool area is nestled amongst a dense layer of trees and vegetation, giving it a secluded swimming-hole kind of feel to the whole place. Ol’ Man Island in general is heavily wooded and has a Tom Sawyer Island kind of feel to it. From the mainland it’s hard to know that anything is going on out there until you actually cross one of the bridges and see for yourself.

There is also a hot tub located near the pool and a small splash pool for tots as well.

When we were done swimming we headed back to the room to rest. I was able to catch a ten minute nap and the kids watched some TV.

Of course we couldn’t resist turning the TV to Stacey. Boy do we get suckered into watching WDW Resort TV. (Casey too, over on the DVC channel.) Unfortunately the young perky Stacey has been replaced with the older, soccer mom version of Stacey. I keep expecting her to say at the end of her loop that she has to run and go pick up the kids from school and then get home and make something for the PTA bake sale. Gone are the days of Stacey hanging out at DTD till dawn.

 

[B&WMickey]

LOVE the golf ball story! Have to add that to my trip to dos for next year.

Also love the pic of your daughter jumping at the fountain......such a Disney energy!!!

The element of surprise is big with the golf ball.

Those fountains are kid magnets. I know my brother and I must have stood there for what seemed like hours when we were younger trying to do the same thing.

 

[meggiebeth]

Great TR so far! I love the Epcot golf ball thing on Soarin'. That must have been priceless!

Port Orleans looks beautiful. We really are hoping to get back to WDW next November- same time as you- after our first trip in August which was amazing. We loved the hot weather so aren't sure what to expect if we go in November. How high did the temperatures get?

I am having a hard time choosing between POR and CSR. We stayed at SSR in August and are worried a moderate would be noticably different- but your photos of POR are beautiful and don't make it look different to a deluxe Disney hotel! I think I'd like to stay in the mansions buildings.

Can't wait for the next update!

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 2 – Part 5 – Epcot – PM – Space Ship Earth

After coming through the gates of Epcot we headed right for the big ball.

Prior to leaving Epcot in the morning we had every intention of riding Spaceship Earth but when we got there we found the ride closed. DS really wanted to ride SSE so that was priority number 1 for us on our return to Epcot that evening. After last year’s trip to WDW, SSE became one of the boy’s favorite rides. It’s always been one of mine.

(Side Note: I’m going to get all nostalgic here but Spaceship Earth has a way of taking me back to the days of “EPCOT Center”. For better or worse most of the original Epcot rides were similar in nature to SSE. (Don’t even get me started on the Imagination Pavilion and the newest incarnation of the Figment ride. All I have to say is bring back Dreamfinder.) Of course SSE is essentially all that is left from long ago. I think it has held up well over the years and the rehab from a couple of years ago has given it new life. It must be doing alright if my 6 and 8 year olds like it.

Now DW told me recently that she’s not that big of a fan of SSE... I feel so betrayed.)

The whole ride has a way of building to a climax, which is perfect since the ride spirals upward into the giant golf ball. I love the scene where Michelangelo is painting the Sistine Chapel. It seems like the ride kind of builds to a crescendo at that point. I especially love hearing the choir singing in the back ground as you pass by him lying there, painting in the dim light. Total Goosebumps. You can kind of imagine really being there several centuries ago.

I love the modern areas as well passing through the industrial revolution all the way through the Jobs/Wozniak character working on an early computer in the garage in the middle of the night. Of course I’d be remiss if I didn’t say I long for the little chariot racing through the streets of Rome but overall SSE is still one of my favorites at WDW.

We were able to get on and ride it with hardly a wait. It didn’t disappoint (at least for 3 of us) and we all walked out of there smiling.

It was looking like a gorgeous evening; the weather was definitely warmer than the night before.

After SSE we headed to World Showcase and the Food and Wine Festival.

 

[B&WMickey]

Great TR so far! I love the Epcot golf ball thing on Soarin'. That must have been priceless!

Port Orleans looks beautiful. We really are hoping to get back to WDW next November- same time as you- after our first trip in August which was amazing. We loved the hot weather so aren't sure what to expect if we go in November. How high did the temperatures get?

I am having a hard time choosing between POR and CSR. We stayed at SSR in August and are worried a moderate would be noticably different- but your photos of POR are beautiful and don't make it look different to a deluxe Disney hotel! I think I'd like to stay in the mansions buildings.

Can't wait for the next update!

Thanks

The weather was great while we were there. Virtually no rain. The high temperatures were in the 70s for our coldest days and were in the low 80s for the warmest days. A couple of days were on the humid side. Even the temperature at night was quite warm on several of the days.

I haven’t stayed at CSR before but one of the things I keep hearing about CSR is that it’s a conventioneer’s hotel and that it can be kind of muted and less “Disney” like, keeping it more of a hotel for business travelers as opposed to vacation families.

Having stayed at both Moderate and Deluxe properties the first difference you’ll notice is the size of the rooms. You get more square footage for paying the extra $$$$ at the Deluxes. That said we were never over crowded in our room.

One of the things that is changing at POR is the size of the beds. While we were there we had double beds in our room but when the refurb is done rooms will be getting queen beds.

Another difference is the selection and quality of sit down restaurants, which is typically larger at the Deluxe hotels. No character meals at POR. Of course if you don’t really want to eat at table service restaurants it is a lot easier to grab quick counter service meals at the spacious food court at POR than some of the tiny counter service areas at the Deluxe hotels.

POR has a marina as do most of the Deluxe hotels. You can rent bikes too. I love the Fishing Hole at POR. To get to the parks you have to take bus transportation but there is a boat option for getting to DTD. Riding the boat from DTD to POR is one of my favorite things to do while staying at POR, especially at night.

I would say the quality of the grounds and theming at POR isn't second to any of the Deluxe hotels.

We have stayed in the Mansions before. I'll post some pics in upcoming updates. We really enjoy the secluded feeling of AB section but the Mansions are appealing too.

 

[FosterA]

excellent review with lots of deets on the pool area at POR! Beautiful pics too of course! I really want to stay at POR for our second trip

I love spaceship Earth too! I really like the starry sky part at the very top

 

[mandas08]

I had a bit of catching up to do... What an awesome Soarin experience. I will admit I wasnt hugely impressed the first time I rode it, so I'm anxious to try it again.

The pool looks so relaxing. I really like how it is tucked away. I keep getting more and more impressed with every picture you take of the resort.

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 2 – Part 6 – Epcot – PM – Food and Wine Festival - 1

After SSE we headed over to World Showcase for Food and Wine Festival. We’ve been to WDW several other times when F&W is going on and have always enjoyed sampling from the many different countries. While we were at Epcot in the AM I picked up a brochure on F&W listing all of the different menu items at each country. Back at POR I sat down and intently studied it like I was taking a final exam, circling the most appetizing looking items on the menu. I hadn’t eaten all that much since breakfast that morning so I was famished. F&W was going to be my dinner so I came prepared.

According to the crowd calendars that we had seen Epcot was supposed to be busy that day. It was still the weekend (Sunday) and F&W festival was going on and Jersey Week was coming to a close. That morning while touring Future World the crowds seemed pretty light. Now that evening over in WS things seemed to be crowded. Not as crowded as it probably could be but crowded nonetheless.

The top things on my list all seemed to be near Mexico so we started in that direction and made our way around WS in a clockwise direction.

(Disclaimer – Sadly I have no pictures of actual food items to show for this segment. It was little crowded as I indicated, the kids were a bit antsy at times and I’m trying to juggle a plate of food, walk and eat at the same time so manning a camera was something I wasn’t up to doing. Maybe if I was an octopus.)

Actually the first place we stopped was Australia as DW had her eye on the Shrimp on the Barbie with Pepper Berry Citrus Glaze ($4.50). She said it was quite good. It looked good but I had other things I wanted to try so I passed on Australia.

My first choice was found in Argentina, the Grilled Beef Skewer with Chimichurri Sauce and Boniato Puree ($5.00). I thought it was quite tasty. I thought the meat was good, not too fatty or grisly; I loved the flavor the sauce added.

Up next was the Caribbean. DW and I both had our eyes on the Ropa Vieja (braised beef) with White Rice ($3.50 x 2). This was good, very satisfying. I loved the beef, slow roasted, melt in your mouth good.

Then it was on to Mexico for the Grilled Ribeye Taco with Chipotle Pepper Sauce and Scallions on a Flour Tortilla ($5.50). I liked the taco a lot. I loved the sauce that went with this, very spicy. The meat was also very good.

Even though at this time we had only been in WS for all of 30 minutes the kids were getting anxious and wanted to do something other than watch us eat. We didn’t really feel like doing Kim Possible at this point in the evening since we knew we’d be doing it during our return to Epcot later in the week.

Well, what comes after Mexico in WS? Norway.

We decided to give Maelstrom a shot. The kids had never ridden it before and it was probably 10 years since we had so why not. DD was a bit nervous, I think she was still feeling the shock from Fantasmic the night before and was now getting second thoughts about every ride we approached. We assured her it was no big deal, even though we knew there’d be a few low level drops. We talked her through it and she held up fine. Big brother liked it as well.

It was a bit crowded that night and we waited about 20 plus minutes before we could board the boats and the stream of people coming in behind us was steady. As we were leaving the boats we skipped the movie and then exited out into the gift shops. There were two CM’s (from Norway) standing there handing out Mickey stickers to kids.

It wasn’t until we were leaving Norway that I noticed all of these people with Mickey stickers on their backs. It turns out that while they were handing stickers to kids they were also patting people on the back wishing them a good evening and of course putting Mickey stickers on them. Of course I remembered one of them patted me on the back. I had DW check me then de-sticker me. She was unscathed.

After riding Maelstrom we moved to Germany and another one of the items that both DW and I wanted to try. Nurnberger Sausage in a Pretzel Roll ($4.50 x 2). I loved the pretzel roll and that alone was almost worth the price. The sausage was good too.

Now DD had been begging since before we left home to get a stuffed Pascal. I had done a little research on the DIS and came up with a list of shops in which it had been reported that Pascal was being sold. We struck out earlier in the day in Mouse Gears. One of the other stores I was told would have him was in Germany.

After eating we headed into the stores on a Pascal hunt. It didn’t take long before DW said, “I see Tangled stuff.” And lo and behold, there was Pascal. Thanks DIS, I’m always amazed how helpful the people here are.

Here is a picture of the little guy back in our room later in the trip.

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[B&WMickey]

Day 2 – Part 7 – Epcot – PM – Food and Wine Festival - 2

After buying our lizard... I mean chameleon we moved on. We passed by the American pavilion. Big Bad Vodoo Daddy was playing that night as part of the Eat to the Beat concert series. The kids were a bit hungry and none of the food items with F&W was all that appealing to them. So we got them a snack out front of the American Pavillion.

After that we continued our stroll around WS.

My main F&W objective that night was the Lobster and Scallop Fisherman’s Pie in Ireland. I first had the Fisherman’s Pie last time we did F&W a couple of years ago. We both loved it and were both looking forward to getting it again on this trip. After bypassing so many other good selections we came to the Ireland booth near the UK pavilion. I got in line, salivating down my shirt of course, only to get to the register and told they were currently out of Fisherman’s Pies..... What?????

Oh the horror. At this point we had to keep moving, the kids were starting to wear down and they weren’t in the mood to stand around and wait for mommy and daddy to eat a lobster claw shoved into a seafood casserole.

We moved on to a couple of other items I had circled on my list.

Next stop, O Canada. Here we both tried the Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup ($3.75 x 2). I had heard enough people rave about this item. We found it was quite good and glad we tried it.

After that DW and DD wanted to do more shopping. As we were making our way out of WS they hit the last gift shop on the right.

While they went shopping I noticed the Hawaii stand up ahead. Hawaii is where I found the last item circled on my list. The Kalua Pork Slider with Sweet and Sour Dole Pineapple Chutney and Spicy Mayonnaise ($3.00). This was one of my favorites of the night. The spicy mayo with the pineapple chutney was a great combination of flavors with the pulled pork.

F&W Recap
Total Damages

DW – 4 items - $16.25
Me – 6 items - $25.25

Overall it was pretty satisfying. Keep in mind this was our dinner for the evening so expense wise I wasn’t upset about the cost. If we had done a TS meal we probably would have spent more money than this. After grazing at 6 different stands, I wasn’t stuffed but I wasn’t hungry either. Think of it as a multicourse meal where you may eat as many as 5 plus different entrees but of generally smaller portions. Overall the food quality was good. If they were selling the Fisherman’s Pies I probably would have gotten one in addition to the other items I had eaten, which would have brought the total cost up a couple of bucks.

By this time it was getting late and we decided it was best to go while we were still ahead. We decided against Illuminations, didn’t want to traumatize DD two nights in a row after the whole Fantasmic shock to her system.

Epcot at night is always one of my favorite places. I especially love the area by the fountain. All those oranges and purples and the sound of the rushing water is so peaceful and soothing at the end of the day. When you leave in that time period approaching Illuminations, Future World seems so empty, especially in comparison to the midday crowds.

Now keep in mind that this trip DS started to become a ride junkie. From the time we got to WS he kept asking to go on more rides. He was glad we did Maelstrom but he wanted to do more. As we were making our way toward the exits we gave him the option of either doing Mission Space or Spaceship Earth.

Both kids wanted to do SSE again. As a matter of fact both of them wanted to do it twice, which we did. I was also proud since I found a hidden Mickey all on my own.

After our two spins on SSE we were on our way back to POR.

Monday is an Animal Kingdom day. Our only visit to AK on this trip.

 

[B&WMickey]

excellent review with lots of deets on the pool area at POR! Beautiful pics too of course! I really want to stay at POR for our second trip

I love spaceship Earth too! I really like the starry sky part at the very top

Thanks

I agree the starry sky part is great. When I was younger I loved how the ride flips around and you go down backwards at a really steep incline.

I had a bit of catching up to do... What an awesome Soarin experience. I will admit I wasnt hugely impressed the first time I rode it, so I'm anxious to try it again.

The pool looks so relaxing. I really like how it is tucked away. I keep getting more and more impressed with every picture you take of the resort.

Thanks… I’ll keep the POR pics coming. Hope you continue to like them. POR is definitely one of my favorite resorts.

I do love Soarin but I would be the first to admit it’s probably in need of a ride rehab. I think the ride mechanism has enormous possibilities and I look forward to Soarin 2.0 one of these days.

 

[mandas08]

Yay for finding a Pascal! Im sure that made her day All of the food you tried sounded great! Especially the taco and slider..yum!! I would love to experience FW some day

 

[donnaf516]

A little late, but getting caught up.

 

[FosterA]

beautiful night photos of Epcot!
some of that food you guys sampled sounds awesome

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 3 – Part 1 – POR – In the Morning

Monday morning and today is an Animal Kingdom day.

(Hindsight is 20/20 Moment No. 1 – Now we’ve had a lot of “magic” up to this point and we still have many more great things ahead of us but we did experience a bit of a stumble later in the trip. The decision we made regarding today ultimately comes back to bite us in the end.

As I’ve stated several times already in this TR our trip in 2010 was short (3 nights). The other times we’ve come to WDW with the kids we always did a character meal at Chef Mickey’s. Well in 2010 in an effort to save a little $$$ we decided against doing Chef Mickey’s. At one point during our 2010 trip we took a detour into the Contemporary. While in CR we got a view of Chef Mickey’s from a distance, boy did our hearts sink.

One of the big things I had my heart set on for this trip was eating at Chef Mickey’s. At the 180 day mark I got online and made reservations for Chef Mickey’s. Of course the tough thing with WDW ADR’s is being able to exactly forecast your itinerary 180 days out, considering park hours aren’t exactly set in stone at this point. So in an effort to assure a meal at Chef Mickey’s I booked a reservation on Monday and Friday for this trip.

As our trip got closer we fine tuned our itinerary. We decided that Monday would be an Animal Kingdom day and Friday was going to be one of the days we’d be at Magic Kingdom. In the days leading up to our trip I kept wrestling with what to do about Chef Mickey’s.

I really wanted to go on that Monday, like a kid on Christmas morning I didn’t want to wait any longer. However, my rational side came in and convinced me that doing Chef Mickey’s today may not be the best decision. This was going to be our only day at AK. It was going to be an EMH – AM, so by conventional thought the park would be crowded. Our reservation was at about 8 AM. Meaning after breakfast we’d have to catch a bus from CR to AK. I thought it would be difficult to eat at CM’s and get to AK before 10 AM and since AK closes by 5 PM this wouldn't give us much time. So being the level headed person that I am we decided to cancel our CM’s ADR. Of course this should be no big deal since we’re doing CM’s on Friday.... Right?)

So with CM’s off the table our morning routine was starting to cement. DW gets up early heads to Riverside Mill for coffee and a quick bite. I get up when she gets back, shower, get dressed and head over to Riverside Mill to eat. Meanwhile DW gets the kids up and gets them fed.

Leaving the room it was definitely warm out. No chill in the air today. Might even work up a sweat today.

It was the breakfast platter again for me. The food court wasn’t all that crowded. It didn’t take me long to eat before I was on my way back to the room.

I decided to take a slightly different way back to the room. I hadn’t really been over on the Magnolia Bend section of POR since we stayed there almost 5 years ago. So I chose a route from the main building that would lead me over to that side of the resort.

Here are some of the pics I took.

Here is Bldg No. 90 – Oak Manor where we stayed the first time we came to POR – we were on the courtyard side that opens up towards the river. We loved this location.

Very pretty, love the morning, so quiet and peaceful.

Here is a shot across the river back to the main building.

More of Magnolia Bend

When I got back to the room the kids were pretty much done eating and dressed. We headed to the bus stop and were there by about 8:30.

As I said earlier this is Monday. Meaning, Monday Night Football. Meaning the Packers versus the Vikings. Being from Wisconsin we are huge Packer fans. Of course with the Packers being undefeated at this point in the season (8-0 going into the Vikings game) I was sporting colors.

While we were at the bus stop a man and his wife showed up to wait for a bus. I noticed the guy had a Packer shirt on as well. We struck up a conversation and it turns out they didn’t live all that far from us back home. We talked about the Packers, WDW, POR, the weather back home and so on. It turns out that there kids are grown and on their own now and they have been coming to WDW at least once a year for at least the last 10 years plus. They’ve stayed at a number of hotels at WDW but POR is their favorite.

Throughout the trip we kept bumping into each other around POR. It was nice to see a friendly face from time to time.

It wasn’t long before our bus showed up and we were on our way to AK.

 

[GrammyJudy]

I am really enjoying your TR. Nice to have a male perspective. You have a lovely family

 

[B&WMickey]

Yay for finding a Pascal! Im sure that made her day All of the food you tried sounded great! Especially the taco and slider..yum!! I would love to experience FW some day

I don’t know what I would have done without the help here on the DIS. We never would have dreamed of looking in Germany if I hadn’t found that out here.

We’ve been lucky to have travelled as many times as we have during F&W.

A little late, but getting caught up.

Thanks for coming aboard.

beautiful night photos of Epcot!
some of that food you guys sampled sounds awesome

Thanks… We really enjoy F&W and this year we probably did more of it than we had in recent years.

 

[Annabelle64]

Just joining now