It was a Horror-ible, and then Not-So-Scary (but exhausting!), October/NovTrip!! Completed 3/13!!!

[buzzrelly]

Hello! Welcome to my trip report! DH and I just…alright, not JUST, but 2 weeks ago we got back from an AMAZING trip! We had to get back and recuperate before I had any energy leftover to start this TR!

Some of the Highlights from our trip include:

We started at Universal and stayed at Royal Pacific Resort and Cabana Bay:


We had some Butter Beer:


We went to Halloween Horror Nights (OMG! SO Scary!!):


And then went to WDW:

and went to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (DEFINITELY more my speed!):


We hit up some Food & Wine Booths:


We did a couple of dessert parties:


saw some floating mountains:


And THEN…AFTER we did ALL of THAT, we ran 19.3 miles in 2 days in the Food & Wine Challenge!


But one of my favorite parts of the trip was getting to meet two awesome people at my first EVER DISmeets, @cyndiella, and @ariane37 !

We had a fabulous time and have a million pictures to prove it! So, if you're interested in any of that, I'd love to have you follow along as I relive this amazing trip!

Details:
Who: Just me (Kelly) and DH (Mike) on our first-but definitely NOT last-adults only trip. Yup…we left the kiddos at home, and they were't happy about it, but at 16, 14, and 11 they've been on some pretty great vacations so I don't feel (that) bad

Dates:
October 28, 2017 to November 6, 2017

10/28 Royal Pacific Resort/Universal

10/29-10/31 Cabana Bay Beach Resort/Universal

10/31 Bay lake Tower/WDW

11/1-11/6 Polynesian Village Resort

More details about the planning of this trip and how it came about can be found in my Pre-Trip Report, HERE

Or just skip all that and just join in here!

Off we go!!


CHAPTER LINKS:

TRAVEL DAY: OCTOBER 26, 2017 AND OCTOBER 28, 2017
DAY 1, OCTOBER 28, 2017: UNIVERSAL
DAY 1, PART 2
DAY 1, PART 3


DAY 2-UNIVERSAL/ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE
OCTOBER 29, 2017

DAY 2, PART 1
DAY 2, PART 2
DAY 2, PART 3
DAY 2, PART 4
DAY 2, PART 5

DAY 3-UNIVERSAL AND HALLOWEEN HORROR NIGHTS
OCTOBER 30, 2017

DAY 3, PART 1
DAY 3, PART 2
DAY 3, PART 3

DAY 4-DISNEY SPRINGS, BAY LAKE TOWER & MNSSHP
OCTOBER 31, 2017

DAY 4, PART 1
DAY 4, PART 2
DAY 4, PART 3
DAY 4, PART 4
DAY 4, PART 5
DAY 4, PART 6
DAY 4, PART 7
DAY 4, PART 8
DAY 4, PART 9
DAY 4, PART 10

DAY 5-POLYNESIAN, EPCOT, FOOD & WINE, TRADER SAM'S, 'OHANA
NOVEMBER 1, 2017

DAY 5, PART 1
DAY 5, PART 2
DAY 5, PART 3
DAY 5, PART 4
DAY 5, PART 5
DAY 5, PART 6
DAY 5, PART 7
DAY 5, PART 8
DAY 5, PART 9
DAY 5, PART 10
DAY 5, PART 11

DAY 6-MK, KTTK, DHS, STAR WARS DESSERT PARTY
NOVEMBER 2, 2017

DAY 6, PART 1
DAY 6, PART 2
DAY 6, PART 3
DAY 6, PART 4
DAY 6, PART 5
DAY 6, PART 6
DAY 6, PART 7
DAY 6, PART 8
DAY 6, PART 9

DAY 7-ANIMAL KINGDOM, PANDORA, POLYNESIAN
NOVEMBER 3, 2017

DAY 7, PART 1
DAY 7, PART 2
DAY 7, PART 3
DAY 7, PART 4
DAY 7, PART 5
DAY 7, PART 6


DAY 8-10K, EPCOT, FOOD & WINE, AND A DISMEET
NOVEMBER 4, 2017

DAY 8, PART 1
DAY 8, PART 2
DAY 8, PART 3
DAY 8, PART 4
DAY 8, PART 5
DAY 8, PART 6


DAY 9-HALF MARATHON, MAGIC KINGDOM, HAPPILY EVER AFTER DESSERT PARTY
NOVEMBER 5, 2017
DAY 9, PART 1
DAY 9, PART 2
DAY 9, PART 3
DAY 9, PART 4

REAL LIFE UPDATE

DAY 9, PART 5
DAY 9, PART 6
DAY 9, PART 7
DAY 9, PART 8
DAY 9, PART 9
DAY 9, PART 10
DAY 9, PART 11
DAY 9, PART 12

​

NEXT CHAPTER, CLICK HERE​

 

[dnllmz]

Following along!

 

[Lesley Wake]

Following!

 

[buzzrelly]

Following along!

You're first…for whatever that's worth! and Thanks for following!

Following!

 

[buzzrelly]

Travel Day(s):

So for Mike, this day was October 26th. As I explained in my PTR, he won't fly. I have driven down South with him a couple times already but driving makes me tense. Plus, I didn't want to take extra time off work to drive.

So THIS is how Mike got there…


Not really, but he actually took this bus to a train station in New Haven, then took a train from New Haven to NYC, then got on a train to Deland, FL Got it? Doesn't that sound pleasant? Once there, his mom picked him up and he spent the day with her before he headed over and picked me up at MCO on October 28th.

As for me, I spent those two days making sure everything was in place for us to be away…I brought our little dog Oscar to my mom's house where he would be spoiled with Pot Roast and extra treats all week. Then I scrubbed my house from top to bottom and finished packing. My mom was nice enough to get up at 4:30 am and drive me to the airport on 10/28 (she is REALLY the greatest mom, ever)…


I was sitting at the gate by 6:10 am when I realized…I probably could have let my mom sleep a little later I recently got TSA pre-check and it made getting through security SO EASY. I highly recommend it. I may even get it for my kids and mom for when we go in April.

I actually don't mind getting there a little early. I got a coffee at McDonalds and read a little bit while I waited for my plane. The time passed fairly quickly and I boarded the plane at about 7:45…


I almost always fly Southwest and usually purchase EBCI. This time was no exception and my boarding number was A26, so I was one of the first people on. I chose an aisle seat close to the front and settled in for the next couple hours.

When the pilot said we could turn on our electronics, we were somewhere over Philadelphia …


I thought I had downloaded Hocus Pocus from iTunes, but when I went to play it, it turns out that I hadn't. In fact, I had a bunch of movies on my computer that weren't downloaded and I didn't feel like paying for the wi-fi, so I settled on something DD had downloaded a couple years ago…


Terrible picture .

I was sitting next to a nice lady who I was chatting with when we were first boarded, and I noticed she was watching the movie with me. I didn't have an extra set of headphones but I asked her if she wanted me to turn on the captions. She said it was ok, but I did it anyway because I felt bad that she couldn't hear it.

It was a great, non-eventful flight and by 11:05 I was heading to the fake-o-rail




Mike was already texting that he was at the airport and by the time I got to the main terminal and got my luggage, he ended up having to circle around a couple of times. I was kind of sad that I wasn't getting on the DME, but on the other hand, getting right in the car and driving ourselves was SOOOOO much quicker. By 12:10pm, we were checking into our first hotel, the Royal Pacific Resort…


That's about it for "Travel Day!" Easy Peasy…just the way I like it. Now it's time for funner things…Diagon Alley and Butter Beer!

CLICK HERE FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER​

 

[scrappydew]

Looking forward to reading!!

 

[scrappydew]

You made me laugh with your travel plans.....we might be doing the same ourselves someday -I get so anxious flying. I'd love to take a train, the hubs, not so much!

 

[buzzrelly]

Looking forward to reading!!

You made me laugh with your travel plans.....we might be doing the same ourselves someday -I get so anxious flying. I'd love to take a train, the hubs, not so much!

and thanks for reading!

I don't love flying but the thought of 25 hours on a train makes me cringe, so I suck it up and fly! Mike doesn't mind it at all…he brought books and movies and kept himself busy the whole time

 

[Nhebron]

Following along.

 

[buzzrelly]

It was too early for our room to be ready, so after we checked in, I went over to the desk and bought my AP (since I'm going back with the kids in April). The cast member who was helping me told me to wait and go get Mike's ticket at guest services a Universal so I could get a discount. We ended up doing that but the line was CRAZY long and not moving very fast at all. It took another half hour once we got there just to get his ticket and get into Universal.



We finally did get in and pretty much walked straight to Diagon Alley and went through the Express Pass line to Escape From Gringotts…


Mike waited in line with me and was watching a youtube video of the ride while we waited. By the time we got to the front, he decided he didn't want to ride and he ended up taking the chicken exit and I went on by myself…

…hence, the blurry weird selfie with a random stranger behind me

The ride was awesome! But I was kind of glad that Mike didn't go on because I didn't remember it being as intense as it was, but when I was on it, I was thinking, "Oh, thank God he didn't come on this!"

We ended up poking around a little bit and Mike got a Butter Beer and I got a Butter Beer Ice Cream…








They were both good, but we both agreed that the ice cream was better than the drink. We fully intended to go back for another one either the next day or the day after, but sadly, we never did do that The BB Ice Cream is on my Must-Do list for April though!

After our snack, we boarded the Hogwarts Express via Platform 9 and 3/4 (I think Mike was having flashbacks as he was getting on the train!)…






The ride was cool and it felt good to sit and relax for a couple minutes. Very soon, we were at Hogwarts Castle…

CLICK HERE FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER
​

 

[buzzrelly]

Following along.

Thanks for joining!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Following along

 

[buzzrelly]

Following along

Awesome!

 

[buzzrelly]

Upon entering Islands of Adventure, we poked around Hogwarts for a little bit…





Just after 2 pm, we got the text that our room was ready. We were both feeling a little gross and tired so decided to go back and relax and freshen up a little.

We wanted to save our feet a little, so we took the boat back…nice and relaxing



We got room 3648…I'm guessing in Tower #3, but honestly, I've stayed there twice and I still get confused trying to get around in there...


Our room was nice and clean and ready for us…











My Artsy shot with the leis they gave us at check-in
​

We relaxed for a bit and then walked over to CityWalk for dinner, which I'll talk about in the next post…


CLICK HERE FOR NEXT CHAPTER​

 

[ariane37]

Yay yay yay, you started!

We went to Halloween Horror Nights (OMG! SO Scary!!):

LMAO I find this funny!

But one of my favorite parts of the trip was getting to meet two awesome people at my first EVER DISmeets, @cyndiella, and @ariane37 !

Definitely one of my favorite parts, too I wish we got to spend more time together but since some of us were not being lazy and had to rest, it's completely understandable

Not really, but he actually took this bus to a train station in New Haven, then took a train from New Haven to NYC, then got on a train to Deland, FL Got it? Doesn't that sound pleasant?

This absolutely does not sound pleasant lol! I don't remember if we asked him about it; what did he think? Would he do it again that way?

I was kind of sad that I wasn't getting on the DME, but on the other hand, getting right in the car and driving ourselves was SOOOOO much quicker.

I agree with both parts of this sentence. I was sad in Nov. not getting on ME because it sets the tone for the trip and it's so exciting getting off at your resort However, landing at 6 and getting out of the taxi at the Poly at 7..........really can't complain!

Can't wait to read more, Happy Thanksgiving!

 

[buzzrelly]

LMAO I find this funny!

Me too! Definitely NOT my thing

Definitely one of my favorite parts, too I wish we got to spend more time together but since some of us were not being lazy and had to rest, it's completely understandable

Next time! We won't be waking up at 3:30 am again for anymore races

This absolutely does not sound pleasant lol! I don't remember if we asked him about it; what did he think? Would he do it again that way?

He's doing it again next year! I don't know if I'll do a PTR, but we are heading back to the Poly October 16th-21st, and then cruising on the Dream October 22nd-16th

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family! Hope everyone is feeling well!

 

[buzzrelly]

When we were reasonably rested and refreshed, we walked back to CityWalk. After looking over our choices,we decided to eat at The Cowfish. I thought this was perfect because they serve both burgers and sushi, and they get great reviews for both, which is kind of weird. I figured Mike would get sushi since he's always wanting it and I don't really eat sushi…unless you count California Rolls, which people tell me isn't "real" sushi.

We got to the restaurant around 7 pm and they told us there would be a 30 minute wait, so we took the beeper and went to poke around in some stores. We had just gotten into the store when I got a text that our table was ready (as a crazy germ-a-phobe, can I just say how much I LOVE that some restaurants are sending texts now instead of using those gross pagers??!)

Anyway, we got sat and ordered some wine…


and looked at the menu.


For some reason Mike was reluctant to try the sushi at a burger restaurant, even though all the reviews for it are good. In the end, we both ended up getting burgers.

After much debate, Mike got,

The Big Squeal:
Half-pound beef burger, pulled pork, smoked gouda cheese, onion strings, bacon coleslaw, BBQ sauce, lettuce, pickles, brioche bun.


He liked it, but he had been thinking about getting, The Cowfish Has Offically Left The Building (A.K.A. The Hunka, Hunka):
Full-pound beef burger, creamy peanut butter, fried bananas, applewood bacon, brioche bun. Choice of side. (Make it a SINGLE HUNKA LOVE, half-pound beef burger for $13).

He was torn between the two burgers and our waitress actually talked him out of getting it. Speaking of our waitress, she was a little…odd. She was kind of hovering at our table while we looked over the menu. Once I had decided, she just stood there even though Mike was still clearly looking over the menu. She was talking about her personal life and actually very distracting. I think Mike just felt rushed and went the safe route. If we could have had a minute alone, I think he would have been a little more adventurous.


I went the safe route, as I usually do, and got:

Jammin' the Blues-Half-pound beef burger, smoked blue cheese, applewood bacon, tomato onion jam, arugula, tomato, brioche bun. Choice of side


I really enjoyed mine. When and if I go out for burgers, I almost always get the Blue Cheese burger. This was delicious. The fries were pretty standard fries, but they were good too.

Our whole meal cost $47.93 plus a $9.00 tip, so it came to $56.93. Super reasonable, though I can't recall if I ended up getting a AP discount. I just have the credit card receipt but not the detailed receipt for some reason, so that might actually include a discount.

We walked around the shops at CityWalk after, and I know I've said this before in another TR, but CW just isn't my thing. I don't even really like any of the stores there. It's funny that the whole time we were in UO, I never felt the urge to buy anything because non of it really appealed to me, but the minute I stepped foot on WDW property (we started at DS), I wanted to buy EVERYTHING. It just goes to show where my heart lies

Anyway, after a little poking around, we called it a night and went back to the room.

Tomorrow, we wake up for early entry into Diagon Alley...
​

 

[scrappydew]

I am really enjoying your report! We have been to Universal, but never stayed on property. I would really like to someday.

 

[SpaceMtnGirl]

Looking forward to your TR! We've been to Universal once, but it was springtime. We have a trip booked over fall break for 2018 (at RPR). thinking of trying Horror Nights too. Excited to hear all about your trip.

Side note: We went to Cowfish too and really loved it. I got the cheeseburgooshi which is basically a cheeseburger in sushi form. It was DELISH. 10/10 would recommend!!

 

[drdisneygirl]

Following! Looking forward to hearing about your trip!