Just back from two weeks in the World

[Tomh]

We got home a couple of hours ago from 13 nights at POR. It was a great trip, but exhausting haha.

DD15's best friend was supposed to be going with us. Thursday night (we were leaving Saturday morning to drive down) they had her call us to tell us she couldn't go, knowing that we had already paid for the trip, and that we were giving it to her as a graduation present. They knew about the trip for months, and waited until two days before we left to change their minds about her going. Needless to say, when I told DD15 the next morning, she was heartbroken.

Saturday morning we packed up the car, and were on the road early, and everything was fine until we got into Virginia. I HATE Virginia, REALLY. We were stuck in traffic on 95 for 3 hours, moving an average of 4 Mph the whole time. My left leg was on fire from pushing the clutch so many times lol. Despite the traffic, we still made pretty good time, and were in our hotel in Manning SC by 8:00. The next day, as we were driving through Florida, my mother called. She had mentioned to our neighbors (their daughter is also 15, and is friends with our daughter) that we wound up paying for someone to go, and they canceled at the last minute. To make a long story short, they found a flight the next morning, and sent their daughter down to Florida. When we checked in, I was able to change the name on the reservation, and get a KTTW printed up for her. Once they gave me the flight info, I called Magic Express, and arranged for her to get the bus to the resort. She arrived Monday afternoon, just in time to go to MK with us for supper, and enjoy the rest of the evening in the park.

We had a great time. DS6 rode RnRC. I so wish I could have gone with him, but the ruptured disc in the back made me think twice about it. I also opted out of the spinning side of Mission:Space, and Expedition Everest (DS didn't do that one, but DD's friend did). I did brave the Kilimanjaro Safari, which in hind sight was not a great idea. My back was KILLING me by the end of the ride. That was the only thing I did in Disney that really bothered my back. BTMRR was fine, the Tea Cups didn't bother me, nor did the Tomorrowland Indy Speedway, even though the kid behind us kept bumping us, but that safari did me in.

Animal Kingdom continues to hate me haha. Once gain, it poured while we were there, and for quite a while too. Once again, we weren't able to see Flights of Wonder. I'm not certain why, but they canceled the last show of the day. The weather had cleared back up nicely, so I figured it would go, but it didn't. We did see Festival of the Lion King again (still the best show in Disney World I think) and we managed to see Finding Nemo this time. With the weather, and the fact that we got a late start, we didn't get a lot done in AK this year (seems to be the norm for us at that park). Since Flame Tree BBQ was closed, we had to do something else for lunch, so we tried the Yak and Yeti markets. The Honey Chicken was very good, BUT the downpour started before we could really finish our meal. We gathered our stuff up, and started looking for shelter, but most of the spots we saw were already filled up. We finally found a spot along the side of the Tusker House restaurant. There were a couple of other people there, and we ducked under the edge. Three CM's were fine with us being there, but one told us we had to go, and made a big stink about it. We finally left, and ran over to the queue for the Safari. As we were leaving, I saw two other families take the spot we had been in at Tusker House. Twenty minutes later, when the rain had stopped, and we moved on, those two families were still there, in the same spot we had been forced out of. It really made me wish I had taken the time to get the name of the rotten CM that chased us out in the rain so that I could complain about her.

Anyway, on we went. We eventually dried out, and enjoyed the rest of the day. That night we took the bus to the Poly, well, not exactly, DS had a potty emergency that forced us to hop off at the Contemporary. However, that gave us the perfect excuse to take DD's friend on the Monorail. A short time later we arrived at the Poly where we shopped and browsed until it was time for our supper at Ohana. It was a great meal! We'll be certain to eat there again next vacation. We had originally planned to watch Wishes from the beach, then take the bus to DTD and boat back to POR, but after supper we were pretty wiped out, so we took the monorail back to MK, and then the bus from MK to POR.

Bus service from ANY of the parks to POR was a disappointment throughout our stay. The POR stop consistently had long lines, often 3 to 4 buses worth of people deep. I can't begin to tell you how many times we made it to the front of the line, then stood aside while they packed the standing room only bus. I'm sorry, but I flat out refuse to have DS6 stand, and with my back I'm not too keen on the idea of standing myself. I often sat with DS6 on my lap so that we only needed one seat, and DW stood frequently to allow young children to sit.

There is so much more to tell, but it's getting late. I'll leave you all with this positive note (since I griped a bit above). On Friday the 27th, we spent our last day in the MK. After riding the Haunted Mansion (smelled like it was on fire, made another thread about that), we were looking at the merchandise cart outside. Earlier in the week, I had spotted a HM shirt that I liked, which they had in 2x (my size). Stupidity reigned supreme though, and I chose not to buy it. Of course, on our last day, when I returned to the cart to buy it, the largest one they had was xl, which is close, but no banana. I asked the CM at the cart (Renee was her name, can't for the life of me recall where she was from) if they might have any more. She explained that she was by her self at the moment, and couldn't check, but that as soon as the next CM came to relieve her she would check, and if she found one she would leave it there for me, so I should check back later. I thanked her and went about my business figuring my odds of getting that shirt were about zero. A few hours later, we rode HM again, and on the way out I stopped and checked, and sure enough there were two of the shirts in 2X there. When I went to pay for mine, the (different now) CM remarked that I was the guy who was looking for the shirt earlier. I said yes, and she went on to explain how the other CM had gone and found two of them, put them up, then described me to her, and told her if one of the shirts should sell before I returned, she was to put the other one aside for me. I asked the name of the CM who had gotten them, and she told me Renee, and then told me that Renee was at the Heritage House gift shop.

We went over to the Heritage House gift shop where I found Renee, and thanked her for going out of her way to help me. We then went to supper at the Liberty Tree Tavern. A bit later that night a good long, heavy rain set in. Since we were leaving the next morning to drive back to NY, we decided to just call it a night early. On the way out of the park, I stopped in Guest Services and filled out (well actually the CM there filled it out for me) a guest comment card to let Renee's supervisor know what a great job she had done! The CM there assured me that Renee would be recognized for doing a good job. I sure hope so!

Renee, if you happen to be on the DIS and see this, THANK YOU!!

I'll try to put together a longer, more thorough trip report at a later time, but that's it for now.

 

[Pjimmeyer]

Thanks so much for the report...sounds like a great time

 

[joshsmom]

SO glad your daughter's other friend was able to join you!!! And GOOD JOB RENEE for the Awesome Customer Service!!!! That just warms my heart!! Sounds like your trip was a good one!!! Now, start planning that next one!!!

 

[mariepapa]

That is too bad about your daughter's friend. Make's me realize I need to have a contract if I ever decide to do something like that. Glad you got the shirt you wanted!

 

[Tomh]

My first post was all over the place, wanted to just touch on some of the big things during the trip.

We got a good start Sunday morning from Manning SC, and didn't catch much traffic along the way, so with our arrival at POR fairly early in the afternoon, we opted to just wait until we got there for lunch. We parked in the lot out front, and hit up the Riverside Mill for lunch. In hind sight, it would have been a lot cheaper to eat before we got to Disney World, but there's nothing quite like the feeling of driving onto the property at the beginning of the trip, so we wanted to get there.

After lunch we checked (online check in) and had the new KTTW made, then drove around to our building. We were in building 17 in Alligator Bayou, on the back side of the building, facing the swamp, a very nice location, ground floor too! We dragged the bags into the room. You'd be amazed at the amount of crap I can pack into the trunk of my little Accord, I know I was when I had to carry it all to the room!

We took a bit to get settled into the room, then we walked back to the main building, where I got ANOTHER KTTW made, with DD's friends last name spelled correctly this time around. From this point on, we will refer to her as Brad (don't ask why).

We then hopped on a boat, and headed to DTD. At DTD, the first order of business was for me to buy a belt and buckle. Last summer I had wanted a skull belt buckle, looked at it a couple of different times, but never got around to buying it, then regretted it all year long. This time I wasn't going to make that mistake again, so I got my buckle, and a new belt (mine was pretty beaten up) first thing so I couldn't forget, or put it off until it didn't happen.

DW, and DD did a bit of shopping as well. We also got two Sorcerer Mickey antenna toppers: one for my car, and one to replace my mothers, which I ripped off on a low hanging tree branch after a big snow storm. DW purchased a new leather bag, one of the one shoulder deals, we got a couple of little things for DS, can't recall what they were now, and DD got something which I also can't recall at the moment.

On to supper, we walked over to Planet Hollywood, browsing in a few shops along the way. We were early for out ADR, but they weren't terribly busy yet, and took us right in. On the way in, they took two pictures of our group, which I thought was kind of strange. There were only four of us at the time. We've gone there with 7 people and only had one picture taken. When they brought the pictures to the table, they had two packages, and of course there is a discount if you buy BOTH. I noticed during our meal that they were doing this at a lot of the tables, and selling both packages quite often. Of course we got both. Supper was good, I had ribs (I love ribs) DS6 had chicken tenders, pretty much what he ate for two weeks, and I can't recall what DD15 and DW had.

After supper we wandered our way back to the boat dock, and headed back to POR where we played some phone tag, got the flight number for Brad's flight, and called Magic Express to get her registered. Brads flight was to arrive in Orlando at 2:00, and the Magic Express folks assured me that she would get to POR between 3:30 and 4:00 give or take a bit. After that, it was time for showers, and bed.

The next morning we headed off to the MK for an early breakfast at CP. The food was good, as always, and the characters were great. Eeyore was slow, so we decided to leave before he got to us. DW, DD15, and DS headed straight for Dumbo, where DS and DD managed to be on the first ride of the day! I headed over to BTMRR to grab some fast passes, then met them back in Fantasy Land where we rode Peter Pan with only a 10 minute wait. After Peter Pan, we went to the Haunted Mansion, then BTMRR, and the Jungle Cruise. After the Jungle Cruise we headed to the castle, and watched the Dream Along with Mickey show, then rode the Mad Tea Party (DW sat out) before seeing Philharmagic. By that time, it was close to noon, so we headed to Columbia Harbor House where DS and I had Fish and Chips.

We had planned to see the Dreams Come True parade, but decided we'd all skip it so we could return to the resort to meet Brad. After lunch, we headed out to the bus, and went back to the resort. DW did a quick load of laundry, and the kids ran amok for a bit. When it was time for Brad to arrive, I walked over to the office to meet her, and carry her bag back to the room. We got Brad settled in, and then headed back to the MK for the evening. Brads mom had requested that I get a picture of her getting off the bus at the first park, which I did, but you all know that there isn't much to see at the bus stop at MK. When we got to the park, I got her picture as she came out from under the train station, and then again as she came into town square and the castle came into view for her. I'm sure her mom will LOVE that shot! Brads first meal with us was at Liberty Tree Tavern. We were seated quickly, and had a great meal. We then wandered around the park, and went on a few rides. They weren't on our touring plan, (it really only covered the morning) so I don't remember exactly what ones, but we did BTMRR, and Pirates for certain. We watched the Main Street Electrical Parade, then watched Wishes from the hub. We caught the second running of the MSEP at Town Square as we were getting ready to leave the park for the night. As soon as the last float came around, we got out of the park.

Next installment will be day two, DHS.

 

[Tomh]

SO glad your daughter's other friend was able to join you!!! And GOOD JOB RENEE for the Awesome Customer Service!!!! That just warms my heart!! Sounds like your trip was a good one!!! Now, start planning that next one!!!

Yeah, it was amazing news when my mother told us that the neighbors were going to put her on a plane and send her down. Renee was AWESOME! We did have a great trip, and with a little luck, we'll be able to take advantage of the newly announced free dining offer to go back next summer, just got to work out the school schedule. Lately we've been returning to school VERY early in September, and with free dining not starting until the 19th of August next year, that may cause a problem.

That is too bad about your daughter's friend. Make's me realize I need to have a contract if I ever decide to do something like that. Glad you got the shirt you wanted!

Yeah, it really sucked. The kid is 18, graduated from high school with decent grades, her parents had told me it was alright for her to go. I spent a good bit of my summer running her back and forth to college to get her registered, get her financial aid in place, and have her ready to go, then they pulled that on me, go figure. At any rate, it worked out well, we had a great time with "Brad," and she may well go back with us next summer. I am so happy about the shirt, I LOVE the Haunted Mansion.

 

[Tomh]

Ooops, just realized these threads aren't supposed to be here anymore . . . . Sorry Mods!

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Thanks for all the details of your trip! Lucky you finding a super-extra great CM at HM!!

Question though, how are the tarps down Main Street??? Any of them coming down yet?

 

[Tomh]

Nope, there were still plenty of tarps up on Main Street. At least two that I remember, Casey's, and one of the other shops on that side of the street. Pooh is still walled up, with scaffolding around the tree, though some of the tarps were down from the tree on our last day. Small World is walled up during it's refurb, and of course the whole area where Ariels Grotto, and the Pooh play area were. Magic Kingdom is a bit of a mess at the moment haha. The rest of the parks looked good. The only construction walls I remember in Epcot were around part of the fountain, and the restaurant in Mexico, and I didn't see any in the other two parks.

 

[jackemail]

Thanks for an interesting report, with lots of details.

I love it when cast members go above and beyond---and when guests take the time to make sure those cast members are recognized!

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Nope, there were still plenty of tarps up on Main Street. At least two that I remember, Casey's, and one of the other shops on that side of the street. Pooh is still walled up, with scaffolding around the tree, though some of the tarps were down from the tree on our last day. Small World is walled up during it's refurb, and of course the whole area where Ariels Grotto, and the Pooh play area were. Magic Kingdom is a bit of a mess at the moment haha. The rest of the parks looked good. The only construction walls I remember in Epcot were around part of the fountain, and the restaurant in Mexico, and I didn't see any in the other two parks.

Thanks for the quick response!

I'm hoping the stuff on Main is down SOON!! I can deal with the FL walls and such, but I am praying that the tarps on Main Street are down quickly. Our trip in 3 weeks is my BFF's BF's first trip and we don't want him to think of MK as a construction zone down Main - we want the magic to grab him right away!

 

[TLinden16]

I'm going to move this to our trip report board.

 

[MomOf2Gals]

sounds like you had some fun!

 

[Tomh]

Even with the tarps up, the magic is still there. It really didn't detract from Main Street that much!

We did have a GREAT time, looking forward to planning the next trip lol.

 

[Tomh]

I've gotta say, I think the free dining REALLY WORKED for Disney this year! Last year I remember the second week of our trip (and to be fair, it was the third week of free dining, the last few days of August and the first couple of days of September, while this year our second week ended on Aug 27, a few days earlier) the crowds were pretty much non existant, with most of the lesser rides being walk on, including Pooh, Buzz, Haunted Mansion, and several times even Splash and BTMRR. This time around, there were 40 minute lines for Pooh pretty much constantly, Buzz was often 30 to 40 minutes, Peter Pan was an hour constantly, BTMRR was 30 most of the time. Even Haunted Mansion frequently had a 20 - 30 minute wait, we even saw the outside queue line in use.

I'm sure that the closures in Toon Town, and IASW being down make the park seem a bit more crowded than it is, but none the less, MK was packed every time we went there. We saw Wishes the first night, and DW and DS had to visit the bathroom. When they returned they couldn't find us. We were only about 25 feet apart, but couldn't catch a glimpse of each other, not even with me holding my mini Mag light up in the air turned on, and waving it back and forth pointed in her direction (this was before the fireworks actually started).

Anyway, on to day two, DHS. This was Brads first full day with us, and her first time visiting DHS. My family are not big dare-devils. DS6 is probably the most adventurous one in the family, followed by my wife and I. We have a bit different taste in rides. She'll do some things I won't do, and I'll do some she won't do. DD15 is a certified ride wussy. Brad is an adrenaline junkie!

We got to the park before Rope Drop, but decided not to mess about with the mad rush, so we spent a bit of time in the shops until the insanity wore off, then headed into the park. Our first stop was Star Tours. Amazingly DD15 decided to ride with us (it scared the heck out of her last year), and although she insisted that it still scared her, she didn't appear any where near as bothered by it this time around. By the time we got done with Star Tours we were somewhat behind out schedule. We saw the Voyage of the Little Mermaid next, then decided to skip the Magic of Disney Animation to make up for lost time. We moved on to Muppet Vision, then went to the Sci-Fi Dine-In theater for our lunch. I had the ribs (I LOVE ribs haha) DS had chicken nuggets (you're going to hear this a LOT) and I don't have a clue what anyone else had. Ribs were good, DS loves the Disney chicken. After lunch we saw Indiana Jones. We skipped Block Party Bash for something cool, then the girls went to see Prince Caspian (were disappointed that he no longer appears there) while DS6 and I went to see Lights Motors Action. Next we went and grabbed some FP's for RnRR, then we went to see Beauty and the Beast. This was high on my list of things that I needed to do since we had missed it two years in a row, and DD15 really wanted to see it. It's a nice show, but needs some walls and air conditioning, or at least some serious fans. It was HOT in there! After Beauty and the Beast, we went and found some counter service supper at the shops across the street from Beauty and the Beast, then DS and Brad went on Rock N Roller Coaster. I was a bit concerned that DS might chicken out, so I went in with him and Brad. I would have loved to give it a try, but having ruptured a disc in my back a few months ago, I felt fortunate just to have survived the 20 hour drive to Disney, and didn't want to push my luck. When we got to the loading area, and DS confidently queued up with Brad, I found my way to the chicken door, and waited for them at the unloading area. DS had a great time!

By this time, it was nearly 8:00, so we went to get in line for F!. There was no line, people were flowing into the theater, so we followed along. It was a bit more than a full hour before the show, and we were seated in the last section, all the way to the left, and most of the way up to the top. There wasn't a lot of room left at that point. and within a few minutes, it was pretty much standing room. We timed it just right, no waiting in line, walked in and got seats. It threatened of rain all through the evening, with lightning visible a bit in the distance, but it stayed dry, and we were able to enjoy the show. When we got out of the show, the line waiting for the 10:30 showing was absolutely ridiculous! I'm so glad we decided to see the earlier showing. Earlier, after getting the FP's for RnRR DW had been looking at a pair of Aerosmith Drum Sticks she wanted to get for DS kind of as a reward for going on the ride, but we needed to get going for Beauty and the Beast, so we returned. At this point the outside stand was closed, so DW went to the inside shop while DS and I went to the bathroom. There was a big hassle in the shop, and DW wound up pretty steamed. Apparently the drum sticks were ticketed something like $11.99 (which seems pretty cheap to me, probably a mistake), but they rang up like something like $19.00. DW pointed out the CM that they were ticketed a significantly lower price. He went to talk to his manager, then came back saying that $19 was the right price, so DW said, but there are a lot of them there ticketed with the lower price, what about the ticketed price. CM responds by puling off the ticket, and saying there, now they're not ticketed $11.99 anymore. DW got steamed, but instead of getting his name, and making a fuss until a manager came out to handle it, she walked away with no name, no proof. At this point I was tired, DS was tired, Brad was tired, so we headed for the front of the park. On the way I heard the story about the drum sticks at least eight or nine times. Finally at the front of the park I told DW to either go to guest services and complain, or to put up and shut up because there was nothing I could do about it, I wasn't there when it happened. She did go and complain, though she did not have the CM's name. They did offer that if she wanted to walk back to the shop, they would call ahead an make certain that she got the drum sticks for the ticketed price, but I've taught her well over the years. At that point it wasn't about the 8 dollars, it was about the CM that was pretty rude, and should have handled the situation better. She declined, saying that it wasn't about the money, it was about how she was treated, and we left the park.

Next installment, day three, Epcot: Houston, we have a problem, DS6's feet have had ENOUGH!