Just Back -- part 1

[WayneWatsonFan]

We just got back Saturday afternoon from 7 days at WDW. This is my first post since getting back -- little football game involving My Iggles, you know (good effort, boys, came up short, we'll be back next year).

So much fun was had by all, I'm not quite sure where to begin with posting it on here. I thought about some detailed, day by day report, but who's got time for that?!

Well, I'll try....

Our travelling party was me, my DW, our three Disney Kids (DD12, DD9, DS6), and my wife's parents (ages 64 and 63 I think). We drove down from the Lancaster area of Pennsylvania, left 4 am on 1/27, made it to Brunswick GA and a nice Hampton Inn. Made it to Orlando around noon on 1/28. We parked at DTD and went to Guest Relations to activate my AP (Hastings was NOT there, eeyore0062! ). Then straight to POR to check-in. All went pretty smooth there, our rooms were ready (Yay! thought we'd have to wait til 3 PM), and we drove to our Alligator Bayou rooms in Building 26. Our first impressions were wonderful.....what a lush, beautiful setting, like a plant-filled jungle, with the buildings spread all around amongst the flora and fauna.

One Pet Peeve and Big Suggestion for Disney......it was quite a hassle getting all of our luggage and other personal effects from my ol' minivan in the parking lot to Building 26, maybe a 100 to 200 yard walk -- it would have been awesome to have a rolling luggage rack on which to load ALL of my bags and push it to Building 26 in ONE trip, as opposed to the six that it took me.

The Alligator Bayou rooms at POR are quite nice. Comfortable size, not nearly as big square-footage-wise as CR (our last trip), but just fine for the five of us. The 2 double beds are a nice wooden-log type of frame, they sit really, really high compared to most beds. I joked that I hoped I didn't fall out of bed in the middle of the night, might need to call 911! Nice decor, a dorm fridge, TV stand/armoire combo, 2 free-standing sinks, comfortable tub, small table with 2 chairs. My kids checked out the Much-Talked-About-On-Here POR trundle bed.....none of them were impressed, and rejected any chance of using it. We were prepared due to the DIS Board , and brought along our inflatable twin-bed air mattress -- my DD12 claimed that, and the other two claimed the other double bed.

So we got settled into our room and excitedly headed to MK for the first time.....

More later!

 

[Nolcrest]

Oh, I can't wait to hear more. I'll be looking for part II.

 

[susan137]

Thanks for the report, Mark. Look forward to reading more.

We are sorta neighbors. I live in Shippensburg. We are driving for the first time in April. We usually fly, but we are trying to save money on the flight and rental car, so we will be driving. I am really dreading it!!

Susan

 

[live4christp1]

Thanks for the report! Just wanted to say we noticed your screen name and we are Wayne Watson fans too!!!! Glad you had a good trip!

 

[Del]

We're almost neighbors---we live in chadds ford--anxious to read more!! Del

 

[JMCDAD]

Thanks for the report
Look forward to the next
I especially enjoy reading reports from families with the same or similiar make up as mine, DD 10, DD 7, DS 5.
Can really relate kinda thing

 

[bigcrit]

Thanks Mark. I can't wait to here the rest of the story. If you have a chance let me know what you thought of the Contemporary. We are going there in May. I would love to hear from you.

We live in NJ. Just outside of Philly and we camp in Quarryville every year.

Thanks,

Chris

 

[lorifl2]

Thanks for the report!

We are driving for the first time in June, coming from Lansdale PA (north and east of Philly). How long did it take you to get from Lancaster to Brunswick GA? We're trying to get an idea of how long the drive will take. Mapblast says 17 hours...

Thanks,

 

[Donnask8pro]

Ok silly question.. ( I'm new here) AP means???? And POR is which resort? Give me time.. I'll learn. Thanks

 

[bigcrit]

Annual Pass
Port Orleans Riverside

If you look under the welcome to the diboards you will find this link.....

http://www.wdwinfo.com/abbreviations.htm

hope it helps. I'm new here too.

 

[bigcrit]

Hey Donna. We live in Glendora, NJ........

 

[WayneWatsonFan]

Lori, we left Lancaster around 4:15 am on 1/27, had very nice driving weather. Watch those VA state troopers, they are Everywhere!! Anyway, we stopped at a very nice Hampton Inn in Brunswick GA around 6 PM or so, that included long breakfast stop at Bob Evans, and lunch at a BK. So just less than 14 hours. Then had about 4 hours the next morning.

Live4christp1, Wayne rules! Check out www.waynewatsonfan.com for all the latest on Wayne. He's now the Worship Leader at his church in Houston (something like 5000 members!), so time's at a premium for WW. In his last email, he asked for prayers for time to write new material for a new album. Lift him up!

Susan, I understand you saying you're dreading the drive! I'll tell you what though, the drive down is a breeze, the anticipation factor and all. It's the drive north that always gets us down -- we had an awesome time, but driving back on 2/4 and 2/5, we were VERY anxious to get home to make Super Bowl party preparations!

JMCDAD, great ages for your kids! They outnumber us and keep us hopping, eh? And the joy on their faces every minute of last week at WDW made it all worth it.....talk about priceless.

bigcrit, about the Contemporary.....We had our best trip EVER to WDW there three years ago. All five of us loved it beyond words, the memories are still vivid. We were in the Tower, 11th floor, with a view of the Castle all night. Every night we sat on the balcony for a half hour or so, kids on our laps, and just watched that sucker change colors.....Disney magic at its best. The room was large, big time, queen beds, and a sofa bed for my oldest daughter. Awesome bathroom. Every morning, we just zipped down the elevator, onto the Resort monorail, were at MK front gate in five minutes. Same thing at night......right on the Resort monorail and in our room quickly, no cattle chutes with the maddening crowds. The outdoor pool at Contemporary was fantastic.....we had 80 degree temps in January and swam every day during afternoon break, the slide was way cool. We love the "feel" of the CR, coming out of the room and looking over the railing at that huge Contemporary inside cavern, down onto the concourse.....fantastic for us, some don't care for it. We stayed post-9/11 and got a great discount then.....checked into it for our just-concluded trip and decided we couldn't afford it. POR was great, but our family's hearts are with the CR, and that's where we'll shoot for our next trip to The World. Hope this helps. Are you staying in Tower or Garden room?

Del, Part II of our trip report coming soon. I'm still sorting thru the 450 pics taken on the new digital camera -- love that gadget. Fly, Eagles, Fly!

 

[TeresaNJ]

Great start to your report, can't wait to hear more. I'm from Franklinville, NJ, about 15 minutes from Glendora!! What a small world. And I loooove Lancaster, go at least 3-4 times a year with hubby, and camping/shopping with the girls every September.

 

[bigcrit]

Thanks for the info on the contemporary. We are staying in the garden wings but are hoping to upgrade when we get there. Either way we will have a great time I'm sure. We have been looking forward to this trip for a long time and will be happy to be there (FINALLY). As you can see we are so excited we can barely contain ourslelves.

Teresa (Howdy Neighbor),
Lancaster is terrific and so is Captain Cat's in Franlinville and National Park. How often do you go to DIsney? You look like you have a lot of trips under your belt. Any advice for a family of four with twin 8 year old girls?

 

[WayneWatsonFan]

Part 2 is up now.....