TigrLvsPooh
Travel Channel's Ultimate Disney Fan
- Joined
- Jul 6, 2001
- Messages
- 12,074
Here is our trip report!!! We had a great time
Disney is very different without our kids. We skipped a lot of things we usually would do with them and had a more adult vacation! J We rode all the big rides, had nice dinners, and did our fair share of drinking. We missed our boys terribly, but we really enjoyed our time away. It was just like being a kid again. J
Friday:
Arrived at the Clarion Universal Hotel around 7pm. The hotel was old but they had done some renovations. The lobby looked very nice with ceramic tile floor and large marble pillars, but our room was gross. They had tried to update things, but the bathroom was yucky and so was the carpet. In the hotel there was a restaurant (we didnt eat there) and a small bakery where we did grab muffins one morning before getting on the shuttle. AAA lists this as a 3 diamond hotel, but I would call it a 2 diamond at best. After bringing our luggage to our room we changed clothes and headed to City Walk. We had dinner at Margaritaville, as well as SEVERAL drinks. After that we went to Pat OBriens I did not care for the dueling piano singers; they were off key and ruined every song they attempted to sing, so we left. After walking around a little more we decided to head back to the hotel and get a good nights sleep.
Saturday:
The shuttle was nice, but PACKED! It went straight to the park, and was only about a 5 minute ride. We arrived at IOA about 5 minutes before the park opened. There were a lot of people in line, but we were able to get in easily and ride Spiderman and Hulk with no wait. This is definitely a good idea because later the lines were over an hour for each. After that we had a quick breakfast and headed over to Dueling Dragons. DH rode ALONE because I chickened out. We walked around some more but decided to skip the water rides because it was cold and raining. We did Spiderman one more time and then we headed over to US. Once we got there we did Twister and MIB. My score was pitiful; dh beat me big time and rubbed it in!! We decided to have lunch so we walked all the way to City Walk only to discover that there was an hour wait everywhere!! So we walked all the way back to US and had a great lunch at Finnegans. I had the fish and chips and dh had the Shepards Pie. They had live music, which was nice, so we stayed for a while and kept out of the rain. I loved the Woodpecker cider (beer). After that we did Earthquake and King Kong before heading back to the hotel to change clothes. That night we went back to US for the Mardi gras parade, we had Jambalaya for dinner and it was really good, but HOT!! We got lots of beads and after the parade we stayed for part of the CCR (Credence Clearwater Revival) concert and then went back to the hotel. Oh, and we stopped at Schwabs on the way back to get some ice cream. YUM!!!!
Sunday:
Checked out of the Clarion and headed over to CBR. Dare I say I have a NEW favorite resort??? I really love CBR. Check-in was a breeze we got a corner room in Martinique 24 with a pool view. The grounds around the resort are beautiful and our room was perfect. I am very picky, but I cant think of anything negative to say about our room. It was large, clean, and well decorated. The beds were comfortable and the bathroom was spotless. I love the tile and all the color schemes. We were VERY close to the bus stop and a short walk to OPR. After that we headed to MK. We grabbed a quick breakfast at the Main Street Bakery and headed over to Pirates of the Caribbean (5 minute wait). Then on to Thunder Mountain to get a fast pass. We did Haunted Mansion and ate some McDonalds fries to kill time. Thunder Mountain was great, as usual. We walked through Fantasyland but didnt ride anything because it was very crowded. We decided to leave and go to MGM. The lines were also very long there, so we did The Great Movie Ride, watched the Stars in Cars parade and then headed to the Poly for dinner. Dinner at Ohanas, wonderful as usual!! I just love those chicken wings. J Oh, and the layered drink Sand in your Pants was delicious!! I highly recommend that one. We had a table by the window with a beautiful view of the castle. After dinner we went to Downtown Disney. Did some shopping and topped off the night with Ghiardellis!! Yummmm!!!
Monday:
Headed to Animal Kingdom bright and early! Road Dinosaur twice with no wait and then got a fast pass for the Safari. Ate those delicious cinnamon buns at Tusker House while we waited. The safari was great probably the most animals Ive ever seen in one trip. We skipped the water ride since it was a little cold and headed to Epcot. Once we got to Epcot we did Test Track (singles line) and then on to England for lunch. We all had fish and chips (YUMM!) and Bass Ale. After that we drank our way around the world! Wine in France, beer in Germany, etc. We staggered back to do The Land and Spaceship Earth! After that we did Test Track again and then went to Canada for dinner. Le Cellier was GREAT! The food was delicious (see dining report on restaurant board). After dinner we went back and did Test Track again and caught part of Illuminations. Then back to the room to crash.
Tuesday:
Our last day. We went to MGM in the morning. Hit the Rockin Roller Coaster (my favorite ride) and got fast passes for the Tower of Terror. Then did Who Wants to be a Millionaire, 100 Years of Walt Disney, and ate some McDonalds fries for a snack. Did lots of shopping bought every Buzz Lightyear thing we could find for our son!! Then went back to the hotel. DH took a nap and I walked around the resort I took pictures, sat on the beach, had a Pina Colada, walked around Parrot Cay, checked out the pool, etc. I really like this resort. It doesnt even seem like a moderate to me. I would definitely stay here again. The bus transportation is the best of all resorts Ive stayed at we never waited more than 5 minutes. We didnt eat at the food court, but it seemed very nice and clean. Much nicer than the All Stars or POR (in my opinion). The beach area and pool are better than the Grand Floridian and the Cabana Banana Bar was great too. This is a great resort. J If you are looking for a place thats not too expensive, but still nice, then youll love it. I thought Martinique was the most romantic, and Jamaica seemed great for families because of the large play area and being the first bus stop back from MK and MGM. Trinidad North is also nice, but Barbados, Aruba, and Trinidad South seem pretty far away. The only negative thing I can think of are the birds. They didnt really bother anyone, but they were a little annoying.
Next we headed to the Wilderness Lodge for dinner at Artist Point. I had the Salmon, as usual, and it was great. (See dining report on restaurant board). After dinner we went back to CBR to change clothes and go to E-night. I LOVED E-NIGHT!!!! It was so much fun and definitely a must for anyone who loves MK. There were a lot of people there, but no lines longer than 10 minutes. We did Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, the Haunted Mansion, and topped off the night with ice cream cookie sandwiches at the Main Street Bakery. There were lots of characters walking around, a lot more than usual, and the castle was so pretty. J Splash Mountain was closed for maintenance, but it was a little too chilly to get wet anyway.
Wednesday:
Checked out and went home. We hated to leave, the weather was beautiful that day and the high was supposed to reach close to 80. But we were excited to see our boys.
That is pretty much it. If anyone has any questions about anything (Clarion, CBR, the parks, the restaurants, etc) Ill be glad to help. J
Friday:
Arrived at the Clarion Universal Hotel around 7pm. The hotel was old but they had done some renovations. The lobby looked very nice with ceramic tile floor and large marble pillars, but our room was gross. They had tried to update things, but the bathroom was yucky and so was the carpet. In the hotel there was a restaurant (we didnt eat there) and a small bakery where we did grab muffins one morning before getting on the shuttle. AAA lists this as a 3 diamond hotel, but I would call it a 2 diamond at best. After bringing our luggage to our room we changed clothes and headed to City Walk. We had dinner at Margaritaville, as well as SEVERAL drinks. After that we went to Pat OBriens I did not care for the dueling piano singers; they were off key and ruined every song they attempted to sing, so we left. After walking around a little more we decided to head back to the hotel and get a good nights sleep.
Saturday:
The shuttle was nice, but PACKED! It went straight to the park, and was only about a 5 minute ride. We arrived at IOA about 5 minutes before the park opened. There were a lot of people in line, but we were able to get in easily and ride Spiderman and Hulk with no wait. This is definitely a good idea because later the lines were over an hour for each. After that we had a quick breakfast and headed over to Dueling Dragons. DH rode ALONE because I chickened out. We walked around some more but decided to skip the water rides because it was cold and raining. We did Spiderman one more time and then we headed over to US. Once we got there we did Twister and MIB. My score was pitiful; dh beat me big time and rubbed it in!! We decided to have lunch so we walked all the way to City Walk only to discover that there was an hour wait everywhere!! So we walked all the way back to US and had a great lunch at Finnegans. I had the fish and chips and dh had the Shepards Pie. They had live music, which was nice, so we stayed for a while and kept out of the rain. I loved the Woodpecker cider (beer). After that we did Earthquake and King Kong before heading back to the hotel to change clothes. That night we went back to US for the Mardi gras parade, we had Jambalaya for dinner and it was really good, but HOT!! We got lots of beads and after the parade we stayed for part of the CCR (Credence Clearwater Revival) concert and then went back to the hotel. Oh, and we stopped at Schwabs on the way back to get some ice cream. YUM!!!!
Sunday:
Checked out of the Clarion and headed over to CBR. Dare I say I have a NEW favorite resort??? I really love CBR. Check-in was a breeze we got a corner room in Martinique 24 with a pool view. The grounds around the resort are beautiful and our room was perfect. I am very picky, but I cant think of anything negative to say about our room. It was large, clean, and well decorated. The beds were comfortable and the bathroom was spotless. I love the tile and all the color schemes. We were VERY close to the bus stop and a short walk to OPR. After that we headed to MK. We grabbed a quick breakfast at the Main Street Bakery and headed over to Pirates of the Caribbean (5 minute wait). Then on to Thunder Mountain to get a fast pass. We did Haunted Mansion and ate some McDonalds fries to kill time. Thunder Mountain was great, as usual. We walked through Fantasyland but didnt ride anything because it was very crowded. We decided to leave and go to MGM. The lines were also very long there, so we did The Great Movie Ride, watched the Stars in Cars parade and then headed to the Poly for dinner. Dinner at Ohanas, wonderful as usual!! I just love those chicken wings. J Oh, and the layered drink Sand in your Pants was delicious!! I highly recommend that one. We had a table by the window with a beautiful view of the castle. After dinner we went to Downtown Disney. Did some shopping and topped off the night with Ghiardellis!! Yummmm!!!
Monday:
Headed to Animal Kingdom bright and early! Road Dinosaur twice with no wait and then got a fast pass for the Safari. Ate those delicious cinnamon buns at Tusker House while we waited. The safari was great probably the most animals Ive ever seen in one trip. We skipped the water ride since it was a little cold and headed to Epcot. Once we got to Epcot we did Test Track (singles line) and then on to England for lunch. We all had fish and chips (YUMM!) and Bass Ale. After that we drank our way around the world! Wine in France, beer in Germany, etc. We staggered back to do The Land and Spaceship Earth! After that we did Test Track again and then went to Canada for dinner. Le Cellier was GREAT! The food was delicious (see dining report on restaurant board). After dinner we went back and did Test Track again and caught part of Illuminations. Then back to the room to crash.
Tuesday:
Our last day. We went to MGM in the morning. Hit the Rockin Roller Coaster (my favorite ride) and got fast passes for the Tower of Terror. Then did Who Wants to be a Millionaire, 100 Years of Walt Disney, and ate some McDonalds fries for a snack. Did lots of shopping bought every Buzz Lightyear thing we could find for our son!! Then went back to the hotel. DH took a nap and I walked around the resort I took pictures, sat on the beach, had a Pina Colada, walked around Parrot Cay, checked out the pool, etc. I really like this resort. It doesnt even seem like a moderate to me. I would definitely stay here again. The bus transportation is the best of all resorts Ive stayed at we never waited more than 5 minutes. We didnt eat at the food court, but it seemed very nice and clean. Much nicer than the All Stars or POR (in my opinion). The beach area and pool are better than the Grand Floridian and the Cabana Banana Bar was great too. This is a great resort. J If you are looking for a place thats not too expensive, but still nice, then youll love it. I thought Martinique was the most romantic, and Jamaica seemed great for families because of the large play area and being the first bus stop back from MK and MGM. Trinidad North is also nice, but Barbados, Aruba, and Trinidad South seem pretty far away. The only negative thing I can think of are the birds. They didnt really bother anyone, but they were a little annoying.
Next we headed to the Wilderness Lodge for dinner at Artist Point. I had the Salmon, as usual, and it was great. (See dining report on restaurant board). After dinner we went back to CBR to change clothes and go to E-night. I LOVED E-NIGHT!!!! It was so much fun and definitely a must for anyone who loves MK. There were a lot of people there, but no lines longer than 10 minutes. We did Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, the Haunted Mansion, and topped off the night with ice cream cookie sandwiches at the Main Street Bakery. There were lots of characters walking around, a lot more than usual, and the castle was so pretty. J Splash Mountain was closed for maintenance, but it was a little too chilly to get wet anyway.
Wednesday:
Checked out and went home. We hated to leave, the weather was beautiful that day and the high was supposed to reach close to 80. But we were excited to see our boys.
That is pretty much it. If anyone has any questions about anything (Clarion, CBR, the parks, the restaurants, etc) Ill be glad to help. J
