Leaving tomorrow: Week at SSR treehouse/4 day Dream

[lovethecastle]

Sounds like fun!! I really love the idea of taking a boat to dtd-the buses are always packed when it is time to leave dtd. Hope you & your son have a
great birthday.
If you could & try to post pictures of the treehouse that would be great!
Have a great day, Sandy

 

[SamSam]

Sounds like you're off to a great start! Have a fabulous trip.

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

Day 2: Magic Kingdom

Left the treehouse at around 7:30am, got to magic kingdom around 8:15am. The bus system actually is much better than expected, but that's probably due to the fact that we use Toronto's transit system at home. Just a 5 minute walk to the treehouse bus stop, then a quick bus to the main lobby, and then another to the magic Kingom. All in all, maybe a half hour trip.

Our first stop was Fantasyland. Snow white ride, Dumbo, Philharmagic, Peter Pan, Small World then Winnie the Pooh. For touring plans saying it was a 9 plus day, I thought the crowds were more than reasonable. The longest we waited was about 20 minutes for Pooh, which gave the kids time to play in the new interactive queue.

Lunch was at Cosmic Rays. I actually liked the tray only policy for the tables, as after ordering (at the empty side of the cashier, not the one with a 10 deep line), we walked right in and got 2 adjoining tables.

After lunch was the indie car ride, TTA, carosel of Progress, Buzz Lightyear, Laugh Resort, Hall of Presidents, Country Bear Jamboree and Pirates. The only fast pass we used all day was for Buzz. Ciara kicked everyone`s butt, scoring 478,000. Pretty good for anyone, never mind a 7 year old.

Dinner was at Crystal palace. The chef walked my Mom around and showed her what she could and could not eat. She had more than enough choices.

Got back to the treehouse at around 8:30pm.

 

[Mouse Skywalker]

Sounds like you're having a great trip Paul! Enjoy it all, and enjoy the Dream.

BTW: Happy Birthday!!!

 

[lodgelady]

Bon voyage! Can't wait to hear about the treehouses!

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

Day 3: My Birthday

Got up way to early (around 4:30) as I had to get to Fort Wildreness for my Segway tour. The bus driver was extremely nice, and since I was the inly person on her bus for Magic Kingdom at 6:45, she took me directly there. A quick trip on the FW busses, then a little walk and I was at The Bike Barn for the start of the tour.

For those of you who have never been to Fort Wilderness, it's amazing in it's beauty. I'm in Pete's camp when it comes to camping (I wouldn't under any circumstances), but if you're into that sort of thing, it definitely is a prime camping area.

The Segway tour was amazing. beutiful scenery, and the guides were both extremely informative and funny. I'd highly recommend the tour.

Getting back to Epcot was interesting. A walk to the boat to Magic Kingdom, then 2 monorails. Met up with my family at Sunshine Seasons at noon.

Attraction time after lunch. Imagination with Figment, Captain EO, then shopping at Mousegears. Ellen's energy ride, then a slow walk through Flower and Garden exhibits to the Canadian pavillion.

I left my parents and the twins at the Kidcot station, then Brendan and I checked out the rest of the pavillion. Beutiful, but they really need to get some "real" Canadian culture and not just the stereotypical stuff.

New menu items at Le Cellier are amazing. The yahtsman's chef moved here as of March 1st, and actively planned all the new items. The girls had cheese soup, pasta and dessert from the kids menu. I had cheese soup at an appetizer (along with the pretzel bread of course). I had the rib eye, my parents both had sirloins and Brendan had the fillet. Dessert was all the usuals, creme brule, moose, and a sorbet for my Mom. Amazing meal, and definitely worth every penny.

The entire staff was fantastic as well. We had a great waiter who took care of my mom's dietary needs, and kept us all entertained. Even wrapped up pretzel bread with a handle as my birthday present.

A great birthday.

 

[JacksLilWench]

Happy Birthday!!!! I can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip--even if I am a little jealous

Hope the rest of your vacation is just as awesome!!

 

[topolino]

You're having an awesome trip, I can see. Keep those updates coming!

 

[cannp123165]

Sounds like a brilliant trip so far! Sounds like a brilliant Birthday!

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

Day 4: Hollywood studios

Left the treehouse around 9am, and got to the Studios at about 9:30. Got fast passes for Toy Story, then went to Magic of Animation. Pictures and autographs with Mickey and Lotso, then the drawing class (we drew Piglet, and Brendan asked for the instructors).

Lunch was at Backlot Express. I had the grilled turkey, ham and cheese sandwich. Brendan had the Angus burger. Dad had the chicken south west salad, and mom had a hot dog. The girls had mac and cheese.

My parents went back to the hotel for a swim, and the kids and I watched Iniana Jones show. Next was American Idol, followed by the Great Movie Ride (cowboy edition).

After a bit of shopping, we saw the Little mermaid show, then used our Toy Story Mania fast passes. Gave my parent;s passes to a cute couple who are Disneyland cast members.

Met my parents at 50s Prime Time for dinner at 6pm. Dad had meatloaf, my Mom roasted pork, Brendan the steak, and I had the sampler (fried chicken, pot roast and meat loaf). The girls had mac and cheese and beans. Drinks ranged from smoothies to a rootbeer float, strawberry and chocolate shakes, and sweetened ice tea. Desserts were sundaes, ice cream and cheesecake. Even my Mom had a lactose free ice cream sundae.

My parents absolutely loved 50s, as this was "their era". The waiter was once again amazing, and I was SOO happy when my Mom laughed when the waiter threw the straws on the table. The chef walked my Mom through what she could eat, which she enjoyed.

Back to the treehouse pool after dinner. Very secluded spot, and not too deep. Another very nice day.

 

[lugnut33]

How are you liking the THVs?

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

How are you liking the THVs?

They are perfect for us. My parents have 1 bedroom, my twin girls are in the bunk beds and my son and I are in the other bedroom. The master bath has a jaccussi tub and multi-head shower. Very roomy and nice.

The busses aren't nearly as bad as what I expected. I think they are quite good actually. No issues whatsoever.

 

[goofystitchfan]

Glad you are having such a great time. We stayed pre and post cruise in the THV last year and will be doing so in November. Keep the posts coming.

 

[mainegal]

I am enjoying reading your trip report. Hope you all all still having a great time.

I am sure you will enjoy the cruise and will certainly want to book PCC 4.0

Happy Birthday!

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

Day 5: Epcot

Pouring rain all day, and I woke up with a bad upset stomach. My parents took the kids over to Artist's Palette for lunch. By the time they got back, I was feeling much better. Brendan was dying to go to Mitsukoshi to buy some Pokemon items. Mitsukoshi is the only store outside of Japan to sell a lot of the Pokemon items, so I go him there, sore tummy, pouring rain and all. After that, we saw the museum near the back of the store, as well as doing some colouring at the Kidcot station. A quick stop for a ride on Spaceship Earth and we were off to meet my parents for dinner.

For those of you that have never been to the Polynesian, it's georgeous. We had time to walk around a bit, and it's very beautiful. It was our first time at Ohanas, and we were not disappointed. Once again, my Mom met with the chef, and got much more food than needed. So did we, with wings, pot stickers, noodles and beans at out table almost before we sat down. Then came the huge skewers ofmeat carried by various waiters. Boy did we have a feast. Dessert, ice cream for the kids and bread pudding for the adults, was so good you had to eat some, even though we were all bursting at the seams.

Next was a monorail ride to the Poly for the Pirates and Pals Fireworks cruise. If you've never done this ride, I'd highly recommend it. We liked it so much last year that my son insisted on it again. After meeting Hook and Snee (along with a room full of snacks), off we went for a 90 minute cruise, featuring the electrical water pagent, then Wishes. Our host, Patch, was not only an amazing singer, but was funny, and fantasic to my kids. He even got my parents dancing in the aisle of the boat.

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

Day 6: Animal Kingdom

Brendan's 11th birthday, and Brendan wanted to spend the morning with just daddy, so off the two of us went to AK. First stop, Kali River Rapids. Since we were there shortly after rope drop, we stayed on twice without disembarking, ensuring that neither of us had a dry spot left. We saw some poor father as we were leaving was just as soaked as us, but had on full length jeans. OUCH.

Next was Dino-land. Brendan is amazingly good at county fair type games, and won 2 small and one huge prize with just 5 tickets. God knows how we are getting that thing home with us. After seeing the Nemo play, we met my parents and the girls at Flametree BBQ for lunch (although Brendan had a turkey leg).

The girls wanted to play the dino-games, but failed to win anything. Back to another Kali ride, then a return to our treehouses for an afternoon swim. Dinner was at T-Rex (loud but good), and after some shopping downtown, we took the boat back to the treehouses. A great birthday for my best friend.

 

[Cherinva]

Your trip sounds amazing.

 

[belle41379]

Is there a pool at THV, or do you have to ride over to SS? If there is one, what is it like?

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

Is there a pool at THV, or do you have to ride over to SS? If there is one, what is it like?

The THV do have their own pool. Nice size and very secluded. Nothing fancy, just your basic pool. There were maximum 5 other people there the times we went.

The other option is the main pool by the lobby. We spent our first afternoon there waiting for our room to be ready.


I couldn't post the rest of our trip's details as I was on The Dream. Once I have more time (I'm busy applying for my job search), I'll do my best to finish my report this evening.

 

[sjsjbrook]

...and tell us how you got that "huge thing Home".