Let's Do It Again! - First Family Trip, May 2024 (Updated 2/28 x2 - Epcot and Garden Grill)

[SimplyGoofy]

Let’s Do It Again!
Our First Family Trip to Walt Disney World

May 23 – June 1, 2024

Aloha!

(I’ve always wanted to start a Disney trip report with that!)

As you may have guessed, my family enjoyed a fantastic stay at the Polynesian (along with the Beach Club Villas) for our May 2024 Disney vacation.

This magical nine-night vacation was my first Disney trip with my husband and our first Disney trip with our two girls. In other words, our first family Disney trip!

Here we are on our first park day with the iconic castle picture:

This is my husband, me, and our two girls who were five and one during our trip.

I will add that the first day was one of the only days I wore my hair down during our vacation. It was hotter than Hades in Orlando last May!

You can read all about our grand plans in my pre-trip report Our First Family Disney Trip… Take Two!

Did we do everything we planned?

Absolutely not.

Did we enjoy many magical experiences anyway despite a few hiccups?

Absolutely.

I’m so thrilled you’re here!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Table of Contents

Introductions and Trip Overview

Day 1 - Thursday, May 23rd
The Early Bird Catches the Flight
A Taste of the Islands
What a Room!
Hi, Mickey!

Day 2 - Friday, May 24th
Early Morning Magic
Well Boo, Pooh
Yo Ho, Yo Ho
Hello, Princess!
Sleep? Who needs sleep?!
Macaroni ONLY!
Just One Ride

Day 3 - Saturday, May 25th
Time to Soar!
Chip and Dale are the Best!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Introductions and Trip Overview

Let me introduce you to our crew and give you an overview of what's to come.


First up is me, Jenny:

Why yes, I'm hanging out with my other main man, Goofy, fully outfitted in my Goofy ears and Goofy shirt.

I’m lucky to stay at home with my two girls. When I’m not spending time with my family or thinking about Disney, you’ll find me cooking a new recipe, organizing something, or curled up with a good book.

Favorite Park: Magic Kingdom (but Animal Kingdom is really close)

Favorite Attractions: Tower of Terror, Cosmic Rewind, Expedition Everest, and Carousel of Progress

Favorite Character: Goofy

Favorite Snacks: Disney popcorn, Cream Cheese Pretzel, Wookie Cookie



Next up is my husband, G:

He spends a lot of time at work but also loves running, hiking, kayaking, and spending time with his girls.

Favorite Park: Probably Epcot

Favorite Attractions: Soarin’, Pirates of the Caribbean, and the Disney World Railroad

Favorite Character: None

Favorite Snacks: G does not snack. He did enjoy the cinnamon roll from Gaston’s Tavern that he ate for breakfast, though, so we’ll say that!



Our older daughter, M, was 5 (almost 6!) during our trip:

M is a very kind, empathetic girl who loves her sister, Disney movies, and reading books. She was most excited about turning into a fairy (foreshadowing!) and conquered many ride fears on this trip. She’s now a Disney World super-fan like her mom!

Favorite Park: Hollywood Studios

Favorite Attractions: Slinky Dog Dash, Tower of Terror (!), Flight of Passage, Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Star Tours, and Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway

Favorite Character: Any princess, but especially Rapunzel and Elsa

Favorite Snack: Lunch Box Tart at Woody’s Lunch Box



Finally, our younger daughter, L, who turned 19-months-old during our trip:

L is a go-with-the-flow child (much more than her sister) who loves books, dollies, and her sister. She was a gem in the restaurants and very patient while touring – two things that aren’t guaranteed with a one-year-old, so we are very lucky. L loved seeing the characters at a distance but was quite skeptical when they got too close… except for a certain duck.

Favorite Park: Hard to say – maybe Magic Kingdom?

Favorite Attractions: It’s a Small World and any spinner ride (Dumbo, Magic Carpets of Aladdin, and TriceraTop Spin)

Favorite Character: Donald Duck

Favorite Snack: Goldfish and applesauce pouches (not exactly Disney snacks… but, oh well?)



Trip Details…

Dates: May 23 – June 1, 2024 – ten whole days in Disney World!

Resorts: Polynesian Villas & Bungalows (five nights in a studio) and Beach Club Villas (four nights in a studio)

Tickets: We had seven-day park hoppers as we planned to skip the parks on our travel days and enjoy one full pool day during our trip.

Meals: We skipped the dining plan but scheduled one or two ADRs each day of our trip. I love the Disney restaurants! These plans originally included ten character meals including Cinderella’s Royal Table, Topolino’s Terrace, 1900 Park Fare, and Storybook Dining at Artist Point.

Travel: We flew into Orlando and used a car service for the first time. Due to recommendations I found here I picked Cast and Crew Transportation – they were excellent and I’d use them again in a heartbeat. Even my husband said they were worth every penny!

Genie+ and ILLs: YES and yes. Long lines and little kids do not mix. I got enough complaints about the long lines that we sailed through!

Extras: In addition to Memory Maker (a must-purchase for me), we also booked a Magic Kingdom Fireworks Dessert Party and booked a slot for M to be transformed into a princess at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. Booking those extras was the most stressful part of our planning process (other than waiting on DVC rental point requests to come through), so I was thrilled when they were successful during our trip!

You can read about additional pre-trip details in my pre-trip report.

Up Next: Travel Day!

 

[DLo]

Popping over from the PTR . Looking forward to reading about your magical adventure.

 

[Nicnicnic.nic]

Following

 

[Mollydolly334]

YAY!!!! Jenny I’m so glad you’re back!! I followed along closely with your PTR and I can’t wait to hear about your amazing trip- staying at two of my most favorite resorts!! Your girls are adorable and it sounds like they had a blast!

 

[HappyGal]

I was just thinking about your trip report the other day, so glad I found it!

 

[kc2wdw]

Really looking forward to this as my kids are almost the same age, we are going those same dates in 2025 AND we are staying in Beach Club villas!

 

[piglet1979]

I am so excited to read your report to see how everything went.

 

[ambula603]

Oh, I can't wait to hear all about it! Count me in!

 

[suse66]

I can't wait to hear all about your magical adventures!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Popping over from the PTR . Looking forward to reading about your magical adventure.

Welcome! Thank you so much for joining in!

Following

Welcome! Thanks for joining!

YAY!!!! Jenny I’m so glad you’re back!! I followed along closely with your PTR and I can’t wait to hear about your amazing trip- staying at two of my most favorite resorts!! Your girls are adorable and it sounds like they had a blast!

Thanks so much, Molly! It’s nice to return to my Disney-loving group.

My girls (especially my oldest) loved Disney World - it will be fun to relive the trip again here! Despite a few unmagical moments we packed in a ton of fun (not to mention a ton of food and a ton of characters!)

I’m thrilled you’re here!

I was just thinking about your trip report the other day, so glad I found it!

Aww, thanks Monica! Welcome and I’m glad you’re here!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Really looking forward to this as my kids are almost the same age, we are going those same dates in 2025 AND we are staying in Beach Club villas!

Welcome! Thanks for joining in!

How exciting!!! I hope I can share a few tips that will make your trip even more magical. (Honestly, the most important… water. Drink SO MUCH WATER if it’s as hot as it was when we were there. Take advantage of your stroller and use a nice insulated bottle! Also, you will adore that short walking path to the back entrance of Epcot and the close proximity to the skyliner!)

I am so excited to read your report to see how everything went.

Welcome, Stephanie! Thank you for joining in!

Oh, I can't wait to hear all about it! Count me in!

Welcome, Amber! I’m so glad you’re here!

I can't wait to hear all about your magical adventures!

Welcome, Susan! Thank you so much for joining in!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Hi!!! I am here to follow along!!!

Favorite Attractions: Slinky Dog Dash, Tower of Terror (!), Flight of Passage, Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Star Tours, and Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway

I love who diverse her list is!

Favorite Snack: Goldfish and applesauce pouches (not exactly Disney snacks… but, oh well?)

I wouldn't expect anything else from a 1 year old! ha!

These plans originally included ten character meals including Cinderella’s Royal Table, Topolino’s Terrace, 1900 Park Fare, and Storybook Dining at Artist Point.

Can't wait to hear all about all of the meals. We are kind of past most character meals. So I will love to hear about yours!

 

[Araminta18]

Joining in! 10 character meals?! wow!!!

 

[PAsFab5]

Joining in!!

 

[disneyAndi14]

I’m here joining in! Excited to hear all about your trip! I wish we had some hot weather right now, we are in a true deep freeze here. A lot of Dis, TV, and reading on these frigid days!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Hi!!! I am here to follow along!!!


I love who diverse her list is!


I wouldn't expect anything else from a 1 year old! ha!


Can't wait to hear all about all of the meals. We are kind of past most character meals. So I will love to hear about yours!

Welcome, Ariella! I'm so glad you're here!

I was pleasantly surprised how brave M was about rides! I had to talk her onto Tower of Terror which I thought she would love (I was right!), but she was nervous about the roller coasters. She LOVED Slinky Dog (she practically sprinted back in line when we did rider swap) but still opted out of BTMRR and Everest. I like that she enjoyed some classics, too!

I know, right?! I think L will enjoy more actual Disney treats on our next trip.

I don't know that we'll ever be able to be fully past character meals - I love them! That said, this is the most I've ever done in one trip.

Joining in! 10 character meals?! wow!!!

Welcome, Tiffany! I'm thrilled you're here!

I know, I know... I may be crazy. Part of it is it was my first Disney trip in eight years - I wanted to show M and L several of my favorites, plus there were several new ones I wanted to try! That combined with my love of Disney dining led to a LOT of character meals!

Joining in!!

Welcome! Thank you so much for joining in!

I’m here joining in! Excited to hear all about your trip! I wish we had some hot weather right now, we are in a true deep freeze here. A lot of Dis, TV, and reading on these frigid days!

Welcome, Caroline! I'm so glad you're here!

Tell me about it! I'm one state below you and it's SO COLD here! I'm sure it's much worse around Duluth. I remember we traveled there one Christmas (I have an aunt and uncle there) and it was amazing how much lower the temperature dropped the further north we drove. Their area is especially chilly as they live on the bay across from Park Point.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

The Early Bird Catches the Flight
Day 1 – Thursday, May 23rd

Hooray!!! It was Disney Day!



After months (years!) of planning, booking things, changing plans, and waiting for the trip to arrive… today was the day!

My original plan was to be completely packed (minus last-minute things) before my husband got home from work the day before. Did that happen?

No.

Instead, I was still working on our three suitcases (children, man!) through bedtime, but thankfully wrapped up before 9:00. This felt late for G (he’s an anxious early packer) while I’m an excellent (?) last-minute packer who may have been known to pack well into the night.

I thought 9:00 was pretty good!

G packed up the car as I finished the suitcases to give us a jump-start in the morning.

A jump-start was a good idea as we had a very early morning ahead of us. In order to get us there as early as possible, I booked the flight that left at 6:25am. Even though we have two young children.

Crazy? Maybe…

My alarm went off at 3:45am. Ooof. Boy was I glad I wasn’t packing until 3:00! (Which I have on past trips!)

I was up and showered first, followed by my husband. We waited until the last possible minute before waking the girls and getting them dressed. It helped to mention, “it’s Disney day!” to our oldest daughter when we woke her – far less grumbling and even a little “hooray!”

G ate breakfast before we left the house, but the girls and I waited until we arrived at the airport. I don’t always love our airport (it’s the largest in our area but not as many direct flights as I would like), but it is just 20 minutes from us which is grand.

Unlike our airport kerfluffle from a few months before (long story short: G was yelled at by the airport security folks for leaving our car unattended while he helped me in with the bags), G dropped us off and emptied the car but M (our older daughter) and I got them into the airport while pushing L (our younger daughter) in the stroller.

We didn’t wait long before G had parked and returned. (Another point for the smaller airport.) We checked into our Southwest flight and were happy to drop off our three suitcases (for free!) and only worry about backpacks, our travel stroller, and L’s car seat.

Thanks to TSA PreCheck we sailed through security (yet another win for our small airport) and made our way toward our gate. I stopped along the way to grab a breakfast sandwich and a cup of ice for my water bottle while G filled the other bottles.

Once we reached the gate, we had just enough time for a quick bathroom run before getting in line to board. We had great boarding numbers thanks to Early Bird Check-In so we had no issues finding seats near the front of the plane.

Even better, the plane was half empty so G sat with M on one side while I sat with L on the other side and no one ever joined us. It was nice to have a row to ourselves!

Here we are, ready to fly!

We look pretty bright-eyed and bushy-tailed despite our early wake-up time.

I had a chance to dive into my breakfast sandwich after takeoff. My egg sandwich had mozzarella, tomato, and pesto on a brioche roll:

It was delicious and way more fun than the bowl of cereal G ate before we left the house. L snacked on some cereal and yogurt bites while M had mini muffins.

Our first flight was only an hour – M passed the time eating and watching a movie on her tablet while L actually fell asleep for a brief time. We now purchase a seat for our toddler – we had a “challenging” first flight with M when she was fifteen-months-old and learned our lesson. Taking a car seat onto the plane is a huge pain in the keister, but I’ll deal with the hassle if it allows my toddler to sleep. It wasn’t long before we were gathering our stuff and heading off the plane.

Both girls got their wiggles out once we found our gate:

Check out their “best day ever” shirts! I’ve never been one to plan coordinated outfits, but this trip with two little girls turned me into a different person. I had so much fun coming up with outfits for them that complimented our plans every day!

We boarded our second flight in less than an hour. This flight was full (or close to it) so no rows to ourselves this time. I put L next to the window (a requirement due to the car seat), while I put M on the aisle and I took the middle seat. G took a window seat behind L.

Once we were in the air I started Wish on M’s tablet and L took another short rest. Whoo-hoo!

Once L was awake, we spent the rest of the flight playing with toys and reading books. When L got restless, I pulled her into my lap and started Zootopia on my tablet. She wasn’t a fan of headphones so she couldn’t hear it (I wasn’t about to blast the sound), but the screen provided a distraction when the books got old.

Around noon we were approaching Orlando. M and I were pretty excited!

We had no problems landing and were soon gathering our stuff and exiting a second time.

Honestly, I was thrilled with how smooth our flights were. The kids did great and we didn’t have a single delay or incident. We were off on the right foot!

We stopped at the bathroom before heading on the Fake-O-Rail. It was so nice to see it again after eight years away! Unfortunately, there was a rush for the front of the car (plus I didn’t think G would go for waiting for another car), so boring middle of the car it was.

Our bags spun around the carousel soon after we arrived in baggage claim and we were off to find our town car service.

After years of riding the Magical Express (R.I.P. ), a fancy town car service was a change for me. However, with Mears occasionally providing a van instead of a bus for less popular resorts, I was concerned we’d get a van on our return to the airport from the Beach Club Villas. I had zero interest in M riding on the Florida interstate without a car seat (and had little desire to haul one along “just in case”), so a town car service with a guaranteed car seat felt like a safer plan.

Thanks to recommendations I found here (I believe @missjackiemcg was a fan?) I booked an SUV with Cast and Crew Transportation. Two other reasons I picked private transportation are the rental car costs were nuts (twice the cost of the town car service!) and they provided stroller rentals and would have our double stroller waiting for us in the SUV.

I will say right now that booking that SUV was one of the best decisions of our vacation.

Cast and Crew was excellent – our driver Washington reached out to us that morning (my first text was typed during our layover in St. Louis) and he gave very clear instructions where to go once we collected our bags. All we had to do was go down an elevator and there he was with the car!

The car was clean, the extra car seat was installed, and the stroller and accessories were ready to go. The driver loaded all our bags while we set up L’s car seat and settled in. He played the Encanto soundtrack for the girls and chatted with G who sat up front with him during our ride to the resort. As much as I loved (and miss!) the Magical Express, it was the quickest and easiest ride I’ve ever had from the Orlando airport. If you’re looking for private transportation (especially if you need car seats and/or a rental stroller), I highly, highly recommend Cast and Crew. Five stars! 10/10!

Here we are on our way to Disney World:

Less than an hour after we landed (!) we were passing under my favorite sign:

HOORAY!!! I was so excited to see that sign. It was my first trip to Disney World in eight years!

Less than ten minutes later I snapped this picture as we pulled into the Polynesian Village Resort. As resort guests. In our private transportation. Who were we?!

Our driver pulled in, unloaded our bags, and showed us how to operate the double stroller. Thankfully it was very similar to our single City-Mini at home so the learning curve was small. Once he made sure we’d cleared out the car, I took care of the transportation payment and Washington went on his way.

The bellman provided a cart for all our luggage, which you can see to the side of this picture. It’s tough (impossible?) to travel light with two young kids!

I’d done online check-in but the CM checked to make sure our Magic Bands were programmed correctly. She also won M’s heart by handing her a bunch of Mickey stickers and passed out leis to both girls. M, of course, picked a pink lei while we chose a purple one for L. Come to think of it, I should’ve requested one for myself!

As you can see, M added her pink Minnie Mouse ears to match her shirt.

The nice CM offered to take a family picture for us:

We were officially Poly guests!

Up Next: Lunch at the Poly

 

[SimplyGoofy]

A Taste of the Islands
Day 1 – Part II

We walked into the Polynesian around 1:30 in the afternoon:

Look at M – she’s on the edge of her seat to spot the Tiki Man*!

*M nicknamed the central Maui statue in the Poly lobby as we watched YouTube videos of the Polynesian Resort. She was so excited to see him in person!

To be honest, I still miss the waterfall they used to have in the Poly lobby, but I still love it, nonetheless. I was almost pinching myself that I was finally back in Disney World!

Our first order of business was getting lunch. Before our trip, I’d considered trying a walk-up at Kona Café (I love their breakfast but had never been for lunch), but our stomachs insisted on quick service food.

We placed our order and had no trouble finding a table in Capt. Cook’s – it was pretty empty in the middle of the afternoon!

Once we were seated M insisted the rest of us put on ears. This is the only time this trip G sported ears – only M (and eventually L) could talk him into wearing them:

It wasn’t long before L was trying them instead:

That was also short-lived, but an A+ to our daughter M for her effort to get us all in the Disney spirit!

Time to eat!

For the kids, I chose the chicken and pineapple skewers for M:

And the turkey sandwich with French fries for L:

It’s changed a bit this year (thanks, school lunches!), but M didn’t used to be a fan of breaded chicken. We don’t eat it at home so M is used to and prefers plain chicken. She also doesn’t like burgers. (Quick service kids meals at Disney were fun, folks!) As such, I was thrilled to see this option as regular chicken + pineapple is a double win.

L is also tough to order for, as she is not a fan of peanut butter sandwiches or most meat (except for fish, which tells you what we eat often at home). I tried the turkey sandwich as I figured I could deconstruct it, plus the fries are usually a winner.

M didn’t eat much (she was so excited!) but did like what she managed to put in her mouth. I tried a piece of leftover pineapple and it was delicious! L ate the grapes and a bunch of fries… and not much else.

G and I tried more unique items on the menu.

G had the Pan-Asian Noodles and Vegetables:

And I tried the Thai Coconut Meatballs with rice:

Both were excellent! G and I are spice wimps (flavorful spices = yes, spicy food = NO) and I didn’t find the meatballs super spicy. Certainly a little zest to them but super tasty and not overwhelmingly spicy despite the Thai label.

I also picked up a refillable mug:

We only purchased one mug for our trip. I’m the only one who drinks coffee and soda/iced tea (G had the occasional soda but mostly stuck to water) so it didn’t make sense to buy a second mug.

Our room notification appeared while we were eating. (Side note: G saw the notification first as he’d turned on notifications for the MDE app. I’d turned them off since our last trip and didn’t realize I’d need to turn them back on. It was helpful to have the notifications so remember to update your app settings if it’s been a while since your last trip!)

I was super excited that our room was ready so early! I don’t know if we were moved since we’d “checked-in” with the desk out front or if we were lucky, but I didn’t think we’d get into a room until after the 4:00 check-in time as were renting DVC points.

I was even more excited when I saw our room assignment:

First floor of Tokelau! Just what I’d requested - and perhaps one of the most-requested combinations for the OG Poly Villas. Huzzah!

We wrapped up lunch and headed toward our home for the next five nights. Moana was out meeting guests at the green space next to the Great Ceremonial House, but M elected to bypass the meet and greet. I think she was still a little nervous about meeting characters – I’m certain if we spotted Moana on our check-out day M would’ve raced over to meet her.

L was excited to walk to our building:

I’m pretty sure M would ride in a stroller until she was 12, so she was happy to take a ride.

It was a short walk to Tokelau:

The interior hallways were very nice:

I gave M the honor of opening the door – she was super pumped to try out her Magic Band:

What would we think of our room?

Up Next: Poly Villa Studio Room Tour