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

[pkondz]

M had trouble sleeping after the fireworks woke her – she said she was trying to go to sleep but it sounded like there were “volcanoes in her head.”

Pretty descriptive, though.

I was not so lucky.

I hate it when that happens. And for me, (being a shift worker for decades) it happens all too often.

Nothing like a full Disney park day on around three hours of sleep!

Let's go soldier! It's time to Disney!

Whoo-hoo for dropping more than $100 just for lightning lanes!

Nothing like gouging the guests as much as possible.

One tip I gathered from Pixie Dusted Mom was to put sunscreen on the kids as they were getting dressed.

Oh!
Dang.
I wish I'd thought of that back when my kiddoes were little.

We’d pulled the autograph books out this time, so we knew it wasn’t them.

hmmm...
Curiouser and curiouser.

I took this cute picture of M showing off her Rapunzel sundress and ears:

That's when I noticed it was 7:02am.

Drat! I’d missed the 7:00 Genie+ opening!

Uh, oh!
Good thing you were looking for JC and not Tron or some other super-popular headliner. You'd have been out of luck!

I was practically giddy to be back at Magic Kingdom!

What do you mean "practically"??

M was pretty excited as well. She spotted one of the decorated windows and insisted to get out of the stroller for a picture:

M is smart.

Next, we walked up Main Street to get the girls’ first view of Cinderella Castle:

Outside of nature... this is one of the best walks/sights in the world.

I'll fight anyone on this.

We also got some nice family pictures, including this one:

Very nice shot.

While we waited, I kept refreshing our Jungle Cruise lightning lane. I moved it up once to around noon and then got an even better window of 10:20-11:20.

I had no idea you could change that. Now I know!

M spotted Pooh and wanted to go there.

Sure, why not?!

I love this.
I've seen sooooooo many parents who forget that they're there for their kids.

I figured this was the best time to try the honey wall as almost no one had touched it yet that day:

M was very excited for her first official Disney ride:

Yay!!

L, as per her personality, was reserving her judgement about the experience:

Awww.

She was especially concerned when we hit the bouncing in the Tigger portion of the ride - she was NOT a fan.

Oh dear.

The final conclusion on her first ride of the trip? M immediately turned to me once the ride was done and said…

“Let’s do it again!!!”

And a trip report title was born!

Instead, we stopped for everyone’s favorite attraction in Tomorrowland…

The Tomorrowland Speedway:

L started out not too sure about the experience:

But soon started to help me spin the teacup:

I think we're starting to convert her!

Yuss!!

There was a little girl on a horse in front of us. An adult needed to ride with her (she was well under seven – maybe around five?) and her mom was on the ride. Unfortunately, her mom was wearing her baby in a carrier and the ride attendants said she couldn’t stand on the ride wearing the baby.

Then the dad came on with a younger sibling (perhaps a three-year-old?) who was NOT having a good morning. She threw a full-on tantrum and REFUSED to sit on a horse. She was face-down on the carousel screaming.

Fun times.

Oh geez.
Better them than you!

I love carousels, in case it’s not obvious from my big smile:

Love this shot of you.

I ate here with a first-thing-in-morning ADR on each trip from 2013-2016.

Whoa! Now that's dedication!

I’d read before our trip that two of my favorite items at Crystal Palace (Pooh’s puffed French toast and the custom omelet station) were no longer there and I was sad.

Well, poop.

Needless to say, we don’t eat our money's worth at buffets (especially with Disney prices!), but the food was good.

I don't either. At least not anymore. Maybe I never did.
But that doesn't stop me from enjoying them.

M made friends with the little girl at the table next to us:

Awww!

We’d only met two characters in the hour we’d been there and Pooh seemed too far away from our table to bother waiting longer. (Although better than Eeyore, whom I hadn’t even spotted!).

Not exactly a "character" meal, then.

*I’ve done that for years at Disney World buffets – I pay immediately so you can leave anytime instead of waiting around to settle your check. I’m all for saving time!

This is a great idea!

 

[pkondz]

Our picture was pretty funny - M was covering her ears in case of loud noises and poor L HATED the drop and was crying and clutching onto Dad for dear life:

What I find funny is you!
One child freaking out. The other terrified of a possible loud noise... And there's mom. Just happy to be back at Disney, kids be darned!

Our ride on Pirates got a rousing, “let’s do it again!” from M.

Great!

Boy, was I glad to jump past that 40 minute wait with our lightning lane!

And yet people wait 60+ minutes for it. Not me! (And not you, either, apparently. )

L and G had fun while we waited:

Awww.

One of my favorite sections of Jungle Cruise is the elephants:

Thankfully, they had their trunks on today.

We parked the stroller in the Tangled restroom stroller parking area and made our way over to It’s a Small World.

As expected, the girls loved the ride:

I also got a chance to spot my favorite drunken hippo:

I love that guy.

everyone (especially me!) gets grumpy without regular food.

Noted.

And look, they even said goodbye to me as we left!

Nice.

I guess than $35 investment in a Magic Band+ was worth it!

Definitely! Paid for itself, right there!

We made our way to our lunch spot, Columbia Harbor House.

Excellent choice.

I was excited to try the lobster roll:

Love a good lobster roll. And if memory serves, that's a good one.

 

[pkondz]

Next up was the main attraction for M – Rapunzel!

Ya gotta!

M was SO excited to meet Rapunzel. Rapunzel was a joy, as usual, and complimented M on her dress and ears. M and Rapunzel even shared a conversation and although not captured well in the automatic pictures) a dance:

Awww.

Cute shot.

The only downside to the experience was the photo boxes rather than a live Photopass photographer. I have some fantastic photos from past character meets that were only captured because of live photography. It’s a shame they took away the photographers – we got some nice pictures but the experience is not the same.

I've not experienced that, but it really doesn't sound great.

It was time for M to put on her brave face and conquer her first roller coaster of the trip!

Go M!

Despite being excited while waiting in line, M HATED the ride. She kept saying, “why did you make me ride that?!”

Her ride picture is a keeper. She’s still holding on for dear life!

And the conclusion?

Despite the photographic evidence…

“Let’s do it again!”

Great! Good for her!

Thanks to the rider swap we grabbed before our ride, M did have a chance to ride it again with G. Thanks, L, for being too short!

M and L were fading (and frankly, so were the adults in the heat), so G stepped in as the voice of reason and recommended we return to the Poly for a break.

G is smart.

 

[pkondz]

We took the monorail back to the Poly and L and M both settled down for naps. Both girls were out in no time.

I'm not even a little bit surprised.

Despite how sleepy I felt, I was unable to fall asleep. While tossing and turning, I booked our next lightning lane for Haunted Mansion. I also kept pushing our Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh lightning lane forward (I’d booked that after visiting the princesses).

Gee... I can't imagine why you couldn't sleep.

I picked up apple slices and pineapple (a must, I think, when you’re staying at the Poly!)

I've never stayed, but... this just seems logical.

G and I chilled (literally – thanks air conditioning!)

G and I decided the express monorail was likely faster.

Interesting. I would not have thought that.

I took the girls and the stroller this time while G took the bags.

I'm sure you can guess what happened.

You had a nice stroll over to the TTC?

It took about 15 minutes for G to work his way through the bag line. It would’ve taken a minute (or maybe no time at all!) at the Polynesian security stop – so much for saving time!

D'oh!

the good news is we finally figured out what was setting off the sensors!

One of my best time fillers for the kids at restaurants is a “monster factory” game where you can mix and match pieces to make multiple monsters.

The activity’s full title is the “Magnetic Monster Factory.”

ohhhhhh...

Lesson learned – leave your magnetic activities at home, folks!

Nope. My magnetic activities are far too important to leave behind.

“Dad! Dad! Look, Dad! It’s the Magical Kingdom!”

It was so sweet. And she was right! It is a magical kingdom!

Both girls loved the Little Mermaid attraction - and honestly, who wouldn’t?

Indeed!

It was time to dine in Beast’s castle!

Looking forward to hearing about this. Haven't been back since they changed it.

 

[pkondz]

There. Now I'm all caught up.

Tag. You're it!

 

[missjackiemcg]

The only downside to the experience was the photo boxes rather than a live Photopass photographer.

Uuugh, I didn't realize the photo boxes had made their way to Princess Fairytale Hall now, too!! The pictures are just NOT as good. Your family ones are pretty good considering no real photographer. We have gotten some absolutely awful ones with Mickey and Chewbacca that now if I know there are boxes, we don't even bother. I totally agree with you, only a person can capture those extra special moments like an expression or quick hug with a character.

G stepped in as the voice of reason and recommended we return to the Poly for a break

My husband, Rob, is always the voice of reason, too, because he knows I'd just keep pushing through and a break is usually a better idea!

The activity’s full title is the “Magnetic Monster Factory.”

If ever there was a forehead-smacking moment, this was it.

OH NO! But at least you finally figured it out!

I love that M was brave enough to go on Mine Train and that she really enjoyed it!! My son, Jimmy, is just not an adventurous guy. It took him til age 10 to finally go on and enjoy Slinky Dog after Mine Train scarred him LOL I'm hoping when we go back this Christmas, he will finally ride them all with me, now that he's a six foot tall 16 year old!!

 

[Araminta18]

What did we think of the restaurant? Honestly, I was impressed! I’ve read so many mediocre reviews of Chef Mickey’s that I had pretty low expectations. I thought the food was solid for a buffet (the mashed potatoes and stir-fried noodles were SO good) and there were so many options for a variety of palettes.

Nice! I think this is the only positive review of Chef Mickey's I've heard LOL but I'm so glad it was a good experience for you guys!

We were getting spoiled by this speedy monorail service.

the downsides of staying at a monorail resort...you get spoiled!

That's when I noticed it was 7:02am.

Drat! I’d missed the 7:00 Genie+ opening!

oh no!!

And thank goodness we stopped for those pictures. We were fresh off the air-conditioned monorail and were therefore not completely sweaty yet. Plus, I found it challenging to get my family to take multiple pictures. We got many great pictures (M, in particular, got more into it as the trip went along) but I had higher hopes for picture variety (and quantity). We’ll have to work on that next time!

such a cute picture! I love how all of you are excited except for L who is slightly stonefaced.

The ride attendants couldn’t start the ride until she was seated and were unable to help the dad move the screaming girl. The older girl sat patiently on her horse – perhaps she was used to the theatrics of her younger sister? Finally, the dad managed to calm the girl enough to get her to stay on a horse. It only took five minutes but it felt like a LONG five minutes.

oooh that poor family. but yea, long time waiting on the carousel!

Overall, I was pleased with our first hour in the park! We rode five attractions – perhaps not the top-billed attractions, but all ones that got longer lines later in the day. Most importantly, the girls loved the rides and we all enjoyed walking right onto less busy attractions. Our first early entry was a success!

Nicely done! You guys got so much done!

We’d been there for almost 45 minutes before the first character came to our table.

Holy smokes, wow. That's horrible

After the parade, we decided to call it at Crystal Palace. We’d paid our check earlier* and had been done eating for 20 minutes. We’d only met two characters in the hour we’d been there and Pooh seemed too far away from our table to bother waiting longer. (Although better than Eeyore, whom I hadn’t even spotted!).

*I’ve done that for years at Disney World buffets – I pay immediately so you can leave anytime instead of waiting around to settle your check. I’m all for saving time!

1. that is brilliant and next time I'm at a disney buffet I'm doing that and 2. oh my gosh what is up with Crystal Palace characters? That's horrible!

Again, it only took ten minutes between walking into the queue and being on our ride. It was great to be able to ride this Disney favorite twice with practically no wait!

That's awesome! I'm so glad you got to ride it twice - M needs at least one time riding something twice in a row, since she keeps asking when she likes it

Thankfully, they had their trunks on today.

ba dum ssssssssss

And look, they even said goodbye to me as we left!

I guess than $35 investment in a Magic Band+ was worth it!

oh neat! The screens weren't working last time we rode Small World

The only downside to the experience was the photo boxes rather than a live Photopass photographer. I have some fantastic photos from past character meets that were only captured because of live photography. It’s a shame they took away the photographers – we got some nice pictures but the experience is not the same.

ooh they don't have real photographers anymore? bummer! I hate that - I 100% agree about the live photographers catching great moments.

And the conclusion?

Despite the photographic evidence…

“Let’s do it again!”

Yay!!! Not gonna lie I was in suspense about how it would go.

M and L were fading (and frankly, so were the adults in the heat), so G stepped in as the voice of reason and recommended we return to the Poly for a break. We headed out of Magic Kingdom after almost six hours in the park:

breaks are 100% a necessity. Good for G!

I laid down as well – I was super tired after my night of three hours of sleep. Despite how sleepy I felt, I was unable to fall asleep. While tossing and turning, I booked our next lightning lane for Haunted Mansion. I also kept pushing our Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh lightning lane forward (I’d booked that after visiting the princesses).

Oooh I feel this - for whatever reason at Disney I never sleep super well, despite being tired! Even just a break in the heat helps but the nap would be helpful. At least you put the time to good use?

It took about 15 minutes for G to work his way through the bag line. It would’ve taken a minute (or maybe no time at all!) at the Polynesian security stop – so much for saving time!

oh no! did you try the experiment later in the trip? I'm curious now if resort monorail from the poly or express from TTC is faster.

One of my best time fillers for the kids at restaurants is a “monster factory” game where you can mix and match pieces to make multiple monsters.

The activity’s full title is the “Magnetic Monster Factory.”

If ever there was a forehead-smacking moment, this was it.

Why it never crossed my mind to leave that out of the bag is beyond me. We removed it that night and never had a further issue with security.

Lesson learned – leave your magnetic activities at home, folks!

oh wow...glad you figured it out!!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Yay for facing roller coaster fears! It took me until I was 20 and my boyfriend and I went to Magic Mountain in Southern California. I am not kidding when I tell you I was on the verge of tears getting on the ride. I LOVED it. By the end of the day I was riding all the super crazy coasters with loops and corkscrews and huge drops…you name it. You may have a little daredevil on your hands!

I’m so glad you faced your fear - roller coasters are awesome! And whoa, you made huge strides in a single day!

M remained nervous about coasters during our trip, although she did try a few more “big kid” rides. I was proud of her for trying what she did and I think she’ll try even more on our next trip!

I love all your pictures! Despite the dreaded photo boxes the pictures came out nice! I was bummed to see this at almost all the meet and greets now!
I am glad you figured out the security problem in your bag!
M looks like me on most rollercoasters

Thank you so much! I had fun capturing the kids’ expressions on the rides.

The photo boxes are a bummer! I mean, I get that it’s less expensive to have the photo boxes than a live photographer, but you don’t get the same candid pictures with the automatic pictures. Our posed pictures turned out pretty well, but I left out all the pictures of our backs.

That darn monster activity. I didn’t even think about the security scanners when I added it to our diaper bag - it’s a regular dinner out activity at home. I’m leaving all our magnetic games at home next time!

Also, about your roller coaster comment! She got more brave as she went along, but she was still happy to hold onto an arm.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

I hate it when that happens. And for me, (being a shift worker for decades) it happens all too often.

Let's go soldier! It's time to Disney!

I don’t know why I had so much trouble sleeping. Thankfully the first night was the worst - I think I got more tired as the trip went along (plus I felt more confident about new-to-me things like lightning lanes) so I slept better.

Thankfully, M (and L) slept well during the trip, which helped a ton!

Nothing like gouging the guests as much as possible.

I know. I don’t see it slowing down anytime soon since so many people are willing to pay more to improve their experience.

Oh!
Dang.
I wish I'd thought of that back when my kiddoes were little.

It was such a good tip! I do it all the time now!

She was SO excited to wear that dress and her ears. I was impressed that she wore ears so frequently on our trip!

Uh, oh!
Good thing you were looking for JC and not Tron or some other super-popular headliner. You'd have been out of luck!

Indeed! Still, I got smarter as the trip went along and set a two minute warning alarm on my phone. I never missed the 7:00 booking time again!

What do you mean "practically"??

Fair. I was VERY giddy!

M is smart.

Yes, she is! She was SO excited to be there.

Outside of nature... this is one of the best walks/sights in the world.

I'll fight anyone on this.

I agree! The castle is the most iconic, but I’m excited to see the icon for any of the four parks. All of them make me happy!

Very nice shot.

It was one of our best family pictures of the trip. It helped that we took it early in the morning before we completely melted!

I had no idea you could change that. Now I know!

Yes, refreshing worked several times for me! I don’t think it works as well now with the pre-booking, but you can still get lucky during the day as people change plans. I read it also helps to look at 7:00am on your park day, especially for Tiana’s. Some will change their Tier 1 booking if they get the VQ for that attraction which may allow you to change your booking or move up your ride time. We’ll see how it goes next month!

I love this.
I've seen sooooooo many parents who forget that they're there for their kids.

I did my best to remember that. It helped that we had other chances to ride Peter Pan (and I’d suspected we’d ride it on the second full day anyway, as M talked about becoming Tinkerbelle at the BBB).

I’m sure the honey wall is still gross, but surely they must clean it after closing? And if not, most of the germs must’ve died overnight?

That’s what I tell myself, anyway.

Yay!!

SUPER PUMPED doesn’t even come close. She was thrilled to ride it in real life after seeing the ride so many times on YouTube!

Awww.

It took L a while before she got used to rides - it was brand new to her! She did enjoy them more as we went along.

It was such a fun moment! I loved her catchphrase during the trip (and hope to hear it again next time!).

We were the only ones (seriously - NO ONE ELSE had young kids that morning?!), but it was nice to walk right on! M really enjoyed her ride!

Yuss!!

L loves spinning, just like her sister. I think she’ll be less nervous upfront the next time around!

Oh geez.
Better them than you!

I agree. I felt bad being annoyed (kids are kids after all, and sometimes it’s tough!) but I was nervous about being late for our breakfast. We would’ve had time to spare if the ride would’ve started right away. I hope their day got better!

Love this shot of you.

Thank you! I was so happy to be on the carousel. I’m glad G took the picture!

Whoa! Now that's dedication!

It is! I really enjoyed that breakfast, and it was a nice way to get into MK early. Back then the only way you could get into MK before opening time was with a dining or other reservation and I found it much more pleasant to enter MK without the crazy crowds.

Well, poop.

It was disappointing. The food was fine (and the churro waffles were tasty), but I really missed those favorites!

I don't either. At least not anymore. Maybe I never did.
But that doesn't stop me from enjoying them.

Me, either!

Awww!

It was nice she found another way to pass the time. The family next to us was very nice!

Not exactly a "character" meal, then.

I’ve never met all four characters at Crystal Palace, but always managed to meet three during my prior meals. I guess the lesson here is to book that first-thing slot and then stay away for the rest of the day!

This is a great idea!

Yes, it’s always worked well! I especially appreciated it for the pre-park opening breakfasts because we could bail the minute we finished (and beat the oncoming crowds to the attractions).

I’m sure I got that tip from these boards (perhaps the dining reviews?) and I’ve used it since!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

What I find funny is you!
One child freaking out. The other terrified of a possible loud noise... And there's mom. Just happy to be back at Disney, kids be darned!

I swear I was telling M it would be okay… but yes, I was pretty happy to be on Pirates!

And yet people wait 60+ minutes for it. Not me! (And not you, either, apparently. )

Heck no! The main (only?) reason I’m willing to pay for lightning lanes is I do NOT like waiting in long lines! I appreciate that others have that patience but I… do not.

Awww.

It was adorable.

That’s one of my favorite jokes from the ride!

I know you’re not a fan of Small World, but it’s a must with young kids. It’s also such a classic Disney attraction that I enjoy it, too.

He’s my favorite! I think I get a picture (or five) every time I ride that attraction!

Noted.

Don’t we all, though? No one wants to be around a hangry person!

Nice.

Definitely! Paid for itself, right there!

Absolutely!

Excellent choice.

It’s a nice quick service restaurant.

Love a good lobster roll. And if memory serves, that's a good one.

Yes, it was very good! I miss some of the sandwiches they used to have there (the veggie one in particular, even though I am NOT a vegetarian!), but I’m glad they have a few non-fried options still available.

Awww.

She was so excited to meet Rapunzel (and Tiana, too!). I’m glad the meet went so well (and I’m glad we could still book a lightning lanes for it and avoid the aforementioned long lines!).

I've not experienced that, but it really doesn't sound great.

It’s not the greatest. I probably wouldn’t think anything of it if I didn’t have past trips (and photos) with the live photographers. We made it work but it’s definitely a step down.

Go M!

She was nervous but I’m proud she gave it a try!

I felt so bad! I really thought she’d love it or I wouldn’t have encouraged her to go in the first place. Now she LOVES that same rollercoaster - we rode it a ton last summer!

It’s such a funny photo - I’m having a great time and it looks like M is NOT. (But she did!)

Great! Good for her!

I was relieved that she liked it! I didn’t want a repeat of the local amusement park fiasco.

Rider swap was a mixed bag. It was great for M (double rides!) but not as great for us as riding something took twice as long. I look forward to the time when we can all ride together!

G is smart.

Yes. It’s good to have a voice of reason (which I usually have - just not at Disney!).

 

[SimplyGoofy]

I'm not even a little bit surprised.

I was expecting L to sleep (as she did at home), but was surprised how easily M fell asleep (although I’m sure the heat played a role).

Gee... I can't imagine why you couldn't sleep.

Fair… but I tried for almost an hour before I booked that lightning lane. Once I determined sleep wasn’t happening, I decided to get up and took care of that as well.

I've never stayed, but... this just seems logical.

Doesn’t it, though?

That air conditioning felt spectacular. It was SO HOT during our trip - I think we had July and August temperatures during our trip. The Floridians we talked to (our airport driver, for example) said it was about ten degrees warmer than usual for that time of year. Lucky us!

Interesting. I would not have thought that.

I’m not sure if it was actually faster, but it seemed like it should be as we didn’t have an additional stop at the Grand Floridian. Also, Tokelau was pretty equidistant from the Poly monorail station and the TTC, so that seemed to be a wash.

D'oh!

ohhhhhh...

I’m glad we figured it out on day two instead of day six! Frankly, it’s thanks to G (and the TTC security guard) that we figured it out. The security guard pulled the game out of the back pocket and once G saw it he knew that was the culprit. He didn’t realize I’d put it in the bag!

It was a magical moment. I hope that girl and her dad enjoyed their evening in the Magical Kingdom!

Indeed!

I know Ariel is a favorite of yours!

Looking forward to hearing about this. Haven't been back since they changed it.

I had moderate expectations going into it. I loved the old experience (I’d order the French onion soup and the mussels - both appetizers, but plenty of food together) and was curious to see how the experience held up with the prix fixe meal.

There. Now I'm all caught up.

Tag. You're it!

Noted!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Uuugh, I didn't realize the photo boxes had made their way to Princess Fairytale Hall now, too!! The pictures are just NOT as good. Your family ones are pretty good considering no real photographer. We have gotten some absolutely awful ones with Mickey and Chewbacca that now if I know there are boxes, we don't even bother.

Yes, we found them in every pre-set character experience. We made them work and got some fairly decent posed individual and family photos…

I totally agree with you, only a person can capture those extra special moments like an expression or quick hug with a character.

But YES, this is exactly the problem with the photo boxes. I have some awesome candid pictures from Photopass photographers from past trips. I can always take those candid pictures of my kids myself, but it would’ve been more fun to get everyone in those candid shots!

My husband, Rob, is always the voice of reason, too, because he knows I'd just keep pushing through and a break is usually a better idea!

Yes, I’m exactly like you, at least at Disney World. Outside of Disney I have reason, but when I’m there I don’t want to miss a magical moment! It’s a good thing G insisted on the break because we definitely needed it.

OH NO! But at least you finally figured it out!

I was frustrated that it took so long (the Poly security line would’ve been short!), but glad to have solved the mystery. We didn’t get pulled out for bag check again!

I love that M was brave enough to go on Mine Train and that she really enjoyed it!! My son, Jimmy, is just not an adventurous guy. It took him til age 10 to finally go on and enjoy Slinky Dog after Mine Train scarred him LOL I'm hoping when we go back this Christmas, he will finally ride them all with me, now that he's a six foot tall 16 year old!!

I was SO happy she liked it (mostly because I still felt bad about the roller coaster fiasco from the summer before). It was also fun to try more and bigger rides as we went along!

Okay… what now?! Jimmy is SIXTEEN and six feet tall?! How did he get so old? Isn’t he still, like, ten?!

I hope you have good luck this Christmas! M still has a few rides to try (she put her foot down on a few, which you’ll see in future updates), but I’m curious if she’ll try more when we go next month. It will be fun to see both kids grow and change with each trip!

 

[missjackiemcg]

Okay… what now?! Jimmy is SIXTEEN and six feet tall?! How did he get so old? Isn’t he still, like, ten?!

Right!?! He's my profile pic on the DIS, and that is how I still see him, even though he towers over me now! He's still 15 but will turn 16 in a couple of months, and I just don't know how it went by so fast. I'm going to try to attach a more recent picture of him here! You can also find me on FB, Jackie McGonagle Lagoni, if you want!

It will be fun to see both kids grow and change with each trip!

Our Disney trips are my favorite timeline for how Jimmy has grown and changed over the years. Every trip is new and exciting in different ways as he grows. I hope we still have lots more Disney trips to look forward to!!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Nice! I think this is the only positive review of Chef Mickey's I've heard LOL but I'm so glad it was a good experience for you guys!

I had pretty low expectations (I was there for my kids, and me, to enjoy the characters), but was very pleased that the food was good. It was pretty noisy in there but it helped that the tables weren’t super close together.

I don’t think it will be a must-do every trip, but I’d certainly eat there again with kids!

the downsides of staying at a monorail resort...you get spoiled!

YES, 100%! I felt especially spoiled at the Poly since we had easy access to both the MK monorail and the Epcot monorail.

oh no!!

I was KICKING myself for missing that important 7:00 window! Thankfully I was able to move up the time by several hours (thank you, other people, for changing your plans!), but I still wonder what time I would’ve gotten if I’d been on right at 7:00. I didn’t make that mistake again!

such a cute picture! I love how all of you are excited except for L who is slightly stonefaced.

Yes, that’s L in every posed picture! For our Christmas card photo (which you can see in my latest PTR for March) I picked the photo where she was scowling the least.

Now that she’s older she’ll smile on demand, so that’s fun!

oooh that poor family. but yea, long time waiting on the carousel!

I felt guilty that I was annoyed (just pick up your kid and get on with it!), but I also understood completely. I hope that family had a better day as it went along.

Nicely done! You guys got so much done!

It helped that we picked lower demand rides, but it was nice to get them out of the way before there were any lines. I feel like it’s rare to walk ride onto multiple rides at Disney World outside of a special event.

Holy smokes, wow. That's horrible

I was unimpressed. I’ve never met all four characters despite my multiple visits to Crystal Palace, but waiting almost an hour for your first character seemed like too much. To see only two in an hour is ridiculous. The only reason I can think that I’d see three in my 30-40 minute visits is there were so few people in the restaurant.

1. that is brilliant and next time I'm at a disney buffet I'm doing that and 2. oh my gosh what is up with Crystal Palace characters? That's horrible!

Yes, it’s a great technique! Especially at the Disney buffets, the servers get busy and it can take a while to flag them down for your check. I do it nearly first-thing for the breakfast buffets and am sure to request the check between our main courses and desserts for the prix fixe meals. It’s nice to not have to wait an extra 10-20 minutes to pay once you’re ready to go!

That's awesome! I'm so glad you got to ride it twice - M needs at least one time riding something twice in a row, since she keeps asking when she likes it

It was great to be able to ride Pirates twice! I think that’s less likely with the new lightning lane system (the pre-booking fills the ride in the morning along with the afternoon), but it was a nice treat for this trip.

ba dum ssssssssss

Thank you, thank you.

(I love that Jungle Cruise joke!)

oh neat! The screens weren't working last time we rode Small World

That’s a bummer!

ooh they don't have real photographers anymore? bummer! I hate that - I 100% agree about the live photographers catching great moments.

Yes, they had photo boxes at each fixed character meet and greet. It really is a less magical experience with the photo boxes. I miss the live photographers so much!

Yay!!! Not gonna lie I was in suspense about how it would go.

Frankly, considering her nervousness during the ride… so was I!

breaks are 100% a necessity. Good for G!

Yes, I’m glad he was there to encourage our break. We needed it!

Oooh I feel this - for whatever reason at Disney I never sleep super well, despite being tired! Even just a break in the heat helps but the nap would be helpful. At least you put the time to good use?

The nap would’ve been so nice… but so it goes. It was nice to visit the GCH and chill in the air conditioning, though, so it wasn’t a total loss..

oh no! did you try the experiment later in the trip? I'm curious now if resort monorail from the poly or express from TTC is faster.

I don’t think we did! Perhaps we were traumatized by our long wait!

I think the Poly stop would be the best choice first thing in the morning, but I think it may be slightly shorter or a wash later in the day. At least we finally figured out what was setting off our bag!

oh wow...glad you figured it out!!

Yes, so were we. It was much more pleasant to go through security without the bag check!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Right!?! He's my profile pic on the DIS, and that is how I still see him, even though he towers over me now! He's still 15 but will turn 16 in a couple of months, and I just don't know how it went by so fast. I'm going to try to attach a more recent picture of him here! You can also find me on FB, Jackie McGonagle Lagoni, if you want!

Wow, he’s grown up! I love the recent pictures. I even wonder where the time goes and my girls are only six and two.

I don’t post much, but yes, I’ll try to find you on Facebook! I’m sure we have some mutual friends so I think I can locate you.

Our Disney trips are my favorite timeline for how Jimmy has grown and changed over the years. Every trip is new and exciting in different ways as he grows. I hope we still have lots more Disney trips to look forward to!!

I look forward to future family trips and seeing how things change. I’m excited for next month to see if M tries a few more attractions and can’t wait to see L ride the Tomorrowland Speedway and Alien Swirling Saucers for the first time.

I’m sure you have more trips to enjoy with Jimmy! Think of how fun it will be to travel with him and his future family, just as you did with your parents!

 

[pkondz]

I don’t know why I had so much trouble sleeping. Thankfully the first night was the worst - I think I got more tired as the trip went along (plus I felt more confident about new-to-me things like lightning lanes) so I slept better.

Glad to hear it got better.

Thankfully, M (and L) slept well during the trip, which helped a ton!

Nothing like Disney to knock the kiddos out!

I know. I don’t see it slowing down anytime soon since so many people are willing to pay more to improve their experience.

Yup.
I'm one of them.

Fair. I was VERY giddy!

I agree! The castle is the most iconic, but I’m excited to see the icon for any of the four parks. All of them make me happy!

I’m sure the honey wall is still gross, but surely they must clean it after closing? And if not, most of the germs must’ve died overnight?

That’s what I tell myself, anyway.

Just keep telling yourself that.

It was such a fun moment! I loved her catchphrase during the trip (and hope to hear it again next time!).

I’ve never met all four characters at Crystal Palace, but always managed to meet three during my prior meals. I guess the lesson here is to book that first-thing slot and then stay away for the rest of the day!

Last time I was there with a DD, we made a point of not seeing any characters. I told a CM and they bypassed our table. Was a nice relaxing meal!

Heck no! The main (only?) reason I’m willing to pay for lightning lanes is I do NOT like waiting in long lines! I appreciate that others have that patience but I… do not.

Nor do I.
And Disney knows it. "You know those free fastpasses? I bet people would pay for those..."

I know you’re not a fan of Small World, but it’s a must with young kids. It’s also such a classic Disney attraction that I enjoy it, too.

Oh, I did it with my DDs when they were little. Heck, when they were older, too.

Don’t we all, though? No one wants to be around a hangry person!

I'll give you that one.

It’s not the greatest. I probably wouldn’t think anything of it if I didn’t have past trips (and photos) with the live photographers. We made it work but it’s definitely a step down.

Yes, but at least going to Disney costs less, so they can justify not having...

Wait..

It costs more???

I was expecting L to sleep (as she did at home), but was surprised how easily M fell asleep (although I’m sure the heat played a role).

The heat. The excitement. Rope drop...

I know Ariel is a favorite of yours!

TBH... I've toned that way down. I mostly did it for fun for the TR. But after that incident a few years ago, I felt it was better to drop that. I did have fun with the pictures up until then, though.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

I'm one of them.

Obviously, so am I!

Pay for lightning lanes? Absolutely. Pay to get all the fun photos with characters? Sure. Pay almost $100 to sit in the “exclusive” garden to watch Happily Ever After? Take my money!

Just keep telling yourself that.

I will.

Nor do I.
And Disney knows it. "You know those free fastpasses? I bet people would pay for those..."

No kidding! I mean, I get it, but I feel for the folks who have to bypass it in order to take their “once in a lifetime” trip. Saving time matters a bit less if you’re able to go more than once (or even more frequently). That doesn’t mean I won’t pay for it for most trips, anyway.

(But I do miss when the service was free!)

Yes, but at least going to Disney costs less, so they can justify not having...

Wait..

It costs more???

The heat. The excitement. Rope drop...

True, true.

TBH... I've toned that way down. I mostly did it for fun for the TR. But after that incident a few years ago, I felt it was better to drop that. I did have fun with the pictures up until then, though.

I figured it was for fun - I remember it from the trip report with one of your daughters. I don’t remember an incident (unless it was an incident with someone else?) but in current times I understand choosing different things to joke about.

 

[pkondz]

Pay for lightning lanes? Absolutely. Pay to get all the fun photos with characters? Sure. Pay almost $100 to sit in the “exclusive” garden to watch Happily Ever After? Take my money!

I figured it was for fun - I remember it from the trip report with one of your daughters. I don’t remember an incident (unless it was an incident with someone else?) but in current times I understand choosing different things to joke about.

This from google:
“On November 2, 2019, a 51-year-old sex offender was arrested and charged with battery after groping a cast member playing Ariel during a meet-and-greet.”

After that I decided to stop joking about it.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

This from google:
“On November 2, 2019, a 51-year-old sex offender was arrested and charged with battery after groping a cast member playing Ariel during a meet-and-greet.”

After that I decided to stop joking about it.

Yikes! Fair enough.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Macaroni ONLY!
Day 2 – Part VI

When I originally counted character meals, I didn’t include Be Our Guest as Beast wasn’t meeting guests directly during our visit. However, now that he’s back to greeting guests (hooray!), I’m adding it back into the character meals. That brings our anticipated character meal count up from ten to eleven character meals.

Meeting Beast is great. It was a highlight during my 2016 trip with my mom:

He even offered her a dance when he spotted her birthday button:

It was an excellent character meet - one of my favorite of all time! I’m so glad he’s greeting guests in the study again.

Onto our review!

Character Meal #3 of 11

We were let onto the bridge shortly after checking in. Molly beelined for a picture with a gargoyle:

We then could go directly into the building. Perhaps it was because we were running almost ten minutes late, but it was nice to get right into the air conditioning. I do love the entrance to the restaurant:

Molly was excited to see the stained glass window of Belle and Adam:

A very nice woman offered to take our picture together:

L (and M) enjoyed seeing the “knights” in the former QS order spot:

We were called in for our table just a few minutes later. I don’t remember if I requested it, but I was happy we were seated in the ballroom. I think it’s the most fun place to sit in that restaurant.

Our server came shortly and we placed our orders. Be Our Guest is now a three-course prix fixe menu instead of the a la carte choices they had during my last visit in 2016. I’m sad that my favorite “entrée” (actually an appetizer) is no longer on the menu – the mussels were excellent and I enjoyed them every time I went to Be Our Guest:

Au revoir, mussels! You were wonderful and I'll miss you!

One thing to note at Be Our Guest (and other prix fixe multi-course meals)… children under three do NOT get a full meal unless you pay the full children’s price for them. I somewhat knew this before our meal, but our waitress was very direct in that L’s option was mac and cheese.

And ONLY mac and cheese.

Thankfully, L loves mac and cheese (as you’ll see as we work our way through the trip), but I was a little surprised at how limited our choices were. I think they’d offer other things if there was an allergy issue (hopefully?), but for us… mac and cheese it was!

Although the (only) option was fine, I was a bit put off by our server with how matter-of-fact she was about L’s dinner. Perhaps she usually gets a hard time about this or her last table was rude to her?

Once our orders were in we spotted Beast walking through the restaurant:

It was just not the same as the formal meet and greet – I’m so glad they brought that back! (Especially for the price of that prix fixe meal!)

I think L was happy there was no meet and greet, though, as she could stay FAR AWAY from Beast but still get a glimpse of him:

M also wanted to check out the West Wing (although she was happy we were eating in the ballroom). She LOVED the enchanted rose but was a little nervous about the thunder:

When we got back to the table our first course had already arrived.

M and L shared M’s appetizer, fresh fruit:

G ordered the Sweet Corn Bisque:

And I, of course, ordered the French Onion Soup:

I was glad that even though they got rid of the mussels they kept this glorious soup. I LOVE French Onion Soup and it’s extra fun to eat it inside Beast’s castle.

G enjoyed his soup as well.

We also got some rolls with oil and butter and they were fine.

About twenty minutes after receiving our appetizers our main courses arrived.

M got the Grilled Steak with green beans and sweet potatoes:

You can also spot L’s mac and cheese in the picture. We gave L the mac and cheese but also a few bites of M’s meal. M liked the steak and green beans but was NOT a fan of the sweet potatoes. As L didn't really love them either (she does at home, but we usually have mashed) I should've ordered the french fries instead.

L LOVED the mac and cheese and finished the entire portion that we didn’t give to M. I also had an applesauce pouch or two for L to supplement her meal.

G ordered the Roasted Poulet Rouge Chicken, which came with a potato and a mustard sauce:

The menu also lists asparagus, but I don’t see it on this plate (perhaps it’s hiding under the chicken?). G liked his meal.

Despite strongly considering the Chef’s Special, Steak Frites, I decided to order a menu mainstay instead. I ordered the Short Rib Beef Bourguignon with potatoes, bacon, and red wine sauce:

This was REALLY tasty. G grills an excellent steak (plus, we live in the Midwest where we can purchase great steak) so I made the right choice.

In between our main course and dessert, I grew to love our server. Her name was Houda and she stopped by several times to check on us and to interact with L. She was happy to see that L loved her mac and cheese (and impressed she finished it) and kept saying to L, “Who’s your favorite server? It’s Houda!” which made L smile. As you’ve seen, it’s tough to get L to smile (especially with strangers), so Houda was special. I let go of my earlier bristliness about the “only mac and cheese” bit and decided that matter-of-factness had nothing to do with us. I should’ve given her a cast compliment given how much L loved her – I need to get better about doing that!

Dessert at Be Our Guest is preset (I miss that rolling dessert cart!) and we got those about thirty minutes after our meals.

M’s dessert plate was a dessert trio with an almond macaroon, a chocolate truffle, and a white chocolate “Chip” cup with paintable frosting (and a paintbrush!) and a dollop of grey stuff:

M LOVED this dessert. As you can see, she dove right into the Chip cup before I had a chance to take a picture!

G and I each got a trio as well, with a lemon jam macaroon, a chocolate truffle, and a chocolate tart with grey stuff:

I do enjoy the grey stuff (although I liked the grey stuff cupcake more). Our desserts were fine but mostly forgettable.

We paid our bill and said goodbye to Houda. We walked out of Be Our Guest just over an hour after we were seated.

What did I think of the “new” (to me) Be Our Guest experience?

Overall, I enjoyed our meal here. I thought the prior version without the three-course requirement was better (especially for the value), but I was happy with our dinner. Our food was good (I would happily order the French Onion Soup and Short Rib Beef Bourguignon again) and the atmosphere of Beast’s castle is always great. It would be very rich food for lunch but was fine for dinner.

The major downside other than the price was the lack of character meet. With Beast greeting guests again I think the experience is more in line with the high price. It’s still not the best value for money (or dining credits), but was solid and a much better experience than our breakfast that morning (even without meeting Beast).

As such, you won’t be surprised with the rankings:

Character Meal Ranking

1. Chef Mickey’s
2. Be Our Guest
3. Crystal Palace

It may have bumped ahead of Chef Mickey’s if Beast was meeting guests, but my ranking is accurate for our experience. The food and atmosphere had a slight edge at Be Our Guest but it’s tough to compete with meeting the Fab Five.

Up Next: Wrapping up our day at MK