Mandymouse’s ‘Free Dining Here I Come’ Report – Part 1

[mandymouse]

Castmembers

Mandy (44) & Paul (43)

Becky (15) & Kerry (17)

Friday 15th August ‘08

I had a nice, easy start to the day. I did a bit of cleaning, washing, hovering, and had a relaxing bath before dropping the girls off at their friend’s house at 10.30am and then I went to get my nails done

Paul got home from work around 3.45pm and after finishing our packing, we picked the girls up from their friend’s at 4.20pm and we were on our way to Manchester

We checked into the Travelodge, and then popped to the Trafford Centre for dinner.

We had dinner at Frankie & Benny’s and then we wandered around the shopping centre for a couple of hours where I bought a CD and some bits from Claire’s Accessories

We got back to the hotel around 9.30pm and caught the end of Big Brother (bye bye Stu), and we all fell asleep quite early, and surprisingly we all slept quite well

Saturday 16th August ‘08

The alarm went off around 5.30am and we were checked out by 6.15am

We arrived on the top floor of the terminal one car park for 6.30am and the QPark Meet & Greet chauffeur was there to take our car away.

We were travelling with Thomas Cook for the first time. We missed not being able to do the night before check in that we used to do with MyTravel, and when we entered the terminal, we were shocked at how long the queue was for check-in. Thankfully after a quick wander round, I found a different area to check in for the Sanford flight (phew !!!)

Within 10 minutes we were checked in (we had already pre-booked our seats) and then heading towards departures. This area has changed since our last flight from Manchester. It looks like it still being renovated, but you don’t get to the shops until you go through the new security area, and that area takes you straight into Duty Free (I hope that changes, as it was so busy in there)

We had breakfast in the lounge, and then I bought the girls some Rock & Rose perfume from Duty Free

Our flight was called at 8.30am and we had boarded by 9.15am. Our flight should’ve left at 9.30am, but we were delayed while strollers and luggage were still being put on, so we didn’t leave till around 10.10am

Our flight was very uneventful. The food was OK. We had chicken with veggies for lunch and penne pasta later on. I didn’t watch any of the movies (there wasn’t much on to be honest), so I read virtually all the way, so the flight felt that it went quite quickly

We landed at 2.10pm (20 minutes late). We were one of the first off and through passport control. We didn’t have to wait long for our luggage, though we were chosen to have our suitcases scanned and they only asked to have one opened

We picked up our car from Alamo, and again it was quiet as we were out of the airport so quick

We checked into the Caribbean Beach Resort around 4pm and we had a preferred room in Martinique (Room 2508), a nice area with only a few minutes walk to the Old Port Royale food court. We unpacked and had our first meal at the food court using our Free Dining Plan credits. I was thrilled that I could have the Rotisserie Chicken there (I’m easily pleased ). Kerry had the chicken too, Becky had a cheeseburger and Paul had a chicken sandwich

After dinner we headed over to the Florida Mall. Kerry bought a cardigan from Hollister and Becky saw a dress that she may get for her school prom, but she needs to go back and try it on

After the Florida Mall, we stopped at Wal-Mart and stocked up on Mountain Dew, water, Oreo’s and Lay’s chips

We were shattered after our long day, so we were all in bed by 9.30pm

 

[mandymouse]

Sunday 17th August ‘08

I was wide awake at 4.30am, and by 5.30am I was on the DIS as everyone was virtually awake

We took our time getting ready and we were out of the CBR by 8.15am and we were on our way to the Polynesian Resort for our 9am ADR at O’Hana’s

We had a lovely breakfast. I love this place, it has a great atmosphere and of course I get to see Stitch The food was really nice (fruit, breads, bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, potato wedges and Mickey waffles) and we really enjoyed the orange and pomegranate juice. We saw Stitch, Lilo, Pluto and Mickey

After breakfast we headed back to the CBR for a swim and sunbathe

Later in the afternoon we went to Festival Bay and DownTown Disney where the girls parted with more $$

After dropping the car back at the CBR, we caught the bus to Epcot. We used snack credits on cakes and pastries in The Land and we paid for a Smirnoff Ice for Paul and a White Zinfandel for me. We wandered around World Showcase and had a couple of drinkypoos in the Rose & Crown, a couple of glasses of wine in Germany and some curries in Japan for dinner

We caught the bus back to the CBR and we had an early night

 

[wickesy]

Great start Mandy. I love Mountain Dew too!

 

[Jets fan]

Love your report. What a great first day although I don't know how you had the energy to shop, I'm usually shattered. Looking forward to reading the rest.

 

[mandymouse]

Monday 18th August ‘08

We were up around 6.45am this morning as it was EMH’s at Animal Kingdom today. We arrived just before 8am. We went straight in, and as we had missed the opening ceremony, we went straight to Expedition Everest. We picked up fastpasses and went straight on it. We rode it 3 times altogether and then had a wander around the shops on our way to Tusker House. We checked in at 9.45am for our 10am ADR. Our beeper went off at 10am and we were taken to our seat. This was our first character breakfast here, and we really enjoyed the buffet (well you can’t go wrong with a buffet can you ?). We had a lovely time and we met Goofy, Donald & Daisy Duck and Mickey Mouse

After breakfast the girls got some cool spray tattoos with glitter done. Kerry had Goofy on her wrist and Becky had Squirt (from Finding Nemo) on her shoulder

We headed out of the park around 11.30am and we went back to the CBR for a lie by the pool

This afternoon was our DIS meet at the Rose & Crown at 4pm, but Becky wanted to see the Bash Block Party at DHS at 3pm, so we made a dash to the studios. We had to park at the end of the car parking area and as we stood waiting for the tram, we had a downpour, we got absolutely soaked to the skin. We got into the park as the rain stopped and we were told that the parade would be a little late

Finally the parade started and it was really good (though we thought it had been shortened due to the weather). It was nice to see all the Pixar characters

We dashed back to the CBR to get changed, but by the time we got back it was already 4.30pm. I was really sorry to have missed everyone. I hope you all had a good time

Around 5pm we decided to head to the Mall at Millenia. The girls bought lots of clothes at Urban Outfitters and Hollister and Paul got a t-shirt from Abercrombie & Fitch. We had a quick look around Target and then we popped to DTD as Becky wanted to buy another top

We had dinner at the food court of rotisserie chicken and turkey dinner (mmmm) and then we went back to the room for an early night

Tomorrow we were heading to Epcot for EMH’s, but when we got back to the room we had a message from Disney saying that due to Tropical Storm Fay, all parks would be opening early for on-site guests - Hmm, surely a little tropical storm wasn’t going to effect us ? We’ll see …

 

[natalielongstaff]

Yay great start to your trippie Mandy, lovely photos

I agree about the juice at Ohana's its lovely !

 

[mandymouse]

Tueday 19th August ‘08

We left our room at 7.30am and it was pouring with rain. We got to Epcot at 7.45am and the rain was still coming down

The girls were meeting their friend at SpaceShop Earth, so Paul and I headed to Soarin’. We picked up fastpasses and rode the standby line. We then rode Mission:Space and went back to ride Soarin’ again

We met Kerry & Becky at 9.45am at MouseGear and headed to Norway for our 10.05am ADR at the Princess Storybook Breakfast. We had a photo taken with Belle and then we were taken to our table.

Once again we had a lovely breakfast. We helped ourselves to the cold buffet of fruit, meats, salmon, pastries and cheeses. Our server brought us plenty of orange juice and then she brought the skillet to our table of bacon, sausages, cheesy potatoes and scrambled eggs, and then she brought another skillet out to us

After our photo with Belle we met Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Mulan and Jasmine. We thought that this meal was worth the one TS credit especially as we didn’t have to pay for the photo, but I’m sure that next year, this will become a 2TS credits like Cinderella’s Royal Table

After breakfast we rode Maelstrom while the girls waited for their friend’s to catch up with them, and they went off to ride the rides in World Showcase

As it was raining on and off, Paul & I settled down in the Rose & Crown – or the freezer as it became affectionately know as – due to the fact that the air conditioning made the place so cold, and as we were so damp, it really was blooming freezing in there. In fact people would walk in and walk straight back out again as it was so cold

Anyway my 3 Bacardi & Cokes warmed me up nicely and later that afternoon we did some shopping in MouseGear before riding SpaceShip Earth. I hadn’t read about the changes at the end of the ride, where it turns around. I won’t ruin it for anyone, but I absolutely roared laughing when I saw it, and I really wished I’d taped it

We met up with the girls around 3pm. The rain hadn’t really bothered us as much as I thought it would, but we decided to head back to the CBR for a rest

Kerry stayed back at the room MSNing, so the rest of us went to Wal-Mart, where Becky bought a DS Lite and a Pokemon game and then we went to LBV Factory Outlets where Paul got some Sketchers

When we got back to our room, Paul & I went to get some dinner from the food court and then we stopped at the Banana Cabana pool bar (well it would’ve been rude not to) and we had a couple of Captain’s Mai Tai’s there (delish) while the rain poured around us

 

[mandymouse]

Wednesday 20th August ‘08

Our plans for today were to visit SeaWorld and ride Kraken for the first time ever. Well thanks to that cute little storm, those plans went out of the window. There weren’t any EMH’s today, so we had a bit of a lie in and went to DHS. We were looking forward to riding the new Toy Story Mania ride, but at a very busy ropedrop, most of the crowd headed that way too. We didn’t have too long to wait, probably 5/10 minutes and then we were on. Well we loved it. The theming is great and it is so much better than Buzz Lightyear’s ride in the Magic Kingdom.

After the Toy Story ride we legged it down to get some fastpasses for Tower of Terror. Once we picked up the FP’s, we joined the RockNRollerCoaster line. We had a good 45 minutes wait in the line, but we really enjoyed it once we got on. After enjoying our time with Aerosmith, the girls got more FP’s for RnRc and we got some for Tower of Terror.

We got some cookies and danishes at Starring Rolls and then used our first ToT FP’s. We were in the front row and had a great picture taken, so we bought that on our way out

After ToT, we had a wander around the stores and the girls had some lunch at Pizza Planet. The girls went off to ride RnRc and we rode ToT again. After our rides Paul & I had a couple of double cheeseburgers and the girls met up with us again

It had pretty much rained all day, so by 1.30pm we’d had enough, so we headed back to the CBR, where we just chilled and I did some washing

Later in the afternoon, the girls took the bus to the Magic Kingdom and Paul & I headed to Epcot as we had an ADR at Restaurant Marrakesh for dinner. Our first stop was at ‘The Freezer’ (Rose & Crown) where we had a couple of drinks

Next stop was our 6pm ADR in Morrocco. We had a lovely meal there. We love the atmosphere here and the food was delish. We started with a Marrakesh Express cocktail (a rum based drinkypoo) and for a starter, we had a Combo for two. For our main meal, I had the Roast Lamb Meshoui (Mmm) and Paul had Chicken Kebabs. We had another cocktail followed by a Marrakesh Delight (fresh fruit salad and mint ice-cream) for Paul, and I had the Moroccan Symphony (a selection of mini pastries). The meal was very good and I think this was the only meal that we had to pay extra for out of pocket – and boy it was well worth it

As we came out of Restaurant Marrakesh, we noticed that Aladdin and Genie were having photos taken

As if we hadn’t had enough to drink today, we popped to Italy, where I tried a Rosa Regale for the first time. I raised my glass to Karen (CustardTart), and I agree, it is very nice. We had a quick wine in Germany and then caught the bus back to the CBR

Once back at the resort we had a Captain’s Mai Tai at the pool bar and then had an early night

 

[mandymouse]

Thursday 21st August ‘08

We were up early (6.30am) as it was EMH’s at Magic Kingdom today. We left around 7.20am and caught the bus to MK. Once again it was raining, and by now it was really getting us down.

The girls dashed off to meet their friends again by the Castle, and me and Paul went to Tomorrowland for some shelter from the rain. We rode Buzz Lighyear, the TTA, Stitch’s Great Escape, Mickey’s PhilharMagic, It’s a Small World (wow, things were bad) and Snow White’s Scary Adventures.

We met up with Kerry & Becky at the back of the Castle at 10am and we checked in for our 10,15am ADR. We joined the line and took off our groovy ponchos. This was our first visit to CRT, and we only chose it as we had free dining, but at the same time, I was looking forward to trying somewhere new. We waited outside for about 15 minutes and we could see flashes going off where people were having their photo taken with Cinderella. When we were finally let in, we joined a huge line inside to see Cinderella. Paul took one look and let out a ‘Jesus, Mary & Joseph’ at the size of the line, and I hid in embarrassment

After our photo with Cindy (and Paul having calmed down), we were taken upstairs to our table. It was really nice up there, and the food was pretty much the same as the Princess Storybook Breakfast. We saw Snow White (who recognised the girls from PSB earlier that week), Aurora and Jasmine. After our breakfast, we were given our photo and we left.

Like I said, we only came here as we had free dining, but there is no way we would’ve paid to go there. I can understand that if you have got little princesses, that they would love this place, and there were lots of little girls that had visited the Bibbidy Bobbity Boutique before their breakfast – but I can’t see us going there again

After brekkie, the girls met up with their friends again. Paul & I had had enough of the rain, so after a visit to the Christmas Shoppe, and wandering through the shops, we got the bus back to the CBR, and the girls followed us about an hour later

It pretty much rained all afternoon, and when it seemed lighter, Paul, Becky & I risked a trip to Epcot on the bus ~ BIG MISTAKE !!!! as soon as we got there it began to pour. But being the Brits that we are, we thought we’d get on with it. Even after a quick snack break in The Land, it was still bucketing down.

Undeterred, we set off for Japan where we had a couple of curries and a chicken teriyaki. As we left Japan, the heavens opened and the park cleared out. It took ages to get a bus, and even under the cover of the bus stands, we were still getting soaked. By the time we got back to our room, we looked like drowned rats

After a quick dry off and DIS, we were all in bed by 11pm

 

[mandymouse]

Friday 22nd August ‘08

There were no EMH’s this morning, so we had a bit of a lie in. At one point I got up and looked out of the window and when I saw more rain, I got back into bed

We started waking around 8am/8.30am and after showers, we decided on a shopping morning.

We went to the Mall at Millenia, Festival Bay, Target and DTD where I bought all my pressies and my Halloween, Christmas Decoration and Secret Santa gifts.

Later in the afternoon, we caught the bus to the Magic Kingdom and we walked over to the Contemporary Resort for our 6.15pm ADR at Chef Mickey’s

After checking in, we waited 15 minutes and our buzzer went off

We were seated, and I noticed one of the ‘Bahama Mama’s’ Danielle (one of the girls who was getting our Cruise on Sunday). She was having photos taken with Chef Mickey & Minnie, so I went to get some food. Unfortunately, by the time I got back, she had vanished

Anyway, we had a lovely meal. We’ve never done dinner here before (we love brekkie here), and we really enjoyed it. We saw Chef Mickey, Minnie, Donald Duck and Pluto

After looking in the shops at the Contemporary, we caught the Monorail over to the Polynesian Resort, as my plan was to have my first Lapu Lapu. I’d heard so much about these cocktails, and they didn’t disappoint. Even though the area was very busy, we really enjoyed relaxing at the Tambu Lounge, and the Lapu Lapu was delish

After our cocktail, we caught the Monorail back to the Magic Kingdom, where there was an awful downpour, so we had to leg it to the bus stop

Once again after a little DISing, we had an early night

 

[mandymouse]

Saturday 23rd August ‘08

I was up around 6.30am and I woke the troops up as it was EMH’s at DHS this morning.

I looked out of the window ~ and OMG !!! ~ It was dry and sunny

At 8am the rope dropped and we (and the rest of the crowd) headed to Toy Story Mania. As we were rushing along, I could hear someone call my name ~ it was Danielle, one of the ‘Bahama Mama’s’ that I had missed at Chef Mickey’s the night before. After a quick hug and ‘hi’ I joined up with Paul & the girls, and while in the line, I was able to introduce everyone to Danielle and her family

Once again we really enjoyed this ride, and afterwards we went to get FP’s for ToT and then rode RnRc. We then rode ToT, and after running into Danielle a few more times, we headed out of the park for our 11am breakfast ADR at Chef Mickey’s

Once again, we really enjoyed the food and we saw the characters and twirled our napkins

After breakfast we drove to Target, where I bought some FHI hair straighteners

We went back to the CBR for some sunbathing ,laundry and then I made a start on the packing

We spent a good hour or so by the pool, and it was so good to see the back of the rain

In the evening, me, Paul & Becky went in the car to Epcot, where we rode Nemo & Friends (my first time on it and rather cute), we had some egg rolls in China and got a couple of meat platters from the Tangier Café. After one final Bacardi & coke in the Rose & Crown, we had one last look around MouseGear, then headed back to the room. Once back at the room, I finished our packing and had an early night

 

[mandymouse]

Sunday 24th August ‘08

We were up around 7am and we were getting very excited about getting the Disney Wonder this morning.

Paul & I popped out to the food court to use up our last counter service and snacks, and on the way I took some photos. While at the food court, we ran into Princess Jackson (Ginette) and we had a quick chat at the toaster (as you do )

We left our room at 9am and we were on our way to Port Canaveral ………. To Be Continued

Thoughts

Caribbean Beach Resort – Hmm, I’m not sure how to put this, without sounding like I didn’t enjoy it ~ we did like it, but we missed the Pop Century (how sad is that ?). It didn’t feel very Disney (yes we do like big, tacky icons). The room was really nice, but not much bigger than the Pop, but the Nemo theming was really nice. Our location was great, as it was only a couple of minutes walk to the food court. The beaches were really nice, but thanks to the rain, we didn’t get the chance to enjoy them.

Free Dining ~ Absolutely loved it. All that food, and we didn’t have to pay for it. But we did eat loads, and it felt like we were always getting ready for the next ADR. I don’t think we’ll do free dining again, I think we’ll just stay at the Pop and pay for our food

I’d love to say that Tropical Storm Fay didn’t bother us, but she did. We didn’t get to SeaWorld (though we will be using our tickets for our New Year’s trip) and we didn’t do many rides in the Magic Kingdom. I can’t believe that I didn’t get a photo of the castle this time, and we really were fed up of wearing our ponchos for so long

But, despite all of this, we still had a great time, and at the end of the day, you can’t do anything about the weather

Next ….. The Cruise

 

[BRobson]

The rain does sound a nightmare I think I may have cried and stamped my feet a lot !!!!

Sounds like you still had a lovely time - cant wait to read about the cruise

 

[CustardTart]

Lovely photos and great trippie, Mandy! Sooo glad you found time to try Rosa Regale...

Can't wait to read about your cruise...

 

[jtlover]

What a shame you had so much rain - love the look of your room though. Lots of nemo

 

[SusanEllen]

I've enjoyed reading your report of the first half/park half of your trip. You've made it so convenient posting all the installments on this single thread--the move of a TR pro! I also enjoyed the photos of your happy family that illustrate your words so well. Thanks for sharing. I'll be watching for the cruise reports.

 

[epcot1stfave]

Great report so far, looking forard to the next installment and your impression of the Wonder as we are going to be onboard later this month.

 

[wilma-bride]

Such a shame about the weather Mandy. Looks as though you managed to make the most of it anyway - plenty of excuses to head for the bar and get out of the rain

Looking forward to reading about the cruise

 

[Minniespal]

Such a pity that the weather was so bad Mandy. It sounds as though you didn't allow it tio disrupt your plans too much.

Lovely photos as always. Can't believe how much Kerry and Becky have grown up since your last trippie. They've both turned into lovely young women.

 

[KayleeUK]

Aww thanks for posting these Mandy (love you hair by the way ). The girls look so grown up now!

Such a shame about the weather Glad you enjoyed my favourite Lapu, Lapu though!