My First Trip Report

[Sbk1234]

FINALLY! A Walt Disney World Trip Report!!!! (Lots and LOTS of photos)
07-23-2016, 10:17 PM
It has taken a decade, but finally got back to Walt Disney World.
Because of course I did, I decided to shave off my beard and use a new selfie every day to mark each new day and monitor my beard growth.

Got up a little too early for the kids to make our EARLY fight.



So, a flight later with a layover in Denver and we finally made it to our destination. Our first stop: Disney Hollywood Studios.





It was great seeing Hollywood Blvd. without that retched hat in front of it.


We got a kick out of the Walt Disney exhibit, since we'd been to Marcelene, MO, and have walked down that street before.


Then it was time for our fastpasses and The Great Movie Ride.



Of course, the kids didn't like when Jennifer started singing along with the Munchkinland scene.

Nathan, Mikayla and I decided to see what it was like to be a star, so we put our hands in cement.

We also saw their Star Wars exhibit, and met a local dude.Nice photo, but it would have been better if he had smiled.


I didn't see the Indiana Stunt Show last time, so it's actually been since 1999 since I'd seen it. I was amazed at how little it's changed over the years.

Had to stop for a little rest and pose.

Then, it was off to lunch. The kids had heard us talk about the Sci-Fi Dine-In for years. I honestly don't know how impressed they were. But the old folks had a good time.



We kind of figured we were done with the studios, so we decided to hop over to Epcot. Samantha was tired, but her adrenaline was kicking in.

Mikayla was a little bit cooler.


Epcot is usually what I consider my favorite park. It is always a thrill to see Spaceship Earth as I approach.

And that HAD to be our first attraction.

I have to say, Judy Dench's narration is alright, but I still think the Jeremy Irons version was a masterpiece. I really missed that version of the descent, with the stirring music, compared to what they have now.

After, we started working our way through World Showcase, but since we got there so late, we only made it a little of the way around.

 

[Sbk1234]

And.........

DAY TWO!!
First, the growth.


For day two, we would spend opening to close at EPCOT. We started with Futureworld, hitting Nemo, and The Land. Everyone was underwhelmed by the Nemo pavilion. It WAS much better when it was The Living Seas, with the hydrolators and seacabs. But we liked The Land, especially Living With the Land ride. It had everything, including a happy man in with fish.





When we were here in 2006, we took a photo by the fountain, so we had to have that done.

Then it was time for Mission Space. Due to health reasons and some whimpiness, we all decided to take the calmer version of the ride. That is except for Mikayla, who is a dare devil.

 

[Sbk1234]

Then it was on to World Showcase.


I think Canada is one of the prettiest pavilions at the resort. Since that's the only country I've really spent time at besides the US, I feel a little more connection with it. I liked the new film with Martin Short, and I'm glad they saved the same theme song.


Also caught these incredible jugglers.

Often people don't realize how good the live entertainment is at Epcot.
When we got to the United Kingdom, I figured it was time for me to take my 13-year-old daughter to a bar. Father of the year.


Then we worked our way around. France is another highlight for us.

Back in 1999 when my son was 1, we took a photo of him with a big troll in Norway. i got a call from Nathan who said he was with an old friend and we should meet him in Norway. And there he was with the same troll.


Then it was back to exploring world showcase. The girls liked the relaxing boat ride.

We spent the rest of the day shopping, exploring, and enjoying the few attractions on that side of Epcot.

Samantha did get tired at one point.

 

[Sbk1234]

DAY THREE!!!
and ME!!
Starting to sport the Fred Flintstone look.

It was off to Magic Kingdom. The monorails weren't working, so it was off to the ferry.

This gave us some great views and great photos.

Security didn't take too long, and we were finally into the park.

As a Southern California, regular Disneyland goer, The Magic Kingdom is an interesting experience. It is simultaneously similar and unfamiliar. Anyone who has been to both has probably had a similar experience.


Haunted Mansion was a must for us. Got a kick out of the interactive queue.


And we really liked the new Fantasyland. It was done so well. Too bad Disneyland's Fantasyland isn't like this.


Enjoyed Gaston's Tavern. It seems they use antlers in all of the decorating.

It was not hot. It was HOT!!! So we stopped for a couple of cold drinks.

 

[Sbk1234]

DAY THREE cont.

Their facade for Little Mermaid was incredible.

And I really liked how they presented their Space Mountain. Especially the exit.




One of the biggest thrills for Jennifer and me was riding The People Mover.



For lunch we sat down to listen to the music of Sonny Eclipse. I always get a kick out of him.

One funny interaction with a couple of cast members came when my two oldest kids were hunting Pokemon on our way to Adventureland. Don't judge me!
The two cast members were virtually giddy with excitement with the kids' Pokemons.


I really like Magic Kingdom's Adventureland. I love the queue to Pirates of the Carribean.






Walking out of the ride, I noticed this lovely young cast member selling hats. I loved the extra effort she put into the presentation of her wares.


Then it was off to the Jungle Cruise. I can't say their version is any better or worse than Disneyland's, but it's nice to see a jungle that's different from what I know so well.


After the ride, I enjoyed a stroll through Adventureland on my way to Frontierland. My goal here was another cherished attraction now missing from California: Country Bears.



It was also a treat to cruise on the riverboat, since Disneyland's is closed for so long. Again, so nice to see things being different. Once thing I prefer at Magic Kingdom was their mill, which was much smaller and had a lot more charm than the big stage at Disneyland's river.





Well, the rest of the day went on rather Disneyish. While the females in the group decided to do some shopping at the end of the day, I went to meet Tinkerbell, who had no line.

It's a cute little area they have for the photos, but it's no Pixie Hollow.
It was such a fun day at Magic Kingdom that the only thing we could follow it up with was ANOTHER day at Magic Kingdom.
Stay tuned, kids!

 

[Sbk1234]

Another day, another bit of beard growth. Is it noticeable yet?


Now, it was day two in Magic Kingdom.

Still more to discover on Main Street. We especially liked the statue of Roy Disney with Minnie.




I think their hub is beautiful. However, I can't really remember what it looked like before the upgrade.





It was then a left at the Hub, and onto the past. Liberty Square is my favorite section in Magic Kingdom. I compliments both Frontierland and Fantasyland perfectly. And it contains my favorite Magic Kingdom attraction: Haunted Mansion.



While we were in line for Pirates of the Carribean, I was given the very important job of holding the red tag that helped them monitor the line!! Me!!! Of all the people, they picked me!!

It got even better. While sitting on the railroad, the conductor chose me to be the guest conductor!! I got to say "All Aboard!!!" into the microphone. Disney Magic!

And, of course, the views off the train were awesome.









Our stop would take us to Fantasyland, and lunch at Be Our Guest.







First, we had to order from a keyosk, but we managed to figure it out.

We loved this restaurant. The setting was perfect. We ate in the West Wing, which was dark, creepy and gorgeous. We also checked out the other parts of the place, including the ballroom.





When lunch was over, it was pouring rain, so we had time to pose for a photo while we waited it to dry.

 

[Sbk1234]

At this point, we decided to split up a bit. Samantha and I went to explore some of the resort, including the Monorails, Polynesian Resort, and Disney Springs while the others went to Blizzard Beach.




Later, for dinner we met up with the others at Port Orleans Riverside. Nothing too fancy to eat, just the food court, but the food was good, the atmosphere better. And then we engaged in our family tradition of a horsedrawn carriage ride.

 

[Sbk1234]

If my memory is good, it's now up to five days growth. Let's see, Day 1: Studio and Epcot. Day 2 Epcot. Day 3 and 4 Magic Kingdom.
Yup, it's day 5. Now's about the time I start getting sad because an end to the vacation is in sight.

Today we were going to do things a little different. Instead of rushing out to a theme park, we would start the day at Typhoon Lagoon. I like Typhoon Lagoon, largely because of the theme. Blizzard Beach is really well done, but seeing all that snow and ice in a hot Florida environment really screws with my mind. So I insisted upon Typhoon Lagoon.
Also, the kids were real happy because of Shark Reef and Crush and Gusher.
It was all fun until the storm hit and we decided to take off.





But, as I said, it ended up getting rained out a couple of hours later, so the girls and I went on with plan B. This would be our Four Park Challenge. We would try to tackle all four theme parks in one day. Our rule was we had to do one attraction in each park. To qualify as an attraction, we would go by the Disney guide map.
We started off at Magic Kingdom and went right to the Railroad.




We hopped on the Monorail to Epcot. This was great because the views of Epcot from the Monorail are the best!





We then ran right to Innoventions, and the girls played a couple of activities there. We said that counted.

We were in a rush, since we had dinner reservations. So we headed right to the Studios for the Fifties Prime Time Diner. This is another favorite of my wife and mine. Even though the food was good, the waiter wasn't the most colorful, so the kids weren't overwhelmed.

Well, Mikayla was enjoying herself.

And I got a sticker for cleaning my plate!! Not hard, since the meatloaf was pretty good.




Dinner doesn't count as an attraction, so while we were at the Studio, and no longer worrying so much about time since we didn't have any more reservations to get to, we took a ride on the Great Movie Ride.

I also decided to include this photo because the tour guide was very cute.

Managed to get a good photo of Munchkinland, too.

And finally it was off to the Animal Kingdom.
We didn't want to do too much, so we went right to Dinosaur since it was already nighttime. Unfortunately the photo of us in the vehicle after the ride didn't show much, but trust me, it's us in Dinosaur.

On our way out, we watched the new night show where they project visuals onto the Tree of Life. It was a really good show, but I don't know if I'd stay at the park for a whole day just to see it, so I'm glad we went there that night.
We accomplished our goal. That also included a water park, so I guess we did pretty well. So it was back to the hotel for another night to get ready for the next day at the Animal Kingdom.

I just noticed. Boy, are my arms hairy!!

 

[Sbk1234]

And now, ANOTHER DAY!!!!! How's the beard looking?

As I said, this would be our day at Animal Kingdom.





We started out early and had fastpasses for Kilimanjaro Safari. However, it was a walk on, so we just went through the standby line.



And we liked it so much, we went on it right way again with our fast passes.
I've never been too crazy about the Animal Kingdom, but this day we really had a good time exploring.




I will say that Animal Kingdom has among the best theming in the entire resort. The only part that even the kids weren't too impressed with was Dinoland, USA. We liked the part near the Dinosaur ride, but the tacky amusement park area did nothing for us. So here's some dinosaurs.





Even though we have Tough to be a Bug at DCA, the kids wanted to see it here. While we were waiting we saw the incredible art on the tree

and in the waiting area I took a photo of Samantha with a big ball of poop.

One highlight later in the day was at Rafiki's Planet Watch, when we sat in the sound booths to hear the rain forest in 3D sound. Mikayla was really surprised by what she heard.


But a big deal for the girls was Expedition Everest. I couldn't ride it due to my heart, but I managed to snag a few photos in the line.



We were finally having about enough of the Animal Kingdom. Jennifer wanted to see The Lion King show, so we did that. Honestly, I wasn't too impressed. It was just music, but no story. But that's just me.


So, we decided to explore my favorite resort that I've never stayed at: Wilderness Lodge. I think this is the most beautiful hotel I've ever seen.

 

[Sbk1234]

Day seven.

At this point, I'm feeling rather melancholy, since the trip is almost at an end. And my beard hasn't grown in as thick as I'd like.



Today will be an Epcot day. I still think of Epcot as my favorite park. Although it's changed over the years, and has even lost some of the quality of the "Golden Years" of Epcot, I still love it and see it as a high quality park.

It would be our last morning bus ride of the trip.

I still love the bus rides and spend the whole time staring out the window like a kid.
When we got there, we were able to take it slow. We had already seen most of the park so I was enjoying a slower pace to soak it in and savor the taste.
Some morning shopping. Some morning snacks.


We hadn't gotten on Universe of Energy yet, so that was first for the attractions. I have to say, I found this to be really funny and entertaining still. Perhaps a little dated by virtue of the ages of the actors, but still a good time.



And then it was on to Journey Into Imagination With Figment. I know. Not even a fraction of the attraction it once was, but I had to see it. It is what it is. I'll move on.




And then I spent more time just enjoying the environment of the park with the girls, while Jennifer and Nathan went off to do their own bonding.





Then we had our final fast passes. We trekked back to The Land, where Jennifer and Nathan would meet us.

We got there in time for them to be getting off Living With the Land.

I liked the new Soaring attraction. The new film is pretty good and is a nice change. I'm glad the music was based on the same theme by Jerry Goldsmith.
And then it was back to World Showcase.




Samantha is very fond of things British.


And then it was time for our reservations at Rose and Crown for dinner.



After dinner I worked my way around the rest of World Showcase. Around Norway I met these lovely two sisters who agreed to take their photo with me.


As things were wrapping up, I went for a couple more trips on Spaceship Earth.



It was a good trip. It had been a long 10 years away and I hope I won't have to wait that long to go back.
It was, however, real hard for my kids to pull me away.

 

[Barbara76]

I loved all your pictures and report, thanks for sharing. I also enjoyed seeing all your Star Wars and Doctor Who shirts!

 

[Sbk1234]

thank you

 

[DVC Katie]

Looks like you and your family had a great trip, thanks for sharing!

 

[Sbk1234]

We did! The only things that would have really made the trip better would be more time at there, staying on property, and MUCH bigger budget.

 

[CDnVA]

Great first trip report!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing. It looks like you had a great time!

 

[VACamm]

Thank you for sharing, it looks like you had a fabulous time! EPCOT is also my favorite park!

 

[vicwishes]

Loved your trip report. Looks like you had a super family trip. Your pictures are great with a few pretty funny ones. Thank you for sharing in the wonderful adventure!

 

[DeterminedOne]

Loved this! Thank you.

 

[NDollie]

so fun! thanks for sharing your experience...what a great family

 

[daisydee43]

Loved all the pics! Awesome trip report!