rigsfhdgnv
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2008
- Messages
- 47
Day 1 - June 16, 2008: My mom, stepdad, nephew (Dylan) and I leave for the World from Wichita, KS. We arrived at the Orlando-Sanford airport around 3 p.m., had our luggage and rental car by around 4:30, and drove to CBR, where we'd be staying for the first 4 nights. My mom had called the week before we left and requested a first floor room, and either Martinique or Jamaica (thanks to my DIS research! thanks DISers!). They had told us we could have a first floor room, but that Martinique and Jamaica were all booked - but when we arrived, they put us in Martinique 2314! 
We were literally just a few steps from the bus stop, and not too far from Old Port Royale. We ate and settled into the room for a few minutes, and then my mom had the completely crazy idea to go to the Magic Kingdom for awhile. We went, and immediately upon entering, saw Pluto and Chip and Dale! I had purchased an autograph book at Old Port Royale while my family ate, and thought my nephew would get a kick out of getting autographs from all the different characters. He looked at Pluto (one of his favorites), and immediately decided that meeting him would be "too scary."
My mom and I thought maybe he was just tired, and decided to get a Mickey ice cream bar instead, to which my nephew was in agreement.
We went to Tomorrowland and rode Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (Buzz is another one of my nephew's favorites). He and I rode in the same car. In the middle of the ride, he suddenly stopped shooting and said he was "scared." Then we rode Tomorrowland Transit Authority, after promising that it wasn't scary or dark (completely forgetting about the Space Mountain part) After that, we couldn't get him to ride anything else that was inside, and reluctantly went back to CBR to rest.
Day 2 - June 17, 2008 We woke up early and ate at Old Port Royale. Afterwards, we went to DHS, hoping to get my nephew on some rides (fat chance!). My mom and I got fastpasses for the ToT, which weren't until some 3-4 hours later. We decided to walk around the park some, literally dragged Dylan into the Muppet 3-D attraction (which luckily was only half-full, so no one seemed to mind his whining, "but I don't like the puppets!"). Then we actually got to meet Woody and Buzz (I had to stand in line as though I was going to meet them by myself before Dylan decided to get brave enought to meet them, too).
Then we went to the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids playground, where, again, everything around us was "too scary." We walked around the park a little more, at which point Dylan became hot and tired. My stepdad valiantly offered to take him back to CBR so that my mom and I could stay and make our fastpass time. After ToT, my mom and I did a little shopping, and we met a very nice CM named Deb, who explained all the ins and outs of pin trading to me, which I'd been too bashful to attempt until we met her(thanks, Deb
)! I successfully completed my first trade with Deb, trading my Pocahontas pin for a Hidden Mickey Gonzo pin. My mom and I went back to CBR to meet up with Dylan and my stepdad, who were resting in the room. We all rested some more, and then went to DTD for more shopping! My fave part was definitely the pin traders store, where I took my nephew to make his first trade! (Thanks to a nice CM named Keira from England who gave him a "My First Trade" certificate!). Though my nephew enjoyed the pin trading, he seemed to like the Lego store better, and had to have his picture taken next to the Lego dogs.
Then it was time for more rest, as we were all tired from our first 2 days!
Day 3 - June 18, 2008 We went to Epcot in the late morning/early afternoon (where some VERY nice people saw us waiting to rent a stroller and gave us theirs as they were leaving!). The stroller made a HUGE difference in the attitude of my nephew. He was less whiny and didn't have anything remotely resembling a meltdown at Epcot! We managed to somehow get him on the Nemo ride and into Turtle Talk with Crush (both of those I thought, were super fun), and that night we went back to DHS for Fantasmic and extra magic hours. We got caught in a characteristic Florida downpour, and waited for Fantasmic in the rain.
After Fantasmic, my mom and I rode Star Tours (no wait with EMH!), and then the whole family went to Voyage of the Little Mermaid, which I think its safe to say we ALL enjoyed (the blacklight "Under the Sea" performance was pretty cool). As we exited this show, we saw that the Playhouse Disney doors were open, and went to see what that was all about. It was a Playhouse Disney dance party, and they were playing music from High School Musical, Hannah Montana, etc. Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Goofy were all there, and Dylan actually hugged Goofy (the closest he'd gotten to any character!), and danced with Mickey. The dance party was very loud, but equally cool. After all this EMH excitement, we went back to CBR for some much needed sleep.
Day 4 - June 19, 2008 Dylan LOVES the water, so on the 4th day we went to Typhoon Lagoon, where Dylan stayed most of the day in the wave pool and Ketchakiddee Creek, while my mom and I did a couple of the raft rides. Back to CBR midday for rest, and then back to Magic Kingdom for a second try that night. We arrived on Main Street for the end of Spectromagic!, and tried to navigate its crowds. Crowds freak me out, so my nephew very sweetly grabbed my hand and said, "don't worry, Tiffany, I'll pree-tect you." My stepdad had gone off to find a restroom, so my mom and I took Dylan on Its a Small World. Either he thought it would be scary or just plain didn't want to go on it, because he threw a fit, and the CM controlling the ride asked if he was ok before she would let us go. Well, he did go on it, and I think secretly liked it, but looked stormy the whole way through. By the time we got off, my stepdad was waiting for us, and we all went to Fantasyland. By the time we got there, Wishes had started (I'd never seen it before, but I enjoyed it immensely). After Wishes, we were amazed at how the park started to empty. Dylan and my stepdad had a short wait for Dumbo, and we all rode the carrousel together. Dylan and I went on the Teacups together, although I thought he'd throw up on me in the middle.
Lastly, we made our way to Tomorrowland again, where Dylan was soooo excited to drive at Tomorrowland Speedway. They even gave him a license!
Then, back to CBR for yet more rest (there never seemed to be enough)!
Day 5 - June 20, 2008 Check-out day from CBR
. Technically, though, we were still guests throughout that day, so we decided to do EMH at Magic Kingdom that night and go to Daytona Beach and check into our new hotel during the day. Daytona Beach was great, although we all got bad sunburns, regardless of all the SPF 50 we kept applying. Our new hotel was the Econo Lodge on International Drive (and not as nice as CBR, but my mom has already said she won't stay anywhere else again, since on property seems to be so convenient in every way). We had very little time to settle in before heading back to the Magic Kingdom, but we made the most of EMH and did everything we could. Mom and I did Haunted Mansion with no wait, Dylan rode Goofy's Barnstormer 4 times (before EMH, as this one doesn't stay open late). Mom and I also did Winnie the Pooh, Mickey's Philharmagic and Stitch's Great Escape (Dylan wouldn't ride Winnie the Pooh, he said the seats were "scary"), but we did get him on It's a Small World again, and this time he loved it 
. We also went back on Dumbo, the caroussel and Tomorrowland Speedway. We stayed right up until 2 am, when EMH were over, and we were able to use a free 5x7 voucher my mom had for Photopass right before exiting the park.
Days 6 and 7- June 21-22 2008 We spent these last two days at Universal, which cannot compare to Disney. The posted wait times were often inaccurate, the employees were not as friendly and the food was actually much more expensive! My mom and I both expressed that if and when we go back to Orlando, we'll probably just do all Disney, all the time!
This is my very first trip report, and I hope its what you expected, and maybe a little more.
We were literally just a few steps from the bus stop, and not too far from Old Port Royale. We ate and settled into the room for a few minutes, and then my mom had the completely crazy idea to go to the Magic Kingdom for awhile. We went, and immediately upon entering, saw Pluto and Chip and Dale! I had purchased an autograph book at Old Port Royale while my family ate, and thought my nephew would get a kick out of getting autographs from all the different characters. He looked at Pluto (one of his favorites), and immediately decided that meeting him would be "too scary."
My mom and I thought maybe he was just tired, and decided to get a Mickey ice cream bar instead, to which my nephew was in agreement.
We went to Tomorrowland and rode Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (Buzz is another one of my nephew's favorites). He and I rode in the same car. In the middle of the ride, he suddenly stopped shooting and said he was "scared." Then we rode Tomorrowland Transit Authority, after promising that it wasn't scary or dark (completely forgetting about the Space Mountain part) After that, we couldn't get him to ride anything else that was inside, and reluctantly went back to CBR to rest.
Day 2 - June 17, 2008 We woke up early and ate at Old Port Royale. Afterwards, we went to DHS, hoping to get my nephew on some rides (fat chance!). My mom and I got fastpasses for the ToT, which weren't until some 3-4 hours later. We decided to walk around the park some, literally dragged Dylan into the Muppet 3-D attraction (which luckily was only half-full, so no one seemed to mind his whining, "but I don't like the puppets!"). Then we actually got to meet Woody and Buzz (I had to stand in line as though I was going to meet them by myself before Dylan decided to get brave enought to meet them, too).
Then we went to the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids playground, where, again, everything around us was "too scary." We walked around the park a little more, at which point Dylan became hot and tired. My stepdad valiantly offered to take him back to CBR so that my mom and I could stay and make our fastpass time. After ToT, my mom and I did a little shopping, and we met a very nice CM named Deb, who explained all the ins and outs of pin trading to me, which I'd been too bashful to attempt until we met her(thanks, Deb
)! I successfully completed my first trade with Deb, trading my Pocahontas pin for a Hidden Mickey Gonzo pin. My mom and I went back to CBR to meet up with Dylan and my stepdad, who were resting in the room. We all rested some more, and then went to DTD for more shopping! My fave part was definitely the pin traders store, where I took my nephew to make his first trade! (Thanks to a nice CM named Keira from England who gave him a "My First Trade" certificate!). Though my nephew enjoyed the pin trading, he seemed to like the Lego store better, and had to have his picture taken next to the Lego dogs.
Then it was time for more rest, as we were all tired from our first 2 days!
Day 3 - June 18, 2008 We went to Epcot in the late morning/early afternoon (where some VERY nice people saw us waiting to rent a stroller and gave us theirs as they were leaving!). The stroller made a HUGE difference in the attitude of my nephew. He was less whiny and didn't have anything remotely resembling a meltdown at Epcot! We managed to somehow get him on the Nemo ride and into Turtle Talk with Crush (both of those I thought, were super fun), and that night we went back to DHS for Fantasmic and extra magic hours. We got caught in a characteristic Florida downpour, and waited for Fantasmic in the rain.
After Fantasmic, my mom and I rode Star Tours (no wait with EMH!), and then the whole family went to Voyage of the Little Mermaid, which I think its safe to say we ALL enjoyed (the blacklight "Under the Sea" performance was pretty cool). As we exited this show, we saw that the Playhouse Disney doors were open, and went to see what that was all about. It was a Playhouse Disney dance party, and they were playing music from High School Musical, Hannah Montana, etc. Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Goofy were all there, and Dylan actually hugged Goofy (the closest he'd gotten to any character!), and danced with Mickey. The dance party was very loud, but equally cool. After all this EMH excitement, we went back to CBR for some much needed sleep.
Day 4 - June 19, 2008 Dylan LOVES the water, so on the 4th day we went to Typhoon Lagoon, where Dylan stayed most of the day in the wave pool and Ketchakiddee Creek, while my mom and I did a couple of the raft rides. Back to CBR midday for rest, and then back to Magic Kingdom for a second try that night. We arrived on Main Street for the end of Spectromagic!, and tried to navigate its crowds. Crowds freak me out, so my nephew very sweetly grabbed my hand and said, "don't worry, Tiffany, I'll pree-tect you." My stepdad had gone off to find a restroom, so my mom and I took Dylan on Its a Small World. Either he thought it would be scary or just plain didn't want to go on it, because he threw a fit, and the CM controlling the ride asked if he was ok before she would let us go. Well, he did go on it, and I think secretly liked it, but looked stormy the whole way through. By the time we got off, my stepdad was waiting for us, and we all went to Fantasyland. By the time we got there, Wishes had started (I'd never seen it before, but I enjoyed it immensely). After Wishes, we were amazed at how the park started to empty. Dylan and my stepdad had a short wait for Dumbo, and we all rode the carrousel together. Dylan and I went on the Teacups together, although I thought he'd throw up on me in the middle.
Lastly, we made our way to Tomorrowland again, where Dylan was soooo excited to drive at Tomorrowland Speedway. They even gave him a license!
Then, back to CBR for yet more rest (there never seemed to be enough)!
Day 5 - June 20, 2008 Check-out day from CBR
. Technically, though, we were still guests throughout that day, so we decided to do EMH at Magic Kingdom that night and go to Daytona Beach and check into our new hotel during the day. Daytona Beach was great, although we all got bad sunburns, regardless of all the SPF 50 we kept applying. Our new hotel was the Econo Lodge on International Drive (and not as nice as CBR, but my mom has already said she won't stay anywhere else again, since on property seems to be so convenient in every way). We had very little time to settle in before heading back to the Magic Kingdom, but we made the most of EMH and did everything we could. Mom and I did Haunted Mansion with no wait, Dylan rode Goofy's Barnstormer 4 times (before EMH, as this one doesn't stay open late). Mom and I also did Winnie the Pooh, Mickey's Philharmagic and Stitch's Great Escape (Dylan wouldn't ride Winnie the Pooh, he said the seats were "scary"), but we did get him on It's a Small World again, and this time he loved it . We also went back on Dumbo, the caroussel and Tomorrowland Speedway. We stayed right up until 2 am, when EMH were over, and we were able to use a free 5x7 voucher my mom had for Photopass right before exiting the park.Days 6 and 7- June 21-22 2008 We spent these last two days at Universal, which cannot compare to Disney. The posted wait times were often inaccurate, the employees were not as friendly and the food was actually much more expensive! My mom and I both expressed that if and when we go back to Orlando, we'll probably just do all Disney, all the time!
This is my very first trip report, and I hope its what you expected, and maybe a little more.
