Not-So-Scary Escape from Parenthood, September 2024 Trip Report **Updated 11/12/24**

[Peyton McLean]

As you can read in the title of this trip report - DH and I escaped from parenthood for 9 days. We went to Walt Disney World/Universal Studios from September 21st - September 29th, 2024.

If you would like to read my many thoughts + changing plans - here is my pre-trip report https://www.disboards.com/threads/y...er-2024-pre-trip-report-updated-7-18.3949470/

This will be my very first trip report on the DIS boards so I would love advice, tips, and if you would like a different format

So, lets begin to discuss our stay at All Stars Movies resort, our very first Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween party, + my first time riding Tiana's, Tron & Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.

I will start with introductions first..
My name is Peyton, and my DH is joining me on this trip. We have two boys who stayed with the grandparents. I work from home in digital marketing and I specialize in B2B marketing. We went to Walt Disney World for our honeymoon in February 2018 (my first time) and I was hooked. We went again in January 2021 during covid times as our re-booked 2020 trip. Then, last November, we took our older son for the first time while I was 28 weeks pregnant with our second.

So, this trip was our second trip back to WDW as parents but kid-free! It was very hard leaving the boys, but it makes me so excited to bring them next time.


Now that my quick intro is over - lets discuss our recent trip to Walt Disney World!

 

[summerlvr]

Looking forward to reading more!

 

[Peyton McLean]

Let's get started

Saturday, September 21st, 2024
I woke up bright and early at 5 am - my body mentally could not sleep anymore. I was very excited, but very anxious since this was the first time we were leaving the boys for a long period of time (previously kid-free trips were just weekends). We had already packed the car the previously night, so all we had to do was get the kids ready and put them in the car.

We left the house around 7 am in the morning to meet my parents in Crestview, FL. We live in the Mobile, AL area so this was going to be an hour and a half drive. We met my parents at 8:30 am, and dropped off the kids. I will say tears were spilled.. by me. I think mom guilt officially hit me once we drove away because I knew how long we were going to be gone.

We were on our way to the Pensacola International airport. This was the first time we have flown out of Pensacola - we got an amazing deal for our flights with Silver Airways (~$258 with one personal item and one carry-on) (regional Florida airline operated by United). We parked in the parking garage on level 3 and it was very busy parking garage (we had to really look for a spot). I really didn't want to park on the top level in the sun since we were going to be gone for 9 days. (Seagulls are everywhere near the coast)

Once parked, we took an elevator to level two and walked the sky bridge to lobby/security. We watched this Youtube video on the layout of the airport - this helped us know if we had food options after security (you do).

Going through security took maybe twenty minutes, then we just took our time to the gate. When we are flying out/in, we always try to find a gate that does not have a flight that day or for a while so we can spread out and relax better.

We were relaxing near our gate at around 11:21 am. Our flight was scheduled to leave at 12:45 pm so we had plenty of time. I watched youtube videos + we ate lunch at Chik-Fil-A (which was very expensive, around $30 for a grilled chicken sandwich meal + 12 count nuggets (alone))



Around 12:00 pm, we headed to our actual gate which was on level 1 (you will see in the Youtube tour video). Getting on the plane was very interesting/new to say the least - we walked onto the tarmac and up very tiny ramp at 12:10pm. There was no group/zone boarding - it kind of was a free for all. It was kinda cool to have that walk up - but it was a smaller plane. We were on row 5 so we were right by the plane's propellar.




The flight was about 2 hours with boarding, taxing, actual flying. I took this picture below when we were walking off the plane in Orlando because these stairs were HORRIBLE. I was so scared of falling off with my carry-on because they were tiny and steep. I felt so bad for the older humans who had bags to carry. I took this picture at 2:36 pm.


I will say.. there is nothing like walking through MCO on your first day. Even though we were in terminal B, I was so happy to be there. Terminal B is SO outdated - I really do hope they update this in the future - I am assuming the airlines help with renovations but it was very 1990s.

Luckily, we walked straight to the airport monorail to listen to Buddy Dyer and start our vacation. We were waiting for family to come get us, so we had time to window shop + buy some Minnie ears (you will see these later on ). Also, we were SO happy we finally saw the historic "The Traveler" statue - I loved finally being able to see this amazing work of art + I love how the clothing trends always come back around (since its from the 80s).


So, now our family was ready to pick us up around 3:13 pm. We went to the Florida mall to visit the new Primark store + I needed to do some shopping at Sephora & BoxLunch.

We ate dinner at an amazing mexican restaurant, Agave Azul. This is a chain in the Orlando area but it was such a nice and priced-well meal to start our trip!

This is the end of our travel day - we spent the night with family so stay tuned for our afternoon at Disney Springs + our (very scary) check-in experience at All Star Movies resort.

 

[Peyton McLean]

Looking forward to reading more!

Yay! It was a very interesting trip to say the least

 

[buteraa]

Following!

 

[rdkeim]

Following!

 

[Peyton McLean]

Now lets enter the Disney bubble!

Sunday, September 22nd, 2024
We spent the morning with our family until it was lunch time! We were so excited to arrive at Disney Springs. It is one of my favorite free areas of Disney - also I love that you do not have to pay for parking!

We arrived at the lime garage (the best garage in my opinion - near town center area) at 1:30 pm. When we pulled up to the lime garage, it said it was full; however, cars were still pulling in so we did too! I am happy we did because there were around 20 spots open on level 2, 3 and 4.

We parked on level 2 and walked through Disney Springs security (love that this is a standard on all Disney property). We had already thought about what we were wanting for lunch, and I remembered how I have always wanted to try Polite Pig.

We walked up to Polite Pig at 1:35, and the line was out the door. However, the line moved very quickly. The cast members were giving out menus so by the time you were ordering - you knew exactly what you wanted. Also, there were cups and free water to drink - it was nice because it was a very hot Sunday.

We ordered and sat at our table at 1:50 pm. This restaurant is considered a quick service and they do accept the Disney dining plan but we paid with our Disney Chase Visa card (received a 10% off discount). I would recommend using your quick service credits here - it is a very expensive lunch for sure.

I ordered the Polite Rub Pork Shoulder served with Jalapeño Cornbread, Signature Polite Slaw and the Crispy Brussel Sprouts ($18.00). My DH ordered the Low & Slow Brisket sandwich - Prime Brisket, Pimento Cheese, Porter BBQ, Pickled Jalapeños and Onion Straws served with a Pickle Spear ($15.00) (left)


We received our food at 1:54 pm. I will say - this was a lot of food (for Disney standards) for $18. My DH had to help me with the meat + the Brussel sprouts. I think you could get a plate like this + an appetizer for two people easily. DH loved his sandwich and it filled him up without a side. He is not a pimento cheese fan but he said he didn't even taste that because of the other toppings - so keep that in mind. So overall, I would definitely eat here again especially if I have the Disney dining plan.

Now that we were full - it was time to window shop! I wanted to look for any more Minnie ears or souvenirs for our Disney portion of the trip because we had someone with us who could take them back to their house. We stopped at World of Disney, Marketplace Co-op, and other shops. We did not buy anything since it was very busy. We saw a lot of people in costumes so i assume they were at Disney springs before going to MNSSHP.

Okay... lets talk about (trying) to check in to All Stars Movies resort.

 

[Peyton McLean]

I say "trying" to check in because that is all we could do at ASM..

I requested early check-in because of MNSSHP (check-in is at 3:00 pm) so during our afternoon at Disney Springs I kept checking to see if we had a room number. Around 3 pm, I told DH that we should just leave and try to see if we need to physically check-in (in case the mobile app wasn't working).

We left DS at 3:06 pm and made our way to ASM. It was so many cars following the same path as us (assuming they were trying to check-in too). We arrived at the guard gate of the All Stars resorts at 3:36 pm. Like I said - it was very busy and a very long line to get through the guard gate. I assume it was because the three All Star resorts are beside each other. If you are driving, I would give yourself extra time to get through this gate if you are arriving around check-in time.

After parking in a "30 minute check-in" spot, we went into the lobby. I did not have much expectations (we usually stay at the moderate resorts), but it was very busy. I assume a lot of people did not get their room number on the mobile app, and the check-in line was very long. However, it was a Sunday which is usually the start of everyone's vacations. The cast member told us our room was still being cleaned (at 3:50 pm?) and they would text us our room number. He already gave us room keys so that we would be ready to go to our room right away.

So, we thought okay we will walk around until 4:15 pm, then we would see what we can do (and be super nice about it). I mean, we had a party to go to!

We walked around the gift shop, had a potty break, walked around the pool + take some pictures of the Toy Story area. We did not want to walk far in case we needed any help with the app once our room was ready.



At 4:15 pm - we headed back to the lobby and I waited again in the super long line. I will say cast members were working as quickly as they could - I think a lot of people were trying to get into their rooms. Once it was my turn, I asked the cast member (he was wearing a blazer so I assumed he was in management) if we could leave our bags at luggage assistance (I wanted to make sure they would be there at 1 am) so we could go to MNSSHP. He immediately said he would try to get us any room that was ready. I didn't want to lead with this before because I really thought it would be any second after speaking with a cast member earlier.

He was able to get us into a room, and we were officially checked in room 3725 @ 4:21 pm - so 1 hour and 21 minutes after the time we were suppose to be able to check in.

We were in the Mighty Ducks rooms (the area I wanted). We got into the room and dropped our bags & freshened up (like I said it was very hot so I needed to redo my makeup + put my hair up). The room was clean and smelled amazing - which I was grateful.



We left the room and got in line for bus at 4:48 pm. Hot tip - if you are in the mighty ducks rooms, you can easily walk to the All Star music buses. It said the next bus for magic kingdom was for 5:15 but bus arrived at 5:01 pm. It was a pretty packed bus, but I loved seeing everyone’s costumes! The bus played this is Halloween and other Halloween songs which I loved. We arrived at Magic Kingdom at 5:20pm - it seemed to be a very long bus ride. I forgot how far out ASM is from the parks.

Next - we get to party at our very first Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party!

 

[alexeis]

Following. Sounds like an exciting start!!

 

[DLo]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more.

 

[Tina1]

Thank you for the report. Can’t wait to hear the rest.

 

[Peyton McLean]

Let's party

***Background***
Last November, we went to the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas party on November 10th. My DH and I are very much Christmas/Holidays people- we love everything about it, and the party just was the cherry on top to begin the season. I believe that party was worth every single penny we paid. So, now we wanted to experience the Halloween party to compare (I know its vastly different). We paid around $350 for the Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween party for September 22nd, 2024. Our priorities going in was rides (Tron & Tiana's), snacks, and the parade.

Now let's talk about our experience!
As I mentioned before, we arrived at Magic Kingdom at 5:20pm - about 1 hour after we wanted to because of the checking in mishap. There was little to no wait to walk into the park. I found it strange that we were still going into "party only" guest stations - who would go into the park as regular guests 30 minutes before closing? Anyways, we walked into MK and we were motioned to go to the right to get our treat bags + wrist bands. I wish we got something else to commemorate like we did with MVMCP - we loved the ornament we were given. Cruella was out talking to the guest which made it much busier than it should be, but she was an amazing Cruella.

Now that we were officially in Magic Kingdom, we wanted to slowly make our way to one of our absolutely favorite rides, Pirates of the Caribbean. We took some pictures along the way + a potty break since this was our first time seeing the fall decorations!



We made it to pirates at 5:37 pm - so it will take you about 10-15 minutes to get through the crowds at this point of the day. Pirates had a posted 25 minute wait, and we were on the ride at 5:51 pm. Next, we wanted to ride one of my favorites - Big Thunder Mountain. The last time I rode this ride was January 2021 since I was pregnant last trip. We walked past Tiana's Bayou Adventure - I was SO excited for this ride. I had rode Splash Mountain before and I didn't really understand the story. Tiana is one of my favorite Disney princesses so I was so happy she finally received the recognition she deserved.


We walked into the line at 6:02 and it was a 15 minute posted wait - we were on the ride at 6:10. I missed this ride so much the past couple years - my all-time favorite family coaster.



Now we wanted to ride Haunted Mansion to get into the spooky spirit so we walked the bridge over to Liberty Square + took some photos.



Haunted mansion had a 30 minute wait at 6:24 which was crazy since we were in the stretching room at 6:31(which is when the ride starts in my opinion). This will be a trend at Disney World - very inflated wait times. When we walked out of HM, we noticed cast members at the Columbia Harbor House treat trail were telling people to come in so we did our first treat trail at 6:35. I was shocked they let people go in early since the party technically did not start until 7:00 pm.

We were getting quick hungry so we wanted a snack. I had a list of treats I wanted to get so I found one that was close to us. On our way, we stopped at the Mickey's PhilharMagic treat trail - we arrived at 6:55 with little to no wait.

Our first snack was the S’mores Cup: Layers of graham cracker crumbles, chocolate ganache, chocolate popping candies, milk chocolate panna cotta, and marshmallow cream - $5.99. We ordered at the window at 7:01 and we received it at 7:04. I know it is very simple but it was very delicious. We love traditional smores so this was a great cold treat. I am a chocolate dessert fan so this was perfect.


To eat our treat, we walked the long way around to Tomorrowland - by Be Our Guest and Tea Cups. We were on our way to Tron but we saw that Space Mountain had a 25 minute wait. We walked into line at 7:18pm and we were on ride at 7:24 pm. By this time, we really disregard wait times during this party. Now, we were ready for Tron. DH rode this last November with VQ and he couldn't wait for me to ride it with him.


It was very busy around Tron - there was a treat trail near here as well so maybe that was it. We were prepared to wait as long as we needed to, but it was a posted 35 minute wait. We walked into the line at 7:35 pm and we were at the lockers at 7:52. I believe after the lockers we waited maybe 5 minutes. As for the lockers - we did not have a magic band this trip since everything was on our Iphone + Apple watch. We could not open the lockers without a magic band or physical ticket so a cast member had to open one for us - which seems very silly. As for the ride, I felt like it was a very fun coaster especially the launch but I really wish it was 30 seconds longer. I would not wait more than 60 minutes for this if I really wanted to ride it again. We were able to get first row which we were super excited about.

After Tron, we followed the crowd to the Tron treat trail. This is a one way treat trail so you will end up in Storybook circus. We wanted actual food at this point to we headed back to Tomorrowland, and we headed to Cosmic Rays.

We arrived at Cosmic Rays at 8:24 pm and I mobile ordered our meal. It was absolutely dead in there - besides the Disney Junior dance party. I highly recommend eating around this time if you can because it took no time to get our food + you will thank yourself later in the party (craziness coming up).

We ordered the Terrifyin’ Twice-spiced Chicken Sandwich: Spicy fried chicken breast dipped in hot honey topped with pepper jack cheese, jalapeño poppers, and bacon for $13.29. Also, we grabbed a bottle water and a Sprite. Our meal was $22.68 for everything.


The presentation was not very appetizing, but the chicken sandwich was amazing. It was not spicy at all but it was very cheesy + sweet because of the jalapeno poppers and hot honey sauce. I would definitely get this again - it was enough food to share with two people. Also, what is with Disney World hating paper plates.. the baseball cartons (what I call it) do not hold food well at all + very hard to cut food in them. We were done eating at 8:35 pm.

Once we finished eating, we looked at the wait times and most rides were 5 minutes around us. We walked onto Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin at 8:41 pm and it was a walk on. We went to the Carousel of Progress treat trail afterwards, then we went to ride the People mover to take in all of Tomorrowland. We walked onto the People mover at 8:50 pm and it was a walk on. To finish off Tomorrowland, we walked through the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor (never been before) to another treat trail. There was quite a bit of people sitting in here around 9:00 pm.

Since we were done with Tomorrowland, I wanted to start making our way back to Frontierland for Tiana's. On our way, we noticed that Seven Dwarfs Mine Train was a 40 minute wait so we decided to do it. We walked into the ride at 9:12 pm and we were on the ride at 9:34 pm. Also, in the line, an older human literally ran right into my ankle with her ECV. It was sore the rest of the night so please be careful in the lines when you are on your ECV or as a someone who is not.

I am at my picture limit so I will continue our journey during the MNSSHP in my next post!

 

[ambula603]

Following as we are taking a similar trip next week!

 

[Peyton McLean]

Part two of Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

Now it was time for Tiana's Bayou Adventure. It has a 25 minute wait and we walked into the line at 9:50 pm. I knew we were gonna miss the fireworks, but it was worth the miss for me. We walked on the ride at 10:05 pm. The fireworks were going off as we were getting on and it was echoing very loudly since it is kind of cavernous. However, we were able to watch the fireworks on the ride during the outside portions which was amazing honestly. The ride stopped at the point where you could see Tiana's water tower, and it was the perfect timing to get some really cool pictures of the fireworks.




We were in the first row so we got soaked. A full on wave of water came onto us. The boat was not full at all - maybe 3 rows full. Be prepared to be wet especially your sneakers


I knew I wanted to wait for the parade in Frontierland (it seems to be more of a spooky spot). So we walked towards BTM again to ride at night. We walked onto BTM at 10:27 pm - it had been closed due to the fireworks so I think most people had the same idea. It was a posted 5 minute wait but we did not get on the train until 10:37 pm. This is the only time during the entire party the wait time was more than the posted wait time.

Now it was time for the MNSSHP parade and I wanted a good spot. We were able to get a spot across the street from Peco's Bills at 10:50 pm. We had 25 minutes before the parade, but I knew the Headless Horseman would start galloping earlier than 11:15. There was a lot of people already waiting for the parade in this area so I am happy we came early. I wanted a treat to enjoy before the parade so I ordered the Guava Lemonade Slushy with cheesecake foam, Halloween sprinkles, and sugar candy for $6.49. I mobile ordered this treat because the line to order at Peco Bill's was absurdly long. i noticed everyone was ordering multiple meals right before closing (11 pm). I felt so bad for the cast members because they mentioned to another guest they were 20-30 orders behind. I had waited around 10 minutes (trying to be very patient since I only ordered one drink) and my app never told me that my food was ready. i walked up to the mobile ordering area and told the cast member - he just handed me one that was near him which I felt bad since that could of been someone else's. All the cast members looks flustered because guests were being touchy about the wait. The drink was actually very good - the cheesecake foam was the standout part.


Like I mentioned in my other post - please do not wait until before the last parade, an hour before closing, or the last minute before the restaurant closes to order your food. You will save so much of your own time and cast member's time. I felt like a lot of people were still waiting for food when the Headless Horseman came through at 11:10 pm + some of the beginning of the parade.
Here is a screenshot of the video I took of the Headless Horseman - I was so happy we were able to see him since so many parties were being rained out this year. You can also see where we were standing for the parade - this was a great spot to be honest.


I absolutely loved this parade - I had watched this parade many times on YouTube through The Dis so I knew what to expect. I think this parade is my all time favorite now (bypassed the MVMCP parade). The cast members and characters were very energetic, and they just seemed to really love what they were doing. The parade ended where we were at 11:35 pm. It is a long parade since it technically starts at 11:10 pm when the Headless Horseman starts. Absolutely worth the watch!

Now, we had basically done every single thing we wanted to do, and we had 25 minutes to spare. We headed towards Pirates to miss some of the Main Street crows. We walked onto Pirates again at 11:37 with a walk on wait. When we got off at Pirates, we had 9 minutes left of the party. We made the decision to speed walk to Haunted Mansion to end our party the right way. We walked on to the Haunted Mansion at 11:58 pm with 4 other people to end the night. I love how the cast members were being extra spooky and "dead" during the party.


After Haunted Mansion, it was past midnight so we could slowly walk out to the buses. The cast members were directing us to walk through Liberty Square past the Christmas shop to Main Street. We were officially walking out of Magic Kingdom at 12:22 am and made to the All Star Music busses at 12:30 am. I knew we were in for a long bus ride so we got comfy at the back of the bus. We did not have to wait long for a bus since it was already waiting for us. We made it back to All Star Music at 12:50 am.

So, I can properly give my opinion if Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party is worth the $355 for two people. In my opinion, I think this party could replace your Magic Kingdom park day if you can get here at 4 pm. In the 6 hours and 40 minutes we were in Magic Kingdom, we were able to eat a full meal, one snack, and one specialty drink. We rode 12 rides including 7 dwarfs, Tron, Tiana's, and we rode Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain, and Pirates twice. Also, we were able to go through 5 treat trails which these were not a priority. I do believe the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party as a whole is better, but I did enjoy the MNSSHP parade better in Frontierland.

Next we are headed back to Magic Kingdom on Monday, September 23rd (roughly 6 hours later)!

 

[ambula603]

Glad to hear you had a great party! We have been once before and it was hotter than the surface of the sun (and we were in full costume) so this year I decided to go more low-key with just tee shirts and shorts. Well, now it is supposed to rain all day and night. It just may not be the event for us! But I loved the parade location you shared, will try to find that!

 

[Peyton McLean]

Glad to hear you had a great party! We have been once before and it was hotter than the surface of the sun (and we were in full costume) so this year I decided to go more low-key with just tee shirts and shorts. Well, now it is supposed to rain all day and night. It just may not be the event for us! But I loved the parade location you shared, will try to find that!

With the hurricane coming, we had no idea if we would be rained out or not. We are use to this weather as fellow southerners, but it is always hit or miss. August to November is always so up in the air on weather. Another point for MVMCP I guess

 

[Peyton McLean]

We showered, we slept.. now back to Magic Kingdom!

Monday, September 23rd, 2024
I am calling this one of our best Magic Kingdom days we have ever had at WDW. Our plan was to have not a plan for today since we did everything we wanted to the night before at the party. Also, we did purchase LL, but we did not purchase any LL+ for Tron or Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.

If you cannot recall, we got back to our room at All Star Movies at 12:50 am. We left our room Monday morning at 7:20 am. With two younger children, we are very use to no sleep + we are at WDW! We walked over to All Star Music bus station and we were the last to get on at 7:23 am - perfect timing! Again, this is a long bus ride to Magic Kingdom - we did not arrive until 7:42 am. As a resort guest, you get early park entry at 8:30 am, but we wanted to get here early to get coffee + take some pictures!

Holy moly - the lines to get into Magic Kingdom were very long. My tip is to go towards the Resort Boat launches and get in those lines. Everyone from the buses tend to get into the first lines they see. It still took a awhile to get in, but we were officially past the turnstiles at 7:56 am. We weren't "on a mission" for the first time ever so we casually walked in + took photos!


We knew the first thing we needed was coffee and we didn't care how long the line was. We walked into Starbucks at 8:02 am - it was completely empty! We have never seen it like this before park opening, but maybe a lot of people went to the party last night & were not crazy like us. We received our coffee fairly quickly so we slowly walked around the hub and went to sit in front of the castle beside the Mirabel meet and greet. It was currently 8:09 am, so we had 21 minutes until early park entry.


When we arrived in this area at 8:09 am, there was only couple of people waiting. We actually sat down with amazing view of the castle. As it did get closer to 8:30 am, it was getting very crowded - which I guess some people didn't even see us since they were literally standing in front of us (inches to our faces). Just be aware of the people around you!
When 8:30 am hit, we had one thing we wanted to do - get a cinnamon roll from Gaston's Tavern. However, we walked over there and it didn't open until 9:00 am. To make the wait quicker, we decided to ride Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid. We walked into the queue at 8:47 am and it was a complete walk on (one family ahead of us). Now it was 8:55 am, so we walked back to Gaston's Tavern. Now there was a line outside the door but once it hit 9:00 am, the line moved very quickly. We ordered the Warm Cinnamon Roll for $6.99. I took a picture but I wasn't quick enough before DH dived in (he did learn eventually). Also there are bathrooms right beside Gaston's Tavern - there are some of my favorites that most people don't even know about.





Now, we were honestly just doing whatever we wanted. I asked DH if he wanted to ride Big Thunder Mountain to walk us up even more. We entered the queue at 9:22 am and it was a posted 10 minute wait - we were on the ride at 9:31 am. As we were walking off BTM, we heard the Walt Disney World Railroad so we decided to ride. We haven't rode the train since our honeymoon in 2018. We walked over to the train station in Frontierland and it was a 10 minute posted wait. We were at the train station at 9:44 am, and the next train arrived at 9:49 am. The train was almost completely empty. We sat in the very back, and honestly it was so relaxing.

We rode the train until the Main Street train station. It was 10:04 am when we got off. I think this is the best way to get off your feet or if you have more time to make your way across the park. We wanted to make our way down Main Street again, and walk towards Adventureland. We noticed the Tiki Room had another show in 4 minutes, so we wanted to go in! I love the Tiki room - it such a nice quick show and I truly think this is what "Disney Magic" is about. We walked into the line at 10:24, and we were in our seats at 10:29 am. The show ended at 10:43 am - it was a pretty packed show which made me so happy.

We had our first Lightening Lane to use, and it was for Pirates of the Caribbean. We scanned in at 10:45 am, and we were on the ride at 10:49 am. In the line, I made our next LL for Space Mountain from 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm. We had another LL for Peter Pan's Flight for 11:30, so we had about 40 minutes to "kill". DH and I made the decision to see the new Country Bears Jamboree show.

If you knew us before, we were CBJ enthusiasts so we were so sad when they completely changed the show (we get it okay). It was a 15 minute posted wait and it was 11:03 am. We were in our seats at 11:14 am, and the show was something.. I feel like the songs that were chosen for the characters didn't match who they were. For example, Trixie is not an upbeat pop star like she is portrayed in the new show. However, the show was packed and this was the ultimately what Disney wants.

Now it was time for our LL for Peter Pan's Flight. It was 11:35 am so we scanned in - it was a complete walk on so we were on the ride at 11:37 am. I will only ride this ride if I have a LL or during a extra ticketed party.

Now it was time for lunch, and we actually leave the park mid-day for the first time ever!

 

[Peyton McLean]

Let's get some lunch!

We didn't really know where we were going to eat at all in Magic Kingdom - I know the food options aren't that good unless you booked dining 60 days ago. We could book Jungle Skipper Canteen for lunch time the day before, but we ate here in January 2021. DH and I discussed actually leaving the park for lunch, and our family suggested Steakhouse 71 at the Contemporary Resort. So, we decided to leave the Magic Kingdom to see the Contemporary Resort for the first time. We left the park and hopped onto the monorail at 11:52 am. Our lunch reservation with our family was at 12:20 pm, so we wanted some time to walk around the resort. We arrived at the Contemporary resort at 11:58 pm. When you get off the monorail at the Contemporary resort, you are on floor 4 - we walked around the gift shops here, but it was very loud area since Chef Mickeys is on the 4th floor. Steakhouse 71 is on the first floor, so we took the escalators down. We walked up to our reservation at 12:20 pm, and we were sat at our table immediately.

The restaurant is actually very nice - cloths on the table type of restaurant. Our waitress was very nice, and she was always there when we needed her. The restaurant wasn't very busy, but I did notice it was an older crowd eating lunch. As an appetizer, we ordered the Steakhouse 71 Onion Rings - Hand-breaded with Spicy "Ranch" Dipping Sauce (Plant-based) - $10.00. These were giving me Outback blooming onion vibes with a spicy sauce (10/10 in my opinion). The onion rings were thick, and we got about 6-8 of them. I didn't take any photos because we were very hungry at this point. I will add pictures below of what it should look like. For our mains, DH ordered the Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Herb Aïoli, Mozzarella, Avocado, and Bacon (comes with fries) - $19.00. DH didn't think it was anything special, and I couldn't find a picture of this on the web. I ordered the Stack Burger - Signature Blend of Beef, Pork Belly, American Cheese, Lemon Aïoli, Red Onion, House-made Pickles, on a Brioche Bun with Petite Caesar Salad - $23.00. This was by far the best Disney World burger I have ever tasted. It was amazing! The salad on the side was the kind where they give you a huge wedge and put dressing on it - I would get the fries next time. The fries are the waffle fries (like Chik-Fil-A).



I would eat here again, but I want to try dinner - our family said it was better at dinner since it is a steakhouse. We started walking back to Magic Kingdom from the Contemporary resort at 1:15 pm and we were at the MK gate at 1:25 pm. This was such a nice walk since we could see the train pass by - I wouldn't hate to do this walk every time if we stayed there.

More photos were taken of the train station!


Now we were back in the park with our family (two other people, AP holders). We had our Space Mountain LL starting at 1:30 pm so we walked to Tomorrowland. We scanned in at 1:35 pm and it was a complete walk on. As we were walking in the queue, we were able to get a LL for Tiana's at 2:30 pm which completely shocked us. I figured someone had cancel their LL once they figured out how wet you got. After Space Mountain, we had time to "kill" at 1:40 pm.

Since we had waters at lunch, we thought it was time for another Starbucks stop. It was a very hot September day, and I had forgotten my sunblock. We arrived at Starbucks at 1:55 pm and it was much more packed than in the morning. It was parade time + very hot so we knew it was going to be. However, we all ordered teas/refreshers so our drinks were made fairly quickly. This picture was taken at 2:06 pm.



We wanted to be indoors so we decided to see the next Mickey's PhilharMagic show. We arrived at 2:15 pm and we were in our seats at 2:30 pm. I love this show, and the kids always eat it up! It was time to head to Tiana's Bayou Adventure, but we needed a potty break. We stopped at the Rapunzel's bathroom (sad she only gets a bathroom here) at 2:45 pm.

We scanned in for our Tiana's LL at 2:56 pm, and we were on the ride at 3:07 pm. We got the very back row this time so we did not get as wet as the night before. At this point, we didn't really have anything to do until our Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin LL at 4:00 pm. We decided to do Pirates of the Caribbean again to get out of the sun (I felt my skin burning). It was a 30 minute posted wait at 3:36 pm, and we were actually at the boats at 3:47. However, the ride broke down and everyone had to get off. The ride was delayed until 4:02 pm, and we were able to get on. Our group gave the ride until 4:05 pm to start again before we were gonna leave.

After getting off of Pirates, we walked towards Tomorrowland to do some of our favorites. We scanned our LL for Buzz at 4:24 pm - it had a 35 minute posted wait. It was a complete walk on for us. Now, it was time to get out of the sun again + one of my favorite rides (yes, it is a ride). We walked into the "queue" at 4:47 pm of the Carousel of Progress. We waited maybe 5 minutes to get on. The perfect 20 minutes of relaxation and off your feet + see something that Walt Disney himself worked on (even though the cast member made a nap joke..).

After we got out of COP, we saw the People Mover had a 15 minute wait so we got in line at 5:04 pm - we were on the ride at 5:18. We had a Big Thunder Mountain LL at 5:30 pm so we slowly walked that way. People were already sitting down for their fireworks spot around this time or they just wanted to get off their feet for the next three hours. The hub was very busy (reason we always try our best to bypass it).


When we were on the bridge in Frontierland, we passed by Chip & Dale. I didn't even know they had a meet & greet in Magic Kingdom. We scanned in for our BTM LL at 5:46 pm - it was a complete walk on for us (maybe 5 minutes after the merge point). After BTM, it was time for dinner (like I said, do not wait until closing).

We chose Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe because it was close & it had new menu items. We mobile ordered our meal here at 6:02. DH ordered the Chicken Rice Bowl with Pinto Beans, Cilantro-Lime Rice, Cowboy Caviar, and Queso Fresco - $12.99 with a bottle water - $3.75. I ordered the
Kids Beef Nacho Bowl with Cilantro-Lime rice and a cutie + a kids small Sprite - $8.79. DH didn't think his meal was anything special (don't think you are getting Chipotle quality here). I thought for a kid's meal - my meal had a lot of food. It was just simple beef nachoes with queso. I wouldn't eat here again (Columbia Harbour House all the way for us).

After dinner, it was 6:48 pm, and DH wanted to go to the next Hall of Presidents show. We had just missed one at 6:45 pm, so we had to wait for the 7:15 pm show. We went into the Christmas shop in Liberty Square to waste some time. Once it was 7:10 pm, we went back to Hall of Presidents to enjoy the show. It was 7:45 pm when the show ended, so we wanted to get a treat before Happily Ever After fireworks show.

We walked over to Aloha Isle in Adventureland to order an Pineapple Upside-Down Cake with swirl of DOLE Whip® Pineapple & DOLE Whip® Vanilla - $6.99 + a Tropical Serenade - Pineapple-Orange-Guava Juice, Coconut Soft-serve, and an Upside-down Pineapple Cake Pop - $7.99. This is always worth it + the portion size could feed two people, but we wanted our own treats

Now it was time to find a spot for the fireworks. We wanted to watch from Tomorrowland because we wanted to hop on Tron as our last ride of the day. We found a spot right at the entrance of Tomorrowland + we could sit down at 8:08 pm. I will say if you have never seen the show before (or watched it on Youtube) you should watch it in the hub or down Main Street. I just wanted to be in MK while the fireworks were going off + I could hear the music. We could of gotten up to see the actual fireworks going off. Also, Tinkerbell flew to the right of us which was very cool to see.



After the fireworks were over, we made our way to Tron (as did everyone else). We got in line for Tron at 8:50 pm with a 120 minute wait. With this queue, I couldn't imagine being outside during the day. I was so happy it was nighttime + windy. Were we at the lockers at 9:52 pm, and we waited maybe 5 minutes after the lockers. We were on row 2 and 3 for this ride.

After Tron, it was time to leave Magic Kingdom for good. We took photos in front of the castle, and we slowly made our way to the buses. I will say after 16 hours of being in the MK with 6 hours of sleep, we were ready for bed.


Once we arrived at the bus station for the All Star resorts, we were devastated. The line was wrapped around about 4 times for each resort so we would of waited so long for a bus (and we were very tired). We decided to eat the $46 and order a Minnie van. I will say I was very excited to try out the Minnie vans. I ordered a Minnie van at 10:34 pm and we had a 20 minute wait. There were many big families waiting for Minnie vans so my guess was much longer than 20 minutes. Our Minnie Van (they have numbers on them for you to easily identify yours) at 10:51 pm. We did not have any strollers or bags so we just hopped in - our driver, Jason, did get out and open our doors for us. Jason was super nice and asked us tons of questions about our trip and who we were. I asked him if he was only assigned to MK, and he said he goes wherever the car tells him to. The car ride seemed to be much quicker than with the buses, but I think it was the conversation that helped. Another special touch is I noticed the radio station was on "All Stars Music" so it was play Jazz music and some Frank Sinatra. We arrived at the All Stars Music lobby at 11:06 pm.

We had the best first full park day and I wouldn't change a thing!

Next day - we are off to Epcot (my favorite park)!

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I’m really enjoying your trip report! You guys had a very full two days.

 

[Peyton McLean]

I’m really enjoying your trip report! You guys had a very full two days.

Thank you! It was a very busy two days - this is how we do it without kids