TraceyL
Always planning........
- Joined
- Nov 7, 1999
- Messages
- 1,866
Sunday 15th April
Been watching the weather forecast closely since last night and there was a major storm predicted for early morning. Unfortunately the front slows it doesn’t actually hit until later so we abandon the planned visit to Epcot and wait to see what happens. Decide to get some supplies in ready for our visit to Royal Pacific tomorrow (mam & dad are staying at the villa and will be without transport) so we pop out to Super Target to get some food - dodging the initial rain showers. Whilst we are in the store there is an amazing thunderstorm (we watch from the doors as I love storms). Steve manages to find some training gear and I finally find the Ariel comforter I’ve been looking for to complete Annabelle’s bedroom J
We’re now back at the villa waiting for the winds to drop (tornado watch has been cancelled for this county) as we may pop out to Seaworld this evening…..
Monday 16th April
Overnight low temps of 48 degrees!
Tonight we’re booked into the Royal Pacific Resort so, overnight bag packed, we head up the I4 to Universal. Check in at around 9:30am and decide to upgrade to Club Level with the assurance of a room overlooking the theme parks. We walk from the Hotel to IOA & go straight on Spidey (which Annabelle doesn’t like) - just love the front of line passes ! We make our way clockwise around the park - it’s windy and actually a bit chilly (low 70as)
mg: and decide to give the wet rides a miss today. Ride the Unicorn & then stop for lunch in the Enchanted Oak - chicken platters all round - ad end up in Seuss Landing. We alternate taking the girls on the Trolley Ride in the Sky, One Fish Two Fish, cat in the Hat and the CaroSeussel until Steve takes mam & dad back to the villa at around 3 o’clock. Quick stp for a Funnel Cake Sundae and we wave them goodbye and I take the Gils over to the Studios.
We have a great hour riding ET & MiB (too many times to count!) before heading back by boat, to RPR to meet up with Steve. We are more than a little disappointed to see our room has a great view of the Interstate and ask if we can change rooms. This is not possible unless we downgrade our room - which we do. Our new room is on the 7th floor of Tower One and has a fantastic view of the Hulk & Dr Doom- which the girls are very impressed with
Good news is - the front desk gave us Club Access cards s we could still use the Club Lounge in Tower 3 although it is a bit of a trek. We forego appetisers & beer (mg: ) and head for the pool instead. RPR has a lovely pool area and beach - the pool has a zero entry section & there are plenty of loungers in sunny & shady spots. There’s also a wet play area for the kids, though the girls found it a but cold due to the unseasonable temperature!
We have a drink from Bula’s then head back up to the room. The rooms are ok - quite small but nicely furnished with a coffee maker & mini bar.
Shower & changed and down to the Islands Dining Room for dinner. We’re seated straight away as it’s quiet - apart from the special gusts - Scooby & Shaggy. They sit down with us and autograph the grils’ menus (we hadn’t thought to take books/camera with us). ‘Shaggy’ very skilfully carried out a conversation with us about visiting Cardiff during the Grand Slam 2 years ago whilst remaining totally in character for the girls.
We both have the Teriyaki Beef stir fry with noodles (which is lovely) with a bottle of wine & the kids eat from the kids menu (usual fare) - check is $64 inc AP discount. E have dessert in the Club Lounge (Pineapple upsire-down cake, cherry pie or cookies) along with a coffee.
We head back to the room and crash pretty early - all sunburnt!
Weather - windy 72 degrees
Tuesday 17th April
We’re all up early after a broken night’ sleep (could never spend the whole holiday in a hotel room any more), the Hulk is running at 7am, and pack up most of our stuff. We have breakfast in the Club Lounge (cereals, pastries, fruit & toast with coffee & juice)
& I try to log onto the Dibb from the Lounge PC but can’t get on the site. Return to the room and check out via the TV then throw the bags in the car and walk back to IOA.
This morning we start at Seuss Landing & ride Cat in the Hat, Trolley Ride & Caro-Seuss-el before heading anticlockwise around the park. Onto the Unicorn again & I ride Fire & Ice, Steve & Annabelle ride Jurassic Park (which she doesn’t like) & round towards Spidey. We also fit in a ride each on the Hulk & the girls ride Storm Force Acceleratron thingy 3 times :confused2:
Time for The Studios now so we head across at lunchtime. We hit Shrek & Jimmy Neutron before grabbing pasta at Louis Place. Steve rides the Mummy & we all do Jaws again. Next it’s back to MiB again
We ride 3 times & get ‘Galaxy Defender’ each time. Rachelle manages an amazing 500,000+ score - we have the photo to prove it !
One final ride on ET & Woody Woodpecker before we reluctantly drag ourselves away back to the Villa. The FOTL passes are fantastic - we rode every ride we wanted to at least once that day - I dread to think how long it would have taken if we hadn’t had those magic room keys.
I wasn’t overly impressed with RPR - but for the price (£70) and the FOTL I would definitely stay there again. It wasn’t a patch on the Poly Concierge - but it was a lot more affordable
We head back to Sunset Lakes and have a swim followed by sarnies & cake.
Weather 81 degrees & sunny.
Wednesday 18th April
Quiet day shoe shopping (9 pairs!) at Premium Outlets. Lunch in the food court. Villa & pool in the afternoon and a dinner of fried chicken, biscuits & salad from Publix.
Temp 82 degrees an d sunny
Thursday 19th April
Off to Typhoon Lagoon at about 10am - parking lot is heaving & it’s wall to wall people inside. Lines for the slides etc aren’t too bad though. Both girls want to snorkel with the ‘sharks’ but chicken out at the cold water. We swim, relax & ride the raft slides until 4:30. Back to the Villa and straight into the pool lol ! Get a carry out from the Outback (chicken & ribs all round & one kids’ steak - $65) and pick up a bottle of wine from the Marketplace next door.
Getting an early night tonight as we’re off to Busch Gardens tomorrow morning.
Temp 79 degrees and sunny
Friday 20th April
Up early and on the road before 8am. We stop for a quick breakfast in McD’s off the I4 and are pulling into the Busch Gardens parking lot ($9) for park opening at 9:30.
We pick up our free military one day passes (get given a dog tag necklace which the girls love) and our Discovery Cove 7 days tickets.
First stop for me & Steve is Sheikra - WOW!!!!
Mam & dad have taken the girls on the train ride and as the wait is only about 10 mins we get to ride twice (queue jumpers and all :angry: )
Now for the momentous occasion - we head over to Timbuktu for the Scorpion rollercoaster. Annabelle checks it out - gives it the thumbs up and she’s off to try her first ’upside-down coaster’ She loves it and rides again - that’s my girl!
We ride the Rhino Rally next and then head over to the Sky Ride before stopping for lunch at the Smokehouse (longest line of the day!) Spend the rest of the day doing the minor attractions & exhibits as there are now quite a few large school groups & the park is getting very busy.
We finish up at the Hospitality Center and head out just before 5.
Hit a bit of traffic on the I4 but are back in the pool by 7.
Weather mid 80s hot & sunny
Saturday 21st April
Today is our one and only ADR - breakfast at ’Ohana. We all have a well deserved lie in after yesterday and leave at 9am. Park in the Polynesian and head upstairs to check in at the podium. We’re seated at 0945 (adr was for 0940) and lead to our usual table at the back in the corner.
Breakfast is served ‘family style’ with pineapple bread and cinnamon & raisin bread followed by a large skillet of hot food and some fresh fruit washed down with Papaya juice and coffee. Mickey Waffles were ‘on request’mg: and were distributed sparingly.
Annabelle gets talking to one of the Chefs and gets given a ‘thank you’ Mickey pin for making her smile J
We have a browse around the Poly before heading to Celebration for the Liquidation Sale. OMG it is busy ! Everything is 70% off with some items reduced to $1. People are going out with boxes and boxes of stuff! We spend a respectable $60 (mainly odds & ends for my ‘present box’ which I keep stocked up with stuff for birthdays & Christmas pressies. Also picked up a nice sarong (something which I forgot to pack) & a Greg Norman polo shirt for my dad. Sit and watch the little playing baseball (sale is in the school) for a while before heading to Downtown Disney for my 2007 Christmas bauble - a tradition. We have ‘lunch’ in Ghirardelli’s before deciding to take a look at Prime Outlets/Belz. There is practically nothing left but I still manage to buy more shoes Sketchers for Rachelle at $15.
We stop at Kobe at LBV on the way home for dinner - steak & chicken teriyaki all round - $132 inc tip - and we would definitely return.
Weather 78 degrees and mostly cloudy
Been watching the weather forecast closely since last night and there was a major storm predicted for early morning. Unfortunately the front slows it doesn’t actually hit until later so we abandon the planned visit to Epcot and wait to see what happens. Decide to get some supplies in ready for our visit to Royal Pacific tomorrow (mam & dad are staying at the villa and will be without transport) so we pop out to Super Target to get some food - dodging the initial rain showers. Whilst we are in the store there is an amazing thunderstorm (we watch from the doors as I love storms). Steve manages to find some training gear and I finally find the Ariel comforter I’ve been looking for to complete Annabelle’s bedroom J
We’re now back at the villa waiting for the winds to drop (tornado watch has been cancelled for this county) as we may pop out to Seaworld this evening…..
Monday 16th April
Overnight low temps of 48 degrees!
Tonight we’re booked into the Royal Pacific Resort so, overnight bag packed, we head up the I4 to Universal. Check in at around 9:30am and decide to upgrade to Club Level with the assurance of a room overlooking the theme parks. We walk from the Hotel to IOA & go straight on Spidey (which Annabelle doesn’t like) - just love the front of line passes ! We make our way clockwise around the park - it’s windy and actually a bit chilly (low 70as)
mg: and decide to give the wet rides a miss today. Ride the Unicorn & then stop for lunch in the Enchanted Oak - chicken platters all round - ad end up in Seuss Landing. We alternate taking the girls on the Trolley Ride in the Sky, One Fish Two Fish, cat in the Hat and the CaroSeussel until Steve takes mam & dad back to the villa at around 3 o’clock. Quick stp for a Funnel Cake Sundae and we wave them goodbye and I take the Gils over to the Studios.We have a great hour riding ET & MiB (too many times to count!) before heading back by boat, to RPR to meet up with Steve. We are more than a little disappointed to see our room has a great view of the Interstate and ask if we can change rooms. This is not possible unless we downgrade our room - which we do. Our new room is on the 7th floor of Tower One and has a fantastic view of the Hulk & Dr Doom- which the girls are very impressed with
Good news is - the front desk gave us Club Access cards s we could still use the Club Lounge in Tower 3 although it is a bit of a trek. We forego appetisers & beer (
mg: ) and head for the pool instead. RPR has a lovely pool area and beach - the pool has a zero entry section & there are plenty of loungers in sunny & shady spots. There’s also a wet play area for the kids, though the girls found it a but cold due to the unseasonable temperature!
We have a drink from Bula’s then head back up to the room. The rooms are ok - quite small but nicely furnished with a coffee maker & mini bar.
Shower & changed and down to the Islands Dining Room for dinner. We’re seated straight away as it’s quiet - apart from the special gusts - Scooby & Shaggy. They sit down with us and autograph the grils’ menus (we hadn’t thought to take books/camera with us). ‘Shaggy’ very skilfully carried out a conversation with us about visiting Cardiff during the Grand Slam 2 years ago whilst remaining totally in character for the girls.
We both have the Teriyaki Beef stir fry with noodles (which is lovely) with a bottle of wine & the kids eat from the kids menu (usual fare) - check is $64 inc AP discount. E have dessert in the Club Lounge (Pineapple upsire-down cake, cherry pie or cookies) along with a coffee.
We head back to the room and crash pretty early - all sunburnt!
Weather - windy 72 degrees
Tuesday 17th April
We’re all up early after a broken night’ sleep (could never spend the whole holiday in a hotel room any more), the Hulk is running at 7am, and pack up most of our stuff. We have breakfast in the Club Lounge (cereals, pastries, fruit & toast with coffee & juice)
& I try to log onto the Dibb from the Lounge PC but can’t get on the site. Return to the room and check out via the TV then throw the bags in the car and walk back to IOA.
This morning we start at Seuss Landing & ride Cat in the Hat, Trolley Ride & Caro-Seuss-el before heading anticlockwise around the park. Onto the Unicorn again & I ride Fire & Ice, Steve & Annabelle ride Jurassic Park (which she doesn’t like) & round towards Spidey. We also fit in a ride each on the Hulk & the girls ride Storm Force Acceleratron thingy 3 times :confused2:
Time for The Studios now so we head across at lunchtime. We hit Shrek & Jimmy Neutron before grabbing pasta at Louis Place. Steve rides the Mummy & we all do Jaws again. Next it’s back to MiB again
We ride 3 times & get ‘Galaxy Defender’ each time. Rachelle manages an amazing 500,000+ score - we have the photo to prove it !
One final ride on ET & Woody Woodpecker before we reluctantly drag ourselves away back to the Villa. The FOTL passes are fantastic - we rode every ride we wanted to at least once that day - I dread to think how long it would have taken if we hadn’t had those magic room keys.
I wasn’t overly impressed with RPR - but for the price (£70) and the FOTL I would definitely stay there again. It wasn’t a patch on the Poly Concierge - but it was a lot more affordable
We head back to Sunset Lakes and have a swim followed by sarnies & cake.
Weather 81 degrees & sunny.
Wednesday 18th April
Quiet day shoe shopping (9 pairs!) at Premium Outlets. Lunch in the food court. Villa & pool in the afternoon and a dinner of fried chicken, biscuits & salad from Publix.
Temp 82 degrees an d sunny
Thursday 19th April
Off to Typhoon Lagoon at about 10am - parking lot is heaving & it’s wall to wall people inside. Lines for the slides etc aren’t too bad though. Both girls want to snorkel with the ‘sharks’ but chicken out at the cold water. We swim, relax & ride the raft slides until 4:30. Back to the Villa and straight into the pool lol ! Get a carry out from the Outback (chicken & ribs all round & one kids’ steak - $65) and pick up a bottle of wine from the Marketplace next door.
Getting an early night tonight as we’re off to Busch Gardens tomorrow morning.
Temp 79 degrees and sunny
Friday 20th April
Up early and on the road before 8am. We stop for a quick breakfast in McD’s off the I4 and are pulling into the Busch Gardens parking lot ($9) for park opening at 9:30.
We pick up our free military one day passes (get given a dog tag necklace which the girls love) and our Discovery Cove 7 days tickets.
First stop for me & Steve is Sheikra - WOW!!!!
Mam & dad have taken the girls on the train ride and as the wait is only about 10 mins we get to ride twice (queue jumpers and all :angry: )
Now for the momentous occasion - we head over to Timbuktu for the Scorpion rollercoaster. Annabelle checks it out - gives it the thumbs up and she’s off to try her first ’upside-down coaster’
She loves it and rides again - that’s my girl! We ride the Rhino Rally next and then head over to the Sky Ride before stopping for lunch at the Smokehouse (longest line of the day!) Spend the rest of the day doing the minor attractions & exhibits as there are now quite a few large school groups & the park is getting very busy.
We finish up at the Hospitality Center and head out just before 5.
Hit a bit of traffic on the I4 but are back in the pool by 7.
Weather mid 80s hot & sunny
Saturday 21st April
Today is our one and only ADR - breakfast at ’Ohana. We all have a well deserved lie in after yesterday and leave at 9am. Park in the Polynesian and head upstairs to check in at the podium. We’re seated at 0945 (adr was for 0940) and lead to our usual table at the back in the corner.
Breakfast is served ‘family style’ with pineapple bread and cinnamon & raisin bread followed by a large skillet of hot food and some fresh fruit washed down with Papaya juice and coffee. Mickey Waffles were ‘on request’
mg: and were distributed sparingly.Annabelle gets talking to one of the Chefs and gets given a ‘thank you’ Mickey pin for making her smile J
We have a browse around the Poly before heading to Celebration for the Liquidation Sale. OMG it is busy ! Everything is 70% off with some items reduced to $1. People are going out with boxes and boxes of stuff! We spend a respectable $60 (mainly odds & ends for my ‘present box’ which I keep stocked up with stuff for birthdays & Christmas pressies. Also picked up a nice sarong (something which I forgot to pack) & a Greg Norman polo shirt for my dad. Sit and watch the little playing baseball (sale is in the school) for a while before heading to Downtown Disney for my 2007 Christmas bauble - a tradition. We have ‘lunch’ in Ghirardelli’s before deciding to take a look at Prime Outlets/Belz. There is practically nothing left but I still manage to buy more shoes
Sketchers for Rachelle at $15.We stop at Kobe at LBV on the way home for dinner - steak & chicken teriyaki all round - $132 inc tip - and we would definitely return.
Weather 78 degrees and mostly cloudy
)
, and you'd do well going shopping with my DF, I'm sure one of the only reasons he comes to WDW with us is for shoe shopping 
, he always end's up buying at least 3 pairs for himself.
