mickeymom629
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2002
- Messages
- 2,649
Our trip was to be a 6 night first-time couples only trip for DH and myself, leaving on a Sunday. But, with the blizzard coming, I changed out flight for Thursday and added 3 nights at ASMu to my previously booked AKV (3 night standard studio) and BLT (3 night lake view studio) reservations.
We were only going to the parks 3 days because we each had a 1 day MK ticket (leftover from DD and my Princess Half Marathon trip that we never used) and 2 park hoppers (from a silent auction win).
Love Magical Express! Everything went smoothly - we carried our own checked luggage on when we got to Orlando but, on departure day, we had our bags checked at the CR and they arrived home with no problem.
The weather was very chilly, and we had 4 days with rain. I wore a light winter coat everyday, and even gloves one of the days.
At ASMu, we were assigned room 6446 in Country Fair, 1st floor. It's about as far from the main building as you can get. The beds/pillows were, imo, the best of our entire trip. Housekeeping carts seem to come by all during the night, and the refrigerator sounded like someone snoring/breathing heavy (not too awful). One night DH got an entire pizza (tasty and a good deal for $15) and I got the platter that was 1/4 veggie pizza and salad. We ended up having snacks for the next two days since we couldn't finish it all - I brought baggies from home. DH got a refillable mug which he used the entire trip. I made coffee in the rooms each day and bought water bottles. We also got beer and wine from the gift shop. Not cheap!
We went to Disney Springs two days in a row because we had no previous plans for the days at ASMu. We enjoyed walking around (though it was cold and rainy/downpours) and were impressed by the new quality of dining places, bars, and the bowling venue. We ate lunch at Earl of Sandwich one day and Morimottos (yum!) the following. At Morimottos, I got the dumplings and California sushi roll, DH got Kung Pao Chicken. We sat at the bar because we had no ADR. It was a very nice experience and we enjoyed our food.
We took lots of walks around the resort and sat by the pool one night, in our coats, watching other people swim!
We took a taxi from ASMu with our luggage to AKV ($10.40 fare plus tip), and our room was ready when we arrived before noon! We were upgraded from Jambo standard view studio to Kidani savanna view studio because of Jambo renovations. We were on the first floor #7670 (a long, long, long walk from the lobby) and loved it.
This was when my original trip plan began, and it was a relaxing day to enjoy the resort. We walked all around, ate at The Mara, sat by the pool (with our clothes on), and ate dinner at Sanaa.
Even though we had a 6:55 ADR we weren't seated until 7:20. We had the large Na'an bread platter, which we brought back for leftovers. DH had the lamb shank and loved it - his favorite meal of the trip - and I had the spicy shrimp and butter chicken with rice - yum! Sat around the campfire and met nice people.
1/26 (Tues) we went to AK in the a.m. I am not a thrill ride person, so we did not have plans to ride many of the headliners this trip. We saw the opening show, rode Safari, did the Pangani Trail, saw FoTLK, Dinosaur!, Primevil Whirl, Maharaja Trail, DH did EE as single rider. Construction was around, but didn't bother us. Got a frozen banana, did Safari again, and caught the bus to HS about 1 p.m. Got into GMR, no line, TSM (FP), saw VoLM, Frozen Sing-a-long (FP) (I don't know why I was expecting more, but this was so bad imo. Disney could have made this so much cuter or had Olaf narrate the story.), walked the 'streets', saw Indiana (FP). By this time, there was SRO at F!, so we decided to skip it - been there, done that with SRO before
. I had a child's turkey sandwich and DH got a cheeseburger at the stands outside/across the street from F!. We shared a Chewbacca cupcake from the Starbucks and got a great view of the Star Wars fireworks while sitting on a ledge in front of PTC. The fireworks were AWESOME! Then we speed-walked to EPCOT, with time to spare, and stood in front of Italy, back by a fence rail away from the water, and had a decent view of Illuminations it was so empty - no one in between those up against the water and us). Rode SE and then took bus back to resort. It was EMH at E, but we had had a long day. I'm sorry I can't report how the lines were at TT and M:S. I was glad to see the QS food/drink places stayed open, though. Three parks in one day is a record for us! None of the parks seemed too crowded, but we weren't trying to wait for the big coasters, so others might have felt differently.
On Wed., we took our bags to Bell Services after checking out, and took the bus to MK to walk to BLT. Our room was ready around 4, and our luggage came within minutes of letting Bell Services know our room #8008! I had booked a lake view and we got a room on the outside of the curved building with a view of the lake AND a view of the Magic Kingdom from the balcony!
The room had not been ready when we arrived, so we took the monorail around to see the other resorts after walking around BLT and CR, and having lunch at the Contempo (sushi and pineapple). Later, we got beer and wine from the gift shop (ask for cold ones if you only see the non-refrigerated ones), dinner from the Contempo and watched Wishes from our balcony with the sound from the t.v. It was a very foggy night.
On Thurs., we went to the MK, just missing the opening show which was well before 9, but we got right in. Ran through PP's new queue, 7DMT (maybe a 20 min wait), Pooh, HM, Pirates, and Jungle Cruise (FP). Went to Tiki Birds to escape rain. Got a Dole Whip, and then saw the Move It, Shake It parade as we were making our way to our ADR at The Plaza. I got a turkey club; DH got a reuben. It was our first time eating here and we enjoyed it. However, odd that the bathrooms are out of the restaurant. We saw a mom have to leave her 3 young sons at the table while she went. Funny time at Laugh Floor, People Mover, CoP, Philharmagic, Small World, Hall of Presidents, 3:00 parade, and Country Bear Jamboree. I had planned a break back at the resort, but it seemed like a waste of time to walk back in the rain, so we stayed in the park. We got in line for what we thought was the Ariel ride but, when we finally got into the cave, it was the meet and greet. Oops! We left and went to our ADR for BOG dinner (first time). I got the onion soup and vinaigrette salad (both yum!); DH got the pork shank and was pleased with the taste and size of the portion. He also got an eclair. He tried a beer and I had 2 glasses of wine. 7DMT again (FP), Ariel ride for real this time, watched MSEP, and Wishes (fp).
On Friday, the sun was finally out!! but it was breezy and we took the monorail to Epcot. It was pretty empty. We got there shortly after opening. Went on Living with the Land, which seemed to not have many fruits on the plants this time (Soarin was closed and I don't do TT or M:S), the Living Seas - Nemo and Turtle Talk (lots of kids, so it was very funny), Pixar 4 D shorts (I hadn't heard about this but it was cute. It was about 40 minutes, but this was a relaxed trip so it didn't matter), shared a chicken pesto sandwich in France, and walked around seeing as many acts as we could. We saw street musicians in UK, flag act in Italy, American Music Machine, TradNations in Quebec (not quite Off Kilter...), Chinese acrobats, Mexico boat ride and Mariachi players. I wanted a jalapeno pretzel in America but they were cooking them. We waited about 20 minutes and finally the cm brought us one and gave it to me for free! (It was still a little under-cooked, so I didn't feel so guilty). DH got a soft ice cream. Tried sodas in Ice Station Cool and did SE again before taking the monorail back to resort, changing into warmer clothes. We had cocktails and split a veggie wrap from the Contempo. Then we walked to the MK and went on BTMR (fp) and HM (fp), watched Wishes from bridge near Stitch (had to move a little because we could hear Stitch), and 7DMT (fp). Went on Dumbo (lots of adults riding at this time
) and the Speedway. DH got a funnel cake and I got a frozen banana.
It was a very nice trip, though the weather could have been much better! AKV my new fave! Next time we'll end the trip with a no park day...says DH. He was a sport with no thrill rides and lots of walking - my kind of trip Some little surprises (pieces of Magic), nice cm's, pleasant crowds, and I was excited to see all the construction since it means lots of fun things coming! Disappointments were the Frozen singalong, and having Buzz and Soarin closed while I was there.
We were only going to the parks 3 days because we each had a 1 day MK ticket (leftover from DD and my Princess Half Marathon trip that we never used) and 2 park hoppers (from a silent auction win).
Love Magical Express! Everything went smoothly - we carried our own checked luggage on when we got to Orlando but, on departure day, we had our bags checked at the CR and they arrived home with no problem.
The weather was very chilly, and we had 4 days with rain. I wore a light winter coat everyday, and even gloves one of the days.
At ASMu, we were assigned room 6446 in Country Fair, 1st floor. It's about as far from the main building as you can get. The beds/pillows were, imo, the best of our entire trip. Housekeeping carts seem to come by all during the night, and the refrigerator sounded like someone snoring/breathing heavy (not too awful). One night DH got an entire pizza (tasty and a good deal for $15) and I got the platter that was 1/4 veggie pizza and salad. We ended up having snacks for the next two days since we couldn't finish it all - I brought baggies from home. DH got a refillable mug which he used the entire trip. I made coffee in the rooms each day and bought water bottles. We also got beer and wine from the gift shop. Not cheap!
We went to Disney Springs two days in a row because we had no previous plans for the days at ASMu. We enjoyed walking around (though it was cold and rainy/downpours) and were impressed by the new quality of dining places, bars, and the bowling venue. We ate lunch at Earl of Sandwich one day and Morimottos (yum!) the following. At Morimottos, I got the dumplings and California sushi roll, DH got Kung Pao Chicken. We sat at the bar because we had no ADR. It was a very nice experience and we enjoyed our food.
We took lots of walks around the resort and sat by the pool one night, in our coats, watching other people swim!
We took a taxi from ASMu with our luggage to AKV ($10.40 fare plus tip), and our room was ready when we arrived before noon! We were upgraded from Jambo standard view studio to Kidani savanna view studio because of Jambo renovations. We were on the first floor #7670 (a long, long, long walk from the lobby) and loved it.
This was when my original trip plan began, and it was a relaxing day to enjoy the resort. We walked all around, ate at The Mara, sat by the pool (with our clothes on), and ate dinner at Sanaa.
Even though we had a 6:55 ADR we weren't seated until 7:20. We had the large Na'an bread platter, which we brought back for leftovers. DH had the lamb shank and loved it - his favorite meal of the trip - and I had the spicy shrimp and butter chicken with rice - yum! Sat around the campfire and met nice people.
1/26 (Tues) we went to AK in the a.m. I am not a thrill ride person, so we did not have plans to ride many of the headliners this trip. We saw the opening show, rode Safari, did the Pangani Trail, saw FoTLK, Dinosaur!, Primevil Whirl, Maharaja Trail, DH did EE as single rider. Construction was around, but didn't bother us. Got a frozen banana, did Safari again, and caught the bus to HS about 1 p.m. Got into GMR, no line, TSM (FP), saw VoLM, Frozen Sing-a-long (FP) (I don't know why I was expecting more, but this was so bad imo. Disney could have made this so much cuter or had Olaf narrate the story.), walked the 'streets', saw Indiana (FP). By this time, there was SRO at F!, so we decided to skip it - been there, done that with SRO before
. I had a child's turkey sandwich and DH got a cheeseburger at the stands outside/across the street from F!. We shared a Chewbacca cupcake from the Starbucks and got a great view of the Star Wars fireworks while sitting on a ledge in front of PTC. The fireworks were AWESOME! Then we speed-walked to EPCOT, with time to spare, and stood in front of Italy, back by a fence rail away from the water, and had a decent view of Illuminations it was so empty - no one in between those up against the water and us). Rode SE and then took bus back to resort. It was EMH at E, but we had had a long day. I'm sorry I can't report how the lines were at TT and M:S. I was glad to see the QS food/drink places stayed open, though. Three parks in one day is a record for us! None of the parks seemed too crowded, but we weren't trying to wait for the big coasters, so others might have felt differently.On Wed., we took our bags to Bell Services after checking out, and took the bus to MK to walk to BLT. Our room was ready around 4, and our luggage came within minutes of letting Bell Services know our room #8008! I had booked a lake view and we got a room on the outside of the curved building with a view of the lake AND a view of the Magic Kingdom from the balcony!
The room had not been ready when we arrived, so we took the monorail around to see the other resorts after walking around BLT and CR, and having lunch at the Contempo (sushi and pineapple). Later, we got beer and wine from the gift shop (ask for cold ones if you only see the non-refrigerated ones), dinner from the Contempo and watched Wishes from our balcony with the sound from the t.v. It was a very foggy night.
On Thurs., we went to the MK, just missing the opening show which was well before 9, but we got right in. Ran through PP's new queue, 7DMT (maybe a 20 min wait), Pooh, HM, Pirates, and Jungle Cruise (FP). Went to Tiki Birds to escape rain. Got a Dole Whip, and then saw the Move It, Shake It parade as we were making our way to our ADR at The Plaza. I got a turkey club; DH got a reuben. It was our first time eating here and we enjoyed it. However, odd that the bathrooms are out of the restaurant. We saw a mom have to leave her 3 young sons at the table while she went. Funny time at Laugh Floor, People Mover, CoP, Philharmagic, Small World, Hall of Presidents, 3:00 parade, and Country Bear Jamboree. I had planned a break back at the resort, but it seemed like a waste of time to walk back in the rain, so we stayed in the park. We got in line for what we thought was the Ariel ride but, when we finally got into the cave, it was the meet and greet. Oops! We left and went to our ADR for BOG dinner (first time). I got the onion soup and vinaigrette salad (both yum!); DH got the pork shank and was pleased with the taste and size of the portion. He also got an eclair. He tried a beer and I had 2 glasses of wine. 7DMT again (FP), Ariel ride for real this time, watched MSEP, and Wishes (fp).
On Friday, the sun was finally out!! but it was breezy and we took the monorail to Epcot. It was pretty empty. We got there shortly after opening. Went on Living with the Land, which seemed to not have many fruits on the plants this time (Soarin was closed and I don't do TT or M:S), the Living Seas - Nemo and Turtle Talk (lots of kids, so it was very funny), Pixar 4 D shorts (I hadn't heard about this but it was cute. It was about 40 minutes, but this was a relaxed trip so it didn't matter), shared a chicken pesto sandwich in France, and walked around seeing as many acts as we could. We saw street musicians in UK, flag act in Italy, American Music Machine, TradNations in Quebec (not quite Off Kilter...), Chinese acrobats, Mexico boat ride and Mariachi players. I wanted a jalapeno pretzel in America but they were cooking them. We waited about 20 minutes and finally the cm brought us one and gave it to me for free! (It was still a little under-cooked, so I didn't feel so guilty). DH got a soft ice cream. Tried sodas in Ice Station Cool and did SE again before taking the monorail back to resort, changing into warmer clothes. We had cocktails and split a veggie wrap from the Contempo. Then we walked to the MK and went on BTMR (fp) and HM (fp), watched Wishes from bridge near Stitch (had to move a little because we could hear Stitch), and 7DMT (fp). Went on Dumbo (lots of adults riding at this time
) and the Speedway. DH got a funnel cake and I got a frozen banana.It was a very nice trip, though the weather could have been much better! AKV my new fave! Next time we'll end the trip with a no park day...says DH. He was a sport with no thrill rides and lots of walking - my kind of trip
Some little surprises (pieces of Magic), nice cm's, pleasant crowds, and I was excited to see all the construction since it means lots of fun things coming! Disappointments were the Frozen singalong, and having Buzz and Soarin closed while I was there.
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