Sand and Sun ~ Trip Number Ten Was Lots of Fun! Clearwater Beach & YC, August 2013

[rusafee1183]

It's been a wonderfully lazy morning, and I am halfway through DHS

One thing I forgot from before was that you had such an amazing room and were able to see/hear Illuminations from the balcony. That's amazing. I am hoping for that when we are there in April, because we will be at the BWV.... but I don't know what to expect.

I doubt I will be able to see anything, but maybe I will at least hear it? Not sure. We have a Boardwalk view, and the villas are kind of off to the side near Jellyrolls, so I am having a hard time figuring out which direction I would need to be facing.

Either way, sitting on the balcony just listening sounds magical

 

[JoBird]

Happy One Week My Friend!!



Hoping for warm temperatures for you!!!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

We got back to Epcot around 11:30. We had a FP+ for Soarin from 11-12, so we headed straight there.













After our final journey on Soarin it was nearing our check in time for our flight the next day. So we walked over to Guest Services and took care of that and got our boarding passes.



From there we headed for our last ride on TT. We had a FP+ for it from 12-1. It was now about 12:45.





We enjoyed our last TT ride and then DS12 bought a remote control car in the gift shop. (which of course is now broke )



We were then off to enjoy our last walk around WS. But not before stopping so DS14 could get one last ice cream waffle cone at his favorite place!







We rode the GFT in Mexico and Maelstrom in Norway.














Up next: More WS and back to the YC

 

[JoBird]

I can't believe it was your last day!!! It just doesn't seem right.

You were getting a lot done and the crowds in the pictures didn't look too bad. Love the pictures of Maelstrom and GFT!!!

Glad DS14 got his fave ice cream-- he's right- it is yummy! I found out that the soft serve was gluten free on this trip so I had my fair share of it. (Minus the waffle cone- that would send me into spasms I think!)

Sad to see this TR coming to a fast close, but excited to know you'll be back there in a week making new tales to tell!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

It's been a wonderfully lazy morning, and I am halfway through DHS

One thing I forgot from before was that you had such an amazing room and were able to see/hear Illuminations from the balcony. That's amazing. I am hoping for that when we are there in April, because we will be at the BWV.... but I don't know what to expect.

I doubt I will be able to see anything, but maybe I will at least hear it? Not sure. We have a Boardwalk view, and the villas are kind of off to the side near Jellyrolls, so I am having a hard time figuring out which direction I would need to be facing.

Either way, sitting on the balcony just listening sounds magical

Our room was amazing!! We were so lucky.

It might be a stretch to see IllumiNations from the BWV. You should probably be able to hear it, depending on the amount of noise on the BW and which direction the wind is blowing.

Happy One Week My Friend!!



Hoping for warm temperatures for you!!!!

Thank you!!!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

I can't believe it was your last day!!! It just doesn't seem right.

You were getting a lot done and the crowds in the pictures didn't look too bad. Love the pictures of Maelstrom and GFT!!!

Glad DS14 got his fave ice cream-- he's right- it is yummy! I found out that the soft serve was gluten free on this trip so I had my fair share of it. (Minus the waffle cone- that would send me into spasms I think!)

Sad to see this TR coming to a fast close, but excited to know you'll be back there in a week making new tales to tell!

I know!! I hate the last day. That stupid envelope and printing stupid boarding passes.

It was a nice morning though and the crowds weren't bad!

I didn't know that soft serve is gluten free. Interesting. I take it that regular ice cream isn't gluten free??

Trying my hardest to get this TR done by Friday!!

 

[JoBird]

How many more updates do you have left to go? You can do it!!
Even if you don't you can finish when you get back.

Some soft serve is GF, as is some regular. You have to read ingredients. I stumbled on it at AK. It was so dang hot and I needed something to cool down with. I went to the allergy kiosk-- which btw, is AWESOME for any questions people with allergies have AND- to buy little snacks that are safe-
anyway, they told me where to go to get ice cream and we went over and sat down and had such a nice time! I can't remember the name of the little place we sat and ate but it was shaded. Tamu Tamu maybe?

IDk.

I hope you make time for a nice long visit at AK this time--- we have grown to love the park. Not necessarily for the animals, per se, but the park itself and the pathways and detail are really something. I can't wait to go back.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

That's so interesting what that CM was telling you. I would love to see Carsland in DHS but I'll believe it when I see it.
I agree with that!! Looks like more Star Wars stuff will be happening first.

Nothing like Soarin first thing in the morning to get to off to a great start!
I agree with that too!!

And the Incredibly Shrinking Kahuna&.

I like that saying, but it's sad. Congrats on booking Jo!

Sad it's the last day of the trip Shelly! But spending it at Epcot is always fun!
Bummer about the dorks in the pool and on the neighboring balcony. Rude people are just :
Also sad that it seems that so many things are going downhill everywhere not just WDW. Service in general, sizes&I'm with you on that stuff.
ETA: Oh - and about the "all the rides getting FP+" - if that's true, they better change how many we can get in one day and all that Tier nonsense. I think that's dumb. Let me decide which rides are more important to me and if you don't have enough FP's, there's always standby for those who chose differently. Sheeesh.
I can't believe you're just a week away!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

How many more updates do you have left to go? You can do it!!
Even if you don't you can finish when you get back.

I'm not sure. Not many. About 3-4 I suppose. I think I can do it this week!!

Some soft serve is GF, as is some regular. You have to read ingredients. I stumbled on it at AK. It was so dang hot and I needed something to cool down with. I went to the allergy kiosk-- which btw, is AWESOME for any questions people with allergies have AND- to buy little snacks that are safe-
anyway, they told me where to go to get ice cream and we went over and sat down and had such a nice time! I can't remember the name of the little place we sat and ate but it was shaded. Tamu Tamu maybe?

IDk.

I hope you make time for a nice long visit at AK this time--- we have grown to love the park. Not necessarily for the animals, per se, but the park itself and the pathways and detail are really something. I can't wait to go back.

That is interesting about the ice cream. You would think it would all either have gluten or not have gluten!!

DS14 and are going to AK this time alone. We did that a few years ago and had the best time. So I'm really looking forward to it.

I like that saying, but it's sad. Congrats on booking Jo!

Sad it's the last day of the trip Shelly! But spending it at Epcot is always fun!
Bummer about the dorks in the pool and on the neighboring balcony. Rude people are just :
Also sad that it seems that so many things are going downhill everywhere not just WDW. Service in general, sizes&I'm with you on that stuff.
ETA: Oh - and about the "all the rides getting FP+" - if that's true, they better change how many we can get in one day and all that Tier nonsense. I think that's dumb. Let me decide which rides are more important to me and if you don't have enough FP's, there's always standby for those who chose differently. Sheeesh.
I can't believe you're just a week away!!

I know, so sad that it's coming to an end!!

I really do hope that they do away with the tier stuff too. I'm hopeful when it's all rolled out it will be a little different. Three a day just doesn't seem like quite enough either.

We'll see how it all works out on this trip. This will be the first time we can't get regular fastpasses.

 

[Wood Nymph]

I know, so sad that it's coming to an end!!

I really do hope that they do away with the tier stuff too. I'm hopeful when it's all rolled out it will be a little different. Three a day just doesn't seem like quite enough either.

We'll see how it all works out on this trip. This will be the first time we can't get regular fastpasses.

The day we arrive, Jan 23rd, will be the day that the last park, Epcot, switches to the fp+ only system. It will be interesting to see how it goes. For the heck of it, I checked the wait times at the parks today, and lines are long. Test Track had a 100 minute standby line and Soaring had 95. For fun I decided to see if we could get a fp + today. We bought annual passes when we were there in December, so we can make fp+ selections for today. So at around 2:30 this afternoon, when the wait time was 100 minutes, I was able to get a fp+ for 6:45pm for Test Track today. It makes me think that they are leaving some times open for fp+. I'm not looking forward to the 3 per day at one park with tiering limits on fp+, but I do like being able to get a fp+ when the standby lines are long.

ETA: I didn't really make a fp+ reservation today. I just got as far as seeing the times it was going to give me, then I cancelled out.

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

Wow, you did a lot for a departure day! We never get to anything on our last day because we have that long drive and have to get on the road asap. Even the time we flew, we had a stupid early flight! I'd love to be able to get one last taste of Disney before heading home, just once.

So which ice cream is it that your DS likes? We have gotten hooked on the soft serve at the kiosk in France. YUM! The chocolate is so good!

Please let me know if you hear anything about them doing away with the tiered FP+ thing. You seem to hear stuff before I do, so I'm going to rely on you to pass it on if you hear something. I'm really hoping that is going to be a very temporary thing. The Soarin'/TT deal is what bothers me the most.

I am seriously fighting off a wild hair that keeps rearing up telling me to book a cruise for the end of Feb. when DD is out on break. It's only $1300 for the 3 of us for a verandah room! They have lots of rooms 'on sale' for Jan. and Feb. cruises right now. By the time I took off for my commission and what I have saved in Visa rewards, it would be under $1000! I am SO tempted!

So are you packed yet? I can't believe you only have a week left! I know you are getting excited! I'm sure as much as you've been working lately, you are really looking forward to getting away for a bit. I am so looking forward to hearing about the WL. I really never thought you would stay there since you like the tropical theming so much like we do. I think it's the perfect choice for a winter trip though. I hope you love it! When exactly are you flying out?

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

The day we arrive, Jan 23rd, will be the day that the last park, Epcot, switches to the fp+ only system. It will be interesting to see how it goes. For the heck of it, I checked the wait times at the parks today, and lines are long. Test Track had a 100 minute standby line and Soaring had 95. For fun I decided to see if we could get a fp + today. We bought annual passes when we were there in December, so we can make fp+ selections for today. So at around 2:30 this afternoon, when the wait time was 100 minutes, I was able to get a fp+ for 6:45pm for Test Track today. It makes me think that they are leaving some times open for fp+. I'm not looking forward to the 3 per day at one park with tiering limits on fp+, but I do like being able to get a fp+ when the standby lines are long.

ETA: I didn't really make a fp+ reservation today. I just got as far as seeing the times it was going to give me, then I cancelled out.

Hopefully the long wait times you saw were just because of MLK weekend. I think those crowds will clear out towards the end of this week.

That is good that you would have been able to get a FP+ even when lines were so long. That's a definite upside to the FP+ system. You know the regular FP's would have all been gone on a day like that by noon.

Wow, you did a lot for a departure day! We never get to anything on our last day because we have that long drive and have to get on the road asap. Even the time we flew, we had a stupid early flight! I'd love to be able to get one last taste of Disney before heading home, just once.

Well, technically our departure day was the following morning. So, this was our last full day.

So which ice cream is it that your DS likes? We have gotten hooked on the soft serve at the kiosk in France. YUM! The chocolate is so good!

I forget the name of the place!! If you are walking from FW to WS and if you went right (towards UK, Canada) it's right there on the right. They have drinks, ice cream, popcorn, etc. He swears that is the best ice cream ever!

Please let me know if you hear anything about them doing away with the tiered FP+ thing. You seem to hear stuff before I do, so I'm going to rely on you to pass it on if you hear something. I'm really hoping that is going to be a very temporary thing. The Soarin'/TT deal is what bothers me the most.

Do you get the Disney Destinations emails in your TA email? That's where I read most of the stuff. Either there or on here, a few days prior.

I am seriously fighting off a wild hair that keeps rearing up telling me to book a cruise for the end of Feb. when DD is out on break. It's only $1300 for the 3 of us for a verandah room! They have lots of rooms 'on sale' for Jan. and Feb. cruises right now. By the time I took off for my commission and what I have saved in Visa rewards, it would be under $1000! I am SO tempted!

DO IT!!!!! Seriously, do it!! That is a great deal!!

So are you packed yet? I can't believe you only have a week left! I know you are getting excited! I'm sure as much as you've been working lately, you are really looking forward to getting away for a bit. I am so looking forward to hearing about the WL. I really never thought you would stay there since you like the tropical theming so much like we do. I think it's the perfect choice for a winter trip though. I hope you love it! When exactly are you flying out?

Not really. Well, kind of. I've been packed. Summer stuff. I'm just sort of waiting around now to see if I need to pull half of the shorts/t-shirts out and replace them with pants & sweaters....

I am really looking forward to getting away. I've been working my tail off lately!

Yeah, the WL was never at the top of the list for me. It will be interesting. It just seems like a good place to be for a winter trip. We'll see...

We fly out bright & early Saturday morning!! Should arrive at the WL around 12:30 or so.

 

[disny_luvr]

Oh, I hate, hate, hate the dreaded ME envelope. It always puts a damper on the morning of our last full day. It looks like you guys had a fun time in Epcot, like usual.

My upcoming week is crazy so I'm not sure how much I'll be on here. If I don't get on here before you leave, have a GREAT trip. I can't wait to hear all about it. I can't remember - is this a short trip or will you be there for a full week? I'm just curious so I know when to start "looking" for you on here.

 

[disny_luvr]

Wow, you did a lot for a departure day! We never get to anything on our last day because we have that long drive and have to get on the road asap. Even the time we flew, we had a stupid early flight! I'd love to be able to get one last taste of Disney before heading home, just once.

So which ice cream is it that your DS likes? We have gotten hooked on the soft serve at the kiosk in France. YUM! The chocolate is so good!

Please let me know if you hear anything about them doing away with the tiered FP+ thing. You seem to hear stuff before I do, so I'm going to rely on you to pass it on if you hear something. I'm really hoping that is going to be a very temporary thing. The Soarin'/TT deal is what bothers me the most.

I am seriously fighting off a wild hair that keeps rearing up telling me to book a cruise for the end of Feb. when DD is out on break. It's only $1300 for the 3 of us for a verandah room! They have lots of rooms 'on sale' for Jan. and Feb. cruises right now. By the time I took off for my commission and what I have saved in Visa rewards, it would be under $1000! I am SO tempted!

So are you packed yet? I can't believe you only have a week left! I know you are getting excited! I'm sure as much as you've been working lately, you are really looking forward to getting away for a bit. I am so looking forward to hearing about the WL. I really never thought you would stay there since you like the tropical theming so much like we do. I think it's the perfect choice for a winter trip though. I hope you love it! When exactly are you flying out?

Do it! I know you didn't ask me, but that is a great deal. I'd give anything right now to be going on a Disney cruise. We had so much fun on our Fantasy cruise a few weeks ago and we can't wait to do it again!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Oh, I hate, hate, hate the dreaded ME envelope. It always puts a damper on the morning of our last full day. It looks like you guys had a fun time in Epcot, like usual.

My upcoming week is crazy so I'm not sure how much I'll be on here. If I don't get on here before you leave, have a GREAT trip. I can't wait to hear all about it. I can't remember - is this a short trip or will you be there for a full week? I'm just curious so I know when to start "looking" for you on here.

I know. It stinks!! It might as well say -- It's been real and it's been fun, but your time here is done. Now get out!!!!




Have a great week! Yep, this is the short trip. I will be back on Thursday (30th) afternoon. Will probably get on here sometime that night or on Friday.

Do it! I know you didn't ask me, but that is a great deal. I'd give anything right now to be going on a Disney cruise. We had so much fun on our Fantasy cruise a few weeks ago and we can't wait to do it again!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

We spent some time in China again. DS admired these swords. He wanted to get one to hang over his bed as a decoration, but then saw the shipping charges and decided to forget that idea!









We stopped in the American pavilion and saw the Voices of Liberty and the American Adventure for the first time ever! We really liked the AA, but thought it was a bit long.


















We came out of there and what do you know, it was raining. Shocker!! We stopped for some snacks at the Fife & Drum snack stand. I wanted a regular soft pretzel, but they were out and she asked if I wanted cream cheese or jalepeno. I said that I really didn't want either. She said that the cream cheese is really way better than you would think. I wasn't really in the mood for something sweet after my Tonga Toast breakfast, but what the heck! So we got a cream cheese pretzel and some popcorn. DS12 got the American Dream drink. It was very tasty!! And she was right – the cream cheese pretzel was very good!






Continued in next post….

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Continued…

We waited there for a bit until the rain let up and then we continued on.












We stopped in France for DH to get an iced coffee, stopped for a few pics, and then we headed back to the YC.






















Up Next: YC and Dinner

 

[monica23535]

That cream cheese pretzel is on my list of treats to try now

I could literally look at your pics of World Showcase and the Yacht and Beach Club all day!

 

[ddluvsdisney]

I love WS and AA always makes me cry. Lol. I can't believe you've never seen it. The voices of liberty have beautiful voices!!!
I never had the cream cheese pretzel, but tried the jalapeño one in AK once and it tasted nasty. I'll have to try that one.
I can't wait to be back. 30 days today.
I'm looking for an Ohana ressie too now. My DS16 asked to eat there, and we need to make the teenager happy!! So we're not miserable lol

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[MEK]

Glad you guys decided to try DQ. I do love that virtual POTC. One June we were there and it was SOOOOOO blazing hot the whole vacation and it never rained and cooled things down.

So on our last I told my DH that I was too hot to go to a pool, park, or water park. I needed to stay in the AC all day. That's when we got the DQ idea and we ended up having your blast.

Nice breakfast at WPE.

Fun evening just hanging out at the Boardwalk.

Last June we had a morning like that at the MK. It was just packed in between the turnstile and the park.

Back to read.