The NeverEnding Trip Report: 39 Parts and Counting (7/9 MK Day 2 & TL! LOTSA PICS!!)

[Nicole786]

So glad you're still updating!! Great first day in the parks!! Can't wait to hear about your experiences at the other parks!

 

[Pooh's-Honey-Pot]

Great update!!!! I love the gift basket idea!

We did the same as you! We were allocated a Mighty Ducks room when we stayed there and had never seen the film, so we asked to move to the Dalmations block, which they did. When we got home I was determined to watch Mighty Ducks to see what I had missed and LOVED it, so could have just stayed there after all!

 

[punkin413]

i got so excited for you while reading this!!!! your first trip - how exciting! just brings a tear to one's eye.

i just LOVE that photopass pic you guys got at night....so pretty!

 

[Cinderella16]

Okay, so I just finished my TR (also from 2007!) and now I am so excited to be able to catch up with yours! I dont remember where I left off, so I think I am going to stay up late and start from the beginning! I cant wait!

 

[OhioDisneyLover]

Great update! Thanks for sharing.

Reading this trip report definitely confirmed that a visit to Sea World is a necessity! It's on our list... just 69 days to go and counting!

 

[Eeyore's Tailfinder]

Hello!! I'm glad you are all still reading!

You are doing such a good job with this!!! We are staying at All Star Sports soon so I was excited to see the pictures of it!! Can't wait to read more!!!!

Thank you! The All Stars are great Have fun!!

YAY, you're finally in Disney. It's really weird as you and I are at the same stage in our trips in our TR's and we both went around about the same time!

I love that pic of you and Els, it is just so sweet, you should get it blown up and framed! OH MY GOD you got a limo to Disney, how much did that set you back? I didn't get to see much of the limo at my wedding so taking a long drive like that would be pretty cool!

You stayed quite long at MK on your first day there. You like me seemed to love pics with hats, I never bought one though, although I do like that one you tried on, I bit big for everyday use, but still

I can't wait to see what happens next...

FINALLY, right?! I am there! It takes a LOT longer than I thought to write these things, I think both you and me are the same - we include the tiniest details which makes them ever LONGER to write!

I'm not too sure to be honest how much the limo cost, I think it cost around $110 with tip. We went with Quick Silver and I would recommend them, and go with them again!

I love trying on hats! I know everyone says you're not supposed to but I can help it! Hehe!

Ooh reading your TR just makes me want to be in MK right now The limo and gift basket surprises for Els were lovely. Kx

Me too *sigh* Writing it has brought back all the lovely memories!

So glad you're still updating!! Great first day in the parks!! Can't wait to hear about your experiences at the other parks!

Still here, going slowly but surely! I am determined to be done by the time I go again!

Great update!!!! I love the gift basket idea!

We did the same as you! We were allocated a Mighty Ducks room when we stayed there and had never seen the film, so we asked to move to the Dalmations block, which they did. When we got home I was determined to watch Mighty Ducks to see what I had missed and LOVED it, so could have just stayed there after all!

LOL Glad it's not just me! I still haven't seen Mighty Ducks, although it was handy when the queue for the ASMo bus was long and we could just catch the ASMu bus!

i got so excited for you while reading this!!!! your first trip - how exciting! just brings a tear to one's eye.

i just LOVE that photopass pic you guys got at night....so pretty!

I am just an excitable person I was completely made up when we got to the MK - just been dreaming about going since I knew WDW existed and to finally stand there was just surreal - but good surreal!!

Okay, so I just finished my TR (also from 2007!) and now I am so excited to be able to catch up with yours! I dont remember where I left off, so I think I am going to stay up late and start from the beginning! I cant wait!

Hello Julianne! I'm glad you finished yours! Can you send some TR finishing pixie dust over my way?! Can't wait to read your Wedding PJ!

Great update! Thanks for sharing.

Reading this trip report definitely confirmed that a visit to Sea World is a necessity! It's on our list... just 69 days to go and counting!

Aww - not long to go now! We really loved SeaWorld! Really great park, I'm going to miss it this year which is sad, but hopefully we'll make it back next year and we'll go then!!

 

[Eeyore's Tailfinder]

The One With All The Characters

Alrighty, since we already did MK, I’ll keep this one short… hey! I see you laughing in the back there! I can make this one short!

We got up. We went to MK. We had lunch. We went to dinner. We went to bed.

Okay, it won’t be that short.

Anyway, we did get up. Quite early, we’re in Disney! But not early enough for the Opening Ceremony. Yesterday had been a long day and we had been knackered. Quick change and making sure everything was in the bag, we set off for the bus stop, making only a quick detour to fill up our mugs.

It was still early after we got to MK and it wasn’t long after the Opening Ceremony. We headed straight for Fantasyland since that’s where it gets busiest first. We passed by Ariel’s Grotto and there was absolutely no wait outside. We got in line and there were maybe 2 or 3 people in front of us and we were soon allowed in to see her. She was a really good Ariel and had the highest voice ever. This was a good move as for the rest of our stay the Grotto was pretty crowded.

Tip No. 410: If your child wants to see Ariel, go first thing in the morning.

I admit, I get a little messy here. I’m not sure what rides we went on. I think we went on Mickey’s Philharmagic again and maybe Winnie the Pooh?! We didn’t spend very long here though since that’s where we spent the majority of our time the prior day. We noticed that Toontown Fair had just opened, so we made our way over there. We went straight over to Toontown Hall of Fame to check the queues and NO QUEUE! We had done the 3 rooms within about 20mins, got to meet and interact with loads of characters and get a bookfull of autographs!

Tip No. 743: If you want to see lots of characters, go to the Hall of Fame when Toontown Fair opens.

After here, we decided to chance our luck with the Big Cheese in the Judge’s Tent. We whizzed through Mickey’s House and saw that there wasn’t really a big queue. We decided to wait it out and ended up waiting around 10-15mins for him. There was the cutest baby in front of us who kept smiling at Mickey and trying to bite his nose! Soon it was our turn and we posed with Mickey – he liked our little compadre, Pal Mickey!

We walked via the Toontown-Tomorrowland walkway into Tomorrowland. This is a really nice and quiet walk, and for a moment we had a chance to realise we were actually here after planning and saving for so long! We went straight over and grabbed a FP for Space Mountain. Even this early in the morning the queue was pretty long. We hopped on Buzz Lightyear instead. I really do think this is a good ride! When we came off, who should we see but Stitch!

Stitch was really funny, and so playful. When the photopass photographer took the first photo, Stitch put his hand over my face! He behaved for the next shot though!

Just as we were leaving Stitch, we spotted Buzz Lightyear over by Carousel of Progress and went right on over. I was really excited as I’d never seen Buzz Lightyear before. Els also made his first pin exchange with the CM looking after him!

We browsed a couple of shops and then it was time for our Space Mountain FP! I love the queuing area for this ride, I think it’s much better than the DLRP one! I also love the loading station and the cars better than the DLRP ones! It’s so much more ‘spacey’! We passed a huge queue and after about a 10min wait, we were onboard and we were off! I must admit, I was really disappointed with SM… I kept waiting for a dip or something throughout the ride. When they revamp the ride, I hope they make it a little more ‘rollercoastery’ but keep all the theming the same. We didn’t go on SM for the rest of the trip because we didn’t think the queue was worth the ride, but I thought the queuing area was really cool!!

After getting off SM we were really hungry (yes, we are weird!) and went off in search of some food. I had put Pecos Bill down on our itinerary cards today, but as we were in Tomorrowland, neither of us could be bothered with walking all the way to Frontierland for some food. We were starving!! I went to check if Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Station was open, and surprise it wasn’t, so Cosmic Ray’s it was!

I like that everything has a separate queue, but can see how it would get annoying if everyone wants different things. Luckily, we both wanted burgers so we managed to find a tiny table and I went off to get the food. Everyone seemed to be queuing on one side, so I decided to chance the other side and I got served almost immediately!

Tip No. 210: If everyone is queuing one side and the other side is open, try it!

The food was really good here and the toppings bar was like a mini buffet! We would definitely eat here again! It started to get packed though and people were just standing about looking for tables. Get here early!

Back through Tomorrowland and through Fantasyland, and we happen to see Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee by the TeaCups! Of course we stop for a photo, and they were really fun!

We walked back under the Castle and started to walk for Adventureland. This was somewhere we hadn’t been yet. We were just walking through and we spot Rafiki and Timon taking photos. We lined up, and only waited around 5mins whilst they took a break. These guys were really funny too! They loved Els hair and made their CM do their hair exactly the same as his for the photo!

I saw that the Jungle Cruise was near and didn’t have much wait, so we went down and rode that. Our skipper was really into the JC thing, and did all the corny jokes and lines.

It was now getting really hot in MK and we were melting. As we were looking for some shade, who do we bump into? Jasmine and the Genie!

After taking some snaps with them, we ran into POTC for some shade! The queue wasn’t very long at all 10-15mins, and I really liked it with the Jack Sparrow additions! Very lifelike.

We were just outside the ride, when who storms past but Captain Hook with Smee. We just had to have our photo taken with them and they were really good fun! Hook thought he was cool and stole my sunglasses to wear for the shot. Smee had a go at being my hairstylist.

Whilst we were with Hook and Smee, Peter Pan runs past with Wendy. Hook spots him immediately and pretends to go after him whilst Peter ducks from him. Had a little show! Els goes to find us a cold drink whilst I get in line for Peter and Wendy. Peter & Wendy were a little out of character in that they couldn’t remember the name of the whale in Pinocchio (Monstro) and Peter said, I always fell asleep during that movie. Anyhow, Wendy didn’t want to grab my hair as she thought Peter was being rude, so she just posed.

We had a look at the wait times for BTM and Splash, but both were very long so we decided to give it a miss for today. We found a great little pin shop in Frontierland and decided to buy a whole host of pins there as well as trade one of our Jacks with the CM in the store, who was very happy to get such a cool pin!

As we were coming out, the CMs had just put the parade ropes up and the announcement said that the parade would start in just 10mins. Well, outside the pin shop there was noone waiting in front of the ropes. So I ran up and grabbed us a couple of spots right in the front. The ropes were still open in places so Els went and got us one of those frozen lemonade things because the heat was seriously bad! Well as he was buying it, the CMs closed the ropes off again and the music started! Yes – he was one of those people who duck under the ropes and run across when the parade is starting!! I had my camcorder out ready, and was really excited to see the parade! About 5mins in, Els had to go stand in the shade near the pin shop as the heat was just awful. I think I was so excited, I was oblivious to the heat!! He gave up his spot to a lady in a wheelchair near him. Although, there were only a few people behind us in the crowd. Not a crowded area at all. I filmed the whole parade from start to finish in the front of the crowd and that tape is just awesome with all the characters waving and smiling at the camera! I will never watch a parade from Main St. again! We bagged a front row spot with 10mins to go.

I went back and found Els who was slowly melting still in the shade. The frozen lemonade had made us more thirsty if anything, so we got a Sprite to share. We decided to walk back to the exit slowly since we’d done a lot this morning and seen a whole host of characters. I am thoroughly hooked on character spotting!

We went back to the hotel, showered and changed ready for our dinner at the Whispering Canyon Café. You can read that review in my Dining TR!

The Wilderness Lodge is absolutely beautiful. We were wowed when we walked in, it’s just amazing.

I wish we would have taken more time to look around. Never mind, we have another WCC ADR this year, so we’ll explore the resort a bit more hopefully! After dinner, we were walking out when a CM noticed my 1st Time badge. He called me over and told me to turn around whilst he dialled a number, and I got a Welcome phone call from Goofy I think! Not a dream, but a bit of pixie dust there! We just didn’t want to leave the WL, it felt like home. We made up our minds that we would be back here to stay one day. Els got on the laptop as soon as we got back to ASMo to look how much it would cost for next year.

We grabbed a couple of hot chocolates as we walked back to the room, before falling asleep tired.

Tomorrow: Typhoon Lagoon!

 

[Eeyore's Tailfinder]

Typhoon Lagoon

Today, something different and a break from the parks – Typhoon Lagoon!

We get there quite early and share a bus with the other All Stars Resorts to the park. First things first, we need to find a locker! We buy one, get our number and dump all our stuff there, bar our towels and swim shoes. We manage to grab some sunloungers quite close to the water and we set straight off to find the little shark swim.

No go. We just could not find it at all despite walking around that area. We followed the signs but just came straight back out onto the main path. Oh well. We found the path for Crush’n’Gusher and went straight for that one. The queue wasn’t too bad – around 10mins. The ride was good, but it’s true the advice that people give you… lift your butt up on the ride! It will definitely hurt if you don’t!

There were a couple of photopass people at the bottom waiting to take some lovely photos of us with water in eyes, gasping for air, and wobbly bits everywhere. Needless to say those photos will be staying on the Photopass CD, never to be seen again! We went on a second time on a different track, and again had the obligatory photos taken at the bottom.

Next, we walked until we found an entry point for the lazy river, grabbed a couple of tubes and floated around. I just love lazy rivers, they really make you feel like you’re on holiday – floating around in the hot sun! We went around once and got out quite near one of the raft ride, so on we went! We queued around 10-20mins to go on and it was quite a short ride and TBH not worth the wait. Ah well.

We went in the wave pool for a while and those waves are BIG! I mean really big! They take you under and take you back! If you take kidlets in the pool, stand far enough back from the waves!

Big Wave!

Right, is it lunchtime yet?

We walked back to the locker to get our KTTW and set off for Leaning Palms. When we got there, I discovered I’d grabbed our Photopass card instead of one of the KTTW! D'oh! Back to change it again, and back to Leaning Palms. Food report is in the Dining TR!

For the next hour or so, we lazed around in the lazy river and swam a bit in the wave pool – well, as much as you can with colossal waves!

At around 1-2pm we decided to leave TL. It was getting quite crowded, not to mention VERY hot.

Here is the *very* short video I made for TL. Sorry the quality is so bad - if I upped it, it would take ages to upload!!
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When we arrived back at ASMo, we nosied around the giftshop for a while and went to get yet more drinks in our mugs. We also noticed the caricature artist and told ourselves we would have to be back to make one. We never did get one though, so that’s something I would like to do this time. Once in the room, we just showered and relaxed for a while. We had an ADR at Boma tonight, so we made ourselves ready to go there.

AKL is really, really nice. It just has this great vibe, I can’t explain it. It’s very well themed, with a great lobby and African spice smells rising from Boma below. I would definitely like to stay there sometime in the future (although surprisingly, I find myself saying this with a lot of Disney hotels!) We were around 5mins late for our ADR but we just couldn’t find Boma! We could see where it was, but had no idea how to get down there – somehow we found it in the end, and the report is in my Dining TR!

After Boma, we walked around the main lobby for a bit, having a look around. I love the look of this resort!

It was still rather early, so we decided to catch a bus from AKL to the MK! Just as we were arriving through the gates, the parade was about to start, so I grabbed the best spot I could find – bearing in mind this was in front of Tony’s 5mins before the parade began, and waited, as we had not yet seen Spectromagic, only a small glimpse as it was passing Cindy’s Castle the other day.

I really enjoyed the parade, but would have enjoyed it more if the guy in front of me hadn’t kept moving throughout it! Ahh well, my fault for being so late! Els snuck off during the parade and came back and put something on my head. He’d been to the Chapeau store, and bought some Flashing Mickey Ears for me and had them embroidered Hayley whilst I was watching the parade!

After Spectro was over, we moved down into the shops, trying to avoid the surge of people on Main St. This was a good plan. We came out near the Plaza and decided to stand on the little walkway that goes past it to wait for Wishes.

I really enjoyed Wishes – it’s the music that makes it! Best fireworks I’ve ever seen (so far )

I believe it was EMH in the MK tonight, so we did ride a few rides in waiting for the crowd to disappear, but got home quite early as we had an early start at Epcot the next morning!

Tomorrow: Epcot!

 

[punkin413]

wow.......you really hit the jackpot with all the characters!!! what a great day.

They loved Els hair and made their CM do their hair exactly the same as his for the photo!

Hook thought he was cool and stole my sunglasses to wear for the shot. Smee had a go at being my hairstylist.

these are my favorites! i love that rafiki and timon did their hair like els! that's just hilarious.

and hook and smee are always good fun. when we were there in may i had on a tink necklace and when hook noticed it he just starting tapping his hook with one hand and staring at me. it kinda scared me but it was really funny!

by the way, what are your dates for your upcoming trip? i'll be there september 3 - 8 for a long weekend trip with a friend of mine!

 

[Eeyore's Tailfinder]

He's shaved his head now, so no one can copy him this year!

We'll be there then too! Our dates are Aug 21 - Sept 7 (then onto the Wonder Sept 7-11)

Where are you guys staying?! Just in case we bump into you

 

[punkin413]

He's shaved his head now, so no one can copy him this year!

We'll be there then too! Our dates are Aug 21 - Sept 7 (then onto the Wonder Sept 7-11)

Where are you guys staying?! Just in case we bump into you

we're staying at pop.

i'll PM you my itinerary and you can see if our plans match up at all. if so, we can be on the lookout for each other!

 

[dinah439]

I'm loving your trip report. It's making me wish January would hurry up and get here!

Are you going to do a TR for your trip next month?