The Prius & The Poly Trip Report **Updated 10/31 What I Learned...**

[Bridora]

Trip Report time! When last I wrote we had packed most of our clothes. Allison & Luke (kiddos) had no idea we were even going anywhere. Max & I successfully packed the bags into the Prius on Thursday night. We loaded the kids & ourselves in on Friday morning and pulled out of the driveway just a few minutes behind schedule at 7:15 am.

Can you spot our hidden Mickey?

We drove from Arkansas to Alabama before Allison & Luke knew where we were going. Screams of delight ensued.

We stopped for the night in Ocala, FL. It has become our pit-stop. We don't make the whole drive in one day, but we do get pretty close! It is so close that we don't have to drive far the next day!

And the next day was SeaWorld! It was everyone's first trip to SeaWorld and we were all so excited. We drove straight there on Saturday morning. The park opened at 9am and I think we were there by 9:30.

Here is my (too slow) attempt at a drive-by shot of the sign:

Here is my shot of the roller coaster I chickened out of riding:

Our first ride was Journey to Atlantis, which I unfortunately have no pictures of... It was a fun "boat" coaster ride which took you through the lost city of Atlantis, complete with mermaids to lure you there, and several drops. I so wish I had a shot of the video they showed you while in the queue. They had a mime acting out the ride to warn you that it was "Dark, Scary, Wet!" and later got, "Darker, Scarier, Wetter!" It was quite funny and that became our slogan for the day. We opted out of Kraken, which was right next door. I think we wandered around for a bit before going to the Stingray Lagoon. The Stingrays swim around and you can put your hand in the water to touch them as they go by. They feel neat!

I'm at SeaWorld!

Next we went to the Dolphin Cove "petting" area. You could also feed them, but we weren't there at feeding time, so we just waited around for a dolphin to swim by under our hands:

Around the corner was the area where you could view those dolphins from underwater:

The Penguin Encounter was really cool, too. You stepped onto a conveyor belt and were taken past the penguin habitat. There were so many penguins in there, swimming, standing, walking around! It was neat to see them all in there.

We also did the Shark Encounter. They had a big "tank" that you actually walked through, the water was on both sides & around you. Luke really liked that!

Somewhere in here we visited the Dolphin Nursery. We also found time for lunch at Seaport Pizza. Guess what we ate?

We went to the 3:00 Shamu Believe! show:

You could definitely tell the difference in the themeing and in the feel of Sea World vs. Disney World. I did really like the Waterfront area, however. It was very beautiful:

The walk took us to Shamu Stadium, where sitting in the Soak Zone did not get us wet. Oh well, we were up pretty high in the "Zone"

We left after that to check-in to our Downtown Disney hotel for that night, with plans to return to Sea World that evening.

 

[Bridora]

YAY!!! I can't wait!!

Thanks! I am learning a lot--and I've only posted one installment!!

Welcome back!! Loved the sneak peek, can't wait for the trippie!

Thanks! I am excited to start on my trippie!

Welcome Back! I can't wait to read your report and see all your pictures! Hurry!

Thank you! I took lots of pictures, but I'm finding out that there are lots of things I didn't get a picture of, either...

YAY! What a great sneak peak! I'm subbing and can't wait to read more

Thanks!

 

[shellywalker]

Love the pictures of Shamu! My favortie! I wonder how much that show has changed over the years? I was there when I was 5...and again after I graduated high school and it seemed the same! But still very awesome! My DD has been begging me to go there when we go to Disney in December...I'm thinking we'll have to squeeze it in!

 

[princess_momma]

Oh man!! How exciting!!! I LOVE Sea World!! Your pictures look great! I can't wait for more!!

 

[stacikristine]

How great! I can't believe the kids didn't know you were going to Disney World until the day you started driving! I haven't been to Sea World in a long time. I love Shamu! Can't wait to hear more!

 

[Bridora]

Love the pictures of Shamu! My favortie! I wonder how much that show has changed over the years? I was there when I was 5...and again after I graduated high school and it seemed the same! But still very awesome! My DD has been begging me to go there when we go to Disney in December...I'm thinking we'll have to squeeze it in!

It's definitely worth the squeeze! We really enjoyed Shamu, too!

Oh man!! How exciting!!! I LOVE Sea World!! Your pictures look great! I can't wait for more!!

Thanks--I'm just about to post another one!

How great! I can't believe the kids didn't know you were going to Disney World until the day you started driving! I haven't been to Sea World in a long time. I love Shamu! Can't wait to hear more!

I don't know how we pulled that off as well as we did! They weren't asking many questions at all! I'm sure it helped that they had Nintendo DS & DVDs!

 

[Bridora]

We had our hands stamped as we left Sea World (without even a picture of the sign!) for our return that evening. We had the handy-dandy navigation system to guide us the short distance to the Best Western Lake Buena Vista. I failed to get a picture of the building. Here is a shot from their website.:

Now, before we left I tried to find some DISer reviews of this hotel. I could not find much. That did not deter me, however. While I do read others’ reviews and take them into consideration, I mainly subscribe to the mantra “you never know until you go”. It was a very nice-looking hotel. Until you looked a little closer. Maybe it was just little nit-picky things, but the bathroom was scary! I should have had a picture of that. Overall, it was an enjoyable place, but I’m glad we only stayed there one night. We did have a balcony with an awesome view.

On the balcony, looking to the left:

On the balcony, looking straight ahead:

On the balcony, looking to the right:

I like the addition of the “Characters in Flight” balloon at Downtown Disney. We didn’t ride, but I think it looks spectacular in pictures. Plus, every time we headed to Downtown Disney and spotted the balloon, Luke would point it out and say, “we’re goin’ the right way”!

We got settled in the room, cleaned up a bit, and changed clothes. Max and I decided we had done most everything in Sea World that we wanted to do. Secretly, though, we were just dying to get a taste of the Disney magic. It seemed like the perfect time for a round of mini golf. After dinner, of course! By this time we were getting pretty hungry. Downtown Disney was so close we could hear it calling. We had “reservations” for T-Rex the next night. Earl of Sandwich is our traditional check in day lunch, but we had not “officially” checked in until we were at the Polynesian! So, we narrowed our choices down to either Bongo’s Cuban Café or Raglan Road.

(Sorry that one was blurry.)
Bongo’s it was! Now, I hope you were not expecting glorious food pictures from me…It seems that taking pictures of your food…every course…is not something that comes naturally for me. I planned on it. I took my camera in. I even took the little Olympus camera so it would be able to sit right beside me on the table without taking up huge amounts of space. I only got a picture of the appetizer. I know. It’s bad. I’m so sorry.

These were very good though. They are the Masitas de Puerco - Fried pork cubes marinated with garlic sauce served with grilled onions. And can’t you see that I almost missed that picture too? Max had already grabbed a pork cube from the plate! The rest of the food was good here, but nothing really stood out. Next time, it’s Raglan Road!

We stepped out to a beautiful night!

We wanted to drive to Winter Summerland to play Mini-Golf. We could not find it for the longest time! It was very funny, but also a bit frustrating! Last time (our first time!) we had no problems getting there…We didn’t mind, though, we were just happy to be in Disney World, following those purple signs no matter what!

Hey, that sign says, “NO Diving”

Luke spotted this little guy on a tree:

We took a break afterwards. We were having so much fun, and the kids were not acting up too much…so we decided to play a round on the Winter Course!

We each got a hole in one!

I don’t have many pictures from the Winter Course, for whatever reason. Maybe I was concentrating more!

It was getting late, and we could not wait for the next day: Check-in at the Polynesian!!

A few parting night shots from our balcony:

 

[stacikristine]

Your mini golf pictures look like so much fun! I played on the Fantasia course when I was with my family in High School. It was sooo fun! Maybe DH and I will have to golf when we go

 

[princess_momma]

OH I can't wait to hear about your Disney magic!! Thats what I'm waiting for too!! The characters in flight looks cool from your window...if I did that, I'd do it at night because it has got to be just an awesome view!! Which side of the mini golf course did you like more?? We are going mini golfing one day and thats the course we're going to!!

 

[Bridora]

Your mini golf pictures look like so much fun! I played on the Fantasia course when I was with my family in High School. It was sooo fun! Maybe DH and I will have to golf when we go

It was fun! We looove some mini-golf. And you should definitely play when you go.

OH I can't wait to hear about your Disney magic!! Thats what I'm waiting for too!! The characters in flight looks cool from your window...if I did that, I'd do it at night because it has got to be just an awesome view!! Which side of the mini golf course did you like more?? We are going mini golfing one day and thats the course we're going to!!

I don't know which one I liked better...Maybe the Summer one. Or maybe that's just because we played 2 back to back and Summer was the first!?! You will have so much fun!

 

[Bridora]

Good morning Florida! Sunday, May 31, was finally here! Polynesian, here we come!
Good-bye Downtown Disney offsite hotel…

Hello paradise…

Now, around about, oh 10 days ago (from then), Max got an email inviting us to use the online check in service. I’d heard things about it, but didn’t know if we wanted to try it, or not. We put in a request for a “longhouse” and a floor, I believe, when we originally made our reservations. I wasn’t sure how your requests might work out with online check in. It was just too exciting, 10 days before your Disney trip, to resist doing it right then! So, we did it…

There was one couple at the desk when we walked in the lobby. There were about 4 groups at the ‘old-timey’ check in desk. Luckily for us, the one couple finished up just as we were walking up! They had our welcome folder with everything inside. Max just had to show his ID. They got my cell phone number and said they could send a text when our room was ready. We had counted on it not being ready yet, seeing as how we were there so early! I ended up wearing everyone’s leis around while we explored the grounds just a bit. I think we had actually skipped breakfast that morning. I don’t know how that happened, because honestly, Allison and Luke NEVER skip breakfast. Which is good, of course, because breakfast is the most important meal of the day, right? All that to say, ‘we were hungry’. And it was back to Downtown Disney. Earl of Sandwich was on the horizon.

This is our traditional check-in day lunch. I do believe Max & I started this in 2006 on our anniversary-trip-with-no-kiddos! Very good sandwiches. No pictures. Will I ever learn? Max & I had Caribbean Jerk Chicken sandwiches. Allison had trouble finding something she wanted and ordered a salad. Luke had the Pizza Sandwich. Now, if you don’t like cucumbers don’t get a salad! Or at least ask for one made without cucumbers. Even after we took them off Allison’s salad you could still taste them. We ended up trading half my sandwich for the rest of her salad. It was a great sandwich and only an Ok salad. But that did not spoil my mood! I had my cup full of root-beer (a taste I had only JUST acquired) and I was walking around Downtown Disney!

Darn! Another place I need a picture I did not take. Let me insert a picture I took later on in the week. It is at an entirely different place, but it will give you the idea.

It was one of those little booths, not far from Earl of Sandwich, and it beckoned us, once again. For the last, oh, 4-5 years Max has been interested in the Disney Vacation Club. I was interested, too, but I didn’t think it was something we could handle at the time. Max was already planning to use part of the day on Wednesday (our pool day) to visit a DVC booth. I insisted we go ahead and stop now, to check it out. After all, we had all day! We talked to the Cast Member at the booth and decided to schedule a tour. He called in on his little walkie-talkie and within 10 minutes we were being whisked away in a golf cart to Saratoga Springs!

Allison I & rode on the back, so that was our view leaving Downtown Disney! It was a very quick ride. Here, again, I have let you all down. I have no pictures of Saratoga Springs. I have no pictures of the cool little kids room where Allison & Luke waited while Max & I toured. I have no pictures of the rooms we toured. I have no pictures of the cool little ice cream parlor where we had (free!) ice cream on our way out. Kick me now!

They greeted us with a “Welcome Home” when we walked in. They gave us name tag stickers and directed us over to a waiting area. After I checked Allison & Luke into the kids’ room, we grabbed a cookie & cup of water and waited. Very shortly someone came to talk with us about DVC & our vacation needs/habits/wants, etc. After that we walked over to another building where they had ‘rooms’ from Kidani Village and Bay Lake Towers. We took a tour of those. Our guide showed them like a realtor would show a house. She would show the ‘studio’ first, then open the door to expand into the 1 bedroom, then show how it became the 2 bedroom if you opened another door. They were pretty neat! They even had a mock balcony off the living area. There was a nice-sized model of the Treehouse Villas we viewed as well. Next, we walked back over to the first building, going in different door, more toward the back. We got a little conference room where we were to discuss further. The whole time Disney had been showing us what they have to offer. They said up front to throw away any concepts we had of “timeshares”. They said they were no-pressure. DVC would sell itself. They didn’t mind if we didn’t make a decision until we were back home. They were right! We did make our decision that day, though, right in that little room. We became DVC owners! Bay Lake Towers, we now call you home!

I cannot even tell you how excited I am. To this day, on the other side of vacation, I can still just think about that day, that decision, that moment, that building, and SMILE. After some necessary papers, signatures, etc. we went back to collect (rescue) Allison & Luke. It seemed we had been gone for almost 3 hours! Yikes! The kids had gotten bored & wondered if we would ever return. After some apologies and failed attempts to explain DVC to Allison while eating free ice cream, we took a van straight back to the Prius in the Downtown Disney parking lot. Our driver was very helpful with some advice on DVC. He told us all the insider info…


Keep in mind, all day long I had been checking my phone for that magical sound that would mean I had a text from Disney and that we had a ready room. It was now about 4:30 or 5:00. We drove back to the Polynesian. We went back to the online check-in desk (why wait, right?). Our room was ready! Turns out, that texting thing is a new feature. I’m just going to say they didn’t have all the bugs worked out yet! And, our request was granted! Samoa…1st floor! (we wanted a patio or balcony ‘1st or 3rd floor’ close to the pool/Grand Ceremonial House) We raced off to check out our room!

This was a great room! I don’t know if there is a better one out there. It was at the very end of the building, closest to Hawaii. The patio doors opened onto our balcony overlooking the Volcano Pool. It was nice to only have ‘neighbors’ on one side. Our balcony was kind of hidden, too, in the landscaping!

We played around at the Polynesian for a bit. We met this Duck Family:

We would run into them frequently all week! Then we cleaned up for our dinner at T-Rex. And it was back again to Downtown Disney for us…

 

[AGPrincess]

Yay!! You checked in at the Polynesian!! I love Earl of Sandwich...I wish I could have some right now. And that's so neat that you joined DVC -- the Bay Lake Towers look so pretty!

 

[princess_momma]

OH MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm so excited and uberly jealous of you! I want to join DVC SO BAD and I would buy into BLT!!! Maybe one day I will have to rent points from you But goodness...your room at the Poly is GORGEOUS!! I freakin love it. You already seem to be having an AMAZING trip and you just barely got your room! LOL

 

[dallastxcpa]

Great trip report! I am sooo enjoying it.

Also, I wanted to say:

HOME

 

[duckybelle]

JHust found your tr, and am along for the ride! Thought I'd say HI from another Arkansas girl!

 

[Bridora]

Yay!! You checked in at the Polynesian!! I love Earl of Sandwich...I wish I could have some right now. And that's so neat that you joined DVC -- the Bay Lake Towers look so pretty!

I wish I was having some Earl of Sandwich, too!

OH MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm so excited and uberly jealous of you! I want to join DVC SO BAD and I would buy into BLT!!! Maybe one day I will have to rent points from you But goodness...your room at the Poly is GORGEOUS!! I freakin love it. You already seem to be having an AMAZING trip and you just barely got your room! LOL

Girl, sounds like a plan! I loved our room--especially the patio.

Great trip report! I am sooo enjoying it.

Also, I wanted to say:

HOME

Thanks!

 

[Bridora]

T-Rex here we come!

Luke has been so excited about eating at T-Rex--he absolutely loves all things dinosaur. We usually hit up Rainforest Café, but we had never dined at T-Rex before. Just a side note: We are Safari Club members. If you are not, I highly recommend it. Eek, can’t remember, though if we had to pay for the initial membership. I’m thinking we didn’t. The card gets you a discount on your meal, and gets you seated quicker. You must use it once a year (at any Landry’s restaurant) to keep it active.

And, here we are!

We had ADRs for T-Rex. You can’t book this through Disney Dining, though, you have to call T-Rex directly.

There were lots of dinos in there! Every 20-30 minutes a meteor shower would occur. Along the lines of the thunderstorms at Rainforest Café. No food pictures, but, hey I did get a shot of the menu, right? We had the nachos off the appetizer menu on recommendation from our server. They were fabulous! I ordered a salad as my meal to accompany them because they were so huge.

But what trip to T-Rex could be complete without a browse through the gift shop? Not ours! Allison & Luke found the Build-A-Dino section and got to work!

Very fun! The dinos were not too bad in price. The $6.00 T-Rex Café dino sized T-Shirts were almost too hard to resist, though.

Afterwards--chocolate!

I love that place! And the free samples, of course!

On our way back through, heading to the car. I just love the look of this area at night.

We got back to the room in time to catch the Electrical Water Pageant at the same time as Wishes! Amazing! What a treat for our 1st night!

Luke & Allison also took advantage of this time to try out the Volcano Pool:

It wasn’t even too crowded. The slide was so much fun--I didn’t go this night, but I will later in the week…

Then it was time for bed. We had to rest up for our 1st day in the parks!

 

[shannon47142]

just read through your repoert---WOW!!! So much happened that first day in Disney for you guys!!!BLT owners, a great room at Poly and a cool dinner place

 

[carri5317]

Great report so far, can't wait to hear more. Congrats on DVC!

 

[princess_momma]

I want to try T-Rex so bad!! But will probably be waiting until my son is older. Do you have pictures of their finished products of the Build-A-Dino. I didn't realize it was like Build-A-Bear type of thing! How fun!! I may have to stop in there just to do that!! (I love dinosaurs....lol)

Oh and that picture you got of the electrical water pagent and the fireworks is really superb!! thats a great shot!!! I always hear people talk about how hard it is to get good fireworks shots but yours is awesome!