EyeofDTiger75
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Aug 4, 2015
So, about a month ago, our Disney Alaskan Cruise was canceled, so de decided to divert that money over to a trip to Disney World. DW (a teacher) and our daughter would be on Winter Break, so we decided to surprise DD. We told her we were planning on going to Cocoa Beach. Being 7 years old she was all excited about going to the Beach.
We left Stonewall, Louisiana about 7:30pm on the 13th after I had gotten off my 12 hour shift (LEO) and headed down. We drove through the night with no traffic through the major citied and as we approached the travel plaza on the Florida Turnpike, DW decided to get in the back seat with DD7. We went through the South entrance to property near Coronado Springs because I knew that entrance had an archway . As we approached we gave her the box with the MagicBands and she nearly screams and kept asking us if we were joking around.
We made our way to the Contemporary and our room was ready right as I approached the front desk to check in. We made our way up to the room and crashed for a bit. After we woke, we had ADR at Splitsville at DIsney Springs. Pretty good place, nothing special and then we walked around Disney Springs before heading back to the hotel to sleep. .
Monday, Feb 15-
We slept in a little as we had Epcot scheduled. We had Breakfast at "The Wave" which was very nice, friendly waiter. We made our way to the bus stop and was able to catch the first bus to Epcot. We walked into Epcot about 10:30 and had no issues getting through security. I really like the new bag/metal detectors. I had everything loaded in the backpack, cellphone, Battery charging pack, keys, etc and never got directed to search the bag. Having a 7 year old, we went right over to "The Seas with Nemo and Friends" and we were the first ones to get on the ride. We actually walked on it twice while we were there. After spending a little time watching the fish as well as a dolphin going through a training exercise, we walked over to "The Land" and waited for it to open. Went and got in line for "Soarin". The line stated 90 minutes, but we only waiting 45. DD was nervous and scared as this was going yo be her first time. After, the ride, she said it was "99% scary, 1% fun". DW loved it as it was her first time on it as well. We got a snack with the mobile app. First time using the app, so it took me a while to get the timing and understanding of it. After we ate, we road "Living with the Land". Not my favorite ride, but the DD7 loved it. We then left the Land and went over to ride "Frozen".... YEAH RIGHT... The line to Frozen was wrapped all the way through CHINA with nearly a 90 minute wait. We decided not to wait, We walked over to the USA section and got there just in time to watch the "American Adventure" show. The sun and heat were getting bad, so it was a great way to cool off. After the show, I walked over to France to see and take pictures of the Skyline and to find where Ratatouille will be. We made our way back to Frozen and the line was still 90 minutes. So with early dinner reservations at "The Boathouse". The Boathouse was great. Great view, and great food. We sat in thee about 90 mins just relaxing. After that, we took the bus back to the Contemporary. We went to the food court and picked us up each a refillable mug, yet we were not allowed to refill ourselves. They wasted so many paper cups with people just pouring them in the cups. The we crashed. We had MK the next day and wanted to be ready.
Tuesday, Feb 16-
We over Slept this morning. Set the alarm for 6am, rolled over and I must have hit the snooze or something and it was 6:35am. We sprang up and go dressed and was at MK, from the Motorail just before they let everyone line up to enter the park. We rented a stroller for DD7 and off we went to SDMT. The ride wasn't open yet, but after a short wait we pretty much walked on it, maybe waiter 15 minutes, DD7 was a little nervous about this Roller Coaster. Then we went over and walked on It's a Small World, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan, and then Little Mermaid all before the crowd started building up. This is now were some of the frustration started to set it. The crowd was very manageable, but the lines became insane. Because of our late start, we didn't really eat breakfast so we went over to Gaston's for a Cinnamon Roll. There was a 30 minute wait just for that and the line was all the way to "Be Our Guest". When we got to the entrance, we found out why. Disney was only operating ONE of the three registers in the building. Wen we finished eating, we saw the line to SDWT was wrapped around the entire ride, ending on the bridge to Gaston's. We walked over and got on Haunted Mansion with a live nearly to Frontier Land, but moved very quickly. I think we only waited 20 minutes. We then walked over and rode the Tea Cups before heading over to Crystal Palace for lunch. This was a big mistake in my opinion. Without the buffet, it is not worth the cost. It IS all you can eat, but only of the entrée you order, and its a predetermined entrée. Yes, you can substitute, but it just doesn't hold the same value was a buffet. After lunch, we decided to go back to the room at the Contemporary and take a break. Unfortunately, the Monorail was down, and we had to make the "short walk' back. This was not the first time the monorail would go down. About 5 we headed back out to the park, Had a short wait for the Magic Carpets, then a 45 minute wait for Pirates, then over to Splash Mountain. Taught DD7 about "Song of the South" and all. DD7 was tired and whining about not wanting to get wet. After the ride she wanted to ride again. After Splash we walked back to Main Street in hopes of eating at The Plaza, but it had closed at 7pm. So, we just relaxed with a pretzel and popcorn and watched to the crowd. We left around 9pm because we had AK the next morning. Mickey and friend were on top of the train stationing waving good night to all.
Wednesday Fed 17-
We woke up super early this morning and caught the first bus to AK. I do not know how people are getting to the parks before rope drop/opening because the resorts aren't getting you there. We got in the park and the line for Pandora was already at the Tree of Life. We too DD7 back to the Safari and were surprised all the animal were very active. Then over to Dinoland. DD7 is learning about fossils and Dinosaurs, so this was a hit. We walked on Dinosaur, the first time any of us rode it and we all loved it. We circled back and rode it again with minimal wait. We then went and rode the TriceraTop Spin and is started drizzling. We ate at the BBQ place when it opened and DD7 got caught up in the Wilderness Explorers activity and she and I went around the park looking for stations. DD7 loved learning about non-fiction, so this was a big hit. After She finished that, we took a Lyft over to Disney Springs where we had a late lunch at T-Rex. T-Rex was just ok. I had to send my burger back because the meat was ice cold when it arrived. They did make it right and we ate, and went back to the room. We were back by 5. We had a relaxing evening.
Thursday Feb 18-
Today we went to HS, I didn't even try to get a boarding pass to ROTR. We got to the park about 8:30 through Disney's bus system. Made our way over to Slinky Dog and was on board by 9:10. the over to Toy Story Mania and the alien spin. Each took about 40 minutes to get through the lines. Today was the hottest day of our trip. After we finished with Toy Story Land, we walked through Star Wars land and got to see Chewy and Rey. The went over to the ABC Commissary and got lunch. After lunch we got in line for the MMRR. the line was 90 minutes and after 45 minutes we were still sitting in the baking sun. DW and DD7 decided to they wanted to leave, so we did. We headed back to the bus, but decided to ride the skyline for fun since it was out first trip to WDW since they were completed. We rode it all the way to Pop Century and then to Epcot and back to catch our bus back to the resort. We had dinner reservations at Shula's at the Dolphine. It was probably the best Ribeye I'd ever had.
Friday Feb 19-
Friday morning was our last BIG day. We got up and got to MK as early as we could, walked down the ramp from the monorail as they were opening the park. Went right over to BTMRR, had to wait until 8:30 for them to actually open the ride, and walked right on, DD7 loved it so much she wanted to ride it again, so we jumped back on with a small wait. Splash was still closed as they were having a mechanical issue. So we headed over to Fantasyland and the only ride we hadn't gotten to on Tuesday was Dumbos. We walked on that and then went over and drove the Speedway. DD& has a lot to learn about keeping a car straight in 8 years. We walked over and got back on the tea cups and Winnie the Pooh, before heading over to Tomorrowland and take a break. We managed to get into The Plaza for lunch and had a good lunch. BTW, the Ice Cream parlor is closed, so this is the only way to get ice cream. It was time for a break, and I we went back to the room for the girls to rest. About 5 we headed back to the park and it started raining. Nothing heavy, but enough to get wet. We had dinner reservations at Be Our Guest, so we really didn't want to get wet, but mother nature had other plans, so we went ahead for on last ride on Splash Mountain. Told DD7 that when we return, it will be different. After Splash we walked over to Be Our Guest and was too early to check in. We went an rode the Little Mermaid that has a posted 5 minute wait and then came back an ate dinner. After Dinner the line for SDMT was wrapped to Little Mermaid. it was about 9pm and we had one hour left. The CM assured me that if we were in line by 10, we would still get to ride. So we ran over and got on Peter Pan and then one last spin on the tea cups. We then got in line for SDMT. We were in the heart of the Queue when 10pm hit and got one last ride in. DD7 held BOTH hands up on the drop. She now LOVES roller coasters. We exited the park and took some last minute photo pass pics on Main Street and got to the resort about 11 again because the monorail was down again. We got back to the resort wanting a drink/snack but the food court was closed and the drink fountains wrapped in platic wrap "for our safety". So, we were out of luck.
Saturday Feb 20-
Our last day at Disney. We got up and went back to Epcot. I wanted to try and get there as early as possible so, we rode the bus to Hollywood and took the Skyline to the Hub. However, they would not load the skyline to Epcot until about 10am. We arrived right after it opened watching people file into the park was we were approaching. we headed for Frozen, the one thing DD7 didn't get to ride Monday. To my surprise, we were able to walk on with no wait and were able to ride a 2nd time with only a 5 minute wait. Then DD7 wanted to go ride Soarin again. We made it over there, the posted 65 minute only took 30 minutes. and after the ride it was time for our ADR at the Garden Grill. We had a great lunch. DD7 actually got to get a picture with Mickey standing behind the booth. We then went for one last ride on "Nemo and Friends before heading to our resort to et the car. We had to go find bottles of water to take home. We live in NW LA and the historic winter storm had knocked out the water in out hometown and family and friends didn't have any drinkable water. We loaded up the SUV and went to relax at the hotel. We got dinner at the foot court then went to Disney Springs where DD7 and DW had a reservation at the Lego Store to make personized characters. After, we went and loaded the car. We left DIsney at about 4am the following morning for the 14 hour drive back home.
We had a great trip. Things were not perfect, mostly due to COVID restriction and Disney Nickle and diming. I am not a fan of the new house keeping policy.
We left Stonewall, Louisiana about 7:30pm on the 13th after I had gotten off my 12 hour shift (LEO) and headed down. We drove through the night with no traffic through the major citied and as we approached the travel plaza on the Florida Turnpike, DW decided to get in the back seat with DD7. We went through the South entrance to property near Coronado Springs because I knew that entrance had an archway . As we approached we gave her the box with the MagicBands and she nearly screams and kept asking us if we were joking around.
We made our way to the Contemporary and our room was ready right as I approached the front desk to check in. We made our way up to the room and crashed for a bit. After we woke, we had ADR at Splitsville at DIsney Springs. Pretty good place, nothing special and then we walked around Disney Springs before heading back to the hotel to sleep. .
Monday, Feb 15-
We slept in a little as we had Epcot scheduled. We had Breakfast at "The Wave" which was very nice, friendly waiter. We made our way to the bus stop and was able to catch the first bus to Epcot. We walked into Epcot about 10:30 and had no issues getting through security. I really like the new bag/metal detectors. I had everything loaded in the backpack, cellphone, Battery charging pack, keys, etc and never got directed to search the bag. Having a 7 year old, we went right over to "The Seas with Nemo and Friends" and we were the first ones to get on the ride. We actually walked on it twice while we were there. After spending a little time watching the fish as well as a dolphin going through a training exercise, we walked over to "The Land" and waited for it to open. Went and got in line for "Soarin". The line stated 90 minutes, but we only waiting 45. DD was nervous and scared as this was going yo be her first time. After, the ride, she said it was "99% scary, 1% fun". DW loved it as it was her first time on it as well. We got a snack with the mobile app. First time using the app, so it took me a while to get the timing and understanding of it. After we ate, we road "Living with the Land". Not my favorite ride, but the DD7 loved it. We then left the Land and went over to ride "Frozen".... YEAH RIGHT... The line to Frozen was wrapped all the way through CHINA with nearly a 90 minute wait. We decided not to wait, We walked over to the USA section and got there just in time to watch the "American Adventure" show. The sun and heat were getting bad, so it was a great way to cool off. After the show, I walked over to France to see and take pictures of the Skyline and to find where Ratatouille will be. We made our way back to Frozen and the line was still 90 minutes. So with early dinner reservations at "The Boathouse". The Boathouse was great. Great view, and great food. We sat in thee about 90 mins just relaxing. After that, we took the bus back to the Contemporary. We went to the food court and picked us up each a refillable mug, yet we were not allowed to refill ourselves. They wasted so many paper cups with people just pouring them in the cups. The we crashed. We had MK the next day and wanted to be ready.
Tuesday, Feb 16-
We over Slept this morning. Set the alarm for 6am, rolled over and I must have hit the snooze or something and it was 6:35am. We sprang up and go dressed and was at MK, from the Motorail just before they let everyone line up to enter the park. We rented a stroller for DD7 and off we went to SDMT. The ride wasn't open yet, but after a short wait we pretty much walked on it, maybe waiter 15 minutes, DD7 was a little nervous about this Roller Coaster. Then we went over and walked on It's a Small World, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan, and then Little Mermaid all before the crowd started building up. This is now were some of the frustration started to set it. The crowd was very manageable, but the lines became insane. Because of our late start, we didn't really eat breakfast so we went over to Gaston's for a Cinnamon Roll. There was a 30 minute wait just for that and the line was all the way to "Be Our Guest". When we got to the entrance, we found out why. Disney was only operating ONE of the three registers in the building. Wen we finished eating, we saw the line to SDWT was wrapped around the entire ride, ending on the bridge to Gaston's. We walked over and got on Haunted Mansion with a live nearly to Frontier Land, but moved very quickly. I think we only waited 20 minutes. We then walked over and rode the Tea Cups before heading over to Crystal Palace for lunch. This was a big mistake in my opinion. Without the buffet, it is not worth the cost. It IS all you can eat, but only of the entrée you order, and its a predetermined entrée. Yes, you can substitute, but it just doesn't hold the same value was a buffet. After lunch, we decided to go back to the room at the Contemporary and take a break. Unfortunately, the Monorail was down, and we had to make the "short walk' back. This was not the first time the monorail would go down. About 5 we headed back out to the park, Had a short wait for the Magic Carpets, then a 45 minute wait for Pirates, then over to Splash Mountain. Taught DD7 about "Song of the South" and all. DD7 was tired and whining about not wanting to get wet. After the ride she wanted to ride again. After Splash we walked back to Main Street in hopes of eating at The Plaza, but it had closed at 7pm. So, we just relaxed with a pretzel and popcorn and watched to the crowd. We left around 9pm because we had AK the next morning. Mickey and friend were on top of the train stationing waving good night to all.
Wednesday Fed 17-
We woke up super early this morning and caught the first bus to AK. I do not know how people are getting to the parks before rope drop/opening because the resorts aren't getting you there. We got in the park and the line for Pandora was already at the Tree of Life. We too DD7 back to the Safari and were surprised all the animal were very active. Then over to Dinoland. DD7 is learning about fossils and Dinosaurs, so this was a hit. We walked on Dinosaur, the first time any of us rode it and we all loved it. We circled back and rode it again with minimal wait. We then went and rode the TriceraTop Spin and is started drizzling. We ate at the BBQ place when it opened and DD7 got caught up in the Wilderness Explorers activity and she and I went around the park looking for stations. DD7 loved learning about non-fiction, so this was a big hit. After She finished that, we took a Lyft over to Disney Springs where we had a late lunch at T-Rex. T-Rex was just ok. I had to send my burger back because the meat was ice cold when it arrived. They did make it right and we ate, and went back to the room. We were back by 5. We had a relaxing evening.
Thursday Feb 18-
Today we went to HS, I didn't even try to get a boarding pass to ROTR. We got to the park about 8:30 through Disney's bus system. Made our way over to Slinky Dog and was on board by 9:10. the over to Toy Story Mania and the alien spin. Each took about 40 minutes to get through the lines. Today was the hottest day of our trip. After we finished with Toy Story Land, we walked through Star Wars land and got to see Chewy and Rey. The went over to the ABC Commissary and got lunch. After lunch we got in line for the MMRR. the line was 90 minutes and after 45 minutes we were still sitting in the baking sun. DW and DD7 decided to they wanted to leave, so we did. We headed back to the bus, but decided to ride the skyline for fun since it was out first trip to WDW since they were completed. We rode it all the way to Pop Century and then to Epcot and back to catch our bus back to the resort. We had dinner reservations at Shula's at the Dolphine. It was probably the best Ribeye I'd ever had.
Friday Feb 19-
Friday morning was our last BIG day. We got up and got to MK as early as we could, walked down the ramp from the monorail as they were opening the park. Went right over to BTMRR, had to wait until 8:30 for them to actually open the ride, and walked right on, DD7 loved it so much she wanted to ride it again, so we jumped back on with a small wait. Splash was still closed as they were having a mechanical issue. So we headed over to Fantasyland and the only ride we hadn't gotten to on Tuesday was Dumbos. We walked on that and then went over and drove the Speedway. DD& has a lot to learn about keeping a car straight in 8 years. We walked over and got back on the tea cups and Winnie the Pooh, before heading over to Tomorrowland and take a break. We managed to get into The Plaza for lunch and had a good lunch. BTW, the Ice Cream parlor is closed, so this is the only way to get ice cream. It was time for a break, and I we went back to the room for the girls to rest. About 5 we headed back to the park and it started raining. Nothing heavy, but enough to get wet. We had dinner reservations at Be Our Guest, so we really didn't want to get wet, but mother nature had other plans, so we went ahead for on last ride on Splash Mountain. Told DD7 that when we return, it will be different. After Splash we walked over to Be Our Guest and was too early to check in. We went an rode the Little Mermaid that has a posted 5 minute wait and then came back an ate dinner. After Dinner the line for SDMT was wrapped to Little Mermaid. it was about 9pm and we had one hour left. The CM assured me that if we were in line by 10, we would still get to ride. So we ran over and got on Peter Pan and then one last spin on the tea cups. We then got in line for SDMT. We were in the heart of the Queue when 10pm hit and got one last ride in. DD7 held BOTH hands up on the drop. She now LOVES roller coasters. We exited the park and took some last minute photo pass pics on Main Street and got to the resort about 11 again because the monorail was down again. We got back to the resort wanting a drink/snack but the food court was closed and the drink fountains wrapped in platic wrap "for our safety". So, we were out of luck.
Saturday Feb 20-
Our last day at Disney. We got up and went back to Epcot. I wanted to try and get there as early as possible so, we rode the bus to Hollywood and took the Skyline to the Hub. However, they would not load the skyline to Epcot until about 10am. We arrived right after it opened watching people file into the park was we were approaching. we headed for Frozen, the one thing DD7 didn't get to ride Monday. To my surprise, we were able to walk on with no wait and were able to ride a 2nd time with only a 5 minute wait. Then DD7 wanted to go ride Soarin again. We made it over there, the posted 65 minute only took 30 minutes. and after the ride it was time for our ADR at the Garden Grill. We had a great lunch. DD7 actually got to get a picture with Mickey standing behind the booth. We then went for one last ride on "Nemo and Friends before heading to our resort to et the car. We had to go find bottles of water to take home. We live in NW LA and the historic winter storm had knocked out the water in out hometown and family and friends didn't have any drinkable water. We loaded up the SUV and went to relax at the hotel. We got dinner at the foot court then went to Disney Springs where DD7 and DW had a reservation at the Lego Store to make personized characters. After, we went and loaded the car. We left DIsney at about 4am the following morning for the 14 hour drive back home.
We had a great trip. Things were not perfect, mostly due to COVID restriction and Disney Nickle and diming. I am not a fan of the new house keeping policy.
