This is Magical, this is Horrific, and this is Epic! TR 8/27-9/7/25, updated 10/5*

I miss you too! When I saw the Candlelight Processional dining packages announced I was SO sad!!!! We would be in full planning mode with ADRs and day plans. Ugh! Can this current specialness please end soon?
I will miss you when I am there at Thanksgiving! The specialness has elevated to such a crazy, awful level, enough is enough, ugh 😩 Maybe we can cruise together at some point! That would be fun.
I can't do mochi either. Just blech for me.
Yeah not for me, very weird and not worth the texture, the flavor was just meh
I love the CR shops!
Same, it is really fun to browse around here, of course I found so many cute things in there but to big to take back!
Sounds like a great event! I am just like Andi...no PDA, lol!
It really was, haha 🤣 Andi is the same, she will sometimes let me hold her hand for a few minutes on a walkway but that is it!
Love it! It seems pretty decent for everything you get.
It really is for the current price, hopefully it won’t increase a ton like so many things do at the World!
I did love the curtains!
Same, the new ones are fine but the constellation ones top notch!
Yeah.... It's why I hate fireworks most of the time.
Same we always are invisible to people because we are small and I detest this. We can have a great spot and inevitably people come and stand right in front of us ugh 😩
I am glad we got to see the guns move cause I really don't think they will ever work again.
Same, I don’t they will ever work again!
If you can, try the ice cream version. I prefer that form over the regular. The ice cream compliments the mochi. In my oppinion. But there is a lot of fun things to try there!
I may try that. I really like the gummy candy in Mitsokoshi and Poki is pretty good but we can get that here!
We're planning to see the Villians show during our upcoming trip. I don't know if we will try for Little Mermaid. It isn't a fan favorite for our group.
I really want to see the Villain show. I really enjoyed the LM show it was way better than the old one!
I'm glad you gave a little bit of a description. The mochi thing doesn't appeal to me.
Yeah weird texture somewhat like a marshmallow but slightly moist inside flavor wasn’t the best.
This looks like a great party.
This is a great way to view the fireworks and enjoy delicious food and drinks!
Is this quite new? I don’t recall hearing about it when I went last in 2022.
I think it is newer!
Tell us how you really feel about it!
Haha wait until my next installment I really digress on it! :rotfl:
Heh… even when the weather is perfect I bet I look miserable when I run.
Power to you if you like running, these people looked miserable! 😭
Someone(s) knows where the camera is.
Thanks to Andi, I have learned where all the cameras are on every ride now!
How did it compare to the old mermaid show?
I thought it was much better, really cool blend of puppets and live actors!
Just be careful. Those old rundown hotels sometimes have problems and faulty equipment.
I fall for it every time! :sad2:
You were holding on with your right hand, weren’t you?
You know my secret 🤐 I can only enjoy the ride if I hold on some and keep my feet firmly planted! ::yes::
I don’t remember the ride well enough to remember the big guns
I think they worked the first few times and never again. It is the scene where you can see out of the ship and all the fighting going on out there in space! You are in the room with the big guns!
I’d like to try that too. I never did get around to trying the old place.
We loved Tokyo Dining and this place was also quite good, I did like the menu here, many choices!
I’ve tried it a few times, and yes, the texture is a little weird. I too haven’t decided if I like it or not.
It must be an acquired taste!
That seems like a lot of food for someone who didn’t want to eat too much.
It looks like it but you know Japanese food, you are hungry again in a couple hours! 🤣 it was actually pretty small bites all around
Can’t go wrong with an arrival mimosa.
It was a nice touch!
It’s a good thing you had sushi earlier!!
I tried a little here and probably from being made earlier the sushi we had earlier was much better
That sounds really good.
The shrimp was very good, Ravioli was my favorite, but everything I tried overall was very tasty!
While the slider seemed the most… pedestrian of the lot, they certainly caught my eye.
I know but these were my second favorite 🤩 really good!
Good for you. Sometimes it’s more important just to be present in the moment.
It really was! Andi and I haven’t watched HEA together in quite sometime
That’s not bad considering all the food there is.
I agree, hopefully they won’t increase the price any time soon, but we all know they will! :sad2:
 
Hello There!

In just over 2 weeks I will be heading back to Florida for a Disney trip with the “free” dining plan. I decided to do this since my AP has expired and I will buy a new one when I arrive using my 5 day PH tickets I have for this current trip! Did I have a little sticker shock with what “free” dining costs? I did just because I never pay rack rate, never buy tickets, and I would never in a day spend money on a DDP but this trip is going to be loads of fun! I am finally traveling with Liesa @Steppesister again! Yay! We will also be meeting up with Kelly @buzzrelly and hopefully also run into Sue @Wood Nymph.

My trip starts on 10/21. I fly out of my hometown around 1200 with a layover in Minneapolis for a couple hours before heading to Orlando. My flight is scheduled to arrive around 8:30pm. I will Lyft to AS Sports for the first night.
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I got a really good AP price for the one night and picked a room on TP so we shall see if I get the area I requested.

I plan to get a little something to eat from the food court before calling it a night!

Wednesday I plan to head over to Universal Studios and IOA for a few hours to get a little more Halloween fun and ride a few things (ET I am looking at you!) I have an AP so why not.

I will have my luggage sent over to AKL before I head to Universal Studios. I plan to take a Lyft to Hard Rock Hotel and walk to the parks. No Epic this trip, it is not included in my AP, boo 😒

I will head back late afternoon to AKL and hope we got our room requests which I did on TP (my track record lately with TP requests not great but a girl can hope right?)

This is when my trip starts with Liesa, The BFP, haha 🤣 her pre trip report has the days outlined and our dining plans, so I won’t go into that here.
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I will be in Disney until Monday 10/27. My flight leaves at 6:20pm so I will want to leave for the airport around 4-4:30pm. I hope to make use of my snack credits with items from F&W, top priority!

I also have a solo trip planned for the week of Thanksgiving! My family is abandoning me so why not head to Disney/USO by myself! My husband and son have their annual Pheasant Hunting trip in South Dakota this week and Andi has plans with Kait and friends to celebrate her 26th Birthday which is the day before Thanksgiving.

My family is all getting together and doing a family gathering before this week.
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My plan for my trip is fly to Orlando on 11/25 arrive in the evening and I will be staying 6 nights at The Swan. I could not beat the AP price for a deluxe resort, it is cheaper than POFQ which was my other choice. I have never stayed at The Swan but I love the location and will be able to check another resort of my list! I fly back on Monday evening. I will also be spending some time with Stacy, @Stacybaeasm we met up for the first time on my May trip. Stacy has invited me to Thanksgiving dinner at Crystal Palace with Pooh and Friends!
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I’m planning to do that and meet up with her the next day at Epcot for Festival of the Holidays. I am not doing any extra add on events this year. The Jollywood sounds interesting but not a must do with the price and I like the Christmas party but I did this last year and it is not as good as the Halloween party in my opinion. I also have done Candlelight Processional many times and have decided not to do it this year. My goals are checking out decorations, Festival of the Holidays, Magical Menagerie and Dinosaur!
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I have one more trip planned after this. This trip will be the last week of January with Andi. We will spend 3 nights at Disney for FArts, yay! We love this festival and missed it this year. I have The Swan booked but will see what the price is
for a bounce back at BWI or BC and if decent could change it up.
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We will spend 2 nights at Stella Nova resort close to Epic and spend 2 days at Epic, we will then move over to Royal Pacific for 2 nights using the express pass for US and IOA parks and head home on Saturday! Things may change some depending on Epic tickets and if we can add Epic to our APs. I have heard rumors that at the beginning of 2026 Epic maybe added to APs. We shall see! There you have it my travel plans through the first part of 2026. I’m sure another trip will be done in late April or early May for a little F&G time and Andi, Kait, and I will be returning for Halloween fun in early September.
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I have decided to end my TR writing after my current report. I will add in a little to Liesa’s report for our October trip then hang up my hat. I will still read all the other great reports out there and comment but I think by now you all know how I travel, haha 😂
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Thanks so much for reading and I do have more installments of my current TR coming up very soon. My plan is to have it done before my October trip! So please stay tuned!


 
You have a lot of fun trips in the works!
If you happen to find yourself in DS the day after Thanksgiving, let me know! Same for if you do decide to go to WDW in April.


Not going to lie, I was sad to read that you're not going to write any more reports. I completely understand and they're something that's meant to be fun and relaxing. Once they become a chore, that's when it's time to step away. I do hope if you ever change your mind or want to recap events, you know we are all happy to read whatever you want to share!
 
Hello There!

Today is a Dinosaur day, followed by DS for drinks, and Epcot in the evening!

We had FP$$ for Dinosaur (shocker), Everest, and Safari with a fancy ride on FoP.

We had a little breakfast with coffee in the room before heading to the bus 🚌 Again we were not rushing and left past the RD crowds at the bus. Both Andi and I were avid RD enthusiasts before Disney changed the extra hours. The 30 minute early entry just doesn’t work for us. It is complete chaos most of the time and at all 4 parks everyday. The old extra 1 hour was so much better, it kept the crowds a little lower at the specific park for that day. The extra hour was at only one park each morning! Huge difference in our opinion. Non resort guests often went to a different park on this morning so the 1 hour and the next 2-3 hours in this park remained at a low crowd level. So for now we mostly avoid RD and head into the park after crowds have dispersed some.

This morning we arrived around 9am. Guess where we went first? If you said Kali River Rapids who are you? 🤣

Dinosaur was our first choice! It was perfect timing to see a PPCM at the big replica of the T-Rex 🦖Sue. We stopped for a few pictures before doing the ride twice.

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During the ride when Dr. Seeker says 4 wheel drive now, Andi with her dry sense of humor leans in and says you would think traveling to the end of the Cretaceous period, we would already be in 4 wheel drive! 😆 Funny pictures again,

#1
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#2
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Our next stop was Everest for Andi. We saw a PPCM on the bridge before Everest and the CM was very nice.

He gave us a typical Minnesota day, lol 😆
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Also a AK day, love seeing Everest in the background
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Andi rode EE with the FP$$ x 2, thanks to my fear of this ride, haha 😂
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I looked around the gift shop while she was on the ride.

I was able to get a NRJ FP$$ so we headed over to Pandora and rode the ride. We did a mobile order for Satuli Canteen after the ride. We took a few photos waiting on our order. It would be an early lunch. It was before 11:00.
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I decided on the cheeseburger pod kids meal with the veggie chips. I also asked for a side of the creamy herb dressing. I also got a Diet Coke with my meal.
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Andi had the grilled chicken bowl and the Hawks Grog beer. It is the green beer made just for Pandora. Our food was delicious.

We had a FoP fancy ride up next. This is such a great ride! I think this will take over as my favorite ride in AK when Dinosaur closes. 🥲😢
More AK fun coming soon….
 



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