lenshanem
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2002
- Messages
- 8,930
Trip Report
Animal Kingdom Lodge
Friday, 5/16/03 - Tuesday, 5/20/03
This trip was planned for my hubby's 30th birthday. Star Wars Weekend was the main reason we went. He is a big fan, plus we really wanted to check out the AKL. This was our last non-DVC trip as we had joined just a few weeks prior. We took our 2 little girls, 5 and 2. We also toured the DVC models at BWV.
Friday -
We left early in the morning from Atlanta with girls still in PJs, trying to get a jump on the morning traffic. There was a wreck an exit up from us and we were able to fly through downtown. We stopped twice very briefly and arrived at AKL in 7 hours, around 1:00 pm. Great timing! I had paid for a standard view room with a code discount, but had faxed a request that we would love to be close to the lobby. When we arrived our room was at the farthest point away from the lobby, but we were bumped up to a savannah view room. Great I thought, worth the hike to the room! Alas, once we got there it was the infamous human emergency holding pen view! LOL I have seen this view many times on the Internet! There was a giraffe far away in the distance so I didn't ask to be moved, but towards the end of the trip I sure wish we had! I would have preferred a view of the parking lot over that hike! YIKES! Room 2572 for anyone interested. The resort was BEAUTIFUL. We really loved it and I immediately started privately worrying that we had made the right decision in joining DVC. Such incredible detail to the place. The room was a tad dark like many others have said, so I would bring a makeup mirror if you want to see yourself in the morning! We went down to the pool and the girls played for hours. Just wonderful. I LOVED the zero depth entry, especially for our 2 year old and the Swahili coladas were a yummy treat!
We also walked around the resort and took it all in. I can't say enough how truly beautiful this place is, although the kids didn't seem too interested in the animals. I guess cause we go to the zoo a lot with our Zoo Atlanta membership. I loved the AKL theming! Reminded me of a cross between the Poly and WL. After a quick room service meal we headed off to Disney's World Wide of Sports for an Orlando Rays baseball game. I also planned this for hubby's birthday. He is a HUGE baseball fan. He took our oldest in early to get autographs and I stayed in the car while the little one slept for a bit. We had great seats behind the catcher, but the girls really enjoyed the lawn and running around with all the other kids. I would highly recommend saving a few bucks and just buying lawn seats instead if you have kids. By the way, does anyone know if Disney is getting another minor league team since the Rays are leaving after this season? I was disappointed with the facility. It was very boring I thought, especially after seeing Chattanooga's minor league stadium just recently. I think they are about the same age. Hubby agreed. We left early to go back to AKL and go to sleep.
Saturday -
We actually got to the MK early enough to see the official opening! We have never managed that before. LOL We then made a mad dash to Fantasyland and rode everything there before our 10:00 CRT ressie. It was nice and we didn't have to wait long, our 2 year old was very excited, but it was very sad to see our 5 year old act very removed... 
Guess she is already growing up? After breakfast we stayed at the MK for awhile, but come afternoon we were hot and tired. I was surprised at how crowded and hot it was. We went back to the AKL pool to swim and eat at the Mara before heading back for Spectro and FITS. The sky looked very scary, but Spectro ran and the girls were amazed. It never seems to be running when we go. We sat by the nicest couple from Maine. The man entertained the girls for at least an hour while we waited for it to begin. I was quite concerned about that BLACK sky, too. But the parade ran without a drop of rain. Our youngest is still talking about Tink flying from the castle before FITS, too. Reminds me so much of my oldest, but last 2 trips she has pointed out to me that she is just too big to really be Tinkerbell! We then met a fellow DIS boarder that I had met through this forum! Jaysue met up with us for E-Ride and he was really nice! He became our ride buddy for a few rides as my hubby and I took turns riding the mountains, but the girls weren't holding up so we had to leave. It was really nice meeting you jaysue!
Sunday-
We woke up early to get to MGM for Star Wars Weekend. It looked so promising with the Storm Troppers out guarding the gate. Wow... As soon as the gate opened my hubby and I split running towards the tables set up to get wristbands for the Star Wars stars' autographs. We both lucked out. I got for C3PO, he got for Lando, plus another wristband for a bounty hunter? From there it was a huge bust. We got different autograph times and the girls were so burned out from the previous day. It was hot, crowded and I was cursing hubby for even bothering with getting autographs. What is so important about a stupid signature? LOL We wasted a ton of time wandering around, but managed a visit to The Little Mermaid and Playhouse Disney. We ate lunch at Sci-Fi and it was a HUGE hit! The girls sat so still staring at the screen... I want to eat there all the time! It was the first meal I've had in ages where I actually enjoyed myself and relaxed. Nice... After a bit we ended the day at MGM by going with my oldest to get the last autograph, C3PO. He was so nice and talked to her about how he was the one wearing C3PO's suit! He gave us an extra autograph for the little one sleeping in her stroller, too. Very nice. I thought MGM handled the autographs sessions terribly. So many poor little kids came up to get in line, but were told they couldn't get an autograph cause they didn't have a wristband. If it wasn't for the Internet I would have never known we had to get there at park opening to run for those tables and I mean RUN. I didn't see it listed anywhere on MGM's printed info or website. I saw many disappointed kids and irritated parents! We decided to give up and go back to the AKL for the rest of the day. We went swimming and ate at Mara again and were off to sleep by 9:00pm! Early for a WDW vacation!
Monday-
Woke up to eat at Boma. I've read and heard so much about this buffet, but I really didn't find it to be any bit more exciting than any of the others. My oldest has severe food allergies and they were very nice about it, but her menu choices were quite restricted. We also don't like to eat anything around her that she can't have so there went half the buffet. Still good food, though and I did try some of the dishes on the side that were a little unique. We went back to the MK to try to meet some characters. I was really surprised at how few were out this trip! When we went last November it seemed they were EVERYWHERE. Was it cause it was so hot? Toontown was our first stop and sure as we met Minnie our camera broke! LOL Geez.. From there on we figured out we had to manually focus it. It will be interesting to get the pictures back! I was totally blown away by how crowed it was this day. Reminded me of the early 90s! What was going on? I thought we were getting a jump ahead of the school crowd. We finally gave up again and decided our commando park days were over and went back to swim again. The heat and crowds were getting to all of us. Plus, the AKL was a really big hit! Once we got back and got in the pool for maybe 5 minutes top a huge bolt of lightening struck the sky and they whistled us all out. It felt good, though for those few minutes! Once in the room we couldn't decide what to do. It was raining quite heavily and it was our last night. Hubby didn't want to eat at the AKL again so I called to see if we could get in to 50's Prime Time. Sure, can we get there in 45 minutes?!? We so lucked out, rained stopped long enough for us to get into the restaurant, then start to pour again once we were safely inside. Girls were wound up, but it was a rowdy crowd around us and we fit in nicely. LOL Stopped raining again for us to get out and back to the bus. Unfortunately, Fantasmic was cancelled so it was off to shop at AKL's store and to sleep... Once we got back lightening had struck the hotel and all the elevators were out! Guess it really was a bad storm!
Tuesday-
Packed and ready to leave, we head to O'hana at the Poly for the character breakfast. It was nice, but my oldest was once again not very excited to see Mickey. Bummer... I thought the characters were very quick, Chef Mickey's is still my fav, but it was enjoyable. We then took the monorail for a spin around the Lagoon. Does anyone know why they aren't allowing people up front now? Is this cause of the terrorist alerts? Last stop we made was at BW to tour the DVC rooms since we had done everything by mail. Our guide wasn't there, but someone let us walk through the models. We had stayed in a BCV studio before by renting, but wow those 1 bedrooms get you, don't they?!? Was told the Saratoga models there would be open soon. This is confusing to me since DVC just started selling all those extra BWV points? I thought the sales office was moving? We checked out the infamous clown slide, too. Our 5 year old immediately told us she wouldn't go down it. LOL So then it was back on the road and once again we made great timing and got home in time for American Idol.
Now I'm overwhelmed by a million things and already looking forward to our next trip. We bought at BCV, but I'm hoping we'll be able to stay at BW next June for a week since we haven't stayed there yet. It is going to be hard getting used to my oldest now being in school and having to work around that schedule! We didn't fare well with the crowds and heat. Guess we became really spoiled last trip. I also think maybe I'm burning my oldest out? She just didn't seem as excited as on our trips before. There just really wasn't as much magic this time. Funny since we just bought DVC! YIKES! I have a short 2 night stay a couple days before Christmas at VWL planned. I was actually able to switch my BCV ressie to VWL today at the 7th month window. I was really quite surprised. Thought for sure I'd have to waitlist. I keep reading WL is beautiful at Christmas? It has been at least 10 years since I've stayed there. I don't think my hubby will get to go, but I've already talked my Mom into joining us. Our first official DVC trip! I hope it won't be too soon for the 5 year old? I want her to love WDW as much as us.
Last, is the pin trading thing fading out? We didn't see many people with lanyards, but the girls enjoyed trading with the CMs. We bought a bunch of pins on ebay for them to trade and it worked out nicely. We also rode by OKW looking for a DVC license plate tag. No luck. I asked someone at BWV's store and she told me that another couple right before us had just asked for one, too! Guess the demand is there? LOL If you're still reading this I'm impressed cause I'm about to fall asleep myself, but I still have LAUNDRY!
Thanks DVC board!
EDIT-
I forgot to mention a few other things...
We bought Pal Mickey. Cute, but I don't think quite worth $50. Our youngest claimed it for herself and we didn't get to use it much. It did vibrate in the Haunted Mansion. I thought it wasn't supposed to in rides? Hopefully, we'll get to try it out more on future trips. Hubby looked funny holding it up to his ear and squeezing his tummy, though! LOL Didn't see too many of them yet.
Mostiqoes! Girls got ATE UP in the play area near Splash Mountain. Never have had a problem with this before...
And pressed pennies still a hit for the 3rd or 4th trip now? Great souvenir.
Animal Kingdom Lodge
Friday, 5/16/03 - Tuesday, 5/20/03
This trip was planned for my hubby's 30th birthday. Star Wars Weekend was the main reason we went. He is a big fan, plus we really wanted to check out the AKL. This was our last non-DVC trip as we had joined just a few weeks prior. We took our 2 little girls, 5 and 2. We also toured the DVC models at BWV.
Friday -
We left early in the morning from Atlanta with girls still in PJs, trying to get a jump on the morning traffic. There was a wreck an exit up from us and we were able to fly through downtown. We stopped twice very briefly and arrived at AKL in 7 hours, around 1:00 pm. Great timing! I had paid for a standard view room with a code discount, but had faxed a request that we would love to be close to the lobby. When we arrived our room was at the farthest point away from the lobby, but we were bumped up to a savannah view room. Great I thought, worth the hike to the room! Alas, once we got there it was the infamous human emergency holding pen view! LOL I have seen this view many times on the Internet! There was a giraffe far away in the distance so I didn't ask to be moved, but towards the end of the trip I sure wish we had! I would have preferred a view of the parking lot over that hike! YIKES! Room 2572 for anyone interested. The resort was BEAUTIFUL. We really loved it and I immediately started privately worrying that we had made the right decision in joining DVC. Such incredible detail to the place. The room was a tad dark like many others have said, so I would bring a makeup mirror if you want to see yourself in the morning! We went down to the pool and the girls played for hours. Just wonderful. I LOVED the zero depth entry, especially for our 2 year old and the Swahili coladas were a yummy treat!
We also walked around the resort and took it all in. I can't say enough how truly beautiful this place is, although the kids didn't seem too interested in the animals. I guess cause we go to the zoo a lot with our Zoo Atlanta membership. I loved the AKL theming! Reminded me of a cross between the Poly and WL. After a quick room service meal we headed off to Disney's World Wide of Sports for an Orlando Rays baseball game. I also planned this for hubby's birthday. He is a HUGE baseball fan. He took our oldest in early to get autographs and I stayed in the car while the little one slept for a bit. We had great seats behind the catcher, but the girls really enjoyed the lawn and running around with all the other kids. I would highly recommend saving a few bucks and just buying lawn seats instead if you have kids. By the way, does anyone know if Disney is getting another minor league team since the Rays are leaving after this season? I was disappointed with the facility. It was very boring I thought, especially after seeing Chattanooga's minor league stadium just recently. I think they are about the same age. Hubby agreed. We left early to go back to AKL and go to sleep.Saturday -
We actually got to the MK early enough to see the official opening! We have never managed that before. LOL
We then made a mad dash to Fantasyland and rode everything there before our 10:00 CRT ressie. It was nice and we didn't have to wait long, our 2 year old was very excited, but it was very sad to see our 5 year old act very removed... Guess she is already growing up? After breakfast we stayed at the MK for awhile, but come afternoon we were hot and tired. I was surprised at how crowded and hot it was. We went back to the AKL pool to swim and eat at the Mara before heading back for Spectro and FITS. The sky looked very scary, but Spectro ran and the girls were amazed. It never seems to be running when we go. We sat by the nicest couple from Maine. The man entertained the girls for at least an hour while we waited for it to begin. I was quite concerned about that BLACK sky, too. But the parade ran without a drop of rain. Our youngest is still talking about Tink flying from the castle before FITS, too. Reminds me so much of my oldest, but last 2 trips she has pointed out to me that she is just too big to really be Tinkerbell! We then met a fellow DIS boarder that I had met through this forum! Jaysue met up with us for E-Ride and he was really nice! He became our ride buddy for a few rides as my hubby and I took turns riding the mountains, but the girls weren't holding up so we had to leave. It was really nice meeting you jaysue! Sunday-
We woke up early to get to MGM for Star Wars Weekend. It looked so promising with the Storm Troppers out guarding the gate. Wow... As soon as the gate opened my hubby and I split running towards the tables set up to get wristbands for the Star Wars stars' autographs. We both lucked out. I got for C3PO, he got for Lando, plus another wristband for a bounty hunter? From there it was a huge bust. We got different autograph times and the girls were so burned out from the previous day. It was hot, crowded and I was cursing hubby for even bothering with getting autographs. What is so important about a stupid signature? LOL We wasted a ton of time wandering around, but managed a visit to The Little Mermaid and Playhouse Disney. We ate lunch at Sci-Fi and it was a HUGE hit! The girls sat so still staring at the screen... I want to eat there all the time! It was the first meal I've had in ages where I actually enjoyed myself and relaxed. Nice... After a bit we ended the day at MGM by going with my oldest to get the last autograph, C3PO. He was so nice and talked to her about how he was the one wearing C3PO's suit! He gave us an extra autograph for the little one sleeping in her stroller, too. Very nice. I thought MGM handled the autographs sessions terribly. So many poor little kids came up to get in line, but were told they couldn't get an autograph cause they didn't have a wristband. If it wasn't for the Internet I would have never known we had to get there at park opening to run for those tables and I mean RUN. I didn't see it listed anywhere on MGM's printed info or website. I saw many disappointed kids and irritated parents! We decided to give up and go back to the AKL for the rest of the day. We went swimming and ate at Mara again and were off to sleep by 9:00pm! Early for a WDW vacation!
Monday-
Woke up to eat at Boma. I've read and heard so much about this buffet, but I really didn't find it to be any bit more exciting than any of the others. My oldest has severe food allergies and they were very nice about it, but her menu choices were quite restricted. We also don't like to eat anything around her that she can't have so there went half the buffet. Still good food, though and I did try some of the dishes on the side that were a little unique. We went back to the MK to try to meet some characters. I was really surprised at how few were out this trip! When we went last November it seemed they were EVERYWHERE. Was it cause it was so hot? Toontown was our first stop and sure as we met Minnie our camera broke! LOL Geez.. From there on we figured out we had to manually focus it. It will be interesting to get the pictures back!
I was totally blown away by how crowed it was this day. Reminded me of the early 90s! What was going on? I thought we were getting a jump ahead of the school crowd. We finally gave up again and decided our commando park days were over and went back to swim again. The heat and crowds were getting to all of us. Plus, the AKL was a really big hit! Once we got back and got in the pool for maybe 5 minutes top a huge bolt of lightening struck the sky and they whistled us all out. It felt good, though for those few minutes! Once in the room we couldn't decide what to do. It was raining quite heavily and it was our last night. Hubby didn't want to eat at the AKL again so I called to see if we could get in to 50's Prime Time. Sure, can we get there in 45 minutes?!? We so lucked out, rained stopped long enough for us to get into the restaurant, then start to pour again once we were safely inside. Girls were wound up, but it was a rowdy crowd around us and we fit in nicely. LOL Stopped raining again for us to get out and back to the bus. Unfortunately, Fantasmic was cancelled so it was off to shop at AKL's store and to sleep... Once we got back lightening had struck the hotel and all the elevators were out! Guess it really was a bad storm!Tuesday-
Packed and ready to leave, we head to O'hana at the Poly for the character breakfast. It was nice, but my oldest was once again not very excited to see Mickey. Bummer... I thought the characters were very quick, Chef Mickey's is still my fav, but it was enjoyable. We then took the monorail for a spin around the Lagoon. Does anyone know why they aren't allowing people up front now? Is this cause of the terrorist alerts? Last stop we made was at BW to tour the DVC rooms since we had done everything by mail. Our guide wasn't there, but someone let us walk through the models. We had stayed in a BCV studio before by renting, but wow those 1 bedrooms get you, don't they?!?
Was told the Saratoga models there would be open soon. This is confusing to me since DVC just started selling all those extra BWV points? I thought the sales office was moving? We checked out the infamous clown slide, too. Our 5 year old immediately told us she wouldn't go down it. LOL So then it was back on the road and once again we made great timing and got home in time for American Idol. Now I'm overwhelmed by a million things and already looking forward to our next trip. We bought at BCV, but I'm hoping we'll be able to stay at BW next June for a week since we haven't stayed there yet. It is going to be hard getting used to my oldest now being in school and having to work around that schedule! We didn't fare well with the crowds and heat. Guess we became really spoiled last trip. I also think maybe I'm burning my oldest out? She just didn't seem as excited as on our trips before. There just really wasn't as much magic this time. Funny since we just bought DVC! YIKES! I have a short 2 night stay a couple days before Christmas at VWL planned. I was actually able to switch my BCV ressie to VWL today at the 7th month window. I was really quite surprised. Thought for sure I'd have to waitlist. I keep reading WL is beautiful at Christmas? It has been at least 10 years since I've stayed there. I don't think my hubby will get to go, but I've already talked my Mom into joining us. Our first official DVC trip! I hope it won't be too soon for the 5 year old? I want her to love WDW as much as us.
Last, is the pin trading thing fading out? We didn't see many people with lanyards, but the girls enjoyed trading with the CMs. We bought a bunch of pins on ebay for them to trade and it worked out nicely. We also rode by OKW looking for a DVC license plate tag. No luck. I asked someone at BWV's store and she told me that another couple right before us had just asked for one, too! Guess the demand is there? LOL If you're still reading this I'm impressed cause I'm about to fall asleep myself, but I still have LAUNDRY!
Thanks DVC board!
EDIT-
I forgot to mention a few other things...
We bought Pal Mickey. Cute, but I don't think quite worth $50. Our youngest claimed it for herself and we didn't get to use it much. It did vibrate in the Haunted Mansion. I thought it wasn't supposed to in rides? Hopefully, we'll get to try it out more on future trips. Hubby looked funny holding it up to his ear and squeezing his tummy, though! LOL Didn't see too many of them yet.
Mostiqoes! Girls got ATE UP in the play area near Splash Mountain. Never have had a problem with this before...
And pressed pennies still a hit for the 3rd or 4th trip now? Great souvenir.
