Walkin’ in a Disney Wonderland | December 2018 PTR [updated 9/18]

[Armoire]

Please be gentle ... this is my first TR of any kind! I’ve been a lurker for eons and decided to post about our upcoming visit for feedback/advice and general excitement.

About us
We are a couple from New England in our late 30s who will be going on our third WDW trip together! We will be spending 5 nights on property with a fairly robust schedule ... I mean, a lot has changed since 2013! New Fantasyland and Tangled bathrooms were all the rage (back when I only got peeks through the temp walls around the under-construction Mine Train).

We have gone during Food & Wine previously (2008 and 2013), so we are excited to try a different time of year. Cinderella’s castle looks stunning with all of the icicle lights - can’t wait to see it in person.

I’ll be planning our trip, and DH is along for the ride.

Where we are staying
My internal monologue was quite tumultuous!

Coronado Springs has great rates! But that construction...

Maybe we go deluxe - Wilderness Lodge? Or we always wanted to stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge! Do we go beyond budget for Beach or Yacht Club?

I booked a room at CSR thinking I could revisit it later. More on that thought process below.


Must-do checklist
I tend to over-plan a bit - but not necessarily in a bad way (a little biased, right? ). I like having an itinerary in place with buffers for adaptability, and DH likes not having to think too much about where we are going next.

Here’s where we initially started off.

• All 4 parks
• Monorail resort hopping
• Resort Christmas decorations, especially WL and AKL
• Disney Springs visit
• Toy Story land
• Pandora
• Happily Ever After (!!)

I think food & drink needs its own list; we are pretty big om-nom-nommers!

• Magical star cubes acquisition
• Sanaa bread service
• Find cheeseburger spring rolls
• Dinner at ‘Ohana
• Trader Sam’s drinks
• Boma dinner
• Yak & Yeti lunch
• Liberty Tree feast

As I continued my research, I also found out about something called the Africa Wild Trek.

Did I mention we are animal-obsessed?

**Spoiler alert [not really] about where we decided to stay
Considering we wanted 2 ADRs at AKL & Kidani, and we were interested in a day or two at AK, and the decorations look fabu, we decided to upgrade from CSR to AKL. Woohoo! It’s been at the top of our must-visit list since we saw it for the first time 10 years ago, so we are thrilled to make it happen!

Itinerary
Day 1, arrival day

• Earliest flight possible booked!
• MDE from MCO to AKL
• Bus to Magic Kingdom
• ADR: Liberty Tree early dinner
• Dessert party on plaza garden (surprise for DH; trying to figure out if it’s worth it!)
• Happily Ever After

Day 2

• 8:45am Wild Africa Trek!!
• AK rides/attractions (~4 hours)
• Resort break
• ADR: ‘Ohana dinner

Day 3

• Full Epcot day
• ADR: Via Napoli Candlelight Processional with Gary Sinise!
• IllumiNations

Day 4

• ADR: Kona Cafe breakfast
• Monorail resort hopping/MK until early afternoon
• HS afternoon
• [wondering where the fudge I fit in Trader Sam’s]
• Resort break
• ADR: Sanaa dinner

Day 5

• AK rope drop
• ADR: Yak & Yeti lunch
• Whatever we missed at parks (HS, Epcot)
• ADR: Boma dinner

Day 6, departure day

• Breakfast beignets @ POFQ
• Boat to Disney Springs for a looksie and shop
• ADR: Homecomin’ lunch
• Whatever we missed at parks
• MDE or Uber for late flight home

———————————

Looking forward to filling in more as I scour crowd calendars and book FP+!

 

[vassar36]

sounds fun! looking forward to reading more!

 

[joules12]

Following along -- sounds like you've got a great trip planned!

 

[Armoire]

sounds fun! looking forward to reading more!

Thanks for posting! We can’t wait to pass through those gates

Following along -- sounds like you've got a great trip planned!

So happy to have you! I hope I haven’t planned too much. It feels like it’s been so long since the last trip with so many new things to see that I simply MUST do it all.

 

[Armoire]

Do you ever reach that point where you have been plan-plan-planning for your trip (planning dreams, anyone?) and think to yourself...

I think I've exhausted all videos from my favorite WDW YouTubers. So strong is the excitement that I'm even watching stuff that isn't entirely relevant (like walkthroughs and dining options for resorts we're not even planning to visit ), but it still scratches that itch.

So, I set up a display panel on my phone with a trip countdown and app icons. HOORAY!!!

You know what would feel even more magical? I decided to wear my Minnie ears headband on a lazy Sunday at home. DH has bought me one pair as souvenirs on each of our last two trips.

In 2008: ye olde standard Minnie ears (black sequin non-puffy ears, glittery transparent fabric red bow). It certainly looks like it's seen better days, but it would do the job.

In 2013: gorgeous gold sequin with roses and feathers on it Here is a picture (not my actual pair)

I thought I'd try on my 'vintage' black sequin ears first to see how they looked. As soon as I went to slide the headband on, there was a loud crack, and the sides of the headband came loose. Broken, seriously?? They were beyond repair. I chalked it up to the ears being 10 years old ... maybe the plastic was brittle. Surely my head hasn't gotten that much fatter ... right?

So, onto the next ears - the beautiful gold pair with feathers! I lifted it to my head, spread apart the band ever-so-slightly to fit, and *CRACK!* - again! Maybe my head WAS fat after all?! Is there a superstition for breaking Minnie ears that I don't know about, much like breaking a mirror or walking under a ladder equates to bad luck?

Devastated yet determined, I decided to look up tutorials on DIY ears. I'm a pretty crafty person and thought I could at least give it a shot!

I wandered around the craft store for what seemed like an hour picking out the perfect fabric, trim, and headband colors. Once I returned home, I laid out everything, cut some cardboard, agonized over fabric placement for ears, glued the sugar out of everything, burned my fingers more than a few times (they are still numb/swollen today), but I am so proud of the result! I made three pairs of ear headbands. For frugal folks, the supplies cost less than 2 pairs of Disney shop ears, but I could easily get 3-6 MORE pairs out of the fabric and fill I have left while only needing to buy more headbands (the 1" Simplicity satin ones I used were $3.49/each).

Pair #1: Epcot (or anywhere, because it'll be Christmastime!) ears (blue Olaf fabric, gray glitter fabric bow, pearl trim, white satin headband)

Pair #2: Animal Kingdom ears (orange Lion King fabric, zebra print fabric bow, gold and silver braided trim, gold headband

Pair #3: Magic Kingdom ears (Disney sketched princess fabric, black glitter fabric bow, pink and white braided trim, pink headband)

I have ideas for Hollywood Studios ears that I'm still thinking about, but at least I'm feeling prepared for arrival day

 

[tyandskyesmom]

LOVE your ears! and since, you know, i have so much free time (NOT) now I want to make some!

 

[PollyannaMom]

Oh my gosh, I love your ears!!! - Please share the tutorial you used.

It looks like you'll be there just a few days before me. (Our Candlelight Processional narrator is still "TBD". - I don't know whether that's good or bad.)

 

[Armoire]

LOVE your ears! and since, you know, i have so much free time (NOT) now I want to make some!

I may have missed some grocery trips and neglected other household chores to make the ears ... and DH wondered if we were ever going to cook at home again. Still worth it!

Oh my gosh, I love your ears!!! - Please share the tutorial you used.

It looks like you'll be there just a few days before me. (Our Candlelight Processional narrator is still "TBD". - I don't know whether that's good or bad.)

The tutorial was amazing! Can I link here or is that against rules? Anyway, it was from the WDW Couple on YouTube. Highly recommended! Please post your ears if you make some, too!

I also hope you find out your narrator soon. There are still quite a few TBDs! I agonized over who to pick during our dates - Pat Sajak or Gary Sinise. Ultimate decision went to DH since that's about as involved as he gets in planning.

 

[Armoire]

Oh man - I can't even believe what's happened over the last week!

I was talking to DH one night after work, and the conversation started like this:

DH: Oh, I might have to go to a conference next month
Me: Ok! Where are you going - San Francisco or Vegas, or ...?
DH: It's in Orlando.
Me:

DH: I know.
Me: OMG, I MUST COME
DH: No, that's crazy.
Me: DON'T TAKE THIS FROM ME!

Over the next day or two, my mission was to price out how much it would cost to piggyback onto the end of the trip. Initial plan was to fly down for a few nights and go to Halloween Horror Nights (I know - wrong sub!). Maybe I'd solo-explore one of the WDW parks in the daytime when DH was at his conference. But then, I realized that MNSSHP tickets were actually cheaper than a day ticket to MK. I also realized that, between pet-sitting at home and foregoing an extra hotel night, if both of us going to MNSSHP we would save a total of [drum roll, please] ....

Slightly over $2!
A savings is a savings, am I right?

WDW conference hotels were completely sold out for DH's dates, so he booked a room at AKL. Unless something opens up, it seems like our first time visiting AKL won't be in December after all!

Even with all of this falling into place, it doesn't seem real (despite the fact that I already made MNSSHP ears ).

Since we will only be doing the hard ticket and not park passes, there will be no FP for us this trip. I'm also going to avoid ADRs and rely on QS and snacks!

In snack news, I saw that DFB is reporting the peanut butter brownie is now gone from The Mara. I never had it but it was on my shortlist of things to try when we stayed at AKL in December. Now it won't even be there on the earlier trip (unless something changes) - Boo!

Soooo, our itinerary will look something like below:

Day 1, arrival day

• Get in late afternoon, then Horror Nights as soon as DH is done with the conference and networking

Day 2

• Disney Springs, MNSSHP (hoping they'll open at 4pm as is typical)

Day 3, departure day

• QS and then leave for late morning flight

I'll keep posting progress for both trips in here.

 

[disney-inspired]

Following along because I've always wanted to experience Christmas at WDW.

Also, we are going in January and are staying half of our trip at AKL! Woo!

 

[Armoire]

Following along because I've always wanted to experience Christmas at WDW.

Also, we are going in January and are staying half of our trip at AKL! Woo!

Welcome, thanks for following, and yay that you are headed to AKL in January! I just peeked at your PTR and it looks like you have a great group to create magical memories.

 

[Armoire]

Mini-trip report
"A trip has no name"
October 2018
​

Well, mini trip is complete!! This tiny taste of The World was just what we needed to prepare for our "real" trip in a couple months.

Arrival Day / Day 1: Halloween Horror Nights (skip to Day 2 if not interested )
My flight was scheduled to get into MCO at 4:15, so the timing was tight to have plans that night! This trip was so short that I only had a small carry-on (but large enough to accommodate resort ears + MNSSHP ears, of course). The plan was to get to the hotel ASAP, drop off my bag, meet DH, and Uber/Lyft to Universal.

This was my first foray into DME since we've always rented a car in the past. After finding my way to the bus around 4:30 (and my first Mickey-to-Mickey since magic bands were only limited release when I was last in WDW!), I waited for 15 minutes until there were enough people on board that we could leave. I was hopeful that AKL would be the first drop-off, but alas, family after family boarded saying "Coronado Springs." AKL ended up being announced as stop #2 (and the only other stop).

I texted with DH, watched MDE TV, and followed the bus on Google maps to determine ETA on the destination. We arrived at CSR where all but two lonely souls got off the bus. I told DH where I was, and he ordered a ride-share. Maybe we could still make it to Universal by 6:30...?? Ride-share was mostly on time but navigation took us to the administrative offices instead of the studios entrance. We walked in around 7:00 pm and ended up staying until nearly 1:00 am.

It was a great night! We visited all 10 houses and each scare zone (Express Pass was a must).

Rides:

• Escape from Gringott's (7/10: first time; really liked it! not as good as Forbidden Journey but some Harry Potter is better than no Harry Potter)
• The Mummy (6/10: I used to really like this ride but it wasn't as thrilling as I remember)
• Fast & Furious (1/10: Hate-hate-hated it. Terrible ride. Unnecessary water sprays (and the spray was nasty/sticky), disappointing story line, already looks dated)

Noms:

• Pizza Fries (9/10: omg delicious)
• Twisted Tater (5/10: was really looking forward to it but it was a little lackluster for us )
• Some IPA from a beer cart that I don't have the name of (7/10: hoppy and tasty)

Total steps: 19,387 (8.07 miles)

Day 2: Disney Springs, The Void, Homecomin', WL, and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party!

This was a pretty chill start to the day! Breakfast began with some light pastries from Mara (I might've picked up some zebra domes for morning munchies ... are they only considered dessert?)

We decided to go to Disney Springs to look around and browse some stores. We were also on the Southwest 24 hour flight check-in mania, so we hung out at World of Disney until we got into our boarding groups and then headed over to The Void for the Star Wars virtual reality experience. While pricey, this was awesome! I wish it lasted a little longer for the money paid, but it was a great time.

From there, we decided to knock out one of the ADRs I had for the December trip since it didn't really jive with that schedule: Chef Art Smith's Homecomin'. The food and specialty drinks were fantastic!

We decided to leave Disney Springs via some magical transport to check out the Wilderness Lodge (once on the short-short list resort for our December trip). We checked out the lobby area and artifacts, then finished up with cocktails at Geyser Point before taking the boat over to Magic Kingdom. The timing was working out perfectly -- we got to the MK gates at just before 4:00 pm, and the CMs were letting in party folks. Woohoo!

Rides/entertainment:

• Space Ranger Spin (ride froze, we got stuck, scores were reset)
• Mad Tea Party (regular ride)
• Haunted Mansion
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
• Splash Mountain
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
• Mad Tea Party (themed - so fun!)
• Space Mountain (themed - wish it was like that more often!)
• Pirates of the Caribbean (themed - meh)
• HalloWishes
• Hocus Pocus
• Boo to You

Noms:

• Homecomin’ - Thigh high chicken biscuits (10/10: perfection!) / fried chicken sandwich (I didn’t try, but DH really liked it) / moonshine margarita and rum shine punch (both 10/10)
• Geyser Point - Captain’s mai tai (7/10) / piña colava (9/10) / dark roast coffee infused with gelato (7/10: tasty but came as a little packaged paper cup with the lid which I wasn’t expecting)
• Magic Kingdom - Sweet and spicy chicken waffle sandwich, Sleepy Hollow (4/10: didn’t like the slaw with the chicken, and my waffle was falling apart as soon as I got it) / Oogie Boogie popcorn bucket, outside Space Mountain (6/10: popcorn was stale but you’re really paying for the Oogie) / pineapple float, Aloha Isle (10/10, of course!)

We stayed until the very end of the party. The standby waits were not as short as I remember from the last party we went to many years ago, so I’m guessing Disney is selling more tix per night. So sad, as paying for this ticket with lower crowd levels used to be a perk of the party.

Total steps: 21,260 (8.81 miles)

Departure day / Day 3
Not too much to report here. We skipped MDE departure since it was over 3 hours before our flight, and we both have TSA pre-check. Instead, we spent some time looking for animals (I think most were still sleepy, though!), enjoying Mara breakfast, and looking around the AKL lobby.