tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
After all that planning, I am so happy we got to go!
-
Controversial Topics
Several months ago, I added a private sub-forum to allow members to discuss these topics without fear of infractions or banning. It's opt-in, opt-out. Corey Click Here
Will we stay or will we go? We went! And had the most magical time! Hijacked 5-29-21 with a quick TR from New York City!
- Thread starter tundra1
- Start date
After all that planning, I am so happy we got to go!
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
I hope it works out for you! We loved it there. Here is the view from our room... Lake view, room 8217.Thanks, OP, for responding that you rented from DVC Rental. I have been looking at David's and DVC Rental, and have been impressed with both , but DVC Rental seemed to offer more. I will try them, and maybe my dream of staying at BLT will come true
And if you choose a theme park view, you will get this...
Good luck!
Justrose
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Oct 27, 2015
Hi Terri! I am from WI too... I'm from Madison originally and now live in Janesville. I went to Disney on a solo trip at the same time you were there!
I have read your planning thread and man, how stressful! I'm super excited to read the rest of this trip report.
I have read your planning thread and man, how stressful! I'm super excited to read the rest of this trip report.
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
Hi Terri! I am from WI too... I'm from Madison originally and now live in Janesville. I went to Disney on a solo trip at the same time you were there!
I have read your planning thread and man, how stressful! I'm super excited to read the rest of this trip report.
Thanks! I am trying to keep adding to it, but I am an ER nurse, and we are SOOOOO busy lately, I have not had any time off!
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
When I left off, we were planning on heading to Hollywood Studios the following day. That morning at 0655, I was logged into the My Disney Experience app and was ready to go. At exactly 0700 I hit the join virtual cue button, got the option to select all in my party, and hit join, only to be asked if everyone in my party had a ticket to the park. Of course not! The baby and the 2 year old did not require tickets. Why would the app even include them? So by the time I unselected them, 12 seconds had passed, and all the boarding groups were full. 
At that point, we had to decide if we were going to switch parks, or just go to Hollywood Studios and try again at 2pm. The consensus of the group was to still go to Hollywood Studios. It was raining outside, and the kids were having fun in the room, so we hung out until around 9am and headed to the bus stop to catch a Hollywood Studios bus. I was pretty impressed when we arrived there and saw the line up of Hollywood Studios busses, all waiting to bring eager guests to that park! We waited about 10 minutes and were assigned the back of the bus, and a few minutes later, we were on our way, and arrived a little before 9:30am.
Hollywood Studios was decorated for Christmas, which was really fun. We immediately headed down towards Toy Story Land. We got in line right away for Slinky Dog Dash, which had a posted wait time of 40 minutes already. When we got closer to the ride, we were able to arrange for a ride swap. I had the stroller and we went exploring. From the point of the rider swap to the time the others got off the ride, it was still around 20 more minutes, so this ride did take the entire 40 minutes. My 4 year old grandson got to ride a second time, and he was so happy! The rest of the family went to ride on Alien Swirling Saucers, and was able to ride twice before Ben and I met up with them. You can see part of our motley crew in the first 3 rows of Slinky. The CM's were good about keeping an empty row or two between groups of passengers. What a fun area of the park for the kids!
We next got in line for Toy Story Mania, which moved along fairly quickly. By 10:45, we had ridden all the rides in Toy Story Land. Then it started to rain again. My son and his family decided to go back to the hotel so the little ones could take a nap, and the boys wanted to go swimming. It was hot and humid, and since the rain showers were brief, the humidity seemed to get worse as the day went on. I, of course, wanted to stay at the park! So we split up and my daughter, husband and I stayed at HS with plans to meet them later in the day for a couple more rides and then our dinner reservation at Sci Fi.
After we split up, the three of us headed to Galaxy's Edge. It was Veteran's Day, and the park felt crowded. The line for each major attraction was at least an hour, but since we did not have to entertain the kids, we were fine. We really enjoyed taking our time winding through the queue for Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run, and interacting with the Rey, Chewy, and the Storm Troopers. Smuggler's Run was so much fun! We weren't the best pilots but we did okay for our first time!
After that ride, we headed over to Ronto Roasters for a Ronto Wrap (Delicious!). We had an outside table and enjoyed people watching! I was so glad I mobile ordered because the line of people who had not ordered ahead of time was really long!
It was too crowded to get into any of the Galaxy Edge stores, so after lunch, we headed out of Star Wars land and headed down Sunset Blvd towards the Tower of Terror and Rock N' Roller Coaster. We were pretty excited to ride both of these rides!
Next Up... Rocking and Dropping!
At that point, we had to decide if we were going to switch parks, or just go to Hollywood Studios and try again at 2pm. The consensus of the group was to still go to Hollywood Studios. It was raining outside, and the kids were having fun in the room, so we hung out until around 9am and headed to the bus stop to catch a Hollywood Studios bus. I was pretty impressed when we arrived there and saw the line up of Hollywood Studios busses, all waiting to bring eager guests to that park! We waited about 10 minutes and were assigned the back of the bus, and a few minutes later, we were on our way, and arrived a little before 9:30am.
Hollywood Studios was decorated for Christmas, which was really fun. We immediately headed down towards Toy Story Land. We got in line right away for Slinky Dog Dash, which had a posted wait time of 40 minutes already. When we got closer to the ride, we were able to arrange for a ride swap. I had the stroller and we went exploring. From the point of the rider swap to the time the others got off the ride, it was still around 20 more minutes, so this ride did take the entire 40 minutes. My 4 year old grandson got to ride a second time, and he was so happy! The rest of the family went to ride on Alien Swirling Saucers, and was able to ride twice before Ben and I met up with them. You can see part of our motley crew in the first 3 rows of Slinky. The CM's were good about keeping an empty row or two between groups of passengers. What a fun area of the park for the kids!
We next got in line for Toy Story Mania, which moved along fairly quickly. By 10:45, we had ridden all the rides in Toy Story Land. Then it started to rain again. My son and his family decided to go back to the hotel so the little ones could take a nap, and the boys wanted to go swimming. It was hot and humid, and since the rain showers were brief, the humidity seemed to get worse as the day went on. I, of course, wanted to stay at the park! So we split up and my daughter, husband and I stayed at HS with plans to meet them later in the day for a couple more rides and then our dinner reservation at Sci Fi.
After we split up, the three of us headed to Galaxy's Edge. It was Veteran's Day, and the park felt crowded. The line for each major attraction was at least an hour, but since we did not have to entertain the kids, we were fine. We really enjoyed taking our time winding through the queue for Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run, and interacting with the Rey, Chewy, and the Storm Troopers. Smuggler's Run was so much fun! We weren't the best pilots but we did okay for our first time!
After that ride, we headed over to Ronto Roasters for a Ronto Wrap (Delicious!). We had an outside table and enjoyed people watching! I was so glad I mobile ordered because the line of people who had not ordered ahead of time was really long!
It was too crowded to get into any of the Galaxy Edge stores, so after lunch, we headed out of Star Wars land and headed down Sunset Blvd towards the Tower of Terror and Rock N' Roller Coaster. We were pretty excited to ride both of these rides!
Next Up... Rocking and Dropping!
Attachments
Last edited:
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
When I left off, my daughter, husband and I were headed to Tower of Terror. Did we survive the drop? My daughter was petrified and screamed the whole time. It was so funny! I had never been in the Tower of Terror, and although I had seen many photos and videos, it was so much better in person! The lines for every ride in the park were pretty long. The shortest wait for an attraction was 45 minutes for the Muppets. We decided that since we did not have the little ones with us, we would try our luck with Tower of Terror. The posted wait was 60 minutes, and while we were waiting, they had a cleaning cycle and the ride went down for a spell, so it ended up being closer to 80 minutes. They had only been running with one elevator, but when we finally got to the elevator shaft area, a second elevator was opened, and we moved much more quickly through that area.
In the phot below, we are in the top left hand row. You can see the death grip my daughter had on her dad and me, and his look of surprise at her screaming! If the lines had not been so long, I would have jumped right back in line and rode it again!
While we were in the Tower of Terror, there must have been a pretty significant rainstorm. When we got out, the heat and humidity were oppressive. We had planned on jumping into the line for Rock and Roller Coaster, but that line was posted at 75 minutes, and we wanted a refreshing beverage. So, we decided to head back down Sunset Blvd, stopping to get a frozen margarita at the fruit market stand along the way. Was it the best margarita I ever had? Not really, but it hit the spot. After enjoying the beverage and watching the people go by, we headed towards Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway. The line for that ride had been over an hour all day, but was currently listed at 60 minutes, so we decided it was our best option.
While we were in line, we tried for the 2pm boarding group for Rise of the Resistance. The people in front of us got back up group 112, but again, I had the same issue with the MDE app, making me lose 8 seconds, and the groups were all filled by then. So, I thought the park would start to empty out, but that did not seem to happen the entire day. We got onto MMRR at exactly the 1 hour mark. This ride was adorable. I knew we had to take the kids on it as soon as they got back to the park!
After this ride, we went to Star Tours, Muppets, and then walked through Batuu again. The lines for the shops were still really long, and there were no openings for Oga's Cantina, but we did see Rey and wished her Bright Suns!
By then, it was around 4:30 pm and my son was getting off the bus to return to the park with his family. We met them at the front, and on our way to MMRR, we were treated to the Pixar and the Christmas Cavalcades, both of which were adorable!
We rode MMRR and planned to see the Muppets, but the posted wait was an hour. By then, it was getting dark, so we walked around Echo Lake, taking some photos. This whole day, we did not see any photo pass photographers except for the one in Toy Story Land, and those pictures were not good at all. I don't know where they were all day! With that many people in the park, I would think they would be in Batuu and near the Christmas tree, but we had no luck finding them. Oh well, lesson learned!
It was a little after 6pm by then, and we were hungry. We had a reservation at Sci Fi Drive In for 7:15pm, but I thought I might stop by to see if we could get in earlier. Sure enough, they said they had a table available and we were able to be seated in 10 minutes.
The food was okay, the atmosphere was fun, the kids liked the movies and sitting in a car, but the service was so slow! The waiter was trying to be "funny", but he was really just annoying. He got our orders wrong, and never fixed them. Out of all our meals, this one was at the bottom. I was so excited that I was able to book this reservation, and had cancelled 50's Prime Time Cafe for lunch to go to Sci Fi for dinner instead. BIG MISTAKE! We waited at least 20 minutes for our bill after everyone had finished eating. The kids were tired, and we wanted to go home. I think we just had a bad server, because other guests were in and out a whole lot faster than us. The only good thing was the the park was closed and pretty cleared out by the time we exited, and there was no wait at our bus stop. The bus was there when we walked up, and there was plenty of room, so we just walked on and had a seat.
Hollywood Studios is very pretty at night, and we did enjoy seeing everything all decorated for Christmas! Except for Sci Fi at the end and no RotR boarding group, it was a good day!
Next up...Back to Epcot!
In the phot below, we are in the top left hand row. You can see the death grip my daughter had on her dad and me, and his look of surprise at her screaming! If the lines had not been so long, I would have jumped right back in line and rode it again!
While we were in the Tower of Terror, there must have been a pretty significant rainstorm. When we got out, the heat and humidity were oppressive. We had planned on jumping into the line for Rock and Roller Coaster, but that line was posted at 75 minutes, and we wanted a refreshing beverage. So, we decided to head back down Sunset Blvd, stopping to get a frozen margarita at the fruit market stand along the way. Was it the best margarita I ever had? Not really, but it hit the spot. After enjoying the beverage and watching the people go by, we headed towards Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway. The line for that ride had been over an hour all day, but was currently listed at 60 minutes, so we decided it was our best option.
While we were in line, we tried for the 2pm boarding group for Rise of the Resistance. The people in front of us got back up group 112, but again, I had the same issue with the MDE app, making me lose 8 seconds, and the groups were all filled by then. So, I thought the park would start to empty out, but that did not seem to happen the entire day. We got onto MMRR at exactly the 1 hour mark. This ride was adorable. I knew we had to take the kids on it as soon as they got back to the park!
After this ride, we went to Star Tours, Muppets, and then walked through Batuu again. The lines for the shops were still really long, and there were no openings for Oga's Cantina, but we did see Rey and wished her Bright Suns!
By then, it was around 4:30 pm and my son was getting off the bus to return to the park with his family. We met them at the front, and on our way to MMRR, we were treated to the Pixar and the Christmas Cavalcades, both of which were adorable!
We rode MMRR and planned to see the Muppets, but the posted wait was an hour. By then, it was getting dark, so we walked around Echo Lake, taking some photos. This whole day, we did not see any photo pass photographers except for the one in Toy Story Land, and those pictures were not good at all. I don't know where they were all day! With that many people in the park, I would think they would be in Batuu and near the Christmas tree, but we had no luck finding them. Oh well, lesson learned!
It was a little after 6pm by then, and we were hungry. We had a reservation at Sci Fi Drive In for 7:15pm, but I thought I might stop by to see if we could get in earlier. Sure enough, they said they had a table available and we were able to be seated in 10 minutes.
The food was okay, the atmosphere was fun, the kids liked the movies and sitting in a car, but the service was so slow! The waiter was trying to be "funny", but he was really just annoying. He got our orders wrong, and never fixed them. Out of all our meals, this one was at the bottom. I was so excited that I was able to book this reservation, and had cancelled 50's Prime Time Cafe for lunch to go to Sci Fi for dinner instead. BIG MISTAKE! We waited at least 20 minutes for our bill after everyone had finished eating. The kids were tired, and we wanted to go home. I think we just had a bad server, because other guests were in and out a whole lot faster than us. The only good thing was the the park was closed and pretty cleared out by the time we exited, and there was no wait at our bus stop. The bus was there when we walked up, and there was plenty of room, so we just walked on and had a seat.
Hollywood Studios is very pretty at night, and we did enjoy seeing everything all decorated for Christmas! Except for Sci Fi at the end and no RotR boarding group, it was a good day!
Next up...Back to Epcot!
buzzrelly
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2005
Hello!
After a short hiatus, I'm making my way back to the TR pages so I'm just catching up on yours!
I'm so happy for you that you got to go and that you loved BLT
There's a reason it's one of our home resorts…we love its much!
Bummer you didn't get on ROTR, but overall looked like a fun day at DHS!
After a short hiatus, I'm making my way back to the TR pages so I'm just catching up on yours!
I'm so happy for you that you got to go and that you loved BLT
There's a reason it's one of our home resorts…we love its much!Bummer you didn't get on ROTR, but overall looked like a fun day at DHS!
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
Thanks Kelly! Yes, the resort was amazing! I loved the convenience of being so close to Magic Kingdom and the Contemporary Resort. Having a villa with a kitchen and laundry room was perfect. The buses at the parks were relatively close to the main gate, which was nice after a full day at the parks. We did have a bit of rain the days we were there, so there were some things that I did not get to do (Like sit on the beach and walk around the entire property), but we will just add that to our bucket list for next time! I know you will have a great time on your next trip!Hello!
After a short hiatus, I'm making my way back to the TR pages so I'm just catching up on yours!
I'm so happy for you that you got to go and that you loved BLT
Bummer you didn't get on ROTR, but overall looked like a fun day at DHS!
pkondz
Brace yourself for immediate disintegration
- Joined
- Mar 9, 2007
All caught up.
Glad you got your seats refunded. I would've been pretty ticked at that. Mind you it would've been almost (almost!) worth it to have the two year old sitting alone.
Flight attendant: "Ma'am? Can you come look after your child? The screaming won't stop."
You, with alcoholic drink in hand: "Nope. Sorry. Wasn't my decision. You'll have to deal with it. Can I have another drink?"
Pretty view from your room and pretty room. BLT is someplace I'd like to stay some day.
Enjoying all the report and looking forward to more.
Glad you got your seats refunded. I would've been pretty ticked at that. Mind you it would've been almost (almost!) worth it to have the two year old sitting alone.
Flight attendant: "Ma'am? Can you come look after your child? The screaming won't stop."
You, with alcoholic drink in hand: "Nope. Sorry. Wasn't my decision. You'll have to deal with it. Can I have another drink?"
Pretty view from your room and pretty room. BLT is someplace I'd like to stay some day.
Enjoying all the report and looking forward to more.
Aprilalidocious
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2020
I've really enjoyed reading this TR! We have a trip planned in February where we partially stay off-site at my parent's timeshare and then in a Poly villa for three days at the end of the trip. I've been going back and forth on canceling or doing our best to enjoy things as they are (taking along a teen who's never been and concerned she'll hate it in absence of entertainment that leads to long wait times and bottlenecks/crowding). Your trip report has me convinced that we can do it and enjoy it It's also really helpful to read about your experience trying to acquire ROtR boarding passes. I went to Disneyland with my mom in February 2020 and got boarding group 18 but doubt there'll be any such luck this trip. I DO hope my husband and teens get to experience it though! We're skipping Epcot for the first time ever and I'm sad to miss certain things but it seems like spending two days at HS and MK is the better choice so we can take our time, avoid crowding, ride all the things we'd like to if waits are longer and perhaps sleep in if needed. Would you say that there's space to keep physical distance at most times? It looks like you all managed and had an excellent time. I bet Disney near Christmas is gorgeous!
It's also really helpful to read about your experience trying to acquire ROtR boarding passes. I went to Disneyland with my mom in February 2020 and got boarding group 18 but doubt there'll be any such luck this trip. I DO hope my husband and teens get to experience it though! We're skipping Epcot for the first time ever and I'm sad to miss certain things but it seems like spending two days at HS and MK is the better choice so we can take our time, avoid crowding, ride all the things we'd like to if waits are longer and perhaps sleep in if needed. Would you say that there's space to keep physical distance at most times? It looks like you all managed and had an excellent time. I bet Disney near Christmas is gorgeous!
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
I've really enjoyed reading this TR! We have a trip planned in February where we partially stay off-site at my parent's timeshare and then in a Poly villa for three days at the end of the trip. I've been going back and forth on canceling or doing our best to enjoy things as they are (taking along a teen who's never been and concerned she'll hate it in absence of entertainment that leads to long wait times and bottlenecks/crowding). Your trip report has me convinced that we can do it and enjoy it
You will have a great time in February! My son was not a fan of going to Disney, and now he is planning for our return trip. There is a lot for teens to do, so if she has never been there, she will still have fun. As far as RotR, the issue we ended up having was trying to get all of us except for the two little ones in the boarding groups. The CM told us to just go for a boarding group as a single, and then they would add everyone else in our party as long as we had a number. That saved us several seconds and we were able to get in... more on that later!
Physical distancing is achievable most of the time. There are definitely bottlenecks in areas like It's a Small World / Peter Pan. But otherwise, they have the queues meandering around the back areas and people keep their distance once they are in line. Yes, Christmas at Disney adds another layer of magic. It is beautiful!
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
Yeah! You found this!
I am pretty good at arguing with customer service people and usually get my way (I know exactly what I want and keep at it until they finally give in... but I am very sweet about it... 
) When I got my credit card bill, they had credited all of the fees we paid for picking our own seats, so I came out even farther ahead. O.M.G: Can you imagine those poor flight attendants dealing with a 2 year old????? Charlie is a handful on good day. I can't even imagine!
Yes, if you ever have a chance to stay at BLT, it is worth it, especially if you plan on going to MK and once that Epcot line opens back up. And the restaurants there are so good! We truly felt immersed in the Disney bubble!
pkondz
Brace yourself for immediate disintegration
- Joined
- Mar 9, 2007
I did!Yeah! You found this!
So... like a nice Karen??I am pretty good at arguing with customer service people and usually get my way (I know exactly what I want and keep at it until they finally give in... but I am very sweet about it...
I'm kidding!!!
Score!
I think you can imagine the flight attendants. You're a mom. Every mom can imagine it.
MK would be the #1 reason I want to stay there.Yes, if you ever have a chance to stay at BLT, it is worth it, especially if you plan on going to MK and once that Epcot line opens back up. And the restaurants there are so good! We truly felt immersed in the Disney bubble!
Didn't know about the restaurants, though. Good to hear!
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
Back to Epcot! I had great plans for this day! Epcot was scheduled to be open 11a-7p, and then the hours were changed to 11a-9p, which was even better! This was our day to eat (and drink!) around the world, and ride everything we missed on Tuesday. I thought the kids would love seeing Art of Animation and Pop Century in the morning, and we could ride the Skyliner. So the plan was to take the morning bus to Hollywood Studios, ride the Skyliner to Art of Animation, walk around and let the kids be amazed at all the character sculptures, and then head over to Epcot when it opened.
It was a great plan... except for one thing! We woke to thunder, wind and rain. I was willing to make a go of it, but everyone else looked at me like I was from another planet, so we hung out at the hotel.
Around 10:30 the rain was slowing down, and we left for the bus to Epcot. There was a line of people waiting to board the busses. but there was also a line of busses, so we boarded fairly quickly. We were at the park by 11:00am, made it through security, and were headed to Spaceship Earth, which was "temporarily down". Since no one had ridden Soarin' except for the 3 ladies, we headed to the Land Pavilion. I took Aubrie, the baby, and Charlie, the 2 year old, onto Living With the Land, while everyone else headed to their ride. It worked out perfectly, and as I was getting off my ride, they were coming down the ramp from theirs. We then walked toward Journey into Imagination, which had a 10 minute wait. The Kids LOVED that ride. It wasn't that bad for the adults either, and the song is catchy. Plus, who can not come out smiling after meeting Figment?
We then cut across to Test Track, but because of the rain, it was not running. We grabbed our first lunch items at Flavors of Fire, trying both the steak and the reuben, and both were quite tasty! After that, we headed to Mexico, where we got empanadas and of course, a margarita. My daughter was assigned Margarita duty, and she couldn't decide which flavor, so the CM gave her lime, mango and raspberry, all layered in the cup.
I would order that again... each layer was as good as the one before! I am glad we did not have to decide!
While passing Norway, Anna was outside greeting guests. Ben, the 4 year old, was so cute. He did not believe she was "real" and was so thrilled to see her in person!
The line for Frozen Ever After was posted at 50 minutes, but we were in and out in less than 30, so that was fun.
I had wanted to stop by the store in China, but it was not open. We found our first photopass CM of the day, and he was not looking very happy to be there. I had to go up to him and ask if he was a photopass photographer, because he didn't even have his camera in his hand, so he did not exactly look like he wanted business. But, he did take the obligatory photos (standing together, arms in the air, hugging each other, smiling behind our masks), so that was good.
Meanwhile, my son and his family had stopped for the cheezy bread bites in Brazil, and at the Africa booth for a couple of items. It is amazing, but the food in those little cardboard trays with a little taste from each country are quite filling! My grandsons enjoyed collecting all the Kid Cot postcards from each country, but since the international CMs were not there, and the CM's who were working were not from the countries they represented, the interactions were not as educational. Zack, the 7 year old, was asking them questions about the geography of each country because he was trying to complete an assignment for school, and only the gal in Canada could answer his questions. Go Canada!
We found a place to sit down and rest in America. The kids had fun playing around the fountain and the Disney birds were quite aggressive fighting for handouts. One of them flew by Zack's head, and when he ducked, the bird took off with the top bun from his lobster roll! Meanwhile, my daughter and I headed to Morocco and feasted on the menu items over there. While we were stopped and stationary at a table along the lake, the only Epcot cavalcade we saw that day went by. I guess because it was raining off and on most of the day, there were not many cavalcades out. But, we got to see the beautiful horse pulling the wagon loaded with princesses, so that was fun!
After lunch, we joined back up with the rest of the family. Although it was cloudy, it was much more humid than we were used to, and the boys wanted to go back to the hotel to go swimming. So we split up for the afternoon and they headed to the rest of the countries to collect post cards and then back to the hotel.
My husband, daughter and I stayed at Epcot. We saw a huge rain cloud coming and noticed that the American Adventure would be starting soon. We dashed inside the America Pavilion and found a seat. The auditorium had every other row occupied, and the seats were staggered within the rows, so there was no one near us once we were seated. During the show, I was not sure if I heard thunder or if it was part of the show, but when we exited, there were people in rain gear and puddles everywhere, so I guess we missed all the excitement outside! 🌧
Continued in next post....
It was a great plan... except for one thing! We woke to thunder, wind and rain. I was willing to make a go of it, but everyone else looked at me like I was from another planet, so we hung out at the hotel.
Around 10:30 the rain was slowing down, and we left for the bus to Epcot. There was a line of people waiting to board the busses. but there was also a line of busses, so we boarded fairly quickly. We were at the park by 11:00am, made it through security, and were headed to Spaceship Earth, which was "temporarily down". Since no one had ridden Soarin' except for the 3 ladies, we headed to the Land Pavilion. I took Aubrie, the baby, and Charlie, the 2 year old, onto Living With the Land, while everyone else headed to their ride. It worked out perfectly, and as I was getting off my ride, they were coming down the ramp from theirs. We then walked toward Journey into Imagination, which had a 10 minute wait. The Kids LOVED that ride. It wasn't that bad for the adults either, and the song is catchy. Plus, who can not come out smiling after meeting Figment?
We then cut across to Test Track, but because of the rain, it was not running. We grabbed our first lunch items at Flavors of Fire, trying both the steak and the reuben, and both were quite tasty! After that, we headed to Mexico, where we got empanadas and of course, a margarita. My daughter was assigned Margarita duty, and she couldn't decide which flavor, so the CM gave her lime, mango and raspberry, all layered in the cup.
I would order that again... each layer was as good as the one before! I am glad we did not have to decide!
While passing Norway, Anna was outside greeting guests. Ben, the 4 year old, was so cute. He did not believe she was "real" and was so thrilled to see her in person!
The line for Frozen Ever After was posted at 50 minutes, but we were in and out in less than 30, so that was fun.
I had wanted to stop by the store in China, but it was not open. We found our first photopass CM of the day, and he was not looking very happy to be there. I had to go up to him and ask if he was a photopass photographer, because he didn't even have his camera in his hand, so he did not exactly look like he wanted business. But, he did take the obligatory photos (standing together, arms in the air, hugging each other, smiling behind our masks), so that was good.
Meanwhile, my son and his family had stopped for the cheezy bread bites in Brazil, and at the Africa booth for a couple of items. It is amazing, but the food in those little cardboard trays with a little taste from each country are quite filling! My grandsons enjoyed collecting all the Kid Cot postcards from each country, but since the international CMs were not there, and the CM's who were working were not from the countries they represented, the interactions were not as educational. Zack, the 7 year old, was asking them questions about the geography of each country because he was trying to complete an assignment for school, and only the gal in Canada could answer his questions. Go Canada!
We found a place to sit down and rest in America. The kids had fun playing around the fountain and the Disney birds were quite aggressive fighting for handouts. One of them flew by Zack's head, and when he ducked, the bird took off with the top bun from his lobster roll! Meanwhile, my daughter and I headed to Morocco and feasted on the menu items over there. While we were stopped and stationary at a table along the lake, the only Epcot cavalcade we saw that day went by. I guess because it was raining off and on most of the day, there were not many cavalcades out. But, we got to see the beautiful horse pulling the wagon loaded with princesses, so that was fun!
After lunch, we joined back up with the rest of the family. Although it was cloudy, it was much more humid than we were used to, and the boys wanted to go back to the hotel to go swimming. So we split up for the afternoon and they headed to the rest of the countries to collect post cards and then back to the hotel.
My husband, daughter and I stayed at Epcot. We saw a huge rain cloud coming and noticed that the American Adventure would be starting soon. We dashed inside the America Pavilion and found a seat. The auditorium had every other row occupied, and the seats were staggered within the rows, so there was no one near us once we were seated. During the show, I was not sure if I heard thunder or if it was part of the show, but when we exited, there were people in rain gear and puddles everywhere, so I guess we missed all the excitement outside! 🌧
Continued in next post....
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
Epcot, continued:
We then went to Germany and bought a few tasty beverages, and since we had to be stationary and socially distanced, we headed to watch the Jamitors play a set while we enjoyed our brews. So. Much. Fun!
We continued around the world, stopping at the store in Japan. I was really excited to go in there, because when I lived in Napa, CA, my best friend was from Japan, and she would bring the most wonderful candy back whenever she went home for a visit. I had seen in the TR from @Lesley Wake that Tokyo Disney had some of those same treats in their stores, and I was hoping to find them in Florida, but we had no luck at Epcot.
Moving on, we stopped in France, trying to check out the progress of the Remy construction. We did take a cute photo with Remy the topiary, but that was about all we could find.
My husband and I had made plans to be back at Bay Lake Tower by 4:30 so we could swap child care duties with my son and his wife. By now, it was after 3:00pm, so we headed towards the United Kingdom and Canada. I was planning on stopping for Fish and Chips in the UK or the steak in Canada, but we were just too full. The sun finally came out for a couple of minutes, so we checked the app to see if Test Track was open, but the wait was 70 minutes, and we did not have enough time. We did see our second Photopass photographer of the day and got a couple of pictures with Spaceship Earth in the background and the one below with Tink!
The line for Spaceship Earth was 30 minutes, so we were able to fit in one last ride! The video my daughter and I got at the end was of us going skiing, me falling and breaking my arm, and being rescued on the ski slope by a dog, who brought a splint so I could set my arm. I am an ER nurse, and I found that video very funny!
By then, my husband and I had to go back to the hotel to swap out child care duties. Who can resist a little cutie like that?
William, Hannah and Alyssa had reservations at Chefs de France for dinner, which was absolutely magnificent! The restaurant was offering a prix fixe menu for $49.50, which included a glass of wine or non-alcoholic beverage, an appetizer, entree and dessert. They had 3-4 different options for each course, so between the three of them, they were able to try almost the entire menu!
After dinner, they had time to ride Test Track, Soarin', and Mission Space, so overall it was a great evening for them!
Meanwhile, Kevin and I had the kids, and after a quick dinner in the room, we decided to go on a Monorail ride, stopping at the Poly for some Dole Whip, walking over to the Grand Floridian to see the grounds and their Christmas tree, and then hopping back on the Monorail to the Contemporary. I forgot my phone (which had been charging in the room) so I didn't take any pictures, but we had a great time exploring! Seeing the Magic Kingdom at night was pretty awesome for the kids, and they were very excited about going there the next day!
We then went to Germany and bought a few tasty beverages, and since we had to be stationary and socially distanced, we headed to watch the Jamitors play a set while we enjoyed our brews. So. Much. Fun!
We continued around the world, stopping at the store in Japan. I was really excited to go in there, because when I lived in Napa, CA, my best friend was from Japan, and she would bring the most wonderful candy back whenever she went home for a visit. I had seen in the TR from @Lesley Wake that Tokyo Disney had some of those same treats in their stores, and I was hoping to find them in Florida, but we had no luck at Epcot.
Moving on, we stopped in France, trying to check out the progress of the Remy construction. We did take a cute photo with Remy the topiary, but that was about all we could find.
My husband and I had made plans to be back at Bay Lake Tower by 4:30 so we could swap child care duties with my son and his wife. By now, it was after 3:00pm, so we headed towards the United Kingdom and Canada. I was planning on stopping for Fish and Chips in the UK or the steak in Canada, but we were just too full. The sun finally came out for a couple of minutes, so we checked the app to see if Test Track was open, but the wait was 70 minutes, and we did not have enough time. We did see our second Photopass photographer of the day and got a couple of pictures with Spaceship Earth in the background and the one below with Tink!
The line for Spaceship Earth was 30 minutes, so we were able to fit in one last ride! The video my daughter and I got at the end was of us going skiing, me falling and breaking my arm, and being rescued on the ski slope by a dog, who brought a splint so I could set my arm. I am an ER nurse, and I found that video very funny!
By then, my husband and I had to go back to the hotel to swap out child care duties. Who can resist a little cutie like that?
William, Hannah and Alyssa had reservations at Chefs de France for dinner, which was absolutely magnificent! The restaurant was offering a prix fixe menu for $49.50, which included a glass of wine or non-alcoholic beverage, an appetizer, entree and dessert. They had 3-4 different options for each course, so between the three of them, they were able to try almost the entire menu!
After dinner, they had time to ride Test Track, Soarin', and Mission Space, so overall it was a great evening for them!
Meanwhile, Kevin and I had the kids, and after a quick dinner in the room, we decided to go on a Monorail ride, stopping at the Poly for some Dole Whip, walking over to the Grand Floridian to see the grounds and their Christmas tree, and then hopping back on the Monorail to the Contemporary. I forgot my phone (which had been charging in the room) so I didn't take any pictures, but we had a great time exploring! Seeing the Magic Kingdom at night was pretty awesome for the kids, and they were very excited about going there the next day!
Attachments
tundra1
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2019
Check out The Wave. We mobile ordered for take out from there one evening... Try the Bacon and Eggs appetizer for dinner, it is amazing! And the chocolate/peanut butter cupcake from the Contempo Cafe' was so good, not too sweet, and no coconut!I did!
So... like a nice Karen?? Exactly!
I'm kidding!!!
Score!
MK would be the #1 reason I want to stay there.
pkondz
Brace yourself for immediate disintegration
- Joined
- Mar 9, 2007
Well... poop. Welcome to Florida!
I just said... "Welcome to Florida"!I was willing to make a go of it, but everyone else looked at me like I was from another planet, so we hung out at the hotel.
If it's not raining... just wait.
This is the most PC comment about that ride that I've ever read!
Masks half off.... you guys felt like this, didn't you?
Wow that sounds good. Had no idea you could do that!
That's... weird. :/
I presume because of Covid.
I hadn't realized that would be the case.Yuss!and only the gal in Canada could answer his questions. Go Canada!
And that right there folks, is why you're not supposed to feed the birds.
I haven't seen that in over 30 years. How was it?
So odd to see them on a stage as opposed to wandering around.
That's too bad. I love that store. I almost never buy anything, but I love to look around.
Cute.
So specific!Ah! Restaurants in the CR. I thought you meant there were restaurants in BLT. I've yet to try The Wave yet, but I have heard good things. And that cupcake sounds great (and no coconut! You know me well.
)
samantha3590
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 16, 2017
Following along!
That’s disappointing about Sci Fi! I have a reservation there for our February trip. It’s actually kind of hard to get right now!
Share this page
-
All New 'Springs in Motion' Entertainment in Disney Springs
-
May The 4th Be With You and The Newest RSVLTS Collection
-
New Flavored Croissants Coming to Walt Disney World in May
-
Disney Cruise Line Shares New Details on Entertainment at Lookout Cay
-
Disneyland Releases New Room-Only and Park Ticket Discounts
GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE
Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.
Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.
Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
