Winter Weather Escape to WDW and the WL ~ A January 2014 Trip Report

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Just joined and enjoying your trip report. You look fabulous for someone who was so sick!!!

Thank you and welcome to the TR!!

Love me some tonga toast!!

I am thinking about staying at the WL when I go to celebrate my 50th bday in Jan 2015--now rethinking it.

Me too!!!

I think the WL would be okay, just book a woods view or courtyard view!

On all of our trips to WL, the MK boat always went straight to MK. But in this last trip I noticed that some of the MK boats were going to FW first. Luckily, we had just missed one of those boats and were able to get on a direct boat.

I'm glad that you felt better the next morning. But how annoying not to have hot water in the morning.

We just weren't expecting it to go over there first. It hadn't the night before!! It's a long ways over there.

Thanks, I'm so glad I recovered so quickly.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Breakfast looks good! glad you were feeling well enough to at least make breakfast and eat half of your tonga toast

From your pics the view, while certainly not magical, don't look that bad - especially if a view of Wishes was part of the deal - but that truck-backing-up noise every morning is just ridiculous to have to deal with

Just realized that we will be there around the same time as you for your next trip - was booking my ADR's today. Glad you wound up getting everything you wanted even if it was a bit of a pain. I was able to get everything I wanted except for dinner at BOG

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Breakfast looks good! glad you were feeling well enough to at least make breakfast and eat half of your tonga toast

From your pics the view, while certainly not magical, don't look that bad - especially if a view of Wishes was part of the deal - but that truck-backing-up noise every morning is just ridiculous to have to deal with

Just realized that we will be there around the same time as you for your next trip - was booking my ADR's today. Glad you wound up getting everything you wanted even if it was a bit of a pain. I was able to get everything I wanted except for dinner at BOG

Breakfast is always good at Kona, even when you are not feeling so well!

Yes if we looked up and not down, the view was not terrible. It was all the noise that was just too hard to overlook.

Congrats on your summer trip and getting your ADR's!! BOG is hard to get -- even 180 days out.

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

Hey Shelly! I'm back home and all caught up with your TR. We had a wonderful trip!!! I LOVED the Magic! LOVED it!! Best cruise ever! I learned that February is a wonderful time to cruise. The ocean was so calm and the snorkeling was fantastic! I also learned that going to WDW in February is not for me. It was SO stinkin' crowded at MK!!! There were long waits for almost everything. There was even a 45 minute wait for PotC! Crazy! I think we'll stick to fall trips for WDW from now on.

Just read your last two updates. I am so sorry that you got sick! That kind of sick is always sooooo bad. You just feel like you're going to die... or wish that you would! And I agree, it's bad when other people are around when you're sick. I like to go hide too. Just isn't something you want to share with others! As for your DH only ever getting sick once since you've known him... my DH is the same way. What's up with that?

I hate you had to hear those trucks beeping every morning too. That is really annoying. I don't think all the issues that room had were acceptable whether it was a standard or not. Even standard rooms aren't cheap at the deluxe resorts so I think you are right to have certain expectations.

I'll be very curious to hear what you think of Frozen after you see it. We watched it on the ship. It was not at all what I expected. This is just my opinion, but I didn't care for it being done as a musical. There was just too much singing in it. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Disney music, but I like to hear a complete song and then move on to the script. It annoys me when they actually sing the script. IDK, must just be me because people are crazy about it. I've had several people tell me they have been to the theater to see it 3 or 4 times.

 

[BellaSoleil]

Ah! Those beeping trucks! Breakfast looks so yummy!!!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Hey Shelly! I'm back home and all caught up with your TR. We had a wonderful trip!!! I LOVED the Magic! LOVED it!! Best cruise ever! I learned that February is a wonderful time to cruise. The ocean was so calm and the snorkeling was fantastic! I also learned that going to WDW in February is not for me. It was SO stinkin' crowded at MK!!! There were long waits for almost everything. There was even a 45 minute wait for PotC! Crazy! I think we'll stick to fall trips for WDW from now on.

I was going to email you today and see how your trip was!!!

So glad to hear it was so fabulous. You sure are making DCL sound pretty enticing!!

Sorry MK was so crowded. I guess I didn't even realize that you had decided to go to the parks!

Just read your last two updates. I am so sorry that you got sick! That kind of sick is always sooooo bad. You just feel like you're going to die... or wish that you would! And I agree, it's bad when other people are around when you're sick. I like to go hide too. Just isn't something you want to share with others! As for your DH only ever getting sick once since you've known him... my DH is the same way. What's up with that?

I don't know, I usually get the stomach flu about once every year or two. DH gets it like once a decade!!

I hate you had to hear those trucks beeping every morning too. That is really annoying. I don't think all the issues that room had were acceptable whether it was a standard or not. Even standard rooms aren't cheap at the deluxe resorts so I think you are right to have certain expectations.

I'll be very curious to hear what you think of Frozen after you see it. We watched it on the ship. It was not at all what I expected. This is just my opinion, but I didn't care for it being done as a musical. There was just too much singing in it. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Disney music, but I like to hear a complete song and then move on to the script. It annoys me when they actually sing the script. IDK, must just be me because people are crazy about it. I've had several people tell me they have been to the theater to see it 3 or 4 times.

That is interesting about Frozen. No one had told me that yet - about all the singing. I'm kind of glad I didn't drag the boys to see it, it sounds like they wouldn't have enjoyed it!! I am really curious to see it now! I've had people tell me they've gone to see it more than once because it is so good.

Ah! Those beeping trucks! Breakfast looks so yummy!!!!

Those trucks were crazy!!!!

Breakfast was very good!

 

[ddluvsdisney]

Hi Shelly! I'm back from sunny warm FL. I am so sad it was so beautiful there the weather was fantastic!!!
It was harder to come home than any other trip I think. It's just still so cold here I can't stand it anymore.
We have yet to eat at Kona. It does look yummy though.
Glad you got your ADRs. We ate at Teppan Edo a few years ago. It was good. The boys really liked it.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[PrincessPaczki]

Hi Shelly. Love the update. Breakfast looked wonderful. Breakfast has always been good at Kona for us. I love the tonga toast! and yes....I eat it all. The pictures of the Poly really make me smile. I love that resort. I can't even picture what the changes are going to be like. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Can't wait to read more.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Hi Shelly! I'm back from sunny warm FL. I am so sad it was so beautiful there the weather was fantastic!!!
It was harder to come home than any other trip I think. It's just still so cold here I can't stand it anymore.
We have yet to eat at Kona. It does look yummy though.
Glad you got your ADRs. We ate at Teppan Edo a few years ago. It was good. The boys really liked it.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

Welcome back! I know, it stinks to be back. Especially since this winter is never-ending!!!

You've got to get to Kona sometime soon!

We are excited to try Teppan Edo, hope we like it!

Hi Shelly. Love the update. Breakfast looked wonderful. Breakfast has always been good at Kona for us. I love the tonga toast! and yes....I eat it all. The pictures of the Poly really make me smile. I love that resort. I can't even picture what the changes are going to be like. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Can't wait to read more.

Thank you!

Tonga Toast is great!!

I know, me to -- love the Poly just as it is. So sad about the changes. It will be interesting...

 

[JoBird]

I know that they sang in Frozen and it was a musical, but I don't remember it being overly obnoxious with too much singing.

I thought Drew would hate it, because he hates most every movie he sees, but he actually thought it was very good and funny. He liked it a a bazillion times more than Tangled. Yes, with his two sisters he has to watch girl movies. Poor guy.



Maybe your guys will like it too. The snowman is hysterical.

 

[thornton0511]

Thanks!

I'll never understand how such a great company can have such poor technology. Their website is always slow and there always seems to be "glitches".

Congrats on your first DL trip!! That was our plan for this summer, but we couldn't pass up our agency offer for WDW for August, plus the agency dinner/event. So, maybe we'll make it out to DL next summer!

Lol we say the same thing about their technology. As fantastic a company Disney is this makes absolutely no sense

Thanks for the congrats! I have planned for a DL trip several times before but I always give up when I start trying to plan it and we always just end up going to WDW again lol. I was determined though this time and we have our non refundable airfare purchased so no turning back now! It has been a lot different than planning for WDW for sure and I get frustrated easily when I keep comparing the two....ugh! There just does not seem to be near the resources out there for DL as there is for WDW. Definitely going to try to TR though if I can ever get though the one I am doing now anyways lol(and I also have our trip scheduled to be there for the 59th DL anniversary and playing with the idea of doing the Walt in Walt's footsteps tour the day of the anniversary so that might make for an interesting story! I get goosies just thinking about it) Anyways rambling again sorry

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

I know that they sang in Frozen and it was a musical, but I don't remember it being overly obnoxious with too much singing.

I thought Drew would hate it, because he hates most every movie he sees, but he actually thought it was very good and funny. He liked it a a bazillion times more than Tangled. Yes, with his two sisters he has to watch girl movies. Poor guy.



Maybe your guys will like it too. The snowman is hysterical.

We watched the movie while we were on the ship and they showed the 'sing along' version with the words at the bottom of the screen with that little bouncing ball to help you keep tempo. Well it is quite possible that it wasn't so much the movie that was overly obnoxious, but the tween girl sitting directly behind me, belting out EVERY SINGLE word with the musical finesse of a screech owl. It was perhaps the longest 1.5 hours of my life. Maybe I should go see it again, without the peanut gallery bellowing behind me....

Now that I think of it, she also kicked the back of my chair about a dozen times and her mother socked me in the back of the head with her purse. And the guy directly in front of me was completely toasted and laughed at every funny part of the movie about 30 seconds after everyone else did with that totally annoying drunk man chuckle. I'm really starting to think it may have been the atmosphere and not the movie!

 

[disny_luvr]

I hate that you got so sick on vacation. I'm pretty sure it was food poisoning, too. I had food poisoning once, last year, and it was horrible. I still can't bring myself to eat at that restaurant again. I'm glad you were able to enjoy your breakfast at Kona.

 

[disny_luvr]

RinkyTinkyTinky - I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise and the "new" Magic. We sailed her once, before the refurb, and love that ship.

 

[rusafee1183]

We watched the movie while we were on the ship and they showed the 'sing along' version with the words at the bottom of the screen with that little bouncing ball to help you keep tempo. Well it is quite possible that it wasn't so much the movie that was overly obnoxious, but the tween girl sitting directly behind me, belting out EVERY SINGLE word with the musical finesse of a screech owl. It was perhaps the longest 1.5 hours of my life. Maybe I should go see it again, without the peanut gallery bellowing behind me....

Now that I think of it, she also kicked the back of my chair about a dozen times and her mother socked me in the back of the head with her purse. And the guy directly in front of me was completely toasted and laughed at every funny part of the movie about 30 seconds after everyone else did with that totally annoying drunk man chuckle. I'm really starting to think it may have been the atmosphere and not the movie!

That'll do it!

I wondered if they would show the lyrics on the bottom of the screen in the singalong viewings. If I hadn't seen it before and all that was going on, I would have hated it too!

We had an obnoxious family ruin Saving Mr Banks for us. They came in late, were yelling to each other across the theater about where to sit and then all ultimately sat in different rows and were passing popcorn back and forth to each other. I was a second away from freaking out, and they finally shut up. But, it definitely took away from the movie and wasted about 20 minutes of our time.

 

[Disney before Sally]

I got my ADR's!!

Then after all that I forgot to ask about the cabana rental.

We will also have our Agency private dinner/Frozen Event in Epcot one night and we will go to either ESPN or BRG, neither require ADR's.

Teppan Edo will be the only new one for us!

So happy you got the ADRs you wanted!

What is a cabana rental?

Private Frozen Event in Epcot sounds like it will be fun!

We did Teppan Edo on a trip a couple years ago. The food was great, but just like any Japanese Hibatchi Grill that we have all over where we live. My kids are all into Japan and animation. The oldest took Japanese as her foreign language and the next one plans to as well. I had to talk my family out of doing Teppan Edo this time and the farthest away I got was Tokyo Dining. : o )


Thanks for the Kona report and pictures. With what everyone says about the tonga toast i was starting think maybe i should try it, but after looking at the pictures I think I'm more of a Kahuna fan.

 

[mickeyplanner]

Just a week behind on reading, I had no idea you had food/stomach issues too on this trip.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

I know that they sang in Frozen and it was a musical, but I don't remember it being overly obnoxious with too much singing.

I thought Drew would hate it, because he hates most every movie he sees, but he actually thought it was very good and funny. He liked it a a bazillion times more than Tangled. Yes, with his two sisters he has to watch girl movies. Poor guy.



Maybe your guys will like it too. The snowman is hysterical.

It will be interesting to see what my boys think of it!!

Lol we say the same thing about their technology. As fantastic a company Disney is this makes absolutely no sense


It is a mystery!!

Thanks for the congrats! I have planned for a DL trip several times before but I always give up when I start trying to plan it and we always just end up going to WDW again lol. I was determined though this time and we have our non refundable airfare purchased so no turning back now! It has been a lot different than planning for WDW for sure and I get frustrated easily when I keep comparing the two....ugh! There just does not seem to be near the resources out there for DL as there is for WDW. Definitely going to try to TR though if I can ever get though the one I am doing now anyways lol(and I also have our trip scheduled to be there for the 59th DL anniversary and playing with the idea of doing the Walt in Walt's footsteps tour the day of the anniversary so that might make for an interesting story! I get goosies just thinking about it) Anyways rambling again sorry

That sounds just like us, we have had DL planned about 3 times, but never go through with it.

It's just easier to go to WDW.

I would love to do the Walk in Walt's Footsteps tour. That would be so awesome! I really do need to get out there. I can book DL trips for clients, but haven't yet. Haven't even had any requests. Maybe if I had the experience under my belt that would help.

We watched the movie while we were on the ship and they showed the 'sing along' version with the words at the bottom of the screen with that little bouncing ball to help you keep tempo. Well it is quite possible that it wasn't so much the movie that was overly obnoxious, but the tween girl sitting directly behind me, belting out EVERY SINGLE word with the musical finesse of a screech owl. It was perhaps the longest 1.5 hours of my life. Maybe I should go see it again, without the peanut gallery bellowing behind me....

Now that I think of it, she also kicked the back of my chair about a dozen times and her mother socked me in the back of the head with her purse. And the guy directly in front of me was completely toasted and laughed at every funny part of the movie about 30 seconds after everyone else did with that totally annoying drunk man chuckle. I'm really starting to think it may have been the atmosphere and not the movie!

Yeah, that's enough to ruin the experience.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

I hate that you got so sick on vacation. I'm pretty sure it was food poisoning, too. I had food poisoning once, last year, and it was horrible. I still can't bring myself to eat at that restaurant again. I'm glad you were able to enjoy your breakfast at Kona.

I don't think I will be going to Chef Mickey's again anytime soon.

We had an obnoxious family ruin Saving Mr Banks for us. They came in late, were yelling to each other across the theater about where to sit and then all ultimately sat in different rows and were passing popcorn back and forth to each other. I was a second away from freaking out, and they finally shut up. But, it definitely took away from the movie and wasted about 20 minutes of our time.

So happy you got the ADRs you wanted!

What is a cabana rental?

Some of the deluxe resorts have private cabana's set up on their pool decks. GF, Poly, and CR for sure.... Not sure about the rest. There is a refrigerator stocked with drinks, you also get a fruit tray. The cabana has furniture, a ceiling fan, and a TV. They look really nice! You can rent them for a half day or a full day.

I will have pics of the Poly cabana's in my next update.

Private Frozen Event in Epcot sounds like it will be fun!

We're excited about it!

We did Teppan Edo on a trip a couple years ago. The food was great, but just like any Japanese Hibatchi Grill that we have all over where we live. My kids are all into Japan and animation. The oldest took Japanese as her foreign language and the next one plans to as well. I had to talk my family out of doing Teppan Edo this time and the farthest away I got was Tokyo Dining. : o )

We've never even been to a Japanese Hibachi, so it will be a new experience for sure!

Thanks for the Kona report and pictures. With what everyone says about the tonga toast i was starting think maybe i should try it, but after looking at the pictures I think I'm more of a Kahuna fan.

Well, I would say Tonga Toast!! DH would say Big Kahuna!! You should definitely try Kona!

Just a week behind on reading, I had no idea you had food/stomach issues too on this trip.

Yep, it wasn't our best arrival day, that's for sure.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

We set off to explore the Poly a bit and check out the DVC construction.

It was pretty chilly. The temperature was actually a bit higher than the day before, but there was no sun. It didn’t feel near as warm as the day before.

We checked out the cabanas. As you know, we plan to rent one in August, if the Poly pool is open!!

We looked up at our room from December 2012. LOVED that room, right there on the end of the top floor.

The construction looked about the same as it did in pics I saw before we left. They weren’t working on it this day.

Continued in next post....