I couldn't sleep the night before our flight despite taking a sleepaid, so after we arrived at WL and had lunch at Whispering Canyon, I had to take a nap. Magical Express worked very well, and our bags were in our room after our lunch. We had a courtyard view and I asked if there were any with views of the lake and the CM said no, but maybe she just wanted to surprise me because as you can see in my photo from the balcony, we had a good view of the lake and the pool area - so that seemed magical to me. I left $5 tips for housekeepingmost days, but no towel animals 
Oh well, at least I didn't mention that to the kids so they were none the wiser.
Our room was comfy - firm beds and down pillows. The lodge is very detailed and the roaring forks counter restaurant had some good choices for breakfast and lunch. Whispering Canyon was not a hit because my youngest doesn't care for loud noises and some of the waitresses (not ours) made annoying screeches. The food was just ok IMHO.
We arrived on the same and only day for EMH night at MK and I was determined to take advantage of it. That was a mistake. There was no noticeable difference in the crowds. When we went 4yrs ago they had E-ride night where guests must pay extra to stay and there was very little wait for anything - with EMH we still saw 30-60 minute waits for popular attractions. We used fast pass for Space Mtn and after an inital shock, my 6yr DS fell in love with Space Mountain. He would ride it 10 more times during our trip (thanks to no crowd at MNSSHP) We stayed up too late and had a rough morning the next day.
Bickering at breakfast lead to a timeout and a late start to Typhoon Lagoon. We still had a fun day at Typhoon Lagoon although we missed swimming with the sharks as it seemed a little crowded to enjoy. The super slides were fun for both my boys (6 & 10) and we tried most things although I kept my youngest off Crush-n-gusher. I am overprotective I guess but my dh said it was a little intense. Nothing was more than a 10 minute wait at most.
Dinner was at 1900 Park. My DS 6 turned up his nose at the princess concept, but quickly warmed to it once Fiary Godmother sprinkled him with Pixie Dust. It was a good meal - the only negative was they wrote our pager number down wrong and we waited over 30 minutes to be seated. We got out a few minutes before 9 to find that the boats stop from 9-9:45 because of the perimeter fireworks on the nights of MNSSHP, so we were stuck. A driver from the Floridian finally took us home when I got a little demanding. I noticed the next night they announced on the boats about the break in service during the fireworks.
Friday was supposed to be MGM, but my DH 10 had sore feet and was limping. I think it was from all the walking at Typhoon Lagoon. We went to Disney Quest instead. It was okay - if I didn't have a park hopper plus - I wouldn't recommend it. On weekdays they can have school fieldtrips and it was crowded and loud. The "make your own roller coaster" is the coolest thing and dh and ds's loved that. Otherwise, I just didn't equate a trip to Disney with arcade games. Not enough magic.
That night we went to MNSSHP. We went at 5:30, got our wristbands and were herded into liberty square with all other wristband guests. Although rides were open in Adventureland, my DS 6 was dying to go back on Space Mountain and a little after 6, the CM's "guarding" libertysquares entrance said we could head over to Tomorrowland and wait for the rides to open close to 7pm. So we were prepared to just line up at Space Mountain, but the rides were already running. We rode at least 6 times before anyone started showing up and even after that, Tomorrowland never got very crowded. It made for a very nice night and made up for the EMH on 10/5 being a disapointment. The rain held off and the headless horseman rode through. That was exciting. We watched the 10pm parade and my DS 6 was tuckered out and not even sitting up when we saw Woody (Toy Story is his Favorite) on the other side of the roped off street. He started crying because he had so wanted to see Woody, so I scooped him up, ducked under the ropes and made it accross before the parade started. No one was even around Woody and we got autographs and a photo. He was so happy.
Saturday we went to AK and it was more crowded than I thought. I guess Columbus day was bringing in people. It was a good day but not as relaxing as I remembered. The streets were crowded and it felt like we didn't see much. We did get fast passes for the safari and went to Lion King - walking in at the last minute and being seated on the second row. We also did fast pass for Its tough to be a bug. There wasn't 2 hour delay for getting fast passes. My oldest ds stayed and went on Kali Rapids with me - it was a 50 minute wait. The longest we waited for anything thus far. It was not as thrilling as I thought and we didn't get wet. It was very hot, so getting wet would have been OK. That night we didn't make our ADR for Spoodles, but got ADR at Trails End since it was close. Our waiter was very friendly but the food is a step below Ryans. If I didnt have free dining, I would not have wanted to pay for that food. Still it was good to be seated right away even though others were turned away. Its amazing how just calling "55" from your room makes all the difference.
Sunday, we goofed. We headed to MK, but then my Dh panicked when the crowds looked bad, so we left only to come back again at 11am - not exactly the best way to deal with crowds. All in all, it wasn't too bad. They waited about 30 minutes for Space Mtn and my DS 10 and I went on Barnstormer which was surprisingly fun. We had ADR at Crystal Palace and the lunch break was nice. Food was good and the characters all made it around. We went back to the hotel, but my DS wanted a pool break - I thought about going to Epcot to get fast passes for Soarin, but DH didn't want us to split up. We had ADR at the Garden Grill in Epcot. Sure enough when we got there, all fast passes for Soaring were gone and there was an hour wait. We had a very good dinner at Garden Grill - my favorite meal of the trip and got in line for Soarin at 8pm. It was indeed a 60 minute wait, but on full tummies and in air conditioning, it wasn't too bad and the ride was worth it. It was DH's last night and I am glad he got to experience it.
Monday was my big mistake. We had a fun breakfast at Ohanas with Lilo and Stitch, but we had to get up early to make it there by 7:50. The food wasn't great (how can you make waffles not taste good?) but Stitch was funny and it was a lively fun meal.
We enjoyed Soarin so much, we decided to go to Epcot, I failed to notice it was an early entry day as well as the wine festival - I went to Test Trak grabbed fiast passes and headed to Soarin only to find it was already a 60 minute wait and unlike AK, there was a 2 hour delay between fast passes and in two hours fast passes would either be for 9pm or gone. We passed the time going on Maelstrom ( a little boring) and the mexico boat ride ( also less than thrilling) and headed to Test Trak. The fast pass was good I guess, but we still waited about 25 minutes. It was very fun though. All three of us could ride together. If it wasn't a 50 minute wait - we would have done it twice. We didn't know what the ride was like and when it opened up, it was really great. Epcot was hot and very crowded. We decide to take the boat to MGM, but when we got there the boys were complaining about being so hot and tired that we headed back to the hotel and just rested. We went to Downtown Disney that night and I also regretted that choice. It was packed - you couldn't move in the stores and I got the same souvenirs we had looked at the contemproary stores.
Tuesday was our last day. I packed the night before, laid the boys clothes out so we could check out and hit MK at opening. My DS 6 was whining that he didn't feel good and was hungry and tired. I prodded him to go to Roaring Forks and he ate 2 bowls of fruit loops and a doughnut and said he was still hungry, but I drew the line. We headed over to MK on the boat while he complained. He said he just wanted to go to the pool, but we hadn't gone on Thunder Mtn Railroad or Splash Mtn, and DS 10 wanted to go to MK. I told him he needed to think about what other people wanted to do and not whine. As you may have guessed, my words came back to haunt me. We barely got through the turnstile before he threw up and began sobbing that I should have listened to him. I felt guilty and bad. We went back to WL to find someone had already checked into our room. Standing at the counter explaining the situation, the CM looked at me dumbly and said that when our bags came down they cleaned our room and allowed someone else to check in early as was their policy. As ds proceeded to throw up into the bag we were holding, another CM grabbed him and said, "find them a room". They gave us room and got our bags from the holding area so he could put on fresh clothes. It was a long day until our 8pm flight but at least we had a room.
All in all it was a good trip - I wish I had relaxed about things a little more at times, but as you know without a plan at all one would be stuck standing in line and eating at snack counters. The WL was nice, but transportation was disapointing. We waited for boats up to 45 minutes and buses seemed to go everywhere before they went ot our stops. Next time I would either rent a car or stay at a monorail resort or both. I'd say the main downers were the transportation and hitting Epcot on one of their most crowded days. Otherwise a nice trip with MK and Typhoon Lagoon being the highlights.
Here is the view from 5119 WL
Other photos from WL:
Oh well, at least I didn't mention that to the kids so they were none the wiser. Our room was comfy - firm beds and down pillows. The lodge is very detailed and the roaring forks counter restaurant had some good choices for breakfast and lunch. Whispering Canyon was not a hit because my youngest doesn't care for loud noises and some of the waitresses (not ours) made annoying screeches. The food was just ok IMHO.
We arrived on the same and only day for EMH night at MK and I was determined to take advantage of it. That was a mistake. There was no noticeable difference in the crowds. When we went 4yrs ago they had E-ride night where guests must pay extra to stay and there was very little wait for anything - with EMH we still saw 30-60 minute waits for popular attractions. We used fast pass for Space Mtn and after an inital shock, my 6yr DS fell in love with Space Mountain. He would ride it 10 more times during our trip (thanks to no crowd at MNSSHP) We stayed up too late and had a rough morning the next day.
Bickering at breakfast lead to a timeout and a late start to Typhoon Lagoon. We still had a fun day at Typhoon Lagoon although we missed swimming with the sharks as it seemed a little crowded to enjoy. The super slides were fun for both my boys (6 & 10) and we tried most things although I kept my youngest off Crush-n-gusher. I am overprotective I guess but my dh said it was a little intense. Nothing was more than a 10 minute wait at most.
Dinner was at 1900 Park. My DS 6 turned up his nose at the princess concept, but quickly warmed to it once Fiary Godmother sprinkled him with Pixie Dust. It was a good meal - the only negative was they wrote our pager number down wrong and we waited over 30 minutes to be seated. We got out a few minutes before 9 to find that the boats stop from 9-9:45 because of the perimeter fireworks on the nights of MNSSHP, so we were stuck. A driver from the Floridian finally took us home when I got a little demanding. I noticed the next night they announced on the boats about the break in service during the fireworks.
Friday was supposed to be MGM, but my DH 10 had sore feet and was limping. I think it was from all the walking at Typhoon Lagoon. We went to Disney Quest instead. It was okay - if I didn't have a park hopper plus - I wouldn't recommend it. On weekdays they can have school fieldtrips and it was crowded and loud. The "make your own roller coaster" is the coolest thing and dh and ds's loved that. Otherwise, I just didn't equate a trip to Disney with arcade games. Not enough magic.
That night we went to MNSSHP. We went at 5:30, got our wristbands and were herded into liberty square with all other wristband guests. Although rides were open in Adventureland, my DS 6 was dying to go back on Space Mountain and a little after 6, the CM's "guarding" libertysquares entrance said we could head over to Tomorrowland and wait for the rides to open close to 7pm. So we were prepared to just line up at Space Mountain, but the rides were already running. We rode at least 6 times before anyone started showing up and even after that, Tomorrowland never got very crowded. It made for a very nice night and made up for the EMH on 10/5 being a disapointment. The rain held off and the headless horseman rode through. That was exciting. We watched the 10pm parade and my DS 6 was tuckered out and not even sitting up when we saw Woody (Toy Story is his Favorite) on the other side of the roped off street. He started crying because he had so wanted to see Woody, so I scooped him up, ducked under the ropes and made it accross before the parade started. No one was even around Woody and we got autographs and a photo. He was so happy.
Saturday we went to AK and it was more crowded than I thought. I guess Columbus day was bringing in people. It was a good day but not as relaxing as I remembered. The streets were crowded and it felt like we didn't see much. We did get fast passes for the safari and went to Lion King - walking in at the last minute and being seated on the second row. We also did fast pass for Its tough to be a bug. There wasn't 2 hour delay for getting fast passes. My oldest ds stayed and went on Kali Rapids with me - it was a 50 minute wait. The longest we waited for anything thus far. It was not as thrilling as I thought and we didn't get wet. It was very hot, so getting wet would have been OK. That night we didn't make our ADR for Spoodles, but got ADR at Trails End since it was close. Our waiter was very friendly but the food is a step below Ryans. If I didnt have free dining, I would not have wanted to pay for that food. Still it was good to be seated right away even though others were turned away. Its amazing how just calling "55" from your room makes all the difference.
Sunday, we goofed. We headed to MK, but then my Dh panicked when the crowds looked bad, so we left only to come back again at 11am - not exactly the best way to deal with crowds. All in all, it wasn't too bad. They waited about 30 minutes for Space Mtn and my DS 10 and I went on Barnstormer which was surprisingly fun. We had ADR at Crystal Palace and the lunch break was nice. Food was good and the characters all made it around. We went back to the hotel, but my DS wanted a pool break - I thought about going to Epcot to get fast passes for Soarin, but DH didn't want us to split up. We had ADR at the Garden Grill in Epcot. Sure enough when we got there, all fast passes for Soaring were gone and there was an hour wait. We had a very good dinner at Garden Grill - my favorite meal of the trip and got in line for Soarin at 8pm. It was indeed a 60 minute wait, but on full tummies and in air conditioning, it wasn't too bad and the ride was worth it. It was DH's last night and I am glad he got to experience it.
Monday was my big mistake. We had a fun breakfast at Ohanas with Lilo and Stitch, but we had to get up early to make it there by 7:50. The food wasn't great (how can you make waffles not taste good?) but Stitch was funny and it was a lively fun meal.
We enjoyed Soarin so much, we decided to go to Epcot, I failed to notice it was an early entry day as well as the wine festival - I went to Test Trak grabbed fiast passes and headed to Soarin only to find it was already a 60 minute wait and unlike AK, there was a 2 hour delay between fast passes and in two hours fast passes would either be for 9pm or gone. We passed the time going on Maelstrom ( a little boring) and the mexico boat ride ( also less than thrilling) and headed to Test Trak. The fast pass was good I guess, but we still waited about 25 minutes. It was very fun though. All three of us could ride together. If it wasn't a 50 minute wait - we would have done it twice. We didn't know what the ride was like and when it opened up, it was really great. Epcot was hot and very crowded. We decide to take the boat to MGM, but when we got there the boys were complaining about being so hot and tired that we headed back to the hotel and just rested. We went to Downtown Disney that night and I also regretted that choice. It was packed - you couldn't move in the stores and I got the same souvenirs we had looked at the contemproary stores.
Tuesday was our last day. I packed the night before, laid the boys clothes out so we could check out and hit MK at opening. My DS 6 was whining that he didn't feel good and was hungry and tired. I prodded him to go to Roaring Forks and he ate 2 bowls of fruit loops and a doughnut and said he was still hungry, but I drew the line. We headed over to MK on the boat while he complained. He said he just wanted to go to the pool, but we hadn't gone on Thunder Mtn Railroad or Splash Mtn, and DS 10 wanted to go to MK. I told him he needed to think about what other people wanted to do and not whine. As you may have guessed, my words came back to haunt me. We barely got through the turnstile before he threw up and began sobbing that I should have listened to him. I felt guilty and bad. We went back to WL to find someone had already checked into our room. Standing at the counter explaining the situation, the CM looked at me dumbly and said that when our bags came down they cleaned our room and allowed someone else to check in early as was their policy. As ds proceeded to throw up into the bag we were holding, another CM grabbed him and said, "find them a room". They gave us room and got our bags from the holding area so he could put on fresh clothes. It was a long day until our 8pm flight but at least we had a room.
All in all it was a good trip - I wish I had relaxed about things a little more at times, but as you know without a plan at all one would be stuck standing in line and eating at snack counters. The WL was nice, but transportation was disapointing. We waited for boats up to 45 minutes and buses seemed to go everywhere before they went ot our stops. Next time I would either rent a car or stay at a monorail resort or both. I'd say the main downers were the transportation and hitting Epcot on one of their most crowded days. Otherwise a nice trip with MK and Typhoon Lagoon being the highlights.
Here is the view from 5119 WL
Other photos from WL:
Usually photos with characters are far away (from a distance), but you shot from upclose, I like that!!!! very good. (great looking kids too, btw........)
