Yes, I Really Am Spending All 9 days in Disney - a LIVE October Trip Report - COMPLETE!

[Goof's Girl]

Intro time - to be very honest with you all….I’m just going to link my Pre-trip report thread here for your reference My intros were hefty so please take a peek before reading on!

The short version:

• Sarah - Me! Your ghost host, Disney adult, childless millennial, and trip report writer
• Disney Mom aka DM - the glue that holds us all together
• Disney Dad aka DD - will follow along with all your plans as long as you feed him (Mickey bars preferred)
• Disney Cousin aka DC - only here to drink around the world (jk..sort of…it is our favorite thing to do together)
• Disney Cousin Husband aka DCH - only here because DC is - will also have a camcorder in his hand despite owning an iPhone

The trip report title is inspired by a Slack message I got from one of my coworkers last night when she realized my entire block of PTO would, in fact, be spent on Disney property lol

I absolutely LOVE my coworkers but there really aren’t too many Disney adults among them. Little do they know this trip is about RELAXING - again highly recommend checking out the pre-trip report!

I’m also planning to write this baby live and I promise there will be more pictures once I’m actually on property! So…hope you enjoyed this intro that I typed up while waiting on my second flight to take off!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 1 - Does anyone understand how airplane boarding works?

There are two kinds of can’t sleep before a trip vibes:

• The omg tomorrow is Disney and I’m so excited I can’t sleep

OR

• I know I’m going to forget something/miss my flight/anxiety monster attacks so I just can’t sleep

Wanna guess which one I had this day? That’s riiiiight #2!

As I mentioned, work has just been so hectic that after I logged off, I thought of about 6 things I forgot to do and pack and these thoughts hit me right around 2am. At 2:45am I just gave up and started to get ready. Honestly the extra time was nice, I repacked a few things in my suitcase, was able to do my makeup, and got the last couple work things on my list wrapped!

The best part was the mug of ice coffee I was able to drink at home and on the way to the airport since DBF was an angel and drove me at 4:25am!

Security was a breeze and soon I was standing at my gate with only 15 left until we boarded…or so I thought.

Now, I had a TIGHT layover for this trip. Only about 40 minutes. So I needed everything to start on time including boarding, takeoff, and landing - heck even early would be awesome.

I double checked with the desk workers at my gate and their reaction to my layover and offer to reroute me was NOT comforting…nevertheless I believed that a little pixie dust would get me to Atlanta on time to make my connection.

Boarding finally started and it honestly made me question if people remember how to do it anymore. One of my biggest pet peeves is people who try to get on the plane before their assigned time. I had upgraded to Comfort+ for this trip knowing it saved me precious time deboarding but also guaranteed me overhead space for my bag. Well…as soon as this group heard that the flight was at capacity and space would be limited, it basically turned into a mob rushing the gate.

The desk team finally had to make an announcement about boarding procedure and people were not pleased. But, boarding was completed and we were on our way.

I just said a silent prayer that we would be landing in the same terminal as my flight to Orlando.

We did not.

So upon landing, I set out on a light morning jog from one end of the airport to the opposite end and made it, albeit out of breath, minutes before boarding started. Score!

This is when luck turned around as - at the same time, I got a call from my mom letting me know she was able to secure a Remy boarding pass!!! The morning definitely has turned around and that’s where I’m sitting now, typing this…waiting for my last flight to take off!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 1 - More travel and a new look for a home resort!

A short hour and change after leaving Atlanta, we were touching down in sunny Orlando! In my effort to get airport Starbucks before my parents showed up to pick me up, I shot off the plane and hoofed it to the faux-rail, where I found a delightful surprise!

It was all decked out for the 50th!!!

As soon as I exited the faux-rail, my parents alerted me they had arrived so no airport Starbucks for me. I jumped in the car and we started driving toward the most magical place on Earth. Thankfully, they took pity on me having been up since the wee hours and we stopped at Starbucks on the way.

I was fully caffeinated by the time we pulled into one of our home resorts: Saratoga Springs! It’s been awhile since we stayed here and they recently redid a lot of the rooms so we were excited!

Turns out that’s not the only thing they’re redone!! The lobby is now sporting a VERY different look.

I love the giant horse paintings but I also have so many feelings about change. I’ve been coming to this resort since it was The Institute and I was a baby - so it’s always bittersweet to see it evolve.

Once checked in, we stowed our luggage and headed to Epcot until our room was ready!

Continued in next post!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 1 - What do you mean this isn’t the right line?

Before we could walk through the gates of Epcot, we had to activate our annual pass renewal certificates - a normally quick and easy task.

NOT TODAY!

The line for guest services was HUGE and after waiting in it for 15 minutes, we were told we had to go wait in line by the ticket kiosks. Now, in the past, you could never activate passes at these windows so we were very confused.

In the end, the three of us split up into different lines and whoever got to the front first would call the rest of the group over. My mom won! I was excited to get my hands on the 50th anniversary pass.

We were FINALLY headed into the park and all of us were VERY ready for a drink. Given it was noon already, we decided to go for it. Our first stop was Mexico for margs and the swine booth for snacks.

Omg this is my favorite booth so far!!! We got the pig’s ear salad, the porchetta, and the ribs. Of the three, the porchetta was mine and DD’s favorite as the serving was HUGE And the sauce was delicious. This is a great value pic for F&W! DM loved her pig’s ear salad and commented that she’ll probably get it a couple more times over the course of the trip.

The margs were delicious as always - DD is not a marg guy but he LOVES the top shelf option from the stand out front. DM and I also went with our favorite, the smoky pineapple.

CHEERS!

We meandered over to China to walk around and ran into Mulan! This is my first character interaction this close in a longgggg time and it was super fun. Plus Mulan’s costume is one of my favorite princess costumes.

After China came Germany where we determined another snack was needed. It’s at this point, I should probably introduce Peter. Peter is a small stuffed bear DBF got me at Oktoberfest. Since my nickname for DBF is bear, it’s like having him with me when he can’t travel. I’ve even brought him on work trips - Peter has pictures on the floor of the NYSE lol

You’ll likely see him pop up in a few pics here and there as those are the pictures I send to DBF back home!

Anyway, in Germany we found another winner of a food booth! DD Got a blueberry frangipane tart that was surprisingly served warm - that was a game changer. This thing was insanely good! I’ll for sure be grabbing another one of those. DM and I split the Raclette with ham - also good! I loved the combo of the cheese and little potatoes.

We didn’t stop again until Japan where we sampled the Tokyo Sunset and Violet Sake - two family favorites and did a little shopping in the gift store.

France was next! Now, this is normally a family favorite F&W booth. It’s never failed to have some of the tastiest treats of the festival. But this time? It was kinda meh…the cheese filled donut was super greasy and the chicken was also only average. Sadly, our least favorite of the day!

So, our bellies finally full and our bodies getting a little overheated…we thought to ourselves, we’ve got to be close to our boarding group right? WRONG! We were AT LEAST another three hours away…was it worth waiting?

Continued in next post…

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 1 - I mean…we’ve kinda already ridden it

I left off with our group’s enthusiasm over Remy starting to wane. Here’s the reason: we’ve already ridden it, just not in Florida. We were lucky enough to ride Remy in Disneyland Paris years ago when I ran the half marathon. We’ve heard this version is an exact duplicate. So, while we were excited to ride it in Florida, we were beginning to question if it was worth sticking around in this heat for.

Since our room wasn’t ready, we decided to check out Creations and the DVC lounge. It was at the lounge where all three of us fell asleep sitting in our chairs. Another sign we should perhaps just give up on Remy. We were still more than two hours away from our group getting called by the way.

Our last ditch effort was to visit the Appleseed booth in Canada where I got the frozen apple brandy drink and DD got the non-alcoholic frozen apple pie. We collapsed onto a bench to drink our drinks and then got the notification our room was ready. Well…keeping the enthusiasm to stay just got even harder.

So we figured we’d walk over to Remy, see what it was like and make the final decision if we stick it out to make our boarding group. WELL….upon arrival we learned that, even after your group is called, the line is still 45 minutes long! And it’s mostly outdoors. That was all the push we needed - we quickly turned around and headed back to the car. We would try again for a boarding group tomorrow.

Another motivation for this decision was that, DC and DCH got in around 8:30 and we had yet to unpack or go to the grocery store. It was around 5pm at this point so time was getting tight.

We got to the car and that’s when I suddenly started to feel nauseous. Like REALLY nauseous. I attribute it to not drinking enough water, no sleep, and the 90-something degree heat.

Anyway, I had to lay down for an hour while my parents grocery shopped. But, when they left to pick up DC and DCH, I helped with some of our meal prep for the week.

By 9pm I was SOUND asleep in bed…hoping to wake up feeling refreshed and alert enough to score a better boarding group for Remy.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Sounds like the trip is off to a great start (other than not feeling well last night). I'm looking forward to following along! Have fun!!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 2 - Is TODAY the day for Remy?

Considering I fell asleep so early last night, I was up before the crack of dawn today! I woke up around 5:30am and, at 6, finally just got up and headed into the kitchen/living room of our 2-bedroom villa. I was honestly shocked not to see DM already awake and making coffee - I was the first one up!

So, I got stared on the coffee then sat down to write up yesterday’s trip report (you may have seen from this morning!). Around 6:30, DD finally walked into the living room and honestly seemed a little surprised to find me up and drinking coffee. He sat down to read the news and keep me company while I typed.

As the minutes ticked down to 7am, I started getting a little nervous. While my family has ridden Remy, DC and DCH never have, so I was hoping for an early boarding pass so we could use ride it first thing and not feel obliged to stay in the park alllll day.

Well DD counted down the seconds, I refreshed, clicked join and….BOARDING GROUP 2!!! Both DD and myself were absolutely shocked. So was DM once she came in to see what the yelling was about.

The rest of the morning was pretty smooth, everyone eventually woke up, grabbed their coffee, got ready and headed out the door. Today was early entry for resort guests and I figured it would give us a head start and maybe we could get in a ride before Remy. And we did!

Myself, DD, and DCH rode B1 on Soarin and DM and DC rode Nemo and friends. From there, we booked it to France and, as we were crossing the bridge, our boarding group was called! We literally walked right on the ride - we had to be some of the very first people to ride it that day. So much better of an experience than yesterday afternoon.

After that, my organizer job for the day was done! We began our trek around the world, sampling quite of variety of treats:

In order we’ve got: griddled cheese and spanakopita from Greece, lobster role and mushroom tart from the US, noodle casserole from Germany, bread service from India, and potstickers from China.

Drinks were had along the way as well, but none better than my beloved ByeJoe punch. This is my FAVORITE drink is Disney at anytime and anywhere. It’s this special liquor called BaiJui, lychee syrup, soda water, and pina colada mix. It used to be available year round but I guess you can only get it during F&W now. I was so happy to finally drink it again.

Post-drinks, we headed to Frozen Ever After and only waited 25 minutes until we were boarded and floating to Elsa’s ice palace. This was DC and DCH’s first time riding this and they thought it was really cute. Somehow DC and I got soaked at the end. Like a bucket of water dumped on my lap. I was torn between being uncomfortable and it feeling pretty refreshing.

After Frozen I had the pipe dream of getting a marg from La Cava…yeah the line was 1.5 hours….HARD PASS.

We rode the Mexico ride instead and were greeted by another massive line for the marg stand outside. Honestly, all the food booth lines were pretty hefty at this point so we split up. DC and I went to shimmering sips and the rest of the crew turned toward the swanky saucy swine. The line for mimosas was huge but we were committed and ended up with two mimosa flights that were delicious. That about did us in for our morning at Epcot. One stop at Creations later, we were on our way to the park exit.

Continued in next post…

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 2 - Shopping is the best way to kill time

We may have gotten a ton done this morning but my mission for the day was not over: I wanted the purple 50th anniversary Starbucks cup. You know…the one that’s impossible to find lol

So, after getting back to the room, we once again split ways with DM, DC, and I walking to Disney Springs. We grabbed some moonshine at Homecoming and popped into World of Disney to try and accomplish the impossible. Amazingly they had one cup left, it was still in it’s cardboard box! I think they’re hiding them a bit since they’ve caused such a frenzy. I had to ask an amazing cast member named Sophie and she found this one for me right away.

I was so so happy - I’m writing her a cast compliment!

We did a little additional shopping at Lululemon and Uniqlo before walking back to the room. Which is where I’m sitting now, writing this.

We made some tater tot casserole to have as leftovers in the fridge and everyone is napping or watching Netflix.

Tonight we’re planning to go back to Epcot to get a few more treats, maybe ride another ride, and see Harmonious!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Sounds like the trip is off to a great start (other than not feeling well last night). I'm looking forward to following along! Have fun!!

Thank you so much and thank you for following along

 

[jo-jo]

Are you driving to the parks or using disney transportation?

 

[Goof's Girl]

Are you driving to the parks or using disney transportation?

My parents drove down here instead of flying like me so we are using their car We don’t mind the buses but we love being able to have the car here!

 

[ThePin Princess]

Joining in! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip! I love your Hades/Herc shirt -- is that recent purchase!? I think I need it

 

[Goof's Girl]

Ok I got a little behind yesterday! I typed everything up but fell asleep before I could post! So here is the rest of day 2 and all of day 3!

Day 2 - Will Harmonious be as disappointing as Enchantment?

We arrived back in Epcot right around dusk and omg was it CROWDED!!! I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything different on a gorgeous Saturday night but still.

Luckily the line for spaceship earth was short so we rode that and got a quick spin in on Figment as well. Finally we headed into the absolute mob of people in World Showcase hoping to get some drinks and snacks before it was time to stake out a spot for Harmonious.

With lines this long we had to split up again - DD and I grabbed wings and waited in about a 30 minute line for margs. DC and DM got some cheesecake and beers in Germany. After the margs were secured, we lucked into an open spot on the railing between Mexico and Norway. Literally the one spot over there with no trees and minimal poles. This spot was perfect because even though it wasn’t dead center with the ring in the middle, it was an unobstructed view and left us with a decent getaway path when it was time to leave.

I think we waited here around 45 minutes until it was time for the fireworks to start. Well, I was absolutely BLOWN AWAY!!! This was the first nighttime show me or my family have actually enjoyed. I love that there were TWO songs from Hunchback which is my favorite movie.

We trudged back to the car in a huge crowd and finally made it back to the resort. One shower later and I was tucked into bed knowing just how early we were going to have to get up in the morning.

Continued in next post…

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 3 - We have to get up at WHAT time??

Jambo! Today is Animal Kingdom day. Normally we wouldn’t rush to get there for early entry but DCH really really wanted to ride FoP even though no one else did. Considering the lack of interest, it’s safe to say that no one wanted to stand in a two hour line either. So getting there at early entry was really our only option.

Well, I woke up around 6am, as did DD and DM….DC and DCH woke up at 6:42…cutting it awfully tight. We pulled into AK at 7:33 and jumped out of the car at 7:36. DD and DCH and DM took off power walking while DC and I leisurely strolled to Creature Comforts for my most favorite thing: an AK iced Starbucks coffee. For once, there was no line at CC so we breezed through, got our coffees and the 50th anniversary pin then waited for DM to get back from dropping of DD and DCH in line.

While we waited for the guys to ride FoP, we found an awesome trail by the tree of life and did a little exploring and animal watching. It was a lovely way to start the day. Afterwards, we rode the Na’avi river boat ride and met back up with the guys.

Rides were really the main focus of this morning so we quickly hit Dinosaur, Everest, and Kilimanjaro.

The only really eventful thing to happen over the course of those two hours was me tripping and, instead of sacrificing my Mickey pretzel, just let my knee stop my fall. One skinned knee later, I was in line for Kilimanjaro eating my pretzel.

After the ride, my knee was really starting to sting, so naturally I got a jungle juice from Dawa bar which is basically spiked POG juice and it really hit the spot.

The sun was out in full force by now so we decided to head back, eat lunch and check out the pool! And, of course, for me to write this!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 3 - When the sun goes down we apparently go back to Animal Kingdom

DC and I spent several hours lounging by the quiet pool at SSR - which was a lovely break given how early we got up. But eventually, we all had to figure out how to spend our evening.

Our group was fairly divided with half of us wanting to go to Disney Springs and play cards in the room and the other half wanting to go back to AK. DD was fairly neutral - he’s an easy going guy.

We ended up heading back to AK to get in a dusk safari ride and hopefully see the tree lighting! I’ll be honest I was in the Disney Springs camp but I’m thrilled we went back because this was a GREAT safari ride!!

Not only did our guide have the most beautiful voice (really it was like listening to a presenter on the Discovery Channel), but the animals were SUPER close to the truck. My favorite part was seeing all the giraffe’s lined up near the gate where they go back in during the night. It’s like they know when it’s “quitting time.”

Post-safari, DC and I had one goal, to get the boba drinks in Avatar land at the stand by Satuli. DC LOVES boba and remembers these drinks from years ago when we all went on a family trip. We both got the rum blossom and I guess when you get it 40 minutes before park close, they’re not shy about really pouring on the rum.

At this point, DCH really really wanted to ride the boat ride to feel like he rode everything in the park. The line was about 35 minutes which would have him finishing right at park close. Since me, DC, and DM had already ridden it, and DD just doesn’t really like it, none of us were jumping at the opportunity to get in line with DCH. Finally DC gave up and went with him while me, DD, and DM went in search of a snack.

DD found the 50th anniversary mickey bar! While this was beautiful, the addition of the blue candy coating changed the flavor quite a bit. DD said he much preferred the plain bars.

I grabbed some crunchy onion rings to share as well. Eventually, DC and DCH made it off the ride and we gathered in front of the tree. Unfortunately, it was still pretty light outside and they can’t really do the tree until it’s dark. So at 7:15 we gave up and headed back to the car.

Back at the room, everyone’s energy faded very fast and I ended up going to bed around 9pm. Honestly the rest was MUCH needed.

 

[Goof's Girl]

Joining in! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip! I love your Hades/Herc shirt -- is that recent purchase!? I think I need it

Welcome!! So happy you’re following along. Thank you - I wish it was! I got it last September :/ There is a really cool Herc shirt on shop Disney right now though if you search Hercules under adult apparel I almost ordered it!

 

[SEAGULL59]

Day 3 - When the sun goes down we apparently go back to Animal Kingdom

DC and I spent several hours lounging by the quiet pool at SSR - which was a lovely break given how early we got up. But eventually, we all had to figure out how to spend our evening.

Our group was fairly divided with half of us wanting to go to Disney Springs and play cards in the room and the other half wanting to go back to AK. DD was fairly neutral - he’s an easy going guy.

We ended up heading back to AK to get in a dusk safari ride and hopefully see the tree lighting! I’ll be honest I was in the Disney Springs camp but I’m thrilled we went back because this was a GREAT safari ride!!

Not only did our guide have the most beautiful voice (really it was like listening to a presenter on the Discovery Channel), but the animals were SUPER close to the truck. My favorite part was seeing all the giraffe’s lined up near the gate where they go back in during the night. It’s like they know when it’s “quitting time.”

Post-safari, DC and I had one goal, to get the boba drinks in Avatar land at the stand by Satuli. DC LOVES boba and remembers these drinks from years ago when we all went on a family trip. We both got the rum blossom and I guess when you get it 40 minutes before park close, they’re not shy about really pouring on the rum.

At this point, DCH really really wanted to ride the boat ride to feel like he rode everything in the park. The line was about 35 minutes which would have him finishing right at park close. Since me, DC, and DM had already ridden it, and DD just doesn’t really like it, none of us were jumping at the opportunity to get in line with DCH. Finally DC gave up and went with him while me, DD, and DM went in search of a snack.

DD found the 50th anniversary mickey bar! While this was beautiful, the addition of the blue candy coating changed the flavor quite a bit. DD said he much preferred the plain bars.

I grabbed some crunchy onion rings to share as well. Eventually, DC and DCH made it off the ride and we gathered in front of the tree. Unfortunately, it was still pretty light outside and they can’t really do the tree until it’s dark. So at 7:15 we gave up and headed back to the car.

Back at the room, everyone’s energy faded very fast and I ended up going to bed around 9pm. Honestly the rest was MUCH needed.

Sounds like a good day! Mid-day breaks are always nice, in my opinion. My daughter and I are going to Animal Kingdom for the first time ever next month and I really don't know what I want to focus on. She is 7 and loves animals so I figure the Safari will be a must. Not sure about FOP or EE. I am pulling more for EE! Just hoping she will be up for it!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Sounds like a good day! Mid-day breaks are always nice, in my opinion. My daughter and I are going to Animal Kingdom for the first time ever next month and I really don't know what I want to focus on. She is 7 and loves animals so I figure the Safari will be a must. Not sure about FOP or EE. I am pulling more for EE! Just hoping she will be up for it!

Our vacations are centered around mid-day breaks hahah today we’re going to MK and planning to spend all day there so we’ll see what happens.

The safari is def a must!!! One of my favorite things to do as well is get a coffee at Starbucks and walk the animal trails. There are often keepers all around the trails who your daughter can talk to about animals It’s a unique way to spend the day beyond just rides!

Keeping my fingers crossed for you she’s up for EE! Maybe the river boat ride in Avatar too? Oh! And be sure to check out the Lion King show - that’s a family fav

 

[SEAGULL59]

Our vacations are centered around mid-day breaks hahah today we’re going to MK and planning to spend all day there so we’ll see what happens.

The safari is def a must!!! One of my favorite things to do as well is get a coffee at Starbucks and walk the animal trails. There are often keepers all around the trails who your daughter can talk to about animals It’s a unique way to spend the day beyond just rides!

Keeping my fingers crossed for you she’s up for EE! Maybe the river boat ride in Avatar too? Oh! And be sure to check out the Lion King show - that’s a family fav

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Goof's Girl]

Day 4 - An easy start to a busy day

Hello hello - coming at you live from SSR as I recap our big day at Magic Kingdom!! Normally I’ve been writing up the day in halves when we come back to our room for an afternoon break. But today was a day without breaks so I have a lot to document!

This morning we decided not to rush given we’ve had two early mornings trying to make early park entry hours. We also knew we would be spending the whole day out with no breaks so no one felt the need to rush out of the room.

I woke up around 6:30am and hung out with DD and DM, watching the morning news and drinking coffee. Once everyone started waking up, I changed into gym clothes and finally found my way to the gym after a one mile workout jog. I was honestly surprised by how many people were lifting in there!

At home, I have this thing called the Mirror - it’s a mirror on which you can stream workouts. It’s super cool. I was one of the “founding members” which means I bought it within its first few months of existence. Since then, it was acquired by Lululemon and you can see them in stores across the country. I LOVE mine and adore the trainers. I especially love that you can do the workouts even when you aren’t near the mirror - just stream them on your phone.

This is the long way of me saying I completed one of my favorite lifting workouts before walking back to the room. I felt REALLY good about getting a lift in today and am hopeful I can do it a few more times the rest of the week.

One speedy shower and outfit change later, we were headed out the door to Magic Kingdom!! It was 10:04am at this time - I only remember as I looked at my watch while putting on my shoes and was surprised how close we were to hitting the goal departure time of 10am.

The wait times were a little yikes when we got there but Buzz was only 35 so we made a beeline to Tomorrowland. We took the shortcut by the purple wall and I’m so glad we did!! We found Stitch!!

Stitch is DM’s favorite character so we all had a little photo shoot then we’re back on our way to Buzz. Sadly, Galatia Hero was not achieved but I still had the best point total in our group.

Next was Tomorrowland Transit Authority aka the Peoplemover - the line for which was wrapped almost to the car track!!! I’ve never seen it that long - it was a little crazy. Altogether though, I think it was only a 20ish minute wait. We love that ride - one of my favorite views of the castle too!

I think it was around 12 at this time and we were HUNGRY - we saw Cosmic Ray’s first so that’s where we went. I tried out this new Mission to Mars specialty burger. It had Mac and cheese and bacon then the bun was topped with crumbled cheese puffs. It definitely looked fun but was crazy messy. It was delicious and I’d get it again but just taken off the top bun.

At this point, the wait times were getting absolutely insane. Like nothing was under an hour. I couldn’t believe it. My group decided to wait in the longest Haunted Mansion line I’ve ever seen (75 minutes) so I dropped them off in line while I set forward to complete a different mission.

But first…coffee….

Continued in next post…