You Get a Suite! You Get a Suite! Everybody Gets a Suite! December 2023 Trip Report! (Updated 5/2!)

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Day 1, Part 4: A Brand New Ride…for Dad!​

We last left off checking out the gingerbread monuments inside the American pavilion.

We headed back outside after checking out the displays, and decided since we were getting hot and tired to make our way over to Remy where we had a DAS booked.

On the way we saw a photopass photographer in Morocco with no line, so of course stopped to get pictures!







We then made our way over to France, where we stopped for some more pictures.






I love the rat detail in the fence!

While heading back to the new area, we passed the little store cart, and something caught my eye…



This sweater is everything, and they only had two left, and one was in my size!!!!! Of course I bought it. (so glad I did since later that week they had a totally different sweater for sale there)

Finally it was time for our ride, and we joined the LL queue. The line was super long, but it moved quickly, and soon we on.

My dad absolutely loved this ride!

After the ride we stopped for the photopass picture in front of the ride.





It was finally time to head out, we were so tired and needed some rest. On the way out we swung by the store at IG where I got the festival spirit jersey (omg this thing is sooooo comfy!) and the festival tumbler.

When we arrived back at the room we were surprised to find a note and some salt water taffy waiting for us in the room!



Next up: Pre-Dinner at the Boardwalk!​

 

[2xcited2sleep]

OMG that cheese sweatshirt is amazing! I absolutely adore the Ratatouille attraction. It's so cute and fun. Fantastic addition. They just need a champagne cart back there...

 

[BadgerMom99]

Day 1, Part 3: First Taste of Festival of the Holidays!​

After checking out the store at the Boardwalk it was finally time to head into Epcot! Good thing because we were so hungry by then!

Once in Epcot we swung by the store at the IG to pick up the Olaf scavenger hunt map (and the prize), as well as a new gift card since I totally forgot to bring one of my other ones down. We browsed the Festival merchandise a bit and there was a bunch of stuff I wanted to buy, but I didn’t want to carry it around, so we decided to just pick it up on the way out.

After finishing up our shopping trip we headed out for some food! We had discussed where we wanted to start prior to the trip, and decided that the America food booth would be the best since it had food that was safe for my dad. My dad is not a very adventurous eater, he doesn’t really like spices, and the more basic the meal the better for him, so we figured the turkey in America would be a great option for him.

On the way to America, we saw a photopass photographer with no line, so of course stopped for pictures!



We then made our way over to America, and were really shocked at the lines for the food booths we passed. They were massive compared to what we’re used to seeing at Food and Wine! We eventually made it to America and got in line for food. While in line we decided to send dad out to try to find a table, which he luckily did, and being the nice guy he is he let other people sit with him while he waited for us to get through the food line.

The line was crazy long, took about 25 minutes to make it to the register, then another 5ish to get the food. Here we each got the turkey, and I got the beer flight.

Food in hand we made it to the table my dad found, and the timing was perfect since the people he was sharing it with finished up their food just as we arrived!





We all really enjoyed the turkey, and the beer flight was great!

So far a good start to the festival food!

After eating we wanted to pop into the pavilion to see the gingerbread monuments, so headed inside. We were pleasantly surprised to find the Voices of Liberty were performing when we got in! So we ended up watching their set, which was soooooo good! What great timing!



Sorry for the bad picture, not the best view, but we could hear their voices and my goodness they are so good!

Once they finished up and the room cleared out, we went to check out the gingerbread monuments.





I’m so impressed these are gingerbread.

Next up: A Brand New Ride…for Dad!​

Following!!! Getting me super excited for my trip with my DD (21) in 22 days!

 

[Wood Nymph]

While heading back to the new area, we passed the little store cart, and something caught my eye…

The shirt is very cute. Disney needs to add more merchandise for this ride. I'm surprised they haven't done it yet.

After the ride we stopped for the photopass picture in front of the ride.

Your pictures turned out really cute this day.

When we arrived back at the room we were surprised to find a note and some salt water taffy waiting for us in the room!

That was a very nice gift. Your dad is going to think that Disney is always so generous with their surprises.

 

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OMG that cheese sweatshirt is amazing! I absolutely adore the Ratatouille attraction. It's so cute and fun. Fantastic addition. They just need a champagne cart back there...

Isn't it great? I've been wearing basically that and the festival spirit jersey nonstop since we've been back. I'm obsessed. OH! I never thought about adding champagne in the new area, but I 100% am on board with that idea!

 

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Following!!! Getting me super excited for my trip with my DD (21) in 22 days!

, thanks for following along! Hope you have an amazing trip!!!

 

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The shirt is very cute. Disney needs to add more merchandise for this ride. I'm surprised they haven't done it yet.

That's a really good point, also kinda wild they didn't build a gift shop at the exit, that little cart doesn't stock much!

Your pictures turned out really cute this day.

Thank you!

That was a very nice gift. Your dad is going to think that Disney is always so generous with their surprises.

Haha, it's funny you say this. He keeps saying how he can't wait to go back and talks about all the little (and massive) extras/upgrades we got on this trip. We have to remind him that this trip was not standard, the chances of getting any sort of upgrade again, especially one like we got, is slim to none. We definitely had a super magical trip, and I'm sooooo happy that all of it happened on the trip my dad joined!

 

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Day 1, Part 5: Pre-Dinner at the Boardwalk​

We had an amazing break in the suite, having all the space was so great to spread out and we each had our own area to decompress without being in each other’s way. We also had the Hey Disney in it, which we ended up using a lot for alarms, which we did this afternoon for our nap. I will admit, it took me a hot second to realize you have to actually turn it on with the button on top, I kept hitting all the buttons on the screen and couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t working. I’m starting to understand how my parents feel trying to use a smartphone.

Earlier in the day I had done a mobile order for Docking Bay 7 that evening for ~6:30, and I had also booked us a G+ for Slinky right when my plane landed with a return time of 7:40. During the day I also booked us a G+ for MMRR with a return time of 5:30, but we decided we wanted to hang out in the room a bit longer so I modified that to be 7:30.

We started to get hungry again around 4:30, so at 5 headed over to the lounge to see what apps were being served. The choices were pretty good this evening, they had a pulled pork, a beef with potatoes dish (I’m sure a fancier name than that), a chicken alfredo (really just chicken with macaroni), and then various sides. They also had self pour wine which was really nice.

We each got some of everything, and some wine too, then decided to take advantage of our amazing room/dining room so brought everything back to eat there.





The food was delicious, especially the beef and pork. It was just enough to hold us over until dinner later that evening.

Before heading out, I decided to pile up the presents I had gotten my parents in front of the tree.



I usually like to get a small gift for my mom each trip to surprise her, but I went a bit bigger for this trip and got both mom and dad some new festive shirts, and some new Disney flannel PJs.

Around 5:40 we decided to head out for our evening plans.

Our first stop was the lobby to check out the gingerbread display and get some more pictures of the lobby décor.











The gingerbread was so cool!

I also swung by the little shop they had set up to get an ornament before heading outside.



We then made our way down to the boat dock to grab a boat to HS. The boat was packed so we couldn’t sit together until people got off at the Swalphin, but at least we got seats!

Next up: This is Why You Never Became a Pilot!​

 

[Wood Nymph]

We started to get hungry again around 4:30, so at 5 headed over to the lounge to see what apps were being served. The choices were pretty good this evening, they had a pulled pork, a beef with potatoes dish (I’m sure a fancier name than that), a chicken alfredo (really just chicken with macaroni), and then various sides. They also had self pour wine which was really nice.

We each got some of everything, and some wine too, then decided to take advantage of our amazing room/dining room so brought everything back to eat there.

I'm impressed with the BW lounge offerings. We were disappointed with Crews Cup when we were at the BC in October. The Boardwalk lounge might be a good option for us next time.

It looks like you had a very relaxing afternoon at the BWI.

 

[VAtink]

I'm impressed with the BW lounge offerings. We were disappointed with Crews Cup when we were at the BC in October. The Boardwalk lounge might be a good option for us next time.

Yeah, the food there was really good. As much as YC/BC are our home resorts, we've been talking about starting to do more Boardwalk stays in club level we enjoyed the food offerings so much! That's sad to hear about Crews Cup, we used to love that place! Are they still doing the Yachtsman menu or are they back to their own?

It looks like you had a very relaxing afternoon at the BWI.

It was such a relaxing afternoon! It was hard to leave the room for our evening plans!

 

[Wood Nymph]

That's sad to hear about Crews Cup, we used to love that place! Are they still doing the Yachtsman menu or are they back to their own?

The Crews Cup menu no longer has the burger. It is has a few things from Yachtsman, like the prime rib. But they charge $50 for the prime rib. It used to be a much lower price. We decided to split the prime rib and it was a very disappointing cut of meat.

 

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The Crews Cup menu no longer has the burger. It is has a few things from Yachtsman, like the prime rib. But they charge $50 for the prime rib. It used to be a much lower price. We decided to split the prime rib and it was a very disappointing cut of meat.

Aw, that's disappointing, they used to have a beef sandwich there that I loved, but it also looks like it was eliminated from the menu. The menu is actually looking pretty sparse if what's online is accurate.

 

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Day 1, Part 6: This is Why You Never Became a Pilot!​

Once we got into HS, we did our favorite activity, took pictures!





This trip we really tried to get as many pictures as possible since I hardly have any pictures of my dad and I since he rarely comes on vacations.



It was just a tad crowded.

It was also dapper day there and there were SO many people all glammed up, it was so cool to see! Even more people this night than we saw on Jollywood night!

We strolled around getting more pictures of the decorations.





After our photoshoot, we made our way back to dinner. I hit the I’m here button just before arriving and had about a 5 minute wait for the order to be ready. As we were entering, the CM at the door leaned over and asked me if I knew who the man was that had been standing behind me, apparently it was someone famous. I hadn’t even noticed a man behind me, but apparently there was some celebrity there that day? Wish I had turned around!

We entered and grabbed our food, and I also got the Gold Squadron Lager since I love it, then we took our food out to the courtyard to eat.





We usually get lunch here, so I was surprised at the portions for dinner, it was sooooo much food! Both my mom and I had three massive cubes of meat, and my dad got four! It ended up being way too much to eat, I couldn’t finish it, usually we get only two of those meat cubes when we eat there for lunch!

After dinner it was time for our G+ for MMRR, so we made our way over there.

This was another new ride for my dad, and once again he loved it, although he did complain a bit about how jerky it was.

By the time we were done with MMRR it was into our Slinky G+ time, so we headed over there. We thought my dad would love Slinky, it’s such a fun little rollercoaster.

Well, we were wrong.

He thought it was super intense! He couldn’t understand how it was a kid rollercoaster!



Oh well, we tried!

Got some pictures of the decorations in TSL as well.



Finally, after Slinky, it was into our return time for a DAS I had booked upon entering the park for MFSR, so we made our way over there.

We lucked out and got pilots, so we decided dad and I would be flying. Dad wanted to do the up/down, so I did the right/left.

Now my dad was actually working towards becoming a pilot back in the day, so I figured he’d rock being pilot on this ride.

Again, I was wrong.

He was crashing into EVERYTHING! Meanwhile, I was doing my best job ever piloting.

Well it turns out, it wasn’t completely my dads fault his flying wasn’t up to par. Apparently he didn’t realize that what he was doing with the controls ACTUALLY worked, he thought it was just for show so wasn’t really trying to avoid hitting things since he thought the ride would just do it anyways. Oops, so apparently mom and I didn’t do a great job explaining to him what the ride is!

By the time we wrapped up with MFSR, it was about 8:30, and we were super tired from our early wake-up that morning, so decided to head back to the room. We made it to the boat dock and lucked out to see a boat just pulling in! There was a super long line, so we hoped we’d make it on, and luck was on our side this day since we did, but it was standing room only. Oh well, just glad we made the boat!

Next up: The Perfect End to the Night​

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Oooh, I wonder who was behind you. John Stamos and Neil Patrick Harris were there that week! I think Docking Bay 7 is a hidden gem. I'd go out of my way to go there and have the plant-based kefta and I'm not even vegetarian/vegan. LOL on the piloting. Hope it wasn't too much of a rough ride. I once rode with young kids as pilots, and I can tell you I was unwell after that experience.

 

[happily single]

Following

 

[Wood Nymph]

We thought my dad would love Slinky, it’s such a fun little rollercoaster.

Well, we were wrong.

He thought it was super intense! He couldn’t understand how it was a kid rollercoaster!

It is intense, especially when you get older. I only ride it if I have to.

We made it to the boat dock and lucked out to see a boat just pulling in! There was a super long line, so we hoped we’d make it on, and luck was on our side this day since we did, but it was standing room only. Oh well, just glad we made the boat!

It's nice to take the boat at the end of the day when you just don't want to take another step. And it is very nice when you don't have to wait for the next boat.

 

[VAtink]

Oooh, I wonder who was behind you. John Stamos and Neil Patrick Harris were there that week! I think Docking Bay 7 is a hidden gem. I'd go out of my way to go there and have the plant-based kefta and I'm not even vegetarian/vegan. LOL on the piloting. Hope it wasn't too much of a rough ride. I once rode with young kids as pilots, and I can tell you I was unwell after that experience.

I wonder too, I wish I had turned around at one point while waiting! We love Docking Bay 7, definitely our favorite place to grab food in HS.

Haha, yeah it was funny how bad my dad was at piloting, but it made a lot of sense after he told us he didn't think he was actually controlling anything! The ride was fairly rough, but still fun. We've been on it too when there have been kids piloting, and yeah, that was way rougher!

 

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Following

! Thanks for following along!

 

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It is intense, especially when you get older. I only ride it if I have to.

Oh no! No wonder my dad thought it was too intense!

It's nice to take the boat at the end of the day when you just don't want to take another step. And it is very nice when you don't have to wait for the next boat.

Right? Sometimes waiting for that next boat seems to take forever!

 

[jrmint427]

She then told us some other good news, apparently we had overpaid for the original deluxe room, so we were getting a refund on that too! So not only did we get this massive upgrade, we were getting money back from Disney for the room too!

How often does that happen?? That sounds very lucky!

I love the rat detail in the fence!

I've never noticed that before!

While heading back to the new area, we passed the little store cart, and something caught my eye…

I love this shirt! What a fun find.

Before heading out, I decided to pile up the presents I had gotten my parents in front of the tree.

Did all of the rooms have Christmas trees? That is a nice touch!

I hadn’t even noticed a man behind me, but apparently there was some celebrity there that day? Wish I had turned around!

Did you ever figure out who it was?