WDW Summer 2013 - Day 12

I thought it was about time I got back on the case with writing up our last vacation to WDW, can't believe it's a year since we were last there! But at least writing this blog helps to re-live the memories and keep me going until we can next visit (I have no idea when this will be yet!!!)

So here we are at Day 12...so what did we do?  Well the mad one in our family, my husband Simon, decided to get up and out early and go for another run between the Wilderness Lodge and Fort Wilderness Campground; not a long run by his standards but enough to keep him in training as he had a half marathon to run only a couple of weeks after we returned home. But after that the day started with breakfast in the sunshine; what better way to start the day?!

Mmmm pancakes!!!

We then headed over to Animal Kingdom to catch up on a few things we hadn't had chance to do yet.  Our first stop was to take the Wildlife Express Train over to Rafiki's Planet Watch and visit Conservation Station.

This was an area of the park that we had never visited before and is an area that you can choose to spend as little or as much time there as you like.  It gives you a greater appreciation of all the work being carried out on a daily basis to look after and nurture all the animals within the Animal Kingdom.  It is also a less crowded area of the park and along with the train ride is a nice diversion from all the hustle and bustle elsewhere.

So after finding out about the behind the scenes at the Animal Kingdom we thought we would jump aboard Kilimanjaro Safaris.  This was the first time we had rode this attraction since the storyline of 'poachers on the reserve' had been dropped...and I have to say I enjoyed it so much more!  The guide we had was great and it really felt more like a trip around the outback somewhere with the pace of the journey much more dictated by the animals that we could see.  We all really enjoyed our trip and managed to see a good array of animals, with some good close-up experiences of rhinos, ostrich, elephants and some baby giraffes.

On safari!

By now the kids were itching for some thrills so off they went to get soaking wet on Kali River Rapids whilst Simon and I decided to just have a wander and soak up the atmosphere, which at Animal Kingdom is truly exceptional.  It also gave us chance to take advantage of our Photopass+...

Ahhh!!!

The kids were into full thrill mode now and headed off to Expedition Everest...

Trust me the kids are on both these photos!!
















But whilst we waited for them we took a walk over into Dinoland USA and had a little perusal of the shopping opportunities.  I finally picked out a new phone case (I'd been looking at them every time we went into a shop and been struggling to make a decision!) and when Simon returned from paying for it he'd bought me a couple of Cutester Vinylmations as a surprise - ah!!

By now it was time for lunch and we headed over to Pizzafari in the Discovery Island section of the park.  It was our first time eating here (our usual 'go to' tends to be Flametree Barbecue) and actually we were quite impressed.  We had a mix of salads and pizza and chocolate mousse and cheesecake and we all really enjoyed what we had. The restaurant wasn't overly busy so we were able to grab a table in a relatively quiet corner and really enjoy our time there; we loved the bright and bold decorations throughout; in fact the room we were in seemed to have a theme of animals that hang upside down with painted murals of sloths, bats and monkeys - absolutely fantastic.

After lunch we headed back to the Wilderness Lodge and while the kids chilled out at the hotel Simon and I decided to go exploring and walked part of the route Simon had gone running along between the Lodge and the Fort Wilderness Campground.

Views walking from Wilderness Lodge to Fort Wilderness Campground

We had a lovely wander around Fort Wilderness taking in the dock area, Tri-Circle D Farm and the Meadow Trading Post shop.

Some of the wildlife we encountered

View from the dock at Fort Wilderness Campground, looking towards the old Discovery Island

And look what we saw on our walk back to the Wilderness Lodge...

...and then we arrived home...

...just before the rain came!!

So we decided to wait out the rain before taking a boat to the Magic Kingdom; we had a bit of a wait for a boat (which was very unusual) so ended up jumping aboard one headed for Fort Wilderness Campground that then went over to the Magic Kingdom but it was great just to take the time and get chance to show the kids where the campground was and to point out the old Discovery Island!

Beautiful view as we travelled over to the Magic Kingdom

Over at Magic Kingdom we headed for New Fantasyland...

and in particular Gastons Tavern to partake in a pork shank...

...now I do have photos of me eating said pork shank but none were flattering enough to put on here!  And the verdict...yes it was nice, but it was basically a messy way to eat roast pork and is just the pork version of the turkey leg!  Personally I've tried it but won't be bothering again!

As we'd shared one pork shank between us we headed over to Pecos Bills for more substantial food before jumping onto Big Thunder Mountain which by this time was 'in the dark'! The kids then managed two rides on Splash Mountain back-to-back as there was no wait at all and we then all went back on Big Thunder Mountain to ride it during Wishes, which was amazing...so much so we rode it again!

Roller Coaster buddies :)

As we made our way round from Frontierland we managed to catch the second showing of 'Celebrate the Magic' from the bridge leaving Liberty Square.  Turned out to be a nice view and we caught details that we'd missed on our previous viewing.  As the park was busy we thought we'd take our time and exit through the shops but they were just too busy to be able to meander through so we decided to make a break for the exit.  The queues for buses and the monorail were heaving but we walked right up to the dock for Wilderness Lodge, got straight on a boat and were heading off before we knew it!

WDW Day 5

So here we are on day 5 of our WDW vacation and today was a bit of a special day for us, because today we got to meet a good friend for the first time in person.

Through the wonder of the internet we had become friends with a certain Mr Lou Mongello of the WDW Radio Show. Over the years we had emailed the show and got involved through Simon's artwork with various charity auctions organised by Lou raising money for the Make-a-Wish foundation.  But despite visiting WDW a couple of times since listening to the WDW Radio Show we had never been able to time our visits to coincide with a 'Meet of the Month'...until now!

Today's 'Meet of the Month' was to be at Blizzard Beach, meeting at 8.30am/9.00am at the entrance, so this meant an early start.  So being prepared we had bought donuts the evening before and had a breakfast of coffee, powerade (the kids drink of choice) and donuts sat on the balcony to our room - a fine way to start the day I think you'll agree!

So by 8.00am we were ready to set off for Blizzard Beach.  When we arrived at the hotel bus stop we found that an Animal Kingdom bus had just turned up.  Now usually this bus displayed that it would be stopping at Blizzard Beach but this one didn't.  So Simon jumped on board to find out from the driver what best to do.  She explained that it was too early for the buses to start going to Blizzard Beach.  So Simon explained that we were meeting people at park opening and that was why we thought we would get an early bus. The driver then said 'get on board and I'll drop you after Animal Kingdom'.  Brilliant and how kind of the driver...and then she dropped us off first before even getting to the Animal Kingdom!!  Another bit of Disney magic!!

So we arrived at Blizzard Beach and made our way to the park entrance and the group of people already lining up to get into the park and there amongst them was Lou and his family and other WDW Radio friends (after all we are all friends those of us that listen to Lou, even if we haven't actually met!).

We then had a fun packed few hours (in fact probably the best time we've spent in a water park!) hanging out with our WDW Radio friends and going on plenty of rides together.  We met a large number of fellow British WDW Radio listeners who have now joined our list of 'Disney Friends' :)

Simon was armed with the Go-Pro camera and managed to capture some great footage of us plummeting down various rides.  We had great fun riding down Steamboat Springs a couple of times and why is it that I always end up going backwards?! We rode Runoff Rapids as well as Toboggan Racers and Downhill Douple Dipper and the kids had a float around Cross Country Creek whilst we got to know our new friends.

Runoff Rapids

Teamboat Springs

Lunch was turkey legs for the kids, BBQ pork and slaw dog for me and caesar salad for Simon - how come messing about in water makes you so hungry!!  The kids finished off with ice-creams too!

Our day was brought to an end by the weather, what started out as a small shower soon turned into an absolute downpour.  So we bid our farewells and returned to Wilderness Lodge.

New friends :)

So back at the hotel we got showered and changed and waited out the rain by sorting out some photos and the Go-Pro footage and then hooking up with new friends via social networking!  But as the rain eased we decided to venture out to Downtown Disney for the evening.

Waiting for the bus to Downtown Disney

View from the bus stop towards the hotel main entrance

When we arrived in Downtown Disney it was extremely busy and we decided to keep food nice and simple by visiting one of our favourite places...Earl of Sandwich...

The famous gold wrapper :) yummy!

After eating we had a wander around the shops but it was so busy...so busy in fact that we decided to call it a day and head back to the hotel.  So we jumped on a resort bus and off we set...but boy was the traffic bad.  It took what seemed forever just to get out of Downtown Disney, the traffic was horrendous so by the time we got back we were all ready for our beds, ready to re-charge for another busy day ahead.

WDW Day 2

Let's get this trip report well and truly underway with the happenings on our first full day at WDW!

One advantage of travelling 4500 miles and numerous time zones means that with our bodies still being on UK time we all awoke early Orlando time.  This meant we were able to make the most of our first full day...

We started off with breakfast at Roaring Forks...and what else could I have but Mickey waffles...a staple of any good WDW vacation.  So by 7.30am we were sat outside eating our breakfast.

Views whilst eating our breakfast :)












We then headed, as is both a tradition and a must-do, to the Magic Kingdom; our first day park of choice. One of the great things about staying at the Wilderness Lodge, as we soon discovered, is it's proximity to the Magic Kingdom and what better way to start the day than with a boat ride...

So over Bay Lake and then Seven Seas Lagoon we went to get to our destination.  We arrived just after 8.30am and headed to the entrance via the 'bag check'.  Now all of us except Ethan (our eldest) had bags that needed to be checked, so we dutifully took the bags off our shoulders, opened all zipper compartments (we know the drill) and with a smile said 'good morning' to the security guard.  He checked our bags and as he was finishing Simon's bag he looked up at Ethan and said 'Are you with these people?'  Ethan looked nervous and mumbled (as teenagers do) 'yeah'..'how old are you?' asked the security guard..'15..' mumbled Ethan.  At this point the guard refused to give Simon his bag back instead passing it over to Ethan saying 'well then you better have this then as it's your job to carry it!'...we all laughed except Ethan who wasn't too sure if the guard was being serious or not, suffice to say Ethan didn't carry the bag!!

We then headed over to the new RFID Mickey 'turnstiles' just as the 'Welcome Show' was starting, which was a great way to start our first full day in the magic.  We then proceeded through using our 'Key to the World' cards and our trusty fingerprint; this was so much easier than the old turnstiles and made the whole getting into the park much smoother.

Now, the plan had been to get our Photopass+ sorted and then follow the Touring Plans guide for the day...but we got a little sidetracked.  Simon saw the signage for 'Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom' and we promptly went over to the Firehouse and signed up - I shall do a separate blog post all about playing this game as it really deserves a post all to itself.  Consequently we ended up playing the first few parts of the Sorcerer's game and sorting out our Photopass+ before heading off into the park.  I shall talk more about Photopass+ in a later post.

Without going into a lot of detail 'Touring Plans' allows you to plan the most effective way to get around a park and do all the rides that you want to do; so with a bit of thought before getting to the parks you can plan your day to make the most of your time.  So over the course of the day we managed to ride all of the following before late afternoon;

Pirates of the Caribbean
Splash Mountain
Haunted Mansion
It's a Small World
Peter Pan's Flight
Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
Space Mountain
Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Under the Sea - Journey of the Little Mermaid
Mickey's PhilharMagic
Mad Tea Party

We even had time to catch the 'Celebrate a Dream Come True' parade, with a quick dash for cover at the end as the heavens opened!

A bit of rain didn't stop the parade :)

We also managed to squeeze in our first bit of shopping; some earrings for me and pins, lanyard, t-shirt and a bandana for our daughter.

During the late afternoon we decided to explore the new Storybook Circus area of New Fantasyland, and after a fun filled ride on Dumbo in the rain (I think we got wetter than when we went on Splash Mountain!) we wandered over to Big Top Souvenirs and in particular Big Top Treats...

Just some of the tasty treats on offer...so much choice!!

The smell was amazing the minute you walked into this fantastically themed shop, so much so that our two kids couldn't resist and had to buy something sticky and sweet and sickly!  Whilst the kids were buying their treats Simon had got talking to a couple of cast members working in the shop; they were so lovely wanting to know all about our vacation so far and chatting about working at the Magic Kingdom.  Then McKenna asked if we all liked marshmallows...well 'yes?'...she then said 'wait here I have something for you'.  A couple of minutes later she re-appeared saying 'only a minute or so they're being made fresh for you'..well the next thing we knew was McKenna and Morgan coming towards us holding four marshmallows on sticks; dipped in white chocolate and covered in red sugar sprinkles!

They were amazing and such a lovely surprise and so unexpected...yet another bit of Disney Magic at work.

Me with aforementioned marshmallow!!

We rounded the day off with dinner at Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn & Cafe...because as everyone knows you just can't beat the fixin's bar here!  And as we strolled around the park as dusk fell we decided to have another ride on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover, one of our all time favourite rides.

Early evening on the TTA

We then took a leisurely boat ride back to the Wilderness Lodge, chatting to a lovely family from Toronto.  When we got back to the Lodge around 9.30pm our youngest decided that she'd like to take a dip in the pool.  So Simon and I grabbed a hot drink, sat by the pool surrounded by ducks whilst Molly splashed about and we listened to the sound of the Electrical Water Pageant passing by...perfect :)

WDW Day 1....Part 2...

So you may have noticed that my WDW Day 1 post didn't actually cover all that happened that day, so here is the second part.

Story so far...we have made it from the UK to Orlando...we have checked in at Coronado Springs Resort only to be told we have been upgraded to the Wilderness Lodge...

The staff at Coronado Springs were lovely, especially Devon & Toni who helped organise a taxi to take us and our luggage to the Wilderness Lodge and who stayed with us until we were safely on our way.

The taxi ride gave us all chance to breathe and reaffirm that what we thought was happening was actually happening.  Even the kids knew this was a big deal.

In the taxi from Coronado Springs to Wilderness Lodge - still in a state of shock!

We drove up to the Wilderness Lodge, under the sign that spans the driveway, past the 'Welcome Home' sign and everything felt just right.  We were greeted as we got out of the taxi by yet another happy, friendly cast member who checked our name on his 'i-pad' and then escorted us through to the check-in desk.  He seemed genuinely thrilled by our story and spoke to us about his wife who had worked at Coronado Springs but how Wilderness Lodge was so much better!

The fantastic service continued with the lady at check-in who sorted everything for us in a blink of an eye, and also commented 'oh you've got an upgrade to a courtyard room'. What? Another upgrade? What's a courtyard room?  Everything was happening so fast!

Checking in, still pinching ourselves!

But despite all the excitement we couldn't fail to be blown away by the awesome lobby at the Wilderness Lodge.  Now Simon and I had been here once before, way back in 2008 when we had lunch at the Whispering Canyon Cafe as part of the 'Backstage Magic' tour, but this was the kids first time here.  They were a little taken aback to say the least!

We then headed off to our fifth floor courtyard room...well how lovely was our room!!  We had the traditional towels in the shape of a tri-circle Mickey on one of the beds, a beautifully decorated room, stunning bathroom/vanity area and to top it all we had our own balcony that looked out over the stunning courtyard.  We were all once again speechless...but very, very happy.

View from the balcony of our courtyard room

Now we had had plans of perhaps visiting Downtown Disney for some food but as we had been awake for over 18 hours and were now really quite hungry we decided to stay at our new resort and find out just what was on offer.  So we headed downstairs and paid our first visit to 'Roaring Forks', the counter service eatery at the resort, and had a mix of salads, BBQ pork sandwiches, cookies and massive cup cakes.

Tired but hungry

Full of food we had a little walk around the resort to get our bearings and then it was off to bed in search of much needed sleep ready to refuel us for our first proper full day in WDW :)

But when we got to our room there was another surprise in store for us...some music...which Simon and I instantly recognised as the Electrical Water Pageant.  I went out onto our balcony and looked to my right and sure enough I could see out onto Bay Lake and catch sight of most of the pageant.  The water pageant was on our list of 'must do's' for this trip as it had been a fair few years since we had last seen it so it was amazing to see it on our first night and know that we would be able to see it as many nights as we liked.

A perfect ending to an amazing first day :)

WDW Day 1

Here is my first blog post in a series that I hope gives you all a feel of what our most recent visit to WDW was all about; what we did, where we went, who we met and that all important Disney magic.

Day 1 - getting there...

The day started bright and early at sunny Gatwick with a short drive from our hotel to the airport.  We had decided to use the valet car parking service which meant we simply dropped off the car and keys, literally a five minute job, and then walked straight into the terminal building.

We headed straight through security (our hold luggage already being checked-in the night before) although my bag had to be searched separately as I'd forgot to take the i-pad out of the bag - oops!  Then it was off in search of breakfast, settling on a quiet corner in Pret-a-Manger - in fact it was so nice it didn't feel like we were in a busy airport at all.

I took advantage of walking through duty free to grab a free spray of perfume as I'd not had any with me that morning followed by a mooch about the shops.  I remembered to post a couple of letters before we left the country including a birthday card for a friends upcoming birthday and by then it was time to head over to our gate ready to board.  And no sooner than we got to our gate we were called through for our nine and a half hour flight!

Now the flight was fine...yes it's long but when travelling from the UK I'm afraid it's a necessary evil we have to put up with in order to get to the good stuff at the other end. Unfortunately our 15 year old doesn't travel well on planes, loves roller coasters but hates planes, so much so that he was ill for the majority of the flight.  This meant most of my time was spent making sure he was OK and wishing the time would pass by so much quicker!

We landed just after 3.30pm local time, cleared border control and were on a bus waiting to be taken to Coronado Springs Resort by 5.00pm.  We had time for a quick phone call home to let families know that we had arrived safely before setting off.

We've arrived!

On the bus to Coronado Springs

We were the second drop-off; we grabbed our luggage, tipped the driver and headed into the lobby to check-in.  The hotel was relatively quiet and we walked straight up to the check-in desk and were greeted by smiley faced cast members who asked our name and proceeded to look for our booking on the computer system...which was followed by a pause...which was followed by a more senior cast member being called over.

My initial thought was 'oh no what's gone wrong, can't they find us?'  But then the second cast member gave me the biggest smile and said 'Congratulations!' Now at this point I was a little bemused - had we won something?  Maybe we were getting Magic Bands? (I got very excited at this thought!  For non-Disney fans these are a new way of accessing all you need whilst at WDW - room key, park tickets, charging etc and much coveted by us Disney devoted). 'You're getting an upgrade', again much bemusement from us all...'an upgrade?' I said...'yes, you're being upgraded to one of our deluxe resorts, the Wilderness Lodge'.  At that point I think I was officially speechless...I didn't know what to say I was completely taken aback.

Me - speechless!!

Now I never win anything or get anything for free and couldn't quite believe what I was hearing.  Part of me was thinking 'but I've done all my pre-vacation research about Coronado Springs, I'm supposed to be running around Lago Dorado' whilst at the same time thinking 'but we're going to Wilderness Lodge', we would never have chosen to stay there because it was out of our budget, OMG we're going to Wilderness Lodge!

Happy...and stunned family

I can't really recall the reason why we had been selected for an upgrade...I remember asking the question but can't remember the answer!  I remember the check-in staff saying that they had had a few recently and I wondered if it was because the resort was busy with conventions, but whatever the reason we were off to Wilderness Lodge.

Hidden Mickey at Coronado Springs

The cast members were brilliant and looked after us while we waited for them to confirm all the details with the Wilderness Lodge.  They took the time to point out the hidden Mickey near the registration desk, insisting that we had our photo taken, as well as organising a taxi to get us to the Wilderness Lodge and then staying with us until we were safely on our way.  Now that is how Disney do things - professional, exemplary and all the time with a smile.

This was when we knew this vacation was going to be different and full of new experiences and adventures.

Two Weeks to Go!!

That's right it is only 2 weeks to go until we see that 'Welcome Home' sign!! This vacation was booked approximately 16 months in advance and although at times it has seemed a long way off it really is nearly here!

So we are now down to the finer details in the planning process; from those last minute purchases to making sure all bills are paid before we leave to actually deciding on which park we will visit on which day (I keep putting it off because it's hard to decide).

So the Excel spreadsheet is up and running and I have key dates already marked out. Our first and last days are in my mind a 'no-brainer', it has to be The Magic Kingdom; it is after all the epitome of all that Disney conjures up, and nothing beats that feeling of walking under the railroad and down Main Street USA heading towards Cinderella Castle. I then have dates put aside for a few other things;

• We have our ADR (Advanced Dining Reservation) at Teppan Edo
• We will be attending WDW Radio's Meet of the Month at Disney's Blizzard Beach
• We shall be joining Michelle of The Minnie Minxes for a 'Drink Around the World' at Epcot
• And another date with Michelle will be over at Beaches & Cream Soda Shop when we will hopefully tackle the infamous 'Kitchen Sink Ice-Cream Sundae'

I have sorted our Photopass+ and ordered new raincoats for the kids as would you believe it they have grown somewhat since our last trip back in 2011.

I am hoping to book at least one more ADR, this time for Whispering Canyon Cafe at Disney's Wilderness Lodge so I need to make some decisions as to where we are going on which days so that I can tie this reservation in nicely.

I am also, along with the help of my daughter, going to make up some envelopes ready for tipping 'Mousekeeping' - a creative few hours with pens, envelopes, glue and more decorating envelopes for those oh so important tips.

So over the next few days I shall let you know how the planning is coming along and just how excited we are all getting!