Trip Reports
02-21-2007, 09:41 PM
Tracy - June 2006
Time of Year: Summer
Travel Method: Plane, Magical Express
Resort: PCR
Accommodations: Standard
Ages Represented in Group: Adult
WDW Experience Represented in Group: Infrequent
Tracy -- June 2006 - Walt Disney World (PCR)
Tracy – June 2006
Characters:
Tracy – 23, graduate student, 5th trip (but first in 8 ˝ years!)
Travel Dates: June 5 – June 9, 2006
Resort: POP Century!
Passes: 3 Day Magic Your Way Pass with Park Hopper Option
How this trip came about: Basically, this trip is the result of my refusal to go 10 whole, long years without getting back to Disney. Over the past 10 years, my family has somewhat “outgrown” (is that possible?!) their love for Disney and we have replaced our annual vacations with trips to Key West. Don’t get me wrong, Key West is wonderful, but I have been hinting, pleading, and bugging everyone to go to Disney since our last trip in December 1997! I thought to myself, “enough’s enough – I’m going by myself if that’s what it takes!” So, I decided that I had spent enough time crying over not being at Disney and just decided to book it!
It was March 2006 when I decided to book my trip. I had taken a year off from graduate school to switch programs and knew that I would be in a place to afford a trip around June 2006. However, I was spending the summer working at my family’s restaurant and also knew that it would be hard to get weekends off. So, I decided to go to Disney on a Monday through Friday plan. I had enough frequent flier miles from USAir to book a flight to Orlando, so it was just a matter of finding the right week. I decided on Monday, June 5 through Friday, June 9. I figured that early June would still be better crowd-wise than late June when all the schools would be out for the summer.
Next came the resort. I absolutely knew that I would want to be on property. Our last trip in 1997 we stayed at what was then called Dixie Landings and I just loved the convenience and extra magic that a Disney resort provided. I had pretty much convinced myself that for this trip I would take advantage of one of the Disney Value Resorts. I decided on Pop Century and made my reservation for 4 nights ($441.52 including tax). I had read that Pop Century’s transportation system was a bit more efficient than the All Stars resorts, which ultimately sold me.
Now for the passes. I decided to buy through Maple Leaf Tickets and purchased a 3 Day Magic Your Way Park Hopper for a total of $233 before shipping charges. I also made my reservation for Magical Express both to and from the airport on my arrival and departure dates.
The Plan:
Monday, 6/5: leave for the airport around 4:30pm; arrive in Orlando at 10:46pm; check in with Disney’s Magical Express and arrive to POP Century!
Tuesday, 6/6: breakfast at POP Century; Magic Kingdom for Early Entry, lunch at Pecos Bill’s or Cosmic Rays; head to Epcot, dinner at Yorkshire County Fish Shop, Illuminations and Extra Magic Hours
Wednesday, 6/7: Animal Kingdom for Early Entry, ride Expedition Everest and Dinosaur and watch It’s Tough to be a Bug; leave for Disney Studios, spend majority of day here; forgo Extra Magic Hours at DS to get to Magic Kingdom in time for Wishes at 10pm
Thursday, 6/8: Magic Kingdom for Early Entry, lunch at Pecos Bill’s or Cosmic Rays; Epcot for Extra Magic Hours
Friday, 6/9: Head home ?
Things I’m REALLY looking forward to this trip:
I’ve been to Disney four times in my life, but since the last trip was SO long ago (about 9 whole years!), I almost feel as though I have to start out with rookie status again and work my way up! However, I am looking forward to the magic of surprise that perhaps only a rookie can obtain when they first walk up Main Street USA! So much has changed since I’ve last been and although I feel like I have been up-to-date with these changes thanks to sites like Mouseplanet, I am looking forward to some of my old-time loves and excited about some of the new additions (well, to me anyway – I still haven’t experienced Rock N Roller Coaster, not to mention that Animal Kingdom wasn’t even around yet!).
My All-Time Favorites:
It’s a Small World
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Splash Mountain
Space Mountain
Haunted Mansion
Pirates of the Caribbean (although it will be in rehab this trip!) :(
Peter Pan’s Flight
World Showcase
Tower of Terror
New things to me that I can’t wait for:
Soarin’
Rock N Roller Coaster
Mickey’s PhilharMagic
Stitch’s Great Escape
Mission: Space
Test Track
Expedition Everest
Dinosaur!
It’s Tough to be a Bug
NOTE: For my own benefit for future trips and for those of you who are interested in what things cost in WDW, I’ve listed exactly what I’ve spent on food and souvenirs as I wrote the report and again at the bottom of each day. Hope it helps!
Day 1 – Monday June 5
The Plan: leave for the airport around 4:30pm; arrive in Orlando at 10:46pm; check in with Disney’s Magical Express and arrive to POP Century!
It’s finally here! And I know that today will be the longest day imaginable! I tried to sleep in and kill a few hours since my flight to Orlando was not until much later today, but we all know how hard it is to sleep at all the day before vacation. I got really nervous yesterday because my throat started to get really sore, so I got up this morning and went to the store to buy some Airborne, hoping that all the hype about this stuff will prove to be true. At the store, I also bought a back-up digital camera memory card (I predict that I will go through both!) and a couple more odds and ends. I went home and finished the last of my packing, watched my Walt Disney World vacation planning DVD for the umpteenth time and tried to pass the hours until my trip will begin! The plan is to load up the car and head out around 4:30ish. My flight leaves Elmira at 6:20pm and I have a small layover in Philly – I should touch down in Orlando around 10:45pm, catch the Magical Express to Pop Century and finally begin my Disney vacation!
Finally I left for the airport and arrived around 5:15pm. This airport is about ˝ hour from my house and I knew that it was small enough that I wouldn’t have to sit around for hours before my flight. My mom and my youngest sister Ashley met me at the airport to wish me a happy and safe trip and we had some pizza before my plane boarded. Finally, they called my flight and I was in the air on my way to Disney right on schedule! I grabbed an apple and a banana in Philadelphia during my layover and finally boarded my plane to Orlando and boy did that flight take forever! Once I got to MCO, I found Disney’s Magical Express (all around the airport, there were Disney employees holding signs and supplying directions for those of us that get a little lost). I checked in easily with Magical Express and was pointed to the queue for Pop Century; as I was walking down it, a CM said to me, “Gimme that Disney smile!” and I knew that my vacation had begun! Magical Express left the airport around 11pm and made four stops before arriving at Pop Century. We watched a Disney orientation video that was really cute on the 45 minute drive to Disney property. Once we were actually on property, the bus driver said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Disney World.” I’m not going to lie, I got a little teary eyed!
Actually, I didn’t mind the stops at all because it let me get acclimated to Disney property again and I was able to see a few other resorts (although I must say I wish that this all occurred during daylight hours, as I was exhausted from traveling and couldn’t see well in the dark anyway!). We stopped at All Star Sports, All Star Movies, Animal Kingdom Lodge and Coronado Springs. I must say that Coronado Springs looked especially beautiful even in the dark! I can’t wait for a future Disney vacation when I have more time so I can resort hop a little!
Magical Express arrived at Pop Century around 1am! I checked in with no wait (I was the first of about 3 families off the bus) and was in my room (#9465 – the 90s building) around 1:15am. My luggage arrived around 1:45am and I was so thankful that it made its way safely. I think my next trip I will pick it up at the airport myself just to ensure that I have it in my room when I need it. I was in bed, but not asleep, by 2am! I was far too excited for what was ahead to sleep!
Day 2 – Tuesday June 6
The Plan: breakfast at POP Century; Magic Kingdom for Early Entry, lunch at Pecos Bill’s or Cosmic Rays; head to Epcot, dinner at Yorkshire County Fish Shop, Illuminations and Extra Magic Hours
My first full day at Disney! I got up around 6:30am, got around and headed down to get some breakfast about 6:50am (in time to get on a bus by 7 for Extra Magic Hour at Magic Kingdom). I had a croissant, egg, cheese and bacon sandwich and orange juice ($7.76). I had waited barely a few minutes and a bus arrived for the Magic Kingdom! I was in line about 7:30am and got to see the morning welcome show – very cute! I tried to prepare myself for what it would be like to walk onto Main Street USA for the first time in over 8 years, but I just couldn’t…it was amazing! I missed Disney SO much over these long years. I quickly headed to Tomorrowland and jumped in line for Space Mountain with little wait. After that, I headed straight for Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. I got a horribly embarrassing grand total of 2,000 points! (I’ll have to work on that!). After that I headed to The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan’s Flight and Mickey’s PhilharMagic. Mickey’s PhilharMagic was wonderful! I had to take a picture of the sign that read: “Caution, doors will open automagically toward you!” I loved this show, you can even smell the apple pie!
After the show, I headed straight for it’s a small world, which is my all time favorite ride (tied with Big Thunder Mountain Railroad) since I was a little girl. As always, I loved this ride and had a whole bench all to myself. (Already I’m laughing at myself for continuing to have to say “one, please” when asked how many are in my party!). Next year I am already planning to take another Disney trip with my youngest sister Ashley who is 16 now and loves Disney almost as much as I do, at least then I can sit with someone else!
Next I checked out Haunted Mansion, another favorite of mine and then went to see Hall of Presidents. I remember when I was younger, my sisters (I have two in all) and I would be so irritated with my parents that we had to get educated on our Disney trips. But this time, especially being the history buff that I am, I loved it! For traditions sake, I went to Country Bear Jamboree which is always cute. By this time, I was getting hungry so I checked out Pecos Bill’s for the line and discovered it wasn’t really that bad (it was about 11:15am). I had the Number 3 (a cheeseburger and French fries) and a diet coke ($8.50).
Since I was already in Frontierland, I decided to scope out Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and see about the wait times. They were both over 70 minutes long! So, I decided to head back to Tomorrowland and ride the TTA. It gave me a chance to just relax and enjoy the fact that I was finally at Disney World! I headed out for Epcot around 12:30pm by taking the monorail to TTC. I arrived at Epcot minutes later and headed directly for Spaceship Earth. The wait time was apparently 20 minutes but it was really only about 5 or so. I went quickly through Innoventions East and got a FP for Mission: Space for 1:54 to 2:54pm. From there, I went over to Ellen’s Energy Adventure (which I remember loving and loved this time too!). By that time it was time for my FP return, so I headed over to MS a little after 2pm. I decided to go for the low impact line, as I am prone to motion sickness. It turns out I was fine and probably would have been okay with the higher impact one, which I will definitely have to check out next time. I was the engineer by the way!
I walked over to The Land and tried to get a FP for Soarin’ but by that time they were already out of FPs for the day! I did however get at FP for Living with the Land which I was really looking forward to. My return times were for between 3:15 and 4:15pm. I then went over to Imagination! and got a FP for Honey I Shrunk the Audience for 3:10 – 3:45pm. In the meantime, I went to see Journey into Imagination with Figment – very cute. At the end, there was a gust of wind that actually blew my sunglasses from off the top of my head! By then, it was time to head back to HISTA for the 3:30pm show. This show I remember as being great and of course it was again. I noticed as I was waiting how many honeymooners are here this week! I just love the bride and groom Mickey ears I see scattered all over the parks! (Mental note for that “someday” of mine probably years from now!).
After that show, I headed over for my FP return time for Living with the Land. Whoever thought up fastpasses was an absolute genius! This ride was great and the CM that gave the tour was outstanding. By this time I was getting a little hungry and anxious to check out World Showcase, so I headed over to Norway and got a kringla and diet coke ($5.73) around 4:15pm to hold me over until dinner a little later. Wow was that kringla good (and enormous!) but somehow I managed to eat the whole thing! After my snack I decided to make a clockwise tour of World Showcase beginning with what I remember as my favorite, Mexico.
I still was amazed when I walked into the Mexico pavilion, I just love this country at Epcot! I got in line for El Rio del Tiempo which was a complete walk-on (I don’t know why, I love this ride!). I absolutely adore how the first thing you see is the view from the river of San Angel Inn – I can’t wait to eat there one day, perhaps when I come back with Ashley (I’m hoping for around Christmas time!). Also in Mexico, I bought two bracelets, one for my mom and one for me. I forget the name of the store, but I love that jewelry shop, I could have spent hundreds there! But it was all actually very reasonably priced. (Total $17.04). I had the items shipped back to my resort so I wouldn’t have to lug them around with me all day. After Mexico, I headed to Norway and got a FP for Maelstrom with a return time of 5:45 and 6:45pm. I stopped by the store to check out the Laila perfume, as I’ve read so many great reviews of it from fellow trip reporters (especially Krista Fulkerson!). I, too, adore it and might have to break down and make a purchase on a future trip!
From Norway, I headed over to China and saw Reflections of China which I found beautiful and very interesting. By the time that was over, it was just about time for my FP return for Maelstrom. I love this ride and it has a little video at the end, Spirit of Norway, which I don’t remember from my previous trips. I wandered through Germany and Italy a little bit after I left Norway and made a mental note to come back to American Adventure for the 6:45pm show.
In Japan, I watched a lady making animal candies which was really neat! I definitely remember that from my last trip and was looking forward to seeing it again on this one. After that I wandered through the Bonsai gardens in Japan, which was really beautiful. Now it was just about time for the American Adventure show and wow was that amazing…I admit that I did tear up at the end – it was really unbelievable!
By now I was really starting to get hungry so I headed over to the United Kingdom to check out Yorkshire County Fish and Chips around 7:30pm. The line was quite lengthy but a few people actually stepped out of line so I ended up only waiting about 15 minutes or so. I got the Fish N Chips and a small bottle of water (total $10.24) and sat on a bench over by the Sportsmen’s Shoppe to eat my dinner. I was actually really excited about this meal, but I was pretty disappointed, the batter was really thick around the fish, but a lot of people probably like it that way. But my parent’s own a family restaurant and I’ve grown up on a certain type and I guess I’m just used to that kind!
After dinner, I walked over to the International Gateway where they were distributing wristbands for EMH tonight will little wait. About 8pm I walked back over to Morocco to snap some pictures – I know, I’m doing a lot of zigzagging today! Back in France, I made a few mental notes about some gifts and souvenirs that I might pick up on Thursday. They have an adorable little French Minnie Mouse that I think I’ll have to pick up for myself! I decided to wait to see Impressions de France on Thursday as well because it was already 8:30pm and I wanted to get a decent spot for IllumiNations. So, I headed over to the Boulangerie Patisserie and got a chocolate croissant and hot chocolate (total $5.01) and found a good spot around International Gateway bridge for the fireworks. The croissant was really great and the hot chocolate was too, but somewhat bitter compared to what we’re used to in America – so I thought it was very authentic!
After IllumiNations, which I just loved, I headed over to the Land to check out Soarin’. I decided already that I was willing to put up with any length of line to see it tonight and that’s what I did. The wait time was posted at 70 minutes but it turned out to be only about 30-40 minutes. The worst part of the waiting wasn’t the boredom or anything but the pain in my heal! (I have fractured my left heel twice and I knew that all this walking, even though I waitress full-time, would take its toll towards the end of these long days). However, I would have waited 3 hours to see this attraction, it was unbelievable and by far my new favorite ride! I couldn’t even get over it! Everything from the citrus and pine smells to wanting to splash your feet right into the ocean – this ride was just magical! I can’t wait to do it again!
After I came down to earth from the exhilaration of Soarin’, I decided to head over to Test Track where I waited in the single riders line. This ride was also a bit of a wait, it was posted at 40 minutes and it proved to be pretty accurate. However, this ride was also really exciting, although nothing really could live up to Soarin’! I loved how you went through the hot and cold rooms and then at the end went flying around corners! It was very fun!
After Test Track, I went over to Mouse Gears and bought a photo album and some Disney World Stickers (total $34). By this time, I was thoroughly exhausted and the park was ready to close anyway, so I found my bus back to Pop Century and turned it about 1am.
TODAY’S BEST: walking out onto Main Street, USA again for the first time in 8 ˝ years; seeing one of my favorite rides, it’s a small world; Soarin’
TODAY’S WORST: my aching heel!
TOTAL EXPENDITURES: $ 88.28
TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 37.24
TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 51.04
Day 3 – Wednesday June 7
The Plan: Animal Kingdom for Early Entry, ride Expedition Everest and Dinosaur and watch It’s Tough to be a Bug; leave for Disney Studios, spend majority of day here; forgo Extra Magic Hours at DS to get to Magic Kingdom in time for Wishes at 10pm
I woke up this morning around 6:15am, got around quickly and went down to get breakfast and a refillable mug (not really for this vacation, as I’m never at the resort, but for the souvenir). Again, I got the croissant, egg, cheese and bacon sandwich with an orange juice. (Total including the refillable mug $20.53). As I ate my breakfast, I headed back to the room to drop my mug off and grab my sunglasses which I forgot this morning on my way out! The weather channel had reported a clear day with highs in the 90s – not a day to be without sunglasses!
I still managed to be second in line for the bus to Animal Kingdom at 7am for EE. I was waiting in line for rope drop easily by 7:30am. As soon as we were let into the park, I made a beeline for Expedition Everest. Once I got there, the ride was experiencing technical difficulties, so I grabbed a FP for 8:40 – 9:40am and headed over to Dinosaur! around 8:15am. This ride proved to be one of my all time favorites! I love the way that the vehicle lurks forward and you feel as though you are standing up because of all the dips in the path! It was amazing! I wish I had time to ride it again, but the wait had already increased significantly and I wanted to get back over to EE for my FP return time which was almost here. I killed a few minutes at the EE gift shop where I bought my little sister Ashley who is determined to climb the real Everest someday an EE permit with her name on it (a little dorky, but I think she’ll really love it!). The permit including tax was $8.46. By this time, I was able to get into the FP line for the ride. It turns out that I got pretty nauseated on this ride and wasn’t actually that impressed (although it could be that I was queasy and had woke up with a cold this morning too!). After EE I walked (not in a very straight line!) over to It’s Tough to be a Bug, which I was determined to watch before I left the park. This show turned out to be really cute and gave me a little time to recover from EE before I headed out for Disney Studios. I was really impressed with the show and thought it was really cute – except for the stink bug part! ? Boy does that thing stink! Shockingly, I headed out of AK by 9:15am and was waiting along with only one other family for a bus to DS by 9:30! I realize that I sacrificed a lot of things at AK today, but that was my intention since I wanted to spend the majority of my vacation at MK and EP and still fit in a good portion of one day at DS. Next trip I will definitely schedule more time at AK!
Immediately upon entering DS, I went right over to grab a FP for Tower of Terror which had a return time for 10:45 – 11:45am. I decided to head over to Magic of Disney Animation in the meantime. This was well worth it and I will definitely go again in the future. I even was able to see a lady drawing Mickey Mouse! It was really neat! Since I was so close, I went right over to the Great Movie Ride which I rode with little wait. This ride was mostly as I’d remembered it, nothing spectacular, but definitely worth seeing each time.
By this time it was time to head back down Sunset Boulevard for my FP return time for ToT. Before I jumped in line, I went to Rockin Roller Coaster to grab a FP with a return time of 2:55 – 3:55pm. I got to ToT by 11:10am and was really excited to see this attraction again. As I sat down (row 2!), the guy next to me said under his breath, “Hope I don’t throw up again.” I glanced quickly at him through the corner of my eye and saw that he was smiling, so we both laughed at his little prank, it was very cute! For the second time today, I got really nauseous over a ride. I truly think it had more to do with the fact that I was under the weather than it did with the fact that I am prone to motion sickness, because this ride hasn’t really bothered me a lot in the past, surprisingly. Anyway, I enjoyed it regardless because it’s just such a great themed ride and you don’t know when you’re going to drop and how many times – it’s just so much fun!
Next I headed over to Muppets 3D which I really enjoyed. After that it was the Backlot Tour, which I actually was slightly disappointed with, as I had remembered it being a lot better in the past. I am a fan of Golden Girls and remember passing by that house years ago, I was looking forward to it again but the house has probably been used for something else in the more recent years. After the tour I was getting pretty hungry so I decided since I was close by to check out Pizza Planet. However, after about 10 minutes of waiting in line and seeing that the line wasn’t about to budge I decided that I wasn’t in the mood to wait any longer and headed out for ABC Commissary. The line there was minimal, thank goodness and I got a cheeseburger, French fries, and a bottled water (total $8.70).
After eating, I tried to watch Indiana Jones which I’ve always enjoyed. The line was SO long and after waiting in it for about 20 minutes a CM told us that the show was full and that we needed to come back to a later one. I was SO disappointed because I knew that I’d want to head out to MK soon and didn’t want to stick around for a later show. So instead I headed over to Sounds Dangerous with Drew Carey. I really didn’t know what to expect for this attraction but I like Drew Carey so I thought I’d check it out. Overall, I wasn’t impressed, I knew that most of it would be in the dark, but there wasn’t a lot going on and it certainly wasn’t that exciting. After SD I checked out One Man’s Dream which I was looking forward to and liked a lot. I especially liked that Walt narrated it himself.
It was about time for my FP return for RNRC at 2:55pm. I really enjoyed this ride but again found it to be really nauseating for me (I hate being sick, I think it’s really put a damper on my ability to tolerate fast paced rides this trip). I thought that maybe something cold would be a nice treat for my motion sickness so I grabbed a Mickey Premium ice cream bar ($2.50). It was wonderful and did the trick. As I ate it, I headed out of the park and was waiting in line for TTC by 3:30pm. I knew that I needed a refresher because I was very tired and borderline miserable from being sick and nauseas too!
Well MK was exactly what the doctor ordered because as soon as my feet hit the ground to the park I was in the best of spirits! MK is by far my favorite park! Immediately I went to Frontierland and grabbed a FP for Splash Mountain with a return time of 7:05 to 8:05pm. I decided to wait in line for BTMRR which had a posted standby time of 50 minutes (which proved to be very accurate). The wait wasn’t the bad part but the lady in back of me was! She kept bumping into me, pushing me and stepping on my feet that whole hour! But BTMRR was worth it all, I absolutely love this ride and it is definitely one of my all time favorites! (I’ve said that a lot haven’t I?!) I even got to ride in the front row all by myself!
After BTMRR I took the railroad from Frontierland to Main Street and from there took it to Adventureland and waited in line for the Jungle Cruise (about a 30 – 40 minute wait). This ride was so cute! I rode the Mongala Millie. The CM tour guide, Bob, was wonderful and busted out his fair share of corny jokes. He asked if there were any New Yorkers on board and after I raised my hand, he warned the rest of the passengers that I steal! After I got off Mongala Millie, I headed over to the Enchanted Tiki Room. This was actually the very first time I had seen this attraction at all and I found it to be really cute. Zazu and Iago were especially funny!
After the Tiki Room, I headed over for something to eat at Columbia Harbour House – I needed something other than a cheeseburger! There was almost no wait at all here and I ordered chicken strips, French fries, and a Diet Coke ($9.36). It was decent but I didn’t finish it, I really think that my being sick has severely affected my appetite!
After eating, I went over to the Haunted Mansion again before my FP return time for Splash Mountain was up. I could ride this ride over and over again, I just love HM! It was time to head over to Splash Mountain for my 7:05 return time. What’s not to love about this ride!? This is another that I could ride all day long. After that, I headed over to Snow White’s Scary Adventures. During the time I spent in line, my mom called my cell phone and I was telling her how weird it was for me to be a Walt Disney World alone. As soon as I got off the phone with her, a lady in front of me from Ohio mentioned that she overheard me say that I was traveling solo – she just couldn’t believe it! She said, “Wow! That’s brave, I don’t even like going to the movies alone!” She was with her husband and two little girls (who were so cute!) and I rode the ride with them and got to see it through the eyes of a three and five year old.
Okay, this is where I must comment on a T-shirt I saw a girl wearing last night that said “One day my prince will come.” I absolutely have fallen in love with it and can’t find it anywhere! My mission continues in search of this must-find treasure!
I give up for the moment in order to ride it’s a small world (20 minute wait time or less). My family always picks on me that I love this ride so much, but I don’t care, it’s one of my all-time favorites! After that, I tried to see about Space Mountain again but gave up after I saw the line was at about a 50 minute standby time with no FPs left for the night. I decided to try Carousel of Progress, another attraction that I had never seen until now. I really enjoyed it and had “it’s a great big beautiful tomorrow” stuck in my head for the remainder of the vacation! From there, I hopped on TTA to see it for the first time at night. How beautiful! This little ride is fast becoming one of my favorites because it gives you time to take in all the magic. The castle is just brilliant at night, it was breathtaking.
I decided to try out Stitch’s Great Escape after TTA, it was a complete walk-on. I loved the cute little cuddly alien in the second staging area on the left hand side. The ride itself was fun, but somehow I missed the part when Stitch was loose and running his hands through everyone’s hair! I was disappointed with that because I had been hearing that it was really cool!
I headed over to Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café for a brownie ($2.66) before Wishes began. By 9:45 I had grabbed a decent spot on a bridge to the right of the castle. Wishes was absolutely incredible, I can’t even describe it. Seeing Tink take off was just unbelievable! Another thing that was unbelievable was the crowd trying to exit the park after the fireworks! Once I finally reached Main Street, I did a little shopping and picked up a Mickey Mouse ice cube tray ($5). After that, I headed over to grab my bus back to Pop Century – I waited less than 10 minutes for it. I left the park a little early tonight because I needed to get back to the resort before the gift shop closed so I could pick up my package from yesterday that I had shipped to the resort – I really didn’t want to be obligated to dealing with it on my last day. I don’t think that I will ever use this service again, it was very disorganized and that late at night you just want to get back to your room. I waited at least ˝ hour for my package which was too long when your feet hurt, you’re sick and ready for bed!
I was in my room by midnight and was seriously considering a quick trip down to the pool which was just below my window. I really wanted to use it at some point during my trip, but was just too tired tonight so I decided against it. I took a quick shower, updated my trip report notes and was sound asleep by 12:45am.
TODAY’S BEST: Dinosaur! and Wishes!
TODAY’S WORST: being sick and dealing with the package pickup
TOTAL EXPENDITURES: $ 56.91
TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 43.45
TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 13.46
Day 4 – Thursday June 8
This morning I woke up around 6:30am, as I didn’t want to waste any time on my very last day. I ate a granola bar in the room as I got organized for the day to save some time as well. I was waiting in line at the bus stop by 7am for the MK and was at the MK by 7:45am. I had some photos taken by Photo Pass in front of Walt and the castle. I had tried to go to Adventureland first but discovered that it had not yet opened this morning. So I headed over to Fantasyland and jumped on Peter Pan’s Flight which was a walk-on. I love how Peter and Wendy appear as silhouettes in the moon!
I was on Space Mountain by 8:15am and rode the left side of the ride this time (haven’t discovered a favorite yet!). I headed back over to the hub and just behind the castle tried to find that t-shirt again at Sir Mickey’s and Tinkerbell’s Treasures. I had no luck at either store but did buy a 2006 WDW magnet and a Mickey and Friends “mood” magnet for a total of $9.59. About this time Frontierland opened so I headed over and got a FP for BTMRR with a return time for 10:05 – 11:05am. After that I rode Splash Mountain with minimal wait, the line was rapidly moving the whole time. After Splash Mountain I went over to Liberty Square and rode Haunted Mansion…again! This ride never gets old! After I got off, it was about 10am and time for my FP at BTMRR. What’s there to say, this ride is always fabulous! And, speaking of, I decided to ride iasw again as well! From there I went over to Tomorrowland and rode TTA again – “paging Mr. Morrow, Mr. Tom Morrow” – I love it! I have rode this so much the past few days that I had caught on to all the little sayings when you pass certain attractions (like Carousel of Progress with Mr. Morrow!).
I knew that I wanted to spend a good portion of my day at Epcot so after I had rode all the rides I wanted to this morning, I headed over to Main Street and as I passed the castle I noticed that Cinderellabration was taking place and took the opportunity to snap a few shots of the show. I didn’t really have the time to schedule it in this trip but it looked wonderful. Before I left the park I decided that it made better sense to grab some lunch at the MK before the lunch crowds got too bad at Epcot by the time I got there. I went to Casey’s Corner and ordered a hot dog, French fries, and a Diet Coke ($8.81). Everything was really good and I sat outside and enjoyed my last few moments at the MK.
I didn’t shop like I’d planned to on Main Street because the crowds were heavier than I had expected. Besides I was ready for Epcot anyway. I left MK about 11:30am for the TTC and took the monorail to Epcot. I saw a father unloading a stroller from the monorail with a kid still in it and about a dozen shopping bags and had to smile at the thought that that would be me someday. I was glad for the moment that it was not, however!
I was at Epcot in no time and the first thing I did was head to the Land and grab a FP for Soarin! (FP return time of 5:39-6:39pm). From there I decided to finish off the last countries that I hadn’t seen on Tuesday. This time, I started counterclockwise with Canada. I saw O Canada around 12:15 and thought it was very well done and enjoyable. Upon leaving however, I dropped my cell phone outside the show and will now be reminded of Epcot every time I look at those signature scratches! I made a mental note of Le Cellier and decided that my next trip I will have to try it out. I bought an Epcot World Showcase postcard collection at one of the Canadian pavilion shops ($5.33) so I could hang them up in my apartment.
I headed over to the UK and bought my younger sister Ashley a Beatles t-shirt and magnet at The Crown Chest ($30.89). She is obsessed with the Beatles and virtually anything British. I heard “Greensleaves” playing on my way to France and had to call her up and tell her how much I wished she was there! (She’s also obsessed with King Henry VIII and sings the song on a regular basis!).
In France, I finally saw Impressions de France and loved it! From there I strolled over to Germany and bought a triple chocolate Mickey brownie for $2.67. Christopher, the CM at the counter, told me that it was his favorite. It was so good, but so rich and I didn’t end up finishing it unfortunately. After my snack I headed to Norway to ride Maelstrom again and got the front row to myself! From there, I headed over to my favorite pavilion, Mexico, and rode El Rio del Tiempo again as well! I made a point of checking out the menu at San Angel Inn for my next visit!
By this time I decided to head back to Future World. On my way, I stopped in Mouse Gears and got to see the new Mr. Potato Head pieces which were really neat! I did a once over of the store in search of that t-shirt by never did find it.
My eyes lit up when I stumbled upon Club Cool, because these sodas from around the world have been something I have heard about for so long and had never gotten to experience so I was very excited about trying the Beverly! Of course it was awful, but of course I had to try it out for myself! My favorite was Israel which I thought was really good. Right next door I saw the Festival Center for the Flower and Garden Festival and decided to check it out briefly – not really my thing but very interesting nonetheless. I could tell that it was totally up some people’s alleys!
After that I was in the mood for a little snack and decided to grab an Ice Cream Cookie Mickey Sandwich at a vendor for $2.50. That hit the spot and I ate it while walking over to the Living Seas to investigate the attractions there. I was generally unimpressed, as I thought there was something that I may have missed on Tuesday. There were SO many kids there just running around unsupervised that I just decided to make a beeline for the door! From there I walked over to the Land to check out the standby time for Soarin’ – 140 minutes! Yikes! There weren’t any more FPs either! I did get a FP for Living with the Land though for 6:45-7:45pm but didn’t end up using it after all.
I tried out Kodak Image Works but again the place was just too crowded to be enjoyable. I tried to decide what to do, it was miserably hot and I still had 1 ˝ hours until Soarin’ and wanted to eat at Cantina de San Angel for dinner. So I decided to see what the wait time was for Spaceship Earth. I jumped in line and had just a short wait. I love SE, it is so relaxing. After that, I went over and saw Ellen’s Energy Adventure again which I’ve always loved, she’s so funny. I just love that the whole theatre moves, it’s so neat!
By that time, it was about 5:45pm which meant that my FP time for Soarin’ was finally here! I have absolutely fallen in LOVE with this ride, I can’t even describe what it’s like, it’s just incredible. I love the smells of pine and oranges. I could ride this ride over and over and over again…too bad the wait time usually exceeds an hour! After Soarin’, I decided that I was hungry enough for dinner so I went over to Mexico and ordered my dinner at Cantina de San Angel. I got a “wet burrito” which consisted of beef, beans, and cheese in a tortilla with a side of salsa, lettuce and tomato. That along with a Diet Coke totaled $10.69. It was really really good but I didn’t have time to enjoy it because I was worried that it would start raining and on top of being sick still, I wanted to make sure that I was out of the park with time to spare before the downpouring began!
After I quickly ate dinner, I hauled to France where I picked myself up the French Minnie Mouse that I had seen on Tuesday ($11.72) and bought my dad a biography of a French chef (my dad is a chef and owns our family’s restaurant so I knew he’d like it) for $27.69. I left Epcot around 7:15ish to get a good night’s sleep before I have to head home tomorrow and work tomorrow night! Yuck!
On my way to the bus though, I had still one more magical moment. I saw Jennifer and Dave Marx, the Passporter authors entering Epcot! I was in a complete daze walking to the bus but did a double take once I saw that they had on their Passporter neck pouches. It took a second but I recognized them out of my Passporter book! How neat! Once I collected myself from being starstruck, I jumped on an awaiting bus and was back to the resort by 7:45pm. I packed myself up, set three alarm clocks for 3am and went to sleep. Magical Express was due to pick me up at 3:45am for my 6:30am flight from MCO back to Elmira, NY.
TODAY’S BEST: Soarin’, finally getting to taste the Beverly soda at Club Cool, and getting to see Jennifer and Dave Marx
TODAY’S WORST: not being able to find my t-shirt, the crowds were really getting to me today too
TOTAL EXPENDITURES: $ 109.89
TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 24.67
TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 85.22
Day 5 – June 9
This morning I woke up around 3:00am and was out the door by 3:25am to be at the bus pickup area by 3:30am. Magical Express sent a taxi for me at 3:40am and I was on my way (kicking and screaming!) to the airport. I arrived at the airport around 4am and the ticket check-in was a mess, the computers were down and security was overflowing. What a way to end my wonderful vacation! Other than that, I was on my way home with little hassle. I got a quick breakfast at the airport before my plane boarded. (Bagel with cream cheese, an apple and orange juice for $5.51). I paid a little over $20 for the parking fee back in Elmira and was back to work in a matter of hours.
$$$ BREAKDOWN:
Pop Century Resort, 4 nights including tax: $441.52
3 Day Magic Your Way Pass with Park Hopper Option: $233
Grand Total Daily Expenditures: $ 275.08
GRAND TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 105.36
GRAND TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 149.72
GRAND TOTAL: $949.60
Final Thoughts:
I am so happy that I decided to go alone to Disney this year. I had so much fun and will go back just as soon as I possibly can. This next year will be really busy for me, as I am moving to New Jersey to go to graduate school at Seton Hall University for Museum Professions. I am toying with the idea of taking my little sister Ashley over the winter. We each have vouchers from Delta that will expire in April, so I think it will give me a perfect excuse to get back for some more magic. I will never ever let so much time go by between Disney trips now that I am able to finance my own vacations. I know that once graduate school is over and I can catch up on my student loans that I will be going on a yearly basis at the least! Hope you’ve enjoyed reading my trip, I know I had a blast writing it! Can’t wait to write more trip reports and read about yours…see you real soon!
Tracy
Time of Year: Summer
Travel Method: Plane, Magical Express
Resort: PCR
Accommodations: Standard
Ages Represented in Group: Adult
WDW Experience Represented in Group: Infrequent
Tracy -- June 2006 - Walt Disney World (PCR)
Tracy – June 2006
Characters:
Tracy – 23, graduate student, 5th trip (but first in 8 ˝ years!)
Travel Dates: June 5 – June 9, 2006
Resort: POP Century!
Passes: 3 Day Magic Your Way Pass with Park Hopper Option
How this trip came about: Basically, this trip is the result of my refusal to go 10 whole, long years without getting back to Disney. Over the past 10 years, my family has somewhat “outgrown” (is that possible?!) their love for Disney and we have replaced our annual vacations with trips to Key West. Don’t get me wrong, Key West is wonderful, but I have been hinting, pleading, and bugging everyone to go to Disney since our last trip in December 1997! I thought to myself, “enough’s enough – I’m going by myself if that’s what it takes!” So, I decided that I had spent enough time crying over not being at Disney and just decided to book it!
It was March 2006 when I decided to book my trip. I had taken a year off from graduate school to switch programs and knew that I would be in a place to afford a trip around June 2006. However, I was spending the summer working at my family’s restaurant and also knew that it would be hard to get weekends off. So, I decided to go to Disney on a Monday through Friday plan. I had enough frequent flier miles from USAir to book a flight to Orlando, so it was just a matter of finding the right week. I decided on Monday, June 5 through Friday, June 9. I figured that early June would still be better crowd-wise than late June when all the schools would be out for the summer.
Next came the resort. I absolutely knew that I would want to be on property. Our last trip in 1997 we stayed at what was then called Dixie Landings and I just loved the convenience and extra magic that a Disney resort provided. I had pretty much convinced myself that for this trip I would take advantage of one of the Disney Value Resorts. I decided on Pop Century and made my reservation for 4 nights ($441.52 including tax). I had read that Pop Century’s transportation system was a bit more efficient than the All Stars resorts, which ultimately sold me.
Now for the passes. I decided to buy through Maple Leaf Tickets and purchased a 3 Day Magic Your Way Park Hopper for a total of $233 before shipping charges. I also made my reservation for Magical Express both to and from the airport on my arrival and departure dates.
The Plan:
Monday, 6/5: leave for the airport around 4:30pm; arrive in Orlando at 10:46pm; check in with Disney’s Magical Express and arrive to POP Century!
Tuesday, 6/6: breakfast at POP Century; Magic Kingdom for Early Entry, lunch at Pecos Bill’s or Cosmic Rays; head to Epcot, dinner at Yorkshire County Fish Shop, Illuminations and Extra Magic Hours
Wednesday, 6/7: Animal Kingdom for Early Entry, ride Expedition Everest and Dinosaur and watch It’s Tough to be a Bug; leave for Disney Studios, spend majority of day here; forgo Extra Magic Hours at DS to get to Magic Kingdom in time for Wishes at 10pm
Thursday, 6/8: Magic Kingdom for Early Entry, lunch at Pecos Bill’s or Cosmic Rays; Epcot for Extra Magic Hours
Friday, 6/9: Head home ?
Things I’m REALLY looking forward to this trip:
I’ve been to Disney four times in my life, but since the last trip was SO long ago (about 9 whole years!), I almost feel as though I have to start out with rookie status again and work my way up! However, I am looking forward to the magic of surprise that perhaps only a rookie can obtain when they first walk up Main Street USA! So much has changed since I’ve last been and although I feel like I have been up-to-date with these changes thanks to sites like Mouseplanet, I am looking forward to some of my old-time loves and excited about some of the new additions (well, to me anyway – I still haven’t experienced Rock N Roller Coaster, not to mention that Animal Kingdom wasn’t even around yet!).
My All-Time Favorites:
It’s a Small World
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Splash Mountain
Space Mountain
Haunted Mansion
Pirates of the Caribbean (although it will be in rehab this trip!) :(
Peter Pan’s Flight
World Showcase
Tower of Terror
New things to me that I can’t wait for:
Soarin’
Rock N Roller Coaster
Mickey’s PhilharMagic
Stitch’s Great Escape
Mission: Space
Test Track
Expedition Everest
Dinosaur!
It’s Tough to be a Bug
NOTE: For my own benefit for future trips and for those of you who are interested in what things cost in WDW, I’ve listed exactly what I’ve spent on food and souvenirs as I wrote the report and again at the bottom of each day. Hope it helps!
Day 1 – Monday June 5
The Plan: leave for the airport around 4:30pm; arrive in Orlando at 10:46pm; check in with Disney’s Magical Express and arrive to POP Century!
It’s finally here! And I know that today will be the longest day imaginable! I tried to sleep in and kill a few hours since my flight to Orlando was not until much later today, but we all know how hard it is to sleep at all the day before vacation. I got really nervous yesterday because my throat started to get really sore, so I got up this morning and went to the store to buy some Airborne, hoping that all the hype about this stuff will prove to be true. At the store, I also bought a back-up digital camera memory card (I predict that I will go through both!) and a couple more odds and ends. I went home and finished the last of my packing, watched my Walt Disney World vacation planning DVD for the umpteenth time and tried to pass the hours until my trip will begin! The plan is to load up the car and head out around 4:30ish. My flight leaves Elmira at 6:20pm and I have a small layover in Philly – I should touch down in Orlando around 10:45pm, catch the Magical Express to Pop Century and finally begin my Disney vacation!
Finally I left for the airport and arrived around 5:15pm. This airport is about ˝ hour from my house and I knew that it was small enough that I wouldn’t have to sit around for hours before my flight. My mom and my youngest sister Ashley met me at the airport to wish me a happy and safe trip and we had some pizza before my plane boarded. Finally, they called my flight and I was in the air on my way to Disney right on schedule! I grabbed an apple and a banana in Philadelphia during my layover and finally boarded my plane to Orlando and boy did that flight take forever! Once I got to MCO, I found Disney’s Magical Express (all around the airport, there were Disney employees holding signs and supplying directions for those of us that get a little lost). I checked in easily with Magical Express and was pointed to the queue for Pop Century; as I was walking down it, a CM said to me, “Gimme that Disney smile!” and I knew that my vacation had begun! Magical Express left the airport around 11pm and made four stops before arriving at Pop Century. We watched a Disney orientation video that was really cute on the 45 minute drive to Disney property. Once we were actually on property, the bus driver said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Disney World.” I’m not going to lie, I got a little teary eyed!
Actually, I didn’t mind the stops at all because it let me get acclimated to Disney property again and I was able to see a few other resorts (although I must say I wish that this all occurred during daylight hours, as I was exhausted from traveling and couldn’t see well in the dark anyway!). We stopped at All Star Sports, All Star Movies, Animal Kingdom Lodge and Coronado Springs. I must say that Coronado Springs looked especially beautiful even in the dark! I can’t wait for a future Disney vacation when I have more time so I can resort hop a little!
Magical Express arrived at Pop Century around 1am! I checked in with no wait (I was the first of about 3 families off the bus) and was in my room (#9465 – the 90s building) around 1:15am. My luggage arrived around 1:45am and I was so thankful that it made its way safely. I think my next trip I will pick it up at the airport myself just to ensure that I have it in my room when I need it. I was in bed, but not asleep, by 2am! I was far too excited for what was ahead to sleep!
Day 2 – Tuesday June 6
The Plan: breakfast at POP Century; Magic Kingdom for Early Entry, lunch at Pecos Bill’s or Cosmic Rays; head to Epcot, dinner at Yorkshire County Fish Shop, Illuminations and Extra Magic Hours
My first full day at Disney! I got up around 6:30am, got around and headed down to get some breakfast about 6:50am (in time to get on a bus by 7 for Extra Magic Hour at Magic Kingdom). I had a croissant, egg, cheese and bacon sandwich and orange juice ($7.76). I had waited barely a few minutes and a bus arrived for the Magic Kingdom! I was in line about 7:30am and got to see the morning welcome show – very cute! I tried to prepare myself for what it would be like to walk onto Main Street USA for the first time in over 8 years, but I just couldn’t…it was amazing! I missed Disney SO much over these long years. I quickly headed to Tomorrowland and jumped in line for Space Mountain with little wait. After that, I headed straight for Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. I got a horribly embarrassing grand total of 2,000 points! (I’ll have to work on that!). After that I headed to The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan’s Flight and Mickey’s PhilharMagic. Mickey’s PhilharMagic was wonderful! I had to take a picture of the sign that read: “Caution, doors will open automagically toward you!” I loved this show, you can even smell the apple pie!
After the show, I headed straight for it’s a small world, which is my all time favorite ride (tied with Big Thunder Mountain Railroad) since I was a little girl. As always, I loved this ride and had a whole bench all to myself. (Already I’m laughing at myself for continuing to have to say “one, please” when asked how many are in my party!). Next year I am already planning to take another Disney trip with my youngest sister Ashley who is 16 now and loves Disney almost as much as I do, at least then I can sit with someone else!
Next I checked out Haunted Mansion, another favorite of mine and then went to see Hall of Presidents. I remember when I was younger, my sisters (I have two in all) and I would be so irritated with my parents that we had to get educated on our Disney trips. But this time, especially being the history buff that I am, I loved it! For traditions sake, I went to Country Bear Jamboree which is always cute. By this time, I was getting hungry so I checked out Pecos Bill’s for the line and discovered it wasn’t really that bad (it was about 11:15am). I had the Number 3 (a cheeseburger and French fries) and a diet coke ($8.50).
Since I was already in Frontierland, I decided to scope out Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and see about the wait times. They were both over 70 minutes long! So, I decided to head back to Tomorrowland and ride the TTA. It gave me a chance to just relax and enjoy the fact that I was finally at Disney World! I headed out for Epcot around 12:30pm by taking the monorail to TTC. I arrived at Epcot minutes later and headed directly for Spaceship Earth. The wait time was apparently 20 minutes but it was really only about 5 or so. I went quickly through Innoventions East and got a FP for Mission: Space for 1:54 to 2:54pm. From there, I went over to Ellen’s Energy Adventure (which I remember loving and loved this time too!). By that time it was time for my FP return, so I headed over to MS a little after 2pm. I decided to go for the low impact line, as I am prone to motion sickness. It turns out I was fine and probably would have been okay with the higher impact one, which I will definitely have to check out next time. I was the engineer by the way!
I walked over to The Land and tried to get a FP for Soarin’ but by that time they were already out of FPs for the day! I did however get at FP for Living with the Land which I was really looking forward to. My return times were for between 3:15 and 4:15pm. I then went over to Imagination! and got a FP for Honey I Shrunk the Audience for 3:10 – 3:45pm. In the meantime, I went to see Journey into Imagination with Figment – very cute. At the end, there was a gust of wind that actually blew my sunglasses from off the top of my head! By then, it was time to head back to HISTA for the 3:30pm show. This show I remember as being great and of course it was again. I noticed as I was waiting how many honeymooners are here this week! I just love the bride and groom Mickey ears I see scattered all over the parks! (Mental note for that “someday” of mine probably years from now!).
After that show, I headed over for my FP return time for Living with the Land. Whoever thought up fastpasses was an absolute genius! This ride was great and the CM that gave the tour was outstanding. By this time I was getting a little hungry and anxious to check out World Showcase, so I headed over to Norway and got a kringla and diet coke ($5.73) around 4:15pm to hold me over until dinner a little later. Wow was that kringla good (and enormous!) but somehow I managed to eat the whole thing! After my snack I decided to make a clockwise tour of World Showcase beginning with what I remember as my favorite, Mexico.
I still was amazed when I walked into the Mexico pavilion, I just love this country at Epcot! I got in line for El Rio del Tiempo which was a complete walk-on (I don’t know why, I love this ride!). I absolutely adore how the first thing you see is the view from the river of San Angel Inn – I can’t wait to eat there one day, perhaps when I come back with Ashley (I’m hoping for around Christmas time!). Also in Mexico, I bought two bracelets, one for my mom and one for me. I forget the name of the store, but I love that jewelry shop, I could have spent hundreds there! But it was all actually very reasonably priced. (Total $17.04). I had the items shipped back to my resort so I wouldn’t have to lug them around with me all day. After Mexico, I headed to Norway and got a FP for Maelstrom with a return time of 5:45 and 6:45pm. I stopped by the store to check out the Laila perfume, as I’ve read so many great reviews of it from fellow trip reporters (especially Krista Fulkerson!). I, too, adore it and might have to break down and make a purchase on a future trip!
From Norway, I headed over to China and saw Reflections of China which I found beautiful and very interesting. By the time that was over, it was just about time for my FP return for Maelstrom. I love this ride and it has a little video at the end, Spirit of Norway, which I don’t remember from my previous trips. I wandered through Germany and Italy a little bit after I left Norway and made a mental note to come back to American Adventure for the 6:45pm show.
In Japan, I watched a lady making animal candies which was really neat! I definitely remember that from my last trip and was looking forward to seeing it again on this one. After that I wandered through the Bonsai gardens in Japan, which was really beautiful. Now it was just about time for the American Adventure show and wow was that amazing…I admit that I did tear up at the end – it was really unbelievable!
By now I was really starting to get hungry so I headed over to the United Kingdom to check out Yorkshire County Fish and Chips around 7:30pm. The line was quite lengthy but a few people actually stepped out of line so I ended up only waiting about 15 minutes or so. I got the Fish N Chips and a small bottle of water (total $10.24) and sat on a bench over by the Sportsmen’s Shoppe to eat my dinner. I was actually really excited about this meal, but I was pretty disappointed, the batter was really thick around the fish, but a lot of people probably like it that way. But my parent’s own a family restaurant and I’ve grown up on a certain type and I guess I’m just used to that kind!
After dinner, I walked over to the International Gateway where they were distributing wristbands for EMH tonight will little wait. About 8pm I walked back over to Morocco to snap some pictures – I know, I’m doing a lot of zigzagging today! Back in France, I made a few mental notes about some gifts and souvenirs that I might pick up on Thursday. They have an adorable little French Minnie Mouse that I think I’ll have to pick up for myself! I decided to wait to see Impressions de France on Thursday as well because it was already 8:30pm and I wanted to get a decent spot for IllumiNations. So, I headed over to the Boulangerie Patisserie and got a chocolate croissant and hot chocolate (total $5.01) and found a good spot around International Gateway bridge for the fireworks. The croissant was really great and the hot chocolate was too, but somewhat bitter compared to what we’re used to in America – so I thought it was very authentic!
After IllumiNations, which I just loved, I headed over to the Land to check out Soarin’. I decided already that I was willing to put up with any length of line to see it tonight and that’s what I did. The wait time was posted at 70 minutes but it turned out to be only about 30-40 minutes. The worst part of the waiting wasn’t the boredom or anything but the pain in my heal! (I have fractured my left heel twice and I knew that all this walking, even though I waitress full-time, would take its toll towards the end of these long days). However, I would have waited 3 hours to see this attraction, it was unbelievable and by far my new favorite ride! I couldn’t even get over it! Everything from the citrus and pine smells to wanting to splash your feet right into the ocean – this ride was just magical! I can’t wait to do it again!
After I came down to earth from the exhilaration of Soarin’, I decided to head over to Test Track where I waited in the single riders line. This ride was also a bit of a wait, it was posted at 40 minutes and it proved to be pretty accurate. However, this ride was also really exciting, although nothing really could live up to Soarin’! I loved how you went through the hot and cold rooms and then at the end went flying around corners! It was very fun!
After Test Track, I went over to Mouse Gears and bought a photo album and some Disney World Stickers (total $34). By this time, I was thoroughly exhausted and the park was ready to close anyway, so I found my bus back to Pop Century and turned it about 1am.
TODAY’S BEST: walking out onto Main Street, USA again for the first time in 8 ˝ years; seeing one of my favorite rides, it’s a small world; Soarin’
TODAY’S WORST: my aching heel!
TOTAL EXPENDITURES: $ 88.28
TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 37.24
TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 51.04
Day 3 – Wednesday June 7
The Plan: Animal Kingdom for Early Entry, ride Expedition Everest and Dinosaur and watch It’s Tough to be a Bug; leave for Disney Studios, spend majority of day here; forgo Extra Magic Hours at DS to get to Magic Kingdom in time for Wishes at 10pm
I woke up this morning around 6:15am, got around quickly and went down to get breakfast and a refillable mug (not really for this vacation, as I’m never at the resort, but for the souvenir). Again, I got the croissant, egg, cheese and bacon sandwich with an orange juice. (Total including the refillable mug $20.53). As I ate my breakfast, I headed back to the room to drop my mug off and grab my sunglasses which I forgot this morning on my way out! The weather channel had reported a clear day with highs in the 90s – not a day to be without sunglasses!
I still managed to be second in line for the bus to Animal Kingdom at 7am for EE. I was waiting in line for rope drop easily by 7:30am. As soon as we were let into the park, I made a beeline for Expedition Everest. Once I got there, the ride was experiencing technical difficulties, so I grabbed a FP for 8:40 – 9:40am and headed over to Dinosaur! around 8:15am. This ride proved to be one of my all time favorites! I love the way that the vehicle lurks forward and you feel as though you are standing up because of all the dips in the path! It was amazing! I wish I had time to ride it again, but the wait had already increased significantly and I wanted to get back over to EE for my FP return time which was almost here. I killed a few minutes at the EE gift shop where I bought my little sister Ashley who is determined to climb the real Everest someday an EE permit with her name on it (a little dorky, but I think she’ll really love it!). The permit including tax was $8.46. By this time, I was able to get into the FP line for the ride. It turns out that I got pretty nauseated on this ride and wasn’t actually that impressed (although it could be that I was queasy and had woke up with a cold this morning too!). After EE I walked (not in a very straight line!) over to It’s Tough to be a Bug, which I was determined to watch before I left the park. This show turned out to be really cute and gave me a little time to recover from EE before I headed out for Disney Studios. I was really impressed with the show and thought it was really cute – except for the stink bug part! ? Boy does that thing stink! Shockingly, I headed out of AK by 9:15am and was waiting along with only one other family for a bus to DS by 9:30! I realize that I sacrificed a lot of things at AK today, but that was my intention since I wanted to spend the majority of my vacation at MK and EP and still fit in a good portion of one day at DS. Next trip I will definitely schedule more time at AK!
Immediately upon entering DS, I went right over to grab a FP for Tower of Terror which had a return time for 10:45 – 11:45am. I decided to head over to Magic of Disney Animation in the meantime. This was well worth it and I will definitely go again in the future. I even was able to see a lady drawing Mickey Mouse! It was really neat! Since I was so close, I went right over to the Great Movie Ride which I rode with little wait. This ride was mostly as I’d remembered it, nothing spectacular, but definitely worth seeing each time.
By this time it was time to head back down Sunset Boulevard for my FP return time for ToT. Before I jumped in line, I went to Rockin Roller Coaster to grab a FP with a return time of 2:55 – 3:55pm. I got to ToT by 11:10am and was really excited to see this attraction again. As I sat down (row 2!), the guy next to me said under his breath, “Hope I don’t throw up again.” I glanced quickly at him through the corner of my eye and saw that he was smiling, so we both laughed at his little prank, it was very cute! For the second time today, I got really nauseous over a ride. I truly think it had more to do with the fact that I was under the weather than it did with the fact that I am prone to motion sickness, because this ride hasn’t really bothered me a lot in the past, surprisingly. Anyway, I enjoyed it regardless because it’s just such a great themed ride and you don’t know when you’re going to drop and how many times – it’s just so much fun!
Next I headed over to Muppets 3D which I really enjoyed. After that it was the Backlot Tour, which I actually was slightly disappointed with, as I had remembered it being a lot better in the past. I am a fan of Golden Girls and remember passing by that house years ago, I was looking forward to it again but the house has probably been used for something else in the more recent years. After the tour I was getting pretty hungry so I decided since I was close by to check out Pizza Planet. However, after about 10 minutes of waiting in line and seeing that the line wasn’t about to budge I decided that I wasn’t in the mood to wait any longer and headed out for ABC Commissary. The line there was minimal, thank goodness and I got a cheeseburger, French fries, and a bottled water (total $8.70).
After eating, I tried to watch Indiana Jones which I’ve always enjoyed. The line was SO long and after waiting in it for about 20 minutes a CM told us that the show was full and that we needed to come back to a later one. I was SO disappointed because I knew that I’d want to head out to MK soon and didn’t want to stick around for a later show. So instead I headed over to Sounds Dangerous with Drew Carey. I really didn’t know what to expect for this attraction but I like Drew Carey so I thought I’d check it out. Overall, I wasn’t impressed, I knew that most of it would be in the dark, but there wasn’t a lot going on and it certainly wasn’t that exciting. After SD I checked out One Man’s Dream which I was looking forward to and liked a lot. I especially liked that Walt narrated it himself.
It was about time for my FP return for RNRC at 2:55pm. I really enjoyed this ride but again found it to be really nauseating for me (I hate being sick, I think it’s really put a damper on my ability to tolerate fast paced rides this trip). I thought that maybe something cold would be a nice treat for my motion sickness so I grabbed a Mickey Premium ice cream bar ($2.50). It was wonderful and did the trick. As I ate it, I headed out of the park and was waiting in line for TTC by 3:30pm. I knew that I needed a refresher because I was very tired and borderline miserable from being sick and nauseas too!
Well MK was exactly what the doctor ordered because as soon as my feet hit the ground to the park I was in the best of spirits! MK is by far my favorite park! Immediately I went to Frontierland and grabbed a FP for Splash Mountain with a return time of 7:05 to 8:05pm. I decided to wait in line for BTMRR which had a posted standby time of 50 minutes (which proved to be very accurate). The wait wasn’t the bad part but the lady in back of me was! She kept bumping into me, pushing me and stepping on my feet that whole hour! But BTMRR was worth it all, I absolutely love this ride and it is definitely one of my all time favorites! (I’ve said that a lot haven’t I?!) I even got to ride in the front row all by myself!
After BTMRR I took the railroad from Frontierland to Main Street and from there took it to Adventureland and waited in line for the Jungle Cruise (about a 30 – 40 minute wait). This ride was so cute! I rode the Mongala Millie. The CM tour guide, Bob, was wonderful and busted out his fair share of corny jokes. He asked if there were any New Yorkers on board and after I raised my hand, he warned the rest of the passengers that I steal! After I got off Mongala Millie, I headed over to the Enchanted Tiki Room. This was actually the very first time I had seen this attraction at all and I found it to be really cute. Zazu and Iago were especially funny!
After the Tiki Room, I headed over for something to eat at Columbia Harbour House – I needed something other than a cheeseburger! There was almost no wait at all here and I ordered chicken strips, French fries, and a Diet Coke ($9.36). It was decent but I didn’t finish it, I really think that my being sick has severely affected my appetite!
After eating, I went over to the Haunted Mansion again before my FP return time for Splash Mountain was up. I could ride this ride over and over again, I just love HM! It was time to head over to Splash Mountain for my 7:05 return time. What’s not to love about this ride!? This is another that I could ride all day long. After that, I headed over to Snow White’s Scary Adventures. During the time I spent in line, my mom called my cell phone and I was telling her how weird it was for me to be a Walt Disney World alone. As soon as I got off the phone with her, a lady in front of me from Ohio mentioned that she overheard me say that I was traveling solo – she just couldn’t believe it! She said, “Wow! That’s brave, I don’t even like going to the movies alone!” She was with her husband and two little girls (who were so cute!) and I rode the ride with them and got to see it through the eyes of a three and five year old.
Okay, this is where I must comment on a T-shirt I saw a girl wearing last night that said “One day my prince will come.” I absolutely have fallen in love with it and can’t find it anywhere! My mission continues in search of this must-find treasure!
I give up for the moment in order to ride it’s a small world (20 minute wait time or less). My family always picks on me that I love this ride so much, but I don’t care, it’s one of my all-time favorites! After that, I tried to see about Space Mountain again but gave up after I saw the line was at about a 50 minute standby time with no FPs left for the night. I decided to try Carousel of Progress, another attraction that I had never seen until now. I really enjoyed it and had “it’s a great big beautiful tomorrow” stuck in my head for the remainder of the vacation! From there, I hopped on TTA to see it for the first time at night. How beautiful! This little ride is fast becoming one of my favorites because it gives you time to take in all the magic. The castle is just brilliant at night, it was breathtaking.
I decided to try out Stitch’s Great Escape after TTA, it was a complete walk-on. I loved the cute little cuddly alien in the second staging area on the left hand side. The ride itself was fun, but somehow I missed the part when Stitch was loose and running his hands through everyone’s hair! I was disappointed with that because I had been hearing that it was really cool!
I headed over to Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café for a brownie ($2.66) before Wishes began. By 9:45 I had grabbed a decent spot on a bridge to the right of the castle. Wishes was absolutely incredible, I can’t even describe it. Seeing Tink take off was just unbelievable! Another thing that was unbelievable was the crowd trying to exit the park after the fireworks! Once I finally reached Main Street, I did a little shopping and picked up a Mickey Mouse ice cube tray ($5). After that, I headed over to grab my bus back to Pop Century – I waited less than 10 minutes for it. I left the park a little early tonight because I needed to get back to the resort before the gift shop closed so I could pick up my package from yesterday that I had shipped to the resort – I really didn’t want to be obligated to dealing with it on my last day. I don’t think that I will ever use this service again, it was very disorganized and that late at night you just want to get back to your room. I waited at least ˝ hour for my package which was too long when your feet hurt, you’re sick and ready for bed!
I was in my room by midnight and was seriously considering a quick trip down to the pool which was just below my window. I really wanted to use it at some point during my trip, but was just too tired tonight so I decided against it. I took a quick shower, updated my trip report notes and was sound asleep by 12:45am.
TODAY’S BEST: Dinosaur! and Wishes!
TODAY’S WORST: being sick and dealing with the package pickup
TOTAL EXPENDITURES: $ 56.91
TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 43.45
TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 13.46
Day 4 – Thursday June 8
This morning I woke up around 6:30am, as I didn’t want to waste any time on my very last day. I ate a granola bar in the room as I got organized for the day to save some time as well. I was waiting in line at the bus stop by 7am for the MK and was at the MK by 7:45am. I had some photos taken by Photo Pass in front of Walt and the castle. I had tried to go to Adventureland first but discovered that it had not yet opened this morning. So I headed over to Fantasyland and jumped on Peter Pan’s Flight which was a walk-on. I love how Peter and Wendy appear as silhouettes in the moon!
I was on Space Mountain by 8:15am and rode the left side of the ride this time (haven’t discovered a favorite yet!). I headed back over to the hub and just behind the castle tried to find that t-shirt again at Sir Mickey’s and Tinkerbell’s Treasures. I had no luck at either store but did buy a 2006 WDW magnet and a Mickey and Friends “mood” magnet for a total of $9.59. About this time Frontierland opened so I headed over and got a FP for BTMRR with a return time for 10:05 – 11:05am. After that I rode Splash Mountain with minimal wait, the line was rapidly moving the whole time. After Splash Mountain I went over to Liberty Square and rode Haunted Mansion…again! This ride never gets old! After I got off, it was about 10am and time for my FP at BTMRR. What’s there to say, this ride is always fabulous! And, speaking of, I decided to ride iasw again as well! From there I went over to Tomorrowland and rode TTA again – “paging Mr. Morrow, Mr. Tom Morrow” – I love it! I have rode this so much the past few days that I had caught on to all the little sayings when you pass certain attractions (like Carousel of Progress with Mr. Morrow!).
I knew that I wanted to spend a good portion of my day at Epcot so after I had rode all the rides I wanted to this morning, I headed over to Main Street and as I passed the castle I noticed that Cinderellabration was taking place and took the opportunity to snap a few shots of the show. I didn’t really have the time to schedule it in this trip but it looked wonderful. Before I left the park I decided that it made better sense to grab some lunch at the MK before the lunch crowds got too bad at Epcot by the time I got there. I went to Casey’s Corner and ordered a hot dog, French fries, and a Diet Coke ($8.81). Everything was really good and I sat outside and enjoyed my last few moments at the MK.
I didn’t shop like I’d planned to on Main Street because the crowds were heavier than I had expected. Besides I was ready for Epcot anyway. I left MK about 11:30am for the TTC and took the monorail to Epcot. I saw a father unloading a stroller from the monorail with a kid still in it and about a dozen shopping bags and had to smile at the thought that that would be me someday. I was glad for the moment that it was not, however!
I was at Epcot in no time and the first thing I did was head to the Land and grab a FP for Soarin! (FP return time of 5:39-6:39pm). From there I decided to finish off the last countries that I hadn’t seen on Tuesday. This time, I started counterclockwise with Canada. I saw O Canada around 12:15 and thought it was very well done and enjoyable. Upon leaving however, I dropped my cell phone outside the show and will now be reminded of Epcot every time I look at those signature scratches! I made a mental note of Le Cellier and decided that my next trip I will have to try it out. I bought an Epcot World Showcase postcard collection at one of the Canadian pavilion shops ($5.33) so I could hang them up in my apartment.
I headed over to the UK and bought my younger sister Ashley a Beatles t-shirt and magnet at The Crown Chest ($30.89). She is obsessed with the Beatles and virtually anything British. I heard “Greensleaves” playing on my way to France and had to call her up and tell her how much I wished she was there! (She’s also obsessed with King Henry VIII and sings the song on a regular basis!).
In France, I finally saw Impressions de France and loved it! From there I strolled over to Germany and bought a triple chocolate Mickey brownie for $2.67. Christopher, the CM at the counter, told me that it was his favorite. It was so good, but so rich and I didn’t end up finishing it unfortunately. After my snack I headed to Norway to ride Maelstrom again and got the front row to myself! From there, I headed over to my favorite pavilion, Mexico, and rode El Rio del Tiempo again as well! I made a point of checking out the menu at San Angel Inn for my next visit!
By this time I decided to head back to Future World. On my way, I stopped in Mouse Gears and got to see the new Mr. Potato Head pieces which were really neat! I did a once over of the store in search of that t-shirt by never did find it.
My eyes lit up when I stumbled upon Club Cool, because these sodas from around the world have been something I have heard about for so long and had never gotten to experience so I was very excited about trying the Beverly! Of course it was awful, but of course I had to try it out for myself! My favorite was Israel which I thought was really good. Right next door I saw the Festival Center for the Flower and Garden Festival and decided to check it out briefly – not really my thing but very interesting nonetheless. I could tell that it was totally up some people’s alleys!
After that I was in the mood for a little snack and decided to grab an Ice Cream Cookie Mickey Sandwich at a vendor for $2.50. That hit the spot and I ate it while walking over to the Living Seas to investigate the attractions there. I was generally unimpressed, as I thought there was something that I may have missed on Tuesday. There were SO many kids there just running around unsupervised that I just decided to make a beeline for the door! From there I walked over to the Land to check out the standby time for Soarin’ – 140 minutes! Yikes! There weren’t any more FPs either! I did get a FP for Living with the Land though for 6:45-7:45pm but didn’t end up using it after all.
I tried out Kodak Image Works but again the place was just too crowded to be enjoyable. I tried to decide what to do, it was miserably hot and I still had 1 ˝ hours until Soarin’ and wanted to eat at Cantina de San Angel for dinner. So I decided to see what the wait time was for Spaceship Earth. I jumped in line and had just a short wait. I love SE, it is so relaxing. After that, I went over and saw Ellen’s Energy Adventure again which I’ve always loved, she’s so funny. I just love that the whole theatre moves, it’s so neat!
By that time, it was about 5:45pm which meant that my FP time for Soarin’ was finally here! I have absolutely fallen in LOVE with this ride, I can’t even describe what it’s like, it’s just incredible. I love the smells of pine and oranges. I could ride this ride over and over and over again…too bad the wait time usually exceeds an hour! After Soarin’, I decided that I was hungry enough for dinner so I went over to Mexico and ordered my dinner at Cantina de San Angel. I got a “wet burrito” which consisted of beef, beans, and cheese in a tortilla with a side of salsa, lettuce and tomato. That along with a Diet Coke totaled $10.69. It was really really good but I didn’t have time to enjoy it because I was worried that it would start raining and on top of being sick still, I wanted to make sure that I was out of the park with time to spare before the downpouring began!
After I quickly ate dinner, I hauled to France where I picked myself up the French Minnie Mouse that I had seen on Tuesday ($11.72) and bought my dad a biography of a French chef (my dad is a chef and owns our family’s restaurant so I knew he’d like it) for $27.69. I left Epcot around 7:15ish to get a good night’s sleep before I have to head home tomorrow and work tomorrow night! Yuck!
On my way to the bus though, I had still one more magical moment. I saw Jennifer and Dave Marx, the Passporter authors entering Epcot! I was in a complete daze walking to the bus but did a double take once I saw that they had on their Passporter neck pouches. It took a second but I recognized them out of my Passporter book! How neat! Once I collected myself from being starstruck, I jumped on an awaiting bus and was back to the resort by 7:45pm. I packed myself up, set three alarm clocks for 3am and went to sleep. Magical Express was due to pick me up at 3:45am for my 6:30am flight from MCO back to Elmira, NY.
TODAY’S BEST: Soarin’, finally getting to taste the Beverly soda at Club Cool, and getting to see Jennifer and Dave Marx
TODAY’S WORST: not being able to find my t-shirt, the crowds were really getting to me today too
TOTAL EXPENDITURES: $ 109.89
TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 24.67
TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 85.22
Day 5 – June 9
This morning I woke up around 3:00am and was out the door by 3:25am to be at the bus pickup area by 3:30am. Magical Express sent a taxi for me at 3:40am and I was on my way (kicking and screaming!) to the airport. I arrived at the airport around 4am and the ticket check-in was a mess, the computers were down and security was overflowing. What a way to end my wonderful vacation! Other than that, I was on my way home with little hassle. I got a quick breakfast at the airport before my plane boarded. (Bagel with cream cheese, an apple and orange juice for $5.51). I paid a little over $20 for the parking fee back in Elmira and was back to work in a matter of hours.
$$$ BREAKDOWN:
Pop Century Resort, 4 nights including tax: $441.52
3 Day Magic Your Way Pass with Park Hopper Option: $233
Grand Total Daily Expenditures: $ 275.08
GRAND TOTAL FOOD ONLY: $ 105.36
GRAND TOTAL GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS: $ 149.72
GRAND TOTAL: $949.60
Final Thoughts:
I am so happy that I decided to go alone to Disney this year. I had so much fun and will go back just as soon as I possibly can. This next year will be really busy for me, as I am moving to New Jersey to go to graduate school at Seton Hall University for Museum Professions. I am toying with the idea of taking my little sister Ashley over the winter. We each have vouchers from Delta that will expire in April, so I think it will give me a perfect excuse to get back for some more magic. I will never ever let so much time go by between Disney trips now that I am able to finance my own vacations. I know that once graduate school is over and I can catch up on my student loans that I will be going on a yearly basis at the least! Hope you’ve enjoyed reading my trip, I know I had a blast writing it! Can’t wait to write more trip reports and read about yours…see you real soon!
Tracy