The Cast:

Me, Lara – yes, only one person this time, I am making a solo trip

Pre-Trip Info:
My annual pass expires in February. I thought I might get one last trip in on the AP. I had read that they had some good AP discounts on the rooms during January, so I called. I got a room at All Star Movies for 3 nights, at $59 a night!!! I have a voucher for one-way on Airtran that was set to expire this year, so I checked the flights – one way was only $69 if I planned it right, but I used the voucher anyways. So my roundtrip ticket cost about $78 with all the surcharges and taxes and fees. So, the start of this trip shows that I am going pretty cheap!!!
My uncle gave me $50 for Christmas this year. He usually gives us giftcards, but this year, he went easy and CASH was in the envelope. This went straight into my Disney Fund. I also spent some time straightening up my room, and found $50 in Disney Dollars that I had purchased last year to get ready for the family December trip. So, it looked like I already had $100 in spending money. Since I didn’t think I would be doing any fancy sit down dining, I think this will be plenty to cover most of my food costs while down there.
I also called Disney Visa Rewards to find out how much I had earned on my rewards card. They are sending me a $65 card in the mail – woohoo!!! You can use this anywhere on Disney property, so food or souvenirs (which I really don’t expect to buy a lot of). I am pretty much SET!
I decided since I will be solo, that I would take a tour. That way I knew at least part of the time during my trip, I would be social with other people. I had it narrowed down to 2 tours – both behind the scenes, one at Epcot and one at Animal Kingdom. With some input from the family and from my DWT friends, I decided on the Epcot tour. So the Monday I will be there, I will take the UnDiscovered Future World Tour at Epcot.
Some of my friends from DWT will be there that weekend, so I really am hoping to at least catch up with them some. Perhaps we can meet up for a Dole Whip or something.


Friday, January 26th – I’m too excited to sleep (and I haven’t finished packing)


I actually left work on time so that I could go home and pack. It took me awhile as I fixed dinner and watched some tv. I also took some time to check the DWT site before I left. It was a good thing too, since one of the people who I had planned to meet up with the next day could not make it. Mandy had been at the Magic Kingdom that day with some other DWT friends. She lost her cell phone and would be spending Saturday dealing with that.


Saturday, January 27th – I just got here and my feet already hurt

Mom and Dad drop me off at the airport before the crack of dawn. It was nice to go through security pretty fast – showed them my Ziploc bag and I was good to go. Began loading right after I got to the gate and the flight was not full, so I had 2 seats to myself. I was able to stretch out some for the long 1 hour flight to Orlando.
Upon arrival, I made my way to baggage claim and then down to ground transportation to check in with Magical Express. I was able to get right on a bus, but we sat and waited for awhile. After about 15 minutes, the driver got on, said we only had one stop, and started the Welcome to Walt Disney World video.
We stopped at Disney’s All Star Movies, I got off the bus and went to check in. There was no line, so up to the first CM I go and I check in. She asked if I was sure there wasn’t someone with me – nope. Just me. My room would not be ready until about 3pm, and it was barely 9am. I got all my info and checked out the store. I bought some pirate bling (some hair clips) and got a big bag to put my room info into. I then got in line for Epcot.
The sun was out and it was nice and warm. I wished I had worn a short sleeve shirt. I gave Jerrame a call to see what their plans were and they were still at breakfast in Norway – eating with the princesses. I told her I would call once I reached the park and then we could meet up somewhere.
The bus finally came and we were off to Epcot. I called her from right in front of Spaceship Earth and she told me to meet them over at Living with the Land. Nicole had to run to the front of the park to get a stroller for the youngin’s, as they were getting tired of walking around.
Jerrame walked in with her oldest and Nicole’s oldest and gave me a big hug!!! We headed downstairs to grab a fastpass for Soarin’! I got caught up on the Pirate and Princess Party from the night before. It sounded like they had a blast! Then we headed out to meet up with Nicole.
I met all the kids and I think they liked me!!! We checked out the new Clam Shells over at Finding Nemo in the Living Seas and took in a show with Turtle Talk with Crush. I think after this we headed over to the Land to ride Soarin’, grab some lunch and ride Living with the Land – in which all the kids sat with me on one seat, we were kinda squished a bit.
I don’t remember the order of all the things we did after that, but we did just about everything that there was to do in Future World, except Innoventions and Spaceship Earth. So, we then headed over to the World Showcase.
Nicole had bought each of the kids a passport to fill while going around to the different Kid Kot stops in the Showcase. I tried to get a picture of the kids working on their masks or the passport at each location. By the time we got around to the American Pavilion, it was getting close to the time for their dining reservation at The Beach Club – they were going to the Clam Bake. In Morocco, we said our goodbyes and they headed to the International Gateway and I headed to the front of the park.
Man, the bus stops are a long walk from the front of the park. I got on the first bus heading to All Star Music. This was a nice thing, they had a separate bus for each All Star location. I don’t think they have it that way all the time though.
I called the number on the card they had given to me earlier in the day, and I headed straight to my room located in the Mighty Ducks section. I was on the 2nd floor and overlooked the Mighty Ducks pool. I was given a handicap room with a king sized bed. Everything in here was lower to the floor, I guess giving the person in the wheelchair better access. I unpacked, got my refill mug and headed to the food court with a book.
They have a lot of good selections in their food court, much more than you would think. I ended up getting a chicken quesadilla for dinner. It was good, and I ate it all while sitting there, resting my feet and reading a Dan Brown book.
I headed back to my room with some ice cream that I got and had to cover it up as it had started raining. I hoped that it would let up by the next morning. I didn’t really have anything planned; it would be my 2nd day here, but my 1st totally by myself.
The TV in the room was pretty small, but I did find that I had a fridge – woohooo!!! I had a hard time falling asleep as there is no timer on the TV – I woke up at 3am to turn the TV off.


I will post more later

Looking forward to it; great post. How old are you, by the way. I was just wondering because of the CM's question: "Are you SURE there's no one with you?"

I just turned 36, so no real reason. However, I have been told that I look young. Will post more as soon as I can find what disc I saved it to!

Sunday, January 28th – Did that guy not check the weather before leaving his room?

I had no set plans for the day. I was trying to decide between MGM Studios and Animal Kingdom. While getting ready for the day, I received a call from Jerrame. They had made it safely to the airport, but I got a run down of the blur of activity from the night before. Let’s just say that the kids learned their way around The Animal Kingdom Lodge the hard way! But all was good and they were on their way home, tired, but happy.
I also received a call from Melissa, who was following up on the messages I had left her from the day before. She convinced me that I should go to the Animal Kingdom. So, as soon as I was done straightening my hair, off I went to the bus stop.
I stopped in the food court and grabbed a banana and an orange juice. I had my jacket tied around my waist and a long sleeved shirt on. The bus took awhile to get there, but the group of about 15 people and I were soon off to the Animal Kingdom.
Once at DAK, went inside, grabbed a times sheet and headed towards Asia via DinoLand. The first show for Finding Nemo wasn’t for a couple of hours, so I planned to ride Everest a couple of times and then head over and get into line.
On my walk over, I got a call from Carolyn. We chatted for a few minutes while I paused outside the theatre for Nemo. I was asked for directions and the times for the show a couple of times. Nope, I was not wearing a Disney uniform, nor a badge! But I was happy to help none the less. While I was stopped, I also put my jacket on, it was really pretty cold this morning.
I went over to Everest and grabbed a fast pass for 10:30, I figured I would ride it once at that time, and still have time to get in line for the first Nemo show (what was I thinking?). While getting my FP, I spoke to the CM there, as she was about as bundled up as you can get. This guy walks up to get FP’s for his family and he is wearing shorts, a tank top and mandals….did he not check the weather before he left his room?!
I walk over to go ahead and get into the regular line, but I notice they had just opened the single riders line for the day, so I went into that line and walked straight to the front and paused for maybe 30 seconds when they put me on the ride. The woman I sat with was so scared, and she warned me that she was a screamer!!!
We had a great ride. Going that fast made it even colder, but more of a thrill! Walked through the exit and the store and got right back on through the single riders line. The CM there said “Hi again” as I walked through. Again, right onto the ride, I was wondering if no one knew about the single rider’s line at all? Another great ride, but sitting in the middle of the train both times. Again, walked through the store and right back into the single rider’s line. This time there were about 6 other people in line, so I had to wait about 5-7 minutes before getting on again. But it was a great ride, this time with a kid – his dad and sister were in the seats in front of us. I pointed out to him that when you reached the top of the hill, you could see almost all of Walt Disney World – he though that was pretty darn cool.
I thought 3 rides was enough for me this morning. I did not use my FP at all. Instead, I wandered over to the Maharajah Jungle Trek to visit the tigers. I walked past the bats and everything. The Tigers were out sunning themselves and I got some great pictures. I then started the trek back over to Finding Nemo, the Musical. I walked past the theatre to find the end of the line and I kept walking and walking and walking. I passed the entrance to DinoLand USA and kept walking. This was not a good sign. I decided that I was not going to make it in to see the first show of Nemo.
I walked down to the river location to meet with Pooh and friends. There wasn’t a long line and I got my picture taken with Pooh. I showed Eeyore my jacket, that had him on it and he was so excited. I also had my picture with Tigger and each CM was nice enough to take a picture with my camera as well.
After the photo stops, I decided I would get some lunch. Since I decided before this trip that I would try some new places, I went to Flame Tree Barbeque for lunch. I had a ½ smoked chicken with corn, baked beans and a water. I was able to use my dining experience card here and saved $2!!! I grabbed a seat by the river with a good view of everest and ate my lunch.
After lunch I went to get in line for the next Nemo show. Man, the line was nearly as long as it was earlier. I was afraid I was not going to make it into the show. However, since I was a single person, I thought that I would fit in anywhere, at the end of a row or whatever. And I did, and they sent me all the way down to the front to fill in the end of a row. Unfortunately, the seat was all the way over on the side. I think you really do miss some of the show because of that. Some things in the middle and even the side of the stage were hard to see.
Lots of people like this show and I think they did a good job turning it into a musical. I just didn’t like it that much. Just my opinion here, but the people interaction just threw me off a bit. I mean, I am ok with seeing the puppet “masters”, but why do they have to talk to each other and make faces like actors. I think half the time I didn’t know if I should look at them or the puppet. Very distracting.
After the show, I decided that I was just about done with everything I wanted to do at The Animal Kingdom on this trip. I walked towards the front, and took in a band that was playing by the Flame Tree, they were pretty interesting.
I left the park and decided I would go to downtown Disney for a little while to shop. I thought about my transportation options, and took a bus to Port Orleans French Quarter. I took this opportunity to check out this resort – it is really cute. I then took the boat to Downtown Disney and did some shopping in the World of Disney.
I bought pretty much all the souvenirs I was going to buy here, since I get an Annual Pass discount, but it ended up, my Disney Visa got me a better discount – well, according to the CM who rung me up. I also used my Disney Visa Rewards here. One of the things I got was a pirate skull and I was able to fill it up with pirate “booty”. This is going to the nephews in Wisconsin. Dad is upset that I didn’t get him the same thing – he got a Pirates t-shirt.
I did not find the personal calendar that I was trying to find. So, I left the World of Disney and walked over to Disney’s Wonderful World of Memories and found an agenda book that would work. The girl there asked if I wanted to have my bags shipped back to my resort. Now, why didn’t I think of that at the World of Disney?! It didn’t matter, I was going there anyways, so I just took my bag and walked to the bus stops.
Back in my room, I dropped off my purchases and rested my feet for a few minutes. Then I headed out to the Magic Kingdom, it was extra magic hours there that night. I got there in time to see people lining up to see SpectroMagic. I got my EMH wristband at the front of the park and then got on the train. I took the train back to Toontown.
While in ToonTown, I decided to visit the Judges tent and had my picture taken with Mickey Mouse. Man, it was cold out tonight, and I was really wishing I had my gloves in my backpack, but I didn’t. I then went over to the big store where you can have the character meet and greets. I do not remember what this is called. Well, the wait times for each of the lines were 20-40 minutes each, with the princesses being the 40 minutes. I wanted to go in that line, but really did not want to wait for that long. Instead I went into Minnie and friends and stood in line for less than 10 minutes. I had my picture with Minnie, Pluto and Goofy!
I don’t really remember where I went after this, but I was starting to get hungry. I ended up at Cosmic Ray’s. The girls from DWT introduced me to the fixin’s bar last February when we were here. Unfortunately, the cheese sauce is no longer on the fixin’s bar!! But I enjoyed my cheeseburger and fries while taking in the comedy and song selections of Sonny Eclipse. Oh, they also do not take the dining experience card here.
I walked around to Tomorrowland and took a quick ride around on the TTA.
I then walked straight onto Buzz Lightyear and had a good time fighting the aliens.
When I walked out, Wishes was ending, so I caught the tail end of the fireworks and headed against the crowd towards the hub and then Adventureland. Jungle Cruise was not open for EMH, but Pirates was. I actually had to stand in line for a good 10 minutes for this ride. I got a seat in the back of the boat and the front was kinda heavy loaded with people. When we went down the drop, the front row got drenched!
After my jaunt with the pirates, I walked over to Aloha Aisle and purchased my dole whip float. I don’t care how cold it was, this was so yummy. I ate as I walked over to Liberty Square where I took a seat near the Liberty Bell and enjoyed my pineapple heaven!!
While sitting here, I was asked question after question. I directed people to It’s a Small World and the shortest route to get to Space Mountain. It was kinda funny, cause I didn’t look like a CM!!!
After enjoying my treat, while shivering, I headed over to the Haunted Mansion. The last time I was here with my family, the CM loading everyone scared me and my niece by sticking her head around the corner of our doom buggy and wishing is a nice haunt…
This ride was nice, no stopping in the séance room, where I usually get stuck.
Heading into Fantasyland, I was feeling a little tired. I wanted to see Mickey’s Philharmagic, so I headed in there, taking pictures of the movie posters along the way. I had a great seat and enjoyed all the wonderful Disney songs.
It was time to head back to the resort, even though there was a little over an hour left in the EMH that night. I stopped in the Emporium to check on a couple of things. I always get a Park Hopper Mickey from the last few years I have been. One year he had all his pin trading stuff, the next year he had stuff for the anniversary of DisneyLand. This year, I couldn’t figure out which one he was and none of the CM’s in the store were able to help me.
I went ahead and left the Magic Kingdom for the night. I had to be up early the next morning for my UnDiscovered FutureWorld Tour at Epcot.

hello again lara ! last time i chated with you was on a post about disney & you had i belive a pinched nerve. what do you think of mouseplanets moving trip reports away from the front [page] to me it kinds of loses its luster

You must be referring to my Flower and Garden Trip last year. I had a herniated disc at the base of my neck, pressing into my spinal cord. FUN!!
I have since had surgery and am doing much better.

It will take a little while to get used to the change. I don't think the reports will get the attention that they used it. It will be those that post and those who are4 addicted to reading them!